Mark P

Good Evening Allan;
 
When carronades were first introduced, they were (if I recall correctly; might be wrong!) only issued to a ship at the captain's request. It was also his decision (and presumably the gunner's) as to where they were to be sited. 
 
See below pictures of contemporary letters on the subject, from 1779 & 1788
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 

In addition to Mark's great reply: A round tuck was better in a following sea: the stern would tend to part the wave and lift the ship, whereas a square tuck would receive a heavy impact.

Good Evening Phil;
 
The answer to your question is probably best explained by photographs; basically, a square tuck stern has a large flat area, approximately vertical, with planking, which is separate from the hull planking, laid diagonally. A round tuck stern has the hull planking continued through a rising, curving line until it reaches the lower counter, or 'tuck' line. Note that in both designs, the tuck line is in the same place, roughly in line with the bottom of the main wale.
 
The first picture below is of a round tuck stern, the second of a square tuck.
 
A round tuck gives more effect to the rudder by allowing the water a smoother run to it; at least, that was the reasoning for it, I seem to recall. A square tuck was introduced to give stronger support for guns placed in the stern when such things first came into vogue. In English ships this was changed back to a round tuck in the 16th century, whereas Dutch (for example) retained the square tuck for much longer.
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 

Good Evening Phil;
 
The answer to your question is probably best explained by photographs; basically, a square tuck stern has a large flat area, approximately vertical, with planking, which is separate from the hull planking, laid diagonally. A round tuck stern has the hull planking continued through a rising, curving line until it reaches the lower counter, or 'tuck' line. Note that in both designs, the tuck line is in the same place, roughly in line with the bottom of the main wale.
 
The first picture below is of a round tuck stern, the second of a square tuck.
 
A round tuck gives more effect to the rudder by allowing the water a smoother run to it; at least, that was the reasoning for it, I seem to recall. A square tuck was introduced to give stronger support for guns placed in the stern when such things first came into vogue. In English ships this was changed back to a round tuck in the 16th century, whereas Dutch (for example) retained the square tuck for much longer.
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 

Good Morning Gentlemen;
 
Not being any kind of expert in Dutch ship design and building, I do not feel qualified to comment on the various points of view put forward above. I can say, though, for those who have not seen it, that Ab's claim that the drawings in question are forgeries was published in an article in the NRJ for Spring 2020, p.33. I will also add that, to my personal knowledge, several very notable persons in the world of research were extremely sceptical of the reasoning used in the said article, and remain so. The matter should certainly not be regarded as closed.
 
An important point to consider is that as Ab has nailed his colours to the mast, so to speak, by stating categorically that technical drawings were not used in 17th century Dutch shipbuilding, it then becomes an absolute necessity that any and all evidence which might indicate the contrary should be discredited.  
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

Good Morning Gentlemen;
 
Not being any kind of expert in Dutch ship design and building, I do not feel qualified to comment on the various points of view put forward above. I can say, though, for those who have not seen it, that Ab's claim that the drawings in question are forgeries was published in an article in the NRJ for Spring 2020, p.33. I will also add that, to my personal knowledge, several very notable persons in the world of research were extremely sceptical of the reasoning used in the said article, and remain so. The matter should certainly not be regarded as closed.
 
An important point to consider is that as Ab has nailed his colours to the mast, so to speak, by stating categorically that technical drawings were not used in 17th century Dutch shipbuilding, it then becomes an absolute necessity that any and all evidence which might indicate the contrary should be discredited.  
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

Just read through the entire log in one sitting - what a super build - you have captured the atmosphere of this working boat so well; I have learned a great deal from the skills you have demonstrated.  May I also say that your presentation of the build with it's outstanding photographs and notes adds enormously to the enjoyment. Congratulations, and thank you!

Thank you all so much for the wonderful comments.  It is so great to share a hobby with like-minded folks.
 
 
 
 
Hello Druxey and Allen.  Thanks for asking and your interest.
 
When I began this Stonington boat, I always had it in the back of my mind that this would be a trial run of sorts leading up to a larger and more complex Eastern-rig vessel. I always figure the scar tissue developed during one project will benefit me in the next, or at least help in avoiding a total face plant. There are numerous weaknesses and flat-out errors on every model I've ever made and that tradition will continue, but I hope to make new mistakes and not repeat ones made before. There are very few wooden hull Eastern-rig boats still floating today. They have mostly been replaced by steel hull stern trawlers, but in mid-century New England, they were ubiquitous. Based on my interests and being a mid-century New Englander myself, an Eastern-rig scallop dragger out of New Bedford seems a natural next project.
 
I didn't have much in the way of plans for the Stonington boat and I spent ridiculous amounts of time scrounging around in search of tidbit information.  I'm not going to do that on the next model, so I need to hunt down comprehensive plans and I know who has them.  The research library at Mystic Seaport is a rich resource of plans for vessels of all types, but the vast majority of the material is undigitized and requires on-site research.  Their archives contain the original drawings for dozens and dozens of Eastern-rig boats – but the library is closed to visitors due to Covid.  When they re-open, I will travel down to Connecticut and see what they got.
 
 
In the interim I'm going to work on some non-floating modeling and make another 1:87 mini- diorama. Early on in this log I posted photos of one of these small dioramas – a small boat building shop.
 

 
That was the second in a series. The first was this old Fordson tractor emerging from a barn. Both dioramas are the same size.
 

 
The third will be a 1920s auto repair shop and will keep me occupied until I can begin work on the scallop boat.
 
 
 
 
Hello Wefalck.  No, it's not in the tidal zone and your question is a good one. I looked at many photos like this and though “how did that boat get there”?
 

 
What was confounding to me is that the boat stands, props and cribbing are in the way of whatever placed there. How do you hold the boat up and pull the transport out from under it at the same time? I then found this video and the “well, of course” moment happened. The video is from a manufacturer of boat stands and it demonstrates the ease of how it's done. The first 45 seconds or so is product sales pitch.
 
Brownell Boat Stands Demonstration - YouTube
 
And there is always plan “B”.
 

 
Thanks again everyone.  Stay safe.
 
Gary

Thanks to all for the comments and the likes – it is always greatly appreciated.
 
 
Hello Ron.  I'm glad you found my log and thank you for the kind words.  Thanks also for the comments regarding the dory, but I'm going to respectfully disagree on the dory's purpose for the following reasons.  First, as I researched these small western-rig boats, I found references to the roof mounted dories as indeed being lifeboats.  I agree with you that present day F/Vs mostly do not carry lifeboats, only inflatables.  But even as late as the 1970s they did. In Peter Prybot's book, White-Tipped Orange Masts: (Gloucester's fishing draggers in the 1970s), the author states that the eastern-rig boats carried two life boats atop the pilothouse and smaller boats carried one.  Here is an image of eastern-rig boats in Boston in the 1960s/70s all carrying dories painted in the same high visibility color.
 

 
The image above doesn't prove anything by itself, but it shows that the boats were common in an earlier time.  As the decades passed and the dories became increasingly rare, it must have been due to the movement toward CO2 canister inflatables.  If the dories were part of the fishing gear, they would not have vanished because the basic method of trawl fishing during this period didn't change.
 
A second reason I believe the dories on these small draggers were not part of the fishing gear is that I have never read where auxiliary boats have ever been used in conjunction with otter trawl gear.  I don't see how the dory would assist in that process or what it could do that the winch or boom hoists could not, especially considering the weight of the gear (wire rope, otter boards, roller gear, etc).  And my final thought is that without a davit, getting the dory down off the roof and back up routinely seems impractical.
 
Of course I could be totally wrong about all of this, but certainly without some way out of the frigid New England water, a person would quickly suffer from cold incapacitation followed by hypothermia in short order.
 
Thanks again Ron.
 
 
Finished
 
This simple diorama base has been a painfully slow slog.  I re-did it several times with each version being tossed into the trash.  But I have surrendered and it is done.
 
I began with a framed platform that measures 7.5” x 13.5”. Like the model, it shows signs of wear.
 

 
 
I then made a landscape foundation of Hyrocal.  This is great stuff – mix with water and it cures hard as a rock, doesn't shrink, crack or flake apart.  I poured this mix onto a piece of waxed paper so I could work the stuff away from the base in anticipation of do-overs.  The rock out-crop is also Hydrocal that I formed in a flexible mold manufactured by Woodland Scenics.  Trailer tire tracks are laid in.
 

 
 
I glued the slab onto the base with crazy amounts of PVA and filled in around the perimeter with a fresh batch of the Hydrocal. There is an interval of time before it has cured (hours) where the stuff is “green” - hard, but very workable with carving tools. I then cut and glued down the wood blocks that will support the boat.
 

 
 
Slide switches and a battery holder for the LED lighting are mounted to the underside.
 

 
 
The Hydrocal was painted with a brown gouache and then landscaping materials are added on top.  The rock out-crops are also colored with gouache.  The “dirt” is pulverized cat box absorbent (unused mind you).  It's placed into a plastic zip bag, smashed with a hammer and then sifted into piles - powder, fine and course.  The scant vegetation is dry bits of things from the flower garden that were then painted with acrylics.  And the scattered rocks are, well - small stones.
 
Once things were arranged to my liking, I sprayed wet water (more like a heavy mist) over everything until good and wet.  This helps the adhesive to flow.  Before it had a chance to dry, I used a craft style syringe/eye dropper and applied a 50/50 PVA/wet water mix over the entire diorama.  A lot of this mixture was applied- everything soaked but no puddles.  Below is how it looks when dry.  I can shake it vigorously upside down and nothing falls off, but that's not a recommended practice.
 

 
 
I make up a few details. An extension ladder colored with acrylics and pigment powder.
 

 

 
 
And a step ladder.
 

 
 
A 55 gallon drum filled with scraps.  The drum is injection molded plastic from Tichy Train Group.  It is based painted rust enamel then over-painted with acrylic, chipped and pigments applied.
 

 
So I grab the boat and bring it over to the base for final mounting.  Before I make it to the base, I sneeze violently and the boat jumps from my hands like it was possessed.  I watched in slow motion horror as the model pitchpoled end over end and landed on the floor like a cat, right side up and flat on its keel.  I could barely believe my careless stupidity or my undeserved good fortune.  The model remained in completely undamaged condition with only the engine stack having been slightly loosened.  Sometimes the gods smile upon you.
 
The LED wiring is run down through holes in the wood blocks and the boat is attached to the base.  Details are glued on and boat stands are added.
 

 

 

 
 
A worker in a pensive moment contemplates the world and his place in it.  The figure is by Arttista.  And at the last minute I decided the scene needed saw horses and a couple of planks.
 

 
And some other direct lighting shots.
 

 

 

 

 
Some indirect lighting photos.
 

 

 

 

 

 
Well, this model is finished and it has been a pleasure sharing it with you.  I thank everyone who looked in on the build and all the folks that clicked the “like” button.  And to all of you who have generously given comments of support, suggestions, information and expertise – I thank you so very much.
 

 
Be safe and stay well.
 
Gary
 

Thanks to all for your wonderful comments.  And thanks for the likes and to those watching quietly.
 
 
Some Final Odds and Ends
 
These boats almost universally used a 3 or 5 blade right-handed propeller in the 26” to 30” range. The prop I'm using scales to about 26” and is from Bluejacket Shipcrafters.  I had intended to scratch my own, but I found this prop in my stash box and my inner lazy-slug voice talked me into using it.  So I cleaned it up with file and sand paper.
 

 
 
And then added some evidence of use.
 

 
My understanding of prop walk is that the dynamics of a right handed propeller will hook the vessel to port as it moves forward.  The effect is more pronounced in reverse but still evident going forward.  So I have this question that I have found no definitive answer to.  Is this prop walk the reason all these boats drag off the starboard side - to counter this hook to port?  At least it's not adding further to the tendency to pull to port as it surely would if they were dragging off the port side.  Or is this prop walk insignificant compared to the other forces involved here?  What do you think?
 
 
 
After looking at a couple of dozen rudders, I drew up this one.

 
Prepared some bits and pieces.
 

 
 
Then assembled. Acrylic paint and pigments are applied.
 

 
 
Glued to the boat.
 

 
 
I then prepared parts and pieces to assemble a coal scuttle.  The scuttle diameter is approximately 5/16” or 15 scale inches.
 

 
 
The lid is painted and held captive within the brass ring with a dab of epoxy.  Holes for the bolts and lifting ring are drilled and the bits glued on.
 

 
 
Scale 4” fuel fill deck plates are punched from brass shim stock and painted.  The paint is mottled to suggest detail that isn't there.
 

 
 
A engine cooling water discharge pipe is cut from brass tube and the end is reamed to reduce the pipe wall thickness.
 

 
 
In the image below, all three of these items are shown; the scuttle, one of the fuel fill plates and the cooling water discharge.  There also would have been a fresh water fill plate, generator cooling discharge and other items, but  . . .
 

 
 
Some time ago back on page #9 of this log, I built the Otter Boards for the boat.
 

 
 
So it is time to hang them off winch chains. They are lightly glued to maintain their position.
 

 
 
The hull is painted with acrylic Tamiya Hull Red (XF-9).  I don't have a lot of Tamiya paint so I forget how nicely this paint lays down, how well it covers and how smoothly it brushes on.  It's like painting with thin mayonnaise.  The surface of the hull was then scraped and India ink/alcohol was washed on top. I then added a water line stain with thinned white acrylic.  And then some sanding.  I played around with simulating barnacles, but I was never really happy with my results to where I thought it added in a positive way to the model.  So I'm leaving the hull in this pre-paint prep state where the marine crud has been mostly removed.  I think this will work as the model will be displayed in dry dock in the process of getting new bottom paint.
 

 
 
Here on the starboard side the bottom painting has begun.
 

 
 
Old tires were often used as fenders on these boats and still are on modern F/Vs as well.  I found some vinyl 1:48 tires on ebay that have hollow interiors and raised lettering.  I put these tires in my portable drill and stripped off all the tread with a needle file.  These tires were already black, but they were too black and shiny, so I re-painted them with my own dull charcoal mixture that looks more to scale.  I then gave them a white acrylic wash.  Because they are hollow, I was able to place a piece of blackened copper wire inside to form them into a slight out-of-round shape.
 

 
 
The ropes wrap around a cleat and hang over the rail.  A subtle rubber abrasion against the hull is added with pigment.  I haven't decided yet how many of these tires to place on the model.  Just a couple maybe – after all, it's not a tugboat.  I guess I should add some rope abrasion to the rail as well.
 

 
 

 
I've begun working on the diorama base, so in a couple of weeks I'll have one more posting to share with you.
 
Thanks for taking a look. Be safe and stay well.
 
Gary
 
 

The real thing varied.  The 18th century British Navy materials were largely oak, elm, and Deal based on numerous contracts that call out specific species to be used.  These are not really preferred by most model builders as the grain shows so is way out of scale.   Walnut-like wood that we see used by some, not all, kit makers is, I believe, to save money as realistic appearance does not seem to be a consideration in those cases.  Many folks, me included, think the color is nice, but it is porous and these tiny holes can be seen and looks awful if scale is important.  
 
Contemporary models used a variety, principally boxwood as well as other species.  Castello and  Alaskan cedar are current favorites when considering tight grain and hardness.  Fruit woods such as pear were often used and are still a good choice today.  Basswood looks very good but is quite soft compared to the others.   Still, it looks far better than the walnut mentioned above.
 
The key is little to no grain and sufficient hardness to hold an edge for shaping, carving, &c.  
 
Some pics of various tight grained species and the open grained stuff found in many kits follows.
Alaskan Cedar
Castello
European box
Holly
Swiss pear
"Walnut" from a kit
 
 

This is not a post about the Byrnes Saw, I'll just sum that up by saying there is no saw but the Byrnes saw. It's also not about the Byrnes Disc Sander or Thickness Sander which I also own and are equally outstanding.
 
This is instead about Jim and Donna Byrnes and the level of customer service they provide in support of their amazing products. It's nothing short of OUTSTANDING!  I've had my saw for about 15 years and never had a problem until recently and likely one that I caused and not the quality of the design. Donna usually answers the phone because Jim is building things, I explained my problem to her, she said she'd have Jim call me back, which he did later that day. After some trial and error attempts per Jim's guidance he said "We'll send you a new arbor and an email on how to change it." Three days later I had the new arbor and installed it (after first admiring the piece, the milling is pure artistry) using his clear instruction. However another small problem resulted, by a few thousands of an inch the blade guard on the top of the table was rubbing the blade (after conferring further with Jim I had properly installed the arbor correctly). "Donna will send you a new blade cover." I'm sure he milled a special one that accounted for the few thousands because when I got it, again three days later, it was a perfect fit.
 
I've had other interactions with Jim and Donna over the years, always pleasant, always informative and helpful.  This incident though was above and beyond - total, thorough, and complete support for a product I purchased over 15 years ago as though I'd bought it yesterday.  No mail the unit in and we'll see what we can do, instead here's the part and how to install it. Who does that these days, what small business takes that level of pride and support in the products they produce over a decade after they sold it to you. 
 
Just Amazing!
 

OK so that boot was confusing

Got the safety cage done.

A trial of the body

 

I used to do the same with ParcelForce. A good way of dealing with it was asking for the charge to be separated from the duty, and then the duty paid. The parcel was then released and when they then invoiced you for there fees, they couldn't legally enforce it (because you had to contract with them) and the invoice was binned.
 
ParcelForce then stopped that happening. I have never since had success in getting a package released from any courier without the fees being paid prior.  They hold your parcel and the 'third party' argument or the 'final mile' argument simply didn't work. 
 
If you know how this is bypassed, and I've spent so long navigating this problem, PLEASE let me know what you say/send etc. 

I was told by an insider at a main hub where customs are assessed in UK, is that just about everything from the US is held up for customs to get their £ out of you, while from anywhere else (including China and Japan), it's quite arbitrary. 

FYI, Fusion 360 is free for hobbyists (https://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/personal). It is cloud based as you say (although files can be saved in an offline (local computer) cache). Is it the best? For me it's working well. My usage is for 3D printing and designing parts to be made on my lathe and mill. However, my 3D printing is not for models. I make jigs, brackets, tool holders, etc.. My last drawing was a prototype for a bracket to be made on the mill from aluminum (when I finally get it right 😧). I chose Fusion 360 because it seemed best for me and the price was right. There is a steep learning curve but I actually found it easier to learn than all my previous attempts in 2D cad - which was a surprise. Like learning most complex things nowadays, internet searching is essential. 
 
 

The books were as described, a very nice collection.
Liz has now passed these books to me to distribute among the interested and raise something for a charity. I will post something when a plan is hatched.
Full marks to the family for taking the trouble to do this. We should all take note 🤐.

Earlier this week, I sent some small pieces of wood to a friend in another state. (Nothing commercial about it - just a friend-to-friend thing.) They wouldn't fit in a regular envelope, so I put them in a padded CD mailer. That's about 6" square. The wood was very light and the whole package probably weighed only a couple of ounces. Took it to the post office and the clerk asked if it needed to get there in a hurry. I told him no - it could ship the cheapest way. The price? $10.30!!  We were both floored but he swore that was the right price. As I stood there, I looked at the display of "If it fits, it ships" envelopes, I saw there was one considerably larger than my CD mailer and it was $8.95, which was the cheapest mailer they have. I asked if I could just put my envelope right into one of those mailers and he said, "Sure."  So for $1.35 less, the package was sent priority mail to arrive in 2 days, had a tracking number, and $50 insurance.  Crazy.
 

This is simply not true.  At least not in the USA.  All commercial products must be mailed and shipped at the parcel price.  The USPS will not allow any product to be shipped by a known commercial seller just an an envelope.  I know first hand because I have tried.   Many dont know this and the seller would face stiff penalties and or refusal to ship from the Post Office if caught.  Sorry but you are just wrong.  One reason is that any stiff items will jam the new sorting machines.   Only envelopes can be put in them and they bend through the machine rollers.  When you put anything hard or metal in the envelopes it jams the machines and believe me you hear about it if you are a commercial shipper.
 
Parcels are NOT put through sorting machines like the envelopes are...or they are put through different ones not likely to jam.
 
In the US the cheapest parcel rate for commercial shipping is around $5.50  Up to 8 oz.  If its going international it varies...but you are looking at $14 - $22.   The cheaper number is basically just Canada.  I have had angry emails that shipping 1package of large triple blocks which cost $6 when sent to Europe would cost $22 to ship.   I get called a crook all the time.   But folks are just so wrong and have no idea how it works for a small business.
 
No way around this unless you are Amazon and get a huge break from the post office.  Small guys have to pay full rate every time.  So any of you guys in the US that get angry about not using a first class stamp to mail a few packages of blocks or rope....or "brass pins", please understand that this is not 1950....you cant do that any more.  
 
Now if that guy is charging $16 to ship within the same country like the USA he is absolutely ripping you off.  But $7 - $10 is pretty standard to cover packaging etc.  Unless you are Jeff Bezos.

I haven't posted in a while.  We've had a major house remodel project underway for the last six months and are just finishing up.  Ready to start back in with the capstan!
 A photo of the barrel/whelp assembly sitting on the capstan step.  

The upper part of the drumhead is made of three parts:  An upper drumhead disk made of boxwood, a cap piece made of holly and an iron ring.  The plans call for thin sheet brass for the ring if you have a mill and metalworking skills, otherwise paper is suggested.  I thought 1/64” thick aircraft grade plywood was a good option.  I had a good friend laser cut a few rings for me (Thanks Mike!) and the ring was dyed black with a marker.  Holes for bolts and bar pins etc. were positioned using the plan templates rubber cemented to the drumhead parts.  The photos show some of the steps.  
 
 
 

The parts of the drumhead were glued together and 12 bolts were added to hold the iron ring to the structure.  

That's a possibility  druxey, of course I probably need to finish the rest of her first 😁

Thank's very much Mark P  for all of your help. Gary