Orca by Cort - scale 1:1 - as seen in Jaws - screen accurate recreation of the interior cabin only

[Cort]

Hi everyone,

 

I am by no means a talented modeler as you all are (maybe one day!) but I wanted to share my scratch built 1:1 scale of the cabin of the Orca from Jaws. I’m hopeful the information and pics I post here will be quite useful to any future Orca modelers. 
 

I am a lifelong fan of Jaws and it partially influenced me to join the marine industry at 18. I spent almost 9 years in the Coast Guard and have spent the last 12 years in the recreational marine industry. 
 

About a year ago, I had this idea to see if I could figure out the exact dimensions of the inside of orca by finding and purchasing all of the props and equipment that was present during filming and using those items to make accurate drawings. 
 

It sure was hard to locate some of these things…and thank goodness for the HD version of the movie or I would have never been able to make out what most of these things were. 
 

I feel confident I found all of the exact props used, except for one of the items I cannot locate yet. I will be sharing everything I found here. 
 

So, once I had enough props to start measuring (stove, fire extinguishers, clocks, barometer, engine gauges, liquor bottles, etc.) I began drawing. And drawing. And drawing. Every time I thought one drawing was spot on, I’d use those dimensions to draw another view and it wouldn’t line up. So back to checking dimensions….

 

I’m not sure how many times I actually drew each bulkhead view, but it was numerous! But finally after many renditions drawing top views, side views, straight shot views and when all the different views lined up I knew I had it!

 

So that is my intro. I didn’t get a lot of pics of the construction, but I have a few. Mostly I want to provide the finished pictures and explain how I did it. I am a tinkerer at heart, not a skilled shipwright or wood worker. So you may not be impressed with some of my choices of joinery, but I feel I have a very close representation of the real thing. 
 

Standby for pics and some good info!

[Cort]

I settled on 30” windows and 3” tongue and groove planking for the build. Those measurements worked well when lining up the props. During the build, the windows came out just slightly under 30” and I think the planking ended up being 3 1/8”. But everything lined up perfectly. 
 

 

 

Edited November 12, 2022 by Cort

[Cort]

Of course, as most of you may know, there were two orcas in the movie and both VERY different at least as far as the interior is concerned. 
 

Orca 1 has 8 planks across the face of the helm console. 
 

Orca 2 has 7 planks across the face. 

[Cort]

The spacing between the door frame and the big back window were quite different. As well as the placement of the bench seat arm rest under the window. As well as spacing between port hole and door frame. 
 

Orca 1 at top 

Edited November 12, 2022 by Cort

[Cort]

Cabinets different. Orca 1 has tongue groove, Orca two has no tongue and groove. 
 

Orca 1 at top. 

[Cort]

And probably most notably, Orca 1 looks to be made from Fir tongue and groove whereas Orca 2 appears to be pine or something more grainy. I’m sure to save costs during filming. 
 

I ended up going with pine for my build to also save costs. So my build will have very different grain appearance when compared to Orca 1. 
 

 

[Cort]

Here is an overhead shot of the dimensions. Figuring the size for both hatches was a little tricky, but I think I got it pretty close. 

[Cort]

Figuring out how to make the sole (floor) was the first challenge. I didn’t want to spend big money on real teak and Holly. And I also couldn’t find the right dimensions that would line up with what the real Orca had. So, I bought plywood and routed my own lines. I filled the lines with real teak caulk and then applied stain.

This project is basically a movie set, so I made no detail to hidden areas. Thus, the reason I stained the sole the way I did. 

 

The stringers are not evenly spaced on purpose. I wanted to use 4x8 sheets instead of 5x10 because it was easier to work with. So there are three sections of the floor. The middle section is the same as the hatch dimensions and is meant to be removed so that the stringer halves can be separated and moved out of the basement. 
 

The whole build is composite and built in sections that can come apart to facilitate moving. 

[Cort]

After the sole was completed, I started on the starboard bulkhead. As with the sole, I couldn’t find available tongue and groove planks with the dimensions and profile I needed. So I had to route out every groove by hand. 
 

This photo shows the incorrect helm. It is the first component I built and based on Orca 2 dimensions, which I didn’t realize were wrong at first until I studied more. 

[Cort]

Starboard side coming together. 
 

I made the “discharge of oil prohibited” sign myself. I remade the helm to the correct dimensions. 
 

I’m not very happy with how the cabinet came out and I may re-do the doors in the future. I wish I would have chosen less grainy planks as well. 

Edited November 12, 2022 by Cort

[Cort]

After the glass was installed. And a comparison photo from a movie still and my helm. I was missing one switch in this photo, but have since installed it. 

[Cort]

Now that I’ve started showing some of the props, I guess it’s time to discuss them!

The gauges are all Stewart-Warner as in the movie. I found the exact same 3k RPM tachometer. The rest speak for themselves and are most likely what was installed based on my experience with boats. One of the temp gauges I installed is just a filler until I figure out what the 5th small gauge might have been….

[Cort]

The clock and barometer were Swift models I believe manufactured by Schatz. 
 

[Cort]

And of course, the kidde extinguisher 

[Cort]

The steering wheel is a 20” Perko. Both flybridge and lower helm were the same except flybridge was painted black and had brass handles instead of wood. 

Edited November 12, 2022 by Cort

[Cort]

Now for the Radio:

 

This was a Motorola and the model was either the Modor or the Metrum. Very close in appearance. I was able to find the Modor. 

[Cort]

The stove is a Bernz-o-matic unit. The coffee pot is a Sears brand. The enamel pot I don’t think has a brand name that I could find. The coffee mugs I’m pretty sure are Buffalo China or similar. And it turns out that Campbells soup really hasn’t changed the label on the cream of mushroom soup in at least 50 years. 

Edited November 12, 2022 by Cort

[Cort]

Now for the booze!

 

The Canadian Club was pretty easy to spot. But the other bottle was literally the hardest thing to find out of all the props! It took me months and months to figure it out since the label is scratched off in the movie. But I found it! 
 

The other bottle was cheap, bottom shelf vodka made by S.S. Pierce. This was a local liquor in New England. I can’t find a good used bottle of this so I made my own and had a little fun with the label. 

[Cort]

The Depth finder was a Lowrance unit. 

[Cort]

The port side coming together. 

[KeithAug]

Amazing, and fabulous attention to detail. A great resource for future “miniature modellers but I can hear the groans of those who have completed models and are now reevaluating their models.

[Cort]

11 minutes ago, KeithAug said:

Amazing, and fabulous attention to detail. A great resource for future “miniature modellers but I can hear the groans of those who have completed models and are now reevaluating their models.

Thank you Keith! Yes, I definitely thought of the pains I might be causing others who have already built their Orcas…. Apologies to those folks! None of these details could’ve been figured out before the High-def version was released though, so everyone I’m sure did their best to get it right with only the old blurry versions available to see/scrutinize. 

 

 

[Cort]

The little clock on the forward bulkhead is a tide clock/timer that is still made to today. Although they changed the unit slightly over the years. I had to buy it new as I couldn’t find a vintage version. Still keeping my eyes out for one though!

[Cort]

The little piece of paper on the forward bulkhead is a Naval Pennant chart. 

[Cort]

The books!

 

I was able to find all but two or three of the books that were on the port dash. Throughout the movie, there are different books added/removed depending on the scene, so I based mine off of the best detailed scene when the barrel breaks the port windshield. 
 

The almanac I have is the wrong volume, but correct year. Still looking for the right one. I had to make/fake the water way guide and the cape cod coast pilot. All the rest of the books are the real thing. 
 

The tool box I found is a close match, but not perfect. I won’t bother trying to find anything closer though…for some reason these things go for a lot of money and are expensive to ship….

 

The water jug is a Hot’n Cooler made by general foam plastics corporation. Mine is slightly different as you can see it has ribs on the bottom. Good enough for now!

[Cort]

Aft bulkhead coming together. 

[Cort]

Table and cushions in. Table is a little big. I may have to cut it down and try again. 

[Cort]

This is about where I am at currently with the build. I have to get the port side windows installed as well as the big back window. Then lastly I’ll build the front windshields. 

[FlyingFish]

Quite extrordinary! Well done on your research Cort, and your tenacity in finding all the right props. 

[Cort]

4 hours ago, FlyingFish said:

Quite extrordinary! Well done on your research Cort, and your tenacity in finding all the right props. 

Thank you Sir! As I’ve said before, your model of the Orca is truly exceptional. Thank you for commenting!