EdT

Young America - extreme clipper 1853 Part 320 – Running Rigging Continued The last 1% always seems to be the most difficult to complete – or perhaps its just the most exhausting. It seems like not a lot has gotten done since the last post almost three weeks ago. A fair amount of time was spent adjusting tension on the 60-odd main mast belaying points – a time consuming task – and one that is dangerous for completed work that gets in the way. Not a lot to show for that effort. That is now complete and the pins should be ready for rope coils. Work has also been continuing on the mizzen yards, as shown in the first picture. The upper topsail and the topgallant were installed in the past couple weeks. Below is the view from aft. Below is a picture of the poop deck pin rail about half full and the last main deck rail forward of it – almost full. Installing mast trucks and signal halyards is in progress. In the next picture one of the trucks being bored to fit the its mast pole. The top is left a bit flat so the sheave holes can be drilled without slipping off the side. The next picture shows that work – with a very short bit extension. Below is a picture of the house flag, pre-assembled with its truck and halyard. The flag is painted with thinned acrylic gouache on some very old drafting linen that has had its wax sizing removed by boiling then washing. It is the house flag of the William Daniels Company of New York that owned the ship from its launch in 1853 until 1859, when it was sold to another shipper. The truck will be fitted to the mast pole without glue, held down by the fit and the halyard that runs down to the deck. This will allow it to be removed and replaced – a possibility. The last picture shows it flying from the top of the main mast. Similar trucks with halyards are being fitted to the other masts but without flags at this time. Ed

Looks fantastic, Frank. Clean with beautiful detail. I sometimes envy the larger scale. Bravo. Ed

Remarkable, beautiful work. Ed

Bravo, Pat.

It wasn't a rebuttal, Rob. It was a simple thank you. Ed

Thank you, Kevin. Its nice to see the Naiad is still being looked at. Ed

No fuss, rob. You were correct to pick up that oversight on my part - has been corrected. Ed

Thank you, Rob.

Thank you all for the kind words. Micheal, I can only imagine what this would be like with double topgallants as well as the double tops - to say nothing of all the stunsl rigging that I have left off. There is a wonderful order to the lines, provided by the fairleads and the belaying plan. this keeps it generally in order. Fouling problems occur when running lines and crossing them - good eyes would help. The belaying plan I used came from a combination of Crothers's drawings and Underhill - neither had the whole story. I am happy to say there have been few revisions required along the way. There is a logic - probably time-tested - to the layout. As to sequence this has been a learning process. I have a much better grip on it than I did at the start - and I made a number of mistakes in ordering the work. Hopefully others may learn from these through the book. Thank you, Druxey. Mixed feelings - true. Its been a long haul, but not an arduous one. The pace has been comfortable - there are other things in life. Thanks again everyone. Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853 Part 319 – Running Rigging Continued I keep looking at the model and thinking that it doesn't look a lot different than it did last month - considering the amount of time being spent on it. All these pictures were taken today after a fairly major cleanup of the work area. The first picture shows most of the model. In the picture the rigging of the foremast is essentially finished except for the lower braces which are deferred for access reasons. On the main mast all the lines are run and belayed at least initially, again except for braces. The mizzen still lacks its four upper yards but these have been made and are ready for rigging. The next picture shows the fore course sheets that were installed this week. Again, these were deferred until now to permit access. These large, 5" lines run from a shackled eyebolt on the outside of the sheer rail, then forward and up through the large block ganged with the clue garnet block, the tack and the lazy tack. Finally they pass back through a bulwark sheave and are belayed to cleats on the deck. The next picture may be clearer. Without sails, the lines drape across the lower shrouds. The tacks are the lines running forward to cleats on the catheads. The lazy tacks angle aft and belay on the first pin on the main rack rails. These were used to control the tack of the sail when the yard was being braced around – between the casting off of the sheet and the belaying of the tack – or vice versa. The starboard tack may be seen belayed to its cleat on the cathead in the next picture. This picture also shows the new lashing between the bullseyes on the martingale stay where it is shackled to the cathead. This outer bowsprit standing rigging suffered damage during nearby work. It should have been deferred. The jibboom guys are still scheduled for replacement. Further aloft, work on the fore upper yard braces has progressed. The next picture shows the topgallant brace tackles between yard and stay pendants. Tension on these will be relieved to normalize the stay. Below this, the fore upper topsail braces have been run except for the falls, which are delayed to permit access to belaying points below. The main spencer gaff has finally been mounted and rigged and is shown in the next picture. The rigging on these consist of one standing lift and two vang pendants with tackles. The tackles and belaying points on the side rails are out of this picture. Rigging of the fore braces gets complex at the heads of the stays as seen in the next picture. The tackle falls run through blocks seized to the stay then through blocks on the shrouds to direct them downwards without fouling. Two sets of braces attach to this stay. One level up it gets even more congested with the two upper sets of braces as well as the staysail halyard block. Finally another view of the full model. The two broken jibboom guy chains may be seen dangling from the boom waiting for replacement in this picture. Approaching endgame. Ed

Amazing, Micheal amazing. My hat is off. .

Perfection - or as near as possible.

Or up to the trucks? I assume they shinnied up the poles, which ranged from 4" to 6" in diameter. Seems crazy, but these upper topmen had to be like monkeys. I have seen ironworkers do things I would never contemplate. Also, I have not seen ratlines on the double royal shrouds. They must have gone up those hand-over-hand. There was not much need to get on the skysail yards, since these were raised and lowered as a unit with the sail bent, using the halyard. The braces could be fixed to the ends at a lower level. These are my assumptions based on what I have read and on drawings/photos. Ed

Rob, tension on standing rigging is a constant issue, especially with changes in humidity and the sizes of the model lines. I have had many of the deadeye lanyards on and off for adjustment a number of times and have actually replaced some stays. This is particularly difficult where running rigging is attached at an angle, as is the case on most stays and many shrouds. Deflection at these points was probably evident on real ships as well, given the sagging of standing rigging seen in some pictures and the strain some running rigging would induce in high winds. Eighteen or so lines hauled through fairleads on a gang of shrouds would also exert some inward force. Although Jacobs ladders are shown to the top of the royal section on the photos in which the ship has pole masts, they do not extend up to the sky masthead. The stepped mast configuration I am using has shrouds but no ratlines to the royal mast head. In both cases there is nothing to the sky masthead, so at present I do not intend to add these. Ed

Thank you, Micheal. I do harden the ends of line with thin CA and also snip the end to an angled point, but the coloring idea is brilliant. Thanks. Actually, most fouling is detected once the line has been pulled taut, but the color sure would help find the ends under the tops and crosstrees. As to steady hands, I could only wish. Worse with each passing year. Ed