Steaming Modified Main

[Dick Zimmermann]

Jerry Boock, MMCM (SW), 1986 - 91

Steaming Modified Main

I've really enjoyed reading the sea stories, and figured it was my time to contribute.

First I wanted to comment on steaming modified main. The real reason we steamed modified main was so we could get underway quicker if we needed to. Yes it gave you a more stable plant, but with good watchstanders, we could steam auxiliary steaming on Buchanan with no problem. We steamed auxilaries a lot during my tour on BUCHANAN, I’m sure BTCM (SW) Plaisance, MMC (SW) Esber, MM2 Avey and others will suport this. The key to steaming auxiliaries in DDGs was to have good watchstanders, and during my tour on BUCHANAN I was blessed with some of the best.

Now I wonder how many BUCHANAN sailors remember our “Drift Ops of 89.” We were told if we conserved fuel our battle group would get to go down to Australia for liberty when we finished sailing circles in the Indian Ocean. The BUCHANAN was assigned to the southern AAW picket station.  They gave us this big box to sail around in, so we set up drift ops to conserve fuel. Winds and seas were such that we would sail up to the northwest corner of the box, go down to one boiler/one blower, steam one engineroom modified main so we could quickly make turns if we needed too, and steamed cross-conected and ran a generator and other auxiliary equipment in the other engineroom. This allowed us to conserve fuel to the tune of about 150 barrels a day, not to mention it gave us a chance to get caught up and get ahead of our PMS requirements. We would drift for two or three days, then bring the engines back up and steam back up to the northwest corner again and start drifting all over again. Although we might have come close a time or two, we never lost the load, and we sure enjoyed Bunbury, Australia!

We sure had a great crew!

[Dick Zimmermann]

Rick Avey, MM2, 1986 - 90

Drift Ops

So that’s what all that drift ops stuff was all about.. Whoda thunk?  Come to think of it that drift op assignment was almost like a mini vacation while underway.  Now, now!  I said almost! And who could forget dial a sailor?  And as far as great sailors and steamers I think the guys we had back then were and still are the greatest assembled group of hard core steamers there ever was. I wish I had a copy of the package of ECCTT drills we ran.  Those drills were something to see!  If any of you other BUCHANAN sailors have never seen the results of a fully qualified fore and aft casualty drills in the engineroom or fireroom you just wouldn’t believe what the Mighty Buck was capable of.  

We tossed crossconnect valve configurations in seconds!!  Do you guys remember the 600 psi crossconnect?  A good upperlevel man didn’t need to be told to crossconnect six - he was there before the order was given. Guys like MM2 Bailey, MM2 Noyes, MM2 Dellatorre, MM1 Pugh, MM3 Kozlowsky, MM3 Graham.  I feel honored to have served with those men and I didn’t even come close to giving everybody the credit they earned.  

Does anybody still have a copy of the Ode to Snipes?  I remember only a part of it that said something like “Those sweat soaked heroes fight in superheated air, And no one knows they’re there.” Anyway take care. Til next time....MM2

[SEADAWG]

   OMG...reading these posts have sure generated a lot of good memories. Yes, we worked our dear little buts off in those main spaces, and 75% of the time we were just plain sleep deprived, and overheated, BUT, what a crew. I have to agree with MMCM Boock and MM2 Avey...what a crew. In my 23 year career I have served aboard 3 carriers, 1 tender, and 5 tin cans, and I will state for the record, the Buchanan snipes were hands down the finest bunch of steamers I have had the privledge of steaming with. Does anyone remember the unofficial race we had with a Russian cruiser in the Indian ocean? And yes Jerry, I remember steaming mod main. Didn't take us long to break that down to a fine art huh? Remember the mysterious vacuum leak aft that had us all pulling our hair out for weeks? And casualty control drills till I was ready to puke. And the good old midwatches....pump....dump....and blow. Memories, lots of good ones. Thanx snipes.