Long long ago

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Long, long ago, I used to build large models. This was my last plank-on-frame, completed in about 1981. The hull about a foot long. Frames sawed out of common plywood, and planked in 1/16th inch thick obeche – Still rigged with wire though!

Bob

Edited By Bob Wilson on 07/04/2020 16:06:23

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

You`ve kept this model a bit secret, since you made it 39 years ago?

You seem to like punishing yourself?

It looks very nice though

Did you make any models while aboard ship?

How the French prisoners made those lovely ships out of bone is truly amazing

Bob

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Bob,

I always made them at sea, but large ones were too inconvenient, so I moved onto miniatures in the early 70s. When on the liner service from Southampton to South Africa and back, I build one a voyage for 12 years, and the voyages were 5 weeks in length. After they sold all the large passenger liners, I moved into the tiny passenger liner RMS St Helena that was only 300 feet long and carried 76 passengers on the same run as the big ships. But our voyages were then about 8 weeks as we were a lot slower than the old ships, but I still only built one per voyage, because by that time, my wife was was able to accompany me, and we spent more time socialising with the passengers than I did on the big ships. Scottish Maid was built when on leave. This is the St Helena, drawing by myself. My cabin was the single window just behind the bridge and under the bow of the lifeboat – all very pleasant. One twelfth the size of the largest one I was in, RMS Windsor Castle – once famous, now virtually unknown, and forgotten!

Bob

Edited By Bob Wilson on 07/04/2020 19:41:18

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hi Bob

What process do you use to create these lovely crisp ship pictures?

They look like CAD

Bob

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

I haven't got CAD – Too expensive and I wouldn't have the patience to learn how to use it. So I use drawing pens, ship curves, rulers, dividers etc. I photgraph the large drawing with a normal digital camera, and colour it in on the computer with paint bucket. But in the above image, I added the reflections under the ship with a free program called Sqirlz.

Bob

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

This is the above drawing completed – Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

It`s very effective

Bob

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

I started doing my own drawing because all the various museums and archives usually wanted fistfulls of £s just to use them in a publications or e-articles. I quickly discovered that it wasn't all that difficult, and the colouring is done at the touch of a button. The lettering font I use is Monotype Corsiva that I find is ideally suited to plans like this. The secret is to do them large scale on card, and when they are shrunk by photography, all the errors shrink as well, and they look much better. I do the deck plans as well, but they are confined to my publications.

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

How did these big Square riggers get out of a harbour, not having an auxiliary motor?

and I suppose they have to turn round somehow

Perhaps a Steam Tug?

Bob

[Bob WilsonParticipant @bobwilson59101]

Steam tugs came into use in the early 1800s. Looking at the Lloyds Register for 1804, and selecting a page at random, I find the largest vessel listed was the full-rigged Finnish ship Hoppett, of 340 tons. That is really not very big, and could probably be dragged round the side of the dock by the crew, or horse power. Warships tended to anchor off. By the 1860s and 70s, steam tugs were very common and used by the big square-riggers. Tugs would often go out looking for becalmed sailing ships close to the UK coast and negotiate the price of a tow home. Even in the 1850s, 800 tons would be considered big for a sailing ship, but by the 1890s, they were often in excess of 2,000 tons, and really needed tugs. Small collier brigs actually sailed up the Thames right to their berths, tacking upriver with incredible skills, I doubt if the small coastal schooners even bothered with tugs at all on account of the expense!

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Thank you, Bob

Useful information

Bob

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