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19th century deck planking - what shift to use?


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Hello there:

 

I read Ulises Victoria's article on deck planking - very clearly written and informative - and I've planked a few decks in the past. But one thing I've wondered is whether any particular conventions governed whether a 2, 3, 4 or 5 butt shift was used....Was it:

 

1. Builder's/designer's preference

2. A matter of time-period? 

3. A matter of vessel type/size/rate?

4. A matter of national convention?

 

I've almost exclusively used a 4-butt shift in all the models I've built - with the exception of a couple where none was used or where a 2-butt shift was used...

 

I'm currently building the Fair Rosamund from the OcCre Dos Amigos - a Baltimore clipper of the early 19th century - any hints on the deck planking arrangement?

hamilton

current builds: Corel HMS Bellona (1780); Admiralty models Echo cross-section (semi-scratch)
 
previous builds: MS Phantom (scuttled, 2017); MS Sultana (1767); Corel Brittany Sloop (scuttled, 2022); MS Kate Cory; MS Armed Virginia Sloop (in need of a refit); Corel Flattie; Mamoli Gretel; Amati Bluenose (1921) (scuttled, 2023); AL San Francisco (destroyed by land krakens [i.e., cats]); Corel Toulonnaise (1823); 
MS Glad Tidings (1937) (in need of a refit)HMS Blandford (1719) from Corel HMS GreyhoundFair Rosamund (1832) from OcCre Dos Amigos (missing in action); Amati Hannah (ship in a bottle); Mamoli America (1851)Bluenose fishing schooner (1921) (scratch); Off-Centre Sailing Skiff (scratch)
 
under the bench: MS Emma C Barry; MS USS Constitution; MS Flying Fish; Corel Berlin; a wood supplier Colonial Schooner Hannah; Victory Models H.M.S. Fly; CAF Models HMS Granado; MS USS Confederacy

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I used to use at least 3 butt shift patterns, sometimes more. Then one of the older guys in the club, who used to work in a shipyard building fairly large schooners, said that they didn't use any pattern in planking a deck. They just took the longest length boards they had and installed them, just making sure that the butt joints weren't adjacent on the same deck beam.

 

Since then, I use a scale plank length of about 24 feet - I read somewhere years ago that this was about the longest that a planking team could work with easily and safely. After the first plank is in, I shorten the next one by 4 or 5 feet and the next one 4 or 5 feet again. Then plank #4 is full length and so on from there. BTW, I work from the center out to the waterways.

 

Ed.

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Thanks Ed - I suppose this means that there is ample room for interpretation! 

hamilton

current builds: Corel HMS Bellona (1780); Admiralty models Echo cross-section (semi-scratch)
 
previous builds: MS Phantom (scuttled, 2017); MS Sultana (1767); Corel Brittany Sloop (scuttled, 2022); MS Kate Cory; MS Armed Virginia Sloop (in need of a refit); Corel Flattie; Mamoli Gretel; Amati Bluenose (1921) (scuttled, 2023); AL San Francisco (destroyed by land krakens [i.e., cats]); Corel Toulonnaise (1823); 
MS Glad Tidings (1937) (in need of a refit)HMS Blandford (1719) from Corel HMS GreyhoundFair Rosamund (1832) from OcCre Dos Amigos (missing in action); Amati Hannah (ship in a bottle); Mamoli America (1851)Bluenose fishing schooner (1921) (scratch); Off-Centre Sailing Skiff (scratch)
 
under the bench: MS Emma C Barry; MS USS Constitution; MS Flying Fish; Corel Berlin; a wood supplier Colonial Schooner Hannah; Victory Models H.M.S. Fly; CAF Models HMS Granado; MS USS Confederacy

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