1947 Motorship

Advert

New Replies

Report Bug

Help/FAQs

1947 Motorship

This topic is empty.

Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)

Author

Posts
28 May 2011 at 08:48 #30771
Bob Wilson
Participant
@bobwilson59101
I have just completed the Moss Hutchison Line cargo ship MEMPHIS of 1947. It is built to a larger than usual scale (for me) of 20’=1″ and has a hull length of 18 inches overall. It took 120.6 hours to build, longer than I have ever taken before.

Bob
Advert

28 May 2011 at 08:48 #5729
Bob Wilson
Participant
@bobwilson59101
28 May 2011 at 11:53 #30788
Bob Abell 2
Participant
@bobabell2
That`s really beautiful, Bob

Well done indeed!

Bob
28 May 2011 at 11:56 #30789
Bob Abell 2
Participant
@bobabell2
Hello Bob

Forgot to ask…….Why is it called a motorship? Not heard of that name before.

Bob
28 May 2011 at 12:15 #30790
Robin Lee
Participant
@robinlee31938
Another very nice model Bob. Any particular reason for the larger scale? Another thought – have you ever entered your models into a Model Engineering Exhibition competition. They would do very well I think.

Regards

Robin.

PS “motorship” – just another term for a diesel engined merchantman – Bob will explain further.
28 May 2011 at 13:40 #30792
Bob Wilson
Participant
@bobwilson59101
Hi Bob,

In years gone by, the ships that superceded sailing ships were all steam driven, first fuelled by coal and then oil. In the 1920s, motor ships began to be developed and they were powered by diesel engines (motors) and the term motorship came out at that time. By the early 1980s steam power was well into a decline at sea and only large ships were driven by steam. But with the escalating cost of fuel, steam became non-viable. My old ship, the 36,000 ton WINDSOR CASTLE, guzzled oil at the rate of about 250 tons per day to drive the twin screw steam turbines that moved us along at 22.5 knots service speed .

I doubt if there are many steamers still sailing these days – well over 99% of them are motor ships driven by highly eficient diesel engines.

Robin

Larger scale was simply because it was a private commission. I prefer smaller scales though. I gave up entering competitions years ago, because my type of preferred ship is so alien to the judges, they never stood a chance. Cost of getting them to London & back is also prohibitive.

Even at the local model club with over 60 members, they rarely attract more than a passing glance!

Bob
28 May 2011 at 14:14 #30793
Robin Lee
Participant
@robinlee31938
Hi Bob

“Even at the local model club with over 60 members, they rarely attract more than a passing glance!”

That is a great pity – perhaps a touch on envy? That’s life.

Regards

Robin
28 May 2011 at 15:06 #30794
Bob Wilson
Participant
@bobwilson59101
I don’t think so – its just that they are generally not interested in this sort of thing. The greatest interest seem to be a Napoleonic warships because of the “glory” angle. But I can’t really get entusiastic about wooden walls blasting their enemies to pieces whilst hacking away at each other with cutlasses. I can never see much glory in it when I accidentally slice myself open with the scalpel whilst model making, or burn myself with the soldering iron, never mind a cutlass or red hot piece of iron.

Bob
30 May 2011 at 00:49 #30820
Peter Fitness
Participant
@peterfitness34857
Another gem, Bob.

I have often seen ships referred to as “MV” plus their name which, I understand means “Motor Vessel”, as distinct from “SS”, or “Steam Ship”.

Peter.
30 May 2011 at 07:41 #30821
Bob Wilson
Participant
@bobwilson59101
That is correct. I went to sea in early 1961 and my first ship was a steamer. Between 1962 and 1965, I served in 5 motorships. Between 1965 and 1974, I served in 6 large passenger steamers and only one motorship. From 1974 to late 1992 when I left, I served in 6 more motorships, but no steamers. It comes as a great surprise to me that the term motorship (MV) is not widely known amongst the ship model fraternity. The fastest ship I was ever in was the RMMV GOOD HOPE CASTLE (Royal Mail Motor Vessel), with a service speed of 23.5 knots. I made the fastest record-breaking run from Southampton to Cape Town aboard the 36,000 RMS WINDSOR CASTLE (twin screw steam turbines) in 1965 when, despite stopping at Las Palmas for a few hours to take on bunkers, we made the run in an amazing ten days, burning 250 tons per day!

My last ship, the RMMV ST. HELENA, completed in 1990 at Aberdeen took almost a month to get from UK to Cape Town, but I think our average fuel consumptions was less than 50 tons a day!

Bob
Author

Posts