Viking longboat by toms10 - scale 1:64 - late 9th century

[toms10]

Hi MSW,

I was going to take the summer off from building anything but alas, I have the sickness.  Being inspired by watching all the Viking series movies on Netflix,  I started building my own Viking longboat. I am using a paper done by Dr. Biscoff on the Oseberg as a guide. It is quite detailed so there should be more than enough information to scratch build something similar. I will make up my own carvings for the bow and stern to personalize it. 
 

here are some pics from the beginning of my journey. The keel is made from .080” thick plywood I made from some basswood I had lying around. The frames and planking are made from my neighbors’s pear tree we cut down last summer. I guess I went overboard with the scratch idea by cutting down and drying my own wood   😜

 

Tom

 

[ccoyle]

Looks like a great start!

[Louie da fly]

You're doing a beautiful job already. 

 

I've a long history as a mediaeval (Viking period) re-enactor, and if you want to pick my brain about details of things like the rig of ships, size and thickness of shields and their decoration, cargo, and anything else that I might be able to help with, feel free to ask.

 

Steven

[toms10]

It’s summer so progress is very slow in the shipyard. I did finally get the hull planked up to the sides a.k.a, “the hard part” on this model. At least I think/hope so. 🤪😁

Still have to do some sanding but it will get there eventually. 😜

 

 

Tom

[Freebird]

Tom, you are an amazing modeler! From your gorgeous Morgan to a longboat, I’m truly impressed! Your longboat is looking awesome and I’m sure it’ll equal your Morgan in detail and finish.

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited July 24 by Freebird

[toms10]

Hi Rick,

Hope your summer is going well. Thanks for the compliments. Yeah this one is quite different from the Morgan. It is actually tougher with regards to the planking. The clinker style planking helps a bit to hide some “non-perfections”. 😂

Tom

[Freebird]

Non-perfections?!?! I didn't know that was in your vocabulary. LOL! I can't wait to see your next steps.

 

Summer is going well, working a lot and honey do's hasn't left a lot of shipyard time. I have started Chuck's Speedwell and have the keel and some frames built. 

 

I really like your choice of a longboat, really have a fascination about them; Olha's example at the convention was amazing. My Admiral got me Pavel's kit for Xmas and I'm chomping at the bit to start it but can't until I really make some good progress on Speedwell. 

 

Best Regards .... Rick

Edited July 26 by Freebird

[Dave boatswain]

Great job Tom! The Drakkar turns out very well. By the way, have you already seen the new model of the drakkar built by Pavel Nikitin? His model turned out fantastic.

[toms10]

Hi Dave

I have seen the model by Pavel. A fellow modeler brought it to this past Northeast Conference. It was under construction so only the hull and decking were completed. She did an amazing job on it.

I actually have the model (won it at the Northeast Conference a year ago).  I decided not to build it because it is very large. For this particular model, I wanted to do it in a much smaller scale which is why I am scratch building my own version. 
 

Tom

[toms10]

Some more slow and steady summer progress. I finished the hull planking and the deck sections. The deck sections are made using a 1/32” thick piece of basswood and shaping it so it is a snug fit to the inside contour of the hull. Then I glued .025” thick pear strips on top for the finished piece  Finally, the edges were sanded to a close fit to the shape of the hull.  Everything is still dry fit until they absolutely need to be glued in place.  This gives me the option to remove pieces if I run into some problem with the order that I am assembling everything. 
 

I think the next step will be to cut the slots in the hull for the oars. That should be fun.   I also need to start thinking about a color scheme. 
 

 

Tom

[toms10]

I decided to make some of the “accessories” for a change of pace. 
The mast stop was fun with all the 3D shaping and sanding. 

Also made all the oars along with a few spares. They are a bit delicate so I made a few extra just in case something “unplanned” happens. 🤪

I also made all of the little benches for the oarsmen.  They were a bit “fiddly” to make and took a bit more work and time than anticipated but doesn’t everything?

And finally made all the necessary shields (28 of them) for the sides of the boat. I still have to drill the center holes and then place the hand protector metal cup over it.   Then on the backside, put a gripping handle the will also serve as a mounting point to tie the shield to the hull. Then of course is all the painting of the different shield designs. I am thinking 7 different patterns. 

Still a ways to go to finish up the shields. That gives me more time to decide on the overall color scheme of the hull and deck. 
 

Then I need to come up with an ornate looking pattern to put on the curled part of the keel. That will be a challenge. I am thinking of a dragon head for the bow and tail for the stern. I have seen some pretty interesting ones on the internet. I just have to figure out how I am going to make them at this scale. 
 

Tom

[Louie da fly]

Nice work, mate. Those oars look good, and so do the benches for the oarsmen. From my reading, the most commonly held opinion is that the oarsmen sat on their chests of possessions, but I stress that's opinion - to this day nobody knows for sure - nothing's been found either way.

 

On 9/24/2024 at 3:38 AM, toms10 said:

hand protector metal cup

usually known as a boss. Those shields look very good - that was a lot of work building them from planks. I'm not sure if you're familiar with this, but it's the most comprehensive article I know regarding the decorative designs on Viking shields (and other things about them as well, including how the handle worked). https://www.scribd.com/document/497550805/Viking-Shields - sorry about all the ads and stuff.

 

Regarding dragon heads, there are quite a few images online but just check whether they're the real thing or modern 'interpretations'. Here's some of the genuine ones:

 

   

 

       

   

 

    

 

That should give you plenty of choice 

 

Steven

[toms10]

Thanks Steven for the dragon head ideas. That is the next hurdle which frankly scares the fire out of me. 🤪. 
 

I did manage to get the front sides of the shields painted. Just need to stain the backs and work on attaching a handle. I will definitely check out the link you sent. 

It was a bit tedious but they are done. The actual diameter is .520” (13.2 mm).  I will be using blackened escutcheon pins for the center hand protector.  Not sure about the handles yet. They will be pretty small. 

 

Tom

[Thukydides]

Very nice. Great job on painting the shields.

[Louie da fly]

On 10/2/2024 at 3:09 AM, toms10 said:

Thanks Steven for the dragon head ideas. That is the next hurdle which frankly scares the fire out of me.

I'd recommend you keep it simple. No need to try to emulate the top two - the unknown Viking who carved the one on the left is known to academics as the Academician because he was so expert. I must say I like the middle one in the second row (I've only just discovered him - he was on a Sotheby's auction site). Relatively simple carving job, and the decoration is all just what they call ring and dot (you can see why). I think that'd look pretty cool.

 

I think the escutcheon pins should be fine for the bosses, and many of the shield decorative patterns are very similar to those shown in contemporary images.

 

Looking good.

Edited October 3 by Louie da fly

[toms10]

Managed to put on some rails to hold the shields in place.  Inserted one of my scrapped shields to test it out. 

Tom