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  1. It is not the first build log showing OcCre's Albatros but it is the very first wooden ship model I will build. To start with shipmodelling I have selected the Albatros as she should not be too tough to build and there is a series of YouTube videos showing the build step by step I can refer to when I need it. I have started this project at the end of November last year and already have spent some 60 hrs working on it before I have joined MSW a week ago. Therefore this log will be a rough wrap up of what I have done so far and then will join the actual stage of the build - rigging the guns. As I am not a native speaker I will have to translate some nautical terms from German to English and getting the photographs uploaded and resized first. Starting tomorrow I think that all posts will be done until sunday. You will see a lot of mistakes I think so any help and comments which will help me to improve my modelling skills are highly appreciated. Thanks in advance ... Kai
  2. The schooner Mary Day is a passenger schooner on the coast of Maine that is based out of Camden. She was built at the Harvey Gamage shipyard that was located in South Bristol, Maine, and launched in 1962. Her designer was Arno Day, and she is named for his daughter. The Mary Day was designed and constructed to be a passenger schooner, and therefore has not been converted from any previous use. It was Havilah Hawkins that conceived of the idea of a schooner built specifically for the passenger trade. You can learn more about her at schoonermaryday.com, and I encourage everyone to visit their webpage. She is such an important part of coastal Maine’s heritage. My wife and I took a cruise on the Mary Day in 1997, as a sort of delayed honeymoon since we got married when I was still in medical training (in 1994). Barry King was the captain of that cruise, and shortly thereafter he and his wife Jennifer Martin took over ownership of the boat. It was during this same time frame that my interest in model boat building was developing, and I always kept in the back of my mind the idea of building a model of her, even though my skills at that time would only permit the idea of building model boats from kits. Before evolving to my current skill level, though, I did learn how to build half hull models by taking a course with Eric Dow at the Wooden Boat School in 2004. In the course of a week, each student built two models. The first was one based on purchased lines drawings from the Wooden Boat Store to build one of a variety of models, plus we could do a second model of our choosing. Shortly after our trip on the Mary Day, Barry and Jen had kindly sent me the lines drawing for her: Only now do I regret using this plan sheet to directly transfer the lines to the pieces of wood used to build up her hull. I should have had accurate copies of this original made, then used those to actually build the two models I ended up creating. As a result, this original is quite beat-up after about 20 years of existence! While I was at the school, we had a surprise visit from the Mary Day, which I had not seen since our cruise 7 years earlier. To my surprise, when I reintroduced myself to Cap’n Barry, he remembered me and spontaneously asked how my wife Susan was doing! What a memory. I got this lovely picture of her as I was being rowed out to meet her. This is the product of that school week, and it hangs on the wall in my shop. I built a second model a few years later as a gift to Barry and Jen, and it resides at their business office. The lifts are made of basswood and mahogany, and the backboard is also mahogany. Before I could consider building a fully rigged model of the Mary Day, I would need more information than just a lines drawing. Over the next few years, I stayed in touch with Barry and Jen and would intermittently inquire about more complete plans for the Mary Day. There was certainly no hurry, as I was finishing a kit model that ended up taking about 20 years to build. Harvey Gamage’s shipbuilding yard had since closed, and when I checked with its successor (now known as Gamage Shipyard) about possible builders plans, they suggested that nothing would remain from their predecessor. Research at the local libraries in the area of Camden did not yield any information. In February 2018 I spent a week in Southwest Harbor, Maine, and I let Barry and Jen that I would be paying a visit to Camden. When I arrived, the first thing Barry did was to present me with full builders plans, in 3/8” scale! A dream come true. The most important sheet looks like so: More than enough detail to build out a very accurate hull. I could even choose to model it as it really exists, with a fit-out interior including deckbeams, carlins, mast partners, and centerboard trunk. Without these plans, no model could be generated, so I am greatly indebted to the staff of the Mary Day for their help. Cap’n Barry and first mate Tony in February 2018. Having learned a lesson from the previous lines drawing they had sent me, I promptly had these plans scanned to electronic format, thanks to the good people at Brooklin Boat Yard, where I visited the next day. Having the plans in digital format would of course be very important for constructing a 3D model of the boat using Rhino 3D. I am not (yet?) the kind of model builder that is interested in researching a no-longer-in-existence vessel; I doubt I would have the patience to do the research necessary to resurrect a bygone vessel into an accurate model. My last project was of a currently existing vessel (Pride of Baltimore 2), and having direct access to the vessel was extremely important. So this project greatly appeals to me on multiple levels, not just the personal connection via our previous travels on the Mary Day, but also the physical connection of being able to return to her in Camden, Maine, and obtain any needed documentation. So buckle up! Here we go. First order of business will be to generate a 3D model, because that will enable me to determine the shape of the schooner’s frames at any point along the hull.
  3. The build log reconstruction begins... It has been a long time since I’ve started a new sailing ship build, with my sailing ship model (Oneida) taking about 4 years to complete. Ever since building Smuggler, an 1870’s mackerel seiner from Gloucester, I’ve been smitten by 19th and 20th century American fishing schooners. There are a number builds, both in progress and completed, that have been inspiring to me – Bluenose builds, a couple of Ben Lathams, a scratch build of Columbia, and even a few of the “yachty” Americas. Jim Lefever, who’s impressive Benjamin Latham build was a great inspiration for me, provided me with a list of great reading references on American fishing schooners. After receiving a number of them as gifts, and reading through them, I knew my next build would have to be another fishing schooner. I have to admit right up front that Arethusa, an early 1900s fishing schooner and the topic of this build, was never called the “Goddess of Gloucester”. She was a goddess in Greek mythology. The schooner was named after one of Thomas McManus's daughters. I just thought that 'Goddess of Gloucester' fit to her will and made for a catchy name for this log. Arethusa, the schooner, was big, beautiful, and had a colorful history – sounds interesting to me. Enough about my motivations and ramblings….let’s get on with the ship. Arethusa was designed by Thomas F. McManus in 1907 and built by James and Tarr in Essex, Massachusetts, in 1909. She was what is termed a knockabout schooner. Unlike traditional schooners, with bowsprits (and jibbooms, and flying jibbooms), knockabout schooners had an extended bow and no bowsprit. The extended bow essentially placed the fore topmast stay at the same position as on a traditional schooner. With that configuration of stay location the crew wouldn’t be required to climb out on the typically poorly maintained footropes aside the bowsprit in order to perform tasks involving the sails and rigging. This was a Thomas McManus innovation, based on his observations and discussions with fisherman and owners, and was meant to reduce sailing crew injuries and deaths. I am using Howard I. Chapelle’s lines drawing and sail plan of Arethusa from his “American Fishing Schooners”, plate 120 and figure 30. “American Fishing Schooners” (AFS) has a great deal of detail in it’s appendix on most of the features of late 19th century and early 20th century schooners, and it is these I will use to build the details of the model. If anyone knows of more details about Arethusa I would be most grateful to learn of them. I have contacted Mystic Seaport Museum about their collection but found that while Arethusa is listed in their collection they don’t have any more information than that (little) which is shown in AFS. Following are some excerpts from “Thomas F. McManus and the American Fishing Schooners”, by W.M.P. Dunne, on Arethusa: James and Tarr “...completed her on 25 September 1907. Fifteen feet longer than the Pontiac, the Arethusa was, nevertheless, a deep, short ended knockabout, with the typically knuckled straight run of the keel (although with less drag), that Tom favored in this class, and more tumblehome. Once again he experimented with the rig. He stepped the foremast farther forward with the masts further apart. Right from the start, the big fisherman earned a reputation as a speedster. Captain Clayton Morrisey, the Arethusa’s first skipper waxed poetic: “She’s the slickest bit of wood that ever went down to Bay of Islands. Nothing can touch her and an eight-year-old girl’s little finger is stout enough to spin the wheel no matter how fresh it breezes.” “Can she sail?” exclaimed Captain Morrisey, opening his eyes as if he didn’t quite believe his ears. “Why, when we were coming up from the herring grounds she cut out her 13 knots an hour for six consecutive hours.” “We’d see a blotch of smoke away ahead on the horizon and in a little while would make out a tramp steamer bound our way. Pretty soon the Arethusa was kiting alongside the tramp and then we’d lose sight of her astern. She did that trick a number of times.” In fact, with Clayt Morrissey at the helm in 1912, the Arethusa would easily outrun the Canadian Dominion fisheries’ patrol steamer Fiona, “whose commander opined the Arethusa was violating the three-mile limit.” “At the beginning of 1921, soon after the new [prohibition] law was in place, Captain William F. “Bill” McCoy, a sometime Daytona Beach, Florida, boatbuilder, guided his fully-laden McManus schooner, the Henry L. Marshall, past the Tybee Lighthouse and up the river to Savannah, where, in the dark of the night, he discharged not fish, but 1,500 cases of illicit liquor. With the proceeds, McCoy replaced himself with a new skipper on board the Marshall and went to Gloucester in search of the boat of his dreams, Tom’s speedy Arethusa. Although McCoy had fished the Marshall legitimately until after the Eighteenth Amendment dried out the country, he had always thirsted for Arethusa. With Gloucester feeling the effect of postwar economic contraction, the owners of the fourteen-year-old schooner…..sold her to McCoy in April 1921. The Arethusa became a rum runner, a fast freighter of bootleg spirits. McCoy renamed her Tomoka, added a bowsprit so she could carry two jibs, jumbo and jib topsail-and a lot of liquor (she had the capacity of 6,000 cases of illegal alcohol). He brought the Tomoka to anchor just outside the then three mile limit of United States waters, but well within site of the beach. He soon began a thriving business with New York and New Jersey bootleggers…. “ [this is where the term ‘the real McCoy’ came from] Arethusa later returned to fishing, and was lost off Halifax in November 1929. Her particulars are: Designer Thomas F. McManus Builder Tarr and James Launch date 25 September 1907 Gross tonnage 157 tons Molded length at caprail of 127’ – 3” Molded beam 25’ – 0” Molded depth 13’ – 2” Registered dimensions 114.0’ x 25.6’ x 12.5’
  4. Some time ago I promised my wife to make for her a ship in a bottle larger sizes than previously made. I begin to fulfill a promise - it will the model of the steam schooner with the glorious history and the symbolic name "LENA". History: The wind power meets the power of steam in late 1800’s . In this period of maritime history, a hybrid generation of ships appeared combining these two. They kept the glory of sail ships and added independency from wind. Lena is a little steam schooner like that. She was launched in 1875 in Sweden by Motala. She was 26.8m long, 4.95m wide and 2.59m deep. While sailing by wind, the funnel tilts back so that the sail boom can move freely. She has an interesting story beginning with Nils Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld’s polar expedition. She joined the expedition as an auxiliary ship up to a point. She took part in Russian revolutions. She was reconstructed several times. Once in 1938. She was extended two meters in length, a new boiler was installed and living quarters were rebuilt. In 1959, she was planned to be reserved as a historical vessel. But the attempts failed in 1967, the damage she suffered was beyond repair. But the model ship builders will help her to live forever. - by Captain from Free Ship Plans Best REgards! Igor.
  5. I should be finishing off the last tweaks on Alert, but I couldn’t resist starting Vanguard’s Grecian at the same time. Other than JamesH who builds the prototype and provides an excellent build log too, I think I’m the first to do a build log on this kit, so I’ll try and provide a bit more detail than I did on Alert. The kit came very promptly via UPS and extremely well packaged in a robust, well designed box. Inside the box there’s a large range of laser cut wooden and MDF sheets. Except for the decks the wood is all pear. The laser cut on these sheets is incredibly clean and precise. Not all the sheets are shown below. There’s also a box of fixtures including high quality resin cannon. There’s copper tape for the hull, a resin cutter, 3 sheets of photo etch, box of thread for the rigging, pear and lime planking strips, dowels, Vanguard’s standard but brilliant colour building manual full of step by step photos and instructions, eleven large plan sheets, and a clear acetate cradle for the completed build. I went for all the extras too, so I bought the Grecian paint set, American flag, pear block set and PE copper plate set (not sure yet if I’ll use this or the tape - whichever is easier I suspect). It is all absolutely excellent quality. This will be my seventh Vanguard build and the first time that one of the parts came broken - a dowel. I messaged Chris and within a day or two he’d sent me a replacement. Amazing customer service. There’s one other tiny error in the instructions that in the inventory there’s a sheet of 0.1mm PE listed that wasn’t included. I asked Chris and he tells me that this was for copper sheet to face the rudder, but he couldn’t obtain the copper so it’s not needed for the build. I was curious how big the completed Grecian would be. So here is Nisha and Alert against a plan of her deck. She makes Nisha look tiny. And is bigger than Alert, but by less than I had expected. Cant wait to get building her!
  6. Hello everyone and best regards from Berlin - Germany. I registered at MSW in July / 2020, but haven't gotten around to being active so far (pandemic tribute ?), but that should now change. I've been at home in model making for many years. After various kits from Revell (all of which did not survive the times) I came to the wooden sailing ships and made the mistake of reaching right up to the top and began to build the HMS Victory (kit) in 2000. Dissatisfied with the kit, I stopped it and started a new beginning in historical ship model building. 7 years ago I started a simple fishing boat "Zeesboot" around 1920 to improve my knowledge of materials and tools. At the same time, I started another model in 2015, the pilot boat “PHANTOM” (1868) in a scale of 1:50. I am building this ship in a group of model builders. Even if some time has passed, I hope to show and pass on some inspirations and techniques with a building report. I am looking forward to a great time with all of you sharing knowledge and practice. I already know a few names here and I really like what I saw about the pilot boat “PHANTOM”. If there is time and interest, a report on the Zeesboot is also possible. BtW; my english is not really good but the google translator should help me here. So excuse my writing style. Of course, I am happy to answer any questions. *** The result is a two-masted gaff schooner for the New York Lotsn; a service ship of the port authority. Built in 1867 in East Bosten (Massachusetts) by Dennisen J. Lawler and sunk in 1888. Half a century later by H.I. Chapelle published cracks and their revisions, a 3-part blueprint is available today. The planning documents and the book “Working techniques for ship model building” (Robert Volk / Peter Davis Garner; ISBN 3-88180-704-7) are the basis of this ship model. So it is not a kit and all parts are made by ourselves. Robert Volk, one of the authors, accompanies the group project and gives valuable first-hand information. I want to start with the "slipway" because there was none available for this model. Inspired by the slipway presented in the project, I first built the following base: 12 mm multiplex segments were glued onto a 25 mm multiplex board (950 mm x 400 mm). As long as the shipyard is dry, multiplex panels are absolutely free of distortion and are thick enough. A profile rail was screwed into each of the spaces. This ends flush with the surface. Various support brackets can be mounted in these rails. These are connected to the rail with an M5 machine screw and wing nut and allow use in the transverse axis in 4 positions and at any point. Later on, the U-rails for a “measuring bridge” will also be held in this way. The hull was then mounted on this slip board for the stern fall (the keel does not run parallel to the waterline). So the first step was done and we could start. The templates of the model frames were made available in a separate file. The set consists of the middle part and 9 structural frames. Two strips (10 x 10 mm) run along the center board / frame for stabilization on the port and starboard side. This prevents the central part from warping. I have already sawn out the cutouts for the companionways, the masts and the oar light in the lower area and left only a small jetty. So I was able to break out these parts after gluing the ribs with the middle board and the reinforcement strips. The construction of the bulkheads (malls) was now ready and it continues with the hull.
  7. Seeing the Bluenose II off the starboard beam of our cruise ship last fall, sparked my desire to build a model of her. She was an awesome sight and I was convinced this would be a great project. Then I started to do some research and figured I needed to cut my teeth on some simpler builds. I purchased Steve Rogers “Model Boat Building Made Simple” and built my first rowing skiff. I had so much fun I went on to build his “Spritsail Skiff” and am now working on his “Skipjack”. But in the back my mind, the Bluenose II was a constant presence. Using the measured drawings from L. B. Jenson and Gene Bodnar’s wonderful Modeling Practicum, “The Queen of the North Atlantic ―The Schooner Bluenose”, I started lofting a 3D model of the Bluenose II in SolidWorks. This has taken me almost a month. It is amazing how intimate one becomes with the lines of a hull through the process of creating a 3D model. I had many false starts, but finally developed a simple set of equations and a table that describes the spline control points for all of the frames of her hull. I imported and scaled the side view, top view as well as the hull lines as my starting point: Resulting in my final model: Now, as they say, it is time to make some sawdust: Now I go into mass production mode as I need to make over 60 frames. It is bizarre timing, but today I reported to work as usual and was immediately sent home due to the Covid-19 crisis. My company is limiting on-site access and having us work from home. I don’t know how that will work out, but at least I have some time to crank out more frames. 🙂
  8. Pride in the Pacific 1982 In late 1976 I got a job as a laborer on a construction site in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. At the site they were building a Baltimore Clipper schooner named Pride of Baltimore. Pride under construction in November 1976, just about when I started there. Five years later, on my 21st birthday, I reported on board as Pride's newest crew member. I spent two months aboard the boat in charge of her guns as she took part in the bicentennial reenactment of the battle of Yorktown. Yours truly is at the top right, in the cocked hat. A summary history of the boat is available at my site, as is an album of the few photos taken during my time aboard. In 1982 I acquired a copy of her plans from Thomas Gilmer with the intent to build a sailing model, but I was young, moved around a lot and it just never happened. In November of 2011 I got to seriously thinking about actually building a model of Pride and figuring out what size to make her. The upper limit was as large, overall, as Constellation, but there was a lower limit also. I tried scaling her the same as Constellation (1:36), but looking at what she would need in terms of batteries, winches, servos, etc; I didn't see how I could fit the equipment needed to control so complicated a rig. I decided to make her 1:20 scale, as large as I could and still stuff her into a van or SUV. With her lines scanned and scaled up I printed her stations on paper. There were glued to 3/8" CDX plywood, cut out, sanded, etc, and stood up on the old building board Constellation was built on. A work in progress: every item I draw in scale gets added to this plan. There they stood for nearly a year. On November 19, 2011 I cut out the keel, mounted it on the forms and began planking. I learned my lesson on Constellation and fully planked the hull, but I taped the edges of the forms so the planking wouldn't be glued to them, and they could be removed - leaving me with full access to the very limited space. The hull was planked in pine strips 1/8 thick and 1/4" wide. They were glued to each other, but only pinned to the forms. The pins were akin to half-length straight pins and bent at the slightest look, making planking extremely tedious and hard on the fingers. I wasn't doing the next one that way. I also didn't spiel the planks, but just laid them on from the keel up, and the sheer down, leaving that football shaped hole to fill. The hull being glassed and painted, it wasn't an issue visually, except that it bother's me constantly. I'm not doing that again either. By Halloween, the hull was planked. The hull was filled, sanded, filled, and sanded some more. The aft-most form with the counter and transom forms was given a tap with the handle of a screw-driver and came right out. Soon the other forms followed, leaving the hull open. The inside was sanded and then painted with diluted Tightbond III to get into the nooks and crannies of the planking and glue everything up. It was then given two coats of poly resin. The stern post was too tall, a sign of advanced planning. I cut it down with a rotary tool - you'll see why later. The stern and then the sides were fiberglassed with 4 oz cloth. Pride's plan compared to Macedonian's The concept I restarted the build logs for Constellation and Macedonian that were lost in the crash. There never was a build log for this model on MSW, but, what the heck, there is now.
  9. I have been working on a model of a topsail schooner, and had a number of questions about how the anchors were handled. Looking through the literature, and at some of the schooner models on the Forum, it seems that there are several different methods. So which was right for the model I am building? I have a 1980s Mantua Albatros "Goletta Typpica de Baltimora" kit. The kit contains a lot of the "standard" parts the company threw into many kits, regardless of scale and many of these were not well made. When I compare the kit to drawings in Chapelle's The Baltimore Clipper I see a lot of questionable details. The kit includes a capstan, and some topsail schooners used capstans for weighing anchor. But many kits and drawings have windlasses, and some show nothing for handling the anchor. There are other discussions on the Forum about anchor handling in small craft, with lots of opinions. What I present here is a compilation of these discussions and material from several references. What I am interested in is how smaller ships that had no windlass or capstan handled the anchor. Anchor Tackle The anchor tackle on smaller vessels consists of two assemblies used for dropping and raising the anchor. Larger ships may have permanent fish davits and a different arrangement for handling the anchor. Small ships often used a version of what is shown here. The crown or fluke end of the anchor is typically secured to the side of the ship with a shank painter of rope or chain secured to bitts or timberheads to support the fluke end. A stopper rope to support the stock of the anchor is secured to the cathead on one end, looped through the anchor ring and then the free end is looped around a cleat and secured to a timberhead. To drop the anchor the anchor cable is brought up from the cable tier, run through the hawse hole and secured to the ring on the anchor (on some ships the cable is always attached to the anchor ring). Then the cat block and hook are attached to the anchor ring. The fish davit is rigged with it resting on the cap rail and the inboard end resting against some firm object like the mast or knight head. The davit may be positioned over the anchor flukes using fore and after guys. The fish pendant runs over a sheave in the end of the fish davit. It has a large fish hook on the lower end and the upper end is tied around a thimble. The fore tackle is hooked into the thimble and provides the lifting force to raise and lower the anchor. I have also seen drawings where the fish tackle was rigged to the fore course spar and a fish davit was not used. With the fish pendant and cat tackle pulled tight the shank painter securing the anchor to the ship is removed. The anchor is then lowered along the ship's side with the fore tackle and fish pendant until it is hanging beneath the cathead on the cat tackle. Then the fish hook is unhooked and taken in. The cat tackle is slacked to allow the stopper to carry the weight of the anchor, and then the tackle is tied back to clear the anchor. To drop the anchor the stopper is released from the timberhead and allowed to slip over the cleat, allowing the anchor to fall. To weigh (raise) the anchor the anchor cable is hauled in using tackles (smaller vessels), a windless or a capstan and messenger line (larger ships). Smaller schooners often did not have a capstan or windlass so one or two luff tackles were used to pull a messenger line that was lashed to the anchor cable. If one tackle was used when it became two blocked (both blocks come together) the anchor cable was secured to the bitts and the messenger was run out again and tied to the cable. When two tackles were used and one tackle was two blocked the other tackle was tied to the cable to continue pulling while the first was run out again. The messenger line might be a loop with one side tied to the anchor cable to haul it in and the other returning forward. When the anchor broke the surface the cat hook was attached to the anchor ring. Then the anchor was “catted” by raising it to the cathead with the cat tackle. The fish davit and pendant were rigged and the fish hook was hooked to the anchor stock at the flukes. The anchor was “fished” using the fore tackle to hoist the flukes up to the cap rail where the shank painter ropes or chains were passed around the anchor and secured to timber heads or cleats to support the anchor. Then the fish pendant was unhooked. A wooden fender or "shoe" was placed between the anchor flukes and the side of the ship to protect the hull as the anchor was being fished. On some ships the anchor head remained suspended by the cat tackle. On other vessels the head of the anchor was secured with stopper lines to cleats or timberheads. The cat tackle was usually left hooked to the anchor ring. The anchor cable may have been removed and stowed in the cable tier. One reference said two hefty seamen could hoist a relatively light anchor with a simple tackle. By increasing the number of sheaves in the tackle greater lifting power could be achieved, but at the expense of having to pull more line through the tackle and a much slower process. But with heavier anchors this system was not practical. Instead of the luff tackles a capstan could be used to pull a messenger loop wound around the capstan and running around the fore deck and back to the capstan. The messenger was tied to the anchor cable and hauled back until the lashings reached the cable tier. Then new lashings would be tied around the cable and messenger up forward and the hauling would be continued until the anchor was catted. With a windlass on the fo'c'sle the anchor cable would be wound around the barrel or warping drum. For dropping the anchor the winch would be allowed to rotate freely. When weighing the anchor the windlass ratchet mechanism would allow men with poles to turn the barrel to haul in the cable. The cable could be secured with stopper lines to bitts. One other detail I came across is that the anchor might be hauled inboard after the cable was detached and stored below decks in the cable tier. Here are a couple of useful references: The Young Sea Officer's Sheet Anchor by Darcy Lever in 1808 (reprinted by Algrove Publishing Ltd., Ottowa, Ontario, Canada, 2000) tells the novice officer or seaman how to rig a ship - every detail of how to put all the pieces of the masts and rigging together. It is essentially an illustrated glossary of nautical terms and a how-to book. It has a discussion of anchors and anchor handling. The Art of Rigging by George Biddlecombe in 1925 (reprinted by Echo Point Books & Media, LLC., Brattleboro, Vermont, USA, 2016) is based upon David Steel's 1794 The Elements and Practice of Rigging and Seamanship. It has an excellent glossary and many illustrations. I think you can find Steel's original book on line as a PDF file.
  10. I have neglected ship modelling for too long and my New Years resolution is to get started on a new build. So here we go. I wanted to build another classic early 20th century schooner but found sourcing decent plans very difficult. This in part was the reason for not starting a build earlier. After many hours spent on the web I decided I could get together enough information to build a decent representation of Germania (either in her original form or as the recently built reproduction). So Germania sort of chose me rather than me choosing her. Because I found getting early 20th century plans so difficult I though would document (through this log) enough information for others to build her should they so wish. So I will include PDF files and dimensioned sketches as I go. And so to a bit of background:- The first Germania (designed by Max Oertz in 1905) was conceived as a racing yacht and built for Dr Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, a German businessman and industrialist who used her to promote his steel business among the social elite. In her first year she won Cowes Week with a new course record and often raced against Kaiser Wilhelm’s Meteor IV, although, rather diplomatically, that was one yacht Germania never beat. In one year alone, she won more than half of the regattas she entered and her winning streak only came to an end due the outbreak of World War I. Seized as a prize of war, she was sold on several times, ending her days in the US. In 1930 she foundered in a storm off Key Biscayne; she now forms Florida’s Seventh State Underwater Archaeological Preserve. Germania Nova is 60 metre gaff-rigged schooner : a replica of the classic 1908 Germania, using the same hull lines, deck- and sail-plans. She was built as a super yacht by Factoria Naval Marina in 2011. The two yachts look identical with the exception of modern electronic / navigation equipment. Fortunately a lot of photos are available which I will insert in the build as I go. Here is a taster:- Plenty of opportunity here for nice wood and metalwork. This has the potential to be a big model. I like larger scales and in choosing a scale I was minded to do a comparison with Altair (previous build). Hence the following chart:- I'd really like to build at the same scale as Altair but I don't think the house controller would put up with it. So 1:36 it is. It is still however some 16 inch (30%) longer than Altair. I will enter sizing negotiations once it is too late to change. I won't be cutting wood for some time as the next image is the best I can do for hull lines. It does not look too bad at this scale but when blown up the lines lack definition. It will take some effort to convert this into cutting templates for frames. So I now need to find my drawing implements - bought for my first post apprenticeship job in the Rolls Royce Design Office in 1975.
  11. Hello there: This log will document my first attempt at a scratch built ship model. I've chosen to start with something more or less straightforward -- a 1:64 scale plank-on-bulkhead Bluenose based on Model Shipways' plans. I purchased the plans for the 1:64 MS Bluenose several years ago while I was working on the Amati 1:100 Bluenose. I wanted the plans as reference for the rigging, which on the smaller Amati kit had been quite radically simplified. Since then, the plans have been gathering dust in a drawer. But I always imagined that I might return to them once I felt ready to embark on a scratch build. The choice of Bluenose, then, was guided by the fact that I own the plans, which include reference drawings of all the laser cut parts, as well as by the fact that I've built the Bluenose before (though in a smaller scale). I also felt that, though clearly the principles are different, cutting my teeth on a p.o.b build would be a good way of getting into scratch building with an eye to a fully framed ship model. In any case, everyone knows the history of the Bluenose, so I won't repeat it here. This log will be more like a documentation of my clumsy entry into scratch building. Since I'm also working on the Mamoli America as a gift for a friend, the Bluenose build will no doubt be very slow. I also plan on continuing with kit builds alongside this project, which will also no doubt slow it down. The need to acquire some tools (and save some money in order to get them) will also slow things down a bit - currently, I'm equipped with a bandsaw, which I'll use to cut the centre keel pieces and bulkheads, but I can already see the utility of a disc sander and mini drill press.....I think for this build I can wait on other things like a mini table saw, but I'm going to assume that the priority of tool acquisition will become clearer as I work through the build.... I know that there are a lot of Bluenose logs here on MSW, but I hope that this log will add something to the mix. For starters, here are a couple of photos - my tracings of the centre keel pieces and a practice-run at the bow piece using 1/4 basswood - it's pretty rough, as you can see. This was made to help me get a feel for the bandsaw and is out of scale thickness in addition to being kind of ratty. I'll be using 3/16 birch ply for centre keel, bulkheads, rudder, and sternpost. I bought some of this today at a local hobby shop, but it is not very good (lots of warping). I'll use this to do more bandsaw testing and try another source for the ply. Well that is all for now....those who've looked in on my America (and perhaps other logs) will know that the frequency of my posting is quite idiosyncratic, so sorry about that....I'll try to be more diligent in the future!! hamilton
  12. Hi all, first post here so please be gentle. I am building RCMP St. Roch as she spent most of her life in the Arctic, wearing her mainmast and schooner rig and with the original smaller deck house. I am using copies of original plans from the Vancouver Maritime Museum where the ship is currently the main exhibit. I am also old school, so dividers and French curves are substituting for CAD! The only kit of St. Roch is a 1:72 rendition by Billing Boats which I see several members here have built or are in the process of building. I look forward to checking these builds out! I will build my model plank on bulkhead in 1:48 scale, with the cargo hatch open to show the transverse beams in the hold that were designed to prevent the hull from being crushed in the ice. I will also include the rudder well which allowed the rudder to be lifted clear of ice. I will decide how to display the sails later in the build. So, to start: I drew patterns onto tracing paper to be transferred to plywood for cutting out. My copy of the 1927 lines drawing is 9 scale inches (3/16”) short, so I did not directly trace parts from it. I also referenced a copy of the 1944 section and general arrangement plans, but with caution since it shows her later configuration. I drew a base line onto the tracing paper, then vertical lines to mark the frame locations shown on the drawing, and the stern. Next I added seven horizontal waterlines, also from the lines drawing. Their vertical distance from the base line is not important. The spacing of frames and waterlines came from actual measurements noted on the lines drawing, which when transferred to my tracing paper made up for my undersized copy. When checked, I verified that my hull will indeed be the correct scale size after planking. I now have a template onto which I can draw my model’s spine. I used a 1:48 scale rule, dividers, and French curves to transfer scaled measurements and known dimensions from the drawings to complete this pattern, which is the aft half of the vessel, drawn from frame 5 aft to the stern. I will need extra frames at the aft end of the hold and the fore and aft ends of the open rudder well, and these locations are shown on the 1944 drawing, taking note that a jog was made in the hold to enclose St. Roch's larger engine. I transferred these locations to my spine drawing then drew in the propeller and rudder posts and the rudder well, and indicated the rudder axis and propeller shaft centerline. The large jog near frame 6 is the aft end and floor of the hold. Next I will finish my paper templates and cut wood! Thanks for looking in and comments and critiques are welcome!
  13. Hi all, I love the fine shape of "Ingomar", a design from the "Indian Headers" series, by Thomas F. Mc Manus. She was built in Essex in 1904 and wrecked in 1936. Sources of this model come from: 1. The American Fishing schooners, by Howard.I.Chapelle, 2. Thomas F.McManus and the American Fishing Schooners, by W.M.P. Dunne, 3. Gloucester Clipper Fishing Scooners, by Erik A.R. Ronnberg Jr, 4. Bluenose II, the saga of the Great Fishing Schooners. The following pictures show the books, lines, and the first building step. Now the model is quite painted and it's time to prepare the deck details. I hope thet someone will'give me some suggestion to continue building in a good way. Thank you. Giorgio. ingomar.bmp
  14. Emma C. Berry as a schooner The Berry was originally built at the Latham Yard in Noank, CT (near today's Mystic Seaport) in 1866 as a gaff sloop. John H. Berry, a Noank fisherman, commissioned a well smack sloop (a small fishing vessel with an internal wet well for storing the catch) for $1,275. She was launched June 8 and has been “restored” several times over the last 155 years. The Emma C. Berry was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994 and is one of the oldest surviving commercial vessels in America. In 2015, Lawrence R. Jabobsen published “Celebratthing the EMMA C. BERRY” for the Noank Historical Society. It is a pivotal history of the last remaining Noank smack. After serving for 20 years as a sloop, she was re-rigged as a schooner in late 1886 /87 at either the E.P. Beckwith Shipyard or the nearby Crocker/Davidson Yard in New London CT. The main reason being the ease of handling several smaller sails, allowing a smaller crew to handle the vessel. Model Shipways (division of Model Expo) offers a very good plank-on-frame kit as the restored sloop in 1:32 scale. Sterling Models sells a solid hull kit as a schooner, and I cannot comment on the quality. In all the years I've been on MSW, I've not been aware of anyone doing a true POF model of her as a schooner. To this day, I think the Berry is one of the most attractive boats I've seen. Perhaps that is a reason the actual boat has survived so long. I purchased the excellent plan set (Ben Lankford, 1994) from Model Expo and converted everything to 1:48 scale. I have collected over 100 photos of her as a schooner (mostly dated in the 1920s and 30s.) I think I have every book ever published on the restorations. These provide tremendous detail of the scantlings so off I go on my next project.
  15. Hello, I am a total newbie here, getting along with my first ship model, 'Albatross', chosen for its simplicity. Now please forgive me if I am going over old ground, but I haven't been able to find anything relating to my problem, so need your opinion. The photo of Albatross on the kit box and online shows the masts more or less vertical, perhaps even with a little forward rake, but my research, limited because I don't know where to look, suggests that this ship might be more true historically with mast rake around 11 to 13 degrees. I would like to know this early in the build since not only will the rigging be affected, (shrouds led further aft etc), but those big gaff sails will change shape too. Your thoughts on this will be much appreciated. Andrew
  16. There comes a time when I am building a model that I start thinking about what to build next. I had been thinking of a schooner so I started a web search and when I saw the HEAR drawings of the Lettie I knew she was my next build. I plan to build it with the break in the deck as was typical of the Fredonia model schooners. The HAER drawings do not show the break so more research was needed. If you look at the drawings you will see that the Lettie was warped and one side was lower than the other and the stern was askew. In redrawing the lines I straightened it out. Hopefully the way it was when it was first built. Here is a brief history. Dimension as built 1893 as “Lettie G. Howard” Length: 74.6 feet Beam: 21 feet Depth: 8.4 feet Tonnage Gross: 59.74 Net: 56.76 Dimension as rebuilt 1923 as “Mystic C.” Length: 75.4 feet Beam: 20.8 feet Depth: 8.5 feet Tonnage Gross: 52.24 Net: 47 Designated a National Historic Landmark, the Lettie G. Howard is the last existing clipper-bowed “Fredonia model” inshore fishing schooner. Named for Captain Fred Howard’s daughter, the Lettie G. Howard fished near the coasts of Massachusetts and Maine. Built in 1893 in Essex, Massachusetts by Arthur D. Story, her hull was oak framed, planked with pine held in place by treenails. She originally carried topmasts on both fore and main masts. E.E. Saunders and Co. of Pensacola, Florida purchased her in 1901 and fitted Lettie G. Howard for the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery. She was rebuilt in 1923 in Bay Point, Florida and renamed “Mystic C.” Changes included the removal of the break in the deck, and the addition of eight inches of false keel depth along 36 feet of the keel. Documentation after the rebuild also noted slight changes in overall dimensions. In 1924 she was fitted with a 36 horsepower auxiliary engine, necessitating a new stern post and rudder. Sometime later her topmasts and bowsprit were removed. She was sold to the Historic Ships Associates of Boston, Massachusetts in 1967, who mistakenly renamed her Caviare, believing she was that former Gloucester schooner. The South Street Seaport Museum purchased her a year later and returned her to the original build name “Lettie G. Howard.” Lettie G. Howard was included in the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), which documents historically significant engineering, industrial, and maritime works in the U.S. The project is administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Lettie G. Howard was documented in 1989. The HAER high resolution drawings are on the Library of Congress web site at http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?q=Drawing:%20ny1621&fi=number&op=PHRASE&va=exact&co%20=hh&st=gallery&sg%20=%20true. The South Street Seaport Museum completely restored her between 1991 and 1993. Now in her original 1893 appearance, Lettie G. Howard is outfitted to accommodate trainees on educational voyages. In 1994 the U.S. Coast Guard certified her as a Sailing School Vessel, allowing her to carry students of all ages as a training ship. In January 2012, Lettie G. Howard was dry docked at Mystic Seaport. Subsequent inspections found extensive rot in her keelson and foremast step, and she was put back in the water until enough money can be raised for the necessary repairs.
  17. On a very foggy August 11, 1897 night off the coast of Maine the Howard W. Middleton was searching for a protected cove inside Richmond Island. GPS not being what it is today, it hit a rock off of Higgins Beach, Scarborough, Maine and has spent the rest of its days there. Today the wreck is visible at low tide and often pieces of coal appear in the ever changing sands. I have been modeling off and on for over 30 years and have always wanted to build the Middleton but a scratch model always seemed a bit out of reach. During my research over the years I contacted the Philadelphia Maritime Museum (the Middleton was built at Coopers Point, NJ across the river from Philadelphia) and they put me in touch with an individual (Edward Brownlee) who was interested in coastal schooners of the 1800's. After much correspondence, Edward drew up plans of the Middleton from the original Admeasurement dated April 23, 1883. With actual plans in hand and semi-retirement "availability" I started the model several years ago. Plans from Admeasurement August 20, 1897 - Middleton off Higgins Beach, Maine Middleton Today Model Begins Nov 2013 She was a centerboard tern Planking complete/ready for painting - March 2014 Hull Painted - April 2014 Building Deck Houses - July/Dec 2014 Middleton coal fills holds This one's a bit too large... Brought down to scale... Holds filled with scale coal from Middleton cargo... Masting and decking - March/Sept 2015 Rudder, Fife Rails/belay pins, capstan - Nov 2015/Feb 2016 Bowsprit and Jib Boom - March/April 2016
  18. Post 1 The beginning. Trying to decide what to build Now that it seems Ernestina Morrissey nee' Effie Morrissey will have spent over five years here in Boothbay Harbor before returning to her home in Massachusetts, I would like to consider her to have become part of our local maritime history. It is such an opportunity to visit her especially in these final stages to see how the interior and the equipment are all being done in 2020-2021 to make her the incredible teaching schooner that she will be. I got to see her in each of her stages as she was hauled, dismantled, and built back with incredible skill. She was birthed on a railway next door to where Bowdoin was replanked last year. 1a here we see from DEC 2018 the lowest view looking forward of the amazing planking on the Ernestina as rebuilt by Bristol Marine. This view is a definite challenging view to folks like me as to what the planking is supposed to look like. 1b here we are looking aft from the bow. We are also fortunate that the Wooden Boat Magazine is in mid-stream of publishing a multi part article trying to capture both her heritage and her rebuild. These articles, especially the third one that tells of the actual reconstruction in the first stage of the rebuild, are must reading for those of us who dabble in the world of schooners. 2 This WoodenBoat article is a must read for all schooner fans I must also say in this first post that once again for me I may have started down a rabbit hole. I have never done plank on frame and felt this might be the right schooner to start with. We’ll see. I need to get done by next spring and a master modeler is already doing a plank on frame version for the yard and I want to focus more on telling a story. As I am at this stage doing my planning and procurement of materials. I am comfortable taking the lines and drafting up molds [ bulkheads] and getting on with it. I may decide to do that and then focus on the deck furniture and rigging to match what is included in the 2021 rebuild. Then on the side I can work away learning how to draft frames and try to end up with the same shape. The next few posts will both introduce the actual work that is going on, a little of the history and the thought process that sets me on my way. I have done dioramas for the last two displays and may choose to do that again. I am fascinated with the early 20th century work in the arctic. Effie Morrissey as she was named for the first 50 odd years was a true arctic explorer. Perhaps I do another arctic diorama to sit beside the Bowdoin , each one representing a different period. They would be the same scale. To work in a comfortable 1:48 scale it would be fun to get her sails on too. So much to think about before I decide. First up is where to get information. I have totally consumed all the log created by Allanyed as he started his build of Effie Morrissey. Allan has offered to help when I get into trouble too. Most important he led us all to the Library of Congress where one can download lots of Tiff drawings and even modeling images of fitting out for the interior either for fishing or learning purposes. Maybe a cutaway with either fish or cabins to look at? The set includes the basic line drawings of which we all have sufficient familiarity, but also I fear they included too much additional information. They drew a cross section and plan at deck level showing every frame. Guess what? They are not all the same separations….eek all for now jond
  19. Day 1 of my first build! Still have some cleaning up to do and sanding. I've seen quite a few others who started with the Albatros so I feel I'm in good company. This will be slow going as I'm facing a bust spring and summer, but I'm looking forward to getting into it. Thanks! Kramer
  20. ATLANTIC history Commissioned by New York Yacht Club member Wilson Marshall, Atlantic was launched in 1903. She was designed by William Gardner, one of America's foremost designers of large yachts. From the moment Atlantic went to sea, it was clear that she was an exceptionally fast and beautiful schooner. When a yacht in 1903 hits twenty knots during her sea trials, she is a promising yacht, but even then nobody could imagine two years later this yacht would set a record that would stand unmatched for almost a century. Nevertheless, whilst Wilson Marshall wanted Atlantic to be the fastest schooner on the water, he felt there was no reason to compromise on comfort. Unlike contemporary racing schooners, Atlantic was equipped with every imaginable luxury. Fitted out with the finest mahogany panelling, she had two steam driven generators to power electric lights, refrigerators and a large galley. On deck her halyard winches and primary sheet winches were also steam driven. She had two double and three single staterooms, a lobby, a large full beam saloon, a dining room, a chart & gunroom, three large bathrooms and in the deckhouse there was a comfortable observation room. She had retractable chimneys, so while under sail the below deck steam heating, lighting and refrigeration systems could keep running. Atlantic's fo'c'sle accommodated her thirty-nine strong crew and officers, who would live aboard throughout the year. During her first season Atlantic proved fast, winning both the Brenton Reef and the Cape May Cup hands down, but it was only in 1905 she made the headlines by winning the Kaiser's Cup, a Transatlantic race from Sandy Hook to the Lizard. Referred to as "The last Great race of Princes" the entries for this race included all the yachts that the rich and powerful from Britain and America could send to sea. The legendary Captain Charlie Barr, who had already successfully defended the America's Cup three times, was hired to skipper Atlantic. Charlie Barr's determination to win was as legendary as his skills for driving the largest of yachts to the very limit. And win, he did, sailing 3006 miles in 12 days, 4 hours, 1 minute and 19 seconds. Atlantic's 24-hour record was 341 miles, an average speed of 14,1 knots. Uncountable attempts were made to break this record but it would hold firm until 1998, the longest standing speed record in the history of yachting. Atlantic's story continued for another seventy-seven years with ownership passing through the likes of Cornelius van der Bilt and Gerald Lambert. She was used as a mother ship for other racing yachts like Vanity, for America's Cup defenders and the J-Class Yankee on her voyage to England. Her guest book included the rich and famous of the world. Simply put, she is the most famous and beloved racing schooner of all time. Although after World War II Atlantic would never sail again, she refused to give up her existence. Somehow she was saved from the scrap yard on three different occasions, broke loose from her moorings, to sail back to sea without a man aboard and ended up used as a houseboat, a restaurant and a floating dock at a fuel station. Finally on 30th of January 1982, she was broken up at Newport News Boat Harbor, Virginia. The Schooner Atlantic's General Specifications Design William Gardner Year Originally Built 1903 Length on Deck 185 Feet 56.43 Meters Waterline Length 135 Feet 41.18 Meters Beam 29 Feet 8.85 Meters Draught 16½ Feet 4.9 Meters Displacement 298 Tons 303 Tonnes Sail Area to Windward 18,500 Feet² 1,750 M² This information from the site www.schooner-atlantic.com So, I decided to construct model of this surprising schooner in a bottle.
  21. In 2008 I decided it was time to make my first expedition into scratch-built ship modeling. This log will follow my progress both past and future as work continues. Some of you may recognize this project. As I started and progressed through my models, I posted progress photos and discussions of my work on several model ship internet sites including the predecessor to “Model Ship World”. All of those sites and posts are now gone. Starting in 2008 I made steady progress on the Dove up until 2012 when my progress came to a rather abrupt halt. I stopped for a variety of personal reasons without ever losing interest in the project and now have resumed my work. I hope to complete the work in the next year. So, this build log will include a lot that’s old and with a little luck something new. Previous to this project, I had completed two somewhat challenging kits: Model Shipways Prince de Neufchatel and Model Shipways Benjamin Latham (both now posted in the gallery). As many of you may know, like many commercial kits, each of these kits fail to include the full range of details a modeler may want to represent and also include features which are distinctly out of scale or crude. In both cases I sought and found (largely in Howard Chapelle’s works) supplementary modeling data and I spent a fair amount of time on each adding to or correcting elements of the models. Two Doves, well underway With two completed kits below my belt, I began searching for a new project. It would be a scratch build. I decided that the project should be challenging but not too challenging, should be not too big and should generally follow along the lines of my previous work. In Chapelle’s The American Fishing Schooners I came across the Dove plans and decided that in addition to being fairly complete plans, the ship itself met my criteria fairly well, somewhat challenging, not too big and like the Prince and the Latham an American built schooner. I purchased a set of plans from the Smithsonian and I was off. Jim
  22. Revision to the beginning and name of build I need to change the direction of the hull started in the first post and alter it to make the schooner the Ada Cliff. There were two similar schooners built in Boothbay in 1917. One in Boothbay Harbor and one in East Boothbay. Ada Cliff has been recorded to be 149 feet and the Priscilla Alden is apparently recorded at two different lengths. The local records all show 142, but a Boston based reference suggests 154. The Ada Cliff was a more standard schooner as per her pictures, built to spec for coal. She became the design basis of several four masted schooners built in the boom years that followed. There is no remaining half model or drawings for Ada Cliff that the late Jim Hunt was able to find in his research, but several photos for reference. More on that later I started off using a generic hull form described in the first post below. I then was able to find more references to the Priscilla Alden. Those references including surviving drawings showed a much sleeker hull. I have decided to use the framing I made in the first post to build the Ada Cliff and will hold back and start a total new hull later on for Priscilla. That will also give me the opportunity to study more about the disparity in the length. The following first post will lead into Priscilla and the next post will bring us back to Ada cheers Post 1 The beginning The beginning to a new project can often be a bit risky. For me at least I am typically a little tentative. Will this be small or large scale, plank on frames or bulkhead model or a diorama? In this case, I want to build a three masted Boothbay built coasting Schooner. What is interesting is that I rushed into it and started making sawdust before fully sorting out my research. First of all, I wanted to explore this design because after studying the bigger schooners, and learning firsthand the poor sailing aspects of the “too long” form, I wanted to get to what seems to have been the most reasonable solution. That is 3 may have been better than 4. Three masted Schooners a quick summary • The first 3-masted schooners evolved in the Chesapeake region around 1790 • The three masts were adjusted to be the same height around 1850 • 1840-1865 full rigged ships looking for speed evolved into clipperships • As steamships took over for long hauls, coasting schooners, with less labor costs, took on coastal routes • 1865-1880 coastal trade blossomed as the US government required US flag vessels for inter-city trade • The coastline favored long narrow fore and aft rigs (like clipper) with small crews • Coastal schooner construction grew quickly, and the 3-masted fleet competed with steam ships along the coast These beauties became prolific in the decades after the civil War. Then, as human nature and business models dictated, they grew until the sails became too big. Then the plans changed, and a fourth mast was added to improve the sail handling and keep the sizes growing. As we know that cycle repeated itself across Maine until we ended up with nearly ten 6-masted schooners and one steel hulled 7-masted schooner by around 1910. Then, except for the World War I short termed boom, steam took over . 01a Looking at the local Boothbay market, we learned that through this period schooners built here were prolific in the two masted fishing arenas. From 1873 to 1903, nine bigger schooners built. In East Boothbay, four masted Schooners were launched from the Adam’s yard in 1890 and 1903. Jim Stevens, one of the area gurus, put together a story listing 21 3 and 4 masted schooners built on the peninsula. There was a complete void until in 1917, when it all came back in a roar. ' 01b In the main harbor in the year 1917 the Ada Cliff was being built at the I R Reed yard. That year the Mayor of Sommerville, Mr Cliff himself, and lots of investors came, bought that yard, and built four 4-masted schooners over the next few years. They took the partially built Schooner Ida Cliff lines and simply stretched them 40 feet in the middle and then added a fourth mast. Anyway, someday I hope to build a diorama of all that stuff. It is not for this build. What is of interest is that in 1917 the IDA Cliff was a 149 foot long three masted schooner and that was pretty much as big as they got. Just beyond the big roof in the phot, on the other side of the harbor, the Atlantic Company was set up and they built 6 more 4-masted schooners before then end of the era in about 1921. More on that when I get back my next 4-masted build. I am now focused on East Boothbay. I have selected a 1918 Schooner, the Priscilla Alden. I chose after searching all the names on the list I had and found at Maine Maritime Museum an authentic copy of her sail plan to use as a basis. Their list advised the schooner to be.... Length 142.8’. Traced from Charles Sayle original by George S. Parker, 1982. In that late year she was built at the end of the era of three masted schooners. Those built later would have been an exception. Fishing schooners continued to be launched into the 1930’s but three and four masted pretty much stopped in the early 1920’s in the post war era of steam. The Priscilla Alden comes up in a few publications. The late Jim Stevens of Boothbay wrote an informative article, Boothbay Schooners in Downeast Magazine published in Sept 1968. At the end he listed Priscilla to be 142 feet. I suspect with his working often with the Maine Maritime Museum that they shared sources and that is why they agreed. It is the length I plan to build. A challenge was to find a hull plan big enough to use in cad to match up with the sail plan. Here some artistic license in needed. I found in the Maine Maritime Archive the hull lines for several three masted schooners. One, the Kate Hilton was built in Bath and had remarkably similar characteristics. She was 140 feet, so I chose her and down loaded the drawing. Maybe a False Start I thought that this data was enough information to go go go A month in and the local Historical Society has reopened for us hobbyist to come in and do research. I signed up right away and this week went down to spend time going through several files. Most important however was photocopied pages out of a book. The book John Alden and His Yacht Designs written by Robert Carrick and Richard Henderson. On pages 86-88 there is a set of plans that include, sail plan, lines, deck arrangement, cross section bow to stern as well as an amid ship cross section. There is enough information here to build anything. Unfortunately to scan the line drawings, approximately one inch square, and to blow them up in cad got a bit fuzzy mess. I found the book on Amazon and await a better original for scanning. The problem I discovered however is they declare the schooner to have been much bigger. WHAT??? We’ll see So let’s start off with the steps I took to rough out and make bulkheads for a good start. Design 02a here is the sail plan published by the Maine Maritime Museum. There are dimensions on all the sails. There is a little variance[ between 1-2%] between vertical and horizontal found while measuring the image with CAD. 02b here is the source as printed on the drawing. Key word for me is blueprint. 03 here is the selected hull plan for Maine built schooner in the same size. I made offsets from both the sail plan and the bull plan and in scale the difference was the sail plan forward shear line rises about 1/8th inch higher than the hull plan. That is close enough for me. Maybe when I get there, I add that 1/8 inch in…we’ll see 04 here is the source of the kate hilton hull lines 05 here is the Jim Stevens chart from the 1968 article in Down East magazine. It clearly shows Priscilla to be 142 feet. Of more interest is the low tonnage. IDA Cliff at 149 feet built the same year in the main Harbor was 25% heavier [ volume that is] as she was made for maximum coal transport. Priscilla was lighter and most likely a faster sailor. More on this argument later 06 here I have laid out the cross sections the rectangle that will be used to support the bulkheads to the building board, making the waterline 4.4 inches above the board. That will come in handy at the time of marking the water line. 07 here all the layers are turned on for the forward sections. 08 here is what the pattern looks like for one of the bulkheads. The keel/keelson slot is important to the assembly. I did not sit for a while and add the extra cut line for the planking thickness. It takes me much longer that striking a line by eye . 09 the patterns are all glued to a simple Luan plywood from Lowe’s. They are ready for cutting out . I will adjust later for the thickness of the planks. All for now [jd1]
  23. Alright, time for ya'll to follow my struggle. The Modelshipways Bluenose will be my first ship model, I got the kit pretty cheap - $90,00ish - on the "Help us Move" sales Modelexpo just had. Huge model for a begginer, but since I live in Brazil, and it takes around two months for anything, really, to get here, I figured that I would get the big ship and double up on research time. So the kit arrived and, naturally, I have some noob questions that I'd like to ask you gentlemen. Dowels, regarding those. None of them are perfectly straight but then there is this one: Would it work to heat it up and straighten it, as you do with planking? Or would the wood eventually warp on me again, and thus I should contact Modelexpo for a replacement? Also, my kit came with two different types of wood for masts and yards - basswood and green vietnamese stuff-, which I'm not too fond of, I'd like to keep it consistent. The basswood, as I understand, isn't the best for masts and yards, due to its softness. So I might be looking into getting some nicer wood for that. As for the green vietnamese stuff. What is it? It feels light, it's fairly small grained, it's pretty consistent, it's kinda green, and it's "from vietnam" labeled: Last question: I have some Mr. Hobby lacquer paints at hand, are there any cons to using those on wood instead of acrylics? Lacquers seem to be often used as clear coats over wood, but better ask, they're much more agressive than acrylics. Afraid to screw up the big expensive ship, I decided to get my first taste of wood modelling with the dories. Overall, I'm pretty happy on how it's been going, even though the by the manual method of building them is hopeless. The jig Modelshipways provides is too fiddly, and there is no way, no way, the thin wood frames would hold the boat to it's proper shape, as per suggested. I won't elaborate further, getting you to propper understand the problems with the kit's dories would take a lot of text and some images, and I don't think you guys are interested in that. Rather, I'll show you what I'm currently doing about it: These are the leftover of the laser cut pieces for the jig that should be used to get the dories to their correct shape. I've cut off the jig's "footprint" from the waste portion of the laser cut sheet provided by the kit, if that makes sense". Now I'm converting those "footprint" pieces into a small POB model, I'm making my own keel and bulkheads. Then, i'll add some filler blocks, make the boat a solid piece of wood, and use it as a template for constructing the dories. I'm currently aligning evrything up and shaping the boat's top. That's it for now. I look forward to learning a lot from you! Cheers!
  24. Bluejacket is proud to announce an exciting new kit, the Ellie Mara, a 2-masted coastal schooner typical of the mid-1800's. With a wide beam and shallow draft, she could get very close to the shore. The kit has a cast resin hull, laser cut pieces, Britannia fittings, brass rod, and 4 sizes and colors of rigging thread. overall length is 15", and is scaled for HO (1:87) She has a very attractive list price of $124.00, part number K1115.
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