FIG. 40. 
Yacht Designing.— XX. 
BY W. P. STEPHENS. 
In the last chapter were described the splines or bat- 
tens used for drawing the curve lines of a design. They 
are held in position upon the drawing by metal weights 
of 3 to 61bs. each, of lead or iron. These are made of 
different shapes, as a rule, each designer having a particu- 
lar pattern of his own, by which he sets especial store. 
The main points in a weight are that it shall be of such a 
shape as to be readily grasped in the hand, that the center 
of gravity shall be as near as possible to the end which 
holds the batten, that there shall be a suitable projection 
for this latter purpose, and that the front of the weight 
shall be cut away enough at the top to allow the hand and 
pen to pass without danger of touching. 
We have among our most treasured relics a lead weight 
that was once the property of George Steers, and still 
bears his name stamped in the bottom. 
It is of the conventional shape more frequently used 
than any other, a rough resemblance to a fish, from which 
it is termed a "dolphin." It weighs a little less than 3lbs., 
and its exact size and shape are shown in the drawings. 
Fig. 37. A plug of hard wood, about ^in. in diameter 
and lin. long, is driven into a hole in the fore end, and in 
this is driven an iron hook with a sharp point, which 
, catches the upper edge of the spline. The weight shown 
in Fig. 38 is small and compact, a common iron tenter 
. hook is driven in the point. A larger weight of very good 
form, designed, we believe, by Mr. J. Beavor Webb, is 
shown in Fig. 39. The bottom is a plate of cast brass, the 
, lead being cast on to it. At A is a slight depression, to make 
a point that will hold the spline. Being quite narrow, this 
Jorm allowes a number of weights to be placed close to- 
r gather on the inside of a sharp curve, which cannot be 
■ done with the wide spreading tail of the "dolphin." 
What is called a punt weight (Fig. 40) dispenses with 
,the wire hook, the weight itself being fastened to a piece 
(of oak, mahogany or other hard wood, called a punt. On 
ithe fore end of the punt a notch is cut, leaving a project- 
iing end to go on top of the batten. 
Weights are sometimes made up quite elaborately, a 
hollow shell of cast brass being filled with lead and fitted 
with several sizes and shapes of hooks, made from brass 
wire and fitted to screw into the casting so as to be 
changed at will. Fig. 41 shows such a weight; a boss is 
cast at A, and drilled and tapped, and the tail is notched out 
at B, to take a piece of rubber, to prevent slipping. In 
the ordinary dolphin a wide rubber band stretched over 
the tail answers the same purpose. 
For specially sharp curves with a stiff batten the ordi- 
nary weights, even when placed close together, fail to 
hold. The weight shown in Fig. 42, an old English pat- 
tern, is so shaped that one may be inverted and placed on 
top of another, thus doubling the weight and increasing 
the holding power. In the tail of each weight is a hard 
wood dowel, fitting into a corresponding hole in the head 
of the other weight. A full set of weights is not special- 
ly portable, and a novel form of weight has recently been 
devised by Mr. John Harvey, a box of cast brass, with a 
sliding top, which may be filled with shot. In carrying 
from place to place, as sometimes happens, the boxes may 
be emptied, being refilled again with new shot when next 
wanted for use. 
The cost of lead is so little greater than that of iron 
that it har41y pays to use the latter. 
Several different forms are used for the pomt of the 
ivcight. In some cases the wire hook is filed to a sharp 
point, as in Figs. 37, 38, which holds the batten firmly, but 
tends to destroy it. Sometimes the end of the hook is 
flat and blunt, like the point of a small screw-driver, or 
somewhat as in Fig. 41, to enter the groove on the top of 
the batten ; but this is not a good form, as grooved bat- 
tens are not the best. The square notch, as in Figs. 
40-42, does not mar the batten, and though it has not the 
holding power of Fig. 37, it is to be preferred. A good 
end for a wire hook is shown at B, Fig. 37, filed to a 
square angle and then notched with a hacksaw to a 
depth of i-i6in. This point holds well on the ordinary 
square batten, and it can also be used for the thin spring 
steel splines sometimes used for very sharp curves. 
The ordinary punt weight may be easily made by any 
amateur mechanic; a good pattern for a weight of about 
Slbs. is that shown in Fig. 40. The pattern is whittled out 
of dry pine and neatly sandpapered off, a coat of shellac 
improving it, though not absolutely necessary. Old lead 
pipe or scraps of any kind that may be procurable will 
answer for the castings; as the impurities come out in 
the melting. An iron quart pot or ladle will serve as a 
crucible, with a common starch box full of fine, dry 
sand. 
The pattern is placed on a flat board, and the box, with- 
out top or bottom, is placed around it; the sand is then 
packed in firmly and the box inverted, after which the 
pattern may be withdrawn by screwing a common screw- 
eye into it and rapping it lightly. A board with a y^'m. 
hole through it is now placed over the sand and held in 
place by a couple of bricks or other weights, and the mol- 
ten lead is poured through the hole in the board into the 
cavity in the sand. The sand must be slightly damp in 
order to pack firmly and to hold its shape when the pat- 
tern is removed, but the board must be perfectly dry, as 
any water will cause the molten lead to fly. The casting will 
set in a very , short time, and may then be dumped oujt of 
the box and the sand used for another casting. After the 
lead is quite cool, which will take some time, it may be 
smoothed off all over with an old plane. The punts may 
be made of mahogany or teak, about 5-i6iii. thick, though 
commoner hardwoods will answer. The notch at the 
point should be just large enough to catch the smallest 
batten without quite reaching the drawing edge, where 
the pen would hit it ; and at the same time to keep clear 
of the board, except at the after end, putting most of the 
weight on the batten. The punts will be fastened to the 
weights by screws, the lead may be painted, the edges of 
the punts shellacked, and" the bottom of each covered with 
green baize or similar material, glued on. 
At least a dozen weights are necessary, and even more 
will be found convenient at times. They may be all of 
one weight, slbs., or some of them may be about 3lbs. ; the 
pattern being cut down after the heavier ones are cast. 
Even where the punt weights are preferred, a few of the 
hook weights, Fig. 37-41, are always useful for speci^.1 
purposes. 
We have already alluded to the adjustable curve rulers, 
made of lead bars or steel springs in combination with 
rubber, and intended to retain a-ny curve into which they 
may be bent, without the use of weights. For marine 
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