November 2024 Volume 14 number 11

How time flies! Last month made a year since I sold Bluejacket. Although I'm still working, it's only about 15 hrs a week, leaving me plenty of time for hobby stuff. Of course, that includes building for Bluejacket (see my workbench) I'm very happy with the transition, and Josh is doing a great job running the place.

NRG'S MODEL SHIP WORLD

Model Ship World is an on-line forum of over 40,000 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! And yes, BlueJacket is one of the sponsors.

www.modelshipworld.com

The roadwork in front of Bluejacket is finally done. We now have a center turning lane, which will ease the congestion that occurs because we have two companies on each side of the road, and someone turning always backs up traffic.

Josh

Bay - Shipboard space or section. The word comes from the Old French baer, to stand open.

Catwalk - A walkway above deck-level, running fore-and-aft, to enable the crew to avoid "no-man's-land" in rough weather. Seen first aboard the big square-riggers of the late XIX, these later became common on tankers.The origin of the term is unknown, but it does imply the nimbleness of a cat. It is also known as a monkey bridge.

Lagan - Any heavy article thrown overboard and buoyed, for possible recovery. The term comes from the Anglo-French word of the same spelling and possibly the same meaning.

Penny - The long-known designator for the sizes of nails. It referred to the price for one hundred nails, obviously relating to size. The term got its start in British shipyards and chandleries.

Information is from the book "Origins of Sea Terms" by John G. Rogers

copyright 1985 Mystic Seaport Museum, Inc. and available from BlueJacket.

This is from Dan D. of FL:

"I purchased your Lobster Boat kit #K207 to use the hull as a foundation for my attempt to recreate “Orca”. Below a brief photo essay of the project and end result. Without plans I took notes by looping the movie and making thumb nail sketches as I progressed. I am not a pro at this, but thought the finished model came out reasonably well.

Thanks for all your help with aftermarket part orders."

From Randy B. of ID, - "The special effects barge for the movie JAWS was called SS GARAGE SALE"

This is from Carl H. of CA

"Nic, I am working on a scratch built 1/8” scale model of the West Coast steam schooner Wapama (Tongass) built by St. Helens Shipbuilding Company at Saumie Island, St. Helens, Oregon in 1915. It is based on plans from the San Francisco Maritime Museum. The Wapama was the last of 225 steam schooners plying the lumber and passenger trade on the Pacific Coast. She was built entirely of Douglas Fir, and some iron wood at chafing points. In service to1947 she was laid up, was restored and became a floating museum ship until placed on a barge due to major leakage in 1977. Named a National Historic Landmark in 1985, she was dismantled in 2013. Some of the interior woodwork and other fittings are in the San Francisco Maritime Museum. A full description of the Wapama is in the Addendum to Historic American Engineering Record, HAER CA-67, and Wikipedia.

Carl "

Nic's bench - Small Friendship sloop progress. I decided to name her the John B. - do you know the significance of the reference? I'll tell you in my closing below - Don't peek!

I also finished a cute indoor r/c plane for the winter. It's called the Playmite, and is a take-off of a 1930's free flight design. All up weight including battery is 1.4 ounces. I purchased the kit here:

www.stevensaero.com



Al's bench - Al has been re-directed to operate our laser machine since we lost that employee. Here's his new (temporary) bench.

Last month's tip ungluing titebond generated a response from Bill M. who said "...my wife does caning and weaving and we use distilled white vinegar to unglue titebond 3..."

From the Shipwrights of Ohio newsletter

Sometimes in your build, you need to either mark a waterline or measure the height of an object from a base, for that you need a jig that can mark a location on your hull (like a waterline) at a consistant height from a base anywhere on the model. I built one when I was doing a restoration and needed to insure that objects were at the same height from a base at multiple locations on the model. The jig consists of five parts and three 3/16” stove bolts with wing nuts. The parts were:

• A stable base

• Slide post

• Pencil holder consisting of clamp that can be adjusted on the slide post • A pencil

• 3 – stove bolts ¼” x 1 ¾” with wing nuts

The Sloop John B. is a song sung by many artists, most recently by the Kingston Trio and the Beach Boys. It is a 1700's Bahamian folk song. The actual ship's ribs lie embedded in the sand at Governor's Harbor, Eleuthera Island, Bahamas. The boat was named after Captain John Bethel, who used it in commercial trade around the islands.