While I was enthusing over the new 'Museum Miniatures' Arab Dhow, this little wargaming point came to mind. I have to say that your brief review of the new 'Museum Miniatures' junk, dhow, etc, etc, did absolutely nothing to prepare me for the quality of the Arab ship! Dhows, by the way are a damn faster than you suggest. [Other ships in the scenario were using oars as well!] A Movement Note The addition of the superbly crafted 'Museum Miniatures' dhow to that already available from Tony Barr at ERM, beefs up the potential for 1/300th scale naval wargamers, as it does for 1/450th games, if the two junks are added to 'Peter Pig's' Pirate Ship range, reviewed in 'Lone Warrior 141. They both slip into 1/450th scale with ease. Now Dhows of course are unusual sailing ships, and have some specific traits, which can be problematic when the Dhow is used as a man o'war. I've heard them described as a bit like racing yachts in handling terms. Dhows do not 'go about' as other vessels, but instead they must 'wear ship'. This to landlubbers means......... 1. First the stem is turned to windward, and the spar, or spars if it's 2 or 3 masted, is hauled up to a vertical position, and the sheets are cast off. 2. Next the spars are rolled around the front of the mast, then the sails and sheets are passed around the front of the mast and secured on the other side, from port to starboard or vice versa. This is the vulnerable moment, with most of the crew involved in wearing ship. 3. Finally, the sheets are adjusted, and the ship can sail onwards. Though quite a fast vessel sailing on long hauls before a favourable wind, the Dhow has to slow significantly, perhaps almost to a standstill on some occasions, in order to wear ship and change direction. An important wargames point, and one which does tend to make the Dhow vulnerable at times, even if she’s crammed with pirates! [Rob, as usual thanks for your contribution. My personal experiences of dhows, comes from a trip I took in one around Mombassa, and I must admit I paid very little attention to how the vessel was actually handled. It was just an unusual pleasure cruise. I have studied, and filmed feluccas plying their trade on the Nile, with their similar rig and it was fascinating. Now who makes such a 15mm vessel? Question: Why do sailors insist on calling ropes ‘sheets’? Kenn] Back to Table of Contents -- Lone Warrior # 148 Back to Lone Warrior List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 2004 by Solo Wargamers Association. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com