The Shipyard ( Dry Dock ): Builds & Questions => Working Vessels => Topic started by: chas on October 31, 2015, 02:28:51 pm
Title: Very strange old ships!
Post by: chas on October 31, 2015, 02:28:51 pm
a picture is worth a thousand words, have a look at these very odd vessels. the pictures are from an old Eagle annual, I refuse to grow up. I found one reference to the connector on the web, so it was at least a proposal, though I can´t imagine it being built, think of the stresses involved. The weird ferry is at least a possibility for a model, though it will take a better person than me to do it. right, back to Dan Dare now !!!!
Title: Re: 2 very strange old ships
Post by: furball on October 31, 2015, 05:27:39 pm
I've seen mention of the hinged one somewhere, many years ago. Wouldn't have been in the Eagle though.
Lance
Title: Re: 2 very strange old ships
Post by: Nemo on October 31, 2015, 05:30:38 pm
'Roller-Ship' see - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_ship
Title: Re: 2 very strange old ships
Post by: DavieTait on October 31, 2015, 05:36:48 pm
Martin, I like the cigar boat, but I can't make out the paddle / impeler in the middle. Any ideas?
It was a 'radial propeller', driven by a steam engine in the hull. Not sure how the engine and propeller were connected, though.
Tom
Title: Re: 2 very strange old ships
Post by: chas on November 01, 2015, 11:18:16 pm
I've never heard of a radial propeller, I'll google it later. At a quick glance I presume it's in a sealed slot in the hull. Weird,there were some odd ideas in the early days of steam shipping.
Title: Re: 2 very strange old ships
Post by: ballastanksian on November 02, 2015, 10:40:34 pm
That is one of the Cigar ships designed by and built for the Winnan brothers who were millionaire railroad barons.
They knew nothing about nautical architecture and so developed some radical ideas, some evolutionary and some revolutionary. Their plan was to design a ship with the minimum of water and wave resistance. All three of their ships had perfectly round hulls. At least one had a novel ballast pendulum moved using a huge steam cylinder to move the pendulum counteracting the movement of the propellor as there wee no keels nor even bilge keels!
The Radial propellor of this vessel was driven by two steam engines on a common shaft with one engine in either end of the hull. This was split in two by the propellor with contact across the flying bridge and a catwalk over the propeller housing. This ship suffered from severe stress damage to the drive shaft due to hogging and troughing.
The Ross Winnan had a radial propellor at each end and a superstructure. All three ships were well maintained despite never sailing after their initial trials and were broken up in the 'ninties of the last century.
John Guthrie's book 'Bizarre ships' has an article on these, the very enigmatic articulated ship as well as many other mad designs, though it does omit the Ernest Bezin. Worth a look as it does have some plans of several of the ships plus period illustrations that could help with building a model.
Guthrie says that the Winnans need not have made such narrow cigar ships as the resistance is still not great for a wide cylidrical hull, so I one day fancy building a 'what if' cigar liner!.
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: Martin (Admin) on November 02, 2015, 11:29:11 pm
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: tonyH on June 21, 2021, 02:19:48 pm
Nearly 30 years to get to the Tower? Suffolk Coast was doing the Grand Tour so why not U155 in dead slow?
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: NickelBelter on June 23, 2021, 05:51:58 am
Don't know if any whaleback steamers made it across the Atlantic, but there's one preserved in Duluth, Minnesota at least (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/The_whaleback_steamer_Henry_Cort.jpg)
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: nemesis on December 17, 2022, 03:21:33 pm
That is one Heavy lift. nemesis
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: tonyH on December 17, 2022, 03:37:59 pm
A slightly more covert version, if you've lost your sub in the lake %) ! https://www.hnsa.org/manuals-documents/single-topic/the-glomar-explorer-deep-ocean-working-vessel-technical-description-and-specification/
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: Liverbudgie2 on December 18, 2022, 12:29:31 pm
She was an interesting vessel and state for heavy lift ships of the art when built. She did her maiden voyage from Birkenhead in 1983. She was scrapped some years ago I believe. LB
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: TheLongBuild on December 18, 2022, 04:20:22 pm
She was an interesting vessel and state for heavy lift ships of the art when built. She did her maiden voyage from Birkenhead in 1983. She was scrapped some years ago I believe. LB
Assume you are referring to the Jumbo Challenger and not the Glomar Explorer.
Title: Re: Very strange old ships!
Post by: Liverbudgie2 on December 18, 2022, 06:18:21 pm
Yes I am, The picture of the Glomar Explorer wasn't there when I posted. An iteresting vessel though. LB