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1 The beginning This part of a build tends to take the longest time. I have been mulling over modeling this schooner for at least 5 years. Where to begin? My introduction to her was seeing two pictures at our local Boothbay Region Historical Society. One view was of her launch and a second of an accident later in the same home harbor. 1 launch day 2 oops inexperienced crew anchored over a ledge, and we have 10-foot tide. The story and other images are in our local newspaper as a history article. It was January 1919, and she was full of fish. They pumped her out, took her to town, unloaded the fish, and raised her on the railway. All was well so then back to work. She was more of a hauler of mackerel than a fisherman in those days. Having recently complete my big Bluenose I moved onto other builds. Then a few years later I learned about her racing history….wow and from Maine too! 3. great view as she completed the Lipton Cup race in 1923 with Ben Pine at the wheel. this image came from Facebook site for the Fisherman Festival in Gloucester I then fell into an article from NRJ vol 46 starting on page 12. A member, Daniel Turner, did yeoman’s work to uncover the story of her mysterious length. Unfortunately, there are no surviving records from the Adams Shipyard here in Boothbay. Paul Adams, a grandson to the last builder is past 95. Sharp as a tack, he came to my talk a few years back on the history of the Boothbay Shipyards and sat in the front row. He corrected a spelling in one of my slides but alas when talking after he had nothing to do with the yards. As a matter of record, they had closed by 1921. Back to the story of why this build. I am trying to build things for each of our yards. The Adams family started about 1810 and ended 110 years later. Pinky schooners first and then many schooners, a few brigs, a ship, and other vessels ending with some Tugboats and a motor yacht in 1920. Their last sailing vessel was the 3-masted schooner, Priscilla Alden. launched in 1918. I started to build a model of that schooner a few years back, but the records here showed a discrepancy in length of the Priscilla Alden, that I documented there and had to make a choice of who to follow. I chose to defer and build another schooner, the Ada Cliff built across town. Having recently built two steel hulled vessels I felt it time to go back in time a bit and take on another Schooner. I have about 5 of them on my to-build list and the White Ghost looks like a fun place to start. I highly recommend any schooner lovers out there, especially any Mainers or Bluenose people to chase down the NRJ article The Schooner Elizabeth Howard and enjoyed it. Ten years ago, I built a big Bluenose [ 1:24 scale]. I went to Lunenburg twice over that build and fell in love with the saga of the Fisherman’s Cup Races. In several books they talk about the challenger, but some focus was given to the field of contenders. More so when like the Starling Burgess designed Schooner Mayflower owners tried to enter. What they had built was truly a racing machine that only looked like a fisherman. She was kept out of the races due primarily to the small volume below decks set up to race and not to collect fish. It is interesting to note that one of the schooner Elizabeth Howard’s options was to be sold to the schooner Mayflower owners to use as a match boat if Mayflower ever would be qualified for the Fisherman Cup. There is a bit of fate to this story too. The Schooner Elizabeth Howard was bult in 1916 and was quickly followed by her 126-foot sister the Louise Howard in 1917. To satisfy her owner, Thomas McManus took is 1908 design for the schooner Oriole and extended her bow. As said above…she had to be fast! In her early years she was known for speedy long runs full of fish that she typically bought in Nova Scotia to race south. She was reported to do 16 knots in a good blow. When the Fisherman Cup races became popular in 1920, her owner wanted to get involved. The problem she had at first was that she was not associated with the Gloucester in-crowd. With a New York owner, and having been built in Maine, she was not accepted to enter the races. After the 1921 loss to Bluenose the Americans were scrambling for the next year rematch. The top two schooners to contend amongst four were Henry Ford and Puritan. The Puritan, designed by Starling Burgess, was launched in March 1922. As part of her prequalification, she was off to the grand banks to fish. Disaster struck and she was lost in her first summer. Ben Pine [ future Columbia and Gertrude Theobald skipper] was preparing to race her so now he was looking for help. After Elizabeth made a reported amazing fast sailing return trip to Boston from the banks and the schooner Puritan was lost, Ben Pine, made arrangement to get Elizabeth qualified. He then took her on and in 1922. In the best 2 of 3 series, she raced but broke a topmast on the first day and was beaten by the schooner Henry Ford in light air on the second day. The Schooner Henry Ford competed for the Fisherman’s Cup but lost to Bluenose. Elizabeth won the Lipton Cup races in 1923 but after that win, Ben Pine moved on to the new Starling Burgess designed Columbia. There is a large collection of photo images of these races on the Boston Library website. Elizabeth’s distinct white hull surely makes an impression, and it is easy to see how she got her name…the White Ghost. The unfortunate end of her story connects her fate to the Schooner Puritan. It was later in the fall of 1923 when just like Puritan, she was lost off the coast of Nova Scotia. What was her length? Let’s look at her lines for a moment. Daniel’s NRJ article touches on the racing and then proposes a solution to the length mystery saga of the Elizabeth Howard. She was designed by the renown Thomas F McManus. Howard Chapelle includes the lines of Elizabeth Howard shown annotated over the lines of an earlier 1908 schooner Oriole. The schooner Oriole was 127 feet at the rail. The only change was to push the bow forward [ in scale] 6.5 feet. The only reason to do this would be for speed. she started as a knockabout [ no bowsprit]. The confusion comes from a note on the Chapelle document stating the length at the rail being 148. The short version of Daniels work is a follows. • A Fisherman Cup racing vessel must be less than 150 feet. • The reported bowsprit added to Elizabeth was 14 feet long. • If one scaled the Chapelle drawing showing the extension one gets 133’6” • Add the bowsprit and you are under 150 at the recorded 148 feet. Go with the 133’6”. I think that is more than good enough and it is what I will try to build. All for now

You are looking great. A suggestion, use several coats of sanding sealer before painting. The acrylic pain tends to raise the grain on the wood. Also the idea is not new to me but you can modify the binder clips you use as clamps by using the handles to make a base using either the loop end or the other end as the picture I added shows. They are really handy!

Hi, Will follow as well - Good start. This one is under my table, so will follow with added interest. Cheers,

Just catching up - my index finger almost got numb from clicking so many likes... Cheers, PS: clicked a wrong key -- nothing below is hidden.... Cheers

I surely will do Glen. It was a pleasure to look at and follow Micha

I looked at the Revell and a number of reviews/build logs of both and in the end I just thought I'd enjoy doing the Tamiya more. It's on its way now so I'll have to start working out where this Dio will go, it'll be pretty big!

With the port side also ready, the standards are made to height. A simple way to measure, is to use a wooden plank as a template. A mold for the semi-circular gun ports. This is slightly conical, so up to the arrow and no further, otherwise the hole is too big. Ready. This is how far we have come, next is the last piece of planking on the bow. Thanks for following

I've attached all four stringers to the pontoon hoops and released the whole structure from the jig. Before I remove the solid discs inside the hoops I plan to drill holes for 'bolts' that connect the stringers and hoop, as well as for the support cross-wires. I suspect the cross-wires are actually bicycle spokes so that they could be tensioned.

Thank you so much for saying that - so makes all the diffrence to know my build is achieving what I hope. OC.

For me, it did start to move, but not not enough to start its cycle. I needed to push the flywheel to get momentum. I presume the initial movement was because the cylinder was at the start of its travel (at bottom of stroke), and needed external momentum to begin that cycle.

This is so helpful! Yes, there is suspension for both hydrofoils. I sometimes have an orientation problem on how they work and need to remind myself that it is the top brackets that are connected to the hydrofoil support post, and this is what moves to stretch the bungie cord suspension.

@juhu as I recall there are no drawings in the plans of the individual frames. I am not sure if there were any sort of lines drawing on the plans. The frames did require a fair amount of tweaking to get things lined up but it was not insurmountable. But it perhaps was a bit more of an exercise of "that looks good, looks reasonable" and not an exercise of "that is the exact correct shape".

This looks like a really nice little engine and a great value. Eye candy for steam engine junkies like me. Not a criticism but a question. Most steam engines are double acting; steam is alternatively admitted and exhausted from each end of the cylinder. In other words steam pressure alternatively acts on each end of the piston. This is a single acting engine. Steam pressure acts only on one end of the piston, the bottom. It is also non condensing. The condenser block is just a tray that collects water. When the piston reaches the top of its stroke pressure across the piston is balanced and the only downward force acting on it is gravity. Once the engine is running momentum from the flywheel is sufficient to allow gravity to overcome friction and to return the piston to the bottom of its stroke. The question: If you’ve fired up the engine will it operate from a standing start or is it necessary to first spin the flywheel? Roger

Mahalo, Ron!! Yes, some folks call it a Texas Tattoo! I appreciate you following along. 🤙!!! Thanks for following along, Micha! Your comments were greatly appreciated and I sincerely hope that you take part in all my future builds! Thanks, Mike! And yes, I finally caved to the pressure and found a way to get a penguin in the bottle. No doubt they will now want a polar bear or Canadian rat or something in the next one! 😁 Thanks, Gary. As a fellow Austin guy, I'm sure you are way too familiar with those cedars trees! Hope you don't suffer from the allergies like so many around here do. Thanks, Keith. I was worried about how much the poly darkened the wood, but you make a really good point about the contrast with the white ice and snow. Thanks you, Phil! Always appreciate you following along. Thank you, Paul! And many thanks for following along. Thanks, Ken! I appreciate you being part of this project. Thanks, Bob! Not sure about the next one yet but hopefully something will come to mind soon. In the meantime, I'll enjoy checking out you and Captain Marvin on your dual builds! Thank you so much, Steve! I'm really anxious to see my niece's reaction to it (she knows nothing about it yet). Thanks, Grant! Same comment as above to Steve!! Thank you so much, Mark and Johnny! I'm always grateful to hove y'all following along on these projects. Hey Pat! So glad you found this but I certainly did miss your excellent commentary and suggestions along the way. I've grown accustomed to them on my build logs! However, as I mentioned to Landlubber Mike above, I don't think the "stalkers" (LOL!) are going to be satisfied with that one tiny penguin! Thank you so much, Gary! And thank for following along!

I am looking at a model I think made by Maquettes Gerard Schmitt. Any info would be nice. The model is 1/50 Maquettes Gerard Schmitt Prince De Neufchatel

They sure are. Was a big surprise to me as the last two I bought for the school I work, were between £150 and £200, possibly. Certainly nowhere near £400. And let's be honest, they aren't great technical creations with their soldered joints and thin boiler jacket, faux chimney and rickety construction. This new one feels incredibly robust and 'sure' in its operation. If anyone wants a nice discount on this or any other model engine from EngineDIY, just use the voucher code: JAMESHATCH

Excellent review, thanks. Are Mamod really that much now! Awful when they were cheapish!

The Tamiya Corsairs, (there is more than one) are probably the most built, (and considered the best kits if you can handle the price) But if budget is a consideration, there is the grand old Revell Corsair that can be built into a stunning model as well... Plenty of build logs and plenty of aftermarket out there for it as well... At one time it was the only game in town in 1/32.... Still widely available as well... Not looking to change your mind if you have your heart set on a Tamiya, but the Revell bird is the grandaddy of Corsair models, and deserves a mention in any convo on 1/32 scale corsairs.... Wow an F4U and a PBJ in the same display.... I'm down if you wanna go that route...

@mtaylor, @Old Collingwood, I also have interpreted the plate where the backrest of the navigator is located as an armored plate. I even made some chipping on the edge of it. However, even assuming so, the head of the navigator was not protected. But I have seen such an arrangement also when I built the interior of the Beaufighter where the pilot seat backrest stopped at the shoulders height. Cheers, Dan

Actually it survived without a scratch. I was very lucky. But yes they clearly dont know how to handle a ship model. I wonder if Ed Harris also autographed an original Jackson Pollock with a sharpie during that film....LOL. Not that you would be able to tell.

How many lines were fouled and spars snapped while Ed was signing this delightful "prop"?

Dang! That's 2 pieces of great news for us. Maggie is making a wonderful recovery and you are fixing to get back to work on the Tennessee. That's an even better update than I was hoping for!

Hello, the first results. I think, tomorrow I have to make the cutter new. But it is an interesting material and cuts better then wood.

Not for sale, LOL... Interestingly enough, there were about eight or nine models that I placed on the set. Several of mine and many others from members of my local Ship Model Society of New Jersey club. Someone was so taken by one of the models that they bought it. And for a very handsome sum. I have no idea who. It was an anonymous sale through the production studio. So it was a success for many model ship modelers I know. Maybe if it goes well and enough ship model content isnt cut from the final movie, it will also encourage a few to give it a try. You never know!!!

Full Metal Beam Engine Steam Engine (RETROL) EngineDIY Catalogue # 33ED3487709 Available from EngineDIY for USD $299.99 A beam engine is a type of steam engine where a pivoted overhead beam is used to apply the force from a vertical piston to a vertical connecting rod. This configuration, with the engine directly driving a pump, was first used by Thomas Newcomen around 1705 to remove water from mines in Cornwall. The efficiency of the engines was improved by engineers including James Watt, who added a separate condenser; Jonathan Hornblower and Arthur Woolf, who compounded the cylinders; and William McNaught, who devised a method of compounding an existing engine. Beam engines were first used to pump water out of mines or into canals but could be used to pump water to supplement the flow for a waterwheel powering a mill. They also could be used to power steam ships. The first steam-powered ships used variants of the rotative beam engine. These marine steam engines – known as side-lever, grasshopper, crosshead, or 'walking beam', among others – all varied from the original land-based machines by locating the beam or beams in different positions to take up less room on board ship. The kit This steam engine kit comes in quite an anonymous and thick gauge cardboard box with absolutely no label! The box itself is reasonably heavy too, weighing in at just under 2kg. Lifting that lid off immediately shows the colour printed instruction sheets which are sat on a sheet of foam which protects the two trays of parts underneath. This kit contains 84 parts, inclusive of screws etc. All parts are sat in foam cutouts which provide excellent protection for the assemblies and parts. I say assemblies, because I see this as more of a semi-kit in that a number of elements are pre-built, and the idea is to assemble these to the individual parts, which are all then mounted on a metal base. A number of the parts are in plastic sleeves. These are the ones made from stainless steel, and are for building the boiler's mounting chassis, and also the fuel/igniter tray. Work starts on mounting a number of parts to a metal stand-off frame which will eventually mount to the main plinth. This includes the piston mount/condensation block, and the column for the cross beam. Hex keys are provided for the bolts, as well as a spanner with various sized jaws for various nuts etc. This assembly can now be mounted to the main plinth. This is done via a series of brass stand-offs. I'll also now fit the two fly wheel mounts. All screws are tightened up except for those holding the brackets. I decided to make sure I align the drive shaft through them before properly tightening up. This is the cross beam, and one of the number of pre-built assemblies in this model. This is composted of cast and turned brass, plus stainless steel. You can see the piston plunger on the right of the image. This is now fitted to the column using a small grub screw to secure. I ddi apply a little lubricating oil into the piston chamber first and then made sure the beam would move freely, pulling the piston up and down. A separate sheet of instructions gives tips on how to achieve this. If not done correctly, this is about the only area which will cause enough friction to stop the engine from running freely. I found I needed to do a little adjustment of the base of the beam. That's why you can see an adjustment hole underneath this, in the main plinth. The idea is that once the piston is raised, it will drop into the piston cylinder due to gravity. This drive arm is now lubricated and slid into the base of the piston block, and the two bearings are interred into the outside of each of the brackets. Notice the larger end isn't yet engaged into anything and is sat on the bracket simply for the photo opportunity! You could say this is one of the main events...the fly wheel. This beautifully machines piece of aluminium will now be fitted between the two bearings, via that drive shaft. Flats are machined onto this so the grub screws have a proper surface to fasten to. The opposite side of the drive arm is now engaged into the drive shaft and a grub screw used to tighten up to the machined flat on the shaft. The drive wheel can now also be secured to the drive shaft via a grub screw. A small collar is used to help space the components. This is the beam link which will connect the beam to the flywheel drive shaft. The brass fastener has a reverse screw thread which secures into the drive arm. This beautiful little assembly is the centrifugal regulator. The lowest bolt needs to be removed from the unit and reattached from the underside of the plinth, along with the smaller bolt you can see here. Pushing the small brass linkage downwards will force the two balanced wheels outwards. This is what will happen when pressure is pushed through the brass block that you can see midway down the assembly. A small length of silicone tube is used to link the centrifugal regulator to the condensate box/piston chamber. Lastly, for this section, a silicone drive belt is applied between the centrifugal regulator and the fly wheel. The boiler sits atop a stainless housing which doubles as the heat box for the boiler. The first side is fitted, via two brass shafts which also help reinforce the assembly, as well as create mounting points for the boiler securing straps. The box is now complete, with the scalloped side towards the top, and the square cutout as shown. The latter is to accommodate the fuel tray. This really is a very nice piece of engineering, mostly from machined brass. I remember the boilers from the Mamod steam engines, and I can vouch that there are flimsier than this, and that had soldered joints. This is a far superior unit. The boiler is now fitted and secured. The protruding outlet pipe is connected to the centrifugal regulator via a length of silicone tubing. The steam engine itself is now complete. These parts assemble to create the fuel tray. This contains a tray into which the fuel (methylated spirits, IDA etc) will be poured. The 'wick' units which create a chamber from where the fuel vapours emit, are then plugged into the tray and then the cap is fitted. This creates a shield which closes off the fuel chamber from the outside world. The underside of the piston block has that condensation pipe. This little tray will sit underneath that whilst in operation. Instructions These are quite sparse in text, with quite a lot of Chinese present, but the illustrations themselves are enough to easily build this steam engine. With the engine complete, we can now give it a test. First, the safety valve needs to be unscrewed and then water added. I do this with a syringe. First you need to open the valve at the front of the boiler, or the water will just leak from the injection point, as you add it. I found that about 60ml of water was enough for this. I also added about 10ml to 12ml of methylated spirits to the fuel tray and then lit the burner. The boiler took just a few minutes to come to pressure. The flywheel began to rotate slowly, so I gave it a gentle push and off it went! Conclusion Firstly, I have to say that this is a delightful little steam engine that is both easy to understand and build. This took me a little over 90 minutes to build, inclusive of taking the unedited photos. The quality of parts really is excellent, which is what you need when you are dabbling with a miniature boiler unit and the pressures within. The overall feel of the kit and the finished model is one of quality. All I would suggest is adding a little lube in areas such as the piston and gearing in the centrifugal regulator etc. When you compare the beautiful finished model here, compared with the current Mamod models which are pre-built and cost over a £100 more than this, then I consider this to be excellent value for money. It will also make a wonderful cabinet display piece too, which is exactly where mine will be heading. My sincere thanks to EngineDIY for sending out this kit for review on Model Ship World. To buy direct, click the link in the header of this topic.