Why do American subs have a less test depth in comparison to a German UBoat?

propbeanie · 05-12-21, 07:26 PM

From the "reliable" Wikipedia for a Type VII:
Test depth: 230 m (750 ft) -Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)

Very similar to the Gato figures, but the American boat designers were more nervous about their advertised "test" depth. Notice that the German crush depth is also calculated, and is very similar to the US calculations. Only the US used 1/2 of what they knew was a "safe" depth as the test depth. Think about it though, you are in a boat that is "safe" to 700 feet, and someone is raining depth charges and maybe a hedge hog or squid volley or two at you at that depth, and I do believe that everyone of us would have to change our shorts after just the first nearby explosion... Most submarine officers were highly educated men, most of them engineers in one field or another, and all could guess what the designers knew...

KaleunMarco · 05-12-21, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by propbeanie

From the "reliable" Wikipedia for a Type VII:
Test depth: 230 m (750 ft) -Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)

230 meters is significantly less than the Hollywood depth of 700 meters.

A Soviet Fanboi · 05-12-21, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by propbeanie

From the "reliable" Wikipedia for a Type VII:
Test depth: 230 m (750 ft) -Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)

Very similar to the Gato figures, but the American boat designers were more nervous about their advertised "test" depth. Notice that the German crush depth is also calculated, and is very similar to the US calculations. Only the US used 1/2 of what they knew was a "safe" depth as the test depth. Think about it though, you are in a boat that is "safe" to 700 feet, and someone is raining depth charges and maybe a hedge hog or squid volley or two at you at that depth, and I do believe that everyone of us would have to change our shorts after just the first nearby explosion... Most submarine officers were highly educated men, most of them engineers in one field or another, and all could guess what the designers knew...

Test depth of Type VII C was 150m. Beyond the 150m is known as critical depth.

05-12-21, 07:26 PM	#1
propbeanie CTD - it's not just a job Join Date: May 2016 Location: One hour from Music City USA! Posts: 10,109 Downloads: 451 Uploads: 2	From the "reliable" Wikipedia for a Type VII: Test depth: 230 m (750 ft) -Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft) Very similar to the Gato figures, but the American boat designers were more nervous about their advertised "test" depth. Notice that the German crush depth is also calculated, and is very similar to the US calculations. Only the US used 1/2 of what they knew was a "safe" depth as the test depth. Think about it though, you are in a boat that is "safe" to 700 feet, and someone is raining depth charges and maybe a hedge hog or squid volley or two at you at that depth, and I do believe that everyone of us would have to change our shorts after just the first nearby explosion... Most submarine officers were highly educated men, most of them engineers in one field or another, and all could guess what the designers knew... __________________ "...and bollocks to the naysayers" - Jimbuna