Ray S Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 What an interesting history Steve. I will keep checking in. PS, you have inspired me to dig out a stalled scratchbuild of my own now, so hopefully I will be able to complete that one! All the best, Ray 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted February 26, 2020 Author Share Posted February 26, 2020 1 hour ago, Ray S said: PS, you have inspired me to dig out a stalled scratchbuild of my own now, so hopefully I will be able to complete that one! WIP! WIP! WIP! Shout the masses! 👍 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted February 27, 2020 Share Posted February 27, 2020 21 hours ago, Bandsaw Steve said: WIP! WIP! WIP! Shout the masses! 👍 Mr Bandsaw, it will be a resurrection of an old WIP: I hit a proverbial barrier when doing this, and could not get past. One problem was how to do sails, which I have managed since with paper and some BM help with a computer... I am also looking forward to your 'Resurrection' post (hint, hint...) All the best, Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted February 27, 2020 Author Share Posted February 27, 2020 Excellent! I remember this thread now and remember thinking how ‘Xantho like’ it is. The last of the three History posts will probably come out on Saturday. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted February 29, 2020 Author Share Posted February 29, 2020 Part 3 - Resurrection Forgive me – this is going to be a long post. 🙄 Back in the days before reliable time-keeping it was impossible to accurately determine a ship’s longitude until it made landfall. If a ship heading from Capetown to the Spice Islands (now Indonesia) travelled quicker than realised while in the roaring forties it would be further East than thought when it turned North towards the Indian Ocean. Such ships risked encountering the Western Australian coastline. The landmass here is low-lying and when approaching from the sea cannot be seen from any great distance, there are numerous reefs and low-lying islands, strong tides and currents, frequent cyclones and very few natural harbors. It’s a near perfect ship-trap. Consequently, there is a wealth of historic shipwrecks on our coast and ample opportunity for maritime archaeologists to pursue and advance their discipline. In the 1970s the Western Australian Maritime Museum was heavily involved with the study, conservation and partial recovery of many very old wrecks including the infamous VOC ship ‘Batavia’ (see photograph below). By the end of the decade it was one of the world’s leading maritime wreck archaeology and conservation organisations. In 1979 Mr Lindsay Hill, President of the Maritime Archaeological Society of W.A, paid a visit to Port Gregory and with the help of some of the local fishermen pinpointed the Xantho’s wreck and reported its exact location to the museum. In the spring of 1983 the museum sent a small team of archaeologists, divers and conservators to check out the wreck and determine if it warranted further study. At the time it was generally thought that iron-hulled ships were unworthy of archaeological attention. After all, the methods of shipbuilding in the Victorian era were very well documented and there were a plethora of plans, records and photographs from the period. No one anywhere had ever applied the systematic methods of archaeology to any iron or steel hulled wreck. There was simply no point! McCarthy’s team saw things differently. Here they had an undisturbed wreck - rusted to ruination for sure - but one that had sunk gently without any major structural damage. It had not been cut-up for scrap metal or ransacked for treasure. The date and circumstances of her loss were recorded and its history and significance to the state was known. She lay in an easily accessible spot, in shallow water and not far from a small town. Here was an opportunity; an opportunity to conduct the world’s first comprehensive archaeological and conservation survey of an iron-hulled ship! The staff of the museum were not going to let this slip. They moored their dive boat directly above the wreck and started with a complete pre-disturbance, environmental and conservation survey recording ‘Eh, Ph, salinity, water temperature and goodness knows what-else, before they even entered the water. This in itself was exceeding rare in the early 1980s and it’s possible that this may have been the first time this procedure was ever carried out on a virgin wreck of any description. Only once all of that data was collected and validated, the team progressed into a reconnaissance dive. In strong currents and in visibility less than a metre they descended onto the wreck. At first everything was much as expected. The hull settled roughly to the waterline in soft sandy sediment, heavily corroded with much of the iron hull gone, almost all wood rotted away, significant amounts of galena remaining where the hold had been. The boiler and engine were relatively well preserved, however the engine was covered in a thick layer of concretion and had somehow fallen on its side – or so it seemed at first glance. On closer inspection, however, it turned out that the engine was not an upright design as would be expected of a ship of this era but, quite incredibly, was a military-design, horizontal trunk engine. These engines were common on warships of the middle 19th century and were designed to lie flat below the waterline where they would be safe from any horizontal gunfire passing through the hull. This high-spec, high performance, but very inefficient engine had no business sitting here in the hull of a tramp steamer! The only explanation seems to be that Robert Stewart, when he modernised Xantho, must have had access to some low-cost navy surplus equipment, including this engine; so into the ship it went! Upon thorough investigation this engine became more and more fascinating. It turned out that this particular unit was the last surviving example of a ‘John Penn and Son’ 60 horsepower, Crimean-War gunboat, trunk engine. The first ever mass-produced marine engine. From this point is was clear that Xantho – and its engine in particular - was a genuine archaeological gem. Numerous Masters thesis and PHd’s have been written on this ship which is now recognised across the world as the starting point of the discipline of iron-hulled marine archaeology. The ship's boiler and engine was recovered and over a 20 year period was – with extreme care – cleaned of its concretions, stripped, reconditioned and reassembled. Today the engine can be turned over by hand and is on public display in the Fremantle shipwreck museum in the ‘Xantho’ gallery (see below), an excellent display on everything relating to Xantho, her history and her engine. It’s just a shame there’s no model of the ship… 🤔 21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, Bandsaw Steve said: It’s just a shame there’s no model of the ship… 🤔 Yet......? That is a bit blooming interesting about the engine, I'm not seeing any evidence of it being a double expansion job at all but a simple side by side twin, albeit on its side. Steve. Edited February 29, 2020 by stevehnz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted February 29, 2020 Author Share Posted February 29, 2020 4 hours ago, stevehnz said: That is a bit blooming interesting about the engine, I'm not seeing any evidence of it being a double expansion job at all but a simple side by side twin, albeit on its side. Exactly! Apparently it was a high-pressure, high RPM engine specifically designed for high performance but with no consession made to efficiency. Completely unsuited to a merchant vessel! The unit on Xantho did not even have a condenser fitted so water was used once only - a major problem over here where fresh water can be in very short supply. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Sounds like some masterful planning. I bet they got it cheap. Steve. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Hello @Bandsaw Steve, all that waiting(!) for the Ressurection was well worth while. What a story and what a find that engine was! Cheers, Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 On 26/02/2020 at 17:10, Bandsaw Steve said: WIP! WIP! WIP! Shout the masses! 👍 That's what they are saying about this thread too! Just a hint, Martian the Subtle 👽 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted February 29, 2020 Author Share Posted February 29, 2020 Yes I must apologise for the long preamble on this thread. Unfortunately there are still some significant practical issues to overcome before we start up the bandsaw. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 9 hours ago, Bandsaw Steve said: Yes I must apologise for the long preamble on this thread No apology needed, feel free to preamble to your hearts content, its just bloody fascinating to my mind. Steve. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clogged Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 I must pay another visit to the museum and check out the Xantho. It’s only a 10 min drive away! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted March 1, 2020 Author Share Posted March 1, 2020 6 minutes ago, Clogged said: I must pay another visit to the museum and check out the Xantho. It’s only a 10 min drive away! Good idea! Remember- it’s in the Shipwreck museum (near the fisherman’s harbour) not the main maritime museum near the E shed. 👍 Are you on the ‘highway to hell’ at the moment? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clogged Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 Haha. Yes knew which museum it was. Been loads of times. No. Avoiding it in fact! We’re in fact staying up in the city for a night! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted March 1, 2020 Author Share Posted March 1, 2020 We’re at wireless hill right now and it’s actually pretty good fun! 🤗 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnWS Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 A very interesting read, Steve. Thanks for sharing. On 29/02/2020 at 02:20, Bandsaw Steve said: ... It’s just a shame there’s no model of the ship… 🤔 Can't wait to see your model build begin. John 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clogged Posted March 1, 2020 Share Posted March 1, 2020 11 hours ago, Bandsaw Steve said: We’re at wireless hill right now and it’s actually pretty good fun! 🤗 It’s a unique day indeed. Celebrating ACDC. Have you got a photo? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murdo Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Are you convicts getting some typical Scottish weather just now? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted March 2, 2020 Author Share Posted March 2, 2020 Nope! Weather’s beautiful today thanks. 🌞 AC-DC did some great things with bagpipes though! 🏴 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murdo Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 They did? What did they do then? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted March 4, 2020 Author Share Posted March 4, 2020 Appalling Thread Drift At the risk of drifting right off the topic here is a brief note on Fremantle's most famous son Bon Scott; founder and lead singer of AC-DC. What did AC-DC do with Bagpipes? My God - what sort of question is that?!?! 🙄 😀 What was the 'Highway to Hell' all about? Last weekend was the 40th anniversary of the internment of Bon's ashes in the Fremantle cemetery. The local government shut down the Canning Highway, the road that links South Perth to Fremantle and according to legend the actual inspiration for the song 'Highway to Hell'. About 150,000 people came out and lined the empty highway as eight trucks - each with it's own band playing tributes to AC-DC slowly rolled past over about an hour and half. Here are some photos. What does all this have to do with SS Xantho? Well, not a lot to be honest. Shocking thread drift really. But know this... If you ever get to Fremantle and find this 'Bon Scott' Statue... You will be standing within 200 metres of the Xantho engine, housed in the old customs house (out of shot) that Bonn's right foot is pointing towards. That's a bit of local knowledge for you! The fish and chips here aren't bad either. Yours irrelevantly, Bandsaw Steve 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beefy66 Posted March 4, 2020 Share Posted March 4, 2020 Just catching up with this Steve and looking forward to more inspiring stuff all this history beefy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hendie Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 (edited) great story. I'm hooked I remember seeing AC DC in a church hall in Glasgow back in '73 or '74 Edited March 6, 2020 by hendie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bandsaw Steve Posted March 8, 2020 Author Share Posted March 8, 2020 Up for a Challenge? On the 14th of June 2018 I paid a visit to Dr McCarthy at his office in Fremantle with the intention of offering to make the museum a model of the Xantho, for public display. The meeting went well. Dr McCarthy was most accommodating and enthusiastic about the idea but emphasised that although the museum would do all it could to assist me I would be building it for myself. If however, upon completion, it met the museum’s standards for display and I was prepared to donate it, then the offer would be considered on its merits. He also advised me that to give the model the best chance of being accepted it should be full-hull (not waterline) and have the sails furled. These conditions are fine by me. All was going well. Mac then asked me how I proposed to go about drawing up the plans? Huh!?! I intelligently replied. Hasn’t the museum got a set? 🙄 Now at this point I must make clear that as far as anyone knows there are only three contemporary images of Xantho in existence. Here they are… As you can see, two are rock drawings completed by indigenous people who either travelled on Xantho or perhaps just saw her from shore. The museum has the traditional owners’ permission and blessing to reproduce these artworks, so I trust that in the spirit of that agreement I am OK to post them here on this thread. The other image is a small header for the advertisement regarding the salvage of the wreck and may - or may not be - representative of the actual ship. At the start of the meeting with Mac I was fully aware of the complete lack of any contemporary photographs or technical drawings of the vessel but was quite surprised that after 35 years of intensive study no-one had attempted to draught even a speculative set of schematic drawings. It seems that the profile at the start of this thread is the furthest anyone has gone in that direction, but Mac seems to think I can do better. So now it’s up to me, and my rather shakey knowledge of maritime matters to come up with a set of schematic drawings that are consistent with all known primary sources regarding the ship including: written records; we have the original builders specifications, the ship’s registration papers, and some written testimony from the inquest into the sinking. the artworks above archaeological evidence In addition I am going to have to make intelligent, defensible speculations based on knowledge of the technology and similar ships of the age. For me this is quite daunting and I’m going to need some expert help. Hello Britmodellers! Anyone up for a Challenge? Bandsaw Steve 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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