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Post by pnolan48 on Aug 12, 2015 20:25:24 GMT -5
The Chessie was a compact 95-foot powerhouse built in 1984 for the Chessie Systems marine operations. Twin diesels driving twin propellers and a Kort maneuvering nozzle produced a total of 4000 HP. While only 95' long, the tug weighed in at a hefty 280 tons. It and its sister, the Seaboard, operated around Philadelphia; they were purchased by McAllister Towing & Transportation and operate today out of New York and Norfolk in the company's red. black and white colors.  The model captures the handsome and hefty lines of the prototype. It features custom photo-etched brass railings with closely-spaced stanchions, fold-down mast and antennae, custom 3D printed towing bitts and water cannons, and bulwark ribbing. Doors are positionable. The hull is built up from precision-cut styrene.  See them at nscaleships.com. Kits are $79 plus shipping. |
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Post by smr on Aug 13, 2015 2:56:55 GMT -5
.....and, Peter, her new home port is: Deal Island, Chesapeake Bay, Western Maryland !!!  |
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Post by smr on Aug 13, 2015 4:05:32 GMT -5
In 1983, what was by then the Chessie System was looking for a way to downsize the tugboat fleet at Newport News while still being able to dock the new large colliers that were being built and calling at the coal piers. By then, the 1980 merger with the Seaboard System into CSX had created a new all-rail routing into Norfolk and Portsmouth from the former C&O Railway. Thus, the need for the cross harbor car floats was eliminated. The only job left for the tugs was docking and undocking ships. An order was placed with the Jakobson Shipyard of Oyster Bar, New York for two new tugs. They are among the most powerful tugboats ever built. Costing $3.3 million each, they were 105 feet long and had two General Motors diesels with 3,900 horsepower. At the request of and with financial help from Newport News Shipbuilding, the new tugs had twin screws and special thrusters called kort nozzles that enabled them to have greater thrust and maneuverability. The new tugs were called Chessie (second) and Seaboard. These were the last two railroad tugboats built in the United States. At the height of the tugboats usage in Newport News there were 124 men working on them. Each tug had three daily crews with up to six men on each crew. The car floats had a captain and a fireman and the house barges had a deckhand. The reason for the captain and fireman on the car floats was that they could be steered to assist the tugboats while docking and undocking at float bridges. The fireman manned a small boiler that provided the “power steering” to move the rudder.  |
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Post by pnolan48 on Aug 19, 2015 20:54:31 GMT -5
Wow, Sven! You sure make my ships look wonderful! Thanks!
They (Chessie and Seaboard) are listed at 95 feet long in their current employment.
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