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HMS Vanoc vs U100


Phil Reeder

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THE END OF THE "HAPPY TIME"

In March 1941 ,the homeward bound convoy HX112,was under the escort of the group led by Commander Donald Mcintyre,and came under attack by several U-Boats,and lost several merchant ships.On the night of the 12th,a U-boat was seen on the surface a short distance from the convoy,the escorts Walker and Vanoc promptly attacked the U-boat,which by this time had dived.They both carried out Depth-charge attacks ,and shortly after this Vanoc got a contact on her Radar ,and went to full-speed on a intercept course,and spotted the U-boat travelling at full speed.Vanoc was in an ideal position to ram,which she did ,resulting in the sub sinking,after rescueing six survivors ,she rejoined the Walker,who had also got a visual sighting on another U-boat,which had dived,and had been badly damaged by Walker`s subsequent D/C attack,this sub then surfaced and came under fire from both the Walker and Vanoc.The crew of the U-boat then abandoned ship ,and were rescued by the Walker.

THe two U-boats sunk ,belonged to the two most successful commanders in the DKM,U100 was Schepke`s boat ,and U-99 belonged to Kretschmer,the top-scoring "ace".Schepke was crushed by the bows of the Vanoc,as he was on the conning tower of the sub.His last words were "Don`t worry boys ,she`ll miss us astern"Theory has it that he was deceived by Vanoc`s unusual camouflage .The Radar contact made by Vanoc ,was the first one made during the war on a U-Boat.Dornitz was worried by the loss of his "Aces",as the other Ace Prien had been sunk by HMS Wolverine a short time before.

THE MODELs

For the Vanoc I`m rebuilding an old Skytrex model of a VW destroyer.I`ve removed most of the previous paintwork,and it does not need a great deal of work to turn out a model of the Vanoc.As for the U-boat U-100 ,the Hobbyboss of the Type VII is to be used.

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The part-painted hull of the U100,with just the right amount of rust!

Cheers Phil

Edited by Phil Reeder
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Oooooh yes!!! I thrilled to MacIntyres " The Battle of the Atlantic" as a youngster & again not so long ago. I'll be awaiting the result of this build with enthusiasm & no doubt a little impatience. You've picked a fascinating subject Phil & I'm sure you'll do it more than justice.

Steve.

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I`ve painted the Vanoc`s vertical surfaces (although you can`t really see that ),and both the hulls have been cocooned in cling-film,and attached to the base.I made the seascape as per my usual method ,when dry the C/F will be removed ,and the Vanoc`s decks will be brush painted.I plan to finish the U100 first,as this should be the easier of the two models.This is the first time I`ve done a diorama ,it`s set my brain ticking thinking of other things I could do.

Cheers Phil

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U-100 is now finished,what a smashing little kit it is ,too!I hope I haven`t over-done the rust,but I figured that a few weeks in the North Atlantic would ruin any paintwork ! The small splashes are from a Lewis gun mounted on the bridge of the Vanoc,and as it was too close for anything larger to be brought to bear.I used MiG weathering powders for the rust effect,both light and dark rust were used.

Cheerio ,Phil

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Thanks to an excellent Hobbyboss U-boat ,which went together like a dream ,and the Skytrex VW destroyer being virtually in one piece,requiring only painting and the addition of the smaller details,this little diorama is now complete and the pics are in the "completed builds" section.

I may do something else,before this GB ends.

Bye ,Phil

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