Good day,
As I a looking over the model and this forum especially the reply on my previous post (New model) I have considered what was mentioned concerning buying blocks for this model Heller1:50 Pamir. I looked over at blue Jacket and well, Which blocks do I buy?
Iron stroped blocks? Single, Double, triple?
GROOVED FOR STROPS?
Thanks
Robert
Since you have stated in other posts on the subject that you are new to ship models and that you are going to use this kit as a “practice” model (again, your words) I think you should consider building this kit more closely to out of the box.
In my opinion, (that and 5 dollars will get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks), you will be faced with a lot of work in learning the details of rigging a tall ship. Adding to the kit the additional learning requirements of different kinds of blocks and when and where they are used will make your learning experience more unplesant and turn you away from ship modeling.
For the record, you will likely need many of each kind of block. Each have their purpose. Iron strops are straps of iron which wrap around the block and are spiked to the side of the ship. There may be several types of blocks involved. Grooved blocks have the rigging looped around them and tied off/wrapped tightly.
The number of holes in a block is variable based on the location and purpose.
I think I’d use the kit parts and learn how to rig, then transfer that knowledge to your next project and begin to depart from the kit by adding aftermarket details such as blocks.
Hi Spelunko.
I agree with what EdGrune has said. Build from the box as best you can.
The only thing I might change would be the sizes of the rigging lines. Often kits provide over scale lines.
Black line is for standing rigging. That is lines that do not move and involve the stays for the masts etc. It’s black because it was tarred as a preservative. Running rigging is natural tannish colour.
May I suggest that you rig the ship and tie off the lines where they are supposed to go along the belaying pins. To add the left over coils, do them off the model and apply them afterward. It’s a little easier.
Rig from the inside out and no lines should touch each other. If a line rubs, see if you can find out why. Maybe you have to run that line inside or outside the other.
Start with the standing rigging first though. This will give the masts some stability.
To prevent the lines from looking fuzzy, run the line through some beeswax. You can get a block of beeswax from most craft shops or from Bluejacket. A block will last a very long time.
Don’t reef the lines really tight as they will stretch and shrink depending on humidity.
Take your time, don’t be afraid to ask for help and don’t worry if you are frustrated. Walk away and try it again at a later date.
A fully rigged ship is a work of art even if it is a kit.
I agree with all the above. The biggest danger you face in this project is potential burnout. The Pamir was a huge ship with a vast amount of rigging, and 1/150 is a small scale. If you reproduce enough of the rigging so that the masts and yards look like they’re supported in all necessary directions, you’ll be doing a lot.
The lines that would fit that definition are:
Shrouds
Backstays
Stays
Maringale stays
Bowprit shrouds
Topmast shrouds
Braces
Lifts
Halyards
On a 4-masted bark, the above list probably amounts to somewhere in the neighborhood of a hundred pieces of thread. I suspect you’ll conclude that’s enough for a first project.
Regarding blocks - a latter-day sailing vessel like this would be fitted with iron-stropped blocks in most cases. (There probably would be some small, rope-stropped blocks for things like jib sheets and flag halyards, but they’d be extremely small - on 1/150 scale, far smaller than anything the manufacturers offer.) The smallest and, perhaps, second-smallest sizes in the Bluejacket line would be about right for the largest blocks on a model like this.
My suggestion is: get the books we talked about earlier (especially the Underhill one) and do some reading about how rigging works. Figure out in some detail just how much rigging you want to put on your model, and how many blocks (and of what sizes) you’ll need to do it. Then place your order to Bluejacket. Those fittings aren’t cheap; you’ll want to buy some extras, but you don’t want to waste money. And you don’t need to place the order today. You’re a long way from the rigging stage.
Wow,
You guys are great.
My decision: I will not plan on purchasing after market blocks. If, as I am building this scale model I feel that I have done well enough, than I will consider the purchase. All points mentioned are well taken. I needed what Ed said to stop my “perfectionist” thinking. As I even said, this is in some respect a learning model for me. Might as well focus on what I do have, not on what ay be coming.
Prof. Tilley, You previously mentioned that I should now be considering how the model will be mounted (Correct phrase?) while her so that while working on it, it will not fall. Good point. Since the stand is so small I am not sure what method I should use to keep the ship stead. How is this done exactly?
As for the rigging, I will assuredly read the books and consider which rigging to include. Your list is very helpful. At this time, I am not sure which are “important” to include.
To all thanks,
Robert
There are lots of ways to mount a ship model. Many people like brass pedestals, which are available from firms like Model Expo and Bluejacket. (Quite a few modelers get by with modified brass lamp finials from the hardware store. I have no idea whether such things are easy to find in Taiwan.) The Pamir was a long, relatively skinny ship. I’d suggest three pedestals.
Another nice - and slightly easier - way to do it is to make a series of “keel blocks,” suggestive of a ship that’s sitting in a dry dock. Get hold of some nice hardwood, perhaps about 1/4" square, and chop it into lengths slightly longer than the model’s beam. (In the U.S., the easiest wood to find in hobby shops is basswood. It can be made to look pretty nice with the help of stain and varnish. Pine is also ok; maple, walnut, and cherry are better. Just about any hardwood you like will work. But strike all memory of the term “balsa wood” from your mind.) Glue the blocks down to a nice baseboard. (If you’re the woodworking type, you won’t need instructions on how to make a baseboard. If you’re not, maybe a friend can saw one out of a board and rout the edges for you. As a last resort, the ship model suppliers sell them - but at a pretty high price.)
Whatever mounting method you pick, you’ll need a system of fastening the model to it that’s both sturdy and removable. (You don’t want to mount it for good on that nice baseboard till it’s finished. Till then, mount it to a piece of scrap plywood or something.) That means drilling some holes in the bottom and providing something for either screws or bolts to screw into. You can epoxy a piece of wood inside the hull bottom and fasten the hull to the baseboard with wood screws, driven in from the bottom. Or you can epoxy a couple of nuts inside the hull bottom and do the job with bolts. That’s a particularly good option if the bottom of the hull is relatively flat - which, as I recall, the *Pamir’*s is. If the hull bottom has a lot of deadrise (i.e., if it slopes upward sharply from the keel), it probably will be easier to shape a piece of wood to fit inside it.
The rigging lines I listed earlier would be a good start. (You’ll probably want to add a few more; I didn’t, for instance, mention any of the ones that control the spanker boom and gaff.) Start out by installing enough rigging so that none of the masts or yards looks like it’s unsupported or free-swinging. I suspect you’ll conclude, after you’ve gotten four masts and their associated yards, booms, etc. into that condition, that you’ve done enough rigging for your first effort.
The Underhill and Villiers books should make the basic nature of rigging clear. It’s far easier to explain with the help of illustrations - which both of those books have in abundance. Another book I strongly recommend is Seamanship in the Age of Sail, by John Harland. But if your budget is limited (as whose isn’t?) I think the first acquisitions I’d recommend are Underhill and Villiers.
There are lots of ways to mount a ship model. Many people like brass pedestals, which are available from firms like Model Expo and Bluejacket. (Quite a few modelers get by with modified brass lamp finials from the hardware store. I have no idea whether such things are easy to find in Taiwan.) The Pamir was a long, relatively skinny ship. I’d suggest three pedestals.
Another nice - and slightly easier - way to do it is to make a series of “keel blocks,” suggestive of a ship that’s sitting in a dry dock. Get hold of some nice hardwood, perhaps about 1/4" square, and chop it into lengths slightly longer than the model’s beam. (In the U.S., the easiest wood to find in hobby shops is basswood. It can be made to look pretty nice with the help of stain and varnish. Pine is also ok; maple, walnut, and cherry are better. Just about any hardwood you like will work. But strike all memory of the term “balsa wood” from your mind.) Glue the blocks down to a nice baseboard. (If you’re the woodworking type, you won’t need instructions on how to make a baseboard. If you’re not, maybe a friend can saw one out of a board and rout the edges for you. As a last resort, the ship model suppliers sell them - but at a pretty high price.)
Whatever mounting method you pick, you’ll need a system of fastening the model to it that’s both sturdy and removable. (You don’t want to mount it for good on that nice baseboard till it’s finished. Till then, mount it to a piece of scrap plywood or something.) That means drilling some holes in the bottom and providing something for either screws or bolts to screw into. You can epoxy a piece of wood inside the hull bottom and fasten the hull to the baseboard with wood screws, driven in from the bottom. Or you can epoxy a couple of nuts inside the hull bottom and do the job with bolts. That’s a particularly good option if the bottom of the hull is relatively flat - which, as I recall, the *Pamir’*s is. If the hull bottom has a lot of deadrise (i.e., if it slopes upward sharply from the keel), it probably will be easier to shape a piece of wood to fit inside it.
The rigging lines I listed earlier would be a good start. (You’ll probably want to add a few more; I didn’t, for instance, mention any of the ones that control the spanker boom and gaff.) Start out by installing enough rigging so that none of the masts or yards looks like it’s unsupported or free-swinging. I suspect you’ll conclude, after you’ve gotten four masts and their associated yards, booms, etc. into that condition, that you’ve done enough rigging for your first effort.
The Underhill and Villiers books should make the basic nature of rigging clear. It’s far easier to explain with the help of illustrations - which both of those books have in abundance. Another book I strongly recommend is Seamanship in the Age of Sail, by John Harland. But if your budget is limited (as whose isn’t?) I think the first acquisitions I’d recommend are Underhill and Villiers.
Great ideas.
You are an encycloedia incarnate. Will look into, as always, into what you recommend. PS Hardword is hard to find in Taiwan. It grows here but no shops (Model, lumber, etc) carry it. No demand. Will have to make my own. THis OK. I have friends and I am not a stranger to woodworking .
Gracias,
Robert