KTO

Good evening to all
Working my way through this model and finding it very enjoyable.
But can someone explain to me how and why the garboard plank has the hook down up to the stern post?
Not registering in my brain.
thanks Chris

Oh dear it seems like one step forward and three steps back with this build.
Having fitted four strakes each side along the bottom, something didn't look right, there was a creeping mismatch at the fore end between Port and Starboard so the strakes on the starboard side including the garboard plank were taken off and re-done.

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Balance restored.
Using pva allows this re-work without too much effort and importantly without damaging the frames. A slight wetting and easing with a scalpel blade and off they pop. Certainly would not have been so easy had I used c.a.
 
The first four strakes from the top sheerline are untapered.

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...but the fifth required a degree of taper both forward and aft to allow for the fit of the remaining  strakes. There was also edge bending required.

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Something amiss Gromit?
 

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What's that you say Gromit, is there enough room for two remaining strakes?
We'll see Gromit, we'll see.
One thing I wish I had done with this build at the outset was to replace the Lime/Basswood keel and stem with Boxwood. It really is a poor wood for this purpose where clean and sharp edges  are desirable.
It will take careful sanding to remove the scuffs and marks, followed by application of sanding sealer to preserve the surface.
Am I happy with progress thus far, the jury is still out on that one, finding this a very tricky build; I'll see how I feel once the planking and a sanding finish has been applied.
 
B.E.
 
 

With the fairing completed the stern transom is added.

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This has very little to hold it securely at least until the first strakes are added, so I also drilled and pinned it to the false keel.
Even so very soft hands are required to fair the transom piece.
As a trial  I am using 0.6mm thick Boxwood strip, slightly thinner than the provided Limewood.

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The sheer strake is applied full width.
PVA is used to bond the strip to the b/heads, secured with an assortment of clamps.

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 Water and heat are used to bend the strip both laterally to follow the rise of the sheer, and to curve around the bow.

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The foremost Bulkhead K  rises above the sheer line.

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The Sheerline strake extends beyond the transom.
When I made the mini version for Pegasus I omitted the second decorative transom piece, still not sure what practical purpose, if any, this addition served, but as they were a feature of the 18th Century Pinnace, I will include it on this build.
 
Once the glue has hardened overnight I will add the next strake, and then make a decision whether to continue with the Boxwood, or remove and revert to the Limewood.

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C'mon ain't you spent enough time on that today.
 
B.E.

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 150 – Ship’s Boats 6
 
In addition to the workhorse longboat(s), clippers carried smaller boats for convenience and for the safety of the crews.  Government regulations had begun to exist to aid in crew and passenger safety.  A variety of different types and sizes were used and it is most likely that boats on a given ship varied over time.  With Young America’s long, 30 year career I am sure there were replacements. I am still pondering the fourth boat, but the third is to be a 25 foot clinker built cutter that will rest inverted on the skid beams outside the longboat on the starboard side.  It is likely that the fourth boat – to be suspended from quarter davits - will be a somewhat smaller cutter.  So, on to the first cutter.
 
In the first picture, the sheer line at the top of the side is being scribed into the partially shaped pine plug.
 

 
The boat pattern can be seen pasted to the block.  This initial shape was formed using the disk sander.  In the next picture the plug has been fully shaped and the area below the topside given a coat of white shellac, sanded and well waxed.
 

 
The frames being formed in this picture are slightly smaller than the longboat frames.  They too, are pear and were left in water overnight before being placed as shown above.  They were about as flexible as string.  The process being used is the same as for the longboats, but thanks to the learning curve, it is still evolving and becoming more efficient.  In the next picture planking is well along.
 

 
Planking began after both halves of all the frames shown were fitted over the plug, the keel assembly installed on them and the topside guide strip nailed over the frames as shown above.  Frames at the ends were added later.
 
The clinker planking requires more work and care than the carvel planking used on the longboats.  First, because the planking lines will be very pronounced even after painting.  Also, the upper edges of each plank need to be beveled to bed the next plank, working up from the bottom.  The next picture shows the first step in that beveling using a paring chisel.
 

 
On the carvel hulls the planks were tapered at the ends to provide fair lines and to conform to the contraction of the planked area at the ends.  The same was done here before beveling the planks as shown above.  After the paring step, a flat file was used to smooth out the bevels along the plank.  The next planks were then overlapped and glued to both the plank above and the frames.  The next picture shows the topside plank above the wale being installed against the guide strip.
 

 
The next picture shows the planking nearing completion.
 

 
In the next picture, the boat has been removed from the plug and some internal members have been added.
 

 
As with the longboats, except for the unplanked boat, the internals are simplified on these upside-down boats.  The last picture shows the cutter in its position on the skid beams.
 

 
In this picture the boat has been given a first coat of white shellac primer, to be followed by the white acrylic.  The wales on this boat – and the one at the top – will then be installed.  The two longboats can then be secured, but this cutter will be left loose to provide access for rigging on the rail below, if needed.
 
Ed

The following set of photos show how I made the hawse pieces. I glued the hawse pieces into two blocks and roughed them out on the bandsaw and finished shaping them with a small drum sander.
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 212 – Mizzen Stay
 
Before moving to the mizzen stay I had to replace the aft chain plate on the port side and make and dye some more 3½" lanyard rope.  This went rather quickly and the mizzen shrouds were completed as shown in the first picture.
 

 
The next picture shows the completed mizzen stay.
 

 
The stay is looped over the shrouds at the mizzen top, fed through the lubber's holes on each side and secured with three round seizings.  At the lower end it passes through a bullseye shackled to an eyebolt on the main mast and ends in a thimble secured by another three round seizings.  This is lashed to an eyebolt in the deck.
 
Again, because of the soldered shackle, the eyebolt/bullseye assembly had to be prefabricated.  It was slipped over the stay as shown in the next picture, allowing the lower seizings to be done off the model and avoiding having to pass the leathering through the bullseye.
 

 
The stay is roughly the same size as the shrouds, is served and leathered at the top, and served at the bottom.  The lower seizings have been put on and a temporary thread is attached to secure the bottom while the masthead collar is secured.   The next picture shows that collar.
 

 
 The next picture shows the lower end of the installed stay with the permanent lashing to the deck eyebolt.
 

 
The last step in completing the lower standing rigging was to put leathering on the mainstay legs astride the foremast.  I had forgotten to do this earlier.  The next picture shows this painted wrapping.
 

 
The last picture shows the model at the current state, with all the lower shrouds and stays installed.
 

 
The next step will be to tackle the bowsprit, but I may begin some ratline work to help me spread out that tedious task.  This will also allow me to make and fit the shroud fairleads.
 
 
Ed

Disclaimer This is all Pete's fault.
 
Because I already have too many builds on the go I thought why not another one. I know there are a few others here who merrily go about building a few boats/ships at the same time one of them shall remain nameless but we all know who it is.
 
Pete has already done enough waxing eloquently about the merits of the Herreshoff lineage of boat designs so there is no need for me to go into any great details here except to say that I completely agree with him on the elegance of the Herreshoff lines no matter what size he designed.
 
Build Part 1
 
Pete sent me a printed copy of the drawing he is using for his new boat it was already printed at 1 1/2 inch to the foot. (thanks Pete) I scanned it in order to trace it for developing some detailed model plans the lines plan is 50% and the body plans are 100%
 

 

 
I spent a lot of time studying the various images of the 14 on the net and was particularly drawn to the Port Hadlock WA Boat school photo stream
There are a lot of pictures of the 14 under construction and it is this version of the hull that I intend to model as far as the main structure of the hull. I have chosen this one because of the clarity of the construction methodology visible in the pictures.
 
Unfortunately there are no pictures that I have yet found of the beginning of the Port Hadlock boat which would have confirmed a few things about how they prepared the frames and if they used a set of mold forms with ribands to prepare the bent frames, but I suspect that is the method that was used.
 
I used corel draw this time instead of Autocad because I am more familiar with all the curve functions in corel. I used the line width function to shape the frames instead of drawing the outlines of them and this seems to be working well.
 
This hull will be a test of my skill at doing a proper planking job, I have learned so much since the first post on the Pilot Cutter (still planning on sailing her next summer) where I basically did not have a clue about what I was getting into and built that hull as if it were a strip built canoe. I have chosen 3/4 inch thick planks for the hull (3/32 inch) and wondered a while about what wood to use. I want to have the planks varnished and not painted (visions of Chucks planking job on his cutter  for the clarity and elegant execution)  as a goal but with a more reddish colour.
 
I remembered the redwood panels from the salvaged garage door and did a little re-sawing to get enough planks for the task.
 

 
stripped up to 3/32 x 9/16 (3/4 x 4 1/2)
 

 
Next I tried to bend some 5/32 square stock by all the different methods that I have read about on this forum and snapped most of them (what am I doing wrong?)
 
I remembered that I had a 5 foot by 5 foot sheet of 1mm birch aircraft ply so I cut some 3/16 strips up on the paper cutter, it worked very well surprisingly. I also printed and traced out one of the more challenging mould forms to add the frames to.
 
Next I used the wide throat jewelers saw to fret out the mould to use as a form for laminating the rib/frame the material is 1/4 inch Baltic birch ply.
 

 
The mold form was pinned to some cork covered homasote (at least that is what I think it is) and the 4 layers were laminated together.
 

 
In order to cancel out any discrepancy from side to side I laminated two of the same side, I will cut out the middle of the mold to help with the clamping of the planks.
 

 
This will now continue for the rest of the frames that will fit over the molds
 

 
Michael 
 
 
 
 
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 210 - Mainstay
 
Once the main shrouds were installed the main stay was next.  Like the lower shrouds and the forestay, this was 10 ½" rope.  The first picture shows the main shrouds in place and tensioned, and the mainstay rigged so the served areas could be marked out.
 

 
The shackled bullseyes and eyebolts through the main deck beams were installed earlier.  In the next picture the stay has been served and leathered and is rigged to allow the glue on the leathering to dry in position before painting.
 

 
The stay is clamped where a collar seizing will be placed after the stay is secured at the fore ends.  In the next picture the first seizing at the lower port end has been tied.
 

 
The lower ends of the stay are served as well as the collar at the top.  In the next picture frapping turns to the first seizing on the port side are being made with the aid of a sewing needle.
 

 
The next picture shows the four seizings on each leg completed.
 
 
 
I was very pleased that the stay clears the chafing battens on the mast by about six inches and is just inside the sheet bitts, so I may not install the spreader that was used if needed to keep the stays outside the mast.  The smaller bullseyes inside and just aft of those for the main stay will anchor the main topmast stay and will hopefully fit as well as the first.
 
The last picture shows the completed main stay with the collar seizing applied below the top.
 

 
The sheer poles have yet to be installed on the main shrouds and the lanyards are still dangling loose.
 
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 209 Forestay
 
The forestay was a fairly simple job to install, but before getting into it, I should say a few words about my sequence.  I am sure there are many approaches to this, but my general plan is to work fore to aft, bottom up, so I will do the standing rigging on the lower masts, working aft, then either go on to the lower yards or topmasts – not decided yet.  Details on the lower shrouds like fairleads, staves and ratlines will be added later when convenient.
 
The first picture shows the installed forestay.
 

 
It is 10½" rope (like the lower shrouds), doubled around the masthead with a seized collar, secured with four seizings on each leg to bullseyes with iron straps shackled to eyebolts in the knightheads.  These were installed earlier.  The lower legs are seized together above the lower seizings.  The rope is served around the collar and at the lower ends and the upper part around the masthead is leathered.
 
The next picture shows the leathered collar bedded on the shrouds.
 

 
The next picture shows the extent of the upper serving and leathering and the upper seizing.
 

 
In the next picture the lower ends of the stay have been hauled up and clipped so the seizings can be put on.
 
 
 
The starboard seizing has been started in the picture.  The next picture shows the lower legs completed and the lower seizing installed to pull them together.
 

 
Finally, the completed stay from above.
 

 
There is quite a bit of work to do on the bowsprit, but because the forestay is secured at the knightheads, I can defer this until the fore topmast is being fitted.
 
Next, the main and mizzen lower mast rigging, but first I want to replace all those topmast backstay chains and channel deadeyes discussed in an earlier post.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 208 – Sheer Poles
 
Ok, lets get off the tar-baby.
 
Sheer poles were 1" diameter rods that were lashed across the shrouds just above the deadeyes and just below the futtock shrouds.  The purpose was to spread the shrouds evenly, to help keep them in a flat plane and to prevent twisting.  They apparently came into use around the end of the 18th century.  They were assisted by wood staves lashed at intervals between the sheer poles and groups of ratlines.  The staves will be installed much later, with the ratlines, but the sheer poles are needed now.
 
The first picture shows a small diameter brass rod being served for use as a sheer pole.
 

 
The next picture shows this served rod spread across and lashed to the fore lower starboard shrouds just above the deadeyes. 
 

 
The rod will later be cut to length after touching the ends with a drop of CA to seal the serving to the rod.  Except for the first shroud, the lanyards are kept down, out of the way.  After final tension adjustment, the lanyards were brought up through the space above the deadeye and wrapped four turns around the shrouds, as seen in the next picture.
 

 
The four turns is arbitrary.  The lanyards were normally wrapped around until used up and were generally much less tidy than I tried to make these.  In the next picture the lanyards are finished off.
 

 
One additional turn was taken and a clove hitch on knotted the back sides.  A length of remaining lanyard was then secured to the inside of the shrouds with a small rope lashing.
 
The small sheer pole under the futtock shrouds is shown in the last picture.
 

 
Only three of the six lashings have been tied in the picture.  Note that there is no connection between the shrouds and futtock shrouds that pass between them.  This is different from earlier man-of-war practice.  The forestay may be seen in the top upper right corner of the photo.  It is the next item to be installed once the sheer poles are finished on each side.
 
Ed
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 205 – Making Lower Shrouds
 
Before getting into making shrouds, I completed one more chore that has been on my mind for a while.  The brass poop rail was becoming more tarnished by the day, so considering that it was losing its shiny appeal and that the original was probably iron, I decided to paint the rail white.  See the first picture.
 

 
I decided on white based on the photo taken at San Francisco.  After degreasing with acetone, the rail was painted with gloss white enamel – two coats, slightly thinned.
 
The lower fore shrouds shown in the following pictures are 10½" rope, laid up from three strands of Barbour Irish linen thread.  An adequate discussion of rope making, cotton vs. linen, and size matching is beyond the scope of this log, but I have been working on a description for Volume III.  My rope making "machinery" and process has undergone major development since my first efforts 20+ years ago – but is, of course, still not perfect.  For dimensional reasons and the difficulty in making good four-strand rope without a central core, the shrouds are three-strand, even though four-strand was typically used for these.  They are also right-handed, in keeping with American practice at the time.
 
Shrouds were made in pairs that were looped over the mast head, starting with the forward starboard pair, followed by that pair on the port side and continuing in that way.  In the first picture, the third starboard pair has been cut to length, looped over the mast and is being marked at the ends of its served length – at the futtocks - with a white pencil.
 

 
The shroud was then removed and transferred to the serving machine as shown in the next picture.
 

 
Before putting tension on the rope, needles were inserted through the rope at the white marks so serving thread could be pulled through to help secure each end.  Starting at the right, after pulling the thread through, the rope was then served, initially over the thread end, then up to the second needle which was threaded and pulled through to complete the joint at the second end.  In the next picture, an earlier served shroud has been looped over the mast and is being marked at what will be the top of the seizing to show the extent of the outer parceling that was used as an added protection against damp in the closely packed bights.
 

 
With the shroud stretched between two vises, white PVA glue was applied and the shroud wrapped with strips of tissue, working from each end toward the center as shown below.
 

 
The white PVA dries softer than Titebond making it easier to loop the shrouds later.  After wrapping, the shroud was looped over the mast until the glue dried.  The parceling was then painted with artist's acrylic paint.  After the first coat dried, the seizing was put on as shown below.
 

 
The last picture shows both gangs of shrouds looped over the fore mast head. 
 
 
 
An alligator clip is holding the final pair while the parceling glue dries.  After seizing and painting this pair, the shrouds will be ready for the deadeyes at the lower ends to be turned in.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 204 – Tops and Futtock Shroud Wrap-up
 
I am happy to be finished with the dust case and to resume the model work.  The completion of the three mast assemblies with their pre-erection detailing, including their futtock shrouds, required just a bit more work and is now complete.  The first two pictures show the mizzen top with its futtock shrouds installed.
 

 
As mentioned earlier, these shrouds are served, fitted with brass thimbles at both ends, hooked to the deadeye straps at the top and secured to eyes on the mast band with lashings.  The futtocks are 4 1/2" rope (5 ¼" on the main and fore), spun from three strands of linen thread, right-handed.  The rope was dyed black with diluted India ink.  Making these was described earlier in Part 196.
 

 
The last task on the lower mizzen mast was fitting of the mast coat at the base.  This is shown in the next picture.
 

 
The next picture shows the model with the three completed lower masts fitted – still temporarily.
 

 
The next step will be to make the lower shrouds.  The next picture shows numbers 1 and 2 on the fore mast, port side, looped temporarily over the mast head.
 

 
These two will actually go over the corresponding starboard pair.  In each case the #1 shroud is served over its full length.  The serving on #2 extends down to the futtocks as it will do on all the other shrouds.  Parcelling has been wrapped over the serving around the mast head down to the top of the seizing, but has not yet been "tarred."  More on all this in the next post.
 
 
Ed

Bob,
 
I have found that copper can be blackened with LOS without effecting surrounding wood.  The wood needs to be clean of any metal sanding dust and the LOS needs to be fairly dilute.  When leveling off boltheads, files produce less fine dust than sanding but the surface should be wiped clean before treating.  LOS solutions seem to neutralize to water and inert white solids and leave no reactive residues, unlike salt based blackeners like the blue selenium based solutions.  You may also wish to rinse with clean water.  While I have found this to be the case, some testing is always worthwhile to understand the right LOS dilution as well as the need for pre-cleaning.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 201 – Lower Mast Coats
 
When I decided to wedge the masts with pieced wedges, it was clear that some sort of mast coats would be required to cover the openings between wedges – not to keep out water as in real life practice, but to simulate the real coats and to improve the appearance at the bases of the masts.
 
Apart from terse descriptions, there was not a lot to go on in making these.  My usual search through photos gave some ideas, but ultimately the solution came from the question, "What would I do to make a watertight canvas 'flashing' over the mast wedges?"  I am comforted by the thought that many ships' carpenters asked similar questions – and came up with a variety of solutions - as the few pictures I have seen illustrate.
 
The canvas for the model coats is tissue and in the first picture a strip of this is being wound around the glue-coated main mast and its wedging.
 

 
Several strips were used with plenty of glue and not too much effort to smooth out the result.  Canvas would most definitely have wrinkles when forced into the required shape.  The next picture shows rope being tied around the top to clinch it tightly around the mast.
 

 
In practice the coat would have been caulked and tacked around the mast and deck, but rope cinches would keep it from tearing out from the nails and risking damage to the high-value cargo these ships often carried.
 
At the bottom, a flange was simulated using card and fitted around the mast at the base as shown in the next picture.
 

 
When this was glued in place and allowed to dry, a second rope cinch was added at the base.  The next picture shows the coat being "tarred" with fairly thick, dark grey, artists' acrylic paint,
 

 
After drying the coat was brushed with black, thinned, acrylic wash to highlight the wrinkles in the canvas and the ropes as shown below.
 

 
Those that have been following the project will note that the glistening brass pump wheels, by now well tarnished and lacking their original appeal, have been painted.  Next job for the painters, the equally tarnished poop monkey rail.
 
Other true followers may also notice in the picture that I have finally gotten around to adding the central posts to the fore and aft fife rails that were previously omitted.
 
 
Ed
 
 


 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 200 – Lower Masts Continued
 
It is hard to believe we are at the 200th post on Young America – almost 3 ½ years into the project.  Still as exciting as ever – for me at least.
 
Since beginning work on the lower masts, most of the reporting has been on the fore mast – the guinea pig for construction, finishing and rigging – and only one version in the scrap box.  However, though mostly unseen, work has been proceeding on the other two, so here are a few pics.  The first is the most recent, taken yesterday and showing the main mast ready for fitting the deadeyes and rigging the futtock shrouds. 
 

 
The mizzen mast to the left is almost to the same state, but needs its masthead detailing.  The next picture shows the main top before fitting the deadeyes.
 

 
At 18' 6" in breadth, this is somewhat larger than the 17' fore top.  The "pre-rigging on this top includes a pair of brace blocks for the mizzen lower yard, the crojack.  These may be seen dangling from shackles below the aft crosstree.  Because of the soldered shackles, any shackled connections, including eyebolts, need to be either fitted with their blocks or left off until later.
 
The next picture shows the forward chafing batten being glued to the mizzen mast.
 

 
The batten is concave on the mast face and was rounded on the forward face after gluing.  The top, with the 9" diameter spanker mast inserted, is to the lower left.  The below-deck rings have been blackened and the ring of wedges is in place.  After this step the above deck ironwork was buffed with a clean wheel and blackened as shown in the next picture.
 

 
The sanding stick in the picture was used to clean the glue off the batten's nail heads (not shown).  The next picture shows the mizzen at this stage.
 

 
The top and the spanker mast are permanently attached in this picture.  The picture also shows small brail blocks hanging from the mast.  These will be discussed later.
 
By this time, the foremast was complete and could, if desired, be permanently installed.  The last picture its base with a mast coat fitted over the wedges.
 

 
The mast coat simulates a tarred canvas cover with surrounding rope to pull it tight at the mast and at the base.  It would also have been nailed before tarring.   I could find no standard method for these – only brief and varied descriptions.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 195 – Mast Wedges
 
So far, the masts have been temporarily stepped and placed in position through partners at the main deck level.  The openings at this level were centered so the masts would stand at roughly the correct rake, but were not sized precisely, nor were they cut perfectly round.  The next step in the mounting process was to fit wedges on to the mast at the partner level.  The wedges would secure the masts at the correct rake, but still allow them to be removed for the remaining bench work.
 
The first step was to size the openings, refine their position, and make them round – with a few inches of clearance around the mast.  The first picture shows this being done at the fore mast partners, using sandpaper mounted on one of the tapered mandrels described earlier.
 

 
When the opening was large enough to wedge the mast, the diameter was measured with dividers as shown in the next picture.
 

 
In the next picture a ring is being turned that will fit the mast diameter and the hole diameter below an enlarged and rounded section at the top.
 

 
The mast wedges were cut from this ring.  The next picture shows the turned ring cut in two and one half being checked for fit on the mast.
 

 
Each of these halves were cut into segments.  In the next picture a segment has been fitted to the mainmast mast and the mast positioned.
 

 
This allowed the mast rake to be measured and any corrections made before fitting the rest of the segments.  The next picture shows the main mast with all the segments glued to it.
 

 
Once wedged, the masts are held firmly in their final position but may be removed for further work.  This work includes final installation of the tops and the masthead trim.  It will also include installation of the deadeyes and futtocks for the topmast shrouds.  The last step before finally stepping the masts will be the fitting of mast coats over the wedges.  These will cover the woodwork shown above with simulated tarred canvas.  The masts will then be glued at the partners and the step and will be ready for the lower shrouds.
 
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 194 – Lower Masts continued
 
Previous posts showed the fore top completed and the other two constructed but not yet fitted with rigging connections.  None had yet been installed on the masts, which remain loose from the model.  The plan is to complete construction of the lower masts, then fit the tops with chains, deadeyes and futtock shrouds and then permanently step the masts.
 
The mizzen mast is lagging behind the larger two.  In the first picture the hounds have been fit and the mortises for the bibbs, have been roughed out,
 

 
The metal work is all left unblackened until the handling of construction is finished.  In the next picture one of the bibbs is being glued on.
 

 
The top of the hounds assembly will be filed off to the correct rake angle later.  The assembly will then be fitted with its 22 simulated bolts, rounded and sanded smooth.
 
In the next picture the completed fore top has been glued to the hounds.
 

 
Bolts and rigging connections may be seen in the picture. 
 
With the top fitted over, the next step was to trim out the masthead.  In the next picture the bolsters on either side of the mast have been installed and and excess glue is being washed from the newly fitted chafing battens.
 

 
The bolsters provided a rounded bed for the shrouds, but on the model they also strengthen the connection of the top.  The glued joints to the hounds under the trestletrees are end grain joints, so the added strength from the bolsters is helpful.  I avoided drilling bolt holes through the trestletrees astride the mast.
 
The last picture shows the completed fore top.  In addition to the bolsters and the chafing battens, thumb cleats have been fitted to each side of the head. 
 
 

 
The wood thumb cleats will support the strapping of a bullseye that will redirect the main topgallant stay downward to the eyebolt just behind the lower masthead.  The battens and the cleats are bolted with small-size (.014") monofilament.  The entire top, including the ironwork has been given a coat of thinned Tung oil.
 
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 193 – First Rigging Work
 
It has been quite a long time, relatively speaking, since the last posted update.  I have been very busy, but with little progress that is visible on the model.  Decisions and documentation for the rigging have been major, time consuming efforts.  Because rigging was undergoing a transition at the time – from rope to wire or chain, to the use of iron fittings like shackles, and many other things, there are choices to be made.  Some require a modeling solution before they can be adopted.  The idea of arbitrary choices may seem odd, but I am using more than half a dozen sources, old and new, they all differ and few are date based or specific as to merchant vs. navy.
 
It may seem surprising, but the first rigging to be done will be the topmast futtock shrouds.  I plan to install these on the masts after the tops have been fixed and before the masts are stepped.  I have sidelined that work pending resolution of the futtock shroud design.
 
I number of issues have to be decided.  The first was rope vs. iron bar.  I have decided on rope.  Then there is material – linen vs. cotton.  I would like to use linen on the standing rigging that will be modeled taut.  I have been making a lot of sample rope using the six sizes of thread in my inventory to decide how to make each size.  Then there are questions on fastenings: hooks, shackles or lashed eyes.  I have tentatively decided on hooks with thimbles at the deadeye straps and lashed eyes at the mast eyebolts.
 
I have just a few pictures illustrating some of the test work.  None of this is finished product.  The first picture shows a blackened hook and thimble, an unblackened thimble made from thin-wall, 1mm, brass tube, and the tool used to shape the thimble flares.
 

 
The flaring tool was turned from a bit of drill rod, then hardened.  It will probably be replaced with a better shape.  I may or may not pre-fabricate the hooks and thimbles.  
 
Thimbles at this time were becoming more heart shaped and open at the throat.  Although Longridge describes a method, I could not do it at this size.  Also, thimbles were not black – another issue.  I also have to decide how far down in rope size to use thimbles.
 
 There are some advantages, to pre-fabbing the hooked thimbles but more test work is needed.  The next picture shows an alternate approach where the eye is formed first, the thimble inserted, flared in place, the area over the splice served and the serving used to tighten the throat.
 

 
The picture shows two sizes of thimble 1mm and 1.5mm – another decision.  A length of rope, ~6" in this case, was served first. 
 
The eye splice was made by looping the served line and gluing it below the throat.  When dry, the excess was trimmed off the splice and the thimble inserted.  The splice was then served with thinned glue to strengthen the joint and tighten the throat.  The hooks were then formed in the eye.
 
The last picture shows a closer view.
 

 
I like this method but the metal parts will need to be blackened first and that raises issues in forming the hooks.  The shapes of the splices will get better.  These test pieces were made in the space of about an hour, so I had to be careful with the unhardened glue joints.
 
And so it goes…
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 192 – More on Tops
 
The holiday season is a time for reflection and I have been thinking about the work ahead on YA in the New Year and beyond.  One of the approaching tasks is to finish the dust case that was started in an earlier post.  This project always gets me thinking about the size of the model.  The first photo, showing the drawing of the enormous fore yard attached to the mast, is not nearly as scary as it is in real life, but gives some appreciation of the final model size.
 

 
The yard is 82' long (~14" actual), just 7' shorter than the entire lower mast from step to cap – and without studding sail booms.  Even with all my familiarity with the drafting, it was somewhat shocking. 
 
The height of the model is another issue.  The next picture was taken using a Christmas gift – a new tripod that can crank up to 7' in height.
 

 
This will be needed for the rigging photos.  A leg of the old tripod may be seen in the picture.  So much for reflections on model size.
 
Some questions arose on the fabrication of the tops after the last post.  The steps are many, so I will refrain from describing everything here, except to answer some questions.  In the first picture the distance between index holes is being measured so the crosstree can be drilled to match the index holes on the drawing.
 

 
The aft tree has already been drilled and pinned in place on the drawing.  With the crosstrees in place the trestletrees were marked and the mortises cut, one at a time.  In the next picture the forward tree has been removed to check the first mortises.
 

 
After the structure was assembled, the bending pattern used for the rim, was used to mark the inner line of the rim on the structure.
 

 
In the next picture the half-laps on the cross and trestle trees have been cut, the structure has been located using pins, the rim has been pinned in place, and a chisel is being used to mark the lines of the mortises to be cut in the rim.
 

 
After fitting the joints, the rim was glued to the trees and all the excess ends were trimmed back.  The iron rim plates were then attached as described earlier.
 
There was a question on the slotting of the rim to fit the deadeye straps.  The next picture shows this being done using a jewelers saw.
 

 
The holes are too small to be filed.  The saw works well.  It does take some contortions to fit the saw to the threaded blade and to reverse it so the cut is always downward on the plate.  This keeps it from peeling off.
 
There is a cap over the forward part of the rim, covering the plank ends and also the joint at the forward end of the trestletrees.  This was cut from a single piece of wood and is shown in the next picture being finish sanded.
 

 
In this picture some planking has been installed.  These were installed over the lubbers hole to ensure a straight line once the lubber hole sections were cut out.  The next picture shows the three tops planked.
 

 
The holes in the fairlead planks were drilled using the x-y table on the mill to set the spacing.   I spent quite a lot of time this week making sure there were sufficient holes in each top.  This required reviewing the entire running rigging list of roughly 400 lines.  Each hole is allocated to a specific line – generally buntlines, leech lines, clue lines, upper sail sheets and some jib lines.  Six yards on each mast add up.  The line numbers for the mizzen top may be seen in the lower right of the photo.  As a result of the review, I added holes at the forward end of each top.  The fore and main tops now have 40 holes each and the mizzen 34.  There are just a few spare open holes, none in the mizzen top.  I mention this because rigging design and checking is consuming a lot of my time, so the modeling progress these days is slow.
 
The drawing in the last picture shows additional features added to the cap, in this case the mizzen cap.  Drawing discrepancies in the pictures, actually revisions were mentioned earlier.  Note that blocks are shown on the cap.  These are shackled to the cross iron on the cap, so to avoid having to strap the blocks later to the soldered shackles on the installed cap, this will be done before fitting the iron to the cap – a complication in using soldered shackles that requires more rigging checks early in the work – in this case checks of the entire standing and running list.  All of this is a great mental exercise.
 
Happy New Year everyone.
 
Ed
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 191 – Decking the Fore Top
 
Just when I was having fun with wood, more ironwork was needed.  The first picture shows the addition of iron reinforcing for the rim in the area where the topmast shrouds will be positioned.
 

 
The iron in this case is .010" copper, snipped to the shape of the top, glued on with CA.  It was then trimmed to shape and polished, at least on the port side in the picture.
 
The next picture shows the frame temporarily wedged on to the hounds.
 

 
The iron rim caps have been drilled through the index points.  The wooden rim cap that will cover the plank ends is being glued on in this picture.  In the next picture, planking of the top is proceeding.
 

 
Planks are 6" x 2 ½" thick.  The 9" fairlead planks have been drilled and are being installed.  The next picture shows the top with all planking installed.
 

 
The holes in the rim have been converted to slots that will pass the deadeye straps.  Also, the two iron fid plates on which the topmast fid will rest have been installed.  Work on the fore mast cap has begun and is shown in the picture.
 
The next picture shows the top again placed on the hounds.
 

 
In the next picture the top has been trimmed out and the ironwork blackened. 
 

 
There are six eyebolts under the forward rim for the fore course bunt and leech lines.  The two on the top of the rim will be hooked to the tackles of the upper topsail sheets.  An interesting location for these.  Belaying points for the added upper topsails may have been difficult to find on the crowded deck rails.  The next picture shows the aft side.
 

 
The eyebolt just aft of the mast will secure the main topgallant stay.  There should be just sufficient space between this and the mast for the shroud collars.  The shackled eyebolt on the aft crosstree will anchor the standing lift on the spencer gaff.  There may need to be a bracket added forward of the topmast to secure an iron stay for the lower topsail yard that will be fixed at the cap.
 
Last post before the holidays.  All the best to everyone in this special season.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 190 – Framing the Fore Top
 
It was nice to get back to some pure – well almost pure – woodworking on the tops.  There will be ironwork involved, but not in this post.  The first picture shows the first step, pinning the 9" x 9" crosstrees to the drawing.
 

 
Pins were placed in holes that are centered on the slots that will pass the deadeye straps for the topmast shrouds.  They are conveniently located to index the pieces.  In the next picture the 9" x 18" trestletrees have been mortised and fitted.
 

 
The port trestletree is being glued, held down by pin clamps.  The next picture shows the basic framework positioned on the hounds.
 

 
The spacing of the members provides just sufficient clearance to go over the masthead bands.  The top framing is temporarily wedged forward of the mast to check and adjust the level on the top face of the hounds.  The top is aft-heavy.  The next picture shows the rim being formed.
 

 
This was made in a two piece laminate to facilitate bending and minimize spring-back after the two dried pieces were glued.  The rim is shown on the drawing in the next picture.
 

 
The lap joints in the trees have been cut in this picture.  In the next picture the laps have been cut in the rim.
 

 
Indexing holes were drilled in the rim before the joinery was done.  Finally, the assembled framing.
 

 
Next, planking and triming out the top.
 
Ed
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 189 – Lower Mizzen Fittings
 
The mizzen mast has some additional hardware not found on the forward masts. First, there is a belaying ring, or spider band around the mast instead of the fife rails of the forward masts.  The design of this is not documented, but from the work on the rigging list, at least 16 lines should be belayed here.  The ring for the model is a simple circular flange around the mast bored for 16 belaying pins.  The unblackened part is shown in the first picture.
 

 
This was made as a turning from a solid brass billet to fit over a brass tube mast ring that was silver-soldered in.  The pin holes were then drilled in the mill using the rotary table.  The ring will be a tight fit over the mast about 39" off the deck.  This is a pretty piece that will be completely hidden under a mass of rope.
 
In the next picture it has been blackened and installed on the mast.  Above it is a reinforcing hoop and above that will be a bracket that will support the spanker mast.
 

 
 
A start on the spanker mast bracket is shown in the drawing.  The mast band part of it has been shaped to fit the mast and will be soldered with other parts added progressively.  The finished bracket is shown in the next picture.
 

 
This piece is of thicker stock than the normal mast hoop, as were the bands for the lower yard trusses.  The small eye will support the goose neck of the spanker boom.  Both pieces are shown on the mast in the next picture. 
 

 
The spider ring was pre-blackened, but all the copper work will be blackened later as was done for the other masts.  The third piece to be made was the wood stool for the spanker mast.  While the bracket maintains the horizontal position, the stool will take the weight of the 9" diameter mast.  The next picture shows the stool parts.
 

 
For strength on the model, I set the stool itself into a mortise in the mast that will give it the appearance of a surrounding piece but the strength of the mortise joint.  Two triangular gussets that will reinforce the stool are shown.  The last picture shows the three items installed.
 

 
Shaping and polishing of the stool assembly has yet to be done.  The gussets were glued to flats filed on the mast.  The remaining hoops may now be installed on the mizzen mast.
 
Meanwhile, work has begun on the fore top.
 
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 188 – Completing Main and Fore Masts
 
Just a few finishing up steps were required to complete the two large lower masts.  First, the tops of the hounds had to be angled to the rake of their masts so the tops, when fitted, would be level.  The foremast rake is about 4.75 degrees and the main is at about 5.4 degrees.  A plywood gauge, shown in the first picture was trimmed on each side to these angles.
 

 
This gauge was then used to check the angle of the hounds as it was trimmed back by filing, as shown below.
 

 
The gauge is held parallel to the masthead in the picture.  These mastheads are not tapered.  Both sides had to be matched.  These will get a final trim when the tops are installed and can be levelled more accurately and in both directions. 
 
The next picture shows the main and fore masts with all the construction work completed.
 

 
All the foremast ironwork has been blackened in the picture.  This was all done all at once after all the bands, including the masthead bands were installed and all other work on the mast completed.  This was done to avoid excessive handling of the blackened bands.  Liver of sulfur solution was brushed into each band until black.  Brushing helps eliminate black powdery buildup.  As each band was blackened it was rinsed under running water.  The masts were left to dry overnight then given a finish of Tung oil diluted 50%, applied with cotton swabs.  In the next picture a dry cotton swab is being used to soak up any excess oil.
 

 
The Tung oil restores the tone of the Castello and protects the blackened metal as well as the wood.  The mastheads were left unfinished so that wood fittings may be added later after the tops are slipped over.  The last picture shows the two masts placed temporarily in position to allow the Tung oil to dry..
 

 
Mast wedges will be made and fitted at the partners later, probably after the tops and masthead trim is installed.  This will permit that work to be completed on the workbench.  Meanwhile, the mizzen mast is in the works.
 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 187 – Chafing Battens
 
Chafing battens were used to limit damage to sails and rigging that were subject to rubbing against ironwork or other rough parts of masts or spars.  The largest and most prominent of these are the large forward battens on the lower masts.  These protected the lower sails. 
 
I am not sure how these battens were fitted over the mast bands in practice, but I assume they would be slotted, caulked, and sealed to prevent moisture causing rot on the mast.  So, fitting these neatly over the mast bands becomes a chore.
 
First, the battens must be fit over the mast.  I started by milling a concave gutter in the batten stock as shown in the first picture.
 

 
The purpose of this was to establish a straight groove as a starting point for the handwork necessary to fit the piece to the tapered mast.  This fitting was done with the curved rifflers in the next picture – with frequent checks against the mast itself, in this case the unbanded, new main mast in the picture.
 

 
After fitting to the mast, the batten was ripped off of the stock shown above.  Once the bands were placed on the mast, clearance slots were filed at the band locations.
 

 
These slots provide clearance at the edges but not in the center of the batten.  The slots are shallow.  The bands are only .010" thick.  The spaces between the slots were hollowed out with a small gouge to help the batten lie flat on the mast.
 

 
Since these inside hollows will not be visible, no attempt was made to square them to fit the bands.
 
The batten was then glued to the mast.  The shellac coating was filed away under the joint so the glue would adhere.  The batten was then nailed/bolted along its length with monofilament bolts held with CA.
 
The batten was then rounded on its forward face to the correct thickness.
 
The next picture shows the forward batten and the smaller side battens glued and bolted to the foremast. 
 

 
The side battens extend over the area where both the mainstay and the main topmast stay pass beside the mast.  This was checked by running lines from the main top, hence the red correction notation on the drawing.  The next picture shows these with the foremast temporarily in position.
 

 
The last picture shows the forward batten on the new main mast – alongside the replaced earlier mast.
 

 
Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 185 – Iron Mast Bands 2
 
In addition to the shrunk-on hoops that reinforced the masts, there were bands for other purposes.  On the lower masts these included bands with eyebolts to secure rigging, bands to secure the spencer gaffs and bands that supported the lower yard trusses.  These other bands were generally clamped on the mast rather than heat shrunk.  I experimented with two different methods for making these.  The first picture shows a clamp band bent around the mast ( actually the mandrel) to be soldered in one piece.
 

 
The next picture shows a band made like the reinforcing bands to which parts will be soldered to form the clamp joint and in this case the bracket for the yard truss.
 

 
This band is made from thicker material.   The tabs on the truss bracket in the lower part of the picture were bent around some band stock to size the gap.  The bracket was then hammered square before soldering.   In the next picture the truss band has been soldered together and a wire bolt added at the clamp joint.
 

 
In the picture the band is pushed on to the mandrel for finish filing and polishing.  The next picture shows the special bands on the foremast.  These are the three at the top.
 

 
At the top is the truss band – blackened.  More on that below.  Below that is the band that supports the fore spencer gaff.  The eyebolt on the aft side of this is not visible in the picture.  Next is the futtock band with six eyebolts for the lower futtocks and one on the aft face to secure a block for another line, I believe one of the main staysail's downhaul.  The bands below these are the normal reinforcing bands.  The joints that show on these will be covered by the forward chafing batten.  The next picture is another view.
 

 
In this picture the horizontal eye for the spencer gaff is visible in the band below the truss.  The pattern of the eyebolts on the futtock band and the chafing batten may be seen in the drawing.
 
The last picture shows the fore mast with all its iron bands installed.
 

 
Some bands are blackened on this mast and others not.  The plan going forward is to defer all blackening until all other work on the mast is complete – hounds, bibbs, battens, cap tenon, yard sling eyebolt, etc.  Blackening just before installing the mast will reduce handling of the blackened parts and the resultant rubbing off of the black.  It will also help keep the wood surface of the mast clean of black.  These were problems on the first main mast.  A replacement is in progress.
 
 
 
Ed