Battleship Texas, Looking For Hidden Treasure!

[@ElBantosClips]

Still amazes me that pre WW1-2 warships were drawn up by hand on paper and then built all by hand. Some serious talent went into these ships

[@arch3088]

Amazing engineering for the time!

[@eriefinishing6378]

Love seeing whats left of the spare parts and armatures sitting in their racks! Very cool!

[@djfaber]

I'm not going to wait for 11 minutes to click the like button Tom. I clicked it right away and there's nothing you can do about it :p

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

:)

[@edwardcaseyjr5490]

I did the same.😁😁

[@FixitFrank]

Liked and shared. @battleshipnewjersey needs to collaborate with you. I think you and Ryan would make a fantastic video.

[@HM2SGT]

Indeed. Ryan should borrow the idea and do the same sort of video. It would be intriguing to see what was left behind in but Iowas

[@pepperman2385]

The jealousy is real. I don't care how old I get, I would feel like a kid on the worlds best jungle gym scampering around the off limits parts of the ship! For the record, I hit the thumbs up BEFORE watching the video! Thank you Tom and God Bless Texas!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I don't do much scampering anymore, but I know what you mean. Believe me, I know very well how lucky I am to have access. By the way, it isn't as free and open as it may appear in the videos. I reflect back to the spring of 1998 when I went on board for the first time as an adult. I remember peering down a passage through a locked wire gate, wondering what was at the other end. I certainly didn't think at the time that I would end up shooting hours of videos showed and described it!

[@pepperman2385]

@@tomscotttheolderone364 Given my own age or more specifically, width, I know I was being generous with "scamper" as a descriptive term. It's our collective love for USS Texas that makes us look at those dark, dirty, hot, cramped spaces that don't seem to hold much interest to anyone else and think to ourselves, "man, I would love to see that with my own eyes!" knowing full well we never will. I am very grateful that you at were able to make it a reality and are decided to share your explorations and discoveries with the rest of us! Salute!

[@straybullitt]

It reminded me of watching a mine exploring video sort of.... You just never know what kind of artifacts you are about to see.

[@robbyowen9107]

Thanks for another wonderful tour!! Please keep them coming!!

[@tomlockhart4225]

Videos like this remind me of the hard hat tour I took about 15 years ago, can't wait to take another one.

[@Vile-Flesh]

Absolutely loved this treasure hunt! Thanks for taking us.

[@Anthony-kn8cn]

Love the ship. Appreciate preserving history.

[@P61guy61]

Watching, liking, appreciating your videos. Thank you.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Thanks, I appreciate your interest and your clicks!

[@joeparvana9549]

Well done climbing and crawling through that maze. You're a better man than I. 🙂

[@4evaavfc]

All the best for battleship Texas.

[@AprilSmith-hi3qt]

Amazing video of areas I would never see, any other way! Thrust bearing shoes.... wow. Huge steam line.... wow. Just so much to see!

[@StevensPaul]

"She's equipped NOT stripped!" Still hard to believe how old She is AND what She's been though,both during Her working life as well as in Her retirement. Not to mention the neglect She's endured over time..... Great Video 😊📸👍🇺🇸.

[@The7humpwump]

I imagine the storekeepers library must have been huge. No microfiche everything in big volumes and cards to locate

[@doktorscottdiabolical]

In the early 1990s, I worked in an ice cream dairy that had been built in 1946. We ran anhydrous ammonia. But two of our compressors were Frick 3-cylinder high-pressure units. They looked very similar to the R-12 compressors you filmed. Compressors like that give off A LOT of radiant heat.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

There are large compressors on board used to produce ice that run on CO2. Ammonia was the preferred medium in1912 when they were built, but it was far too dangerous to have on board a warship.

[@jeremykamel9655]

@@tomscotttheolderone364 yeah one leak would have killed many people.

[@nmccw3245]

Thanks Tom. Can’t get enough of these off limits to the public spaces. 👍🏻

[@DavidSmith-cx8dg]

Wow the armature as , resistors and even a drum controller for a starter , takes me back to the days of my early career working on DC. ships . All very basic but achieving a great level of control and performance of the ships functions . It's amazing all these spares are still there , ready for action in most cases I expect . I'M guessing there should be some bearings to go with the armatures and I haven't seen open brushgear on a motor for a very long time . Given Texas age she looks in pretty good shape considering she's in refit and it's reflects great credit on those who look after her .

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I don't recall seeing any bearings. It could be that they would have still been useful. However, I suspect there wouldn't be any use for the armatures since they were specific to 120 volt d.c. motors that were obsolete by the time Texas retired. I have also seen some small and medium size brushes packed in cardboard boxes and wood crates.

[@DavidSmith-cx8dg]

The ships I worked on were 220dc , including the HMY Britannia . Some of the armature with double windings were for motor generators as transformers don't work on DC . Thanks for the info , a very interesting video .

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

@@DavidSmith-cx8dg There are M-G sets all over the ship that were used to either produce a different dc voltage or convert to ac. The 40mm anti-aircraft guns installed in the last half of WWII all required 440vac. and two very large M-G sets were installed in 1926 to power the fire control director transmitter circuits. They required ac in order for their self synchronizing gear to correctly function.

[@randomrando8350]

Awesome look into some unique spaces and artifacts, one must wonder just how often those armatures failed to justify having so many.

[@Kevin-go2dw]

It is not how often they fail, but when at sea and you have a failure, there is no repair shop except what you have on board. It only needs to be useful that one time.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I agree. While they certainly had the ability to rewind most armatures, there would be many occasions where they did not have the luxury of time required to do it. Once changed out, they could take the bad armature and rewind it at their leisure. However, there were major motors, such as those that drove the hydraulic equipment that rotated the turrets and elevated the guns, that couldn't be easily repaired or rewound. In that particular case, they had mechanical linkages that allowed them to change to a second rotating mechanism and motor, or link the two guns in the turrets together so that one motor and gear could elevate the two guns together. That changeover could happen in a matter of seconds.

[@THINKincessantly]

Howdy from the Piney Woods! You are the best ship tour guide !!you really rejuvenate the spirit of the old battle wagon! You remind me of my Dad, gentle and kind nature really compliment your deep knowledge! Long and good health to you, Sir....

[@samthemultimediaman]

lots of weird little spaces on that old girl, awesome video as always!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Thanks!

[@judybassett9390]

Very interesting spaces. Thanks for the tour.

[@medic1541]

My Uncle was one of two signalers on the USS Texas during Pearl Harbor!!! I can't wait to see this beautiful ship when the renovations are completed. I would love to see that signaling box one day.

[@J.A-CA139]

I love the use of the ships general plans in your videos! It gives a good sense of where exactly you are in the ship!

[@joelonzello4189]

Wow ! Amazing how much is still there parts wise. Thanks for the Tour 😉

[@alexh3153]

I love how much was left aboard her when it was deactivated. It’s sad when everything is stripped out and left empty

[@lexiheart6558]

My grandaddy was always proud of his contribution of pocket change that was put towards bringing the Texas to, well,Texas.

[@thayerthacker6858]

Great video Tom! Thank you

[@gasengineguy]

Holy crap for spare armatures, Thanks so much Tom. Also cool to see those compressors, very cool stuff

[@MrBobcone]

What a Great Tour, thanks Tom!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

My pleasure!

[@charlieaustin2818]

Sir once again thank you for the educational tour of off limits spaces on the ship.

[@mattweber2004]

Thank you Mr. Scott! Such a treat to see these rare spaces!

[@Joe-ym6bw]

Your amazing Tom the complexity of these ships are a testerment to what man can build it's mind boggling

[@VKiera]

It's interesting to see what the Navy left behind and what they thought important enough to remove.

[@nigelterry9299]

Wonderful!!! Please keep them,coming!!

[@JDK73772]

Love the off the wall episodes like this, purely for fun

[@Tellyfive]

Amazing how even an ac unit was so aesthetically pleasing back then. Pride in the details.

[@agfan1]

Absolutely and totally awesome/ outstanding. 10 years as a volunteer on the overnight program and I never knew about all this. Lucky bag..... I'd love to see you find all the graffiti that the men left behind. That adds the human touch to it Sir

[@daveblackburn5393]

An amazing ship. An amazing career this battleship had. It would have been awesome at one timee to see her recommissioned

[@doinjusfine1]

Very good finds !!

[@Jason607]

So nice there are still these parts and supplies. Who knows how they will come in handy or be important in the future.

[@moefuggerr2970]

I was a TAD MAA onboard the Eisenhower for a month. I got to explore the entire ship from bilge to the bridge. All sorts of voids and storage areas that I would never have been able to see normally as I was an AT/ Final Checker and worked the flight deck. Was way interesting to explore my ship.

[@stmtom2811]

That was absolutely fascinating, loved it!

[@keithagn]

Thanks for the tour!

[@georgethompson5192]

brilliant treasure hunt i love to see the inside structure of the old girl she's in good shape thank you Tom (more please)

[@michaelgrey7854]

Wow. All I can think of is how frightning it will be to be stuck in one of those compartments if the ship was sinking!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

You’re right, but the good news is that they would be closed and sealed with no one in them during combat. If they needed something, they’d open the hatch long enough to get it, then leave. Having said that, there were many manned spaces that would be very hard to exit.

[@thegreatchewwyexpress8044]

Getting ready to reserve a tour while she is in drydock, I could spend ages on her cataloging all the parts and love every second of it. I wish I could be in a more active role of preserving her legacy and stories.

[@364pgr]

Outstanding video, thank you.

[@mattwilliams3456]

Amazing the efficient use of space.

[@Bobfelli]

The Condenser Water piping you noted is just the overboard piping. Pump suction is in the bottom of the ship under the Main Circulating Pumps for the condensers

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I used drawings specific to this ship to identify the pipes and devices.

[@davidknows3320]

I'm watching this twice. :)

[@model-man7802]

We had her here in Norfolk for the reserve fleet till she went to Texas. Dad saw her many times as he went back and forth from Norfolk to the Philly Naval Mothball fleet.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Yes, she spent time at Norfolk when deactivated, then again while being prepared for donation. She also spent time in Baltimore while the politics involved in the decision to donate her played out.

[@burroaks7]

awesome video!!!!! "like" button clicked immediately

[@notsocapedcrusader6293]

Love this video. You should take over the restoration updates. Bravo. Terrific Thank you Mr. Scott.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Thanks, but I don't think that I should. First, I am not in the center of the action the way that Travis and his staff are. Also, Travis' knowledge of the ship is so extensive that I go to him with questions.

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

WOW! Those parts are priceless! I can imagine being thousands of miles from any support facility and having a breakdown, and being able to pull the correct part from spares! Those parts being on hand would save time and lives!

[@TriumphT140]

Quite enjoyable - thanks for that. (liked it of course)

[@paullamb9366]

Watching the progress from Toronto Canada. Thanks for all the updates. I imagine she will reward you with a big treasure as you restore her soul.

[@DIVeltro]

Thank you very much for the video! It would be wonderful if you all could be able to get some of the electrical systems operating with the stores you found.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I'm glad that you enjoyed it. As far as making things work, unfortunately, no. There are several reasons, a major one is that almost all motors require 120 volts d.c. It simply isn't practical to produce that in a usable amount.

[@leaj847]

Fascinating video! Thanks for taking time to document these things on board the battleship. I had the pleasure of taking the drydock tour last Sunday and it was fascinating. Keep up the good work!

[@loualiberti4781]

Amazing - more vids like this please !!

[@GoldensRLife]

Loved seeing the treasures!

[@trg_sn1p3r19]

Love your videos!

[@davidlee8551]

Thank you.

[@Tedjenkins55]

Wow! What a Fantastic video Tom. I liked👍 the video before watching because as usual top content. it's amazing these little treasures are there, probably not moved or possibly touched since they were put there 80+ years ago i wonder what else there is around the hidden parts of battleship texas.

[@blueboats7530]

Ooo, the new restoration can really use the fresh thrust bearing parts

[@joman160]

loved this treasure hunt Fascinating video!

[@billieray6208]

That was a great video! Seeing the nuts and bolts of what made these magnificent machines run is fascinating!

[@bigstick6332]

Great content Tom. Thank you!!

[@kiereluurs1243]

Bizarre to still find piles of spare parts in various spaces of the ship. Does give a sense of a time-capsule.

[@timvalentine7196]

Love the videos keep them coming!

[@warringwarthog]

I wish that ship could talk and tell you the things it seen and done it always amazes me when it was built and commissioned people were still riding horses and just started transitioning to automobiles

[@dennisfox8673]

I’m happy to click like after watching this entire (very interesting) video, and even leave a comment to boost you in the algorithm. 🙂 Keep up the great work keeping this history alive and vibrant. Oh, also a request, could you show the interior of the fire control stations in the fighting tops? I’ve always thought the standard(ish) era battleships post-lattice mast fire control directors looked fascinating, but I’ve also wondered how the heavy window framing affected their operations. Thanks!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

There isn't anything to see up there. All of the equipment was removed by the Navy when the ship was being prepared for donation, leaving the compartments completely empty. It's my understanding that it was done to remove their heavy weight from that high on the ship. They had a bad effect upon stability with the ship in its extremely lightened condition caused by removal of ammo, most fuel, crew and supplies. That's a good question about interference, I've thought about that myself and have never found a discussion of it. Having said that, Mark 3 fire control radars almost totally replaced the optical directors during WWII.

[@MOrab46019]

Thank you for this

[@mikus4242]

The electrical stores space is in amazing shape. The humidity must have stayed lower in the space. The paint in there is very good shape compared to many other spaces on board.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

You are right. Many lower spaces forward of the boiler rooms are pretty clean and corrosion free. There was little water penetration into them and they normally stayed closed.

[@ctg6734]

Wow! awesome discoveries! I can only imagine what the total pile of parts would look like if everything the Navy removed was still on the ship.

[@uppishcub1617]

Wow, the inside of Texas is grimy. It makes wonder how she looked when she was new.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

It certainly looked better than it does now. All it takes to keep it clean is a couple of million in annual maintenance funds and a crew of 900 sailors!

[@uppishcub1617]

@@tomscotttheolderone364 It makes me wonder how all the other battleships manage to look so pretty. I suppose they spend a lot of money on regular maintenance plus most of them have been through dry dockings and repairs in the past 20 or so years. Are there any pictures of the interior spaces of Texas from when she was new?

[@HM2SGT]

🤣 That's one of the ways the military keep soldiers, sailors and Marines out of trouble; it's called a *_"fatigue detail"_* , & it does precisely what the name implies - keeps people busy and wears them out so they're too tired to make trouble. Also known as make work/busywork, because Idle hands are the devils playground!

[@wayner806]

Enjoyed the video.

[@DC9716]

I love these videos

[@rockindubya557]

Absolutely fascinating. I'm a retired DC Master Mechanic. All the spare armatures demonstrate the breadth of having everything needed to keep the old girl battle ready and sea-worthy.

[@leswilliamson3587]

Great video

[@davecaron1213]

I have watched quite a few videos of your wonderful ship. I realize being over one hundred years old, time plays havoc on things. However, the one thing I have noticed is the poor condition of most painted surfaces. I understand money is always an issue and you have to rely on mostly volunteers, but many areas could use a good scraping and a coat of paint. I hope some of this can be accomplished during her time in drydock. Just an observation, keep up the good work.

[@keithspillman]

As an old industrial maintenance guy, I really enjoyed this video. We always like lots of spare parts!! I wonder how they cataloged all these spare armatures. You obviously didn't carry the old one around and look for a match. Were there tags on each one with some kind of part #? I assume then that the Engineering Dept had reference books so you could figure out which motor took which armature....and maybe where that part was stored? Also, many of these parts were in tough places to get to and would be VERY heavy. Did they have any clever ways of moving these parts around....or just lots of manpower? Thanks for all you do!!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

I have seen scans of exploded parts drawings for motors and other equipment that were produced by their manufacturers and almost certainly used to identify parts. I cannot say with complete certainty where on board drawings and inventory records were kept; however, it is reasonable to assume that they were kept in an engineering office. Mechanical parts, gaskets, bolt, etc. were kept in engineering store rooms located throughout the ship. As you saw in the video, electrical parts had their own storerooms. While I have not seen clear documentation, I feel it is reasonable to assume they used card files, similar to the old Kardex system. It had a card for each part, with cards organized by part number; each listing part number, brief description, location and quantity on hand. As far as armatures, it's pretty unlikely that they failed very often. That being the case, the goal would be to find a place to store these heavy, bulky parts where they didn't take space needed for more commonly used items. If that meant having to crawl to get to them and drag them out, so be it. That's what 19 year old sailors were for!

[@jeffreym.keilen1095]

Really cool to see the stash of items still on board. Not like that they will ever be called into service, but better to have than need. Look forward to more vids like this.👍

[@trryhin]

This was awesome!

[@stephenbritton9297]

Electric motor reliability sure has come a long way! Also, as for the "lucky bag," remember the old saying "gear adrift is a gift1'

[@randymagnum143]

Not really, but now you usually toss and replace. The big DC mill motors are no longer made, they are all antiques that have been remanufactured dozens of times. Big AC motors have more resilient insulation to hold up to the stress of frequency drives, but they certainly aren't any more durable or reliable than the iron giants of the past. There are a lot of motors from WWII still spinning.

[@zakpearson3321]

This is the stuff I want to see if I can't make it to the ship myself, but even then... would I be able to go see these same things? Hidden treasures for sure! Ex-Navy myself & even on modern vessels, lots of parts stored everywhere.... and I mean EVERYWHERE! Oddest one I recall is a valve part behind XO's bunk, outboard locker. :)

[@IcanDriveIt]

I’m 30. It’s crazy to think this ship was decommissioned when my grandfather was 7 and this ship was going to war in Europe when my great grandmother was born (1916)

[@galaxieman1964]

Great treasure hunt, Tom.

[@JoshuaTootell]

Am I the only one that gets jittery when you see obvious X-ray fittings left open? 🤣

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

:)

[@TheStefanskoglund1]

The cam axle for the crane is about the same as what you find in a tram's motor controller.

[@glen8449]

Sir. It was a real.pleasure to watch your video and click that like button. The video and your knowledge was great. Best of luck. I will also subscribe and watch more of your videos. Thanks again. BTW, dad served on the USS Pennsylvania, turret 2 gunners mate.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Thank you for your kind comments! Your dad worked with exactly the same guns. In fact, some of the ones on Pennsylvania were removed after their bores were worn, rebuilt and found their way onto Texas in 1944! The only difference is that when on BB38, they had vertically operated breeches. He also had to work in even more cramped conditions since Pennsylvania had 3-gun turrets that were spaced closer together in a space not much larger than those on Texas and had three gun crews!

[@glen8449]

@tomscotttheolderone364 Thanks Tom, theres something I never knew. You sure know your facts. Dad served 41 / 45 and luved that ship. I have been on 3 battleships so far. The size and magnitude astound me. I also have watched 2 more of your videos. You go places in them that others dont. Thanks again and keep up the great work.

[@rossington1680]

Awesome!

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Glad you think so!

[@Pamudder]

Thanks for a fascinating tour! As you entered space A-111 there was a faded sign in large red letters on the left bulkhead. May I ask what it says? Electric motors were still pretty new in 1914 and I seem to recall reading that the lacquer used at the time to insulate motor windings wasn’t very reliable. A salt air environment wouldn’t help. So I’m not surprised that the ship carried a lot of spares. May I ask what was the working fluid in the refrigeration plant? The OLYMPIC and TITANIC, built about the same time, used carbon dioxide.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

If you are referring to "FMCO M-2", I believe it stands for Fire Main Cut Off.

[@Pamudder]

Thanks!

[@doktorscottdiabolical]

@2:20, the line tags indicate F-12. This is likely "Freon-12", the commercial name for dichlorodifluoromethane. Freon-12 wasn't available before 1928. Likewise, the Frick compressors are 1940s-era. And if the system was installed in Hawaii, then my best guess would be that it was installed sometime between December 1944 and January 1945.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

@@doktorscottdiabolical You guess was dead on! The compressors were installed as part of yard work at Pearl Harbor from December 13, 1944 until January 3, 1945 prior to taking part in the invasion of Iwo Jima. They also added another small system to cool auxiliary combat information center and the infirmary.

[@ethanspaziani1070]

Searching for treasure in a giant treasure itself

[@nogoodnameleft]

I have been reading numerous news articles about the drydock. They keep reporting that the federal government provided a $35 million matching federal grant to the Battleship Texas Foundation in matching funds with the $35 million provided by the state of Texas government. So she has $70 million to work with for her drydock refit??? That is awesome! She needs more private donation money to build the new museum and parking and other infrastructure at her new homeport though.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

This is the first that I have heard of a $35 million federal grant. Can you tell me where you saw these articles?

[@F-Man]

Clicked that like button after 1 second. 😎

[@charlieslorenson1861]

Good afternoon Tom I've been there and saw that I believe we spoke in the past I was the one that ran the equipment to put the flotation foam in our girl

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

All I can say is Bravo Zulu! You guys did a great job!

[@longrider188]

All of those electrical parts make me think the electric motors didn't last very long and the Electrician's Mates were always busy back then.

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

It may seem that way, but there were literally hundreds of electric motors on the ship and they needed to carry parts to repair any of them at a moment's notice. Carrying a couple of spares armature for each type would result in what you see here.

[@aurktman1106]

Time for the Navy to send a gaggle of seamen recruits with chipping hammers and buckets of paint!

[@tomlongbow]

Visited her in the 90‘s during SHOT show. Great ship 💪🏻👍🏻. ( I guess that after 30 years it is time to admit that I emergency peed in her engine room. ) 😊

[@tomscotttheolderone364]

Well, that explains all of the corrosion.