The black stripe

[SaturnV]

In most pictures the black stripe is only on the Wales. Other pictures the stripe goes down to the waterline. I like the latter better but would it be historically correct to take it down to the waterline?

[dafi]

What kind of ship, what year, what nation, what temperature of the water ...

 

:-)

 

XXXDAn, 

[SaturnV]

The 1773 Triton 6th rate frigate..........I don't know what waters it would have traveled.

[russ]

Triton originally had its bottom coated with white stuff and that might have extended up to the bottom edge of the wales. Chances are that the blackening of the wales would not have extended below the wales.

 

Russ

[druxey]

I agree with Russ. However, sometimes the first strake of planking above the wales was also painted black, the 'black strake'.

[michaelpsutton2]

I agree only the wales and the "black strake" would be black. The area between the waterline and the underside of the main wales might be white like the bottom or it might be left "bright" and painted over with varnish or tar.

[Landlubber Mike]

Sorry to bump this - I came across this thread and was wondering about which ships may have been painted black between the wales and waterline and why.

 

I'm working on the Pegasus at the moment and was considering taking that approach - Realworkingsailor's Pegasus was painted this way, which I really love.  For what it's worth, the Pegasus was a 14-gun sloop of the Swan class launched in 1776.  If ships of that class and time period would not have been painted that way, I'd likely not do it.

 

Thanks!

[Beef Wellington]

The AOTS Pandora book specifically refers the the ship being painted black beneath the wales referencing the ships records (I'm assuming theres a entry to the effect "Tuesday, hands employed painting black below wales to the waterline"  .  It doesn't seem like that big of a deal and I'm sure varied on the same ship over its career.  It seems sensivle that most ships would have been painted as it would offer a degree of protection a look a bit nicer when fresh. - I think we get used to assuming minimal paint from the the admiralty models.  The wales are consistently painted black, although the 'black strake' seems to be painted as often as not (e.g. Admiralty models of Artois class have both painted and unpainted black strake)

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Jason - good points  

[allanyed]

As far as liking the looks of the paint  going to the  water line, I see no fault from the liking it or even when considering the historic aspects.  No doubt each yard's building methods varied from the others in many ways.  In fact, I love the look of the models I have seen that were built  by David Antscherl who sometimes planks the bottom from the keel up to the underside of the wales with holly to replicate the "white stuff" used on the ships' bottoms before coppering came into use. This can be seen on his models of the Resolution and Comet.   In actual practive I believe the white stuff  was usually applied to the water line, but the look of planking with holly to the wales looks great. 

 

Allan

[druxey]

Yes, Antscherl's models are somewhat stylized. White stuff would end just above the waterline and wood (perhaps oiled) be seen above.

[michael20]

Didn't that white stuff have a lead base to keep the worms from eating the wood?

 

Marty G.

[allanyed]

Marty,

Pages 57 and 58 in Goodwin's Arming and Fitting give a lot of information on paying the hulls,   The description he gives is of tallow, rosin, sulfur, oil from whales and seals, and pitch, no mention of lead at that point.   The black stuff was half the price of white stuff and became predominant over white stuff by 1702, but mostly on ships in home waters.  The white stuff was thought to be superior and was used for the supposedly more demanding waters of the Caribbean and Mediterranean Seas.

 

When brown stuff came into use later in the eightheenth century, it was used from keel to about 3 feet below the LWL.  The next three feet were payed with tallow and lime and had a skirting of white lead and tallow.

 

Allan

[michael20]

Allenyed,

 

Thanks, I wasn't sure. The neat things you learn about the way they did things is most interesting.

 

Happy Modeling.

Marty G.