Here are scanned pages from a pamphlet that was originally published as a magazine article about
the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company.

I was working at the shipyard at this time, in the Mechanical Maintenance (84) department. I've
worked the linear launches as part of the hydraulic team (which literally pushed the ship on
rollers onto the floating dry dock), and also worked on the dry dock pretty much full time at this
point, and on the cranes.

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

"Kilgore Trout" wrote in message
.. .
Here are scanned pages from a pamphlet that was originally published as a
magazine article about
the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company.

I was working at the shipyard at this time, in the Mechanical Maintenance
(84) department. I've
worked the linear launches as part of the hydraulic team (which literally
pushed the ship on
rollers onto the floating dry dock), and also worked on the dry dock
pretty much full time at this
point, and on the cranes.

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

Interesting! Thanks for posting.
Bob

On Thu, 4 May 2017 21:16:40 -0400, Kilgore Trout
wrote:

Here are scanned pages from a pamphlet that was originally published as a magazine article about
the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company.

I was working at the shipyard at this time, in the Mechanical Maintenance (84) department. I've
worked the linear launches as part of the hydraulic team (which literally pushed the ship on
rollers onto the floating dry dock), and also worked on the dry dock pretty much full time at this
point, and on the cranes.

You have stirred up my ,memories of shipbuilding on the River Tyne,
1954-58. I did not work of a shipbuilder's yard but was the local
salesman for Esso which had just introduced mineral lubricants to the
market for launching lubricants - tallow and other things before
that..
So I was present at several launches, not on the VIP platform but
underneath the hull. offering a prayer that the ship would start
moving as soon as the chocks were knocked out. There were, of course,
hydraulic rams to give it a push if necessary.
At least one shipyard would not believe that the coefficient of
friction would be so much better than with the old materials so there
were some exciting launches.
The Tyne is not wide so the ship had to be turned as soon as it was in
the water, done with suitably positioned drag chains. At one launch,
the ship was going a bit quickly and did not turn quickly enough and
hit the boiler house of British Paints on the other side of the river
- the chairman of British Paints was on the VIP launch platform but
fortunately he could not see his boiler house!

Guy Gorton

In article , says...

On Thu, 4 May 2017 21:16:40 -0400, Kilgore Trout
wrote:

Here are scanned pages from a pamphlet that was originally published as a magazine article about
the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company.


So I was present at several launches, not on the VIP platform but
underneath the hull. offering a prayer that the ship would start
moving as soon as the chocks were knocked out. There were, of course,
hydraulic rams to give it a push if necessary.

When I started in the shipyard in '73, I worked in the Stagebuilders (66 department, shipwright
carpenters), who actually performed the launch. I've helped knock out the supports that held the
ship up, and was on the shipway when it started down.

At least one shipyard would not believe that the coefficient of
friction would be so much better than with the old materials so there
were some exciting launches.

Yeah, we had one get stuck once for the exact same reason.

The Tyne is not wide so the ship had to be turned as soon as it was in
the water, done with suitably positioned drag chains. At one launch,
the ship was going a bit quickly and did not turn quickly enough and
hit the boiler house of British Paints on the other side of the river
- the chairman of British Paints was on the VIP launch platform but
fortunately he could not see his boiler house!

Sun used a steel cable to turn the ship, and one launch, that cable snapped. The ship then went
sightseeing in New Jersey. :-)


--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

In article , says...

On 2017-05-04 21:16, Kilgore Trout wrote:
Here are scanned pages from a pamphlet that was originally published as a magazine article about
the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company.

I was working at the shipyard at this time, in the Mechanical Maintenance (84) department. I've
worked the linear launches as part of the hydraulic team (which literally pushed the ship on
rollers onto the floating dry dock), and also worked on the dry dock pretty much full time at this
point, and on the cranes.


Very interesting.

Thanks. My dad had even more stories about that place, but died before we could get him to record
them :-(

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

In article , says...

"Kilgore Trout" wrote in message
.. .
I was working at the shipyard at this time, in the Mechanical Maintenance
(84) department. I've
worked the linear launches as part of the hydraulic team (which literally
pushed the ship on
rollers onto the floating dry dock), and also worked on the dry dock
pretty much full time at this
point, and on the cranes.

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

Interesting! Thanks for posting.
Bob


Thanks. My dad had even more stories about that place, but died before we could get him to record
them :-(

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

Kilgore Trout wrote in

So I was present at several launches, not on the VIP platform but
underneath the hull. offering a prayer that the ship would start
moving as soon as the chocks were knocked out. There were, of
course, hydraulic rams to give it a push if necessary.

When I started in the shipyard in '73, I worked in the Stagebuilders
(66 department, shipwright carpenters), who actually performed the
launch.



So you were there while the Glomar Explorer was being build & launched ?

In article , john Szalay says...

Kilgore Trout wrote in

So I was present at several launches, not on the VIP platform but
underneath the hull. offering a prayer that the ship would start
moving as soon as the chocks were knocked out. There were, of
course, hydraulic rams to give it a push if necessary.

When I started in the shipyard in '73, I worked in the Stagebuilders
(66 department, shipwright carpenters), who actually performed the
launch.



So you were there while the Glomar Explorer was being build & launched ?

Yes! I worked on the staging on it, and even lost a lunchbox and paperback book in the inards when
a hull section got added while I was working elsewhere :-)

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com

Kilgore Trout wrote in
:





So you were there while the Glomar Explorer was being build &
launched ?

Yes! I worked on the staging on it, and even lost a lunchbox and
paperback book in the inards when a hull section got added while I was
working elsewhere :-)



You might get a chance to get them back, she is going to be scrapped soon.

;-)

In article , john Szalay says...

Kilgore Trout wrote in
:





So you were there while the Glomar Explorer was being build &
launched ?

Yes! I worked on the staging on it, and even lost a lunchbox and
paperback book in the inards when a hull section got added while I was
working elsewhere :-)



You might get a chance to get them back, she is going to be scrapped soon.

;-)

Huh, I need to send this on to some old shipyard folks.

--
Al McCann
albert(dot)mccann(at)outlook(dot)com