18-19 March, 22-26 March, Now we are getting somewhere

The high water is over and things are back to more normal with a lot of progress being made. Lepi completed number 3 compartment. Number 2 was completed except for final washdown which is occurring this morning. They will start on number 1 today and expect it to be completed by the end of this week.

The remaining small repairs in number 6 were completed. There was a repair in number 5 starboard center bulkhead at the after transverse bulkhead where there was a set-up. There are two other significant set-ups on that bulkhead forward which will addressed when the replating is done there.

The first plate to go up was a transerse plate on the stern starting just forward of the forward bulkhead of compartment number 6, extending 8 feet aft, and extending from knuckle to kuckle. The WOUB group was down for the first weld on Thursday afternoon, the 25th. The transvere plate is not yet fully welded but is tacked in place enough to show a good fit up. A side plate on each side of the stern have been fitted up to the original plate which was ultrasonically tested and found to be thick enough for a butt weld which will give a better looking appearance.

The angles for the Z-bar replacement in number 4 outboard compartments have been delivered and are on the platen for assembly. The placment of the longitudinal plates on the stern have been worked out and progress is being made to fit them up.

Number 4 compartment frames and bulkheads are pretty much dressed up and will be ready for the big plate shortly. However, the Z-bar replacement as well as some bulkhead and gussett repairs will have to be accomplished. The protocol for these repairs has not yet be worked out.

11, 12, 15, 16, 17 March Mixed Bag

Thursday and Friday, the 11th and 12th, not much got accomplished. There were several towboats that came in for some serious repairs and there were only two burners (welders) on Thursday and only one on Friday. Lepi, when they left Thursday, had only the bottom of number 3 compartment outboard to blast and clean out. That will finish the full width of number 3 compartment. They work 4-10+ hour days. To add to the confusion, the river was rising. NOAA predicted it would crest on Tuesday afternoon above the flood stage of 50 feet. It did not quite get there, rising to only 47.66 feet locally.

Monday, we had five burners on the job. Lepi had only 16 bags of walnut aggregate aboard. Their usual porcedure was to truck it down to the dock, slide it into the drydock and then carry it aboard. However, with the high water, there is no truck acces to the dock. So after blasting the bottom and rough cleanout, they left to return on Moday, the 22nd. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, three burners worked under number 4 compartment, and two started repairs to the deteriorated sections of the forward bulkhead of the number six compartment. As of tonight, 8 of the 10 deteriorated sections on the lower edge have been repaired with insert plate. There are six small transition pieces which form part of the lower frame of the longitudinal bulkheads in number 6 compartment that are wasted. They are being fabricated in the fab shop and have yet to appear. These are the only repairs needed to be accomplished before replating can start.There is then the dressing of the frames to remove weld remnants and rivet debris. After that is a coat of primer, then initial fit up. The yard anticipates that replating will start Monday. We will see.

I ran the laser measurements again tonight. There is no discernible hog, sag or rack.

8-10 March Incremental Progress

This week thus far and will continue to be the slow intricate preparation of the stern section and under number 4 compartment for replating. Cutting out and trimming is being carried forward of the forward bulkhead of number 6 compartment. The first plate will be a full transverse plate started foward of that bulkhead and carried aft. The remainder of the stern plating will be split plates carried longitudinally. There are several holes in the lower edge of that forward bulkhead and a hole each in the longitudinal bulkhead. These will be repaired prior to replating.

Most of the overlay is off from under compartment 4.

Lepi has completed the port side of number 3 compartment and has started on the starboard outboard number 3. They expect to have number 3 and number 2 completed by the end of next week. They have been able to speed up the process somewhat by introducing limited amounts of Black Beauty (coal slag) into the walnut shell medium.

The yard surveyors ran their sights today and there is no significant change in the shape of the boat. I verified this tonight with laser measurements.

Dwain, that is a darn big plate!

On Thursday morning, the 4th of March, I travelled down to the fab shop at the new facility to watch and videotape the flipping of the three bottom plates joined by the new welding procedure. However, when I got there, Dwain decided that he wanted two more plates welded on so as to reach the whole length between the blocks underneath compartment 4. This would reach from knuckle to knuckle with a length of 40 feet. Returning to the boat, I performed my usual rounds of the cutting work and Lepi's activity on the port outboard compartment 3. I also had some discussions with Earl the foreman and Nick, the lead welder on the replating of the stern section. Lunch time brought me back to the fab shop where James had welded the two additional plates. The now 30 by 40 foot plate was dragged out into the open where a well coordinated crane effort lifted it vertically and laid it over. It was quite a show particularly as this was a windy day and the wind seemed to strengthen when they got it vertical. Fortunately, it was accomplished without mishap.

I sat down with Dwain that afternoon and we laid out the replating procedure for the stern. When the overlay was removed on the stern, it had significant gaps between it and the original plate. This made the tunnels deeper which would reqquire greater compound bends of the sheet steel. Fitting this up to make tight butt joints would be impossible without a computer controlled bending process. McGinnis does not have this. No shipyard on the Western Rivers has this. Accordingly, as there is little stress in the stern area and to facilitate the replating process, we will be going with split sheets (4 foor wide) and lapping the joints. When the overlay was taken off the stern, it revealed the lower carrier (gudgeon) bearing which protrudes beyond the surface of the original plates. There was some cut trim on one of the bearings from time before (?). It still protrudes. I do not want to remove or discard those bearings. Accordingly, they will be boxed in with a truncated cylinder over the new plate. This will show the position of the rudders where it was not visible before.

Friday, the 5th, I returned to the fab shop where James had welded up the backside of two of the plates with two welds to go. Paul Tucker from Lincoln Electric showed up with the new written weld procedures that had been qualified previously on the plate with rounded corners. I already had the test coupons. The resulting welds are coming out very well with full penetration and with no requirments to gouge out and repair.

Initially that morning, it was decided that the stern replating could start on the 8th. However, that got changed to Tuesday as Dwain had to go out of town Monday. The trimming work in both the stern area and in compartment 4 is progressing steadily. The hole in the transverse bulkhead between compartment 4 and 5 inboard starboard has been closed with an insert plate. The holes in the longitudinal bulkheads cut by Lepi can remain open to facilitate the welding operation joining the new plate to the existing frames and longitudinals. Lepi has now completed number 3 port outbaord compartment. The survey team will run measurements again prior to the stern replating.