Muirneag 1903 by Blue Ensign – FINISHED - Vanguard Models - 1:64 scale - A Scottish Zulu Fishing Boat Based on the Vanguard Models Zulu Kit

[tkay11]

Just to get back to the yards for a moment, BE, I tried the Jacobean stain on some wood a few years ago and didn't achieve the same results as you have. I note the masts are made from oak, but what wood is used for the yards, and do you have any tricks up your sleeve for the staining?

 

Thanks

 

Tony

[Blue Ensign]

Hi Tony,

In my primary reference book Sailing Drifters by Edgar J March

He gives information directly from a Zulu builder William McIntosh who worked in his father’s yard in 1894.

 

Masts were of Norwegian white wood and the yards of Larch.

 

As far as the model timbers are concerned, I would have used Walnut for the yards, but I didn’t have the right size for the Fore lug.

I reluctantly used one of the whitewood dowels, but knowing how tricky they are to stain evenly I first coated them with sanding sealer, two coats rubbed down in between.

I then use a Medium oak stain followed by Dark Jacobean oak.

I painted this on rather than wipe it on and off, and after a couple of coats with a fine rub down in between 

what you see is the result.

 

Cheers,

 

B.E.

[Blue Ensign]

Post 43

 

Bringing sail and yard together

 

 

Completing the Mizen sail took less time altho’ I did have to repair the clew loop which became unravelled.

 

Once again, the Quadhands proved a very useful and flexible aid.

 

9140(2)

Use of these magnetised arms is not restricted to the provided base. Distances can be increased using any old piece of ferrous metal, in this case a steel rule.

 

 

With the sails completed it is time to test the fit on the model with a jury rig.

 

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I can now attend to the parrels.

Once in place the yards can be removed as they will slip easily over the masthead.

 

 

B.E.

02/12/20

 

 

 

Edited December 2, 2020 by Blue Ensign

[Gahm]

What a beautiful model!

 

Thomas

[EKE]

She's looking really great, BE!  Wonderful job on the sails and yards.

 

Have you thought about adding a sail number?  I've been thinking about that for my Zulu.

 

[Blue Ensign]

Thank you Erik,

I have been thinking about adding the Registration to the sails but haven’t quite decided how to go about it.

I would want the lettering to appear to be painted on and not appear too stark against the sail.

The requirement to show Registration details on Fishing Boats has been in force since the Sea Fisheries Act of 1843.

In summary the letters and numbers are to be painted on the Main Sail either in Black or white depending on the colour of the sail and be one third larger than those on the bow of the boat.

If you want to read up on the various acts and regulations here’s the link.

 

https://www.maritimeviews.co.uk/west-cornwall-luggers-and-mfv/the-lettering-and-numbering-of-fishing-boats/

Regards,

 

B.E.

[EKE]

Thanks so much for the link, BE.  Bookmarked for future reference!

 

I have to say that one of the things I'm really enjoying about ship modelling is the knowledge I'm gaining while researching these things!  I never thought I'd learn so much about the Scottish herring fishing universe, but, here we are. 

 

I would think that transferring the outline of the sail numbers to the sail cloth using graphite, and then painting them onto the cloth with some flat white paint or ink would probably be the way to go. 

[Blue Ensign]

Post 44

 

This post concerns a mixture of those little finishing off tasks that progress a build towards completion.

 

 

Parrels

 

For these I use slightly elongated tubular beads of 2mm ø and 1.75mm in length.

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Parrels attached, not a difficult job with the yards in place.

 

Tuckle chain.

 

This secures the tack of the Mizen Lug and is fastened around the mast foot. Those with a copy of the Edgar March book can see a photo of this detail on Muirneag in his book Sailing Drifters.

 

 

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The ring and hook are silver soldered to the chain.

 

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Testing the fit of the Tuckle chain.

 

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Thinking about nets

 

It is of some surprise to me to read that luggers the size of Muirneag carried around 70 nets, each about 600 square yards  which when strung together extended nearly 2 miles with a catching area of 33,000 square yards.

In our scale terms each net would be 860 mm in length.

 

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To represent the nets, I am using Tulle material in a fetching shade of peat brown.

 

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Excellent for scale and the only issue with Tulle is that it is quite a springy material so a touch of pva in the folds helps to hold it in shape.

 

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A glimpse of the floats, aka Baking Beads which do the job at the scale involved.

 

 

Navigation lights

 

I have got around to completing the light boards which now have the lanterns installed.

 

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On the advice of John (Jim lad) I did try to impart a blueish green tint to the Starboard lamp by  misting it with a rattle can spray of Ocean blue auto paint but it wasn’t really effective.

 

 

I couldn’t get the lightness and clarity I would have liked.

 

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These are too delicate to leave insitu and will be one of the last things to be fitted on the model.

 

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I’m quite pleased the way things are going and I can now turn my attention to the rigging line and blocks.

 

B.E.

04/12/20

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by Blue Ensign

[EKE]

This really looks excellent!  The fishing nets are very convincing indeed.  Where did you find the net material?

[Blue Ensign]

Thanks Erik,

 

Tulle is widely available  on the net from material suppliers, it is cheap to buy  and the minimum quantity of a yard or so will give you a lifetime supply.

For one model you could probably get away just ordering a sample. 🙂

 

B.E.

[BobG]

The authenticity of the details you have added to this boat is amazing! I have this model on the shelf and I thought it would probably be a relative "quick" build for me at some point. I now know it will probably take me a long time to even come close to making a model that is half as good yours. You've set the "standard of excellence" for building this model and I know I will want to try and follow your lead. 

 

5 hours ago, Blue Ensign said:

In our scale terms each net would be 860 mm in length.

I know this has probably been discussed elsewhere on the forum but how exactly do you calculate the proper scale when adding details to a model?

[Blue Ensign]

Thankyou Bob,

It helps to have a written confirmation of actual sizes, and in relation to the Zulu build there is a wealth of written detail in the Edgar March book.

For instance there is a reference to fishing nets being 60 yards long. This equates to 2160 inches x 25.4 = 54846mm ÷ 64 (scale of model) = 857mm

Of course in scale terms this would simply not fit on the model so some circumspection needs to be applied.

Other fittings such as oars are given as 18’ long with blades of 7’ x 5”

This would produce a scale version of 85.75mm

(18 x 12 x 25.4 ÷ 64)

Blades would be 33.3mm x 2mm and this looks right for scale.

6272

Scale built oars for the Fifie build.

 

In working out rigging sizes there is an additional step. Ropes are usually given in inches circumference where model lines are invariably given in mm or inches diameter.

There is reference to Fore Halyards being of 3” manilla This would scale to 0.38mm ø which is a good fit for the model.

3 ÷ 3.142 (Pi) = 0.955 (ø) x 25.4 = 24.25 (mm) ÷ 64 = 0.38mm (ø) scale line.

Scale lengths of line is a different matter. True scale lengths are rarely fitted on models, there simply isn’t room.

The Fore halyards are given as 60 fathoms (360ft) this would scale to 1715mm of length, a difficult fit on the model.

 

Hope this helps,

 

B.E.

[Rik Thistle]

The amazing details just keep coming...wonderful stuff.

 

luggers the size of Muirneag carried around 70 nets, each about 600 square yards

 

I had read somewhere previously that the nets extended for about two miles. But '70 nets' has made me focus on what that means to the men onboard who would have to clear the nets of fish ('redding') when they were hauled in. Can you imagine the effort and hours it would take to hand pick the herring out of the nets as they arrived on deck? The crew deserved every penny they got.

 

Richard

[BobG]

Thanks very much for your thorough explanation. I can actually understand it and math is not my strong point!

 

 

 

 

[Jim Lad]

Just catching up after a few days away.  She continues to impress.

 

John

[gjdale]

36 minutes ago, glbarlow said:

1:64 is one inch equals 64 inches right?  I though the scales are in inch to inch comparison, or is it mm?

Glenn,

 

1:64 is a ratio - it is independent of unit of measure. So yes, 1 inch equals 64 inches AND 1mm equals 64mm.

 

It gets confusing when scales are expressed in inches, eg 1/4”. In this case we are saying how many inches equals one foot, so in this example, we are saying that 1/4” equals one foot. This is the same as expressing the scale as a ratio of 1:48 (ie 1/4” x 48 equals 12” (or one foot), or put another way, 12” divided by 1/4” equals 48).

 

If we were to express the ratio scale of 1:64 in the inch format, it would be 3/16” (ie 3/16” equals one foot) - you can do the math.

[Suzdal]

And another reason why the world (except Trump land) has adapted the metric system.

[Moab]

Wow! A beautiful build!...Moab

[Blue Ensign]

Cheers Guys, and thanks for posting the explanation Grant.

 

For those particularly working with kits where the scale is given, 1:64, 1:48, 1:72 etc it is simply a case of  converting the full size of a fitting  or rope  to the measurement system being used, inches or mm and dividing by the ratio number.

 

The only extra calculation concerns scale rigging line which is usually given in fractions of an inch or millimetres diameters. Full size lines of the 17th/18th/19th  centuries are invariably given in inches circumference, so dividing by Pi (3.147) gives the full size diameter, to which division by the ratio number will give the scale line size.

 

 

B.E.

[EKE]

Useful for those of us who may be math-challenged:  Woodland Scenics, the model train folks, have created a scale calculator for the iPhone and iPad.  It’s called ModelScaler.  You can use any of the pre-installed scales, or you can do a custom scale.  It allows you to go back and forth between model size and actual size. Screen shot:

 

 

 

[Blue Ensign]

Post 45

 

Registration numbers on sails

 

I have been pondering for a while the why and how to apply the Registration number to the sails.

 

The why is easy, it is required under the Sea Fisheries Acts 1843, 1868, and 1883.

 

The requirement is also mirrored in the Merchant Shipping Act of 1894.

 

The requirement is that on ‘Barked’ sails such as carried by Muirneag white lettering is to be used of a size 30% greater than that of the Registration numbers on the Bow.

 

In scale terms that is around 7mm in height.

 

I have gathered quite a collection of dry rub lettering over the years, by Letraset, Conte, and W.H Smith, in various sizes, but not 7mm and not in white.

It is always the way, dozens of screw sizes on hand except the one required for the job in hand.

 

I have trialled Letraset dry rub lettering on fine cotton material and I think it should give a reasonable effect. It will also take a degree of abuse before it starts to flake off, but best not to test it.

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I picked up from Erik’s (EKE) log that he used Woodland Scenics dry rub lettering and I managed to obtain some  from a UK supplier.

The position of the numbers on the sails is something else that may be open to interpretation, as I notice there are differences evidenced by photo’s old and new, and models and drawings.

 

Here’s the Law:

 

SEA FISHERIES ACT, 1883.

ARTICLE VI.

The same letter or letter and numbers shall also be painted on each side of the mainsail of the boat, immediately above the close reef, in black oil colour on white or tanned sails, and in white oil colour on black sails. Such letter (or letters) and number on the sails shall be one third larger in every way than those on the bows of the boat.

The letter or letters and numbers on the sails shall be one-third larger in every way than those painted on the bows of the boats.

By a subsequent Declaration of 1^st February,1889, the paragraph was replaced by the following provision: –

The same letters and numbers shall also be painted in oil colour on each side of the mainsail of the boat, immediately above the close reef, and in such a manner so as to be plainly visible; they shall be painted, on white sails in black, on black sails in white, and on sails of an intermediate shade in black or in white as the superior competent authority shall deem the more effective.

 

…. and you think we are bedevilled by regulations in our modern times!

 

In terms of positioning there are examples of horizontal to the reefs, and degrees of downward slope.

The most pleasing position to my eye is around the half way point between peak and clew which in terms of Muirneag is 145mm. down from the peak.

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I opted for the angled approach where the numbers followed the line of the sail panel seams.

A steel ruler is used to guide the application.

I was somewhat edgy about doing this for fear of spoiling the sail, and the application proved more than a little tricky. The letter ‘S’ ‘Y’ and the number ‘4’ proved particularly stubborn to release cleanly and each took several goes to apply and then not entirely satisfactorily.

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No matter how I secured them and burnished them bits did not take.

 

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In the end I accepted the situation and had to resort to painting over the deficiencies. This didn’t work out too badly with the shapes mostly there to follow, but it was a one shot exercise as any paint overspill would not be easy to remove.

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A little more touching-in once the paint on both sides is set, and then I can raise the sails and begin the rigging.

 

 

 

B.E.

 

12/12/20

[Jim Lad]

Shouldn't the numbers be lower down - "Immediately above the close reef"?

 

John

[Blue Ensign]

I looked at a lot of model photo’s and of the real thing John, and regardless of the regulation the position I chose reflects what appears to be the general arrangement. I only came across one old photo where the registration number looked a fair bit lower.

I think it looks ok tho’

 

B.E.

[EKE]

40 minutes ago, Jim Lad said:

Shouldn't the numbers be lower down - "Immediately above the close reef"?

 

John

Take a look at the photo of the Fifie at the top of this page.  This seems to be the usual location.  I suppose the general practice of having it higher on the sail might have been practical.  Easier to see from a distance?

[Blue Ensign]

Post 46

 

The rigging begins.

 

 

This starts with raising the large Fore dipping Lug sail which involves rigging the Tye and Halyard.

 

 

The given information is that the tyes were of wire; I did trial using 0.5mm braided wire but fore-saw problems with the attachment to the tackle block which requires to be done insitu on the model.

 

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Braided wire halyard

It is fairly straightforward to silver solder an eye for the attachment of the tye hook, but that option disappears when it comes to the upper halyard block, that is if I wish to avoid setting the model on fire.

 

So, Syren thread it is.

 

For the Fore and Mizen yard Tyes I am using Syren 0.30mm ø line.

 

 

Fore halyards 3” manilla - 0.45mm ø line.

Mizen Halyards 2¼” manilla - 0.30mm ø line.

 

The significant blocks on the otherwise simple rigging set-up are the Halyard tackles for the Fore and Mizen yards.

Two 15” wire stropped triple blocks on the Fore and two 11” triple blocks on the Mizen make up the tackles. The lower blocks are hooked.

For the makings I am using Syren Boxwood 1/4” and 3/16^th” Blocks.

The strops are made from 0.5mm ø brass wire and are formed around a block before the joint is silver soldered.

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The eye is firstly formed and a short section below soldered

together; the ends are then formed around the block using mini pliers and the bottom ends trimmed to meet.

 

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I blacken the ‘iron’ with the block in place. I have determined from previous tests that this has no detrimental effect on the blocks and eliminates the risk of marking the block or blackening during the fitting process.

 

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Fitting the upper halyard block.

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Fore Halyard tackle completed.

 

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Mizen Halyard tackle.

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The rigging will continue in the next post.

 

B.E.

13/12/20

Edited December 13, 2020 by Blue Ensign

[Jim Lad]

A very nice start to the rigging.

 

John

[gjdale]

4 hours ago, Blue Ensign said:

The eye is firstly formed and a short section below soldered

together; the ends are then formed around the block using mini pliers and the bottom ends trimmed to meet

Looking great BE. Are you saying here that you solder the two ends together with the block in place (within the wire)? If so, how do you avoid burning (or disintegrating) the block? Or have I misunderstood you altogether (wouldn’t be the first time!)?

[glbarlow]

Great tutorial detail we can all use, thanks BE!

[Blue Ensign]

Thank you John, Grant and Glenn.

@ Grant - Once I have formed the wire around the block I remove it to solder the bottom join, and hope it will stretch a little to allow re-fitting with a snug fit.

The important thing is to make sure the cut joints meet so that the solder will form a strong bond.

 

Regards,

 

B.E.

[gjdale]

Thanks BE - that certainly clarifies things. 😊