FIAT Diesels - the Italian Job.

As we pick up speed again after the brief encounter with some interesting articles, a remnant past, for your information, "We're still onboard the MS Franca C, and hope you've enjoyed the meals."  We go down to the hottest place on the ship, the Engine Room.  The 'coolest' time I've experienced being  down there was 34˚C!  And that was in Fremantle, Western Australia.  The outside temperature was 18˚C.  The usual temperature in the Engine room was usually about (in the tropics) 40˚C - 48˚C.  'Engine guys' please clarify!!

It was in La Spezia and the Ansaldo S.A. shipyards at Muggiano, her oil fired steam engines were replaced with a double-acting six-cylinder diesel, which was built by Fiat Grandi Motori Turin.  The Medina and Roma were powered by steam before this change.

provided by www.ssmaritime.net

Later in 1970 when she was renamed the Franca C, in Cantieri del Tirreno in Genoa, she was given her second brand new fiat diesel engines, a four stroke, 18-cylinder unit capable of 8,100 HP.  The Fiat Diesel engine was able to develop 4,200 HP that gave the ship a respectable speed of 15 knots.  This third engine is now the engine aboard the Doulos Phos (renamed when the MV Doulos was taken out of service).

Note the size of the 'spare' cylinders on the left.      - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

 Secondary manual engine controls. - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

As you see above, the things here are very old.  I think you'd only see these in a WWII epic movie like 'Das Boot' (The Boat).

'Top' starboard cylinder-heads. - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

 'Lower' engine casing.  - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

Engine gearbox, which turns the shaft to the propeller.  - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

In the above picture, this is the original shaft from the Medina built in 1914.  See my earlier post in 'Artefacts'.  One of my responsibilities as Deck cadet on the Bridge was to prepare the vessel to leave.  I would inform the Engine Room officer for a 'One hour notice'.  I'd run through my checklist (just like an aircraft pilot does).  One of the tests we do is the 'Test engines on Air' and 'Test engines on Fuel'.  When ready, the Engine personnel will call the Bridge and in less than a minute the whole ship begin to shudder as high pressured air is forced into the cylinders and in turn, turning the propeller while the ship is still tied up.  The same goes for 'Test engines on Fuel'.

provided by www.ssmaritime.net

As far as I recalled my time on board, we never run the engines to the max of 100 percent power - only 80 percent.  Owing to the fact that its 'ancient' factor put in, you don't want to run this 'old lady' flat out!  Our normal 'Full Away' speed was always (depending on sea conditions) within the vicinity of 10 - 12 knots.  For your pleasure of knowing, we recorded a maximum speed of 14 knots on our voyage from Taiwan to Korea, this was possible because we were steering to a 'running sea' as opposed to head seas.

Engine room exhaust ducts seen from above.       - provided by www.ssmaritime.net

When all the generators, machinery, and the Fiat engine are 'ON', it sounds like a jet engine!  Loud!!  The Engine room crew were exceptional.  They don't see what's outside, nor aware of what is going on in the Bridge, but yet these guys work and stand on 'stations' in extreme heat and sometimes sea sickness; awaiting commands which the only indicator is from the Engine Telegraph control - I salute the guys working down there!

Old switches.  - provided by www.ssmaritime.com

Do sign up to follow if you don't want to miss new posts as they appear.  Also, do check out a new page 'BRIDGE Logbook'.  It's a transcription of my logbook I found recently.  It highlights some of the things we faced during voyages.  Have a peek.

Ship's 'Taffrail Log' Saved.

Be reminded, as you are reading this, you are embarking on a journey with me on this "ship like no other."  And since our last encounter, as we turned the dials of time on our story on a Seth Thomas clock, we were served with a sumptuous meal from our discovery of menus from Franca C's Rapallo Restaurant.  Nothing can stop this ship from displaying her resolute character in surviving the 'hard-pitching' to head seas pounding her bow.  Hard as she can be just like my 'lignum vitae' block of hardwood.  Yes! We are still on the MS Franca C.  Jewel of the Atlantic sea in her time.  Hope that you still have your 'sea legs'!  But let me steer you to a next discovery.

Working in the Deck department at times brings me to certain areas where not many are familiar with.  And the best experiences were of course here on the Doulos.  She is a 'live specimen', a living museum.  Everywhere you go, the word is 'old'.  There was this day when we were cleaning up the steering gear compartment of all the bits and pieces of junk like disused metal parts, old fittings that belonged to the bygone days and....more junk.

After half a day sorting out the place we realised that there was a considerable pile of stuff we need to throw out.  As usual, being a curious person I looked through the pile.  One by one I worked on the pile like a little boy searching for a new toy.  And this boy found a new 'toy'.  I found an old ship's taffrail log.  It's heavy and made of brass.

www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

The 'log' or simply called ship's log, is the modern equivalent of a car speedometer.  Before the days of GPS navigation a log was used to register the speed of a vessel moving through water.  A log consisting essentially of a rotator towed through the water by a braided log line attached to a distance-registering device usually secured at the taffrail, the railing at the stern - hence the name taffrail log.

www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

Again like my little research on my Seth Thomas clock, I faced difficulties in verifying its age and origin.  But incidentally I found a good website in dealing with antiques and old items.  See my post on 'Saving Seth Thomas'.

"Cherub Mark II" - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

It was made by Thomas Walker & Son, Ltd of Birmingham, England whose name is synonymous with patent logs.  Cherub logs are one of the oldest and largest of all logs of Thomas Walker's distance measuring apparatus.

www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

This one's probably made for a Dutch vessel as many Thomas Walker logs were manufactured and sold to many countries.  The word 'Mijl' for 'mile' in English is seen printed on the log face.  According to reliable sources, the Mark II was made between the 1900 - 1930's.  This could probably be used on the Medina, or the Roma and Franca C.

On another finding, a fellow cadet officer while working the same job as mine but in another compartment called the baggage compartment, found an old brass ship's lantern and a 'gas detection oil lamp' - like the one used by miners.

My pile of rubbish could be one that has been accumulated through the years.  What a place to find a piece of history!  If you have anymore information on this Mark II or if you just want to comment on this post, do share and leave a comment.

Saving Seth Thomas - 1943

I hope you are following me in my earlier posting 'Artefact' and 'Artefact 2 - Restaurant Menus Found'.  Not only have I treasured my time being on the 'old lady', but also privileged to have known her past.  This next 'find' will definitely wind us back into time and one item that shares her resilient nature.

Chart table. - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

I worked onboard the Doulos for two and half years, and my last year there I was a deck cadet - or apprentice officer.  Normally I'd be working out under the hot sun or in the cold, depending in which country we were in.  But sometimes I would be required on the Bridge working on charts or attending to other duties.  One day we were replacing the old stuff in the Bridge with new ones.  And one of these items was a 'Seth Thomas' ship's clock.  Since they threw it, I took it.  A simple rescue operation.

 See the 'clock' on the top right of the photo. - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

'Seth Thomas' No.32801. - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

Some numbers on the back plate. - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

 Manufacturer's marking. November 1943. - www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

For years I've tried to source the meaning of these markings but unfortunately none concrete.  But recently I tried again.  This time I located a site called www.collectorsweekly.com.  The people there helped me out and verified the markings.  It was also pointed out to me that a similar clock was sold on eBay with the same arrangement of numbers - of course, with different numbering.  With the assumption and  validity of the numbers, this meant to say that this clock was used possibly on the SS Medina when she was serving in the military until she was almost scrapped, bought then renamed the Roma in 1949.

www.doulos1914/blogspot.com

Seth Thomas clock company began producing clocks in 1813.  It went through a few change of ownership and is now owned by CST Enterprise in Rhode Island.  No manufacturing is underway at the time.  But the Seth Thomas brand now lives again, made available by another clock builder for CST Enterprise.

Please share any extra insight if you have in comments section.

Artefacts 2 - Old restaurant menus found.

I had just joined the MV Doulos in May 1990, and within a year with 21 ports 'under my belt' we finally berthed at Ocean Terminal Hong Kong.  One of the most expensive ports in the world in terms of port fees were concerned.  We had a great time of ministry and after a few weeks it was time for the women, children and guys from the Book Exhibition to leave the ship and continue ministering in the different churches on shore.  Reason?  It's our annual dry dock, and my first!  Excited?  Of course.  An unforgettable one definitely.

As you can see above, the clean lines of the Medina, Roma, and the Franca C truly is a testimony of this 'tough American ship' borne in the docks of Newport News.  The standard of maintenance is astounding considering it was run by a 'volunteer crew' when she sailed as the MV Doulos.

We worked at least 12 - 14 hours a day during the dry docking period, but it was considered nothing compared to the excellent 'food & beverage' crew for providing us almost-bottomless feeding!  Our consumption skills took a twist one day when we uncovered a 'finer-style' of dining that was long lost beneath us.

The crew that worked on the Dining Room, which was the Rapallo Restaurant during her days as the MS Franca C, were replacing the electrical cables,  therefore wood paneling and fittings had to be removed.  The steel bulkheads were 'needle gunned' to remove rust and then treated with industrial 'rust remover'. 

This is what the 'restaurant' looked like (bottom) on the MS Franca C.  (Note: In fact, nothing's changed when she was the MV Doulos.  I've just realised that we've been using and sitting on the very chairs that belonged to the Franca C all the time!  In 1977 when the ship was renovated, they just left it as it was.  This includes all the cabin and passageways paneling).

    provided by www.ssmaritime.net

When the wooden panels were removed (the panels just under the windows in the picture above), they found pieces of cutlery and dining menus left there from the time it sailed as the Franca C.  How it got there, no one knew.  Probably it was during the time of transition and renovation to the MV Doulos that some workmen decided to dispose of them and left it there behind the panelling, or someone purposefully hid it to be found again in the future - this, is purely just speculations.

It was such an 'eye-opener' that it was the talk of the day.  For me, first it was the wooden block from the propeller shaft, and now this!  We were suddenly drawn into the past as we stood at the very place where 'meals were served' on the Franca C - and we were holding those menus and pieces of cutleries in our hands!  Time stood still for a moment.

We all took a bit of memorabilia for ourselves, some were kept on board for historical keep-sake.  I had mine.  The piece of lignum vitae (see my earlier post), and now to this.  Suddenly I was so proud of being able to be part of her history.  I was only a sojourner.

Bread knives - Rapallo Restaurant

If you are local, something in Italian perhaps?

"Good morning!"  Breakfast is served.

Another menu with the 'Costa Line' logo.

Hungry yet?

November, I bet they're escaping winter for somewhere sunny. 

For your enlightenment, we're back in 1964.  Do enjoy!

The 'Lunch Menu'

Well, if you don't understand Italian, "English please!"  As I was saying, these 'menus' were found hidden behind the wood paneling and we uncovered it by pure happenstance.  Imagine having these in your hands standing in Rapallo Restaurant (at the time, our Dining Room), it was like immersing oneself back into the year 1964, the sound of music, Italian speaking voices, the smell of roasted duck bathe in strawberry juices..oh my!  I'm hungry now as you are reading this aren't you?  And look at that picture above, 'Suckling pig with apples!!!'  Ohhh...I'm famished!  I need this.

Now do you understand why the Franca C was a world's first in trans-oceanic travel?  The world was changing in her time - people needed this.  They heard it, they believed it, and they got the journey of their lives.

More to come.  Please share if you have anything to add as we go on this journey together.

Artefacts - 'Lignum Vitae' hardwood

"A ship like no other."  Truly it is a testimony of her sea-worthiness throughout.  This time we're descending deep into her past, down where one can smell the fumes, the oil, sound of machinery running and heat.  We enter the Medina's propeller tunnel-shaft.

In the old days, the shaft inside the tube was bronze coated and run against a longitudinal bearing, which, when I was serving my time on the Doulos, still retains its narrow strips of a very hard-wearing wood known as “lignum vitae.”  Lignum vitae is hard and durable, and is also the densest wood traded; it will easily sink in water.  The belaying pins and dead-eyes aboard the USS Constitution and many other sailing ships were made from lignum vitae. Due to its density and natural oils, they rarely need replacement, despite the severity of typical marine weathering conditions.

    provided by www.ssmaritime.net

Pictured above, the propeller shaft tunnel (Medina's original shaft ~ see earlier post) runs through here.  If, looking through during a voyage, that's the sea outside!

Commonly used in ship's propeller stern-tube bearings, due to its self-lubricating qualities, until the 1960s with the introduction of sealed white metal bearings.

 

It was, during our annual dry dock in 1991, Hong Kong; other than the general maintenance and external upkeep of the physical aspect of the ship, several of the ship's spaces underwent a 'not-so-small' refurbishing projects.  Deep down in the belly of the ship were our engineers and engine crew, soaked in engine oil and blackened complexion, worked tirelessly on the ship's machinery and often in close and confined spaces.

One of the job was to remove the propeller shaft, and the propeller together, with crews working on the inside and dock workers, from the outside.  As explained earlier, the stern tube where the propeller shaft sits, is made of wood.  A remnant of a technology which dates back to the steamship era.

2nd Mate Steve Baker walked up to me and spoke about what the guys down below were doing and showed me this piece of wood that had come off (or while they were servicing the shaft) from the wooden bearing.  He left it with me.  This piece of history is in my hands now.  I don't know whether the others have kept pieces of it or not, that I'm uncertain.

It is rock-hard!! It feels like....yeah, a rock!  The weight and density of the wood is impressive.  Lignum-vitae is the heartwood of the genus Guaiacum. At a hardness of 4,500 lbs. it is one of the world’s hardest woods (three times as hard as oak). In the dry state.

Other uses include Hydro bearings and Saw blocks.  Other findings include some of the memorable times when the MV Doulos sailed as the MS Franca C.  You wouldn't expect to find it in the most 'secretive' but obvious places on the ship.  Yet, that is what the discovery is all about.  It's like walking into a 'time machine', peering into its treasured past.  Again I say "What a privilege to have sailed on her."  Don't miss out on my posts, more to come.

'Me' standing beside our removed propeller for servicing.  Dry dock Hong Kong 1991.