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| 2003 Dover reprint of 1942 original published by W. W. Norton |
“I had put off this harbor-tugboat project for well over a year feeling that my hitch as a sailor long years ago did little to fit me for the role of shipbuilder. Then, later when I had begun some research on the subject, a chance buy of a marked down copy of a book on ship models, which seemed at the moment a good omen, added almost nothing to my scanty knowledge. From it, I did learn though, in a discussion of appropriate woods, that no serious modeler ever considers balsa.”
So notes E. L. Moore in the introductory paragraph to part 1 of the add a Harbor to your Pike series that ran in the January and February 1968 issues of Railroad Model Craftsman. This is the series where he builds the tug boats Taurus (from a kit) and John McKeon (scratchbuilt based on the Taurus), a barge, and a sail loft.
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| Model of the S.S. Prince Edward Island at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. She was a ferry that could carry 12 railway cars. |
For long years I’ve wondered about the title of that ship modelling book. Mr. Moore never mentions it, and the only thing he says about the book, other than it being an omen, was that its author didn’t think balsa wood was a suitable modelling material. It’s a clue, admittedly a thin one, but still a clue. I’ve worked with less.
I admire traditional ship modelling and consider it something of the apex of the model builder’s art. It’s beyond my abilities, but I admire it nevertheless. So, whenever there are ship models to be seen I like to have a look.
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| Information card associated with the model |
Last year when we visited Halifax I had the opportunity to visit the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. It’s a fascinating place, and has an interesting collection of both full-size and model boats. I’d say the model boat display is better than the Thomson collection at the Art Gallery of Ontario.
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| I think it's 1/4" scale given the size of those passenger cars. |
Both museums have excellent models, but I give the Halifax collection bonus points for having what they call a ‘Visible Storage’ area right beside the main collection. This is where they have stashed in glass fronted cabinets unfinished models, models not currently on display, nautical odds-and-ends, and other memorabilia related to the main model collection that are easily accessible to museum browsers.
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| Some cabinets in the Visible Storage area |
Maybe this was just a way to cheap out on offsite storage, but being a model maker myself, I much appreciated this ‘behind-the-scenes’ window into the museum's collection.
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| A typical cabinet in the Visible Storage area |
I also like that the museum notes on cards strategically placed throughout the exhibit area information about the model builders whose work they have on display. Those model makers don’t remain anonymous. and the cards give some background on their lives as craftsmen.
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| Some issues of Model Ship Builder from 1982. Bought at BMV |
Well, fast forward a year or so and I’m wandering around BMV and see copies of an old magazine called Model Ship Builder. I’d never heard of this magazine and decided to buy a few issues.
Each issue has an interview with an expert model shipbuilder. I found the one in the September / October 1982 issue with Bruce Hoff interesting, and especially the comments on how he got inspired to start ship modelling:
"It all started sixteen years ago on a Sunday afternoon at the Winnetka Public Library. Bruce was looking for something to read and picked up V. R. Grimwood's American Ship Models and How to Build Them. "This is a perfectly remarkable book. It contains just about everything anyone really needs to know about building solid hull ship models, and I was very lucky to have stumbled across it as a foundation book.""
So, if the interview was conducted in 1982, sixteen years prior would land us in 1966. E. L. Moore had his article published in 1968, and he submitted the typescript to RMC on 27 October 1967, soon after finishing the project, so it's conceivable he stumbled across his book in '67 or '66. Now, these mid-1960s dates are all just coincidence, but for me, they got me thinking again about the title of the book Mr. Moore leafed through.
A few paragraphs later Hoff mentions that Grimwood's book was one of the most important books he'd owned as a ship modeller. I later learned it's considered a classic in the field, so that clinched it, I had to find a copy.
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| On the trip we also were lucky to see the Bluenose II in Lunenburg. When we arrived some of the young, 20-something crew were discussing the musical merits of Miles Davis through the ages as they went about their chores! |
Well, this is the 21st century and there isn't a huge used bookstore a short walk from my house, the public library isn't as well stocked as it used to be, and BMV is 450km from my desk, so I called the internet into action. I couldn't find a 1942 edition, but I did find a Dover reprint.
When it arrived I skipped all the niceties and immediately looked for a section on woods. There is one, and I wasn't disappointed:
"Wood is the indispensable material. A different variety grows to fit almost any need. Avoid woods that are fuzzy in texture. The novice dotes on balsa because of its ease in working. For the modelmaker it may have its uses, but I have never found them. Here is a list of woods generally used to advantage by the modelmaker."
Just to emphasize the dismissal, balsa wood doesn't appear in the list.
Does this prove this is the book? Of course not, but what it does is make it a candidate. It's a fairly famous work in its field, so that helps it stick around, even into the 1960s (a print history would help here), and it does scold about the use of balsa (but, many experienced modellers do as well), so it's a candidate. Maybe one day I'll figure out the title of the book E. L. Moore consulted, but until then I'm going to enjoy this one. It's a great find.
Well, any sustained thought on boats always leads to this song popping into my head at some point, so I'll leave you with it.
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