Charles W Morgan Restoration; A Volunteer's Perspective-1

[Morgan Volunteer]

A week or so ago I posted a picture of a cross beam that will go in Morgan’s stern.



Today it was lifted into position.

That’s it in the center, dwarfed by the crane that will lift it.



The crane operator said it weighs 2,000lbs.



Down through the roof and out through the wall to turn it toward the stern.

[Morgan Volunteer]

It's not all the way in. The round thing is the bowl from the captain's head.



Hours of twisting and prying and massaging.



This is about where it was at quitting time. Today they will finish it up.



Meanwhile we kept busy.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The seaport has a sailing ship, a lobster boat, and a fishing dragger - but none of these boats float in the water.

Bring the kids!



The original milk paint always needed attention so this spring the fleet is getting refurbished.

The lead man on this project started with us on the Scrapin' & Paintin' Team. He and his team are scraping and sanding down to the bare wood.





http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=D727487 6-B0D0-D05E-1AFBF7F0570AC37B


In the engine shop the Packard has one bank assembled to where the valves can be adjusted.

[Morgan Volunteer]

On Saturday Mystic Seaport held a half hull making class. Starting at 9:00 one of the seaports shipwrights introduced himself and explained the process.





During a six hour class there is not enough time for every facet of half hull construction so the models were already glued up. Each student could start carving a hull to take home.

He took pictures too.






Small planes, rasps, gouges, chisels, and sanding blocks are all used.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Low light and fast hands create a bit of a blur.



The instructor also kept the tools sharp.



“Graduation” picture for the class of 2012.



I took this class two years ago. It was great fun.

My model hangs on my family room wall.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Another bottom plank.







When one end is secure the crew starts to bend it into place.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Now it sits for a few days and then the trunnels will go in.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Spring is beginning to show.









The seaport is open full time and visitors are starting to come.







I have a lot more this week but the tax man has to come first.

Abe Lincoln died, the Titanic sank, and the tax man gets his due, all on April 15^th.

And people think the 13th is unlucky?

[Canoez]

How many lobsters would this hold?

[Morgan Volunteer]

Bottom work continues.

From a log.



To rough.



To finished.



Then steaming.




And then Git R' done.




Fastening will come next.

[Morgan Volunteer]

After our work on the captain’s wife’s deck cabin, it is back in place in front of the Morgan. An interpreter is often stationed there to explain to visitors about the restoration and other information about the Morgan.



This is the only item we have scraped and painted that is back in place. Everything else needs to wait until the rebuild is done.

Another cabin we helped on is the ticket booth on the Sabino dock. The crew that restored the playground boats did the bulk of the work on this one.









After a job well done, take a break.

[Gerarddm]

The amount of work to be done there is staggering. Kudos to all of you.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The crew that restored the playground boats did the bulk of the work. We just showed up for the finishing touches.






It is very fast drying paint. Good thing too. There were kids on it in an instant.

The little sailor and his Mom were pretending to fish. They brought in some whoppers too.



Here are a few random pictures from this week. Two shipwrights are carrying a template for another hull plank. There is an assembly line of planks coming along.



That massive piece installed last week in the stern had a couple of rivets installed to secure it. A copper rod was installed and then two men started to hammer.

The trick was to hit each end at the same time. It would take five or six hits before they were in perfect unison. I arrived just seconds too late to get a video of it.




Inside.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The Hartforde Engine is almost done.



Our gang is varnishing the motor mount.



Some of the hardware on Morgan's mast has been painted and installed.





Donations come in all forms. This is the back wall of the galley. The back side of the stove sits just inside the door. Somewhere along the way, a pair of galvanized steel hinges had been installed and then painted. I found this pair of brass hinges at an antique sale and bought them. Management liked them too and told me to put them on.



This is the first caulking I have seen.

[Morgan Volunteer]

I had seen this advertized on the Mystic Seaport website. I didn't give it any thought beyond that. Then yesterday we took a walk and went into the Schaefer Exhibit Hall. The last time I was in there it was all about tug Boats and was aimed at children. (At least that’s the way I saw it.) This is different. I need to go back and take a better look next week. This stuff is amazing.


http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.c...16929B9EB21314





My father-in-law actually remembered seeing boats like this on Long Island Sound when he was a boy in the 1920's.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Check out this detail.

[Morgan Volunteer]

One of our crew is related to Sherman.

The seaport was holding Pirate Days so there were a lot of people.



http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.c...81FC580E72A639

There were pirates all over the place.





In the galley too.

This little girl wasn’t going to let a pirate get the best of her, she just stared him down until he backed off.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Two new knees were added to the top of the cross piece installed a couple of weeks ago. This is the template in place.



The new knee.



As volunteers, sometimes we get pressed into service. It needed to go up where we were working, so we got to haul it up.







Fit like a glove.

[Morgan Volunteer]

We had a great day on Tuesday this week. The crew of Lynx invited the staff and volunteers to go out for a shakedown cruise.

http://www.privateerlynx.com/



The captain welcomed us on board.



A tug got us away from the dock.



Wait for the bridge.



And the Amtrak bridge.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The Coast Guard was on board for an inspection.

He was explaining to us how they pulled some of the fasteners from the planking for inspection. The screws appeared to be about #14 x 3 ½”. They have been in the hull for ten years and one of the three had the slightest corrosion at the area where the planking meets the frame. His opinion was the hull is in excellent condition.








It was a beautiful day and the wind was good.



The river is beautiful. If you can’t bring your own boat you can take the evening cruise on the Sabino. She sails down to the mouth of the river almost every evening in the summer.

http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.c...FF4F8D9D7F35B4

But…We were out there to go sailing.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The compass looks old. Probably older than me.



However the GPS is new.

[Morgan Volunteer]

After a couple of hours of sailing and making sure all the equipment was working, it was time to head in.



The cowboy position? I never heard of it before but...



On the ride in the Mystic Seaport crew and the Lynx crew compared knives. That's her knife in his hand.



Back in the river we passed my favorite house.



The Lynx crew prepared to shoot the cannons.



Pricking the charge.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Friction primers are used to ignite the powder.




Now we waited for the order to fire.



Ok, let 'er rip.




Ok, so I love a nice cannon.

Back home again.



It was a grand day.

Thank you to the captain and crew of Lynx.

[Sailor]

Good thing there's no shot in there, the recoil would have removed his foot.Great shot though. Pun intended.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The bottom end of the Packard is complete enough to put the oil pan on.




It’s not really an oil pan as the engine has what is called a dry sump. The oil reservoir is a separate tank holding about 30 gallons. (about 120 liters)




This is the transfer pump used to fill the reservoir. It is mounted on the very bottom of the engine.



Since we do not yet have the correct carburetor for it, the guys have made up a manifold to hold a couple of four barrels. Not authentic, but the four barrels are well understood. When we get an original carburetor, the current plan is to use it for show. That may change.





One backfire and it looks like it might make a good bomb, however…The intake manifolds have flame arrestors, so all is well.

This engine is a magnificent piece of engineering, even by today’s standard.

[Morgan Volunteer]

For every plank going into the Morgan there are dozens of black locust trunnels to hold it in place. The trunnel making machine is getting a workout and starting to go through cutters.




Black locust is mean. It eats cutters for breakfast.

Here is where the cutter goes.





Since I own a machine shop the job came to me.

Tools are good to have.



Boring the ID.



Putting on the cutting edge.

[Morgan Volunteer]

After heat treat the blanks were cut in half making two cutters from each.






All done.



Now he can make more trunnels.

[Thad]

Nice machines, good job!

[Morgan Volunteer]

Road Trip!

One of our Scrapin’ & Paintin’ crewmembers also volunteers at a local historic sawmill. He arraigned another road trip for several of us.





This is thought to be the oldest operational sawmill in the country using original equipment, on the original site, and in the original building.

It was built in 1868 and was in continuous use until 1938 when New England’s worst hurricane damaged the rear of the building.

The town of Ledyard acquired the property and made it into a park.

It is said that one end of the pond has a play ground for six year olds and the other end has a playground for 60 year olds.

“Down by the old mill pond.” This is the real deal!







The up down saw is powered by a water turbine. To operate it you start by turning on the water.

Open the gate and let the water run.



The water drops nine feet into the building where it spins a turbine. The turbine is in the cellar under the saw. The vertical turbine shaft turns the horizontal bevel gears that drive the flywheel on the other side of the room. Attached to the flywheel is a connecting rod that connects to the saw up stairs.

Using a wheel located up stairs by the saw, the water is controlled by the valve located on the back wall shown here. As the horizontal shaft at the top of this picture turns, a gear on the ends lifts the rack and the gate valve. This starts the water and the turbine. (It is supported on the other end by the diagonal brace.)

[Morgan Volunteer]

The saw.




We had about 15 Mystic people there.




This tool is used to set up the next cut.



Each mark is 5/4 plus the kerf.



Once the location is set the log is tapped over to touch the gage. Then the dog is hammered into the end of the log to secure it.



Once the other end is set it’s time to start the saw.

There is a wheel next to the saw that opens the water valve. The saw usually needs a little help to get started but once it’s running its amazing how smoothly it runs.

When up to speed the feed is engaged and the sawdust starts flying.





The feed is advanced by this ratchet.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The ratchet wheel turns a shaft that drives the carriage forward using wooden teeth. This is below looking up.








The teeth engage the bottom of the carriage. Looking up at the bottom.




Even the saw blades are still original.






Now perhaps you can help. There are other old parts and machines stored in the cellar. This machine is used for cutting threads on steel shafts. The name plate is gone and the crew would like to identify it. Does anyone recognize it?



http://www.ledyardsawmill.org/

[Morgan Volunteer]

It started with a dream and this.



Three years ago Pawcatuck Valley Coin Club was planning to celebrate its 50^th anniversary in 2012. They planned to issue a Commemorative coin and wished to include another significant event in the area. The committee chose to honor Mystic Seaport and the restoration of the Charles W. Morgan.

The club approached the seaport with the sketch above.

Initially, the seaport liked the idea but thought the Morgan looked too much like a “bath tub with some sticks in it.”

The committee took the rough draft and went to work.




This is the final choice.







On Wednesday a ceremony was held to give the seaport a set of the commemorative coins plus an 1841 large cent to be used in the stepping ceremony of Morgan’s mast.

The seaports vice president in charge of advancement, Nat Arata, welcomed my scrapin’ & paintin’ partner and coin club treasurer for the presentation.

We volunteers often wear many hats. My partner is also the man who took us to the saw mill the day before.





Steve White, Mystic Seaport president accepts the commemorative coin set and the 1841 large cent from another club officer.

[Morgan Volunteer]

During Steve’s talk he admitted that he too is a Numismatist with a Cheshire Cat grin and his hand in his pocket.



The commemorative set, two coins in silver and two in copper.





This is not the same coin, but I include it to show what it looks like.



The final decision on what coins will go under the masts is up to the “Management” at the seaport but this coin seems like a shoe in.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The Packard has new spark plugs.



The gap is .025.



The next big move is to mount the engine on a temporary base. The transmission goes on next and it needs to be off the engine stand. It’s made from scraps left over from the Morgan restoration.



Nice scrap!

We are now cleaning up the dead eyes and the iron hardware. I’m sure there is a name for this but for now….

My scrapin’ & paintin’ boss on the right.





The needle gun works well on the iron. The coating is tar, not paint.



Twenty three more to go.

[Peerie Maa]

We are now cleaning up the dead eyes and the iron hardware. I’m sure there is a name for this but for now….

My scrapin’ & paintin’ boss on the right.





The needle gun works well on the iron. The coating is tar, not paint.

​

The iron things are called "chains". You need to watch out for needle guns and windy hammers. They can cause a nasty complaint called Vibration White Finger.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Sorry this is late. I was busy last week. I had to get my boat ready for Saturday’s launch. Sorry again, it’s plastic. I can only handle one wooden boat project at a time. (Morgan)



It was raining last Tuesday. One of those dreary cold days when it’s not cold enough to turn on the heat, but you wish someone had.







We stayed in the DuPont barn all day scrapin’ and paintin’.

Started with a staff meeting of the Tuesday Scrapin’ Crew.



Then it was time to go to work.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Just is case you were wondering how they know where all the parts go, this helps.



The Packard now has exhaust manifolds.

[beernd]

This really is my favorite thread, it's such a great place please keep the comment and pictures coming.

Question are the mechanics going to run the Packard engine?

[Morgan Volunteer]

We got to play in the shipwright’s sand box yesterday. Not just doing the also important work of scraping paint, but actually taking a hammer to the ship.

The stem is partially held in place with copper rivets. There may be a more nautical name, but for now I’ll call them rivets. To remove the old stem a Sawzall was used to cut through the rivets holding it in place.

The stem and a couple of other pieces in the hull were all tied together. Our job was to remove what was left of the old rivets so when the stem is installed the existing holes can be used to guide the drill through the new stem.

The first job was to secure the other parts together. We drilled and counter bored two holes for ½” bronze lag bolts. ($17.00 each!) When secure, we hammered out the old rivets.

The old rivets can be seen here.






Driving out the old rivets.







Another job was to secure a rivet that had been cut and left in place. The trick here is to have one man inside, hitting the head of the rivet. He acts like on old time metronome setting the pace. (I wonder if anyone even knows what that is anymore.)

Outside another man holds the tool that will peen the end of the old rivet so it will remain secure. It’s not as strong as the original rivet head but the rivet no longer doing much work.



First you hear the man inside then the outside starts.

[Morgan Volunteer]

The Packard should be running for the Marine Engine show in August.

http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.c...8BEDDAB342FD5F

Last week the Wednesday crew mounted the transmission and this week the Tuesday crew put on the cover.




After a couple of hours of shimming, prying, hammering and persuading, it finally was done.





And one final cotter pin.

“Drop that and you’re a dead man!”

[Trebuchet]

Thanks for documenting this. One of my favorite threads. Loved the water driven saw.

[Morgan Volunteer]

A lot of Morgan’s bottom is long leaf yellow pine. This is an interesting wood.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinus_palustris

Highly resistant to fire while in the tree, it is fire that helps it grow by wiping out the competition. So full of resin, it will not rot and stumps more than 100 years old are dug up in perfect condition.

While it will not rot, as a building material it is quite flammable and burns very hot.

Another bottom plank heading into the DuPont barn.



This plank shows evidence of recent fire damage.



Almost an assembly line. Rough planks go in, finished planks come out.



The old planks are coming off as new ones are added.

On the ship the original joint is marked with orange spray paint. Putting the joint back where it was is just one of thousands of details to keep the restoration as accurate as possible.



Lowering the old plank.



As visitors watch the old plank is rolled out the door.

[Morgan Volunteer]

We wear many hats on the Scrapin’ & Paintin’ crew. Now we are adding salt to preserve the hull. There is nothing new here; shipwrights and seamen have done this for centuries.

1/3 Borate is added to the mix at about 2/3 rock salt. Borate is new to me but on line I read it is good for all sorts of wood destroying elements. (Termites, fungus, insects and alga.) I’m guessing it will slow down teredo worms too. (Soap and Salt?)






As the planking goes on the salt will go in.



Ramming it down and later, water is added.



As we added the water it leaked out half way down the length of the ship where there is no caulking yet.



She is keeping up with the planking. This is the first application of cotton. The oakum comes later.

[Alan Douglas]

I wanted to add my thanks, after reading the entire thread yesterday. Several weeks ago I was on the Seaport website, specifically looking for interior photos of the Morgan, but I didn't find anything. Now, here they are. Also, as the owner of a mill and lathe, I appreciate seeing the related stories of other ongoing projects.

[Morgan Volunteer]

Big fancy looking cameras are often seen at Mystic Seaport but always nosey, we stopped to see what was going on.

WTNH, a Connecticut TV station, was reporting on the Amistad.






Reporter Tina Detelj doing an interview



Amistad has been out of commission for two years due to damage done in 2010. Now she will be underway again with her first stop in Norwich, Connecticut to help celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

www.norwichfreedombell.com


Here is the television report from last night’s news. Sorry, you have to watch an ad first.

http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/new_lon...at-sea-in-june

Another sign of spring is the uncovering and starting of the Wichmann. Built in Norway in the 1930s, the 83-horsepower Wichmann semi-diesel was acquired by the Museum and restored in the 1990s. This is one of the engine crew’s favorites.





As with any beast awoken from a long winter’s nap, the Wichmann was cranky. It would only run on one cylinder until it was restarted after lunch. Then it wouldn’t run at all.

Later I could hear it running again but only on one cylinder again. Next week will be better.




I received this from a friend in Baltimore today. If you’re in the area, this might be of interest.

http://www.historicships.org/turnaround_cruise.html

[Morgan Volunteer]

In the DuPont barn, some of the “small” parts are made.



It has to fit, of course, but the surface he is finishing is on a knee that will buried deep in the hull where most people will never see it.



In the bow, this is the opening for the new stem.



We added 600 pounds of salt today.



One scoop at a time.

While my partners worked toward the bow, I worked to the stern.



This one cavity took five, five gallon, pails of salt and we ran out. It still needs at least one more pail full.



That's a lot of salt!

[Morgan Volunteer]

We used the plank as scaffolding. We had to stop our job at 2:30 so the crew could install it.



The crew assembled on time.



The plank going on.



A job well done.




On the other side another one came off.

[Morgan Volunteer]

I just got this from a friend.

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/12/05/wo...ory/index.html

HMS Victory is a much larger ship than the Morgan so naturally the costs will be higher. At 226 feet she is twice as long as Morgan and at 3,500 tons she outweighs Morgan by about ten times. The Morgan’s restoration is costing roughly ¼ of Victory’s $25,000,000. Most of Morgan funding comes from private donations.

While Victory is a wonderful ship, she is not afloat and has not been for years.





CW Morgan is, and always has been afloat, and will set sail again in 2014!

Put that in your teacup Lord Nelson!





On a more serious note, congratulations to the British Navy and HMS Victory. Well done.

Perhaps one of your volunteers could start a similar thread on the Wooden Boat Forum.


https://secure2.convio.net/mystic/si...donation=form1

[Peerie Maa]

Perhaps one of your volunteers could start a similar thread on the Wooden Boat Forum.

HMS Victory is still in commission as a warship and so is the responsibility of the MOD. They have placed the contract for her refit with a commercial company, just as previous maintenance over the years has been carried out by Portsmouth dockyard. There will be no voluntary labour involved, so unfortunately we will be dependent on anything that the contractor posts on its website.

[schoonerpacket]

And our oldest commissioned warship USS Constitution is afloat, has been sailed and there are plans to sail her again.