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Author Topic: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet  (Read 29156 times)

Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #25 on: May 11, 2011, 07:15:11 pm »

Good luck Dave with yours!  The superstructure on this one is not quite right either, some of the windows and one of the doors are in the wrong place which will need re-locating, there is also one part of the rear cabin section that is totally wrong which i will have to re-build that section, i know why its wrong, as the build plans want me to cut notches in the section to fit in the base funnel but there really is no need as the base is covers by two huge vents either side so i have no idea why they hashed it up in the first place, and it can't be due to the section being removable to get access, once the lifeboat deck is glued to both parts you can't separate them. God only knows what they were smoking when they built this, but hell i want some i might actually get more work done!  :D
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Dave13

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #26 on: May 11, 2011, 07:38:32 pm »

With mine I don't know if they ever looked at the plans of the real ship!!!!! :o
Or they were smoking something really strong LOL {-) {-)
The only trouble is the it cost £ 612 and that was 7 years ago.
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #27 on: May 11, 2011, 07:59:48 pm »

7 year build!? if I'm still doing this one in 7 months ( mind you i have dedicated 1 year to the project) I think someone's gotta shoot deans marines for making crap kits! surly by now people have complained about this quality issue they are knocking out?? my advice to anyone who's interested in buying a kit from them... think twice and then build one from scratch! cos I bet it will be half the construction time in the long run, and you will get value for money!  >>:-(
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brianB6

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #28 on: May 12, 2011, 12:37:32 am »

Hi Roadrunner
I like your idea with the tool clips.  :-))
Bang goes the Deans advertising to support the site.  <:(
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #29 on: May 12, 2011, 09:55:54 am »

I like your idea with the tool clips.  :-))

The tool clip idea is one of my fondest ideas /discoverers  and a very simple and quick method for holding motors in place, also quick to get them out in reduced working space once the deck in on, im sure many here can say of the hassle it is trying to remove the screws from some mounts once the models finished, there are other methods, such as the body filler moulded mounts held with rubber bands, but in this case i went for a method that is simple to use, and won't cost a great deal of time or effort afterwards to do maintenance.

Bang goes the Deans advertising to support the site.  <:(

I'm giving an Honest build log, which if it upsets deans marines then they only have themselves to blame and should make more effort in there quality control department.
By the statements of a few others just in this log, i'm not the only one who finds the price of these models for the quality received very poor indeed!
Some of these kits cost a small fortune and you would expect better quality parts for your cash wouldn't you?

These kits do make beautiful models no doubt about it, but the amount of extra work or re-construction needed to get them to that state is the skill of the modeller rather then the skill of the manufacture, when really, people buy kits to have a nice model that is 'straightforward' to build and not a nightmare!

Deans marine are free to post a comment if they like, I welcome there opinion on there quality or an explanation why they feel what they produce is good enough.

Oh and I also would like to know why some kit manufactures think its acceptable to put 'cast white metal props' in there kits instead of supplying plastic or brass ones?! everyone knows white metal sucks and as a prop .... pfft waste of material and time! 

Sorry for the long moan but the truth sometimes needs stating to these company's! 
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brianB6

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #30 on: May 12, 2011, 10:17:10 am »

Why do you think I prefer to scratch build?  ok2
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deadbeat

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #31 on: May 13, 2011, 04:07:44 pm »

I'd also like to hear Dean's excuses for such poor quality. Compare this with the quality of Sirmar fittings! Deans should have bought out Sirmar for the tooling and expertise, its a shame that Sirmar that went to the wall as they are missed.
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Voyager

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #32 on: May 13, 2011, 08:14:40 pm »

Come on chaps, play nicely for heavens sake!

Forums like this are being ruined by members who like nothing better than moaning about boat manufacturers and slagging off their products  >>:-( I for one have no interest in following this thread if this continues....
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #33 on: May 13, 2011, 08:55:24 pm »

Forums like this are here to voice the opinions of the people who buy these products, good or bad, its the biggest customer review on the planet, what your not intrested that you may waste hundreds of pounds on a product that you have to remake most of the parts, when you could have saved a small fortune starting from scratch in the first place?
Believe me i don't buy anything with out checking the customer reviews first!
You don't have to like my opinions or others, but they are ours to state, and for you to respect them even if you don't agree!
Im giving an honest log with all the trial and tribulations. And what i write on my blog is up to me as long as it valid and does not violate the terms of the forum.

I for one have no interest in following this thread if this continues....

If thats the way you feel then no loss on my account, jog on matie, but im sure i can save a few head & heartaches for future builders :-))
As far as im concerned that should be the end of this little spat on my blog tyvm...  <*<
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stuarts2

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #34 on: May 13, 2011, 09:26:57 pm »

Hi, I will be watching this build with interest as I have built this model and was very happy with it, may be some things may not be to the best of standard but you will have to spend on more items and time to get it to your satisfaction. when I show the Komet people do not know What it is so really getting it to look like the real thing is not such a needed thing as long as you are happy with it. There was a picture in model boats magazine of my Komet in the January 2011 issue at the Alfold show.
With regards sailing her yes she does lean :o when the wind is blowing and I was thinking of fitting a detachable keel,
I have lead shot for ballast as deep into the hull as possible and for power two 6 volt lead batteries very heavy model.
I would like to thank you for the pictures of her and I can see that the Komet had ratlines which the plans do not show so still some work to do. :-))
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #35 on: May 13, 2011, 09:35:54 pm »

Thanks Stuart, yes i saw the model in the jan 2011 it was the Portsmouth mbc Stand, is a very nice model, you can see the work thats gone into it even being such a small photo.
 Im not to worried about the state of the parts as they will all get cleaned up and some as you see already re-built, its just so frustrating to have to spend all that time fiddling around with parts that could have been avoided. Never mind im sure my bad mood will pass once i get some sleep  {-)

I have quite a few more photo's that are not on the forum if your interested please send me a pm with your email i will be happy to send them to you, but if you also have any photos i may not have i would be interested in acquiring yours it all helps as you well know! its easier to make alterations sooner rather then later, i have found the plans to be quite inaccurate in some places which is why im glad i stood back for the first month and spent time looking up photo's and information about her rather then rushing in and start head banging later!
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RaaArtyGunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #36 on: May 13, 2011, 09:52:49 pm »

Come on chaps, play nicely for heavens sake!

Forums like this are being ruined by members who like nothing better than moaning about boat manufacturers and slagging off their products  >>:-( I for one have no interest in following this thread if this continues....

What is different about the comments on here as opposed to say a poor kit Review in a Magazine.

I for one value the commets and experiences of all builders whether they are positive or negative the main point is that they be accurate, after all a spade is still a spade.
Regrettably these days with no constructive feedback producers/manufactures can't improve on their product as we don't voice our opinions/experiences.
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #37 on: May 13, 2011, 10:16:20 pm »

What is different about the comments on here as opposed to say a poor kit Review in a Magazine.

I for one value the commets and experiences of all builders whether they are positive or negative the main point is that they be accurate, after all a spade is still a spade.
Regrettably these days with no constructive feedback producers/manufactures can't improve on their product as we don't voice our opinions/experiences.

Thanks RaaArty i have to agree with you, no feed back then no improvements its up to us as consumers to let the issues be known for corrections to take place, i don't like whining about issues but im not the only one to have experienced issues like this with kits and its certainly worth telling the truth in these matters, not everyone has the experiences to fix the problems that crop up sometimes, with these kits so to avoid disappointment its easier to say this is what's wrong, this is how it was corrected, if they are not able to do that then they either do the kit to the best of there ability's and live with it, or not buy it until they have the skills to do the job properly or to a better standard, which ever they wish to obtain.
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Voyager

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #38 on: May 15, 2011, 05:13:53 pm »

Rather than ranting and moaning on here to other modellers, isn't it far better to mention any issues to the manufacturer directly? I'm all for progress with regards to improving kits, but mentioning of faults on forums such as this only encourages a free for all gang up! I for one have found Dean's Marine to be extremely helpful and hugely informative on any matters relating to their kits.
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Netleyned

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #39 on: May 15, 2011, 05:50:30 pm »

Ron Dean is a Forum member so he probably gets more honest feed back this way
Customer complaints can get smoothed over (or ignored) before anyone in top
management gets to know of a problem.

Ned
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #40 on: May 15, 2011, 06:37:43 pm »

Rather than ranting and moaning on here to other modellers, isn't it far better to mention any issues to the manufacturer directly? I'm all for progress with regards to improving kits, but mentioning of faults on forums such as this only encourages a free for all gang up! I for one have found Dean's Marine to be extremely helpful and hugely informative on any matters relating to their kits.
In Short NO, where will that get me? simple answer no where, the odds of receiving replacement parts that are of better quality are slim to none given that they will be out of the same tooling so I'm still stuck with the original problem. The manufacture are not likely to spend money on replacing the tooling they have at cost.
Then i have the hassle of all the phone calls, possible issues with waiting for parts i need.
At the end of the day I have the ability's to fix the issues I have found, so its far easier to just fix them rather then wasting my time getting the supplier to fix them, as I'm not going to see any benefits as i won't buy a kit from them after this, trust me on that.
I'm not posting my blog to 'mollycoddle' the manufactures by saying ''oh the kits is of good quality, the fittings need a little bit of work to clean up bla bla bla'' frankly because its not,
I'ld rather not endorse sale's for them based on my ability's to make there kit look good, if they want more sales, simply fix the issues that I and many others point out to them and if it has to be through a public forum then so be it, complaints over a phone can be as Netleyned Says 'Ignored'.
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Spook

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #41 on: May 16, 2011, 12:22:49 pm »

Well said, Roadrunner.

I had a similar gripe about the Deans MHS Amethyst kit that I built. The finished model looks good, but could have looked so much better if the original parts and instructions had been of better quality (and all there).

Unfortunately I don't have the skills to remake complex or detailed parts in order to cover up the inadequacy of the manufacture, so I'm stuck with something that's not quite right. I shan't be recommending or buying another Deans kit, which is a shame, as I was really looking forward to building some of their extensive range.
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Tutssy

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #42 on: May 16, 2011, 04:19:11 pm »

I have to agree with Spook & Roadrunner.

I have similar problems with my Slipway 'AZIZ'.  Unfortunately, due to health issues I am/was not able to complain.  The last time I did I spent 4 days in hospital!

The best I can say is that the only decent parts are the etched brass fittings & that the only reason there are so many outstanding models out there, is due entirely to the skills of the modellers.

I, for one, do not think I will never buy another kit.  They are all grossly overpriced.  When you add together the cost of materials plus a couple of hours labour, they are a rip off.

I shall only scratch build from plans in future.


Regards  Al
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HS93 (RIP)

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #43 on: May 16, 2011, 05:32:47 pm »

I wont comment on my experience with deans kits but as it has been opened up to kits in general I have recently read a build of a Martin Howe's and baylis kit in which the builder did not have a good thing to say about a single part in it and over about 40 pages of a build called it for everything he even disliked the prop I think and all the fittings, but mainly that there where not enough instructions, well a full sized plan and 30 pages of step by step plus a load of colour A4 pictures is more than most people put in kits, so there is no pleasing some people I think they expect model boats to fit together like there Airfix models did when they where young.
me I found nothing wrong with any of the MHB kits (except price)
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #44 on: May 16, 2011, 05:40:25 pm »

well a full sized plan and 30 pages of step by step plus a load of colour A4 pictures is more than most people put in kits, so there is no pleasing some people I think they expect model boats to fit together like there Airfix models did when they where young.
me I found nothing wrong with any of the MHB kits (except price)

The kit is supposed to supply two plans, side profile and top in full size. I only have the top plan, so I have to guess where the majority of things go! The 40 page manual is so full of typo's spelling mistakes, and errors in parts, dimension and materials to use I have now designated it to the toilet as extra paper just in case i run out. No pleasing some eh!

But thanks guys for your support im not pleased to hear that many of you have the same issues with these kits but im glad im not alone in these matters, hopfully we can call this kit moaning to a close (for now) and move on a bit with the build, mind you i say a bit cos i will most likely start moaning again shortly  :}
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #45 on: May 19, 2011, 12:07:55 am »

Well a little update on progress this week, not a great deal to be honest, having been busy with the kids since the wife has just changed jobs so its a bit up and down in our house till it settles.
But I have taken a few photos of some part to show the quality that's being knocked out, some are not so bad others are awful.

The Prop... what's the point!?



The cowls are pretty bad lots of flashing of the moulding, and a lot of air gaps which will need filling, even the vents faces are pitted or have chunks taken out all around.





The life boat arms are just as bad a lot of flashing around the, which will need serious cleaning up many are bend out of shape which is not to big a deal but for something that was secured in a flat case shows the lack of care when packing them up! I think I may re-make them from brass as they are fitted to the top lifeboat deck and run through to touch the main deck, as the whole superstructure is removable I feel it prudent to make them stronger to withstand the punishment they may come under.




Finally...The white metal rudder linkage.... Unusable and a waste of time in construction.



So instead i bent some 6mm strip brass into a U shape with a long arm, two nuts and a bolt to lock to the rudder post and a drop of glue just to make sure it does not give.. there are other methods for a rudder arm but this one has always served me well in the past.



Then I mounted the servo pretty simple job.
 


Ok for those who like videos ... I'm going to attempt to get this one working.... bare with me this forum hates my photos and videos normally! (well i fiddled with it for quite some time trying to get the vid to work in the forum .. not having any of it , anyone know how to do that?)

So here's a link to the vid of the rudder working if anyone interested.http://youtu.be/se7-Uikb9mc



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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #46 on: May 19, 2011, 10:24:41 pm »

Evening lad's been a bit busy today building the Anchor Windlass, forgot to take a photo though  {:-{ never mind something to do tomorrow.

I have a few more photo's of the Original Komet for you tonight for those who love the prosperity & history of ships.

The first is of her coming into port just after being captured by the Australian.



The second apparently was taken when she was being unloaded after being captured from the Germans in 1914 at an Australian port.



Now im unsure if the descriptions of the photo's is accurate but being so little info out there i will have to take what i read as fact until corrected. So appoligys there if the facts are not right after all we are talking 98 years ago now.
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Roadrunner

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Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #47 on: May 20, 2011, 12:38:15 pm »

I've located some more history of the komet over the past few days, so i will C&P the story as its not written by me. Should keep some of you busy for 20 mins or so  {-)

The capture of the Komet: Neville Threlfall

(Published in Una Voce, March 2004)

In the second of Dick Doyle’s interesting articles about the Witu Islands (Una Voce, September 2003), he raises the subject of the German naval vessel SMS Komet (not Comet) and whether she was towed back to Germany during World War 1. The answer is No, as the vessel was captured by the Australians a few weeks after German New Guinea’s Acting Governor surrendered to the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force. The story of her movements after the outbreak of the war, and of her capture, are told in both volumes IX and X of the Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918, The Royal Australian Navy by AW Jose and The Australians at Rabaul by SS Mackenzie.

The Komet was not built as a naval vessel, and was classed as a yacht of 977 tons displacement, serving as the administrative vessel within German New Guinea. When war broke out on 4 August 1914 Acting Governor Haber was using the Komet to visit settlements on the mainland of New Guinea (Kaiser Wilhelmsland). News of the war was received by the Komet’s wireless; Haber hurried back to Rabaul and landed at Matupit on 14 August. Australian warships had already entered Simpson Harbour on a brief raid, so the Komet was sent away at once, to a bay she had used as an anchorage before, on the north coast of New Britain west of the Willaumez Peninsula. This bay her crew had unofficially named ‘Komethafen’. For a few days she dodged about between Komethafen, the Witu Islands and points on the northwest coast of New Britain, then came back to Massawa Bay on the north coast of the Gazelle Peninsula and was commissioned into the German Navy. From there she went north to Angaur in the Palau Islands (part of Germany’s Micronesian possessions), but later came south, calling at Durour Island and at Peterhaven in the Witu’s before hiding again in Komethafen on 4 October.

Meanwhile the commander of the ANMEF, Colonel Holmes, was anxious to seize the Komet, as under the surrender terms of 17 September all property of the German administration was to come under his control. But Haber insisted that as the Komet had been commissioned into the German Navy, she was no longer the property of the colonial government, and he did not know where she was. A British trader, Stephen Whiteman, a long-term resident of German New Guinea, knew from his contacts with the New Guineans that the missing vessel often used Komethafen as an anchorage, and told Holmes that she would probably be found there. A smaller German government vessel, the Nusa, which had been seized at Kavieng, was hastily fitted with a naval 12-pounder gun and sent to Komethafen with a detachment of soldiers aboard. They took Whiteman as an interpreter, and a Japanese shipowner, Komine, who knew the area, also went with them.

By 10 October 1914 the Nusa was near Komethafen, and learned from local villagers that Komet was indeed at anchor there. At dawn next morning the Nusa steamed into the bay, taking the Komet’s crew completely by surprise. Her captain was halfway through his morning shave when the leaders of the Australian expedition boarded his ship! So the Komet was captured without a shot being fired; escorted to Rabaul by the Nusa, she was there commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy as HMAS Una. After a refit at Garden Island naval Dockyard in Sydney Harbour, she served the Australian administrators of German New Guinea for the rest of the war.

The Komet story: Ken Humphreys

Dick Doyle mentioned the German gunboat Komet in his September 2003 article on Witu. Her history during and after 1914 is of some interest. The Komet was a 1438 ton (cf Bulolo 6267t) steam yacht delivered in August 1911 to the Governor of German New Guinea. She replaced the Seestern which had disappeared in June 1909 when returning to Herbertshohe after maintenance in Brisbane.

On 20 July 1914 Acting Governor Dr Haber departed Rabaul on the Komet for Morobe where a station inspection and a short patrol was planned. At the time the OIC Morobe was Hans Klink of Klinki Pine fame. Haber disembarked at Morobe on the 22nd and the Komet was sent to Madang calling at Finschhafen mission enroute to pick up any outward mail. At Madang the Komet would also collect mail for Finschhafen and Morobe that was expected off the Austral-Japan Line Coblenz which had departed Sydney on 25 July with ETA Madang of 4 August. The Coblenz duly arrived at 7am on the 4th. Then on the night of the 5th August prior to 8.50pm the Komet wireless watch started to pick up Morse fragments of telegrams being repeatedly broadcast from Nauru. There were two telegrams that came through loud and clear commencing at 9.10pm:

OK OK GOVERNMENT No. 1
PLANET RABAUL – NAURU – FOR GOVERNOR ENGLAND 4 AUGUST WAR DECLARED
DISTRICT OFFICE KBN (Nauru call sign)

The Planet was the Naval survey vessel working in Simpsonhafen but Nauru did not know that the New Guinea Bita Paka wireless had been receiving since mid July so was able to receive the telegrams. Bita Paka was not able to transmit until 8 August at a weak 8kw which caused Yap to instruct the operators to repeat all words three times. The second telegram was:

GOVERNMENT No. 2
FROM BERLIN NEWS NEWS FOR GOVERNOR RABAUL NAURU NAURU GOVERNMENT No. 2/14 WAR WAR WITH ENGLAND FRANCE RUSSIA CONFIRMED TELEGRAM END OF TELEGRAM
CENTRAL KBN

As it turned out Port Moresby VIG wireless did not learn of the war until 7 August. During the next few days while returning to Morobe the Komet ran long wireless watches monitoring the frantic coded messages between Yap and the East Asia Squadron commandeered by Admiral Graf Maximilian von Spee. However care was still taken to jot down Sydney copra prices broadcast to Port Moresby via Townsville VIT.

After collecting Dr Haber at Morobe the Komet arrived Matupit at 3.45am on the 14th where she loaded 15 tons of coal at Hernsheims, then headed for Komethafen which was not in the Witu/French Islands but in Eleonara Bay sited between Wilson and Rudiger Points, just west of the Willaumez Peninsula. Colonel Holmes of the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF) which was to occupy Rabaul on 12 September thought Komethafen was Tawanakus Bay but that was well to the east of the Willaumez Peninsula near Open Bay. Having arrived at Komethafen on 15 August the Komet laid low until the 27th when she steamed for Witu then Augaur where she coaled the mailboat Prinz Eitel Frederick, now converted to an Auxiliary Cruiser. The Komet bunker had been topped up on the 19th with 250 tons off the Neu Guinea Kompagnie 450t Siar. Then the Komet went on to Palau, then down to Western Island west of Manus for some unknown reason, and home to Komethafen on 4 October.

At dawn on 11 October ANMEF troops on board the 64t steam pinnace Nusa captured the Komet without a shot being fired. It is recorded that the Komet crew were completely surprised, but surely the sound of the Nusa's wood fired engine would have been heard well before she came upon the Komet. The Komet crew consisted of Captain Moeller, five German officers and 52 New Guinea seamen. Moeller was married to the daughter of Lt-General Wylde of the British Army who was visiting Rabaul when war broke out: thus arguably the sole British General to attain the status of a paroled POW in WW1, though only for five weeks. Wouldn’t he have some stories when he returned to the regimental mess!

The Komet departed Rabaul on 17 October for Sydney where she was refitted and armed then commissioned on 17 November as the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) sloop HMAS Una. Surprisingly her 280 ton bunker capacity was not enlarged in the refit. She served in the RAN until paid off on 23 August 1919, but was re-commissioned on 27 April 1920 to serve as the official yacht for the inspection of the Australian fleet in Port Philip Bay by the Prince of Wales. Paid off again on 30 June 1920 she was mothballed in Sydney. On 27 January 1925 she was sold to Captain Rose of the Williamstown Pilot Office and renamed Akuna. She remained in the pilot service until 1953: subsequent fate unknown.

A footnote to the Komet story is that on 12 May 1915 Colonel J. Paton of ANMEF HQ Staff was court-martialled in Sydney on a charge of looting cutlery from the Komet. He admitted taking the items in a belief he had a right to mementoes. The court found him not guilty and he was honourably acquitted, a verdict that displeased WM (Billy) Hughes, the Federal Attorney-General. The incident did not affect Paton’s career as he ended the war as Major General Paton. One other footnote of interest is the fate of the German Kaiser’s yacht Hohenzollern, illustrated on the colonial postage stamps from around 1900. The last information heard was that it was a gambling den in international waters off the American eastern seaboard around 1930?

The German Yacht Komet: Robin Hyde

Following up Dick Doyle’s query in the last issue of Una Voce (Sept. 2003, No. 3, p. 33), Dick recounted that the German gunboat Comet (more usually, Komet) was hidden at Witu Island at the start of WW I, and that he had been told it was subsequently towed back to Germany during the War. He asked for further details as, he noted later, he found that hard to believe.

The wartime history of the small ship (977 tons) is partly told in Chapter 8, ‘The capture of the Komet’, in MacKenzie, S. S. (1934). The Australians at Rabaul: The Capture and Administration of the German Possessions in the Southern Pacific. Volume X Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918. Sydney, Angus and Robertson, pp. 127-137. The Komet was in fact the German Governor’s new administrative yacht that managed to evade the Australian fleet that headed to Rabaul in early August 1914. In September, from the Pelew Islands in Micronesia, the Komet headed for Peterhaven on Witu Island, where it remained between at least 29 September and 4 October 1914. (The Komet’s movements between July-October 1914 are apparently described more fully in Vol. IX of the Official History, Chapter 4). It then crossed to the northern coast of West New Britain, and hid just west of Talasea.

After news of the Komet’s presence reached Rabaul, the armed yacht Nusa (two guns, a 3-pounder, and a 12 pounder), under Commdr J.M.Jackson, with a small infantry force plus machine-gun under Lt-Col Paton, was directed to search for and capture the Komet. The Komet was taken by surprise and surrendered on 11 October near Talasea. An account on the Paton website describes Paton boarding "the Komet brandishing a revolver and took the ship by surprise, finding the captain shaving in his cabin. The entire crew of 57 then surrendered to Paton and the ship was taken to Rabaul and then Sydney as a prize." It also reports that Paton and other officers were subsequently court martialled, but acquitted, for souveniring items from the Komet!

MacKenzie cites Jackson’s own account for the major role played by Komine (Isokichi), a leading Japanese businessman resident in Rabaul, in the search for and capture of the Komet. For a more detailed account, from Komine’s perspective, readers should consult the most interesting paper by Hiromitsu Iwamoto (1996. “The impact of World War I on Japanese settlers in Papua New Guinea, 1914-1918”. South Pacific Study, 16(2), 143-174). According to a note to the excellent photograph of the Komet included in MacKenzie’s account (there is also a photograph of her in Frigates, Photofile No. 6), the ship was subsequently armed and commissioned as HMAS Una and stationed in New Guinea waters. At the end of 1918 the Una was sent to Darwin after a "rebellion" against Administrator Gilruth.

Following the war, the Una was apparently sold into service as the pilot boat for the Port Phillip pilot service (renamed as the Akuna), and gave long service at this position with a "legend for rolling on wet grass"(?): she was finally broken up in Melbourne in 1955. However the source of the latter information (which sells model kits of the original ship, and includes technical details), also includes some other undocumented information about possible periods in Sydney and England. This however seems unlikely since the anchor of the Komet is now a memorial on the lawn of the foreshore reserve, Weroona Parade, at Queenscliff, Barwon, in Victoria. According to the official description (Victorian Memorials Database, Region Barwon, Record 30):

The anchor of the German yacht Komet set at an angle in a concrete slab with a signboard attached which reads: 'Borough of Queenscliffe. This anchor was forged in Hamburg in 1911 for the German New Guinea Administrator's yacht Komet. The yacht was captured in New Guinea by Australian forces in 1914 to become H.M.A.S. Una - the Port Phillip Pilot Service acquired the vessel in 1925 and renamed her Akuna. She saw service in Victoria from 1925 to 1954. Her wheel is installed in Wyuna, donated by the Port Phillip Pilot Service'.

While this summary leaves a few loose ends, it doesn’t appear that the Komet was towed back to Germany during the War.

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Roadrunner

  • Guest
Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #48 on: May 20, 2011, 09:21:48 pm »

Ok boys less of the history now onwards with the build!

Yesterday i finished the windlass, and taken photo's today just to reduce handling time waiting for the lacquer to dry.

Took me quite some time to get the parts to go together needless to say the parts took a lot of work to get right, the other issue i had is that some parts were missing so i was reduced to 'make it up', the finished outcome of the windlass is not a perfect scale replica but it looks the part better now then it originally did, i have also weathered it some what, as this is a part of the ship that is constantly working being part of the anchors ( since its a hydraulic anchor windlass) having a perfect paint finish is total unrealistic, this is a working model after all! well i hope you like the outcome as much as i do.





Now before anyone asks why I'm doing some things ass about face in regards to deck fittings, i have little choice, before i can do the decking I have to make up all the deck fittings so I can fit the new planked deck around these item's.

Now next up on my list of things for the deck is the front 'Hatch' this hatch sits between the windlass and the cargo/sail winch. I have decided as this section of the boat is very open its unlikely that a lot of damage can occur so have decided to make this hatch the on/off switch compartment for the lights and main power. This will reduce the need to remove the superstructure for such a simple operation as turning the model on!

Ok so the hatch cover first.. well what a fricking pigs ear this turned out to be.. the hatch is wayyyyy oversize for the deck hole that needed cutting, so simple fit was to pack out the hatch to have a tight fit over the combing. I also had to clean up the hatch fittings as they were in a very poor state, i have also fitted two brass handles on the hatches.







Next up is the combing it fits over, this combing is actually a box in which the switches sit, so a bit of box construction first. ( oh and two mini on/off switched dry fitted to check finger movement , plenty of room so got lucky with that one)





And the hatch fitting on the combing as a dry fit before mounting it in the boat.





Now to fit it to the deck, the Stanly blade is holding the box in place while I take the photo, clamps would have obscured the work.





Once glue had dried I gave it a few coats of satin black paint just to tidy it up , this also makes life easier later when i put in the white labels for what each switch will do, white against black really stands out.





And finally what the hatch will look like once in place full time, Hatch is not painted yet i will do that at the same time I paint the hull. you can also see where the Anchor windlass sits and that i will have to create a new inlay around it as the original black deck lines do not match up, either sure or angled its a pretty hashed up print, Hence my reason to plank it properly.








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RaaArtyGunner

  • Guest
Re: Dean Marines S.M.S Komet
« Reply #49 on: May 20, 2011, 10:33:03 pm »



 its unlikely that a lot of damage can occur so have decided to make this hatch the on/off switch compartment for the lights and main power. This will reduce the need to remove the superstructure for such a simple operation as turning the model on!

Food for thought  :-)) :-))
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