Tools & Gear

Sheerlegs are two long spars lashed together in an upside-down V, used as a crane to lift heavy loads. In this case, the sheerlegs are lifting the massive main mast onto the schooner before launching.

This image is from Basil Greenhill and Sam Manning, The Evolution of the Wooden Ship, 1988, p. 170. Used by permission of the artist, Sam Manning.

Hawsing iron, used in shipbuilding for caulking seams, particularly deck seams. The long handle allowed one caulker to stand holding the iron while another drove the caulking home using a two-handed mallet. The caulking had been previous set in place using a small mallet and a hand-held iron. Deck seams are especially difficult to caulk and keep tight as the sun dries out and shrinks decks.

This diagram shows how a seam between planks of a ship are caulked with oakum, which is forced into the seam with a caulking iron. Four or more strands of caulking may be needed to fill the seam. There are different widths of caulking irons which are used depending on the width of the seam and how deep the caulking is driven.

This image is from Basil Greenhill and Sam Manning, The Evolution of the Wooden Ship, 1988, p. 154. Used by permission of the artist, Sam Manning.

Here a completed double-sawn frame is lifted into place on the keel. The frame is assembled flat ahead of the row of frames, then tackles fixed to previously erected frames are used to raise up the new frame.

Treenails were used as fasteners for shipbuilding. They were often made of locust wood. They were less expensive than bolts for fastening, and they made tight connections. The treenail is like a large dowel, pounded into a hole drilled through the pieces of wood to be fastened together, and set by pounding wedges into both ends, so that the treenail will not come out. Treenails were often called "trunnels."

This image is from Basil Greenhill and Sam Manning, The Evolution of the Wooden Ship, 1988, p. 145. Used by permission of the artist, Sam Manning.

This diagram shows how a half model is used to design a ship. This lift model is made of a number of lifts or layers of wood, pinned together. The model is then carved. After the model has its final shape, the model is taken apart and the lifts measured. Vessels designed this way are usually said to be modeled rather than designed.

This image is from Basil Greenhill and Sam Manning, The Evolution of the Wooden Ship, 1988, p. 91. Used by permission of the artist, Sam Manning.

Using an adze to cut off the head of a driven treenail, making the planking smooth. Dubbing is the adze-users word for trimming small amounts of wood. This is a small vessel under repair; some of the planking is being replaced, mostly that above the waterline, in a process called retopping. This is the plank that is subject to drying from the sun, and often is most vulnerable to rot.