National Maritime Museum Cornwall Workshop

Light, flukey winds for Curlews first 'shakedown' sail. Keep an eye out for her around Falmouth this summer. #sailing #Falmouth #Boats

Henry and the crew have been busy getting the rigging sorted on Sea Queen.. We have for the first time hoisted the fore sail.

Another boat which is being prepared for display, Father's Day, the smallest boat to cross the Atlantic full story previously featured on the Workshop FB page.
Reuben our Boat technician working out the complexities of the rigging.

Ready for display an Iraqi Guffa similar to a corricle, built by the Marsh Arabs of the Euphrates.

Barge sailing going Dutch ! acknowledgements to Mark Marks, a great short film.

John our "Rope meister" has made a demonstration rig for when our Boat Crew team goes to shows and events.

Today has been a productive day at Ponsharden. The Monday crew have got one step closer to getting Sea Queen ready for launch.
The mast was lifted in position and then we hoisted the main sail for the first time. The next step is to tweak the rigging, and then the final details ready for the launch.

Happy St Piran's day from all of the team at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall Workshop! Enjoy your Pasties and cream teas (with jam first!)

A very interesting film from the Pathe archive....not Cornwall but fascinating none the less !

We are experiencing particularly low tides in Falmouth this week, so we thought it was a good opportunity to clean up some of the rubbish that had been thrown into the sea near our pontoon...and what a haul! plus the rare sight of our Bligh Launch replica on the mud!

We have finally completed the riveting on our steam launch "Emma". over 3000 rivets have gone into her hull! the fashion pieces have also been fitted at the stern of the boat and the current works in progress are the gunwales, as you can see partially fitted on the picture.

This week we serviced our lifejackets, a vital skill for those that use the water. A couple of ours certainly needed some attention after inspection! This article by Practical Boat Owner takes you through a basic lifejacket service....you don't want it to fail you when you need it!

No matter how hard the riveting and caulking, boat shop humour is always there....this is something to make all our hardworking volunteers smile.

We love the steady rhythm...good caulking demonstration.

Behind the Scenes.
The Dhow ‘Tala’ is a type of sailing vessel built and sailed almost entirely in the southern part of what we refer to as the Middle East. Most people will recognise a dhow by its large triangular sail, set on a short, forward-sloping mast, but as a class, there are at least 5 different types of dhow varying from small boats used for fishing up to the very large, two-masted craft once used for ocean-going cargo carrying. The big sail is extremely versatile..., being able to sail using the wind from all directions and is easily handled by one or two sailors. The museum dhow is a genuine vessel built in Kuwait in1990 at the request of the donor – Mr J Bourne. The timber used in construction is Indian teak, the builder was an ageing Kuwaiti Master of Construction and the overall length is seven meters – making it of a type known locally as a Tishaala. As a type of boat, the dhow has a very interesting past. Recorded as early 173 BC by a Greek historian, dhows would sail long distances on the monsoon winds, carrying goods to and from India and the East coast of Africa, navigating entirely by the sun and the stars. Pearls and dates to India, silk, spices and timber on the return journey. To East Africa would go cloth and dates and the return journey brought ivory, mangrove poles (for scaffolding) and – sadly - slaves who would be sold throughout the Gulf states. Modern life has brought an end to the big sailing dhows but to this day, large hulls are being built to be powered by big powerful diesel engines to continue on the ancient trade routes. Nowadays only a few of the smaller ones are being built for local use with the traditional sails. The museum is very fortunate to have a traditional half sized dhow. inspection work has started to see what is needed to get the vessel into a condition ready for ailing or exhibition.
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Unusual sight on one of Falmouth's beaches this morning. Russian cargo ship Kuzma Minin now re floated at 14.00 thanks to Falmouth Tugs. Coastguard Helicopter put Falmouth Pilot aboard and RNLI all weather lifeboat on station since 06.15 .Luckily A&P dry dock on hand. Full salute to our emergency services.

Thank you Falmouth University for a dust extraction unit for our Ponsharden workshop. Saving the unit from going for scrap. By managing the extraction of the Extractor ourselves, we all get recycling brownie points. WIN WIN.