jud

Kept ours here, handy and out of the way. Bassac River Vietnam 1967, fire support, bunker in there bothering the PBR's, they quit.

A lot of British and European ships in the 19th century had much of the larger bits and bobs such as rammers, sponges, worms, ladles etc stowed in racks attached to the bulwarks; not sure what was done earlier.  However, I have seen some images of these stowed in the overhead for the lower gundecks.
 
Powder cases, slow fuse, lanyards etc were collected from the magazine by the designated number (sometimes a powder monkey' while the gun was being readied by the rest of the crew.  Ready use shot was usually stowed in 'shot garlands' around hatches etc, or on the bulwark.  When action was likely (and the weather permitted), sometimes guns were readied well before action, which then just required them to be 'primed'.  I cannot comment on the practises used in 'Constitution' as I am not familiar with US vessels.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Still thinking about this and in light of what Jud mentioned.   I did see a description of a French vessel where all the tools were rigged to the side of the gun.   How prevalent this was, I can not say.   It is an interesting question though.....  

Wife asked me to put drain holes in a container she had dragged in to plant something in, used a 22 revolver to make the drain holes. After that she used her own revolver for such chores, might try that, shoot a hole in the bulwarks or side, run a jig saw blade through it, attach the blade to a saw, and have at it.  If done carefully, you can do both sides at once and save ammo.  

I use mine quite frequently when planking a hull. I still use tic strips to adjust for the curvature of the bulkheads, but I find marking off the strake positions  on the bulkhead edges with pencil or pen less accurate (and prone to error) than using the proportional dividers. Plus if I gradually reduce the proportions by one (5, 4,. 3, 2 e.g.) when applying each strake it helps to compensate for accumulated error that may have crept in while installing the previous strakes in the current planking belt.

Ships’ bells served two distinctly different purposes.  First, they kept time.  In conjunction with the sand glass they announced the progress of the four hour watch at half hour intervals.  The bell performing this function logically would be located where it was assessable to the watch standers.  Bells are sometimes seen atop the binnacle.
 
Bells were also used to announce the existence of an anchored vessel in conditions of reduced visibility; fog.  This could require a larger bell to project sound further.  This might account for the large bells hung forward from the Samson post or the break of the forecastle.
 
Roger

It indeed evokes the feeling that the crews on these little ships crossing the oceans were all on their own ...

I have used an old kettle and a length of PVC tube to steam wood for bending, but this was for a full-size canoe's laminated stems. It takes 30-45 min for 1/4" thick hardwood strips to become very pliable. The time required should scale according to thickness.
 
I realize steaming may not be very practical for most modeling but I mention it here as it may be a way to do edge bending.

There's  alot of ways to get there.   Here's a short list...
 
1) Soak for maybe 1 hour or more depending.  Put the wood in a microwave and heat.  Check constantly so as not to burn the wood.
 
2) The afore mentioned soak and curling iron, plank bender, etc.   Again, the heat must be applied for more than minute or two.
 
3) There's a method by Chuck involving soaking the plank and then bending it using nails set into a large piece of wood such as to form the shape and allow to cool in the jig.   Apply heat with a hair dryer or heat gun.   I've found this method works best for me.
 
I'm sure there's a few more but the big thing is don't be afraid to test different methods as to soaking time and heating time.  Everything is a variable with different species of wood, different thicknesses, etc.  So testing for the best result is necessary.

The listing stated it was an "insurance cannon." What's an "insurance cannon?" I looked it up. I learn something new here every day!
 
1840 BRITISH INSURANCE GUN - SWIVEL CANNON - DECK CARRIAGE (buckstix.com)

Varied by ship, her job and job of each individual, in a combat Zone or not and the experience of the Skipper and crew. On LST 821 we operated in a combat zone constantly month in and month out supporting SEALS, PBR's and HAL 3, were kept busy just doing our thing without GQ on top of it, so we minimized that and had a ready gun always manned with enough to fire one gun, two men on roving patrol with grenades and a  M16 as defense against swimmers and floating mines while we went on about our business, some got more sleep than others but it was those who got the most that the months on station bothered the most, one shot himself because he wanted no more of it and he was a E6 Store keeper, exhausted enough to sleep on anything and take power naps is good thing on extended operations, just as important or even more so, is the ability to remain alert in spite of it all, when others are relying on you doing your job.

Varied by ship, her job and job of each individual, in a combat Zone or not and the experience of the Skipper and crew. On LST 821 we operated in a combat zone constantly month in and month out supporting SEALS, PBR's and HAL 3, were kept busy just doing our thing without GQ on top of it, so we minimized that and had a ready gun always manned with enough to fire one gun, two men on roving patrol with grenades and a  M16 as defense against swimmers and floating mines while we went on about our business, some got more sleep than others but it was those who got the most that the months on station bothered the most, one shot himself because he wanted no more of it and he was a E6 Store keeper, exhausted enough to sleep on anything and take power naps is good thing on extended operations, just as important or even more so, is the ability to remain alert in spite of it all, when others are relying on you doing your job.

Varied by ship, her job and job of each individual, in a combat Zone or not and the experience of the Skipper and crew. On LST 821 we operated in a combat zone constantly month in and month out supporting SEALS, PBR's and HAL 3, were kept busy just doing our thing without GQ on top of it, so we minimized that and had a ready gun always manned with enough to fire one gun, two men on roving patrol with grenades and a  M16 as defense against swimmers and floating mines while we went on about our business, some got more sleep than others but it was those who got the most that the months on station bothered the most, one shot himself because he wanted no more of it and he was a E6 Store keeper, exhausted enough to sleep on anything and take power naps is good thing on extended operations, just as important or even more so, is the ability to remain alert in spite of it all, when others are relying on you doing your job.

Quote from Srodbro, ( I wonder whether the water course was less intended to protect the deck from heat than from fat/grease leaking thru the layers of brick ( due to cracks in the masonry and joints ) from the burning of blubber scraps as fuel and spreading fire to the deck below ). Suspect this is the correct reason for the water. Used as a barrier to the oil preventing the decks and supporting timbers from becoming soaked in oil and a stinking messy fire hazard later.

Quote from Srodbro, ( I wonder whether the water course was less intended to protect the deck from heat than from fat/grease leaking thru the layers of brick ( due to cracks in the masonry and joints ) from the burning of blubber scraps as fuel and spreading fire to the deck below ). Suspect this is the correct reason for the water. Used as a barrier to the oil preventing the decks and supporting timbers from becoming soaked in oil and a stinking messy fire hazard later.

Mystery Solved !
 
I obtained from Mystic Seaport Museum a drawing of the try works construction details. Here are a couple ( very rough) sketches that describe the construction shown on the drawings. 
 

 
The bottom course of brick rests on a layer of yellow pine sheathing over the deck. This course has open joints with no mortar between. Several courses with mortar joints lay on top of the base course, and form the floor of the furnace. In several locations, brick piers are built up to where the iron pots can rest on them. I suspect ( but this isn’t clear from the construction drawings) that these piers extend all the way down to the sheathing, penetrating the water course. In the sketch the blue represents the water “ coolant “ that provides additional protection to the deck. Filled at the “duck pen” the water level could be kept high enough there to assure flow thru the bottom course interstices. 
 
The next sketch shows additional detail 

The bricks of the bottom water course are widely spaced athwart ships to provide even more water protection. 
 
This whole try works structure would have been enormously heavy. There is a wooden plank structure with massive iron brackets fastened to the deck on the starboard and port sides of the structure to hold it in place,  but it doesn’t seem there is much to keep it from sliding fore-aft … but apparently the weight was enough. Nonetheless, the working of the ship must have played havoc with the integrity of the joints. 
 
Seeing this construction, I wonder whether the water course was less intended to protect the deck from heat than from fat/grease leaking thru the layers of brick ( due to cracks in the masonry and joints ) from the burning of blubber scraps as fuel and spreading fire to the deck below. 
 
At any rate, the arrangement of this water course and the structure supporting the pots is more clear. 

I'd use a brass brush.  Stainless steel might be too hard. Ferric chloride will eventually dull the teeth . 
 
But before using a file, try rubbing some chalk on the file.  It might prevent clogging the teeth with metal chips and make it easier to clean with the brass brush.

Clean with a clean, fairly stiff, stainless steel brush.  A light coat of oil will keep the files from rusting.  Wipe off with alcohol or acetone before using to remove the oil residue.

Ferric chloride solution works well I you, like I by mistake did, have tried filing white or Britannia metal and clogged up the file.

The easiest way to clean a file is to use a piece of brass.  Push the end of a brass rod along the teeth of the file (i.e. shortways across the file not along the length of the whole file) so that the brass pushes any dirt along and out from between the teeth of the file.  The brass rod will soon form to the shape of the teeth and a few "pushes" throughout the length of the file will soon have it clean.
 
Any light rusting will also be pushed out of the way.  Heavy rusting can be removed by soaking the file in acid (try dilute citric acid which is safe and can be obtained form the chemist as crystals) followed by rinsing in running water and drying with warm air (maybe a hair dryer?).  Don't oil the file as the oil will transfer to the wood and stain it.

Before GPS but Loran was in use on larger vessels, all we had was a chart, magnetic compass and a fathometer to navigate from Bellingham, Washington to SE Alaska and back with a King Salmon Season between. We used the compass and visual cues to steer by, paid close attention to the chart and water depth, verified by the fathometer, to verify where we were while running or fishing. When caught by fog, we listened for horns and followed a bottom contour chosen from the chart to find  our way in to a place to anchor. We had no Binnacle but there was a gimbaled Nautical Compass mounted which was adjusted to the magnetic field it occupied with tested and certified correction tables at hand. All forward of the wheel of the 34 foot King Salmon Troller, Cape Race,1965. Don't remember needing the correction tables, would pick a course, get on it and visually correct if necessary, we were running the Inland Passage or when fishing, had islands in sight most of the time. Did have Binnacle's, Engine Order Telegraphs, Gyro Repeaters and of course Radar, on every Navy Ship I rode, they were a Fletcher Class Destroyer; a Baltimore Class Heavy Cruiser; 3, 542 Class LSTs and some others doing my reserve time.

Before GPS but Loran was in use on larger vessels, all we had was a chart, magnetic compass and a fathometer to navigate from Bellingham, Washington to SE Alaska and back with a King Salmon Season between. We used the compass and visual cues to steer by, paid close attention to the chart and water depth, verified by the fathometer, to verify where we were while running or fishing. When caught by fog, we listened for horns and followed a bottom contour chosen from the chart to find  our way in to a place to anchor. We had no Binnacle but there was a gimbaled Nautical Compass mounted which was adjusted to the magnetic field it occupied with tested and certified correction tables at hand. All forward of the wheel of the 34 foot King Salmon Troller, Cape Race,1965. Don't remember needing the correction tables, would pick a course, get on it and visually correct if necessary, we were running the Inland Passage or when fishing, had islands in sight most of the time. Did have Binnacle's, Engine Order Telegraphs, Gyro Repeaters and of course Radar, on every Navy Ship I rode, they were a Fletcher Class Destroyer; a Baltimore Class Heavy Cruiser; 3, 542 Class LSTs and some others doing my reserve time.

Before GPS but Loran was in use on larger vessels, all we had was a chart, magnetic compass and a fathometer to navigate from Bellingham, Washington to SE Alaska and back with a King Salmon Season between. We used the compass and visual cues to steer by, paid close attention to the chart and water depth, verified by the fathometer, to verify where we were while running or fishing. When caught by fog, we listened for horns and followed a bottom contour chosen from the chart to find  our way in to a place to anchor. We had no Binnacle but there was a gimbaled Nautical Compass mounted which was adjusted to the magnetic field it occupied with tested and certified correction tables at hand. All forward of the wheel of the 34 foot King Salmon Troller, Cape Race,1965. Don't remember needing the correction tables, would pick a course, get on it and visually correct if necessary, we were running the Inland Passage or when fishing, had islands in sight most of the time. Did have Binnacle's, Engine Order Telegraphs, Gyro Repeaters and of course Radar, on every Navy Ship I rode, they were a Fletcher Class Destroyer; a Baltimore Class Heavy Cruiser; 3, 542 Class LSTs and some others doing my reserve time.

Before GPS but Loran was in use on larger vessels, all we had was a chart, magnetic compass and a fathometer to navigate from Bellingham, Washington to SE Alaska and back with a King Salmon Season between. We used the compass and visual cues to steer by, paid close attention to the chart and water depth, verified by the fathometer, to verify where we were while running or fishing. When caught by fog, we listened for horns and followed a bottom contour chosen from the chart to find  our way in to a place to anchor. We had no Binnacle but there was a gimbaled Nautical Compass mounted which was adjusted to the magnetic field it occupied with tested and certified correction tables at hand. All forward of the wheel of the 34 foot King Salmon Troller, Cape Race,1965. Don't remember needing the correction tables, would pick a course, get on it and visually correct if necessary, we were running the Inland Passage or when fishing, had islands in sight most of the time. Did have Binnacle's, Engine Order Telegraphs, Gyro Repeaters and of course Radar, on every Navy Ship I rode, they were a Fletcher Class Destroyer; a Baltimore Class Heavy Cruiser; 3, 542 Class LSTs and some others doing my reserve time.