Sorry video was a day late this week.

I was once, about 15 years ago, on a plane with an elderly gentleman named “Steve.” He told me a story of how he went on a tour of that boat, and the tour guide spoke with a German accent. The guide spoke competently about crew routines, how they lived day to day, and how they operated. Steve stuck around to talk to the guide and asked how he could possibly know so much. The guide responded “I was a radioman on this boat when it was captured.”

UK: "So you stole the sub and put it in a museum?" USA: "Well... I learned it by watching you." UK: "Im so proud."

"Not only are you not allowed to sink your own ship Your not even allowed to rage quit and the us is about to joyride your fucking submarine through the Bermuda triangle Im literally crying laughing

Love that comment at 15:05 "Where it sits as a proud member of the second largest navy on the planet: America's fleet of museum ships." XD

Normal countries: "We defend ourselves by building walls and digging trenches so the enemy can't get to us." America: _"We defend ourselves by eradicating the enemy pre-emptively, so the enemy can't get to us."_ *America: Because an enemy can't be an enemy if it has neither arms nor legs to fight or run with.*

Seabees: "We robbed a train." USS Barb: "Ha. We blew up a train." TF 22.3: "That's adorable. We blew up, salvaged, and stole a submarine!"

When I started as a merchant sailor I heard a story that I didn't believe at first but turned out to be true. Back in WW2 merchant sailors on the Atlantic run would sometimes sneak off the ship and join the Marines... because it was safer. The merchant fleet had a higher loss of men than all 3 branches of the military combined over the length of the war. To this day we STILL wonder why we're not allowed to be armed.

@the_fat_electrician I met one of the crew that carried out this mission. He was a really great guy named Rex Moore, and he lived in Van Meter, IA. When I was in 8th grade I interviewed him for an English project. His story was basically the same as yours. That the Germans tried to sink it but "we didn't let them." He said they hooked a chain to it and drug it across the ocean. They were pretty happy about finding that enigma machine. I went to Chicago and got him one of those little injection molded submarines you can get at the museum. He was pretty tickled about that. RIP Mr. Moore. Thanks for telling the story sir.

Fun fact about U505 not in the video: After the war when news that U505 was being turned into a museum ship, the companies in West Germany that used to manufacture spare parts for those subs, offered to supply replacement parts for the sub. I can just imagine it: “we regret that you have taken our boat captive. But since she’s going to be a museum ship, here; at least make her look accurate.”

The whole of WW2 was just America dropping UNLIMITED amounts of disrespect. And i love it

This video needs to be shown at the exhibit in the museum in Chicago!! Give them the rights please!

As a fellow electrician, that driveshaft hack was fucking baller

"I stole that submarine fair and square" -makes me proud to be an American!

I've been on this U-boot at the MSI. It was... humbling. Also, you left the best part of the story out: The interior of the ship had to be refurbished after the war. The curator of the exhibit wrote to all the German companies he needed parts from, fully expecting to be told "Nein, fahr zur Hoelle". Every single company sent the parts free of charge, with a passive-aggressive message saying that it was still German property and they wanted it to be a testament to German engineering.

as a german citizen I can say: WOW that's a GREAT story! thank you for telling it so wonderfully

"Here's all the shit from your office and it's distinctly not water logged." Lmfao

German U-boat commander: “When my chain of command hears about this, I am so screwed.” American commander: “IF. IF your chain of command hears about this.”

I'd rather climb Everest to fight a Yeti than get into a submarine. Hats off to those that do.

Supporting a family owned company with forged lifetime Tools is remarkable. Thank you very much.

I think the best part of the story was the company who built U-505 was the one who restored it. The inside was kinda trashed and after sitting in Chicago for a couple decades things were rusting a bit. They said they would restore it back to original conditions for free as long as it was them doing the work. So that boat is as close to original delivery condition as you could possibility get it.

"strategically transfered a piece of equipment to an alternate location" is a beautiful way to describe stealing

Once I heard the part about a cameraman boarding the sub, I knew they were going to succeed. Camera man never dies.

All of his content is freaking amazing, I really do look forward to the weekly content, and his sense of humor is FKN EPIC!!!! Love this guy lol, and how he puts his own personal spin on things.

The rube-goldberg mechanisms Navy enlisted men have come up with multiple times to save a ship from certain destruction always amaze me. Best example was when a mine broke FFG-58's keel and the Captain was preparing to order abandon ship, since you are pretty screwed with a broken keel, then some rando E-4 suggested running steel cable between the fore and aft capstans and taking them under strain to artificially create a new keel between the strongest structural points of the ship, the capstans. It worked, the ship was saved and continued to serve till retirement in 2015. I was a DivO and despite their lack of education, the enlisted man is cunning and should be heeded for wisdom and watched for mischief in equal measure.

I grew up in Illinois. There was always a story floating around that one of the US sailors that "acquired" the sub was feom Chicago. Every year he took his kids and eventually his grandkids to see the sub. He often took them into parts of the sub not open to the public. Supposedly one time a museum worker said something to him going over the rooes. His reply was basically "F u. I helped steal this sub and I will go where I want to on it." The story continues with the worker replying "Yes sir. Have a great day." Not sure how true it is. But it would be awesome if it was.

Just imagine how interested kids would be in history, if the Fat Electrician taught all the classes! 😀👍

If you're in Chicago, it's definitely worth a visit. It has been beautifully restored and the short tour is very informative.

Thats why i love this channel. When i was a new sailor in Chicago at A-school, i went to see this and i never realized how impressive the story was. Same for the Wisconsin in Norfolk.

Hey Nick, one of my great-grandfathers took part in capturing the U-505. He was part of the boarding party, and where he had to swim to the damn sub in order to get the hatches open. He received the Presidential Unit Citation for him and his units' bravery while under hostile gun fire. My grandma told me that his job in the Navy had to do with engineering, so, he was pretty much needed in the salvaging operation that took place during and after capture. Sadly, in 1973, at age 44, he passed from cancer. After being told his story and his bravery, he is now one of my inspirations for joining the Navy, hopefully, soon. I will send an email to you with the actual paper certificate, the picture of him and his fellow sailors. Edit/Correction: He was 18 when he joined in 1943 and died at 48 in 1973. His name was John Howard "Mickey" Davies, Jr. Sorry to those who literally went to all hands on deck to correct me. Jeez.

The fact that we have a museum of ships that is only second in size to our active navy is just incredible!

Hell yeah, I'm from West Virginia, thanks for supporting our businesses.

They didn't steal it, they captured it. Remember the war?

Regarding the cameraman: This was the first look inside a WW2 German sub. Any picture of any electronics, machinery, documentation, gauges, pretty much anything inside that submarine that was not a kitchen sink (and I'm not sure about that one) had the potential to be an intelligence windfall. And if you're not sure you'll be able to keep a sub for more than a few minutes, you have to send that camera in the first wave.

The fun thing bout U505, was that in like the 80s she was in bad shape. Cause she was originally left outside in a Chicago park for like 40 odd years. So they decided to move her inside to what is her current location after restoration. Well the company that built her and made most of her parts in the War, which been long since knicked by the locals cause Chicago never change, came to the museum and said: "We are sorry that you have our U-boat, but since she's going to be there for many years, we want her to be a credit to German technology." And that is how U505 became the most complete German submarine in the world.

I've been to the U-505 exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. It's one of the coolest exhibitions I've ever been to and a must-see for any history nerd, especially those interested in WW2 history. You get to walk around inside the U boat and see basically everything inside. If you're taller than 5'8" though, watch your head.

The photographer may have been the most important man on the mission - if they determine the boat IS sunk, he can snap a few pics of any important docs/intel before the lot of it sinks to the bottom. Remember, the paper had ink that dissolved in water so taking any intel of the boat where the ocean can get to it would be highly risky to the intel. But if they had a photo of it...

American military logic in a nutshell: Psychologist: “insane” America: “challenge accepted” Psychologist: “risk” America: “try me” Psychologist: “destruction” America: “Tuesday afternoon”

Lmfao! You got me with the Where's Waldo book! I actually believed that until you said you made it up. 😂😂😂

Fun fact - the original periscope for the U505 had been removed and taken to San Diego for inspection. The German periscopes were able to be rotated up in order to look for airplanes, this was adapted to American submarines and were used in the 50s to inspect the polar ice when we were sending nukes to the North Pole. It was found in a warehouse scheduled for demolition in the 90's, and they sent it to Chicago to be remounted in the 505. I actually went through the sub in the early 80's, and was surprised at how cramped they were (and that was the larger of the two types the Kriegsmarine used through most of the war).

Fun fact: Not only can you see it, but also walk around inside and view its war materials in the museum its placed in.

Every one of your presentations brings tears to my eyes . You are the best storyteller , period ! I wish public education taught History as entertaining as you do . We stole it , not giving it back

The Royal Navy had already captured U 570 on August 28, 1941, towed it to Iceland and commissioned it into the Royal Navy on September 19, 1941 as HMS Graph. U 570 was decommissioned in 1944 and scrapped in 1947. U 505 is now in the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. This is why U 505 has the reputation of being the "only" submarine captured.

Another detail that saved the sub was the German crew's failure to dispose of a critical piece of sea scuttling equipment. U-Boats were equipped with sealed pipes called 'sea strainers' which would fill the craft with seawater when the cover was removed. Those covers were then supposed to be tossed overboard. However, whoever removed the cover on the U505 just dropped it next to the pipe. A member of the recovery crew was lucky enough to find the cover in the knee-high water next to the strainer and seal it back up. If this wasn't done the sub probably would have been lost.

Anyone who has the opportunity to visit the Museum of Science and Industry will be awestruck at how a submarine is nestled into a building. It was my favorite thing to see as a child. The entire museum is wonderful.

This video gave me the ONLY reason why I’d want to visit Chicago, to visit this submarine.

I've lived in Chicagoland all my life, visited 505 on many occasions. Never knew the story. Thank you for this

As a former submariner, I feel I should somewhat defend the German submarine crew, when our guys were doing all that they, didn't have the threat of constant depth charging to worry about. I know, it's all in jest, but all submariners during ww2 had balls of steel.

What’s actually most amazing is how this critically damaged U boat didn’t go to the bottom by the shear weight of our USN sailors balls of titanium. Great job as usual. Subbed.

I can remember how sad it was when U 505 was was just sitting outside the museum rusting away behind a chainlink fence and thought out of respect for the story and war heroes that captured it deserved a better fate. So I was relieved to finally see it restored and moved indoors for the proper display it deserved to show it to many future generations.

I have been inside that submarine at the museum in Chicago when I was a kid back in the seventies and had no idea of the significance and the history behind that until now , holy cow what a story. I love how you deliver your stories keep up the good work my friend

You know you've failed when you can't sink your own submarine.

America really said "I'll be taking that now"

As a mechanic the genius of using the propeller to turn the alternator was just the epitome of "keeping your wits about ya" I love it. Tha

I had the privilege of seeing the U-boat 505 when I was a kid in Chicago. It’s a hell of a boat, and such an Incredible story. Hard to believe it’s like 40 almost 45 years ago since I’ve seen it but yeah, if you ever get a chance to see it you should definitely go and see it. Hats off to the greatest generation.

Hell of a way to console an enemy commander who's in deep shit. Bad guy: "Oh shit, my chain of command is going to do things that are absolutely illegal to me for a failure like this!" American: "Don't worry. No one will torture/execute you because there won't be any chain of command." Bad guy: "What?"

As a retired sailor, I can say, with absolute certainty, that all of this is keeping with the greatest traditions of the Navy. One of our earliest heroes, John Paul Jones, acquired the British ship that sank his, as his was sinking. I am still waiting on your take on the battle off Samar. I wonder what you would make of the displacement of the USS,Johnston and USS Samuel B Roberts, due to the sheer mass of their crews balls.

I just found your channel and am currently binging your content. I'm a huge history buff and Marine veteran. You have a gift for telling these stories and delivering information in such a way that keeps your listeners entertained the entire time. Your veteran antidotes are hilarious, something I've missed since being around these filthy civilian casuals. Please keep the amazing content and history coming.

My father in law was one of the lead mechanical engineers that helped restart the engine on the U505 maybe 10-15 years ago. Pretty dope!

Towards the end of WW2 U boats were staffed with 18 y.o kids, an average age of a captain was 26. There is a book called “shadow divers” about a U boat that was found 70miles off the coast of New Jersey and there was no record of it ever being there so a couple of guys spent about 20 years diving there to identify what that boat was doing there. Book opens a good amount of information about U boats in general. Fascinating read, so is this story.

I would love to see a video about the worlds first attack helicopter: The AH 1 cobra and its history. Thanks for all the great content!

Greetings Fat Elect. I am a 61 year old naval veteran attached to a fighter squadron for AC Uss Nimitz. 81-85. I came across your America Obliterates Iran's navy. Couldn't stop laughing. Great job! Working a va hosp I have many many great stories I'll try to pass along. MIKE KEGs from Philly. Great job. Subscribed.

It simply amazes me the amount of courage and grit those sailors had just rowing up to a sinking U-Boat, let alone boarding her, full well knowing scuttling charges were armed! Being able to work in a proficient, safe manner finding the charges and then disarming them.... I am no expert on scuttling charges, and maybe it is not as complicated as it sounds, but damn that took some balls of steel!

I had a High school history teacher who was German born and had served in WWII, I recall his telling of this story with a lot of humour from the German Grunt perspective and it stuck with me to this day. Gotta say Nic, You are a national treasure mate.

Okay of all the things in this that shocked me it was Nemo. Now knowing what it means changes 'Finding Nemo'. Now I will always see it as 'Finding No One'. That aside this was impressive.

I was a Navy Corpsman for 21 years. Our phrase for “stealing” was “creatively acquired through alternative means”.

Visiting the U-505 at the Museum of Science and Industry as an early teen is something I still remember. One of the events that encouraged my love of history.

You’ve found a great niche here on KZfaq. These interesting military history anecdotes are fascinating and your delivery is hilarious. Keep it up good sir

My dad was with that task group that captured the U505. He was aboard the Destroyer USS POPE, DE134.

I had the honor of knowing Zenon Lachesis, the American who saved the submarine, as well as Hanse Geobler, the German who pulled the plug on it. We set up at a few military collector shows together about 25 years ago. We would hit the bars after the shows, and the conversations between the two were fun and off the scale. I remember Hanse telling Zenon, "If I knew you were crazy enough to board a sinking sub, I'd have thrown that sea-straining cap behind the batteries and you'd never have found it". Zenon replied with, "Well, lucky for me that you weren't that smart". It was great to know that former enemies could be good friends so many years later.

The best part about this story is after his distinguished military career Daniel Gallery went on to write two comedic novels inspired by his military service. “Now Hear This” and “All Hands on Deck.” I don’t believe they’re currently in print but if you can find them they are hilarious.

If you want to know more about Admiral Gallery, he penned numerous books that, hilariously, told of life in the US Navy like, "Capt. Fatso", "Awaaaay All Boats", and "Clear All Decks". He, also, wrote a novel about the comandeering of the U505. He was a badass Sailor with a....unique personality and view on the world.

One of the German crew actually visited the 505 and praised the USA for preserving his boat. Much respect

As a member of the Museum Ship Mafia, the end line makes me really proud and we are incredibly grateful that U-505 is among the many museum ships in the US that can be visited

I went to both U-505 in Chicago and the USS Texas before I turned 13 in the 80s. I wish your videos had been featured on the tours so I could have comprehended the gangster shit that went down.

I just found your channel. Your passion, humor, and pride for our country is beyond belief. Thank you for producing the content.

Here's a fact that you, a true American Laborer will appreciate. All the guys from the local Chicago unions who helped put the 505 in her current home got hard hat stickers of her. I met one of the crane operators at a union picnic and he's very proud of that sticker Edit: checked with my father, he was an iron worker

I love the way you tell stories. Its so crazy these things actually happened. I have burst out laughing more then once watching your stuff. The complete hold my beer attitude of these men haha

Been in the thing at least a half dozen times when I was a kid. Never cared to read the boards on the wall about the story, just thought it was cool. This was a much better way to learn the history. Keep up the good work!

Loving the long form. Much more room for better joke set ups And that you're going into detail is good too. Almost as good as Warwood Tools

Love seeing the U-505 making an appearance on your channel! I worked as MSI's curatorial intern during the summer of '21. They knew I was a military history buff right off the bat and let me get hands on U-505 both inside and out in the archives. One of the documents I came across during digitalization was the literal deed of ownership from the US Navy to MSI. On my last day I got to take my family through on a private tour with the Director of my department. A great story I came across through older staff (and more corroborative documents) was that one of her former crew Hans Goebeler, author of "Steel Boats, Iron Hearts" gave tours of his boats to guests in the 70s and 80s! I can barely imagine getting a tour of a U-Boat by one of her crewmen. She also has all four original flags (two large sailing flags and two battle ensigns), which I got to take out one of sailing flags to confirm it was. Someone had emailed the Director that they thought they had one of U-505's Reichskriegsflagge because it had Hans signature on it. I had written to let the collector know that it wasn't one of U-505s real flags as they are all accounted for (MSI has two, and the other two are with the US Navy, one of the battle ensigns om exhibit at Annapolis. The collector had a legitimately real Reichskriegsflagge but either from Army or Civilian use. Someone before they collector had gotten the flag and asked Hans to sign it. I still don't know if the collector sold it. Just to cover my bases I contacted the German Naval Museum and the curator there told me along the lines of "I asked a friend of mine who was a Submarine captain in the 80s and he said they still get issued four flags, two sailing and two battle ensigns." SOP is one of those things that never changes lol. One last little story I have to share is regarding their time in Camp Ruston where the US overlooked the Geneva Convention rules due to the fact the sub was captured whole, including the enigma machines on board. The scuttling was reversed nearly at the last the second by US sailors. The government didn't want the Kriegsmarine to know they knew the codes so everything was super secret. Meaning, the sailors were kept in their own section of Ruston, LA and hidden when the Red Cross showed up. So these guys were desperate to let other Getman POWs know they were alive to let their families know they were still kicking. No attempt really worked, but the U-505 boys made a make shift balloon and painted a black iron cross on it with the bold words that "U-505 lives!" The story of the capture is amazing as Quack Bang has shown us. Hans' book is a great read if you're interested in the Enlisted Man's experiance as a unterboatman. If you're ever planning a trip to MSI email the Collections department and ask if you can get a private tour of the Archives. We had maybe less than 10% of the collection on exhibit... there are over 10k artifacts at MSI! I got to take parties through the archives and based on what they were interested in tailored the tour around that. Some of my favorites are: the Dragon head and tail of the Norwegian Longship "Viking" that sailed from Norway to Chicago to prove the Vikings made it to the new world for the 1893 Columbian Exposition World's Fair, Lewis guns as part of the Spitfire and Stuka gifted by the UK (from the Africa Campaign), a insane collection of multi-million motorcycles (most being the very first of their kind!), some Civil War Era Fire Engines, one of the first armored vehicles in America (from St. John's Academy), a Soviet space probe (likely surveillance satellite, Roscosmos never got me to confirm that before my contract was up), not only 1893 World's Fair stuff but tons from the 1933 World's Fair Century of Progress with medals and models the Regia Aeronautica's massive seaplane flight over (that carried the column from the ancient Roman Port city thay linked Rome to the wider world, Ostia. It's still up on Balbo Ave by Soldier Field. Oldest artifact on public display in the city. It needs restoration badly). I can go on! Just make sure you see it next you're in the Museum! Collections is hidden in the old US Navy department right by the U-505. Infact my adhoc office was inside the mockup of the nuclear submarine and outside my office were no less than FIVE WWII torpedoes!

Thank you for this amazing story! I grew up in Chicago in the 60’s, and almost every year in school we would take a field trip to the museum. In those days you couldn’t walk around the outside, just into a small room. I never knew this whole story, and I was always fascinated with how they got it to the museum location. I no longer live in Chicago, but I hope to go back and see the updated display that you show in your video.

This story is so hilarious. Thanks.

It is awesome to go see it and go inside. It’s also got the enigma machine that they acquired.

My great uncle was on the U.S.S. Guadalcanal during ww2. He worked in the engine room. God bless the men who built and protected this country.

Of the 40,000 men who served on German submarines, 30,000 never returned.

We know that trick too “What do you call the only A7V Tank in the world…Australian!” 0:05

Imagine playing battleship and when your opponent steps a way for a second and you S.T.E.A.L his submarine and then take a picture of his entire layout and use that information to defeat him? That's basically a dumbed down, Barney/Army proof story of what happened. Lol

If anyone hasn't had the opportunity to visit the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago - it's worth the trip. Been several times. The U-505 exhibit is easily one of the most impressive exhibits of any museum I've seen.

I went through it around 1966 as a kid. You could look through the periscope and see ships on the lake. The tour was awesome and then many years later I got to meet Hans Goebler at two different times about a year or two before he passed. I heard his stories and saw the pictures and logs of the captains of U-boat 505. He had moved to the U.S. after the war and he still had his fairly thick German accent. They were awesome experiences!

Brilliant. Former Navy myself. Royal New Zealand Navy. Though we aren’t on the same scale as the US navy especially for their size & might. We did exercise regularly with the US. As a ping jockey I was able to spend time on HMAS Onslow & Australian Oberon class Submarine. I had the privilege of visiting a few US ships including USA Missouri of course. That was a must. Lots of stories & adventures myself but nothing like this. This is one of the most daring & incredible stories of epic proportions. Go Navy!! Thank you for your service.

Years ago, I read Gallery's book about the capture of U-505. It's a good read and really highlights how difficult and dangerous it was to be a naval aviator. Escort carriers were pretty small and a huge number of planes were lost, especially during night operations. Those guys definitely didn't get the notice that the guys in the Pacific did.

Then it immediately got its catalytic converters stolen.

If ww2 was a basketball game the US would have been Stephen Curry running circles around the axis powers scoring 3 pointers everytime

I remember seeing this as a kid. It was massive as you walked up to it, and yet the inside was so cramped. this was the early 90s, and you could still walk around inside.

The U-505 legit got me into studying military history as a kid. That line of interest led me to earn two degrees. Sparky, thank you again for extolling the virtues of Warwood tools. This native son of Wheeling thanks you.

I spent Christmas time when growing up touring the Museum of Science and Industry, and I always went to go check on the submarine. It really is an incredible piece of history, and it was awesome when they updated the exhibit to have more backstory and context that you actually go over in this video. The reason I went during christmas is because my mother headed up the Polish Christmas tree that goes on display during the holdiays. She’s the reason the ornaments changed every year, and subsequently why all the other christmas trees look better and fancier because they don’t want to look pathetic in contrast, and she’s also the reason that most of the ornaments on all the trees are wire-tightened onto the branches so that viewers can’t grab the decorations off. People were literally stealing ornaments, some of which were candies, because my mom is a gangster christmas tree decorator.

Holy crap! I toured that sub as a kid in Chicago and was far too young to understand its significance until now! Thank you for this

Captured U-boat U-570 enters the harbour of Barrow in Furness, England, 3 October 1941. Renamed HMS Graph, she carried out three war-patrols with a Royal Navy crew and became the only U-boat to see combat service with both side in World War 2. HMS Graph (pennant number P715) was a German Type VIIC U-boat captured and recommissioned by the British Royal Navy during World War II. Commissioned as U-570 in Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine in mid-1941, she was attacked and captured on her first patrol. She provided the Royal Navy and United States Navy with useful information about German submarines.

The Enigma machine was certainly a good find, but by that point, the Alies had already broken the code and been listening in. U-505 wasn't even the only UBoat captured during the war. It was still an impressive story, along with what happened while they were restoring it. They got many of the original equipment manufacturers in Germany to help with restoring it.