bdgiantman2

I get reminded a lot doing this hobby how Rome wasn't built in a single day concerning progress. Model is coming along nicely, doing a great job. Brian D

Take at look at Blue Jacket, I saw a 5-blade prop on there you can buy. Not sure the scale. https://www.bluejacketinc.com/shop/fittings/under-water/propellers/5-blade/f0918-1-1-2-dia-rh/

boat model looks great, even though I am not much of a seafood fan. Unique construction method but has come out well. Brian D

Another quick update. I am slowly continuing to shape frames. As had mentioned in post 39 (April 2023 *gasp*) I had even started experimenting with hawse frames. Today I cut out the excess wood around the first hawse timbers for both port and starboard. I know lots of thinning and trimming remains, and many frames still to make. Feels good to feel sawdust again.

With the weather remaining nice here, I have been attempting to make new progress despite limitations involving certain power tools. Currently working on several more of Eagles rib frames in addition to more on the guns from my last post. Using a giant sanding block a member of my local guild gave to me, I thinned down the two widest frames on Eagle and have them sitting in position (Frames 7 and 8 on the jig plan). The frames of identical shape immediately behind are being shaped up and will be constructed hopefully soon. Also been attempting some other rib construction both in bow and stern (Frame P in the bow and Frame 36 which is sternpost). In the photo you will also see the keel guides I have made but haven't yet screwed into place yet. Brian D

You and Mr. Ribbits have done a great job. Carry on!!

Hamilton - I've been following your build quietly and you have overall done a great job on this cross-section. Is this just me, or in the picture looking straight down over the model, it looks like the aft wall of the pumphouse is off center too far to the right?? I am sure that I would have made that same mistake myself making such items. Brian D

Your model looks great, Mike!! Making terrific progress making Speedwell. You and Chuck have been great mentors with this project as well as the Winnie Brian D

Pretty vessel, I can see why someone would convert into a personal yacht. Thank you so much for your service, I will follow this blog with interest. Brian D

You can try also making a stub mast on a spare flat piece of wood and practice the sizing that way. Archjofo has very good pictures how he does sizing with descriptive articles as well.

Hello friends. With my limited abilities at this time to be working on the keel and ribs like I am wanting to, I have changed my focus for the time to the favorite topic of the gun carriages. I have provided you a picture of the wheel chassis for one of the carronades. I found pieces of styrene that came molded in a square shape and filed away one of the sides. That provided me the opening for the wheels and the block of wood that I make still. Each of wheels are 1/16" wide, used a small diameter dowel I found in my workshop that proved the perfect size.

I bought that Chicago Tool for Christmas two years ago, then my dad got me a similar Amazon saw for birthday last year. Mine doesn't have the blade height adjusting feature as a cheaper model, but that would come super beneficial for this hobby. Brian D

Thank you for the reply. I could have sworn it was in your blog, but I very well could be thinking of others I follow as well that are bigger ships

What were the purposes of those green and red tanks near the aft of the superstructure if you know?? Great details and a finely produced ship model!! Brian D

Enjoying following your blog on Speedwell, she is coming along very nice. I was noticing that both tackles were singles, so because of these guns being lighter in weight and caliber they wouldn't need the one tackle connecting to the hull as a double like you demonstrated on Winnie. Is this the correct understanding?? Brian D

Your model of Cheerful is coming along very nicely

Toni, your tutorials here as well as the half-frame model have been such a pleasure to follow, you make a very good teacher on these kits and I say thank you for sharing. This desk-top model has turned out lovely

I used to have a copy of that article from Coffins of the Brave, until the USB I had it stored on decided to cease working for me without giving any warning at all. I will have to get a new copy downloaded.

Hello Roger, thank you for the input. Some of the information I did know, others I didn't. The knees being omitted, for example, I did know about which Dr. Crisman described well in his thesis papers. I have tried studying in more depth and details the sonar pictures provided of the wreck looking at areas such as the possible hawse timbers in the bow which has either completely deteriorated or maybe buried in mud. And while it is very well documented that many construction short-cuts were taken as possible to speed up the building process, I personally can't imagine the Browns altering the standard construction especially about her bow. Many of the models I have seen of Brig Eagle show her with bow timber construction more like what you find on modern steel vessels, which I don't believe would be historically accurate which is why I am drawing her with traditional hawse timbers. If I remember correctly I do think that many clipper ships have same bow timber used real life that the models of Eagle show, but the clippers were half a century out still during 1814 war and the Browns were gone in history by then as well. It is amazing learning increasing details about this project. The population of Vergennes, VT, at the time when the ship was constructed is estimated to have been 700-800 individuals including lumberjacks and carpenters and fur hunters -- so the Brown brothers had a good supply of workers to recruit for the project. It is quite a feat that they built ships that size that fast, had to be working around the clock all hours. And despite having used a lot of unseasoned wood for the project, the ship was floating reportedly for a decade following her famous moment in history before nature did its thing and Eagle slipped under the water entirely. This tells me she may have been rebuilt with better planks after the war although the wreck doesn't provide such information that we can tell, or else there was a big enough furnace that was at the construction site must have dried the starboard side of the ship enough to keep that side intact for more than two centuries.

It's been a slow year in the making with progress, but here is a snippet of my attempts so far using AutoCAD doing a 3D edition of how Eagle would have looked and getting shapes of her ribs. I am open to feedback concerning this and suggestions how to proceed.

Amazing outcome of this ship!! I am seeing an increasing crowd for doing 3d printing and the quality has been vastly improving. How long did it take to print up all those pieces?? Looks like at least two weeks worth of printing continuously in my estimates.

Great demonstrating this project, Toni, your model is looking fantastic! With doing the lanyards, as well as cross seizing and others, is it easier doing these with a curved sewing needle or a straight sewing needle?

Thank you for this information, don't know how I missed that before. So then the royal mast, on a real ship, would be 2" approximately in diameter if same size rules apply??

Toni, I don't know if this kit will be including any of the deadeyes on the mast platforms (I've always only known them as crowsnests), but I've heard that the deadeyes get smaller in diameter as go higher up the mast. Was this typical practice as I don't know???

The post you have drawn in blue is the sternpost. The post in red is the inner stern post. The blue sternpost you will leave thick as the keel itself. The inner sternpost does get thinned down. I have copied and provided for you images from Gaetan Bordeleau that have been a big help to me in understanding and shaping the stern and will be using for my own model. Brian D