S-204 Carrying Mines

[Airborne SF]

I have returned to my build of the 1/35 S-100 after a hiatus.  I am building it as S-204 just before her surrender.  Mainly because there are a fair number of good photos of her at Felixstowe with S-205.  This allows my to add a lot of details and correct a few things that are missing from the kit.  One of the things I have added are the late war mine rails that run up both sides of the boat.  As I understand it (please correct me if I'm wrong)) the S-boots carried the LMB/S mine and late in the war the TMB mines.  I am equipping her with six TMB mines, which as I understand is the maximum they could carry due to weight.  However I have yet to see a photo of an S-boot with the mines on board.  Does anyone know of a photo?  How were they distributed on the rails?  I assume one at the stern, one alongside the galley area and the third beside the aft engine room.  

 

Another question if I may, is at the stern on the port side, there is a flat bar that can pivot across the stern.  I have seen it in photos but I have absolutely no idea what it is for.  Does anyone know it's purpose.

 

Thanks in advance for any help offered. 

[Little Timmy]

The bar across the stern is to prevent the mines from going overboard prematurely. 

 

But that's just my guess. Some pictures of what your asking about would be helpful. 

[Richard502]

On 3/24/2025 at 8:37 PM, Airborne SF said:

  However I have yet to see a photo of an S-boot with the mines on board.  Does anyone know of a photo?  How were they distributed on the rails?  I assume one at the stern, one alongside the galley area and the third beside the aft engine room.  

 

Steve Wiper's Warship Pictorial 15, "Kriegsmarine Schnellboote" p. 46, has 2 photos of Schnellboote being loaded with mines. Caption: "...photos show two of the types of mines that were carried and deployed by these vessels."

2 mines are stowed on the port mine rail way aft, the crew are watching a third one being lowered onto the port rail forward of the other two. I do not know whether they are TBMs or not (the are spherical with horns, sitting on a sledge). A - to me - unidentifiable object sits on the starboard mine-rail. It may be a mine as the caption mentions two types.

Apologies, but I haven't got a scanner.

[Arjan]

The only pic of an S-100 type boat I know with the mine rails you mention in use :

 

 

The pic is not clear and I don't know anything about mines so I don't know what type of mines we see here. Another pic of an earlier S-boot, again I can't tell you which type of mines are on the rails. The canvas cover doesn't help :

 

 

Perhaps you could show us some pics of the 1/35 mines you've got.

 

Regards,

 

Arjan

 

 

[Arjan]

In the mean time I've looked up what a TMB mine looks like and I think that both pics I posted show these mines. 

 

 

In other words, it seems to me you got the answer to your question. I doubt any better pics will turn up.

 

edit: Another pic showing the mines in question, location IJmuiden lock :

 

 

Arjan

Edited March 31 by Arjan

[Arjan]

Regarding your question about the bar. Not clear to me which bar you are referring to. If it's the object I marked with a red arrow then it's the emergency tiller :

 

 

Arjan

[Airborne SF]

You guys are fantastic.  Thanks so much for the photos, they made my day!!!