High above the shipyard floor, two workers ba!ance nonchalantly on the edge of Ranger‘s hull near her snubnosed bow. The plates of Ranger's all-steel hull were flush-riveted rather than welded, making her srnoother and thus enhancing her speed. Vanderbilt heaped praise on Ranger's builders, who "took infinite pains," he said, to smooth the minutest dents in her plates.