Emma C Berry

[DamienG]

Built from a Stirling Models Kit (USA) around 1971-2 to help my dad work through a physical breakdown I lay-by'd it at the hobby shop I worked at at the time with Radio and everything needed to finish her $600 was a lot of money back then. We built her as a team then years later when I got married he gave her to me on 2 conditions I finisher ( Sail winches and R/C gear and sail her.

Hasn't had her keel wet for 18+ years hope to get the Vintage Futaba 5 wire gear working again.

No pic's sailing as I only have negatives.

[Walter Snowdon]

I also built this kit in the early nineteen seventies. A lovely design but oh the quality!. rock hard hairy balsa which looked as though it was die-cut with broken bricks and the white metal castings were only good for ballast. Still, after replacing half the kit it made up into a very pretty schooner and a good sailer!. Regards, walter

[Brian Gates]

A pretty looking model, I see why you were keen to get the radio going.

Brian

[DamienG]

Thanks Brian.
I built winches because they hadn't been invented when I did them  they are based on the Archimedes screw 3/4 copper pipe with a 3/16" slot cut length wise  with bearings each end and a traveler on 1/4" threaded rod to do the work.
I built 2 one each for mainsail and the 2 jibs they're 13 1/2" overall length.
just loading these pic's I've found some cringe worthy problems and servos appear hot melt glued in place lol



As you see from the pic's the wiring is complex I hope it still works as I lost the memory section of the brain in radiation for a grapefruit size brain tumor that had all my electronics skills, I didn't lose model building though just what I'd made a living off for many years all gone lol They call it acquired brain injury and is very common with radiation to the brain.
I had to call my son for help with the battery box.

[djt]

hi damian ,

you don't realise how much progress we have made, since you built this boat I am amazed at how you did it  , are you going to keep this method for winches. as if it works it would give it a antique stateus showing old and recent methods. well done hope you can do a video of it working


david

[DamienG]

If it all still works I'll keep it for sure no hope of working out the wiring now without a schematic diagram of it all.
each winch has 2 limit switches, a servo with 2 micro switches for winch forward and reverse as the pic's show wires everywhere.

Officially the schooner belongs to my son as after my brain surgery in '94 I was not expected to live 2 of my brothers fought over who would get the model that their dad built they were 5 and 6yo at the time it was built and had no idea of the circumstances regarding it's builds I signed it over to my son to go to first son of each generation.

[DamienG]

When I posted this thread I forgot a some major details firstly she been to the bottom of Albert Park Lake (where the Aussie F1 GP) is held very cold day mid July '78 or '79 was a great day until she was hit broadside by a squall  that laid her sails flat on the water where surface tension of the wet cotton sails kept her until the hatches floated off and she sank  desperate me stripped of to jocks and shoes and jumped into freezing chest deep water and left my glasses behind Emma was about 100ft out headed in general direction the choppy conditions meant I could only see the top of the main mast in the trough of the waves.

Needless to say lots of time and effort was required to dry her out, I removed all the lead ballast melted it down and poured it into a piece of 3/4" copper pipe the length of the keel which was shaped and pinned and glued to the keel it can just be seen in the fore and aft photo's

[DamienG]

I've taken a new lot of pic's of photos from my album.









And the winches.