Chuck

Yupp!!! Thats why I am sticking with what I am using. But it was just interesting to see that some of these big museums are switching over. Its just getting tougher and tougher to find good linen and cotton material to work with.

That is some great looking rope you have made there. I am also someone that has been biased by tradition and try to only use natural materials for my rope. Silk is OK but it is too shiny for me and very slippery so it tends to unravel after you make it. In some instances it unravels quite a bit like morerope. But I suspect you have experienced that too especially on the larger ropes. I was quite surprised about 4 months ago however with the prevailing thought about only using linen or cotton for scale ropes. I was hired by a major well known museum in Europe (I wont mention their name) to make several thousand feet of rope for them. They were going to use it to restore a contemporary model....and also to rig a newer model. But they told me they have now decided that polyester scale ropes are being used from this point forward because of its longevity and its crispness and beauty. It really lays up like real rope. They have (like all of us) been unable to find good quality linen or even cotton that isnt fuzzy or lumpy or that requires custom dying. The custom dying opens up a whole host of other issues for them. So anyway, they specified polyester rope made the same way I make my other rope which they have purchased many times before. But this time they also specified the brand and color they wanted for the polyester thread I was to use. It does unravel like mad.....just like morope....BUT they are aware of this and use a conservatoires glue that is used to stop fragile textiles from fraying and deteriorating on it before they cut it. They seemed to have a whole plan set up for now accepting the use of this material. Below is a photo of some of that rope I made for them. Its beautiful and I like its appearance and handling more than the rope I sell. I even considered switching to it for all of my rope. But then I thought model builders wouldnt get used to how it unravels.....it really unravels if you dont glue or burn the ends. Just thought I would share that while you are making your experiments. There are actually two colors they specified for all running rigging. Both are in the photo. No fuzz and no lumps and it laid up the best I could have asked for.

In some instances the buildboard may be slightly thinner than 1/4". In these cases you should sand the bottom tabs of each frame so that your frame sits down onto the buildboard. It shouldnt be higher. This will happen if your frame tabs stick out on the bottom of the build board a little. Just sand them down flush. Hope that helps.

They may be out of business.....will try and contact tex. But I am pretty sure the site no longer exists..

I never serve the block strop. To much of a finicky detail for me.

Starting rigging... The boom was rigged first. But before I started I knew I would need two 1/4" single blocks set up with hooks. See below. One is for the boom and the other is for the gaff. So I made these first. They were stropped with .025 light brown rope. The hook was made with 22 gauge black wire. I also used a thimble but this is optional. I know they are a pain to make but if you want to give it a go, use some 1/16" brass tube to make them. The photo shows the blocks without a coat of wipe on poly..... Making thimbles if you want to give it a try. Just use a small punch to lightly tap both sides so they flare out. Then blacken them. With those done, I started rigging the boom by adding the topping lift first. I used .025 light brown line. It was seized to the outboard end of the boom. Then it was brought up to one of those blocks hooked to the mast. See below. Then the loose end was brought down to the aft belaying pin on the starboard side. I set the angle of the boom I thought looked good and then secured the line to the belaying pin on the thwart. But it isnt glued on permanently yet. It will absolutely need adjusting and retensioning as I progress. So I left it extra long with no glue for now. I probably wont use any glue at all. But remember I will be rigging it with sails after I I rig it first without sails. So I will need to be able to undo all of these lines and readjust them later. You can see that second block on the mast hanging which is for the gaff peak halliard later. So to finish off the boom rigging, I added the main sheet which is shown below. Two 1/4" single blocks were used. One lashed to the boom and another seized to the horse. The sheet was run between both using .018 light brown rope. The loose end was made fast to the horse and left extra long again. No glue being used yet. Once the shrouds and stays are added everything will be retensioned.

Great progress. All of your joints look clean and crisp.

And dont forget that in the topic with all the Medway downloads you will find a PD with all of the spiled plank templates. Your model looks really great. Awesome job on the planking.

Here is a downloadable PDF full size of the rigging plan. This is without sails for those who wish to rig it this way. I have omitted the sizes of ropes and blocks as this will all be explained in the instructions. Its a simple rig and this way those notations wont crowd the paths of the rigging on the plan sheet. I am releasing as a download also because I know there may be folks who would prefer not to pay for a masting and rigging package especially after so few items are needed that you might already have. I will do the same with the sail plan. This will hopefully help those in other countries where the shipping would be ridiculous to send a plan sheet and mast material in a mailing tube. But I will offer it of course for those who still want to buy all the parts in cedar and use my rigging blocks and rope which will be part of the rigging kit. let me know if you have any questions about the rigging plan. The mast blank is 20" long and will be expensive to ship internationally even though its very light. 26ftlaunchsheetonehalfsheet3.pdf

Time for sticks and strings!!!😄 I finished up the boom, gaff and bowsprit today. Nothing unusual to report and its just more of the same. Square stock was rounded off like the mast. The gaff has laser cut jaws that need to be attached. Then a few eyebolts were added to follow the plans. The boom has a hook made from 18 gauge copper wire (blackened) on its inboard end. There is also an eyebolt. The bowsprit has a sheave on its outboard end which is typical and it was simulated the same way that was used when making them on the mast. So now I am ready start with the strings. I added the horse under the tiller which is typical for the period and as has been discussed numerous times. This not only follows the two contemporary models that are fully rigged but also contemporary rigging plans. One great example can be found I believe on page 80 of mays book. The horse was made from 1/16" brass rod (blackened). And lastly a photo before I start rigging. The Boom and Gaff will be rigged first while the there is more room. Then the shrouds and stays will be done afterwards. I have also uploaded the rigging plan (without sails). Chuck

Yupp!!! But this is all stuff that just wouldnt look right on a model in my opinion. I m sure it was all used, but its just as important for a model builder to decide what not to include in order to make a better model. It would just look very odd indeed. As I have mentioned several times previously...the "kitchen sink" method of model building is not my thing. But it does open up possibilities for others if they like that sort of thing. Especially when there is so much primary evidence of this stuff. The hard part would be getting enough details of how these items looked to be able to model them properly however.

Nope!!

I would agree that the two heads are a bit much but if you take a look at the contemporary model for Surly it does show two heads at the stern. This is what I used for my model. Its not a locker because it has a hole just like the Starboard side which would make for messy stuff keep in there if it was meant to be a locker. Those two other features you highlighted on the plan were also a mystery to me. But they are not the heads. I originally thought they might be for a portable mast that could be set up on either side of the boom. That they were wooden crutches with iron straps to hold the mast back there in position.....But thats just my guess. They would stretch across the two stern frames adjacent to the heads. I opted to just not show this feature. But they are also visible on the inboard sheer draft. There are quite a few unidentifiable weird things going on and depicted at the stern on this draft. I chose instead to duplicate the Surly contemporary model rather than guess what is going on back there. Check ot the other features........some crazy stuff.

Make an entirely new channel with the deadeyes spaced properly to avoid the guns yet still be in its original position. It should be easy enough to make. Just trace the channel and make new slots for the deadeye positions. Chuck

I use a brush to apply and a clean brush to wipe or buff it off afterwards. Use a cheap brush unless you want to clean them....I usually buy a bag of cheapo brushes for kids crafts and dump them when I am done.

Looks great Rusty....great to see the progress!!! 😊

You are correct.....no char left is the way to go. More sanding

Nope...not too easily which is why I didnt do it. Chuck

Continuing with the main mast. I painted the areas of the mast red or black to suit. Then I simulated the mast bands with black masking tape. The tape was cut into strips 1/16" wide and wrapped around the mast a few times to get the correct thickness. Before anyone asks how thick.....just until it looks right. Not too heavy. I wrapped around twice and it was plenty. Then I used some rusty brown weathering powder to make it look different than the painted mast and more like metal. I will only use brass or actual metal when absolutely necessary. In this case it isnt needed. Then I finally made some eyebolts using 22 gauge black wire. I drilled holes through the bands and inserted the eyebolts. I also ran some pencil over the sheaves I made on the mast to make them look different and stand out a bit more. and a close up view.... At the base of the mast, it was painted red up to the band there. This band was made the same way but this time 3/32" wide tape was used. The eyebolt was made using 20 gauge brass wire blackened afterwards. I cant find pre-blackened 20 gauge wire. The mast isnt permanently stepped yet but the mast is now completed. I will now make the boom and gaff.... I also made the 7mm deadyes that we will need for the model. These are just like the kits I offer. Three layers are glued together.....then I remove most of the char from the outside. To finish them up I throw the in my block tumbler to soften and round off the edges. Not to long though...or they will get funky. These are boxwood and not cedar. The cedar is too soft to make these. You can see four deadeyes that were released from the spru with no sanding or laser char removal. The other group is ready to go but no finish has been applied yet. Any questions please dont hesitate to ask.

Its up to you....Whatever you are more comfortable with. I tapered them ahead of time but then touched up the entire assembly afterwards.

Have fun with project....looking forward to seeing you get started.

It wont really cause issues. They play on the baseboard slots was done on purpose. Just do your best to center them. When you fair the hull it will make up for any small issues. Keep going...... Chuck

Really Nice Ben....

It looks very good indeed!!! You finished all the pain in the butt stuff. Its all fun stuff from here on out. Also a lot quicker.

Just buy a whle roll of every size available on ebay. Sunset amnesia I believe is the name. Its great stuff. And cheap.