The Replica Prop Forum

The Replica Prop Forum
Very cool site I am also a member of

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

There were no WMD's in Iraq..

Oh, wait a minit.......

"UK Experts To Assist In Destruction of Saddam Hussein's Remaining Stores of Chemical Weapons

Yes, you read that correctly. Not even a hint of acknowledgement in this AP report that the question of Saddam Hussein's chemical warfare stocks is something of a contentious point in US and world politics."




According to Ace it doesn't say if these are weapons the UN inventoried and sealed before the invasion, but then again, do actually expect the MSM to say ANYTHING which might validate G.W. Bush?

Yahoo news tries to belittle Mitt Romney

First I'll put up the screenshot I took of it. Click to Embiggen it.




Now I will excerpt it.

"These should be the dog days of the political campaign season, as we await Mitt Romney’s any-Portman-in-a-storm or I’ve-got-plenty-of-Pawlenty choice of running mate. But just as we braced for a two-week news blackout in deference to the Global Contest That Really Matters (a.k.a. the Olympics), Romney obligingly reanimated himself as an international man of mystery. "


Did you catch that?


"international man of mystery"

Hmmm, that sounds really familiar. Where have I heard that before?

Oh, I know. Here: Austin Powers:International Man of Mystery


So basically, this Yahoo News Columnist, Special Correspondent for the New Republic and other news sites, Walter Shapiro, decides to take a jab at and to lampoon Mitt Romney by referring to him tongue in cheek as "an international man of mystery" We know that the Austin Powers films were a take off/spoof of the James Bond 007 films. A caricature of all the spy movies leading men. Just another character assassination against the Republican presumed nominee. After all what is a little character assassination between media types?

Hmmm I know what do we know about Walter Shapiro?

Let me screen shot his own bio page from his own site and here:

Click to embiggen. But here is the text as well:

Biography

Walter Shapiro has covered the last eight presidential campaigns and is looking forward to chronicling his ninth in 2012. Along the way, he has worked for two newspapers (USA Today and the Washington Post), two news weeklies (Time and Newsweek), two monthlies (Esquire and the Washington Monthly) and two online magazines (Salon and Slate). The only thing that mars the symmetry of these pairings is that he has so far written one book (on the 2004 Democratic primary race), but is about to get started on an Obama-themed second book.

Shapiro just completed a nearly three-year stint as the Washington bureau chief for Salon.com. He wrote more than 250 pieces for the online magazine, almost all of which blended campaign-trail reporting with commentary and analysis. He also supervised a three-person bureau and helped increase readership of the website by roughly 50 percent.

For nearly ten years ending in 2004, he wrote a twice weekly political column for USA Today. He is the author of "One-Car Caravan: On the Road with the 2004 Democrats Before America Tunes In," a chronicle of the early skirmishing for the presidential nomination, published by PublicAffairs in November 2003. Business Week called the book "witty and insightful." He was also a columnist for Slate in 1998.

Shapiro spent the first four years of the Clinton administration writing a monthly column ("Our Man in the White House") for Esquire. From 1987-93, he was a senior writer for Time and was also the magazine's correspondent covering the 1992 Clinton campaign. At Newsweek (1983-87), he was the lead political writer. He was on the reporting staff of the Washington Post from 1979-83. Prior to joining the Post, he served as a White House speechwriter for President Jimmy Carter and a special assistant and speechwriter for Secretary of Labor Ray Marshall.

His first major job in journalism was as an editor of the Washington Monthly (1972-76). He also was on the reporting staff of Congressional Quarterly (1969-70). In 1972, Shapiro ran unsuccessfully for a U.S. House seat from Michigan. He received a B.A. degree (1970) from the University of Michigan where he also did graduate work in European intellectual history.

Shapiro was a 2005 fellow at the Shorenstein Center at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He also spent five months in Japan (1991-92) on a fellowship from the Japan Society. He is a regular speaker and guest lecturer on college campuses, having appeared within the last year at Yale University, Stanford University, NYU, the University of Virginia, American University, George Washington University, St. Anselm University, the Midwest Political Science Association and the Institute of Politics at Harvard's Kennedy School. Since 1995, Shapiro has also periodically performed standup comedy at leading New York City clubs and played the Hotel Fort Des Moines on New Year's Eve 2007-2008 on the cusp of the Iowa caucuses.

He is married to the writer Meryl Gordon, the author of the recently published, "Mrs. Astor Regrets." Shapiro divides his time between his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and his reporting rounds in Washington.



Hmmm I see a lot of Democrat related things in there. Soooo I guess that maybe Mr. Shapiro is using his own personal biases when he calls Mitt Romney "an international man of mystery" Who knew Democrats even like Austin Powers, I mean after all the movies were actually funny, and made money. But I think Mike Myers might want to ask Walter Shapiro to pay him royalties, dont you?

Ammunition purchase reporting requirements

Bitter has some info and a suggestion for you.  First the info:


"Emily Miller reported on Facebook that the bill targets those who buy more than 1,000 rounds at one time. That is factually true. However, even many gun owners wouldn’t buy more than 1,000 rounds at a time. (Let’s face it, many gun owners don’t actively shoot that often.) It’s not unheard of by any means since just a couple of bricks of .22 and even one extra box of anything else would put you over the limit, but it’s not something that’s done all that commonly by many folks. For those who don’t shoot at all, 1,000 rounds seems like a ton of ammunition regardless of the fact that it’s really not.


However, you know what message will really hit home with far more folks – gun owners or not? The mass of paperwork and bureaucratic headaches this reporting requirement will cause for small businesses."


Now for the observation:


"You know what isn’t so easy to defeat? Telling people what the bill actually does.


Instead of saying that Lautenberg & McCarthy don’t want Rhode to practice as much as she has to in order to compete at the Olympic level, why not emphasize the fact that Senator Lautenberg and Representative McCarthy want Kim Rhode to be reported to law enforcement authorities every single week for the rest of her career?"

As always click to RTWT

More cases the Obama DOJ aren't investigating

OR PROSECUTING!!  Stacy McCain has it:


"An article in the August issue of Townhall magazine describes disturbing failures by the Department of Justice in investigations of human traffickers, including cases involving the sex slavery of minors. FBI informant Brandon Darby said he and human trafficking expert Dottie Laster “presented dozens of cases to the FBI,” but that the agency failed to investigate the cases."


When are these SICK TWISTED MOTHERLESS LUMPS OF FECAL MATERIAL!!!!! Going to do their JOBS?

Monday, July 30, 2012

Mayor Bloomberg you're a feminine hygiene product

Since when does being the Mayor of any city give said individual the authority to dictate how a woman is to feed her child?

"The nanny state is going after moms.

Mayor Bloomberg is pushing hospitals to hide their baby formula behind locked doors so more new mothers will breast-feed.

Starting Sept. 3, the city will keep tabs on the number of bottles that participating hospitals stock and use — the most restrictive pro-breast-milk program in the nation."


How much ego must this man have to think he can just dictate things like that? Oh, I forgot. This is the anti-gun, anti-soda, anti-salt anti-you name it mayor of New York, who changed the laws of the city of New YOrk (yes the big O is intentional) so he could run for a third term. I guess things like the Law and The Constitution don't mean much to him. If he doesn't like a law he'll just spend his $$ and get it changed. What a hypocrite....

Having an issue with blogger AGAIN!

I forward some of my posts from stuff that is e-mailed to me.  And so far only 2 of the 4 things I sent in in the last 4 days have posted.  Plus photos are not showing up properly.  Is anyone else having a hiccup with blogger?

Chaos on the border

Thank to A Nod to the Gods for the vid.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Feminists take note -

you are hurting your own cause. The below is the result.

"I rant against rabid feminism that seeks to subjugate men, or hold women to a lesser standard, because the logical inconsistency annoys the hell out of me. I believe in treating people as equals until they prove otherwise, and today I realized that I was not acting on that belief out of fear.

Some background is in order, right now I am taking a class that has separated me from my family for a few months. The Army still considers this "dwell time" but it is anything but. The course is designed for Captains and above, but the National Guard has the opportunity to send 2nd Lieutenant or higher as they see fit for their state. In this class we have a few Guard Soldiers, and one of them happens to be a female 2LT."


Click the above to RTWT

You really need to read the whole thing. It isn't a symptom of what Radical Feminism is doing. It is the result.

Hey Gun Grabbers and Gun Control proponents

The Silicon Graybeard has something you need to read.

"Attention please, Chuck Schumer, Barbaras Boxer and Feinstein, Frank Lautenberg, Carolyn McCarthy and all the rest of you who get your talking points from the same place. Yes, that goes for you, too, Peter Bogdanovitch and Harvey Weinstein and thanks to Improved Clinch for reminding me I wanted to rant about this."


Click the above to RTWT

All I can add to it is this: Gun Control isn't about Gun's, it is about Control. And you people have no RIGHT to try to control what I do or do NOT do. Stuff that is your peace pipe and smoke it.

I have a question for Gay Marriage supporters

how does THIS help your views?

Or THIS?

Seriously, I believe Gays, Lesbian, Transgender and Bi-Sexual people should have the same rights as everyone else in all facets of life.  But how does spewing such bile and hatred help your cause?  Were it not for the fact that I have several members of my family who are Gay, Bi, TG and I KNOW them, I would be appalled at ANYTHING you say after reading those.  You might want to think about just how outsized the impact of actions and statements like those are.  Granted it is a small proportion of the GLBT population, but I don't hear anything but crickets from the remainder of the GLBT population.  Crickets.......

If you want to be taken seriously and have your voices heard, maybe you can start shouting down the crazies on your side, the way you insist the Conservatives must do.  So my advice to you is simple.

Clean up your own house before you insist your neighbor cleans up theirs.

How much more pandering

will the Obummer Administration do?  Well according to this:

"In a blatant move to shore up two vital components of his base–blacks and students–President Obama announced yesterday that he would create a federal office aimed at promoting education for black students."

a LOT more. Do we really NEED a "Federal Office" specifically for "Black" students? What about Hispanic students? Oh oh I know, Eurasian students!!! Seriously just how low will this idjit and his advisers go to keep his lame duck butt in power? Wait!! Don't answer that. I don't think I want to to know.

Oh, this is comforting

First click Read this:

"The United States government said today that even if the indictment of the Megaupload corporation is dismissed, it can continue its indefinite freeze on the corporation's assets while it awaits the extradition of founder Kim Dotcom and his associates."

Did I read that right?  The U.S. Department of Justice has decided to unilaterally maintain the seizure of the assets of a corporation even if the Judge order the dismissal of the charges?  Uhhmmm, They way I'm reading this is the DOJ screwed up by the numbers and instead of admitting it and making amends they are like the petulant child holding it's breath to get it's way.  Holding on to the assets of Megaupload and it's founder Kim Dotcom, punishing the company and Mr. Dotcom for the audacity of being the victim of the DOJ's misdirected and bungled prosecution .

What is next for the DOJ?  Refusing to uphold the Law in the U.S?  Oh wait....  That's already happening.  Well then are they going to use this vexatious pernicious ability of theirs to harass others?  Maybe people who don't want to buy overly processed foods?  Oh, wait.....  They're doing that..  Maybe they are going to try to stop the flow of weapons from the U.S. into Mexico?  Oh wait...  They've done that..

Maybe what we need isn't a Department of Justice, but a Department of Law.  Where they actually enforce the Law and the Constitution you know as it is WRITTEN!  NOT! as they would like it to be.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

NBC shows their bias by what

they decide NOT to show from the Olympics.  The Jawa Report has story.  I find it despicable that NBC decides to edit out a tribute to the victims of the 7-7 Terrorist attack.  Just what ELSE are they deciding isn't important for us to see?

Plus MORE media bias

This man came around to the truth. Thank you.



Swiped from Weerd

New Chinese Aircraft Carrier - From my Inbox


Quite the statistics

China 's new aircraft carrier! Wow!



These aircraft carriers look formidable and of ultra modern design. There are reports the 1st Chinese aircraft carrier is under construction and could enter service around 2015 or earlier. It won't be long before we see the real thing. Defense analysts are waiting; watching anxiously.

[]




[]













THIS IS QUANTUM LEAP ABOVE ANYTHING WE HAVE ON THE DRAWING BOARD.  THEY HAVE THOUGHT "OUTSIDE THE BOX" ON THIS ONE.  BETTER SPEED, LARGER CAPACITY, MUCH MORE STABLE, ETC. DEFINITELY A "BLUE-WATER " LONG REACH VESSEL.
PLUS THEY CAN SERVICE THEIR NUKE SUB FLEET IN-BETWEEN THE TWIN HULLS ( SIGHT UNSEEN ) OR EVEN LAUNCH AMPHIBIOUS OPPS FROM SAME.  IT WILL BE LAUNCHED IN HALF THE TIME IT TAKES THE USA AT JUST ONE-THIRD THE COST.  ADD THE NEW CHINESE STEALTH FIGHTER BOMBER (NAVAL VERSION ALREADY FLIGHT TESTING) IN THE MIX AND YOU HAVE THE MAKINGS OF A FORMIDABLE WEAPONS SYSTEM INDEED..
ALSO LOOK AT THAT EXTRA ''PARKING AND READINESS'' STATION BETWEEN BOTH HULL STRUCTURES..  AND OF COURSE THE LAUNCHING AND LANDING CAPABILITIES FROM THE UTILIZATION OF TWIN FLIGHT DECKS AT ONCE

P.S. SOME THOUGHT SHOULD BE GIVEN TO ADVISING YOUR GRANDCHILDREN TO LEARN TO SPEAK MANDARIN (FORGET SPANISH) MY "VERY, VERY BRIGHT" 15-YEAR OLD COUSIN HAS ALREADY BEEN ADVISED TO DO SO BY PEOPLE WHO KNOW ABOUT SUCH THINGS.




P.P.S SIX OF THESE VESSELS (TWO PACIFIC, TWO ATLANTIC, ONE INDIAN OCEAN AND ONE MED SEA) WOULD BE A PRETTY GOOD DIPLOMATIC "BIG STICK."

NOTE: THE CHINESE ARE ALREADY DRILLING FOR OIL OFF CUBA , BRAZIL AND VENEZUELA . CAN THEY BUILD A FLEET OF THESE THINGS ???, YES!!!



A FEW FACTS: THE CHINESE HAVE COMPLETED THE WORLD'S BIGGEST DAM (THREE GORGES), THE WORLD'S LONGEST OVER-WATER BRIDGE, 65 TIMES AS MUCH STEEL AS IN THE EIFFEL TOWER, CONSTRUCTED A 15,000' HIGH RAILROAD INTO TIBET (ALL CONSIDERED MAJOR ENGINEERING FEATS).



THEY ARE THE ONLY NATION OTHER THAN RUSSIA THAT CAN LAUNCH MEN INTO OUTER SPACE OUR CAPABILITY ENDS WITH THE LAST SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH THIS MONTH.

THEY HAVE ALSO SHOT DOWN A SURVEILLANCE SATELLITE (ONE OF THEIR OWN) FROM THE GROUND.

PLUS THEY "OWN OUR ...behind..." IN THE INTERNATIONAL DEBT GAME.



CHINA'S NEW A/C CARRIER COULD BE TWICE AS FAST AS ANYTHING WE HAVE, PLUS THE STABILITY OF A CATAMARAN TYPE HULL WILL GREATLY REDUCE THE PITCHING, YAWING AND SWAYING COMMON TO OUR PRESENT DESIGNS.

 

WE ARE IN TROUBLE PEOPLE... WE CANNOT EVEN GET OUR OWN DEBT

TAKEN CARE OF BY THE IDIOTS WE ELECTED!!!

Government Fishing expedition

causes a 7 year court battle, cost a woman her life's savings and may cost her her freedom.

"The huge humpback whale whose friendliness precipitated a surreal seven-year — so far — federal hunt for criminality surely did not feel put upon. Nevertheless, our unhinged government, with an obsession like that of Melville’s Ahab, has crippled Nancy Black’s scientific career, cost her more than $100,000 in legal fees — so far — and might sentence her to 20 years in prison. This Kafkaesque burlesque of law enforcement began when someone whistled."


Ilya Somin from the Volokh Conspiracy has the story with some commentary.

Click above to RTWT

Friday, July 27, 2012

Testing of the Blogger video service.

I was down at the Nina today, and tried to do a little filming. The real camera I had decided to have a hissy fit so this is a cell phone video of me talking a little bit about the Nina and the Columbus Sailors. I know it doesn't look to good, but this is a test of the blogger video interface. If this works ok, there will be more original videos from me coming.



And if you'd like to help out with the restoration of The Nina, you can send an E-mail to:

lanina-cc@hotmail.com

Under Obamacare prices for McDonalds food and other things may rise

Yahoo news has an article, that under Obamacare costs for things such as Big Mac's, printer paper, and fries could rise.

"In exchange for lower health premiums under Obamacare, experts say shoppers could pay higher prices on everything from printer paper to French fries.

Complying with the Affordable Care Act will cost as much as $420 million annually, McDonald’s CFO Peter Bensen said during a conference call Monday, according to CFO Journal. And when the new law goes fully into effect in 2014, it’s possible menu prices will be raised to cover the health costs."


Now I think we have a problem.

If the cost of Bacon goes up, There may actually be calls for a revolution.


You DON'T mess with BACON!!!

Click to RTWT

From my e-mail

 
Yes, he told us in advance what he planned to do.
Few were listening.
 
The following is a narrative taken from a 2008 Sunday morning televised "Meet The Press."
 
From Sunday's 07 Sept. 2008, 11:48:04 EST, Televised "Meet the Press" the then Senator Obama was asked about his stance on the American Flag.
 
General Bill Ginn, USAF (ret.), asked Obama to explain WHY he doesn't follow protocol when the National Anthem is played.
 
The General stated to Obama that according to the United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 10, Sec. 171...
During rendition of the national anthem, when the flag is displayed, all present (except those in uniform) are expected to stand at attention, facing the flag, with the right hand over the heart. Or, at the very least, "Stand and Face It".
 
NOW GET THIS !!
 
'Senator' Obama replied:
"As I've said about the flag pin, I don't want to be perceived as taking sides....." "There are a lot of people in the world to whom the American flag is a symbol of oppression...." "The anthem itself conveys a war-like message. You know, the bombs bursting in air, and all that sort of thing."
 
(ARE YOU READY FOR THIS???)
 
Obama continued:, "The National Anthem should be 'swapped' for something less parochial and less bellicose. I like the song 'I'd Like To Teach the World To Sing.' If that were our anthem, then I might salute it. In my opinion, we should consider reinventing our National Anthem as well as 'redesign' our Flag to better offer our enemies hope and love. It's my intention, if elected, to disarm America to the level of acceptance to our Middle East Brethren. If we, as a Nation of warring people, conduct ourselves like the nations of Islam, where peace prevails - - - perhaps a state or period of mutual accord could exist between our governments ......"
"When I become President, I will seek a pact of agreement to end hostilities between those who have been at war or in a state of enmity, and a freedom from disquieting oppressive thoughts . We as a Nation, have placed upon the nations of Islam, an unfair injustice, which is WHY my wife disrespects the Flag, and she and I have attended several flag burning ceremonies in the past."
 
"Of course now, I have found myself about to become the President of the United States and I have put my hatred aside. I will use my power to bring CHANGE to this Nation, and offer the people a new path. My wife and I look forward to becoming our Country's First black Family. Indeed, CHANGE is about to overwhelm the United States of America."
 
WHAAAAAAAT , is that?
Yes, you read it right.
I, for one, am speechless!
Dale Lindsborg , Washington Post

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Death by Phosphorous - Israeli Anti-Tank rocket - Is it real?




Read the text first and then watch the video; it takes less than a minute and it is amazing.

This is one of the reasons Arabs are scared to death of Israel. What you are about to watch is an actual event. The Israeli Armed Forces filmed this in real time. What you'll see is a fully armored Syrian tank being hit by an Israeli laser-guided, steel-penetrating, phosphorous-filled "hand held" rocket. The rocket is small, very portable and is a tightly controlled weapon. Each one is accounted for when they are checked out and back in. There must be no fewer than 2 soldiers present to verify the use, one must be a senior officer with a minimum of 10 years military service. (the name and program is classified) This tank was headed for one of Israel's settlements. There were four more tanks one mile to the rear of this tank. They turned around before getting to this area after learning what had happened to the lead tank. You can hear the ammunition going off after the initial strike. No Syrian tank crew member survived this event (pretty obvious) and it did not make the news. It is an everyday event for Israel's Armed Forces and they do not permit the "embedding" of news reporters with their armed forces like we Americans do. This weapon and its tactical use is for their survival, not for "news" entertainment. Perhaps we should take a page from the Israeli Military Handbook.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Marie Clare magazine did a "political"

piece.  And Daisy from Chicks On The Right responded.  Boy did she.

"If today’s liberal “feminist” wants someone else to take care of them, I suppose your fashion and beauty tips in the pages of Marie Claire will come in handy – after all, the better you look, the more apt you are to snag yourself a rich Sugar Daddy with a weak heart and flexible will. And that is precisely what so-called “feminists” seem to be looking for these days – just under the flimsy guise of the federal government and my tax dollars. Just so you know, there are still women in this world who are strong enough to not buy into that absolute bullshit.

I am a Republican woman. I am a strong, conservative, self-reliant, fiscally and personally responsible woman. I was raised by other conservative women to never rely on ANYONE to take care of me. I don’t need or want a Sugar Daddy. I believe that the entitlement mentality is the antithesis of true feminism. And when you and those like you in the media feel as though it’s your job to perpetuate this narrative of the “victimized” woman – THAT, Ms. Walshe, is what pisses me off."



Click to RTWT and leave her a comment while you're at it.

The Tale of the Three Sisters

UPDATE:  The Nina's restoration is complete, Update here:  Three Sisters Update

I’d like to introduce you to Nina and her two sisters.  Nina and her sisters were brought up in a loving family in Spain, then brought to the United States to live in their new home with their adopted family.  When they arrived they were well loved and traveled to many places and saw many towns and people.  Their beauty awed everyone who saw them.  Finally they traveled to their final home, where the sisters were cruelly separated; the youngest Nina was taken from her two sisters and banished to the loneliness of the docks.  Her two sisters however were still visited by hundreds of people, yet they became ill away from their sister and their natural home.  Years went by, Nina and her two sisters became more ill as time went on.  Finally a group of people, tired of seeing how Nina and her sisters were being treated tried to take action.  The sisters adopted parent attempted to shun any responsibility for Nina, even going so far as threatening to have Nina killed in a fire.  The good and kindly people were horrified and they did take action.  Rounding up friends and family they spoke to any who would listen as to Nina and her sisters plight.  The patron of the adopted parent heard of the plight of Nina and her sisters.  He and his associates stepped in and intervened, and Nina at least is being cared for and nursed back to health.  Slowly but surely, Nina is becoming whole again.  Her sisters on the other hand are in more and more need of proper care. 

Recently however, the group which is helping Nina, were able to examine her sisters to determine where their hurts are so they can be made whole again as well and reunited with their sister.

You may think this is a fairy tale.  It is not.

That is the true story of The Columbus Fleet The Nina, The Pinta and The Santa Maria.  The Pinta and the Santa Maria are currently housed at the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History, the Nina is at the T head on the Corpus Christi shoreline, where it has been undergoing restoration by the Columbus Sailors.  A volunteer non-profit organization, which hopes to get all three of the ships fully restored and back in the water where they belong.  The Nina has had her hull repaired, scraped and repainted and a lot of her rotting timbers replaced and a lot of her woodwork refinished.  There is still much to do.

Recently members of the Columbus sailors have finished their examination of The Pinta and The Santa Maria, and while there are some necessary repairs that will be required before they can be refloated to join their sister, The Nina in the Corpus Christi Bay.

The Nina has recently been moved, after a repair to her hull and repainting with proper bottom paint, she is still undergoing further restoration at the T-head in Down town corpus Christi.

Some pics my adopted daughter Tory and I took when we were down there last month to see how the progress is coming along.
The Nina as you see her at the end of the T head

One of the Columbus Sailors volunteers taking a break in the 101 degree heat index

The front of the Nina

One of the hatches with the newly built hatch covers

The Nina's rudder and name plaque

The Columbus Sailors shield at the quay

The new built steps for entry, and you can see the hull has been receiving several coats of varnish

The stern of the Nina

How she looks from head on

I have been given permission to post photos taken by members of the Columbus Sailors of their evaluation of the Pinta and the Santa Maria.  And also updates on the Nina and estimates for the repairs of the Pinta and Santa Maria.

The Nina

Nina Update                  May 7, 2012


The Columbus Sailing Assn, a certified 501(c)3, has a formal contract with the City of Corpus Christi to restore the Columbus Ships and place them in the water in a suitable display. We’ve outlined 5 phases to as our plan to make that happen.

1) Restore the Nina in place.  Projected finish, October 2012.  Biggest obstacles to completion, need Sails, engine installed.

2) Set up a suitable dock arrangement on Lawrence St. to remove activities off the sidewalk. These activities would commence with restarting the sailing school to teach prospective sailors how to handle the lines and sail the Nina as well as allow the CSA to charge admission for on-board tours. This would allow us to obtain volunteers to help us with the maintenance.

3) Restore the Pinta & Santa Maria, including their ability to float.

4) Construct the Columbus Seaport with barges set up as floating piers to dock the Three Ships.

5) Lift and set the Pinta & Santa Maria in the water & tow them over in front of the Omni at the north end of the Marina.





            Nina Restoration

1) The Nina had a haul out in September of 2010. Several Planks were replaced on the hull and an extra-ordinary bottom paint job was administered. The Master shipwright stated that this was one of the tightest ships he’s ever pulled and the bottom job should last ten years because of the extra Coal Tar coating he administered.

2) The crew started in December of 2010 by clearing the decks and hold of trash and unnecessary equipment. Over the ensuing months we have removed the port & starboard cap rails, the mizzen (upper deck) mast, most of the foredeck, all of the upper deck, the rear cap rail on the upper deck and a small portion the port side upper deck cap rail. We’ve rebuilt the upper deck hatch frame & covers, rebuilt new hatch covers for the forward hatch, rebuilt a new mizzen mast, replaced the port side cap rail, replaced the entire upper deck, replaced the stern cap rail on the upper deck. We’ve sanded & varnished three sea chests, upper deck ladders, the upper deck itself, the railings, 1/3 of the main deck, 3/4ths of the port side hull and the mizzenmast as well as all three hatch cover frames and refurbished the 8 shields that mount on the upper deck railings.

3) In our reconstruction we’ve set our course to replace everything we can with pressure treated lumber, galvanized screws & lag bolts to do a better job on lowering maintenance efforts & costs. We are using a $100 per gallon exceptional marine varnish ( for lack of  a better word that is understandable) called Cetol. We have one coat on the areas I’ve mentioned. We will end up with three coats on the entire ship down to the waterline. The Boy Scouts are going to help us commencing May 12th on applying the varnish and hopefully they will finish the other two coats as well.

4) The remaining items for completion are as follows

a) Complete the sanding & varnishing of the entire ship by August.
b) Set the Mizzenmast on the upper deck. This will necessitate the use of a truck crane, approximately a $500 expense. At that time we will lower the foremast and bowsprit to recondition them. We will also extract the engine that is seized and set it on deck to exchange the rear transmission with the replacement engine we are purchasing from Kirk’s Truck Service.
c) Replace the fore deck and construct a pin board to hold lines. This may require having some special metal backing plates constructed & set.
d) Reset the foremast, & bowsprit, and drop in new engine. Will require the services of a truck crane again.
e) Replace approximately 10 main deck planks.
f) Caulk all decks with Styrofoam string  (backer rod) and a semi plastic black caulking to seal decks.
g) Remove European corroded electrical panels & lines. Reconstruct necessary electrical system & wire in current Onan generator on board. Simplify system.
h) Get Engine to run and assess jet drive unit for propulsion.
i) Complete re-rigging of all standing & running lines. Most of them have been replaced with synthetic, but there are a few that need attending to.
j) Construct crew quarters below decks. There are two marine heads with a holding tank in working order.
k) Replace 6 heavy-duty batteries. 3 for the main engine & three for the generator. They can be set up to back up each other.
l) Replace main mast. AEP has donated a power transmission pole to replace the main mast. We need to cut the pulley slots and shroud cuts. We’ll need a big crane to remove the old & install the new. The main mast is 60 feet tall.
m) Replace sails and purchase sail covers.
n) Install an extra lag bolt on all exposed planks above the water line & below the rub rail. The Iron nails below the water line are secure.


I have left out information which is of a private nature of the Columbus Sailors, and their agreement with the City of Corpus Christi, Texas.

Now for the Pinta, I will post the survey document then some of the pictures from the survey, but not all of them.  You will understand I have to edit these photos and include the watermark which is a little time consuming.

The Pinta

PINTA SURVEY – MAY 18TH, 2012


I, John Torrey, President of the Columbus Sailing Association went to the Corpus Christi Museum, where the Pinta & Santa Maria are in dry dock to conduct a survey of the ships’ hulls to determine what repairs are necessary to secure their floatability.

I looked at each & every plank on the Pinta’s hull up to the rub rail on each side. This is the area we need to be concerned about to prepare for soundness and to prevent leakage so that we can set the Pinta in the water with the expectation she will float with no problem. There is some wood, higher up, on the freeboard planks on the hull that needs replacement, but not as much as one would think. Those problems can be addressed after she floats.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that even though the spray system that had been set up, had long ago been dismantled, I did find that Rudy Mircovich, one of the ship’s carpenters had set up and did use a salt water wash down of the decks. This has the added advantage, because the decks were not properly caulked, to drip saltwater into the sides of the hull wetting down a large surface area that drained through a few cracks in the seams, or corroded nails. I believe this has helped preserve the hull. Almost no seams showed any signs of dry out separation. The vast majority were very tight. Time and future preparations of flooding the hold will reveal just how tight the hull seams are, but right now with a few exceptions they look very good. This constant spray down of salt water revealed very few seam leaks, which I take as a good sign.  

Surprisingly, I found the vast majority of the hull to be in sound shape. I took an ice pick and attempted to pierce the wood to discover “soft” spots, which are indications of either dry rot, or in other instances I found nail rot.



This is where nails had become exposed to air and moisture, which corroded the nail, and this spread to the surrounding wood.  The piercing I did approximately every 12” on every plank all the way around.  Some soft spots may be addressed by chiseling out the deteriorated section and “scarfing” in a wedge of wood and using a two-part epoxy glue, place it in the carved cavity. No entire length of plank needed to be replaced. The longest plank was 84” and the shortest was 24”. I’ll detail each instance of repair I found necessary with an approximation of remedy and time necessary. Photos will be available after my return June 7th.


    Starboard Side Hull from the Rudder Forward


1) Rudder itself. There are several large cracks on the rudder and the rudderpost, which hold the pintels, which hold the rudder pins, which suspend the rudder. These can be carved out and new wood laid in place & epoxy glued. This needs to be done to both sides of the Rudder & Rudder post. Gaps behind the rudderpost need to be filled with foam similar to that used for insulation that can be bought in a can. It will flow to fill the largest area possible and act as a sealant “gluing” itself to anything it touches.

Estimated time: Four 8 hr days two men plus materials 
   64 hrs   materials $200 - Epoxy, wood, foam, paint

2) Cracked plank 10 ft from stern, two boards up from keel.
Area is 41” long X 81/2” high X 2 3/8” thick. We need to get a better handle on the thickness but that is what the Nina’s planks are. I will be submitting a request for quote to Armstrong Lumber, where we can get the size lumber we need specially cut.

Estimated time three hrs two men.

Plank Procedure: Need to hole saw around nails, pry board away, or beat out from inside the hull, drill around nails & pull, drill out nail hole so a dowel rod can be glued in place. Cut, seal & caulk board, drill ½” X 6” pilot holes, counter sink lag bolt and washer. Caulk hole.

It will be necessary to make other plank cuts while waiting for the dowel rods to dry in place. All plank cuts are straight; none are curved on the Pinta.

6 hours     materials $50.00

3) Small ¾ inch run on edge of planks, Approximately 16 foot total. Soft on surface but not deep. Approximately 16 foot total in length ¾” deep, over three planks.

Remediation: use router or skill saw to cut out soft spot runs. Cut a one by two to fit, epoxy glue in place. Caulk when dry.

4 hours one man, materials $35.00

4) 2 planks near jet drive grate on stern side 36”X6 5/8” X 2 3/8”
Use Plank Procedure from above. 

2 men 8 hrs = 16 hours – materials $150.00

5) Option: Remove Jet drive grate & jet drive. This will leave a four foot
     diameter hole. It will require constructing a beam box on the inside to
     mount the hull planks to cover the hole.  6 planks 7’X 6 5/8” X 2 3/8”
   
     2 men 16 hours = 32 hrs, materials $500.00

6) 1 plank 38” X 6 5/8” X 2 3/8”.   This plank is 32” from the #2 cradle
Use Plank Procedure from above.

2 men three hours = 6 hours, materials $50.00

7) Scarf small wedge directly above the #2 cradle 6” X 2” X 1” deep.
Carve out. Epoxy glue in cut wood.

1 man 2 hours materials $10.00

8) 1 Plank next to cradle #3, 24” up from bottom of cradle arm.
Plank is 40” X 6 ¾” X 2 3/8” thick.
Use Plank Procedure from above.

2 men 3 hours = 6 hours, materials $50.00

9) 2 planks right side of the bottom end of cradle arm #3.
Each plank is 24” X 6 ¾” X 2 3/8” thick.
Use Plank Procedure from above

2 men 6 hours = 12 hours, materials $100.00

   10) Scarf wedge 2 feet to stern side of cradle #4 near large NUT.
10”X 4” X 1” deep.  Carve & epoxy glue

1 man 2 hours, materials $10.00

Total Man hours – 150          Materials $1,145



           Port Side Hull from Bow to Stern

1) 1 plank next near bow 2nd board up from keel 36” X 8” X 2 3/8”
Use Plank Procedure from above.

2 Men 3 hours – 6 hours, Materials $50.00

2) Body filler around nail holes Plank #2 from Keel 5 ft from bow.
Carve out bad wood put in filler

1 Man 2 Hours, Materials $ 30.00

3) Crack in Plank # 6 40” X 7” X 2 3/8”
Use Plank Procedure from above

2 men 3 hours = 6 hours, Materials $120.00

4) # 5 plank from keel stern side of cradle # 1 60” X 7” X 2 3/8”
Use Plank Procedure from above.

2 Men 4 hours = 8 hours, Materials $150.00

5) Scarf 8”X 3” X 1” deep cavity Epoxy glue. 3 feet towards bow
Cradle #2

1 man 1 hour, Materials $10.00

6) 3 feet towards bow from cradle #3 scarf 6” X 4” X 1” deep cavity
     on plank # 7. Scarf 3” X 3” X 1” deep cavity on plank #8

     1 Man 2 hours, Materials $15.00

7) 1 foot to stern from #3 cradle scarf 6” X 4” X 1” deep cavity

1 man 1 hour, Materials $10.00




8) Replace Plank by transducer 60” x 7” X 2/3/8” deep.
Use Plank Procedure from above.

2 men four hours = 8 hours, Materials $150.00


Totals   34 Man hours, Materials $535.00



Extra Lag Bolt on each Plank @ each Rib

I believe it will be confirmed by the Mile 533 Shipyard staff that it’s advisable to place a ½ galvanized 6” lag bolt w/ washer in between each two nails that hold the hull planks to the ships ribs. This would help assure hull integrity. There are approximately 4,000 of these that need to be fitted. I need to get inside the Pinta and count her ribs and her hull planks to get an accurate count. This is a 9-stage job for efficiency that requires four electric drills, 4 special bits, a marker, a soaper, a setter and a caulker. 

I estimate 3 ½ minutes per bolt. That’s 14,000 minutes divided by 60 = 233 man-hours divided by four men = 60 hours apiece. Let’s call it two weeks and hope we do much better.  ½ inch drills with an extra handle work best because they have the power to get in & get out as well as drive the bolts home. The handle helps as well to pull full bits back out.

Four half inch drills              $  200.00
Drill bits                                                 $  100.00
Caulk                                                      $  150.00
½ galvanized 6” lag bolt w/ washer
1000@ 50 cents each              $ 500.00
Scaffolding                      $  ?

Four men 40 hours apiece = 160 hrs, Materials $950.00

                          BALLAST

There is 48,000lbs of lead ballast at the Bulk Terminal at the Port of Corpus Christi that belongs to the Santa Maria. We propose hauling 36,000 lbs of this ballast to the Museum and placing it in the Pinta. They are on about 20 pallets. This will take a flatbed semi-trailer of some kind two trips to haul the pallets to the museum. It will take a cherry picker type truck-crane to lift those pallets to the Pinta’s hatches and drop them into the hold. The lead ballast is in 70-80 pound ingots in the form of a short-legged “T”, they are designed to interlock when set in place.  This will be a tedious process, as each ingot will have to be handled by two men to be set in place. This is 450 to 514 units. At five minutes each it will take 42 hours to set in place. If we double the men and move from the center in two directions it will still take 42 man hours, but it can be accomplished in three days

I would like to approach the city for the semi trailer & the crane. There will probably be a cost for those two pieces. One day for the semi and three days for the crane.

We will also need to drill tunnels through the floor beams to allow water to drain to a central pumping point. We may need to place a shim on the bottom of some of the ingots as well to facilitate that drainage. We will place a plastic chain in those tunnels to drag back and forth to free any debris that may clog the channels.

Man Hours Ingot placement 100
Tunnel drilling on hull ribs (78 bores) 2 men 30 hrs =60 hrs   160 hrs 


             Bottom Paint Job Options for Pinta

We need to consult with Mile 533 staff on what work we actually need done to secure a paint job like the one they did on the Nina.

Questions that need to be answered are

1) Do we need to remove the paint on the hull?
2) Does it just need to be scuffed or actually removed?
3) Can they come over and do it at the museum?

When I spoke to Manning Chapman with Mile 533, he expressed concern about air quality permits and other environmental issues that he is licensed for at their yard, but may not be available at the museum. Part of this I’m sure is because they use compressed air (which generates free aerosols) to paint at Mile 533.

4) If they feel they cannot come over, is it within our scope of effort to sand the Pinta or hire a firm to come in & sand it? (I’m pursuing a quote on the sandblasting.) We could perhaps paint it with a roller & brush thus avoiding the aerosol issue.
5) Can we “roll” coal tar paint? It appears to be a magic bullet for bottom jobs in terms of effectiveness & longevity.

The bottom paint job utilizes two paints; Coal Tar based paint and then regular marine bottom paint. The Columbus Sailing Assn does have an account @ West Marine as a “Shipyard” vendor. This gives us almost a 40% discount on supplies purchased @ West Marine.

The last Nina Bottom job was $12,000.    Estimate on Pinta $15,000 


TOTAL MAN HOURS 494        TOTAL MATERIALS $ 2,630
                            BOTTOM JOB         $15,000
474X $25 HR = $12,350
                            TOTAL                $17,630

TOTAL TOTAL = $29,980   PLUS CRANE?



Now for the photos:
The Pinta's Keel Bolts showing through the keel

a hole along the keel in the hull

The Pinta's rudder

The Pinta's foredeck

the hoses are a watering system to try to keep the hull of the ship wet so it will remain tight. the system failed in the not too recent past.

The Pinta's mast collar

The Pinta's rudderfrom the other side

A frontal view from the Starboard side
The Pinta is not in as bad a shape as the Santa Maria.  The survey and photos of the Santa Maria follow.

SANTA MARIA SURVEY  JUNE 13TH, 2012

I, John Torrey, President of the Columbus Sailing Assn did undertake an inspection of the replica ship Santa Maria at the Corpus Christi Museum to ascertain what repairs are necessary to float the ship. Joe Hominick and Rudy Mircovich also accompanied me on this inspection.

                              KEEL

1) There are at least 6 keel bolts that are stainless steel but have mild steel nuts which have corroded excessively leading to “nail rot” to the surrounding wood. It will be necessary to remove these nuts and drive the remaining bolt out. We will have to carve out damaged wood and glue in a “Dutchman” Scarf to replace that section of wood. We will have to try and salvage the bolt. If not salvageable we will install a new bolt (20 inches long by 5/8 inch thick after drilling through the “Dutchman”, countersinking the nut and covering it with a wooden plug.

Man hours 24    Materials $200

2)  At several stretches along the keel, there are cracks, which need filling and perhaps another keel bolt added.

Man hours 20    Materials $150

                       PORT SIDE FROM BOW

3) Hull planks from the port side bow to the first cradle, from the keel to the 2nd Rub-rail need replacing. There is a picture documenting this area, approximately 20 feet long X 16 feet tall. There is also a large plank area from the middle of the first cradle to middle of cradle number six up to the 2nd rub-rail above. This area is fifty-one feet, 3 inches long by 16 planks tall (approx 8 ft tall). There is a picture with these areas marked out.  A number of these planks will need to be steamed to fit the curvature of the hull. Some of the planks have cracked vertically because of drying out. There are approximately 100 15-20 foot planks that need to be replaced.

Man hours 500     Materials $6000

4) There are 7 vertical “fishplates” along the length of the keel. These are stainless steel plates, but they utilized mild steel nuts & bolts. To stabilize these plates it will be necessary to drill new holes in the plates through the keel and install stainless steel nuts & bolts. I would also recommend cutting off the remaining nut & bolt heads, drilling the shaft down and then gluing a wooded plug in the remaining holes. There are six bolts on each plate. There is ample room to drill a new bolt pattern in the plates.

Man hours 42   Materials $1500

5) On the Rudderpost and Rudder there are cracks & voids that need to
     be filled.  We should also look at putting grease fittings on the rudder
     pivots.
    
     Man hours 36   Materials $150 excluding grease fittings

STARBOARD SIDE FROM RUDDER

6) Starboard side from the rudder forward, planks No. 4 thru 15 approximately 10 feet long need to be replaced.  There are curves that will have to be built into these planks

Man hours 70   Material $420

7) There are four planks above and in-between cradles 8 & 7 on the starboard hull. They are approximately six feet long.

Man hours 16    Materials $150

8) 3 Planks between the rub-rails over cradles 6-4 approximately 15 feet
long.

Man Hours 12   Materials $200

                    MAIN DECK SUPPORTS

9)  10 Main Deck Beams (Joists) approximately 30’ long X 10” X 10”
      This also includes building the mast box through which the main
      mast is to be braced.   Remove & Replace all. All but one, are on the
      main deck, which is exposed to weather. The deck itself needs to be
      removed.

      A tarp needs to be suspended over this open section of deck
      to shed water and provide shade until the deck is replaced. Need to
      disconnect electricity & remove wires. With the deck removed we
      need to pull the engines & jet drives. The generator as well, if it
      cannot be revived. The beams may need to be cut from a large
      enough trunk of lumber to effect an arch, or they may need to be
      steamed to gain the arch.

          Man hours  3 men X 5 hours per beam X 10 beams  = 150 hours
          Materials $3,000

  10)   Remove one jet drive & rebuild two 4 foot holes in hull.

Man hours 2 men 32 hrs = 64 hrs   Materials $1000

 11)   100 feet of 6”X8” longitudinal joist beams. Remove & replace. These
  are runners that are underneath the deck beams connecting them.

          Man hours 2 men X 32 = 64 hours   Materials $600

12)   Cracked plank 4 ft from bow keel 3 feet down from rub rail. 8 feet
    long.
    
   Man hours 4   Material $50.00


                         BALLAST


13) There will be six tons of lead ballast from the Port
Warehouse, available to place in the Santa Maria. This leaves a balance of 24 tons that must be replaced. I propose doing this by utilizing concrete pumped into the bilge. It will take approximately 16 cubic yards of concrete to replace the balance. We will need to prepare the bilge timbers to protect them as well as construct tunnels for bilge seepage that we can direct to a central pumping point to drain the bilges. This means drilling the hull ribs on the floor to allow this water to seep as well as placing tunnels in the concrete to facilitate this drainage.

Man hours 300   Materials $5,000

                       BOTTOM JOB OPTIONS

The same questions that were posed for the Pinta need to be answered for the Santa Maria. I’m still trying to run that down.  Bottom job  on the Nina was $12,000. I’ll suggest the Santa Maria will be about $15,000. Less if we can do it.


  EXTRA LAG BOLT AT EACH RIB PLANK

    1,102             Man hours 180     Materials $551


TOTAL MAN HOURS 1,482      TOTAL MATERIALS  $18,971
                        BOTTOM JOB         $15,000

                                           TOTAL MATERIAL     $33,971


Some of the survey photos below.

You can see where the deck is severely damaged and needs to be repaired

Several deck joists also need repair

the port forward hull

the view along the port side hull

the rudder

the starboard side stern
These sister ship were built by the country of Spain and given to the City of Corpus Christi, Texas.  I feel it is shameful the way the sisters have been treated in the past, and I hope that soon all of them will once again ply the waters of the Gulf of Mexico as a tangible example of exploration and courage.  If you would like to donate or more information about the restoration of the ships you can send an e-mail to lanina-cc@hotmail.com

If you are down in the Corpus Christi area, the Nina can be seen moored by Joe's Crab Shack on the St. Lawrence T-head off of Shoreline Dr in downtown Corpus Christi.  Please if you do go to see the ship do not board the vessel.  It is a work in progress and as such there are dangers you cannot see on board.  Take only photos leave no traces but do it from shore.