CSS Virginia help needed

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Yes, the shutters were installed post Hampton Roads.

 

[Kevin Martin]

Yes, the shutters were installed post Hampton Roads.

ALRIGHT!!!! Yay, I think from a display perspective, having the doors adds much. Now were they clamshell opening, or single one piece covers? Hinged top or bottom? Internally operated, or pulled by external cable?

 

[AndyHall]

I'd love to put doors on as it makes my life easier as I can pick and choose how many barrels to have to make.

That may be the only advantage to going digital, <CTRL+C>, <CTRL+V>, repeat as necessary.

 

[Kevin Martin]

That may be the only advantage to going digital, <CTRL+C>, <CTRL+V>, repeat as necessary.

yeah, I hear ya. Waiting a week or more for RTV to cure for my molds doesn't fit my style of speed building.

 

[Kevin Martin]

The thing that surprises me the most about the Virginia, is that there wasn't an additional pilothouse at the aft end of the casement to direct gun fire. Seems logical as communications had to be a ***** in the midst of a battle. Or were there not any gun directors on warships then? Forgive me, my bread and butter in modeling up until a couple years ago was entirely WWII aviation.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

The concept of gun directors was still a few decades off... heck, the concept of carefully aiming the weapons (as opposed to pointing them generally in the right direction and trusting to luck) was still relatively new!

There were some tentative steps in terms of forward observation and organized gun-laying at times, but only in certain situations (such as the bombardment of a particular fortification, or the defense of a harbor).

 

[rebelatsea]

Funny you should mention the pilothouse being cast. I had the same thought last night as I didn't think it possible to get iron rails to work together for that conical shape. I have sanded it smooth. And yes, I have started painting in Tamiya Gunship Gray which is the darkest of brands between Modelmaster and Tamiya. And in modeling there is that thing called "scale colors". In that as the scale gets smaller, the colors get lighter.
The gunports, again I may be over thinking reality, I know they were absent doors during the March 8th and 9th battles. I'm speculating that maybe down the road, doors were added. I dunno. I have the gunports opened on the starbaord side and receiver blocks behind to accept cutoff barrels. I'd love to put doors on as it makes my life easier as I can pick and choose how many barrels to have to make.

The pilot house was cast in one piece, the gun port covers were on board at the time of the two actions ,but were not fitted.
Afterwards the covers supplied were found useless and new ones made.

 

[rebelatsea]

The thing that surprises me the most about the Virginia, is that there wasn't an additional pilothouse at the aft end of the casement to direct gun fire. Seems logical as communications had to be a ***** in the midst of a battle. Or were there not any gun directors on warships then? Forgive me, my bread and butter in modeling up until a couple years ago was entirely WWII aviation.

John M Brooke's plan for Virginia DID have two pilothouses. It was this plan that Porter was supposed to have followed, but fitted it to the ship as the conversion went along.

 

[rebelatsea]

ALRIGHT!!!! Yay, I think from a display perspective, having the doors adds much. Now were they clamshell opening, or single one piece covers? Hinged top or bottom? Internally operated, or pulled by external cable?

We simply don't know Kevin, I'd make an informed guess that they were hinged at the top to be lifted clear in action.

 

[rebelatsea]

We simply don't know Kevin, I'd make an informed guess that they were hinged at the top to be lifted clear in action.

Most were pulled by external cable.

 

[AndyHall]

The concept of gun directors was still a few decades off...

Funny enough, though, Phillip Broke experimented with the idea back during the War of 1812. His Shannon was reputedly the best-drilled ship in the Royal Navy, especially in gunnery. I recall reading that Broke had lines inscribed at the base of each gun so that, in the midst of battle, the broadside guns could be adjusted so that their fire converged at a set distance. That turned out not to be necessary in the fight with Chesapeake -- which he took by boarding -- but it would be interesting to know if it would have worked in combat.

 

[Kevin Martin]

Painting has begun. I intentionally painted the wood deck Gunship Gray. I then sanded it back down, leaving a patina to the deck. I then applied a light Minwax stain to the deck. Again, the components are simply placed on the boat.

 

[NeilL]

Most were pulled by external cable.

I have an old note I made from when I read through Baxter's Introduction of the Ironclad Warship years ago (I do not have the book; perhaps if someone does, they can chime in) that there is a contemporary sketch (@early March, 1862) showing the Virginia with shutters attached; the shutters are rectangular, hinged at a top corner, and with chain attached to the opposite bottom corner.

 

[NeilL]

Easy enough, thanks to Google Books: see this link:

http://books.google.com/books?id=rR...=gbs_selected_pages&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

Easy enough, thanks to Google Books: see this link:

http://books.google.com/books?id=rR...=gbs_selected_pages&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false

Here's an easier perspective of that sketch,

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Thanks... that's easier on my neck.

 

[Kevin Martin]

Here's an easier perspective of that sketch,
View attachment 48962

Is that a cannon on the deck pointing out over the stern?

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Kind of looks like it, but I'll bet it's a boat howitzer up there temporarily. I can't imagine anyone manning it outside the casemate during action.

 

[Kevin Martin]

Kind of looks like it, but I'll bet it's a boat howitzer up there temporarily. I can't imagine anyone manning it outside the casemate during action.

Yes, but that is super cool! Maybe it was to wake the crew? I have a small howitzer in 1/96 scale. The drawing, while seeming simple, could be considered done by somebody with an eye for details. Does anybody else notice the rake of the funnel toward the stern? I thought I'd read that the Merrimac's sister ships had funnels with a decided tilt favoring the stern.

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

I had never seen this sketch before.
Note the positions of the two ship's boats.

Assuming two were also on the opposite side of the casemate, would this would suggest the Virginia carried four boats ?