Topic starter
11/02/2010 7:58 pm
In response to a newcomer's complaint that riverboats are all flat and straight-lined, here are some pictures of the NATCHEZ, taken yesterday 2/10/10
1) overall lines at the Toulouse St. wharf
2) camber on the Boiler Deck bow
3) sheer on the Hurricane Deck looking aft
Topic starter
11/02/2010 8:01 pm
more NATCHEZ curves
and here are some different curves especially for Travis and Bubba...
11/02/2010 9:55 pm
God, what a lovely, curvy boat. And a lot of care on the part of the crew has gone into keepin those curves afloat and steamin' into the future. As someone who knows how much they love that boat, my hat goes off to them! And yes, those last couple were definitely appreciated 🙂
11/02/2010 10:38 pm
The miniature version of the Natchez, complete with the curves
11/02/2010 11:57 pm
Our deck crew has spent this winter appreciating how the Belle's sheer and camber are made as they replaced her Texas deck and various stanchions and beams, losing several pounds of weight in the process.
12/02/2010 3:15 am
You can thank a man named Dexter Denton for those curves. Boatbuilders are loath to bend steel and claim (falsely) that they double the cost of the work. Denton was the yard superintendent at the Bergeron plant who pulled those beams and cut those curves that I drew. He had to fight Bill Bergeron for every one of them.
Suddenly Dention was fired and a jerk from Hillman Barge took over. That is why the texas roof is not quite right. It is not crowned, but has a lengthwise ridge to "save money". Fortunately he arrived too late to make the Natchez look like a Hillman towboat.
The fact is that curves add a significant measure of strength to steel plates, thus making them well worth while in the durability of vessels.
23/02/2010 1:44 am
Curves continued
Since this is a favorite subject of mine (both natural and man-made), here are a couple of the latest shots of an inspiration for the Natchez's lines and have held up well for all the Western Rivers have thrown at them for over 95 years.
Topic starter
23/02/2010 2:22 am
Whazzat?
I presume that thing on the stern bulkhead has to do with the new A/C. But what are those things on the roof- also A/C, and if so, has the calliope been moved so it is visible? You mentioned you took off some weight with replacing decking - was this to counteract the additional weight of the a/c equipment? When the PREZ was being converted to a casino, they had to weigh the wood they stripped from the dance floor as part of the deal in adding the heavy machines/tables/coins.
23/02/2010 4:34 am
Judy,
Those things are the condensers for the A/C. There will be I think 4 back by the calliope and 4 in front of the pilothouse. They are to have boxes put around them with grill work so they can ventilate and not hurt the look of the boat all that much (so I am told). Something was said about them looking like skylight windows or something. My sources say the interior will be the hardest hit with changes.
My personal opinion is meaningless here. Seems I don't agree with alot of progress that buys these great boats another 10 years before they go the way of the dodo bird. However, the changes to the PREZ bought her 10, the hull on the DQ bought her a little over 10 and now this?
Food for thought rather than my opinion this time!
The NATCHEZ just may be the last of the breed sooner than we all think!
Travis
Topic starter
23/02/2010 4:59 am
The last one standing
I expect the NATCHEZ to be the last one standing, for one big reason: she is owned by individuals, not by a corporation or government; and these individuals know what they are doing and aren't out to make a killing to impress stockholders. As long as there is enough profit to get Bubba through college...