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"Flying Cloud " by Mamoli - kit bash

I used CA in the same way over a lot of years and nothing has fallen apart yet. UV light is probably the most damaging. Keeping these models out of direct light is probably the best anyone can do. The CA thing alone probably won't do much that we'll ever live to see, provided the models are kept away from heat/UV light sources.
 
Inquiry to all hands:
Most every illustration of American clipper ships of the mid 19thc. and subsequent models depict the ships boats mounted on the deck house upside down.
This seems wildly impractical. As Roger Pellet pointed out, these boats are very heavy and difficult to manage. Is the commonly depicted practice a matter of an assumption repeated so often that it becomes common practice and not reflective of the actual practice? I only see the upside-down storage practice on models and illustrations of mid 19th c. American Clippers, never on any other contemporary sailing ships. The deck house boats on Cutty Sark are modeled right side up. and I believe are that way on the actual ship as it stands now. (Those of you better informed will no doubt correct me, if I am in error.) This would suggest that the Scottish built clippers followed the more practical right side up practice.
Thoughts? Facts well researched and supported by historic sources? The pics of Glory of the Seas show both.

Puzzled Pete
(I gotta get off this dime! :rolleyes:)
 
Hi Peter,
Interesting question. I did a quick google search and found that there were a little of both. Most American made clippers that I saw stored their ships boats up side down, but not in all cases. It does appear that Scottish built clippers stored their ships boat right side up. I have included a picture of the Sovereign of The Seas. Its ships boats appear to be stored up side down. It would be interesting to see if there was a standard or if that was an independent choice.

Bill

Sovereignoftheseasdockedphoto.jpg
 
Bill-R said:
Hi Peter,
Interesting question. I did a quick google search and found that there were a little of both. Most American made clippers that I saw stored their ships boats up side down, but not in all cases. It does appear that Scottish built clippers stored their ships boat right side up. I have included a picture of the Sovereign of The Seas. Its ships boats appear to be stored up side down. It would be interesting to see if there was a standard or if that was an independent choice.

Bill

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Thanks, Bill, That's very helpful. Thumbsup The little1:96 scale boats I'm building are plank on frame construction with all the detail. So, if I do mount them upside down, I'll leave one side unplanked to display the construction. Ed Tosti did this on his Young America clipper model to great effect. These tiny laser cut card and paper POF models are the most challenging kits I've ever attempted. I got the kits on Ebay. Scarce as hen's teeth. ZHL Chinese kits.
 
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Peter Gutterman said:
Thanks, Bill, That's very helpful. Thumbsup The little1:96 scale boats I'm building are plank on frame construction with all the detail. So, if I do mount them upside down, I'll leave one side unplanked to display the construction. Ed Tosti did this on his Young America clipper model to great effect. These tiny laser cut card and paper POF models are the most challenging kits I've ever attempted. I got the kits on Ebay. Scarce as hen's teeth. ZHL Chinese kits.
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Pete! For what it's worth I'd show off the boats and store them right side up. Despite the absence of an exact historical record, the logic of storing the boats leads to the conclusion of storing them right side up. Also, based on Bill's research, a "rule" doesn't appear to exist. Who's to say that it would be "wrong" to decide on the logical approach to boat storage in the absence of a specific resource saying that it was never done that way on any American built clipper ship?

Finally, you worked too hard to produce those very fine details to turn around and hide them. IMHO :cool:

Blessings. Peace. Gratitude.
Chuck
 
Hi Peter,

The picture below is from the book "Some Famous Sailing Ships and Their Builder Donald McKay" written by Richard McKay. The picture is of the Lighting and was printed in the Boston Atlas on January 31, 1854. In this picture, the ships boats are being stored both ways. The forward boats up side down and the aft ship boats right side. I have seen several paintings that indicated this, but I wasn't sure. I agree with Chuck about being able to show your work. If you placed them in this configuration you would have the best of both.

Bill

Lightning Clipper.jpg
 
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Bill-R said:
Hi Peter,

The picture below is from the book "Some Famous Sailing Ships and Their Builder Donald McKay" written by Richard McKay. The picture is of the Lighting and was printed in the Boston Atlas on January 31, 1854. In this picture the ships boats are being stored both ways. The forward boats up side down and the aft ship boats right side. I nave seen several paintings that indicated this, but I wasn't sure. I agree with Chuck about being able to show your work. If you placed them in this configuration you would have the best of both.

Bill

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Well done, Bill!
 
My unqualified gratitude to all of you! Thumbsup
After searching around on the internet sources for pictures of clipper ships, mostly of period era paintings. Bill R.'s conclusion comes closest. Even the beautiful illustration for Cuttysark's deck plan, in the Time-Life tome on "The Clipper Ships"' shows a mixture of both. After looking through Ed Tosti's Vol. II of his Build log of "Young America" He solves the problem of the upside-down boats on the deckhouse by leaving one side of one boat un planked in order to reveal its' inner construction Admiralty style. I think this is a good compromise. I get to show my work and still illustrate the common view of storing boats on American clipper deckhouses: See below.
The little Cutter model below is as yet unfinished on the planked side with some filling, fairing and painting to go. I'll post the entire build log for that model asap.20250124_122640.jpg20250124_114032.jpg20250124_113914.jpg20250124_113812.jpg
 
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Many thanks to everybody for the interest, good suggestions and favorable emogees! :D
The Jolly boat, which I have finished gets hung from davits ("davies") right side up on the starboard quarter. I'm leaving off the "canvas" cover to display the finished interior. Word has it that Flying Cloud only had that one.
 
After obsessing forever about which ship's boats to use where and how to be presented, I settled on two of the Chinese ZHL POF paper and card models: the Jolly Boat for the davits and the Cutter (28'x7') on the deck house; one of the vacuum formed boats (formed over a modified white metal cast aftermarket boat); and one of the boats scavenged from an old Revell Cutty Sark Kit, both for the deck house. As impractical as it may appear I decided to mount all three deck house boats upside down because of the anecdotal evidence (most contemporary paintings and prints and subsequent plans and models) giving weight to this as the common practice on mid 19th c. American clipper ships. For the same reason I decided to mount two single action capstans on the poop deck, the anecdotal evidence being early models and plans for Flying Cloud and the description of her being hauled away from the pier in New York harbor using capstans as described in David W.
Shaw's novel "Flying Cloud and the Woman Who Guided Her". While the dialogue is speculative fiction, the operation and sailing details of the voyage are based on the ship's log and other available factual records.
Following is the build log of the POF Cutter. When embarking on these models, that are so tiny at 1:96 scale in paper and card, it is well to remember that all the equally tiny errors, distortions and flaws are greatly magnified and unforgiving not to mention the extreme fragility or the materials. It is well to examine the illustration only plans several times well in advance in order to accurately determine the proper placement and location of some of the tiny parts the look of which is very similar, even though used for different specific purposes and locations. Due to the nature of the material, correcting mistakes is nigh unto impossible. In this regard use only the most readily and easily reversible adhesives. Even so paper and card don't like to be f***ed with once stuck down
For this reason, I assembled the building jig and attached the keel to it, which require later disassembly using liquid hide glue, which comes apart with a drop of warm water. Still, the paper and card don't hold up very well when wet. I used waterproof transparent matte acrylic spray to give the paper and card parts a water-resistant coating prior to coating with water-based coatings and paint. This proved only marginally successful. When pre-painted the paper parts must be covered and weighted and allowed to dry thoroughly before use to avoid warpage and distortion.
I am posting the process without further commentary. I hope it isn't impossible to follow. :rolleyes: Questions welcome.20250114_160730.jpg20250114_162115.jpg20250114_161202 (1).jpg20250114_165650 (1).jpg20250114_172831.jpg20250114_164144 (1).jpg20250114_164413.jpg20250115_125720 (1).jpg20250115_125713 (1).jpg20250115_130800 (2).jpg20250115_125802 (2).jpg20250116_124304 (2).jpg20250116_131031 (2).jpg20250116_140634 (1).jpg20250116_140414 (1).jpg20250116_142834 (2).jpg20250116_173619.jpg20250117_121945.jpg20250116_173634 (2).jpg20250117_124706 (2).jpg20250117_130403 (1).jpg20250117_130330 (1).jpg20250115_131448 (1).jpg20250115_132308 (1).jpg20250115_132520 (3).jpg welcome.
 
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On to capstans. Nice little Drydock kits good quality and cheap (pre tariffs? Speechless) No instructions wait to remove char until assemble save for a top piece with a starfish shaped cutout. This piece will split if you don't file off this char before trying to fit it over the five little tabs it rests on! Other wise the pieces need th snug fit provided by the char. It is not too onerous a chore to clean the capstan up after assembly. I finished with a little diluted amber shellac brushed on. A very nice solution to a very fussy problem, especially at 1:96 scale! Thanks, Zolly! BTW you will need to open up the hole for the dowel with a rat tail jeweler's file. Cut the dowel to size off the model, then glue it in place.
I had used a gold line to simulate bronze or brass chains that I saw depicted on some model examples :oops::(
So, I painted them flat black. I think it looks a whole lot better! :D20250128_124751.jpg20250128_125557 (1).jpg20250128_130525 (1).jpg20250128_133326.jpg20250128_140744.jpg20250128_130525 (1).jpg20250129_150546 (2).jpg20250129_150652.jpg20250129_150845.jpg20250114_174411.jpg20250129_160327.jpg20250129_160423.jpg
 
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I ordered an assortment of plastic rod to turn the patent vents and galley stack. I thought I was ordering styrene, but this is more like nylon. No matter, it worked satisfactorily. The plastic turns more evenly and can take a more precise cut than wood. The lathe I got on Amazon fairly cheaply. It's the most adaptable for turning tiny stuff in wood or plastic that I have found yet. For turning very small diameter pieces attach the tool rest into the inner most of the slots provided. Having done, you will be able to adjust the tool rest so that it sits very close to the very small diameter piece to be turned. The turning chisels are an old Dremel set, probably 45-50 years old. Still my favorites after all these years. I failed to mention that the third picture features a tool for cutting lengths of rod, tubing or dowel of small diameter, into uniform lengths that I found in the Micro Mark catalogue. 20250131_133624.jpg20250131_133808.jpg20250131_123229.jpg20250131_125311.jpg20250131_132346.jpg20250131_135111.jpg20250131_145308.jpg
I also included a magnifier head set that I found on Amazon for relatively little $. It is comfortable; not claustrophobic; has five interchangeable lenses that can be used individually or in combination; has two slots to insert lenses near or farther away from the eye, or in combination, these are adjustable for angle; can be used in combination with prescription glasses or contacts.

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