That is probably next to impossible now. No steel mill in the United States can manufacture 18 inch thick Krupp process armor steel needed for the turrets, barbettes, armor deck and armor belt. You may be able to cannibalize two Iowa class BBs for their barbettes, turrets and mark 7 guns. but why, without missiles, the enemy is safe if they stay 25 miles away from one.
“That is probably next to impossible now. No steel mill in the United States can manufacture 18 inch thick Krupp process armor steel needed for the turrets, barbettes, armor deck and armor belt. “
Are you saying we can’t build steel mills?
The fast BBs may be, as many say, useless. The infrastructure to build them is not.
Did you know that there was once a steel mill on the streets of NYC to support the Brooklyn Navy Yard?