Virginia Ruth by Kelpie - RESTORATION

[Kelpie]

Hello All,

 

I have a model that was built by my Great Grandfather for my Grandmother back around 1913.  Dad and I decided top rename it Virginia Ruth, my Grandmothers first and middle name.   It is supposed to be modeled from a sloop(?) that he was familiar with in the Gulf at Homosassa, Fl.  Way back in 1980 or so, I did a cosmetic rebuild for a 4-H project.  I want to restore it to how he built it.  The hull is hollow and we think it may be made out of Bald Cyprus.  All I had to work with was the hull and a photograph.  My grandmother said that all the rigging operated as it was supposed to, but none of that is left.  He used pulleys and other hardware sourced from England.

 

I guessed on the mast height based on measuring the photo and the actual hull. I repainted it, and stained the top for more of a deck feel.  I am open to modifying the ship to make it as close to how it would have been in reality.

 

Most of the hardware on the deck is original and I do have the anchor.  The hull measures 32 1/2" long on the deck.  it measures 6 1/2" tall at the mast.

 

Here are two photos when it was new.  My Great-Grandfather's shadow is visible.

 

 

 

Here are two photos of how it looks now.  Pretty much a butcher job as I had no idea what I was doing.

 

 

I am willing to replace and add what hardware needs to be added.  I have a set of sails for it that were made from measurements and drawings of the original photo and measurements of the hull.  I really do not like the metal bits that are used for deadeyes or maybe in this case turnbuckles. 

 

Let me know what you think and don't hold back.

 

Thanks,

 

Russell M.

[ccoyle]

Wow! I can't advise you on your project, but what a great story and keepsake! Good luck!

[druxey]

An interesting project!  I note that the rudder shape is now different and therefore not original. Mast and  bowsprit look very skinny as well. Mast was also shorter: you can check by taking the angle off the photo from stern of the hull to the mast top. Apply the same angle from the model's stern and where it intersects with the mast will give you the correct height. Simple triangulation.

[SardonicMeow]

I'm no expert, but after some searching, I have found that the sail plan strongly resembles that of turn of the century racing yachts.  Do some searches on America's Cup winners from the 1890's to 1920's and you see what I mean.  The hull shape is completely wrong for a racing yacht, however.

 

[Roger Pellett]

To me, the charm of this model is the fact that your Great Grandfather built it and it’s 1913 craftsmanship.  I would, therefore, keep and use all of the 1923 metalwork including the rigging attachment points.

[Kelpie]

thanks for the replies.  I figure I should keep the original hardware.  Those racing yachts do look very similar.  Does anyone know where I can get a rigging plan that would work?  I don't have much of an idea how to rig this thing to make it all work again.  I'll either shorten the mast or make another one.  We made the current mast, bowsprit, and boom, so I have no problem re-working anything above the deck.

[Kelpie]

I've found a few online articles to help with the rigging.  Some from this website.  Is there a book that anyone would recommend that I could buy to help?  Since our library is closed, I can't get any books from there.  There were also quite a few remenants of small carved cleats on the deck that I need to replace.  Without knowing exactly how much of the rigging worked, I am not sure how far to go with it.  I may build the rigging so that the main and topsails are the ones that can be operated.  I don't see much evidence on the photo that implies that the jibs could be moved.

Edited April 18, 2020 by Kelpie

[Roger Pellett]

Do you intend to try to sail this or do you intend it as a static display model.  

 

The model is what would be called a Pond Yacht and if you google vintage pond yachts there is a lot of material on the web.  EXCEPT, your model is much older!  The classic Pond Yachts of the 1930’s and ‘40s were Marconi rigged.  Yours is Gaff Rigged.  I think that this is a real gem, especially given its history.

 

 

As a static model you should pretty much be able to duplicate the rigging from your photos.  I would worry less about what is “correct” and more about duplicating your Greatgrandfather’s work.

Roger

 

 

Edited April 18, 2020 by Roger Pellett

[Kelpie]

Thanks for the advice Roger.  Sounds like I'm over thinking it a bit.  It looks like the main and topsails were the only ones that moved.  I'll go in that direction.

 

Think I'll paint the mast and bowsprit white and add another smaller boom for the topsail.  Gotta figure out what size of rings and pulleys to order

Edited April 18, 2020 by Kelpie

[Kelpie]

I pulled the mast, and the hole in the deck is 3/4 inch, but the hole in the keel for the mast is 1/4 inch.  I did the math on the mast diameter using the Gaff Rig Handbook and by measuring a copy of the photo that Dad has, and it looks to be 3/4 inch or so on the photo.  Anyone have any ideas on the mast diameter I should use?  I am leaning toward 3/4 inch because of measuring the photo, but I cannot find any mast bases that would fit properly.  Looking at several sources online and the Gaff Rig Handbook, I'm guessing that the original boat was at least 35 feet long.  This looks to be about 1:12 scale...

 

Dad found the original photo, so I may be able to look at something with better resolution. Looking around inside the hill with a gun bore light and looking through the long crack in the deck, it looks like the hull was carved from one piece of wood,with the deck fastened to the top.

 

 

Edited April 21, 2020 by Kelpie

[Kelpie]

Well, the dowels I have to choose from are too large.  The mast isn't quite 3/4, its more like .70 in.  I thought I would try an 11/16 dowel and look for a mast base to use.  Measuring the photo again in several places puts the diameter between .7 and .68, so 11/16 doesn't seem too horribly small.  The bowsprit measures to around 3/8, and the boom and gaff are around 1/4.  The more I look with the microscope, the more lines and blocks I am finding.  I am up to 15 now, and maybe more.  Also, the boom was adjusted with a traveller.

 

[Kelpie]

Still working on a parts list.  Looking at the photo, it looks like it uses chainplates and turnbuckles.  The chainplates are still on the model (some I made back in 1980), but I cannot see how the turnbuckles were attached.  Guess I'll use some small shackles.  The single and double blocks measure out to about 7mm in length.  The turnbuckles are about 1.17 inches.  Not sure at all about the cleats, thinking 12mm at the largest.  Not sure if they were wood or metal, as none were left, but I can get an idea of the number from looking at old nail holes on the deck.  The nails were about the size of a pin.

Edited April 27, 2020 by Kelpie

[Roger Pellett]

In my opinion, making masts, booms, etc from a dowel is doing it the hard way.  If you have access to woodworking tools it is much easier to rip square stock from straight grained wood.  Then taper the square stick that you have ripped, plane it eight sided, then make it round.  Much easier than trying to work with a dowel.

 

Roger

Edited April 27, 2020 by Roger Pellett

[Kelpie]

Unfortunately, I do not have access to much more than a table saw down at Dad's house.  I did see some threads on how a mast can be built using straight lumber.  I may give it a go, but I do not have access to a planer or anything like that.

[Jim Lad]

Just found your thread, for some reason.  My personal opinion is that you should restore this lovely model as closely as possible to the original.  It is a family heirloom, after all.  If those original photos you have were taken around 1913, then they are quite probably very fines grained and capable of a lot of blowing up to reveal most of the original detail.  

 

I agree with Roger that making your spars from square material is by far the best way.  If you don't have access to a hand plane, you can shape your spars with sandpaper - use quite course paper to start with to remove the bulk of material, and then go to finer paper to finish off.

 

A new rudder and tiller to match the original would be good, plus some filler in that crack along the deck.  You should be able to get most of the rigging from your photos, but if not, there is always help here on the forum.

 

As I said, just what I would do if it were my model, but of course you must do what you would like to do with it.

 

John

[Colin B]

If you have a hand drill you can use that as a crude lathe and wrap a cylinder of sandpaper around the mast blank with your hand.  At a slow speed this is quite effective.

Edited April 28, 2020 by Colin B

[Kelpie]

12 hours ago, Jim Lad said:

Just found your thread, for some reason.  My personal opinion is that you should restore this lovely model as closely as possible to the original.  It is a family heirloom, after all.  If those original photos you have were taken around 1913, then they are quite probably very fines grained and capable of a lot of blowing up to reveal most of the original detail.  

 

I agree with Roger that making your spars from square material is by far the best way.  If you don't have access to a hand plane, you can shape your spars with sandpaper - use quite course paper to start with to remove the bulk of material, and then go to finer paper to finish off.

 

A new rudder and tiller to match the original would be good, plus some filler in that crack along the deck.  You should be able to get most of the rigging from your photos, but if not, there is always help here on the forum.

 

As I said, just what I would do if it were my model, but of course you must do what you would like to do with it.

 

John

John,

I was considering work on the hull.  When I got it, the hull had been banging around from place to place for 70 years and was all beat up.  There are some areas where some 100 year old wood putty has chipped out and also areas where the hull could use some light sanding.  The top was originally white, when I refinished it it was stained it to look more like a deck.  Not sure if I will paint the deck, or leave it stained. 

I do have a couple of hand planes, so that may make the work on the mast easier.  It would be nice to use the hand drill method of a lathe, but the mast needs to be finished to about 0.71 inches, and my drill does not open up that far.

Dad has the original photos, so I'm going to get a look at those.  My photo is a copy.

[Colin B]

You could drill the end of the blank and glue a smaller piece of dowel in place to fit the chuck on your drill. It is a rather meaty mast though!  I really like this model which has a lot of the charm of Victorian pond yachts so good luck with the restoration.

[Roger Pellett]

If you have a hand plane and sandpaper and if you or your father can rip same straight grained stock on his table saw, you can make a mast and boom without using dowels.  If you do decide to use dowels try to find some that are straight grained.

Edited April 28, 2020 by Roger Pellett

[Kelpie]

On 4/28/2020 at 1:04 PM, Roger Pellett said:

If you have a hand plane and sandpaper and if you or your father can rip same straight grained stock on his table saw, you can make a mast and boom without using dowels.  If you do decide to use dowels try to find some that are straight grained.

 How large of a blank should I have to start?  I was thinking no larger than one inch or so.  Is that the right size?  I downloaded the article on making masts from square stock.

Edited April 29, 2020 by Kelpie

[Kelpie]

Ordered some mini planes for the mast and they sent a hacksaw.  Had to reorder.  Started on the hull removing old filler that was chipping out and sanding the rough spots.

 

Was able to take a look at the original photos and the standing rigging is a bit weird to me.  The two outside shrouds are attached at the top of the mast, and the three inner shrouds are attached just above the gaff boom.  Has anyone seen this before?

[Runner]

You can taper masts easily with a rasp and sandpaper whether working from square or round stock. This is how it was done in the C19th. Use the rasp to taper the stock square, then octagonal, and then use two or three grades of glasspaper starting with the coarsest and ending with the finest, rotating the spar back and forth with one hand while curling a small rectangle of glasspaper around it and moving it to and fro along the spar as you go. You can get surprisingly good results this way.