canoe21

Earlier than my steering wheel endeavor I had fabricated the cat heads and installed the chainplates. All of the deck furniture remains only temporarily placed for context.
 


 


 
Funny thing about the deadeyes - they don't want to stand upright, as in the photos. They lay over, free on their pivot pins...
 
And last, but not least, thank you to all those who've 'liked' my updates!
 
Cheers,
 
Elia

The model is almost finished ......
Mauro

The dory fleet continues to grow ........
Mauro
 

Here is my small fleet of Dory! It will build 8 but in the model it'll only be 4 or 6, the most well-made.
Mauro

The deck beams are coming along.  The pattern on the plans is odd in at least one place.  The photo 9-13-13B of the deck beam locations has a black arrow showing  what I mean.  This may be a result of one of the refurbishments made since she was originally launched.  There are also more typical uses of heavy beams, narrow beams, carlings and ledges, lodging knees and hanging knees.  The mast partners are relatively simple designs.  The hanging knees are in fact hanging standards as they fay to the bottom of the beams, not the sides of the beams.
 
I added a few of the knees where I plan to leave a bit of the deck uncovered.  I am also installing the after cabin bulkheads and deck as I may leave the sliding cover open.  There will also be a ladder going from the weather deck down  to the cabin deck.  
 
Allan
 
 

The hull planking is on and first sanding complete.  Hand sanding to a fine finish will be next.  I left a section of planking off to expose the framing, but I have decided against installing most of the below deck items inside the hull.  I left a little DNA on the keelson after a little slip of a chisel, so there is no denying who built this thing.
 
I put in a few inside planks for strength and the two mast steps are in place.  The deck frames are started.  There are a few carlings where there are deck structures and to set up the masts' partners.  Once the deck is framed the stanchions and bulwarks will follow.
 
Allan

A bit of progress on Effie. The deck is planked and scraped, but needs a bit of trimming around the various deck openings.  With no top timbers on the frames, sanding and scraping the deck planking was easier than when there are bulwarks or top timber framing in place.
 
There are stanchions between frames versus having top timbers on the frames. The frames stop at the same height as the top of the deck beams so the stanchions will be the support for the bulwark planking. 
 
When framing the model I placed small blocks between frames to give added strength.  Coincidentally, these act as a stop for the stanchions.  I have drawn these blocks in red on the attached.
 
I have started fitting filler decking pieces between the stanchions to close in the decking around the stanchions as shown on the photo.
 
Allan

I was out today.......I got the wrong thickness wood......1/8 instead of 3/16.  bad guess on my part.   I also had a closer look at the light kit and almost had a heart attack......they want $70.00 for it!   I looked at the piecing out the parts,  and walked out of there spending $37.00.
     I'll show you what I got soon.
 
you never know John.....what was meant for one thing,  can be fashioned and altered for something else.

Hi, She's finished. Last bits to do were the anchors which were silver and soft soldered together from bits of copper.

 

 

 

 
here she is.

 
Thanks for looking!

Keith, I had Chapelle’s book in my hand the whole time I did the rigging. (It’s hard to rig with one hand.) There is a lot of information in the last half of the book, but you need to be a scholar to dig it out.  We of poor brains need to go through it over and over and then go through it again.  In one place he talks about the gaff and how this or that is done, then when he talks about the cross tree there will be information, in writing or in picture, about the gaff that was not mentioned before.  I tried to make a table of contents for the rigging.  There are at least 17 different places that have to do with the mast, 6 for the booms, 5 for the fife rail, and any one of those may turn on the light bulb.  Feel free to ask questions.  I’ll be here.
 
Bedford, Thanks for the complement but it will never sail like your three master.
 
Elia,   If she were as beautiful as your Arethusa she would at least have a case.  Glad the pictures help.  Like I told Keith and I’ll tell anyone If I can help, ask.
 
Thanks Popeye. (although with the new avatar you are more of a Denis.) The wind blows past the door not into it. I hope. I hope. I hope.
 
And thanks for the many “LIKES”.
 
Bob

How do I answer so many? Let me answer the questions and for the well-wishers, thank you, thank you, and thank you.
 
Keith here are some pictures of the top sails, the rigging was taken from Chapelle’s book “The American Fishing Schooner”.  The top sail is held tight at the peak and clew, but the tack is brought down on what appears to be the wrong side of the gaff, this is to hold the loose tack close to the mast instead of flying out.  There are two ways to rig the top sails.  The most used seems to be single halyards with the main top on one side and the main top on the other.  The other which I used is with double halyards so the sails can be set so they do not rub against the peak halyard.  To put the sail over it must be bundled and passed over the peak halyard and reset on the other side.  For the main top sail clew there is only one halyard, so I used a cheek block on the gaff.  The fore top sail need to be brought between the spring lines also.  To aid in this there is a clew line that goes around the edge of the sail and bundles it against the top mast where it can be pulled through by the halyard.  I did not add the clew line.  The clew requires two halyards, so a double block is used at the gaff peak.  There are two sheets attached to the tack the one in use holds it on the windward side of the gaff.  The other goes up next to the sail, over and to the outside of the peak halyard lines, then down under the peak halyard lines and over the gaff to be belayed on the other side.
 

 

 

 

 
 
The lady in question, (Admiral, Wife, “She who must be obeyed”) is disabled and wanted it where she could see it all day.  So it is in front of a mirror, on her special table, just inside the front door, with no case.  So be it.
 

 
 
The launch I am looking for is a Victorian clipper bow excursion boat.  Could be steam powered.
 
I don’t foresee another schooner in my future but who knows. 
 
The difference between the cod fisher and a mackerel seine schooner (as it turns out this is neither) is the cod schooner would be carrying several dories on board.  The cod is a large fish and are fished for by men in the dories and when brought on board, are cleaned laid out in the hold and salted, and kept there until the hold is full.  Mackerel are smaller fish and are caught in a net (seine).  A boat called a seine boat takes the net out in a large circle and brings it to the schooner where the fish are brought aboard, cleaned and packed in barrels with brine. 
 
Bob
 

I like the new avatar.  That’s the Popeye we all know and love.
 
Bob

Hello again,
 
Here is an update on my painful ratline education.   After numerous attempts, I just couldn't achieve anything remotely acceptable in terms of neatness or scale by tying knots, so I reverted to another method I had read about on MSW: sewing the thread directly through the shrouds.  I've been using a course waxed black thread for the standing rigging, so it was relatively easy to pierce the shrouds with a small needle and fine beige thread that I'd run through beeswax.   I then put a tab of clear flat lacquer on each of the joints and, after it dried, clipped off the excess thread. Finally, I dabbed some flat black paint on the ends of the beige thread.   This worked reasonably well, if not quite up to the normal standard of this section of MSW, and the mainmast ratlines are now done.   Please see the attached pictures.
 
Now it's on to various deck fittings, foremast ratlines, final adjustments of the sails and rigging and, finally, the name.
 
Rick
 
 
 
 
 
 

Hello again:
 
I'm in the process of working on the standing rigging and doing a lot of little things that needed fixing or completion.  Parrel balls were added to the gaffs and booms, which I think look all right.  I've also completed running backstays on the mainmast.
 
In trying to create a boat underway with the sails drawing wind, it's important to have the mainsheets stiffened, which I do with cc (although I'm extremely allergic to it and can only use it very rarely and with strict safety precautions).  While the cc works well to stiffen the sheets, it leaves them shiny.  I tried eliminating the shine with flat clear acrylic but as can be seen in the picture, it didn't work very well.  If anyone knows a better way of doing this, I'd love to hear it.
 
I've started doing ratlines for the first time, a tedious and humbling experience.   This first set is really both an experiment and learning experience.  I hate the way they look at this point but till reserve judgment until this set is finished;  I'll probably end up doing it over again, avoiding the first-time mistakes. 
 
I've attached some pictures of the above. Comments and suggestion as always welcome.
 
Rick

Thank you, Michael, Bob, Elia, and Pete.  Mark, I too have noticed that the further back I stand, the better it looks (reminds me of a great line from "Tootsie").
 
Elia: Let me add a couple of things to what I said about sails on in the new-members' page.  But first, what is the schooner pictured on your profile?  She's a real beauty.
 
In order to counter the effects of gravity, in addition to reinforcing the edges of the sails with wire (see, for example, the fisherman's staysail, where all but the luff are stiffened), I also use very fine stainless steel wire to help the sails "stand up" the way they would when drawing wind.  So on this model, both the jib and the jib topsail have such wires.  They're obvious close up but beyond six or eight feet they almost invisible and, at a couple of thousand miles, completely invisible!  See the attached picture.
 
To get the gaff topsails to stand out from the gaff, the sheets are supported by heavier wire painted the same colour as the sheet.  The attached picture of the main gaff topsail shows this -- it also shows that the sheet got beaten up in the process and is now on my rapidly growing list of things to correct or do again. 
 
As I work on and shift the boat around, the shape of various sails often needs adjusting.  If they can be taken off, the ironing method of course works well; if they can't be removed, then a portable hair dryer on low speed can be effective.
 
I'm currently working on shrouds and ratlines -- a humbling if educational experience -- and so have the fisherman's staysail off.  I've attached a picture to show it like this.
 
Many thanks again.
 
Rick
 
 
 
 
 

Hello Again:
 
Having only joined MSW a couple of weeks ago, I don't have many pictures of the build up to that point.  However, here are a few which show the partially-painted hull, the masts with topmasts added, gaff temporarily in place in order to begin the process of deciding the size and shape of the main, the mainsail  temporarily in place, and the main and foresail, which was progress to early January.  Late January through to the present was a process of designing, making and temporarily rigging, adjusting and fixing, the rest of the sails, the current state of which can be seen in the last two pictures. 
 
Not knowing if the builder had intended it to be a scale model of an actual vessel (but believing he had not) and not having any plans was, in a sense, liberating: I could simply try to design the most attractive rig possible.  So what you see in the pictures of its current state reflects my own sense of the Grand Banks fishing schooner rig, a bit of Bluenose (which we Canadians grow up with because it's on our ten-cent piece), Gertrude Thebaud, Columbia, and other attractive schooners of which I could find pictures.  Thanks to our PVR, I also stumbled upon a great source of actual film footage of the Gloucester fishing fleet in the 1935 production of Kipling's Captains Courageous: it's filled with absolutely wonderful shots of these beautiful schooners on all points of sail, with many different sail combinations, and in different weather conditions (it's also a great story and film!). 
 
While my sense of the boat evolved as I made progress, right from the outset I've been trying to achieve the look of a working boat with beaten-up sails; this also harmonized with the look of the hull after almost 50 years in a garage, even after repair and painting.  Hence, six of the sails were made from an old piece of sailcloth, and I'm working on the main and foresail (made from cloth in a kit) to give them more of a weathered look.  The last two pictures above, both of which are partially backlit, show the overall effect with the varied colours and imperfections.
 
I've now started shrouds and ratlines -- a daunting prospect, on which I'll be seeking help -- and there are still many, many other small things to adjust, fix and add. 
 
Suggestions and comments welcome.
 
Rick
 
 
 
 

Here are some close-up shots of the various sails as well as the current state of the whole rig taken in indirect early-morning light.   Given the fine work so evident on MSW, I put these up with some trepidation and with the reminder that I'm aiming for the overall effect of the rig, viewed from a distance of eight feet or more.
 
Comments, observations and suggestions all welcome.
 
Rick

yes Nenad.......it more fitting     I have another one I found that looks really cool,  but it doesn't fit either.  so,  I went back to what fits better.
 
anyway.....I promised I'd show you what I scored in my recent scavenger hunt.   as I mentioned,  the lighting kit was about $70.00.....I should have looked closer the first time.   I wouldn't have been so shocked.   I decided to go piece meal with it to save a little.   first,  the transformer for $19.99.
 

 
this will attach to the bus board that I got for $9.99.   I'm going to take a close look at this,  because if I can do it,  I want to cut this down to about 3 or 4 outlets.   the rest will be hardwired in the hull,  for the lights that have plugs already on them.  I'll cement the plugs in place,  so they don't fall out with time.
 

 
I found the website.......these are exclusive to Hobby Lobby.   they don't carry any of the metal parts for them.........if I can do what I want to do,  all I will need is solder and heat shrink tubing.   I also picked up a package of outlets and these really cool bulbs,  that are supposed to flicker.   they will be perfect to set up near the windows.
 

 
as far as the wood goes,  I didn't go back to get the correct thickness.   I took some 1/16 &  1/32 flat stock and glued it together.......it's being pressed as we speak.   I'll see how this works out when I trace and cut them.

I was in and out most of the day today.   I did manage to do something with this today......hopefully more this evening.   circles........I think I found a suitable circle template to use
 

 
this template comes from the Mary Ann......I forget what purpose they served in the build.  I like to keep some of these shapes.    you never know when they will come in handy.  
 

 
then there are the port and starboard cap rails.   they need to be trimmed and shaped to fit the bulwarks,  and then a transom rail can be fitted.  there are two portholes that will be located in the hull for the bow cabin below the fore deck,  that I still need to drill.  with these two obstacles out of the way,   then maybe I can get on with the pain of masking this bad girl,  and do some paint 
 
 

Final update !!!!!
 
She's finished......
A long journey but a wonderful one.
Thank you all for the comments and likes, helpful tips, pointing out the mistakes to me and more of that funny stuf   
It was a pleasure for me to build her  and to share it with you all !
The time has come to dust off the Agamemnon and go on with her.
 
Thank you all again 
 
Sjors
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Here is our own private fleet.
San Ildefonso, Corsair and the Albatros

Hello all,
Im not one to post, to much non ship related info..but........
 
vacation was fabulous, needed and enjoyable, looking forward to returning to the USA, not done anything with the ship this week catching up on all my friends builds,
 
I was in two minds about putting the Victory in a case, but while I was a way, I recived a mfsg from my son " to contact him urgent" as we were five hours behind made it a little hard as were were at theame parks allday.
But court up with him, I thought he had crashed the new company van.. NO.... hs wanded to tell us we are going to be grandparents !!.. our first ( mind you im not 40 yet), next year. Lol..
 
What a great early birthday and Christmas present.

Well hello Lawrence, good to hear from you again and thanks for dropping in.  Yes, I guess I'm adding more things to this build then initially intended but I like the way she is turning out.  Right now she is put on the back burner in favor of de model of my father's submarine, the O 19.  Sooner or later I'll get back on the VOC ship Surabaya.
 
Cheers, 

Hello Lawrence, thank yo for visiting the Surabaya shipyard.  Yes, pretty soon I'll remove the towels from her and resume work.  I may have mentioned it before but there is also a connection with the Surabaya, my father and father in law, Gwen's dad.
That's why it has to be a fictitious model and not of an existing ship of the VOC.  The details from this point on like the masts, yards and rigging will have to be close to how it was at that time.
 
Stay tuned,
 
Cheers,

What a great time of the year, not only the holidays, but all the college football games.  I’m not going to get much done on this build for the next three weeks.   I did manage however to clean up the bulkheads and dry fit them, that’s when I found out #14 (third from end) was bad.  You can see in the first picture #14 is not big enough.  So it was back to the drawing board, so to speak, I use DraftSight, and I did find the error.   Picture two shows both #14 bulkheads and then how the new part lines up.
 
And with that I’ll say Merry Christmas to all, with wishes for a great 2014.
 
Bob
 

 

 

 

Finally!  I made sawdust today.  I cut the parts out on the skill saw now I need to go back and sand to the line, but it feels good to get started.  I should mark the date somewhere, like in the records of ships where you see, “KEEL LAID ON:” Dec 18, 2013.
 
I decided to go POB for this boat.  You can see my CAD drawing on letter size paper in the picture.  The box with the 2” inside gives me the size to enlarge to.  If anyone wants a copy let me know.
 
Bob