[Sailor Steve]

Bewolf, I completely agree with everything you just said, including the part about "not losing the argument". The only point I ever tried to make was against people who say "this was the best", no matter whether it's ships, tanks or planes. A true discussion of this kind has to take each machine on its own merits, including what it was designed for. The Type VII was the best boat for what it was designed to do, period. Germany needed a boat that could be mass-produced, and one that could dive fast, turn fast and dive deep. Some people say that American fleet boats would have been in big trouble if the Japanese had as good ASW as the Allies did. They are probably right, but we'll never know. On the other hand, the Type VII could never have made the long trips the Gatos did. The Type IX could do that, and more, but they had pretty much the same limitations as the American boats, with less torpedoes and worse sonar and radar.

Which was truly best? I think the answer is yes. The engineers on both sides designed the best weapon for the job.