Calling all Russian submarine fans

[nfrancis3]

I just ordered 5 kits from Boris....they came through perfectly...no issues like what was discussed above. Arrived pretty quick too...ordered on Jul 21 and they arrived yesterday- For those interested the 5 kits were: Papa, Mike, Sierra II, Charlie II, Golf II

[Tom Dougherty]

Where are you located? The Polar Bear experience seems to vary among people.
Did your kits arrive intact with no broken parts?

Tom

[nfrancis3]

I'm in Missouri. Everything came through perfectly... Was very very well packed-

[Tom Dougherty]

Unfortunately that was not my experience. We have people who have been waiting for several weeks up to over a year for delivery. I know he is in an area with some recent turmoil, but it would be good to know exactly what is happening at Polar Bear and to see kits getting delivered. I am encouraged by your experience. Thanks for posting and replying!

Tom

[nfrancis3]

Question guys...anyone done Boris' Sierra II? I have 4 small fins...one certainly goes on the side of the sail...the sub-waterline SOKS fins were molded with the hull...any ideas on where the other 3 fins go? Looked at his site and couldn't glean much from the completed kit photos

[nfrancis3]

May have found a partial answer...see if some of the experts here agree. Found a few photos on a forum that show the Sierra I having a few fins that the Sierra II does not, below shows them in front of the sail as well as one on the sail...

[Vepr157]

As far as I can tell, the only fins with SOKS on them are one on the starboard side of the sail and two 3/4 down the hull. There are other SOKS sensors on the front of the sail and on the upper casing, but no other fins besides those three.

[Bwi]

AKULA
Help needed on the underwater SOKS positions

Is there someone who has a clear picture of the SOKS on PS

The position of the SOKS on SB is clear (million pictures available)
The position of the SOKS on PS is vague, it seems it�s not the same as on SB I only found one blur picture of them.

Thks & grtz,
Bart


SB position




PS position (difficult to see how they are placed due to the camera angle)

[Vepr157]

From some plans I have of various Akulas, it seems that the configuration is three small pods and one fin on the starboard side, and just the fin on the port side. There are a few different configurations of SOKS (you can even see that there are only two spikes on the sail instead of the usual array), but this one seems to be the most common.

[Bwi]

Vepr157 you helped me out AGAIN, thank you.

Didn't notice the "bull horns" SOKS on the sail. So the K-154 together with the K-328 (No SOKS) are different from the other two AKULA I IMPROVED flight II subs.

I never realized there were so many variants.

I have also seen a picture of the K-154 with "full" sail SOKS, probably a later upgrade.

Thks again
Grtz,
Bart

[Vepr157]

Nerpa also doesn't have SOKS, which may be due to her being exported.

Surprisingly, the two probe configuration is actually seems to be an upgrade. Gepard and Tigr both had a full array of probes on the sail and then switched to the "bull horns" at some later time. The newest version of SOKS found on Severodvinsk, only has small bumps (similar to the small pods on the Akula) on the sides of the sail and upper hull. I suspect when the Akulas are modernized in the coming years, they will emerge with the same low-profile SOKS as Severodvinsk.

[Tom Dougherty]

Question for Pierre (Kagou):

Did you ever receive the kits you ordered from Polar Bear??

Thanks!
Tom

[Kagou]

Hi Tom

Unfortunately no and no mail from Boris .I would like to transform my 1/700 subs payment (april 2014) for a 1/350 Golf II...

I'm satisfied for nfrancis and his subs .It proves that when Boris wants he can .

I am as you Tom, I don't t know how to do
Best regards

Pierre

[nfrancis3]

Pierre,

Sorry to hear this....really wonder if I just got dumb lucky. Also makes me leery to order a 2nd batch...

Nick

[Tom Dougherty]

Nick,
By my count, you probably paid close to $500 for the five kits. Big order, big attention.

I do want to order a Golf II, but between the issues some have had with delivery and lack of communication, as well as the state of the Hotel II kit I did get, I am reluctant to commit to the $90 for the kit.

Tom

[Neptune]

If you look well on that lower picture of portside SOKS, you can see the three pods below the fin on portside of the sub, so definately they are there. They seem to be in one line, but difficult to tell from that picture.

[Vepr157]

If you look well on that lower picture of portside SOKS, you can see the three pods below the fin on portside of the sub, so definately they are there. They seem to be in one line, but difficult to tell from that picture.

Those are keel supports, not sensors. See this photo (ignore the arrows):

https://i.imgur.com/2xbRAwJ.jpg

[Neptune]

it does indeed look like that. A bit strange though, because that means they can't really triangulate or give any direction of the signal from only two positions from those sensors.

[Vepr157]

it does indeed look like that. A bit strange though, because that means they can't really triangulate or give any direction of the signal from only two positions from those sensors.

As we've discussed before it seems pretty unlikely that SOKS uses "triangulation".

[Neptune]

Yeah it probably doesn't in the way that triangulation would give distance and bearing, what I really mean is that it would give you directions, up, down, portside, starboard side by activating certain sensors. However the fins could act that way with their positions, while the other sensors would work in a different way. The reason for having three of each in each position (for the drop shaped ones, this might have to do with reliability of the equipment rather than functionality. You can't just walk outside to clean or repair these sensors on a sub.
On other pictures from the yards I can indeed see there is only the fin type on portside.