popeye2sea

Those are the shrouds and ratlines. The shrouds are the long lines that diverge at an angle, narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. The horizontal cross parts are the ratlines. There are several reasons that most modelers replace these kit parts. The foremost being that they just look too fake. The shrouds are too thin and the ratlines are too thick, and on the whole the geometry is too perfect. Each ratline crosses completely straight and horizontal. Another reason has to do with functionality. The shrouds actually play a role in holding up the mast. Of course you could just put the model together using the supplied shrouds, deadeyes and laniards, but if there is any shift fore and aft or side to side in the masts when you set up your other rigging it will pull these pre-made shrouds out of alignment and they will look warped. You will be much better served by making these parts yourself and setting them up properly. And you will have a much stronger rig because of it. Regards,

There is a rope laniard called an earing that is hitched to the head cringle. When the sail is bent onto the yard the earing is passed 2 or 3 times between the cringle and the yard arm cleats to stretch the sail head taut. Then the remaining part of the earing is passed vertically around the head cringle and the yard several times till the earing is expended.

More than likely a boy or the midshipman on watch would be detailed to go forward and strike the hour. I doubt that they were really worried about being exactly on time with the bell. The important part was keeping the glass accurate and recording the course and speed on the traverse board. Regards,

Most of the line you will find on a ship will be 3-strand right hand layed rope. That is the basic, flexible type of rope. Good for the running rigging because it bends nicely around pulleys. Left hand layed rope was slightly stiffer, so you will see it used in some of the standing rigging; like shrouds. Stays were often layed up around a 'heart' strand. This gave the rope additional strength. Larger ropes were made up of three right hand laid ropes layed up left handed into a cable (cable laid); an example would be the anchor cables. While you can tell the difference at scale in right hand, left hand, and cable laid ropes you will never be able to tell if a stay has a heart. Regards,

There was something like a standing wedge that could be inserted into the barrel of the windlass called a battledore (?) that would keep the line from surging over itself. Regards,

That method is from R.C. Anderson, The Rigging of Ships in the Days of the Spritsail Topmast. While it is not the actual method used to raise a mouse, it comes very close and you probably could not tell the difference by appearance. The actual method used nettles doubled over a loop above the mouse. The mouse was padded out from the stay to its shape with parcelling. The nettles were then pointed over ( like weaving, over and under each successive nettle). As the mouse shape got larger additional nettles were woven in and when the mouse narrowed nettles were cut out. After the mouse is pointed over the ends of the nettles were laid along the stay and the stay serving covered over them. I used Andersons method for my stays, and while the method takes some fiddly work with a needle to accomplish the results are great. Regards,

Beautifully done!

It has always been my understanding that all line had some degree of tarring as part of the rope making process. Basically the rope is run through a vat of hot tar at a rate determined by how much tar the rope maker wants in the rope. I have been told that after the shrouds, stays, and other standing rigging have been wormed, parcelled and served where needed and have been set up on the ship they were slushed with additional tar to make them more impervious to the wet. Other, more learned persons than me may have more information. Regards,

I think that if you are representing your tarred line with a particular color the service should be the same. After all it is all coated with the same tar. Regards,

Nice job on the thimble eye for the stay. Looking forward to watch how you raise the mouse. Regards,

Nice job on the crows feet. It's got to be a bear to get the tension right. Regards,

I think it would make the most sense to have the riding bitts on the same deck level as the hawse ports. That is where the anchor cable would be. Regards,

I think a wedge shaped piece will suffice for all. They pretty much share the same shape. Just remember to put the wider, untapered end towards the line. The sheave hole in the top and topgallant masts is for the top rope. It is what is used to hoist the mast into place. Once the mast is raised high enough a fid is inserted through the fid hole below the sheave. The fid extends beyond the mast on both sides. The mast is then lowered back down until the fid is resting on the trestle trees. That is what holds the mast up. Long winded answer I know, but it helps to know what the parts do so that you can represent them properly. That said, I believe that the sheave for the top rope goes right through the center of the mast. Otherwise the pull will be off center and the mast would not be hoisted straight up. You will probably find that there is an eyebolt under the mast cap on either side of of the mast. You will also notice that they are offset from each other. One is more forward than the other. One side takes the end of the top rope, the other takes a block for the top rope. If you follow the line from the eyebolt through the sheave in the topmast and back up to the block on the other side you will see that will pass through the topmast at an angle. Et voila, that is the angle that your sheave hole must pass through the topmast. The top rope sheave is set into the octagon portion in order to give the rope clearance to pass between the topmast and the trestle trees while the mast is being hoisted into position. Regards,

You will find them in lots of places. There may be several on the bowsprit for the gammoning and the fore stay. Possible also at the base of the main mast for the mizzen stay

That is beautiful work. Regards,

Regarding line sizes. The same type of formula as for the deadeyes holds true for the rigging. Usually the main stay is the largest line on the ship and it will have a circumference equal to half the greatest diameter of the main mast. Or stated another way its diameter will be approx. 1/6 of the diameter of the main mast. All of the other rigging is a percentage of the main stay. Fore stay = 4/5 of the main stay Main shrouds and main topmast stay= 1/2 Fore shrouds, fore topmast stay, mizzen stay = 2/5 Main topmast and mizzen shrouds = 1/4 Fore topmast shrouds, fore and main topgallant stay, and mizzen topmast stay = 1/5 Shrouds of these last three = 1/6 More details for other parts of the rigging can be found in "The Rigging of Ships in the Age of the Spritsail Topsail 1600 - 1720", R.C. Anderson

Fine work on the mast pendants and shrouds, but Peter is right, the fiddle blocks should be seized in so that the larger block is above the smaller. Regards,

What you described is called a jam cleat. What year was your vessel built? Those are more of a modern fitting. Regards,

Are you referring to cleats that are used to keep a line from slipping down or along a spar? If so then depending on the location and the size of the line they are holding back they will have different sizes. I think in general they have a rectangular shape with a flat face against the line being held and the rear is tapered toward the spar. Perhaps a picture of what you are referring to will help to get the correct answer. Regards,

In order to figure out the proper lengths of the lines that will belay in the waist I need to temporarily set up some of the main rigging. So I stepped the main mast, crossed the main yard, and rigged the clew, sheet, tack and brace on one side. Let me just say that I love the challenges involved in rigging this ship as close as possible to the real vessel. But, it is obvious that it is going to add a looong time to the build. For example, all the blocks on the yard are stropped with long and short tails with eyes and rose lashed to the yard. The clew line is fastened to the yard with a timber hitch, and the brace pendant is put over the yardarm with an eye splice. The strops for the sheet and clew blocks were stropped with large eyes that have to be large enough to fit through each other and also admit the tack knot. Each individual block on the ship will have a different size or type of strop based on the blocks location, size, and purpose. All rigging will be fastened with proper seizings, lashings, bends, and hitches; no knots. As an example of the time I'm spending on these items. It took me about eight hours to perfect the tack knots before I could say that I like the result. Figuring out the lengths of the strops needed for the clew garnet and sheet blocks took a few trial and error attempts and about five hours to get right. Add to that the time it took to make the clew garnet block out of two 5mm Syren blocks and you get about 15 or 16 hours just on that one sheet tack and clew assembly. I really like the deadeyes that I purchased from Syren but I am taking them one step further. I am shaping them so that they have more of a bulge in the middle and go thinner towards the edge. Am I nuts? Maybe, but I really like the results. Here are some photos of the latest work. Iron strops for deadeyes next. Regards,

I look at it from another perspective. Weathering and making a ship look well used is an art and a skill that I do not yet possess. And I think that many do not. I look at models that are weathered and say to myself "I could never achieve that effect". Some may look at realistic models and be put off or discouraged by the level of skill displayed there. It is the same for any new endeavor one undertakes. Does that put me off from building? Not in the least. I work to my strengths and expand my knowledge along the way. To each his own. Regards,

The definition of a rigol is a gutter. So it does pretty much what it says; direct water away.

BTW Tom, the "eyebrows" are called a rigol Regards

I hear you Mark. I am going to try to do something else to get the soldering off the hull. See my latest thoughts in the build log. Regards,

I think that no matter which way I go is going to involve a little surgery. So, here is my latest thought. Cut open the channels at the slots for the deadeyes so that the strops can then be slid in from the edge of the channel. Assemble and solder the chains and strops off the ship. Open the loops slightly on the eybolts in the wales; just enough to get the lower end of the chains on. Re-close the eyebolts. Slide the strops into the channels. Fill the gaps in the channels with styrene and then putty, sand and repaint the channels. Hopefully I won't make a mess of the eyebolts and the channels, but at least all of the soldering will be away from the hull. Regards,