Talk:Seabee

Other Cold War Locations

I was born in Taiwan in 1961 while my father (then a freshly minted civil engineer) was in the US Navy leading a Sea-Bee battalion building some of the island's first paved roads outside the capital to ring the island for defense against Chinese invasion. However, Taiwan does not even appear in the article, and I am not sure where to add a sentence mentioning that period of road building. My Dad is still alive but very old (86!). He could write a sentence or two if someone can point to or create a section where such belongs. Jeffryfisher (talk) 00:46, 28 May 2021 (UTC)

Old and uncategorized

Another REALLY MESSED UP PAGE which causes the whole thing to run into the right margin. We are encountering more and more of these where tables are being used. -- Zoe

Could you produce a screenshot of this and upload it? I and not experiencing trouble when I downsize my browser window. --mav

Now it looks fine. Was the table changed? -- Zoe

Seabee information

This entry is a good one, but it is more of a Press Release. While it has good general information summarizing the Seabees, it lacks depth. Heck, there isn't even a link to the IMDB entry on The Fighting Seabees ;-)

I was wondering if there are any other current or former Seabees (such as myself) who would like to help work on a new entry. I was thinking of expanding a bit on the history (maybe doing a separate entry on the CEC), going over the ratings (SW, BU, EA, CE, UT, EO, CM), and the current state of the Seabees.

Despite what the current article states, Seabees have units other than NMCBs and PHIBCBs. Naval Construction Force Support Units (NCFSU) are another type of unit, plus Seabees are also involved in the First Lieutenant's office on many (if not all) US Navy bases and Underwater Construction Teams (UCT).

Anyone interested?

References to individual stories, maybe even just links to outside websites that have some, might be especially useful. They make it easy to get a feel for the sort of work the Seabees do. Durahan

A lot of this page is taken verbatim from the Seabee website for the Navy CEC

Would like to get our beginning history corrected. Please add our Camp Allen, Camp Bradford history. REF http://hamptonroadsnavalmuseum.blogspot.com/2015/08/remembering-project-much-bigger-than.html — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mfogienmcb7 (talk • contribs) 10:08, 1 July 2016 (UTC)

Pretty sure the Bees still started at Davisville, including training. Not saying it didn't happen at Camp Allen and Camp Bradford, but the way that page reads, that was where we started, and from what I know, that just isn't the case. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 06:59, 29 January 2017 (UTC)

Re: "Notable Seabees" I am wondering, since it even says it in the page, that since the designer of the SeaBee emblem that gave us the image known today later actually JOINED the Bees later that year, that he deserves an entry in that list? I feel it is right to put it in, even though he is mentioned elsewhere, but since he actually DID join the Bees, he deserves that mention there as well. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 07:27, 29 January 2017 (UTC)

Renamed

to singular from plural, following Wikipedia naming policy —Morven 23:54, Aug 17, 2004 (UTC)

Not sure this is appropriate as the entry in question is about the entire military unit referred to as SeaBees, not one individual, despite naming policy, I think this should be reverted back to plural 'Seabees'. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 18:27, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

I think it should be changed back to 'Seabees'. It's a similar situation to the page 'Jews'. The Seabees are a group and it doesn't make sense to think about one in isolation. --Liquidmetalrob (talk) 09:54, 25 August 2017 (UTC)

contradiction

Is it just me or do the statements supported by references one and two directly contradict each other? 24.150.45.19 (talk) 07:44, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

It wasn't just you, but I fixed it. Smartguy777 (talk) 06:49, 27 May 2008 (UTC).

Trivia

Richard Karn the actor who played Al Borland on Home Improvement was A Seabee too.He was a BU3(Builder Third Class)in the 70's stationed at CBC Port Hueneme, Calif.He was in NMCB 3 or 5 cannot remember which.Butch Tavares of the 70's disco/soul group Tavares was also a Seabee and also a BU3 in either NMCB 3 or 5 from 72 until 76.

Lou Santiago, who I first became aware of because of the PowerBlock automobile related shows on Spike TV, was a SeaBee as well. John Wayne was not a SeaBee, although he DID play one on TV (or movies, same idea). 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:03, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Logo specific trivia, I remember hearing before that the actual ORIGINAL SeaBee logo used a giant capital letter Q as the outer edge of the design, to honor Quonset Point (unofficial name), the accepted birthplace of the SeaBees, but was later (possibly even before official adoption) changed to a hawser rope to further accent the U.S. Navy attachment. I heard this from talking to people, I do not know if there is any documentation that can be accepted as standard for being included on the page. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:15, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Addition to above. Have to presume this is accurate, but found link at http://aville94thbattalion.tripod.com/id3.html describing the origin of the SeaBee emblem including verification that the capital Q was in fact a part of the original design. Adding this (with link reference) to the main page. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:42, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Second addition. While at the Davisville museum most recently, I saw the page that the tripod link used as the basis. Not sure, since Iafrate worked in the area at the time the logo was created if this is THE actual page or not (at the museum) but they do offer reprints of it at the museum. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 18:43, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

Two merchandise links - which is the official one?

Link http://www.shop.seabeesmuseum.com/main.sc seems to be correct, since it's the same site as the museum, but today a merchandise link was added to http://www.seabeemuseumstore.org/shop/homepage.php as well. Which is the official site? --CliffC (talk) 20:20, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Both would appear to be, as both are active (at the time I entered this post) SeaBee museums, the first one links to the one in Davisville run by former (and possibly still active) Bees, and the second is claiming "official" status, but what qualifications allow them to claim that? 32.212.104.223 (talk) 17:56, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

Popular culture

I've tagged the "In popular culture" section because none of the claims are referenced, and because none of them seem to meet the requirements outlined in the tag. If those requirements aren't met within a reasonable period, I'm thinking of deleting the whole section. Lou Sander (talk) 15:11, 21 April 2010 (UTC)

I looked up "seabees" on IMDB.com and found a possibly missing entry that might need entry in this section on the main page. With the episode title, I think there is little doubt who they are referencing.

Season 2, episode 6 of "Somebody's Gotta Do It" titled "Navy Seabees". In the "cast" list, it has 3 definite Bees, possibly 4 if the officer listed is also a Bee. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 18:06, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

service

do seabees typically serve on ships or are they land based?

Today they are land based. In the 1940s and 1950s they traveled by ship and were actually stationed on atemporary landling field ship.

When I was in, it was generally a land based assignment, but I am sure, like the Marines, if a ride somewhere was needed, they would be taken there. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:04, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Latin Translation

The root verb Construo means "to pile; to load up; to build". Construimus means "we build [it or them] up". Pugno means merely "to fight; to do battle". Batuo, on the other hand, translated literally means "to pound, beat, or strike"; it can also mean to hit with a weapon, like a baculus (club or mace). The verb implies beating somebody bloody, smashing something to bits with your bare hands, or beating it with a stick. Batuimus therefore means "we beat [it or them] down". Hotspur23 (talk)

Well, the Bees DO fight back if someone is attacking one of the projects they work on, although when I went through, most of us used M-16s to "beat them down" if necessary. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:11, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Uniforms

Does anyone have information about uniform regs for Seabees? I have recently seen them in the NWU and a woodland variant (not MARPAT colors) out of NCBC Gulfport, though they participated in the area Veterans' day parade with the whole contingent in BDUs. Noderaser (talk) 23:57, 25 December 2011 (UTC)

When I was in CBMU 202, USNR, the standard uniform of the day was what many would consider Woodland Camo, same style that the Marines used. In fact, the cover we had was almost a direct equivalent to the USMC version, with the "stop sign top", minus the globe and anchor emblem found on the front panel. Of course, this was back in '96-'97 time frame, and IDK the standard version Bee uniform worn today, but I would presume it is still very similar to standard Marine dress. While visiting the SeaBee museum at Davisville, RI, I saw a uniform display, and they also had the digital camo pattern being shown there. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 07:09, 29 January 2017 (UTC)

Disambiguation

I moved the article under the current name and created a disambiguation page. It might take a while until I fix all redirects and such. Help is always welcome. Tupsumato (talk) 21:42, 10 July 2012 (UTC)

Requested move

The following discussion is an archived discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the move request was: Move. Cúchullain ^t/c 17:13, 10 March 2013 (UTC)

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Seabee → Seabee (disambiguation); Seabee (United States Navy) → Seabee – The U.S. Navy Seabees are the clear WP:PRIMARYTOPIC for the "Seabee" term; the move to the disambiguated name was undiscussed and unneeded based on WP:PRIMARYTOPIC and WP:COMMONNAME. The Bushranger _{One ping only} 05:15, 2 March 2013 (UTC)

• Support I went through the full list of Seabee articles and the others are either redirects or stubs. I see no reason to believe that this is not the primary topic.--Labattblueboy (talk) 18:35, 2 March 2013 (UTC)
• Support What he said. Highspeed (talk) 07:39, 3 March 2013 (UTC)
• Support per nom. -- Necrothesp (talk) 14:25, 4 March 2013 (UTC)
• Support, Navy is primary. LCS check (talk) 18:04, 5 March 2013 (UTC)

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

SEABEE Image Wrong?

Being a regular Navy (ABHAN) of three years, a Seabee vet of 6 years (after the previous, leaving as a BU2), and an Iraqi veteran with the "Bees"; am I wrong in assuming the Seabee image on this page is wrong? Originally our image was drawn using all 3rd class petty officers (a "crow" and one chevron but definitely no rocker on the top). Later (from my understanding with my battalion) it changed to an image with the bee having from one chevron to all three chevrons. To my knowledge I have never heard of our bee being a chief (which the only rank that might work is the third leg of the bee) ever being a chief. The first two legs of the "bee" (in this image), in my knowledge, do not exist having "rockers" on top of one or even two chevrons. If I am incorrect please let me know; as I love my bees and serving with them. I am now trying to collect memorabilia. Any feedback would be nice. Just trying to keep my facts straight. Thank you. 2001:5B0:22FF:1CF0:0:0:0:3A (talk) 04:52, 7 February 2015 (UTC)

When I was in the active reserves with the Bees, iirr, the emblem was (front to back) standard 3rd 2nd and 1st Class Petty Officer emblems/chevrons with no top rockers like you would see on Chief (or higher) rank. That looks more like what you might see on Marine or Army rank patches, because starting at E-7, you still had the full 3 chevrons carried over from 1st Class PO. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 00:09, 20 September 2016 (UTC)

Recently went to visit the Bee museum in Davisville (only second time in my life so far, hopefully more in the future), and found out some information about the Fighting Bee design. Originally, according to the design by Frank Iafrate, the Fighting Bee only ever was a Third Class PO, and the mini Bee inside the museum main building, and the large original Fighting Bee outside show this original design. In fact, point of history, Frank was there to make sure that the Fighting Bee in Davisville was repainted with the correct colors and design. I believe the "official" design was modified at some point to show (from front to back) Third, Second, and First Class PO chevrons, but to my knowledge, the official Bee was never granted Chief (or higher) rank. That being said, I am far from an official source in any stretch of the imagination. I only served in active reserves in my unit for about a year and a half. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 07:15, 29 January 2017 (UTC)

What is a SeaBee?

During one of my visits to the Davisville, RI SeaBee Museum, I picked up the following copy of a page someone had done about the Bees. If anyone happens to know actual origin source information, might be helpful. Posting this more as for interest in those tidbits about the SeaBees. I am capitalizing the B in SeaBee to more closely follow the actual words the name came from. (Following capitalization in this page/entry and/or spelling issues were copied from the page as-is.)

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WHAT IS A SEABEE?

Between the awkwardenss of a soldier and the dignity of a Marine there is a questionable character called a Seabee.

Seabees come in assorted sizes, shapes, and weights, but all have the same code: to enjoy every second of every hour of every day, whether at work or at play, and to protest by griping (their most beloved privilege) when issued an order.

Seabees are found everywhere: on top of, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or more likely than not, turning to.

Mothers and sweethearts love them, fathers are proud of them, brothers look up to them, sisters admire them, Airdales hate them, Company Commanders tolerate them, and Chief Petty Officers drive them.

A Seabee is a composite: he has the appetite of a horse, the digestion of a sword swallower, the energy of a pocket-sized atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the lungs of a dictator, the imagination of a Paul Bunyon, the slyness of a violin, the enthusiasm of a firecracker, and the spirit of a fighting cock. He likes: liberty, leave, holidays, weekends, girls, chow, beer, movies, gedonks, swimming, pin-ups, sleep and comic books.

He isn't too hot for: duty nights, watches, taps, reveille, routine discipline, officers, drills or secured heads.

Nobody else is so early to rise without actually wanting to get up. No other person, gets so much fun out of liberty or Shore Patrol. No one can have so much fun on so little money.

A Seabee is a magical creature: you can chew him out but you can't get the work done without him; he is dirty, unpolished, unkempt, often overbearing and sometimes reluctant.

A Seabee is a man of magical abilities: he can weld, build, drive, repair and fight, he can wreck or he can beautify, he can make something out of nothing, work never tires him nor does he seem to tire of it.

His motto is "Can Do," to which he has added "Has Done" and "Did:" this frequently miraculous occurance is recognized in the form of a "Well Done" by everyone from the Commanding Officer on down.

The average Seabee is a thick-headed individual of a variety of nationalities. He won't admit it to anyone or anywhere except in the defense of his corps that his is the best job in the Navy. Without him the Fleet would have nothing to gripe about; Marines would have nothing to talk about and history would have nothing to write about.

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Hopefully someone who doesn't know as much about SeaBees can learn a little more. 32.212.104.223 (talk) 17:45, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

Image use

This article has quite a lot of images, which in general is typically a good thing. Too many images, however, can create layout issues because they tend to be located apart from the relevant article content they are intended to support. So, if might be a good idea to consider alternative ways to present the images such as galleries or by using templates such as {{multiple image}} to eliminate any overlapping or badly placed images. There's probably quite a number of different things which can be tried some examples can be found in WP:IUP#Adding images to articles and WP:PIC. -- Marchjuly (talk) 02:40, 12 January 2018 (UTC)

I read your comment about images not aliening with text. I could be wrong, but I think alignment changes some with the browser and device being used. This article was edited on Google chrome and I think they correlate with the text fairly well. That is a POV with a COI for-sure but thank you for the observations. Mcb133aco (talk) 21:50, 29 June 2018 (UTC)mcb133acoMcb133aco (talk) 21:50, 29 June 2018 (UTC);[Note:This was originally posted at User talk:Marchjuly#Seabee, but has been moved here to keep the discussion in one place. -- Marchjuly (talk) 22:40, 30 June 2018 (UTC)]

Tags

Unless there are objections the current Tags will be removed.Mcb133aco (talk)mcb133acoMcb133aco (talk)

Commons files used on this page have been nominated for deletion

The following Wikimedia Commons files used on this page have been nominated for deletion:

• USN - Diver 1st Class.png (discussion)
• USN - Diver Master.jpg (discussion)
• USN - Diving Officer.png (discussion)
• USN - Fleet Marine Force Insignia.png (discussion)

Participate in the deletion discussions at the nomination pages linked above. —Community Tech bot (talk) 04:39, 6 January 2019 (UTC)

Are they navy or marines?

The article doesn't name it clear.

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— Preceding unsigned comment added by 2606:6000:FECD:1400:6833:4A9F:5E1A:F021 (talk) 01:30, 27 January 2019 (UTC)

It is in the name: Naval Construction Battalion.Mcb133aco (talk) 23:42, 10 November 2019 (UTC)mcb1233acoMcb133aco (talk) 23:42, 10 November 2019 (UTC)

They are Navy. CB is a navy rating not Marine. IamtheKingofThings (talk) 02:30, 15 January 2020 (UTC)

True, but as a BUCN. I can say that it felt more marine than Navy especially when your Training NCO is a Marine Corp Master Gunnery Sgt. lol. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.47.128.46 (talk) 02:42, 21 October 2020 (UTC)

And afterwards you had some Fleet officer call you a sailor, right?Mcb133aco (talk) 18:39, 20 March 2021 (UTC)mcb133acoMcb133aco (talk) 18:39, 20 March 2021 (UTC)

Excellant Question! Ought to remove the USMC segment near the bottom and replace it with the US Navy's. I use the term Segment out of Ignorance - I am sure there is a proper Wikipedia term for it. So "nowadays" if you see a SeaBee in the field working - what does their uniform look like Navy or Marine? (wereas lately they don't look that different) I expect for a while they had Uniforms same as Marines. FYI _ I am under impression for many units in the Vietnam Era "cameoflague" was not yet available. Wfoj3 (talk) 14:52, 10 October 2022 (UTC)

Erroneous short reference "Formation 2017"

There is a short reference "Formation 2017" that doesn't point to a full reference. It appears that it should point to either "Introduction 2017" or "Formation 2015". I have looked through the history of the article, and the error appeared in March 2017, when the three "Naval History and Heritage Command" sources were added. – Jonesey95 (talk) 05:47, 31 January 2020 (UTC)

Long page

The article is currently tagged for listing on the special page for "Long pages". It is currently number 5687 on the that list.

20 March 2021 is currently number 6392 Mcb133aco (talk) 18:27, 20 March 2021 (UTC)

No carity

Like many articles related to the US military, this article uses a lot of euphemisms, unnecessary jargon, and defense-contractor speak. The opening paragraph is almost completely unreadable, as it doesn't actually say what the seabees do. (The only thing we get out of it is "construction", since that's in the name.) Jess_Riedel (talk) 13:48, 25 June 2023 (UTC)