Roger Pellett

As Gaetan has already noticed, it is important to consider the so called, Working Distance, which means the distance between your eyes and the working area, where the detail is in focus. In the case of a surgeon, this distance is typically greater, since the operator is usually standing next to the table/patient. In the case of a shipmodeler, the person is generally sitting at the table, hence this distance is typically shorter (about 250 - 350 mm in my case). For a long time I have been using a common Optivisor and it works for me. Sometimes I just wipe off the lenses from wood dust with a dry rag or a paper towel, nothing else (the frames are from plastic, but the actual lenses are of glass, I think).
Before you buy anything, measure this distance for yourself and make sure you get your magnifier within this working distance, otherwise it will be very uncomfortable for you to use it, or you'll be forced to stand next to your model, while building it.
Also, usually magnification of 2x is sufficient, sometimes a bit more, perhaps 2.5x, when you are working on a VERY minute details, like rigging and such. (we are not talking here neurosurgery and sewing up minute nerve fibres).

Emma C. Berry as a schooner
The Berry was originally built at the Latham Yard in Noank, CT (near today's Mystic Seaport) in 1866 as a gaff sloop. John H. Berry, a Noank fisherman, commissioned a well smack sloop (a small fishing vessel with an internal wet well for storing the catch) for $1,275. She was launched June 8 and has been “restored” several times over the last 155 years. The Emma C. Berry was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994 and is one of the oldest surviving commercial vessels in America.
 
In 2015, Lawrence R. Jabobsen published “Celebratthing the EMMA C. BERRY” for the Noank Historical Society. It is a pivotal history of the last remaining Noank smack.

 
After serving for 20 years as a sloop, she was re-rigged as a schooner in late 1886 /87 at either the E.P. Beckwith Shipyard or the nearby Crocker/Davidson Yard in New London CT. The main reason being the ease of handling several smaller sails, allowing a smaller crew to handle the vessel.
 
Model Shipways (division of Model Expo) offers a very good plank-on-frame kit as the restored sloop in 1:32 scale. Sterling Models sells a solid hull kit as a schooner, and I cannot comment on the quality.
 
In all the years I've been on MSW, I've not been aware of anyone doing a true POF model of her as a schooner. To this day, I think the Berry is one of the most attractive boats I've seen. Perhaps that is a reason the actual boat has survived so long.
 
I purchased the excellent plan set (Ben Lankford, 1994) from Model Expo and converted everything to 1:48 scale. I have collected over 100 photos of her as a schooner (mostly dated in the 1920s and 30s.) I think I have every book ever published on the restorations. These provide tremendous detail of the scantlings so off I go on my next project.
 
 
 

Weekly update.
 
Making blocks, hooks, eyebolts and rings.
With as examples
The Mary rose (16th century) blocks (general shape)

And the rigging info of the La Belle (17th century) for approximately the dimensions. This is a pdf which is freely downloaded and very interesting

Rigging "is very interesting" Even for Felix

Nope,  zzzzz...

Blocks

Discs

ironwork

"Custom made" pliers

Blocks collored and ironwork  soldered  

ropework

One side in place  
This is what the small beam at the supports of the channels is for.

The problem of not having any belaying pins.
Not yet fully tied . I hope this can be the right solution ?

Thanks for following, likes and comments

Hello and Happy Passover / Easter [delete whichever does not apply] –
 
Thanks as ever for the many likes and compliments.
 
The next task was to repair or recreate the several fittings that were either detached, damaged or incorrect.  The most obvious was the rudder.  Here it is as received – too small, too white, and hung badly.
 

 
It was removed and examined, where I found that the brass pintles were properly pinned through the rudder, but set at incorrect angles and too far forward so the gap between the rudder and stern post was too great.
 

 
Drawing the outline of the existing rudder onto a piece of card stock I fitted the pattern to the stern post and the gudgeons.  I left extra card on the aft side and the bottom so I could draw a proposed new shape and refine it before cutting ivory.
 

 
Here are the three initial stages of shaping the new rudder.
 

 
The new rudder blank was carved out of ivory and test hung on the gudgeons.
 

 
After final shaping the pintles were transferred to the new rudder and pinned through with brass rod.
 

 
Once I was happy with the shape and how it hung on the gudgeons I gave it two dark vertical lines to indicate the joints between the three portions of the rudder blade.  This was done by drawing on the blank with a soft lead pencil, then tattooing the graphite into the ivory with the back of a hobby blade.
 

 
Once that was done I ‘aged’ the rudder with brown coffee grounds and added a bit of grey tone with ebony stain.  It took up the colors in the deep scratches that I purposely left by sanding with fairly coarse paper.  I think the combination of techniques resulted in a convincing look that matched the bone planks of the hull.
 

 
Next, on deck there was a bench for the officer of the deck which can be seen in some of the initial photos.  It turned out to be loose, so it was removed and stowed until now.  I found that it had been hollowed from one side (I don’t know why) with the opening closed with a small square of ivory. 
 

 
This little piece did not fit well, so I shaved off the edges until it did.  A drop of cyano applied from the inside secured it back in place.
 

 
The restored bench was reset on deck and secured with PVA glue.
 

 
The next posting will be the final segment of this build log.  I will write it up soon.
 
Till then, stay safe.
 
Dan

Ships and boats are built with Sheer and Camber.  
 
Sheer is curvature in the fore and aft (longitudinal) direction.  The result of sheer is to cause the bow of the boat to be higher above the water (the term is Freeboard) to keep waves from breaking over the bow and flooding the deck.
 
Camber is curvature across the deck (from side to side called Athwartships). Its purpose is to help water that does come aboard to drain over the side.
 
Since river boats operated in protected waters big waves were not a problem, but sheer provided another attractive feature, it improved the boat’s appearance.  In a competitive market, appearance counted.
 
From the pictures that you have posted it appears that the kit designer intended the hull to have sheer.
 
Roger
 
 

My answer to your question, scratch building.  With a kit, you’re locked into the manufacturer’s building method, materials, etc.  When you build from scratch, you can use methods that you find to be easier.  You can also make use of higher quality materials.
 
Roger

The first NRG Conference that I attended took place in the historic town of Marietta, Ohio, population 16,000 and 100 miles from any sizable city.  My wife and I were living there and I read about the upcoming conference in our local small town newspaper.  I had never heard of the Guild prior to this.
 
Attendees included Harold Hahn, Bob Bruckshaw, Jack Kerzow, and Merrit Edson, all regular NRJ contributors and master modelers.
 
I joined up immediately and have been a member ever since (45 years this October).
 
 

Ships and boats are built with Sheer and Camber.  
 
Sheer is curvature in the fore and aft (longitudinal) direction.  The result of sheer is to cause the bow of the boat to be higher above the water (the term is Freeboard) to keep waves from breaking over the bow and flooding the deck.
 
Camber is curvature across the deck (from side to side called Athwartships). Its purpose is to help water that does come aboard to drain over the side.
 
Since river boats operated in protected waters big waves were not a problem, but sheer provided another attractive feature, it improved the boat’s appearance.  In a competitive market, appearance counted.
 
From the pictures that you have posted it appears that the kit designer intended the hull to have sheer.
 
Roger
 
 

It was really fun to make the clothing! It helped a lot to have sewn before as some of the pieces were cut just like the real thing. It worked out great using the same tissue paper as the sail and it got a great consistency when covered with watered down PVA. It was an interesting experience as it was a bit similar to sculpting as one pushed around the goo to form wrinkles.
 

The triangles are gores and make the skirt part of the surcote wider.
 


 
The person on the foredeck wears an open frock and you can see the doublet underneath (I didn't get the edges as crisp as on the other figure, but I think it will show  up when painted). He's got a drawstring purse in his belt and a bag hat on his head.
 
The other person wears an older style of a longer surcote and you can see the arms of a cote underneath. On his head he's got a liripipe with the long tail tucked in the belt. He's got the bigger style of girlde purse for coins and such like.
 
Both have hose and shoes.
 
Now lets do some painting.
 
 

I would assume that this issue would have been addressed on the recently restored Great Britain.  While this might not conclusively answer your problem, it would at least give you an idea of what was done on another large Brunel designed and built ship.
 
Tarpaulins covering the hatch board were considered to be a pain in the *** by ships’ crews.  Here on the Great Lakes there are several documented cases of vessels being lost with heavy loss of life when their masters were surprised by heavy weather after leaving port without the hatches tarped.  
 
The whaleback steamship James Colegate (see build log by Dan Pariser on this forum) sank in a storm on Lake Erie when her hatches leaked despite being tarped.  Her captain was the only survivor.
 
With her (for her time) enormous freeboard, I wonder if canvas hatch covers atop the usual hatch boards were not routinely used.
 
Roger
 

My answer to your question, scratch building.  With a kit, you’re locked into the manufacturer’s building method, materials, etc.  When you build from scratch, you can use methods that you find to be easier.  You can also make use of higher quality materials.
 
Roger

Yes, the loftsmen would need to know the frame disposition for a number of reasons, and of course the orientation of the frame in relation to the keel affects frame shape.
 
During the years when large wooden ships were routinely built there was great variety in building techniques, depending on tradition, environment, availability of materials, etc.
 
While there is a rich treasure of detailed construction information for British, some European and some American ships built in organized shipyards, much less is known about the construction techniques employed by artisans in the small yards.
 

Stairs and ladders 2
 
 
While struggling with something else I will be reporting on shortly, as a diversion at looked at the stairs and ladders again.
I had fashioned the stairs from bakelite paper some three years ago (time is flying), but somehow I was not 100% happy with the result. The bakelite paper has a smooth surface and edge can be filed smooth too, but the glueing with CA was not quite so neat as I had wished. In principle it can be cleaned up well with a sharp chisel and fine steel-wool, but the inside edges of the steps are difficult to get to. Below is the result from that time:
 

Selection of stairs (not yet trimmed to length)
 
Having now the laser-cutter at my disposal, I decided to try my luck with it. The photo-etching templates I had drawn quite a while ago where modified for use on the laser-cutter. The idea was to build up the stringers from three layers of 0.15 mm thick Canson-paper. The innermost layer has slots for the steps. The steps themselves are build up from two layers of paper.
 
 

Laser-cut pieces for stairs waiting to be assembled
 
First the stringers were laminated together using lacquer and the edges sanded smooth, dito the steps. One stringer was then leaned against a little steel block with exactly square side on a glass plate. In this ‘jig’ the topmost and the bottom step were glued to the stringer with lacquer. Next the second stringer was glued on, while held exactly vertical with another little steel block. It was also checked that the step were at a right angle to the stringers. This assembly was let dry thoroughly. Still between the two steel blocks as ‘jib’ the remaining steps were slotted in and fixed with a drop of lacquer.
Using the laser-cutting process ensured that the upper ends of the ladder had a uniformly rounded shape and the bottom was cut off at the correct angle to the deck.
 

Collection of stairs and ladders (the stairs are 4 to 5 mm wide)
 
The stairs were held in place (I assume) by shoes made from bronze. I cut out these shoes with the laser-cutter and attached them to the bottom end of the stringers. Eventually, they will be painted in bronze colour and glued to the deck.
The colour of the Canson-paper soaked in lacquer comes close to that of teak, from which they were made presumably on the prototype. However, the actual colour depends on the number of layers of shellac I happend to apply and varied at places. So I will have to spray-paint them eventually to also get an uniform sheen on the surface.
 

Assembly of ladders for the barbette
 
The barbette is provided with two ladders, that allow the crew to scramble in and out of it, while for more leisurely access there is a narrow stair leading down from the bridge area. The stringers of the ladders, presumably steel on the prototype, were also cut from Canson-paper with holes for the rungs marked by the laser, which were opened up with a cutting reamer to exactly the right size for the wire to be used as rungs. 
 

Trimming flush the rungs of the ladders using a pair of cutting-tweezers
 
After the trimming a second layer without perforations was laminated on.
The ladders eventually will be painted white as the inside of the barbette will be.
 
 
To be continued ....

Thanks again gentlemen !
 
Being myopic, there was a time, when I could just take off my glasses and didn't need to bother with any magnifying devices. Long gone. I am slowly moving on to stronger equipment. I have 2x magnifying safety glasses (which gives me together with my own 4.5 myopy a good magnification). Occassionally, I am using optivisors, but do not like them too much due to the short working distance. Some years ago I bought a set of magnifying telesopes as used by surgeons, but never really used them, because here the working distance is to large - they are meant to work standing over a patient, not for sitting at a work-bench. And then I got the stereo-microscope, which now that I adjusted it properly really like for working with the milling machine. It took the fear off of drilling 0.2 mm holes and you can properly watch what happens when milling tiny parts.

Reynard,
 
perhaps you might send send us a picture of the condition that you are describing.  As the saying goes, “One picture is worth a thousand words.”  One we better understand your problem I’m sure that you will get a response.  You can add a picture by clicking the Add Files below.  Once you have uploaded the picture, click the + sign on the box with the picture to add it to your post.
 
Roger

Yes, the loftsmen would need to know the frame disposition for a number of reasons, and of course the orientation of the frame in relation to the keel affects frame shape.
 
During the years when large wooden ships were routinely built there was great variety in building techniques, depending on tradition, environment, availability of materials, etc.
 
While there is a rich treasure of detailed construction information for British, some European and some American ships built in organized shipyards, much less is known about the construction techniques employed by artisans in the small yards.
 

Vaddoc,
 
Keep in mind that wooden ships were not actually built from plans.  A draught showing hull lines was drawn or a half model was carved.  A table of offsets, a digital table of xyz coordinates was then prepared fromthe drawing or model.  This table was then sent to the mould loft.  The loftsmen were experts at turning the offsets into a full sized “drawing” on the floor of the loft.  The actual full sized patterns of the frames were taken from the floor of the mould loft, not the drawings.
 
Roger

Chapman’s drawings were intended as a survey of hull forms; both to illustrate generic vessel types and more unusual foreign types.  Except where he actually shows structural details his projections would be intended to best show hull form, not actual framing.
 
The waterline is important to Naval Architects as other waterlines drawn parallel, stations drawn perpendicular to it, and especially buttocks based on these projections help them to visualize flow around the hull.  On the other hand there is no structural or construction reason why frames needed to be perpendicular to the  design waterline.  
 
There is also no important structural or construction reason why frames needed to be square with the keel.
 
My conclusion:  Frames in wooden ships were erected square with the keel except when they weren’t. 

Yes, the loftsmen would need to know the frame disposition for a number of reasons, and of course the orientation of the frame in relation to the keel affects frame shape.
 
During the years when large wooden ships were routinely built there was great variety in building techniques, depending on tradition, environment, availability of materials, etc.
 
While there is a rich treasure of detailed construction information for British, some European and some American ships built in organized shipyards, much less is known about the construction techniques employed by artisans in the small yards.
 

The results of my attempting to answer this question are inconclusive.
 
Here’s what I think that I know.
 
Wooden ships were built on keel blocks set up on a slight slope.  Maritime history researcher Eric Ronnberg says that this slope was typically 3 degrees.
 
William Carothers reinforces this conclusion in his book on American Packet Ships.  He explains a procedure where a setoff dimension was calculated for each frame.  With the plumb bob landing on this calculated distance from the frame heel the shipwrights would know that the frame was vertically square with the keel.
 
He then goes on to say that ships were not always built with the frames arranged vertically square to the keel.
 
I also have a book published in the early 1900’s where a marine surveyor named Carr discusses construction methods used in Great Lakes shipyards where vessels are side launched.  He points out that a great advantage of side launching is that it allows construction on a level area, unlike ships built elsewhere.
 
While I am confident that ships in American coastal yards were built on a declivity and not jacked up before launching, the question of disposition of frames relative to the keel is not clear.  (The jacking that did take place immediately prior to launch was only to transfer the weight of the vessel to the launch cradles.)
 
In his book, The Practical Shipbuilder, Author  Launchlan McKay, includes a drawing of a New York pilot boat, c1820.  These boats were built with considerable drag.  The stations on the lines drawing are not drawn square to the keel.  
 
McKay’s book also includes a procedure for making a lines drawing for a vessel with drag.  Without actually going through the process with pencil and paper I have been unable to follow it.  It’s on my to do list.
 
I’ll leave examination of British Admiralty draughts to others.  As far as American Practice goes, many of the lines drawings by Howard Chapelle were either developed from half models or by the British measuring captured American ships.  Many half models do not show station lines, and British techniques for taking off lines in a dry dock would not necessarily capture actual disposition of frames.  Chapelle, therefore, drew his lines to illustrate the development of American hull forms, not necessarily to illustrate exact construction techniques.
 
This is an important topic as more and more ship modelers want to build models that display actual construction.  Hopefully this thread will inspire more discussion.
 
Roger
 
 

I am ham handed enough that I can (and have) destroy(ed) almost any hand tool.  Here’s my take on the Japanese saws.  They require careful use!  If you are used to conventional saws and try to push these you can buckle the blade.  Personal experience!  This is not necessarily a reason not to buy one, you just have to master the technique.
 
You don’t say what kind of cuts that you are trying to make but other choices might be a coping Saw, or a Zona razor saw. Both of these can be used with blades with different tooth counts.  
 
 

Yes, the loftsmen would need to know the frame disposition for a number of reasons, and of course the orientation of the frame in relation to the keel affects frame shape.
 
During the years when large wooden ships were routinely built there was great variety in building techniques, depending on tradition, environment, availability of materials, etc.
 
While there is a rich treasure of detailed construction information for British, some European and some American ships built in organized shipyards, much less is known about the construction techniques employed by artisans in the small yards.
 

The other difference is that U505 is currently in Chicago and U534 is not.  It's in England.

The ZONA fine razor saw comes in 42 teeth per inch (and fewer).
 
Some woodworkers use them for cutting dovetails.
 
They're inexpensive ($10 to $15) and work well.

The results of my attempting to answer this question are inconclusive.
 
Here’s what I think that I know.
 
Wooden ships were built on keel blocks set up on a slight slope.  Maritime history researcher Eric Ronnberg says that this slope was typically 3 degrees.
 
William Carothers reinforces this conclusion in his book on American Packet Ships.  He explains a procedure where a setoff dimension was calculated for each frame.  With the plumb bob landing on this calculated distance from the frame heel the shipwrights would know that the frame was vertically square with the keel.
 
He then goes on to say that ships were not always built with the frames arranged vertically square to the keel.
 
I also have a book published in the early 1900’s where a marine surveyor named Carr discusses construction methods used in Great Lakes shipyards where vessels are side launched.  He points out that a great advantage of side launching is that it allows construction on a level area, unlike ships built elsewhere.
 
While I am confident that ships in American coastal yards were built on a declivity and not jacked up before launching, the question of disposition of frames relative to the keel is not clear.  (The jacking that did take place immediately prior to launch was only to transfer the weight of the vessel to the launch cradles.)
 
In his book, The Practical Shipbuilder, Author  Launchlan McKay, includes a drawing of a New York pilot boat, c1820.  These boats were built with considerable drag.  The stations on the lines drawing are not drawn square to the keel.  
 
McKay’s book also includes a procedure for making a lines drawing for a vessel with drag.  Without actually going through the process with pencil and paper I have been unable to follow it.  It’s on my to do list.
 
I’ll leave examination of British Admiralty draughts to others.  As far as American Practice goes, many of the lines drawings by Howard Chapelle were either developed from half models or by the British measuring captured American ships.  Many half models do not show station lines, and British techniques for taking off lines in a dry dock would not necessarily capture actual disposition of frames.  Chapelle, therefore, drew his lines to illustrate the development of American hull forms, not necessarily to illustrate exact construction techniques.
 
This is an important topic as more and more ship modelers want to build models that display actual construction.  Hopefully this thread will inspire more discussion.
 
Roger