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Work in Progress June 17, 2015
Reporter: Dave Yotter
Lumber Carrier S.S. Iaqua – Bill Schultheis
From the Port of Long Beach “Interport” Fall 1991: The SS Iaqua (pronounced I-Kway) hadn’t seen Long Beach shores in over threescore and a dozen years. Familiar landmarks were gone. In their place, a megaport….bustling with the energy that is international trade. Matter of fact, several commodities was unlike anything the Iaqua had encountered. What was that course black stuff spewing from the shiploaders on Pier G? For that matter, where did Pier G come from? And what on Earth was contained in the hundreds upon hundreds of steel boxes lining the wharves for as far as the eye could see? Dwarfed by the megavessels of today, the SS Iaqua, drawing a mere 10 feet of water when fully laden with its load of redwood from the Pacific Northwest, made a triumphant return to the Port of Long Beach in early summer 1991. Eighty years after opening the harbor for business in June 1911, the pride of
Newsletter
Volume 42, Number 7, July 2015
Contacts
President: Bill Schultheis (714) 366-7602
E-Mail: [email protected] Vice President: Don Dressel
(909) 949-6931 E-Mail: [email protected]
Secretary: Paul Payne (310) 544-1461
Treasurer: Mike DiCerbo (714) 523-2518
15320 Ocaso Ave, #DD204, La Mirada, CA. 90630
Editor, Don Dressel (909) 949-6931
908 W. 22nd Street Upland, CA 91784-1229
E-mail: [email protected] Web Manager: Doug Tolbert:
(949) 644-5416 Web Site
www.shipmodelersassociation.org
Meeting – Wed., July 15, 7 PM, Red Cross Building, 1207 N. Lemon,
Fullerton, CA. 92832
Officers meeting –Wed., August 5, 2015, 7 PM, Bob Beech’s house, 130 Clove Pl., Brea, CA. 92821 –
(714) 529-1481.
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Bendixsen Shipyard in Fairhaven, CA, sailed back through Long Beach portals and into her rightful place in history. It was a long stretch between port calls. Constructed in 1900 by one of the day’s premier ship builders, the Iaqua was a multi-purpose vessel….an industrious one, at that! Nearly 190 feet in length and 37 feet across, she was powered by 750 horses and carried a crew of 22. Versatility was the Iaqua’s middle name. Primarily utilized in the lumber trade, the harbor’s first caller also saw duty as a salvage vessel, passenger ship and tugboat. Late in her career, she took on a coat of camouflage and served her country well during the First World War. The Iaqua was christened and launched in Eureka, CA, and spent a good deal of time traversing the US West Coast. Long Beach was a popular port of call for the wooden two-stack (sic) schooner; it was a two to four day voyage each way up and down the coast from San Francisco. The Iaqua made this trip hundreds of times between 1900 and 1917; during 1912 alone, the workhorse steamer made 64 separate voyages! LONG BEACH REVISITED One of the last vessels built by Hans Bendixsen before his death in 1902, the ship was named after the Iaqua Buttes, a nearby geographical area from which Bendixsen received his lumber. Born is Thirsted, Denmark in 1842, Bendixsen came to the United States and established his shipyard in Fairhaven, a small island just west of Eureka. A very particular customer, the local buttes provided the top-quality material Hans demanded. Soon thereafter, a tangible example of the builder’s initiative and foresight was heard and seen in the Northern California woods: Bendixsen built his own sawmill. It was the only facility in the state, which could cut logs 125 feet long….therefore, ultimate flexibility and control of his craft rested in Han’s hands! Unlike many builders at the turn of the century, Bendixsen took on and supervised only as much work as his yard could handle. A tireless worker, he built 113 vessels in 31 years. In addition to building the SS Iaqua, Bendixsen was also co-owner of the vessel, along with numerous local members of the Shingle Manufacturers Association of Humboldt. One of the ship’s notable features is her sheltered deck made from these shingles, enabling the Iaqua to carry and protect more valuable cargoes, such as finished products. Extensively researched by Los Angeles Maritime Museum Curator Sheli Smith, the original SS Iaqua burned to her waterline and sank off Cape Gracias, Nicaragua in late 1918. The ship is gone, but not forgotten. Some photo captions follow for pictures that your reporter was unable to download from the article for some reason: Anchored firmly in her place is the new (model of) SS Iaqua, symbolized 80 years of dedication, hard work and versatility, the ideal yardstick by which to measure the hundreds of thousands of vessels that have visited this “Trade Center for the World” since its inception. Current Harbor Commission President Friedland and former President Lang, congratulate Iaqua builder John Pignatelli on a job well done. Model maker extraordinaire John Pignatelli works on rigging at his home in Bowers, PA.
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Minus only its signal flags, Iaqua model atop workbench, awaiting finishing touches. Project took four months to build.
Bill is making good progress on the Port of Long Beach’s 1:48 model of SS Iaqua. He found that the masts were made from brass tubing with wooden inserts shaped for the mast tops. The cargo booms appear to have been former chopsticks. Davits for the ship’s boats were rebuilt using brass wire. Most of the deck clutter – winches, bollards and such has been already placed back aboard. Some material such as deck cleats and life preservers remain. Monterey Clippers – David Okamura
David is continuing work on his fleet of Monterey fishermen. When finished, the boats will be moored in a 1:48 scale harbor scene depicting a North-Central Coast of California fishing village circa 1890 to 1930. This harbor scene will be one module in a 1:48 marrow gauge railroad being built by Kevin Spady. David started with three resin hulls supplied by fellow model railroader Dennis Ivison. Since the hulls are all molded the same and they are all to be moored essentially together, David is working to individualize the fleet. The cardstock mock-ups of the sides and hatches have been replaced with styrene. The cabins are on board now and some
feature Grandt Line doors. One of the model cabins came in the form of a cab from an On3 Grandt Line Porter locomotive kit. Some of the individualizing features will include anchors, an extended bowsprit on one and different outrigger arrangements. Some had an aft cockpit for steering while
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trawling. Current temporary rigging was done for a recent model railroad show and will be replaced with a more permanent version soon. Another hull has appeared and David is deciding on the configuration for this model. Front-runner seems to be for a San Francisco crab boat. David had some nice pictures of the fleet in position on the nearly finished module. When David is done with all the construction and detailing of the boats, currently finished in grey primer, these will be painted and weathered by Kevin. Sprengboot Tornado – Bob Penikas
Bob brought in an unusual model of a boat resulting from the desperate last days of the Third Reich. The idea was to load the floats built for a Ju52, a three-engine transport plane, with high explosives and drive it toward a target. Remote control not sufficiently developed; a pilot was to guide the craft toward the target and either bail before reaching the target or suicide. Although some information suggests that the fully developed version would have a portion of the craft detach from the explosive portion for return of the crew. The main propulsion was as unique as using a floatplane’s floats as both a hull and warhead. Propulsion was to be a pulsejet engine from a V1 rocket. Sea trials of the prototype in the Baltic
resulted in a speed of 45 knots but the boat was reportedly difficult to handle even in a calm sea. All of this was presumed to be a cost saving measure rather than using valuable torpedoes. The Tornado was destroyed upon the surrender of the Wehrmacht in May 1945 to keep it from falling into enemy hands but the design drawings were handed over to the Allies. The paper model was downloaded from the Internet and is thought to be about 1:48 scale. The model was assembled with the help of Cheerios box cardboard for interior bulkheads. Bob finished the model by spraying it with Krylon clear acrylic. The Editor wishes to thank Bill Russell for taking the pictures at the meeting while he was in England this month – THANKS BILL!
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Bill Schultheis’s lumber carrier SS Iaqua Paul Payne’s USS Oregon David Okamura’s Monterey Clippers
Bob Penikas’s Sprengboot Tornado
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A few pictures of Paul Payne’s much modified Glencoe model of the USS OREGON. Yes, Paul was not at the meeting in June, but sends his pictures of his work in progress for SMA members’ enjoyment.
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By Don Leyman
Mates on deck were Guy Bell, Steve Jones, Don Leyman and our host John Bakker.
John began by showing us the new NRG plans of the row galley Washington. This ship was built in 1776 on Lake Champlain and joined General Benedict Arnold’s fleet there in defense against the British. The plans were drawn by Jeff Staudt and are available at the NRG for a price of $65.00 plus shipping. Accompanied by the step‐by‐step monograph, (available free on the Internet) they will make a great plank‐on‐frame project. A discount on the plans is available to NRG members.
John then showed his new kit from Model Shipways of the Emma C. Berry, a sloop rigged well smack used for lobster fishing
Finally, John brought out his current project, the Derfflinger, a German fluyt or merchant ship of 1675. John is having a problem with the plans
positioning a bitt post on the deck. Typical of a Mayflower Meeting, the crew jumped in to assist or at least give their opinions on the answer to john’s question. This ship was originally used in the triangle trade route running from Europe with rum and other goods to Africa to buy slaves. The slaves were then taken to the West Indies where they were sold for sugar to take back to home for making more rum.
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Steve Jones is always at the meeting offering useful advice, but rarely bringing a ship model. This week was different, as he brought in the bare frame for his model of the Model Shipways kit of the sternwheeler Chaperon. Steve explained that some of the forward frames furnished in the kit were to narrow and he was in the process of shimming them out before planking. The Chaperon was built in 1884 to ply her trade from Pittsburgh down the Ohio River and the Mississippi to New Orleans.
Don Leyman has completed the planking of the bottom of his HMS Pegasus. This model is being built from David Antscherl’s plans and books. The planking of alder was selected primarily for its light brown color as a contrast to the boxwood frame. Don says the alder was fairly easy to use although a little soft and the grain a bit too articulated. He now has to scrape and sand the bottom and to install “trennals” (treenails).
There was a discussion with the crew on how to make the trennals and how many to install to make the model attractive. In reality, there would be a couple of thousand but that’s unrealistic on this model. Don says he needs to finish the model in his lifetime.
Finally, not to be outdone by the energetic modelers in John’s family room, a pair of mockingbirds spent the time outside the window
building a new nest.
Don would like to thank Don for standing in for him at this Mayflower Group meeting and taking notes and pictures, as the first Don was away in England at the time of the meeting. It looks like it was another great meeting and everyone came away with additional knowledge with respect to ship model construction.
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A Trip to England – Part 1
By Don Dressel
I am very fortunate and honored that I was able to receive an invitation to attend a dinner aboard the HMS VICTORY this year, as a result of being a Society for Nautical Research (SNR) member, among other things. The visit gave my wife Liz and I an added opportunity to visit once again the Portsmouth Dockyard with all of its maritime attractions as well as spend some time in London, visiting the Maritime Museum at Greenwich and the CUTTY SARK.
Thanks to suggestions from Magnus and Byrne McLeod, we were also able to visit The Royal Pavilion in Brighton, the palace of King George IV as well as the Osborne house, home of Queen Victoria, on the Isle of Wight. The train from Portsmouth gave easy access to both locations.
Doug Tolbert and his wife Margaret Buckingham also were able to attend the HMS Victory dinner with my wife and I which started off with a reception on the upper deck of the Victory. The ship is being worked on to correct structural problems, but access to the interior of the ship is no problem. Attached is a current picture of the ship. The upper spars have been taken down and the hull is being worked on. For the dinner, we accessed the ship through this portal as shown in the picture.
Once the reception was completed, we were invited to go below to the gun deck where the dinner was served. No, we did not eat the normal fare of the crew of yesterday, but instead had a very fine meal served by catteries. The food was excellent and the company we had at the dinner was also excellent. We had Mr. David Davies and Mr. Ray Sutcliffe at our table, where we indulged in many fine discussions and observations concerning many things nautical. In other words, we had a good time with excellent food and company. Doug and Margaret were occupying the table behind us. We ate at the same tables that the original crew would have “messed” at. The attached photo shows the general setup, which I am sure was NOT the case with the original crew. More detail will follow in a
future article on our trip to England and events that took place in Portsmouth Dockyard, but for this
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article we will fast forward to the second highlight of the trip, a visit to Gravesend and the home of Magnus and Byrne McLeod, which is about 20 minutes by train from London. Magnus meant us at the trains station in Gravesend and we had a nice walk from the station to their house. Along the way we saw the statue of Pocahontas, who originally landed at Gravesend from America in 1617. See the attached photo. Another location along the Thames River shown on the way to the house was the oldest pier in the world, also indicated in the photo to the right.
Both Liz and I had a wonderful time visiting them, their home, and having a great lunch. The best part, for me, was visiting Magnus’s workshop. It is always a real pleasure to be able to see the fine craftsmanship exhibited by Magnus and the great workshop he has put together (and in a small space, as well). Not only is he a fine shipwright, but also a fine tool maker. The next few photos show his workshop, with everything very compact, in its place, and readily accessible as needed.
Magnus’s comment on tools is that anything can be made to meet the requirements for making the product, with modifications to tools as necessary. These pictures are worth study, as many of the tools are modified to meet shipwrights’ requirements. These are shown below. Note the modifications to
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the Proxxon sanding tool, which is set up for fine sanding work on small detail parts. Many of the tools used by Magnus are made specifically for a certain requirement. Everything is highly detailed and carefully measured. Note that all the tools are calibrated enabling fine adjustment.
The following photos show Magnus and his magnificent ship model that he has been working on for a LONG time. In fact, Magnus indicated that he probably would not live to see the model completed and hopes that his family will complete it for him (with the same degree of exactness). I have concerns that he will be able to move the model from his basement workshop once it is completed, as the stairs down to his shop are very steep and narrow. Magnus is enjoying himself very much, however, and spends many happy hours working on his model,
which is the main thing for all ship modelers and shipwrights – enjoying the hobby! I hope some of the
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members of the SMA will get some inspiration from these photos. The first couple of photo’s are of the hull of the ship, followed by photos of the ships stern and quarter badges (separated from the model for ease of construction), then re‐installed on the model (which fit perfectly). Everything is held together with pins (predrilled) which will eventually be replaced by dowels of appropriate size.
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The Paddle Wheel Frigate
USS Susquehanna 1847 Text, Photos, Drawings & Plans
By Gilbert (Gib) McArdle
Florence, OR: SeaWatchBooks, LLC, 2015 9” X 12”, hardcover, 112 pages with color
illustrations 10 sheets of plans
Photographs, appendices, notes, references Case bound with Jacket ISBN: 978‐0‐9904041‐5‐6
Manufactured in the United States of America
Another fine ship modeling publication by SeaWatchBooks, this one is different in several ways. To quote, “USS SUSQEHANNA was one of the great transition warships of the early 19th century. Using sail and steam, she had a full career in the Navy.
She served as Admiral Mathew Perry’s flagship on his historic trip to Japan and as part of the blockade fleet during the Civil War. While Gib has built his model using the plank on frame method, it could also be built using plank on bulkhead or with lifts for a solid hull. Plans for all of the frames are provided along with a full set of templates for a plank on bulkhead build. The ship is fully rigged and makes a beautiful model at 1:96.”
Chapter one is a brief introduction to the ship and its history. Gib also covers the various types of hull construction, solid hull, bread and butter method, simple bulkhead plank on frame and full frame construction. Fully illustrated with his method of frame jig, chapter 2 covers his method of frame construction including tools and jigs used. His method of fairing the interior of the hull, as well as the exterior, is very well done. He also fills in all the spaces between his frames, as was done with the real ship.
Chapter 3 concerns all the details on the station and orlop decks and just exactly how he locates these decks, the woods used and why, and the extra details of these decks including the
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mast step construction, sister keels and compartment bulkheads. He describes the jig used to make the hatches and other deck details. One of the real interesting details is the jig he made to determine the contours of the hull for the basswood compartment bulkhead constructions. The photo included here is of the aft orlop deck construction as the model progresses. There are a LARGE number of color photo’s in the book which show many details discussed in the text. Chapter 4 deals with the berth deck including all the details of beam, ladder and hatch construction, including the construction of the mast rings, anchor bitts, foremast step and mast partners, the deck partitions and a neat little jig to make sure the spacing between the beams is correct. A method of making the pillars, the spiral staircase and berths is fully illustrate and explained. He also describes his method of making the capstan base and its full construction.
Chapter 5 deals with the main deck construction with all the components fully described and methods used to install same. The port carlings, ledges and knees are installed, as well as the gunports and preparations for the installation of the steam engine. The bow cheek pieces are fully illustrated along with the work done on the stern transom and stern railing. Many other details are included, again with full color illustrations. Chapter 6 is one of the real fascinating chapters of the book, describing Gib’s tremendous research
and construction of the steam engine for the USS Susquehanna. His explanation of the construction method is augmented by many color photos of the process. He made many of the components out of wood, his explanation for not using brass or another metal to make the components making good sense to me. He did the smart thing, making the engine outside of the model and completing it on its four sister keels, then installing the completed engine model into the ship in its proper location. It would have been very difficult to try and install the steam
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engine piece by piece into the model. There are included with the explanation of the steam engine construction many color photos, again augmenting the methods used to arrive at a very fine steam engine model. This also explains why he left many of the deck details off the model. Your definitely want to see the many details put into the steam engine! Attached is a color photo of the completed engine showing all the details included in the engine. This chapter alone makes this book well worth its small investment, particularly for any modeler who is contemplating this type of ship model.
The next chapter continues with the details of hull construction, starting with the installation of the steam engine completed in chapter 6 followed by added details such as painting the hull black, adding the channels and deadeyes, coppering the hull (with the hull turned upside down mounted on pillows), the installation and completion of the hammock rail construction, the insertion of the main deck beams above the engine including the paddle wheel supports and other outer hull details. Many color photos are again used to demonstrate
the procedures followed, one of which is attached. Chapter 8 deals with the various fittings for the model. These include the many ladders, the catheads, several different skylights, the turned binnacle, belaying pin racks, four funnels and how they were made, the smoke stack, the complicated method for making the steering wheel and capstan bar racks (not easy in 1:96 scale), the five ships boats (three cutters and two launches), the figurehead (carved from Swiss pear wood), the very complicated paddle wheels, paddle box support, paddle wheel box cover with details, the anchors and many deck fittings. According to Gib, the paddle wheel construction
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is a very difficult process and can lead one to becoming prematurely bald. For your enjoyment, a photo is attached of the paddle wheel under construction. Again, as with all the chapters, there are many colored pictures of the finished product as well as the methods used. The next to last chapter deals with the masts, spars and rigging. The masts and spars were made using maple and birch dowels according to the plans supplied along with boxwood details. There are four main spars, bowsprit, foremast, mainmast and mizzen. The plans supplied with the book give a full description of the rigging, both standing and running. Gib has made his mast caps using Plexiglas, but indicates that the use of boxwood or any other acceptable material is fine, which is up to the shipwright constructing the model. Once again, full details of all the rigging is supplied along with many colored pictures of the rigging process along with detailed sizes of all the lines. Gib uses silk and linen line for his rigging, but again choices can be made by the model builder.
The ships armament consisted of 12 nine inch Dahlgren smooth bore guns and two 150 pounder Parrott rifles, which are fully described and detailed along with their respective carriages. Fabrication of the etched brass tract for the two bow and stern Parrott rifles are described along with the mounting of the ships boats using the davits. A photo of the completed model is attached. Gib also supplies details for a ships case for this model.
The photo to the right shows the folder that houses the plans for the model. This comes with the book, the plans being drawn from lines courtesy of the National Archives in Washington DC. This book, along with the plans, is highly recommended and will produce an excellent model. Both the book and plans are a fine addition to any ship modelers library. The USS SUSQUCHANNA 1847 by Gib McArdle is available from www.seawatchbooks.com at a cost of $70.00 plus $9.00 for shipping and handling in the US. Check out Bob Friedman’s web site above for details. Additional shipping charges are required for areas outside the US.
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SMA Collection of Ships Plans As many members of the SMA know, Bill Wicks was the keeper of the collection of Ships Plans that belonged to the Club. When Bill passed away, Bob Beech volunteered to take over the storage of these plans, which he has done since Bill passed away. Unfortunately, Bob is no longer able to perform this, so the SMA is now in need of a volunteer to take over the project of storing all the ships plans in our possession. Please contact any of the officers of the club if you would like to volunteer for the job of storing and loaning out, as required, the existing ships plans, which are now in Bob Beech’s home. NRG Conference to be held in Mystic this year Look for details on the upcoming NRG Conference in Mystic, Connecticut this coming October. It should be a great conference. There is now full information on the Conference on the NRG web site for those interested in attending this years conference. Potential location for upcoming SMA Show As the announcement was made at the January meeting, it is past time for the SMA to put on a ship modeling show and demonstration, possibly with the assistance of other clubs in the Southern California area. Please inform any officer if you have any suggestions for a venue for such an event. Treasurer’s Report Mike DiCerbo reports that there is $2,085.90 in the SMA account for the end of May. Mike was not at the last SMA officers meeting, so we do not know what the current fiscal balance is. Web Manager’s Report The Webmaster, Doug Tolbert, informed us that the SMA web site is back up and running fine. There will be additional details added to the web site as time goes by and members may wish to visit the web site occasionally to see what is new. The web site has been very worthwhile as we have, in the last few years, attracted a few new members through the web site. SMA Badges For those SMA members who do not have an SMA badge, please inform our president, Bill Schultheis, providing your name and the city you live in, and Paul Payne will be notified. An SMA badge will then be made for you and given to you at the following SMA meeting. There is no fee for new members for the badge. If you lost your badge and want a new one, there is a small fee. SMA PINS For those who may want an SMA PIN, Don Dressel will have some at the next SMA meeting. The cost is $3.00.
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Bow of San Felipe – Don Dressel
Donald C. Dressel 908 W. 22nd Street, Upland, CA. 91784-1229
Next meeting Wednesday, July 15, 7:30 PM, Hillcrest Park Red Cross Building
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