The other day at another "hot stove" confab, we decided that perhaps Betty Blake, Bill Muster and Simonton might have been right back in 1967 when they proposed to tear the DQ down to the hull and rebuild.
The grand old lady has a good hull, working steam plant (except for the boilers), and a steel frame work...all acceptable to the USCG. It might be cheaper and a lot easier to salvage all the vintage parts from the present boat...such as the stained glass, grand stair case, etc. Then tear the boat down to it's steel frame and rebuild using steel or aluminum. That way you wouldn't need a congressional exemption, the boilers could be replaced easily, the rooms could updated to the 21st century, and still have the historic items from the present boat. And the boat would be legal to operate for a long time, not just until a new exemption runs out.
Who knows you might even be able to get the govt. to loan the money if you did the work at an American shipyard...increase jobs, keep American shipyards going, etc., etc. I bet a congressman or senator would love to sponsor a bill for a project like this for his/her district.
But, what do I know.
The grand old lady has a good hull, working steam plant (except for the boilers), and a steel frame work...all acceptable to the USCG. It might be cheaper and a lot easier to salvage all the vintage parts from the present boat...such as the stained glass, grand stair case, etc. Then tear the boat down to it's steel frame and rebuild using steel or aluminum. That way you wouldn't need a congressional exemption, the boilers could be replaced easily, the rooms could updated to the 21st century, and still have the historic items from the present boat. And the boat would be legal to operate for a long time, not just until a new exemption runs out.
Who knows you might even be able to get the govt. to loan the money if you did the work at an American shipyard...increase jobs, keep American shipyards going, etc., etc. I bet a congressman or senator would love to sponsor a bill for a project like this for his/her district.
But, what do I know.
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