Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: MechAg94 on June 06, 2022, 02:22:30 PM
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I thought I would just start a new thread for this. A company in Galveston has acquired a floating dry dock and brought it to Galveston. They said the first job on location will be to rebuild the Battleship Texas. Supposedly some work will be required on the dock before the Battleship can be brought over. Still should happen this year. I imagine it will be a bit of an event when they move it.
Battleship Texas Dry Dock Arrives in Galveston
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhtQ161zfKQ
Short video of the floating dry dock arriving in Galveston. This is where the Battleship Texas will be rebuilt soon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP94GSctWv8
Longer live version from Saturday. They talked about where the dry dock came from and other stuff during the stream.
https://battleshiptexas.org/donate/
They have a few neat gifts in their catalog. I am definitely getting the Zippo. I would love to get the sword.
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Does this relate to the dry dock they are preparing in Galveston for the USS The Sullivans? Or are we talking about two distinct dry docks?
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USS The Sullivans is in Buffalo, NY, not Galvaston, TX.
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Oops, yes. Sorry, I misread one of the posts.
I wonder if things like this would be better memorialized by selling small certified, serialized, and labeled portions to hundreds of individuals. They would be cherished individually by those having interest. They do sell sections of the deck planking from some famous ship, and I know they sell attractively labeled and certified small portions of some famous airplanes.
They also keep the nose art from a lot of famous planes in a museum somewhere, rather than the whole plane, which was scrapped.
And from the descriptions of the USS Sullivans' condition, I wonder if it could ever be made safe for visitors.
Terry, 230RN
REF:
https://planetags.com/
https://www.museumofflight.org/Plan-Your-Visit/Calendar-of-Events/7539/nose-art-after-dark
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Finally some good news.
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Oops, yes. Sorry, I misread one of the posts.
I wonder if things like this would be better memorialized by selling small certified, serialized, and labeled portions to hundreds of individuals. They would be cherished individually by those having interest. They do sell sections of the deck planking from some famous ship, and I know they sell attractively labeled and certified small portions of some famous airplanes.
They also keep the nose art from a lot of famous planes in a museum somewhere, rather than the whole plane, which was scrapped.
And from the descriptions of the USS Sullivans' condition, I wonder if it could ever be made safe for visitors.
Terry, 230RN
REF:
https://planetags.com/
https://www.museumofflight.org/Plan-Your-Visit/Calendar-of-Events/7539/nose-art-after-dark
If you look on the Battleship Texas Foundation website linked in the OP, you can get steel paperweights made from metal off the ship. You can also get 1911 grips made from wood taken off the ship. I don't know if other muzeum ships do that or not. They are in the middle of a major rebuild of the Texas so they have metal sections being replaced.
Eventually, the ships will either deteriorate enough they can't be maintained in the water at all or something different will have to be done. I heard the Battleship Texas will be moved to some sort of permanent dry dock.
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Mikasa is embedded in concrete but I'm read even that has it's problems
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Mikasa is embedded in concrete but I'm read even that has it's problems
Corrosion, which concrete promotes.
The curator of the New Jersey made a video a while back talking about various mooring options and their upsides/downsides and includes various methods of putting them on land
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FYI, the Battleship Texas is supposed to leave its San Jacinto mooring and be moved to the mobile dry dock in Galveston tomorrow (8/31). They are supposed to livestream it on their youtube channel. There are a few videos posted showing preparations.
https://www.youtube.com/c/BattleshipTexas/videos
There should be an update at this link, but I can't pull it up right now. The internet at work is slow and the page won't load up. The text of the last email is below.
https://battleshiptexas.org/departure/
We're still on for August 31st - Here's the Latest
Battleship Texas will be departing San Jacinto for repairs at Gulf Copper Galveston on August 31st! San Jacinto will be closed when the ship gets underway that morning, but you will be able to watch the ship from various locations along the Houston Ship Channel. Bayland Island, the Texas City Dike, Galveston Naval Museum at Seawolf Park, and Pier 21 will all be good viewing locations. We will also be live streaming throughout the day on our YouTube Channel and in our Facebook Group. battleshiptexas.org/departure will feature live tracking, the official live stream, and live updates all through the day, to give you the most up-to-date information as it happens.
This is an ESTIMATED schedule, it IS subject to change. There will be LIVE UPDATES on battleshiptexas.org/departure throughout the day which will be more reliable than this schedule. This is an ESTIMATED schedule.
3 AM: Work starts at San Jacinto - our livestream will start around this time and continue through the entire day. Please remember that San Jacinto is closed until after Battleship Texas is underway.
6 to 7:30 AM: Battleship Texas gets underway and enters the Houston Ship Channel - this is one of the slowest and most complex steps of the day. The timeline from this point forward is at the discretion of the Pilot and based conditions encountered during towing and may differ from this schedule significantly. Please remember that San Jacinto is closed until at least 9 AM.
11 AM to 12 PM: Battleship Texas will cross under the Fred Hartman Bridge and enter the bay - the ship's speed will still be at the discretion of the Pilot and based on conditions encountered during towing, but we will not exceed 6 knots. Do not attempt to watch from the Fred Hartman Bridge, it is illegal and extremely unsafe to park on the bridge.
2 to 3 PM: Battleship Texas will pass near the Texas City Dike - the end of the Texas City Dike will have an excellent view at this time. Because the Texas City Dike has a direct line of sight down the Houston Ship Channel, you may see the ship begin to come over the horizon earlier than this, but the closest approach will be around this time frame.
3 to 4 PM: Battleship Texas will enter the Galveston Ship Channel - The ship will be visible from Galveston Naval Museum and Seawolf Park at this time and will get a good view of the ship turning into the Galveston Ship Channel.
4 to 5 PM: Battleship Texas will arrive at Gulf Copper Galveston - This will be visible from the Pier 21 area in Galveston. The ship will wait at Gulf Copper while the riding crew prepares for dry docking and waits for the appropriate tidal window. At this point we may pause streaming, depending on how long it will be until the next steps.
Late August 31st to Early Morning September 1st: Battleship Texas will be maneuvered onto the dry dock and lifted out of the water. This process will be very slow once it begins. If we stopped, we will resume streaming at this time.
This is an ESTIMATED schedule, it IS subject to change. There will be LIVE UPDATES on battleshiptexas.org/departure throughout the day which will be more reliable than this schedule. This is an ESTIMATED schedule.
If you want to help, you can find the commemorative Colt Python they are selling on the site to help raise money.
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Mikasa is embedded in concrete but I'm read even that has it's problems
Mikasa es Sukasa?
Concrete is essentially a sponge. It takes forever to dry out once it gets wet, which means that it rarely, if ever, dries out.
It gets even worse if the concrete is in a marine environment because of the salt contamination. The chloride ions supercharge the corrosion reaction.
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I'm sorry, I watch WAY too much anime. When I read "Mikisa", I think of Misaka Mikoto in "A Certain Scientific Rail-gun".
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Mikasa es Sukasa?
Concrete is essentially a sponge. It takes forever to dry out once it gets wet, which means that it rarely, if ever, dries out.
It gets even worse if the concrete is in a marine environment because of the salt contamination. The chloride ions supercharge the corrosion reaction.
Mikasa
Mikasa Memorial Warship
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mikasa-memorial-warship
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_battleship_Mikasa
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I had no idea she was concreted because of the Washington Naval Treaty.
Interesting.
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The Battleship Texas is in the Houston Ship Channel and on the way. Coming up on the Baytown bridge now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe74Ib49f0Q
Youtube says the livestream won't play in restricted mode. You might not be able to play it if you aren't logged in.
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Don't think they could handle the load.
Video got jerky then cut out
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I thought they were going to do a continuous livestream. They just posted a short video talking about current status. I assume they will stream more later. As they get closer to Galveston, there are public boat ramps and parts to view from. I couldn't take off today or I would want to head that way.
They mentioned they might allow tours at some point in dry dock. I would love to see that.
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I had no idea she was concreted because of the Washington Naval Treaty.
Interesting.
I remember hearing there were provisions in the Treaty to prevent navies from keep a fleet off the books in mothballs or in some sort of auxiliary status. Drachinifel did a video about the treaty. I hadn't realized it was our countries' idea.
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Live stream back up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IJRnuGP_00
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Another one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8teq2uLVK1g
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I never realized just how close the rear turret was to the fantail on Texas.
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Battleship Texas Underway Update 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n90FQhqJtao
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Good live view
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta6TafiOXqM
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7op4Ut2qS4
Current livestream. Looks like they don't have much further to go, but I don't know that area.
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Is is me or is she down by the stern?
Could be her lines fooling me.
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Easing her into the floating drydock
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First Walk Around The Dry Dock | Battleship Texas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl8ZPyWGkrg
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It would be more interesting if the idiot would explain the things he's pointing out. So far, I'm only 5 minutes into it and I have two big questios:
1. Right at the start, he showed some kind of a fin beneath the bow, with two holes in it. I've listened three times and I still can't understand what he said it's called. He said it's unusual, that very few ships have it. But he didn't explain what its purpose is.
2. He has made multiple references to the round plates being for things like fire pumps. That makes no sense -- unless those are former inlets for sea water that were plated over in a previous repair.
3. He mentioned that the "coating" is in pretty good shape -- but no explanation of when it was coated (the 1989 refurbishment?) or what it was coated with.
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It would be more interesting if the idiot would explain the things he's pointing out. So far, I'm only 5 minutes into it and I have two big questios:
Idiot?
1. Right at the start, he showed some kind of a fin beneath the bow, with two holes in it. I've listened three times and I still can't understand what he said it's called. He said it's unusual, that very few ships have it. But he didn't explain what its purpose is.
"this is the deadeye for the paravanes"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadeye
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paravane_(water_kite)#Military_applications
I assume it was fitted for minesweeping.
2. He has made multiple references to the round plates being for things like fire pumps. That makes no sense -- unless those are former inlets for sea water that were plated over in a previous repair.
"... blanks for sea chests ..."
When a sea chest is "blanked off" it is blocked and sealed, but behind the blank would likely still be the inlet and equipment for handling the raw seawater. Blanking is often temporary (although for a museum ship it is probably permanent).
3. He mentioned that the "coating" is in pretty good shape -- but no explanation of when it was coated (the 1989 refurbishment?) or what it was coated with.
"The coating, the 1989 coating is really intact"
This was an epoxy coating. Above the waterline was a zinc-rich epoxy primer, epoxy intermediate coating, and a silicone alkyd top coat.
Underneath the waterline received six coats of an anti-corrosion epoxy coating, the last being colored black.
http://battleshiptexas.info/html/History/1988-1990.html
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Thanks for posting the dry dock link, WLJ.
I listened to "deadeye for the paravanes" at least 5 or 6 times before I figured out what he was saying, and then had to go to wikipedia to figure out what it was. (Clearly, I'm no swabbie.) I'm still not sure how useful something at the bow would be for guiding paravanes whose fins would presumably guide them 'way out to the side, or how they'd thread a new cable through when they lost one.
No wonder hardly any ships have them today.
I was also mildly surprised at how rough the hull was underneath - I wonder how many knots were cut off the speed and range of the ship, or if it's just a case of the ship itself being SO big by comparison the protuberances and such are inconsequential.
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USS New Jersey, I believe, still has some of the equipment for paravanes in place.
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USS New Jersey, I believe, still has some of the equipment for paravanes in place.
I watched a video by the curator of the New Jersey. He said that the attachment point in the New Jersey was in bad shape and had to be removed when it was last refitted for activation, but that the other battlewagons that were reactivated for use in Southeast Asia still had them.
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Drach visits the USS Texas
Far worse inside than I expected but I guess I should have considering her age and the fact she wasn't all that well taken care for quite a long time. Armor deck is warping from rust in places.
A cool look at the inside showing a mix of Dreadnought and WW-II era equipment.
USS Texas in Drydock - 2023 (Lets go inside!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgfGGNNUYas
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Not that it was an option for much of Texas' existence but one of the best things that New Jersey has had done is air conditioning for much of the interior. IIRC Ryan said 80 percent in one video. That keeps the humidity down and extends the life of just about everything, including paint. While I think that as an irreplaceable artifact she needs to be in climate controlled indoors I understand that the Foundation does have plans to get at least some of the interior air conditioned at her new berth.
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Back in the water
Warning: His choice of music is shall we say not to my liking.
First Drone Footage of Battleship Texas Now at Pier D in Galveston after Leaving Dry Dock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZXqcsG8Jtc
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Thanks for posting the dry dock link, WLJ.
I listened to "deadeye for the paravanes" at least 5 or 6 times before I figured out what he was saying, and then had to go to wikipedia to figure out what it was. (Clearly, I'm no swabbie.) I'm still not sure how useful something at the bow would be for guiding paravanes whose fins would presumably guide them 'way out to the side, or how they'd thread a new cable through when they lost one.
No wonder hardly any ships have them today.
I was also mildly surprised at how rough the hull was underneath - I wonder how many knots were cut off the speed and range of the ship, or if it's just a case of the ship itself being SO big by comparison the protuberances and such are inconsequential.
Just another example of video and written presenters who make the implicit assumption that the whole world can read their minds and everyone has exactly the same body of experience.
I wouldn't expect to have to explain "starbboard" and "port," but maybe "abaft" would need a word of explanation or a parenthetical substitute.
Yeah, you could assume your audience would be interested in and conversant with your subject matter, but some others might not want to dig into an on-line dictionary for every other sentence.
I was interested in the battleship, but as a landlubber, I echo Hank B's complaint.
"Put your head on your reader's shoulders" was the best writing advice I ever heard (Winthrop "Winnie" Palmer). Could be just as relevant to video presentations as well.
COMMUNICATE, dammit!
Terry, 230RN
See Reply #36 below for correction.
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"Put your head on your reader's shoulders" was the best writing advice I ever heard (Winthrop "Winnie" Palmer).
To do so you must first have a head on your shoulders.
Good to see the old girl back afloat. Hoping they make a comprehensive documentary of the refit.
Brad
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Actually, I typed that wrong. It should have been "Put the reader's head on your shoulders," as Winnie Palmer put it, but I'll leave it alone in the original above.
<chagrin>
Terry
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USS New Jersey's turn
Live links
Underway on Battleship New Jersey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToDAq0HeF94
LIVE LOOK: USS New Jersey to move down Delaware River to dry dock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGYPZKYpVB4
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LIVE: Battleship New Jersey continues voyage down Delaware River
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbahiEILxUk
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NJ being eased into drydock
Battleship New Jersey moving to Philadelphia Navy Yard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5cDqdV56ZY
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Drach is on the ship during the above
Live Drydock from a Drydock during Drydocking - Aboard USS New Jersey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSne0Co_iLs
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The New Jersey was built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
Nice homecoming.
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In The Drydock: First Look At The Ship On The Blocks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuyU2obzIQc