Tommy Vercetti

On 3/20/2022 at 8:20 PM, Kurtis said:

hi Tommy;

Thanks for the interest!

The project is still on hold at the moment whilst I sort other things in my life out. Your messsage has come at a convenient time in a way cos I was hoping to resume in the next week or so.

I understand the problem with a lack of tutorials For me, the issue is more about the individual parts, how they're supposed to look and function. On ships like these, there are tons of them! I'm hoping when I get underway again that I can post here and ask questions (hopefully not to the extent that the community gets annoyed 🥴)

I'd be interested in seeing your work if you're willing to post them. We can share tips that way as well if you're so inclined!

Hi Kurtis,

that's some very good news! I have the same situation, I started this a few months ago but put on hold because had some other things with higher priority. But last week I resumed it and hope will finish soon and post it on this forum if you're interested.

Just like you, I was also thinking to start from scratch again because I feel like I know a lot more now but I am reluctant to do it, because even if I start again I'm sure there will always be some things to improve anyway. I hope I will have time to a new model in the future that will look better and more realistic and authentic.

And yes, indeed, modeling itself is quite simple, no complex shapes but I got stuck because I never had any experience with ships before. It is hard to make it look at least somewhat realistic without spending a lot of time on researh. I was using this forum to look around some topics and saw many other works that helped me a lot though but it seems I still just touched the tip of the iceburg. I think it can take me years to learn about this ship stuff 

Nice work! How is your ship looking nowadays? Any progress? I would surely like to check it out because I've been trying to do a ship in Blender too and it looks like our hull references are the same, I used Bellona as a base for the hull. Although the model I'm trying to build is more like a prop for a game so it's more of an artistic work where I am using many references rather than creating a genuine representation of a particular model. It proved to be quite difficult to do a ship especially since I haven't found any 3D tutorials for models of this kind.

1 minute ago, Gregory said:

Historic Ship Model  by Mondfeld has a lot of general information ..  Can be a good place to start.

 

Here is an example ..  Topmasts and topgallants were for the most part made from single timbers and not built up like lower masts..

Yes, I agree. I read chapter about masts and some other chapters and it's really good for a start and I found a lot of good info and very good illustrations of lower masts and tops but not much about topmasts and topgallant masts, unfortunately.

On 12/25/2021 at 4:54 PM, druxey said:

There are numerous books such as James Lees' Masting and Rigging English Ships of War, 1625-1860 or R. C. Anderson's Seventeenth Century Rigging that will inform you.

Thank you for book recommendations. Lees seems a bit expensive but I think I can afford Anderson's Seventeenth Century Rigging. Hopefully I'll find answers there

2 hours ago, allanyed said:

Tommy,  What ship(s) and year(s)? 

 In general, Lees and Anderson per Druxey's post above are the best books that I have found for the 17th century. 

 

I have seen a number of contemporary drawings of masts and yards on the RMG Collections site as well.  I am not sure if any go as far back as the 17th century  but a  search on their collections site should turn up anything appropriate. 

 

Allan

Thank you for your reply. I am just researching in general about the topic, trying to figure out how things worked. Here is one picture I that made me wonder about it in particular https://www.hnsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/mastplate2.jpg from https://www.hnsa.org/manuals-documents/age-of-sail/the-elements-and-practice-of-rigging-and-seamanship/page-1/

I thought trestle trees are supposed to be placed upon the cheeks or bibbs as on the lower mast but according to that diagram it's not clear how trestle trees of topmast are supported. Moreover, the transition from the topgallant mast to the pole head is even more confusing. It just says "Topmast trestle-trees are supported by the hounds." but it's still not clear because I can't really see any support under topmast trestle trees, only 8 sided section. I think it could be from 18th century  but still relevant for me.

Hi! I've been researching about masts for a while now and more or less understood how lower masts are constructed but I found little info explaining other masts. Can anyone explain the differences in construction, please? I'm particularly interested in 17th century frigates. I usually see topmasts without cheeks or bibbs. I'm not sure if these diagrams are correct but if then how trestle trees would be attached to the mast. Also, topgallant masts often feature head poles and I don't understand how these head poles are attached to the topgallant masts either.

Thank you a lot for your invaluable feedback. I've learned a lot! Will dig deeper into the books and materials you guys recommended.

Hi, I'm quite new to ships and I was wondering if someone could explain how masts are done exactly on old full rigged ships. I was checking some general plans on masts on the internet but I still don't quite understand. In general, I found that the mast is round until some point and then it is somehow squared off on the top, but if I understand correctly it is first trimmed in octagon before being squared. Can someone explain why it's constructed like this, please? And is it the same for topmast and topgallant mast? Also, if anyone can point me to some good plans on masts, would be be much appreciated. Thanks!