The mainstay tackle is used to load and offload materials (and the small launch boat) and so there are two – one located above the foremost hatch on the main deck and one over the aft hatch. The FFM calls for a 12″ double block hanging from the main stay – the more aft block from a longer 3.5″ inch pendant and the fore block stropped directly to the stay. Each is then tackled to a 12″ single block stropped with a decent sized hook with a 3.5″ line that’s then belayed on the deck. I actually made a couple minor changes here. The 12″ blocks this scale are 4.75- to 5mm, but I beefed those up slightly to 6 mm. I did this for two reasons – one, I believe the 3.5 line (abut .45mm) overwhelms smaller block and balances better with the 6mm block. I also really like this very visible part of the ship’s tackle (much like the anchor rope) and wanted the blocks and rigging to be large enough to make out the details without too much effort.
As I said, the aft block is attached to a pendant – which is about 21′ feet, which is about 100mm at scale. I positioned this block / pendant directly over the aft eyebolt in my launch and lashed the standing end to the mainstay. I then coated it generously in diluted pva and hung a clip to it to let it dry and stiffen. The lashing itself is an eye seized in the .45mm line then wrapped to the mainstay and half-hitched. This is where the stiffened line, still held with a pretty heavy clip, came in handy as I wrapped the lashing and tied it off. I did put a spot of CA glue on the mainstay to hold the pendant in place.
The tackle itself is a 1.5″ (.20mm) line stropped to a block with a hook made from a long eyebolt. The line starts with the single block, runs up through the double block, down to the single, back up through the double, then back down to belay near the deck. The companion block to the fore of the deck is the same process without the pendant, lashed the same to the main stay.
There are a variety of options to where this may belay – each book / person seems to have their own spot. The convenient location(s) for me were the eyebolts along the anchor rope since the cannon aren’t attached to them. It’s important to adjust the tension of the tackle so it is taught, but doesn’t drag down the mainstay.
Studdingsail (Stun’sl) spars
Before getting too deep into more of the lower rigging, it’s important to mount the studdingsail booms. These booms run along the yards and protrude pas the ends to facilitate the studding sails – or stun’sls. The Stun’sls were extra sails used in fair weather to increase speed. The stun’sl booms feed into the irons as far as feasible and are held in place with a tiny spot of CA glue. The inboard end of the booms are then wrapped with .60mm line very similar (but smaller of course) to the gammoning rigging on the bowsprit.
The Lehman Shipyard 