Customer Reviews

Rigging Period Ship Models: A Step-By-Step Guide to the Intricacies of the Square-Rig

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a completely new approach to the rigging of ships for the wooden ship modeller. The author has done this by pictures alone. Page by page, step by step, rope by rope, a revolution in this type of instruction. Every page depicts a new, full page diagram on the rigging of ships.

As far as this type of genre goes, I am yet to see a publication that can match this, and as such the new bench mark, instead of the usual tome of exhaustive text for people who have lived on boats their entire life.

I have given it four stars as it is based on only one British ship. I can understand and appreciate the author's brilliance in his ability to filter down such a complex subject, but for the price, I would have liked to see a greater variance of ships and an inclusion of small boats, but this does not lessen nor detract from this books quality.

Boy, I wish I'd got this first, instead of some other books - this is just brilliant.
This book does just what its title says, teaches you in oh-so-easy steps how to rig a period ship. It makes no pretence at describing the different sizes of rigging and blocks (other books provide that info), but it does tell you exactly where each line is attached, which blocks it runs through, and, most importantly, where it is belayed ... in full-page, easy-to-understand line drawings, with all extraneous detail removed, and call-outs showing which is what. As one browses through, it all becomes clear ... rigging is not arbitrary, there are rules, and they make real sense when presented in this accessible manner.
The body of the book has ONE page of text - the rest is ALL graphics - brilliant!
In another review, I complained about that book's lack of clarity on belaying-points; this book tackles that problem in spades!
Anyone requiring a book on accurate routing of running and standing rigging need look no further - gets my 5 stars!

What I REALLY liked about this book, to get right to it, is that I understood every direction immediately. Now, you need to know that there are hardly any words in this book!!! That's right, it's basically just a picture book of one specific line or line set. The drawings show you where the line runs, where it's tied off, how it's tied off, and that's all!! It's great! No complicated wordy instructions to translate, just the lines, clear and easy.

The ship that Mr. Petersson uses for his example is the HMS Melampus, an English frigate (36 guns, 18 pounder). By using his drawings, you'll get to know the finer points for that period, but take care here. If you are building a "Mayflower" (as I am now) or a "Victory", "Wasa", or "San Felipe" you'll need to make a few adjustments in your building from the drawings. Just don't copy the picture, match the lines purpose to your particular vessel, if that vessel even had that line.

Great reference, and you should have one. Thanks Mr. Petersson, who by the way lives in Sweden!!

If you only have one book on this subject, this has to be it! The author treats each individual line of a late 18th century man o' war in a separate diagram, showing how it is secured, which blocks and pulleys are used, and where it should be tied off. He covers standing and running rigging, and (the FIRST time I've seen this) covers all the lines used to control the sails! I think I'll try to put sails on the ship I'm building now... a first for me, thanks to this book. The exceptional diagrams almost completely eliminate guess-work. Another example: his diagram in this book is the first time I've seen how to properly tie-off dead-eyes, which explained immediately why I've had trouble with them twisting when under load. This one diagram will save me HOURS (days?!) on the next model. ABSOLUTELY INVALUABLE.

Well here we go again, another book putting me closer and closer to discarding the instructions that came with my kit. For a model builder, life would be difficult without this book. Every rigging line is right there in front of your eyes. Just for clarification, there are no step by step instructions just complete drawings of rigging sequences. All lines are labeled for you on there perspective drawings and there is a set of excellent belaying plans for you near the end of the book. No reading is necessary, just looking. I wondered about its price tag for a book with only drawings but soon realized that all this info in one source was available no where else. Well designed and an informative resource.
Michael

the ship in the book is a 3 mask ship but it works well with the lesser masked ships, I'm a first Time builder of these KITs, I'm building the USS ENTERPRISE, and after a year i'm up to the rigging and this book has been the best i've bought on how to rig this ship or any kit ship, this book is illastrations from page 2 to 114, from rat lines to blocks to dead eyes, everything you want to know and some knots as well, the pictures are detailed and up close, This book may cost alittle more but you WILL NOT GO WRONG in buying this book plain and simple, plus theres illastrations on all the belaying pins and the names of each line that goes to them, so if you want to try to make your kit true to life as you can Buy this book i'ts helping me 100% on the rigging.

Lennarth Petersson's "Rigging Period Ship Models" is pure gold for the modeller.
Even an unfortunate illiterate can follow along to produce accurate rigging.

The only text in the volume is a Table of Contents, a one page Introduction by the author (explaining why he chose the late 18th century British frigate 'Melampus' for his illustrations) and an Index in the rear of the book. The remainder of the volume consists solely of three dimensional illustrations annotated with call-outs.

Unlike other books on rigging, each page illustrates with clear line drawings one part of the ships rigging. As there is no text, there is no need to page hop between text and illustration. These illustrations make it easy for the reader to understand how each part of the rigging was to function and how it was rigged.

I would recommend the modeller use a copier on the particular page showing the rigging he is trying to model. In such fashion, he would have the illustration always handy on or near his workbench.

This book represents money well spent by the modeller. I highly recommend it.

Fred Weinzweig,
New York

great product but it took 1 month to get, but it came from Germany so its ok in the end

Having spent 4 years building a detailed model of the USS Constitution, I ran up against a wall trying to figure out the running rigging. A friend suggested this book as it showed each line and block in a logical and progressive manner that helped cut through all the discriptions and plans used so far. It requires some interpretation, as it is a generic layout that can apply to all square rigged ships.

I wish I had these two books Square rigging and fore and aft rigging fifty years ago when I got involved in building and rigging all types of sailing ships from cat boats to clipper ships and other multi masted sailing ships.The detail makes a lot of thing easier to duplicate and enhance ship model building highly recommended and essential to the novice and intermediate model, may even help some of us older folks