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From: Peter Thompson
Sent: Thursday, July 15, 2010 3:03 PM
To: captainsteve@manchesterliners.co.uk
Subject: re MLOSA

Hi Captain Steve Worthington
I wonder if you could assist me....as an ex ML C/0 I remember the Lake ships and probably the early Box boats carry a stability machine in the C/O office....nice bit of kit which you could calculate the trim and GM etc.
The reason I ask is that I now a member of the National Coast Watch at Nare Point in Cornwall and we have a number of old salts on the team ,we were talking about stab calculations and no one could come up with a name for it...I have searched the internet but can only think It was a "Ralston"....perhaps you can help

Thanks
Peter Thompson    (present member of MLOSA)

 

From: captainsteve@manchesterliners.co.uk
To: Peter Thompson
Subject: Re: MLOSA
Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:04:17 +0100

Yes Peter you are quite correct.  It was called a Ralston and it was made Kelvin Hughes if my memory serves my right.

Best regards,

Steve

Copy to Capt Cullen for interest - and maybe a few more comments.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

From: captainpete@manchesterliners.co.uk
To: Peter Thompson
Subject: Re: MLOSA
Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:04:17 +0100

From: captainpete@manchesterliners.co.uk
To: Peter Thompson
Subject: Re: re M.L.O.S.A from Peter Thompson ( ex seagoing member)
Date: Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:49:30 +0100

I first came across your enquiry via our hon sec which I acknowledged. Then I came across your e-mail to me.

Yes you are correct the instrument you refer to was called The Ralston Indicator.

This instrument was housed in a rectangular box with a hinged lid. When you lifted the lid inside was a metal profile of the vessel with the c of g of each cargo compartment marked. To operate you placed  small metal blocks representing weights, ranging from 1000, 500, 200, 100, 50, 10, then a small range of small grey pcs for weights under 10 tons, in the various cargo compartments. For example if you had 2000 tons of Grain completely filling N0.2. 2 lower hold thenyou would place a black marked 2000 tons over the c o g of No 2 hold and so on until you had loaded the vessel.

To get the Gm you then raised the profile of the vessel by two levers at the ends to get the Gm by balancing with use of the spirit level built in the the tray. To get the trim, you then lowered the tray back and again raised it by two levers at the sides, again balancing it with a second spirit level. The info you require ie the GM and Trim can be read off when you have balanced in each case.

I used this instrument when I was mate on the Man Spinner, then Man City.

Hope it all makes sense to you Peter.

Regards

Captain Pete Cullen

 

From: Peter Thompson
Sent: Friday, July 18, 2010 8:09 AM
To: captainpete@manchesterliners.co.uk
Subject:
RE: re M.L.O.S.A from Peter Thompson ( ex seagoing member)

Thank you for your detailed reply, I was on the "Miller" for a while as 3/0 from 66 and remember the Mate Don Whitworth using this machine...It was as you described and we used to use it under his instruction....I do know it was on other vessels in the fleet. As I explained in my email it was a query raised whilst on one of my watches at Nare Point (Cornwall) coast watch,just one of my watch mates was a deck officer with clan line and of the same era as we all are.
Going on from the Ralston,,,when I was c/o on the "Reward" Capt Cookson and I were sent on a day course for the computerised Stability machine we had installed but the information it provided couldnt be relied on. I much prefered the information calculated by the stability tables.

So thank you both Capt Steve and Capt Pete for taking the time to reply

Regards
Peter T

From: Peter Thompson
Sent: Friday, July 16, 2010 7:24 PM
To: captainsteve@manchesterliners.co.uk
Subject: RE: MLOSA

Hi Capt Steve W.

Good to keep the old mind working,,,,,we have a number of old salts at our station (Nare Point) from different Companies but with plenty of memories....So to past the time during quiet watch periods we get to have a good natter about the old days,,,,The Coast watch station is one of the only ones we stand 2 personnel each watch. The reason is that we cover a sea area from the Manacle Rocks to the South across Falmouth bay to St Anthony head off Falmouth and also up the Helford River...

So thank you for your help in answering my question on the Ralston Indicator so now I will put this enquiry to rest.

Best wishes
Peter T.

 
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From: Peter Thompson
Sent:Friday, June 18, 2010 10:55 AM
To: captainpete@manchesterliners.co.uk
Subject: re M.L.O.S.A from Peter Thompson ( ex seagoing member)

Dear Capt Peter Cullen
I would like to pick your brains a bit more re the stability calculations on the pre container vessels.
I was on the pre container ships as 2/0 and remember the Mate having a stability calculator in his office.
I am trying to remember the name of it and I think it was Called The "Ralston" but cant be sure.
The reason I am interested is that I now in retirement belong to the National Coast Watch and am a watch keeper at "Nare Point" in Cornwall....(Dads Army equivilant) and we have a number of old salts as watch keepers..We were talking the other day re stability calcs on the ships and that came up.....I remember using one and found it very useful...When I transfered to the Box boats as Mate ie the Renown and Reward they fitted a "Computer" system which I found was very unreliable and myself I prefered to do it long hand with I think more accurate results.
Hope you dont mind me contacting you and that you can give me the answer

Regards
Peter Thompson

 
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