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USS Newport News - April 2004 - Work
Party Report
Breaking News
The USS Salem has received approval
from the town of Quincy for the sleepover programs to re-commence.
This means a steady stream of revenue for them and it opens back up
the option of our guys sleeping aboard when attending our work
parties. Lots of people put in a bunch of time getting the berthing
compartments up to par. Lots of changes there but the big one is that
the after berthing spaces are all air conditioned.
April 29 – May 2nd Newport
News Work Party Summary
By: AL Siegel (ETR-2 67-70)
About 30 shipmates along with family
and friends gathered together on the USS Salem to enjoy time together,
help restore portions of the ship and upgrade the museum.
The work party was very productive. A team of Newport News vets took
on the project of sealing 5” Mount 51 (just forward of the bridge).
Apparently water had been getting into the mount and handling room,
causing damage. After a lengthy search, the source of the leaks were
discovered and properly sealed. The interior of the mount was left to
dry and will be cleaned and restored over the next few months as
volunteers come to the Salem to lend a hand. Our big project was 3”
Mount 35. The gun tub and mount were in serious need of repair. Paint
had chipped off, rust was forming, and the general condition of the
mount was awful. About 15 of us attacked the mount with needle guns,
chipping hammers and wire brushes. We climbed all over the mount like
ants on a cube of sugar. AND after almost 50 years of inactivity, we
were able to elevate the guns – that was a thrill. Our next project
will be to train the mount, but some work is left to do. After
completely chipping the mount, deck and tub, the crew gave it a fresh
coat of paint. Some of the dials were replaced and mount was ready for
action. The remaining crewmembers worked down below in the museum. We
erected a display for last year’s museum dedication ceremony, filled
with pictures and carefully protected by Plexiglas. We also created a
display for ship’s patches and left space for more – if you have any
original ship’s or division patches send it to us and we will put it
on display with your name as the donor.
Each morning we raised a Newport News American flag (one from the
first Vietnam cruise) up the mainmast and also one of our brand new
ship’s flags (that are now available in the ship’s store). We had
colors in the evening as well, and most everyone had the opportunity
to handle our flags. It was an honor.
Saturday was a very special time. After knock off ship’s work, many of
us put on our uniforms and we all joined together for a very moving
memorial service port side by T2. This memorial was for all our
shipmates that have passed on, and stories of some of them were read.
Taps was played and all of us had a tear in our eye. In the end, we
are our own special band of brothers, and only a shipmate can
understand the meaning of that brotherhood.
Following the memorial service, we moved on to the wardroom for an all
hands dinner. The food was great as was the company.
For those of you that can’t seem to find the time to make these work
parties, you are truly missing out. You can always sit around the
house, clean the garage, go to a movie, whatever – but the time to
spend with your shipmates is slipping away. Don’t end up saying “I
wish I did that.” Get off your collective butts and make a work party.
You won’t be disappointed. And by the way, you can sleep on board the
ship and really relive the good old days. Bring your family and
friends – everyone is welcome.
Turret 2 Project Update
By: Al Babson (GMG-2 69-72)
First of all Joe Shea should be
writing this, since he shows up all winter long. Most weekends Joe
shows up during the winter and works on the Salem, doing whatever they
need done. I know it's too cold for me to do much work so I stay home
and get some sleep.
During this work party we checked out below decks up in T-2. During
the winter, some water and a little oil had leaked on the shell decks
and the deck of the powder handling room. Nothing compared to what
there was down there when we started, just enough to be slick and rust
up spots on the deck. It should only be a one-day job to clean it up,
if the warm weather gets here. Lately it's been cool and damp up here
in Boston.
We still need to get the periscopes put in place. For that job we'll
need some strong backs and some kind of jacks or lifts. We might need
to make a few parts to secure them in place. The rubber bloomers on
the front of the guns need to be secured around the guns to help keep
out the weather. Believe we have all, or at least most, of the parts
needed to get that done. Just have to get the bolts soaked in oil to
loosen them up, and then find sockets to fit them. To secure the
bloomers we'll need either some staging or tall stepladders to work
from. That should be a weekend or few days’ job.
Mount 51 Project Update
By: Rich Jordan (T-3 1972)
Mount 51 was drained of all water
and surface oil. Most of the paint in both the Mount and the handling
room is simply falling off. It's my belief that most of the remaining
paint can easily be removed with scrapers and a shop vac. However, the
bulkheads of the mount will need to be repainted, as well as the guns
and Captain's stations. The non-skid strips were just floating around
and were removed. I suggest we use non-skid paint instead of replacing
the strips. The directors need to be sealed as we did on T-2. The cost
should be less than $200.00 for stripping agents and new paint. I
would leave the handling room bulkheads stripped to their original
stainless steel construction. Less necessary work and more light
infiltration. All in all a 5 man crew should be able to finish the job
in a 48-hour work party. Let me know when you want to do this and I'll
bring up what strippers and solvents I have from doing my boat.
Memorial Project Update
By: John Noll (ETN-2 66-70)
As we announced just prior to this
work party, we want to add to our memorial web page the names of all
shipmates who have died while serving aboard the News. Even though
there wasn’t much time I did receive several emails from past
crewmembers with information on several lost shipmates. Over the
Memorial Day weekend I received more. Please keep the information
coming.
I would like to mention one thing that happened as a result of this
project. I received an email from a Harry Montgomery asking for
information concerning his uncle, Joseph Vincent Balzano, who was
killed in an accident while serving aboard the News. The accident had
happened 16 years before Harry was born and he was interested in the
details. The very same day I received an email from Edwin Brathwaite,
BM 3 1952-1955 who told me the story of Joseph Balzano. As a result I
have been able to put Harry in touch with Edwin his uncle’s friend and
shipmate. This is the sort of thing that I want to see happen. I want
the memory of these fallen shipmates to live on, but I need your help.
Upcoming Events
Newport News New England
Work Party
By: Bob Freeman (5th Div. 60-63)
There has been some interest in
having smaller and more frequent Work Parties for our shipmates in the
New England area. With this in mind, the Board of Directors has
decided to have this type of WP every other month. The WP would start
on a Friday and end on Sunday with berthing aboard the USS Salem in
Quincy, MA. The WP’s are being called “New England Work Party” but
this does not mean shipmates from outside of the New England area may
not attend. Everyone is welcome.
The first WP has been scheduled for the weekend of July 16th - 18th.
We are planning on working in mount 51 handling room and the Chief of
Staff’s area.
Hopefully we will be able to have these events all winter. In cold
weather we will be working below deck. The ship is heated so the cold
will not be a problem.
Anyone who would like to attend any of these WP’s may contact me by
Email at
freeman@uss-newport-news.com or call me at 603-882-8860 for more
information on the upcoming WP’s.
CALLING ALL RADIO MEN!
By: John Noll (ETN-2 66-70)
Did you know that there is an
amateur radio club (K1USN) aboard the USS Salem? Did you know that
they operate from Radio 5? Did you know that they also maintain and
operate the ship’s radio equipment? Anyone who is at all interested in
radio communication will find a visit to the ship’s radio rooms an
adventure in time travel.
K1USN is sponsoring the 2004 Historic Ships
Weekend Event this year. This will be the same weekend of our July
work party. During this event Historic Naval ships from around the
world work to communicate with each other using their original radio
equipment. Amateur radio operators also vie for an opportunity to
communicate with as many of these ships as possible. For more
information on the USS Salem radio club and this upcoming event,
please visit the following sites.
http://www.qsl.net/k1usn/
http://www.qsl.net/k1usn/event.html
http://www.hnsa.org/index.htm
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