HMS Terror by Erebus and Terror - FINISHED - Scale 1:48 - POB - as fitted for polar service in 1845

[Erebus and Terror]

Lovely work. I do notice, however, that in the photos the blackened surfaces look a bit blotchy. Try buffing with a soft cloth or Q-tip and you should get a nice, even low-sheen finish. Do protect the wood, though, now that the metal is in place.

 

 

Thanks for the compliment, Druxey - much appreciated. 

 

 

Unfortunately these are already buffed multiple times so this is going to be about as good as it gets. I've never been able to achieve anything but an uneven and flaky surface with Blacken-it, despite relatively rigorous preparation with muriatic acid and acetone.... perhaps I'll do a post about it tonight.

 

 

So, all that work and still the uneven appearance. Despite that, I'm fairly happy with the finish. I think the highs and lows approximate real wrought iron fairly well.

 

 

Oh, and good eye for the wood. These metal  pieces aren't glued in place yet, and I still have lots of work left to do on the wood.  

Edited April 3, 2014 by E&T

[druxey]

I use my blackening agent at between 8:1 and 10:1 with deionized water and get good, if slower, results. And no flakiness either. See if that helps.

[Erebus and Terror]

Thanks for the advice, Druxey! I use bottled water. I've never tried deionized water, but will give it a shot next time. I've also thought of changing brands, but blackening agent is hard to come by in Canada. 

Edited June 5, 2014 by E&T

[druxey]

You could order Jax brass blackening agent from Lacy's in Toronto.

[Erebus and Terror]

Interesting, thanks Druxey. Blacken-it sometimes doesn't play nice with solder...I'll definitely check it out. 

[Alex M]

Very realistic finish! You really make brass to iron. And very fine work!

 

Alex

[EdT]

E&T,

 

Very nice work. I welcome the addition of a model of this period and look forward to following your progress.

 

You are not the only one to experience variable results with the blue selenious blackening agents. Getting good results seems to be an art that is beyond me. In addition to druxey's suggestions, I would add that the silver solder joints need to be well fluxed so there are no crevices left where the blue solution can hide and show up later in unwanted ways. Also, I have begun using copper phosphorous solder - see link below. his seems to take blackening better. My switch to copper vs. brass and the use of liver of sulfur instead of the blue stuff has been well documented on this site so I will not add to that. I have also been told that a product called WinOX does a better job and can be used after brass parts are attached to wood, but I have not tried it - yet. Ibelieve that WinOX, like LOS, is an acid, so it can be neutralized by rinsing. The blue stuff is a salt that cannot be neutralized so it must be completely rinsed away.

 

http://www.contenti.com/products/soldering/420-860.html

 

Good luck. This process on brass has been my nemesis for years. Maybe there is something in my water that the Brita does not remove. Druxey, can you ship me some water?

 

Ed

Edited April 4, 2014 by EdT

[Erebus and Terror]

Alex and Ed, many thanks for the positive reinforcement!

 

Ed, thank you very much for your detailed comments. I have seen your posts about copper and I admit that I am intrigued - especially by the use of copper solder. I have never heard of WinOX but will have a look for it.

 

I feel that if I could recall my high school and university chemistry better I might at least be able to understand why I get such variable results!  As Druxey mentioned, I suspect my water and prep may have something to do with it. Perhaps not enough time in the HCL...

[Beef Wellington]

Lovely work E&T, will definitely be following your progress.

[EdT]

E&T,

 

Druxey seems to have mastered the blue solution, so I would follow his advice.  Druxey, do you buy lab grade DI water or are you running tap or distilled water through an ion exchange resin (Brita for example)?

 

I don't think there is any HCL in Blacken-it, but there is in Win-ox - HCL (muriatic acid aka hydrochloric acid) and tellurium dioxide - both are a bit nasty and require care and ventilation in use.  As I say, I have not tried it yet, but here is a link for it:

 

https://shop.rings-things.com/cart/pc/Win-Ox-3-oz-p18308.htm

 

Be sure to download and read the MSDS file that has a link posted on the above link. Very important before using - or maybe not using.

 

Ed

[EdT]

By the way, the blue stuff is no health potion either.  Here's a link to the Birchwood msds for their product - essentially the same as Blacken-It, Hobby Black, etc. but with a wax to make it a gel.   Selenious acid type.  I couldn't find an msds more specific than this.  But this should do.

 

https://www.birchwoodtechnologies.com/downloads/msds/7503_ANTIQUE_BLACK_GEL.pdf

 

Ed

[Jeronimo]

Just a word for it: F a n t a s t i c

Too bad that I can the English language just through Google.

Karl

[Gabek]

Great project, E&T, and excellent work.

 

I've done a fair amount of reading on the north west passage expeditions and on Franklin. "Barrow's Boys" by Fleming and "Voyages of Delusion" by Williams stand out for me. I'm just amazed at the combination of bravery, determination and stupidity of these voyages. In particular, the profession of 'theoretical geography' which sent many sailors to their doom is entirely mystifying.

 

I've started reading your blog and look forward to following your progress here on MSW.

 

Kind regards,

Gabe

[Erebus and Terror]

By the way, the blue stuff is no health potion either.  Here's a link to the Birchwood msds for their product - essentially the same as Blacken-It, Hobby Black, etc. but with a wax to make it a gel.   Selenious acid type.  I couldn't find an msds more specific than this.  But this should do.

 

https://www.birchwoodtechnologies.com/downloads/msds/7503_ANTIQUE_BLACK_GEL.pdf

 

Ed

 

Good advice, Ed. Many thanks!

 

All three are pretty serious chemicals so I don't take chances; safety goggles, rubber gloves, and open ventilation are a must. You and Druxey have given me good advice on alternate agents and I'm certainly willing to experiment....with all the metal work on this ship I need to find some process that will give consistent results. 

[Erebus and Terror]

Jason, Karl, and Gabe thank you for the words of encouragement. Much appreciated. 

 

Gabe, those are excellent books, Barrow's Boys in particular. It's a fascinating period for the Royal Navy, and these ships are really the bleeding edge of technology for the day. Peake, Seppings, and Lang really poured a great deal of creativity into the vessels, most of which spilled over to the rest of the fleet.

[druxey]

I use an off-the-shelf bottle of deionized water. Usually I think it's intended for steam irons. Try your local supermarket household aisle.

[EdT]

E&T,

 

When you find a way to get consistent results, I know many will welcome your sharing that with us.  What you have done so far looks pretty good to me.

 

Druxey,  I probably need to look harder.  My attempts to find DI water or even distilled water at the supermarket have not been successful - but they have been more casual than determined.  Thanks for the info.

 

Ed

[Erebus and Terror]

Thank you Ed, I certainly will do so. I've actually found deionized water at my local Canadian Tire (if you live in Canada that is).

[Erebus and Terror]

HMS TERROR’S SCREW PROPELLER

 

Having completed the Royal Navy’s last great journey of exploration under sail power, HMS Terror’s next commission was destined to be the first major voyage of discovery to use auxiliary screw propulsion.  

 

The 1845 stern plans show that Oliver Lang chose a two-bladed Smith type propeller for the voyage (Battersby and Carney 2011:204). This choice makes perfect sense; in January of 1845 the Admiralty had just concluded extensive tests of screw propellers on HMS Rattler, finally settling on a two-bladed design by Smith (Carlton 2012:6; see also Bourne 1855:136).The propeller was likely made of gunmetal, similar to those used in subsequent Franklin search vessels (Dickens 1850:8) and other Royal Navy ships of the era. According to Lang’s plans, the screw was ca. 6 feet 11 inches in diameter (from tip to tip). HMS Erebus and Terror also carried a spare four-bladed propeller of the Woodcroft type (Battersby and Carney 2011:204). Roughly the same diameter as the Smith propeller, its shape and size would have necessitated that it be unshipped over the side of the vessel rather than through the propeller well.

 

Plans for HMS Terror's Propeller. The filling chocks used when the propeller

was unshipped are on the right. 

 

Following others (Battersby and Carney 2011:204), I originally believed that the propeller was set in a frame that would sit flush inside the fore and aft rails/grooves in the propeller well (the rail system will be described in my next post). This was a prudent assumption, as a frame-mounted propeller was standard in screw-assisted vessels of the Royal Navy in the latter half of the 19^th century. The frame was an important feature because it was used to raise and lower the propeller along the rails in the well, while providing stability while it was in use.

 

However, despite their common use in the era, I was puzzled by the fact that no frame is visible in the 1845 stern plan. I recently purchased high resolution scans of the plan, which permitted me to read Lang’s thorough annotations.  Needless to say, the last annotation in the list, labeled “P”, describes the reason that Lang didn’t include a frame in the plan:

 

“P: Propeller in place with a hole in the end of the fan to take it up by and to lower it down in place when required.“

 

The annotation exposes the highly expedient and experimental nature of the design, which represented a great simplification of the complex propeller lifting system used for the Rattler (view it here). While very rare, the hole-in-blade lifting system was subsequently employed on the RRS Discovery by Robert Falcon Scott during his 1901 Antarctic Expedition (pictures of the hole in the blade can be found here and here). In fact, the RRS Discovery appears to have borrowed many design elements from the Erebus and Terror, a testament to the advanced and efficient nature of their systems.  

 

Because Lang’s plans don’t show precisely how the propeller articulated with the rails in the well (the rails on the plan obscure those details), I was forced to speculate that the propeller included two retaining ferrules which would both seat the propeller and guide it as it was raised and lowered into position along the rails. In modeling this, I took inspiration from the ferrules used in contemporary Admiralty models and the RSS Discovery, though I admit they are highly generalized and speculative.

 

References:

Battersby, William, and Carney, Peter

2011       Equipping HM Ships Erebus and Terror, 1845. International Journal for the History of Engineering & Technology 81(2):192-211.

 

Bourne, John

1855       A Treatise on the Screw Propeller with Various Suggestions for Improvement. Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, London.

 

Carlton, John

2012       Marine Propellers and Propulsion. Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.

 

Dickens, Charles

1850       A Visit to the Arctic Discovery Ships. Household Words: A Weekly Journal 1:8.

 

 

Propeller blades cut from brass strip stock.

 

A guide for bending the blades to the proper angle.

 

Bending the blade by hand. 

 

Checking the angle. 

 

Blades after bending.

 

Rough filed to shape, with posts for attachment to the hub.

 

The hub is made from brass tube stock. 

 

Parts prior to assembly. 

 

The finished propeller, including the hole in the blade. The blades were silver -soldered to the hub,

then the entire piece was sanded with 400 grit sandpaper and buffed with superfine steel wool. 

 

Compared to the plans. 

 

Assessing the profile shape. 

 

Comparing the prop to the model of HMS Rattler in the NMM. 

 

Checking fit in the well. 

 

Marking brass stock to fabricate the ferrules. 

 

Ferrules roughed out. 

 

Prior to final assembly. The ferrules are glued in place with metal epoxy,

rather than soldered.

 

The finished part - yes, it spins!

Edited May 15, 2014 by E&T

[dgbot]

Marvelous metal working.I loved your dissertation. You should save it and try to get it in the Journal. Your post should be a keeper for anyone who likes to read about the research and knowledge behind ones actions. Bravo!

David B

[Erebus and Terror]

Thank you for the kind words David. I have considered publishing it in some way when I'm done - we'll see how it goes. Partly it depends on if Parks Canada can locate the the ships. If the vessels are intact, my research might become a little redundant! 

[Erebus and Terror]

ON RAILS: RAISING AND LOWERING TERROR’S SCREW

 

On ships like HMS Rattler (launched two years prior to the Franklin Expedition) unshipping the propeller involved a difficult operation involving tackle over the side of the vessel. A significant advancement of HMS Terror and Erebus was a new well system used to raise and lower the propeller directly through the stern of the vessels. The well system was so novel and efficient that a demonstration comparing the unshipping procedures of the Rattler and Erebus was conducted for the Lords of the Admiralty and ­the press prior to the departure of the vessels (Anonymous 1845:279). The system was subsequently adopted on all screw powered vessels in the Royal Navy of the era.

      A significant trait of the new propeller well system was a pair of grooves or rails on the fore and aft sides of the rudderpost and sternpost, respectively. These grooves were used to guide the propeller as it was raised and lowered and to seat it firmly while it was in use. On most ships, these grooves were cut into the wood of the sternpost and rudderpost, but Oliver Lang’s design for HMS Erebus and Terror needed to be different. In his design the grooves were cut into rails which projected into the well and performed two functions:  1) the rails guided and seated the propeller when it was in use and 2) they secured the filling chocks that were to be used to strengthen the stern when the propeller wasn’t shipped.

                Unlike many Royal Navy vessels of the era, the 1845 stern plans for the ships show that rails were straight-sided, presumably because they needed to be smooth for the filling chocks to slide along their length (most rail systems of the era bulged laterally at the position where the propeller was seated). Details of the interior of these rails are not shown on the plans, but we can assume that they included a semi-circular seat for the propeller, similar to other rail systems of the era (see here and here). The fore rail would have included an aperture for the propeller shaft, which likely telescoped through this opening to fit in the hub of the propeller (Battersby and Carney 2011:206). The rails needed to be extremely robust to take pressure from pack ice; so they were likely over-fastened – on my version I included bolts at roughly the same interval as those used on Terror’s iron staple knee. The 1845 plans reveal that the rails were made from gunmetal or a similar alloy, but given the ice abuse they would need to withstand, I believe the bolts used to secure them may have been made from iron.    

 

References:

Anonymous,

1845    The Arctic Expedition. Literary Gazette: Journal of the Belles Lettres, Arts, Science, &c. for the Year 1845. Pp. 279. Robson, Levey, and Franklyn, London.

 

Battersby, William, and Carney, Peter

 

2011    Equipping HM Ships Erebus and Terror, 1845. International Journal for the History of Engineering  & Technology 81(2):192-211.

 

 

Sectional Plans for HMS Terror's Auxiliary Propeller System. 

 

I used brass tube stock with an interior diameter slightly larger than the propeller hub to make the rails. 

 

Tube stock cut in half and filed to the correct dimensions. 

 

Cutting inserts for the heel of the rails. The seat for the propeller can be seen on the left. 

 

Parts before soldering.

 

The rails after soldering and cleanup. The scribe lines mark the position of the  bolt holes. 

 

The finished drilled pieces after polishing. The aperture for the telescoping coupling can be seen on the right.

 

Test fit of the propeller. 

 

Another angle.

 

Dry fit of the fore rail. 

 

Dry fit of the propeller and rails in proper position. I admit I like the contrast between the brass and Swiss pear. 

 

View looking forward. The scribe lines in the rudderpost mark where the rudder groove will be cut. 

 

Port view. 

 

Again, just a dry fit prior to final assembly and finishing. 

Edited May 17, 2014 by E&T

[druxey]

Are you planning to actually have the raising mechanism work? The assembly so far looks terrific.

[Erebus and Terror]

Druxey, thank you for the kind words. Yes that is the plan; I don't intend to glue the propeller in place. When I am finished the chocks I'll be able to show her in her sailing configuration. The propeller glides nicely along the rails, though I made the fit tight enough that it can be held in any position by friction. 

[mtaylor]

Beautiful metalwork, E&T. To hear that it will be functional adds to the beauty.

[druxey]

I wonder how awkward it was to 'hook' the propellor in order to raise it? 

[dgbot]

I read a article about raising and lowering these props. It was done when the sea was calm a lot of headaches.

David B

[Erebus and Terror]

Thank you everyone for the positive comments and likes; they are a source of great motivation for me. 

 

Druxey and David B., yes I think it would have been very tricky work to unship the propeller when at sea. Most systems of the era used a frame to aid the process. The frame was continuously chained or tied to the tackle so it could easily be raised.  I'm not certain why the hole in the propeller blade system was adopted. It is very rare. I can only find two instances of it ever being used; on HMS Erebus and Terror, and some 55 years later on the RRS Discovery. All are polar vessels so there must have been some advantage to this over the frame system. I think, perhaps, that it has to do with potential damage to the frame. If the frame was warped by the ice, it might have been impossible to remove the propeller. The hole in the propeller system was simpler; less parts to damage and cause problems. 

 

Crackers, yes indeed I hope that the Parks Canada team finds the ships! Hopefully they will be intact like the Investigator and Breadalbane. However, they are very small ships (ca. 100 feet) and if they were too severely damaged it could be very difficult to locate them. 

[themadchemist]

Thank You E&T for a very interesting and informative build log. I spent several days savoring its 9 pages of content (so far). It was a fun read.

 

Being from the US I didn't know nor had never even heard of the Franklin expeditions. Your attention to detail, both in giving references in research and building technique are refreshing. You beautifully illustrate the steps to making pieces, which I always find helps us all grow as builders when we share methods and ideas.

 

One question I did wonder about on her rudder/stern post with the screw though, on the rails that the screw slide down until they seat and the drive shaft can be attached, The inner that is bolted to the stern post sits on a shelf cut into the post, but the one bolted to the rudder post hangs freely. I was just curious about this design, as I would think that the wooden shelf would provide extra support? why no shelf on the rudder post?...or is it a part of the chock design?

Either way, the removable screw from above with a replaceable chock for ice crushing force was a slick design for the mid-nineteenth century. 

Your log has definitely sparked my interest in learning more about these ships and the expeditions.

[Erebus and Terror]

Hello Keith, 

 

Thank you for your very kind words; positive comments like this provide great motivation.

 

To answer your question, yes, that was the design, and you can see some details here in Lang's original plan. 

 

http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/85474.html

 

As you can see on the planns, the aft rail didn't actually float in mid-air as it may seem from my last photos. It sat on a custom-fitted chock that was placed over the iron staple knee and then bolted to the keel. So, it was supported by a wood platform, just not one cut into the rudderpost. Though the plans don't indicate this, I suspect these wood supports added little to the structure, as the rails must have been firmly bolted along their length to each post. 

 

When I finally glue all the bits and bobs to the stern wood, I'll then have to model this custom chock. I'm a very slow builder. 

 

Thanks again for your comments!