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Clipper Ship Build Thoughts

I have a set of plans for the Flying Fish, but an instruction manual would be great
My address is
28700 Trails Edge Blvd. #606
Bonita Springs, FL
34134
Yesterday I got all the masts out together. I'm finding that alot of fittings can be home made.

Let me know about cost
Clink
 
Bill-R said:
I am planning on a scratch build of a clipper ship. Lately there has been a lot of posts regarding clipper ships. This has peaked my interest. I find that I really like the lines of the clippers. I also find schooners attractive. My thoughts for a build will be the Ed Tosti Young America or the Scott Bradner Flying Could plans. The build will be a POB. The Ed Tosti plans are beautiful and I have the books to go along with the plans. Having the books will greatly aide me in construction. I have also gotten a set of the Scott Bradner's Flying Cloud plans. These plans appear to be a very complete set of plans. At this time, because I find both ships appealing, I am stuck in the middle as far as a decision on which to build.

Would anyone have any thoughts, opinions or suggestions as to which to choose.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Bill
Click to expand...
I know I'm an old bloke, and been dallying with models for over a half century, but it was only last year that I stumbled over the 'Aberdeen Bow' phenomenon that started the whole clipper ship thing.
Serendi[itously, also in the last century, I started a model of the Scottish Maid - the ship that started it all. I was away from home on a contract and needed something to stop going mad. The model was pone thing, falling into the OldTools virtual Porch was the other.

So my advice is easy - go to the start of clippers. There is now far more information available and that halted model will come out of dock, the tape on the sealed box will be slit open, and a few decades of additional knowledge will see it completed, better rigged, better finished, better planked, better detailed, than ever it was envisioned on a Swedish coffee table in a Swedish company flat (apartment) with next to no tools or holding devices.

start here, then more research..

https://ecoclipper.org/News/the-clipper-bow/

J
 
Clink said:
Just got all the bulk heads (plank-on-bulkhead) traced onto plywood (1/2/2025) and will start cutting them out.
For the first time I purchased a set of plans from "Model Shipways/Model Expo", not getting younger here.
The plans came 1/8"=1' with dimensions for the real Flying Fish.
LOA 222 Feet had to be reduced to a 50-inch model size, thank-you for computers
Click to expand...
Clink,
You mentioned that the LOA 222' had to be reduced to a 50" model size. Yet at 1/8" = 1' a 222' model hull is only 27 & 3/4th" LOA slightly larger than 1/2 the size you're discussing. That's nowhere near as long as 50". Did you scale up everything or what am I missing here? For the past few years, Rob Wiederrich and I have discovered that there are a lot of discrepancies between existing Model Shipways Flying Fish plans, the actual vessel as described in the Boston Daily Atlas article and a famous contemporary painting illustrated by JE Buttersworth. You can reference other builds here and in Model Ship World for greater details. Here's an actual tracing of McKay's vessel.

20240721_135724.jpg
 
Hello everyone,

I just received a copy of the book "The American-Built Clipper Ship" by William L. Crothers. I did a look through the book and what a great source of information on clipper ships. I had no idea that there would be so much information. I also have the book "The History of American Sailing Ships" by Howard Chapelle. This is also a great resource for american ships through the nineteenth century. The next book I'm planning to get is "American Built Packets and Freighters of the 1850"s" by William L. Crothers.

Bill
 
Bill, The best of Chapelle’s books with regards to American built Clippers Ships is his The Search for Speed Under Sail. Much more extensive discussion than the Chapelle book that you have and a good companion volume to Crothers’ book.

Roger
 
Hello everyone,

I was reading an article on clipper ships and it mentioned that William Crothers made a set of plans for the clippers Young America and Lightning. The plans were said to be sold by Sea Gull Plans. Does anyone know anything about these plans? I did search on Google and came up empty handed.

Thanks,
Bill
 
There is an old website:

It is tricky to navigate to get to plans. It is easier to go direct:


The following are Crothers' Sea Gull plans available there:
Understand going in,
they are all 1/8" scale - large ships/ small scale - detail can be a problem - near the limit for natural building materials
there are old blue print style - the more the original is used to make a copy the less precise are the fine details.

BLACK HAWK
An American medium clipper ship built in 1856 by William H. Webb, New York, as Yard No. 110. Dimensions 178ft × 38ft 5in × 23ft 9in and tonnage 1109 tons Old Measurement and 1059 tons New Measurement. Dungaugh & duBarry have 1175 tons. Hull Length 32 in.
1/96 SCALE
2 SHEET PLAN
CR-29
PRICE: $ 28.50

COMET
An extreme clipper ship built in 1851 by William H. Webb, New York, as Yard No. 62. Her dimensions were: 229ft × 41ft 4in × 22ft 2in and tonnage: 1836 (old measurement) and 1361 (new measurement). Built with diagonal iron strapping. Her dead rise was 27in.
Model Hull Length 30in.
1/96 SCALE
3 SHEET PLAN
CR-20
PRICE: $ 25.00

RED JACKET
The extreme clipper ship Red Jacket was designed by Samuel H. Pook and built by George Thomas at Rocklane, Maine. She was launched November 2, 1853 and towed to New York to receive spars and rigging. The owners were Seacomb & Taylor of Boston.
1/96 SCALE
3 SHEET PLAN
CR-30
PRICE: $ 30.00

Red Jacket is an absolute monster.

I do not remember LIGHTNING as being a Sea Gull product. It is available at 1/4" from SI.
Every HIC plan in every book except The Baltimore Clipper is available at 1/4" scale from the SI.
 
In addition to the Deepwater Sail Clippers, there are those designed and built by William Bates for service on the Great Lakes. These were very fast sailers. Of particular interest was his Clipper City (named for Manitowoc, Wisconsin). The Wisconsin Maritime Museum at Manitowoc has Bates’ original offset book that also includes scantlings. They have commissioned a naval architect to prepare drawings for her, available from the museum. There is also extensive evidence available from wrecks showing deck fittings for Treat Lakes vessels of this period.

Roger
 
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