Customer Reviews

U.S. Submarines Through 1945 : An Illustrated Design History

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If this is not the definitive book, it must come pretty close. As one of the most respected naval analyst, the author covers the birth and development of submersible ships and submarines with minute details from their inceptions to the II WW latest types.

The text is extraordinarily well researched, reflecting its scholar-like approach to the subject; nevertheless it is an easy and relaxing read, expecially if you take into account the deep level of accuracy and precise reconstruction of historical events. Specific aspects of submarine technology are carefully dissected: the naval yard organization, the US Navy Bureaus capacity and their (obviously) rivalry in design competence, the development of powerplants and hulls. A particular attention is dedicated to submarine perfomances evolution, how they were estimated conducting tradeoff studies and inspecting foreign submarines and equipment. In a well orchestrated narration, the book provides a detailed insight into technical and political machinations of subs building programs, explaining the different (to tell the truth I should say conflicting) opinions of political leadership, Staff strategic conceptions for the Arm, service Bureaus technical management and , last but not the least, the real requisites of Commanding Officers, the ultimate users ( and the one that took the risks in combat). A true gem in the volume is the data provided in appendices.They cover mainly submarine propulsion and periscope development: since they are vital technologies, shaping the sub operative capability and seagoing perfomance, full studies are presented giving a clear picture of design and manifacturing practices as demanded by the Navy. Weapons, fire control, sonars, tactics, instruments and systems innovations are also covered. For each of them, the author delivers a clarifying view of "how" scientist and builders achieved leaping technological solutions to enhance fighting capabilities. This authoritative content is supported by a fascinating collection of photographs, complemented by extensive use of cross sections, inboard profiles plus drawings and sketches of abortive designs.

There is no doubt at all, this beatiful hardcover volume will adorn your bookcase, barely withstanding the heavy use it will unquestionably get as a reference source.

This is an excellent book for the serious student of submarine history. It is perhaps the most authoritative reference book on the subject of post WWII submarines. Not only is it detailed and fully illustrated, it contains excellent tables comparing performance, size, etc. of various American submarine classes. One of its most valuable features is its descriptions of the performance characteristics of each generation of submarine and descriptions of how the designers of each successive generation attempted to improve performance. It explores, in depth, the characteristics of various generations of submarine devices, most notably sonar. It is fully footnoted and the footnotes often contain remarkable bits of info.

In the early 60's, I was able to take a tour of the USS Steelhead before it was decommissioned at San Diego. This book does not show me standing there, but it comes very close. The book documents submarines from the start to the second war in detail. It includes problems, solutions, working with a government that had to have congressional approval for hiring one draftsman and how far motivated people can go in the space of 10 years driven by dreams and not greed. To business... The book is very heavy on facts and backs them up with pictures. It lacks section views for model makers but the side diagrams are excellent. The facts are presented in a technical manor and appears to be a lifetime collection of information by a dedicated author. All the facts can make it a hard read later in the book, but press on to get to the surprise ending about periscopes! The book claims to cover every stinking submarine from the start to 1945, in extreme detail, and it does!

Quite simply THE authoritative work on post-World War Two American submarines and the design and tactics philosophies that went into creating them. The photographs were well-chosen and the line drawings are some of the best I've seen of U.S. subs.

This book is excellent. It covers not only the physical descriptions of US subs, but the engineering, political, and other factors that contributed to the various design features.

Expect to spend a lot of time referring back and forth between chapters in order to gain a complete understanding of not only what these boats were like, but why they were built the way they were.

This book is very interesting its main goal being to explain how subs changed over the course of about 50 years from the Civil War up to the end of 1945 . I do caution though that this book is written in a very complex(naval engineering) manner that the casual reader will have trouble comprehending. Some of the data is very complex and the author does use at times an off putting format.Often vital data is only found in the chapter notes rather than in the chapter itself forcing the reader to thumb from where they are in the book to the notes section.

I would only recommend this book if you are very interested in naval history and having a nautical vocabulary is some what a must. In other words if you dont know what abaft abeam and such mean you are going to be very confused. Also it is a must that you have an understanding of how submarines operate in the basic manner before you read this book other wise you will be lost.For the casual reader or if you are looking for a more casual book about submarines I would only give this book three stars.