Hi Mike,
with all due respect:"rooh"!
I kind of knew this was coming up...
First off:
Please read this statement I made below the drawing:
References on this design are scarce. So please note that my drawing is to be taken with the "usual grain of salt". I had to do some "guesses" here and there.
To create a reasonably believable drawing of a ship that never left the drawing board is always tricky and involves quite a bit of guesswork.
Saying that this or that is wrong about a ship that never was is stretching it quite a bit.
I tend to follow the references I have as much as possible and add details that seem logical and can be found on similar RL ships. I feel, that I can say, that I put a considerable a mount of thought and effort into these drawings, but am not that presumptuous to say that my drawings are perfect or the "definite" version.
To be honest, I like it better to draw real ships, because there you "simply" draw what you can see on plans and photos.
Regarding the points you made:
1. HA-Rangefinders:
The "mini-bobbleheads" can be found on all the references from H39, H40A and H40B. Curiously enough, drawings of the later H41 show SL8 RFs.
Remember that the very picture
you posted some time ago in this very tread shows the H39 with said "mini" Rfs...
If you don't like how "bad" they look, please feel free to draw a better version and send it to me!
2. Airplanes:
Leaving off the planes was a conscious decision I made, because my reference picture was showing the ship without aircraft handling facilities. Not even a crane can be seen on the aft part like on the H39s.
I do believe however, that the ship would have been equipped with seaplanes.
3. Radar:
I will not depict radar euqipment on a never build ship, unless my references show so. It would have been logical to add some (though imho no FuMO-23 like you show!), but I want to keep the speculation to a minimum in my drawings.
4. 37mm guns:
Again, references state that all H-class versions were to be equipped with 37mm L/83's. The Kriegsmarine was so ridiculously slow to replace those awful guns, that this even makes sense. Especially on a ship that was drawn up in December 1940, when virtually no alternatives were available.
5. Length issues:
My references say that the ship was to be 299,8 m long. The H39 was to be 277,8 m long.
I am not an engineer, but I believe this might have something to do with the facts, that the 40B was to be ~3000 tons heavier and ~2 knots faster. Also the machinery layout was to be different. (H39 Diesel only vs H40A mixed steam/Diesel)
To add a final point, the following is the reference I used:
Edit: Image deleted (if others can why can't I
)
Additional information was taken from the excellent
http://www.german-navy.de
P.S.:
I hope this didn't come off as arrogant or too harsh. I just wanted to make a few things clear.
Also excuse my English, it has become quite rusty...
cheers!
-maomatic-