I think the torpedo depth setting is actually in meters. When you say you're setting 10 to 12 feet, do you mean 10 to 12 units on the dial or do you mean 3 to 4 units on the dial? If I'm correct, the difference is significant.

What you describe was happening to me a lot until (I think) I figured it out. Thinking the numbers on the dial were feet, I was setting the torps to hit low on the hull, or even go under if I wanted to use the magnetic detonator. The result - some of the torps were going right under the ship without exploding and others were exploding without much effect.

When I realized my mistake, I started setting all torps to the minimum depth (which if I'm right is 3 meters (or ~10 feet) and my kill rate against medium size merchants with one or two torp hits went up significantly.

JD

Unclick the position keeper.
Lock on the target and take your range with the stadimeter.
Unlock the target and move the scope to where you want to fire.
Resend the range to the TDC, this will send your new bearing.
Fire when desired part of target passes the centerline.

Depending on how much you move the scope your range will be slightly off using this method but it will fire in the way you describe. Personally I never fire this way because I prefer to use divergent spreads (first show towards the stern, second the center and last shot at the bow), using the spread angle dial. This spread makes it harder to evade all the torpedoes, and if you're using manual targetting the chance of creating such a perfect solution that you actually hit the "aim point" is minimal anyway.

I :rotfl: at you guys. One torpedo per ship is all you need! :yep: :arrgh!:

Thanks everyone. I got into the middle of a convoy today and tried out some of the different depths and ranges. Things seemed to go better this time. Most went down after 2 hits. Small merchants 1 hit. :up:

I never put more than two torps in a merchie of any size.

Yes, the escorts WILL eventually abandon still-floating or even moving targets in favor of faster-moving uninjured ships (unless they are the command/lead ship as we have learned.)
-Pv-

I like that advice!

i have been setting my torpedo depth somewhere between 10-15. only 15 if it was a big ship like a passenger liner or some such. (i'm hoping to find a AC, but no luck yet). so far i have never seen a fish go under without going off, so i would guess that a setting of 3-4 might not be deep enough in most cases.

nor have i had any trouble with the magnetic detonators, although i seldom use it.

i have to admit though, that i just hit 'L' to lock it, and then fire. so far all my fighting has been in very large swells, that make it hard to maintain contact.

anyone have a link to some diagrams with sweet spots, or any such?

Hello, new to this board, but have been playing US submarine sims since Silent Service II, and even that one on the NES.

The computer will usually automatically set depth to 6 ft, unless otherwise changed by the user. However I remember back from the Silent Service days that 6 ft was usually optimal for mediem to small merchant ships . . . 1-5 feet for destroyers and 10-15 feet for large merchant ships and large warships. Does this still hold true in Silent Hunter four? As I sank a Hiryu at 700 yards with four fish at 6ft depth about the USS Salmon, before transfering to a new boat in Pearl.

Hmm... that's exactly what I don't want to do. I've got the range dialed in and only want to send a bearing so I can fire when the ship passes arrives at that exact bearing. No fiddling with the stadi, just a constant bearing. :)

Clicking the red send button sends the bearing you're currently aiming at.

I've wondered about that, what with the bizarre mix of imperial and metric.

But if it's in metric then why does the depth scale go to 50???!!!? Somehow I can't picture a ship with a draft anywhere close to 50 meters (164 feet) :o

And besides I'm regularly popping merchants with a draft of 21' - 24' by setting the depth scale on "11" which if it's meters would be 36'. And usually seeing the torp impact the hull well above the keel in the event cam.

But still something ain't right, I popped a medium old tanker in the bow last night with those settings, a single torp, and within a few minutes her foredeck was totally awash and her ass sticking way up. Within an hour she was back up to 5kts with her bow still under water and her props half out of the water! Was a sight to see :yep:

Gonna try setting shallower depths, and see if that makes a difference...

DH

Nice! You mean the "send to TDC" button in the tracking tool?

Large oil tanker = six fish and a dozen AP shells.

I set all fish to high speed, firing within 2000 yds each time, two fish per round, three rounds, three different times. All set for 12.5 feet depth.
First set of fish hit from around 135 degress to starboard from bow of target. Second set of fish hit from 45 degress to starboard from bow of target. Third set of fish hit from 45 degress to port of targets bow. Ship's convoy left it after the second set, as did the loan destroyer that remained by her . . . after several hours . . . which lead to the third set . . . once it was dusk I surfaced on her starboard side, and let the deck gun, a 4/50, finish her off.

Anyone spend that much ammunition on a single large tanker?
Guess we know where her torpedo belt lies . . . 12.5 ft below the water line. Have had better times sinking a ship her size at fish set at at 6 ft (usually 3-4 fish when set at that depth.)

Now it's back to midway for refit, and then its out again. Not going to bother getting a new mission until trawling the Solomans around SEP 42

Aim for the bridge section and the engine section. You need to "destroy" the ship, not sink it through flooding. Engine section and bridge section can give you nice secondary explosions that greatly reduce number of torpedoes needed to destroy the ship structure.

Not in my case as I came up near my wounded prey he had teeth and started shooting back, when I got out of his range there was a lot of damage needed fixing.

Don't surface to near the wounded beast. ;)

I will admit it only happen once thankfully.