Venetian Carrack or Cocha by woodrat - FINISHED - 1/64

[Louie da fly]

Very nice, Dick. It's very enjoyable following this build.

[woodrat]

The mainmast. This tapered mast is often undersized in carrack models. Contemporary illustrations show a very substantial mast made even thicker at the base by long wedges inserted vertically into the partners. Although, as discussed previously, the mainmast was usually a built mast with a central spindle and at least eight outer spars, I did not have the carpentry skills to reproduce this in miniature. Therefore I chose to fudge it just a little while maintaining the look and feel of a mediaeval built mast.

Many illustrations show the longitudinal lines along the mast that you would expect if the mast was built and not a single spar.

or

note the wooldings

 

I started with a tapered spar

Made a paper template

Made strips with the template so that I would end up with eight tapered strips

Glued the strips to pine strips

Stuck the pine strips to the mast with double sided tape

 

Vessels with built masts had quite a variable number of rope wooldings to reinforce the mast. However they did not use wooden hoops above and below the wooldings as was seen in later periods. It may be that the ropes were reinforced with nails to prevent the ropes slipping.

 

The completed mast

 

Cheers

Dick

Edited May 10, 2016 by woodrat

[Louie da fly]

A nice piece of work, Dick. The precision needed to build a mast up as they did in the day would be utterly daunting, and I think your solution is brilliant - and is certainly indistinguishable from the real thing.

 

And this marks a real milestone - the hull is complete and you're now free to work on the masts and rigging. I salute you, sir.

 

Steven

[woodrat]

Thanks, Steven. I have cranked up the old ropewalk and hope to lay down some line soon. However there are a few finishing touches to do on the hull, namely the loading port and ventilator scuttles in the aftercastle.

Dick

Edited May 9, 2016 by woodrat

[cog]

Marvelous work on the mast, Dick. Wouldn't have thought of that method to be honest ...

 

Cheers

[woodrat]

The loading port. The origin of the word port (opposite to starboard) is the loading port. In the days of the steerboard it is said that a vessel could not tie up at a jetty on the steerboard side for fear of damaging the steerboard and so the loading port was put on the opposite side, hence port and starboard

 

Many 15th century illustrations show the loading port.

 

 

 

 

Cheers

Dick

[Louie da fly]

A nice piece of work, Dick. Contemporary pictures don't seem to show how the loading port lid is attached or controlled (at least none that I can think of). I think your solution is simple and workable. And it looks good, too.

 

Steven

[cog]

Dick,

 

Looks very good. Just a thought, but considering the usage, wouldn't it be more logical to have it open at the top, so the hatch would function like a (draw)bridge ...

 

Cheers

[woodrat]

Thanks Steven and Carl. There aren't many but the illustrations I have managed to find show the port opening as shown and at least one shows a rope leading up to the rail.  It would close by gravity and be probably held with a crossbar inside.To have it opening the other way would be hard to close by pulling from inside.

 

This drawing is probably of a model and seems have the port on the starboard side!

Thanks

Dick

Edited May 15, 2016 by woodrat

[woodrat]

These are the ventilation scuttles to the aft quarters

open

closed

 

Dick

[Louie da fly]

Such a beautiful build, so beautifully carried out. A privilege to watch it take shape.

 

Steven

[JesseLee]

Nice!

 

Jesse

[druxey]

Impressively researched and well modelled, Dick. Just catching up with your last few posts.

Edited May 16, 2016 by druxey

[woodrat]

Thanks Steven, Jesse and Druxey and to all of you who have been following this thread. Your support spurs me on. This largely completes the hull build and now I can tackle (pardon the pun) the masting and rigging. There are good research publications on mediaeval rigging and this should be fun. I am still tossing up whether to display her under sail or furled but am tending toward the former.

Cheers

Dick

[Louie da fly]

That's your decision of course, but it would be wonderful to see that enormous mainsail with the wind billowing it out.

 

One of the really characteristic things about this type of ship which distinguishes it from any other kind of vessel, and of any other era.

 

Steven

[woodrat]

The problem is how to reproduce the bellied out appearance so characteristic of the carrack. It was thought by many experts last century that this was an exaggeration by artists but the ballooned out appearance is consistently shown. How do you cut the fabric to allow this? What fabric to use that would look like real canvas to scale. ? silk. How to stiffen it? glue hairspray plaster of paris. Is it all too hard to do?

Dick

[Louie da fly]

Agreed. But I think somewhere on MSW there are a couple of logs, or perhaps tutorials,  which deal with the problem of making sails look realistic (though this kind of sail is, admittedly, an extreme case). It might be in "Masts, rigging and sails". I seem to remember being pretty impressed with the solutions some members came up with.

 

Aha! Found it! It's at http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/9979-your-best-sail-cloth-and-technique/

 

And particularly look at JerseyCityFrankie's build log for the Victory (linked in his reply on the second page).

 

Hope this helps.

 

Steven

Edited May 19, 2016 by Louie da fly

[druxey]

I've used SilkSpan for sails and flags. There is a booklet on this technique from SeaWatchBooks: Swan, Volume IV, Sailmaking Supplement that may help.

[JesseLee]

I have used handkerchief material for sails. I always use watered down PVA glue. Paint in on wet, shape your sail (there are several ways to do that) In this case you might try wetting the sail in the watered glue, hanging it face down with string on each corner & setting a small water balloon on it to give it the ballooned out look. You can also use a hair dryer to blow the sail out & dry it in shape. The glue dries clear. If it needs re-a\shaping just re-wet.

 

Jesse

[woodrat]

Thanks, Druxey. I dont have the Sea watch Books but maybe I should. Silkspan looks a bit stiff?

Jesse, great idea with the balloons to give the sails a bosomy canopy. Presumably after drying you could cut the edges to shape. I am a long way from sails yet so I will look for more tricks on MSW as Steven suggests. Dick

[druxey]

SilkSpan is very flexible and strong when wetted for shaping, Dick.

[woodrat]

SilkSpan is very flexible and strong when wetted for shaping, Dick.

Thanks, Druxey. I will get some and experiment. Dope or fibreglass resin for stiffening?

Dick

[cog]

Fiberglass resin, in my limited experience - body repair work, and watertightning a ship's hull - is rather thick. The other one I don't know ...

[druxey]

To stiffen SilkSpan, dilute acrylic paint or matt medium - no need for nasty organic volatiles!

[woodrat]

Have received my Silkspan and will experiment. Can you use a laser printer to print on Silkspan?

 

Here are some pics of the typical mediaeval arrangement of huge wedges for the mainmast at the partners and the reinforcing wooldings. There were many variations on this . I do not exaggerate the size of the wedges:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I need to go away and make some mediaeval blocks.

Cheers

Dick

 

 

[mtaylor]

Dick,

 

I've not tried a laser printer.  I think the heat from the fuser will be a problem.  I've printed on silkspan using inkjet type by taping the silkspan to a sheet of cardstock or heavy paper.  If not held flat out, it bunches and tears.   I found that out the hard way as I had tear an inject apart to get out all the bits of silkspan caused by clearing the jam.  

[cog]

Dick,

 

Couldn't you airbrush with templates ... maybe more work, but you'll keep your printer in one piece, besides those sails in former days were hand painted too 

 

Cheers

Edited June 3, 2016 by cog

[woodrat]

Yes Mark and Carl. It sounds too risky to use a laser printer. However, sails are a long way off. I have to draw up a sail plan. Fortunately I will be able to stand on the shoulders of giants to do this. The important thing is to remember that this is a mediterranean vessel and should be rigged as such. Sailors in the northern seas did things rather differently. Consequently, I will not be using deadeyes for this vessel and the standing rigging will look strange to some.  Dick

[cog]

Hello Dick,

 

At least you give yourself a considerable amount of time to ponder on the complications sails may bring ... Now that you mention the rigging, you aroused my curiosity, and made me wonder what the difference will be like ... time to search and be one step ahead ...

 

Cheers

[druxey]

Personally, I wouldn't try printing on SilkSpan, for the reasons given above. As the material is translucent, why not print the pattern on regular paper and put Silkspan over it to trace the pattern?