Building A Ship In A Bottle.

Hello, Building a ship in a bottle was an old form of maritime art. Sailors of the past would often create things in their free time. They also did not have much room for big hobbies, and from this came old treasures such as scrimshaw carvings and ships in bottles.

I have not made one of these for twenty years. But I thought that this could make an interesting instructable. I also knew that I could use this opportunity to show my daughter how I used to make them. So I tried again, I was nervous that it wouldn’t turn out well. But I was pleasantly surprised.

To start with you need a bottle. The shape of the bottle will determine what type of ship you should build. A tall narrow bottle like this is best suited for a tall ship. A big square rigged clipper would not fit. But a topsail schooner fills the empty space inside the bottle nicely.

Step 1: The basic hull

I never used a kit. I just use blank pieces of wood that are available at craft stores, and begin with drawing a ship in the size and shape that I want to build. 

Holes are drilled through wood that will form the upper and lower parts of the hull. Toothpicks are then inserted into the holes to keep the wood properly aligned during the rest of the construction. Draw a rough outline on the stacked wood pieces. 

I don’t know how to put this any other way… And I’m not trying to be silly when I say… Now just sand away anything that doesn’t look like the boat you are trying to build. I started on a belt sander for the rough shape. Worked a little finer with a sanding drum on a Dremel tool, and finished with a piece of sandpaper. 

A quick look at the hull next to the bottle. You will be doing this A LOT!

You can see that the hull is already larger that the opening of the bottle. 

That’s why it is not built out of one solid piece of wood. 

Comments

[deathpod]

This is a great Instructable! Very impressive! i can't wait to try this out. Thank you for putting it up.

[schtipp]

I did another for my son, I continue to be greatful for this excellent instructable.

[awesomecreations]

I assume this is the Black Pearl, right? Very nice "piratey" looking model. I have been considering building either the 'Pearl' or the Flying Dutchman in a bottle. For the 'Dutchman, I think the movie one is easier to copy because of all the footage, but making the legendary one from paintings and word descriptions from the era of exploration is a little bit trickier because they are all different. If I made this one, I would use clear plastic or something to hold the ship above the "water" to make it "fly".

[Quiksilver2693]

Thats a geocaching travel bug in the picture right?

[schtipp]

yes, I like to go caching whenever I get the chance. I have the same screen name on there.

[goaly]

That is just incredible! Very, VERY well done!

[HrdWodFlor]

Great work here! If anyone is looking for small drill bits but don't want to pay allot just ask your local dentist. They don't reuse them. They are small and free. Don't work well on metal but very well on wood. Fits most dremel type drills.

[awesomecreations]

Here is mine!

http://www.instructables.com/id/Ship-in-a-Bottle-1/

[awesomecreations]

Hey, I have a bottle of a similar size which I want to use for one of these but it has a square base. So to better use up this space I want to make a clipper with rectangular sails. How would I make the sails fit through the bottle neck? Keep in mind they will probably be wider than the opening in the bottle.

[goaly]

Hello, The ship I made was a topsail schooner. There is one rectangular sail on the top of the front mast. This sail is similar to the sails on a Clipper. The thread ‘hinge’ allows it to rotate parallel to the mast when entering the bottle.

[awesomecreations]

Okay, thanks!

[GGlave]

Excellent instructable!
I think I noticed Ponal/ Elmer's White Glue used throughout. Did you glue the model to the bottle with White Glue as well?
Nice work.
G'

[goaly]

Thank you to the compliment. Yes, I did use Elmer’s glue to attach the ship to the glass bottle.

[awesomecreations]

On the island of Mauritius there is a small factory which only makes ships in bottles. I went there in 2007 but the factory was closed when we went so I never got to go inside.

[Climbim]

This is really quite amazing and one of the best tutorial on how to make these I have seen.

I have a few questions, most of which I've conveniently forgotten, but, off the top of my head.....

....what do you mean by typing paper? Typing paper is paper which is suitable to be used in typewriters, am I correct in thinking? If so, that may pose a problem. Therefore, are there any other materials one could use for the sails?

Sorry that was so lengthy.

Thank-you.

[goaly]

Hello, Any generic white paper should work. I used the bulk paper that you buy to put in a printer for your home computer. Out of habit, I still call it typing paper.

Thanks for looking!

[justashipinabottle]

I there. I was just wondering, if you had a round bottle, how exactly would you get the ship to stay upright? I've heard people use putty, is this the only option? Thanks for the guide, I'm definitely going to use it.

[goaly]

Hello, I always used blue putty when I put a ship in a round bottle. The putty was molded in roughly the shape that I wanted to end with, and then I would cut it into strips narrow enough to fit through the opening of the bottle. Once inside, I used a bent wire to press the seems of the strips together, and create the surface of the water.

I did not make a full hull for the ship, only from the waterline upward. And the ship would just be glued to the top of he putty. I would then use a little white paint on a very thin wire to paint the wake behind the ship.

Thank you for looking at my instructable, and I hope this helps.

[titanic765]

where did you get the giant tweezers

[goaly]

The tweezers came from a box of odds & ends that I bought at an estate sale. I got them years ago.

[Jsquared24]

Aren't ships in bottles made by putting the pieces in th bottle, rather than making the ship outside the bottle and then putting the ship in ????

[goaly]

This instructable demonstrates the traditional method of putting a ship in a bottle. A few parts of the ship (such as the upper and lower halves of the hull) are assembled inside of the bottle, but the majority of the work is done outside.

[Jsquared24]

Oh, ok. Thanks for letting me know :)

[schtipp]

This instructable is outstanding. It convincedme to become a member. I had done a kit one once asa kid, but this method allows for a way nicer hull. I made one using this technique to use as a geocaching clue. Thank you for the awesome help.

[goaly]

I’m really glad that my instructable was helpful. I have to admit that your first ship looks better than the first one that I made. Well done!

[Alaap]

The ship itself is great
the detail is amazing
i know i will fail but i will try it this summer
can i use cardboard
thanx

[Alaap]

can i use bamboo

[goaly]

I don’t see why you could not use bamboo. The only reason I use basswood is because it is readily available in convenient sizes at the local hobby store.

[goaly]

If you want to try this, I would suggest that you first focus on learning the technique of getting the ship in the bottle. Do not worry about fine details. Start with a bottle with a little larger opening, and make your mast and bowsprits wider than they need to be… On you first try just focus on HOW to do it. Once you are comfortable with that, THEN focus more and more on the little details and making it LOOK good.

GOODLUCK!

[jeff-o]

Very cool. I always wondered how these were made. Thanks!

[maullove]

I've wanted to try and make one of these since I was little, thanks for the really easy to follow instructions!

[newbie314]

What is the type of wood being used?

[goaly]

I used Basswood.

[Honus]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

[suh]

Thanks very much for taking the time to share this with everyone. It's beautiful!

[goaly]

Thanks again for your compliments! I am using this opportunity to answer 2 of the questions that I have been asked about the rigging. I wanted to use photos to help explain, and I was unable to do so when I replied to his message.

Question 5. I have (hopefully ) included a color coded picture (#1) of the rigging. Start from under the hull and work forward. In picture #2 you can see the holes that were drilled for the main rigging lines. The green dots are where the holes for the square topsail rigging will be drilled. These holes should have been drilled at the same time as the rest, but I forgot, and drilled them later.

Question 6. Picture #3 shows where the sails were glued. The sails are secured with a dab of glue to each other in the front of the boat, to a boom, or the nearby thread in the case of the top sail on the rear mast. This step is to just lock the sails into the proper position.

Thanks for looking at my instructable, and best of luck should you try to make one!

[ShadowedOne]

Fantastic Instructable! I've always been interested in how these are made and seeing all the steps so clearly laid out really solidified it all for me.

[twnorman]

Are you currently a member of the Ships in Bottles Assocation of America?
If not you may want to join the community of other builders. Anyone else that might be reading these comments may want to learn more as well. You can visit our official site at www.shipsinbottles.org. We put out a quarterly journal with full color pictures of various S.I.B. buillders and we have some extremely talented members. Join us if you want to learn more!

[Burnsides]

SUPER COOL.

[eman1]

damn awesome!! you rock man! :D