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September 2015
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Vol 5, Issue 9
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Dear Shipmate: |
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This past month we said goodbye to Jamie, our shipper for the last 7 years. She is going to work at the Prospect town hall as a deputy clerk with her sister.
We are very lucky to find a replacement, named Tony. He has a background in shipping, receiving, warehousing and watercraft maintenance, so he is fitting right into the position with no fuss.
Earle from the planking class handed these flag stars out to everyone in the class. It is a great sentiment and a good way to give purpose to a flag that has reached the end of its useful life. Earle's wife made them.
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BlueJacket is a proud sponsor of:
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Model Ship World is an on-line forum of ship modelers. Topics range from kits to scratch builds, in-process continuing stories, tips, manufacturer information, technical topics. Too many to list here. Go take a look!
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| Planking Class 2015 |
Last week we finished up our planking class. 10 students learned spiling techniques on the Herreshoff 12 1/2 model. Here's a group shot of the happy bunch. I'm proud to say that two of the students had already taken the rigging class and returned.
(Left to Right) Walt (MA), Ed (ME), Al (NV), Tim (FL), Jim (TX), Ed (MA), Frank (VA), Richard (TX)
Missing: Earle (MA) and Jack (TX)
During the week, Walt celebrated his birthday, so we had a cake break.
And after the class, Jim picked up his fiancee at the airport and they got on a schooner in Camden for a 6 day cruise, getting married on board. This was quite the interesting class!
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Nautical terms and origins
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Dock - is a term often used too loosely. Properly it is the waterspace between piers, or a basin or other device by which a vesssel can be taken out of the water. The term comes from Middle Dutch,
docke, of these meanings.
Kid - A small open barrel, also a large pan or pot. The term came, via Middle English, from the Middle Dutch
kitte, jug or tankard. As Forecastle terms often are, this one is subject to corruption, such as the naval term spitkit, a seagoing cuspidor.
Monkey's Blood - The British Navy wardroom nickname for red wine.
Skylark - Now hardly a sea term, it once was. It meant to romp in the rigging of a sailing ship, such as sliding down the Crossjack stay. Lark in this sense comes from the Anglo-Saxon word
lac, to play.
Information is from the book "Origins of Sea Terms" by John G. Rogers
copyright 1985 Mystic Seaport Museum, Inc. and available from BlueJacket.
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Model of the Month - USS Kearsarge
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The prototype model is finished and mounted. It features two reveals: one of the ribs, cross-members and ceiling planks, and the other is the hidden chain armor that helped her win the battle of Cherbourg. The 11" Dahlgren cannon alone has 50 pieces! It is detailed right down to the wheels. All that remains is to finish the instruction manual. Here is the overall view.
Closeup of the reveals
Magnificent Dahlgren cannon
30-pounder in the bow
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| What's on the workbench? |
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Nic's bench: Now that the Kearsarge is done, I am building a Yankee Hero for a client. He wants the ships' name to read "Pinky 1" The Yankee Hero is actually a relaxing project for me. When that is done, I will go back to the USS Kidd.
Al's bench: Al has almost finished the 31-ton Revenue Cutter, which will be offered as an Ensign series kit AND as a regular kit for people who already have the tools, paint and glues. Notice the fine deck detail, it is done with our laser machine.
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| Tip of the Month - Workbench glasses |
I was talking to a customer this past month, and told him what I do for eye assistance on my workbench. He thought it was a great idea, and suggested I make it a tip of the month, so here goes:
I told my Optometrist what I do for a hobby, and he gave me a special prescription. Bifocals, where the upper part is my reading prescription, and the bifocal area is 2x magnifiers. This eliminates the need to wear both glasses and magnifiers. If you look back up at my workbench photo, you can see them on the right side of the table. They just stay on the bench, and are so convenient I automatically change glasses when I sit down.
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Thanks for your support
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My final message in this newsletter will always be the same because it is what BlueJacket has done for 110 years, and we're not about to stop.
We appreciate our customers, we exist for our customers, and we listen to our customers. What we do is fun, just as I will try to make this newsletter. If you have any suggestions or comments, still, as always, please just give us a shout!
There's nothing I'd rather do than work on, or talk about model boats. Have fun!
Sincerely,
Nic Damuck
BlueJacket Shipcrafters, Inc.
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