Two years in the making! The Beavercove was built, along with four other sister ships, in 1947 to replace the ships lost by Canadian Pacific during WWII. She is 497 feet long, with a top speed of 19 knots. Here's a 3/4th bow view. And here's a 3/4th stern view. I used solid gunwhales instead of railings. The gunwhale stays are parts from the Bachmann Car Repair Shop. This is an overall view of bow section. Here's a closer look at forward hatches 1 & 2. The crew (on order) is rolling back hatch No.2. There are winches, winch control stands, and boom rests, along with ladders up the posts and lots of rigging. More later.
That beauty surely makes it clear what the monster machine is compared to the itty bitty trains near it .
As I understand it, a Beavercove-class ship (almost a C-3 category) could carry about the equivalent of a 120-car freight train, either by weight or volume. IIRC, the builders kept it at 497 feet to avoid the taxes for a C-3, which is over 500 feet. So it's a big C-2!
OK, I'm back. Let's look at some of the details. I commited to more detail on smaller ships, such as my minesweeper, subchaser, and small cutter. Little did I realize what this translated to on a big ship like the Beavercove. My rigging is about 50% of the actual rigging, but I simply gave up. I left out the blocks, after trying to rig them--not feasible unless I wanted to spend a year just rigging the blocks. So let's look at a close-up of hatches 3 & 4. This was my second try at a large styrene hull, and the sections on the plans cut across the hatch openings. I knew this and, in the future, will adjust the sections so they don't cut across the hatches. I used a vertical keel, which split the hatches in half along the length. I think a vertical keel is essential for strength--but I could have done two keels on either side of the hatches. More later.
Here's a look at the bridge and superstructure from the bow. The Beavercove carried about 20 passengers. Fitting the superstructure to a swept and cambered deck was a challenge, especially since the front of the superstructure was also curved. I still have a little detail painting to do.
Here's a look at the stern. The booms are up on the landside, but mostly in their cradles on the seaward side.
Here's a high shot from the stern. Most of the rigging is 2-lb monofiliament, about a scale 0.5 inch. It's harder to work with than thread, as it's springy. Thread is a bit larger. The monofiliament also takes coloring very well from a Sharpie, or indelible marker/ And, finally, a few details from the stern, looking forward. I still have some dull-coating and weathering to do--next trip to the LHS, as I'm out of dull-coat.
Raise the bar Hey! You could put a nightcrawler on the anchor and say its the Loch Ness Monster. Then maybe a fish would go for the nightcrawler and pull it around the pond. Pete, you never fail to amaze with your work. You alway raise the bar. Keep it up buddy. :thumbs_up:
Pete - You could do me a favor and not go posting this stuff. Wait, it's my fault. I'm the one that showed it to Roberta (Rrrr) in the first place. Now she wants me to build a harbor _and_ buy a ship. Ok, in short - Stunning!
Pete: That is one awesome ship. I love those C class merchant ships. I'm hoping to add one of those to my collection of N scale ships sooner or later. Once again, that is a gorgeous ship, well done!
Into the 1970s. Most of them were broken up in the early 70s--1971 for the Beavercove--while others may have lasted to the 80s. They were pretty efficient ships, but the advent of container ships blew them away. I imagine some lasted until the 1990s, but that's getting really old.
My advice is to start small. Big ships like the Beavercove take a lot of effort. I won't be trying another for at least three years. I may re-rig one freighter already built, but not to this extent. Building a proper hull, which is both swept and cambered, takes a lot of practice. A swept hull has a curve from bow to stern; a cambered hull has a curve from port to starboard. That means you're into complex curves. That's not too hard in solid wood, but it can be murder in styrene. But the hull, and the complex-curved superstructures are just the beginning. Everything then has to be fitted and aligned. JUst getting the masts straight can be infuriating. Buying a built-up ship can be expensive. The savonart ships on eBay aren't all that bad to start. Their little boats--the large harbor tugs especially--are pretty good for the money at about $30-40. Their bigger ships, starting at about $200, are a bit crude, but presentable. I bought a container ship a few years back from the original maker (Burtindustries), and converted it to a coastal freighter. The complaints at the time were that they were shipped with inadequate packaging, so that details were broken. Yep, that was true, but fixing it took about five minutes. The tugs I bought last year came packaged well, but there are still details on ships that are fragile. I had to remount the antennae--no big deal for me. I am in no way associated with the vendor. There were also complaints about the timeliness of shipping from the original maker a few years back. I didn't have this problem with the freighter, and will attest the tugs came lickety-split--shipped on the same day as ordered. So far I haven't had the urge to add details to the tugs--they are really quite nice! I think the new dealer, savonart, is quite serious about the market.
