 rated at 15 @,@ 000 indicated horsepower ( 11 @,@ 000 kW ) , using forced draught , and designed to reach a top speed of 18 knots ( 33 km / h ; 21 mph ) although Asahi reached 18 @.@ 3 knots ( 33 @.@ 9 km / h ; 21 @.@ 1 mph ) from 16 @,@ 335 indicated horsepower ( 12 @,@ 181 kW ) during her sea trials on 23 March 1900 . She carried a maximum of 2 @,@ 000 long tons ( 2 @,@ 032 t ) of coal which allowed her to steam for 9 @,@ 000 nautical miles ( 17 @,@ 000 km ; 10 @,@ 000 mi ) at a speed of 10 knots ( 19 km / h ; 12 mph ) . The ship was fitted with three steam @-@ driven 4 @.@ 8 @-@ kilowatt ( 6 @.@ 4 hp ) dynamos .   Asahi 's main battery consisted of the same four Elswick Ordnance Company 40 @-@ calibre twelve @-@ inch guns used in all of Japan 's preceding battleships . They were mounted in twin @-@ gun turrets fore and aft of the superstructure . The hydraulically powered mountings allowed the guns to be loaded at all angles of traverse , at a fixed elevation of + 13 @.@ 5 ° . Each mount could traverse a total of 240 degrees . They fired 850 @-@ pound ( 386 kg ) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 2 @,@ 400 ft / s ( 730 m / s ) .   The ship 's secondary armament consisted of fourteen 45 @-@ calibre 6 @-@ inch ( 152 mm ) quick @-@ firing ( QF ) guns mounted in casemates . Eight of these guns were positioned on the main deck and the other six guns were placed above them in the superstructure . They fired 100 @-@ pound ( 45 kg ) shells at a muzzle velocity of 2 @,@ 300 ft / s ( 700 m / s ) . Protection against torpedo @-@ boat attacks was provided by twenty QF 12 @-@ pounder 12 cwt guns . The 12 @-@ pounders fired 3 @-@ inch ( 76 mm ) , 12 @.@ 5 @-@ pound ( 5 @.@ 7 kg ) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 2 @,@ 359 ft / s ( 719 m / s ) . Lighter guns consisted of eight 47 @-@ millimetre ( 1 @.@ 9 in ) three @-@ pounder Hotchkiss guns and four 47 @-@ millimetre 2 @.@ 5 @-@ pounder Hotchkiss guns . The former were mounted in the superstructure and the latter in the fighting tops . The three @-@ pounder gun fired 3 @.@ 19 @-@ pound ( 1 @.@ 45 kg ) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 1 @,@ 927 ft / s ( 587 m / s ) , while the 2 @.@ 5 @-@ pounder fired 2 @.@ 5 @-@ pound ( 1 @.@ 1 kg ) shells at a muzzle velocity of 1 @,@ 420 ft / s ( 430 m / s ) . The ship was also equipped with four submerged 18 @-@ inch torpedo tubes , two on each broadside .   The waterline main belt of Asahi consisted of Harvey armour 8 feet ( 2 @.@ 44 m ) high , of which 3 feet 8 inches ( 1 @.@ 11 m ) was above the waterline at normal load , and had a maximum thickness of 9 inches ( 229 mm ) for the middle 224 feet ( 68 @.@ 28 m ) of the ship . It was only 4 inches ( 102 mm ) thick at the ends of the ship and was surmounted by a six @-@ inch strake of armour that ran between the barbettes . The barbettes were 14 inches ( 356 mm ) thick , but only 10 inches ( 254 mm ) behind the upper armour strake . The barbette hoods were protected by 10 inches of armour on their face while their sides were 6 inches thick and the roof was 1 @.@ 5 inches ( 38 mm ) thick . Diagonal bulkheads connecting the barbettes to the side armour were 12 – 14 inches thick , but only 6 inches thick at the lower deck level . The frontal armour of the casemates protecting the secondary armament was also 6 inches thick with the rear protected by 2 @-@ inch ( 51 mm ) armour plates . The flat portion of the deck armour was 2 @.@ 5 inches ( 64 mm ) thick and 4 inches ( 102 mm ) thick where it sloped down to the sides of the ship . The conning tower was protected by 14 inches of armour .   Asahi , like all the other Japanese battleships of the time , was fitted with four Barr and Stroud
Ġrated Ġat Ġ15 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġindicated Ġhorsepower Ġ( Ġ11 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 ĠkW Ġ) Ġ, Ġusing Ġforced Ġdra ught Ġ, Ġand Ġdesigned Ġto Ġreach Ġa Ġtop Ġspeed Ġof Ġ18 Ġknots Ġ( Ġ33 Ġkm Ġ/ Ġh Ġ; Ġ21 Ġmph Ġ) Ġalthough ĠAs ahi Ġreached Ġ18 Ġ@ . @ Ġ3 Ġknots Ġ( Ġ33 Ġ@ . @ Ġ9 Ġkm Ġ/ Ġh Ġ; Ġ21 Ġ@ . @ Ġ1 Ġmph Ġ) Ġfrom Ġ16 Ġ@ , @ Ġ335 Ġindicated Ġhorsepower Ġ( Ġ12 Ġ@ , @ Ġ181 ĠkW Ġ) Ġduring Ġher Ġsea Ġtrials Ġon Ġ23 ĠMarch Ġ1900 Ġ. ĠShe Ġcarried Ġa Ġmaximum Ġof Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġlong Ġtons Ġ( Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ0 32 Ġt Ġ) Ġof Ġcoal Ġwhich Ġallowed Ġher Ġto Ġsteam Ġfor Ġ9 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġn autical Ġmiles Ġ( Ġ17 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġkm Ġ; Ġ10 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġmi Ġ) Ġat Ġa Ġspeed Ġof Ġ10 Ġknots Ġ( Ġ19 Ġkm Ġ/ Ġh Ġ; Ġ12 Ġmph Ġ) Ġ. ĠThe Ġship Ġwas Ġfitted Ġwith Ġthree Ġsteam Ġ@ - @ Ġdriven Ġ4 Ġ@ . @ Ġ8 Ġ@ - @ Ġkil ow att Ġ( Ġ6 Ġ@ . @ Ġ4 Ġhp Ġ) Ġdynam os Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAs ahi Ġ' s Ġmain Ġbattery Ġconsisted Ġof Ġthe Ġsame Ġfour ĠEl swick ĠOrd nance ĠCompany Ġ40 Ġ@ - @ Ġcalib re Ġtwelve Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġguns Ġused Ġin Ġall Ġof ĠJapan Ġ' s Ġpreceding Ġbattles hips Ġ. ĠThey Ġwere Ġmounted Ġin Ġtwin Ġ@ - @ Ġgun Ġturrets Ġfore Ġand Ġaft Ġof Ġthe Ġsuperst ructure Ġ. ĠThe Ġhydra ul ically Ġpowered Ġmount ings Ġallowed Ġthe Ġguns Ġto Ġbe Ġloaded Ġat Ġall Ġangles Ġof Ġtraverse Ġ, Ġat Ġa Ġfixed Ġelevation Ġof Ġ+ Ġ13 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 ĠÂ° Ġ. ĠEach Ġmount Ġcould Ġtraverse Ġa Ġtotal Ġof Ġ240 Ġdegrees Ġ. ĠThey Ġfired Ġ850 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound Ġ( Ġ386 Ġkg Ġ) Ġprojectiles Ġat Ġa Ġmuzzle Ġvelocity Ġof Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ400 Ġft Ġ/ Ġs Ġ( Ġ7 30 Ġm Ġ/ Ġs Ġ) Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġship Ġ' s Ġsecondary Ġarm ament Ġconsisted Ġof Ġfourteen Ġ45 Ġ@ - @ Ġcalib re Ġ6 Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġ( Ġ152 Ġmm Ġ) Ġquick Ġ@ - @ Ġfiring Ġ( ĠQ F Ġ) Ġguns Ġmounted Ġin Ġcas em ates Ġ. ĠEight Ġof Ġthese Ġguns Ġwere Ġpositioned Ġon Ġthe Ġmain Ġdeck Ġand Ġthe Ġother Ġsix Ġguns Ġwere Ġplaced Ġabove Ġthem Ġin Ġthe Ġsuperst ructure Ġ. ĠThey Ġfired Ġ100 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound Ġ( Ġ45 Ġkg Ġ) Ġshells Ġat Ġa Ġmuzzle Ġvelocity Ġof Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ300 Ġft Ġ/ Ġs Ġ( Ġ700 Ġm Ġ/ Ġs Ġ) Ġ. ĠProtection Ġagainst Ġtorpedo Ġ@ - @ Ġboat Ġattacks Ġwas Ġprovided Ġby Ġtwenty ĠQ F Ġ12 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound er Ġ12 Ġc wt Ġguns Ġ. ĠThe Ġ12 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound ers Ġfired Ġ3 Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġ( Ġ76 Ġmm Ġ) Ġ, Ġ12 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound Ġ( Ġ5 Ġ@ . @ Ġ7 Ġkg Ġ) Ġprojectiles Ġat Ġa Ġmuzzle Ġvelocity Ġof Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ359 Ġft Ġ/ Ġs Ġ( Ġ7 19 Ġm Ġ/ Ġs Ġ) Ġ. ĠL ighter Ġguns Ġconsisted Ġof Ġeight Ġ47 Ġ@ - @ Ġmill imet re Ġ( Ġ1 Ġ@ . @ Ġ9 Ġin Ġ) Ġthree Ġ@ - @ Ġpound er ĠHot ch kiss Ġguns Ġand Ġfour Ġ47 Ġ@ - @ Ġmill imet re Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound er ĠHot ch kiss Ġguns Ġ. ĠThe Ġformer Ġwere Ġmounted Ġin Ġthe Ġsuperst ructure Ġand Ġthe Ġlatter Ġin Ġthe Ġfighting Ġtops Ġ. ĠThe Ġthree Ġ@ - @ Ġpound er Ġgun Ġfired Ġ3 Ġ@ . @ Ġ19 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound Ġ( Ġ1 Ġ@ . @ Ġ45 Ġkg Ġ) Ġprojectiles Ġat Ġa Ġmuzzle Ġvelocity Ġof Ġ1 Ġ@ , @ Ġ9 27 Ġft Ġ/ Ġs Ġ( Ġ5 87 Ġm Ġ/ Ġs Ġ) Ġ, Ġwhile Ġthe Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound er Ġfired Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġ@ - @ Ġpound Ġ( Ġ1 Ġ@ . @ Ġ1 Ġkg Ġ) Ġshells Ġat Ġa Ġmuzzle Ġvelocity Ġof Ġ1 Ġ@ , @ Ġ420 Ġft Ġ/ Ġs Ġ( Ġ430 Ġm Ġ/ Ġs Ġ) Ġ. ĠThe Ġship Ġwas Ġalso Ġequipped Ġwith Ġfour Ġsubmerged Ġ18 Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġtorpedo Ġtubes Ġ, Ġtwo Ġon Ġeach Ġbroad side Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġwater line Ġmain Ġbelt Ġof ĠAs ahi Ġconsisted Ġof ĠHarvey Ġarmour Ġ8 Ġfeet Ġ( Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ44 Ġm Ġ) Ġhigh Ġ, Ġof Ġwhich Ġ3 Ġfeet Ġ8 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ1 Ġ@ . @ Ġ11 Ġm Ġ) Ġwas Ġabove Ġthe Ġwater line Ġat Ġnormal Ġload Ġ, Ġand Ġhad Ġa Ġmaximum Ġthickness Ġof Ġ9 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ229 Ġmm Ġ) Ġfor Ġthe Ġmiddle Ġ224 Ġfeet Ġ( Ġ68 Ġ@ . @ Ġ28 Ġm Ġ) Ġof Ġthe Ġship Ġ. ĠIt Ġwas Ġonly Ġ4 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ102 Ġmm Ġ) Ġthick Ġat Ġthe Ġends Ġof Ġthe Ġship Ġand Ġwas Ġsur mounted Ġby Ġa Ġsix Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġstra ke Ġof Ġarmour Ġthat Ġran Ġbetween Ġthe Ġbarb ettes Ġ. ĠThe Ġbarb ettes Ġwere Ġ14 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ356 Ġmm Ġ) Ġthick Ġ, Ġbut Ġonly Ġ10 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ254 Ġmm Ġ) Ġbehind Ġthe Ġupper Ġarmour Ġstra ke Ġ. ĠThe Ġbarb ette Ġhood s Ġwere Ġprotected Ġby Ġ10 Ġinches Ġof Ġarmour Ġon Ġtheir Ġface Ġwhile Ġtheir Ġsides Ġwere Ġ6 Ġinches Ġthick Ġand Ġthe Ġroof Ġwas Ġ1 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ38 Ġmm Ġ) Ġthick Ġ. ĠDi agonal Ġbulk heads Ġconnecting Ġthe Ġbarb ettes Ġto Ġthe Ġside Ġarmour Ġwere Ġ12 ĠâĢĵ Ġ14 Ġinches Ġthick Ġ, Ġbut Ġonly Ġ6 Ġinches Ġthick Ġat Ġthe Ġlower Ġdeck Ġlevel Ġ. ĠThe Ġfrontal Ġarmour Ġof Ġthe Ġcas em ates Ġprotecting Ġthe Ġsecondary Ġarm ament Ġwas Ġalso Ġ6 Ġinches Ġthick Ġwith Ġthe Ġrear Ġprotected Ġby Ġ2 Ġ@ - @ Ġinch Ġ( Ġ51 Ġmm Ġ) Ġarmour Ġplates Ġ. ĠThe Ġflat Ġportion Ġof Ġthe Ġdeck Ġarmour Ġwas Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ5 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ64 Ġmm Ġ) Ġthick Ġand Ġ4 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ102 Ġmm Ġ) Ġthick Ġwhere Ġit Ġsl oped Ġdown Ġto Ġthe Ġsides Ġof Ġthe Ġship Ġ. ĠThe Ġcon ning Ġtower Ġwas Ġprotected Ġby Ġ14 Ġinches Ġof Ġarmour Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAs ahi Ġ, Ġlike Ġall Ġthe Ġother ĠJapanese Ġbattles hips Ġof Ġthe Ġtime Ġ, Ġwas Ġfitted Ġwith Ġfour ĠBarr Ġand ĠSt roud