tying on all those blocks, the tackle required to rig the various lines on the Cutty, took quite a bit of time. soon, they were all in their perspective places, ready to take on the rolls they were soon to play, in this “string art” collaboration with Revell. the blocks, depending where they were place, performed different tasks. a few of the blocks and dead eyes are to be used for the standing rigging, lines that do not move and are, in a sense, part of the framework of the ship. they do not require pulleys. there are the fore stays, that keep tension on the masts in a forward direction. it runs as follows: the bow spirit and boom are held in place by their perspective bow fore stays and the chain gear rigging from underneath the structure, serves as it’s back stays. they keep the spirit and boom secure. from there are the fore mast stays. the bow end serves as an anchor as they pull the fore mast forward. from there is the main mast stays. they in turn use the fore mast as their anchor and pulls the main mast forward. the mizzen mast, in the case that your ship is a three master, will be the last and final mast in the chain. the mizzen mast stays use the main mast as an anchor and pulls the mizzen forward.
to complete the support that the mast need to stay erect, even in the roughest of waters, are the back stays. on all three masts, the back stays perform the same task, using dead eyes that are connected to the deck structures, as their anchor. they are connected at different point of the mast, to pull them back and keep them perpendicular to the deck. to look at the setup of these structures, you will notice that they are supported at three points, in a triangular configuration.
in this picture, most of the fore stays are installed. the lifts for the three lowest yards have also been installed. they are only attached by a singular pinnacle, the need for extra support was called for. there are a few ways to accomplish this task. some like to start from the back to the front and some do each mast individually, but I prefer this method. I do the bow head gear rigging first, making sure that the chain aspects are taught, as well as the bow fore stays. the word “taught” refers to the word “tight”, a variant. what is needed to be achieved here is the degree of tightness…..I refer to it as “absolute zero”. to give you an idea of what I’m talking about, take a piece of string and hold it in your fingers.
pull it, stretching it as much as you can. with your little finger, reach it up and flick the string…..it’s very tight. now slowly relax the string, while flicking it at different stages. what you are looking for is tightness in the string, without a lot of tension. too much tension and the mast will bend, distorting it being perpendicular to the deck. when you can find the taught, without being tight….that is absolute zero.
the fore stays on the rest of the ship should be rigged, so that they are just before zero, but not too taught. this will be taken up when the back stays are installed. this is where you will see what each line does. to gauge the tension of the back stays, take your index finger and gently pull back at different points of the mast that you are working on. you should see lines tighten up, but you will also notice that the bow moves up and down as well. it’s pretty cool to see one line transfer tension from one line to another. you should also see lines that relax and go limp. if you see this occur, you will know to adjust the tension for that back stay.
by the time you are done, you should have a ship with lines taught enough to support you jibs and stay sails without them sagging with the extra weight. after allowing you ship to dry overnight, the next step will be the lifts and halyards. halyards are running rigging lines that are attached to the yard and tied off to a pin, in close proximity to that particular mast down on deck. they raise and lower the yards, raised when they are fitted with sail and lowered when they are in port and the sails have been removed. there are two types of lifts, the running lifts that are manipulated with pulleys and blocks, which in turn, make them adjustable and there are the standing lifts, which give support when the yards are in their lowered position. they do not move, but do require adjustments from time to time. if you plan on equipping you ship with sails, as i am, these particular lifts need to be slack enough to hang down below the yard, long enough to lend credibility that they will be taught when the yard is in the lowered position. lastly, your standing rigging should be done in black thread, giving the impression that it has been coated with tar, to protect it from the elements and your running rigging should be done in tan thread, not coated with tar, so they can be manipulated freely. your instructions will tell you otherwise if something special needs to be done.
when this step is finished, it’s time to tie on some more blocks. I like to look ahead and tie these on so I don’t have to stop in the middle of the next step, which I think is the best step of all…..installing the sails! if you thought this bit of rigging was tough, wait til you rig your sails. the only hint I can give you at this point…..if you don’t have any “long reach tools”, like tweezers, scissors, and picks, you better get some. as my Cutty sits on the table beside me drying……I can’t wait!
to complete the support that the mast need to stay erect, even in the roughest of waters, are the back stays. on all three masts, the back stays perform the same task, using dead eyes that are connected to the deck structures, as their anchor. they are connected at different point of the mast, to pull them back and keep them perpendicular to the deck. to look at the setup of these structures, you will notice that they are supported at three points, in a triangular configuration.
in this picture, most of the fore stays are installed. the lifts for the three lowest yards have also been installed. they are only attached by a singular pinnacle, the need for extra support was called for. there are a few ways to accomplish this task. some like to start from the back to the front and some do each mast individually, but I prefer this method. I do the bow head gear rigging first, making sure that the chain aspects are taught, as well as the bow fore stays. the word “taught” refers to the word “tight”, a variant. what is needed to be achieved here is the degree of tightness…..I refer to it as “absolute zero”. to give you an idea of what I’m talking about, take a piece of string and hold it in your fingers.
pull it, stretching it as much as you can. with your little finger, reach it up and flick the string…..it’s very tight. now slowly relax the string, while flicking it at different stages. what you are looking for is tightness in the string, without a lot of tension. too much tension and the mast will bend, distorting it being perpendicular to the deck. when you can find the taught, without being tight….that is absolute zero.
the fore stays on the rest of the ship should be rigged, so that they are just before zero, but not too taught. this will be taken up when the back stays are installed. this is where you will see what each line does. to gauge the tension of the back stays, take your index finger and gently pull back at different points of the mast that you are working on. you should see lines tighten up, but you will also notice that the bow moves up and down as well. it’s pretty cool to see one line transfer tension from one line to another. you should also see lines that relax and go limp. if you see this occur, you will know to adjust the tension for that back stay.
by the time you are done, you should have a ship with lines taught enough to support you jibs and stay sails without them sagging with the extra weight. after allowing you ship to dry overnight, the next step will be the lifts and halyards. halyards are running rigging lines that are attached to the yard and tied off to a pin, in close proximity to that particular mast down on deck. they raise and lower the yards, raised when they are fitted with sail and lowered when they are in port and the sails have been removed. there are two types of lifts, the running lifts that are manipulated with pulleys and blocks, which in turn, make them adjustable and there are the standing lifts, which give support when the yards are in their lowered position. they do not move, but do require adjustments from time to time. if you plan on equipping you ship with sails, as i am, these particular lifts need to be slack enough to hang down below the yard, long enough to lend credibility that they will be taught when the yard is in the lowered position. lastly, your standing rigging should be done in black thread, giving the impression that it has been coated with tar, to protect it from the elements and your running rigging should be done in tan thread, not coated with tar, so they can be manipulated freely. your instructions will tell you otherwise if something special needs to be done.
when this step is finished, it’s time to tie on some more blocks. I like to look ahead and tie these on so I don’t have to stop in the middle of the next step, which I think is the best step of all…..installing the sails! if you thought this bit of rigging was tough, wait til you rig your sails. the only hint I can give you at this point…..if you don’t have any “long reach tools”, like tweezers, scissors, and picks, you better get some. as my Cutty sits on the table beside me drying……I can’t wait!
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