USS Pluck MSO 464 at sea with the fleet

Video filmed by Gregory Cooper CDR USNR (RET)from the decks of USS Constant MSO 427 1987

Pictures of life aboard the USS Lucid in 1985

This link is to a private photo album containing 42 images of life aboard a US Navy Minesweeper the USS Lucid MSO 458, which was gutted and turned in to a civilian residence.
The above linked album is entitled "life aboard USS Lucid,1985-1986". Dan Keller is the album's owner and former Lucid resident.


The USS Lucid is very similar to the ship on which I called home from 1981 to 1985.

On the other hand, my residence was not quite a plushy. I lived at: USS Pluck MSO 464, rack number 2, compartment 1-14-0-L.
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A group of very special and dedicated sailors and friends of sailors are working to restore the USS Lucid as a museum ship. Her home will be the historic Stockton waterfront, not far from the old Colberg boatworks, where similar minesweepers were built in the 1950's. Sadly, she did not stay in the condition depicted in the album. Much work has been done on this project, and much more is needed. Your help in making this happen would be very much appreciated, even a small donation. Click here for more information.


POST script:
It is mighty intriguing to think that photographs of the USS Lucid were taken during the same time that my ship was testing the PINS (Precise Integrated Navigation System, a minesweepiong navigation system devloped and tested by the USS Pluck in the mid 80's for the minesweepers now in service) in the bay area. We went up and down the entire bay, over and over, for days on end, all the while passing this historical ship, only one of two to escape being shredded in the scrapyard. Speaking of which, here are more photos in the MareIsland facility awaiting such a fate-USS Constant* and USS Excel.

*Constant was our sister ship during the period when we were attached to Mine Division five four.

The USS Implicit MSO 455

This photo shows the USS Pledge MSO 492 outboard of the USS Implicit MSO 455 tied up with the Pluck and another sweep, not in the picture. I took this photo sometime in 1983-84, I believe near the Admiral Kidd club at Shelter island, San Diego Ca.


If you fancy looking at LARGE clear photographs of minesweepers, Chuck Lees has what I believe is the BEST personal MSO website in the web. He sure took a ton of photos during his service, something I regret not doing. Click on the patch below for a visit to his site.

USS Lucid MSO 458

http://stocktonhistoricalmaritimemuseum.org/

1940 British Minesweepers in Action

USS Conquest

MCM Crew Reaper

They fought for you

Pacific beach, the rented car, and no shoes-4th of July 1982

Dan Rodriguez, Pete Baker, and Tommy Delos Santos and I all pitched in together to rent a car, so we could go down to Pacific beach- SanDiego for the 4th of July, 1982. Ernie and I lost the group after a long day of drinking beer, and called the ship's truck to come and pick us up, but they said no way, too many people down there. So we walked back to the ship. The catch... Our shoes were in the rental car.



------------------------------------------------------Tom Delos Santos---------------------------------------

It is 5.17 miles as the crow flies. We couldnt walk as the crow flies.
We were picking broken glass out of our feet for the next month.

Magnetic material control is everybody's business

This picture was posted on the door of the CIC (Combat Information Center) of the USS Pluck, MSO464 with the caption"Magnetic material control is everybody's business".

In this official U.S. Navy photograph, Republic of Korea minesweeper YMS-516 is blown up by a magnetic mine, during sweeping operations west of Kalma Pando, Wonsan harbor, on 18 October 1950.
This ship was originally the U.S. Navy's YMS-148, which had served in the British Navy in 1943-46.