I followed the restoration of the NJ. It was interesting to see they used water in the keel to create stability, and so on.
The people restoring it didn't understand why there was a hatch in the keel. One was to access bearings that were water cooled for the drive shaft, and the other was for maintenance.
Those old ship builders knew their business.
The people restoring it didn't understand why there was a hatch in the keel. One was to access bearings that were water cooled for the drive shaft, and the other was for maintenance.
Those old ship builders knew their business.
That is awesome, glad they are taking care of her. My Dad was a plank owner on the USS Iowa and served on her thru out WWII, so I have always been a big fan of this class. We will never see their kind in action again. Here's to my Dad and all veterans.
I’d say it was more that they didn’t know, not so much that they didn’t understand. There have been quite a few things they’ve learned just from having her up on the blocks; a lot of it is documented in the ship’s library, but ain’t nobody got time fo’ readin’ all that unless they’re researching a question. (They’ve recently shown current footage of the ship’s library, and it’s…a lot of books and manuals.)
Last edited:
FWIW, Ryan has been doing daily videos while the Big J is in drydock; this is just the one for her 81st birthday. They normally do one or two per week, often about things the museum staff has discovered about the ship. Occasionally, they’ll do something note esoteric, like contemplating what would happen if the New Jersey was transported back to the Revolutionary War (spoiler alert: she runs out of fuel and goes adrift in the middle of the Pacific).
Link to her YouTube channel:
https://youtube.com/@BattleshipNewJersey
Link to her YouTube channel:
https://youtube.com/@BattleshipNewJersey
I've enjoyed watching YouTube videos produced by Ryan for some time. In addition, I had the opportunity to tour the USS Alabama in Mobile, AL back in 2021, although the Alabama is of an older class of battleships.
My first ship, 1985 to 1988. Spent many an hour running around that ship. Nothing like a full broad side of the 5" 38s or the 16" 50's.
My brother was in a firefight in ‘Nam when they called for fire support. Shells were coming in from the coast. He never knew if they from NJ, but when they impacted about 1/4 mile up the hill, a literal wave in the dirt would come down the hill.
A friend of mine knew a guy who was on a LRRP (IIRC) team in Nam. He told a story about being pinned down by a sniper; I don’t recall if he was the radioman or if he was just the guy on the radio, but he called for two rounds, first available, on grid coordinates whatever.
Because of the type of team they were, they were a high priority for artillery support, and it turned out that “first available” was the New Jersey. It also turned out that his “two rounds” equated to two full broadsides from the Big J. It eliminated the sniper, alright, but it also obliterated the top of the hill here he’d been hiding.
He said he got to listen to the tapes of the radio calls afterward, and he could hear himself screaming for them to cancel the second round after the first had done its damage, but they told him it was too late, and they were on their way over the South China Sea…
Similar threads
