Is anyone interested in starting "school of the boat" questions post?

[Darrin]

Well Lance here is the first of many clues as to what you Grandpa did at the cube....

First thing to find out is weither or not that she had a "split" cube or a single cube.. Because the job while the same it is also different and done by two on a split cube which IMHO is a better way to go then a single cube, that whole redundancy thing comes to mind especially in a fire... IE you have a fire in the port side of manuvering on a split cube boat what have you lost??? you have lost the controls to the number 2,4 motors and gen sets and on a single cube boat?? depends on how the wiring was ran and how good your electricians are.
Just food for thought folks

[Tom Bowser]

Lance may wear your shirt but he comes to the Drum! We are closer.
Tom

[Lance Dean]

Well Lance here is the first of many clues as to what you Grandpa did at the cube....

First thing to find out is weither or not that she had a "split" cube or a single cube..

Learned something already.  I just assumed they were all split.

Any idea what the Tambor had?  The more I learn, the more difficult I realize it must have been to go from a brand new boat (Sand Lance - Balao class) to the Tambor.

[Darrin]

It depended on when they when and where they were built at from what I understand.... I can and will try to find out if Tambor had a split or a single cube for you.. give me a couple of days on that ok??

[Fred Tannenbaum]

The maneuvering room and control cubicle is one of the most fascinating places on a fleet boat to me after the control room. And that says a lot, considering how fascinating ALL compartments are on a fleet boat!

First, I believe split cubicles did not appear on fleet boats until later in the war, with the installation of two, large low-speed motors coupled directly to the propeller shafts (I believe started in USS Sea Owl), versus the four high-speed motors connected to the shafts with a reduction gear. I believe all the Tench-class boats had them.

Second, it's been a while since I've been in front of a full control cubicle but here's how I remember the layout. The levers to control forward and reverse direction are the outermost or outboard levers. The other levers (not in any particular order) connect the motors to the output from the diesel generators, connect the motors to the output from the batteries and connect the batteries from the output from the diesel generators. I recall that some of the other levers also control whether the power to the motors is in series in parallel and I believe some also may control whether the power from the batteries is drawn in series or parallel.

Also, on the panel in front of the levers, just below all the meters, there are round knobs or rheostats that control the speed of the motors. In the center, above the  meters are rheostats that control the speed of the engines.

Any clarifications are welcome! Again, despite its small size, I enjoy just looking around a maneuvering room and even dropping down below in the motor/red. gear room. Hope you all do as well!

Fred

[Darrin]

The USS Sea Owl SS-405 was a split cube boat, my uncle served on her and a shipmate of his LT Ken Johnson (he is apart of the International Submarine Organization and of K-77 fame) is also a TORSK vol and one of the things that he mentioned about Torsk and the Sea Owl is that they are both alike inside the "people tank" and the big difference was the sonar that was added on the TOP of the bow instead of the Chin Bubble that Torsk has, that and Sea Owl could still "bottom the boat" and after Torsk added the chin bubble they were no longer able to do that for fear of damage to the sonar, here before long I will send him a link to here and see if he is interested in coming here also as a Rep for the K-77..
I heard a LOT of sea stories of the Sea Owl growing up and when I asked Ken to volunteer on Torsk he came out because a nephew of a former shimate asked him to come out and he did it no questions asked.. THAT to me is a TRUE shipmate and he is a shipmate of mine and my uncles now and I have had a LOT of stories confirmed about the Sea Owl and I was really supriesed about one of them in Canada was retold to me by Ken and I couldn't believe that that no shitter was true....  Just remember that "submariners that can't tap dance are queer".......    Long story short, a party was held on their behalf in Canada and they woke up an Adm and they tap danced their way out of trouble and out of the harbour before getting anyone in trouble.

[Lance Dean]

I'd LOVE for Ken Johnson to be a member here.  I've tried to contact him about it without success.  Please do bug him Darrin.

[Lance Dean]

I'd be willing to bet that Tambor (SS-198) was a single cube.

The Drum has a single cube, right?

[Fred Tannenbaum]

Yes, Tambor and Drum have single cubicles.

Fred

[Darrin]

Lance,
when I get home tonight I will shoot him an email and request his presence here on this bbs also... Be forwarned with the Navy and the Army trying to raise his baby he is not spending anytime at home because he has a trailer set up on the grounds so he can help the divers out with every question that they have and how some of the gear works..

On a sad note he was the LAST duty Officer there on K-77 before she sank and he has been beating himself up for the last year about what if's and while the divers went in right after she sank and they did show that he closed the boat up like it is supposed to be done had he been able to get back to the boat before she took the severe list and the Coasties barred anyone from going onboard he could have done a little more he thinks that he could have done something to save her before she ultimatly sank.

[Lance Dean]

Lance,
when I get home tonight I will shoot him an email and request his presence here on this bbs also... Be forwarned with the Navy and the Army trying to raise his baby he is not spending anytime at home because he has a trailer set up on the grounds so he can help the divers out with every question that they have and how some of the gear works..

I know and completely understand.  I just hope he'll register so we can have a "go to" guy for the K-77.