Vasa - 1:65 DeAgostini [COMPLETED BUILD]

DARIVS ARCHITECTVS · Jan 12, 2022

Dave Teel said:
Have you seen this book? I found it helpfull when rigging. Your build is just beautiful!

I think Paul is way ahead of you, Dave. Yes, he has that fantastic book. He has a small library by now. I have three copies of R.C. Anderson myself. For men of war, it is absolutely essential.

DARIVS ARCHITECTVS · Jan 12, 2022

GrantTyler said:
Well done on those blocks Paul. I am super glad you posted this as I was going to do my shrouds first, before the tackle lines and I can see this would have created some problems ....brilliant job thus far.

If memory serves, I did the shrouds and ratlines all the way to the topgallants before the loading tackles on La Couronne. It's a real pain rigging those tackles using tools once the shrouds are up!

Richie · Jan 13, 2022

dockattner said:
In my last post I had just completed my first rigging trial. As I was working on that I realized that the underside of the tops was soon going to become inaccessible (or at least filling up with pendants and shrouds making access dicey). I looked at the museum rigging sheet and saw that there were blocks hanging from the underside of the tops for the lift lines (not sure that's what they are called - I'm talking about ropes that run to the ends of the yards). Anyway, on the Vasa those blocks are atypical; so I tried my hand at block making...

In the images that follow the oblong blocks are the ones I'm talking about. The larger blocks are for something else later in the rigging process.

I started with little chunks of wood, used an XActo for rough shaping, and then used files and sandpaper the rest of the way:

View attachment 282252 View attachment 282253
View attachment 282254 View attachment 282256

The final result:

View attachment 282257

In looking at the plans more closely I may not be needing the smaller ones (note to self - read the plans more carefully).

Installed:

View attachment 282258

And then it was back to tackle lines on the foremast.

The more forward configuration is a Dutch 4-part tackle using a violin block and a single block. The more aft is a Dutch 5-party tackle using two double blocks. I will reverse this orientation on the main mast so the 5-part tackles will be more forward and the 4-part more aft. This arrangement was suggested by Anderson - but I did it mostly for fun and visual interest. The 5-part tackle should hang a bit lower than the 4-part...

View attachment 282259

Next up: foremast shrouds... Thanks for stopping by!

Those blocks are just amazing great job, I wish it was in my skill set to create something like you have.

Peter Voogt · Jan 13, 2022

dockattner said:
In my last post I had just completed my first rigging trial. As I was working on that I realized that the underside of the tops was soon going to become inaccessible (or at least filling up with pendants and shrouds making access dicey). I looked at the museum rigging sheet and saw that there were blocks hanging from the underside of the tops for the lift lines (not sure that's what they are called - I'm talking about ropes that run to the ends of the yards). Anyway, on the Vasa those blocks are atypical; so I tried my hand at block making...

In the images that follow the oblong blocks are the ones I'm talking about. The larger blocks are for something else later in the rigging process.

I started with little chunks of wood, used an XActo for rough shaping, and then used files and sandpaper the rest of the way:

View attachment 282252 View attachment 282253
View attachment 282254 View attachment 282256

The final result:

View attachment 282257

In looking at the plans more closely I may not be needing the smaller ones (note to self - read the plans more carefully).

Installed:

View attachment 282258

And then it was back to tackle lines on the foremast.

The more forward configuration is a Dutch 4-part tackle using a violin block and a single block. The more aft is a Dutch 5-party tackle using two double blocks. I will reverse this orientation on the main mast so the 5-part tackles will be more forward and the 4-part more aft. This arrangement was suggested by Anderson - but I did it mostly for fun and visual interest. The 5-part tackle should hang a bit lower than the 4-part...

View attachment 282259

Next up: foremast shrouds... Thanks for stopping by!

Hi Paul. Nice ‘you could add some custom made blocks to make it truly yours rather than just another Vasa’.
As requoted a line I somewhere read. ROTF

But seriously: those are beautiful blocks.
Regards, Peter

dockattner · Jan 13, 2022

Thank you, dear friends, for your kind and thoughtful comments.

Maarten · Jan 13, 2022

Hi Paul,

Two times congratulations. First with your fantastic start of your rigging, this is promissing a lot for the time to come.

But secondly you reached 100 pages in your blog. I think you are the first reaching this milestone although @Heinrich is doing his utmost to overtake you with the speed of willem barentz log.

.

Keep up the good work but I am convinced you won t let us down.

dockattner · Jan 13, 2022

Thanks Maarten. I'm rather embarrassed by the 100 pages thing... Speechless

.

Heinrich · Jan 13, 2022

dockattner said:
Thanks Maarten. I'm rather embarrassed by the 100 pages thing... .

Why my friend. This is not something to be embarrassed about. When you get that level of appreciation and participation from your fellow modelers, it shows you are doing something that is worthy of their attention and time. That is something to be humbled by, but at the same time, also something to cherish. It doesn't happen very often, so enjoy it!

Heinrich · Jan 13, 2022

Maarten said:
Hi Paul,

Two times congratulations. First with your fantastic start of your rigging, this is promissing a lot for the time to come.

But secondly you reached 100 pages in your blog. I think you are the first reaching this milestone although @Heinrich is doing his utmost to overtake you with the speed of willem barentz log. .

Keep up the good work but I am convinced you won t let us down.

Maarten I will only be able to keep this up for as long as I am at home and have the time to keep to working this hard on the Barentsz,

DARIVS ARCHITECTVS · Jan 13, 2022

dockattner said:
Thanks Maarten. I'm rather embarrassed by the 100 pages thing... .

I’m going for 1,000 pages!

Hubac’s Historian · Jan 14, 2022

dockattner said:
Hello Friends,

As I make the transition to rigging, I have been forced back into the build logs of my Vasa-building predecessors. In doing that I was reminded of the general level of excellence to be found in this niche community. On this forum and others there are some really masterful renditions of my beloved Vasa.

Equally impressive is the variety of rigging solutions for this ship. Indeed, there are more different interpretations than there are universal agreements. In fact, folks will make claims with great confidence: THIS IS HOW YOU DO THAT - and others will be equally assertive for an entirely different approach. At first I was greatly dismayed by that, but then I felt a certain freedom rising up from the discouragement. If people who know what they are doing have made different choices the 'bar' isn't as high as I feared it might be.

Anyway, I spent the entire day yesterday studying books, rigging guides, and build logs looking for answers to a very narrow set of questions about shrouds and mast tackles (and a bit about stays). Nothing was 'accomplished' on the ship itself - but decisions were made, and I'll call that progress.

Just so I could get my sea legs I decided I would rig one line. My goal was to get a sense of the skills I would need to develop. I served a rope, seized blocks, attached a hook - all things YOU already know how to do. For me it was all new ground being traveled (though I did rig cannons previously).

I also built some 'helpers' to assist me during the rigging stage. I have one of those alligator-clip 'third hand' things but I couldn't get it to hold lines securely or keep the rope straight enough for my tastes.

Here is my first finished line - a forward mast tackle using a violin (fiddle?) block and single block/hook at the channel (what Anderson calls a four-part Dutch tackle):

View attachment 281397

I started by creating a loop (a bight?) in the line. The rope diameter is 0.66 mm (I'll use the same size for the foremast shrouds) and has been served where it lays over the mast.

View attachment 281390 View attachment 281391

View attachment 281392

I then rigged up my blocks. Here is my 'helper' helping me tie into the loop at the violin block:

View attachment 281393

And here are some close-up images for your critical review. First, the loop over the mast:

View attachment 281396

The rigging at the violin block:

View attachment 281394

And the rigging at the channel:

View attachment 281395

Things I learned so far:

This is going to take a long time.

I don't have enough rope made - there is a lot of waste.

Tweezers work better than fingers (at least in my hands - I'm pretty comfortable using small tools).

Perhaps the most important thing I learned was that I did not 'hate' this as much as I feared I might. I was not super enthused with the process of rigging cannons, and I feared that might carry over. At least for now this was more fun (satisfying) than drudgery.

Still, it is clear I have rolled out of the blow-up 'pretty princess' kiddie pool right into the Olympic-sized competition pool...

This would be a great time for you all to point out things I did wrong during this trial run. I would be most grateful for your wise counsel and tricks of the trade.

Peace.

The thought that bubbles to the surface, Paul, is F'YEAH! You are bringing it. I have no constructive criticism. This is excellent, with some interesting "helper" engineering that I really appreciate.

Hubac’s Historian · Jan 14, 2022

dockattner said:
Hi Grant. Here's my logic on the seizing. On the heavier pendant line I chose a double wrap - on the lighter tackle line I chose a single wrap. It was also shown that way in a drawing from one of my reference books but there was no explanation as to why...

My kit does not have any rigging drawings (actually, no drawings at all) so the whole thing is a giant guessing game with regard to what to include and not include based on things I find in other resources. At the end of the day, I believe we need to very humble in making claims about how things were done in 1628...

Or 1728, or 1828, or 1928

I have thoughts about 2028 - I'm going to remain optimistic.

PeterG · Jan 14, 2022

Following on from a re-read of your post Paul in Hubac’s comment, it is revealing to me that there are no final solutions when it comes to rigging. There can be guidance (eg Anderson’s book), there can be good examples of how to do things (eg Build Logs by others), but in the end, after your research and personal decision-making of how to do each knot, line and belay, it’s up to YOU. And furthermore, this is precisely what makes your Vasa, truly yours. It will be unique, just as mine is. No two will ever be the same, although we might strive for historical accuracy, it’s just our interpretation of our plans, kit designers and research that results in our final model.

Personally, one of my inspirations for excellent rigging (apart from your own), is the work of @moreplovac with his Brigantine Phoenix, by Master Korabel. In particular, he has detailed his rigging and sailmaking in a series (there are about 30) of YouTube videos (such as here), and these (although in Russian, are outstanding. Well worth watching.

Keep up the great work,

Regards,
PeterG

Hubac’s Historian · Jan 14, 2022

PeterG, I echo your sentiments completely, and I really appreciate your rigging references. For me, personally, the rigging is the most daunting aspect of a convincing build. Fortunately, our ringer Paul is killing it, and while I am cracking your chestnuts, ever so gently, I really do mean it. What I have gathered so far, is that sequence, patient respect of time, and observance of the little nuances are paramount. Some of these things have always been intuitively understood, but the beauty of your Centenarian (congrats on the milestone!) build-log is that there are occasional "speed-bumps" that remind us to slow down; take the lay of the land/spars. Keep on truckin', and riggin', and paving the way for the rest of us, Paul <<truckers' horn emoticon, that doesn't exist>>!

Daniel20 · Jan 15, 2022

My goodness Paul how time flies. I have not visited your log since before Christmas but have now caught up with all your wonderful work. Just as I suspected, your rigging so far and handmade block work are spectacular!! I am no expert on rigging, but I can tell you from my experience with the HMS Fly that when you get the shroud lines installed it becomes difficult to do much else on the underside of the tops. So, all of the setting of pendants, eyelets and such that you can before the shrouds would be of great benefit. I pretty much agree with Dean, Peter and the rest when it comes to critical path. The look of your rope is perfect, I really love the light contrast between the standing and running AWSOME, my friend!!

With the exception of the shrouds, I still am not certain what or how to hang the various pendants under the tops and I'm not sure how the heavier standing rigging lines pass through the tops. Right now I just imagine they wrap around the mast and get seized within the lower portion of the tops along with the shroud lines.

dockattner · Jan 15, 2022

Thank you for your kind words, Daniel. The admiration and respect are mutual.

I believe (warning: a novice is about to make a statement of fact as if he knows what he is talking about) that the pendants are handled exactly like the shrouds. That is, they are the same diameter of rope, they loop around the mast, they are seized at the mast, etc. all in the manner of the shrouds. I also believe (same warning) they go on first and the shrouds loop above them. I then plan on adding the stays which loop around the stack of shrouds. Since the stay is coming so late in the process, I have installed temporary stays to hold things in place (just tied to the tops and not looped around the mast).

Daniel20 · Jan 15, 2022

The stays looping around the stack of shrouds. Now that is an interesting method. I would love to see what they did on the Vasa model in the museum but i cannot find any closeups in that area. My 1 to 1 plans do not indicate doing that but those plans are also in conflict in several areas of the rigging. For example, the lower shrouds on the missen show as five lines where the real ship is rigged with four and one in the middle being a running blocked and tackled line (which I will do also). Ha! I just don't know where it runs to.

dockattner · Jan 15, 2022

My dear model ship building colleagues. I spent the past several days re-reading your words of praise and admiration for my work and I have come to the conclusion that I am a truly special human being possessing otherworldly modeling skills. Thank you for showing me the simple truth that was right before me all this time.

As evidence - see here my latest work of inspiration: shrouds hanging loosely from the foremast...

And then (I CAN HARDLY CONTAIN MYSELF) witness these perfectly served lines!

But wait! There's more! Check out this stack around the masthead! (Take a seat if you find yourself swooning.)

Breathtaking, isn't it!

And now, for my piece-de-resistance - the deadeye rigging...

Wait for it...

Never mind. The WHOLE THING IS A TOTAL SCREWUP. The shrouds are too %#$@*&%^ short and I have to start all over again...

He, he, he. Never let it be said that I take myself too seriously... ROTF

dockattner · Jan 15, 2022

Daniel20 said:
The stays looping around the stack of shrouds. Now that is an interesting method. I would love to see what they did on the Vasa model in the museum but i cannot find any closeups in that area. My 1 to 1 plans do not indicate doing that but those plans are also in conflict in several areas of the rigging. For example, the lower shrouds on the missen show as five lines where the real ship is rigged with four and one in the middle being a running blocked and tackled line (which I will do also). Ha! I just don't know where it runs to.

Hey Daniel. From Mondfeld:

Beats me if it's correct. I just make the teeth straight (and make the shrouds too short).

Daniel20 · Jan 15, 2022

dockattner said:
My dear model ship building colleagues. I spent the past several days re-reading your words of praise and admiration for my work and I have come to the conclusion that I am a truly special human being possessing otherworldly modeling skills. Thank you for showing me the simple truth that was right before me all this time.

As evidence - see here my latest work of inspiration: shrouds hanging elegantly from the foremast.

View attachment 282727

And then (I CAN HARDLY CONTAIN MYSELF) witness these perfectly served lines! The precision! Oh my, I'm feeling faint...

View attachment 282728

But wait! There's more! Check out this stack around the masthead! (Take a seat if you find yourself swooning.)

View attachment 282726

Breathtaking, isn't it!

And now, for my piece-de-resistance - the deadeye rigging...

Wait for it...

Never mind. The WHOLE THING IS A TOTAL SCREWUP. The shrouds are too %#$@*&%^ short and I have to start all over again...

He, he, he. Never let it be said that I take myself too seriously...

OHHHHHHH WOW! Hopefully you can use them elsewhere.