Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

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Merlyn
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

Well that sounds very nice but isn't it a bit much? After all it's only a few degrees on the Clinometer and a couple of sets of clutch plates? Seems a long way to go. Although rethinking it all it probably might still be there when you return. Best you send JK a postcard in the hopes 10% of the salvage be retained for you as a goodwill gesture?
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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JK
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by JK »

JJ just wanted to make us jealous as he is heading for sun and sand. Plus and all-inclusive hotel. Given the present weather forecast for tomorrow, he is probably doing a sun dance so he can fly out.
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Merlyn
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

Sure it's not the clutch change avoidance scheme for Sunday's visit come into play? If it gets there that is. PS Get that old CCG tug flashed up. If you're on standby this weekend this could be the one, the salvage jobby of a lifetime. Hope you don't get the unblocker job though.
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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Merlyn
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

See all you good folk in Halifax Canada have a gale warning in operation gusting 35 knots and the clutch King is slipping out of New York To tie Up on pier 21/22 for one hour only alongside at 1 am. What's going to happen? Should you call on your way home from the pub, will it be there? Your gales man enough to do another set of clutch plates/ covers in or force a third turn back? Watch this space.
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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Merlyn
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

Well I hate to be the purveyor of bad news but the clutch King is running before your 35 knotter ( dropping to 25 ) storm at 12.5 knots abeam of Atlanta US at present. So the planned one hour alongside trip in Halifax is, alas no more. A 180 turn for some reason or other? Bit weird, the weather/ clutches or both? As she seems bound for the taxi run season around the Caribean I fear that sadly this now could be the end of my Tupperware writings. So to conclude the matter Canada saw off the Anthem because of a bit of a slop, pity when I hear a rumour that the four steering gear motors securing bolts have now been replaced with wing nuts and photos of the burnt out clutches have rocketed in value. Such is life.
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by JK »

It was surprising to hear they were scheduled to come up here in earl March, the weather sucks.
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

Been tracking her on AIS but she went out of range yesterday and I just don't know where she is. Last position was abeam of Atlanta US. Can't find out why the destination was charged last minute, speed was reported at 12.5 knots so who knows? She is on a three day trip so hopefully will surface shortly. Opps wrong use age of the word?
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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Re: Top Heavy Tupperware Dishes

Post by Merlyn »

Converted a PPI indicator the other day to track this top heavy Tupperware dish, Anthem of the Seas, took out the sea clutter and the rain clutter controls and made up an anti bullshit gain controls and cost/ delay timings control feature.
The antibullshit gain control was found to be such a large content that a coarse and a fine control had to be added to this on'e.
Sure enough approx three/fourweeks ago off goes the alarm.
The top heavy Tupperware dish had gone down again and to boot with the same defects.
ABB' S Anzipod/s.
Don't know to date which one ( or both ) yet but it was up and running again within two days .
My mind races away here, why only two days?
What aspect of the anzipod was it?
Could it be those clutches again?
My thoughts conjure up a multi head socket tool already slung up on a gantry above the Anzipods waiting and hoping to swoop down onto a pod.
Operated of course by a hand remote.
You know the type of tool, like those used by manufactures to fit new heads.
Probably had its own compressor to ensure rapid removal of the top clutch cover and ensure maximum non shared p.s.i. available at all times, awaiting and ready installation courtesy ABB.
Perhaps they had to draw out and supply and fit a new compressor one a side.
Silent running rotary one methinks.
" Standing By " takes on a new meaning here.
The purpose built rig drops down remotely onto the clutch casing head, apon reassembly it's programmed to torquedown automatically in a three stage operation starting at the centre of the head and thence equals and opposites.
Although thinking about this maybe owing to the regularity of this operation wing nuts could now be fitted.
Or maybe to fantasise even further I am now thinking futuristic thoughts here, perhaps unknown to me some nerd has out there invented a ECU controlled wing nut multihead retorquer tool type jobby to decrease the clutch plates ( maybe 10/12 plates ish? changing times and as such reduce any downtime incurred.
Permanent eye bolts fitted at all times.
However to learn exactly what has gone wrong on these two breakdowns is not an easy task I am finding.
So now I am thinking of crossing the barrier here and sticking my neck out somewhat.
To expound on that " crossing the barrier " speech perhaps I should explain as follows.
Now I am sure that there are many, many folk out there who like me having spent a lifetime upside down jammed into virtually inaccessible hot places for many hours sometimes wondering if we would ever get out again who would agree with me that on a great deal of occasions the best b stard to do the job is the idiot who designed it.
This I first heard in 1960 when starting out and for me is still true to this very day.
Back then there was a very big gap between us on the workshop floor and those in the drawing office who always stunk of aftershave unlike us proper engineers who stunk permanently of fuel oil.
At this point I am not going to express an opinion of them but a fact.
As the years went by it became obviously apparent that what senior apprentices had taught you was blantatly true.
A great deal of the drawing office staff would have never made it in the workshop even if they had served 10 years and these were the boys who " progressed " to the the drawing office.
They always consdered them selves to be above us but we frequently told them that whilst we could do the job all they could do was talk about it, not do it.
Some folk I went to school with, did my time with them, worked alongside them for five years and observed close up their never ever ability to grasp marine engineering properly turned out to be boffin type characters and invariably ended up in the drawing office.
Been there, done that was the sneer to us proper marine engineers.
As the years went by I observed them transfer to Government departments whereby a lot of them were carried by the department they worked in.
So maybe some of the ABB design team maybe, in my opinion be from this school?
Perhaps even some of our old workshop " rejects " may have ended up being involved in the drawing office of ABB?
So my input here may bring about a very large cheque labelled with the instruction to " go away someplace " or perhaps the old Brownies hit man being sent over to " see to me " scenario may well occur.( ex ABB )
So I reckon the setup is a CST motor, ( Controlled Start Motor ) fitted with an integral clutch pack assembly as several CST's can be used together for controlled torque outputs, four in total on the model fitted to the Anthem of the Seas.
Transferred torque via hydraulic wet clutches for high torque output generates a tremendous amount of heat so an oil cooler arrangement would have to be fitted.
Heat exchangers/ tube stack arrangement or radiator/ large fan set ups being required possibly.
Maybe an ECU on each motor overseen by a master ECU perhaps.
A reduction transmission with a single planetary gear set up combined with a wet oilfeed supply.
That advantage being of course the clutch torque being transferred to the planetary gear, i.e. the clutch acts as a brake for the ringear.
Maybe the usual three gear set up, the sun gear, ringear and the planet gear together with the planet carrier making it obviously a reduction gearbox.
During engagement the pressure in the wet clutch increases which creates torque that acts on the ringear as a virtual brake.
Mild steel outer clutch plates, splined id's ( larger surface areas to transmit load, not keyed, ) and large square fingers on the od's to transfer the drive via the hub.
I reckon owing to the failures the mark 1 Modification the whole lot is in a separate internal machined casing with permanently attached eye bolts fitted so it's a one in/ one out rapid exchange fit jobby as opposed to sliding out each cover and centre plate separately there reducing downtime.
You can strip it on the bench later and replace the copper insert centre plates and steel driveplates ready for the next time.
Maybe each podded ship will carry a ABB pod engineer with a specially made up screen rigged around the pod when conducting repairs so as not to reveal the true cause of the breakdown, water ingress, clutches etc etc.
Centre plate inserts could be that great heat dissapation material, Copper?
I can remember back along when you could change the inserts only, Ferodo type inserts but for many many years they have been bonded in.
The usual self arming overload clutch between clutch and steering gear with a fail to safe steering brake to prevent unwanted motion of the pod, i.e. Spring shut set up.
I could go on and on but I don't want RR or ABB stealing any of my ideas as it would appear that there is still some way to go before the podded propulsion can match the reliability of the original shaft set up.
I note many new very large tonnage cruise ships being built have opted to return to shafts probably because of the hundreds of millions of pounds compensations being paid out, yet again like the pod failures all to be a closely guarded secret.
Further more to people like JJ variations in marking exam papers could be a possibility.
An endorsement to the CE ticket in B.S.
No, not Bachelor of Science.
Namely a new degree in Bullshit.
.
Don't know how this could be received by JJ as to obtain the necessary to mark the papers it would be obligatory to have a degree in bullshit i.e. Be an expert Bullshiter but who knows?
Advancement to say the least?
Variation for JJ and here we could have an example of " you never stop learning " syndrome.
When the pods go down on the PR comes normally the Cruise Director ( in the Anthems breakdowns )
Don't worry, everyone is safe at all times and the first half in the bar tonight is on the house.
All those MW normally going to the failed pod are now surplus and as such that big bored out Perspex ball bearing fitted with seats whizzing around on that Hyabb 300 feet above the briny will now run at twice the normal rpm thus allowing you to see twice as much in half the time.
Less of course for you engineering types the air resistance encountered ( much laughter at this point from the bridge )
This means you can get to the bars twice as quick whereby the mechanical men serving the drinks will be on time and a half ( current wise, don't know if they are ac or dc supply ) so you will be able yet again to drink twice as much in half the time,( no frictional losses here mind )
Plus of course the all food moaners about their fillet steak not well done, all those MW whizzing around redundant would ensure your fillet well down in half the time and all at no extra cost.
Plus again, all passengers are safe and should the other anzipod go down fear not, another half awaits you at the bar.
The buckshee MW's means brighter lighting all round, quicker kettle heating up times in your cabin and of course much more efficient AC output.
Twice as much cold air in half the time.
Radar turns twice as fast so we can now see forever.
And so on and so on.
Such are the advantages of a podded ship.
This could well be the necessary CE endorsement of BS on Cruise ships unfortunate enough to be propelled by pods as obviously the delights of your cruise being ruined by pod failure can enhance your safety enormously and indeed carries many advantages as can clearly be depicted.
Two free halves of beer plus all the other " freebies " may encourage you to check nextime before booking your cruise " we only want to sail on ships with pods column " may be added when filling out the cruise form.
You know the one, that Top Heavy Tupperware Dish the Anthem of the Seas springs instantly to mind.
So for me back to the PPI and watch and wait for the next victim to fall foul of the " Pod Disease " and try to find out why it goes down. Permanent podded propulsion problems perchance syndrome.

Closely guarded secrets here, tens of millions of bucks involved.
Nothing I can glean from the US Coastguard yet some 12 months plus later re Anthem.
Some one knows these secrets somewhere
I must admit that to date here I have not had the privilege of stripping and repairing an Anzipod but having spent a lifetime on clutches and planet gear reduction hubs Etc so I am looking to further my knowledge on Anzipods and the like but am struggling at the moment owing to not being able to read any damage control exercises published ( to date anyway )
So it's back to the PPI and watching and waiting for the next victim to appear on the target rings.
So how far off the mark am I re Anzipod clutches?
Anybody in the know out there to educate us re this subject?
How's my drawing / design office entry application going?
Can I now at this late stage of the game be rid of my F.O. Aroma?
I see as an encouragement the stinky aftershave boys now actually have a new smell.
It's called of all things believe it or not over here DIESEL.
Personally my take on all that is that after finally realising after all those years that they want to be like us proper marine engineers and realising that they still can't make it the nearest they will ever get to it is by plastering on the Diesel poncy aftershave onboard and dream.
Think for me I'll just take the ABB's large shut me up cheque and carry on in the real world.
LFO and HFO aroma.
Why change a winning team after all these years.
So what now remains?
JJ's acceptance of the obligatory BS course whereby in order to achieve the 60% pass rate JJ will have to achieve the title necessary for senior cruise ship engineers.
Namely Bullshit.
An expert in same.
Wonder if at this stage JJ will mentally mark my drawing/ design office rating , could it be possible that secretly the endorsement has unbeknown to us all be attained?
Any landlubbers may well be now wondering about what PPI represents.
Perpetual Plan Indicator of course.
You know the rest.
Remembering The Good Old days, when Chiefs stood watches and all Torque settings were F.T.
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