SJSoane

I second druxey's observation. Your work continues to inspire me. Mark

Thanks, B.E., it does sound like the Lees' running backstay is the same as Steel's breast backstay with a tackle rather than deadeyes. I read somewhere that the tackle on a backstay was used to bring the upper masts rather more upright in certain points of sailing. I need to re-read Harlands' Seamanship in the Age of Sail to see if he has anything to say about that. Best wishes, Mark

Cole. Definitely look up pushsticks and feather boards as well as cutting small pieces on a table saw with Google. There used to be a link to a great video from the old site on how to deal with small pieces. I am showing a pushstick that is now well used, to fit the higher Byrnes rip fence. It rides along the fence, and has an adjustable hook at the back that pulls the piece along the fence while your hand is safely up above. It also has sandpaper on the bottom edge, so it grips the wood all along its length. You can see it has been chewed up with a lot of close cuts. the hook is adjustable up and down for a precise fit with whatever thickness of wood you are cutting. Best wishes, Mark

Hi Floyd, The die size makes a big difference and is a challenge to thread tightly. I have drilled a .025" and .035" to add to the .04" that came. I struggle to get all threads through when it is 6 or 9 threads. I tried supergluing the group in order to thread it all through, but that is larger than the combined threads by far. I suspect that I am still using too large a die opening, mainly because of the threading issue. Anyone have good ideas about how to thread it when it is tight? I haven't figured out why I would ever let go of the large knob. letting it spin a bit doesn't do anything for adjusting while making rope. Still much to learn! Best wishes, Mark

Thanks, Mark and Grant. My wife asked me if we would ever see this when the model is done. I explained that the modelmaker of the original 1760 Bellona model is likely looking over my shoulder, making sure I keep standards up... Guy, it is probably late for me at this point. I lofted all of the frames back in the 90s before I started using CAD. And the details are now half a lifetime of research based on dozens of sources. It would be interesting to see someone else's reconstruction of the ship. Are the drawings published anywhere? I am taking a break from the hull for a short time, while I sort out the Byrnes ropewalk and set up a rigging table based on Steel. I have posted a few questions over in Tools and in Rigging. I thought it better to keep these off the build log. Best wishes, Mark

In setting up a rigging table for my 1760 English 74 HMS Bellona, I came across some ambiguities regarding backstays for the topmasts. Can someone help me figure this out? Steel's tables for a 74 ca. 1800 list 3 pairs of standing backstays on the fore topmast set up with deadeyes, and also 1 pair of breast backstays set up with tackles. Lee's Masting and Rigging book confirms 3 pair of standing backstays for ca 1760, but says that there were no breast backstays between 1733 and 1839; the foremost backstay likely served as a breast backstay. Lees also refers to a running breast backstay set up with tackles, which sounds like Steel's breast backstays. Are Steel and Lees referring to the same thing with different names? Best wishes, Mark

Hi everyone, More experiments. I am showing DMC cotton size 50 on the left, and linen on the right. The linen does not lay up nearly as well as the cotton. Interestingly, I made the linen with 3 strands on each supply bobbin right hand (CW on the ropewalk), and it looked better than another I made CWW which was moe uneven and lumpy. But when I tried CW on one strand on each bobbin, it failed altogether. The strands unwound, then wrapped up in strange ways and broke. I wonder why it works so much better with multiple strands. I don't see a pattern yet in how many strands make how large a rope. The linen is .010 off the spool; laid up 6 strands it makes a rope .28 in diameter; and laid up 9 strands it is .035. I need to do more experiments to see a pattern. Does someone know of a supplier of DMC egyptian cotton in the US in various sizes? Best wishes, Mark

Thanks, Michael and druxey, that was a steep learning curve. But the great thing is, I figured it out and learned some new skills along the way. I had to be even more patient than usual, and walk away when I got impatient. And I had to be more systematic than usual, while carefully adjusting each face. I made a few sanding jigs that helped; I'll try to post those later. I also learned that I have to get even more tools....a few more files to expand my range of coarseness, and Michael, I look forward to seeing the watchmaker tweezers. Those could really come in handy! Mark

Hi everyone, Here is the capstan, with lower chocks. Done. Mark

Ed, Looking at these lovely photos again reminds me of an issue that is becoming more important for me as I begin to close up a deck. How do you keep a lower deck clean, when you are sanding an upper deck or otherwise making sawdust? Did you cover the lower deck with something? And do you have a small vacuum of some kind, for cleaning up? I remember in the pre-crash days of a comment you made about turning the model upside down every once in a while... Mark

Remco, that was a fabulous description. It is daunting to think how many more of those there are to make....;-) Mark

Gary, it is great to see these details again! Mark

Hi Remco, Could you explain a little more how you did the splice and stropping? Mark

How nice to see this. I agree with Greg. The metalwork and wood joinery are exceptional. Mark

Beautiful craftsmanship and photos! Mark

Thanks, Grant, Mark, Michiel, Robert, Ben, druxey and Karl. This has been a steep learning curve for me. Of all the things I read over the years, and watching other great build logs on this site, I had no idea that the chocks of the capstans were going to be so challenging. They have to fit very precisely into the angles between the whelps, or you can see the mismatch; they are angled at the back to fit against the angles of the drum, which you can also see if it is not right; they are beveled on the sides to fit the birdsmouth rabbets; and they are rounded on the front so that they make a perfect circle around the capstan, which you can see if it is not a perfect circle. They are too thin to clamp in a vise without breaking them with the force of a file, and almost too small to hold in fingertips. I sanded and filed a great deal off my fingertips while working on these. I became obsessive about not letting them slip from my grasp, because there was no way I would ever find them again. I can't wait to work on a big project like the spokes of the helm! ....;-) Best wishes, Mark

Hi everyone, The top chocks are finally finished, and I went for the black on natural idea. It is starting to look good with the natural gratings and black coamings. I have shown the size of the upper chock in my hand. Challenging. On to the lower ones... Mark

Hi Meredith and Ulises, I have spent the last several days creating an inventory of all of the rope I will need for the 3/16" scale Bellona 74. Then I can join you in experimenting with how to create a LH or RH rope of a given diameter, and know how big of an inventory I will need to create of each size. You keep me inspired at the possibilities of Jim's machine. Mark

Beautiful! It all looks obvious and straightforward when you view the headwork of a completed model. Your photos show just how exceptionally complex those pieces in the head really are. Great craftsmanship. Mark

Hi Everyone, I finally got to grips with the chocks for the capstan, which I now realize had been running me into the ground. I tried a half dozen different ways to machine them since they were so small and hard to hold. But in the end, I used a table saw to cut the angles, and then chisels and files to hand fit them into their slots. Smallest pieces I have ever fabricated. I am thinking about color. I had long planned to do a red or black capstan, since so many 18th century models have one or the other. But the other day I saw the color photo of HMS Yarmouth, 1748, in Franklin's Navy Board Ship Models. It has the chocks in black, and the rest of the capstan natural. I tried one in the photo I am showing (the chock is still loose, and not yet tight up against the rabbet on top). I will sleep on it, and then decide once and for all. I have the dilemma Remco was facing about blackening his mast tops, which would hide all of his great detail. I am feeling the same about the capstan. Alex, I am glad I could help with the wood. What is IPMS? It is not too far away, if you think it is worth seeing. And flattening and refinishing my bench made it feel like a brand new tool to play with. Long overdue. I guess I can thank those pesky capstans for pushing me into any other project but a capstan.... Best wishes, Mark

Hi Michael, I sent you a PM. Alex, it is South American Boxwood. I bought it years ago from Woodcraft, but they have not been able to supply more for many years. I got a sample from HobbyMill that is every bit as good. You can find them at: http://www.hobbymillusa.com Mine is not as yellow as European Box; but it is a delight to work with. Fine, even grain, holds detail, cuts precisely. Best wishes, Mark

So after re-reading Lees and David Antscherl's book on Rigging a 6th rate sloop of war, this is how I see it for now, until someone has a better reading: Strands are twisted left handed (S direction); multiple strands are twisted right handed to form rope (Z direction); and multiple ropes are twisted left handed to form cable (S direction). Most lines are ropes twisted right hand. The largest rigging such as stays, shrouds, and anchor cables, are all cables twisted left hand. Now to make life interesting, most threads that we can buy are already twisted right hand. So to make a standard right hand rope, we need to twist enough threads left hand (Jim's counterclockwise setting) to form left handed strands, three of which are then twisted right hand to form the rope. The number of threads we load onto a supply spool will determine the size of the strands. After the strands are formed, we only load single strands onto the supply spools to form rope. And we only load single ropes to form cables. To calculate how to form a rope of a given diameter, we need to know how big the strands need to be so that three of them make up the desired rope diameter. And to make the strands of the right diameter, we need to know how many threads are needed to make the strand of the desired diameter. The same for calculating a cable. We need to know how big the ropes need to be so that three and sometimes four ropes will twist left handed to form the cable of the desired size. So, let's say a strand is .01 inches in diameter, and three are twisted together to form a rope. Has anyone spotted a standard ratio for this, where for example we could say that the three together will be 1 1/2 or 2 times the diameter of the single strands? or this this variable depending upon the material? And for those of you who then spun ropes into cables, do you see a ratio of the individual ropes sizes to the finished cable size? All for now! Mark

Hi Ulises, Dave and Meredith, Yes, Ulises, your comments makes perfect sense. When should we make up a line with many strands per spool, and when should we lay up a line left, then use those to lay up right, and so on? I have an old spreadsheet of all of the lines needed for the Bellona, using James Lees' book on Masting and Rigging. I will try to consolidate this into a list of the actual diameters of lines needed for the ship, with notes of whether they should be cable laid, etc. Then we can see when a certain diameter should be many strands in one rope, or left hand turned into right hand, etc. It will take me a few days; I converted from Microsoft Excel to Apple Numbers a few years ago, and a lot of cleanup is needed. But now I have partners in figuring this out! I love this website. Mark

Thanks, druxey, Greg, Grant, Ed and Remco. I think working on those capstans has worn me out temporarily. Each step is only an tiny move forward, and I am so ready to move on. I only need to figure out how to attach the whelps so they are evenly spaced around the drum, and get some chocks in. But it seems a long hill to climb right now.... By the way, the workbench is based on an ancient European design, shown in the Workbench Book by Scott Landis. The noted woodworker Frank Klausz shows in great detail in this book (pp. 48-61) how he built his own example of a workbench his father and grandfather used. It so inspired me 20 years ago that I built one. Only mine was left-hand, and not as well crafted as Frank's. He says something about this that I think applies to ship models as well: "It's not my design--it's a thousand years old. The only credit we can take for this is that we made it and it's nicely done." Ed, I just got the first scratches in my new finish on the bench, and initially thought, what a shame. But then I reminded myself, it is only a workbench! Remco, I haven't tried this yet, but I think a straight board used on this shooting board will not need clamping. Just pushing it against the fence, and holding it down firmly, should keep it in place. We'll see. I may have to put some lever clamps in if this doesn't work. I deliberately did not apply a finish on the jig, so that there would be friction between the board and the top of the jig. A piece of fine sandpaper attached to the top may help if it needs more friction. Mark

Meridith, That would be great! i only have a couple of attempts, but I'll pull the information together and post it. Best wishes, Mark