JerseyCity Frankie

Thanks all^
 
Frankie I checked out your website.  Beautiful paintings, and ships!
 
Does anyone know: Is there a forum on this site for bottled ships? 

I started plotting the frame section lines. The drawing numbers the frames with frame 0 at the steering position. Frames 1 to 38 are forward of the steering position and frames -1 to -7 aft of it. It's a bit slow going but I am making progress. I have commandeered the dining room table - somewhat warmer than the workshop at present and my wife can find me more easily. The Christmas table cloth hasn't been removed yet. My draughting arrangements are somewhat basic, MDF for drawing board, my woodworkers square, dividers, french curves and a much overused eraser. Oh! and a laptop to give the impression of sophistication.

Never the less it seems to work and the bow sections are coming out well. I will publish PDF's of the sections in a later post. 
 

 
 
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I have neglected ship modelling for too long and my New Years resolution is to get started on a new build. So here we go.
 
I wanted to build another classic early 20th century schooner but found sourcing decent plans very difficult. This in part was the reason for not starting a build earlier.  After many hours spent on the web I decided I could get together enough information to build a decent representation of Germania (either in her original form or as the recently built reproduction). So Germania sort of chose me rather than me choosing her.
 
Because I found getting early 20th century plans so difficult I though would document (through this log) enough information for others to build her should they so wish. So I will include PDF files and dimensioned sketches as I go.
 
And so to a bit of background:-
 
The first Germania (designed by Max Oertz in 1905) was conceived as a racing yacht and built for Dr Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, a German businessman and industrialist who used her to promote his steel business among the social elite. In her first year she won Cowes Week with a new course record and often raced against Kaiser Wilhelm’s Meteor IV, although, rather diplomatically, that was one yacht Germania never beat.
 
In one year alone, she won more than half of the regattas she entered and her winning streak only came to an end due the outbreak of World War I. Seized as a prize of war, she was sold on several times, ending her days in the US. In 1930 she foundered in a storm off Key Biscayne; she now forms Florida’s Seventh State Underwater Archaeological Preserve.
 
Germania Nova is 60 metre gaff-rigged schooner : a replica of the classic 1908 Germania, using the same hull lines, deck- and sail-plans. She was built as a super yacht by Factoria Naval Marina in 2011. The two yachts look identical with the exception of modern electronic / navigation equipment.
 
Fortunately a lot of photos are available which I will insert in the build as I go. Here is a taster:-
 

Plenty of opportunity here for nice wood and metalwork.
 
This has the potential to be a big model. I like larger scales and in choosing a scale I was minded to do a comparison with Altair (previous build). Hence the following chart:-

I'd really like to build at the same scale as Altair but I don't think the house controller would put up with it. So 1:36 it is. It is still however some 16 inch (30%) longer than Altair. I will enter sizing negotiations once it is too late to change.
 
I won't be cutting wood for some time as the next image is the best I can do for hull lines. It does not look too bad at this scale but when blown up the lines lack definition. It will take some effort to convert this into cutting templates for frames.
So I now need to find my drawing implements - bought for my first post apprenticeship job in the Rolls Royce Design Office in 1975.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

HM Bark Endeavour - Finished!
1 year, 4 months, 10 days, 664 hours
 
I put in a lot of hours since my last major post, and completed the model on Dec. 30. Here are some photos.

Anchors
Since July I've had the main anchors lashed to the channels. When I attached the second set of anchors I decided that the model would look better with the main anchors hanging. That's how they're displayed on my Syren. After a bit of deconstruction I hung them from the cathead. I like them much better this way.
 
Anchor buoy lashed to the first shroud
Fore and main masts

Main and mizzen masts
 
Rigging Problems
The kit has two plans for running rigging. Plan 7 is mostly lifts and the plan 8 is mostly braces. I started with plan 7 and rigged all the lifts, working fore-to-aft. All of those lines belayed to many of the pins, eyes, and cleats shown on the deck plan. I tried to follow AOTS for attachment points.
 
Then I opened plan 8 and started rigging the braces fore-to-aft. It turns out that plan 8 shows many lines belayed to the same points as plan 7, so I started using unused points nearby. By the time I got to the mizzen mast I had totally run out of deck eyes and mast cleats to belay to. There were line cleats attached to each of the mizzen shrouds, but they were totally unused on the plans. I ended up rigging some of the mizzen braces to those shrouds. They're probably incorrect but it was all I could do at that point. Please don't tell the admiral.




Bow with jack

Stern with Ensign
 
Flag Problems
I bought the jack, ensign, and commissioning pennant from Cornwall Model Boats. They are made by BECC in the UK and are perfectly sized and beautifully made, but he fabric material is very soft and hangs limply. I experimented with several products to make them hold a wavy shape  - spray starch, white glue, and polyurethane spray. Nothing worked very well so I ended up washing everything out of the ensign and starting over. Luckily the paint is waterproof. I ended up putting a couple of coats of clear shellac on each flag, crumpling them up, and putting them aside to dry. Then I held them in front of my electric workshop heater and worked them into shape. Even the easy things are hard.
 
Case
I designed and built a case for an old Model Shipways Flying Fish a few years ago, and later scaled the design for my Syren. The Endeavour has nearly the same height and width as the Syren but is 2 inches shorter, so this rescale was easy. I have ordered five pieces of plexiglass cut to size for an Endeavour case and will start cutting wood today.
 
It looks like my wife and I will be moving to Asheville, North Carolina soon, so I need to get this ship in a case before the move. Pictures to follow.
 
 

I'm sorry, but time prevents me getting a drawing done, scanned and posted at the moment. I'll try for a simplified version of my description of the jig. I've amended it slightly, as well, as you will see.
 
Imagine a small block of metal, at least a quarter inch thick and two inches square.
 
The following dimensions will vary depending upon the size of shackle you want.
 
It has two holes drilled in it. Their diameters are the same as the ends of the shackle you want to make. The distance between the far edges of the two holes is the same as the length of the piece of wire you want to make the shackle out of.
 
On one side of the metal block is a "U" shaped slot machined in the face of the block, running between the two holes and in line with their centers. The depth of the slot would be the diameter of the wire you are using to make the shackle. Looking at it from the side of the metal block with the groove, the two holes and the slot would look something like a weight-lifting dumbbell.
 
To use it, the piece of wire that is to become the shackle is cut to the length of the distance between the far edges of the two holes and annealed.  it is then laid on a flat anvil (or any other piece of metal.) and the block of metal with the groove facing downward is placed on top of anvil and the piece of wire so that the wire is held in place by the groove between the outer edges of the two holes and at the bottom of the holes. Looking down at the bottoms of the two holes, one would see the wire ends running straight across the bottoms of the holes, in the same line as the groove. The metal block would then be held so the piece of wire was sandwiched between the anvil and the metal block.
 
A drift punch (or any piece of metal with a flat end matching the diameter of the holes) is placed in a hole and struck, flattening the end of the wire at the bottom of the hole to a flat circle the diameter of the hole. This would be repeated on the wire at the bottom of the other hole.  (This is the same process as hand-striking a coin.) This same process would then be repeated with a transfer punch matching the diameter of the holes. Lightly striking the transfer punch  would add a "center punch" dimple in the center of the end of the flattened end of the wire for accurately drilling the hole in the ends of the shackle.   The wire would be removed and holes drilled in the center (marked by the transfer punch) of the round flattened ends of the wire and the wire bent in half to form the shackle. The shackle pin would be made the same way, but only using a length of wire with one flattened circular shape at the end and a hole drilled in it.
 
Note that the pin of a shackle should be the same diameter as the shackle itself, so the same wire should be used for shackles and pins and the hole drilled in the ends of the shackle should be the same diameter as the wire used for both. If you were working in a larger scale and wanted to be really anal about it, the shackle and pin could be threaded using a tap and die, but allowances would have to be made for the threads which would require using a slightly larger size wire for the pin and a slightly larger hole drilled in the non-threaded end of the shackle. Without threads, a touch of CA adhesive on the "threaded" end of the pin will hold the pin in place forever and no one will be the wiser.
 
This is a transfer punch below. They are used to mark the exact center of holes in the base of a piece when you want to fasten it to another piece.  They are sold in progressively sized sets, like drill bits, and are relatively inexpensive.
 


I've not tried this technique described with the holes used as a sort of die to squash a perfectly round circle at the end of the shackle wire,  In the past, I've simply mashed it with a hammer and then filed to a rounded shape, but that is tedious work when a lot of shackles need to be made and, as most know, if you are working in a scale that permits shackles, there will usually be more of them than there are blocks. Below is a past effort of mine which I hope would be more refined if I'd done it today, but you can see what you get with this shackle-making method. In the below case, a 3/4" to the foot catboat of my own design, I left the shackles to develop their own patina, which has become a good imitation of weathered bronze at this point.
 

I am a  relatively new Bottled Ship builder. I started with a bunch of kits (thank you eBay and Jauce), now enjoying my own scratch builds much more.  Seen some incredible bottled ships by Igor on this site.
 
Looking forward to sharing my joys and sorrows of this great hobby:
Russian schooner heda
Marie Celeste
Fishing schooner Dauntless
Antelope of Boston Brig

Hi,
 
Thank you for all of the very kind comments, they are very much appreciated help me realise that perhaps I am not as mad as a hatter for doing this. 
 
Been a while, but I have been working away and trying to sort everything out that I need.
 
I have just had the laser cut files and photo etch arrive for me to start building the prototype for the cutter Alert (64th scale) - I have attached a pic of the very first dry fitting of parts (about 5 minutes after receiving the parcel..)
 
I originally turned the 6 pounder cannon and half pound swivel gun on the lath, for the masters. Then, I started researching further 3-d printing and better 3-d software packages. The cannon barrels are now 3-d printed (complete with motif). All other fittings which are usually 'off the shelf' types are also drawn in 3-d and then 3-d printed for the masters. I love this method, as it gives me complete control so that every fitting to each model can be bespoke, and match exactly what was on the real thing, rather than an approximation. Also, the octagonal drum winch was initially designed using many parts from both laser cut wood and photo etch, but was worried it would be a little too fiddly for some beginners, so I re-drawn the assembly as one piece and had it 3-d printed. I have drawn all hull, mast and rigging plans for Alert, including sail plans for those who with to rig her with sails.
 
I am not yet skilled enough to draw figureheads and other decoration in 3-d CAD, so have to sub-contract that work out. I did sell my beloved car (last weekend, in fact), so I now have some money to invest in the development and release of the first few kits (I hope). I can say that the next model will be a lot more ambitious than Alert, being roughly the same size as something like Vanguard.
 
As soon as kits are ready, they will be released.
 
Cheers,
 
Chris

Last year I was approached by Katya, a Teacher in a School in Murmansk. She asked if I could help her with some of my paintings of Russian Convoys, for a project she was doing with her pupils for the School Museum. She contacted me through the Dervish75 events which Greta and I Attended. Anyway, today I received a letter with a Christmas Card from her, along with the end result of the project. A small folder with photos of my paintings. It is to be used to promote the School's Museum.
A small thing but a little sign of friendship by the ordinary people of both Countries. Only the angry sensational stuff reaches the media, while us ordinary folk get on with life.
Jim

Thanks mark. Here’s one I did yesterday
Swordfish dropping a practice torpedo, aimed at the Paddle Minesweeper HMS Glen Avon. Off the coast of Fife near Crail. Glen Avon and Usk, both ex excursion steamers were taken up by the RN. Based for a while at Granton, they were often used as 'target ship' for aircraft from the torpedo school at HMS Jackdaw, RNAS Crail.
W/C 16” X 11” 
 

On smaller models, those with very small blocks,  my advice is to use wire to Strop the blocks, not thread.  Forming an eye in wire by twisting is very easy in comparison to trying to tie loop knots in thread and few will be able to notice it is wire not thread. Black Bead Stringing Wire can be purchased online or at craft stores.

On smaller models, those with very small blocks,  my advice is to use wire to Strop the blocks, not thread.  Forming an eye in wire by twisting is very easy in comparison to trying to tie loop knots in thread and few will be able to notice it is wire not thread. Black Bead Stringing Wire can be purchased online or at craft stores.

I just returned from the Mystic Seaport Museum and they’ve got a great Franklin Expedition exhibit that’s full of artifacts and this nice model.

On smaller models, those with very small blocks,  my advice is to use wire to Strop the blocks, not thread.  Forming an eye in wire by twisting is very easy in comparison to trying to tie loop knots in thread and few will be able to notice it is wire not thread. Black Bead Stringing Wire can be purchased online or at craft stores.

On smaller models, those with very small blocks,  my advice is to use wire to Strop the blocks, not thread.  Forming an eye in wire by twisting is very easy in comparison to trying to tie loop knots in thread and few will be able to notice it is wire not thread. Black Bead Stringing Wire can be purchased online or at craft stores.

On smaller models, those with very small blocks,  my advice is to use wire to Strop the blocks, not thread.  Forming an eye in wire by twisting is very easy in comparison to trying to tie loop knots in thread and few will be able to notice it is wire not thread. Black Bead Stringing Wire can be purchased online or at craft stores.

I just returned from the Mystic Seaport Museum and they’ve got a great Franklin Expedition exhibit that’s full of artifacts and this nice model.

I just returned from the Mystic Seaport Museum and they’ve got a great Franklin Expedition exhibit that’s full of artifacts and this nice model.

I just returned from the Mystic Seaport Museum and they’ve got a great Franklin Expedition exhibit that’s full of artifacts and this nice model.

I just returned from the Mystic Seaport Museum and they’ve got a great Franklin Expedition exhibit that’s full of artifacts and this nice model.

Got the port side cannons mounted, tackles installed, rope coils down and tackle ends connected to the coils. It took much longer than I had estimated. It takes a good deal of concentration and dexterity to get those small hooks onto the even smaller eyebolts. I am glad I mounted the eyebolts while installing the bulwarks. I am not sure I would have had the dexterity to mount them at this point. I noticed more than a few places where the paint on the carronades has been chipped off but think I will wait a bit more before trying to touch them up. I fear there will be more opportunities for this kind of damage.
 
I got the yellow lettering from Woodland Scenics and got the name on the stern. I may have to try and redo the "N" - bottom part of left leg is missing. I think I will leave the bow lettering until after the armament is finished. Those are going to be pretty small letters following the plans. May have to think about how to meet the intent if not the letter of the plans.
 
On to the starboard side!

All seventeen of the carronades have been mounted to their skids and the associated hardware installed. I need to make up the gun tackles (40 more sets of 1/8" single with becket and 1/8" double blocks) so I can get these secured to their platforms.
 
Here is the port side long gun next to the already mounted carronade. Have to make up the tackles along with those of the carronades. Still working on assembly of the stbd side long gun. (I know the gun looks somewhat "out of square" but that is caused by the camera. The gun is pretty well square.

Solder is an alternative material. It’s so soft you can crimp the ends with pliers. The downside is it’s not strong and can easily be distorted. On the plus side it’s color is a near match for a galvanized shackle.

Solder is an alternative material. It’s so soft you can crimp the ends with pliers. The downside is it’s not strong and can easily be distorted. On the plus side it’s color is a near match for a galvanized shackle.

Two  adjacent footropes on a tiny spar? Maybe not for a narrow Jibboom on a small vessel. But here’s a shot I just saw today on social media, taken on Bluenose II, that illustrates the need for port and Starboard footropes in most circumstances on headrigs. Note where the crewpersons feet are located then imagine someone on the opposite side trying to use the footrope she’s using. Possible maybe but extreamly uncomfortable. 

I'd like to see your work. Got any pictures ?