Deadeyes Installed

Upgrading to deadeye purchase blocks on your shrouds carries no guarantee of improved performance. But on the scale of "how cool is that?", the ranking is very high.



The Doryman Valgerda, Saga, is a very cool boat.







Thanks go out to Paul Miller who suggested this upgrade and made a substantial effort to make it happen.




If you ever wonder how much exertion it takes to post a simple missive such as this - consider that this small project has been actively on the burner for over four months. I could give you all the details but who, honestly, wants to know?

Never a dull moment...

Odds 'n Ends

Organizing winter projects.....



This is how the deadeyes will look when set up on the shrouds of Saga. The top set are turned and seized with tarred marlin, which took a long time and was very hard on the hands. If you want to see how this was done, check With Needle and Palm.
I'm still working on the straps that will attach the bottom set to the chainplates.

This is more than an exercise in anachronism. A simple block and tackle is a worthy replacement for today's turnbuckle. The turnbuckle costs a lot more, yet is no more effective.
No matter how your boat is fitted, you might find this method useful one day.








Lofting for the Doryman Melonseed has begun. It's cold on the back porch! I noticed today that sometime around the solstice, the setting sun will shine directly down the middle longitude of this room.
(How do you like my new wool hat?)






In the corner is a secondhand miniature barrel stove, once used in a teepee. It burns very small dimensional wood, which is perfect for shop scraps. I'll have it hooked up and working in a couple days. Don't expect much from this little heater, but it will keep the teapot warm.

Deadeye

Remember when I told you that Paul Miller offered to make some deadeyes for Saga?

The man is good as his word.










These lovely carvings have a way to go before they become rigging, but I had to show them off. They are turned from some Black Locust wood Paul had left over from making his own deadeyes.





As you can see, each piece is essentially a triple block. The whole assembly provides a three-to-one tackle for setting shroud tension. One block has a half-round groove 3/8" wide and is spliced directly to the shroud wire, which is typically wormed, parceled and served.*








The blocks work in pairs, with the other end strapped to a chainplate. This second block has a groove cut in it's circumference 5/8" wide and will require a custom made bronze strap.






It may be awhile before Saga's deadeyes look as bristol as those on Paul's Friendship.

First, the finish. Paul applied one coat of Cetol, his favorite, to my new deadeyes.





Hervey Garret Smith has been known to say, "Deadeyes and lanyards are seen but seldom nowadays, having been supplanted by the more easily obtained turnbuckles. Deadeyes have long since disappeared from the marine hardware catalogs and are obtainable only on special order, if at all. Yachtsmen wishing to convert to the old fashioned rig will probably make their own..."

* From the DoryMan Glossary:
Worm, Parcel and Serve – To protect a section of rope or wire from chafing by laying yarns (worming) to fill in the cuntlines, wrapping canvas along the length (parceling) and seizing marline or other small stuff around it (serving).
.