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RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] warning for smyth

Title: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] warning for smyth

Having spent the better part of 24 years, working on and/or supporting US Navy nuclear submarines, I have picked up numerous pieces of trivial information.
 
One of these little trivets, and unfortunately I don't remember the details,  was a submarine-builder identification trick involving the hull welds.  It seems that one of the major builders ground their welds smooth (simply as a matter of professional pride) and the other builder(s) did not.  I think (but am not positive) that the yard that smoothed their welds was Mare Island Naval Shipyard.
 
This was pointed out to me by some old salt, who walked my young butt up and down the piers until I could properly identify the builder of each boat.  Alas, that was awhile back.
 
Gary
-----Original Message-----
From: Alec Smyth [mailto:owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org]On Behalf Of Alec Smyth
Sent: Wednesday, September 25, 2002 1:03 PM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] warning for smyth

Aha, there might be some worthwhile discussion here after all. The certified pressure vessel welder who did the hull said the following with respect to dressing the surface of the weld: It is not a problem so long as you go no deeper than the plate surface on either side. The reasoning is that if its a full penetration weld done with the right material, it essentially becomes one piece of metal.
 
So yes, the welds are dressed. I would not see any reason to do this on a conventional sub, by the way. But its significant given the very specific intent of this design. I've done things like countersink the heads of screws, and make teardrop fairings around hull appendages.
 
In any case, the welds are going to be ultrasound examined and the entire sub tested unmanned. And I doubt very much I'll ever be able to test to anywhere near its design crush depth, which is 3,000 feet.
 
BTW I don't take offense in the slightest at this sort of post. I'm pretty sure in one way or another several people on the list have saved my skin already.
 
thanks,
 
Alec
-----Original Message-----
From: Carsten Standfuss [mailto:MerlinSub@t-online.de]
Sent: Wed 9/25/2002 2:44 PM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Cc:
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] warning for smyth

Great America - submarines was welded there in early 1920 ies.. :-))
.. and maybe it was in a freeflooding area..
Carsten

Michael B Holt schrieb:
>
> True story of a submarine welding problem:
>
> In the early 20s, on an O-class boat in a U.S. shipyard...
>
> A reporter was assigned to cover the launching of the boat.   He arrived
> early, met the important folk and sat back to wait.   After a while, the
> launching was postponed for an hour or so.   The reporter decided to
> look around.
>
> Security wasn't what it is today, so he was able to get on the deck
> of the sub.  He also got to walk alongside the hull.  He started looking
> at the hull closely, and he noted a pitting in a weld at the stern of the
>
> boat, at about the waterline.   He scratched at it, wondering what it
> was.  Finally he looked around for something with which he could
> scrape at the place.   He found a couple of feet of stiff wire, and he
> poked for a bit.
>
> Suddenly the wire broke through the weld.  It went all the way into the
> pressure hull.    The reporter left the wire in the hole and ran for the
> nearest foreman.   Breathlessly, he told the man of his find.
>
> The foreman just grinned cheerfully and said, "It's OK.   We'll just
> cover it up with grease after we launch her."
>
> I think this was on Arch Whitehouse's book on submarine
> warfare.   Right now I can't find it because I re-arranged all
> the books at midnight while I was looking for a copy of Sir
> Thomas More's "Utopia."
>
> Mike H.
>
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