Lars Michler, and his father Werner of Frankfort Germany, started work together on this 1:30 scale model of H.M.S. Banterer some seven years ago.
They chose Banterer as Lars says; "she was the smallest ship with the lines of a 'modern' frigate we were able to find. In 1:30
I can still get her in the back of my car (of course with with lowered masts and folded bowsprit and boom).
Banterer was the namesake of her class of 6 ships; a 24 gun 6th rate "post ship" launched in February of 1807. Another Banterer class ship was HMS Cyane,
captured with HMS Levant by the American frigate Constitution in February of 1815. Banterer was only in service for twenty months when she was wrecked in the St Lawrence river in October of 1808. On the model a miniature of the Admiralty chart of the
water where the ship was lost lies on the table in the great cabin.
Lars and Werner carry Banterer down to the water.
Banterer has a gun deck length of 120cm (47"), and a breath of 32cm (12.5") (hull length bow to stem is 140cm (55"). Fully rigged she is 190cm (75") long and 135cm (53") tall.
She weights about 30kg (66pds) with 4kg (9pds) of external ballast just below the keel and 8kg (18pds) of ballast in the hold.
The model is controlled by a Graupner MC32 2.4gHz computerized remote control supplemented by a programmable Robbe/Futaba S.Bus in the ship. This allows programing of single servos
and groups of servos for chained actions. Functions like the length and balance of the braces was solved mechanically by windlasses developed by Lars and Werner.
Operated by radio-control are:
- Braces on every yard (fore mast on a separate channel and the main and mizzen combined on another channel.
- Headsail sheets
- Driver sheet
- The topgallant yards can be lowered on each mast. The sails are brailed up using their buntlines, etc.
- Functional rudder, steering wheel is connected and turns with the rudder's movement.
For maintenance and transport lower und upper hull can be seperated at the bottom of the main wale.
For Transport masts can be lowered, and mizzen boom and bow sprit can be folded/shortened.
Making the upper part of the hull a package of about 150cm (59") in length, a 65cm (25.5") main yard and 34cm (13") hull width, and a heigh of 75cm (29.5").
Lars keeps a build-log on the Model Ship World forums,
and can be contacted there.
Andrew Charters of South Carolina, USA, builds beautiful models of beautiful historic sailing vessels. Most are of famous Grand Banks schooners, one is of an L. Francis Herreshoff Cutter.
Mark Steele popped a photo of one or two of them from time to time, but I couldn't find where all six had been shown at once; so, here they are,
Andrew Charters beautiful swimmers in alphabetical order:
Blue Nose |
Cicely 1904 |
Columbia 1922 |
Elizabeth Silsbee ~ 1904 |
Gloriana 1891 |
Puritan |
Andrew working on Cicely |
Probably the best forum for ship modeling of all kinds, is now the official forum of the Nautical Research Guild. It still free to join the forum which is chock full of photos of some very fine model work,
and some not so fine as well. Click the banner above to go see.
A little old man of the sea
Went out in a boat for a sail,
The water came in
Almost up to his chin
And he had nothing which which to bail.
But this little old man of the sea
Just drew out his jackknife so stout,
And a hole with its blade
In the bottom he made,
So that all of the water ran out.
unknown
Where the Winds Blow Index of articles. |
