The Southern CaliforniaSchooner Fleet

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The Southern Caldbrnia Schooner Fleet at Cerritos Park, Cerritos California. Photo by Bill Herrera

by Kurt Nehring

t's ten o'clock in the morning. Thewater is relatively calm. There's asubtle warmth to the cool morn-

setting sail. Children get down on theirknees to catch a closer glimpse of aminiature beer-bellied sailor's dog ly-ing in the shadow of a canvas bimini.A few feet away, an elderly womanrhythmically tosses pieces of breadto some very persistent ducks, appar-ently uninterested in the parade ofships noisily making their way downthe cracked, uneven cement sidewalkin clever hand-pulled boat trailers.Their masts seem to twitch and vi-brate in harmony as the jib, foresailand main barely gather enough windto gently billow above the heavily-varnished topside. Nearby, almost atarms length, two schooners sit besideone another in the watet proudly dis-playing woven netting rigged beneaththeir large, stout, square-sided bow-sprits with Sampson posts, toe railsand the traditional deep cockpits of

seaworthy yachts, They periodicallyrock from side to side, tied down tobar cleats with a hemp-like line andcradled in padded floating docks thatprotect the delicate hulls from thepond's sharply jagged shoreline. It'seasy to spot the cleverly-placed guardwires and stanchions, portholes andlife rings. There's a sensually curva-ceous banister carved of some exoticwood that's only an illusion but seemsto draw the spectator below deck toan imaginary saloon with walnut-cladcabinetry, beams, capping and ex-posed bulkheads that appear to havebeen dipped in numerous heavy layersof bright white paint. A closer inspec-tion reveals a ship's bell, deckhousesand skylights, a boom crutch, barrels,buckets and mops, stowed ropes andbronzed belaying pins. It's all there.It's what the skipper's like to call "gin-

ing air as a sunlit blue Southern Cali-fornia sky begins to peer through agroup of cumulus clouds. It's easyto stare at their puffy shapes as theyseem to hang there effortlessly andreflect off the mirrored surface be-low. Beyond a patch of trees and just

a few steps from the lake, there's al-ready quite a bit of activity amongsta growing row of model schoonersperched atop their stands. With thesquint of the eye, these vessels almostappear to be dry-docked in a shipyardfrom a golden era long passed whenwooden sailing yachts frequented thesea. Curious passersby ask questionsof the skippers as they make final ad-justments to the rigging shortly before

20 Model Yachting Magazine, Issue 139

gerbread". The minute detail to thesefloating pieces of artwork is fascinat-ing. From their spoked wheel, steeringcompass, winch and polished binnacleto the weathered mast hoops or blocksand shackle eyes, a labor of love: theinspired work of master craftsmenpassionate about their hobby. Satisfiedby her design and a dream, these build-ers are somehow driven for months tocomplete a project in the anticipationof her first tack, speed, balance &majesty. No, these schooners will nev-er waste-away in dust on the mantle.They're designed to do one thing. Sail.A few moments later, the first vesselis launched. She quickly heels over,making way through a slapping bow-wave that produces a pleasant, satisfy-ing sound to every skipper on shore.The huge wake to her stern is only

slightly broken by a small flat-endeddingy in tow, oars stowed, happilybobbing about. This is the pinnacle ofradio-controlled model yachting. Thisis the Southern California SchoonerFleet. It's Schooner Sunday. So wel-come aboard.

As the story goes, the club origi-nated several years ago as a spin-offof something Bob DeBow introducedto the San Diego Argonauts. Sincethat time, local skipper Bill Herrerahas spearheaded the efforts to ac-tively promote this segment of thehobby. He's been instrumental in ar-ranging appearances at venues likethe Long Beach International BoatShow with impromptu regattas in thelagoon and static displays in the hallof the Convention Center. Accordingto Bil l, the club's also made appear-

ances at countless events in Scotts-dale, San Francisco and Las Vegas,not to mention onboard the infamous

Queen Mary. Even the original rulespenned by the Argonauts have beenadopted by clubs on the East Coastand other organizations in far-reach-ing locations like Australia and SouthAmerica. Swede Johnson, an icon, hasbeen known to produce some incred-ible models over the years, specificallywith his work on the "Santana", "Pin-ky II" and Chinese junk, a few stellarexamples of his many talents and bril-l iant personal achievements. He's alsoresponsible for init ially organizingthe Schooner Argosy, a relaxing andenjoyable well-attended yearly event.Others, all noted skippers, have mul-tiple contributions and accomplish-ments that continue to fbcus attention

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The Southern Caldbrnia Schooner Argosy at Mason Park, Irvine CaliJbrnia. Photo by Bill Herrera

American Model Yachtine Association O 2005 21

The Southern California Schooner Fleet Regatta at Scottsdale, Arizona. Photo by Bill Herrera

on the world of model yachting anditt small but growing community. Sev-eral, like Pete Kruse, were featured ona recently aired thirty minute televi-sion program exclusively spotlightingthe hobby. Filmed locally and hostedby the Orange County Model SailingClub, Pete shared a beautiful exampleof workmanship in his Windeameen,John Alden's first schooner. The full-scale boat is sixty-seven feet on deckand has gone through an impressiverestoration by her new owner Capt.Neil Parker of Rockport, Maine. BothPete and his wife Dagmar recentlytook advantage of an invitation byParker to overnight accommodationsonboard the Windeameen followed bya full day of sailing the scenic coast-line. Dagmar described the entire

experience as "schooner heaven". Ofcourse, the models are rather tiny incomparison, with rules primarily al-lowing desigrs prior to 1950 and withno more than fifty inches on deck.However, they're every bit as beautifulon the water, typically carrying overone thousand square inches of sail inorder to efficiently haul her thirty-fivepounds of plank-on-frame wood, elec-tronics and lead. Some schooners fikeDan Swanson's Mary Jeann II weigh-inat a hefty fifty pounds but still manageto sail with grace and authority. Othernotableq of course, are Dave Endert,Ron Battershill, Erwin DeRoggenbuke,Harry Bourgeious,the late Ralph Bur-ton and Sweden's George Fleetwoodwho for years have actively representedhighly-respected model yachting clubs

like the O.C.M.S.C., TiiCity, the ElBorardo Helmsmen and San Diego'sArgonauts to name a few.

So whether it's a German Robbekit of the 'Atlantis", a "Malabar l"from Hartman Fiberglas R/C or morerecently Bob Burkhardt's exquisitehand built "Bluenose II", on the waterthey all take on the realm, realism andbeauty that will forever draw us to thewater's edge to view a spectacle, capturea digital image, add a memory or justrelive a piece of yachting history. Foryears to come, the Southern CaliforniaSchooner Fleet intends to carry-on, inminiature, the traditions and legaciesof these fine sailing vessels.

For more information, visit our websiteat geocities.com/socalschoonerfleet

22 Model Yachting Magazine, Issue 139

"Cisglyr-g-,L^-*,a,f ggSshggng,rMg*--d*gl.ii/:L /n/:a1^/r:.//.t.//rlxr:t w;!:t!ro

by Andrew Charters

icely was designed by Fi feof Scot land in 1902 as afast cruis ing yacht. Owned

by Ceci l Quent in, she was bui l t byFay & Co of Southampton. "Cic-ely" won al l her races the f i rst yearagainst the big schooners of Ger-many and Great Br i ta in, whichincluded "Meteor I I I " , "Clara"and "Nordwest" . She excel led instrong winds, part icular ly whenclose-hauled. She was I l4 f t wi th10,000 square feet of sai l . Mymodel was started on Dec 6,2003and launched on June 6, 2004,taking 375 hours of work.

The hul l is West System epoxywith 2 layers of f iberglass mat.Deck and spars are of o ld hartpine from a house bui l t in 1768.The spars have growth r ings 5 tothe l /8 inch; we f igure the t ree wasover a 100 years old back then.She is 5 feet on the water l ine wi tha 16 inch beam. 9-112 inches ofdraf t and 109- l l2 inches overal l .She has 42 lbs of bal last andis probably around 60 lbs totalweight. Sai ls are of 3 oz polyesterDacron. Winches are auto windowl i f t motors wi th the power neededto handle her 25.8 sq f t of sai l .

Cicely under sail. Photograph by Andrew Charters

CHERUBINI.MBUPO Box 535Lumberton, NJ 08048Phone/Fax: 609 518 9673Email : JJVtown@AOL.com

CHERUBINI-MBU is stocking Cap Maquettes functional hardware and working scale fittings forR/C sailing and quality display models. Available in 1 :1 0, 1 :15 and 1 :20 scales; these are the finestavailable. The catalog (and price list), 68 color pages, is available for $5.00 (cash, check or Mo).Most items in stock for immediate shipment, factory orders placed frequently. We also represeniAeronaut, Robbe, Dumas, Mamoli and many other world class makers from the US and Europe.Please call for stocked items and questions. Price list free to holders of the Cap Maquettescatalog.SASE appreciated. We're back!

American Model Yachting Association O 2005

The Model Sailing Yachtsof Frankl n Bassford

course, free-sailing, and were racedon open water: the lake at ProspectPark in Brooklyn, the Hudson Riveqand Long Island Sound. The mannerof racing was distinctively American:races were held on triangular coursesof as much as a mile. Skippers fol-lowed their boats in one-man skiffsand trimmed or altered course as nec-essary. Despite the fleet racing appear-ance, each boat was actually beingtimed, with an adjustment made forits sail area and l0 seconds deductedfor each time its skipper was obligedto touch his boat.

The racing classes were based onLWL measurement only, with a hand-icapping system to compensate fordifferences in sail area.

Lewis Franklyn Bassford (1856-

by Earl Boebert

Authors Note: We hqve discoveredmaterial, which sheds light on someof the model yachting practices of the1890's, and also provides us with theplansfor an uncommonly graceful boat.In particular, the newly discovered ma-terial gives us previously unavailsbledetails about the rigging andfittings ofmodel yachts of this period.

rganized model yachting be-gan, as best we can tell, inthe New York area in 1872.It

grew rapidly in popularity and by the1890's there were three clubs, an inter-club union to determine champion-ships. and spirited competition.

The boats of the period were, of

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The yacht "Katrinq," mentioned by Bassford as an example of the use of model yachts to aidfull-scale design. Note thesimilarity to his boat.

1897) was the son of a composer,who had written an opera called ThePhantom Ship, based on the story ofThe Flying Dutchman. When he wasthree months old, his parents set sailfor France, where his father was to en-roll in the Paris Conservatoire. Theywere lost at sea, and he was raised inNew Jersey by his maternal grandpar-ents. He became an expert on yachtingand a marine artist; at least one of hisworks is reported to be the basis of aCurrier and Ives print. He wrote fourarticles for Outing magazine, whichappeared in February and March 1895and March and April 1896, describinga first and second design which I willcall the 1894 and the 1895 boats.

These articles give us a remark-ably detailed view into at least one

24 Model Yachting Magazine, Issue 139

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deeper draft, increased beam, und harder bilges. The profile plan of the later boat is seriously distorted; when redrawn prop'

erly, she is even better looking.

American Model Yachtine Association @ 2005 25

designer and builder's practices of theday. As we will see, the model yachtingdone by Franklyn was in support ofhis full-scale yacht designing, and so itis not clear how widely spread some ofhis ideas were. Sadly, his yacht makingventure failed, and he committed sui-cide in 1897.

Pp.pig:,'.F.pn:'.p..tp;Obiectives

These were summed up best byBassford himself in the opening para-graphs of his first article, aptly titled"Miniature Yacht Modeling. Its Prac-tical and Scientific Service:"

Model yacht sailing, of the sci-entific and practicql sort, must not beconfounded with the pastime of sail-ing shop-made toys, the diversion anddelight of many youths with an inbornand inherent passion for the sea. Normust it be confounded with the meth-ods of those who themselves buildmod-els, sometimes monstrosilies, for themere amusement of winning races inmodel yacht club regattas, regardless ofwhether or no their craft could be re-produced in any other proportions.

The model yacht building and sail-ing of which I desire to treat is of greatpractical and economical value, for by itsome of the most abstruse and puzzlingquestions of "form," in its ability toride over and cut through a seaway, toget to windward, and other like points,

can be more decisively demonstratedthan by uctual vessels.

Strange as this may seem at rtrstblush, a moment's consideration willshow its reasonableness, for the min-iature model when sailing is sailingentirely on her form; the simplicity ofher equipment and entire absence ofthe individual element necessitate thisresult. If she fails in any particular it isthe failure of her design; if she succeedsthe success is attributqble to her designalone; whereas in the actual boat theman at the wheel is able to counteract

faults and tendencies to deviate fromthe true course and to hide many de-

fects. If the model shows creditably il ison its own merits, whereas in the largervessels it may be, and often is, the cap-tain and the crew to q great extent towhom the credit belongs.

Owing to the capacity of manyyacht captains, good results are oftenobtained from poor boats, and "the

navigator's skill must increase withthe size of the ship; "but in the model,aside from the initial trimming of thesails before the start, the boat herselfmust do the rest, and it is about certainthat the worst one will get worsted.

Both these results have been toooften noted to require further argu-ment. An actual yacht may not havethe mast position, the center of effortof her sails may be very far from hercenter of lateral resistance, and theprofile form of her keel may be moreof a hindrance than a help; yet, with anextraordinarily competent captain, shemay still very often win, which a modelyacht so defective never could. When,then, the model does win, aform whichis worthy of imitation has been foundand at a very slight expense.

A. Cary Smilh, the well-knownyacht designer, made the crucial test ofthe vqlue of the model in solving theseproblems in the fall of 1889. He hadbuilt the seventy-foot sloop Katrina,and she carried a lee helm, which, it wasthought, might be remedied by movingthe mast aft, the step of which, however,was so close to the centerboard trunkthat the latter would also have to bemoved, and the experiment promised tobe very costly, with no certainty of en-tire success. At Mr. Smith's suggestionan absolute facsimile of the large boatwas built on a scale of an inch to the

foot, and it also carried a lee helm: " thebaby had the tricks of its mother," aswas well said at the time. The fault was

first inexpensively corrected in the min-iature. and the same alterations thenapplied to the large vessel on preciselythe same relative proportions, show-ing again the same results, the Katrinawinning the New York Yacht Club's re-gattas of 1890-'91 over the Shamrock(which had defeated her in'89)

While this test is absolutely finaland conclusive, it only bears out results,which are obtained and noted every dayin the handling and performances of allreally good miniatures.

Of course Bassford misses the in-fluence of "scale effect," which arisesbecause reducing linear dimensionsby x reduces area by x squared andvolume by x cubed; as a result, the re-lationship between (say) sail area andamount of ballast changes rapidly.Faith in models as indicators of full-size characteristics had a long life; as

late as 1922, when the InternationalA Class (a lll2 size version of a hy-pothetical full size rule) was being es-tablished, serious designers were put-ting forth points similar to Bassford'sabont lll2 size sailing models.

Hul lBassford then continues to argue

that a model should have the propor-tions of a "proper" full sized yacht,that is, one that is esthetically pleasingand most importantly, one that couldhave been built. This philosophy par-allels that of "free-lance" models inmodel railroading, which are replicasof nonexistent, but perfectly plausible,prototypes.

Bassford chose an LWL of 35",the smallest allowed by the rules ofthe time and one, which convenientlyscales to the full sized "70 footer" classat ll2" to the foot. This yields a boata little over

50" LOA, which has proven to bea very convenient size. He then givesthe following proportions:

LOA = 1.5 LWL.Maximum draft = 6 to 8", with

the point of maximum draft a littleahead of the sternpost, yielding arounded keel which sheds weeds, iseasier to unstuck if aground, and pro-vides a "reverse truss" for strength.

Maximum beam at 600 LWL,which yields the "raking midsection"type of hull.

Freeboard of 1/10 the LOA atmaximum point, down to ll20 at therudder post, rising again to avoid theappearance of a droop.

Bulwarks and rail: 5/8" at pointof maximum freeboard, tapering to3/8 at the point of least and then downto nothing at the taffrail, to facilitatedraining of the deck. On his secondhull he added 2" scuppers with I 1/2"between each, starting at the attach-ment point of the aft shroud.

StabilitY

movable external ballast in order tocarry the substantial amount of sailpopular at the time, and gives threedesigns: "lead centerboards," in whichthe external keel simulates the shape(in profile at least) of a centerboard,and two kinds of fin keel. The shapeand method of attachment of each isshown in his sketches. His preferencewas for the full fin keel, which slips

26 Model Yachting Magazine, Issue 139

into a slot in the deadwood and is heldon the aft end by a tab, possibly rid-ing on a transverse screw, and the foreend by the threaded sleeve shown. The

other form of fin keel is attached by"turn buttons," which go in the slotsshown and then are rotated 90 desrees

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to lock the fin in place. Bassford givesthe displacement of the 1895 boat as14.9 lbs and claims that l0 lbs. of leadcan be carried; I calculate the displace-ment at closer to 16 lbs, and based onplank on lrame M boat experience thehull should swing I 1 to 11 1/2 lbs oflead easily.

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ConstructionThree methods are described:

bread and butter using solid lifts,bread and butter using lifts with thecenters cut out, as we know today,and plank on steamed frame. Interest-ingly, Bassford spends considerabletime extolling the advantages of cut-ting the centers out of l i fts; checkingother publications of the era showsthat th is was, indeed, an innovat ion atthat time.

RigBassford's rig is closer to full-size

practice than was common amongstthe designs of those who engage in the"mere amusement of winning racesin model yacht club regattas." He du-plicates in essential detail the "triple

headed" cutter rig of the day, with itsthree foresails fiib, staysail, and jib

topsail or flying jib), the gaff-riggedmain, and club topsail. Most of hiscontemporaries, who were less con-cerned with relating to full-size boats,were running simplified gaff rigs withno topsail and one or two foresails.

The artist in him comes out whenhe discusses sail proportions:

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Sailplan of the 1895 boat. Lines indicate direction of selvage oJ' sailcloth. A thin brass wire batten is sewn where the twopieces of the jib topsail are joined, to flatten it under pressure of the wind.

American Model Yachtins Association O 2005 27

Dimensions of the sails, in inches (not to scale ). The degree of roach of a particu-lar edge(s) shown, where applicable, in parentheses.

If a model yqchtsman has the realinterests of his craft at heart he willdevote all his energies to producing alight and shapely vessel, and cuttingher spars and sails of stylish and effec-tive shapes as well as proportions. Forinstqnce, nothing can so materially addto qppearances, at any visible distance,as a cleanly cut club-topsail, with ex-tremely short leach set over a Caff,peaked as high as possible to preservethe necessary area in the mainsail, ora jib with a high clew and a staysailcarried well up the masthead to closethe otherwise awkward-looking gap be-tween the forestay and the jib-leach.

The proportions he gives are asfollows:

Mast at l/3 LWL.Height of mainmast = LWL.Main boom |25LWL.70oh of main boom to jib tack.60'/o of main boom for gaff.Hoist of mainsail equal to or

slightly less than length of gaff.Topmast = gaff plus 2-4" for set-

ting club topsail.55o/o of the fore space devoted

to the jib boom, 45oh to the staysailboom.

Jib topsail 50o/o of the stay carry-ing it.

Spars thickest in center and ta-pering to both ends, except for themainmast, which is parallel to thepoint of attachment of the shrouds,then tapered above that.

As the sail plan shows, the result isindeed a pleasing rig. With all sails set,she carries an impressive 1830 squareinches of sailcloth. This full rig wouldonly be used in light air. When it startsto blow sail is shortened by removingthe club topsail, the top mast and itsside and fore stays, the spreader, andthe jib topsail. This not only reducesthe sail area to a more reasonable1400 square inches, but it also drops

the center of effort seven inches (theCE moves about an inch aft in theprocess). To give a comparison withcontemporary designs, an EC 12 hassimilar draft, about 213 the sail area,and carries almost twice as much lead.Hence the need for external ballast.

The standing and running riggingis shown on the diagrams; the riggingof the halyards will be shown in thedrawings of the fittings.

As mentioned before, the stand-ing rigging is variable depending onthe sail set. The permanent riggingconsists of the three side stays on ei-ther side. which run to the base of thespreader, and the two fore stays thatsupport the jib and the staysail. Theother two side stays, and the topmostfore stay, are removed when sail isshortened. I have concluded that theremovable spreader is also taken downwith the topmast, as there is no pur-pose for it after the side stays are re-moved, and Bassford emphasizes theimportance of reducing windage byremoving the topmast as well as thetopsail clubs.

The running rigging shows con-siderable ingenuity. The basic mecha-nism for adjusting the sheets is thepin rack. There are two, one on thespreader and one on the deck just af-ter the mast. The deck rack is twelve

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28 Model Yachting Magazine, Issue 139

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inches long by 31 4" wtde and is placedabout six inches aft of the mast. Twoor three lines of holes, spaced ll2" aredrilled in the board. Screw eyes withtheir threads cut off are used for thepins.

The sheets for the foresails run asshown in the diagram. One end is madefast to an eye on the port side of theboat. The sheet is then reeved througha hook attached to loop on the boom,through an eye on the starboard side,and then back to a pin on the rack.

The sheet for the jib topsail ismade fast to a pin arm of the spreader/pin rack, reeved through an attachedto loop or grommet in the clew of thesail, and then made fast to a pin on theother arm. Based on the sketches, I'veconcluded that the spreader exceedsthe beam by about an inch on each

side, which would make it 12" long.The mainsheet is more complex.

The diagram shows the sheet in itsclose-hauled, or beating position. Itis hooked to an eye in the stern, andthen reeved through an open eye onthe boom, down to the tiller, back toanother open eye, along the boom toa closed eye, and then to the deck andforward to the pin rack. When run-ning or on a reach, the line is cast offfrom the stern eye and the two openeyes on the boom, and hooked to thetiller. Thus the "Zo'reeving of the linewhen close hauled takes up the con-siderable difference in sheet lengthbetween close hauled and boom out-board with such a long main boom.The advantage of this scheme is that iteliminates the need for separate beat-ing and running sheets.

The self-steering mechanism is thesheet-to-tiller rig that was standard atthe time. The center of effort of themainsail is a good eighteen inches orso aft of the boom; when swung outfor a run, this exerts a powerful asym-metric force, tending to turn the boatin the direction away from the boom.To compensate, an aft-facing tiller isrigged with tensioning elastic on theforward end. The mainsheet is hookedto the tiller. As the boom swings fur-ther outward (indicating greater windforce), the sheet pulls on the tilleragainst the resistance of the elasticand applies compensating rudder. Therange of rudder angle is controlled bya traveler with two threaded buttons;this is placed at right angles to therudder and the buttons

A single'Jumper stay" is rigged onthe port side. This runs from the endof the gafl, through a loop on a shortline, and then down to the mast part-ner described below. This line is used topull down the end of the gaff and holdthe club topsail taut while running. It isloosened for runs and reaches.

The halyards are shown in the fit-tings diagram, although in some casesyou have to look a little carefully tosee them. Bassford, interestingly, rec-ommends the 'Jam bowline" knoteven though flat toggles or browserswere well known at the time.

There are two halyards for themainsail. The "peak halyard" is reevedthrough the three rings on the uppermainmast in the zigzagfashion shown.At the apex of each "V" is a ring thatattaches the halyard to a fixed line, oro'pennant" on the gaff. This arrange-ment sits on the port side of the clubtopsail, when it is set, and raises theaft end of the gaff. The peak halyard istensioned on itself by a loop and jambowline on the top ring. The "throathalyard" is a short line that runs fromthe bottom of the three rings to jaw ofthe gaff and is looped and tensioned

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The deck plan given in the first article. This is evidently from a preliminary study, because it is inconsistent with other plans andstatements in the text. The beam is too nerrow, and the two eyes for the staysail sheet are aft oJ' the mast instead oJ slightlyt"r-*d

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American Model Yachtins Association O 2005 29

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on itself; it is used to raise thejaw endof the gaff.

A single halyard runs from thebottom corner of the club topsail,down the mainmast, and is made fastto a mast partner.

The jib and staysail halyards areattached to the top corners of the sails,and run through the bent wire bridlesthen down to the mast partners.

Fittings and ConstructionThe details of the fittings are

shown in the illustrations. Most ofthe drawings are self-explanatory, buta few notes are in order. All fittingsmade from sheet are l/64" brass.

The spreader is made of hickoryor equivalent hard wood, riveted tothe brass half-collar.

Bassford did not give exact dimen-sions for all the spars, but I am fairlyconfident from the text and drawingsof the following sizes: The mainmastis 5/8" diameter, tapered as describedbefore. The topmast is 3/8" diameter,straight to the band holding the staysand then tapered and with a finial asshown in the drawing. All other sparsand booms are 3/8" in the center andtaper to ll4" at each end. The clubsfor the topsail are a constan'r. 114".

The hoist of the mainsail is at-tached to the mainmast with brasshoops spaced at I ll2" intervals.

The gaff is equipped with a"bridge." This is a l/8" square piece of"cigar box wood" (so-called "SpanishCedar") which runs the length of thegaff on its lower side. Holes are drilledlaterally through it every l/2" or so andthe mainsail is laced through these.The main, jib, and staysail booms areequipped with wire staples every ll2"

to hold a jack line to which the sail islaced. The ends of the sails are sewnto the eyes on the brass bands at theend of the spars.

The club topsail is laced to twoclubs with a running lock-stitch,which leaves each turn circular ratherthan a spiral. The clubs attach to thegaff and topmast with two double-loop bands each. The inside band isfixed to the topmast and gaff, respec-tively, and the outside band is fixed tothe club. Each club is cut with a shoul-der so it can slip into the bands onlyto the proper length. When the topsailhalyard is made fast the tension on thesail holds the clubs in place.

Likewise, the topmast slips intoa lower band, which is fixed to themainmast, and holds an upper band,which slips, over the top of the main-mast in the position shown. It is alsoshouldered for proper fixing. Since thetopmast is removed whenever the clubtopsail is, it would be reasonable to fixvertical club permanently to the top-mast.

The bowsprit is fixed much like theclubs and topmast. It is shouldered,and slips through a gammon strapon the bow and into an inboard strapattached to the deck. Both straps arerolled from sheet brass. The inboardstrap is cut with a tab that is rolledback and soldered to form the pointof attachment of the staysail stay. Aninboard bobstay plate is fixed to thebow with the loop at the waterline.The bobstay runs from it, through aturnbuckle, and to the bowsprit strapas shown. Bassford recommends l/16"brass rod for the bobstay. The sketch,but not the plans, shows two side stays

attached to the bowsprit strap. Thesewould run back to hooks at deck level,two or three inches aft of the bow.

The standard practice of the pe-riod was to put a tube in the deck andrun the mast down to a seat in the keel.Bassford rightly criticizes such an ar-rangement as being prone to leaks.Instead, he runs an interior brace upto the deck at the mast position, andplaces this mast step above it. It ismade from 5/8" I.D. brass tubing, cutand bent as shown. The four ears atthe base are riveted and soldered toan octagonal brass plate. The tabs arebent down to form the four partners,to which are attached the halyards forthe club topsail, jib, and staysail andthe jumper stay. Note the slot for thegooseneck. The "inverted L" goose-neck fitting is fixed to the mast, withan eye on the main boom. The mastfitting slides into that slot on the maststep, locking the mast properly inplace.

SailsSails were made from a cotton

textile called "Lonsdale Cambric,"now extinct. This is a very tightly wo-ven (150 or more threads to the inch)cloth made from long staple (Egyptianor Sea Island) cotton. No truly satis-factory replacement has been found,although the "down cambric" used indown pillows and comforters is close;it is tightly woven to prevent the endsof the feathers from poking through.

The jib and staysail are sewn totheir respective stays as shown in thebowsprit sketch, with widely spacedloops on the luff (forward edge) andspiral sewing around the jack line onthe boom. We can safely surmise the

Profle, showing a possible designfor a "lead Centerboard" form of external ballast.

)z Model Yachting Magazine, Issue i,39

jib topsail was sewn to its stay in asimilar way, although of course it doesnot have a boom. Bassford specificallystates that there is no halyard for thejib topsail.

I would like to thank my wife, Judy,for discovering the original articles andthe following members of the Bassfordfamily for responding to my queries:

Ethan F. Bassford, F. Ginter, DawnHanlon, David Lambert, Jack NelI,Sylvia Sawyer Sebelist, Kevin Spauld-ing, and Marjorie Bassford Spille.

Hugh Allston's model, based on the lines of Franklyn Bassford and called "Katrina". Photo by Andrew Charter.

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