Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 1 2
Results 11 to 19 of 19

Thread: My first ship

  1. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Varsity Lakes, Gold Coast Qld
    Posts
    707
    Thanks (Given)
    583
    Thanks (Received)
    435
    Likes (Given)
    802
    Likes (Received)
    2226

    Default Re: My first ship

    Joined my first ship, the Pacific Imported, a sam boat, in Cardiff July 1953. As soon as I got on board was sent down no 4 to tally cars, still in full uniform. About 1900, Die Dear came down and said "sorry, we forgot you, come up and we will find you some food in duty mess". I then met the other 2 cadets, Senior was Split Pin Brinkworth and I shared a cabin with Sammy Seal.

    About 0300 we were called out as donkeyman had gone to sleep and boiler had filled with coldwater and Jennies had stopped. Red a lot of dunnage into furnace and by torch light and got enough steam to start the steam generator.

    The releaving mate was Jack 'Slug' Tye, top shipmate. We still had a large deck cargo of baulks of pine for Glasgow and superintendent said, it is in perfect condition, make sure it gets to Glasgow like that.
    Some time during the night, the 3/E pumped up the fuel and somehow got the valves wrong and pumped the hot oil into the filling line. The blank in the filling line in starboard alleyway was not tightened up so acted a spray plate, spraying the hot fuel into a full gail, and having hot black bunker c sprayed all over the ship. The starboard life boats had a couple of inches of oil in the bilges.

    WE anchored off the 'Tail of Bank' and drums of kero were ferried out and all hands, even the stewards were turned too washing the oil off. When we berthed, to the mates great relief, the Dock engineer was delighted with the cargo as it was all for use on the wharf and was to be coated with creosote anyway.

    When we got to LA and were boarded by yank immigration, one of the greasers was taken ashore for interrogation , he was of Latvian descent and had been forced to sail on a Russian ship during the war When he eventually was brought back on board, don't know what had happened but he tried to hang himself from No 4 derricks.

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Bolton UK
    Posts
    15,004
    Thanks (Given)
    20832
    Thanks (Received)
    11089
    Likes (Given)
    30414
    Likes (Received)
    37116

    Default Re: My first ship

    apart from all that, it was a good trip.

  3. Thanks N/A thanked for this post
  4. #13
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Llanelli South Wales
    Posts
    12,988
    Thanks (Given)
    373
    Thanks (Received)
    308
    Likes (Given)
    609
    Likes (Received)
    1097

    Default Re: My first ship

    My first ship was the British Pioneer out from Swansea,
    only a cabin boy,but didnt I feel important.
    Dave Williams

  5. #14
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Location
    ottawa canada
    Posts
    639
    Thanks (Given)
    379
    Thanks (Received)
    581
    Likes (Given)
    2203
    Likes (Received)
    1931

    Default Re: My first ship

    my first ship in 1955 was the British Builder, also out of Swansea. a good mixed crew that looked out for first tripper deck boy. went to some very interesting places that people pay good money to see.
    regards, stan

  6. Thanks Doc Vernon thanked for this post
  7. #15
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Cooma NSW
    Posts
    8,972
    Thanks (Given)
    10199
    Thanks (Received)
    5221
    Likes (Given)
    44159
    Likes (Received)
    26899

    Default Re: My first ship

    Hi Stan.
    My last ship was the British Builder sent up from Swansea with deck crew to join her in Newcastle 8th Nov 55, left her in South Shields 20 Sep 56, went to work in the ICI in Middlesbrough for a few months, then on the coast waiting to leave for NZ.
    Cheers Des
    Last edited by Des Taff Jenkins; 28th January 2018 at 03:38 AM.

  8. #16
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
    Location
    merseyside
    Posts
    1,531
    Thanks (Given)
    2665
    Thanks (Received)
    1188
    Likes (Given)
    11726
    Likes (Received)
    5929

    Default Re: My first ship

    Quote Originally Posted by Captain Kong View Post
    Thanks for that Charles.



    Cheers
    Brian
    hi capt kong
    saw the same thing in freetown when a bum boat tried to make off with the soap and cigarettes and one of the lads threw a couple of shackles down into the boat but hit the guy on the head, after that we went ashore and I was genuinely surprised to see there was a leper colony there, mind you after spending the night with a couple of jungle bunnies I was scared for weeks in case I had the same, and I checked it every day to make sure it had not dropped
    off.
    tom
    Last edited by Doc Vernon; 29th January 2018 at 07:24 AM.

  9. #17
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Varsity Lakes, Gold Coast Qld
    Posts
    707
    Thanks (Given)
    583
    Thanks (Received)
    435
    Likes (Given)
    802
    Likes (Received)
    2226

    Default Re: My first ship

    Dead right

  10. #18
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Cooma NSW
    Posts
    8,972
    Thanks (Given)
    10199
    Thanks (Received)
    5221
    Likes (Given)
    44159
    Likes (Received)
    26899

    Default Re: My first ship

    Quote Originally Posted by Colin Wood View Post
    Dead right
    Or very close to it maybe.
    Des

  11. #19
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Sunbury Victoria Australia
    Posts
    24,996
    Thanks (Given)
    8301
    Thanks (Received)
    10126
    Likes (Given)
    106550
    Likes (Received)
    45666

    Default Re: My first ship

    Quote Originally Posted by David Williams View Post
    My first ship was the British Pioneer out from Swansea,
    only a cabin boy,but didnt I feel important.
    Dave Williams
    Dave, consider yourself lucky, cabin boy.

    Had that been on a UCL you may have had a different feeling.
    Happy daze John in Oz.

    Life is too short to blend in.

    John Strange R737787
    World Traveller

  12. Likes Doc Vernon, Dennis McGuckin, N/A liked this post
Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 1 2

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •