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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 17, 2017 11:44:37 GMT -8
Today I present photographic evidence of the problem with the Howe Sound Queen: Her weak deck can't handle a full load of weight. The photo shows the ship ready to depart Crofton, leaving a large truck behind on the waiting-line trestle. I was there watching, so I know that the truck arrived before the departure cut-off time. You can also see the vast amount of deck space open on the left-side of the photo. This open space extended almost the length of the ship. . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr ps: the shaking Crofton trestle always makes me feel uncomfortable, in a frightened way.
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Post by yak on Jun 17, 2017 14:18:16 GMT -8
Today I present photographic evidence of the problem with the Howe Sound Queen: Her weak deck can't handle a full load of weight. The photo shows the ship ready to depart Crofton, leaving a large truck behind on the waiting-line trestle. I was there watching, so I know that the truck arrived before the departure cut-off time. You can also see the vast amount of deck space open on the left-side of the photo. This open space extended almost the length of the ship. . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr ps: the shaking Crofton trestle always makes me feel uncomfortable, in a frightened way. My understanding is that it generally has more to do with how quickly she reaches her draughts when commercial vehicles are loaded; but the point stands that she is often sailing without a full car deck.
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Post by Ferryman on Jun 17, 2017 17:16:16 GMT -8
The Howe Sound Queen's deck is very strong, structurally. The issue is, ask yak pointed out already, is that the ship itself can only take so much weight. Once the ship reaches a certain displacement, she'll be at the maximum weight able to be loaded onboard where she then reaches the maximum amount of water to be drawn by the hull. Ie: the hull can only legally be so deep in the water. To continue loading beyond that point to simply fill deck space, would then be illegal, would void all insurance, and would seriously jeopardize the ship's stability (ability to remain upright). Every ship has these depths marked out on their hull. What's different about the HSQ? She's had lots and lots of steelwork added to her hull over her 50 year life span. She was much lighter back when she was first built with a smaller lounge that wasn't quite as high off the deck, and there were no car deck lounges or washroom. It all adds up
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Post by Kahn_C on Jun 17, 2017 18:03:58 GMT -8
Tachek used to have a similar problem on Route 18 back before she had her sponsons added in the early 90s, 1 loaded dump truck and 5 cars meant everyone else was waiting for the next sailing.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 17, 2017 19:37:46 GMT -8
Thanks for the kind HSQ issue correction, regarding the reason for the partly-empty sailings.
That's what I love about this WCFF place.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Jun 17, 2017 22:07:18 GMT -8
Thanks for the kind HSQ issue correction, regarding the reason for the partly-empty sailings. That's what I love about this WCFF place. Very much agree. I've learned a lot from the people who actually work on the vessels and who post here. Sometimes it's kind of amusing how our fan or layman perspectives can be skewed.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jul 3, 2017 17:45:07 GMT -8
With the HSQ's retirement in sight (from a distance), here are a few more views of this unique ship in the fleet: ...there's something about the lighting on a summer evening. - Arriving at Crofton's Osborne Bay on July 2, 2017 . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr With a waxing gibbous moon . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr
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Post by Low Light Mike on Sept 29, 2017 8:33:57 GMT -8
A short-clip video of a trip on the Howe Sound Queen: - September 28, 2017
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Post by Ferryman on Nov 15, 2017 20:56:29 GMT -8
The mighty Howe Sound Queen tied up in Berth 2, Fulford Harbour, while the Quinitsa handles Route 6 for a few days. The Howe Sound Queen will be out and about for Operational Readiness drills for the crew to engage in. Howe Sound Queen at Fulford Harbour by Deck-dog SSI, on Flickr
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Post by Low Light Mike on Nov 18, 2017 12:21:20 GMT -8
HSQ arriving at Crofton, and then departing, with the unloading and loading stuff in between.
I was there on a rainy & windy November day, so I recorded this from inside my warm, dry car.
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Post by oceaneer on Feb 18, 2018 8:19:37 GMT -8
Does anybody know what engines the howe has? In the past BCFC Listed engine make, but that was a very long time ago. Oceaneer
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Post by Ferryman on Feb 18, 2018 9:33:11 GMT -8
Does anybody know what engines the howe has? In the past BCFC Listed engine make, but that was a very long time ago. Oceaneer The Howe Sound Queen has two DDC MTU 12V2000 Engines rated at 650 BHP @ 1650 RPM. Each engine is a 12 cylinder, 4–stroke, turbocharged, and links into a Luffkin gear reduction box with forward and reverse Fawick friction clutches.
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Post by oceaneer on Feb 23, 2018 8:40:47 GMT -8
Does anybody know what engines the howe has? In the past BCFC Listed engine make, but that was a very long time ago. Oceaneer The Howe Sound Queen has two DDC MTU 12V2000 Engines rated at 650 BHP @ 1650 RPM. Each engine is a 12 cylinder, 4–stroke, turbocharged, and links into a Luffkin gear reduction box with forward and reverse Fawick friction clutches. Thanks Ferryman. Do you know if you can use both engines on one shaft? Or is she not rigged that way. Sorry for the slow reply, login issues. Oceaneer
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Post by Ferryman on Feb 23, 2018 10:04:19 GMT -8
The Howe Sound Queen has two DDC MTU 12V2000 Engines rated at 650 BHP @ 1650 RPM. Each engine is a 12 cylinder, 4–stroke, turbocharged, and links into a Luffkin gear reduction box with forward and reverse Fawick friction clutches. Thanks Ferryman. Do you know if you can use both engines on one shaft? Or is she not rigged that way. Sorry for the slow reply, login issues. Oceaneer No problem. She’s a pretty simple ship with one engine driving each shaft. There’s no way to link up the two engines on one shaft though. When the engine doing all of the pushing is running at over 300 shaft RPM, the forward shaft has a shaft brake that releases and will then allow the propellar at the forward end to freewheel with the water, but the forward engine will be running at idle speed and not clutched in gear. Max shaft RPM is about 370 RPM and gets about 9.5/10 knots of speed on a good day. If both shafts are engages to push the ship along, you’ll maybe get 10.5 knots out of her, but that’s about it. Usually not worth the added wear and tear for only half a knot of speed. When the pusher engine is reduced to under 300 RPM, the forward shaft then automatically has the shaft brake applied, which also gives off a very distinct “squeak” sound every time she slows down. The shaft brake is applied so that the forward shaft is ready to be put into gear. When she’s running in bridge control, you can choose which shaft you want to operate, however you want it to operate. This makes dockings quite simple with having the forward shaft slowing the ship down, but the aft shaft will still be running at slow ahead mostly for steerage. When it’s in Engine Room control, the engine room can’t split the shafts, so it’s either both engines/shafts pushing ahead, or both engines running astern. The ol Hound Dog has her quirks, that’s for sure.
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Post by oceaneer on Feb 23, 2018 19:03:37 GMT -8
Thanks FerryMan Great info, and she is odd.. But probably one of the most efficient ships in the fleet. Fuel per Pax per Nm. Thanks Oceaneer
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Post by Low Light Mike on May 31, 2018 19:31:31 GMT -8
2019 retirement for Howe Sound Queen: From the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper: from HERE
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Jun 2, 2018 19:45:54 GMT -8
2019 retirement for Howe Sound Queen: From the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper: from HEREMark Collins is spouting a bit of nonsense here. There is no opportunity for Quinitsa to add any sailings beyond what the Howe Sound Queen does, partly because of the existing schedule, and also because she's actually a bit slower than the HSQ. The current plan for the next ten years at Vesuvius has a smaller vessel replacing an existing one, and that's insane. Vesuvius isn't the only route that needs the new government to inject some new consciousness about the needs of marine transit, when we're seeing land based transit getting a boost.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 22, 2018 19:34:19 GMT -8
I'm getting to the "this might be my final ride on this ship" moment for Howe Sound Queen. My June 21, 2018 trip probably won't be the last, but it was maybe in the final 2 or 3 times I will see and ride this ship. Here's a photo illustration of the free-board problem, for a morning sailing that limited-out for weight, but had plenty of deck space available and left many vehicles behind: . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr And the afternoon view at Vesuvius, when she was 50 minutes behind schedule and still had to do a dangerous-cargo trip before she could get back to take me home. . by Mike Bonkowski, on Flickr
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 23, 2018 11:49:39 GMT -8
While stuck at Vesuvius Bay for over 2 hours (combination of dangerous cargo, a 50-minute behind-schedule, and a vessel inadequate for the route), I used my camera.
Here's what I saw with a regular sailing arrival and a dangerous cargo departure:
June 21, 2018
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Jun 24, 2018 12:08:50 GMT -8
Here's a photo illustration of the free-board problem, for a morning sailing that limited-out for weight, but had plenty of deck space available and left many vehicles behind: Jeez, that's amazing that the HSQ would sail 'full', with that amount of empty deck space. Definitely the only vessel BC Ferries has ever had with that extreme a problem with load limits.
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Post by articulated on Jun 24, 2018 15:22:36 GMT -8
I know there's no point to do anything now to a vessel this old and expected to retire in about 1-2 years, but did BC Ferries ever look at upgrading the load capacity on the HSQ? As Kahn_C mentioned earlier in this thread, Tachek was equipped with sponsons to raise its weight capacity, so such a procedure is not exactly without precedence under BC Ferries.
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Post by Ferryman on Jul 5, 2018 9:37:14 GMT -8
With retirement looming in the not too distant future, sailings have been added on Route 6, essentially expanding the operational day by one hour on Mondays and Thursday in an effort to have Dangerous Goods sailings done outside of peak times. Additional regular runs were added on Fridays and Saturdays. Route 6 is another run experiencing a huge jump in traffic demand. The large amount of commercial traffic coming to/from Salt Spring from Central Vancouver Island is largely to blame for alot of the overloads, which is rightfully frustrating for islanders since some waits to get across can last a couple of hours. But equally as frustrating for commercial operators trying to get their deliveries done in a day. www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com/news/sailings-added-to-relieve-howe-sound-queen-traffic/
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Post by Scott on Jul 25, 2018 20:57:04 GMT -8
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,175
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Post by Neil on Dec 6, 2018 18:47:13 GMT -8
A while back, Ferryman Chris told us about how the Howe Sound Queen's vehicle capacity had been reduced, owing largely to the amount of steel she's had added to her since her purchase by BC Ferries. Seven years ago, he posted a shot of her as originally built. There's perhaps a better view of her on her Bowen run, on the Bowen Island Museum & Archives site. What a difference to now. I think she looked a lot better then... kind of like a bigger Mill Bay.
bowenislandmuseum.ca/?s=Howe+Sound+Queen
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Post by Dane on Apr 14, 2019 19:56:12 GMT -8
Do we have a retirement date for the HSQ?
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