Battleship Texas, Starboard Engine Room Upper Grate, Video 1 of 3 

A major rebuild would have to be done in a shipyard using cranes. To do so, they could removed large hatches above each engine on the main deck, then strip compartments and remove 2nd and 3rd decks above the rooms. This left plenty of clearance to disassemble the engines down to their bedplates. The ship's force could pull pistons and do ring jobs without going into a yard. They did it by removing the duct work in the blower rooms on 3rd deck above the engines, then pull up armor plates that make up the deck using tracks and a movable bridge mounted on the 3rd deck overhead. This gave them about 10' of vertical clearance. There are large ventilation ducts and outlets strategically placed throughout the engine rooms that provided large volumes of air. Even with that, engine room temperatures could run around 105 or more on the mid grate when the engines were at maximum rpm. That's not comfortable, but it is a workable environment. Regardless, it wouldn't be too hard to find a duct opening to stand in front of and cool down when necessary.

The room underwent a cosmetic restoration about 15 years ago.

If you are referring to the use of the steam separator, water and steam certainly can coexist! This is saturated steam, which means that the steam carries exactly the amount of water it can contain at its present temperature and pressure. Small amounts of water that have dropped out will not be absorbed, meaning it can be picked up and carried in high pressure, high velocity systems like this one. It will act like a bullet that damages valves and bends in pipe when it strikes them.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 they used saturated steam in the engines? I would have figured they would have had super heaters in the boilers to use superheated steam in the engine. Any idea why they didn’t?

​@@speed150mph The engines couldn't use superheat because it was too dry. The engines relied upon condensate from saturated steam to lubricate their piston rings and cylinder walls. Oil could not be used because It was too easy for traces to stay in the condensate and get back to the boilers in the feed water. Even a little would create carbon buildup and hot spots on the boiler tubes that would cause them to fail. Surprisingly, water was apparently an effective lubricant. While they periodically replace piston rings, there is nothing to suggest that it was more than an occasional maintenance item.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 very interesting. Thank you for the information.

I agree and I thought of that. However, I decided I didn't need one very often and I didn't want something else that I have to purchase, carry and handle.

Thanks! Be sure to watch the videos for the middle and lower grates where I describe the Stephenson valve linkage and also all of the engines' auxiliary equipment.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 Thank you, I look forward to those videos.

There were vibrations at the common cruising speed of 10-12 knots that coursed throughout the ship, much of it caused by harmonics created by interaction between the two engines. That corresponds to a speed range of about 60-70 rpm. While it was a problem, it was apparently not enough to require serious attention because the problem was largely solved by operating one of the engines a few rpm slower than the other. The presence of two tachometers at the starboard engine control stand certainly made it easy to accomplish that.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 very interesting information (and video!) I read somewhere that the vibrations could be a problem in combat creating a real problem for the fire control optics if/when the engines were pushed to full power.

@@wheel6243 It would be helpful to know where you read that. Vibrations could be an issue, but I have never seen any documentation, nor did I hear from veterans, that they were bad enough to interfere with fire control optics.

Temperatures could get over 100 degrees. However, they ventilated the heck out of the rooms. There are a lot of large blower vents around the room where crew could stand and cool down.

The best way to experience the heat, feel and smells of a triple-expansion engine room is to take one of the day cruises offered by the SS JOHN W BROWN in Baltimore and the SS JEREMIAH O'BRIEN in San Francisco. These are the two last operating Liberty ships in existence. To save marine steam turbines and reduction gears for higher-speed vessels, the Liberty ships were equipped with a single 2,500 ihp triple-expansion engine. I was an engine room volunteer aboard the SS JOHN W BROWN for five years and it was one of the most enjoyable and worthwhile things I have ever done.

I would think they largely looked the same, but there were likely some differences. The engines for each ship were built in their respective shipyards and it is likely there were small variations in construction that best met the yards' individual capabilities. Changes were fairly among ships within a class that weren't built at the same facility. Of course, any variation had to be approved by the navy.

To my knowledge, the last time that the complete steam system was under pressure was in early 1946 when the ship left active service. However, two boilers were fired to provide steam to the electric dynamos in March 1948 to provide power for electric lights and bilge pumps during the tow to Texas as a museum ship from Norfolk, Virginia. It would not have required pressurizing the majority of the system since the dynamos were close to the boiler rooms and fed by their own dedicate lines. That's a good thing since two years with almost no maintenance to the system would have likely resulted in it leaking like a sieve.

Component wear wasn't as bad as you may think. Between very effective forced lubrication and low engine rpm's, wear was pretty low. The biggest issue was keeping the bearings in the crosshead guides in good shape and piston rods perfectly aligned. General engine wear keyed off of that. Pistons and valve castings and major parts never needed replacement. Piston rings and many bearings would have at least been periodically inspected and replaced if necessary. Lack of overhead clearance wasn't a big problem. The deck plating above the engine was portable and they had about 10 feet of clearance once that was removed. Block and tackle would then be rigged to lift cylinder heads pull pistons.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 Wow that’s amazing! Thank you for the info! I am hopeful when the Texas opens again they will offer hardhat tours? I would like to see this in person someday.

Reciprocating engines are actually a lot quieter than diesel plants.

As for being the largest steam reciprocating engine in captivity, I would think the Liberty ships like Jeremiah O'Brien might have engines the same size.

@@johncox2284 Nope, each of Texas' engines were 4 cylinder, triple expansion producing more thatn 14,000HP each. O'Brien's only engine was a 3 cylinder, triple expansion that produced only 2,500HP>

Maximum 120 rpm.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 thanks for the reply

Tom, piggybacking on this question, remind me if the engines were direct drive to the props of if there was any gearing for reduction or increase in RPMs. I don't recall you mentioning that in any previous videos.

No, I’ve been able to open the top covers on the thrust bearings in the past, but the staff currently has some stuff stacked on them. I make a point of not moving things around that I didn’t put there in the first place, so I don’t have any internal shots.

It still has the whistle. For steering, look for “One good turn deserves another”.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 does the whistle still work?

@@Reaglesracing44_ It is fully functional and while it has been blown using compressed air, it doesn't sound right. It needs 150psi steam to sound correct and have the correct volume. That is pretty much impossible to provide or duplicate.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 interesting ! i wonder if someone has a video of the whistle in operation??

@@Reaglesracing44_ I am not aware of any modern videos. Do a little searching in the Save The Battleship Texas and Battleship Texas Foundation Facebook groups and you’ll find a clip of a movie with sound of the ship blowing the whistle as she sailed past New York City.

It would have been noisy due to all of the blowers, pumps and other auxiliary equipment running in there, but not to the point of damaging hearing. The engine itself was fairly quiet, with perhaps a few hisses here and there from small steam leaks. The chuffing sound that you hear with steam locomotives is from steam being exhausted through the valves into the smoke stack where it created the noise as it instantly decompressed to outside air pressure. Waste steam on Texas' engines was sent to condensers where it was turned back into water without being suddenly decompressed. The following link will take you to a video of the steam engine running on the Jeremiah O'Brien. It is a similar design that it a lot smaller than those on Texas, but it should sound about the same. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8a8LkGjTs3o.html

@@tomscotttheolderone364 Thank you for your response. I went looking last night and found this video as well. It's amazing to see all of that heavy metal moving at such speed! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-7d7BIVsGkMA.html We loose so much of the history when we put these artifacts to bed. Like old airplanes...they need to be heard and seen flying to better appreciate them and thier crews. I have been aboard the Texas many times over the years but I never had anyone explain the "machine" that she it like you have in these videos. Excellent! thank you

Escape from what? You may need speed to run to the fight and maneuver, but not run away. No, there wouldn't be anything that could be added, but it didn't need it. Small water tube boilers like these reacted very quickly to burner increases. Since they rarely ran at full output, all that would be needed would be to light off all burners, and crank up fuel pressure and the forced air blowers. You would see a jump in output in seconds. In fact, if you tried to add something to supplement it, you would likely overheat the tubes and boil one or more dry. That would destroy the tube, or tubes, and the whole boiler would have to be taken off line, drained, and cooled down enough for crew to crawl inside the drums, find the bad tube, or tubes, and plug them. It would then take several hours to refill the boiler with water and refire it.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 Could A crew in that day and age make such major repairs like your explanation stated while Underway? Is the Texas that well equipped? I never sailed on anything that wasn't nuclear powered and we had everything onboard except MC Donalds. But if we ever had any issues with propulsion it seamed like it forced us to run right to Port. Can I ask you to please show how they made potable water on these ships while underway and the crews showers. Id like to see how its changed.Thats if you don't mind?. BtW thanks for your explanation. I've watched Back to the future one to many times

@@navyav8r653 Battleships were capable of making some pretty serious repairs at sea. Texas had a well equipped machine shop and even had a forge. Many engine repairs on Texas, and other ships having reciprocating engines, could be done at sea. It was a very different matter for ships equipped with turbines. Those really required the skills and equipment found at a well equipped shipyard to do more than very minor work. Plugging ruptured boiler tubes at sea could certainly be done. Sealing one off only required a couple of plugs, a hammer and a sailor small enough to squeeze through a manhole into the water drum. One of my sources said that they could plug up to 10% of the tubes before considering a complete re-tubing of a boiler. However, I've found no evidence that such a large overhaul was ever required during the 20 years these boilers were in service. I know that a few tubes were replaced. I suspect that required skilled workers and a lot of patience, and would only been done in a properly equipped shipyard. Here's a link to one of my first videos that describes the ship's evaporator system that could make up to 36,000 gallons of fresh water per day. It is short on descriptive graphics but does the basic job of explaining. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-hczv1H9KTdg.html

It is a modern electrical box. I'm pretty sure that is the controller for a pump located in the inner bottom. While they have replaced inner hull plating that will prevent flooding into the ship's interior, the outer hull shell is heavily wasted and subject to leaks into the inner bottom. That will quit being an issue once the ship goes to dry dock and has most of its outer hull shell replaced below the waterline after the first of the year.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 I will believe it when I see it, after years of discussion and debate nothing ever seems to happen. I hope she gets the TLC she deserves. What are your personal thoughts on moving her out of La Porte to a new home?

@@kevindahlberg7753 Hopefully you’ll be believing it early next year. Thanks for thinking that my personal opinions about the ship’s future are worth discussing. I prefer to keep them that way. This channel is strictly about the ship and her systems and I want to keep it that way.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 I do appreciate the video and the many hours of research and hard work you put into explaining and editing, you have brought alot of attention to the Battleship Texas. What you are doing is important historically and emotionally, it pays great tribute to the generations who served aboard her and the nation. You obviously have a great passion and love that is reflected in your efforts. This is a prominent landmark in the area that has fostered many tresured memories. Our feelings and opinions are as much of the story as the history and engineering behind it and everyone wants whats best to preserve this treasure.

My experience on the ship suggests that the great majority of passages, compartments, doors and hatches would easily accommodate 6 foot heights and more. I am 5'10" and weigh more than I should, and have little problem throughout the ship based upon my size. That doesn't mean that there aren't some very specific spots where a pipe or bracket hanging down won't ring your bell if you aren't paying attention. There are some spaces and doors that don't permit access by larger folks, but they are mostly in areas that were infrequently accessed or only by specific crew. A good example of that are the electrical flats immediately below each turret that contained motor speed controllers, circuit breakers and fuse panels. Those would only allow small and skinny people and even they have to squeeze in. The gun wells are another spot.

@@tomscotttheolderone364 thank you!

I believe I said "...the largest surviving marine reciprocating engines found anywhere." No engines from the Titanic/Olympia class survive.

Only to the degree that both use reciprocating pistons and a crankshaft. Other than that, no similarities whatsoever.