Mackinaw feature discussion

Discussion board focusing on Great Lakes Shipping Question & Answer. From beginner to expert all posts are welcome.
EN2

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by EN2 »

Nothing like the old white mother of the mid-fifties. McLean was skipper. Keepers came aboard when the lights shut down. We put them back in mid-March.
A few of us went on to be Commissioned and finally retired.
Some may remember Maggie's bad habit, too.2NUE
Third class cook

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Third class cook »

Thanks to the crew, Great job, just saw the Mackinaw films for the first time. I served on two Destroyers DD786 and DD 876, 1962 to 1965. In the Pacific where it was a lot warmer. Dennis
chuck

uscgs sundew 404

Unread post by chuck »

petty officer third class, we broke ice next to the mackinaw in the mackinaw straits in the 70's. She sure could break ice. Proud to serve next to her.
Guest

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Guest »

That is the Historic American Engineering Record for USCGC Mackinaw. It is part of the National Park Service/Library of Congress historic properties documentation programs. The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and other related legislation requires that the federal government perform a historic context study and statement of significance for the vessels that it decommissions from agencies such as the US Navy and Coast Guard. If the vessel is determined to have historic significance, the ultimate disposition may need to be reviewed to determine the impact upon the historic integrity of the vessel. For those ships selected for documentation, HAER drawings and associated documentation are meant to record for posterity the full scope of the vessel's existence. Not only does this create an academic and historic record for study, should a ship ultimately be destroyed or lost, the HAER record serves as a permanent documentary record of the vessel's existence. Quite often, that documentation serves as the mitigation for the destruction of the vessel. In other words, take lots of pictures, describe everything thoroughly then sell off for scrap.
Guest

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Guest »

I came across this document while looking for a picture of the bow prop.. Sorry if it is already posted here, but if not, it may be of interest?

http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg4/cg47/docs/Fi ... W-HAER.pdf
JEM

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by JEM »

According to the text under 'Engine Room' in the Mackinaw feature page, that was not the case.
Guest wrote:The bow propellor was very effective in breaking ice. It would suck the water from under the ice, collapsing it, and chewing it up making it slide past the hull easier. The technology was first seen on the Lakes with the Straits of Mackinac train ferries. Chief Wawatam and Ste. Marie each had one. The bow propellors would on occasion be used for docking maneuvers.
You'll see in the video that the Mackinaw's prop was used up until the end of her career.
E G Grace
Posts: 11
Joined: February 8, 2012, 3:22 pm

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by E G Grace »

Great new video on the news channel.
geo

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by geo »

i don't know about the other wind class breakers, but he Eastwind had her bow prop removed because it got damaged one too many times in windrows. ocean ice windrows can be pretty deep, the wheels on the wind class breakers were about 10' deeper than the mack. as their draft was about 10' deeper.
Guest

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Guest »

The bow propellor was very effective in breaking ice. It would suck the water from under the ice, collapsing it, and chewing it up making it slide past the hull easier. The technology was first seen on the Lakes with the Straits of Mackinac train ferries. Chief Wawatam and Ste. Marie each had one. The bow propellors would on occasion be used for docking maneuvers.

You'll see in the video that the Mackinaw's prop was used up until the end of her career.
wballa

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by wballa »

Was the original intent of the bow propeller to suck the water from under the ice as rumored ?

I could see it would be a neat idea but neat ideas don't always work out in the long run.
Brent

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Brent »

One of the reasons that Mackinaw went red was that it doesn't show the dirt like white does. With the crew reductions and the cost of painting it was I think more a matter of money then anything else.
Brent

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Brent »

Courier was white and Kukui was black. As for coffee I don't know if it was more, but it was a close race. I know I did my part at about 20 cups a day. I now that if we ran short of lube oil we could have used the coffee.
Little Toot

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Little Toot »

Perhaps Brent can answer this one. Did the crew aboard the Mackinac go thru more coffee per hour than any one of the main engine did ?
geo

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by geo »

brent is correct, i remember when the Star and he Sea came out and they were red. it think the reason the earlier ones were white is the rest of the fleet was white with the exception of the a to n vessels. even the Evergreen wasn't white originally. i'm not sure about the Currier or the Kukui
Guest

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Guest »

The breakers were white until an Antarctic incident when a helo couldn't find its way back to the ship in a blinding snow storm. I believe this was the early 70's, but don't hold me to it. There was really no need to go red on the Mackinaw because it hadn't carried a helo for years, but once Washington declared all breakers should be red the die was cast. The Ninth District dragged its feet as long as possible, but eventually caved.
Brent

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Brent »

I believe that all the breakers were painted red about the time the Polar Class came out in the early 70's. Most of the Wind Class were never painted red as they were scrapped about that time. The exceptions were the Northwind, Westwind, and Glacier. Capt Dick Taylor tried many times to get Mackinaw painted red when he was Captain in the early 80's. When the ship was white I hated the black lines running down the sides from the freeing ports. This was caused by soot from the engines and boilers coming out the stack and landing on deck. When the deck was washed down or it rained, the soot went over the side and caused the stripes.
Geo

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Geo »

all cg breakers were white originally except during ww2. the navy breakers were haze grey. i was on her before and after the racing stripe. i thought the stripe made her look better. i'm very partial to the white with buff and black masts but it understand the visibility issues. usually the lakers were so happy to see us, i don't think they really cared what color we were.
Guest

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Guest »

Randy S wrote: I agree - Impressive as she is, she looked far grander in her white dress!
Same here, but she sure was more difficult to see across the ice, I bet Brent can weigh in on that. I can't recall why she was painted white originally rather than the standard red of icebreakers, used to know but it escapes me at the moment. Anyone?
Randy S
Posts: 587
Joined: October 15, 2010, 2:30 pm

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Randy S »

Brent wrote:There is no armor plate on Mackinaw, just good old fashion american steel. I still thing she looks better white . As far as an icebreaker, she is the benchmark for all the others.
I agree - Impressive as she is, she looked far grander in her white dress!
Brent

Re: Mackinaw feature discussion

Unread post by Brent »

There is no armor plate on Mackinaw, just good old fashion american steel. I still thing she looks better white . As far as an icebreaker, she is the benchmark for all the others.
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