Make industrial chain

[jeepsr4ever]

http://www.nvo.com/baldtus/nss-folder/makingchain/chipper.jpg

http://www.nvo.com/baldtus/nss-folder/makingchain/heater.jpg

http://www.nvo.com/baldtus/nss-folder/makingchain/bender.jpg

http://www.nvo.com/baldtus/nss-folder/makingchain/press.jpg


:shock:





:!:

[gremlin boys]

I think that wieghs more than my truck !!! :-|

[Lifted79CJ7]

I wouldn't be surprised if Mudrat sees that stuff all the time while working on the ships over at the Naval yard....

But still - Would hate to drop one link on my toes...would look like meatloaf! :!:

[Mudrat]

Actually, I haven't seen them make chain before. The Navy actually reuses them from decommissioned ships and only buys new stuff when one is lost. Yeah, yeah, your wondering how do you 'lose' an anchor chain that is more than 1,000 feet long, with 684 links weighing 365 pounds each (for the math imparied that's almost 125 tons of standard aircraft carrier chain, and she has 2 of them! For Jack - that's mush not meatloaf :roll: )? When you go to ‘set the anchor’ and screw up really, REALLY, REALLY badly, the chain just keeps feeding outta the hawse faster and faster (there is a point where the brake won't work) until it rips the king pin outta the chain locker, OR the whole locker outta the ship. If it’s in shallow enough water (less than 1000 fathoms (6000FT)) they’ll send a robot down to hook up recovery line – if the ship was smart enough to mark the spot ;-) if not, we (you and me via our taxes) buy a new one. Fortunately I’ve only heard of 1 story where an anchor and chain were lost at sea (in the last 32 years anyway).
The anchor chain for CVN 77 (GHW Bush) will probably be from the USS Constellation.

Interesting to see how they do it though. If you really want to see some metal fabbing, the Yard takes 1" thick steel plates (10ft by 20ft), heats'm up red and bends them into hull plates. I've also seen 1/2" plate "rolled" into 3' diameter (or so) tubes, then ‘bent’ before the 3/4" plate that was cut into circles, heated and formed into a dome then welded on those cylinders to make a 60-foot long 'banana' shaped tank to hold 4500-PSI oxygen or regular air to blow ballast. They’re banana shaped to fit the curve of a submarine hull, inside the ballast tanks.

Neat stuff though :t:

Mudrat

[jeepsr4ever]

cool pat got any pics?

[Mudrat]

cool pat got any pics?
Unless your with Northrop Grumman public affairs you can't take pics in the fence line. Even the Ship photographers have to get special permission to take pics of the ship - so unfortunately no I don't. The best I can do is point you to their web page (http://www.nn.northropgrumman.com/index.asp) and link a pic of the 900 ton crane that lifts sections of the ship into place. This is a crane they make "super lifts" with, of whole sections of the ship at once. Like the bow, complete from sole (the very bottom red and black parts that look like, well .. it looks like ... ah ... the ... a ... 5 story bulbus bow 111!!! ) up to the 03 level (the lite gray section is about 4 stories tall too). This is one lift and still in progress if you look you can see the yellow blocks? That's to fine-tune the position of the lift to match up to the rest of the ship that was built and lifted in the same way! The lift is complete with decks and bulkheads (mmm ... that would be floors and walls to some folks :roll: ) and all the major piping is installed before the lift. That's like moving a 770 ton, 11 story apartment building next to another 11 story building with all the floors, walls and plumbing pipes matching up between the two - in one shot!!
You can see 4 of the 8 "bolts" that will hold the bow to the rest of the hull for welding so it can be welded on. http://www.nn.northropgrumman.com/Reagan/photo_gallery/lowRez/Bowlift1.jpg

If you take a look at the Ronald Reagan (http://www.nn.northropgrumman.com/Reagan/frmphoto.htm) construction page you can sorta see how the puzzle is put together. I reported aboard just after the bow was attached (above pic) and the flight deck was on ...

900 ton crane that makes the super lifts, it's either the #1 or #2 largest crane in the world.
http://www.nn.northropgrumman.com/photogallery/Facilities/C03-367-5.jpg

Mudrat

[Lifted79CJ7]

Yeah, my buddy Howard works on all those cranes over there - great guy who runs an XJ. He attends the TW4WD meetings. As for the pictures, I took a little cruise on an old 3 masted sailboat and they started shouting at our boat to not take pictures over a huge PA system from the Naval yard in downtown Norfolk. Go figure!!
Jack

[jeepsr4ever]

:t: thanks ...I remember when you took me by that yard :idea:

[rollen dean montoya]

remind me when i'm walking around a ships anchor to look down so i won't abuse my feet