Harvey Golden

Thank you Keith! It's a delightful challenge to make a brand new object look so old and worn; so real.

No progress worth showing, but some progress made. Lots of adjusting this and that and doing this here and that there . . . and picking up half a dozen loose parral beads from the gaff after they came cascading down from on high (not sure I found them all, but I have several lifetimes' supply). Pretty sure the main gets hung tomorrow, but who knows? Anyhow, I did take some decent photos; all that lack of sanding, using crap wood, and blotchy paint seems to add a bit of je ne sais quoi. H-

Thank you Jon! At this stage of building a scratch-built model, one might get the impression I know what I'm doing . . . Rigging in general is beyond my comfort zone, and everything you see is new to me. Along with the knowledge and generosity of others on this forum, the following three things were of great help in executing the rigging: 1. The .pdf "Jakt <Jelse>" https://fartoyvern.no/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/5-21_Jelse_THD_v1_MH-SS.pdf 2. Copies of the old Model Shipways plans for the Gjøa-- particularly the Belaying/sheeting diagram and the details of gaff, boom, yard, etc. 3. Lennarth Petersson's "Rigging: Period Fore-and-Aft Craft." Of the latter reference-- it covers three regional craft, none of which are from Norway, but it illustrates the concepts, purposes, and terminology very clearly, and helps corroborate matters from the other two sources. It's also fascinating to see how different people found differing solutions to the same requirements. FWIW, the British ship in Petersson seems to be the closest to the Gjøa w/r to rigging execution. I hope this is helpful, as is this thread-- I'm very aware there must be mistakes in my project though; I rather wish I was following your path! H-

Thank you! Little by little...

A week-long window of free access to the dining room table has just opened! The model is 40" from tip of the bowsprit to the tender on stern davits-- my "official" model work bench is 41" wide, so this is a rare chance to get some serious work done, with access to both sides. The main goal is to get the main sail on. The last four mast hoops are on-- I did not thread them onto the mast before attaching all the foresail rigging, crow's nest, shrouds, etc., so I cut them open and then glued them back together around the mast. The boom and gaff are already fitted out with blocks, cleats, etc. I also got the parral beads on the gaff and have rigged it into temporary position with the throat halyard and peak halyard. Also, the rope ladder for the crow's nest is ready to hang. Also, I've fitted those puzzling Ørefiken thingies-- shown below, though not rigged-up yet, nor properly attached (will be lashed further). Special thanks again to Steggin, who shared the source that provided the answer of how the Ørefiken was set-up (see .pdf he links to at bottom page 3 here). With luck, I'll be attaching the mainsail tomorrow or so; still have to get the topping lift set up.

Not to be left out, I also have a suggestion 😉 I also would hand letter it, but to ensure it has the odd character of the original's lettering and mis-matched weight, etc. I would trace it onto silkspan or tracing paper and then paint the back side (to form the background color). For tracing, I'd get rid of the perspective/foreshortening by simply stretching the image to what looks reasonable-- below is a simple example (it can be printed to proper size, or if you are brave, you can use your computer screen as a "light box"). A Pigma Micron or similar quality pen would make short work of it, even in tiny scale. Just thoughts- H-

You're in for a BIG treat, then! They're hard to find; hoping your local maritime museum may have a set.

The Historic American Merchant Marine Survey volumes have a few color plates in them-- rendered artistically by the surveyors. I don't recall which volume, but they show a nice though not extensive range of colors on various parts of certain boats (fishing craft and/or coasters from the 19th C, [though undoubtedly 'touched-up' by the time of the survey] if I recall). Best, H-

Hi Jond! Nice to see another scratch built Gjøa on the ways! My 1/32 version is a bit stagnant at the moment, though nearing completion. Yours is looking great, and I envy the slightly smaller scale! Best, Harvey

Nothing more delicious than an odd looking paddle-wheeler with a good back story-- "Billy" definitely fits the bill! ... and for future consideration:

Thank you Phil! While it nears completion, I'm definitely on the slow track. Best, H-

Thank you Matle! This information is very helpful-- glad you found my build log. The PDF that Steggen linked to (second post from top; this page) is to-date the best info I've come across yet, but you've clearly shown how the line is run to a reef point, which makes sense. Seeing your drawing on the photos makes me think it must have been a way to sheet the foresail with a reef set without lowering the foresail. By keeping the sail raised with a reef in, sheeting to the traveler may not have been a good option physics-wise, so a higher position of the block-- lashed to the stays-- would offer better purchase. This is all just an un-educated theory, though.... Thank you again!

Flying Jib, Jib, and Foresail are all up and sheeted. I used Dr PR's method of making the hanks on the foresail, as noted on his build-log of the Albatross-- thanks Phil! The Øerifiken continues to perplex, particularly with regards to its purpose, and is so far omitted. I've got a book en-route that will hopefully help. The sheeting of the foresail on the traveler is made exactly like that in the paper Steggin linked to on the previous page-- one with a cleat mounted right on the side of the lower block. The foresail also has a downhaul rigged with a light line. The falls are mostly glued to the proper pins-- will be adding separate rope coils soon. Here are some pics: The model's keel is 1-1/2" above the floor (on the stand), and the mast tops out at over 36" high-- my usual work-space is too small for this model, so I've moved it to the living room floor (I live in a 1913 corner grocery store, so a very spacious living room with 11' ceilings). I've been working on the rigging for the gaff and boom, attaching anchor points for blocks on mast, boom, and gaff. More line and more blocks have been ordered. . . going through this stuff fast! H--

Thanks Siggi! I used archival pva glue to attach the bolt ropes. Just a line of glue along the sail edge, then push the rope against it; once it is situated properly, I elevate the glued section to dry (ensuring it doesn't adhere to the table). I just do about 4-5 inches at a time. Hope this helps! H-

I just saw your build of the St. Roch-- that is a lovely model!!! I've been aboard at the VMM some years back, and it is good to see it preserved. First, I know very little about handling ships like these, but the idea of a fixed cleat for a sheet connected to the traveler seems like it would restrict the movement. I had been thinking maybe it was cleated to a cleat affixed to one of the lines adjacent the blocks, or something like that-- figure 117 in the paper Steggen linked to shows a variation of this, where the cleat is affixed directly to a block. Now I'm wondering what the cleat is for on the St. Roch (also wondering how wrong I am about all of this 😉). Thank you again! H-

Thank you Steggen! This is very helpful. I'll have to take time to digest (and translate) this. I see figure 111 has a line labeled Ørefiken, and it is shown (unlabeled) on the plans I have. Seems to have good info on the traveler as well-- thank you again! H-

Thank you Bruce! Yes, the museum may have some info on that detail-- figured I'd try here first. Wefalck has generously shared some photos of the Gjøa at the museum, and alas, the traveler itself is not even place (probably a tripping hazard, as the ship is open for visitors). Best, H-

The Flying Jib and Jib are up! The panel lines pattern is modeled after that shown on the 1950 Model Shipways plans . . . I hope they're correct, as I've also seen them represented bisected/joined at the clew, perpendicular to the luff (forgive the poor description...). I can't recall seeing photos of the Gjøa with her rig up, at least not ones clear enough to see the panel lines. Two historic paintings (by Fredrik Sørvig) of the Gjøa do show panel lines like on the MS plans, though the paintings were done well before Amundsen bought it in 1901 (The paintings are reproduced in Amundsen's Diaries, 2017; Fram Museum). Here she is: As you can see, the foresail is also in progress. While I have copies of the 1950 plans, I do not have instructions and there is a term on the sheeting/pin-rail plans that I am not familiar with, and can't seem to turn it up anywhere: "Ørefiken." The term on the plans is keyed to belaying pins on port and starboard, just behind the pins marked for the Squaresail Tack; the starboard pin related to the mystery term is shown below. Any ideas, or better yet, a definition? Another question I am struggling with is in regards to how the foresail is sheeted to the traveler. I'm inferring that a double block with an end ring is hooked to the clew, and the line runs through a single(?) block hooked to a ring on the traveler, but where does the fall go? Any help will be most welcome! In other news, I've learned (for next time) to put mast hoops on before the trucks, stays, crow's nest, and shrouds are in place 😉 H-

Thank you! I'm definitely warming up to Silkspan.

Hello all! Am still at it despite being busy with many other projects. It has taken a while to wrap my head around the silksspan-for-sails on what is a very large model. I started with the Gjöa's square sail, which will be furled; it's visible in the photo, un-furled and not cut full-size. I need to brush up on how to properly furl a squaresail; I must have been sick the day they covered it in middle school. I've painted up enough paper for the Gjöa's sails, using a roller as-per Tom Lauria on youtube. The jib and flying jib are cut so far. A good way (for me) to get a hang of these sails was to re-rig old models I had laying about. Here is a Garvey from Barnegat Bay, N.J. built from Chapelle's drawing in "American Small Sailing Craft" (modified slightly to represent a full-size version I built). I chucked the old cloth sail and put this one on: It's got separate edge pieces glued on, penciled panel lines, roped edging, and a few patches here and there for good measure. Practice makes passable . . . hopefully!

The chain drive on Gjøa thread is here, mostly on page 2: https://modelshipworld.com/topic/34394-gjøa-1872-by-harvey-golden-roald-amundsens-cutter-built-at-rosedahl-norway/page/2/#comments (thanks to all that helped with that puzzle).

Hello All! The rigging is progressing nicely, albeit two steps forward, one step back. The boats on the quarters are hung; it's a little odd, but they quite conceal the Gjøa's name board. A discrepancy of where the crow's nest was has been resolved: My plans had it 10' higher than is shown on other drawings; historic photos showed I needed to lower it. Also started in on weathering the hull: It was Golden brand acrylic Red Oxide, which I've just gone over with a brown wash; it'll get a gray wash then some green sponging, then white sponging. The squaretail yard is coming along, as is the gaff and boom. I noticed some historic images of Gjøa (during her famous transit) do show the square topsail in place, so I'l be making that as well. Here she is today-- loving the Ropes of Scale line; I've replaced the backstays with it.

Thanks Ed! Looks like some interesting old boats around town-- 'Peterhead' boats, I suppose? I'd love to get up there someday; I've been to Nunavut, but on the East Side of Baffin Island. It's an incredible place!

Thank you for the kind comments, Arlo! As mentioned by Steve, his popular account is in re-print (two volumes). His private journals are a superb accompaniment-- there's a photo of the book cover on the first post in this thread. Best, H-

Hello All! Still at it. . . I finally sourced the info I needed for the rigging, so I'll be tackling that with more energy. For such a big detailed model I decided to up-my-game a bit: I've ordered rigging line from Ropes of Scale, which are simply incredible compared to the line I had been using (various weights of thread, etc.). Also, I've decided on Silkspan sails-- I've bought enough to do the Gjöa, as well as to re-do a number of my older models. For practice with the Silkspan, I made sails for the skiff and faering. I've brailed them up, as shown in the photo below (I've also added oarlocks, oars, and even rivet-heads to the faering, which look quite good [just dots of glue]). I'm still uncertain if I'll have the Gjöa's sails up or drawn in-- I suppose that's a great advantage of Silkspan, as you can decide after they've been made up.