*British, WW2, 21″ Mk VIII Royal Navy Submarine Torpedo Propeller*
8 blades
Marked:”21″ V111, AA” / “21” V111, SNo: 8031″
This is a propeller designed for the 21-inch Mark VIII torpedo, crafted from a blend of bronze and steel, featuring various stamped markers indicating prop shaft sizes, cypher marks, and rotation directions. It is affixed to a sturdy oak board, approx: 56cm diameter, 27cm high.
The British Royal Navy has employed 21-inch (533 mm) torpedoes since their inception just prior to the First World War. These torpedoes of 21 inches cal were the largest in common usage within the Royal Navy, utilized by both surface ships and submarines.
The 21-inch Mark VIII torpedo was developed in 1925, boasting a diameter of 21 inches (533 mm), a length of 21 feet 7 inches (6.579 m), weighing 1,566 kg, and carrying a 340 kg TNT warhead. It pioneered the use of the burner-cycle engine, a significant technological advancement at the time. This engine utilized pressurized air heated and combined with atomized fuel, injected and ignited into the combustion chamber at the piston’s top dead center. This innovation allowed the Mark VIII to sustain a speed of 40 knots (74.1 km/h) for a distance of 4.57 km. It was incorporated into submarines of the O class onwards and motor torpedo boats from 1927 onwards.
During World War II, the primary version utilized was the enhanced Mark VIII**, with 3,732 being deployed by September 1944, accounting for 56.4% of total usage. Notably, the Mark VIII** was responsible for sinking the German submarine U-864 in 1945 and the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano in 1982 during the Falklands War. This torpedo model saw extensive deployment throughout World War II and, post-war, was redesignated as the Mark 8 torpedo, serving in the Royal Navy until the 1990s.
Mark VIII:
Entered service: 1927
Weight: 3,452 lb (1,566 kg)
Length: 259 in (6.6 m)
Explosive charge: 750 lb (340 kg) TNT
Range and speed: 5,000 yd (4,600 m) at 40 kn (74 km/h)
Other Markings:
“Starting: 21″ V111 / SNo: 8031 / AW”
“21” V111, AA”
“MOD 3 / NCS / RF”
“NCS / RF”
“Pitch/ 36 to 50 / DIAr.19.70 / No 1053”
“Pitch/ 35 8/ DL 17 90 / No 21 / Starting”
Vehicles equipped with this weapon:
Motor gun boats: SGB Grey Fox, SGB Grey Goose
Motor torpedo boats: Brave Borderer, Dark Aggressor, Dark Aggressor TD, Fairmile D (617), Fairmile D (5001), HMS Gay Archer, MTB Vosper, MTB Vosper(2), MTB-422 Pfeil
Destroyers: HMS Churchill, HMS Grafton
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