Model Ship Building
A ship is unlikely to survive beyond her natural life of average twenty years, unless special efforts are made to preserve her. Therefore, ship models are the best representatives to commemorate ships that no longer exist. There are different types of models namely built-up, block, half-models, structural and others. Wood has been the traditional material in which to build a model. However, today many amateur kit models are done with plastics and sheet metal. Nonetheless, wood remains the working material for many model ship builders and it continues to project grandeur and finesse.
Block and 'Bread and Butter' Models
The most primitive and simplest method of making a ship model is to carve the hull from a solid block of wood and then add the details. The simple block model might be defined as either a solid or 'bread and butter' with modest detail.
Half-Models
Wooden ship model hulls can be constructed in various ways. Another popular way is the built-up model or as most popularly known 'the bread and butter construction'. The model maker builds up a model by glueing together the hull from separate pieces of wood. Various horizontal or vertical (according to how you want the seam to appear) slices are cut and then pieced together to form a perfect hull. This is not as delicate as the block form but it still requires extreme skill and the help of good templates to achieve an accurate hull form. The half-block model shows one side of the ship, generally the right side or the royal side. By mid-18th century the use of block models to approve ship design declined and designers used 'waterlines' and diagonals that were represented on paper.
Plank-on Frame
The skeleton construction technique is a more authentic method by which ships were in reality built. The frames of the hull are cut to shape and assembled on the keel. This method of construction is more complex and can only be performed successfully by experienced modellers.
The 'plank-on frame' technique is a development of the skeleton technique and demonstrates the planking between and above the wales. Another technique was the plank on solid hull, that is after carving a solid hull it was then planked with strips of wood (glued or nailed) to achieve a realistic appearance.
Waterline models
Waterline models appeared in the 19th century and ships' draughts are now shown just as they would appear in the sea from the waterline above only.
In the 19th century, the Royal Ship Society used ship models with different waterlines to conduct experiments in specialized tanks in order to monitor the resistance of water to bodies moved on its surface.
Builders' Models
Early ship builders knew little about drafting or mathematics. Instead of drawing plans, shipwrights used models to show their prospective customers how the full-size ship would appear. Then the models became the shipwright's plans. Ship models produced by the shipyards are referred to as builders' models and fall in two categories:
1. Those made for the ship owners
2. Those for the shipbuilders