USS Hawkbill SSN-666 Project

Sub in a Basement Built by Dennis Crile ETCM (SS)




At first, I wasn't sure whether to put this in Sailors' Stories or R&R/Humor.  Ultimately, I put it in R&R.  This page added with the kind permission of Dennis Crile, who served on the USS Hawkbill SSN-666 submarine. The photos tell the story from plans to completion of the recreation of the Hawkbill in his basement.  Thank you Dennis for sharing this with us.  I just can't help wondering if it is ready for the Bongo Straits?   DIVE  DIVE.

 

Hawkbill cap Hawkbill model

The Hawkbill Basement Project by Dennis Crile ETCM (SS)

The Plan

Floor Plan

When I began finishing my basement, I wanted a half bath with a urinal behind my work shop.(Getting old) Later, I thought a 4-man table and benches would be cool too. Finally I added bunks and a 'passageway' to make a small Goat Locker. My dad then recommended the 'water tight door' between the shop and Goat Locker.

 

Constructing the space

Framing Framing

Framing goes up, drywall gets hung, and wall coverings go on.

Framing

The overhead is 7 feet high and the passageway 3 feet wide. Roomy for a submarine, but I wanted a space visitors would not get claustrophobic in.

Framing Framing

Finished wall treatments and lighting.

 

Bunk construction.

Bunks Bunks Bunks Bunks

Bunks are constructed from 3/4" birch plywood and painted with stainless steel appliance paint. I chose to build two bunks for several reasons. I only had two sets of linen. I wanted them roomy enough that visitors could use them. And, I wanted them easy to get in and out of. Quite a few guests have made use of them.

 

Table and Benches

Table and Benches Table and Benches Table and Benches Table and Benches

The table top is birch plywood with oak trim stained and sealed. Benches are constructed from 2x4 studs and birch plywood, painted with more stainless steel paint.

 

 

Parts Supply

Parts Supply Parts Supply Parts Supply

The urinal, bill holder, zarfs, trash can, towel rack, funnel, butt kit, POD holders and tab holder are from the Hawkbill. The growlers came from a surplus store in Washington. The Klaxon came from Federal Signal Company via an Electrical Supply store in South Carolina. Everything else I found on E-Bay. The General Alarm switch sounds the Klaxon. I downloaded the COMSACO alarm switch drawings and will convert it to a proper green Diving Alarm switch in the future.

 

 

 

Naugahyde

Naugahyde

I found Naugahyde at decorativefabricsdirect.com. The cushions are home made. I'm still looking for someone, or a heavy duty sewing machine, to make a table cover and EAB bags.

 

 

EAB Manifold

EAB Manifold

Paul Stearns texted me one day from two states away. Said look on my front porch. He was tracking a package he'd sent containing an EAB manifold. Wow! I dis-assembled; wire brushed, stripped and repainted it. Even cleaned the plastisol with waterless hand cleaner and shined it up with never dull. It's connected to my shop air compressor with 'Rapid Air' fittings from Amazon.

 

 

Bunk Curtains

Curtain Tracks

Where else would you find tracks for bunk curtains than at curtaintracks.com? They also sell the snap strips to hang the curtains.

 

 

Before Upholstery

Before Upholstery

Here the bunks, table, and benches are assembled and waiting for the mattresses, upholstery, and curtains. Mattresses were ordered from Military Supply House, foam for the cushions from buyfoam.com, and fabric for the curtains from fabric.com. I found a local shop to sew the curtains to the size I needed with the snap strip on top.

 

 

Phone Install

Phone Install Phone Install Phone Install

The 'new old stock' growlers came with 34 pin connectors on the bottom. It took quite some time to figure out what each pin was connected to, rewire the growler, find matching 34 pin plugs at DigiKey, make up and run cables for each station, and finally connect it all at the junction box. I cannot even imagine wiring up a whole submarine.

 

 

Head Hardware

Head Hardware

With the 'engine room urinal' and a bar sink from homedepot.com, it came out very much like the ER head on the boat. Here again slightly bigger.

 

 

Upholstery, curtains, and floor

Upholstery Upholstery Curtains & Mattresses

Doing the entire space in 'lawn matt' would have been too expensive. Luckily, humansolution.com sells 3 foot wide anti fatigue matts of the same material. I used that for the passageway and painted the floor under the table and bunks to match it.

 

 

CIC Phone

CIC Phone

Derek Murray always referred to his wife (quite affectionately) as COMNAVKITCHEN. That inspired me to give the CIC in our house a phone with which to send orders down to the basement. After all that work, she says it's easier to just yell for me. Anyway, placing the growler inside a cabinet made it a little less obtrusive.

 

 

Water Tight Door

Water Tight Door Water Tight Door Water Tight Door Water Tight Door

I cut a hole in a solid core door, added some rings cut from birch plywood, and ended up with a reasonable impression of a water tight door. I can still step through it without touching the sides. Of course the floor isn't rocking and I had to guess at the dimensions of the opening.

 

 

Bill Holder

Bill Holder

A Gang gave me a bill holder during Decom along with a MBT vent cover which hangs in my garage. I made up some Compartment Bills for the house with appropriate actions to take in each type of emergency.

 

 

More Finished Project Photos

water tight door

com area

bunk space

bunk space

sink

urinal

water tight door

view in to bench area

view of head

naugahyde benches

view in to bunks

bunking space

 


Hawkbill Yard

Hawkbill Rail  Yard

Dennis Crile
Originally, I started out to build a railroad in the basement. Before I could begin the railroad I needed to semi-finish the basement. As part of finishing the basement I needed a head. I kinda got side tracked for a year or two. But, now that the basement is pretty much done, I have begun construction of the railroad.   Dennis Crile.

 

 

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