Mark P

Good Evening Druxey;
 
It would seem that suddenly half the World's population have been forced into taking early (and hopefully temporary) retirement. In that event, a fair number will, it must be hoped, turn to building model ships as a great way to fill the time that work no longer takes up. 
 
I just hope, though, that the bill for all the 'temporary pensions' does not land on my doormat with too much of a bang!
 
All the best,
 
Mark 

Good Evening Siggi;
 
Some very nice work on your Tiger, as always. I read through the discussion above concerning standards, and I can add a bit of info to help with some of the queries posted there.
 
The contract for Warspite, 70 guns, dated 1665, specifies six pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for re-building the Warspite, 66 guns, dated 1701, specifies seven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for Warspite, 74 guns, dated 1755, specifies eleven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
It would appear that as ships grew longer, the number of standards increased. One important point to note is that in all cases the standards are not laid directly onto the deck, but have separate boards under them, called 'shoals'. These are a few inches wider and longer than the standard itself. In 1665 the shoals are two inches thick; in 1701 they are three and a half inches thick; in 1755 they are three inches thick. 
 
The Dorsetshire draught standards have pins through them, as you surmised. Think of them as horizontal belaying pins. I have seen them on contemporary models, and they are parallel-sided bars, not classic belaying pin shapes; presumably because they were fixed in position permanently.
 
The shoals stopped short of the waterways, to allow the water to run through, and the bottom corner of the standard was often cut away at forty-five degrees, to allow the same thing. 
 
Keep up the great work!
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

Good Evening Siggi;
 
Some very nice work on your Tiger, as always. I read through the discussion above concerning standards, and I can add a bit of info to help with some of the queries posted there.
 
The contract for Warspite, 70 guns, dated 1665, specifies six pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for re-building the Warspite, 66 guns, dated 1701, specifies seven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for Warspite, 74 guns, dated 1755, specifies eleven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
It would appear that as ships grew longer, the number of standards increased. One important point to note is that in all cases the standards are not laid directly onto the deck, but have separate boards under them, called 'shoals'. These are a few inches wider and longer than the standard itself. In 1665 the shoals are two inches thick; in 1701 they are three and a half inches thick; in 1755 they are three inches thick. 
 
The Dorsetshire draught standards have pins through them, as you surmised. Think of them as horizontal belaying pins. I have seen them on contemporary models, and they are parallel-sided bars, not classic belaying pin shapes; presumably because they were fixed in position permanently.
 
The shoals stopped short of the waterways, to allow the water to run through, and the bottom corner of the standard was often cut away at forty-five degrees, to allow the same thing. 
 
Keep up the great work!
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

Good Evening Druxey;
 
It would seem that suddenly half the World's population have been forced into taking early (and hopefully temporary) retirement. In that event, a fair number will, it must be hoped, turn to building model ships as a great way to fill the time that work no longer takes up. 
 
I just hope, though, that the bill for all the 'temporary pensions' does not land on my doormat with too much of a bang!
 
All the best,
 
Mark 

Good Evening Siggi;
 
Some very nice work on your Tiger, as always. I read through the discussion above concerning standards, and I can add a bit of info to help with some of the queries posted there.
 
The contract for Warspite, 70 guns, dated 1665, specifies six pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for re-building the Warspite, 66 guns, dated 1701, specifies seven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for Warspite, 74 guns, dated 1755, specifies eleven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
It would appear that as ships grew longer, the number of standards increased. One important point to note is that in all cases the standards are not laid directly onto the deck, but have separate boards under them, called 'shoals'. These are a few inches wider and longer than the standard itself. In 1665 the shoals are two inches thick; in 1701 they are three and a half inches thick; in 1755 they are three inches thick. 
 
The Dorsetshire draught standards have pins through them, as you surmised. Think of them as horizontal belaying pins. I have seen them on contemporary models, and they are parallel-sided bars, not classic belaying pin shapes; presumably because they were fixed in position permanently.
 
The shoals stopped short of the waterways, to allow the water to run through, and the bottom corner of the standard was often cut away at forty-five degrees, to allow the same thing. 
 
Keep up the great work!
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

After working full bore through the pandemic, I have just executed a long planned retirement.  A couple weeks of decompression and model building will begin anew.  Several models in the ways and in the planning stages.  I will be coming to Chuck for blocks and line at some time in the couple-months-down-the-line future.

The NRG store has been doing increased business during the pandemic.  People are building and reading.

Good Evening Druxey;
 
It would seem that suddenly half the World's population have been forced into taking early (and hopefully temporary) retirement. In that event, a fair number will, it must be hoped, turn to building model ships as a great way to fill the time that work no longer takes up. 
 
I just hope, though, that the bill for all the 'temporary pensions' does not land on my doormat with too much of a bang!
 
All the best,
 
Mark 

Is there a stockpiling of blocks like toilet paper in this pandemic??? Bizarre.

Should have more in a couple of weeks.
 At Syren. A few weeks ago I completely sold out of every size.  Except for a handful of triple blocks, I literally sold them all over a four day period. Which was insane.  About 20,000 blocks.
 
so i have been slowly restocking them.  I am about 1/2 way through making more.

'Shoal' was a variant of the word 'sole' which, if you think about it, makes perfect sense in this context!

Good Evening Siggi;
 
Some very nice work on your Tiger, as always. I read through the discussion above concerning standards, and I can add a bit of info to help with some of the queries posted there.
 
The contract for Warspite, 70 guns, dated 1665, specifies six pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for re-building the Warspite, 66 guns, dated 1701, specifies seven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
The contract for Warspite, 74 guns, dated 1755, specifies eleven pairs of standards on the gun-deck. 
 
It would appear that as ships grew longer, the number of standards increased. One important point to note is that in all cases the standards are not laid directly onto the deck, but have separate boards under them, called 'shoals'. These are a few inches wider and longer than the standard itself. In 1665 the shoals are two inches thick; in 1701 they are three and a half inches thick; in 1755 they are three inches thick. 
 
The Dorsetshire draught standards have pins through them, as you surmised. Think of them as horizontal belaying pins. I have seen them on contemporary models, and they are parallel-sided bars, not classic belaying pin shapes; presumably because they were fixed in position permanently.
 
The shoals stopped short of the waterways, to allow the water to run through, and the bottom corner of the standard was often cut away at forty-five degrees, to allow the same thing. 
 
Keep up the great work!
 
All the best,
 
Mark P
 
 

I think you will really like 'The Real Hornblower: the Life and Times of Admiral Sir James Gordon GCB' by Bryan Perrett (1997). 
 
It's a good read and didn't hurt my thumbs at all.

I have read the entire Hornblower series several times beginning as a teenager.  In my opinion, C.S. Forester is a master of naval history fiction.  While the Hornblower books are certainly great adventure yarns, careful reading reveals that Forester carefully researched geography, history, and square rigged seamanship.
 
Three examples, I don’t exactly remember which books:  His description of Hornblower’s close blockade of the French port of Brest as a young commander in a sloop of war masterfully describes the port’s hazardous, complex geography;  In a later book, his narrative of Hornblower’s navigation, political as well as naval along the Pacific Central American Coast wonderfully illustrates this obscure area’s complex history; and finally his description of navigation in and out of the tiny Mediterranean harbors puts you right along side Hornblower on the quarterdeck.
 
Interestingly at least one of his books, The Commodore was controversial when published due to his very tame, by today’s standards, mention  of Hornblower’s adultery with a Russian Countess.  Readers will, however, note that Forester passes judgement on Hornblower’s dalliance;  He winds up with Typhus.
 
Roger

Hello,
 
today only a short update. I turned the pillars for the gun deck. They are all turned manually.
 

HMS Swift : a British Sloop-of- War lost off Patagonia, Southern Argentina, in 1770
See the pumps on page 9.
 
HMS Swift - a British Sloop-of- War lost off Patagonia- Southern Argentina 1770.pdf

Here are a bunch of contemporary pictures of various docks from the late 15th and the 16th centuries. Sometimes it appears there really aren't any docks as such - you just walk down a gangplank and hope for the best.
 
View of Venice 1500 - Barbari 
 

 
 
Venice 1500 - Barbari
  
 
Venice 1500 - Barbari
 

 
1460–1475, Bruges, Flanders. Scenes from the Legend of Saint Ursula, by the Master of the Legend of St Ursula
 

 
1465 Tavola Strozzi. Italy/Spain. return of the Aragonese fleet from the battle of Ischia 
 

 
1474-1475 France Philip II embarking for 3rd crusade
 

 
1487 Pietro del Donzello departure of the argonauts
 

 
1490 Carpaccio from the Legend of St Ursula (Venice) - next 5 pics
 

 

 

 

 

 
1515 Antwerp, Holland
 
 

 
1515 Antwerp Roadstead - close-ups in following pics
 

 

 

 

 
 
1510 approx. detail from Aeneas at the court of Dido, attributed to Bernardino de Donati Italy

 Cristoforo de Grassi Port of Genoa - dated 1481 but ships look later

 
1493 Genoa - from the Nuremberg_chronicles_f_58v_1
 

 
1544 bird's eye view map of Amsterdam, by Cornelis Anthoniszoon
 

 
 
Altarpiece of Sant Jordi by Pere Nicart. Detail. Palma's Port. 15th century. Diocesan Museum. Palma. Mallorja. Balearic Islands. Spain
 

 
Calais and fortifications - 16th century
 

 
Unknown port - looks Dutch or German, probably late 15th-early 16th  century by the clothing.
 

 
Danzig (that's the coat of arms on the stern of the ship and the flag of the other ship)  - 1st half 16th century, judging by the clothes and the ships.
 

 
1526 livre des fontaines de Rouen, France 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

Thanks Gregory;
 
I did not know that little trick, which will be useful for far more than posting here.
 
All the best,
 
Mark P 
 
 

There are some tools, wood and copies of Model Shipwright from the workshop of a ship modeller who passed away a year or so ago on Ebay. A Hegner scroll saw and a Proxxon mill are among them. I have, with the permission of the mods and the seller, posted this just so you lads and lasses can see what is up for sale.
 
MSW members get a special deal! The seller has offered a price reduction on the power tools to MSW members who message the seller to identify themselves.
I have no connection with the family running the listings other than having happily purchased a couple of items from them.
Here is a link to the Ebay user,
 
https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/darren.wilding
 
… and select ‘Items for Sale’ to see what is on offer.
(Please note the seller is in the UK)
 
Hope this is useful,
Bruce

Good Evening Matrim;
 
That's looking like a good start; only another ten zillion scarph joints to go! 
 
All the best,
 
Mark P

Sawdust at last!!! Wonderful news and I will happily follow along.

Congratulations on laying the keel!
 
Mark: we know that each scarph joint is good practice for the next one... and the next....

Good Evening Matrim;
 
That's looking like a good start; only another ten zillion scarph joints to go! 
 
All the best,
 
Mark P

I've now set the hatches and partners in place. I tried real hard to keep them centered. Time will tell.
 

 

 
I elevated the capstan partner by 1/32" as called for. 
 

 
I also forgot to include a pic of the waterway. It's 3/64" x 3/64" with one side rounded off to a quarter round molding . 
Tips of the finger took a bit of a beating from the sandpaper.  
 

 
Next up will be planking between the hatches and lining off the deck for planking.
 
Thanks for stopping by!

Given the source of your posted link, it would serve you to read some of the posts here concerning pirated model kits and the sites that promote this practice - as short sighted and self defeating as pirating is. 
Understand that such a stand requires a want of moral and ethical integrity.  That lack of ethics is a broad based one and not limited to just pirating.  Be careful of anything that involves trust and always CYA there.
 
I took your original inquiry for a single reference to be a literal and sincere request and came as close to matching it I could.  As you are now beginning a sweeping arc on this subject, some time spent chasing the numerous posts here about the volumes available on this subject.  The reality of it is that it takes a library to cover the subject.  There was a blooming of available references in the 70's-90's.  Most of those volumes are out of print or rapidly approaching that status.  The years have taught me to view new books as skeet.  Your window of opportunity to acquire them is often fleeting.