U-505, Chicago

[Hottentot]

Originally Posted by Growler

There's a reason why the AC panel is screened off from visitors, but that still doesn't stop them from sticking their fingers into live circuit panels after prying the covers off.

Sounds...familiar. How come 6,800 kilometers and an ocean don't seem to make people any different in certain ways that you'd hope they would be different in?

[Neptunus Rex]

Originally Posted by Growler

Torsk's inside diameter (the people tank) is probably that, or less. To the Germans' credit, at least their compartment watertight doors are easier to get through, being round; American boats used smaller, oval-shaped doors that don't necessarily lend themselves to rapid transition for the tall and broad-shouldered among us.

US watertight doors are oval so they can be removed and repaired off ship if necessary.

Tough to do with round doors that are larger than the exterior hatches.

I'm 6'3" tall and had no problem negotiating those doors in my five years on boats.

[Hottentot]

Originally Posted by Growler

I've heard this complaint often. Sad, really, but understandable, somewhat. Too many people would be prying everything loose on that boat, as rare as it is. Hell, we see people trying to pry stuff off of Torsk and the other museum boats, and, while not rare, these boats aren't exactly uncommon, either.

And let us not forget the effect of "Do not touch the objects" signs.

Poke, poke, poke...

[frau kaleun]

Originally Posted by Neptunus Rex

I thought the Gato/Balao were small (compared to modern SSN's). The Type IXC hull was only about 12 feet max width.

When I toured U-505 some years ago it was before my current u-boat obsession began. Of course I knew what a u-boat was and had an understanding of the historical significance within the context of the war in general, but what I knew about the specifics of the boats themselves was next to nothing.

I distinctly remember going through the boat from one end to the other and then thinking, okay, now we'll go up or down and see the rest of the boat. Except there was no "rest of the boat."

I am still amazed at how little living/working space there was inside that thing given the size of the crew it carried.