Lettie G Howard by captainbob - FINISHED - 1:48 - POB - schooner

[captainbob]

Pavel and Keith, thanks for stopping by and for the good words.

 

Keith, in entry >5 you see the Lettie under sail and from the shape of the sails you can tell the wind is cuming from the starboard side.  But looking at the fore jib, it is still sheeted on the starboard side and the clew is on the wrong side of the main jib.  Backing a sail is forcing it against the wind so as to cause the boat to go backwards.  The jib in this case is not large enough to reverse the boat but the term still applies.

 

Bob

[themadchemist]

So the foresail, jib and flying jib (if present) are always stacked with the foresail windward, then the jib and then the flying jib (if present) most leeward? Is that correct?

 

So clew lines must be changed as the ship/boat changes tack angles? 

 

The picture also shows a boom on the foresail. is that attached at the foremast or the stem, from the picture its hard to see. From my study of pilot boats, one of their key build parameters was to run as light a rig as possible. Most fore gaff sails are boomless, I'm I correct in that they call that flying sheet and the clew is tied as discuss above.

So what is the advantage of the boom, or is it a necessity with a larger sail?

 

Sorry for being mister question, but I love understanding the mechanics of how it works.

[popeye the sailor]

glad to see your finally making sawdust Bob.........looks great!    you have copies?

[TBlack]

Cap't Bob,

 

Like Keith, I'm also full of questions, but of a different sort: what lumber did you decide to pick up for this craft? And the profile piece has some interesting markings that I can't figure out. Forward of bulkhead 10 and forward of bulkhead 5 it looks like outlines for the masts, but they're raked, and in the photo they look pretty upright. Also, there's another "mast" outline up by bulkhead 3. What's going on?

 

Tom

[Jim Lad]

Bob - it's good to see her actually started!  Great fun to watch.

 

Keith - to be strictly accurate, that jib isn't actually backed, or aback.  When a sail is aback the wind is coming from the wrong side of the sail, which isn't the case in this photo.  Looking at the foresail, which is pretty slack, I'd hazard a guess that she's actually just going about onto the starboard tack and the jib sheet (not clew line) hasn't yet been changed across.

 

Yes, the innermost jib or fore staysail is always the one to windward and as you go forward, each jib is set further to leeward.  The sheets are changed across as the ship tacks.  In square rigged ships the jibs are used to help bring the ship's head around onto the new tack.

 

The boom on the fore staysail will be attached to a swivel at the stem and the sheet may well be led to a horse across the fore deck.  The boom has the effect of stiffening the foot of the sail and helping it to hold its shape.

 

John

[JerseyCity Frankie]

On the Lettie the headsail with the spar attached is known as the Jumbo, and the spar is known as the Jumbo Club. Why its not known as a jib I can't tell you. Clubs on headsails are not uncommon, at least not on schooners, and they help the sail maintain an optimal shape. Tacks are not the line your thinking of Themadchemist. Sheets adjust the headsails, The tack is the forwardmost lowest corner of a fore and aft sail and there is a tack line holding it in place but its never adjusted and is more like a lashing. Incidentally I have sailed on Lettie and in the photo its likely she has JUST come about and the photo was likely taken in the instant before the sheets were adjusted. She wouldn't be sailing around with her hadsails like that, this is a temporary condition.

Edited December 18, 2013 by JerseyCity Frankie

[michael mott]

Good to see the beginnings of the hull taking shape Bob.

 

Michael

[augie]

Great to see some sawdust mate.  Good start!

[captainbob]

Keith, I was going to answer but John and Frankie beat me to it.  Thanks friends.

 

Tom, I bought 1/8” plywood for the profile and bulkheads.  As for the larger slots, yes they are the masts and the foremost is for the Sampson post which would not have to go below decks on a model but I put the slot in anyway.  The rake of the masts is shown on the inner profile drawings.

 

Popeye, Michael & Augie thanks for the well wishes.  And yes, Popeye I have copies of the bulkhead drawings I made.

 

Bob

[popeye the sailor]

the masts have about the same rake as the AmericA I built....as for the Sampson post.   I have never embedded it,  but it doesn't sound like a bad idea......not too much though.   gluing it in....wouldn't be easy to knock off that way

 

can I have a copy?

Edited December 19, 2013 by popeye the sailor

[Bedford]

Bob, every ship I have made has my name and date of commencement in her somewhere. It will never be seen but it's there.

 

Steve

[captainbob]

Steve,  I've never signed my boats, but maybe I should start.

 

Bob

[captainbob]

What a great time of the year, not only the holidays, but all the college football games.  I’m not going to get much done on this build for the next three weeks.   I did manage however to clean up the bulkheads and dry fit them, that’s when I found out #14 (third from end) was bad.  You can see in the first picture #14 is not big enough.  So it was back to the drawing board, so to speak, I use DraftSight, and I did find the error.   Picture two shows both #14 bulkheads and then how the new part lines up.

 

And with that I’ll say Merry Christmas to all, with wishes for a great 2014.

 

Bob

 

 

 

 

Edited April 17, 2014 by Cap'n'Bob

[Jim Lad]

A good early catch on that frame, Bob!

 

John

[pete48]

Looking good Bob, Merry Christmas and Happy new year

 

Best Regards,

Pete

[popeye the sailor]

looks real good Bob.........sweet looking frame!

[captainbob]

John, it sure would be nice to get then all correct the first time, just once.

 

Pete, Popeye,  Thank you both.

 

Bob

[popeye the sailor]

that's scratch building for ya Bob.........gotta be some tweaking here and there.   still....you worked it through like a trooper!   one of the most important assets,  is the ability to roll over problems like a tank!   there's no stopping you now     Happy holidays BOB!   enjoy!

[Alfons]

I almost missed this one Bob, but now I am on board as well Nice to see another beautiful schooner taking shape.

 

Seasonal greetings to you and your family.

 

Your fellow "Schooner man", Alfons

[captainbob]

Thanks, Popeye.  With you saying there’s no stopping me, how can I lose.

 

Alfons, welcome aboard.  With all the nice detail on your schooner, you set me quite a challenge for me.

 

Bob

[captainbob]

Finally everything is settling back down and getting back to normal.  I got a gift of a sign that makes my work area official, so I went in and started planking.  The plans say the planking is 2 1/2” X 7” and narrower.  That’s .05” X .15” so I’m planking with .07” thick figuring the sanding will take it down to .05”.  In the pictures you can see the gar board and the sheer strakes.  It looks like I will have to use a lot of filler planks at the stern, but that will be a few days yet.  I was looking at the planking of the Bluenose.  The one I was studying used 15 planks bow to stern.  It doesn’t look like I’ll be so lucky.

 

Bob

 

 

 

 

 

[Elia]

Bob,

Lettie is already looking rather sweet! Very nice lines. A thought on your comment about adding a lot of filler planks at the stern - something quite common on the banks schooners of the very late 1800s and through the their demise in the 1930s was the shape and sweep of the garboard strake and the three strakes of planking above it. The garboard maybe have been 20" in width at the sternpost on larger schooners, with each successively higher strake plank a little less in width at the sternpost. The planks narrowed appreciably amidship and the resulting flow of the strakes didn't require many, if any, stealers. If you are interested I can post a picture or two to illustrate this.

And I like that sign!

Cheers,

Elia

Edited January 7, 2014 by Elia

[captainbob]

Thanks everyone for the likes.

 

Elia, Thanks for the information, but Lettie will be painted when it is finished and no one will see the planking.    And, yes, the sign made the day.

 

Bob

[popeye the sailor]

you've made some great progress Bob!   the frame looks very good......your having fun planking...

[captainbob]

you've made some great progress Bob!   the frame looks very good......your having fun planking...

 

I usually plank with .03" these are .07" X .15" and it's killing me.  Ah well, at least I'm learning how to plank with heavy timbers.

 

Bob

[Sailor1234567890]

.07" is "Heavy timbers"? WOW, I thought the 1x1/4" bead and coves I used on my canoe were thin and flimsy. I've never planked a model yet though so I guess I have much to learn. She's going to be a beauty though. That hull is gorgeous.

Edited January 8, 2014 by Sailor1234567890

[captainbob]

Lets see, Sailor1234...1 X 1/4 in 1:48 scale would be .021" X .005".  Yes, that's "thin and flimsy" all right.  Thanks for looking in.

 

Bob

[popeye the sailor]

I use 1.5mm - 1.8mm {it varies.....I don't care what the instructions say}.......but I need lots of sanding room :D :D

[Bedford]

Bob, she has beautiful lines, I'm enjoying this.

[captainbob]

Ya, Popeye, I know.  There are a lot of modelers out there that build with thick planks.  It’s just that this is the first time for me and I had to sound off.  At least there are no sharp bends.

 

Thanks Bedford.  My hope is that everyone is enjoying this.  At least I’m having fun.

 

Bob