Captain_MacNamara

Well, I believe an update is in order. We took her out for her maiden voyage yesterday, at a rather large local lake. It was a hot day, and we worked up a sweat riggin' her for sail. Unfortunately, we left the mainmast back at the house, so we had to use a smaller aluminum pole, and forgo rigging the main. This meant naught but a loose-footed jib and oars... So we took her out with the intent to just see what happens. We rowed out about 100 yards offshore... the waves were only about a foot tall at this point, and we ran up the jib. It was a beautiful sight, once she caught the light breeze, with our colors waving lazily above. We came about, and started heading back to shore... and then the wind picked up. We were fighting both the current, and the wind at this point, which had changed course. We lowered the sail, and rowed for all we were worth, belting out "Haul away Joe" as we went, but made no headway. The seas had other plans for us it seemed. After about 45 minutes straight rowing with no headway, we came about again and ran up the sail. She caught the wind, and even with the tiny jib as our only sail, she started pulling for open water at a decent clip. Then the wind picked up some more as storm clouds came rolling in. The rolling waves were cresting at four foot whitecaps now, and the wind was a steady unrelenting force. She was rolling on the waves faster now, and we laughed as the spray pelted us, our little thirteen and a half foot dinghy the only boat out on the lake. We were about three quarters of a mile out now, rolling on the swells. She weathered the change in weather well, and didn't take on but a half inch of water. We set our course toward the other side of the lake, where there was another boat dock and swimming area we could safely put in at. We were having a blast, making fun of the other boaters who were too timid to be out on the lake. Then the mast snapped at the deck. She heeled over a bit, but nothing serious as I worked to right the mast. The wind was even stronger now, and I braced myself against the starboard side, keeping the mast upright and braced against my body. The sail held, still full of wind, still carrying us to the far shore. The waves were still at about four feet, but coming faster now. The air had turned cold, and the water colder still, but we were still having fun. When we were about 50 yards out from the dock area, people started gawking, which we had expected... it's not every day you see a pirate boat under sail, bearing down on you. All but two of the people there piled into their cars as fast as they could and left! Then we aimed our little boat at a spot of beachlike shore, and saw only too late the rocks that blocked our access. Too late to come about now, we braced for impact, ready to hop out and drag the boat ashore. She came to a full stop, and then the first wave hit before we could even get out. She was half full of water with that first wave, but we still hauled as hard as we could on her to get her ashore. No such luck... She was completely full of water now, and she couldn't handle the strain. With the waves pounding on her, and her being full of water, the starboard side buckled under the strain. We tied her off to a rock, and looked for a ride back to the other side of the lake. Once we got my truck from the other side of the lake, we tried to pull her out, but she refused to budge. We tried bailing her out, but with the waves coming in as they were, the water was filling the boat faster than we could bail it out. We stripped her down, left her tied off to a rock, and came home with our tale. Once the weather dies down in a few days, and the lake calms, I'll go out and try to bail the water out again... but even if she's lost to us, we have our adventure, and ideas for improvements. Most of all, the desire to get back out there.

'aving been interested in this genre for a while now, I thought I'd post one of my pieces: It's the "Audiophonic Aetherometer", which magically plays music obtained from the aethernet. Basically, it's a self-contained MP3 "boombox".

I am actually working on a sculpt for a ring using the skull above as a base design... They'll be in pewter as well for now, as I do not have the resources at the moment to cast in silver, not to mention the skyrocketing prices of silver and gold I'll post pics when I get the sculpt finished.

Thanky! Get me a design, and I'll see what I can come up with Oh, and the skull in the picture is unfinished... that is, un-drilled as a bead. I can also leave 'em solid, as well as cast a sterling silver necklace hoop into the top.

I have updated the website with prices and a couple new items for those who are interested: Pewter and other items (link) If you have anything specific that you'd like to have made, but don't see it on the website, don't be afraid to ask. I'm willing and able to take custom orders.

Aye, that settles that... If'n they're good enough for the 'Royaliste', they're good enough for my gunnery crew as well. And anyone else for that matter Now I just need to sell a few more knives...

Check with Harbormaster. I believe he has some of their cannon. I know they're capable of firing at least blank rounds. The way I understand it, their fine print is primarily to keep from being liable for anyone's injuries or property damages if they say, (read "stupidity") fill one with smokeless powder and a ball that's too tight and creates a rather unpleasant bomb.

I would really suggest Hern's. They have the best price I've found so far, in any good quality that is. Judging by the only price I can find on RBG's site, they're a wee bit too proud of their work. I'm only quoting the swivel gun: Assuming these prices are correct, take the carriage price(we'll use brass to be generous on their part) away from the complete unit price, and you come up with $2,100.00 for just the damn barrel. Hern's, on the other hand, has the same barrel(more or less): From the website: English Swivel Gun (1 1/2" Bore)(30"LG) 90 pounds full scale $426.05 Just trying to help, I hate to see people throw money away. Here's the next cannon my crew plans to acquire: [imghttp://www.hernironworks.com/cannons/carronade1.jpg[/img] Carronade (1 1/2" Bore)(25"LG) 72 pounds 5/8 scale $282.10 Hern's price list I made the mistake of not shopping around before I bought the 44mm naval cannon we currrently have. Thing cost me almost $1,000.00 from Wild Imports, and though she's a beaut in bronze, I could have saved alot of money by going with Hern's and building the carriage myself.

Well, I figured I'd show off a bit of my work. I've been working marlinespike knotwork for some time now, and I built a forge about a year and a half ago. Now, I'm toying with pewter casting, both for jewelry and inlays for my knives, as well as bolsters for the knives, ideas for decorative pommels, etc. I eventually want to get set up to pour brass/bronze, but for now, pewter it is. Here's a couple pieces of my pewter work so far: I had an old rubber skull keychain, which I added some modeling clay to in order to re-sculpt a couple sections before casting. The picture is fresh-cast, I haven't cleaned up or aged it yet. I'm thinking of using these for beads on some items, though that would be heavy, these little skulls look amazing IMO. They're 5/8 inch tall, by almost 1 inch long, solid pewter. I'm thinking of re-sculpting one into a skull ring once I get better at casting rings, and if I can get set up to pour bronze, they'd make NICE decorative ends on a bronze dagger crossguard or other sword/dagger accent pieces. For this one, I took my solid silver POTC coin, cast it, re-sculpted the back to contain my Pirate Group's device, and then cast it up in pewter. These ones, however, are not for sale, and are only available to members of my crew. (To protect the names of the innocent, I embellished the story on how I acquired the original Silver coin a bit ) I made this Thor's Hammer for a member of my crew. For this one, I carved the mold from scratch out of soapstone, then hand-finished the details once I had the Hammer rough-cast. It features an emerald and an amethyst. I am open to taking custom orders for both jewelry, and blacksmithing. I am currently working on a Naval Dirk for a Pub Member. I also currently have a dagger up on EBAY, though it's not a period piece. It's a 100% custom design: My "Stargazer" Dagger auction on EBAY For my Forge website, it is : MacNamara Forge I don't have everything uploaded yet, but it's still worth a look. The 'Iron Lotus' webpage, which is the website for my Crew, is at The 'Iron Lotus'

Aye, I can do a kidney knife as well. Not sure if I can manage the integrated bolster just yet, but even if not, I could work the bolster out of pewter. And yes, I do all me own leatherwork as well.

I have a forge... I also have to tools required to "stock remove" knives out of existing flat steel. I can do a number of different designs, the limit is mainly your imagination. I don't have a metal or wood lathe, so I'm not sure about plug bayonets, but I can do pretty much any regular knife/dagger design, hand made, for a fair price. mcdrago, get me a picture or rough sketch of what you're wanting, and I'll see what it would cost me to make. roytheodd, I can do that blade design, just not in a plug bayonet. If you want it in dagger form, I'd be more than happy to come to an accord with ye. Here's a couple recent examples of my work: Different styles, different materials, but as I said... given a picture or a rough sketch, and I can likely make it. Not exact copies of existing blades, since these are hand-crafted by me, but the sky's pretty much the limit as long as the parts don't require a lathe.

Yeah... I may not post much, but I *read* alot I nearly went insane, hoping that the Pub wasn't gone forever... So I likewise sent an email, and thankfully yesterday was able to get on!

Not to be a loose-footed mainsail... but the topmost sword listed in the thread is not the Windlass Steelcrafts version: KultOfAthena.com: Windlass Pirate Sabre, $45 The product page for this sword is: http://www.kultofathena.com/product~item~S...irate+Saber.htm Kult of Athena *does* have the Windlass Steelcrafts version, and still cheaper than most places I've found it, but their Windlass Steelcrafts version is: KultOfAthena.com: Windlass Steel Hilt Pirate Cutlass, $179.95 The product page for this sword is: http://www.kultofathena.com/product~item~5...ate+Cutlass.htm On a comparative note, I have purchased the $45 version, which isn't too bad with a little work with the proper tools. Generic Pirate Saber(Manufacturer not listed): $44.95 Blade: Stainless Steel, the blade itself isn't too bad for stainless. However, this version has a rat-tail welded tang, using a 1/8th inch bolt for the tang, spot-welded to the blade approximately 1 inch down into the hilt from the guard. Fittings: Cast zinc alloy Handle Material: Plastic, not faux leather wrapped as listed Scabbard: Pretty, what appears to be genuine leather sheath Windlass Steelcrafts Steel Hilt Pirate Cutlass: $179.95(Compare to the same exact Windlass Steelcrafts sword from Museum Replicas, who sells it for $235.00) Blade: High-Carbon Steel, full tang Fittings: All real Steel Handle Material: Wood covered with genuine Leather Scabbard: Genuine Leather with Steel throat and chape All in all, if you can't afford alot on a sword, the $45 version is perfectly fine so long as you never try to hit/cut anything with it or drop it. The $180 version is a real weapon that can stand up to abuse. Left: $45 Right:$180

Be ye havin' any pictures? They sound intriguing.

I hadn't ever heard of them a'fore, but by gods, I'm going to give'em a try soon me'self!

Get me detailed pictures, and I'll see what I can do...

Aye... We barely scrape by as it is, with me bartering for and/or making my own kit items. Up until this spring, we hadn't been to an event for a year and a half, and this one SCA event, which was a 2 hour drive away, was even a strain. Not to mention the fact that employers are complaining about the wages they pay as it is, so no raises around here. Add to that the cost of everyday goods going up because of skyrocketing gas prices... I've heard the same rhetoric over and over from people about how it's "your choice" where you live and where you drive, but in some cases, that's NOT true. For example, Aye, there are fuel efficient hybrid vehicles out there, but at a high price! They're not much seen in the used market, and we can't afford a brand new vehicle. Ahh, so start walking to and from work! But you can't do that when you work more than 10 miles from where you live. No public transit in this area either, and moving across country costs alot of money. Now on the plus side, we'll have our house paid off this year, which is yet another reason we can't move. So eventing is already a strain because of gas prices, which seem to be going up daily. If we take a look back, when I first started playing in the SCA, Gas was $0.99 a gallon, and minimum wage was $5.15 an hour. Things seemed simpler then... Looking back a year and a half ago, minimum wage was still $5.15 an hour, although the cost of gas had doubled (on average), and the cost of living had risen to match the climbing gas prices. That already put a strain on the lower class in which I fall. Now it costs more than triple in gas to go to an event as it did back when I started, so no out of state events unless we save for nearly a year first. So to answer the question put to the board... We're already past our breaking point, but really 'ave no choice. Basically, to be able to make events, we've had to cut out renting any movies, going out to eat, or pretty much any recreational activity. If it hits $10 a gallon, we'll be lucky to survive, much less event.

I'm Cap'n of the 'Iron Lotus' Crew... and though we won't be making PiP (at least not this year), I'm interested in a ditty bag. My sisters made me a nice sailor's bag which I keep my garb in, the ditty bag would be a nice addition to keep my small personal items and rigging kit in. As I too am on a small budget, I'd be interested in offering something for trade. If there's anything you need that you'd be willin' to barter for the ditty bag, I'll see what I can do. I have a Forge, I do Leatherwork and a bit of Woodwork, Marlinespike Knotwork, etc. Oh... and I also make flags out of black canvas duck and white bloodstained/powderstained cotton. I'd have to ship you the item to be bartered and pay for the ditty bag to be shipped here since we're not making PiP, if'n that's ok and ye'd be willin' that is. Cap'n Mac

Here be arrr new flag Black Canvas, blood and black powder-stained white cotton applique-embroider stitched on both sides.

Aye... My Lady is a bit leery o' me shippin' out to sea w'out her. Though it definately IS something I wish to do one day. I mean sail aboard, not ship out w'out her... that may 'ave come out wrong.

I'll have to watch the movie again, but I'm pretty sure the song is different... at least the few words of it you catch.

Here be a few pictures o' me and some of my crew at Beltane. Group shot of most of the on-site Crew A picture o' me'self, and then o' me having absconded with the Lord High Admiral of the Ansteorran Royal Navy's sheep A shot of our camp My First Mate Proposin' to our Quartermaster(With Pirate music blaring in the background)

I'm married with two kids and I'm still considering taking up that call to the sea. Can you PM me with what's to be expected, etc? Also, I have another matter I'd like to converse with ye about in private.

The 2003 "Peter Pan" live action one

Does anyone know where I can find the lyrics to the song Captain Hook is playing/singing when Wendy is brought in? I know it's called "Toora Loora Lo", but I can't find lyrics for it anywhere. Thanks in advance