Since I doubt they could have messed with superchargers or turbocharges (I don't know if U-Boats had them), the only other way is to advance the combustion - normally the ideal combustion midpoint (per Vibe) is 15-20° after the Top Dead Center => for older Diesel engines with pre-combustion chamber. If you delay the combustion, and move the mid point (T) further back - you get what Nisgeis said. By moving it forward, or advancing it, pressure and temperature will rise in the cylinder, and with that the engine power as well.


By manipulating the combustion midpoint (T) you can either achieve max power, max economy or min. achievable emissions (engine and fuel dependant). I am guessing that they have set it for max economical efficiency (furthest range with min. fuel).


What kind of engines were U-boats using? I assume 2 stroke Diesels, judging by Diesel locomotives. If so, they had to be lubricated as well by adding oil to the fuel before it is injected into the cylinders.


So I am rather incline to believe that they could have squeezed out a few extra RPM by either manipulating with the fuel or oil intake system...


But that is my theoretical guess.

Older Diesel engine RPM is limited by a mechanical governor. They can be tweaked.
I have done so on many an engine. I am not that familiar with WWII engines but as a professional mechanic I have no doubt it could be done. Was it done? Who knows? You do risk serious damage to the engine if you go too far.

I seriously doubt that it is modeled in the game but it's possible to do.

Magic

Hey I'm still trying to figure great circle naviagation
 

Depends on how far your numerical skills improved at shool

All Diesel engines are limited in one way or another. Now days (cars) mostly because the transmission can't handle the torque, and with ECM. You can see that in car's manual on the torque diagram (I believe newer cars don't have them any more) - it is flat at its peek value for certain RPM range. :)

I too believe that governors could have been tweaked to produce few extra HP.

This reality of two watches "Port and Starboard" is not reality as I understand it. Technicians working as enginemen and motormen were divided into two watches. Seamen had a three watch cycle. Funkers had a "funky" hybrid watch rotation. I'll start a new thread on the subject so as not to hijack this thread any further.

Regards,

Gumby

This is pretty much what I was just about to post. :up:

4 Watch Officers, with 3 and 4 being split between Nav and Bosun. 4 hour watches.

Seems RFB possibly misquoted from a David Miller book? :hmmm:

Reality was:

Seaman worked 8 hours duty, 8 hours sleep, 8 hours misc duties
Engineers worked 6 hours duty, 6 hours sleep (repeated)
Comms worked split 3 x 4 hours (0800-2000) and 2 x 6 hours (2000-0800)

On the surface, 1WO and 2WO did 2 x 4 hour watch shifts per day
Nav and Bosun 1 x 4 hour watch shift per day
Lookouts came mainly from Seaman stream doing 1 x 4 hour watch shift per day

As confirmed in the first two reference books I just laid my hands on:
U-boats by Miller, David
U-boat Crewman Of WWII by Williamson, Gordon

Spot on, JScones. To add to the references/confirmation for crew watch cycles, crew duties etc, folks can also see:

Type VII U-Boats by Robert C. Stern

Wolfpack by Gordon Williamson

and my personal favorite on the subject of who did what, when, on a Type VII...

U-Boat War Patrol, The Hidden Photographic Diary of U564 by Lawrence Patterson. This puppy follows Teddy Suhren (former IWO on U48) and crew on one single combat patrol in summer of 1942, the one on which he was awarded the Crossed Swords for his Knight's Cross and Oak Leaves. There was a Kriegsmarine combat photographer aboard U564 for the patrol and Patterson does an incredible job of meshing all of the photos with a great story of the patrol down to the tiny details.

In fact, it is my belief that the SHV Dev's have modelled the "character" of their SHV IIIWO after Stabsobersteuermann Karl "Sturkorl" Limburg, U564's navigator and "old man".

Regards,

Gumby

PS- One of my joys in SH3 is SH3 Commander. I've said it before- I'll say it again- THANKS for your utilities JSCones! They are indspensable and have literally added YEARS of replayability to SH3.

To JScones:


Exellent post, once again. However I doubt this:

I doubt if bosun was ever really in charge, unless it was actually "captain's watch", - which I doubt too. (As far as I know, it was usually only special ocassions, like leaving/entering pier, daily dives, and so on, when the U-boat commander took watch himself.) Could be author's mistake? :hmmm:


-RC-

Bosun or "Number One" was actually in charge of the bridge/tower watch for 4 hours a day. He was the Crew Chief, usually an Oberfeldwebel (ie- an Unteroffiziere mit Portepee aka a Warrant Officer equivelent in US terms ie a Senior NCO in the Kriegsmarine). His duties as "Number One" sailor (aka "Chief of the Boat" in US Naval parlance) was to maintain discipline and order among the enlisted crew, maintain clothing and uniforms, maintain the general cleanliness on boat, act as Artillery Chief and to act as Fourth Watch Officer. He had a full plate of duties keeping the problems of the crew from reaching the level where they might require the attention of the Skipper, and he had the authority to deal out discipline.

The Bosun's battlestation aboard U564 was in the conning tower where he input information relayed from the Captain (attack periscope) or IWO (surface torpedo attack) into the TDC.

The Bosun also led a 4-hour tower watch. The IWO stood two tower 4-hour watches, the IIWO stood 2, the IIIWO/ObStMn stood 1 and the Bosun stood 1.

As far as whether or not he was ever really "in charge" I expect it depended quite a bit on the Boat. For example, in the Kriegsmarine, if a midshipman was aboard, I suppose the middy might technically be "in charge" of the tower, even though he was assigned to the Bosun or the IIIWO's watch as a lowly green lookout....

Gumby

PS- I'm gonna post a complete example of the watch cycle on U564 shortly in a dedicated thread...

Doubt it was author's mistake since I have several sources which seem to agree. Bosun was technically a senior enlisted man, but in US Naval terms he was the rough equivelent of a Senior Warrant Officer and had quite a bit of authority on a Type VII, including commonly the duty to act as Fourth Watch Officer. I'm fixing to post a complete crew watch bill for U564, just correlating my sources at the moment. (Patterson, Gordon, Stern, Showell et al).

Regards,

Gumby

Hello, Gumby!


I'm familiar with Patterson's book about the Suhren's U-564. And there author clearly states that only IWO, IIWO and Navigator (Oberstuermann) were acting as WO, while bosun was indeed "number one of the crew".

Then there is for example Stern, who claims in his book "Type VII U-boats" that also bosun stood watches as WO, i.e. he would have been the fourth WO on board. However, I still doubt this. Or have you ever heard about US Navy CPO or Warrant Officer, who has driven a Fleet Boat on patrol or elsewhere? If I'm wrong, just get me straight.

What I'm thinking about is PO or CPO acting as WO while boat/ship is tied in the pier. As far as I know it's done all the time even nowadays, so why not 60 or 70 years ago, when many things were much more simple? So, maybe Stern got these two situations (enroute/in pier) messed? :hmmm:

Another possible answer to the question might be also that Bosuns striking on their navigator's qualification were given WO duties. But, as far as I know, Kriegsmarine was pretty much "no papers - no job" employer, i.e. if you did not have a proper qualification there was less chance you got the job. And I have a feeling that this was one big difference between, let's say, Kriegsmarine and US Navy, for example. Someone from Germany might be able to confirm this, I believe.


-RC-

I don't know about Kriesmarine. In various navies it is possible for an NCO or not a fully qualified officer to stand watch as long as they pass a qualifying exam. This usually requires a 100% passing score in rules of the read and a few other exams.

Maybe they meant he had good hand eye coordination.:D

My data came from Uboat.net, where it talks about the radio room watch rotations, and this page from the interrogation of the crew of U-76:

EDIT:

The final roster of U-76 at the time of its sinking consisted of the following:

Oberleutnant-zur-See: 2
Leutnant-zur-See: 1
Leutnant (Ing.): 1

Obermaschinist: 2
Maschinenmaat: 4
Maschinenobergefreiter: 9
Maschinengefreiter: 3

Funkmaat: 2
Funkobergefreiter: 1
Funkgefreiter: 1

Obersteuermann: 1
Steuermannsmaat: 1

Bootsmann: 1
Bootsmaat: 2

Mechanikersmaat: 1
Mechanikergefreiter: 3

Matrosenobergefreiter: 2
Matrosenobergefreiter: 5

@LukeFF: Engine Room Watches <> Bridge Watches. Having not read your manual, I don't know what you were trying to say, but someone here attributed it to bridge watch times, which is not the case.

@Rosencrantz: USN <> Kriegsmarine. I don't know what else I can say as you have read similar sources from reputable historians and still choose to dismiss them.