Page 82 - Nicolaes Witsen & Shipbuilding in the Dutch Golden Age

Chapter Two
Floors [buikstukken] lie straigh t across the . ..
Bilge futtocks [zitters] lie in the turn of the bilge next to the oors.
. ..
(60 II 52) The bilge futtock is a crook, which is placed in the turn of the bilge. The turn of the bilge is the lowest or last strak e of the bottom, w hich is, on the outside of the ship.
. ..
(54 II 52) Bilge futtocks are beams, w hich lie on the oor of the ship.
19. Also a Floor Timber at the Location of the Main Frame, with a Futtock on Either Side
A floor was then placed in the bilge at the main frame. This was the horizontal part of the frame. A crooked tim- ber, a bilge futtock, was attached at either end, which had the shape of the required t urn or bend. The shape of the bilge futtocks was thus another par t of the design of the ship. These bilge futtocks were attached to the floor tim- ber with bolts, unlike all other frame timbers, which were attached only to the pl anking and the c eiling and not to one another. The whole assemblage of floor and futtocks was nailed to the hull planking to prevent shifting.
20. Then plank the turn of the bilge.
(60 II 5) because the ship is wide 27 feet on the top of the bilges, and 29 feet wide in all , overhanging one foot on each side. Or 27 feet is tak en for the width, and every side hangs out 1 foot, comes to 29 feet.
20. Then Plank the Turn of the Bilge
As the building of the shel l continued, the use of the planking tongs became somewhat more c omplicated at this point, for the roundness of the bilge had to be created with the same straight tongs as were used for the bottom, so little chocks of wood, called oorhouten (clamps), were utilized (see no. 12 in fig. 1.20).
Because the fi rst bilge strak e was at an angle with the bottom pl anking, the tr ansition from bottom to t urn was clearly visible. This was most obvious on very flat- bottomed ships; on sh arply rising floors it was ha rdly noticeable.
When a ship had a very wide and flat bottom, the out- ermost bottom strake was often canted a little so the ship would not be lik e a trough (67 I 2 9). Angular construc- tions underneath the waterline were not favored because they were vulnerable and could result in leakage. Van Yk comments:
But in the Noorderkwartier [the northern part] of Holland . . . I have seen that some Masters still build Ships which, in the rise or the edge of the Bilge have a Plank, which goes stoutly over the other Planks, and thus gives a bilge Seam. Such that the Bottom is clearly distinguished from the Turn of the Bilge.
But this Method is not practiced at the Meuse [Admiralty of Rotterdam], where the Bilges and Floor curve together, which is thought the best way. (Van Yk, p. 70)
(55 I 54 )
bottom.
(55 I 43)
. ..
(54 II 5 6) Two bilge futtocks, a tocks, are called a frame.
. ..
oor, and two fut-
(67 II 32) 11. Of the thickness of the frames.
1. These are on the keel 3⁄4, at the height of breadth half, as the top timbers on the master ribband2⁄5 of the thickness of the inside of the stem.
2. Forward and aft more ligh t, above and below heavier.
. ..
(68 II 3) The
thick inside, or on the keel 3⁄4 of the stem, at the mas- ter ribband half, at the top ribbands 2⁄5.
oors 2 inches thinner than the stem is . ..
(68 I 44) The oors three-fourth parts of the stem. The futtocks against the planking half the stem.
(74 I 44) 1. The oor timbers, on the keel, thick 91⁄2 inches, as the transoms. In the bilge, thick 9 inches, in the turn of the bilge thick 10 inches.
2. The bilge futtocks at the top of the planking of the bilge, thick 71⁄4 inches.
(74 II 8) The oor timbers are placed 9 1⁄2 inches apart, and are as broad, as are the top timbers.
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