Opening the Cans of Powder for the 16in Guns 

The reason for the “can opener” is that the powder bags had cardboard spacers placed between them when the bags were placed in the cans at the ammo depots. The purpose was to keep the bags from rotating inside the can. As a result there was a good deal of pressure on the can top that’s why we made the “breaker bar” to open the cans. I do not remember the details but there was an incident at an ammo depot in the late 1960’s where powder cans were being rolled (not 16” cans) and bags ignited due to static charge. The cans came from the ammo depot with lead wire seals on them. If the seal had been removed we had to inform the depot so those cans could be handled separately by the depot when off loading ammo. We did not have the equipment to place the spacers back once the can had been opened even if we did not use the powder. The depot used som kind of press to close the cans.

Most of the 16 in canisters were re opened in 1980s after it was found that differences in storage had affected powder quality leading to large dispersion in firing accuracy while USS New Jersey was supporting troops in Lebanon. Powder bag were reopened in armory, powder from different storage areas mixed together and then re bagged, recanned and sent back to battleships. The different powder lots were retested and a new firing table developed for remixed powder lots. Captain Kinnier (phd physics) was responsible for finding cause of targeting inaccuracies. I'm assuming there would be markers on cans to show a lot no. And date of remix. To go with new firing tables.

The government issue by the lowest bidder line had me rollin!

If I remember correctly most of the powder bags (and canisters holding them) were pretty darn old in both the Vietnam era and into the 1990's many of which were lot numbers produced at least twenty years before they made to any BB to be used. Anyone that has handled ammo across multiple decades of service knows darn well some cans will open easily and others will have seals that act like they are super glued in place holding the cans closed to anything other than a LOT of force of some kind or a prying tool. Making and using a longer can opening device to solve that common problem is just the Gunners Mates being smart and making their own job easier.

Finally look's into powder can after playing with it's lid for a min. "Thank God the thing was empty..." 🤣

"... I think the most dangerous thing I've ever done working here, is standing on this stool" *continues to stand on stool with securing bar dangling underneath* lmao

Powder must perform as anticipated by the fire control center in order to land shells on target. Since the concentration of ether and alcohol in powder affects the burn rate of the powder, (i.e. force and time of the ignition), it's kind of important to keep the powder sealed air tight in order to keep those stabilizers from flashing off at room temperature.

Ryan had a "Oh Shit!" moment, while Libby was wondering how she would explain to the Powers That Be how she killed Ryan.

When Ryan got passed the brass hook I was expecting him to quote The Adams Family "thank you, thing".

I'm loving Ryan humor as this lockdown has proceeded. Time to open things up guys so we can see Ryan in person and thank the man.

I KNEW that stool was trouble... But I didn't know I'd be chuckling so much at Ryan's wry delivery!

This episode was so involving as a result of Ryan’s genuinely droll humour. Keep it up.

@6:45 "because they lost..." naw. its because some (err, most) of the powder cans hadn't been opened since they were loaded, so the locking lugs had welded and corroded themselves together, so it took the extra leverage to break the cans open.

I've got friends who were involved in demilling the full powder cans that you're showing there. Since those wrenches are some sort of soft metal, they broke two of them while demilling a few thousand cans and then gave up. The teeth would shear off. They ended up having to make their own wrenches, as getting more from the navy was impossible. They still have a few floating around.

Ryan is getting so good at these videos. I was saying out loud "Don't stand on it...don't stand on it...." and laughing.

I can remember doing an amo on load, stacking those canisters by hand and strap, all the way to the ceiling. Handling 5” amo like carting a baby. Maneuvering 16” projectiles in the turret shell deck. What an interest and HARD DAYS work.

One word “ carefully”

Long handle to ensure that you can still open a can that has a stuck seal, last opened when the powder had an inspection in the 1940's during manufacture.

Ryan, thanks for all that you and the staff do for us, and for the ship. I really enjoy the videos. I hope to visit the ship this summer (2021) if allowed to. Take care, Rick, Army Viet Nam era vet.

These videos are wonderfully entertaining and informative, and what an astonishing subject. Addictive viewing!

In the Air Force, we commonly use non-ferrous, particularly brass, tools whenever there is open fuel tanks on an aircraft as much as possible. However, that's not always the case.

If it's $500 to fire the 5" gun and $50 to fire the $40mm gun; so how about charging $25 to try standing on 'the stepstool of death'?

Ryan, you do a wonderful job explaining things, keep the video's coming.

In the early/mid 70's MOMAG (mobile mine assembly group) got a hold of thousands of these aluminum powder cans to use as storage containers for instrument racks of underwater mines. The cans could seal tight allowing the use of desiccant inside to allow long term storage. They worked great! I used to wonder how they would be replaced if battleships were reactivated.

That larger can opener was probably useful when opening cans at the highest "step stool" stacking height. There would be limited access above those cans when trying to use the "short" can opener , so accessing it with the long handle below would be much easier and quicker.

I was on the BB-55 yesterday and saw a wall of those wrenches on the display and an additional one displayed on a canister ready to open it.

This channel just keeps getting better thanks again for the great videos really like the funny stuff left in

I feel like those nonsmoking signs are just a suggestion, kinda like a speed limit 😂 😂. Love these videos, was always curious how the hell they fired those huge guns. Keep up the great work and awesome job keeping these giants in working order.

Perhaps the reason for the long powder bag key is that rubber seals like the one I noticed in the canister tend to stick and even tear after sitting for years.

"the most dangerous thing I have ever done is stand on this stool"

Absolutely fascinating! The amount of resources from materials to engineering to manufacturing is mind boggling! The US was truly a super power!

Howdy from BC, Canada! Love learning about USS New Jersey, great job on the selection of topics you guys do videos on. Speaking of, could you, if you haven't already, do a vid on chaplains and the services they provided onboard?

Just a comment about the presence of ether and ethanol (and sometimes acetone) in gun propellant. These chemicals are used when the ingredients are being mixed and when the mixture is extruded into long cords of propellant. After cutting to length the grains are dried to remove as much solvent as possible. Another technique is to water steep the grains to remove water soluble solvent, before air drying. There is always some residual solvent, but the levels have to be lower than some prescribed limit, otherwise further drying is required. They are not there to preserve or stabilize the propellant, but are undesirable residues from the manufacturing process.

When Ryan regrets carrying Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners in to March.

Ryan, you are naturally funny with your dry delivery, I love it when you add in your ad lib comments, very much enjoy vids and please keep the one liners coming, great stuff buddy.

We need a holystoning demonstration by Ryan of the majority of the deck. All the while telling us the importance of the practice. I know you've done other "deck" videos before but this one would be a nice redo / reboot of the older ones while adding new content.

When she was re commissioned during the 1980's were her propellers re milled to reduce her noise signature ?

Back in the 80's and early 90's the Navy had, at some time, auctioned off the powder bags from a black powder gun and a black powder shooter had bough a bunch of it. He then proceeded to rekernel the powder and sifted it down to cannon grade, and also Fg, FFg, FFFg, and FFFFg and then repackaged it and sold it to reenactors and competitive black powder shooters. My father and I shot the last of it up around 1996 from the powder that he had bought back around 1980. It was the single most accurate powder available until Swiss powder came out in the early 2000's.

Good luck trying to fit Ryan into a powder can! 😁

Good vid as always. Thank you

I just can’t believe the US Navy basically abandons their ships like this. I mean the significance of these Iowa class vessels is indescribable. Not only are they the pinnacle of human naval engineering, but they impacted many generations of Americans. How they are not kept near Naval Headquarters and shown to new recruits as a basis for initial learning of Naval architecture and equally shown to the older generations that still remember when this was the standard, is beyond me. Ryan is an amazing curator. His dedication is first class. I love his effort and stamina. However, many situations have him stumped. Seems like the Navy should have books and people made available to him to keep him from situations where he is stumped about how certain things were done, or how certain procedures were accomplished. In the grand scheme of things this was not this long ago. In many cases these people are still alive. We are not talking about the Pharos, or how the pyramids were built here. I just wish the Navy cared more about where they came from. Tradition is supposed to matter with the Navy. I just feel they abandoned a major investment with the Iowa’s. I feel they should be kept in perfect shape as a symbol of what the Navy once was, and is today. This technology is important to maintain for many reasons. These ships deserve respect. The people who gave their lives on these ships deserve for them to be treated better I believe. It just seems like a waste to see these ships not kept for a more important role. My $0.02

Great video.

Was holding my breath during that last silent moment just before the end, expecting the footstool to collapse suddenly. Thank goodness it didn’t but was scared for Ryan’s well being lol

9:23 LOL! I love this guy.

At MOMAG 8 (Guam) we used the very same powder cans to store Mk 56 mine instrument racks. Of course, same tool (the smaller one). Pretty sure they were all marked '44.

Excellent comedy piece and informative

At 6:50 when Ryan makes the comment about how he's not sure the "can opener" is complete. The reason it probably doesn't have a rotating sleeve around the handle is because they were probably scared of the possibility of generating static electricity in-between a sleeve and a handle.

Lol the fear that rolled over ryans face when he stepped on the stool

Thank you.

If those canisters have not been open in a long time you may need the extra leverage of the long can opener.

very cool

You asked for comments Ryan . Ok I must comment that I like that Step Stool ! Interesting video , Thank you .

You let people fire some of the guns....dude... I gotta get round to going to NJ sometime!

thanks

Is the stool off limits to visitors? lol

Nothing better than a government issued stool! 🤣 great video as always!

The stool was for firing at the enemy in the hopes they pick it up, thinking its a quality American-made stool only for it to break under them the fist time they tried it.

that step stool made me laugh xD

Have you ever heard of the Navy forgetting ordinance in a ship? Lol I can only imagine a volunteer opening a powder canister and finding actual powder inside!

I like that you do this live and with all the miss and goofy ! Did this room have fire protection?

I remember the powder magazine smelling heavily of cordite that make it impossible to forget that you are in a powder magazine.

After the powder is removed from the can for shooting, is the lid put back on? If so, is an empty can marked? Don't want to be scurrying around trying to find a full can late in a battle.

And in that moment, Ryan considered with great clarity the possibility of glaring omissions in his insurance policy...

Weren't the lucky cats who pulled and handled the cordite/powder charges...... lovingly nicknamed "Powder monkeys" ? Was a very dangerous and back breaking job from the history I have read on it. Love the videos, keep em coming.

"I think the most dangerous thing i've done here is stand on this stool" [continues to stand on the stool]

if I understand correctly the powder is the same as the stuff for smaller arms but what the stuff Cordite used by the British BB's?

Wonder if the long handle allowed someone to stand on the deck and wrench the upper cans open, instead of the guy on the stool having to juggle it?

guessing the 1st pattern was the text book way to open/close the cans, the 2nd hand made one was the 'correct' way to open/close them

Love the videos, be safe on those stools

Extra leverage for the integrated Navy?

The New Jersey was in commission till Feb '91, did the USS Iowa turret explosion in April of '89 influence Gun Turret procedures/protocols in the New Jersey after that date? Did New Jersey even fire 16" shells after the USS Iowa incident? Seems like the explosion may have been caused by an overram of old powder (according to Wikipedia).

Can you do a video comparing an actual Iowa vs the Hollywood portrayed Iowa (Missouri) on the movie Under Siege?

Smoking (or trying to) anywhere near the powder room sounds like a shortcut to getting assigned to the absolute worst jobs on the ship for the rest of time.

I wanna pop one of my states battleship North Carolina's guns off.... I bet it still sounds just as sweet and soft to the ear now as it did 80 years ago ;)

in another video someone asked about showing how the overhead rail system worked... i would also like to see that.

Darn, I thought they used the old trusty P38 can opener.

His it true that if you we on deck when the guns went off you could be blown off the ship?

Sorry I missed the premiere! The modern tool made of aluminum looks like it was made locally, like the NJ's machine shop. Any way to check that out Libby?

Haha, great video, and love the stool bit

I imagine that they had to control the temperature, humidity, etc in those powder rooms to prevent fires, keep powder dry, etc

Then concern in his voice when he looks to see if it’s empty.

What are the display bags of 16" powder filled with now?

9.27: its relatively sturdy!!

Possible they made the larger can opener in the ships machine shop?

Does the ship have a barber shop? You guys should open it for business. keep that stool in your office in case you need it!! Love all the videos, great segways at end.

Oh god Ryan has a dry sense of humor just like Paul Harrell. That is just amazing.

I wonder if the longer wrench was more for reaching less accessible cans than it was for leverage.

I copied this from websters regarding either. Besides as a medical gas it is flammable and explosive. Low-molecular-weight ethers are flammable gases (dimethyl ether) or liquids (methyl ethyl ether or diethyl ether) that can produce explosive mixtures when they evaporate and mix with air. ... Ethers tend to form unstable peroxides when exposed to oxygen.

Ryan is hilarious

Are there convection cooling coils (i.e. no fans) in the BB magazines to keep magazine ambient temperatures within specifications?

The only reason why that stepstool isn't collapsing under him is that it's wedged between the vertical bar on his left and the canister on his left.

I will assume its was the FNGs that got to use the killer step stool.

I watched an old war movie, Sink the Bismarck. The British said Shoot and the Germans said Fire when they shot there guns. On the USS New Jersey , what word did they use to fire or pull the trigger, and did the open fire command process take place? I am assuming the final word comes from the Captain.

I am sure you knew it would be empty ahead of time especially given how careful the navy is with ordnance, but what if you'd opened that canister and discovered it had live powder bags in it?

You should take great pride in your marginally acceptable work! I enjoy it very much.

If i were to redesign the loading style id model it after a semi auto pistol magizene put a slide on the turret and load with a crane 15 rounds of 16 inch centerfire big big round it would be

What became of the 12, 14, and 16" shells in the Navy?

I think that big opener was made in house to get more leverage opening corroded or suck closed cans. Just my guess. Doesn't look like anything made in a factory.

You might want to change the wording of "If you'd like to fire the gun yourself..." to "If you'd like to fire a gun yourself..." so that nobody gets excited (then disappointed) that they think you're talking about the 16" gun that the powder canisters in the video are for.

Question: when loading the magazine, how did they stack the powder cans? At 350 lbs., way over head, I can't think it was muscle alone.