The TANAC Tug

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Sep 29, 2019
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During WWII Canada was commissioned by the British Government to build a couple hundred tugboats as a part of the war effort. All were built from the same plan and most were built of metal in Ontario, although some were built of wood in the Maritime provinces. (Recently mentioned in the magazine Saltscapes Vol. 21 No.1 in the article The D-Day MINCA Barges. I am lucky enough to have acquired a owner's model of one of these tugsimage1.JPG sold as surplus in 1945 when the war had ended and there was no requirement for the vessel to be sent to England. Two people contacted me to inquire if plans were available for the tug and I referred them to the plan on line produce by Milne, Gilmore & German Naval Architects, but they found that these plans were too vague to build a scale replica. During the pandemic crisis I had time on my hands so I spent two weeks developing line drawings and a 3-D print of the vessel, which I offered the two fellows at a cost of $70 Can. but they found this too expensive!! Should I feel bad for asking for a fee for two weeks work? In any case, the plans and the print is available for anyone interested.
 
Hello,
It was your TANAC that brought me to this forum, signed up, now I can reply - great looking TANAC.

I'm building a 1/35 T.I.D. Class Tug for a Mulberry Harbour display & have experienced some of your "above" elements. To make matters simple, I converted 1/24 plans to 1/35 via a printing company, large scale scanner & large format printer. Once the hull was completed, with appropriate wear / damage, I had that 3D scanned & from that scan, a 1/2 scale test print was made as proof of concept. I won't add prices here, but it was considerably more than $70 Can. & that doesn't include the build time I put in. It isn't something I intend to sell, the 3D scan was to preserve the work, should I decide to build another. To answer your question, "absolutely no, you should not feel bad for charging a fee, & on top of that, for what you're offering, $70 is a heck of a deal in my world".

If I do decide to build a TANAC Tug, I may be back in touch. For now, I am fully invested in the T.I.D. - time & money. All the best.

IMG-0553.JPG
 
Thank you for your comment on my thread about the TANAC tug. I had not heard of this vessel until I came across and purchased the builder's model and then I did some research, and what an interesting bit of history it is. Unfortunately I have no room to display the model so it sits in its carrier case in the storage room and that is so unworthy of such a beautiful piece of work. At one point I offered it for sale to a couple of museums, including the Canadian War Museum and the Great Lakes Nautical Museum, but they were not interested. Builder's models are quite expensive to have made and to acquire, but I was offering the model at half its value. We build models for our enjoyment and pastime, but it would be great to feel that the finished product is something of value, particularly if we are creating scale replicas which are historically correct which documents past maritime history. Building a model of the TANAC tug is such a proven project.
 
Funnily enough, I also had no idea of T.I.D. history until I began building the model. I wanted to participate in a Mulberry Harbour project & a tug seemed to be an appropriate addition - interest generated when a fellow asked some questions regarding T.I.D.s & D-Day operations. I am now a tug boat fan, simple lines, purpose driven design. As you stated, regarding the afterlife of a project, I know that when the tug is completed, it will be displayed & (hopefully) appreciated in a group setting, along with the other Mulberry components, ships, vehicles.

It is sad that none of the museums took you up on the TANAC. Victoria's Maritime Museum is in flux right now, changing sites & looking for a permanent home. The Naval Museum at Esquimalt Base is an odd entity, located on the base behind wire, open only on weekdays & now in lockdown. I'd like to visit both, if their limited schedule ever matches mine... also limited.

I would like to find any historical photos of a TANAC "on Mulberry duties". If they are like the T.I.D.s, very few records remain of what any individual vessel did during that period. It is as if they were too small for records to be kept, or more likely, matters were moving too fast to keep accurate records, hauling load after load from larger transports. If I can place one there (Arromanches - Mulberry B), I can add one with barge to the project, at 1/35, the projected size is in meters, so there's no shortage of space. I found the online plans you had mentioned, so when I have time, I'll review those in greater detail.

Thank you, regards.
 
Two TANAC tugboats are operating in Argentina. I have plans and photos.

20180523_104525.jpg
 
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During WWII Canada was commissioned by the British Government to build a couple hundred tugboats as a part of the war effort. All were built from the same plan and most were built of metal in Ontario, although some were built of wood in the Maritime provinces. (Recently mentioned in the magazine Saltscapes Vol. 21 No.1 in the article The D-Day MINCA Barges. I am lucky enough to have acquired a owner's model of one of these tugs sold as surplus in 1945 when the war had ended and there was no requirement for the vessel to be sent to England. Two people contacted me to inquire if plans were available for the tug and I referred them to the plan on line produce by Milne, Gilmore & German Naval Architects, but they found that these plans were too vague to build a scale replica. During the pandemic crisis I had time on my hands so I spent two weeks developing line drawings and a 3-D print of the vessel, which I offered the two fellows at a cost of $70 Can. but they found this too expensive!! Should I feel bad for asking for a fee for two weeks work? In any case, the plans and the print is available for anyone interested.
Hallo @Robert Halliday
we wish you all the BEST and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Birthday-Cake
 
During WWII Canada was commissioned by the British Government to build a couple hundred tugboats as a part of the war effort. All were built from the same plan and most were built of metal in Ontario, although some were built of wood in the Maritime provinces. (Recently mentioned in the magazine Saltscapes Vol. 21 No.1 in the article The D-Day MINCA Barges. I am lucky enough to have acquired a owner's model of one of these tugsView attachment 146310 sold as surplus in 1945 when the war had ended and there was no requirement for the vessel to be sent to England. Two people contacted me to inquire if plans were available for the tug and I referred them to the plan on line produce by Milne, Gilmore & German Naval Architects, but they found that these plans were too vague to build a scale replica. During the pandemic crisis I had time on my hands so I spent two weeks developing line drawings and a 3-D print of the vessel, which I offered the two fellows at a cost of $70 Can. but they found this too expensive!! Should I feel bad for asking for a fee for two weeks work? In any case, the plans and the print is available for anyone interested.
Hello
Do you still have a kit for sale?
Bill
Athens, Ga. USA
 
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