Shipyard stories
- Thread starter dmort
- Start date
Breathing Apparatus - similar to scuba tanks, sometimes called Scott AirPaks, one of the larger manufactors of them.
Asa Yam
New member
Mike (and all).
"OBA" stands for "Oxygen Breathing Apparatus". In design and function, it is a "rebreather" system, where CO2 is chemically converted to O2. THE OBA unit is (or was) a US Navy system for supplying breathing air to damage control crews aboard ship.
Scott Air packs and similar devices are "SCBA" units, where the abbreviation stands for "Self Contained Breathing Apparatus". These devices use compressed air in tanks to provide breathing material. SCBAs are now the standard air supply system for use by shipboard damage control.
Both systems have their advantages and disadvantages:
- An SCBA generates a lot less hazardous material than an OBA, but requires an air compressor to recharge the tank.
- OBAs allow for a quick recharge by replacing canisters, but each canister contains hazardous waste. Additionally, the chemical in the canister was reactive to certain materials, especially petroleum products. OBA users were repeatedly warned to be careful about use of the devices and canister disposal in areas containing puddles of fuel. (Remember being told we were wearing the equivalent of several sticks of dynamite on our chests...)
History Lesson
When USS Stark (ex-FFG-31) was hit in the Persian Gulf in 1986, what helped save her was the use of over DOUBLE the ship's normal allotment of OBAs and canisters. Stark used her entire inventory of 331 canisters (normal number for a ship of this class was 118), and ships aiding her sent more over.
Links:
OBA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxygen_Breathing_Apparatus
SCBA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-contained_breathing_apparatus
Nice page on using the OBA: http://www.therebreathersite.nl/Zuurstofrebreathers/USA/msa_oba_a-4.htm
USS Stark Webpage. (Section on OBA and canister quantity is about halfway down the page, in the "remarks" section.): http://xbradtc2.com/2015/05/17/the-uss-stark/
Hope this helps.
Some of the most interesting reading I have enjoyed in quite some time. All though it might be routine to those who have been there and done it or still do the ship yard work is extremely interesting to me. Thank you so very much for sharing it and please continue to do so. Not knowing if it would be a good way for a young man to pursue in these current times I would more than value your input on that subject.
JLouis
JLouis
Oxygen Breathing apparatus. Looks like the Navy has gone to Scott Paks. 3rd row for pic.
https://www.google.com/search?biw=1...WAhVHrlQKHbiNAiUQhyYIKQ#imgrc=U4B-KeT28cU5mM:
A few times underway, after a fire drill. We would get together on fantail and throw the used canisters over the back. Real fun when they are washing the bilges in the Fire/Engine rooms. When mixed with oily water they make a nice explosion....
The Master Chief of the Command EMCS Stephen Kiser USS Stark, helped me get through Electrician's Mate "A" school. A great guy.
He was the chief of the building. He made sure, all new guys were to find him, if they had a problem with school.....It was not his job.
On Thursdays, he would hold school in his office. Friday was test day. He would stay as late as it took to make sure you were going to understand the material....which prolly saved a lot of people, being electricians.
He was the chief of the building. He made sure, all new guys were to find him, if they had a problem with school.....It was not his job.
On Thursdays, he would hold school in his office. Friday was test day. He would stay as late as it took to make sure you were going to understand the material....which prolly saved a lot of people, being electricians.
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dmort
Active member
A misread Mort. Senior Chief Kiser was the building/barracks Chief. It was his shore duty assignment. The building Chief was like an apartment manager. He was in command of the building. Each floor had a 1st class/E6 in charge(my floor, he was not an electrician).
S/C Kiser saw a need or a tradition and kept it going. Every Thurs. after chow, was school call.
dmort
Active member
So, if someone has shore duty it is correct to refer to the ship they are from?
It is the senior NCO's like you described that are really the backbone of the military.
When my son went to the Army version of "A" school he had extra coaching by a senior NCO.
He retired as a MSgt. and I know he still remembers the name and rank of his coach.
It is the senior NCO's like you described that are really the backbone of the military.
When my son went to the Army version of "A" school he had extra coaching by a senior NCO.
He retired as a MSgt. and I know he still remembers the name and rank of his coach.
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So, if someone has shore duty it is correct to refer to the ship they are from?
Sometimes. It's how you associate people and names. A human memory thing. So you know someone, and you remember the guy with the blue Ford truck....can't remember his name.....Ford has prolly painted a billion or 2, cars and trucks blue....
I read the name Stark. And remembered I knew the Senior Chief...from Navy school. But, he was the barracks chief...not an instructor...So I googled the Stark. Found his name and a picture. That was the guy.
Few senior enlisted had beards. On my ship only E-4/5's had beards.
The US Navy was changing again. Bell bottoms and beards were a recruiting tool.
1983. The US Military decided it had too many people, that were trouble makers. And tightened up the rules.
They got rid of all the troublemakers and criminals.....true criminals will never change.
A judge sending some loser/criminal to the Marines, is not helping a true criminal. Just enabling one. And it's not patriotic. The judge is just passing off societies ills on the military....and causing more damage to society as a whole....he/she just found a new target rich environment...
Eh?
The US Military in the 90's became a true Professional Fighting Force.....
It was starting in 1982. At boot camp we were told. Do not climb the fence(you might hurt yourself). You don't want to be here. Then leave.
But, walk out the gate.
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dmort
Active member
Tim
I agree with the military being a more professional fighting force, and I think that started to happen with the elemination of the draft.
On the negative side, veterans became a small minority, and we have too many people in positions of authority that don't have a clue.
A judge never sent me to the Marines, but it was advised if I wished to avoid a court appearance it would be best if I disappeared for awhile.
After one day in boot camp and four years to go, I was sure the court appearance would have been the easy way out.
Mort
I agree with the military being a more professional fighting force, and I think that started to happen with the elemination of the draft.
On the negative side, veterans became a small minority, and we have too many people in positions of authority that don't have a clue.
A judge never sent me to the Marines, but it was advised if I wished to avoid a court appearance it would be best if I disappeared for awhile.
After one day in boot camp and four years to go, I was sure the court appearance would have been the easy way out.
Mort
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dmort
Active member
The Grinding Room
I really liked working nights, and didn't want to be put back on days. That was possible if the shift work got slow...as I was the new guy.
One of the old guys on the night shift was going to retire. He had ground cranks for Studebaker before coming to the yard and he was the go to guy for any grinding work that came in.
Anyway, it was agreed I could work under his supervision on slow nights.
He was a good guy and a good teacher, but I wasn't in a real comfort zone when he left. The day shift foreman would have the final say on my staying there or not.
We had table grinders, centerless grinders and a Blanchard grinder. The largest table grinder had a bed about six feet long and was about 30 inches wide. The wheel was about 8 inches wide. You could end up having a lot of contact surface with the work piece and push it off the table onto the floor...never did that but was always aware. The table grinders had strong magnetic bases but you could still over do it.
Some of the stuff that came in had prior work (threads, keyways, etc.) and you would be the last person to touch it before it went out.
No pressure here, right.
It pretty much went well over time. One job I didn't finish, and I underground a shaft on a centerless grinder (that was stupid).....so my relationship with the day shift foreman wasn't the perfect union.
Bottom line...I still got the occasional job in the grinding room, stayed on the night shift and got to have lunch with my friends.
Mort
I really liked working nights, and didn't want to be put back on days. That was possible if the shift work got slow...as I was the new guy.
One of the old guys on the night shift was going to retire. He had ground cranks for Studebaker before coming to the yard and he was the go to guy for any grinding work that came in.
Anyway, it was agreed I could work under his supervision on slow nights.
He was a good guy and a good teacher, but I wasn't in a real comfort zone when he left. The day shift foreman would have the final say on my staying there or not.
We had table grinders, centerless grinders and a Blanchard grinder. The largest table grinder had a bed about six feet long and was about 30 inches wide. The wheel was about 8 inches wide. You could end up having a lot of contact surface with the work piece and push it off the table onto the floor...never did that but was always aware. The table grinders had strong magnetic bases but you could still over do it.
Some of the stuff that came in had prior work (threads, keyways, etc.) and you would be the last person to touch it before it went out.
No pressure here, right.
It pretty much went well over time. One job I didn't finish, and I underground a shaft on a centerless grinder (that was stupid).....so my relationship with the day shift foreman wasn't the perfect union.
Bottom line...I still got the occasional job in the grinding room, stayed on the night shift and got to have lunch with my friends.
Mort
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jackie schmidt
New member
Well, I was a Draftee. They took me kicking and screaming.
But after I "got there", I got with the program. The Army had a unique way in turning a bunch of rebellious 19 year olds into fairly decent soldiers.
But at heart, I was still a civilian. When my two years were up, they knew better than to even ask.
Trying to explain the Draft to young people today can be difficult, as they have no concept of it. I was drafted 35 days before my 19th birthday. While in, I made it all the way to E-5 and ran a communications station. I had a top secret communications security clearance.
The day I ETSed out, I could not walk in a bar and buy a beer, nor could I vote. Try explaining that.
But after I "got there", I got with the program. The Army had a unique way in turning a bunch of rebellious 19 year olds into fairly decent soldiers.
But at heart, I was still a civilian. When my two years were up, they knew better than to even ask.
Trying to explain the Draft to young people today can be difficult, as they have no concept of it. I was drafted 35 days before my 19th birthday. While in, I made it all the way to E-5 and ran a communications station. I had a top secret communications security clearance.
The day I ETSed out, I could not walk in a bar and buy a beer, nor could I vote. Try explaining that.
dmort
Active member
The Draft
It was hard to explain to young people. Went through that with my grandkids.
I was trying to avoid active duty by joining an Active Reserve unit....there was one about an hour away and the closest. The Marine Corps.
Myself and two friends went to a meeting there to check it out.
Six years?...That was forever, and look at those haircuts!
Doing four years of active duty worked out for me. My last two years were part of the Inactive Reserve. Had I joined the Active Reserve as orginaly planned I could have been called up for Vietnam.
Sometimes things work out after all.....and I never had to go to court.
Mort
It was hard to explain to young people. Went through that with my grandkids.
I was trying to avoid active duty by joining an Active Reserve unit....there was one about an hour away and the closest. The Marine Corps.
Myself and two friends went to a meeting there to check it out.
Six years?...That was forever, and look at those haircuts!
Doing four years of active duty worked out for me. My last two years were part of the Inactive Reserve. Had I joined the Active Reserve as orginaly planned I could have been called up for Vietnam.
Sometimes things work out after all.....and I never had to go to court.
Mort
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I don't see the problem. Looks like it dropped exactly into the correct place. Clear the cables, squirt a little oil on the bearings, slap the top cover on, and let 'er rip.
dmort
Active member
The Pipe Fitters
Sometimes I would be sent down to the Pipefitters shop.
The Pipe fitters had a fairly large shop that had it's own smell. The origin of the smell was a vat that was used to clean pipe that had been removed from a ship...nasty stuff. They also had a large table with removable fixtures for bending pipe. It was hydraulic operated.
In a screened off area in the back of the shop was where I was suppose to go. There was a roll around there with a Machinist box on it, but no Machinist.. There was a small lathe, knee mill and a radial drill press. They all had a strange patina that wasn't rust...more like a stain. I wondered if the stain had something to do with the chemical vat.
I was so anal about my tools I was more worried what exposure would do to them then what I was breathing...and that's the truth.
I figured the machinist that worked here was still alive or he wouldn't be on vacation.
So it's all good, and I knew there was an emergency pack of Luckies in my roll around.
The work turned out to be real easy for the time I was there. Very few jobs required precision work. The radial drill got a work out. Most of what was brought in were damaged pipe flanges with broken bolts, etc. Sometimes I would get a blank flange that had to be drilled for whatever bolt pattern was required....I'm sure there were templates somewhere, but I never found them. Dykem and dividers also worked.
I became fairly proficient drilling out large broken bolts. The only thing left in the flange would be the bolt threads. I had ground a couple of my drift punches on a wheel to give them an angled face. With the modified punch and a ball peen hammer I would go to work. Sounds pretty simple but when the piece that fell to the floor resembled a Heli-coil...I had a sense of satisfaction and the Pipe fitters were happy campers
P.S. On pipes that ran salt water the flanges were suppose to be fastened with stainless steel bolts. Sometimes cad plated bolts were substituted, not good.
Mort
Sometimes I would be sent down to the Pipefitters shop.
The Pipe fitters had a fairly large shop that had it's own smell. The origin of the smell was a vat that was used to clean pipe that had been removed from a ship...nasty stuff. They also had a large table with removable fixtures for bending pipe. It was hydraulic operated.
In a screened off area in the back of the shop was where I was suppose to go. There was a roll around there with a Machinist box on it, but no Machinist.. There was a small lathe, knee mill and a radial drill press. They all had a strange patina that wasn't rust...more like a stain. I wondered if the stain had something to do with the chemical vat.
I was so anal about my tools I was more worried what exposure would do to them then what I was breathing...and that's the truth.
I figured the machinist that worked here was still alive or he wouldn't be on vacation.
So it's all good, and I knew there was an emergency pack of Luckies in my roll around.
The work turned out to be real easy for the time I was there. Very few jobs required precision work. The radial drill got a work out. Most of what was brought in were damaged pipe flanges with broken bolts, etc. Sometimes I would get a blank flange that had to be drilled for whatever bolt pattern was required....I'm sure there were templates somewhere, but I never found them. Dykem and dividers also worked.
I became fairly proficient drilling out large broken bolts. The only thing left in the flange would be the bolt threads. I had ground a couple of my drift punches on a wheel to give them an angled face. With the modified punch and a ball peen hammer I would go to work. Sounds pretty simple but when the piece that fell to the floor resembled a Heli-coil...I had a sense of satisfaction and the Pipe fitters were happy campers
P.S. On pipes that ran salt water the flanges were suppose to be fastened with stainless steel bolts. Sometimes cad plated bolts were substituted, not good.
Mort
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dmort
Active member
The USS Midway
On a trip to Southern California I took the family and the grand kids (who aren't kids anymore) to see the Midway at it's berth in San Diego as a museum.
I didn't need the guided tour or the self guided tour with the headset. Grandpa worked on this ship alot and knew how to get to the engineering spaces....Right?
After three trips passed the mess hall it was decided that everyone would rather go up on the flight deck and look at the airplanes.
The grand kids really love their grandpa and that is alot more important than my ego..... Anyway, I knew I could eventually get down there.
Mort
On a trip to Southern California I took the family and the grand kids (who aren't kids anymore) to see the Midway at it's berth in San Diego as a museum.
I didn't need the guided tour or the self guided tour with the headset. Grandpa worked on this ship alot and knew how to get to the engineering spaces....Right?
After three trips passed the mess hall it was decided that everyone would rather go up on the flight deck and look at the airplanes.
The grand kids really love their grandpa and that is alot more important than my ego..... Anyway, I knew I could eventually get down there.
Mort
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