You seem well educated in this. Great information. I have a question for you (or any of our other smart people here) What was the proceedure, when encoding, to correct a typographic error -- The operator ment to hit the letter "U" but instead hit the letter "I" With the rotor advancing per key stroke there is no "backspace". Would the operator encode the
Forum: Technology and Operations

The pressure hull of a Type VIIC was .88 inches thick Page 37 The penetration of the .50 round is dependent on the range as well as a multitude of other factors. At 200 meters the .50 M2 Ap round can penetrate .9 inches of hardened armour At 600 Meters the same round can penetrate .5 inches of hardened armour scroll to the bottom So whether a .50 cal could damage a submarin
Forum: General Discussions

You could find out yourself by downloading any of the Enigma cipher machine simulators that are out there. The time consuming operations would be the setting up of the wheels and punchboard and the manual writing down of the output. I imagine that it would take a while which is why the messages also used code words.
Forum: Technology and Operations

Count not the dead: The popular image of the German Submarine by Michael Hadley. 1995 This book is a history of books writting about German submarines starting in WWI. While Count not the dead is not the easiest book to read, if you are looking for titles and reviews of books about U-boats written mostly by Germans, this book may help you in your search. Good luck with it.
Forum: General Discussions

That is exactly how I feel about the book, How the author could take dozens of pages to describe that nothing was happening is a good representation of life on a Uboat. Long periods of nothing. I think the author amply conveyed this in his book. In my opinion, any question of whether book or movie has to be answered: BOTH! Of course one thing the book does not have is the the excelle
Forum: Movies and Films

Robert, As with most questions, I would always accept your answer as you have demonstrated many times in the past that you are an excellent reference for submarine questions. When I posted about the alcohol being a fire risk, I was referencing a malfunctioning torpedo still in the tube. Thank you for the information on the reuse of torpedoes for testing, I was under the impression that a
Forum: Technology and Operations

The arming distance would be much more than 30 yards. 200-300 yards would be more likely. The mk 7 torpedo having 326 pounds of TNT would do considerable damage to the submarine if it detonated 30 yards from the submarine. The problems with a "malfunctioning" torpedo would be more concerned with the propulsion and guidance systems than the explosive system. The warhead just sits th
Forum: Technology and Operations

Robert, Did all WWI torpedo pistols have an "arming distance"?
Forum: Technology and Operations

Let me ask you a question. Which is a superior vehicle a sports car or a dump truck? Superiority can only be evaluated across similiar missions and operating environments. A Type VII would perform poorly in the American pacific theater. Likewise a Fleet Submarine would not fare well in Biscay Bay or anyother place where there was good air cover. Like wise the Type VIIc came out in
Forum: General Discussions

Check out this thread The original poster may have some information for you
Forum: General Discussions

No I have not heard about this movie but would like to learn more about it.
Forum: Movies and Films

Thanks for the book tip. Ordering a copy tonight!
Forum: Technology and Operations

The book "Other Losses" by James Bacque may shed some light on this issue. Atrocities and abuses by the US upon German military and civilians near and after the end of the war were not unheard of...unfortunately.
Forum: General Discussions

More pictures of the U-Boat please. I am very envious that you got a chance to visit the U-995.
Forum: General Discussions

No. Absolute neutral buoyancy can only be obtained theoretically. Submarines can only maintain their depth for long periods by maintaining headway and using the planes and altering the trim. A derelict submarine would not be able to maintain level trim and once trim is lost, it tends to not be self correcting but will get worse and equipment/fluids flow/fall to the lower end, pushing it fu
Forum: Technology and Operations

Some other sources Rossler, E, (1981) The U-Boat: The evolution and technical history of German Submarines, (translated) Naval Institute Press Westwood, D., (2006) The Type VII U-Boat. Naval Institute Press
Forum: Modeling and schematics

I think it is an interesting design. Three weeks submerged performance with a non-nuclear power plant is impressive. The storing of the chemicals/gases outside the pressure hull is a novel safety design, but I don't know how rugged it would be in a combat situtation. This may be a moot point as today's anti-submarine battles will be drastically different from the prolonged anti-s
Forum: Technology and Operations

I am pretty sure this is not an American Movie. In your rememberances, did you get the idea the movie was dubbed and perhaps you could determine the "native" language of the movie? And are you sure this was a movie or a Television episode?
Forum: General Discussions

Rossler, E, (1981) The U-Boat: The evolution and technical history of German Submarines, (translated) Naval Institute Press Pages 287-289 discusses this type. Not a lot of information, but you might find something special you are looking for.
Forum: Technology and Operations

Rossler, E, (1981) The U-Boat: The evolution and technical history of German Submarines, (translated) Naval Institute Press Page 353 has a pretty detailed schematic of a Type VIIc showing the rigging. Westwood, D., (2008) The Type VII U-Boat. Naval Institute Press has some good drawings including a 1/150 inside the jacket. They might help you
Forum: Modeling and schematics

The only one I have is in Rossler, E, (1981) The U-Boat: The evolution and technical history of German Submarines, (translated) Naval Institute Press On page 29 there are four schematics of the series U-31 to U-37 with the annotation that they are similar to U-23 to U-26 and U-38 to U-41. Some trivial trivia you might use in your book. The original deliver date for the U-31 was 1 Oct
Forum: Modeling and schematics

Which U-31 are you interested in? There was the U-31 launched 1914 and sunk 13 Jan 15 There was also a U-31 launched in 1936 and sunk 2 Nov 40 Additionally in WWI there were two variations UB-31 sunk 2 may 18 UC-31 Surrendered 26 Nov 18 Referencing Rossler, E, (1981) The U-Boat: The evolution and technical history of German Submarines, (translated) Naval Institute Press W
Forum: Technology and Operations

The narrative in “Jaws”, while entertaining, is not all that factual. While it is true that the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was under “secret” orders from its cruise from Mare Island to Pearl Harbour to Tinian Island, one has to remember that many ships during WWII were traveling under secret orders. Traveling under secret orders does not mean that the ship is isolated from the normal Mo
Forum: Movies and Films

I thought the motto was Wir Fahren das Gegen Engeland - we sail against the angel land
Forum: General Discussions

A good source for you to start would be "Iron Coffins". That book is either a fictional historical account or a historical fictional account depending on your opinions. In any case, that book has some good descriptions that would probably fit your bill. When describing an attack by a U-boat, it is important to know that there were two different attacks. One is a surface attack
Forum: Technology and Operations

This is a complicated question especially when considered during WWII (1939-1945) The applicable treaty would be Manual of the Laws of Naval War. Oxford, 9 August 1913. A copy of which can be found in this link The article you would be interested in would be article 17 which is copied here in its entirety. "Art. 17. It is also forbidden: (1) To kill or to wound an enemy who, ha
Forum: General Discussions

I think you would find it very expensive. You might contact the company that made the movie models for Das Boot, that would give you an idea of the fraction of the costs of re-manufacturing a working Type VII. I would imagine that to re-manufacture, using the same materials and designs, would cost several hundred million dollars. I doubt that a contemporary ship building company would be a
Forum: Modeling and schematics

"The manual is titled Naval Service Manual 381 - U-Boat Training for U-Boat Type VII C" Is this retrievable online? I would love to add this to my library.
Forum: Technology and Operations

This is a fiction book?
Forum: Movies and Films

A very interesting question. That document stated that the Fixed optics (the aft/attack) periscope could be raised 17 feet (page 30) But I could not find the same information on the Watch keeping (Forward/search/night) periscope. If you reference page 79, that diagram appears to have both periscopes fully extended (perhaps a wrong assumption on my part) If my assumption about that graph
Forum: Technology and Operations