YANGTZE RIVER HIGH-NET FISHING SAMPAN [COMPLETED BUILD]

Heinrich said:
Onwards with the rigging.

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Let us learn some Junk Rig terminology. ROTF

This excerpt is taken from an excellent article on the Junk Rig by http://kastenmarine.com/junk_rig.htm

A minor advantage of familiarity with the junk rig is being able to impress dock side wags by knowing all about lizards, sheetlets, euphroes, snotters, and the like....!

The sail shape is controlled by each of the individual sheets. Each "sheetlet" runs through a "euphroe" which acts as friction block to keep the tension set as intended.

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A nice picture of the Euphroe.

Once the sail is raised, if it is desired to tension the sail vertically, it is hauled downward by a "downhaul" or "bowsing tackle." If it is desired to move the sail forward or aft, it can be done by controlling the "out haul" which in this case leads forward to the leading edge of the battens. The top yard can be controlled via a line called the "snotter" to move the spar forward or aft, or to snug it against the mast, as needed.

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A reefed sampan in Hong Kong harbour.

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Almost never seen in books -- one of the earliest drawings of a large sampan, by John Webber, who sailed with Captain Cook. Although two-masted, longer, and lower it still has the same general profile as the small sampans. Drawings and photos from 100 to 150 years later show that these boats changed almost not at all.
Compare Webber's drawing to this large sampan photographed in the Philippines by someone from the US Coast Survey, early 1900s.

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Philippine Sampan

And now with all of that done it is simply a case of picking up the whole sail assembly and mounting the mast in the sampan. This the easiest thing to do you can imagine. Then the lizard block needs to be attached to the block which has previously been mounted next to the mast and the two Euphroe lines need to be connected to the block which has previously been mounted at the stern right next to the Yuloh. And with that done - almost half unexpectedly - the fat lady had sung.

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This picture clearly shows how the lizard block is attached to the block right next to the mast via another lanyard.

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In due course I will get a professional photographer to take some proper pictures, but with the Covid situation the way it is at the moment, no one knows when that will be. Neither do I know when she will find her final resting place in Shatian in Guangdong.

What I do know though, is that this sampan has changed the way I look at modelbuilding. Never before have I had so much enjoyment in my building - to such an extent that instead of today being a happy day upon its conclusion, I feel actually quite sad. Never again will I build a model just to build a model. Unless it has a specific meaning or significance to me (the Dutch uses the word "binding"), it will stay on the shelf.

As to the future of the Tanka people and what it holds for them - no one knows. But in my own, miniscule way, I have at least introduced 24 wonderful SOS members to the plight of the Tanka. For that opportunity, I thank SOS and I thank you all for your wonderful support.

Until next time, keep well my friends!

Heinrich
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It is wonderful for you to have found a boat with a more personal connection for you to build so well and have gained in the background knowledge at the same time along your voyage. This "small" craft is well loaded with large treasures that only you can personally understand. With the care in assembly and finishing you will be able to look upon her for years to come, recalling the moments, challenges, opportunities, and successes along the way. You have earned your time for rest and reflection now to enjoy. Rich (PT-2)
 
Gennaro said:
What a beautiful model, Heinrich. Love it. Thanks for the wonderful story as well.
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Thank you so much for the most kind words and compliments Gennaro. To me it was a very special - and at times difficult - build, but each time I would remind myself of the great care and patience that are prevalent in your build of the La Belle. That gave me the courage not to let my foot off the accelerator!
 
@PT-2 Dear Rich, thank you so much for all your eloquently-spoken and extremely relative comments throughout this build. You have been a stalwart in your support and a needed pillar when things got challenging. Thank you for that. As for reflection - actually that is a dangerous thing for me to do. I need to keep busy and I need to keep occupied - the question though is - with what? :)
 
Heinrich said:
@PT-2 Dear Rich, thank you so much for all your eloquently-spoken and extremely relative comments throughout this build. You have been a stalwart in your support and a needed pillar when things got challenging. Thank you for that. As for reflection - actually that is a dangerous thing for me to do. I need to keep busy and I need to keep occupied - the question though is - with what? :)
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I know that you have abundant opportunities surrounding you all of the time with your personal challenge to find the next one with the greatest rewards for you. Low hanging fruit may be easy to grasp but that beyond may be more nutritious. Enjoy each moment as that is what is actually only what we have and not to be passed by; like stopping to smell the roses or in your case possibly cherry blossoms at that time. Rich
 
@PT-2 Rich, thank you so much for those sentiments. You have no idea - or maybe you already know me very well after this time - how relevant your comments are. I have indeed been actively looking at future projects and possible builds. There is a plethora of new kits and developments available (just look at the new kits' section) and, for sure, some of those are tempting. But @DonRobinson's comment about the Tanka people "smiling down on this build" is the one that stays with me. The job is not yet finished. I have yet to build an authentic Tanka Sampan. But ... to give you an idea of the enormity of that task ahead, let me show you what I have to work with ...

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This picture is courtesy of Ying Ying Yang who is busy with her archeological doctorate on the Tanka Sampan.
 
Heinrich said:
@PT-2 Rich, thank you so much for those sentiments. You have no idea - or maybe you already know me very well after this time - how relevant your comments are. I have indeed been actively looking at future projects and possible builds. There is a plethora of new kits and developments available (just look at the new kits' section) and, for sure, some of those are tempting. But @DonRobinson's comment about the Tanka people "smiling down on this build" is the one that stays with me. The job is not yet finished. I have yet to build an authentic Tanka Sampan. But ... to give you an idea of the enormity of that task ahead, let me show you what I have to work with ...

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This picture is courtesy of Ying Ying Yang who is busy with her archeological doctorate on the Tanka Sampan.
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I am curious what the blue tags and associated annotations are. Probably relating to the body of her thesis and explained there. Rich
 
@PT-2 Yes they are. This model is also in the Shatian Water Exhibition Culture Hall (museum) but is displayed in such a way that only the port side can be photographed or measurements taken. The starboard side is pushed right up against a wall as backdrop, so it is impossible to get in there. Thus she only has half a sampan with which to work. Needless to say the museum is unwilling to move the sampan because of its fragility.

The crazy thing is that outside the museum is another sampan much more complete and in seemingly much better condition - but the real question is for how long? As it is displayed in wind and weather and exposed to the elements it will be just a matter of time because it also ends up like the one inside. The reason why she chose to base her studies on the one inside, is because it is more "representative" of a typical Tanka sampan than the one outside. At the time when she did the field work for the study, she only had three days in which to complete everything and just didn't have time to devote attention to the one outside.
 
Hello Everyone

I am fully busy with the Haarlem again, but I just thought I would share the following update with you. The upshot of the sampan build is that I have been invited to participate in an international online conference in November this year on the Tanka people. Ying Ying will represent the boats of the Tanka and I will get to share my sentiments as well at the hand of the model.

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Heinrich said:
Hello Everyone

I am fully busy with the Haarlem again, but I just thought I would share the following update with you. The upshot of the sampan build is that I have been invited to participate in an international online conference in November this year on the Tanka people. Ying Ying will represent the boats of the Tanka and I will get to share my sentiments as well at the hand of the model.

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I suspect that with your model build experiences and supportive background reading that you will bring a new perspective and insights expanding the conference offerings. Congratulations upon their recognition of you. Rich (PT-2)
 
Hello Everyone

Even though construction is finished, there is one noteworthy development that needs to be mentioned.

As the sampan was home to the Tanka - and indeed other river people of China - it goes without any saying that all cooking was done onboard as well. Now there is something very important about the Chinese that you have to understand. I do not believe that there is another nation on earth that takes food and eating as seriously as the Chinese. In fact, instead of saying "How are you?" when you meet up with someone, the Chinese says "Ni chilema?" - which directly translated means, ""have you eaten".

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In this picture (taken on quite a large sampan) you can clearly see the "kitchen" at the stern.

So, if there is food that needs to be cooked and there is a "kitchen" area, there has to be a stove or oven of some sort - right? Obviously finding a relic like this is out of the question, so the best that you can do is to talk about the "good old days" and try to learn something from it. But therein lies also the snag - most Tanka people do not really like to talk about the old days - there was simply not much good in those days for them. With that as background, I did manage to get very good descriptions of what the oven looked like, what it was made of and how it functioned.

It turns out that it is very much like the D'Tao which is still in widespread use in Thailand. In fact, it is so popular and works so well that a number of them have actually made their way to the USA and elsewhere. The funny thing is that its dimensions and size also corresponds to the info that I could get.

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The D'Tao.

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A very popular dish that was cooked onboard was sampan porridge (or tingzai zhou), a traditional rice-based dish which is still popular with foodies in Guangdong. The delicacy boasts rich ingredients such as fish, shrimp, lean pork, youtiao (Chinese Fried Dough), fried peanuts, and scallions.

Armed with these pictures and dimensions I approached Mike Shanks and I asked him if he could do something like this for us. Next thing, he approached @MystRacing Jodie and before I knew it, Jodie's superb 3D work was already done.

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Prototype of the Sampan oven.

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And yesterday, Mike surprised me with the 3D-printed results of the Prototype. Seeing that the model is going to a museum and that I cannot paint to save my life, Mike also most kindly offered to paint the oven and sent me the completed unit.

All I can say once again is a BIG THANK YOU to Mike and Jodie for what they have done for this project!

Warmest regards - Heinrich
 
Peter Voogt said:
Hello Heinrich.
Congratulations on the completion of this beautiful little ship. A real asset. Nice that Mike and Jodie helps with the extra details. Now you can sit down and enjoy. Then extra attention for the Haarlem?
Regards, Peter
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Vele dank Peter. Your most kind words are sincerely appreciated. Yes the Haarlem build is in full swing which means it's slow going ... but it's going!
 
Heinrich said:
Vele dank Peter. Your most kind words are sincerely appreciated. Yes the Haarlem build is in full swing which means it's slow going ... but it's going!
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So that kitchen is aboard and going to a "protected public viewing venue" and I was going to place an order. Maybe they can spice up the presentation with selections ordered to go from there and aromas wafting through the space with the building's ventilation system. Anything goes in marketing to attract a crowd who when well nourished can examine the model to their hearts content. :D Rich
 
@PT-2 Who knows Rich? It's certainly a good idea. The well-funded museums like the Southern Seas Naval Museum in Hainan throw a lot at marketing and attracting the public. The sampan though is destined for a much smaller and - I would imagine - less adventurous, old school museum.
 
Hi Heinrich,
Lovely little sampan.
I have traveled to near your neck of the woods a couple of times, I would have to say I always enjoyed going to China, so much to see.
On one of our family trips I asked the in-laws if I could go to the Shanghai maritime museum, by the way my admiral is Shanghainese. I am guessing you may have been there, the museum is quite nice if fairly small, the funny thing was that when we arrived it was closed, though after some banter from my in-laws the security guys opened up for us.
Anyway maybe this museum may be interested?

Cheers,
Stephen.
 
This is a most interesting story Stephen! Having Chinese family I am sure that you are very well au-fait with the hospitality that is so typical of Chinese families! Funny thing is, even though Nantong (where I stay) is only about a three hours' drive from Shanghai, I have yet to visit there. The sampan has already been commissioned - I am just waiting on a specially 3-D printed and painted oven to add and then it's all systems go. I will be sad to see her leave though.
 
Heinrich said:
This is a most interesting story Stephen! Having Chinese family I am sure that you are very well au-fait with the hospitality that is so typical of Chinese families! Funny thing is, even though Nantong (where I stay) is only about a three hours' drive from Shanghai, I have yet to visit there. The sampan has already been commissioned - I am just waiting on a specially 3-D printed and painted oven to add and then it's all systems go. I will be sad to see her leave though.
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Hi Heinrich,
Yes you are quite right the hospitality is incredible, with banquets a plenty and dishes in the dozens, quite an eye opener for me.
A difficult thing to part with a model, hopefully it doesn't go too far away.

Cheers,
Stephen.
 
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