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Little Muddle


KNP
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From father's descriptions of her, the word 'update' would not have usually been deployed in relation to 'Snowflake', even in the 30s regarded as a museum piece and generally mentioned accompanied with a rolling of eyeballs.  She's coming along very nicely, Kevin, and I'm sure father would have approved!

 

Does she have a coaling hatch on the port side as well?  If not you've moored her the wrong way round if she needs coaling.  That deck planking is superb!

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1 hour ago, The Johnster said:

From father's descriptions of her, the word 'update' would not have usually been deployed in relation to 'Snowflake', even in the 30s regarded as a museum piece and generally mentioned accompanied with a rolling of eyeballs.  She's coming along very nicely, Kevin, and I'm sure father would have approved!

 

Does she have a coaling hatch on the port side as well?  If not you've moored her the wrong way round if she needs coaling.  That deck planking is superb!

 

Thanks

There is a coaling hatch on the port side so she has correctly eased alongside the quay ready for coaling.

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3 hours ago, KNP said:

Snowflake progress has been concentrated on the bridge area.

I have no plans, photos or drawings showing what this area looked like in the 30's, so I have had to do some 'guestimations'…..

 

 

Not sure how much it would help, but have you seen the film "The Maggie".  The Maggie was a Clyde Puffer, and it was made/set in the early 50s, but I doubt that things would have changed much.

 

Adrian

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4 hours ago, KNP said:

Snowflake progress has been concentrated on the bridge area.

I have no plans, photos or drawings showing what this area looked like in the 30's, so I have had to do some 'guestimations'…..

This would be a very simple layout designed for single person use so from left to right, or for those of you of a nautical nature port to starboard.

The engine room would just have had a stoker so most of the controls would be done from the bridge.

 

Small chart table - with an actual copy of the chart for the upper reaches of the Bristol Channel...(not sure what the black blob is, I am hoping it is the glue drying!!)

Voice pipes to main cabin and engine room

A clock and a barometer on the window post

Ship wheel and compass binnacle

Ahead/astern lever

Steam pressure wheel for speed control

 

As I said this is my interpretation....!

 

SF1.jpg.a0837a6ba3c22b3be426100dca686a6b.jpg

 

Waiting for some fittings and rigging cord to arrive before pressing on.

I'm going to be really pedantic, Kevin, but at the time of your model Admiralty charts were strictly black-and-white. They might possibly have had the little magenta pointers for lights - I'm not sure when they came in - but definitely not yellow or blue shading.

 

Sorry!

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Lovely work Kevin, and much more than I ever got around to on my 7mm puffer.  You shame me sir...

 

on the pedantry front, is the top of the binnacle on the right way round?  It should have a “window” in the upper rear of the dome so the helmsman can see the compass card.  The two lumps either side may have had green and red (or both black) soft iron balls on them.  Apparently, Lord Kelvin’s balls.  I don’t suppose he’s missing them after all this time.

 

the charts are lovely, but as St E pointed out, probably anachronisms.  If the boat’s in waters the skipper knew well, it would more likely be the Express or Mirror, or some dubious magazine on the chart table...


atb

Simon

 

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Thanks Simon.

 

The binnacle is how it came but I have seen (and used) one that had a sliding cover to protect it...….

Never sure if the soft balls should be painted as I have seen them left in the soft iron colour.

It is my understanding that these balls adjusted the magnetic field around the compass card especially when 'swinging the compass' so it faced the correct north with regard to compensating for the effect of all the metal in the ship.

 

The charts have been sorted this morning and now have the approaches to the Bristol channel from around 1920 and the smaller one of the ports and harbours like Bristol, Milford Haven, Swansea, Cardiff, Newport, Fishguard Bay...…!

 

I agree about common knowledge but, and I speak from experience here as I sailed the Thames estuary then the Solent and surrounding areas for more years than I can remember with my Dad, that local knowledge is brilliant but we always had a chart, tide tables and known bearings to fall back on just in case.

 

Here is the latest picture just a few moments ago showing the replacement charts.

 

SF4.jpg.eebab65022feb47cf65f1df7d8f4f5cf.jpg

 

 

See, I do listen and take on board (pun intended) any comments so please feel absolutely free to carry on pointing out any errors or omissions noted.

Thanks

Postmen has just delivered the replacement fittings and rigging cords so we press on... 

 

Edited by KNP
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Father would have been amazed to hear that 'Snowflake' ever carried charts, certainly that they ever found their way to the bridge.  She was not a particularly suitable vessel for use in the Bristol Channel where her speed was insufficient to cope with the ferocious tidal currents and where the big open sea waves down at the Ilfracombe end must have made life, um, interesting.  She ticked her owners' boxes in that she was cheap to buy and run, and easy to maintain, but she was often in trouble and requiring to be towed out of it.  Sometimes she looked as if she was in trouble but was simply sitting on a sandbank waiting for the tide to turn; puffers are designed to 'take the hard', with strengthened flat bottoms, but this made it next to impossible to hold a course with them or even keep them pointed in roughly the right direction if there was even a suggestion of choppiness!  She had to wait for the tide to be going in the same direction she was trying to go to get anywhere.

 

 

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18 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

I'm going to be really pedantic, Kevin, but at the time of your model Admiralty charts were strictly black-and-white. They might possibly have had the little magenta pointers for lights - I'm not sure when they came in - but definitely not yellow or blue shading.

 

Sorry!

Thanks for the heads up.

So used to seeing modern charts that I never gave it a thought.

Now sorted and I have no problem at all in having an error pointed out..

Edited by KNP
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4 minutes ago, Mick Bonwick said:

 

Has anybody yet mentioned that Little Muddle should be facing the other way?  

No?

Which way should it be facing?

I have been upstairs to the layout and seems to be facing in the right direction to me??

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13 minutes ago, Mick Bonwick said:

 

I didn't say it was wrong. I just wondered if anybody had said that it was. :lol::lol::lol:

Well, nobody said anything when I was up there

.....so it must be OK

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2 hours ago, KNP said:

I reckon, if I paint the trousers/jacket say black or navy with a suitable cream shirt I could have found some crew members.

 

Anybody got any thoughts?

 

 

Sounds good.

 

Snowflake is looking suitably careworn, are you intending leaving her in that state ?

 

Adrian

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3 minutes ago, figworthy said:

 

Sounds good.

 

Snowflake is looking suitably careworn, are you intending leaving her in that state ?

 

Adrian

I’m going to have a go at making her look even more battered and weary..

 

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I've got lots of thoughts, but I have to be careful who (if anyone) I share them with.

 

Thoughts that are applicable to this topic are many and mainly concern admiration, inspiration and fascination. Admiration for the way that everything is thoroughly thought through  prior to implementation. Inspiration because I am invariably moved to go and do some modelling of my own in order to defeat procrastination. Fascination  with the results that continue to pour forth from the organisation surrounding Little Muddle station.

 

Rather than navy and cream, can't you use black and white?

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15 hours ago, Mick Bonwick said:

I've got lots of thoughts, but I have to be careful who (if anyone) I share them with.

 

Thoughts that are applicable to this topic are many and mainly concern admiration, inspiration and fascination. Admiration for the way that everything is thoroughly thought through  prior to implementation. Inspiration because I am invariably moved to go and do some modelling of my own in order to defeat procrastination. Fascination  with the results that continue to pour forth from the organisation surrounding Little Muddle station.

 

Rather than navy and cream, can't you use black and white?

Very true, Mick!

 

It is a fine balance between thinking things through (planning) and procrastination. I invariably get the balance wrong, and then my inspiration runs out as hurdles present themselves.

Like you I am fascinated by the level of results achieved, be it Trains, Boats, (or Automobiles?).

 

Best regards

Paul

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Well, if you recall I do have a lorry with a crate on!!!!!!!

 

and

 

who can forget the ploughing engine.....

 

then there are two cars and a taxi

positively rush hour at Little Muddle

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Since 'Snowflake' was famous throughout the Bristol Channel for having developed 'careworn' into an art form during the pre-war years, and the most unsuitably named vessel since vessels had names (the first recorded is the 'Argo'), this is clearly the right way to go.  She was run on a shoestring and paint was a luxury, and her crew would have been dressed in well worn boiler suits or overalls; we're a long cultural distance from the Transatlantic liners and smart uniforms here.  A skipper, who may wear the mortal remains of a captain's hat, a mate, a stoker masquerading as an engineer, and a 'boy', all of whom, like their ship, have seen better days.  I suggest that ciggies and mugs, not necessarily holding tea, should feature.  As you model high summer, possibly bare arms with tattoos, and dirty vests.  Maybe even some washing hung out to dry.  The men lived aboard in the cabin in the forepeak.

 

On the subject of tea, an absolute essential was the tin of Ideal (condensed) Milk, blue and white vertical stripes IIRC.  This lasted into the 60s and my own days mucking about on pilot boats, guaranteed to induce seasickness.

Edited by The Johnster
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On 11/01/2020 at 16:51, KNP said:

...

 

Wonderful details Kevin, I'm dead impressed! The steering gear cables are really effective, and swaged wire terminals are just great - see @Limpley Stoker 's pic above :) A couple of things about the bridge don't feel quite right (the binnacle, which has no Kelvin's Balls, nor sight glass, and whose lamps seem to be below the height of the compass; and the opened-out chart rather magically clinging to the corner of the sloping chart table), but if those are the only niggles on the enclosed bridge of a vessel on a model railway I think that's pretty amazing! 

 

The figure, however, screams 'Railwayman' to me I'm afraid. I think it's in the clothing - every item of railway garb seems loose and over-sized, the exact opposite of a mariner's clobber. I'd expect your man to be thin, boiler-suited with sleeves rolled up and filthy, with a fag in mouth or behind ear and a brew to hand. Suitably accessoried, the closest two from the Modelu catalogue I'd say would be:

1428C-600x600.jpg1000C-600x600.jpg 

As skipper and engineer respectively...which I think could be accepted as mariners, but which wouldn't tell me they were. If you'll forgive a rather backhanded compliment, I worry this wouldn't be up to the standard of the rest of your exemplary 'show-don't-tell' narrative modellng style, which is rightly revered :) 

 

Anyway, thanks as ever for the inspirational photos, looking forward to the next updates :)

 

Schooner

 

EDIT: A quick Google brought this chap to light: Ole_Friele_Backer_Vestmandr%C3%B8d_Olai.

 

Edited by Schooner
Down from three figures to two on reflection
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1 hour ago, Schooner said:

 

A couple of things about the bridge don't feel quite right (the binnacle, which has no Kelvin's Balls, nor sight glass, and whose lamps seem to be below the height of the compass.

 

 

The compass should look at bit like this.

compass_small.JPG.faa525fca29e86f47cd73de668f5cb9f.JPG

That one was off a Humber Barge, but is the right sort of thing.

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