uss frolick

"My Model of the Essex" by Walter Zimmerman was privately printed, in hardcover, but not very long. I would like to pick up a copy, since it would be a good companion to the AOTS book. I especially like the author's stern-carvings reconstruction. Nothing on eBay nor Amazon. It was recently reviewed on Olha Batchvarov's YouTube channel:

"Hip, hip, hip, hooray!"

Unusual scale. 1:84 is a standard scale for die cast collector cars.

Will you be offering a rum-sipping sloth for the great cabin? A cello? Killick holding tray of toasted cheese and Aubrey's number-one scaper? The twins Sarah and Emily? .... ooooh, the imagination soars ...

Charley, I am so sorry to hear of your family problems. Once the dust has settled, you will be happier as a free agent, especially being a young fellow. The first casualties of marriage are always your hobbies, but rarely hers. At least she doesn't have a horse, like mine has. I would be interested in a copy of each, if you can swing it, and I would, of course, pay any expenses.

Here are a couple French naval subjects that I hope Ancre one day creates monographs for: 1. L'Unite/ La Tourterelle, 28 guns: The most beautiful class of eight-pounder frigate/corvette built for the French Navy. L'Unite could be captured and would, of course, become HMS Surprise of Patrick O'Brien fame. Detailed plans of both survive at the NMM. 2. La Renommee of 1806. A late Sane-designed 18-pounder frigate that would be captured in 1811, and become the famous HMS Java of Constitution fame. There is a large rigged model of Renommee that survives in the Musee de la Marine, so the specific unique details of the ship would not have to be reconstructed. It has been four decades since Ancre last visited the 18-pounder class with the lovely La Venus, but then there were no frame drawings. There are enough differences between the two to warrant a new look at the class. 3. The beautiful 24-pounder Romaine-Class Bomb-Frigate L'Immortalite. Her detailed drawings survive in the NMM, with carvings, and she had a rollicking career in both the French and British navies. From Wiki: "The Romaine class was a class of nine frigates of the French Navy, designed in 1794 by Pierre-Alexandre Forfait. They were originally designated as "bomb-frigates" (Fr. frégate-bombarde) and were intended to carry a main armament of twenty 24-pounder guns and a 12-inch mortar mounted on a turntable in front of the mizzen mast. Experience quickly led to the mortars being removed (in most vessels they were never fitted), and the 24-pounders were replaced by 18-pounder guns. The ships also featured a shot furnace, but they proved impractical, dangerous to the ships themselves, and were later discarded.[4] A further eleven ships ordered to this design in 1794 were not built, or were completed to altered designs. Two vessels of the class became breakwaters in less than 15 years after their construction. The British Royal Navy captured three. One was lost at sea. None had long active duty careers. All-in-all, these ships do not appear to have been successful with the initially intended armament, but proved of adequate performance once their heavy mortar was removed and their 24-pounders replaced with 18-pounder long guns." Please add your longed-for French vessel to this list!

How again can one obtain a copy of the Burrows plans?

The wreck of HMS Endymion lies on a reef on the southern Turks Island shoal. In one of the greatest coincidences of maritime history, she sank after striking Endymion Rock ... [Joke. Obviously, the rock was named after her loss.]

If you are a wood-nerd, then you have seen Kentucky carpenter/blacksmith Mr. Chickadee. No music nor narration, just good old carpentry. He is making the blocks for his home-made capstan. Enjoy! Here he uses them on his capstan:

Hopefully one of those new projects will be a true 'victory' in nautical research ...

Don't forget to do a Killick, holding the toasted cheese: "Which I'm coming, ain't I?"

Francois, votre maquette est tres impressionnante!

Photo caption: "Chris and his assistant discuss Vanguard's latest project."

Cochrane's Imperious?