 Only Lion was completed to the original design , which had the foremost funnel placed between the forward superstructure and the tripod foremast . This meant that hot clinker and flue gases from the boilers made the spotting top on the foremast completely unworkable when the ships were steaming at high speed , that the upper bridge could easily be rendered uninhabitable , depending on the wind , and that the signal flags and halyards were at risk of burning . Both ships were altered to correct this problem , Lion before she commissioned , and Princess Royal as she was fitting out , at a total cost of £ 68 @,@ 170 . The fore funnel was replaced and moved aft , the original fore and mainmasts exchanged position , although the foremast was now just a pole mast , not a tripod , the spotting tower at the rear of the conning tower was removed , the conning tower enlarged , the 9 @-@ foot Argo rangefinder was moved from the foremast spotting top to the roof of the conning tower , and all the funnels were raised to the same height . The two four @-@ inch guns mounted above the forward group of casemates were enclosed in casemates of their own to protect the gun crews from weather and enemy action as part of these modifications . 
