USS Texas Roaming Request Camera

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 04-16-2004 02:24 AM

Now that I'm armed with a serious optical sniper gun (Minolta Dimage Z1

) it's time once again to revive the USS Texas Roaming Request Camera. The only place on the internet to see anything onboard a pre-WWI dreadnought battleship!

Being one of the 1st Texas Volunteers, I have access to just about any part of the ship you can imagine. Leave a post here, in this thread, describing what you would like to see, and I'll go get the shot.

Black Tassel · Post by **Black Tassel** » 04-16-2004 02:28 PM

Tongue in cheek of course, Mike......... How about the inside of your locker?

Seriously, I'd asked previously for a snap of you in the pilot house with the wheel you've worked so hard on?

Much Luv & congrats on the new camera!!

Brenda

searchingspirit · Post by **searchingspirit** » 04-18-2004 11:22 PM

I would be very interested in seeing the engine room and pilot house. I bet she is beatuful. Where is she located?Oh I know how much fuel does she hold?How big is the prop?I am kind of a
mariner myself.Not on that kind of scale but always interested in
any kind of ship.

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 04-22-2004 02:55 AM

Brenda, I'll have to order more Wenol to give the wheel a once-over. I'm going to do that soon (ordering) because the anniversary of Normandy is coming up. And searchingspirit, there's a problem with your request to see the engine room, as the engine room consists of four decks and might require its own page. But I can get some shots of individual parts of the starboard engine. And the USS Texas is located at the San Jacinto Battleground, 22 miles east of Houston, Texas.

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 04-22-2004 03:01 AM

Hey, here'san unusual shot. This was taken fro mthe observation deck of the San Jacinto monument, at an altitude of 489 feet, and a distance of 3,285 feet. It was quite hazy that day, so the shot has that wash-out look.

searchingspirit · Post by **searchingspirit** » 04-23-2004 10:05 PM

man spike that is a good looking ship.can you tell me how you came to aquiring this ship?can people donate funds to the cause? can just anyone tour thru it?boy that is truely something to be proud of. i bet there is alot of history and alot of man hours. I am planning on comeing to texas this summer with my husband (going to go visit relatives around corpus cristie) so maybe i could get ahold of you before we go down and set up a visit???

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 04-24-2004 12:11 AM

BB-35 was bought from the US Navy in 1946, and moved to the San Jacinto Battleground park in 1948. Yes, you can donate to the Battleship Texas Foundation, or you can make small monetary donations at the ship. The ship is open every day but Christmas; I think it's $4.OO for adults. Yes, if you get in touch with me before you come to Texas, I can set something up for you.

searchingspirit · Post by **searchingspirit** » 04-24-2004 12:14 AM

thank you mike. we'll let you know when....

Boomer Geezer · Post by **Boomer Geezer** » 04-26-2004 06:06 PM

Yo Spike, what about the Radio Room and any existing antennas she may have left on her?

(Ya know it would be neat to have a functioning radio station aboard. Give a little plug to Amateur Radio and give a feel to what it was like during WWII -- of course we'd have to dig up some vintage equipment, or restore what's left on her! Might even get a special call sign assigned from the FCC!)

===edited===
Now darn it ... after I mentioned this I decided to Google around for some background, in case you had to "sell" this idea to someone, and looka here what I found:

Battleship Texas Radio Rooms Restoration Project

Damn, day late and dollar short alla time!!

Anyway, any more pictures you might get I'd sure appreciate!

Boomer Geezer · Post by **Boomer Geezer** » 04-26-2004 06:18 PM

Only one problem with the above site:
C.F. Moore's BB35 Radio Web Site --
http://cfmoore.home.texas.net/operating ... ations.htm -- seems to be a dead link. I tried different permutations on it to see if maybe something was repeated or not, but no luck.

Damn beautiful ship, Mike! Those curators have a heck of a great job.

TABwebmaster · Post by **TABwebmaster** » 04-28-2004 12:14 AM

Spike, can you get some pics of the mess deck, the focsle, and the brig(if there is one);)

Very cool!

Wish I could have had the wherewithall to take a LOT more pics of the inside of the Connie! Hindsight:rolleyes:

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 04-29-2004 12:22 AM

Boomer, thanks for your request, and I'll contact Chuck about his website. He must be pulling some maintenance right now, as he's one of our oldest volunteers and has spent thousands of research hours looking into all the information he has displayed.

And yes Mark, there is a brig, oooh is there a brig; I bet it'll make the one on CV-64 look like a three-star hotel.

Cpt Spike Mike · Post by **Cpt Spike Mike** » 05-20-2004 01:41 AM

Okay, if the weather will allow me to do so, I'm finally going to haul my carcass over to the USS Texas on Saturday. All requests have been noted and will be filled. Although I do have one stipulation: Mark, you wanted to see the fo'c'stle. I'm not sure, but I believe these are called aircastles on BB-35. They're where the 5-inch guns are housed.

There will be a work party going on that day, so I'll be grabbing shots there. Also, according to our curator, there will be a film crew onboard doing some documentary work. A busy day to be sure!

Any more requests for photos can & will be filled if they're posted before I leave early Saturday morning. For now, here's a shot of the Figurehead Models representation of the USS Texas (and USS New York). These are about 1 1/16th of an inch long, and are cast at an amazing 1/6OOOth scale, and still with impressive detail. The painted one is my work- done with genuine Measure 21 Blue!