Blue Ensign

Nice tackle work Tim. 👍 B.E.

I looked at a lot of model photo’s and of the real thing John, and regardless of the regulation the position I chose reflects what appears to be the general arrangement. I only came across one old photo where the registration number looked a fair bit lower. I think it looks ok tho’ B.E.

Post 45 Registration numbers on sails I have been pondering for a while the why and how to apply the Registration number to the sails. The why is easy, it is required under the Sea Fisheries Acts 1843, 1868, and 1883. The requirement is also mirrored in the Merchant Shipping Act of 1894. The requirement is that on ‘Barked’ sails such as carried by Muirneag white lettering is to be used of a size 30% greater than that of the Registration numbers on the Bow. In scale terms that is around 7mm in height. I have gathered quite a collection of dry rub lettering over the years, by Letraset, Conte, and W.H Smith, in various sizes, but not 7mm and not in white. It is always the way, dozens of screw sizes on hand except the one required for the job in hand. I have trialled Letraset dry rub lettering on fine cotton material and I think it should give a reasonable effect. It will also take a degree of abuse before it starts to flake off, but best not to test it. 9314 I picked up from Erik’s (EKE) log that he used Woodland Scenics dry rub lettering and I managed to obtain some from a UK supplier. The position of the numbers on the sails is something else that may be open to interpretation, as I notice there are differences evidenced by photo’s old and new, and models and drawings. Here’s the Law: SEA FISHERIES ACT, 1883. ARTICLE VI. The same letter or letter and numbers shall also be painted on each side of the mainsail of the boat, immediately above the close reef, in black oil colour on white or tanned sails, and in white oil colour on black sails. Such letter (or letters) and number on the sails shall be one third larger in every way than those on the bows of the boat. The letter or letters and numbers on the sails shall be one-third larger in every way than those painted on the bows of the boats. By a subsequent Declaration of 1st February,1889, the paragraph was replaced by the following provision: – The same letters and numbers shall also be painted in oil colour on each side of the mainsail of the boat, immediately above the close reef, and in such a manner so as to be plainly visible; they shall be painted, on white sails in black, on black sails in white, and on sails of an intermediate shade in black or in white as the superior competent authority shall deem the more effective. …. and you think we are bedevilled by regulations in our modern times! In terms of positioning there are examples of horizontal to the reefs, and degrees of downward slope. The most pleasing position to my eye is around the half way point between peak and clew which in terms of Muirneag is 145mm. down from the peak. 9321(2) I opted for the angled approach where the numbers followed the line of the sail panel seams. A steel ruler is used to guide the application. I was somewhat edgy about doing this for fear of spoiling the sail, and the application proved more than a little tricky. The letter ‘S’ ‘Y’ and the number ‘4’ proved particularly stubborn to release cleanly and each took several goes to apply and then not entirely satisfactorily. 9335 No matter how I secured them and burnished them bits did not take. 9332 In the end I accepted the situation and had to resort to painting over the deficiencies. This didn’t work out too badly with the shapes mostly there to follow, but it was a one shot exercise as any paint overspill would not be easy to remove. 9333(2) 9336(2) A little more touching-in once the paint on both sides is set, and then I can raise the sails and begin the rigging. B.E. 12/12/20

There's a lot going on on the OBP OC, to great effect. 👍 B.E.

You're doing a fine job on an interesting subject Yves, I really like the look of her. B.E.

She looks great Richard, beautiful display model in her home country. Well done. B.E.

The Ensign halyard usually passed thro’ a small block attached to an eye in the end of the Gaff. I would think that with the Gaff lowered and secured to the boom the halyard which was essentially a loop with a toggle attached to the flag when required may well have been removed and neatly coiled somewhere conveniently at the stern. B.E.

In that situation I doubt the Ensign would be displayed. Ensigns were not routinely worn during voyages, unless action was imminent and an enemy was to be engaged. What would be worn is the Commissioning pennant at the mast head, this would be in place for the duration of a commission. A smaller (Harbour)Ensign may be displayed if the ship was at anchor, worn at the gaff or perhaps otherwise on a staff at the stern sheets. Still a well presented Ensign provides a nice touch of colour on a model, and there must have been times when it was displayed to meet a particular situation. B.E.

Cheers Guys, and thanks for posting the explanation Grant. For those particularly working with kits where the scale is given, 1:64, 1:48, 1:72 etc it is simply a case of converting the full size of a fitting or rope to the measurement system being used, inches or mm and dividing by the ratio number. The only extra calculation concerns scale rigging line which is usually given in fractions of an inch or millimetres diameters. Full size lines of the 17th/18th/19th centuries are invariably given in inches circumference, so dividing by Pi (3.147) gives the full size diameter, to which division by the ratio number will give the scale line size. B.E.

Thankyou Bob, It helps to have a written confirmation of actual sizes, and in relation to the Zulu build there is a wealth of written detail in the Edgar March book. For instance there is a reference to fishing nets being 60 yards long. This equates to 2160 inches x 25.4 = 54846mm ÷ 64 (scale of model) = 857mm Of course in scale terms this would simply not fit on the model so some circumspection needs to be applied. Other fittings such as oars are given as 18’ long with blades of 7’ x 5” This would produce a scale version of 85.75mm (18 x 12 x 25.4 ÷ 64) Blades would be 33.3mm x 2mm and this looks right for scale. 6272 Scale built oars for the Fifie build. In working out rigging sizes there is an additional step. Ropes are usually given in inches circumference where model lines are invariably given in mm or inches diameter. There is reference to Fore Halyards being of 3” manilla This would scale to 0.38mm ø which is a good fit for the model. 3 ÷ 3.142 (Pi) = 0.955 (ø) x 25.4 = 24.25 (mm) ÷ 64 = 0.38mm (ø) scale line. Scale lengths of line is a different matter. True scale lengths are rarely fitted on models, there simply isn’t room. The Fore halyards are given as 60 fathoms (360ft) this would scale to 1715mm of length, a difficult fit on the model. Hope this helps, B.E.

Thanks Erik, Tulle is widely available on the net from material suppliers, it is cheap to buy and the minimum quantity of a yard or so will give you a lifetime supply. For one model you could probably get away just ordering a sample. 🙂 B.E.

Post 44 This post concerns a mixture of those little finishing off tasks that progress a build towards completion. Parrels For these I use slightly elongated tubular beads of 2mm ø and 1.75mm in length. 9189 9187(2) Parrels attached, not a difficult job with the yards in place. Tuckle chain. This secures the tack of the Mizen Lug and is fastened around the mast foot. Those with a copy of the Edgar March book can see a photo of this detail on Muirneag in his book Sailing Drifters. 9180(2) The ring and hook are silver soldered to the chain. 9193(2) Testing the fit of the Tuckle chain. 9198 Thinking about nets It is of some surprise to me to read that luggers the size of Muirneag carried around 70 nets, each about 600 square yards which when strung together extended nearly 2 miles with a catching area of 33,000 square yards. In our scale terms each net would be 860 mm in length. 9203 To represent the nets, I am using Tulle material in a fetching shade of peat brown. 9201 Excellent for scale and the only issue with Tulle is that it is quite a springy material so a touch of pva in the folds helps to hold it in shape. 9199 A glimpse of the floats, aka Baking Beads which do the job at the scale involved. Navigation lights I have got around to completing the light boards which now have the lanterns installed. 9214 On the advice of John (Jim lad) I did try to impart a blueish green tint to the Starboard lamp by misting it with a rattle can spray of Ocean blue auto paint but it wasn’t really effective. I couldn’t get the lightness and clarity I would have liked. 9210 These are too delicate to leave insitu and will be one of the last things to be fitted on the model. 9219(2) 9224(2) I’m quite pleased the way things are going and I can now turn my attention to the rigging line and blocks. B.E. 04/12/20

Thank you Erik, I have been thinking about adding the Registration to the sails but haven’t quite decided how to go about it. I would want the lettering to appear to be painted on and not appear too stark against the sail. The requirement to show Registration details on Fishing Boats has been in force since the Sea Fisheries Act of 1843. In summary the letters and numbers are to be painted on the Main Sail either in Black or white depending on the colour of the sail and be one third larger than those on the bow of the boat. If you want to read up on the various acts and regulations here’s the link. https://www.maritimeviews.co.uk/west-cornwall-luggers-and-mfv/the-lettering-and-numbering-of-fishing-boats/ Regards, B.E.

Post 43 Bringing sail and yard together Completing the Mizen sail took less time altho’ I did have to repair the clew loop which became unravelled. Once again, the Quadhands proved a very useful and flexible aid. 9140(2) Use of these magnetised arms is not restricted to the provided base. Distances can be increased using any old piece of ferrous metal, in this case a steel rule. With the sails completed it is time to test the fit on the model with a jury rig. 9152(2) 9153(2) 9156(2) 9162(2) 9157 9160 I can now attend to the parrels. Once in place the yards can be removed as they will slip easily over the masthead. B.E. 02/12/20

Try Abe Books Erik

You won’t be disappointed Richard, it’s a great read apart from the technical stuff, I would go so far as to say that Edgar March is to fishing vessels what C.N Longridge is to Victory. Loads of copies available in the U.S. of A. Erik, hint, hint. 😉 B.E.

Well Erik you may as well name her Fidelity as you say the plan is so close to the kit layout as makes no difference, and it's nice to represent a real vessel. Had I not bashed the kit into Muirneag, I would have gone for Fidelity. 🙂 B.E.

Hi Tony, In my primary reference book Sailing Drifters by Edgar J March He gives information directly from a Zulu builder William McIntosh who worked in his father’s yard in 1894. Masts were of Norwegian white wood and the yards of Larch. As far as the model timbers are concerned, I would have used Walnut for the yards, but I didn’t have the right size for the Fore lug. I reluctantly used one of the whitewood dowels, but knowing how tricky they are to stain evenly I first coated them with sanding sealer, two coats rubbed down in between. I then use a Medium oak stain followed by Dark Jacobean oak. I painted this on rather than wipe it on and off, and after a couple of coats with a fine rub down in between what you see is the result. Cheers, B.E.

Looks superb Erik, a great paint job. I think dry transfer is the way to go, it's my preferred option if I can get hold of them which is getting more difficult over here. Have you decided on a 'port' yet, the name of which is usually carried on the Starboard stern quarter. Regards, B.E.

Thank you Thomas, The sails are an (expensive) extra with the kit, but the material is as fine as I have seen for model purposes. They are obtained from Master Korabel in Russia. Chris Watton has only recently confirmed to me that the material is cotton, and the sail bolt ropes and stitching are of polyester. This does mean that the sail cloth takes a dye very well but the polyester not so. It could possibly be got around with a more complicated dye process, but I simply resorted to staining the bolt ropes with a waterproof marker. The panel stitching is fine and beautifully done and I left it well alone. B.E.

Not quite done yet Richard, I have the whole process to repeat again on the Mizen sail. Having struggled for years with various methods of holding things this QuadHands is a wonder, every serious ship modeller should aim to add one to their tool stock. B.E.

Looks the part Richard, 👍 If you haven't done so make sure it fits between the standards of the Riding Bitts. B.E.

Great job on the deck fittings Glenn, love the cleanness of the head ledges and coamings. Well done 👍 B. E.

Post 42 Fettlin’ the sails Reef points are a tiresome thing but add realism to a sail. To fit them properly a double length line is passed thro’ a hole in the sail and knotted at the top each side. The issue with this at scale is that getting them to hang naturally can be problematic without resorting to use of pva to hold them down on the sail. This risks marking the previously dyed material. My approach is to simply glue the points to the sail at the knot. This way the point lies flat, and the application of glue is better controlled. Even So it is exceeding dull work, knot, trim, and glue, 88 times each side for the large fore lug sail, which has six rows of reef points. 9082 For gluing the sail is taped over the plan and a steel rule used to level the points across the sail. 9088 9093 Three days later and the Reef points are completed on the large Fore Lug sail. I now turn my attention to the Luff cringles, which as everyone knows run down the leading edge of a sail. 😉 These are of an iron ‘D’ shape and there are eight of them on the Fore Lug. For these I have used 2.5mm ø fine brass rings to which the ‘D’ shape is imparted and the joint silver soldered for security. 9095 To aid fixing these tiny fittings I used a smear of ca to hold them in position atop the bolt rope whilst a needle and thread is used to secure them to the sail. 9096 My recent acquisition proved very useful to hold the sail for this exercise. 9101 I used 0.1mm Morope line to secure the rings thro’ the Tabling (Hem) of the sail. 9103 Sail completed by the addition of the Leech cringles. The same procedure will be repeated to complete the Mizen Lug. B.E. 28/11/20

Looking very nice Erik, I'm interested to see her smart authentic black livery. B.E.