The US Coast Guard creates, writes, publishes and promulgates, investigates infractions and prosecutes offenders of the rules US commercial sailors live by. I have here the stack of USCG publications I used preparing to write my Chief Engineer license in New York the fall of 1974.
80 pages CG-191, May 1, 1968.
Rules and Regulations for Licensing and Certificating of Merchant Marine Personnel Subchapter B. (Title 46, CFR, Parts 10, 12, 14, 15, and 16)
18 pages 1944 pamphlet from US Bureau of Mines.
Construction, Care, and Use of Permissible Flame Safety Lamps
100 pages CG-108, April 1, 1972. Rules and Regulations for Military Explosives and Hazardous Munitions. (Excerpts from Title 46 C.F.R. Part 146)
180 pages CG-115, June 1, 1973. Marine Engineering Regulations Subchapter F. Materials, Construction, Installation, Inspection, and Maintenance of Boilers, Unfired Pressure Vessels, Appurtenances, Piping, Welding and Brazing. (Title 46, C.F.R., Parts 50 to 63 inclusive)
150 pages CG-259, June 1, 1971. Electrical Engineering Regulations Subchapter J (Title 46, C.F.R., Parts 110 to 113, Inclusive)
150 pages CG-257, September 1, 1964. Rules and Regulations for Cargo and Miscellaneous Vessels Subchapter I (Title 46, C.F.R., Parts 90 to 98, Inclusive)
160 pages CG-123, January 1, 1973. Rules and Regulations for Tank Vessels Subchapter D. (Title 46, C.F.R., Parts 30 to 40 inclusive)
(Including Pollution Prevention Regulations, 33 CFR)
40 pages CG-329, July 1, 1968. Fire Fighting Manual for Tank Vessels.
All you had to do was go to a USCG Office of Marine Inspection, show your license and they happily would give us for free the latest versions of any and all USCG regulations we desired.
We all were expected to commit all of this information to memory.
The years I wrote license tests the USCG was phasing in multiple choice questions but my memory tells me that was not for major test areas.
We always said that we 'wrote' a license since that is what we did. Write by hand with a USCG black ink pen on lined, grammar school, learning to write, paper. My writing sucked so I print everything. Writing many, many pages of answers were normal.
My memory tells me I turned in 144 hand written pages in answer to the question: What would you, as Chief Engineer do, before, during and after a shipyard dry-docking and overhaul. Nailed it.
The two examiners, one deck, one engine, were kids who had graduated USCG Academy June 1974 and this their first assignment. I got into it with that kid who knocked me down ten points for my description of how a propeller works.
I went to the OCMI - Officer in Charge of Marine Inspection. He read my answer and the USCG answer and said to me "I can see where you are coming from but prove it in a published text."
Saturday November 2, 1974 at Marine Bookshop "Everything Nautical", One Broadway, New York 4, NY I bought two books. Introduction to Steel Shipbuilding, Elijah Baker III, 1953 and Modern Ships, John H. La Dage, 1965. Both describe as I did that the prop is a water pump impeller and as such it creates a low-pressure area on the forward side of the blade. While pumping -- pushing -- that water with the aft side of the blade.
The USCG answer said the blade just pushes the ship through the water.
It was not a big thing but it was my last question and I was looking at a perfect score. I would have had a 90, 70 is passing, but I wanted that perfect 100.
Greg Hayden
Vista - San Diego area - California