Tores mailbox VIIC and VIIC/41 operation and technical details

[NZSnowman]

Tore, I am no expert but this look like a U-boat LO Purifier?

[tore]

Simon
I just was going to post the same assumption. Macieks find that there are sender and receiver at different locations in the saddle fuel/ballasttanks strongly indicate this is indeed the echosounder. As there are two similar boxes at different places make this more probable  than a possible deviation from the location mention in the book. Below is the pictures of the two locations, to me it looks like port side just aft of the controlroom and starboard side of the engine room based on my VIIC ideas. .
Tore

[tore]

Simon.
Purifier.
Your picture could very well be a purifiermodule.
Tore

[NZSnowman]

Hi Tore

Not part of the Engine Room, but part of the Cooling-water system, I found the Hull valve in the E. Room 

[NZSnowman]

Simon.
Purifier.
Your picture could very well be a purifiermodule.
Tore

 

I found it on U-505

http://archive.msichicago.org/exhibit/U505/virtualtour/vr_tour/movie_diesel.html

[tore]

Simon
As I said I am not at all conversant with the IXC so you have to take everything from me with a pinch of salt on that subject. Anyhow I am convinced it is the echosounder.
Tore

[tore]

Simon
Purifier.
As you see it is a fairly sizeable piece of equipment I believe you can see the waterheater fitted on the module as well. You certainly would have seen it in the engine room.  It just confirms that on later VIICs and VIIC/41 they did away with the purifier and installed better filters instead.
Tore

[NZSnowman]

Simon
Purifier.
As you see it is a fairly sizeable piece of equipment...
Tore

I imagine it was one of the weight-saving they found between the Type VIIC and the VIIC/41. They were able to make the VIIC/41 11.5 tons lighter, which they later put back in the pressure hull.

[tore]

Simon.
That could be, but I am pretty sure our two VIICs U 926 and U 1202 did not have the purifier as well.
Tore

[NZSnowman]

Simon.
That could be, but I am pretty sure our two VIICs U 926 and U 1202 did not have the purifier as well.
Tore

Hi Tore,

I was not meaning the changes were only for the Type VIIC/41's and I am sure the late war VIIC's got as many of the update also.

Tore, when do you think they started to removing the reversing cylinder? It must be sometime after 43??

I have noted a huge different in the layout of the forward end of the engine between the engines with and without the reversing cylinder. I been using the wrong layout (with a reversing cylinder) So I will need to charge my drawing around.

[NZSnowman]

I could not help myself, I had to add a little more detail to the drawing. Check out the new fuel filter markings

[tore]

Simon
Based upon my experience with our 3 VIICs-VIIC/41 I would imagine  your had  major changes in the uboats delivered from the yards as from July 1943. U 995 our oldest VIIC/41 delivered July 1943 and the two other delivered end 1943 had nonreversible engines, removed purifier etc. That would not eliminate possible earlier changes. Installation of the schnorchel was carried out later, for U 995 it was just completed at the end of the war May 1945.
Tore

[tore]

Simon
Your fuelfilters looks marvelous.
Tore

[tore]

Simon
Reversing mainengine.
The conversion to a nonreversible engine was really not a major change. They removed the reversingcylinder( the large cylinder),the reversing slide valve ( the small cylinder) and pipings. The tachometer and enginetelegraph as well as the reversing nameplate (removing the handle) was not removed or changed as can be seen on the photo below.
Tore

[NZSnowman]

New layout without reversing cylinder.

You can see the main change the Germans did, they moved the air starting valve and the fuel filters into alignment of the base plate of the missing reversing cylinder.