My name is Stephen Johnson and I'm writing a book on the loss of the USS Scorpion. I'm introducing the readers to the real world of submarine operations and maintenance and wanted to talk to welders who may have worked during the 1960s on the Skipjack-class boats (Skipjack, Sculpin, Scorpion, Shark, Snook and Scamp). Since the hull of the Scorpion received much discussion during the inquiry into its loss, I wanted to obtain stories from welders about the complexities and unique issues of dealing with HY-80 steel that was originally developed by the U.S. Navy. I'm also eagerly scrounging for images of welders plying their trade in the shipyards repairing HY-80 hulls, particularly on Skipjack Class boats which stayed in the system until the 1990s.
I can be reached at stepjohn@mindspring.com I can call you or give you my toll free number. Best Regards.
I have done some welding on the Snook while stationed in San Diego and welded HY-80 on boats in other classes in the mid to late 1970's. We always used preheat (250 F minimum if I remember correct) and a temper-bead type bead sequence with E11018M electrodes. There were other precautions against weld cracking also, but I don't recall any difficulty with weldability as long as welding procedures and MIL specs were followed. These techniques may have been the result of changes after the Scorpion and Thresher were lost though.
Marty
This is a very modest and simple contribution to your book and I'll feel proud if you take it into account.
HY-80 is a special steel developed by the US Navy to prevent falling into ductil - fragile transition at the very low temperatures of polar seas. To achieve this, the steel has to show a high impact (or Charpy) strength at low temperatures.
Giovanni S. Crisi
Sao Paulo - Brazil
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