Well on a 98 Deg. F. day with a heat index of 125 I am safe inside the cool man cave working on the ship. Thought I had fabricated another cargo hook but after being forced to clean up the workbench I did not so have shaped another one. Taken me most of the afternoon to drill out some small winches to accept lines and start designing the rigging for the main cargo boom. Right now I am finally getting around to installing the slewing lines for the forward cargo boom that control the side to side swing. In this overhead shot you can see on of the small winches rigged to the cargo boom and I have a 2nd one to do on the opposite side. 100_0003-1 by John Moore posted Aug 4, 2022 at 4:00 PM In this shot is my big pulleys that mount at the top of the mainmast and heavy duty cargo hook and a small winch made by Seaport Model Works. 100_0002-2 by John Moore posted Aug 4, 2022 at 4:00 PM Got word today that the new superstructure for one of my scrapped 65 foot hulls has shipped from Japan and will be here Monday. Going to build a 65 foot deep sea crabber out of what used to be a small cargo ship. The superstructure is all wood and in kit form.
Well spending some more time in away from the heat working on the ship. Today with a lot of trial and tribulation I finally got the hoist line rigged for the main cargo boom and the hoist line rigged for the cargo hook at the boom end. Lots of excess line to rig them all to the main winch. But that is about all for awhile while I wait for the new winch to get here from Shapeways. I found a much smaller Loran antenna in my parts box, a nice surprise, and took the old one off and installed this smaller on behind the pilot house on the radio room roof. My new superstructure kit is in Los Angles and I have resumed work on the new deep sea crabber on the stripped down hull pictured beside the freighter. 100_0007-2 by John Moore posted Aug 5, 2022 at 5:18 PM
Well while waiting on the winch to finish rigging the main cargo boom on the freighter I have started on the 65 foot deep sea crabber. It is slated to replace the ship right behind it with a better built and more modern vessel. The ship is one of the cast 65 foot hulls built a number of years back as small cargo vessels. The one in the foreground of this shot. Coastal Cargo vessel K.T. EM by John Moore posted Dec 8, 2014 at 8:34 PM The ship was demo'd down to the hull and usable parts saved. I am now putting new sides on the hull and since this phot was taken (below) I have completed bending the stern section of the new sides around and secured it. 100_0008-1 by John Moore posted Aug 6, 2022 at 11:50 AM I will probably shift my focus back to the freighter and start the railings on the flying bridge while stuff is drying.
Well a little more progress. Have installed the first set of railings up by the pilot house and on the flying bridge, More railings go on after the lifeboats are installed that will be next to last. Meanwhile working on the hull for the deep sea crabber. That structure is just a temp fitting and not the one I will use. 100_0013-2 by John Moore posted Aug 7, 2022 at 7:35 PM
Slow but steady progress while waiting for parts. Installed four searchlights, two on each side of the flying bridge. The searchlights were too short for the railings so I fabricated some base mounts that raised them and because the platform is narrow installed them on the outside of the railings. Cut down a small boat and installed it on the stern of the deep sea crabber along with a small crane to swing it out for launching. Making a mast for the crabber using a surplus steel cat pole. The insulators make great mast lights. It now needs to be trimmed to length. Also seen with the mast are sections of the crab pot snag and hoist mechanism and an assortment of new and homemade ventilator cowls. 100_0016-1 by John Moore posted Aug 9, 2022 at 7:23 AM In a rare snafu DHL has had my superstructure kit from Japan laying in LA for 3 days and it is finally moving. And the new Shapeways winch has lain in Shapeways shop for three days after declaring it was shipped has finally actually got to the shipper. By the time UPS and USPS get through playing football with the package I will be lucky if I see it by next week for something that would normally take two days.
Joy at the ACME Marine Supply and Shipyard. The components for a superstructure have arrived from Japan just in time to avoid layoffs of some of the staff. 100_0017-2 by John Moore posted Aug 9, 2022 at 6:22 PM
Good guess and yes it does. Super in this case meaning above. These kits are a very heavy paper kit and are meant to replace the superstructure of a TomyTec tugboat and use other parts from the original to finish out. I have purchased several of these kits and the last one was to extend the superstructure of the heavy sea going rescue tug, Wile E. II. When working with these kits one needs to use care in cutting and only the sharpest tools will do. I used a rotary very thin steel blade chucked in the Dremel and single edge razor blades that are sharper than an Exacto knife blade. The basic structure. 100_0018-1 by John Moore posted Aug 10, 2022 at 7:01 AM And after modification needed to increase the work deck space. 100_0019-2 by John Moore posted Aug 10, 2022 at 7:01 AM Next up is to raise the superstructure slightly with a styrene pad then a base coat of paint after sealing. The glue used for assembly was Elmer's white glue. I will use a spray of Tamiya dull coat to seal the surfaces. The new winch for the interisland freighter is on the move after setting in Shapeways shop packed to ship for 3 days. It is now in the nightmare of Postal Innovations a nightmare combo of the UPS and the USPS that does nothing but delay shipments.
Almost have the deep sea crabber superstructure done, few more details to add. 100_0020-3 by John Moore posted Aug 10, 2022 at 6:20 PM 100_0021-4 by John Moore posted Aug 10, 2022 at 6:20 PM 100_0024-5 by John Moore posted Aug 10, 2022 at 6:20 PM
A little more progress. A radar, Loran, searchlight. and two radio antennas added to the pilot house roof. A skylight was installed on the crews quarters roof. Part of the crab pot line retrieval system was installed on either side of the superstructure with more to come. 100_0026-1 by John Moore posted Aug 11, 2022 at 9:13 AM 100_0027-2 by John Moore posted Aug 11, 2022 at 9:13 AM My big winch for the interisland freighter is now finally handed off the the USPS for UPS and is in the state at last.
Well late today I finished my 65 foot deep sea crabber with the exception of a crew. Installed a hatch, crane, worktables, a small winch, two flood lights for the work deck, life rings, and crab pots. Here posed with the old crabber in back and the 45 foot crabber in front. The old crabber can now be demo'd. 100_0028-001-3 by John Moore posted Aug 11, 2022 at 6:37 PM 100_0029-001-2 by John Moore posted Aug 11, 2022 at 6:37 PM 100_0030-001-1 by John Moore posted Aug 11, 2022 at 6:37 PM The crab pots were made a few years ago out of brass screen and styrene. Now back to work on the interisland freighter.
Those are much larger than the small, bay-crabbers that ply the bays along the gulf coast I am familiar with... Well done!
This latest crabber is based off of the Deadliest Catch boats type boats which are 115 to 169 foot boats. The crab boats in my neck of the woods range from 25 feet for the inland waterways and rivers to 60 plus feet for the bay and ocean going ones.
Finally after a two week wait the new winch arrived yesterday in the post. Painted it last night and late this afternoon I installed it. Where I was going to place it would have created a conflict in the cargo boom rigging so now it is in place next to the mainmast. That meant a modification to the main hatch cover which I did. I have two more winches to install that control the main cargo boom swing. Then I can install the mooring bits and finally the main deck railing. 100_0002-1 by John Moore posted Aug 16, 2022 at 5:33 PM
Finally done with main deck area. Last two winches installed and lines rigged that control the cargo boom swing. Bollards and railings with hawse pipes installed. The hawse pipes and the bollards line up since they are what the lines pass through to moor the ship. Next area that needs work is the superstructure area and stern. 100_0004-1 by John Moore posted Aug 17, 2022 at 7:48 PM 100_0006-2 by John Moore posted Aug 17, 2022 at 7:48 PM
