I bought a new book

[zoso791]

Hey guys. I bought a new book entitled "U Boat Combat Missions" Its got lots of really good pictures and really nice information about U-boats. If anyone needs it for any reason I can send pictures and notes.

Rock on
Jan

[Chock]

What a coincidence, I was looking at that very book today in a shop on the way home from work, but instead I bought a book titled Hunters of the Deep, it has some nice diagrams in it and the text is fairly interesting too. I daresay I'll probably be back for that other one too, it looked interesting. I'd probably have bought them both, but the cash machine near the shop was screwed and would only dispense tenners.

:D Chock

[Torplexed]

Hey guys. I bought a new book entitled "U Boat Combat Missions" Its got lots of really good pictures and really nice information about U-boats. If anyone needs it for any reason I can send pictures and notes.

Rock on
Jan
Hey!...me too. :cool: I picked up a copy two weeks ago at Barnes and Noble. A rather recent publication given it's 2007 copyright. Great book. The interior pictures of the U-995 at Laboe are fantastic.

http://neptoon.homestead.com/U-995-Engine-room.jpg

[Schöneboom]

Me, three! I bought that book at B&N a couple of weeks ago -- it was a good deal, too! Love those pix! :up:

[TarJak]

Who is it by?

[Torplexed]

Who is it by?

Lawrence Paterson. Published by Elephant Book Company Limited.

[von Zelda]

Hey guys. I bought a new book entitled "U Boat Combat Missions" Its got lots of really good pictures and really nice information about U-boats. If anyone needs it for any reason I can send pictures and notes.

I collect u-boat books and I have to admit that the two mentioned books, U boat Combat Missions and Hunters of the Deep were new titles to me.

I searched Amazon and found a 1992 and 1994 edition of Hunters of the Deep by Time-Life but it was only available used. No listing for U Boat Combat Missions.

Zoso791 and Chock, can you please provide ISBNs, publishers and date of publication for the books.

I do plan to check B & N this weekend since you indicated that U Boat Combat Missions was purchased there.

Thanks for your help.

[Chock]

A little more info von Zelda...

Hunters of the Deep is, as you say, by Time Life, (ISBN 1-84447-222-1), it is part of a series of books by them under the banner 'The new face of war'. I bought it from the Ian Allen bookshop in Manchester, they sell stuff online at www.ianallenpublishing.co.uk (http://www.ianallenpublishing.co.uk) so you may find it there, and it was cheap too at just 12.99.

Since you cannot seem to find a new copy, here's some info on it so that you can determine whether you want to bother trying to get a copy:

It's hardback, 160 pages and I would describe it as basically 'a layman's guide to nuclear fast attack subs and boomers'. It's fairly old, having been printed in 2003 but mainly based on info from the 1990s. Although much of it is pitched as an explanatory book, it's very well done and still of interest even if you are fairly clued up on modern subs, there is a large list of consultants for the book printed on the frontispiece, with numerous sub crewmen from Sonar guys to Captains listed among them, so it's technically very accurate, which is a big plus.

As a guide to nuclear submarine development by various nations, up to the Akula and the Seawolf, it's fairly comprehensive, so if you don't know an Echo class from a Whiskey class Soviet sub, this is the book for you! It details tactics and missions, but it also covers other stuff, such as the sinking of the General Belgrano by the Conqueror in the Falklands (with much of the stalking phase covered), the sinking of the Khukri by the Hangor in the Indo-Pakistan war, and the (often ignored) operations of the San Luis by the Argentine navy during the Falklands, where the San Luis was (fortunately) let down by the unreliability of its German wire guided torpedoes and the inexperience of its commander (who was nonetheless very brave).

There's quite a bit of info on Soviet sub operations around Sweden and some info on famous US sub ops too, such as penetrating the inlet to Murmansk in a nuclear submarine and the submerged trip around the globe by Edward Beach and his crew in the Triton. In addition to this, there are comments from crewmembers of subs that have been depth-charged by the Soviets while on covert ops, so quite a lot of interesting reading on stuff that you rarely hear about, it being the 'Silent Service' in more ways than one!

There is also quite a good portion of info on the various spy scandals which enabled the Soviets and the US to gain info during the Cold War, with pieces on the US covert operation to 'wire tap' a Soviet message relay cable on the ocean floor, as well as the infamous activities of John Walker's spy ring that included a contact aboard the Nimitz. Quite a bit of info on the sale of milling equipment to the Soviets by Kongsberg and Toshiba, an acquisition which allowed them to make more accurately-milled submarine propellers (or screws if you prefer) that were less prone to cavitation. It offers some details on more unusual Soviet attempts at noise attenuation with super cavitation and polymers, and a decent explanation of the principles of a magneto hydrodynamic propulsion system that is the basis for the fictional sub in The Hunt for Red October.

There are some great diagrams of modern sub systems and stuff such as thermoclines and how sound propagation is affected by depth and temperature. Most of that info can in fact be gleaned from the Dangerous Waters manual, but it is presented in a much more user-friendly manner in this book, with some really nicely airbrushed artwork, and there are some great pictures of subs and weapons, such as a Mark 48 being loaded into a LA class sub, and periscope photos of one launching a Tomahawk cruise missile during the Gulf War. There are some good interior pics of subs too.

The thing I found most interesting in this book however, is the chapter on navigation by plotting the bottom contours of the ocean floor when unable to use GPS or INS. The book details both the 'line of soundings' technique, and the 'contour advancement' method. This is something I have rarely seen covered in a submarine book, and is one of great interest it being of huge tactical value, as I'm sure anyone who has ever read the book or seen the movie of 'The Hunt for Red October', where they hide in a deep lane and navigate by timings and charts, will know.

It was certainly worth 12.99 anyway.

:D Chock

[flag4]

hi hunters

just been reading your book posts...

here's one you might/might not have

THE U-BOAT COMMANDER'S HANDBOOK.

ISBN: 0-939631-21-O

it is the translation, by the americans, of the original handbook for german submariners 1943.
it contains photo's and all the doe's n dont's of u-boat'ing. don't know how relevant it is to sh3, but for the immersion and a sense of realism, well, this is what they used.

got mine from e-bay

[von Zelda]

Chock,
Thanks for detailed information that you provided about Hunters of the Deep.

[Jimbuna]

I purchased this book for £5 in London earlier this week Bitter Ocean: The Battle of the Atlantic, 1939-1945 (Hardcover)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bitter-Ocean-Battle-Atlantic-1939-1945/dp/0743229290/ref=sr_1_4/202-9451616-2122207?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194733904&sr=1-4

[FIREWALL]

I'm sorry to ask this but could B&N USA buyers post the prices for those books please. THX in advance.

I ask this as I'm currently in a wheelchair and rideing the bus to get around pisses off the other passengers because they have to wait longer while their loading me up. :damn:

I just ask freinds now to pick things up for me when their not busy.


So your posts would be a big help.:D

[Torplexed]

I'm sorry to ask this but could B&N USA buyers post the prices for those books please. THX in advance.

I ask this as I'm currently in a wheelchair and rideing the bus to get around pisses off the other passengers because they have to wait longer while their loading me up. :damn:

I just ask freinds now to pick things up for me when their not busy.


So your posts would be a big help.:D

The first mentioned book, U-Boat Combat Missions was bargain priced at $12.98 as of two weeks ago at B&N. :cool:

[StarTrekMike]

I just got finished reading Iron Coffins by Herbert Werner...I very interesting read that really gives you a sense of how the war went for the u-boat crews both in port and off at sea.

I know that all of you have probably already read it, but I was compelled to talk about it anyway.

Mike

[Torplexed]

I just got finished reading Iron Coffins by Herbert Werner...I very interesting read that really gives you a sense of how the war went for the u-boat crews both in port and off at sea.

I know that all of you have probably already read it, but I was compelled to talk about it anyway.

Mike
I remember reading Iron Coffins well before getting a paperback copy of Das Boot. It was the first thing I had ever read that really brought home the true scope of how drastically and quickly the U-Boat services fortunes fell during the war from their happier times.:up: