Many thanks for your nice, clear and very useful instructions maerean_m !!! :up::up::up:

Does not work for me, even waiting between times the silly crew keep giving me wild speed estimates of around 50 to 70 knots lol. Testing on submarine school, so maybe its the crew?

Put your crew at battle stations. This seems to help. Also, the biggest key here is identifying the target correctly. Your bearing is calculated when you lock on the target with your scope or TBT. You then dial in the range using the stadimeter. Wait a bit and take another range and bearing. Again, if your target ID is wrong, the range will be skewed thus making your speed skewed. Even when I have correctly ID the target, my speed is not always correct. Your calculations are only as good as what you are feeding your TDC officer.

That's because the mast height is way too small so the target is set too far when using the stadimeter (you can activate the Position Keeper to see that) and the speed needed to cover that distance has to be a big number.

:ping:

The position keeper must be activated only when you have sent fresh information to TDC: range & bearing, speed & AOB.

So after you sink a ship, you deactivate the PK and only reactivate it after you have completely described the new target.

Otherwise, your torpedoes will go in odd direction because after you send the first range measurement, the PK will change the TDC data using the last's ship AOB and speed. And there can be many seconds until you determine the new AOB and speed.

Remember: the Position Keeper was a mechanical calculator with toothed wheels, not a wizard, able to eliminate the bad targeting techniques. Its only purpose was to evolve the mathematical equation of the target's trajectory, but only after you have solved it at least once. This only allows for fewer raisings of the scope to avoid unnecessary exposure.

In the speed estimation procedure do you send range and AOB to the TDC twice (ie. lock target, send range, send AOB, wait, send range, send AOB then click stopwatch button) or just the range?

That was the method I used before reading this thread.

The speed of an entity is the ratio between the distance it travels in a given time over that time.

It doesn't matter whether the entity is spinning around its vertical axis (given by an AOB that changes during that time).

So you only need to send the range&bearing to get a speed estimate.

few qeustions
 

guys i have been reading this manual, but since im a newby i don't rly understand all the shortcuts and how to do it, ive got the following qeustions:
I need to send the range to the target to the "TDC", oke what is the TDC? Second, where is the send range to TDC button?
And how can i send the AOB , where is that button, can't find it either!
I can find send estimate target's speed, but then it says it needs more data :(
And what exactly is the stadimeter?
And my last qeustion, i need to identify the ship, in previous SH version that was done by using the recognition manual, how do i acces the manual in SH4? i can't seem to find it!

Sorry for these noob questions, but im just trying to understand and learn the game, i hope u can help me!

The send data to TDC is the white triangle in the upper border of the dial.
The TDC is the Torpedo Data Computer, a device which calculates the gyro angle (firing angle) of a torpedo based on target range, bearing and speed data that you provide. It continuously updates the firing solution until the target changes course or speed.
The stadimeter is the range finding recticle in the periscope lens, the crosshairs and other markings. IF you know the height of a given part of the target, such as the mast, you can calculate the range by noting how many graduations on the periscope scale the object covers and doing a rather simply mathematical formula.
another range finding method was to use a split image in the periscope which is what the game simulates. Theoretically, it should also be possible to use the range finding rectile if the games scope magnification is accurately modeled.
You can access the id manual by hitting a key, (I cant remember which one now but its on the key chart, and also on one of the menu buttons on the bottom of the screen.

It is my belief that you do NOT have to correctly ID the target. You only need to know the masthieght. I am not at my home computer, but if you look at the various ships in a class, you will note that most ships in a given type,Destroyers, heavy cruisers, tankers, etc) have almost the same masthieght as other ships in the class.

Therefore, as long as you can identify what type of target you are aiming at, all you need to do is set an average masthieght..There are a few notable exceptions where the mastheight of a certain class of ship is quite a bit different from the others in that type. I recall that the Yamato class BB has a different mastheight than most other battleships.

I hope this helps, Joe S

No, that's the Position Keeper that continuously updates the firing solution (that is stored by the TDC). If you don't start the Position Keeper, the TDC data is updated only by the player when sending new data to it (TDC). Only the american subs had a Position Keeper, the germans didn't.

The TDC
 

I,m a Newbie to this Game, But anyway, I have NO red Button on my TDC? Or I,m doing something wrong when I try to set up a shot? Or is the red Button always sposed to be there???:roll:

Are you sure you have Manual TDC active. Having no red insertion button mostly means auto TDC

Manual or Auto TDC
 

Well, I don't know which is Manual or Auto? I,m playing on easy with 1.3 patch, and only had the game 5 days! Been Playing it for 5 to 6 hrs a night and still can't hit a barn!! Never played a sub sim before! But am having a ball playing and trying to learn what I,m doing! I just can't get the targeting down yet!:-? :up: I think i have been in the forums for the last 5 days also, Reading all the Threads on this targeting thing but I,am still at a loss or just plain DUMB LOL

You probably have Auto enabled if you're playing on Easy mode. Check your difficulty settings, and you'll find out the answer for certain.

Thanks to ALL
 

Will DO!! Thanks for all the help, Bunch of Great people in here!!:up: