georgeband

Juraj, Thanks for the link about La Jacinthe which I have not seen previously. I find it reassuring when other drawings support my conclusions! There is another thread that is about windlasses and catheads, where I have given some calculations about how many men are needed to raise an anchor. I estimate that one man can pull about 200lb (call it 100kg) using a set of blocks that gives a x4 mechanical advantage. A one ton anchor is quite achievable. This link should take you there, or just search for 'windlass'. http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/12399-schooner-haddock-cuckoo-ballahoo-drawings-windlass-and-catheads/#entry380007 George

Juraj, I have not come across a windlass on the lower deck on other ships, so would suggest that this is unlikely. Larger vessels sometimes have two capstans, one above the other on the same shaft, so that more force can be applied to raise a heavy anchor, but I have not seen a single capstan below the deck. Part of the problem would be friction where the anchor cable is taken around a bend where it is fed down into the lower deck. The low ceiling height would also limit the length of the bars to turn the windlass, making it even harder to use. The other issue for Haddock is that the drawing shows no windlass above or below deck. I like your creative solution to the problem of 'no windlass', but unfortunately I don't think it would work. (Is this where someone finds a photo of a ship that has a buried windlass?) I have marked up a drawing of Haddock in red to show where the steps in the deck occur. They can be found fairly easily by looking for the cross sections of the deck beams. There is a NMM drawing for Cuckoo which shows the same features a little more clearly (it is meant to be a copy of the Haddock drawing sent to another builder in England). The photo also shows the various openings in the deck in green. The plan view of Haddock shows the deck beams, and the steps are where two beams are next to each other without a gap. If you want printed copies of the NMM drawings then copy the images from the NMM website and paste them into Word. You can then change the size of the drawings to get the scale you want. They do not quite fit onto A4 paper in 1/64 scale. George

It is very reassuring for me to see the Haddock drawing above from daves. I have been looking at this drawing for a long while and the varying sizes and shapes of the gunports did not look right, but I have to trust the shipwright who measured the schooner and drew the lines. Equally interesting is how the original build in Bermuda was altered by the people at Portsmouth - the fine dotted lines show the changes. George

Gregor, I have the same question about a windlass (and cathead) for the Ballahoo class schooners built in Bermuda. The drawings for Haddock at the National Maritime Museum do not show the windlass, but an earlier drawing does. I will have to go deeper into the references on seamanship to see if there are any clues there. George

Tony, Kester, Thanks for your comments. I think it is right that the anchor cables enter through the corners of the main hatch; that is what I intended to say but was probably not very clear. The reasons you (Kester) give are a good justification for what feels right to me. The plan drawing for the lower deck on Haddock does label 'cables' at the sides, midship. Christmas celebrations will keep me away from the laptop for a while. Enjoy your break. George

I will be using the Caldercraft/Jotika kit of the Ballahoo schooner (Fish class) to build a model of her sister schooner Whiting. Why Whiting? Because she has an interesting history that I have researched in depth and I continue to study log books and other records. We are blessed with several drawings of the Fish class and their fore-runners at the National Maritime Museum and the drawings of Haddock in particular are excellent (ZAZ6116 and ZAZ6117 are the best two). I am now trying to interpret some features on the drawings and already have several questions about aspects that confuse me. I hope that some of the experienced shipwrights here can help. Height of the deck This is a big issue where the Caldercraft kit seems to make a major simplification. The kit has a level deck from stem to stern, but the drawings show that the deck is higher over the commander's cabin and the 'entrance lobby'. The side profile is a bit fuzzy but the deck planking and the sections through the deck beams show where the deck is higher. The plan view shows where there are pairs of deck beams at the steps, one at the low level and one at the high level. Is this something that Caldercraft and other builders have missed, or am I misinterpreting the drawings? (There are a couple of photos below that show extracts from the drawings.) Windlass and catheads The drawings do not show a windlass which is plausible for the size of anchor that this vessel would have carried. I have read that a couple of blocks would be set up in place of a windlass to raise the anchor, and then more blocks for the final lift because there are no catheads either. It all seems reasonable, if hard work for the crew, but an alternative explanation is that the drawing does not show the windlass or catheads but they would be fitted anyway. The builders might be expected to know to add these items, in the same way that they know about masts and yards even though the drawings do not show them. (There is an old saying that 'absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.) Any thoughts? Holes in the deck for anchor cables There are various names for these holes (Navel pipes?) which were used to route the cables from above deck down to the cable tier. The Haddock drawings do not show any and I guess that this is correct, the alternative being to cut away the fore corners on the grating over the main hatch. I suspect that the holes in the deck are later practice but have no real evidence to support this assertion. Does anyone have information from contemporary models or paintings? More to come later... George Bandurek (Previous model is Sherbourne, completed 5 years ago)

'Billy Ruffian' by David Cordingly is an enjoyable history of the Bellerophon, find it on Amazon or other places. My memory served me badly about the heights of the crew: the average was 5 feet 5 inches and none was above 6 foot. One was under 5 foot tall. George

Jonny, Thanks for the info about Perry Miniatures, they are a new name to me. I have used the Amati 25mm figures which are nicely proportioned unlike some wargame figures that have big heads and big hands. One wargame supplier that I do recommend for dioramas is Newline Designs who have a 20mm range and a 28mm range (look under Napoleonics - Naval for each scale). I have a book about HMS Bellerophon which shows the heights of all the crew, as recorded by her captain. A few officers got to 6 feet tall but the sailors were much below that. A typical height for a crewman was 5 foot 4 inches, which scales down to one inch in 1/64. A 25mm tall figure is very close to the average and the spread would have been between about 23mm and 28mm.The nice figures in 1/72 scale that I have seen are too small and many of the '28mm' are too large unless you want to depict some big blokes. One other thing I learned about the wargames figures is that a stated height can be to the eyes, or to the top of the head, or to the top of the hat. Painting the figures is a pleasant change from tying ratlines. George

Another method for sails is to use plastic-backed cotton lawn. This is a fine weave cotton that comes in sheets for use with an inkjet printer, it is mostly used by quilters to print photographs onto material. I drew the sails on my pc and then printed them out after getting all the seam lines etc in the right places. The sails on my Sherbourne are a mix of furled and loose, but they show the cutter as being static since I think it is difficult to portray motion in a model. Full details for square sails are in a pdf in another part of MSW. (I am having problems copying and pasting the link, but it is about 'superdetailing the cutter Sherbourne') George Bandurek Sails MB.pdf

Tony, I have been distracted away from ship models (in fact, most model making) for a while but am now preparing to return. A look through the MSW files revealed your build log. I am most impressed! The quality of your research and then the execution sets a standard for the rest of us. And you even provide succinct descriptions of what you have done so that it is easy to follow. Superb. Do you have an expected date for completion, or is it just a case of keeping going until you finish? Best wishes George Bandurek

John, I found your build log after a bit of an absence from model making. Your Sherbourne with her yellow uppers looks quite different from my plain walnut and black and the colour sets of her elegant shape nicely. I think you made a good choice. One suggestion would be to consider toning down the white of the lower hull. To my eye it is a bit stark, and the 'white stuff' was some unpleasant mixture that included sulphur and tallow so the true colour is probably a bit more yellowy/creamy/muddy. But if you like the white then keep it, after all the purpose here is to enjoy making a model that you can leave on display and enjoy it again every time you see it. Best wishes George Bandurek

Hi Jonny, I have been away from modelling for a while and found your build log during a trawl through the files at MSW. The diorama concept you have here is a great idea and a world away from a ship in a box. Nice work. I have a question about the figures you used. I think I recognise some as Amati but can you let us know who makes them? It would be useful to know of a source of figures. I think a few figures even on a static display are essential to show the scale of a model. Best regards George Bandurek

Super detailing the cutter Sherbourne, a guide to building the Caldercraft kit, by George Bandurek. I published this book in 2011 and at the time there were several threads that showed photos of my build. These are not now easily accessible so I have resurrected some of the information. The attached pdf files are extracts from the book that show how I tackled some of the topics. I would welcome any comments on these extracts, or if you have bought a copy of the book (thank you!) then please post a review. More information on the book is available on my website www.grbsolutions.co.uk. Buy direct and you will get a signed copy! George Bandurek Shrouds.pdf Sails MB.pdf Cannon.pdf Anchors.pdf