Heller's 1/150 Preussen - blocks

Jerome,

Thanks for the advice. I plan to buy at least 3 sizes although the largest of the smallest 3 sizes offered at BlueJacket may be too big to accurately represent even the largest blocks on a 1/150 model. I'll have to do more figuring after I receive the used book I bought on Amazon: "Masting and Rigging: The Clipper Ship and Ocean Carrier" by Harold Underhill.

In any case this is a build that is probably two years down the road.

Mike S.

You may want to buy a bunch of different size blocks instead of just two sizes. You'll find that the blocks further up the mast and yards were usually smaller sizes.

The lower yards had some really big blocks 12 to 16" diameter for the running rigging.

 topping lifts on the lower yards were also very big.

 And don't forget about all the jibs on the bow sprit. single and double blocks were everywhere. 

I agree with Bondoman that there is no shame in abandoning a project.  Been there and done that.  Just keep all the parts together in case you ever change your mind (or your grandchildren want to take it over).  Been building ships for nigh on 50 years and have run out of steam (so to speak) more than once.

One caution, however, about not buying everything upfront.  When you need more matching blocks or rigging thread a year from now they might not be available or you might not have the money at the time to buy them.  Been there, too.  Just my $.02 worth.

Good luck on your build.  I have the same model in my stash so I'll be following this thread with interest.

Rick

CapnMac82,

Thanks for all the information you've supplied me from Underhill's book. I know it will be valuable when it comes time for me to start the Preussen.

The bottom of this page: http://jans-sajt.se/contents/Navigation/Modelling/R_Preussen.htm shows me the belaying plan for the ship which, along with Heller's rigging plans, should give me some confidence in where all the lines go. How they get there is another story .

Thanks again for your taking the time and trouble to help me out. It's a pleasure to learn from all of you about this hobby!

Mike S.

Looking at Underhill's drawing, there are all sorts of things going on.

He's drawn the lower braces in a two-part tackle.   There's a pendant from the yard arm, which has a large block--probably 3mm for the model--the line led from that block goes back to, well, somewhere,  on the upper half; the lower part goes to a smaller block--call it 2mm--which goes to the deck, and then to--presumably--a brace winch on deck.

The clew blocks on the linked list probably ought to be a medium--2mm--size.  Sheet blocks are going to be mixed.  I'd wager that the lower topsail and lower topgallant had chain sheets.  Halyards are probably multi-part tackles--a single wire or chain line from yard through the mast over a sheave to a block which had a luff or gun tackle run through it.

I'm not sure how I'd handle bunt or leach lines, not thirty sets of them at 1:150 scale.

Thanks Don,

I'll check them out again when I'm ready to start building. I was hoping for metal blocks though and you may be referring to the wood ones?

Mike S.

bondoman,

Thanks for the advice.

At this stage of the game I'm only doing research but I do know what you are talking about. You and others (jtilley comes to mind) have suggested only getting the parts you need for a few weeks of work at a time. Good advice I'm sure. As I stated in my original post, I have Revell's 1/96 Cutty Sark to do first. I am still researching her a little but there's a lot more information on her from a modelers perspective to be found on the internet than there is on the Preussen.

As far as losing interest goes, I'm sure I will stop working on whatever model I have on the bench for a couple weeks at a time here and there - and work or play at something else for a while. That was my habit while building the Connie and I always came back to her after a short break.

RE: blocks for the Preussen. She was such an enormous sailing ship that I'm sure one might actually be able to squeeze in close to 1k's worth of blocks if one was that committed. I'm not sure it would enhance the build though. I'm convinced that, at 1/150 scale, one can build this model with far fewer blocks and still have a model that most observers, even other ship-building modelers, would consider to be a very accurate representation of the original.

I still don't know enough about rigging in general to know where to put blocks that I can't discern from Heller's rigging pages. I'm sure the little "blobs" on the rigging - which I assume to be blocks - are way too few. After all the Preussen hoisted 47 sails on 5 masts! There must have been lots of blocks for that running rigging but I will just have to rely (as of the moment) on what pictures I can find of her and what information I can glean from modeling sites on the 'net.

Here's an example of information on the Preussen I found on the Internet that may be helpful to me when I begin the project: http://jans-sajt.se/contents/Navigation/Modelling/R_Preussen.htm

I wish I could find more rigging images/plans.

Mike S.

I just found this page which, even though it represents 18th century ships, I believe will be helpful in the placement of some of the blocks. Here's the page:

http://www.all-model.com/Rigging-1/Rigging%20period%20ship%20models.html

1943Mike

CapnMac82,

Thanks again for the information. 1260 blocks!!!  I don't think I'll use that many but I'll buy a bunch of the 3/32" and 1/8" blocks from BlueJacket and see what looks good when building her.

Mike S.

Model Expo is also a good source of blocks, and they offer "large quantity" packs at cheaper prices for common sizes.

A piece of advice. I am building the Heller 1/100 HMS Victory, actually the Imai rebox. Most of the way through year two.

I bought the main cable and the traveler, enough line to sort of loop rig the guns on the lower two gun decks, and rig the guns on the upper gun deck that are visible through the opening between the fore deck and quarter deck.

Everything is done except those guns in the middle area. I also bought enough blocks to rig them. I estimate that I'll get one or two done a week, and there's about 20 of them. If I finish next spring, and get the decks on, I'll build the lower masts and the decks above. i reckon that will take all of 2012. Then the standing rigging up to the main tops. All of which is to say that there's no point IMO in buying it all up front. You may very well lose interest after the main mastsare up. And believe me there's nothing wrong about that.

CapnMac82,

Thanks again for the information. 1260 blocks!!!  I don't think I'll use that many but I'll buy a bunch of the 3/32" and 1/8" blocks from BlueJacket and see what looks good when building her.

Mike S.

Did not see a way to magnify that or export it at all.  Could try to see if you can PM the author of that post.

Ah ha!  Found my copy of Sailing Ship Rigs and Rigging, by Harold Underhill.  Under his entry for Preussen, (pg 19) he states that all of the standing rigging uses rigging screws--turnbuckles rather than deadeyes, and that the standing rigging is all steel wire.

He then credits Nitrate Clippers by Basil Lubbock, to give the following information:

• Standing rigging, 35,424 feet
• Wire running rigging, 43.394 feet
• Hemp running rigging, 56,613 feet
• Chain running rigging, 2,296 feet

With 1260 blocks and 248 rigging screws--but no sizes for those.

CapnMac82,

Thanks for giving it a try in Yahoo. As I mentioned, the one item I'm thinking would help me is the chart at the end of the thread that has quantities and sizes? of the blocks.

Mike S.

I tried Yahoo's (nee Altavista) Babelfish, it's a pretty clean translation, other than some slang and technical terms.  (I'm almost down with Page One).