Damage repair plugs ?

[Cascabel]

Some time ago, a guy showed me some fairly large conical wooden "plugs". They were about maybe 12 inches in diameter at the large end, tapering to about 4-5 inches at the small end, where they were cut off flat. Total length was about 30 inches. He told me that they were intended as plugs to temporarily stop up cannon ball holes below the water line from battle damage.

It didn't seem reasonable to me, as I can't imagine a neat round hole being made in a wooden ship by cannon fire. I know about heavy canvas being hung over the side and fastened in place on the outside to slow down the leak, but never heard of using plugs.

Any thoughts on this ? Blackjohn ? Foxe?

>>>> Cascabel

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I'm not sure when they showed up, but we had them in the Navy when I was in service. What you describe is exactly what we had for the purpose of wedging them into a hole during battle conditions. I cannot say at this point as to when these became part of a carpenters/ damage controllers gear though. My Grandfather was a tin-can sailor in WWII, and he talked about DC stuff with me during one of my visits. they were using the same type of plugs and shoring timbers that we were using forty+ years later though.

Bo

[Captain Midnight]

Could they be fids of some kind?

[blackjohn]

I have heard of them. How far back they go... I suspect pretty far. As for efficiency... even if it doesn't fit the hole perfectly, the theory is that "some is better than none."

I'll look for a period account of one being used when I get a chance.

[kass]

Anyone got a copy of Dampier's voyage on the Royal Navy vessel that sank off the coast of Africa? I only read the account in "Pirate of Exquisite Mind" which just gives an overview, but there was a mention of using some kind of "plug".

If anyone would have describe the thing and its use extensively, even in an emergency, it would have been Dampier.

[blackjohn]

Very true... and since I need to hit my copy anyway...

Unfortunately I'm not with the marine archaeologists anymore...

Also Cascabel, think about a bullet hole in a board for a second. It can leave a round hole with long sections of splintered word around it. Cannonballs probably do something similar. Tune in to Mythbusters tonight to find out!

[Capn_Enigma]

Those plugs close a cannonball hole very nicely once they are bashed into place by sledge hammers from within the ship. Don't forget, if the hole is below or near the water line, the water will cause the wooden plug to swell, thus increasing the force of the fit.

For bigger holes or if entire planks have gone missing, you'd want to use a tarpaulin from the outside, though.

[blackjohn]

And we are talking about guys who can, when shipwrecked, cobble together a decent ocean-going craft from wreckage. If your carpenters can do that, what's the big deal with plugging a hole?!?!

:)

[Captain Jim]

I've carried something similar for years to plug through-hull fittings in case of failure. I use cedar, soft (to conform to the hole) and resistant to bugs and rot.

Cascabel, what wood were the plugs that you saw made from?

[Dorian Lasseter]

http://www.shipstore.com/SS/HTML/AFI/AFI60148.html

Thru-hull Plugs

All boats should carry tapered wooden softwood plugs in a variety of sizes to fit the boat�s thru-hulls. Each thru-hull should have an appropriately sized plug attached to the handle or mounted adjacent to the thru-hull.

Lotsa places still make 'em and use 'em...

I did a google search for 'Hull Plugs' and got alot of hits...

[Captain Jim]

I put a brass eye-bolt on the big flat end of mine and tie it to the fitting with synthetic line. If I were to pull up the cabin sole an find it full of water the plug will be floating on top and the line will lead me back to the fitting, even under water and in the dark. Of course people who go to such lengths almost never have through-hull fittings fail (knock on wood) because we constantly inspect that sort of thing.

[Cascabel]

According to the MYTHBUSTERS experiments, cannonballs hitting between frames would make a nice round hole, so the plugs would work.

The ones that I was shown did not have the appearance of great age, so I think they were likely modern ones, like Capt. Bo saw when he was in the Navy, although the guy that had them said they were old.

I really can't speak for their age, other than if they actually were a couple of hundred years old, they had unusually favorable storage conditions. I have no idea what kind of wood they were, but they did not appear to be oak, as the grain didn't look like it, and I didn't try digging a fingernail into them to try the hardness. Also, they were not particularly heavy. Perhaps Capt. Bo knows what the Navy issue ones were made of.

Maybe one of our historians can provide info on GAoP period damage control procedures.

>>>> Cascabel

[PirateKing]

These are actually pretty common, even today:

http://www.dcfp.navy.mil/library/dctricks/.../DCTrick020.htm

You can order some from these two links:

http://shop.sailboatowners.com/detail.htm?...64106&group=872

Or:

http://www.thaiteakmarine.com/catalog/page49.htm

The idea is very simple: You have a hole in your hull from an impact, cannon, rock, explosion, bullets, etc, and don't have the luxury of putting in for proper repairs. So you take a mallet and a conical wooden plug (made from a soft wood like pine or teak) and beat it into the hole as best you can. Once in the hole, the water soaks into the wood, causing a swelling that does well to slow or even stop the water - at least enough that you can pump or bail the rest until you make it back to a safe port.

These were used extensively in WWII and Vietnam, as some of the smaller PT, Sub Chasers and Gunboats were built with wooden hulls and were always prone to minor damages.

Hope this helps,

The Pirate King

www.ThePirateKing.com

[Coastie04]

Plugs exactly like that are used in the USCG for damage control. The way I was trained to use them was not as much for through-hull holes, but for pipes. For through-hull holes we have other tools that we'd use before resorting to a plug such as this. I believe (but don't quote me on this) that ours are made out of pine. Whatever wood is used, you do want it to be a soft wood so that it can be jammed into the hole farther, expand when wet and further fill the hole, and can be worked with easier if cutting, etc. Plus, it's usually cheaper than hard woods like oak (at least today). Also, it's not jammed in there itself. Oakum, sheets of rubber, or in a pinch, cotton rags can be wrapped around the plug prior to inserting it into the hole.

For pipes, we insert the plug as far as it will go (with the expert help of someone on a sledge hammer), mark it, and then take it out and saw off the plug about a half inch inside the mark (approximately, I'm a little rusty in the subject). After the plug has been pounded in place, cut the outside edge off flush with the edge of the pipe. This allows whatever was in the pipe to continue flowing freely after repairs are completed, and prevents a large plug on the outside of the hole to be bumped and knocked out of place. After the plug is in there and cut, we wrap the pipe with twine (three layers) at least two inches on either side of the hole.

After consulting with one of the Damage Control petty officers, I found that we could use a plug or wedge (which is essentially used in the same manner, but for different shaped holes), but that it would need to be shored up to prevent it from popping out of the hole if it's beneath the waterline. Hope this helps.

Coastie

[Silver Steele]

This may be a pretty poor example, but I was reminded of this thread when watching Master and Commander the other night. In the beginning of the movie while the Surprise is under attack, there is a scene where it appears as if she has taken a hit below the waterline. In this scene the hole is temporarily repaired by placing a large piece of canvas over the hole and the wooden plug is pounded into the hole.

Perhaps a search of the Nelson era ships of the line would find something?