Scratch building the 20 gun oar ship, h.m.s.Blandford,built in 1721. Building procedures will follow…
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Welcome to the community!!!
Hello and welcome to FSM
You have a few options, plank-on-frame, plank-on-bulkhead, or carved hull. Choice should be based on experience.
Thanks for your response. Actually,I have been an old viewer of FSM since 2006. Then,I have not made another post since February 2016 when I never completed my scratch build model of the H.M.S. Pelican. That project can be seen on FSM posts on the search section. I have decided to return to scratch building the Blandford and finish the Pelican at the same time.
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my decision to construct the Blandford came quite by accident. To supplement my income, I collect aluminum cans or recycling. Fishing at a dumster for cans, I noticed a ship modeling kit of bulkhead and frame discarted by some frustrated modeler Salvaging the kit, I had no idea what was the name of ship, since the box was not included in the trash. Saving the model, it was put aside until the book, The 20 Gun Ship, Blandsford, by Peter Goodwin came to my library. It was then,the idea of constructing the Blandford came to mind.
Happy miodeling Crackers
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For those interested in the Pelican build, here’s a link.
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This is the book that gave me the inspiration for the Blandford build. The author,Peter Goodwin, gives a complete description of the development of a Sixth Rate vessel according to the Admiralty 1719 Establisment rules and drawings of the Blandford’s hull construction,fittings,masts and yards,rigging and armament. This small ship which were equipped for rowing and escort work were the forerunner of the true frigates of the 1750s. The significance of this type of vessel is not well know, yet important in the evolution of the cruising ship that was to eveolve in the role of the frigate…
. The entire crew of the 20 run ship like the Blandford consisted of about 120 to 130 officers and men of which 25 were commissioned and warrant officers. On average,20 men were able seamen and about 70 were ordinary seamen. The gunner,carpenter,boatswain,quartermaster and coxswain were classified as non-commissioned officers. The captain was allowed to have four servants.
During naval action,able and ordinary seamens manned the guns, while the remaining assisted in the sailing of the ship. There was a problem when rowing the sweeps. At three men per sweep, it took 108 men to move their ship. It was impractible to row and man the cannons at the same time, so the crew would drop the sweeps wonce into position, then rush to man the guns. Hopefully, all were drilled to work without confusion.
Happy Modeling Crackers .
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Funny, I saw that as a 331/3 vinyl album.
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I just perused your Pelican build thread. Very neat. I can’t wait to see how the Blandford progresses!
Thanks for your reply.I have a bad habit of getting bored with a build. At the moment, I have three projects that need to be finished. When I get bored with one, I jump to another one. Since Blandford is my favorite, I will continue with it.
Happy Modeling Crackers.
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**Though rated as a 20 gun ship, the Blandford had 22 gun ports. The last two ports were windowed for the living space of the captain’s servants.The ship was armed with twenty 6 pound carriage guns as Established by the Admiralty. The cannons were made from cast iron and smooth bored to a diameter of 3 !/2inches. Firing of the cannon was done by placing a slow match on the torch hole of the top rear of the cannon.
The cannon was mounted on a wooden carriage made from elm wood which did not splinter into small shards and could withstand the shock of the cannon’s recoil. The cannon was mounted on wheels made of oak and held in place on the carriage by iron straps fitted over the trunnions. Maneuvering was done by rope tackles as withdrawel for loading and firing. Some vessels of the Blandford class like H.M.S. Seaford, carried bomb mortars. But the weight and recoil of these weapons made their use impractable.on a small ship
Built on the specifications of the 1719 Admiralty Establishment, Blandford was launched on March 3, 1720 at the Deptford Shipyard to replace a previous ship with the same name lost on the Bay of Biscay. Blandford,s first voyage was for escort duty to Denmark, arriving on May 6 1720. Returning back to England. the following year, she crossed the Atlantic and arrived in South Carolina on February 9, 1721 to escort a convoy of merchant ships to the West Indies. On one of her tips to Jamaica, Blandford lost her foremast in a storm, and under a jury rig to Quelcher Creek, Slouth Carolina to wait for a new foremast. Returning to England in 1724 for a refit at the Portsmouth Naval Dockyard. For the next six years, Blandford remain in home waters except for a brief escort tip to Gibraltar. In 1730 ,Blandford was once again in American waters for escort and dispatch work between Charleston and Boston. Recalled back to England for a major refit in 1733. Upon completion of refit, she remain in home waters until 1738.Her final years were spent in Jamaica in a squadron under the command of Admiral Vernon,where some tension years with Spain that resulted in the War of Jenkin’s Ear. In 1740, Vernon’s squadron was buffited by heavy gales while cruising off Cartahena. Again, Blandford lost her foremast as well as her bowspirit. After repairs, Blandford sailed for England for the last time. After a survey at the Deptford Shipyard, the old and wornout Blandford was declared unfit for service and broken up on October 28, 1742. A new Blandford was launched, but captured by the French in late 1745. …
These are the pieces that I found discarted in a dumpster.Since the box that held these parts was not available,I had no idea what kind of model ship these parts were supposed to represent. Could it be a frigate ? A clipper ? I had no idea. So, these parts were put aside. The mahogany deck included, perhaps gave thoughts the model was suppose to represent a frigate. I had another project to consider. The dicarted parts were put aside for another day.
Happy modeling Crackers
This is the keel board that came with the pieces that I retrieved from the trash. There was no indication where to slide the bulkhead pieces into the correct slits. By examining each bulkhead, I was able to determine a shape of a ship’s hull. Then, each bulkhead piece was slid into position, and a general hull profile appeared…
When each bulkhead was aligned into position, then it was time to work on the most difficult part of the round shape of the bow. The planks can not just be put into position with out first constructing a round platform for the planks to adhear to. This was done by building a series of scrap wood.pieces into a layer cake out line of a rounded bow.
Once that layer cake bow ship was completed, it was time to form the other less difficult part of the model, the stern. Then the shape of the stern was made with the windows put onto place.
