Calling all New Orleans-class (CA-32) fans

[MatthewB]

I have noticed some tube or pipe looking objects in photos of the 1942 San Francisco. There are six mounted vertically on the back of the hangar in front of the 8" #3 turret. There are two on the front and two on the back of the house under the search light tower, all stored horizontally. There are four on the superstructure under the port forward 5" gun. I have seen them laying on the deck in other photos.

Question: what are these and what color are they?
Maybe for flooding control? Maybe for underway refueling? Maybe rolled up tarps?

Thanks for your help.

Ooh! Good find... I would like to know as well.

MB

[Cliffy B]

Can one of you guys link to some photos talking about said pipes please? I did a cursory look through class photos and can't figure out which ones you're talking about even with the locations listed

[alleycat]

Sorry, I don't have the capability to get scanned pictures into my computer but you can see the tube shaped thjings on the following pages of these books:

Warship Pictorial #5 USS San Francisco page 21, 24, 27, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, and others.

Laying on deck just in front of port quad bofors on page 46 and at this link http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/038/0403858.jpg.

New Orleans Class Cruisers (Lester Abbey) in many photos.

Here you can see some just behind the group of sailors standing on the main deck directly below the formast in the photo:
http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/038/0403808.jpg

And here:
http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/038/0403854.jpg
http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/038/0403870.jpg

And here beneath the two carly floats just behind 8" turret #2.
http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/038/0403857.jpg

You see them in most wartime photos of the SF once you know what to look for.

[Cliffy B]

Ahhhh, I believe those are sections of refueling hoses for fueling at sea revolutions. You'll see them wrapped around the barbettes sometimes too.

[bwross11]

Greetings all,
I know that this is a long shot; but I'm wondering if anyone has any reasonably good pictures or drawings of the rangekeeper in the open top Mk 33 director the San Francisco carried early in the war? I've modeled the cupola and the range scope on the front but am having a little trouble with the rangekeeper.

TIA,

Bruce

[Tim Jacobs]

I've read through all 23 pages and haven't seen this question asked:

I'm building the '42 1/350 San Francisco and have the Master Model brass barrels. Do I cut the plastic barrels off the bloomers/blast bags and insert the brass into the stumps? Or do I insert directly into the gun house and build up bloomers around them?

TIA
Tim

[Timmy C]

The photo on their site shows them to be used with the kit's blast bags: http://master-model.pl/sklep.html?page= ... rd=usn+8in

[MatthewB]

I've read through all 23 pages and haven't seen this question asked:

I'm building the '42 1/350 San Francisco and have the Master Model brass barrels. Do I cut the plastic barrels off the bloomers/blast bags and insert the brass into the stumps? Or do I insert directly into the gun house and build up bloomers around them?

TIA
Tim

Just as a hint for getting the barrels to line up properly:


Glue the blast-bags (with the barrels still attached) into the turrets first, before replacing the barrels with the brass-barrels.

THEN cut off the barrels, and drill the holes to insert the brass barrels into the blast-bags (do this on all three blast-bags/plastic barrels BEFORE mounting any of the brass-barrels).

This makes it easier to align all three of the brass-barrels to the proper length and angle. If you drill out all three blast-bags, and then test-fit the bras-barrels, then you can make certain they line up properly at both the base and muzzle of the barrel.

Then clamp the barrel ends in line before gluing (assuming you want all three barrels aligned together).

I made the mistake on my 1/700 USS San Francisco model of cutting the barrels off the blast-bags for one of my turrets prior to gluing them in the turret, and this made it nearly impossible to align the barrels correctly.

MB

[Tim Jacobs]

Thanks Timmy. Guess I didn't think to look at the website...

Thanks MB. Appreciate the info.

Tim

[Cajuntiger]

Hello guys,

I'm trying to confirm the number of 20mm on the New Orleans when she was torpedoed. I read earlier that she had 12 and some may have been added at Pearl. The attached photo seems to confirm that. It looks like there are 2 behind the aircraft crane on the hangar deck, and assume there is one in front on either side. I also notice that there are two on the aft turret. Does anyone have any clear pictures of the bulwark structure around these guns?

Scot

[Dick J]

Actually, there is only one 20MM on the after turret. I have only found the three additional guns, the two on the hangar and the one on the turret, for a total of 15. However, at the same time those last three were added, the after quad 1.1" mounts were replaced by quad 40MM. The forward 1.1's remained in place until her damage was repaired at Puget Sound.

[Cajuntiger]

Thanks Dick,

It just appears from the picture i posted that there is one complete shield and half of another one just to the right of it. This may be just some other object. I also have one other question. When the 40mm's replaced the 1.1" did they keep the same gun tubs? I know they kept them in the same position but were they enlarged to accommodate the 40mm's? I have the New Orleans Warship Pictorial, and on page 7 there is a clear picture of the tubs but they have the reinforcements around them. In all other pictures of the NO including the one above they are not there which leads me to believe they they were changed.

Thanks again.

[Dick J]

The tubs were, in fact, changed. The original 1.1 tubs did not extend to the deck edge. The 40MM tubs installed at Pearl Harbor did touch the deck edge, as can be seen in your photo. Also, as you noted, there are no external vertical stiffeners. Minneapolis had similar tubs installed, but she retained her individual tubs for the MK-51 directors. When New Orleans was repaired at Puget Sound, that yard chose to leave the fantail 40MM config unchanged and they remained a recognition point for the rest of her career.

On the other hand, Minneapolis apparently had her 40MM removed during her emergency repairs prior to arriving at Pearl Harbor for hull repairs. When she later reached Mare Island for the remaining repairs and modernization, the fantail tubs were replaced by new tubs that overhung the deck edge. San Francisco had the same type installed during her post-Guadalcanal repair/modernization, also at Mare Island. The tubs on Tuscaloosa also overhung the deck edge, but were differently shaped.

[Cajuntiger]

Thanks again Dick. After taking a closer look at the photo above I realize that what I thought was part of a second 20mm shield was just the lighter shaded starboard side of the hangar.

Scot

[MatthewB]

I need some information about jackstaffs and other flagpoles, currently on these ships (but effectively for all USN Cruisers).

In the photos, I cannot see a forward Jackstaff in most photos?

Did they not have them, or were they just folded down?

When/why did they fold them down?

When a ship went into Battle, what was done with the flags and Jackstaffs? Wouldn't they (flags) be combustibles that would be stowed?

Although I suppose in a daylight battle, communication flags might be needed or run-up the mast.

But what was the policy with the jackstaff at the Bow, and the Flagpole (is this also a Jackstaff?) at the stern?

I know that the Ensign flies on one of them, and the US flag on the other.

Which one is on which?

MB

[DrPR]

Jack staffs on the bow and flag staffs on the stern could be folded down to get them out of the line of fire of the guns. It was common to just fold them down after getting underway because they weren't needed. On modern ships the flag staff may be folded down in port if a helo is landing on the stern.

In port the Union Jack (blue field with stars) was flown from the jack staff and the ensign (American flag) was flown from the flag staff. At the underway signal the jack and ensign were hauled down from the staffs and the ensign was hoisted to a position high on a mast.

Upon entering port when the anchor is dropped or the first line goes over to the pier the Union Jack and ensign are raised on the staffs and the ensign is hauled down from the mast.

Signal flags are flown in port or at sea as needed. The Third Substitute flag is hoisted high on a mast whenever the Captain is not aboard in port. First and Second Substitutes are hoisted on flagships whenever the Admiral or Chief of Staff respectively are not aboard.

Ships fly their call sign flags when underway in port. The Hotel flag is hoisted if a pilot is aboard while underway in port. You can learn more here:

http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=273

We also had an "unofficial" use of a signal flag to signal that the ship's officers were at the Officers Club (in port), but I can't remember which one that was. Anyone else remember? Whiskey?

Phil

[MatthewB]

OK...

This is really stupid, and I know that it is out there somewhere (probably even in a book I own), but I cannot find the photo of the stern of the USS San Francisco in the Fall of 1942 showing the Depth Charge Racks.

I FINALLY got a pair of the Five Star Depth Charge Racks made for the SF, but I now need to figure out where they were on the ship.

I remembered that I thought there was an image in this thread someplace, but I cannot find it (or it isn't loading, one or the other).

Could anyone please help me find this image (and if you see my brain, which appears to have fallen out, it would be nice to have it back as well)?

MB

[Dick J]

Try page 23 of the Chuck Hansen monograph on her.

[MatthewB]

Try page 23 of the Chuck Hansen monograph on her.

Would you happen to have a copy of the Chuck Hansen monograph that I could borrow for a few seconds?

MB

[Dick J]

Same shot appears on page 22 of Warship Pictorial #5.

If you don't have that either, contact me off line

dick_jensen_44@msn.com