popeye2sea

Wow!  Beautiful work.  Looking forward to seeing more.

Regards,

Definitely bluff bowed.  I would go so far to say that every late 16th to early 17th century ship was bluff bowed.  That's just the way it was done then. 

Thanks Dave.  I do sometimes fall into using the actual terminology to describe things nautical.  I find that nothing else is more concise or better descriptive than the old ways.  And, I also think it raises the level of knowledge of the maritime arts.

Regards,

The sail would have a bolt rope sewn around the entire perimeter.  It would have cringles (loops) spliced into the bolt rope to take the brails.  The brails were middled and seized to the cringles before leading up on both sides of the sail to the blocks on the yard.  The blocks on the yard shared a strop that was long enough to go around the yard and the blocks and then seizings were put on between the blocks and the yard to hold them in place on the yard.

Regards,

Not sure what the other 5mm block goes to.  So, I can not say how it should be rigged.

This looks like it might be the upper block for the topsail tye?  If so I would rig it in this fashion.  The strop of the block consists of two tails.  One is short with an eye, the other is just a long plain tail.  The tail is lead up through the cross tree around abaft the top mast (sometimes held from slipping down by cleats) and back down through the cross trees on the other side where it is put through the eye on the short tail before being seized to itself.  Essentially , it forms a sling around the mast.

Your drawing is basically correct, however you are missing the block that would form the other end of the long tackle.  It would be a single block hooked into the thimble on the rudder pendant.  The tackle would run in three parts with the standing end of the fall seized to a becket on the single block.  The fall would run through the smaller sheave of the fiddle block then through the single block, back through the larger sheave of the fiddle block before leading in through a port to belay on deck.  The fiddle block was hooked to an eye bolt on the mizzen channel.

Hope that helps.

Regards,

You could always use a simple plumb bob suspended from the mast to keep it square while stepping and setting the rigging.

I was looking at the kits from Artesania Latina and I see two available.  The 16th Century Galleon has three masts with the mizzen lateen rigged and the 18th century ship (not a galleon as the description claims) San Juan Nepomuceno (74) which has a square rigged mizzen.  Neither has a fourth mast in the pictures.

I am a bit confused why your plans would include a fourth mast.  Of course, not having built those kits, the pictures may be wrong.

Regards,

22 hours ago, timboat said:

Ok, so would "Take in T'gallants'l" be appropriate to clew up the T'gallant for battle sails?

Sure.  That would work.

An example would be:

"Shorten sail! Stand by to take in royals and flying jib!"

"In royals! Down flying jib!"

"Lay aloft to furl royals!  Lay out and stow flying jib!"

Regards,

The problem your going to run into is that the actual commands were rather general and intended to control the timing of the sequence to accomplish something.  The subordinate commands for the individual lines and movements were not necessary because the crew was trained and proficient in what needed to be done.  So commands like "off tacks and sheets" or "let go and haul" do not contain enough specific information about individual lines.  The lieutenants and bos'n would make sure the proper lines would be hauled or eased as needed.

The line would indeed pass under the rail.  That is the reason the timber head is set into the rail.  You will find that the top of the timber head has a lip or notch underneath it so that the line does not slip over the top.  Early on, the timber heads would actually be carved heads and the line would belay around the neck.

Prior to the extensive use of belaying pins most lines were secured directly to the rails.

Regards,

I look at it this way.  The shrouds are made in a defined way to certain lengths.  They all act on the same point at the mast head and they are set up in pairs.  It would be very easy to get and keep them set up all in a line.  And they would all be under equal tension unless you ease the foremost one occasionally when the sailing master wants to brace up very sharp.  Why wouldn't they be all in line?

Regards,

Two half hitches just below the head of the timber head.  A timber head that was meant to be belayed to would have a cove groove below the head for this purpose.  Often the lead of the rope was lead beneath the adjacent rail first before belaying to the timber head or through sheaves near the base of the timber head (as in a knight head).

I was a signalman in the Navy for 24 years.  Topside duty, several decks above the guns usually.  And I had some hearing loss from being aboard ship.

It's not that unusual, even today.

Regards

Seize a small block to the truck (top) of the mast or the peak of the gaff.  Reeve the smallest line that you have through the block.  Both ends will belay to the same pin or cleat.   Fasten your ensign to one part of the line.

Regards

There would be stuns'l booms on both sides regardless of whether they were both rigged out or not.  Your plans show detail on only one side to improve clarity.  Notice that the foot ropes and stirrups are shown on the right side while the cleats only appear on the left.

Regards,

Thanks Mark,  I couldn't even find my own reference!!

The sail is bent to the jackstay by means of robands.  Robands are short pieces of braided rope made up with eyes on one end.  The robands go through the grommets at the head of the sail in pairs and are secured by passing through each others eye.  This leaves a pair of ends that will be secured to the jackstay.  There were usually two roband grommets per sail cloth.

To bend the sail to the jackstay the roband ends were passed around the jackstay in opposite directions, through the grommet and back up over the jackstay to be tied together with a square knot.

Regards,

Considering  that a round seizing consists of 7-9 turns of line,use the diameter of line that looks the right size using that many turns and you should end up with a good looking seizing.

If you really want to go crazy with accuracy a round seizing starts with 7-9 turns followed by riding turns one less in number in the opposite direction and three crossing turns.

regards,

Hi Tom,

 

Do you know when the restoration on the Constitution is scheduled to be completed?  I remember in 1997 there was a major restoration.  Is this the same type of work being done?

 

Your model is looking fantastic!

 

Thanks,

Don

The refit will hopefully be done in June.  They are on track so far and they want to have her back in the water before the arrival of the tall ships this July.

Regards,

Not sure I would fit into the no limit category, but I just looked over what I've spent for my current build so far.   The initial kit was about $250.00 about 30 years ago.  To date I have spent about $3000.00 on books , tools, aftermarket parts, and supplies.  And the ship is only half done.

Regards,

Perhaps gathered is too strong a term.  I think what I read was a reference to about an inch of slack canvas per yard when sewing on the foot rope and about three inches per yard on the leech rope.  I know that probably doesn't make a bit of difference at scale, but I was wondering if anyone had ever tried it out.

Is it worth trying to replicate some of the bagginess that was built into the sails?  Has anyone tried this to advantage?  What I mean by bagginess is that the length and width of the sails was actually larger than the bolt ropes.  When the bolt ropes are sewn in the sail material was gathered (for lack of a better term) by a certain amount.  Not only did this allow the bolt rope to take most of the strain , but it produced some of that billowing or bagginess to the sail when it filled.

I was just wondering if this would improve the look of the sails on a model.

Regards,