Barque du Leman - La "Vaudoise"
This Project is Finished: This will be the third barque that I have constructed. Once used on Lake Geneva, in Switzerland, these sturdy boats were used for transporting goods throughout the Lake area.
Almost Ready to Go in the Bottle:
From above you get an idea of the width of these boats. She is outfitted with a board running the length of each side of the boat. When there was a full cargo on deck, the workers moved about on these boards.
There are four strings I will have to glue and cut inside the bottle.
There are four strings I will have to glue and cut inside the bottle.
I used a brush with only a few bristles to paint the name on the transom. It's nothing like lettering a full sized boat, but it came out well with the help from a magnifying glass.
Also, the naviot (dinghy) was very important and rarely would you have ever seen a barque without the naviot trailing behind.
Also, the naviot (dinghy) was very important and rarely would you have ever seen a barque without the naviot trailing behind.
That's a half franc there for scale (same size as a dime). She measures overall 110mm or approx. 3 1/4 inches.
Above and below are two pretty good deck shots. Here you can see the winches, cleats and many lines, as well as bits for tying to.
Now She's Ready for the Bottle
With the addition of a little personna, my model is ready for the bottle.
The boat was constructed in two halves to fit through the neck of the model, while still maintaining an accurate scale of the model. Wish me luck! It's a complex job to fit pieces back together when only working through a small bottle opening.
The boat was constructed in two halves to fit through the neck of the model, while still maintaining an accurate scale of the model. Wish me luck! It's a complex job to fit pieces back together when only working through a small bottle opening.
Entering the Bottle:
Now this is the stressful part!
"Vaudoise" a divided hull, split down the middle, model was a difficult one to reassemble inside. All the parts (hatches, winch, etc...) that share each side of the hull were only glued to one piece (ex: hatches-photo right)
After two hours of fiddling around in there with my long wire tools and a pair of tweezers, I can call it a success!
"Vaudoise" a divided hull, split down the middle, model was a difficult one to reassemble inside. All the parts (hatches, winch, etc...) that share each side of the hull were only glued to one piece (ex: hatches-photo right)
After two hours of fiddling around in there with my long wire tools and a pair of tweezers, I can call it a success!
Inside the Bottle:
Finally fitting together, the "Vaudoise" sits nicely inside the pretty blown bottle. The bottle is quite attractive with a red flared opening, fading to yellow on the neck, then nearly clear at the body of the bottle.
The bottle is displayed on a pretty wooden stand and she will be corcked, sealed, and stamped.
The bottle is displayed on a pretty wooden stand and she will be corcked, sealed, and stamped.
