Sail design for 18th-century longboat?

[ajromano]

On 7/12/2017 at 9:38 AM, Chuck said:

Gregory...because that was the way it was done.

 

Guys, my final word on this for those who are interested ....its just my opinion.  The horse above the tiller is also correct as I mentioned.   But having it below the tiller is very historically accurate for the period.

 

if you read Lavery in the same book Page 228, and this is very important. ... It becomes clear that this arrangement as well as the alternative I drew based on the same illustration in May's book are both correct.    You cannot dismiss the primary contemporary models.  Even if the rigging isnt original...the horses were.  Here is the quote from Lavery.  I posted it once before when folks insisted the illogical arrangement was somehow fabricated by uninformed restorations. Or that I just made a horrible error based on lack of knowledge.  But if you are building a mid eighteenth century longboat that is rigged,   inspired by a contemporary example....the sheet arrangement is correct for the period.  To alter it would mean you are correcting the problem, but this was a later development.

 

Lavery said "The sheet, which controlled the outer corner of the sail, presented a problem, for it had a tendency to get in the way of the tiller.  After the mid-eighteenth century this was solved by putting the horse across the transom to lift it clear, and allow the sheet to move from one side to the other without interruption."

 

Lavery clearly agrees that this arrangement I used on the longboat kit ....however illogical....was used, and corrected later.  Just as I do.  But hey,  its your model and you can always use a 20th century solution like the ones posted by Frank....or any others but that would just be a fanciful error based not on research but something else.  I dont know what that is....but I prefer to stick to the period as faithfully as possible and always use primary sources along with the opinions of noteworthy folks who have spent their lives studying this stuff.   You can always argue the dates....when did they make this switch-over?   Were both configurations used and for how long before the earlier was abandoned.  Lets examine the hard contemporary primary evidence.....or we could just make stuff up instead.

 

When Frank writes,  "What it suggests ( if these are not artifacts arising from folow-on restorations) is that contemporary models can't reliably be used as 100%faithful examples of actual contemporary practice."  

 

This might be true in a one-off incident but when you see something over and over again and then dismiss it readily,  I think it might be more about cherry picking the facts to support ones own false theory.  This is a dangerous road to go down in my opinion.

 

For example,  I am currently researching my next project (Chebacco Lion) and there are very few contemprary models of this early type of American fishing schooner.   The windlass on the three models known to exist and several half hulls of the period is placed on the fore side of the foremast.  There are also some drawings and paintings that show this detail.  This was later changed to abaft the fore mast as can be seen on schooners like Hannah and Sultana.   Rather than just dismiss this fact because as Howard Chapelle stated "the windlass would be very difficult to work and it isnt the best place for it".....I am going to place it where the contemporary evidence says it should be.  Chapelle came to the same conclusion as did william Baker.  Two very prominent naval architects and historians.  Or I could just say that all of those contemporary examples are somehow just wrong and instead make something up that sounds good.

 

Baker writes in his book about Colonial vessels and I find this particularly suitable for our conversation here  "I sometimes wonder about these early designs, many of the fittings, including those that serve the functionality of the rig seem to be contrary to effective and efficient sailing practices.  This can be seen in both the locations and materials used for them.  There ineffectiveness can certainly be determined by comparison to modern-day fishing schooners throughout New England.   The factual contemporary evidence however supports there widespread use despite the availability of better choices for material and examples of more effective designs predominant along the southern shores at the same time.  One can only conclude that  these practices were used because of local shipbuilder traditions and the willingness of these fisherman to faithfully follow regional customs and practice despite advancements elsewhere."

 

Chuck

 

My very amateur observation is they would just take the tiller handle out to reverse the sail.

[ajromano]

lol - I am about to rig this very boat and now do not know weather or not finding this thread is a good or bad thing for my overactive mind! 
 

thanks all for information.