white lead and steel wire

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I am assembling a kit of the Japanese merchant training ship "Nipon Maru". The four-masted barque was built in 1930. By that time, much of the standing rigging was made of steel rope.

In the book "Pamir (A Voyage to Rio in a Four-Masted Barque" there is a reference to painting a stay with white lead (ostensibly to protect the stay from corrosion).

This leads me to the question: Were all of the standing rigging coated with white lead, or just some of them (e.g. would the stays supporting stay sails be so coated) ? Also, should the coated rigging be represented by white rigging thread?

Thanks.
 
You could represent coated steel cable with steel wire painted, or coated, with an off white acrylic…
Jim, it sounds as though you have rigged standing lines with wire before. . . single or twisted? If so how did you work the ends to obtain a straight but not over-tensioned shroud or stay? I will be experimenting with a twisted "cable" of three very fine copper wires and the termination end fittings are somewhat delicate and not able to withstand very much working of the wire cable. Thanks for your recommendations for all of us trying to use wire instead of thread. Rich (PT-2)
 
Jim, it sounds as though you have rigged standing lines with wire before. . . single or twisted? If so how did you work the ends to obtain a straight but not over-tensioned shroud or stay? I will be experimenting with a twisted "cable" of three very fine copper wires and the termination end fittings are somewhat delicate and not able to withstand very much working of the wire cable. Thanks for your recommendations for all of us trying to use wire instead of thread. Rich (PT-2)
I actually use stainless steel fishing line. Check out a fishing supply store or online. A typical 30 pound test stainless steel line is fairly flexible and will wrap around a deadeye. When careful, the ends clip clean (but you need a sharp wire clipper). A bit of seizing completes the application. Be careful as many stainless steel line is nylon or vinyl coated and you do not want that. The fishing line can be limited in size...a typical 30lb test line is .6mm I think, so scale may be an issue.
 
I actually use stainless steel fishing line. Check out a fishing supply store or online. A typical 30 pound test stainless steel line is fairly flexible and will wrap around a deadeye. When careful, the ends clip clean (but you need a sharp wire clipper). A bit of seizing completes the application. Be careful as many stainless steel line is nylon or vinyl coated and you do not want that. The fishing line can be limited in size...a typical 30lb test line is .6mm I think, so scale may be an issue.
Have you used it to simulate stays? Rich
 
You can actually remove the plastic sleeve or coating to the wires on the fishing leaders by passing under a flame
briefly then seperating wires (usually up to Three or more strands) or leave as is. Then rolling straight under a metal 12" rule on paper or similar.
If it is too thin you can procure wire from company Ive dealt with may times namely crazywiresupplies.com in UK and searching for your wire by cross
referencing swg to diametre of wire and order brass. stainless steel, nichrome to that diameter. Thinnest wire is 0.05mm DIA wire. Select length (the more you order the cheaper it is). Try and stay clear from lead wire as it has chemical reaction over time and crystalises with oxygen.
 
How were the ends secured for proper tensioning?
I secured the wire stays in the same manner as I would secure thread stays. Wrap around the mast head and seize into a loop…then down to the dead eyes, pull tight…and seize back on the stay. You might find it easier to use some alligator clips to hold loops in place and keep the tension until you can add the seizing. And seizing needs to be tight so add the seizing exactly where you want it the first time. Seal with CA thin. But otherwise no different than applying thread based stays. The steel wire is just a whee bit more difficult to work with because, though flexible, it is stiffer than thread and not as flexible as thread. Looks cool when done!
 
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