Young America 1853 by EdT - FINISHED - extreme clipper

[archjofo]

Hello Ed,
I would also like to comment on these beautiful pictures very positively.
Also the way you take the pictures is very professional.
Fantastic report!

[EdT]

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 311 – Main Topgallant Mast

 

It has been an interesting week in the shop.  Temperatures in our area dropped below freezing this week, with the usual drop in humidity, causing the long stays on the model to sag somewhat from their taut condition when installed during the warmer, more humid months.  The sag on these is not too displeasing and actually mimics the sag in the photos of the ship.  I measured this by magnifying the images and drawing straight CAD lines to compare.  This could be corrected by hauling up on the backstay lanyards but for now I am not doing this.

 

The topic in this part is the main topgallant mast.  This and its crosstrees were made earlier.  Before erecting the mast, the iron band for the royal futtock shrouds needed to be installed.  This is placed at the smallest mast diameter, just under the octagonal hounds that spread outward to support the crosstrees.  For this reason a soldered band cannot be used.  The first pictures show the way I made this band.  

 

The copper strip was first crimped around the mast in a way that formed two tabs on the aft side.  One of these was cut shorter than the other so the longer end could be bent and pressed over the first to form the flange-like tab shown in the next picture.

 

In the picture this has been drilled for the four futtock shroud eyebolts.  It was then blackened and the eyebolts glued in with CA.  The crosstrees were then fitted and the mast erected.  The next picture shows the foot of the installed mast and the turning-in of the two tg shrouds on the starboard side.

 

The mast fid with its shackle may be seen in the picture.  The forward, served shroud has its deadeye turned in with three seizings.  The second shroud, to the left, is ready for its throat seizing.  The deadeye is held in an alligator clamp for this.  The next picture shows the tg mast with lanyards threaded on two of the shrouds and other lines hanging loose.

 

The loose ends of the shrouds and seizings will be trimmed off when the glue coating dries.  The forward stay has been run, but the upper collar seizing remains untied at this stage.  The lower end of the stay is shown in the next picture.

 

The stay is served at this end and passes through a bullseye strapped to the fore lower masthead.  It is then seized to an eyebolt through the center crosstree.  This picture also shows the fully loaded fairlead planks with just a few spare, unused holes.  The next picture shows a closer view of the shrouds as the tg backstay is being prepared.

 

The next picture shows the deadeye and lanyard connection of the backstay to the channel.

 

The stay and shrouds are threaded but will not be hauled tight until their port side counterparts and the forward stay are rigged.  The next picture shows the state of the model before rigging the port side lines.

 

The sag of the topmast and lower mast stays may be apparent in this picture.  While it is not very pronounced and perhaps realistic, it is counter to the desire for a tight, rigid structure – I guess.

 

Interspersed with the above work, the dreary and eye-straining making and tying of ratlines continues.  I estimate there are around 650 of these on the model.

 

 

Ed

[dvm27]

One of the loveliest features of some of the Navy Board models and Dr. Longridge's Victory  is the graceful catenary of the stays. I notice it developing in my only rigged model made 15 years ago. I suppose it's impossible to duplicate on a new model as real rope has weight, especially when wet, that just doesn't scale down to create a catenary. I have seen this replicated with rope spun around a wire core (Lloyd McCaffery) to very good effect.

 

The photo with the fully loaded fairlead planks is fantastic, Ed!

[michael mott]

40 minutes ago, dvm27 said:

The photo with the fully loaded fairlead planks is fantastic, Ed!

This surprised me, I really had no idea how complex these masts are. incidentally I have re ordered a copy of Longridge's book the anatomy of Nelson's Ship, somehow my original copy has gone AWOL.

 

Ed I am just amazed by how much detail you are putting into this model at such a small scale, it is a masterpiece for sure.

 

Michael

[amateur]

Hi Ed,

 

can I ask a question on the stays?

 

they seem to have a spliced eye at the masthead, but thay are also fixed at the lower end. How did they set up these stays, is such a way that there is enough tension?

 

Jan

[wefalck]

Without wanting to pre-empt Ed, I don't think the stays are spliced, but tied together and served over ? They could be set by attaching a tackle to the loose end (above the area that would be tied) and then tying the two shanks together, while the tackle was still on.

 

The fairleads in 'action' were indeed also a detail I noticed !

Edited November 18, 2018 by wefalck

[EdT]

Thank you, Greg and Micheal and others for the likes.

 

The catenary curve on models is easily disrupted by irregularities in the small rope as well as the light weight.  However, I believe if the rope is fairly uniform and well stretched, then installed taut under humid conditions, the relaxation when it dehydrates will cause it to droop in a smooth curve - at least that is what I am seeing in the slack lines I mentioned.  The smaller, lower yard bowlines are nicely curved as well.  Some of the very small lines not so much.

 

Thanks again, Micheal for your comments on the small scale.  It has its advantages and disadvantages. The latter are felt in the close up photos and while  some of the flaws revealed in pictures like the one of the fore top may be correctable, some are just too small too fix - at least for me. The excess ends on the seizings and lashings being the most problematical.

 

Thanks for the comment on the photo, Greg - taken with my iPhone.  Most of the the photos for the posts and the books were taken with a Nikon D3100 SLR with aperture priority - stopped down to around F22 to maximize depth of field - no question of handheld for these because of the slow shutter speed. The iPhone pics are very crisp at the focal point in  closeup situations but the depth of field is very shallow - sometimes a good thing, but often not.  The phone has the virtue of small size so it can be inserted into the model.  I have been experimenting with it for photos like the one above and also for deck-level photos.  Unfortunately these photos often reveal even more glitches with the work.

 

thanks again for the comments.

 

Ed

Edited November 19, 2018 by EdT

[EdT]

Jan, I will try try to answer this by saying that various methods were used.  Normally the tension would be applied at the lower end of the stay after fitting the collar over the masthead at the upper end - at least that is my interpretation.  The lower end could be a thimble attached with a lashing that would allow for some adjustment, or the rope might pass through a bullseye or even an eyebolt if the rope was small enough.  The doubled forestay was looped under the bowsprit and each leg seized to the other above on the opposite side.  All these lower ends could then be hauled tight and secured with seizings.  The final tension on the stay would be supplied by tightening the backstays and initially the shrouds- usually the backstays.  These were fitted with deadeyes and lanyards for this purpose and were hauled up after securing the forward stays - I believe.  This is the general approach I am following, using seizings or simulated wrapped splices at the top end collar.  Hope this helps.

Edited November 18, 2018 by EdT

[BANYAN]

Very nice work Ed, I have been missing your regular updates.

 

WRT the catenary, I had the same issue with my Endeavour but the other way around.  Luckily I had left a catenary as they tautened up a bit :).  

 

cheers

 

Pat

[EdT]

It is probably better to have taut lines relax when humidity drops rather than having taut lines tighten further when humidity rises.  This could easily distort masts and spars.  One solution would be to pre-dampen lines that are run during very dry conditions.  I found that my lines that had gone slack with the drop in humidity tightened right up again when dampened.  Of course, this applies mainly to long lines.

 

Ed

[druxey]

The line tension discussion is interesting. I wet my (long fiber cotton) lines before hardening them: this lengthens them somewhat, then they contract as they dry under tension. After that, they seem stable. The exceptions are the cabled lines. The heavier ones do slacken off noticeably when humidity is lower.

[rwiederrich]

Wonderful update Ed...love the detail.

 

Rob

[EdT]

Yes, an interesting problem, Druxey – and one that merits some consideration since it has noticeable effects on the model – some potentially negative, some perhaps helpful.  I would be interested in hearing more about your hardening process, but I assume it is as described in Swan IV. 

 

After making rope, I stretch and hold the line until it stabilizes at the stretched length – usually a 5 to 10% increase in length.  I then dye it (aqueous) and hang it to dry, then pass it through a flame to remove fuzz.  Lately I have been adding a "sizing" of diluted PVA to reduce later fuzzing – passing the line through the solution, re-drying it and again flaming it.  I am still experimenting with this sizing step.  I am doing this to combat fuzzing of cotton lines during rigging.

 

(Illogical paragraph suggesting rope increases in length due to moisture removed to avoid confusion.  Rope actually shrinks when wet.)

 

Treating the rope to reduce moisture absorption should reduce the effects of moisture on length.  I have soaked the larger stays with a solution of wax after installation, but do not know if this has helped.  The waxed lines did sag.  I also do not know what effect the glue treatment will have.  Both these treatments should reduce the moisture effect - but to what degree?

Edited November 20, 2018 by EdT

[wefalck]

Do the ropes really become longer as humidity increases ? I thought the opposite: the fibres increase in diameter not length when swelling and, hence, the individual strands of a rope too; as both fibres and strands form helices, the helices should become steeper upon swelling and, hence, the rope shorter ...

[Lou van Wijhe]

Hallo Ed,

 

I've been following your build log with much interest and like the detail photographs that go with it. I remember you once mentioned you sometimes had trouble changing your photos to have the correct colour balance. Instead of post processing them you might check if your camera has the possibility to set the colour balance beforehand. This setting is mostly called white balance. If you set the colour balance on a white surface, like the backdrop (if that's the correct word) on your display box, every other colour comes out correctly. As you can see yourself, on the photos your backdrop often has a slight colour tinge, it is not purely white.

 

Lou

Edited November 19, 2018 by Lou van Wijhe

[EdT]

Lou, thank you for you comment.  It has been some time since I have seen your presence on MSW - was it Cutty Sark posts?.  My camera does indeed have a white balance function that I keep set to auto.  The color correction issue in my shop is due to a variety of lighting types in different areas - florescent overall, incandescent or LED spot lighting,  and sometimes sunlight.  These differences effect the photos depending on the location of the shot.  So, to avoid constant resetting of the camera, I use auto white balance, then post-correct.  I also occasionally use other cameras as well as the iPhone and these produce different hues.  I post-correct to make them more consistent and to bring them closer to my perception by eye - using auto color balance, lightness/contrast, and sometimes RGB adjust.  I do this for each post when I crop and shrink the images.  Monochrome photos for the books  also require post-work - usually lightness and contrast.

 

I will try the white balance method you suggest.

 

Ed

Edited November 20, 2018 by EdT
Erroneous analysis.

[EdT]

Last night at about 4am I came to the realization that my analysis in the first paragraph of the last post is complete nonsense, since rope contracts when wet and not the opposite, which my explanation tries to explain.  So, apologies to all for this faulty logic, but especially to Wefalck whose rationale makes much more sense and is consistent with the actual observed behavior of the rope.  Because my comments were backwards, I have edited out that paragraph from the post - to keep from confusing others and to avoid further embarrassment.  

 

Sorry for this.

 

Ed

Edited November 20, 2018 by EdT

[wefalck]

Ed, your earlier post made me unsure about my own logic, as indeed one 'vector' of the increased diameter of the strand points into the axial direction of the rope. However, I think that the increased diameter of the strands leads to a subtle steepening of the helix and, therefore, to a shortening of the rope.

[EdT]

Yes, I think I was having what we call a "senior moment."  Your explanation makes sense.  The mechanics of this are complex.

 

Ed

[GMO2]

Ed,  Wait until you have reached he point of looking forward to having an occaisional "junior moment".    Gary

[EdT]

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 312 – Spar Making Marathon

 

Not a lot new in this post.  Mostly work that has been shown before.  I normally work sequentially, completing an item through all the steps, then installing and rigging it.  This helps uncover any problems with the design or methods and allows corrections to be made before errors are duplicated.  With the spar making process pretty well in hand and quite a few left to make, I decided to work these together to save time.  Forming the remaining upper yards – three for the main and five for the mizzen - is described in this post.

 

The blanks for all the spars had been cut and sized earlier – the so-called "first trims" – squares of the maximum spar diameter cut to length.  After marking the centerlines and quarters, centerline holes for the jackstays and sheet sheaves were drilled as shown in the first picture for one of the larger yards.

 

After centering and determining the spacing for the jackstay stanchions the holes were drilled using the mill hand wheel to locate each .024" hole.  Where yards had internal sheaves for sheets, these were also drilled to the required size.

 

After this drilling, each spar was shaped and finished before proceeding to the next. Some of these steps are described below.  I believe all have been described in earlier posts.  This next picture shows the first tapering steps on one of the spars, with the work held in a vise in this case.

 

The vise was used in this way for the first tapering on smaller spars, instead of the cam fixture shown below.  Once two opposite faces were shaped to form the second trim, the larger tapered spars were mounted as shown below to form the tapers on the two remaining sides.

 

To adapt this fixture to smaller work, it was modified by substituting a fixed straight fence as shown in the next picture.

 

This eliminated flexing of the small spars between the cams.  These spars are also small enough to deflect at the ends to the straight line of the fence.  Final shaping, and most of the shaping on the smallest spars, was done using a sanding block with 220-grit paper as shown in the next picture.

 

This works well for light wood removal and also for maintaining fair curves along the spar.  With the four sides tapered, the octagonal shape was first applied at the ends, around the square sections.

 

I made rounded transitions on the insides of these sections, but squared off on the outer side to receive the yard arm bands.  The octagonal shape was then filed on each spar inside the square end sections.  This process was illustrated in earlier posts.

 

In the next picture, the central octagonal area of one of the spars has been marked and the rounding has begun starting with file strokes that begin at the mark and remove the eight corners along the spar.

 

All the square yards are left octagonal at the center.  Finally, the remaining corners are filed off to form the rounds.

 

A smaller grooved holder is shown above, but much of this final rounding is hand held.  The corners are first removed using the file, then with a sanding stick.  Throughout all the above work, calipers are used to check both diameters at the quarters and the rounded shape.

 

The last picture shows the set of finished spars – the last significant wood work on the model.

 

The top three spars in the picture are the main topgallant, royal, and skysail yards.  The next five are the mizzen from the lower topsail up to the skysail.  The very small spar at the bottom of the picture is the mizzen monkey gaff.  All have been finished with one light coat of wipe-on poly to help keep them clean as the ironwork is added – the next work to be done.

 

Ed

[druxey]

I thought that the mizen monkey gaff was a toothpick, simply for comparison.  

[michael mott]

Ed you clearly show that sequencing some of the operations is something that only comes with experience. I wonder how many times some of us think, "I wish I had thought about this job earlier when things were easier to hold or not connected to something else" The picture showing the holes being drilled in a square spar before it is shaped and rounded brought this home to me.

 

The shot of all the spars also reminded me if this.

 

Michael

[Kurt Johnson]

Hi Ed,  Hope your Thanksgiving was a good one. Just wondering, at what percentage do you think she’s completed as of now? Or is that something you don’t contemplate?

 

Kurt

[Sailor1234567890]

Ed,

Back to the subject of the lovely photo of the top showing the lines led through the fairlead board in the top.... Do you have an image showing a little lower? I'm curious where the lines pass through the shrouds and how they do so as they are clearly outboard of the shrouds and ratlines in that image but we all know they belay below to the pins on the rail inboard of the shrouds.

Thanks,
Daniel

[EdT]

Thank you all for the likes and comments - appreciated as always.

 

Druxey, actually the monkey gaff may be used as a toothpick in a pinch - not that I would do that of course.

 

Micheal. drilling the holes in the spars is a good example of letting the process develop before locking practices into mass production.  After experiencing the issues of clamping and centering a round tapered spar for drilling the evenly spaced, centered jackstay eyebolt holes, drilling them as a first step was a clear improvement still available for the remaining two dozen.

 

Kurt, thank you.  We had a wonderful Thanksgiving even though we could not assemble the entire brood this year.  We'll should be correcting that at Christmas.  I have not thought about percentage complete - in fact I have some trouble remembering the year I started this - fall 2013 I believe.  I will guess that the model is 95% complete and I am hoping to complete it early in the year.

 

Daniel, I will see if I can get an illustrative photo, but I can tell you that most - not all - of the lines that run through the fairleads in the top run down behind the shrouds and through a shroud fairlead, then belay on the side rail.  I try to pass them through the futtock shrouds and through the shrouds above the futtocks in a straight line to their destination.  For those going through a shroud fairlead this is usually to one side or the other of the line's fairlead shroud.  I normally wet about an inch of the line with thin CA, then straighten and sharpen it with scissors to help thread it through from top to bottom.

 

Thanks again everyone.

 

Ed

[Kurt Johnson]

Ed,

 

So what lies in the future as far as builds go?

 

Kurt

[EdT]

I have no plans beyond completing this model and the book.

 

 

[Kurt Johnson]

Ed, I guess that means that we have to savor what is left of this build. Don’t rush by any means, go nice and slow.

 

Kurt

[dvm27]

Five years, Ed? It seems like time flies by, especially as you get older.

 

I admire your precision with a hand file. My father-in-law was a machinist and told me one of the skills new workers had to manage was achieving perfectly flat surfaces using only a file and both hands. I find that even after years of practice I still chamfer one edge or the other doing this freehand.