Calling all Armed Trawlers fans (WW1 & WW2)

[Jimmy Conway]

Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Commercial trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work heavy trawls in all types of weather. Replace the trawl with a mine sweep and a mine sweeper is created. Trawlers also have large clear working decks which can be suitable for depth charge racks. Adding asdic and a 4-inch gun up front creates an anti-submarine boat.
Armed trawlers were also used to defend fishing groups from enemy aircraft or submarines. The smallest civilian trawlers were converted to danlayers.
The naval trawler is a concept for expeditiously converting a nation's fishing boats and fishermen to military assets. England used trawlers to maintain control of seaward approaches to major harbors. No one knew these waters as well as local fishermen, and the trawler was the ship type these fishermen understood and could operate effectively without further instruction. The Royal Navy maintained a small inventory of trawlers in peacetime, but requisitioned much larger numbers of civilian trawlers in wartime. The larger and newer trawlers and whalers were converted for antisubmarine use and the older and smaller trawlers were converted to minesweepers

Text from Wikipedia

Trawlers of the Royal Navy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is an accounting of the naval trawlers, purpose built or requisitioned, operated by the Royal Navy mainly during WWI and WWII.
Mersey
Castle
Strath
Dance
Basset
Tree
Shakespearian
Isles
Admiralty
Portuguese
Brazilian
Castle
Hills
Fish
Round Table
Military
Requisitioned: These were ships taken over by the Admiralty


Auxiliary Patrol
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Auxiliary Patrol was an antisubmarine initiative by the British to help combat German submarine operations in the early stages of World War I. It was the pioneer of anti-submarine warfare.
The majority of British trawlers were commandeered by the Admiralty, and those left were obliged to fish in groups of 20 with additional protection.
The Auxiliary Patrol was crewed by fishermen and led mainly by Merchant Navy men commissioned into the Royal Naval Reserve. They were a hardy bunch who operated as trawlers do, in all weathers. Their trawlers were retrofitted with armaments, typically 3,6 or 12-pounder guns as well as 7.5" Bomb Throwers (Anti Submarine howitzers). Specialist crew such as signallers and gunners were also put on board.
Later in the war the Admiralty built 3 classes of larger trawlers as well as developing a new special class of Minesweeper.
By the Second World War, the Royal Navy had formed a specialist minesweeping capability, and the Royal Naval Patrol Service was formed, known to many as "Harry Tates Navy".

[Jimmy Conway]

But not only the British used these ships as war effort but many other countries, so I can list New Zealand, Germany, Brazil, US, Russia, France, Canada, Australia..........and so on if anybody can list more countries......
And I think these ships are very elegant with interesting and amazing design, so i like their lines to build good models.


Follow the link to see a nice model of some Round Table class.................. HMT Sir Kay
http://www.bismarck-class.dk/shipmodels ... achin.html

[Jimmy Conway]

I like this site very much, that has lots of photos, and the link for armed and ASW trawlers is excellent.......................... see some sample!
http://www.navyphotos.co.uk/index4.htm

[Jimmy Conway]

Following some drawings from

http://www.aberdeenships.com/

[Jimmy Conway]

You can get good plans for british armed trawlers with Mr John Lambert at: http://www.lambert-plans.com/

Nice regards: Jimmy

[Jimmy Conway]

Brazilian Navy trawlers in operations, during WW2. F5 "Vidal de Negreiros" and F3 "Henrique Dias", both "Barreto de Menezes" class, classified in Brazil as Corvettes.

http://www.naval.com.br/ngb/V/V015/V015-f01.htm
http://www.naval.com.br/ngb/H/H004/H004-f01.htm

[Jimmy Conway]

The Corvette �Henrique Dias�, former �Pargo� was the second ship to bear that name in the Brazilian Navy, in homage to the hero of the Guararapes War against the Dutch in northeastern Brazil in the seventeenth century. The English Fishing Vessel�Pargo�, and five other units in the same class, was ordered in February 1941, the shipowner The Marine Navigation Company Ltd., and built on the site of the Organization Henrique Lage, on the Island of Viana, Niter�i, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. With the outbreak of the 2nd World War, these ships still in progress, with all units already hit with keel and two released, were assigned by the British Admiralty the Brazilian government on August 24, 1942, which went to pay its construction, being built by Notice No. 1708 of October 12, 1942. The �Pargo� was reclassified as Corvette and was named �Henrique Dias�. It was launched into the sea on August 28, 1942, and incorporated on September 9, 1943.

Text from:
http://www.naval.com.br/ngb/H/H004/H004.htm

[Pieter]

Just came across a free paper download of an admiralty 65.5 ft motor fishing vessel. Enjoy!
http://www.cfp.muerell.de/product/details/9

[Jimmy Conway]

Just came across a free paper download of an admiralty 65.5 ft motor fishing vessel. Enjoy!
http://www.cfp.muerell.de/product/details/9

Thanks Pieter, I got this plan, and have some of a russian trawler, that I'll try to find the link to put here...a more complex design, but very interesting.....
nice regards: Jimmy

[Jimmy Conway]

See russian drawings for an armed trawler........seens its name's "Tuman"....

http://mkmagazin.almanacwhf.ru/ships/tuman.htm

you can download the plan from the link written....??????? ??? ??????

[mike mccabe]

Some good links and information here, an unglamorous and largely unheralded group of ships which were especially vital for convoy protection in the early years of WW2.

Not sure if you have seen this from a few years back and on another site, but this is a wonderful build -
http://www.steelnavy.com/GrenadierMilitaryTrawlerLE.htm

Mike

[les]

Revell's Flower Class Corvette hull would be a good choice for a hull. Then you'd just have to build the deck house, etc.

[Jimmy Conway]

Some good links and information here, an unglamorous and largely unheralded group of ships which were especially vital for convoy protection in the early years of WW2.

Not sure if you have seen this from a few years back and on another site, but this is a wonderful build -
http://www.steelnavy.com/GrenadierMilitaryTrawlerLE.htm

Mike

Excellent building and LE made a superb weathering enriching that. John Lambert has plans for this class of trawlers.

[mike mccabe]

I have some small scale plans in an old edition of model shipwright, I keep meaning to get round to doing one in 1:700

Mike

[jRatz]

My trawler of interest is HMT Bedfordshire, shown in the only known wartime photo below.



Bedfordshire was a coal/steam trawler 162' long, 27' wide, displacing 900T, built by Smith's Docks at Southbank-on-Trent in 1935. Requisitioned by the RN in 1939 and converted to A/S, it served in the Bristol/English channels until March 1942 when it was sent to the US as "reverse lend-lease" to help with the U-Boat threat along the east coast where it ended up on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, the Graveyard of the Atlantic, where I live.

It was torpedoed and sunk with the loss of all hands on 11 May 1942 by U-558. 4 bodies were recovered, buried on Ocracoke Island, and every year the UK sends a Naval representative to a memorial service.

Anyway, I have searched high/low for plans specific to this trawler or her sisters without luck. I have the Lambert plans which give me genarl ideas and some basic info. I can scratch build it, but would rather avoid doing the hull and so have been looking for something suitable to hack up. So far I have a Revell 1/142 North Sea Trawler approx 174' long which would yield a scale about 1/132 for Bedfordshire. Also Lindberg will be releasing their old 1/90 Atlantic Trawler which would yield about 1/112 scale for Bedfordshire.

It's a low priority effort until I get my ducks in order, but any help, suggestions, etc, would be appreciated.
If I do it, I hope it'll end up in one of our local museums.

John Ratzenberger
Nags Head, NC

[RickF]

You will may find these interesting:

http://www.gwpda.org/naval/atrawler.htm A page for page scan of Admiralty Trawlers and Drifters, 1916 - 1921 (D.N.C. Admiralty, Copy No. 54) 41 pages plus some photos and quite good drawings.

http://www.gwpda.org/naval/rntrawlr.htm Some crew details (but not much!)

http://www.gwpda.org/naval/rnsinnrs.htm List of captured German trawlers

They can be found on the WW1 Document Archive http://www.gwpda.org/

Rick

[Stefano Salesi]

searching up and down for some small vessel to put along my Tamiya Prinz Eugen i found a photo of a very intresting little ship.
The note claims for a Norwegian fishing vessel....and the evidence claims for an Ex Norwegian fihing vessel, armed by Kriegsmarine...
For what can be seen the "trawler" is armed with a single 20 mm gun on the stern and an MG on the bow (maybe mg42? doubt on it..the barrel seems too long...maybe an MG34? )

i don't think that this ship exist in kit..so...i think I will have to scratchbuild the thing....I'll try to draw a plan starting by the photo, if it will be well done i will post it....

[mike mccabe]

Just came across these photos of the Pitroad Isles class trawler recently released. Have to say, doesn't look all that great.

http://www.hlj.com/product/INTSM-34?nav=rss

Mike

[Quincy]

I agree with you Mike. The finished product does not look all that great. Maybe if they had all the bells and whistles to dress up the kit it would have looked better.



Bob Pink.

[mike mccabe]

Not cheap either, although there are two in the box. Makes me think even more I need to get on with following Rob's Type 41 lead and do some scratchbuilding and casting.

Mike