Ships in Bottles for Schools

.....is to show schools around the World this ancient secret process that craftsmen

have jealously guarded for many, many years. Today, we want to bring it out into the

open and share it with you.........to make sure this valuable information on ‘How To Make Sailing Ships in Bottles,’ is given FREE! to every school, educational

establishments and public librarys throughout the World. We have made a personal

undertaking that this craft is not lost to the future generations and that they will have a

visual and practical knowledge of how to make sailing ships in bottles.

Thank you for helping show and teach this ancient secret craft to the World.

T Wally Royal Master Craftsman Director/Writer 2013Rod Mills

Welcome to the exciting world of making sailing ships in bottles.

We wanted to get this 60 page book out FREE! to schools, libraries, other eductional institutions and people interested

in this hobby.....why? There are not many people out there with experience in the area of making ships in bottles who

really want to pass on this knowledge to people (especially young people), and see this practise carried on in future

generations. This book has sufficient information to allow anyone (from 7 to 70 years old) to learn this craft and build

a ship with 2 days - in normal school hours, as a part of a school curriculum or as a hobby. Over the years of teaching

this subject in schools, homes, markets and maritime institutions, thousands of people in Australia have been shown

these simple procedures. School students as young as 7 have brought their model ship in a bottle to show the class

the next day. The procedures are that simple. And guess who’s pleased the most?........the student. And, the teacher -

who gets a pat on the back from the school authorities...plus the parents. Sometimes the local newspaper gets in-

volved and I am photographed with the students in the classroom workshop. Mind you I didn’t have this book avail-

able in those days, and it was the ‘hands-on’ experience in front of them, that made the knowledge easier to learn. We

wrote the book and handed it out at $60 each, allowing schools to photocopy them freely. Today it’s yours - FREE!

...........and then, it was a natural progression. People asked if there was a teaching DVD available for schools.

Students as young as 7 have brought their model ship to show the class the next day. The procedures are that simple......really, really easy.

It had to be a DVD that showed beginners how to do this in the classroom. Step by step. A simple, visual demonstration of

the procedures that had been created. We got swamped by schools asking for it - proving to be an excellent teaching tool

of an unknown craft. Many teachers have emphasized this to me, “it’s the easiest lesson I have taught pupils in years!”

Repeating the video four or six times a year to various classes is an important part of their annual teaching curriculum.

DOWNLOAD YOUR DVD TODAY - US$672.00 www.sailingshipsinbottlesforschools.com

“The traditional skills involved in building ships in bottles is waning in our society and bypassing this generation. In many instances these skills are unheard of and as such it was perhaps a once in a lifetime chance for our students to experience this craft.” (Principal, Katherine School of the Air, Australia)

PRACTICAL ON CAMERA STEP-BY-STEP TEACHING BY ROD MILLS - 40 MINUTES OF HIS 50 YEARS EXPERTISE AND INSTRUCTION.

LIMITED INTRODUCTORY OFFER ENDS JULY 30 2014 - NORMALLY US$1147.00

Goal - Free Information - Contents - Introduction - Overview 2 - 10Tools required for this craft 11Suitable bottles for a great presentation 12 - 13Making a sailing ship 14 - 18How to curl ship’s sails 19 - 22 How to make a racing yacht 23 - 25How to make a racing yacht spinnaker 26 - 27How to make a gaff rigged schooner 28 - 30How to make a topsail schooner 31 - 32How to make a brigantine 33 - 34How to make a barque 35 - 36How to make a sailing clipper 37 - 39The Cutty Sark Clipper 40 - 41Sailing ships in a bottle library 42 - 48How your school can make money from this hobby 49 - 50Rod Mills Biography 51 - 52Sailing ships in a bottle glossary 53 - 57 Reference Acknowledgements 58

CarPeye Publishing, Cooranbong, NSW 2265 Australia. First published by CarPeye Publishing 2003 - Copyright: CarPeye Publishing - Text copyright: Rod Mills & T Wally RoyalA l l r i g h t s r e se r ved . No pa r t o f t h i s pub l i c a t i on may be r ep r oduced , s t o r ed i n a r e t r i e va l s y s t em o r t r ansm i t t ed by any means , e l e c t r on i c , mechan i ca l , pho t copy i ng o r o t he rw i se , w i t hou t t he p r i o r pe rm i s s i on

of the publisher. Editor, Project Co-ordinator & Art Director: T Wally Royal. Sailing Consultant: Taylor Keriata. Picture Manager: Cam Tauaiti. Proofreader: Maddy Rae.

cc

I decided years ago I would put together a specialist beginners manual that teaches how to build sailing ships in bottles. In the following pages I have put together a simple step by step procedure of various types of sailing ships that anyone, (you could be 7 years old or 70 years old), can make very easily and quickly.

Once you have prepared the various bits and pieces that are required, such as making a number of masts, cleaning, preparing the different sized bottles, cutting out the sails etc, you will then be ready for the closest assembly line you could get to mass production!

You will notice as you go through the motions of ‘curling’ a sail or carving a hull, the procedure re-mains the same....over and over again. You might even come up with an easier way to do the job than me. If you do, my best advice is to go with it - you’ll get a lot more out of this than just job sat-isfaction. In fact some of the people (and schools) I have taught, get more than just job satisfaction, some make income from this hobby - see page 49.

I wish you well with this.....and I hope it proves to be financially rewardingfor you as it has been for me, and other people I have taught......ships ahoy! and many bottles later,

Rod Mills5

Master Craftsman

Background Just, HOW how do they put those ships in there? Obviously, the ship is much larger than

the opening. Some people think that the bottle is cut away and the ship is assembled

on the outside and then placed inside…..WRONG! It’s all assembled on the outside and

then carefully slipped through the neck being s-l-o-w-ly pulled (manipulated is a better

word) to full sail by various strings attached and instruments, in our case home made....

explained later on in this book.

History Over the centuries, sailors on ships of all sizes and types have used scrap wood, cloth,

and rope to make model or toy boats to pass away the long boring hours at sea. Over

4000 years ago the Egyptians buried miniature ships with their mummified masters,

and the Phoenicians, Etruscans, and Greeks produced models that are shown in wall

murals. From that we can believe they were making models back then.

The making of model ships in bottles is really only a modern day phenomenon, due

largely to the poor quality of early bottles. When glass manufacturing improved, bottles

were clearer, less distorted, and free of bubbles and heavy seams. But in these times,

minor distortions, soft tints, and the antique appearance of hand-blown bottles are seen

6

7

as advantages for the model maker adding character to the look. There are glass con-

tainers in the market place that suit this craft; for instance large outdoor light bulbs are

ideal - sealed glass vases sometimes have tiny openings that can be used.....just use

your imagination when the opportunity presents itself.

Model ships were not bottled until about 1850 when the great clipper ships plied the seas

from port cities in England and America. Sometimes there were as many as seven masts

on a vessel and many, many sails for the speeds needed to cross oceans and deliver

products quickly to the many international trading ports. These ships were equipped

with guns (“pirates on starboard Sir!”) and the large crews of sailors for manning the

rigging and weapons. Most of the classic sailing ships have been preserved in bottles

and are in maritime museums arond the world.

Raw Materials The wood for the hull and the glass bottle should be chosen after the model is selected;

the proportions of the ship are better suited to some bottles, and measurements of the

ship parts are controlled by the inner diameter of the neck of the bottle. Usually, Balsa

wood is best, easy to carve and sand. Bottles with flat sides are great as they can lay

on their side for display easily - three-sided bottles with “dimples” also display easily.

But, round bottles require stands or supports for stability. Ships with more than three

masts look sleek in slender in elongated bottles. Sloops, schooners, and other ships

with one or two masts fit shorter bottles well. Other wood supplies include bamboo

cocktail skewers or small-diameter dowels for spars. Sandpaper in grades from about

120-200 for smoothing the hull and other wood are also essential.

Paint thinner, model enamels in a variety of colors, and fine paintbrushes are the ma-

terials and tools for painting the ship parts. Medium-weight white bond paper is cut into

the shapes of the sails, and seams are drawn on with a pencil or tweezers that are

used to curve the sails.

The “sea” beneath the ship can be made with one of two materials. Sometimes, pieces

of blue paper work but in larger models plasticene is best to shape the sea - be careful

how you choose the best sea color. Small vessels should sail on green or greenish blue

near coastal water, rather than the deep blue of the open ocean. Remember, ships do

8

not confront rough seas in full sail. Plasticene

has the advantage of providing its own adhe-

sive effect. If it is used as the sea, it should be

added first the bottle in the construction process.

Otherwise, the bottle should have glue placed

on the area that holds the ship. Most glues stay wet in the confines of the bottle until the ship

is collapsed to fit in the bottle.

Medium-weight bond paper is excellent for sails

because it can be easily marked and curled. Soaking it in tea or coffee, drying it, and

ironing it can “age” the paper. The sails should be drawn on the paper to match the

KATHERINE SCHOOL OF THE AIR, NT - AUSTRALIA....I am writing on behalf of the staff, students and parents of Litchfield, and Kakadu to express our appreciation in conducting these lessons and passing on the many, many skills and knowledge involved in your specialized craft to our students and the adults present. The traditional skills involved in building ships in bottles is waning in our society and bypassing this generation. In many instances these skills are unheard of and as such it was perhaps a once in a lifetime chance for our students to experience this craft. Our students really appreciate it when experts such as yourself give of themselves in both knowledge and time and travel.

dimensions on the plan.

After cutting out the sails, each one should be held in position against its spar to confirm

the fit. The seams and reef points (short lengths of rigging that pull up the bases of the

sails) are drawn on the sails with a sharp-pointed pencil.The sails are glued in place

with clear glue, some are glued along one side only so the mast and other spars will

fold back. The edges that should be glued must be carefully checked.

You also need a selection of simple tools like stanley knives, a hobby drill with fine bits,

and miniature screwdrivers, saws, and a vise - all explained in full later in the book.

Some tools have to be made for the specific bottle and model size. These include wire

tweezers, scoops, and tampers for reaching the back of the bottle and for scooping and

tamping plasticene or clay into place. Clothes hangers can be cut and shaped into long

handles for these tools, and pieces cut from a tin can should be soldered to the wire to

finish them to suit your need....explained later in this book. Remember, we wrote it for

beginners and have tried to keep it simple so that you will have a ship in a bottle on

your shelf within a few days.

Design The ships that are featured in bottles are historical subjects, and part of the

modeler’s skill is recreating a miniature version of the original including the colors it was

painted. Design aspects of the ship are the modeler’s choice of which ship to build and

personal depth of research. In this book the simplest of models are constructed along

with some of the basic nautical terms for sails, rigging, and parts of a ship. Proportions

of masts and rigging to hulls, and flags should be as true as possible because some

9

errors will be obvious even to someone who has never seen a ship in a bottle before.,.......

as we have said, this book is for beginners and as time passes, you will get better in

this craft of making sailing ships in a bottle.

As you get more experienced, the types of bottle and display stand or wall mount, and

decorations inside the bottle are a personal choice - bottles may be chosen for size,

shape, color, character, or historical value. Ships have also been sealed in light bulbs

from large, clear globes to Christmas tree bulbs. Watch out for big-big light bulbs that

light shops may have trashed....they are excellent pieces for this craft.

The building process in the next chapters describe in full each step so that you follow a

simple logical order to get your sailing ship in the bottle..

The Future The hobby of building sailing ships in bottles is not for everyone. Love of

research, ships and sea lore, history, woodworking and other skills, and minute details,

as well as considerable patience, are required.....especially patience.

One of the things emphasised in this book is the ability to turn this hobby into a part

time money making venture. I know. I have earned up to $300 a day just showing

people how it is done.....maritime museums love me taking classes during school

holidays and teaching how to make sailing ships in a bottle. School teachers love the

idea of having a workbook and video to explain this ancient art to a class while they

sit back and and let me do the teaching for them through the DVD/video lesson.

10

Most of these tools you will have to make yourself, OR find them in the bathroom

cupboard. You will have to adapt other “things” to suit the job, but like I had to, try and

develop the tools as you go.

tweezers of various lengths hobby knife or scalpel a strong Stanley knife

various lengths of wire tools PVA glue sandpaper timber or balsa for hulls and

also deck housing old business cards or cardboard to cut up for gunwales (railings)

mosquito netting metal ruler twist drills - from .6mm or .7mm through to 3mm

bamboo skewers paper silk or nylon thread with needles and threader acrylic

paint fine paintbrushes modeling clay OR plasticine cutting board

11

#1 wire tool

#2 wire tool

15cm (6 inches)

scalpel

tweezers

ends of tool, foot

12

When you’re about to select a bottle for your ship take notice as to the type of ship

that will go into a particular bottle. You can virtually use ANY GLASS CONTAINER,

providing there is not too much distortion as to detract from viewing your ship.

Some samples are:

perfume bottles....check that the opening is wide enough. An approxi-

mate diameter is 12 mm to13mm. The smallest opening I’ve used is 1/8th

inch or 4mm.

medicine bottles.....go check your local “friendly” chemist to see if he has

some spare.

beer bottles......has Dad got some? Spirits bottles.....come in all sorts of

shapes and sizes. Take account as to whether the bottle is round or square,

triangular because with the round bottles you’ll also have to make a stand

to hold the bottle steady while you are working on it. And, this can be

added to the finished product to give a great presentation. THE most

favoured bottle for hobbyists is the “Dimple Whisky” bottle which is triangular

and does not require a stand. These bottles are very attractive on their own

for a great presentation

13

with a ship inside. Make friends with your local cocktail barman/hotel bar

manager as he just throws these away with the rubbish each week.

wine bottles.....these have a great variety today but you will have to look

hard for a clear glass bottle. They make excellent containers and most have

a slight tint but the elegance of their shape makes a great presentation con-

tainer and does not necessarily take away from the ship. Make the stand as

inconspicuous as possible so that it does not detract from the ship.

plastic bottles can also be used, but they will get scratched and eventu ally

disintegrate. I personally do not recommend them for this reason.

electric light bulbs.......the larger clear ones make excellent containers as

there is no distortion in the glass. The only drawback is that the glass is very

fragile and a great deal of care must be taken if you are going to attempt this.

Through trial and error I have learnt the art of how to open the fused end without

breaking too many. As I have mentioned later on, I once saw a very large light bulb

“outer” which I thought was easier to insert the ship as the opening was about 4” wide

and the effect would be fantastic. Make friends with your local light retailer and see

what he’s about to throw away into his rubbish bin!

This is the basic construction sequence in which to make your sailing ship. Follow

this and you will be seeing great looking models within a few hours.

SEQUENCE TO FOLLOW:

1 Mark out the hull from your balsa board and then carve it and sandpaper to

make it smooth.

2 Mark and drill the holes for masts and bowsprit - glue the bowsprit on.

3 Paint the hull and leave to dry.

4 Prepare bottle with “sea,” - I use blue plasticine or blue paper.

5 Glue the hull into bottle on top of the sea.

6 Measure and cut mast (or masts) to size.....check the height of the inner bottle

from the sea.

7 Glue sails to masts.

8 Curl the sail and glue the mizzen (back) mast into position.

9 Repeat the above with the foremast.

10 Cut out jib sails, curl and glue into position.

11 Leave to dry and seal the bottle.

12 OPTIONAL: Your ship can be gaff rigged by cutting the top of the sail square.

14

......making a

Angle cut for bow and stern

Timber or balsa wood

15

Deck holes, aerial view

NB.....to get a steeper angle on the bow cut further back from the underside of the

hull, until you have the desired angle. Remember, the further aft (back) you cut, the

steeper the angle becomes. As follows:

2 Using a needle, mark the hull for the desired masts and bowsprit, and drill out.

3 I find it easier to paint the hull and bowsprit by turning the hull upside down and

pushing a pin firmly into the underside of the hull, which gives you something to hold

on to while the hull and bowsprit can be painted without touching either. Then by

placing the head of the pin into some plasticine, the painted hull can be left to dry.

4 By measuring the length and width of the bottle, the “sea” can be cut from

blue paper. Place the sea in the palm of your hand and run the tweezers over the

length of the paper to take the shape of the bottle. Then run some pva glue on the

16

inside of the bottle and place the sea on the

glue and spread by running the tweezers over

the paper. If the bottle is to be mounted on a

stand, do this now.

5 Again, by putting a dab of the glue on the

sea, place the hull (stern first) into the bottle

and press firmly onto the glue. Remember to

heel the boat over slightly to port (left) or

starboard (right).

6 Split the bamboo skewers until you have the

right thickness for the masts (approx. 1mm).

Then sharpen one end so that it will fit into the holes drilled for the masts on the deck.

Keep cutting the mast height down until it will stand upright in the hull comfortably.

MANLY VALE PUBLIC SCHOOL...........On behalf of the Enrichment Workshop Co-ordinating Committee I would like to thank you for participating in the work-shop Ships Ahoy! in our October series. The children really enjoyed themselves and they had an exciting experience at sea. Your boats and ships in bottles were an important part of this workshop. Your con-tribution towards making this Enrichment Workshop series a success is really appreciated......Principal

7 Remove the mast from inside and measure, cut and glue the sail to the mast as

follows - on this page.

8 By putting a tiny bit of glue on the foot of the mast, place the mast into position

by holding it midway with the tweezers and pointing the foot towards the back of the

Cut along the dotted line and glue the right angled edge to the mast

17

Run the glue the length of the mast

Mast height above deck to inside of bottle

This end fits into the hole on the deck

Mast Paper

bottle. Place the mast in the hole you have drilled and stand it upright in the bottle -

presuming you have measured it correctly and it fits inside.

9 Repeat the above with the foremast. Push the foot of each sail till they are near

the leeward side (the lower edge of the hull) and remember that the foot of the fore-

sail must be pushed past the main mast. Take a look at pictures of yachts with wind in

their sails to give you an idea of what I mean.

10 Only glue the top and bottom corners of the jib sails before placing into position.

18

Glue spots here

19

......how to curl

INSTRUCTIONS:

1 To curl the mainsail, lay it in the palm of your hand and put the flat edge of the

tweezers alongside the mast on the sail. Then, pressing down gently, d-r-a-g the

tweezers across to the foot of the sail - the harder you push down on the sail, the

more it will curl. Then by putting a tiny bit of glue on the foot of the mast, place the

mast into position by holding it midway with the tweezers and pointing the foot to-

wards the back of the bottle.

2 The sail should now have a curve in it, as though the wind is billowing strongly

outwards (as in Diagram 2 & 3....page 22). Make sure the sail is curved on the COR-

RECT side.

3 Curl jib sail as follows:

Place the sail in the palm of your hand and place the edge of the tweezers (dia 2a

- page 15) on the long straight edge of the jib. Press down on the tweezers and at the

same time drag the tweezers to the foot of the sail.

4 Pick sail ‘B’ up with the tweezers, (Page 18), holding the sail in the middle of the

long straight edge with the foot of the sail towards the stern (back) of the boat. Glue

either end of the sail (above and below the tweezers) and place the sail into position

touching the top end to the mast and the other end (below the tweezers) to the bow

(sharp end) of the boat and gently release the sail. Now, using the #1 wire tool, push

the foot of the sail into position. Make sure when you do this,....do not touch the glue. Otherwise the sail is likely to stick to the wire when removing from the bottle.

20

5 When the glue has dried, seal the bottle with

the selected top.

6 When you have done that, the finished result

should resemble the curve of the sails in Diagram 5

on page 16.

7 NOTE; If you accidentally get glue on the

inside of the bottle, leave it to dry completely. It

will then be like clear plastic and can be removed

by scraping it with a pin, you should then have a

clean bottle again.

Curl square sails as follows:

1. Pick a sail up with the tweezers and place it in the palm of your other hand. and

place the edge of the tweezers on the top straight edge of the sail as seen below..

Press down hard and at the same time drag the tweezers across the sail till it curls.

2 You will see your square piece of paper slowly curl and take the shape of the

sail as those that are seen on the great sailing clipper ships on page 40.

TORBANLEA STATE PRIMARY SCHOOL, AUSTRALIA - on behalf of the students and teach-ers at the Torbanlea School, I would like to thank you for coming to our school to share your knowl-edge. We are planning future classes with parents and locals as the children have enthusiastically embraced the art.

21

d-r-a-g tweezers

(a)

3 This effect on your square piece of paper will be a permanent fixture lasting

years. It also helps, just for looks, if the paper is a little crumpled before you do it.

22

foot of sail

grip with tweezers here,then...

foot of sail

bottom

glue here

(sail B)(sail A)

long

stra

ight

edg

e

tweezers

d-r-a-g tweezers

Birds eye view of sails curl

HISTORY OF RACING YACHTS: Possibly THE most famous racing yacht ever built by

Australians was the one that broke New York Yacht Clubs’ heart in 1983, called, “Aus-

tralia II.” She was so revolutionary with her winged keel hidden beneath her keel that

many threats were issued against her by the opposing Americans...called her “cheat,....

unsportsman-like etc.” Lawsuits were in place to stop her from racing in the 1983 Amer-

ica’s Cup finals - but she won 4 - 3 against the famous American sailor, Denis Connor.

MODEL ANALYSIS: This is definitely one of the hardest and most “finicky” of models

to make....just take your time and watch the “how-to” instructions closely. Here’s a clue

that may help you get a better idea of building a racing yacht - watch yacht races on

TV. See how the lines of yachts are formed, how they look, how they cut through the

water and draw some ideas from them for your yacht. Please note...the bottle should

be standing upright, NOT laying down.....so that the mast can be longer for effect as

you can see on page 19. The mast in most racing yachts are a very dominant feature.

It’s like motor vehicle grunt, the bigger the motor, the faster the you go....so it is with a

racing yacht - the more sail area you can get, the faster your yacht will go.

23

......how to make a

24

Because we are placing this yacht in an upright bottle, there are a few things we

have to observe, so I have added a few pointers:

BASIC CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURE..................I have tried to make it as simple as possible.....as all ships have the same basic shape and the sails are the same with slight differences - according to the type and style, the easi-est way to show you is to repeat the process for every model you make. * Con-struction of a sailing ship - pages 14 - 18 * How to curl a ships sails - pages 19 to 22

1 Referring to diagrams on page 22, pick sail A up with

the tweezers holding it to the top of the mast, while the

foot is pointing straight down. Glue it to the mast. Now,

using the glue stick put a tiny drop of glue on the foot of

the mast and carefully place it into the hole on the deck

with the foot of the sail pointing to the stern (back end) of

the boat. Once the mast is upright in the hull, use the wire

tool to push the the sail around into position.

2 Pick sail B up with the tweezers, see diagram 2, page 22. Holding the sail in the middle of the straight edge, put

a tiny drop of glue on the bottom corner of the sail. Now,

with your other hand hold the bottle in a horizontal

position with the yacht pointing skywards. Carefully move

the sail B between the mast outside the mainsail and touch the bottom with the

OURIMBAH PUBLIC SCHOOL, NSW.........Rod visited our school with his amazing array of ‘Sailing ships in bottles’ in all shapes and sizes - all made by himself. He learnt his trade in the English Merchant Navy during the late 40’s and 50’s – a very talented craftsman who demonstrated the various processes to our school. The children and staff were enthralled by his wonderful skills and presentation – so much that many of them made their models at school the next day. These were a result of the workshops he conducted while he was here. We thorough-ly endorse and recommend Rod Mills teaching video to all schools in Australia as an educational classroom activity for teachers who wish to educate children of this little known art. Marie A. Principal

25

glue on it to the very tip of the bowsprit and gently release the sail. Using the glue

stick, run some glue on the front of the mast from halfway up to the very top of the

mast. With the wire tool carefully move the top of sail B till it touches the glue on the

mast and stand the bottle upright. Make sure when using the wire tool NOT to touch the glue. Otherwise the sail is likely to stick to the wire when it’s removed. The

finished result for a racing yacht should be like the example shown on this page........

or you could lay it down like this cruising yacht below.

Cruising Yacht Racing Yacht

26

INSTRUCTIONS:The procedure is the same as for the other racing yacht except for curling the spinnaker and

placing it into position which is as follows.

Mark out and colour the spinnaker on a piece of paper as you like and then cut it out. Then

cut a piece of thread and glue it to the bottom edge of the sail so that it overhangs on either

side approx 12mm or ½”.

Pick it up with the tweezers and place it in the palm of your other hand. Then place the edge

of the tweezers on one corner at the bottom of the sail, press down on the tweezers and drag

it across to the other bottom corner. It should now have a rounded curve as you see on the

next page - page 27.

Positioning the spinnaker.: Pick the sail up with the tweezers as in diagram b page 21, hold-

ing the spinnaker from the side near the top end. Put a tiny drop of glue on the inside point of

the sail. Now, carefully place the sail in the front of the mast and touch the glued corner to the

masthead and gently release the sail. Place the bottle on the table with the spinnaker down-

wards so that the bottom edge with the thread on it rests against the inside of the bottle and

leave to dry.

......how to make a racing

When the spinnaker has dried in that position use the wire tool to maneuver the ends of the

thread to the deck and glue both corners. Seal the bottle and the finished result should re-

semble this diagram.

hull

bow stern

main sailspinnaker

foot

drag tweezers

bottom corners

top of sail

grip sail with tweezers here

glue

thread(a) (b)thread

threadthread

27

HISTORY OF : Used in the 19th Century as fishing vessels on the heavier northern

hemisphere seas around Europe. A 60 footer that can have up to 15 or 20 sailors

manning the ship

MODEL ANALYSIS: These ships were often converted for the very rich into private

yachts - can be 3 or 4 masted. The variance with this model is that the fore sail and

the main sail are supported on the top edge by a boom which was to control the di-

rection and angle of the sail for optimum speed.

28

......how to make a gaff


drag tweezers

grip mast with tweezers here

foot of masttweezers

run glue length of mast

29

gaff rigged schooner

hullbowsprit

jib sails

stern

gaff

foresail

gaff

mainsail

Top view of curl of sails of gaff rigged schooner

grip with tweezers here,

foot of sail foot of sailbottom

glue here

(a) (b)

long st

raight

edge

tweezers

drag tweezers

gaff rigged schooner

30

31

HISTORY: These were basically island trading vessels mainly around Carribean

and Mediterranean. They had a crew of up to 12 sailors and carried various cargo

which sometimes included livestock. The schooner sail-plan has two or more masts

with the forward mast being shorter or the same height as the rear masts. Most

traditionally rigged schooners are gaff rigged, sometimes carrying a square topsail

on the foremast and, occasionally, a square fore-course (together with the gaff fore-

sail). Schooners carrying square sails are called square-topsail schooners.

......how to make a


drag

tweezers

grip with tweezers here

glue here on inside edge

(a) (b)

32

stern

main sail

topsail schooner

hull

topsail

bowsprit

jib sailsforesail

lower topsail

HISTORY: Brigantines were used as cargo ships much the sames as the topsail

schooners....crew was about 25 to 30 sailors. They were quite slow in speed and

cumbersome so they were easy targets for pirates. In sailing, a brigantine is a vessel

with two masts, only the forward of which was square rigged. Originally the brigantine

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was a small ship carrying both oars and sails. It was a

favorite of Mediterranean pirates and its name comes

from the Italian word “brigantino” which meant brigand’s

ship. In modern parlance, a brigantine is a principally

fore-and-aft rig with a square rigged foremast, as op-

posed to a brig which is square rigged on both masts.

the late 17th century, the Royal Navy used the term

brigantine to refer to small two-masted vessels designed

to be rowed as well as sailed, rigged with square sails on

both masts.

CONSTRUCTION: As with the previous ships you’ve made and especially the topsail

schooner, the procedure is the same.. In fact, in this case copy as close as you can

......how to make a

ST JOHN VIANNEY SCHOOL, NSW AUSTRALIA......Rod agreed to come and show the children how to make sailing ships in a bottle. We really didn’t know what to ex-pect. The children absolutely enjoyed it….many of them purchased the $5 kit and had made a model within 2 days! Some of them were quite well done and as one of our teach-ers said, “an ancient secret was shown to a new generation today. Maybe sailing ships in a bottle will withstand the test in time.” Josephine K, Principal.

to the topsail schooner.....also add a minimum of three square sails on the foremast.

Always work from lowest square sail to the top. To construct the mainsail (the one at

the back of the Brigantine that looks like a triangle above a square) follow the dia-

gram on this page.

Adrag tweezers

drag tweezers

foot of mast

A

tweezers

foot of mastfoot of sail


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Brigantine

THE HISTORY OF THE BARQUE: a Barque is a vessel with at least three masts,

the first two are square rigged, except for the mizzen (last) mast which is fore and

aft rigged. This was the most common type of deep water cargo-carrier in the middle

of the 1800’s. There were other configurations of this vessel including five and four-

masted barques. By the end of the eighteenth century, the term barque (sometimes,

particularly in the USA, spelled bark) came to refer to any vessel with a particular

type of sail-plan. This comprises three (or more) masts, fore-and-aft sails on the

aftermost mast and square sails on all other masts. Barques were the workhorse of

the Golden Age of Sail in the mid 19th century as they attained passages that nearly

matched full rigged ships but could operate with smaller crews. The advantage of

these rigs was that they needed smaller (therefore cheaper) crews than a compa-

rable full-rigged ship or brig-rigged vessel as there were fewer of the labour intensive

square sails. Also the rig itself is cheaper. Conversely, the ship rig tended to be re-

tained for training vessels where the larger the crew, the more seamen were trained.

Another advantage is that a barque can outperform a schooner or barkentine, and is

both easier to handle and better to rise toward wind than a full-rigged ship.

35

......how to make a

36

CONSTRUCTION: As with the previous ships you’ve made and especially the topsail

schooner, the procedure is the same.. In fact, in this case copy as close as you can to

the topsail schooner.....also add a minimum of three square sails on the foremast.

Always work from lowest square sail to the top. To construct the mainsail (the one at

the back that looks like a triangle above a square) follow the diagram on this page.

Adrag tweezers

drag tweezers

foot of mast

A

tweezers



Barque Barque

37

THE HISTORY OF THE CLIPPER: During the 1800’s the Clipper was one of the most

important ships on the seas of the world - an equivalent of today’s international couri-

ers. Built for speed, she was compact with long graceful lines that sliced through the

sea and her sails catching all the local weather winds that could be caught, for her

time she was the fastest in the ocean. Built for the fast trading market, she could do

more Asian, Australian or Californian runs than any other craft of her time and there-

fore made a lot of money for her owners with her grain, tea or cotton cargoes. Clip-

pers needed large crews to adjust the sails according to wind conditions. This task

was often carried out while hanging on to soaking, slippery rigging and the movement

of the mast from side to side in heaavy seas.

MODEL ANALYSIS: This is definitely the hardest model to put together, so take your

time and you will have a masterpiece for your display. Quick suggestion.......find a

large, wide neck bottle/container. For instance I was shown a large outdoor bulb pro-

tector/casing that would easily have an opening of say 8 cm and an inside space of

probably 30cm. Nice and easy to work with for such an intricate ship such as this.

......how to make a

Don’t be limited to small bottles....the larger the bottle, the larger the model, the

more spectacular the display! not only that, everything is so much easier for you to

make. Of course, everything has to be scaled UP now to suit the size of the receiv-

ing bottle, but with a little bit of measuring it can easily be done.

As with all of the samples before, I’ve put a diagram of the model right up front for

you to contemplate........ with this one there is a lot to contemplate! believe me. So-

o-o-o, .....what are we up for? lets take a look at the job ahead of you.

As in next page diagram, we see 23 individual sails,.....9 in the triangular group,

13 in the square group and 1 main sail, 3 masts, 1 bowsprit and a hull. Don’t be

daunted by these numbers, remember this is probably the most difficult model in this

book.

INSTRUCTIONS:This is an upscale construction of the brigantine. So copy the brigantine’s procedure

(on page 33) and add masts and sails accordingly. The difference is the number of

masts and the increased number of sails that come with this ship. Obviously, a much

more intricate job, but certainly achievable. Be careful of jib sail sizing according to your

bottle dimensions and relative to placement from each mast. As in the above diagram we

see 23 individual sails,.......9 in the triangular group,13 in the square group and 1 main sail.

3 masts, 1 bowsprit and a hull.

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39

1

2

3

4

5

6

7 10

9

8

11

12

13

14

15

16 19

20

21

22

17

1823

hullbowsprit

mastmast

mast

Adrag tweezers

drag tweezers

foot of mast

A

tweezers



On the afternoon of Monday, 22nd November, 1869, a beautiful clipper ship displac-ing 963 tons was launched from Scott and Linton’s shipyard at Dumbarton, on the Clyde. She carried a name that was to become famous throughout the world and was destined to win a place in the hearts of British seamen second only to Nelson’s immortal Victory. Her name was the Cutty Sark.The Cutty Sark was designed by Hercules Linton as a composite built extreme clip-per ship for “Old White Hat” Jock Willis of London. She sailed on the China Tea Trade for a couple of seasons without distinguishing herself and lost her rudder in 1872 off the Cape of Good Hope when racing Thermopylae for London with the first tea.She was moved over to the Australian wool trade when the tea trade was taken over by the steam ships. Here she proved to be a regularly fast sailer. Then in 1922 she was purchased by Capt. Dowman and restored for use as a stationary training ship, first at Falmouth then later in 1938 she was moved to The Thames where she re-mained until 1949 after which she was permanently dry-docked at Greenwich UK as a museum ship.

Her registered measurements were as follows: gross tons - 963 net tons -

921 length - 212 feet 5 inches breadth - 36 feet depth - 21 feet

40

......the fastest clipper ship

moulded depth - 22 feet 5 inches The extreme length of bowsprit and jib-booms was 60 feet, the length of mainmast from deck to truck 145 feet 9 inches mainyard 78

feet and spanker-boom 280 feet. She is the most famous ship in the world She is a gateway to the World Heritage Site at Greenwich and is a key asset to both

the World Heritage Site and the Borough of Greenwich. A great epitome of the

great age of sail The only surviving extreme clipper, and the only tea clipper still

in existence. Most of her hull fabric survives from her original construction and she

is the best example of a merchant composite construction vessel. Preserved in Greenwich partly as a memorial to the men of the merchant navy, particularly those

who lost their lives in the world wars. Is the world’s sole surviving extreme clip-per, a type of vessel that was the highest development of the fast commercial sailing

ship, with the majority of her hull fabric surviving from her original construction. Her fine lines – a considerable part of her appeal – are defined by her frames which form part of the vessel’s composite construction; a construction technique of which

she is the best surviving example. As a tea clipper, she is tangible evidence of the importance of tea in 19th century trade and cultural life.MONDAY MAY 21, 2007......Fire today ravaged the Cutty Sark, causing extensive damage to the world’s last remaining tea clipper. A “substantial” blaze had engulfed the timber and iron hulled ship, which has been undergoing a £25m renovation.

41





42

......sailing ships in bottles

Cruising Yacht

43

Clipper

44

45

Topsail Schooner

Brigantine

46

Brig

47

Brig

Barque

48

“No matter where you set up a display/shop/market/ show/exhibition, you can almost guarantee you will be the ONLY person with ship in a bottle display.” Rod Mills

Here is a list of places that will allow you to sell your product: souvenir shops charter vessels ship chandlery nautical shops

maritime museums historical museums cruise liners private yacht own-

ers......they all want a model of their yacht in a bottle...and who’s the most likely person

to do it?....YOU!

How to help your school with fundraising: make 100 models and get the local newspaper to photograph the models to sell

to the public set up a special exhibition day and get the headmaster to write to all

parents to invite family members arrange for a school promotion inside the local

shopping centre of the models made, and invite the local television news team along,

they’re always looking for hot local news. Again.....it’s you! donate your best model

49

......how your school can make money from

to a local charity to raffle off. But make sure you get high profile local media coverage from that donation for your near future exhibition which you are about to do. set up a stand at the local weekend market......every market will welcome you with open arms. get your biggest and best model.....then put it on ebay for a substantial price. set up a ship in a bottle model making competition in your state. Find a local boat chandlery to sponsor the prizes.

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51

I made my first ship in a bottle in 1958 while I was a merchant seaman on board

cargo ships that sailed around the world. I had to been to over 30 different countries

by the time I was 21 and had seen many kinds of ships in my travels. I learnt the art

from one of the seaman who was my watchmate on a cargo ship sailing to Canada

and the US from Europe. Since then I have literally made thousands of ships in

bottles, mostly small models and shared this knowledge with many people, schools,

museums and shows here in Australia and abroad. I have also been mentioned in

the top 500 artists listed in the “Who’s Who of Australian Artists.

Notably, at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney, Melbourne

Brisbane, and Gladstone (in Queensland), there are models that I have

made at various times, on display. Most of the times I have been involved

with museums, I have conducted 10 day workshops which included how to make a

simple model of a ship in a bottle. This exercise taught children as young as 7 (and up

to 70 years old) in about 10 minutes to make the ship in a bottle. I have taught this craft

in many schools throughout Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and New

South Wales with a concentrated effort in Queensland and the far north coast of WA.

biography

Many of the parents of the students from the schools have contacted me to buy my

video and DVD as further information for their children. One of the observations I have

heard back from teachers who have had me in their classroom, is that this craft en-

grosses the students so much that the teacher can sit back and let the class learn by

the video without much input from them. For the pupils involved, because this craft is

such a challenge they seem to have a higher level of interest - plus it adds to their cre-

ativity because their imagination is stretched to see the end product and the result is

the satisfaction of their endeavours. I tell the students, ‘if you never break this bottle,

it will be with you forever.’ Over the years, I have made just about every type of sailing

craft from the early days of sailing through to the most modern guided missile destroy-

ers afloat today. There have also been trawlers, tugboats, aircraft carriers, water skiers,

paraflyers and a tiger moth aeroplane in a bottle! One of the most remarkable models

I have successfully attempted is a yacht in a glass container measuring 4mm x 7mm -

and possibly the largest man in a bottle (working in a ship’s cabin) putting another man

in another bottle who has a smaller ship in a bottle, which is actually a torch bulb. I wish

all who take up this hobby endless fun and satisfaction in your ship in a bottle achieve-

ments.

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......ships ahoy - best regards,

Rod Mills

53

......sailing ships in bottles

aft or abaft - the rear part of the ship. abeam - across the ship, at right angles to its length.anchor - a weight on the end of a rope used to secure a ship when mooring. Normally tied to the bow of the ship, although stern anchors are also used.astrolabe - an instrument used by sailors to find a ship’s latitude...ie how far north or south of the equator it was. It measured the height of the sun at night the Pole Star above the horizonballast - added weight to a craft to stabilise sailing. beam - width of craft at its widest point.berth - the place where a ship ties up.bilge - the bottom of a ship.Blackbeard the pirate - the most famous of all pirates hailing from the Caribbean. When the British navy finally caught him they hung his head from the bowsprit of their ship. boom - the pole along the foot of a sail bow - the front end of the ship or boat. bowsprit - the wooden beam that sticks out from the front of a sailing ship to attach rigging for the forward sails. bridge - the raised area where the ship’s Captain stands and commands the ship. bulkhead - a cross wall in the bottom of a ship that makes a watertight compartment. chronometer - a highly accurate sea clock which keeps strict time at sea and is used in navigation. Made in 1760 it was the size of a pocketwatch. Harrison, the inventor, was awarded a huge prize for solving the longitude problem. clipper - 1800’s sailing ships - had long slim hulls with a vast amount of sail which

54

meant that they were fast in good winds but also kept moving in calm conditions. Their speed was more important so they carried valuable cargoes. compass - a navigation instrument that uses North to find true direction. cordage - refers to the ropes, called lines, that connect and manipulate sails. Is attached to the spars and sometimes the sails by systems of metal pulleys and clips. The materials chosen for cordage are determined by the strength and weight of the rope.deck - nautical word for floor. draught - depth of a ship below the water.fathom - unit of length used for measuring the depth of the water - equal to 6 feet. fore - towards the front of the ship forecastle - the front raised part of the ship often used as crew’s quarters. galleon - a large sailing ship built high in the front and back used in sea wars during the 15th century...popular with the Spanish. hatch - an opening on the deck or its opening.heel - when a ship leans over to one side it is said to heel over. hold - the below part of the deck housing cargo. hull - the part or body of the ship that sits in the water. jolly roger - the pirates flag with a white skull and crossbones on black background. junk - the Asians still use these ships - flat bottomed,rigged with square sails strengthened by thin bamboo battens that allows the sail to hold its shape and pro-duce better sailpower. keel - the lowest timber running fore and aft of the whole ship supporting the frame-work. Todays sail boat keels extend up to 20 feet below the water to give stability in

55

windy conditions. knot - a unit of speed at sea - equal to 1.852 kilometers per hour.LOA - overall length of a craft lateen - term used to describe a triangualar sail used by ships in the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf.latitude - distance from the equator. Lines that run around the Earth, parrallel with the equator.longitude - the distance, measured in degrees east or west of a line running through Greenwich, England. These lines circle the Earth (running vertically) passing through the North and South Poles.mainsail - normally the biggest sail on a sailing ship.mast - the tall upright “stick” that supports sails.mizzen - the mast behind the main mast. monsoon - a wind in India and southern Asia which blows from the south-west in the summer and the north-east in the winter.nautical mile - a distance of 6076.1 feet. pirates - a common part of the sailing ship era. They not only had to be fearsome but they had to be superb sailors who were constantly adjusting the ship’s rigging to get the best speed. pitching - the plunging and rising movements of a ship going across the waves.poop deck - the raised deck at the rear of a sailing vessel.port - the left hand side of the ship when facing the bow (front) of a ship. rigging - the network of ropes the help hold a ship’s masts and allows the sails to be controlled.

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sails - are fabric aerofoils designed to catch the wind and manipulate the air currents surrounding the vessel. They are attached to spars and rigging in various ways, such as metal clips, rope hoops, or in a luff-groove. Sails are usually rectangular or triangu-lar in shape, which determines their use and placement. Rectangular sails attached to yards, and hanging perpendicular to the keel line are referred to as square sails, because they are “square” to the keel line (not because of their shape); and this type of sailplan is known as square-rigged. sextant - a navigational instrument used to measure the height of the sun in order to calculate the ship’s latitude. square sail - a sail set across the ship from side to side.starboard - the right hand side of the ship when facing the front.stern - the rear part of the vessel.scrimshaw - the art of carving whalebone. spars - are solid beams used to stabilize and manipulate sails. Masts, yards, booms, gaffs and battens are the most commonly encountered spars. Spars are attached to the sails by systems of clips and cordage designed to allow an appro-priate range of motion while maintaining the aerodynamic properties of the sails. tiller - length of wood fitted to the top of the rudder for steering.wake, or wash - waves or foam caused by a moving ship. watch - spell of duty for a seaman. yard - a pole slung across the mast to support a sail.

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Rod Mills and author T Wally Royal, acknowledge information from Wikipedia - New Zealand National Maritime - Australian Maritme Museum.





Documents

Ships in Bottles for Schools