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7th April 2010, 12:07 PM
#21
Older ships
Hi Castleman,
Thanks for all your efforts re this thread on olds ships. Yes the first two were of "my" Gascony of Royal Mail lines. She was I believe one of the first motor ships and by the time i sailed on her caused quite a few problems to her engineers. We were on the London to West Indies run a three month trip.
The third of your photographs was of the Athelviscount but a much later model. The one I sailed on was much older and looked it. I have photos or copies in my scrapbook, think I have most of the ships I sailed on in my thirty years at sea. As a lad did a lot of one trip one ship to see the world so got through a lot of companies as well as ships.
Nils & Louis talked about old colliers, well the Sherwood and Dalewood I mentioned are just like they are talking about coal burners (galley stove as well) counter sterns,chain steering,foscle ac
commodation in other words rough. They dated from 1920s
Thanks again
Stuart
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7th April 2010, 03:19 PM
#22
sir walter scott
hi jimmy, had one or two trips there myself.
as passenger though
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7th April 2010, 04:57 PM
#23
old ship
Hi Nils was the "Clarebrook a coal burner? I cant remember much about it now,what year were you on that one? was you in the engine room? every one was a part owner, when I was on it, in looe of wages' maybe? no overtime bad food and no gear !!! did it have a sister ship? How did you get any woman on that ship, it was not in port long enough to go ashore in most places'
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7th April 2010, 06:37 PM
#24
Old ships
I did a while as surveyor to the PS Waverley for the MCA. She was mid forties build with steam reciprocating machinery. That was a sight to see.
Something on the paddler that is not widely known and there is not many of them left now is her steering gear. It is a Brown Brothers, Rosebank Works, Edinburgh, Patent Steam Tiller. A masterpiece of engineering and certainly pre first war design. Wheel steering,hydraulic signal and all steam to move the gear. No electrics, no chains. It is below the emergency wheel on her poop. Passenger do not really see it. Away ahead of its time. An oldie but goldie as we say.
regards
jimmy
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8th April 2010, 12:10 AM
#25
Not the oldest ship in the fleet, but when I joined the 'Nurtureton' in 1951 I was unaware that she had split in two in 1931 having been grounded in a gale off Dungeness. She was only 18 months old at the time.
The two halves were towed to Rotterdam and sewn together. Nobody aboard during my time seemed aware of this, otherwise we would have been more worried than we were during the rough weather and constant breakdowns we experienced.
Being one of Chapman's the food was lousy, but we could not complain about the food on the last leg home from Barahona - we didn't have any, (apart from Haricot Beans)!
Taffy R556959
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8th April 2010, 11:21 AM
#26
hi vernon. all i have for kingsbury is official number 180533. think it was houlders as they had one called queensbury. alf
Backsheesh runs the World
people talking about you is none of your business
R397928
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9th April 2010, 11:29 AM
#27
clarebrook
hi louis, I was on the clarebrook 28/9/65---4/11/65.
she was a fairly modern ship, no chain steering or coal fired galley that I remember.
The girls I met in blyth and I think we only had a couple of days in that port.
I can't remember what the food was like so it couldn't have been too bad.
The accomodation wasn't too bad, two berth cabins aft.
I certainly didn't remember any part-owners among the crew.
If I'd been told that there were I'd have remembered it.
Like yourself, my memory is rather erratic but on those points I am reasonably sure.
Maybe you've got it mixed up with another
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9th April 2010, 05:03 PM
#28
Oldest Ship
Oldest merchant ship i was on was a coaster called SS Yewtree built i think in the 19twenties,firemen and the deck crowd lived forrard,we had to bring our food forrard in turines,during our watch we had to pull any ashes up from the engine room and dump over the side,sometimes in bad weather it would be impossible to get forrard so had to kip any where you could.
Prior to the Yewtree was on a drifter where 11 men shared one cabin,we would be away from home for 3 months,no toilet (Except the sea) no wash place,had to use a bucket with water heated on the stove in the galley,no sink in the galley so all washing up a bucket was used,fish for breakfast six days a week,the cook would cook dinner any thing after that you had to cook then clear up yourself.
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9th April 2010, 08:46 PM
#29
m.v.Staffordshire.......
Well,my oldest ship was not the oldest by far,judging by all your posts!,but she was old to me,back in 1971.
She was the Bibby Liner the m.v.Staffordshire(3) of 1950.
Built by Vickers-Armstrong's yard at High Walker,Tyneside in May 1950,she was 8,827 grt/10,515 dwt.Powered by Doxford 6 cylinder diesel,single screw.
She was launched as Eastern Prince(5) for Prince Line(Furness Withy).From 1960-1964 she was long-term chartered to Shaw Savill as Bardic.
Bibby Line bought her and her sistership(Gloucestershire,ex-Cingalese Prince ex-Gallic) in 1964.They were to replace the previously larger traditional Bibby Line passenger/cargo
ships on the Colombo and Rangoon via Suez run.
Previous calls were at Aden for bunkers,but since Suez was closed from 1967,the two vessels made the run to Colombo and Rangoon bunkering at Las Palmas and Cape Town.(Always good for a run ashore if you weren't on duty! )
Paddy Hendersons and Burma Five Star Line were the other partners in the consortium.
in 1971 my trip aboard Staffordshire was to be her last. She was a very spacious cargo liner of her day with accommodation for 8 passengers,though on that voyage we carried just one,a young Sri Lankan nurse going home after her training in UK.She chose this method of transport as being one that her parents did years before her,and also to bring home much more personal effects than allowed by plane! Passengers had their own library/lounge matching the officers lounge either side of the walkround forward facing boat deck.Internally,all the accommodation was wood panelled with glass mirrors and wide staircases. Externally around the accommodation the decks were wood.
Unusually I think,although the ship was motor,the deck winches were steam- so there were -many sleepless nights whilst working cargo in port,especially as Number 3 Hatch came right through the accommodation!.But when that hatch wasn't working,it was a great place up on that boat deck for barbecues and film show nights,especially under that velvet-blue star studded Indian Ocean sky......
Officers were Bibby Line company men with the occasional Burmese or Sri Lankan officer or cadet..Crew were Burmese,but the Chippy and 4 QM's were White crew,and were company contract men, rather than off the pool.
On that particular voyage we suffered engine problems between the Cape and Colombo.We were 2 months in Colombo repairing/trials and later transhipping our onward Rangoon cargo. We all got to know that lovely port....Galle Face Hotel.the Fort Seamens Club,Mount Lavinia. Hotel Taprobane. Tropicana Club.........
We proceeded on five cylinders to Hong kong,averaging 8 knots,and delivered the'old lady' to breakers at the appropriately named Junk Bay,our commodore Captain,Maurice Mills from Birkenhead being last off the ship ,whilst she was being run aground on the breakers beach.....
Very Nice Memories.
Last edited by Gulliver; 9th April 2010 at 08:49 PM.
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11th April 2010, 10:47 AM
#30
I am not old just rusty
Hi Nils Hi Shipmates, I am in the fog locker over the "Clarebrook" thats not my oldest will check my books again,brain out to lunch ? as i said was long time ago S.S Patia a skin boat, how old was that one? on the last trip to fiat cars on that one. Still cant' remember the name of the one with chain streering and magnetic compass.
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