I just realized that an additional benefit of the FAT Torpedo is that the explosion can occur on the opposite side of a ship than the sub is on! This means the Destroyers and Destroyer Escort would like go off in the wrong direction looking for a U-Boat that wasn't there!!!
Very good noticed ! Although it never was intended by captains to deliberately miss on the first pass, this was a welcome effect if the FAT has down what it was supposed to do, recover a missed shot.
@@legitscoper3259 Yeah, I imagine retrieving a fully armed torpedo is not on the list of fun things to do! (However, I wasn't suggesting to make it miss on the first pass.) However, since it has to have a positive (nose up) attitude, I imagine that the "eel" (what the Germans call their torpedos) has a negative buoyancy and sink once the batteries has drain to the point it couldn't keep it at it's set depth...
But in 1943 the destroyers had sonar and radar systems in combination with the broken Enigma code. So the Kriegsmarine has already lost the navy war before this torpedo came out.
@@dermax1254 yes. But Germans didn't believe the code was broken. But the Sonar of that time, ASDIC only could cover a cone shape below the ship, if the sub was too far off, they couldn't see it.
Impressive engineering, the FAT is basically a mechanical programmable computer, impressive to see such a system fitted inside a torpedo. Thanks for the video and the explanation on the usefullness of the system.
The alternative meaning of FAT was the "Flächen-Absuch-Torpedo", translated to something like "Area-Search-Torpedo". Its successor was the LUT-Torpedo, "Lageunabhägiger Torpedo", translated to "Orientation-Indrpendent-Torpedo", which could make even more complicated turns and patterns. In my opinion, the FAT, the LUT and the passive-acoustic, self-homing torpedos "Zaunkönig" and "Falke" were most impressive for the war era in the Kriegsmarine. Also be noted, the Kriegsmarine did experiment with an alternate proplusion system for the U-Boats and the Torpedos, called the "Walter-Antrieb" based an hydrogen peroxyde. Very impressive speeds were reached while testing.
Admitably, Lut was a more complex mechanism as it would adjust the straight-distance between turns automatically, based on the chosen "Lut-speed" (ie the resulting forward-moving speed of the torpedo). The "pattern" itself wasn't very complicated though, just different compared to Fat ("zig-zag" vs "s-loops"). Also, the main advantage with Lut was that the torpedo could be fired in any direction, while with Fat you needed to calculate an optimal launch-course. Germany was developing numerous different technologies in regards to torpedo-propulsion. The ingolin-engines/turbines (ingolin = the german term for high-concentrated hydrogen-peroxide used as fuel for engines/rockets) was the main alternative to steam and electricity with two models ready for action by april 1945: The G5u(TXII) and G7u(TXIII) "K-Butt" torpedoes. Their speed of 45 kn wasn't much higher than the "schnellschuss" for G7a(TI) of 44 kn though. The same was the case for the rocket and jet-propulsioned torpedoes still in development (actually they did pass the prototype-stage and were in late stage of testing when the war ended). Although the technology could potentially give much higher speeds, there's a lot of factors to consider, mainly the torpedo-hulls restriction in regards to fuel-capacity, so higher speed would cost a lot in terms of range and subsequently lead to an impractical application in the field. Ingolin also represents very high risk in terms of storage and handling (the US Navy decided they wouldn't touch it after testing the german ingolin-torpedoes in 1946, and the british changed their mind some years later after several incidents and finally loosing a submarine in a similar way as the Russians lost the "Kursk" due to hydrogen-peroxide leaking from a torpedo causing a fire and then an explosion). Today, the main propulsion for torpedoes is still electric, but with very advanced battery-technology giving immense amount of energy stored in the same volume as the WW2-era batteries (increasing speed/range from ca 30kn/5000m to 50kn/50000m). The german development of primary-batteries was the start and in retrospect probably more important than ingolin, but as for many new projects it didn't come through before the war ended.
@@havardhovdet9217 Das mit dem "Schwall Torpedo" ging bei den Russen mächtig nach hinten los. ein Tropfen Wasserstoffperoxid läuft aus, dann fliegt dir alles um die Ohren.
These mechanical simulations of the torpedo mechanism and the maritime simulations of them being fired into a convoy are amazing, especially how you did all the torpedo internals! You must have put a lot of time and effort into finding out how they worked and producing the simulations, I doubt it could have been easy finding that information? Your video's deserve to be on something like Discovery Channel or National Geographic!
I don't know what's more impressive, the German's amazing engineering, or your incredible video. So well explained. I'm deeply impressed with your work Rob. Thanks for sharing this with us!
@@scootergeorge7089 geman lost in manpower the british use it's all colony resources and people fight for British special india.they use all money and people of India in war.
@@scootergeorge7089 Nobody is talking about who lost the war, the comments are all around the engineering. Why are you switching things up? It was the entire planet against Germany anyways, how are they supposed to win the war?
@@raymartcarreon6069 The torpedo isn't moving water around... Of course, it generates a lot of noise (less from an electric vs a steam-engine) so ASDIC/SONAR would certainly be able detect it during the run. Those systems were in early stages at the time, and the ability to accurately locate and track an object moving with a speed of 30-45 kn was probably quite limited though. Also: Only dedicated military vessels would have such systems at the time, so it would not be a relevant/avialable tool for a civilian cargovessel. On the other hand, a torpedo would leave a trail of airbubbles (massive amounts from a wetheater torpedo, quite miniscule amounts from a german electric propulsioned torpedo) which could be visible depending on the viewing angle/heigh and distance, as well as light conditions (hard to see at night, better during the day). A visible bubblepath isn't neccessary useful in determining the torpedo's position though: As air takes some time to raise to the surface, the bubblepath will always be a distance behind the torpedo. The faster and deeper the torpedo runs, the longer distance (water salinity and -temperature also affects the speed of the escaping air towards the surface). I don't remember the detailed numbers, but as a rule of thumb when we used the T1 mod 1 (ie the ex-Kriegsmarine G7a(TI), modified with wire guidance in 1970) for exercise-shots, the distance from the torpedo and the visible bubblepath was 125 metres when the torpedo was running at 7 m depth with 30 kn speed. In reality, you would have much less time/opportunity to manouver your ship to avoid an incoming torpedo when observing a bubblepath, compared to what often is portraid in movies.
@@the_jingo Nonsense, all torpedoes leaves some amount of air in their wake, but depending on the type of propulsion the amount can be ignorable. The discussion here is about german torpedoes, not japanese. However, the japanese navy used several torpedomodels with three types of propulsion in WW2: * Standard wet-heater (massive bubblepath) * Oxygen-enriched wet-heater (minimal bubblepath) * Electric (miniscule bubblepath)
I'm a mechatronics engineering undergrad in Brazil, and I'm also amazed by the insane engineering behind this. Keep in mind that a lot of these weapons were developed during war in a matter of months. It's amazing what people can do understand extreme pressure.
Amazing how they did this with purely mechanical means 80 years ago. Nowadays, a 10 cent IC would do all this, but having watched this that feels like cheating 😉
Now days, the torpedo starts homing in on the target when it gets close. It's no longer running blind. More expensive than a 10 cent IC, but it becomes 'fire and forget'. 1 torp, 1 ship.
And in 2022 navy’s are moving back to battery powered torpedos. Something about a self oxidizing fuel that produces hydrogen cyanide as a by product in a steel tube…
Tomahawk introduced in 1980 can travel close to 1000 miles using nothing but ground features as guidance, no gps needed.... Sometimes I wonder what can truly cutting edge stuff do
Not cheating. We spent orders of magnitude more money developing that $0.10 IC, than they did all the technology they used. And it took a LOT longer too.
This is well-research content. You give inspiration to small 3d Animation like ourselves. But I wonder why RUclips is not recommending your channel to more people. I mean this is the Real Engineering Channel. All the best Again.
Very nice and detailed animation of the Fat I function. However, here are some notes to consider: There were no G7e variant using the Fat I programsteering mechanism that is depicted in the video, it was only used on the G7a(TI Fat I) torpedo. I have a lot of documents relating the german WW2 torpedoes, including the Fat/Lut mechanims. I'm not sure about your BaMa-reference RM 6/3149 "Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e", 1942 though. I can't find it in Inevnio, and due to it's early date I wonder if it's a generic description, not specifically for the G7e(TIIIa Fat II) (I have actually seen a reference to G7e(TII) torpedoes being equipped with Fat, but if that is correct, I assume it was related the development)? The following program-steering mechanisms were developed and fielded by Kriegsmarine during WW2: * Fat I ("S-shaped" loop-patterns). The initial straight distance could be set from a minimum of 500 m to a maximum of 1500 m. Two loop-patterns were available: "short" and "long", and in addition, there was a choice of right or left turns (i.e. a total of 5 settings on the Fat-mechanism). For "short" loops, the straight distance between turns was 800 m, with a total width of the pattern-search of 1140 m For "long" loops, the straight distance between turns was 1500 m (PS: Note your typo in the description), and a total width of the pattern-search of 1840 m. The turning radius for both patterns was 170 m. * Fat II: As Fat I, but with an additional program for a circular loop (a self-defence measure to be used against an attacking escort-vessel). * Fat III, later renamed Lut I ("zig-zag" pattern): The initial torpedo course could be chosen so the torpedo platform didn't need to change its bearing to an optimal course for torpedo launch. The "Lut-speed" (i.e. the resulting advance-speed of the torpedo, considering the zig-zag pattern) could be chosen and subsequently the straight legs between turns would be adjusted accordingly. * Lut II: Same as Lut I, but even slower Lut-speeds could be chosen. The following G7e-variants were equipped with programsteering mechanisms: * G7e(TIII Fat II) * G7e(TIIIa Fat II) * G7e(TIIIa Lut I) * G7e(TIIIa Lut II) In addition, the G7e(TIIId) "Dackel" torpedo was equipped with a special Lut I-version with extremely long initial distance of ca 36000 metres, but it wasn't recognized in the official Kriegsmarine-designation (unknown reason, but it might have been due to secrecy in relation to the torpedo's high vulnerability for detection and allied recovery). In regards to the torpedo-model, intended to depict a TIIIa, the additional airtanks mounted in the front of the batterychamber was not the same 5 litre flasks as used in the aftsection. This was a round ball-shaped container ("kugelluftgefäße") of 25 litre. Also, the warhead was always painted dark grey regardless of type (note that your head is a Type Ka or Kb series with a Pi1 pistol which isn't correct for a TIIIa torpedo). In regards to the ausschiebbaren vertikalflossen (extendable vertical fins), some documents indicates these were first introduced with the Lut I, and not used with Fat II-equipped TIII and TIIIa torpedoes (I know Rössler indicates the latter though. I'm not sure what is correct). The "coupling" piece mounted on the GA VIII servo engine spindle for the Fat, differs slightly from the real thing as it was adjustable and had "fingergrips" and notches for attaching a tool (you can actually see this if you look closely at the two images in Rössler's book, page 117). I don't know if it has been omitted intentionally for visibility, but the GA VIII gyroscope should have a metal shield covering the regulating airnozzle (you can see it on the drawings in Rössler's book, page 115 and the top image on page 117).
Man you sure know your stuff,tell you a funny story,i consider myself amateur WW2 historian, i have many hundred books on the subject and U boats being one of my favorite subjects, one of my dreams if i may call it that was to go see the Uboat in Chicago, about 3 years ago i met my sister at O'hare and we spent 3 days in Chicago just having fun and hanging out. When we were touring the boat the guide was actually pretty good but we were just glossing over everything and as usual the majority of the people in the group were not really into it like me and you might be and had no knowledge,just there visiting the museum , once we were in the Zentrale and it was nice and packed i asked the guide 'hey man, isn't this the spot where the Captain killed himself during the war??" ha ha ha ha, the look on adults and children was interesting to say the least.
Due to the fact that I've never got busy with torpedoes, I understood almost nothing about the connectivity among steering, propulsion and calculation mechanisms but I got the general idea. If I may ask what is your job and how did you succeed to know and understand how all these work together?
@@havardhovdet9217 I understand the fact it looks like a question to the creator and from your side, you pointed some errors and corrected them. My question is to you, what is your job and how do you know all these details, are you for example a naval historian or something like this? You've surprised me.
Glad to see your still posting these feats of engineering, via that smooth animation. You deserve a gig doing this for the history/military channel. Best of luck and thank you brother.
I was waiting for this. I have no idea where you find the technical data and drawings for your modeling, I have to believe they're not exactly what you'd call readily available. But I'm really glad you are able to find them. These torpedo videos are absolutely fascinating to me. I have always wondered how the FaT fish worked. Amazing bit of mechanical computing. Thank you very, very much for putting in the time to do these. You have no idea how much I appreciate what you do.
Fat mechanism could also be used if after lining up a run a destroyer gives chase bearing down on the sub from behind. Hitting such a vessel would be very challengeing as to not have a torpedo glance of the front or miss. But a torpedo with the fat mechnism could hit a chasing ship in the side when fired at the target straight from a back tube from a type VII or XI.
The Fat II had a special program for circle-runing, which was meant for use specifically against attacing escort-vessels. The torpedo was fired from the stern tube and the circular track was positioned between the submarine and the destroyer/corvette.
Kriegsmarine had several torpedoes with acoustic guidancesystems: * G7es(TIV) "Falke" * G7es(TV) "Zaunkönig" * G7es(TVa) "Zaunkönig" * G7es(TVb) "Zaunkönig" * G7es(TXI) "Zaunkönig II" * G7es "Lerche" (never operational before the war ended, hence no torpedonumber) Note that codenames were only to be used for the development, and never for operational systems, but for some reason they got stuck with the weapon anyway (mostly by post-WW2 authors though...). The guidancesystem was electronic (same for the wireguided models), so probably not as "visual appaeling" to show in a video compared to the mechanical programstering systems like Fat and Lut.
I had a plastic model of an aircraft carrier in 1960 that had several insertable cams to allow it to run different courses and mechanical programs. It never blew up.
Watch the video - compressed air is used to drive the gyro, the gyro server motor and the Depth servo motor. This air is exhausted into the torpedo body and then vented off.
If you already have a perfectly good gyro and servos in the 'conventional' torpedo G7A, why spend time and effort to re-invent the wheel. I supect the air flasks would be lighter than the additional batteries that would be needed.
Very nice animation! It's cool to see 3d renderings of machinery, especially for an old guy like me who grew up looking at old fuzzy black and white photos that needed to have the relevant parts highlighted to show what was being described.
No, the official German manual issued in 1942 calls it Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat) So I will stick with the official definition
Both terms were used (even though germany was a sticler for precision and "Ordnung muß sein", there are many examples of them not being consequent in regards to terms and designations). Nonetheless, "Federapparat" is the designation for the mechanism itself, while "Flächenabsuchender Torpedo" is a term describing the federapparat-equipped torpedo.
Well they had electronics but they were severely limited in effectiveness, like the most advanced system you could get there was a acoustic torpedo which used sound from ship propellers to guide the torpedo into the enemy ship
Great Video, but one Grounding missunderstanding: FAT is the Short for "Flächen Absuchender Torpedo" Means "Area Searching Torpedo" Grüße aus Deutschland!🤗🤗🤗
The official German manual issued in 1942 explicitly states: Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat - Torpedo with 'spring device'). If that is what the people who made the device called it at the time, who am I to argue. I will stick with the official definition in this video. But see other explanations in previous comments what a FAT torpedo could be called later.
So, I wish we could know the conversation between the sonar man and the bridge of an escort ship the first time one of these torpedoes began looping back and forth through a convoy. Must have been the source of some confusion if they had no previous knowledge of its deployment.
I can't give you an exact answer, but judging from preserved/available archive material from Torpedo-Versuch-Anstalt, Kriegsmarine and the allied post-war examination of german torpedo development, a lot of research went into the various aspects of the torpedodesign, including propellers and rudders (including a lot of model-work and practical testing in watertanks/pools). An important goal with the development and manufacture of the electric propulsioned torpedoes was to simplify the process and reduce cost. Thus, the G7e-models were considerable less robust compared to the G7a(TI) torpedo - especially in regards to their weaker "woolwich"-type tail with propellers behind the rudders (which was the main reason for the G7e-models not being allowed for surface-launch, with exeption of the TIIId and TVa torpedoes, adapted for S-Boote). Another factor to consider, is the engine-performance which was different for wet-heater vs electric, as well as the torpedo's weight and speed. Almost all G7e-models used the GL 231/Z5 engine, with the following specs (examples, showing different power-outtake for various torpedomodels): * 1700 rpm / 100 Hp at 30 kn (example: TIII) * 1350 rpm / 55 Hp at 24 kn (example: TV) * 1100 rpm / 30 Hp at 17,5 kn (example: TIIIc) * 500 rpm / 7 Hp at 9 kn (TIIId) The G7a(TI) had a 4-cylindre singular piston steam engine (45% filling-grade). The engine was altered a couple of times since it's original design from 1934 (for instance, the first version's engineblock was weak and would often crack at the highest speed; Regardless the redesigned engine introduced ca 1942, the only vessels allowed to use the 44 kn speed throughout the war was the S-Boote. The following specs is for the post 1942 engine-version: * 1170 rpm / 110 Hp at 30 kn * 1280 rpm / 255 Hp at 40 kn * 1470 rpm / 350 Hp at 44 kn The G7a(TI) was originally designed with 4-blade propellers, but at some point (not sure exactly when, but it was before 1941), this was changed to 6-blades. This affected the accuracy of the distance-mechanism which was "calibrated" for the 4-blade propellers (in practical usage for exercises, the torpedo's maximum running distance could extend by up to 1500 metres beyond the set distance).
@@davidjenkins7389 Yes, thank you for asking. I had a couple of models that failed due to poor drawings, but now am working on a model of a 12.5 inch rifled muzzle loading cannon. I was interested in how it was operated - loaded, trained and fired while in a Fort's casement, and what it would be like in the basement ammunition stores with only a lantern for illumination. I am currently creating the animated scenes, but I suspect it will be a few weeks before I can publish.
@@vbbsmyt > Yes, thank you for asking. Very glad to hear that, thanks for the reply . You are doing a great job and keep moving forward despite the setbacks. Keep gowing ! Best wishes .
What is the source for "FAT" meaning "Federapparat"? On Wikipedia they say it means "Flächen-Absuch-Torpedo" (area search torpedo), which also makes more sense.
The official German manual issued in 1942 explicitly states: Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat - Torpedo with 'spring device'). If that is what the people who made the device called it at the time, who am I to argue. I will stick with the official definition in this video. But see other explanations in previous comments what a FAT torpedo could be called later.
Wow, imagine ur ship gets hit with by one of these and everyone on the remaining ships starts looking for subs in the direction the torp came from, but can't find any coz the torpedo was actually fired from the opposite side and only struck after making a 180. Or even worse, imagine the above happened and there were allied subs in the direction the torp came from, everyone would think it was friendly fire when it really wasn't.
Loved the video @vbbsmyt! Can't wait for the next video man! This video will prove to be of some help for those of us in the Stormworks: Build and Rescue Community who want to try building the G7e "Falke" FAT Torpedo with the Search and Destroy DLC aka the Weapons DLC for use with some Kriegsmarine Vessels.
G7e "Falke" FAT..? There's no such thing. The G7e(TIV) "Falke" was the first operational torpedo with a passive-acoustoc homing, but quickly replaced by the improved G7es(TV) "Zaunkönig" (in regards to correct designations/nomenclature for german WW2-torpedoes and usage of codenames, I have explained it in this Wikipedia-artcile: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_World_War_II_torpedoes_of_Germany ). There were three types of directional controls developed for the german torpedoes: * Program-steering (mechanical Fat/Lut): Eight torpedomodels fielded by Kriegsmarine during WW2 * Self-homing (acoustic/ magnetic/ hydrostatic pressure): Three torpedomodels fielded by Kriegsmarine (only passive acoustic homing) * Remote-control (cable or radio): Only one torpedomodel fielded by Kriegsmarine (wire guided) No torpedo was equipped with both mechanical programsteering and homing systems. The only torpedo with a combination of control-methods was the G7es "Lerche" which was a combined passive-acoustic homing and wireguided torpedo (it was never operational, but was the first example of what is the standard today). I have never heard about the term "DLC"...
This was very interesting. Great work :) I'm working on a similar project which will be a rendering of a full-rigged ship that was attacked by a German submarine in WW1. This specific sub is type U43 and name SU50. The captain was Gerhard Berger and he sunk my great grandfather's ship Blenheim in 1916. My goal is to recreate that exact moment in Unreal Engine. But there exists virtually no image or drawing of this sub that I know of. So if someone could direct me to a site, a book, or even a museum where I can find more information on this sub I will be very happy :)
@@stoneylonesome4062 You notice how everything that he does videos of, there's lots of moving parts and complicated animation? Not so much of that on a plaque.
Amazing detail and animation, it really shows how much did it take to make something that "just" was meant to explode. Have you evere considered making a videonabout the Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo? Seems quite interesting. Keep up the good work.
I meant to see this ages ago. As far as I know, most German U-boats of the second war didn't have those rangefinders. Most were just graduated with angular mils and there actually charts showing the conversion for different zoom levels to get the actual angle. A great website for more info is the torpedovorhaltrechner project which has all the info on the computers used to get the solution...Silent Hunter 3 also simulates a more basic version of this computer. I've often found the FATs to be a bit of a gimmick in game that is not particularly helpful. I usually prefer to just get within a kilometer of target and then send a standard G7 into the target. Of course I am aware that getting close was always risky back then. I believe the other problem posed by FAT was that the mechanism often didn't disconnect from the tube setting equipment properly and would often lead to 'tube runners'.
Solved my curiosity about the G6AV Torpedo I saw at the Budapest Military History Museum, its intricate and complex design is astonishing, and I wonder how it operates.
No, it was actually used primary with the G7a(TI) torpedoes, due to it's much longer running distance. The bubble-track wasn't (as) visible at night, and when the torpedo was equipped with a magnetic pistol, the depthsetting would make it's location way ahead of the bubbles, actually giving the target much less time to avoid it than you see portraited in movies...
How incredible! The workmanship/attention to detail/ intricacies/complexity/precision/ ingenuity that went into it's creation is quite mind blowing!...R.
If one puts this in comparison with the Mark 14 torpedo, you will see how much difference it makes to have people on your team that actually wanted the country to succeed.
How is that relevant? Although both Kriegsmarine and US Navy had huge problems with technical malfunctions during the first couple of years of WW2, they were not completely compareable - neither in regards to the issues themselves nor the reasons. The G7e(TIII) was in fact the improved torpedo replacing the G7e(TII) which was "plagued" during the german "torpedokrise".
@@havardhovdet9217 atleast the kriegsmarine tried to address the problem by improving the detonator, compared to a certain company who made the mk14 refused to test it properly,hid the real manual, refused to ackowledge their flaw design, blame the user for not using it properly until chief of US Navy had to step in
@@mr.jancok4413The Mk14 was manufactured by the U.S. Navy itself. That was part of the problem - naval officers in command who wouldn’t believe that their “baby” was faulty (and in four independent different ways).
If this is how complex WWII German torpedoes were then I would love to see a video like this about the first world war German torpedoes but I'm not sure if you would have enough information on them to make a video like this on them but if you do that that would be awesome to see how they would go about designing a torpedo with their era of technology
This is an electricc propulsioned torpedo. It has s very simple design compared to the wetheater (steam-propulsioned) torpedoes. The wetheater-design didn't change much for the torpedoes produced in the period 1910-1950, so WW1 torpedoes (ie the various G/6 and G/7 models) would in principle be very much like the WW2 G7a(TI).
That was fabulous! So bloody clever! Must have had beautiful machining on all those moving parts. Hey, even the music overlay was good. Well done video and well done engineering!! Wonder at times how things may have ended if wartime Germany dumped the nazis and continued fighting.
Interesting comment....Yeah. I wonder....would they have made it to space sooner? Bit then would there have been a space race.. Awefull to imagine the not dumping the Nazis bit
The Germans spent a lot of time testing their torpedoes and were, I believe, mechanically reliable in terms of propulsion, steering and depth control. They, like the US and Brits, developed influence fuzes at the start of the war. Both the Brits and Germans found out very quickly that magnetic influence fuzes were a disaster and quickly abandoned them. American torpedoes suffered from design errors that caused them to run deep during the first year after they entered the war, and it is notable that they only fired 2 live Mk14 torpedoes during development, one of which failed to explode. Lack of realistic testing was the problem.
@@vbbsmyt This is not correct. The german "torpedokrise" (1939-42) was a result of a total of 4 different issues that each - or in combination - affected the performance of the naval torpedoes: 1: Leaking depthmechanisms would cause a wrong internal reference-pressure for torpedoes aboard submarines, causing them to run too deep (ie preventing the torpedo of actually hitting the target activating the mechanical ignition-mechanism or activating the influence-mechanism). The problem was solved by introducing a new depthmechansim - the "Tiefenapparat II" (TA II). Torpedoes with TA II was identified with a green ring around the depthmechanism cover. 2: The influence-mechanism (magnetic) of the Pi G7A-MZ pistol couldn't be calibrated for the natural magnetic fields of the northern hemisphere, and especially in narrow fiords. This caused a variety of malfunctions ranging from premature detonations, delayed detonations after passing the target or no detonations at all. As an immediate fix, the influencemechanism was swithced off and the pistols were used only with its mechanical mechanism (due to issue nos 1 and 3, it didn't quite help though). The problem was finally fixed by developing the new combined mechanical/influence pistol Pi 2, introduced in 1942. 3: Bad design of the defelction arms for the mechanical mechanisms of the PI G7A-AZ and Pi G7A-MZ pistols. The size and shape of the arms gave a limited window of attack-angle to activate the detonator. This problem was increased by issue no 1, as torpedoes launched by uboats also would go deeper than normal, thus hitting the target at the more sloped/rounded part of the hull, deflecting the torpedo without activating the pistol. This was fixed by introducing the Pi G7H (later designated Pi 1) pistol in 1941 with longer deflection arms, increasing the range for activating down to 16 degrees angle of attack). 4: In addition (separate issue) there was a design defect in the early G7a(TI) engineblocks causing it to crack at highspeed setting (44 kn). This lead to banning the 44 kn setting for torpedoes with the old engines (torpedoes with the new engine was marked with a 5 cm green stripe on the top of the aftsection). The reasons for the german problems were mainly caused by lack of qualitycontrol at Torpedo Versuch Anstalt, leading to a war trial against the leaders in charge. The main difference between US Navy and Kriegsmarine in this respect, was that the latter took reports and complaints from the crews seriously and made immediate efforts to rectify the situation with short- and longterm solutions. Influence mechanisms are in general superior to mechanical mechanisms in terms of effect in the target. As soon as Kriegsmarine (and Luftwaffe) had properly working influence mechanisms available, they were reintroduced and kept in service throughout the war.
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I just realized that an additional benefit of the FAT Torpedo is that the explosion can occur on the opposite side of a ship than the sub is on! This means the Destroyers and Destroyer Escort would like go off in the wrong direction looking for a U-Boat that wasn't there!!!
Very good noticed !
Although it never was intended by captains to deliberately miss on the first pass, this was a welcome effect if the FAT has down what it was supposed to do, recover a missed shot.
@@legitscoper3259 Yeah, I imagine retrieving a fully armed torpedo is not on the list of fun things to do! (However, I wasn't suggesting to make it miss on the first pass.)
However, since it has to have a positive (nose up) attitude, I imagine that the "eel" (what the Germans call their torpedos) has a negative buoyancy and sink once the batteries has drain to the point it couldn't keep it at it's set depth...
But in 1943 the destroyers had sonar and radar systems in combination with the broken Enigma code. So the Kriegsmarine has already lost the navy war before this torpedo came out.
@@dermax1254 yes.
But Germans didn't believe the code was broken.
But the Sonar of that time, ASDIC only could cover a cone shape below the ship, if the sub was too far off, they couldn't see it.
@@legitscoper3259 Ah thank's of the Sonar information. I haven't known this, about the effectiveness.👍🏼
Impressive engineering, the FAT is basically a mechanical programmable computer, impressive to see such a system fitted inside a torpedo.
Thanks for the video and the explanation on the usefullness of the system.
Its more fantastic that they manage to make a RELIABLE torpedo that did have a mechanical programmable computer.
@@kirgan1000 More fantastic is that they did it over 80 years ago.
German Engineering
And they even had a homing torpedo too...
@@MajinOthinus ….yes, German engineers seemed to be endless with their creative technical acumen.
The alternative meaning of FAT was the "Flächen-Absuch-Torpedo", translated to something like "Area-Search-Torpedo".
Its successor was the LUT-Torpedo, "Lageunabhägiger Torpedo", translated to "Orientation-Indrpendent-Torpedo", which could make even more complicated turns and patterns.
In my opinion, the FAT, the LUT and the passive-acoustic, self-homing torpedos "Zaunkönig" and "Falke" were most impressive for the war era in the Kriegsmarine.
Also be noted, the Kriegsmarine did experiment with an alternate proplusion system for the U-Boats and the Torpedos, called the "Walter-Antrieb" based an hydrogen peroxyde. Very impressive speeds were reached while testing.
Admitably, Lut was a more complex mechanism as it would adjust the straight-distance between turns automatically, based on the chosen "Lut-speed" (ie the resulting forward-moving speed of the torpedo). The "pattern" itself wasn't very complicated though, just different compared to Fat ("zig-zag" vs "s-loops"). Also, the main advantage with Lut was that the torpedo could be fired in any direction, while with Fat you needed to calculate an optimal launch-course.
Germany was developing numerous different technologies in regards to torpedo-propulsion. The ingolin-engines/turbines (ingolin = the german term for high-concentrated hydrogen-peroxide used as fuel for engines/rockets) was the main alternative to steam and electricity with two models ready for action by april 1945: The G5u(TXII) and G7u(TXIII) "K-Butt" torpedoes. Their speed of 45 kn wasn't much higher than the "schnellschuss" for G7a(TI) of 44 kn though. The same was the case for the rocket and jet-propulsioned torpedoes still in development (actually they did pass the prototype-stage and were in late stage of testing when the war ended). Although the technology could potentially give much higher speeds, there's a lot of factors to consider, mainly the torpedo-hulls restriction in regards to fuel-capacity, so higher speed would cost a lot in terms of range and subsequently lead to an impractical application in the field. Ingolin also represents very high risk in terms of storage and handling (the US Navy decided they wouldn't touch it after testing the german ingolin-torpedoes in 1946, and the british changed their mind some years later after several incidents and finally loosing a submarine in a similar way as the Russians lost the "Kursk" due to hydrogen-peroxide leaking from a torpedo causing a fire and then an explosion). Today, the main propulsion for torpedoes is still electric, but with very advanced battery-technology giving immense amount of energy stored in the same volume as the WW2-era batteries (increasing speed/range from ca 30kn/5000m to 50kn/50000m). The german development of primary-batteries was the start and in retrospect probably more important than ingolin, but as for many new projects it didn't come through before the war ended.
@@havardhovdet9217 Das mit dem "Schwall Torpedo" ging bei den Russen
mächtig nach hinten los. ein Tropfen Wasserstoffperoxid läuft aus, dann fliegt dir alles um die Ohren.
I would love to see a version of the Zaunkönig!
These mechanical simulations of the torpedo mechanism and the maritime simulations of them being fired into a convoy are amazing, especially how you did all the torpedo internals! You must have put a lot of time and effort into finding out how they worked and producing the simulations, I doubt it could have been easy finding that information? Your video's deserve to be on something like Discovery Channel or National Geographic!
No apostrophe in video's.
2 Zweischneidiges Schwert. Es kann dich selber treffen!
Bloody Hell , never knew they where that complicated !
that's why (among other mistakes) Germany has lost the war. too complicated things on the battlefield.
I don't know what's more impressive, the German's amazing engineering, or your incredible video. So well explained. I'm deeply impressed with your work Rob. Thanks for sharing this with us!
1943 was the year that Germany lost the Battle of the Atlantic, despite this rather amazing technology.
Sin la tecnologia de alemania no existiera esta explicacion y claro es increible esta tecnologia pero mas los ingenieros alemanes
@@fernandofelix8889 - los ingenieros alemanes lost the war.
@@scootergeorge7089 geman lost in manpower
the british use it's all colony resources and people fight for British special india.they use all money and people of India in war.
@@scootergeorge7089 Nobody is talking about who lost the war, the comments are all around the engineering. Why are you switching things up? It was the entire planet against Germany anyways, how are they supposed to win the war?
Wahnsinn, was ohne Computer möglich gewesen ist. Deutsche Ingenieurskunst 👍🏻
Had to be terrifying the first time the sailors witnessed that torpedo turning around.
You can't see the torpedo from the target, due to it being below surface at 3-12 m depth...
@@havardhovdet9217 what about the Water that will be moving around due to the torpedo? SONAR devices that can detect the torpedo?
@@raymartcarreon6069 The torpedo isn't moving water around... Of course, it generates a lot of noise (less from an electric vs a steam-engine) so ASDIC/SONAR would certainly be able detect it during the run. Those systems were in early stages at the time, and the ability to accurately locate and track an object moving with a speed of 30-45 kn was probably quite limited though. Also: Only dedicated military vessels would have such systems at the time, so it would not be a relevant/avialable tool for a civilian cargovessel.
On the other hand, a torpedo would leave a trail of airbubbles (massive amounts from a wetheater torpedo, quite miniscule amounts from a german electric propulsioned torpedo) which could be visible depending on the viewing angle/heigh and distance, as well as light conditions (hard to see at night, better during the day). A visible bubblepath isn't neccessary useful in determining the torpedo's position though: As air takes some time to raise to the surface, the bubblepath will always be a distance behind the torpedo. The faster and deeper the torpedo runs, the longer distance (water salinity and -temperature also affects the speed of the escaping air towards the surface). I don't remember the detailed numbers, but as a rule of thumb when we used the T1 mod 1 (ie the ex-Kriegsmarine G7a(TI), modified with wire guidance in 1970) for exercise-shots, the distance from the torpedo and the visible bubblepath was 125 metres when the torpedo was running at 7 m depth with 30 kn speed.
In reality, you would have much less time/opportunity to manouver your ship to avoid an incoming torpedo when observing a bubblepath, compared to what often is portraid in movies.
@@havardhovdet9217 Japanese torpedo don’t have air bubble
@@the_jingo Nonsense, all torpedoes leaves some amount of air in their wake, but depending on the type of propulsion the amount can be ignorable.
The discussion here is about german torpedoes, not japanese. However, the japanese navy used several torpedomodels with three types of propulsion in WW2:
* Standard wet-heater (massive bubblepath)
* Oxygen-enriched wet-heater (minimal bubblepath)
* Electric (miniscule bubblepath)
The effort put into making this video must have been huge. Great job
Me, a modern day engineer, having no idea what I'm even looking at! Who on earth would come up with something ingenious as this?
The power of Nazi science. There is a reason why in Indiana Jones and other movies they always expect *wonder weapons*
I'm a mechatronics engineering undergrad in Brazil, and I'm also amazed by the insane engineering behind this. Keep in mind that a lot of these weapons were developed during war in a matter of months. It's amazing what people can do understand extreme pressure.
Amazing how they did this with purely mechanical means 80 years ago. Nowadays, a 10 cent IC would do all this, but having watched this that feels like cheating 😉
Now days, the torpedo starts homing in on the target when it gets close. It's no longer running blind. More expensive than a 10 cent IC, but it becomes 'fire and forget'. 1 torp, 1 ship.
And in 2022 navy’s are moving back to battery powered torpedos. Something about a self oxidizing fuel that produces hydrogen cyanide as a by product in a steel tube…
Tomahawk introduced in 1980 can travel close to 1000 miles using nothing but ground features as guidance, no gps needed.... Sometimes I wonder what can truly cutting edge stuff do
antikythera mechanism was done 2500 years ago though...
Not cheating.
We spent orders of magnitude more money developing that $0.10 IC, than they did all the technology they used. And it took a LOT longer too.
This is well-research content. You give inspiration to small 3d Animation like ourselves.
But I wonder why RUclips is not recommending your channel to more people.
I mean this is the Real Engineering Channel.
All the best Again.
Very nice and detailed animation of the Fat I function. However, here are some notes to consider:
There were no G7e variant using the Fat I programsteering mechanism that is depicted in the video, it was only used on the G7a(TI Fat I) torpedo.
I have a lot of documents relating the german WW2 torpedoes, including the Fat/Lut mechanims. I'm not sure about your BaMa-reference RM 6/3149 "Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e", 1942 though. I can't find it in Inevnio, and due to it's early date I wonder if it's a generic description, not specifically for the G7e(TIIIa Fat II) (I have actually seen a reference to G7e(TII) torpedoes being equipped with Fat, but if that is correct, I assume it was related the development)?
The following program-steering mechanisms were developed and fielded by Kriegsmarine during WW2:
* Fat I ("S-shaped" loop-patterns). The initial straight distance could be set from a minimum of 500 m to a maximum of 1500 m. Two loop-patterns were available: "short" and "long", and in addition, there was a choice of right or left turns (i.e. a total of 5 settings on the Fat-mechanism). For "short" loops, the straight distance between turns was 800 m, with a total width of the pattern-search of 1140 m For "long" loops, the straight distance between turns was 1500 m (PS: Note your typo in the description), and a total width of the pattern-search of 1840 m. The turning radius for both patterns was 170 m.
* Fat II: As Fat I, but with an additional program for a circular loop (a self-defence measure to be used against an attacking escort-vessel).
* Fat III, later renamed Lut I ("zig-zag" pattern): The initial torpedo course could be chosen so the torpedo platform didn't need to change its bearing to an optimal course for torpedo launch. The "Lut-speed" (i.e. the resulting advance-speed of the torpedo, considering the zig-zag pattern) could be chosen and subsequently the straight legs between turns would be adjusted accordingly.
* Lut II: Same as Lut I, but even slower Lut-speeds could be chosen.
The following G7e-variants were equipped with programsteering mechanisms:
* G7e(TIII Fat II)
* G7e(TIIIa Fat II)
* G7e(TIIIa Lut I)
* G7e(TIIIa Lut II)
In addition, the G7e(TIIId) "Dackel" torpedo was equipped with a special Lut I-version with extremely long initial distance of ca 36000 metres, but it wasn't recognized in the official Kriegsmarine-designation (unknown reason, but it might have been due to secrecy in relation to the torpedo's high vulnerability for detection and allied recovery).
In regards to the torpedo-model, intended to depict a TIIIa, the additional airtanks mounted in the front of the batterychamber was not the same 5 litre flasks as used in the aftsection. This was a round ball-shaped container ("kugelluftgefäße") of 25 litre.
Also, the warhead was always painted dark grey regardless of type (note that your head is a Type Ka or Kb series with a Pi1 pistol which isn't correct for a TIIIa torpedo).
In regards to the ausschiebbaren vertikalflossen (extendable vertical fins), some documents indicates these were first introduced with the Lut I, and not used with Fat II-equipped TIII and TIIIa torpedoes (I know Rössler indicates the latter though. I'm not sure what is correct).
The "coupling" piece mounted on the GA VIII servo engine spindle for the Fat, differs slightly from the real thing as it was adjustable and had "fingergrips" and notches for attaching a tool (you can actually see this if you look closely at the two images in Rössler's book, page 117). I don't know if it has been omitted intentionally for visibility, but the GA VIII gyroscope should have a metal shield covering the regulating airnozzle (you can see it on the drawings in Rössler's book, page 115 and the top image on page 117).
Man you sure know your stuff,tell you a funny story,i consider myself amateur WW2 historian, i have many hundred books on the subject and U boats being one of my favorite subjects, one of my dreams if i may call it that was to go see the Uboat in Chicago, about 3 years ago i met my sister at O'hare and we spent 3 days in Chicago just having fun and hanging out.
When we were touring the boat the guide was actually pretty good but we were just glossing over everything and as usual the majority of the people in the group were not really into it like me and you might be and had no knowledge,just there visiting the museum , once we were in the Zentrale and it was nice and packed i asked the guide 'hey man, isn't this the spot where the Captain killed himself during the war??" ha ha ha ha, the look on adults and children was interesting to say the least.
no answer from the creator of this video. sad.
Due to the fact that I've never got busy with torpedoes, I understood almost nothing about the connectivity among steering, propulsion and calculation mechanisms but I got the general idea. If I may ask what is your job and how did you succeed to know and understand how all these work together?
@@alexismpaltatzis You have replied to my post, but I assume the question is meant for the creator of the animation who posted the video?
@@havardhovdet9217 I understand the fact it looks like a question to the creator and from your side, you pointed some errors and corrected them. My question is to you, what is your job and how do you know all these details, are you for example a naval historian or something like this? You've surprised me.
Great to see that you are still working on stuff like this 🙂
Fascinating! I had no idea that such a system existed! Thank you!
Glad to see your still posting these feats of engineering, via that smooth animation. You deserve a gig doing this for the history/military channel. Best of luck and thank you brother.
I was waiting for this. I have no idea where you find the technical data and drawings for your modeling, I have to believe they're not exactly what you'd call readily available. But I'm really glad you are able to find them. These torpedo videos are absolutely fascinating to me. I have always wondered how the FaT fish worked. Amazing bit of mechanical computing. Thank you very, very much for putting in the time to do these. You have no idea how much I appreciate what you do.
Absolutely incredible animation and attention to detail. This is so much work. Truly impressive!!!
Masterpiece of German engineering. Pure art
Killing people. That's an art germs specialise in.
This is really freaking cool. Awesome detail.
As a Silent Hunter 2/3/4 addict, this was amazing. Thank you!
Superb animation. Quite an achievement to understand how it works just from a book (in a foreign language too)
Amazing, finally a new video, i like how your videos goe very deep into how everything works
What an excellent visual demonstration!
STUNNING + MARVELLOUS, many thanks
I would never know....
Reminds me of the motorized plastic ship models I built in the 70s that had interchangeable cams to select from predetermined courses.
Great explanation! Finally someone has explained it comprehensibly! Do you want to make a video about the "Zaunkönig" too?
Thank you for posting this very interesting video aboiut the FAT Torpedo. Few will realize how many hours of work go into this.
Fat mechanism could also be used if after lining up a run a destroyer gives chase bearing down on the sub from behind. Hitting such a vessel would be very challengeing as to not have a torpedo glance of the front or miss. But a torpedo with the fat mechnism could hit a chasing ship in the side when fired at the target straight from a back tube from a type VII or XI.
The Fat II had a special program for circle-runing, which was meant for use specifically against attacing escort-vessels. The torpedo was fired from the stern tube and the circular track was positioned between the submarine and the destroyer/corvette.
Would it be possible to showcase either the Falke (TIV) or thr T5 acoustic guided torpedoes? Itd be really cool to see how they are guided.
Thanks!
Kriegsmarine had several torpedoes with acoustic guidancesystems:
* G7es(TIV) "Falke"
* G7es(TV) "Zaunkönig"
* G7es(TVa) "Zaunkönig"
* G7es(TVb) "Zaunkönig"
* G7es(TXI) "Zaunkönig II"
* G7es "Lerche" (never operational before the war ended, hence no torpedonumber)
Note that codenames were only to be used for the development, and never for operational systems, but for some reason they got stuck with the weapon anyway (mostly by post-WW2 authors though...).
The guidancesystem was electronic (same for the wireguided models), so probably not as "visual appaeling" to show in a video compared to the mechanical programstering systems like Fat and Lut.
I had a plastic model of an aircraft carrier in 1960 that had several insertable cams to allow it to run different courses and mechanical programs. It never blew up.
The ingenuity behind this apparatus is impressive and fascinating
I could write so much,
but,
This is amazing!
Thank you.
There were also acoustic homing Torpedoes, the G7es Zaunkönig.
Those Germans...they had a lot of skilled people
I'd been looking forward to this one for a long time, thank you!
Why are there gas bubbles in the electric torpedo animation?
Watch the video - compressed air is used to drive the gyro, the gyro server motor and the Depth servo motor. This air is exhausted into the torpedo body and then vented off.
@@vbbsmyt If you already have batteries in the torpedo, why not use an electrically powered gyro and servos?
If you already have a perfectly good gyro and servos in the 'conventional' torpedo G7A, why spend time and effort to re-invent the wheel. I supect the air flasks would be lighter than the additional batteries that would be needed.
excellent animation for that , impressive
Had no idea all that was going on inside that metal tube, great video
As someone who was working on a cold war submarine simulator, nice work!
никогда бы не подумал что в торпеде такой сложный механизм! 😯🤔
That is impressive. Both the engineering and the video. Thanks.
Astonishing drawing and explanation
My compliments for your accuracy in depicting the mechanism
wow you rock, this is awesome, well done, keep it comin pls, thank you
Very nice animation! It's cool to see 3d renderings of machinery, especially for an old guy like me who grew up looking at old fuzzy black and white photos that needed to have the relevant parts highlighted to show what was being described.
Gut gemacht! I always thought, FAT means "Flaechen Absuchender Torpedo" ( area searching torpedo). Thank you for this great animation.
Yes, FAT stands for _Flächen-Absuch-Torpedo._
No, the official German manual issued in 1942 calls it Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat)
So I will stick with the official definition
Both terms were used (even though germany was a sticler for precision and "Ordnung muß sein", there are many examples of them not being consequent in regards to terms and designations). Nonetheless, "Federapparat" is the designation for the mechanism itself, while "Flächenabsuchender Torpedo" is a term describing the federapparat-equipped torpedo.
Crazy amount of mechanical logic just to have it make some turns :O
Incredible graphics, a masterpiece, thanks for providing it.
It's even more fantastic now than the first time I watched it!
Man, make one about the Winchester M1887
absolutely fantastic that they could manufacture something like this completely without electronics ..
Well they had electronics but they were severely limited in effectiveness, like the most advanced system you could get there was a acoustic torpedo which used sound from ship propellers to guide the torpedo into the enemy ship
Great Video, but one Grounding missunderstanding:
FAT is the Short for "Flächen Absuchender Torpedo"
Means "Area Searching Torpedo"
Grüße aus Deutschland!🤗🤗🤗
The official German manual issued in 1942 explicitly states: Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat - Torpedo with 'spring device'). If that is what the people who made the device called it at the time, who am I to argue. I will stick with the official definition in this video. But see other explanations in previous comments what a FAT torpedo could be called later.
Do you plan to make a program on german acoustic torpedoes?
So, I wish we could know the conversation between the sonar man and the bridge of an escort ship the first time one of these torpedoes began looping back and forth through a convoy. Must have been the source of some confusion if they had no previous knowledge of its deployment.
Amazing explanation, thanks
What I'd like to know is why the G7e torpedo's propellors were twin-bladed while the G7a's propellors were six-bladed?
I can't give you an exact answer, but judging from preserved/available archive material from Torpedo-Versuch-Anstalt, Kriegsmarine and the allied post-war examination of german torpedo development, a lot of research went into the various aspects of the torpedodesign, including propellers and rudders (including a lot of model-work and practical testing in watertanks/pools). An important goal with the development and manufacture of the electric propulsioned torpedoes was to simplify the process and reduce cost. Thus, the G7e-models were considerable less robust compared to the G7a(TI) torpedo - especially in regards to their weaker "woolwich"-type tail with propellers behind the rudders (which was the main reason for the G7e-models not being allowed for surface-launch, with exeption of the TIIId and TVa torpedoes, adapted for S-Boote).
Another factor to consider, is the engine-performance which was different for wet-heater vs electric, as well as the torpedo's weight and speed.
Almost all G7e-models used the GL 231/Z5 engine, with the following specs (examples, showing different power-outtake for various torpedomodels):
* 1700 rpm / 100 Hp at 30 kn (example: TIII)
* 1350 rpm / 55 Hp at 24 kn (example: TV)
* 1100 rpm / 30 Hp at 17,5 kn (example: TIIIc)
* 500 rpm / 7 Hp at 9 kn (TIIId)
The G7a(TI) had a 4-cylindre singular piston steam engine (45% filling-grade). The engine was altered a couple of times since it's original design from 1934 (for instance, the first version's engineblock was weak and would often crack at the highest speed; Regardless the redesigned engine introduced ca 1942, the only vessels allowed to use the 44 kn speed throughout the war was the S-Boote.
The following specs is for the post 1942 engine-version:
* 1170 rpm / 110 Hp at 30 kn
* 1280 rpm / 255 Hp at 40 kn
* 1470 rpm / 350 Hp at 44 kn
The G7a(TI) was originally designed with 4-blade propellers, but at some point (not sure exactly when, but it was before 1941), this was changed to 6-blades. This affected the accuracy of the distance-mechanism which was "calibrated" for the 4-blade propellers (in practical usage for exercises, the torpedo's maximum running distance could extend by up to 1500 metres beyond the set distance).
@@havardhovdet9217 Wow! Thanks.
I would like to build a model of the G7e. Where could get a set of drawings?
Drawing sources are given at the end of the notes for G7e. The G7a drawings are easiest to access however.
@@vbbsmyt Hello !
Are you ok ?
@@davidjenkins7389 Yes, thank you for asking. I had a couple of models that failed due to poor drawings, but now am working on a model of a 12.5 inch rifled muzzle loading cannon. I was interested in how it was operated - loaded, trained and fired while in a Fort's casement, and what it would be like in the basement ammunition stores with only a lantern for illumination. I am currently creating the animated scenes, but I suspect it will be a few weeks before I can publish.
@@vbbsmyt
> Yes, thank you for asking.
Very glad to hear that, thanks for the reply .
You are doing a great job and keep moving forward despite the setbacks. Keep gowing !
Best wishes .
I just got these on the game UBOAT build 131, freaking crazy dude
who also thaught at first the germans were propelling their torpedos with fat?
Realmente impresionante la tecnología es fascinante!!!!!
Brilliant - well done Rob Brassington👍
i didn't know to be a submarine captain in ww2, you have to be a math teacher lol
Holy shit. The amount of complexity and advancement of design using *clockwork* to make such an advanced munition is insane.
What is the source for "FAT" meaning "Federapparat"? On Wikipedia they say it means "Flächen-Absuch-Torpedo" (area search torpedo), which also makes more sense.
The official German manual issued in 1942 explicitly states: Federapparat für den Torpedo G7e (FAT = Torpedo mit Federapparat - Torpedo with 'spring device'). If that is what the people who made the device called it at the time, who am I to argue. I will stick with the official definition in this video. But see other explanations in previous comments what a FAT torpedo could be called later.
@@vbbsmyt Ahh, very good. Thank you!
What kind of brains you need to have to invent such a thing. Amazing!
Wow, imagine ur ship gets hit with by one of these and everyone on the remaining ships starts looking for subs in the direction the torp came from, but can't find any coz the torpedo was actually fired from the opposite side and only struck after making a 180.
Or even worse, imagine the above happened and there were allied subs in the direction the torp came from, everyone would think it was friendly fire when it really wasn't.
Loved the video @vbbsmyt! Can't wait for the next video man! This video will prove to be of some help for those of us in the Stormworks: Build and Rescue Community who want to try building the G7e "Falke" FAT Torpedo with the Search and Destroy DLC aka the Weapons DLC for use with some Kriegsmarine Vessels.
G7e "Falke" FAT..? There's no such thing. The G7e(TIV) "Falke" was the first operational torpedo with a passive-acoustoc homing, but quickly replaced by the improved G7es(TV) "Zaunkönig" (in regards to correct designations/nomenclature for german WW2-torpedoes and usage of codenames, I have explained it in this Wikipedia-artcile: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_World_War_II_torpedoes_of_Germany ).
There were three types of directional controls developed for the german torpedoes:
* Program-steering (mechanical Fat/Lut): Eight torpedomodels fielded by Kriegsmarine during WW2
* Self-homing (acoustic/ magnetic/ hydrostatic pressure): Three torpedomodels fielded by Kriegsmarine (only passive acoustic homing)
* Remote-control (cable or radio): Only one torpedomodel fielded by Kriegsmarine (wire guided)
No torpedo was equipped with both mechanical programsteering and homing systems. The only torpedo with a combination of control-methods was the G7es "Lerche" which was a combined passive-acoustic homing and wireguided torpedo (it was never operational, but was the first example of what is the standard today).
I have never heard about the term "DLC"...
Amazing work
This was very interesting. Great work :) I'm working on a similar project which will be a rendering of a full-rigged ship that was attacked by a German submarine in WW1. This specific sub is type U43 and name SU50. The captain was Gerhard Berger and he sunk my great grandfather's ship Blenheim in 1916. My goal is to recreate that exact moment in Unreal Engine. But there exists virtually no image or drawing of this sub that I know of. So if someone could direct me to a site, a book, or even a museum where I can find more information on this sub I will be very happy :)
you do 3D comission?
Fantastic video Bravo!
@vbbsmyt Will you ever make a video animation about the Voyager, Pioneer or New Horizons space probes?
Lot harder to get accurate mechanical drawings of those guys.
@@noiwonttellyoumyname.4385 i think it would be cool. He could explain the pioneer plaque and voyager golden records
@@stoneylonesome4062 You notice how everything that he does videos of, there's lots of moving parts and complicated animation? Not so much of that on a plaque.
@@noiwonttellyoumyname.4385 Yeah, I know, I just thought it might be interesting.
ничего не понимаю в титрах но зрительно это просто произведение искусства и наверное стоит оху....ю кучу денег даже для развитой страны
Она стоила шо пиздец. У него много роликов. И паро-газовая и простая электрическая. Ждем дальше видосов
That is very fascinating. Love the modeling work. Almost makes me wanna get the model from you and 3d print a mock up lol
Amazing detail and animation, it really shows how much did it take to make something that "just" was meant to explode. Have you evere considered making a videonabout the Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo? Seems quite interesting. Keep up the good work.
Maybe next video about ww1 skoda artillery please
The Type VII uboat looks so wonderfully aggressive. Must have been fun modeling it.
I meant to see this ages ago. As far as I know, most German U-boats of the second war didn't have those rangefinders. Most were just graduated with angular mils and there actually charts showing the conversion for different zoom levels to get the actual angle. A great website for more info is the torpedovorhaltrechner project which has all the info on the computers used to get the solution...Silent Hunter 3 also simulates a more basic version of this computer. I've often found the FATs to be a bit of a gimmick in game that is not particularly helpful. I usually prefer to just get within a kilometer of target and then send a standard G7 into the target. Of course I am aware that getting close was always risky back then. I believe the other problem posed by FAT was that the mechanism often didn't disconnect from the tube setting equipment properly and would often lead to 'tube runners'.
Unironically fantastic German engineering.
Solved my curiosity about the G6AV Torpedo I saw at the Budapest Military History Museum, its intricate and complex design is astonishing, and I wonder how it operates.
Amazing research and illustration, I bet the WWII era Uboat crews would have benefited from this video.
I supose the spring path was only practical for battery powered torpedos, since it will give the vessel under attack more chances to notice bubbles.
No, it was actually used primary with the G7a(TI) torpedoes, due to it's much longer running distance. The bubble-track wasn't (as) visible at night, and when the torpedo was equipped with a magnetic pistol, the depthsetting would make it's location way ahead of the bubbles, actually giving the target much less time to avoid it than you see portraited in movies...
How incredible!
The workmanship/attention to detail/ intricacies/complexity/precision/ ingenuity that went into it's creation is quite mind blowing!...R.
there was a toy car or truck from the 1960 that had this in it many little disks that made it go straight turn and so on.
Впервые узнал, что торпеда идёт таким маршрутом! Всегда думал, что только прямо! Благодарю!
Damn that is A LOT of CAD
I was a Quartermaster on a USN nuclear submarine. The tracking data for shooting a torpedo was almost the same as WW2 in the early 1970’s
If one puts this in comparison with the Mark 14 torpedo, you will see how much difference it makes to have people on your team that actually wanted the country to succeed.
Which team do you mean by that? 🙂
How is that relevant? Although both Kriegsmarine and US Navy had huge problems with technical malfunctions during the first couple of years of WW2, they were not completely compareable - neither in regards to the issues themselves nor the reasons. The G7e(TIII) was in fact the improved torpedo replacing the G7e(TII) which was "plagued" during the german "torpedokrise".
@@havardhovdet9217 atleast the kriegsmarine tried to address the problem by improving the detonator, compared to a certain company who made the mk14 refused to test it properly,hid the real manual, refused to ackowledge their flaw design, blame the user for not using it properly until chief of US Navy had to step in
@@mr.jancok4413 But who won at the end of the day?
@@mr.jancok4413The Mk14 was manufactured by the U.S. Navy itself. That was part of the problem - naval officers in command who wouldn’t believe that their “baby” was faulty (and in four independent different ways).
If this is how complex WWII German torpedoes were then I would love to see a video like this about the first world war German torpedoes but I'm not sure if you would have enough information on them to make a video like this on them but if you do that that would be awesome to see how they would go about designing a torpedo with their era of technology
This is an electricc propulsioned torpedo. It has s very simple design compared to the wetheater (steam-propulsioned) torpedoes. The wetheater-design didn't change much for the torpedoes produced in the period 1910-1950, so WW1 torpedoes (ie the various G/6 and G/7 models) would in principle be very much like the WW2 G7a(TI).
Fantastic work, thanks for posting.
That's waaay more complicated than a car for example. How did they do that 80 years ago?
Little more than cams and clockwork. Now the Norden bombsite was a mechanical computer and much more impressive.
Was the Fat the Single turn or the Zig Zags? I don't remember. Im most curious about Magnetic Pistols and how they worked.
Edit: zigzag. Gotcha.
Man! Now I understand the "Prototype FaT Type 95 O2 Torpedoes Kai" From Kantai Collection!!!
That was fabulous! So bloody clever! Must have had beautiful machining on all those moving parts. Hey, even the music overlay was good. Well done video and well done engineering!! Wonder at times how things may have ended if wartime Germany dumped the nazis and continued fighting.
Interesting comment....Yeah. I wonder....would they have made it to space sooner? Bit then would there have been a space race.. Awefull to imagine the not dumping the Nazis bit
Great old technology , Love your channel
Were German torpedoes as unreliable as the American torpedoes in WWII?
The Germans spent a lot of time testing their torpedoes and were, I believe, mechanically reliable in terms of propulsion, steering and depth control. They, like the US and Brits, developed influence fuzes at the start of the war. Both the Brits and Germans found out very quickly that magnetic influence fuzes were a disaster and quickly abandoned them. American torpedoes suffered from design errors that caused them to run deep during the first year after they entered the war, and it is notable that they only fired 2 live Mk14 torpedoes during development, one of which failed to explode. Lack of realistic testing was the problem.
@@vbbsmyt This is not correct. The german "torpedokrise" (1939-42) was a result of a total of 4 different issues that each - or in combination - affected the performance of the naval torpedoes:
1: Leaking depthmechanisms would cause a wrong internal reference-pressure for torpedoes aboard submarines, causing them to run too deep (ie preventing the torpedo of actually hitting the target activating the mechanical ignition-mechanism or activating the influence-mechanism). The problem was solved by introducing a new depthmechansim - the "Tiefenapparat II" (TA II). Torpedoes with TA II was identified with a green ring around the depthmechanism cover.
2: The influence-mechanism (magnetic) of the Pi G7A-MZ pistol couldn't be calibrated for the natural magnetic fields of the northern hemisphere, and especially in narrow fiords. This caused a variety of malfunctions ranging from premature detonations, delayed detonations after passing the target or no detonations at all. As an immediate fix, the influencemechanism was swithced off and the pistols were used only with its mechanical mechanism (due to issue nos 1 and 3, it didn't quite help though). The problem was finally fixed by developing the new combined mechanical/influence pistol Pi 2, introduced in 1942.
3: Bad design of the defelction arms for the mechanical mechanisms of the PI G7A-AZ and Pi G7A-MZ pistols. The size and shape of the arms gave a limited window of attack-angle to activate the detonator. This problem was increased by issue no 1, as torpedoes launched by uboats also would go deeper than normal, thus hitting the target at the more sloped/rounded part of the hull, deflecting the torpedo without activating the pistol. This was fixed by introducing the Pi G7H (later designated Pi 1) pistol in 1941 with longer deflection arms, increasing the range for activating down to 16 degrees angle of attack).
4: In addition (separate issue) there was a design defect in the early G7a(TI) engineblocks causing it to crack at highspeed setting (44 kn). This lead to banning the 44 kn setting for torpedoes with the old engines (torpedoes with the new engine was marked with a 5 cm green stripe on the top of the aftsection).
The reasons for the german problems were mainly caused by lack of qualitycontrol at Torpedo Versuch Anstalt, leading to a war trial against the leaders in charge. The main difference between US Navy and Kriegsmarine in this respect, was that the latter took reports and complaints from the crews seriously and made immediate efforts to rectify the situation with short- and longterm solutions.
Influence mechanisms are in general superior to mechanical mechanisms in terms of effect in the target. As soon as Kriegsmarine (and Luftwaffe) had properly working influence mechanisms available, they were reintroduced and kept in service throughout the war.
Would you be able to provide which graphics program you used for the torpedo mechanism operation?
and imagine what a miracle it was to control the engine of the Focke-Wulf 190 airplane. It was literally an analog computer
Impressive Video. Thank you very much.
I'd like to see the difference to the G7A torpedo
😉