Cutty Sark, Vintage Billing Boats BB564, 1:75.

[DomCee]

I'm fairly sure all the yards apart from the Royals have the rollers. These two pics are of the main mast and it's royal.
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Thanks Kevin, I did not take pictures of all the yards so it was a ? for me. Longridge shows sheaves which I was sure was not right although they may have been used originally.

Dom

 

[DomCee]

Part 40 Some Hull and Deck Fittings

It’s been so long since I’ve worked on the hull and I had forgotten which bits needed to be done next.

The windlass, forward bell, chains and chain pipes: Most of the parts I had made so they just needed to be glued in place. I blackened some chain and added an eye on each end to act as a false link so that I could drill some holes in the chain pipes and behind the windlass to fix the chain into position. I am still not sure how the chains should go, most models I have seen have the chains running either down the side of the coving of the fore hatchway, or across the top covers, to the chain pipes which are located just in front of the forward fife rail. There is no description of how the running of the chains was done, but a picture of the actual chains shows that they are pretty hefty things, so running them across decks and against coving would have certainly torn them to pieces! Perhaps there were chain plates (no longer fitted?), or they placed planks for the chains to run over? In any case, I had to decide and just went with running them along the coving of the forward hatch (Longridge's suggestion). There is also a small hatch for the chain locker access which goes between the forward fife rail and the ships bell on the windlass for which I just cut some sapele and varnished it.


The anchor chains


The windlass handles and bell

I hadn’t made the handles for the windlass. They are typically unshipped from the windlass mechanism. They are lashed to the railing on the forecastle deck as can be seen in the picture, but I am not sure if that is how they were actually stowed on the ship. To make them I used some 1mm brass tube and rod with some 1mm eyelets to hold the cross bars. I soldered them together and painted them white and black to match the ones on in the image and lashed them to the railings as per - good enough.

While I was there, I also made a bracket from some 0.5mm brass sheet for the ships bell and attached that to the Samson post.

Poop deck bell: There is a small ships bell that was fitted on the poop deck next to the binnacle. The bell was a much later addition and can be seen in the picture.


The poop bell

Kevin from KTL had sent me a very nice resin print of the bell, but it was so small and fragile that I ended up snapping it (several times!), so there was more glue from me trying to fix it than there was resin in the end! Not to be defeated, I rescued the resin bell and made a frame from some 0.5mm brass wire and used a cut down rail stanchion for the base which I drilled a hole through for the wire. I tied the bell to the frame using some 0.2mm wire and then painted everything brass/gold. Not perfect, but it’s so tiny it’s good enough!



The signal cannon…..really?: There is a signal cannon shown in Campbell’s plans which is mounted on the poop deck house, but I could not find any images or references to the actual cannon used on the Cutty Sark. Campbell’s plans show options of a 4 PDR or a larger 6 PDR cannon. There is a cannon in the kit that measures 20mm long which would be the scale size for a full sized naval 4 pounder (~ 4.5- 5 ft barrel). However, I very much doubt they would have had something like that on the top of the poop deck house! For starters it would have certainly fouled the spanker boom, and if that’s not bad enough, the cannon and carriage would have weighed close to one ton! Typically, for a flag ship merchant vessel/yacht of the period, the ship would have a small “cannon” for signalling in fog or leaving port, but that would have been much smaller with a barrel length of 10-18 inches at most. The image shows a late 19th century ceremonial bronze cannon which would be the most likely type that would have been on the Cutty Sark, certainly not a full-sized artillery piece!


A signal cannon for a prestige late 19th century vessel (non-military)

A scale size for such a cannon would be something like 5-6mm barrel length with a tapering diameter of 1.5mm at the breach and 1mm at the muzzle……. tiny! At the moment, I am in two minds if I will make something and place it on the poop deck, mainly because at that size, it is going to be so small it will hardly be noticeable.

The steering gear: I had not glued that down so just a simple fit. I also made a grating to go in front of the wheel and there is also a small hatch to the starboard side which gives access to the lower steering compartment.


Forward looking ( I haven’t fixed the ladders)


Steering gear.

Next up: I have started working on a stand for the model and I should have that finished over the next couple of days. There are a few others details that I need to finalise on the hull and once that is done, I will start tying the blocks on the masts and yards…..I may be some time!

 

[Kevin the Lubber]

I couldn't bring myself to make a cannon for this model, it seemed so out of place. In any case, I'd have thought it would have been kept downstairs in the cabin or in the hold and just brought out when necessary.

Shame about the poop bell, but yes, it is one of the smallest, most fragile things I've ever made and easily broken, which is why I don't sell them! Good rescue though.

 

[DomCee]

Part 41 Stand and Blocks (Lots and Lots of Blocks!)

I haven’t had much time to spend on the model this past week (Spring gardening duties!). The only things I could do were to finish making the stand and to drill out the mooring pipes and fit the hawses. After that I started tying the blocks onto the yards (tedious!) so not much else to put in this part …… unless anyone wants to be bored to death by pictures of blocks tied to eyes!

Stand: To make the stand I used my contour profile gauge where I wanted the hull to be sitting on the end pieces and transferred the profile to some card. I wanted the keel to sit as low as possible, so I opted for a cradle design with a nice, sloped geometry. Once I had decided where the hull would be supported, I draw in all the angles, cut the templates out and stuck them to some scrap 10mm mahogany boards (rescued from a cupboard!). It was a fairly easy job to rough out the shape with my fret saw and then I milled around all the edges to get everything neat and tidy. For the connecting rods I had some lengths of 8mm beech which were perfect for the job. I was going to stain and varnish the stand, but once I had glued it together, I liked the natural wood look, so I just used some clear varnish and then added some rubber pads.




Next up: tying more blocks on the masts and yards ( I will get there eventually!)

 

[GrantTyler]

Good morning Dom. Wow this is quality. With some of the photo's I have to look twice to see which one is your model vs the real ship. Cheers Grant

 

[El Capi]

I will not be starting my next build for a while but I thought I would give it a “heads up” now that I have the kit in the shipyard.

Part 1 - Start of a Long Voyage

Choice of Kit - an Odd (or Familiar) Story?

The windjammers/clippers from the mid to late 19th century have always fascinated me for their sleek hull lines and sheer amount of sail. The Cutty Sark is a classic model to build of this type and there are a number of kits to choose from. I looked at some reviews and builds of Cutty Sark kits on the SOS forums and other web sites. Robertd’s recent build of the Sergal/Mantua kit < R'Ds CS > came out very nicely. I was intending to buy that kit later this year but I spotted an estate clearance auction listing for an “old” model boat kit of the Cutty Sark. It turned out to be Billing Boats BB564 complete with the separate fittings kit that had been purchased as a “project” but never started. I left a silly low commission bid and to my surprise won the auction. When I received it I found that it was still in its original shipping box and wrapping paper and had only been opened for inspection. The kit itself is in near mint condition, just some slight damage to the box where the sealing tape had been. The fittings box ( that you had to purchase separately back then) was unopened.
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Judging from the postage labels the kit was bought in the mid 80’s and has spent the past 37+ years languishing at the back of a cupboard (it makes me wonder just how many model kits have been bought with good intentions but are now just collecting dust?).

I think that it is time for this Cutty Sark to see the light of day and spread her sails (probably not the Stuns’ls!).

Gathering My Thoughts on a Build Plan

Although it is not my first choice of kit it will be a good challenge (but I may also regret this one). It will also be the biggest model I have attempted. The completed model is 1.1m (43”) long and the desk I use for my hobby work is 1.4m wide so I am going to struggle (I also have no idea where I will put it when it’s done!). I am also sure that the rigging will test my patience (and my eyesight!) to the limit but that stage is a long way off into the future for now. I don’t have a lot of space to display my models so it is my intention to take my time over this build, add extra detail and make more parts from scratch. I think I will also need plenty of advice on building this one!

The kit is definitely “vintage” (no laser cut parts). I know that Billing kits from this time were not of the best quality but I will be using this as a base kit for the model build so I’m quite OK with the out-of-the-box quality issues from the day. All of the frames are jig cut and some of the ply parts are die-cut. Other detailing parts are just printed onto ply sheets and need to be cut out (I will probably just use them as templates and make new parts from solid wood). The decorative mouldings and service boats are plastic as are the rigging blocks and deadeyes. The rear transom decoration is a decal. The instructions are the usual basic ones from BB with four plan drawings of layout, sails, pins and rigging.

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Because I paid very little for the kit I will upgrade it as I go through the build by replacing all of the plastic parts with wood/brass and making new parts where I think the model will benefit.

I have already purchased a set of photo-etched decor parts and a full set of walnut CNC rigging blocks from HisModel. The rigging blocks came in two sets, one for the standing rigging (224 pieces) and one for the running rigging (535 pieces). The blocks are of the correct type and size for this model (759 blocks to rig is however very intimidating!).

I will replace the plastic service boats with wooden ones of the correct type and scale. If anyone knows where I can find some suitable 1:75 kit replacements (or some scale plans so that I could make them myself) that would be great, please let me know through the forum.

I will also replace the rigging thread with some decent rope when I reach that point (I think I will purchase rather than try to make my own).

The BB kit has no hull plates included and the lower hull is suggested to be painted (I think even the latest version of this kit does not offer plates as an option). I would like to sheath the hull because the real ship was sheathed and I will consider options for that upgrade when I reach that point.

To help with the build and rigging I have bought a set of G.F. Campbell’s plans (General Layout, Rigging and Sail Plan) from the Royal Museums Greenwich. I also found Olha’s book review “Cutty Sark, The Ship and the Model/Longridge. C Nepean'' on her YouTube Channel < CS ref book > and I was able to locate a good used copy of the book in the UK. I do not intend to go the “whole hog” on the model by super-detailing it, my intention is to improve it to a level that I am happy with (whatever that is?).

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I will take a long holiday soon and I have some home improvement projects to do when I return, so it will be a while before I can get started on the framing (probably late autumn). Now that the pandemic is over (I hope!) I have many other things to do, so I will have less time to spend on the ship hobby. I will mainly work on this model during the winter weather months and I will intersperse the work between projects. I am expecting that I will be working on this one for quite some time to come (?years?!) but I am in no hurry.

I will give an update once I have kicked-off the framing.

I built this model - Cutty Sark, late 1960s, together with another famous clipper at the time, "Termopylia". At that time, I was nearly a newbie/untal; I had only been building a fishing vessel. I was born in the northern tip of Denmark, home to the 3 biggest fishing ports. It was here that I finally went to the Cutty Sark. Yes, the one that was NOT Laser Cut, and, as you say, the fitting you had to buy a part for. all of plastic, even dead eyes and blocks. Then, about 10 Years later, I moved to Spain, which was a real mecca. There were two shops, only dedicated to building plastic models and several new wooden models. My first one was "Victory." No laser cut here too. IN the shop "Model Reyna", you can get anything. So, little by little, all plastic parts were replaced with wooden blocks and dead-eyes. I think that shop still exists after more than 80 years.
el capi/an oldtimer with 82 years

www.model reyna

 

[DomCee]

I couldn't bring myself to make a cannon for this model, it seemed so out of place. In any case, I'd have thought it would have been kept downstairs in the cabin or in the hold and just brought out when necessary.

Shame about the poop bell, but yes, it is one of the smallest, most fragile things I've ever made and easily broken, which is why I don't sell them! Good rescue though.

Hi Kevin,

whilst looking through some archive photo's I found this image of a saluting cannon that was displayed on the Cutty Sark prior to the restoration. Unfortunately, there was no other information about it, or if it was just a general exhibit and was not actually used on the ship. It was not on display when I was there, so I think it may have been moved elsewhere because it was not original? I can't tell how big it is, but compared to the width of the deck planks, the barrel looks to be about 20 inches long and the carriage 25 inches long and 10 inches high plus the wheel height.

Interesting, but I don't think I will make anything for the model.

Dom

 

[DomCee]

I built this model - Cutty Sark, late 1960s, together with another famous clipper at the time, "Termopylia". At that time, I was nearly a newbie/untal; I had only been building a fishing vessel. I was born in the northern tip of Denmark, home to the 3 biggest fishing ports. It was here that I finally went to the Cutty Sark. Yes, the one that was NOT Laser Cut, and, as you say, the fitting you had to buy a part for. all of plastic, even dead eyes and blocks. Then, about 10 Years later, I moved to Spain, which was a real mecca. There were two shops, only dedicated to building plastic models and several new wooden models. My first one was "Victory." No laser cut here too. IN the shop "Model Reyna", you can get anything. So, little by little, all plastic parts were replaced with wooden blocks and dead-eyes. I think that shop still exists after more than 80 years.
el capi/an oldtimer with 82 years

www.model reyna

The sad thing is that this model is pretty much the same model that Billing was selling way back then. Same plastic parts/transfers etc. The only upgrade is the laser cut frames. Fortunately, I bought this old kit for very little money, so buying all new blocks, sails, ropes and etched parts has not made it an expensive model to build. If I had bought the kit new and then had to upgrade everything, the cost would be more than some of the really high end models on the market and that would really not make this kit good value at all.

 

[Kevin the Lubber]

Hi Kevin,

whilst looking through some archive photo's I found this image of a saluting cannon that was displayed on the Cutty Sark prior to the restoration. Unfortunately, there was no other information about it, or if it was just a general exhibit and was not actually used on the ship. It was not on display when I was there, so I think it may have been moved elsewhere because it was not original? I can't tell how big it is, but compared to the width of the deck planks, the barrel looks to be about 20 inches long and the carriage 25 inches long and 10 inches high plus the wheel height.

Interesting, but I don't think I will make anything for the model.

Dom

That’s interesting. I wonder if the signalling cannon was part of the cadet training ship period, harking back to when Britain was the great naval superpower. It seems incongruous to have something like that rattling around a merchant clipper.

 

[DomCee]

That’s interesting. I wonder if the signalling cannon was part of the cadet training ship period, harking back to when Britain was the great naval superpower. It seems incongruous to have something like that rattling around a merchant clipper.

That would make the most sense since Longridge does not mention the cannon in his book (published in 1933) which was before she was towed to the Thames Training College at Greenhithe in 1938. I think Campbell's plans were first produced in the mid 50's when she was finally dry-docked at Greenwich (not sure, there's no dates on his plans that I can see) so 1938-54 is probably when the cannon was used for ceremonial salutes.