Maritime Dictionary – Everything that Starts with Letter “F”

by | Last updated Nov 24, 2023 | Maritime Dictionary | 0 comments

F – Code flag; I am disabled, communicate with me. Morse code ● ● ▬ ●.

F Region – ‘Appleton Layer.’

Face Piece – Timber on fore part of knee of head to allow for shortening of bolts and for simplifying fitting of main piece.

Face Plate – A stiffening plate welded along the edge of a frame. A removable plate threaded onto the arbour of a lathe for work  piece attachment.

Factor of Safety – Number that represents breaking strength as compared with safe working load. In propeller shafts it is about 6; in shell plating 4 1/2; in piston rods 12.

Factory Ship – A prolonged endurance vessel for processing fish products supplied by smaller whalers or fishing vessels.

Faculae – Unusually bright patches sometimes observable near Sun’s limb.

Fading – Falling off in strength of a radio signal. Due to variations in atmospheric path.

Fag (Fagg) End – Unlaid end of a rope. 2. Old name for a young and  inexperienced seaman, to whom odd jobs were given.

Fag Out – To unlay end of a rope.

Fagged – When the end of a rope is untwisted.

Fahrenheit Scale – Imperial scale of temperature. Fahrenheit = ((9 x Celsius) ÷ 5) + 32.

Faik – ‘Fake’.

Failure to Join – Non-compliance with undertaking to rejoin ship at a specified time. Used as denoting such non-compliance when reason for not rejoining is unknown.

Fair – To adjust to proper shape or size.

Fair Curve – Line drawn through certain parts of ship for which special delineation is desired.

Fair in Place – To fair a fitting or member without removing it.

Fair On – Fair in place.

Fair Weather – Adjective applied to a person or fitting that is satisfactory in fair weather, but disappointing in adverse circumstances.

Fair Wind – Wind that is not before the beam and not directly aft.

Fairing – Checking and correcting a ship’s plans before commencing construction.

Fairlead, Fail-leader – Fixture that ensures a rope leading in a desired direction. May be of any shape or material. Pierced lengths of wood are used in sailing craft to separate falls of running rigging.

Fairway – Navigable water in a channel, harbour or river. Main navigation channel.

Fake – One circle of a coil of rope. To coil or arrange a rope ornamentally with each fake flat, or almost flat, on the deck, usually in a circle or figure-of-eight pattern. Sometimes called ‘cheesing down’.

Falcate – Said of Moon when in first or fourth quarter. Sickle-shaped.

Falconet – Old ordnance firing a shot of 1 1/4 to 2 lb. Length 6 ft.; weight 4 cwt.

Fall – Hauling part of a purchase or tackle. Rope by which a boat is hoisted.

Fall Aboard – To come in contact with another vessel, more or less broadside on, through action of wind or tide.

Fall Astern – To get astern of another vessel by reduction of speed.

Fall Away – To be blown to leeward. Can be said of a vessel with relation to a fixed object, or to ship’s head with relation to her projected course.

Fall Block Hook – Former fitting for releasing a ship’s boat in a seaway. Pendant from davit head released hook from slings when boat was at a predetermined distance below davits.

Fall Cloud – Low-lying stratus cloud.

Fall Down – To move down a river or estuary by drifting with stream or current.

Fall Foul Of – To come in contact with another vessel and become foul of her rigging or cable.

Fall Home, Falling Home – Said of ship’s sides when they slope upward and inward. Tumble home.

Fall In With – To sight or closely approach another vessel at sea.

‘Fall Not Off’ – Injunction to helmsman of sailing ship not to allow vessel’s head to fall to leeward. More usually ‘Nothing off.

Fall Off – Movement to leeward of ship’s head.

Fall Out – Said of ship’s sides when breadth increases as sides go upward.

Fall Wind – Sudden gust.

Falling Off – Movement of ship’s head to leeward of course.

Falling Star – Meteorite that has become incandescent through friction with Earth’s atmosphere.

Falling Time – Of barometer, is time taken by mercury of an inclined barometer to fall to proper level when placed vertically. Is an indication of sensitivity of instrument.

False Alarm – Distress alert initiated for other than an appropriate test, by communications equipment intended for alerting, when no distress situation actually exists.

False Alert – Distress alert received from any source, including communications equipment intended for alerting, when no distress situation actually exists, and a notification of distress should not have resulted.

False Cirrus – Cirriform cloud extending above cumulonimbus.

False Colours – National flag shown by a vessel when it is other than the ensign she is entitled to wear.

False Fire – Old name for blue pyrotechnic light.

False Keel – Additional keel fitted to main keel to protect it in event of vessel taking the ground. A sacrificial surface bolted onto the outside of the main keel in order to protect it from grounding damage.

False Keelson – Additional keelson fitted above main keelson.

False Points – Name sometimes given to ‘three-letter’ points of mariner’s compass.

False Rail – Additional piece of timber attached to head rail, or main rail, for strengthening or facing purposes.

False Stem – Tapered cutwater clamped to stem of wooden vessel.

False Sternpost – Timber attached to after side of wooden stempost.

Family Head – Old name for vessel’s stern when decorated with several fulllength figures.

Fanal – The lamp, and its mechanism, in a lighthouse.

Fancy Line – Downhaul runner at throat of a gaff. 2. Line for hauling on a lee toppinglift.

Fang – Valve of a pump box. 2. To prime a pump.

Fanion – Small marking flag used when surveying.

Fanny Adams – Name given to tinned mutton in R. N. First issued in 1867. A child of this name, 9 years old, was murdered about the same time.

Fantail – A rounded counter stern extending past the after perpendicular.

Fantod – A nervous and irresolute person. Only heard in R. N.

Farcost – A ship or boat. A voyage.

Fardage – Dunnage used with bulk cargo.

Farewell Buoy – Buoy at seaward end of channel leading from a port.

Fashion Pieces – Outer cant frames.

Fashion Plate – Ship side plate at end of well deck. Usually has an end that is swept in a curve.

Fast – Hawser by which a vessel is secured. Said of a vessel when she is secured by fasts.

Fast Ice – Ice extending seaward from land to which it is attached.

Fast Time Constant or F.T.C. – Radar term, an anti-rain clutter control.

Fastenings – A general term for all nails ,screws, bolts, etc. See coach bolts, lag bolts, hanger bolts, drifts, spikes, treenails.

Father of Lloyds – Name given to Julius Angerstein, 1735-1823.

Father of Navigation – Dom Henrique, better known as Prince Henry the Navigator. 1394-1460.

Fathom – The imperial unit of depth measurement of six feet. There are 3.25 feet to a metre Equivalent to 1.8 metres.

Fathom Lines – Lines drawn on chart to limit areas having depths of 1, 3, 6, 10, 30, and 100 fathoms.

Fathom Wood – Second-hand wood sold in cubic fathom lots.

Fathometer – Echo-sounder made by Submarine Signal Co. of Boston, U. S. A.

Fatigue – Deterioration in strength of a metal due to stress, variations in temperature, vibration and other factors.

Faying – Uniting or joining closely. Joining edges of plates or planks to make a flat surface.

Faying Surface – That surface of a fitting, or member, by which it is joined to another faying surface.

Feather – To turn the oar blade of a rowing boat horizontally with the top forward as it comes out of the water, so to skim above the water for the return stroke. To point a sail boat higher into the wind to reduce pressure from the sails in a gust.

Feather (an Oar) – To put the blade of oar horizontal, when taken from water at end of stroke, and keep it so during its movement forward.

Feather Edged – Said of a plank that is thicker along one edge than along the other edge.

Feather Spray – Foaming water that rises upward immediately before stem of any craft being propelled through water.

Feathering Float – Paddle board of a feathering paddle wheel.

Feathering Paddle Wheel – Wheel having a subsidiary gearing so that paddles are mechanically governed and enter water vertically, remain vertical while submerged, and so propel vessel directly forward or astern.

Feathering Propeller, Screw – Propeller having gearing that can cause blades to be turned fore and aft when vessel is under sail alone.

Feed – Water pumped into boiler to maintain water level. 2. Oil fed to sprayers of oil-burning furnace.

Feed Heating – Increasing temperature of boiler feed water, or fuel oil, immediately before feeding.

Feed Tank – Any tank that feeds a service. Particularly, tank that contains feed water for boilers.

Feeder – Temporary wooden trunkway fitted in hatch of a vessel carrying grain in bulk. Contains between 2 per cent and 6 per cent of hold capacity, and feeds the hold as grain settles. 2. Usual name for ‘oil feeder’.

Feeder Service – Cargo from regional ports transferred to a central hub port for a long-haul ocean voyage.

Feeder vessel – Vessel operating a feeder service.

Feeler – Small implement used when sounding with deep-sea apparatus. Consists of stout wire, mounted in a wood handle, with extremity of wire bent at right angle to remainder. Laid on wire, when sounding, to detect momentary slacking of wire when sinker reaches the bottom. 2. Also feeler guages used by engineers.

Felibote – Spanish name for Dutch Vlieboot.

Felloes – Sections of wood from which the rim of a wheel is built up.

Felucca – Undecked boat of Mediterranean. Has long beak, lateen sails and may pull up to 12 oars a side.

Fen – Low lying liable to flooding.

Fend – To protect. To bear off. To insert a fender.

Fend off: To push a hull away from an object or another boat. To push off.

Fender – Packing material to protect the sides of a boat from rubbing against an object; made from canvas covered cork, flexible air filled plastic or plaited rope.

Fender Board – A board, suspended horizontally so as to span fenders and spread the wear or increase the effective fender surface.

Fender Bolt – Bolt having a large, rounded and projecting head. Used, formerly, on outside planking of wooden vessels to protect from chafing.

Ferro-Cement – Method of constructing vessels with steel re-enforced concrete.

Ferry – Generally used as a term for a passenger carrying vessel on a short and regular route with more than 8 persons aboard. Also used as a verb.

Fetch – Of wind, is distance from starting point to observer, and measured along the water troubled by it. In sailing, is to reach or attain. The area of sea to windward over which the wind is able to build up waves.

Fetch Away – To break adrift. Fid. Strong wood or metal pin passing horizontally through heel of an upper mast and resting on trestle tree of mast below. 2. Large and conical piece of wood used for opening strands of large rope. Often has broad base so that it can stand vertically when rope is worked over its point.

Fid – A tapered tool for separating the strands of rope when splicing.

Fid Hammer – Hammer with one end elongated and tapered. Used when knocking out a fid. Tapered end makes an emergency fid.

Fiddle – A frame or railing on a boat’s table to keep dishes, etc. from falling off in rough weather. Fiddles are frequently left open at the corners for drainage

Fiddle Block – Block having one shell but appearing to be two blocks end to end. Each part has its own sheave, but strop passes around both parts. Has all advantages of a double block with additional advantages that it is narrower, and block has no tendency to topple.

Fiddle Head – Ornamental carving on stem of a vessel when it remotely resembles a fiddle.

Fiddlers Green – Mythical land of plenty for seaman. The antithesis of Davy Jones’s locker.

Fiddles – Wooden fittings clamped to meal tables in heavy weather. They limit movement of dishes, plates, glasses, etc.

Fiddley, Fidley – Stokehold casing and funnel casing especially the gratings and ladders inside.

Fidley – The deckhouse over the boiler tops that the funnel sits on.

Fiducial Points – Those indications, in the graduation of a scale, that were carefully and precisely ascertained; and were not deduced from other indications in the scale.

Fiducial Temperature – That temperature at which the reading of a mercurial barometer requires no correction for expansion of mercury.

Field Ice – Ice pack whose limits cannot be seen from ship.

Field Magnet – Permanent magnet of a dynamo. Establishes a magnetic field in which armature rotates.

Field of View – Area that can be seen when looking through an optical instrument.

Fife Rail – Horizontal rail, or timber, in which are a series of belaying pins.

Fifteen-Metre Type – First international type of yacht (1911). Length overall, 76 ft.; L. W. L., 49 ft.; Beam, 13.8 ft.; Sail area 4450 sq. ft.; Reg. tonnage, 27.5; T. M. tonnage, 50; Freeboard, 3.7 ft.

Fifty-Gun Ship – Man of war intermediate between frigate and ship of the line.

Figsies – Elizabethan spelling of ‘Fizgigs’.

Figure Head – A carved effigy of a person or creature attached under the bowsprit of a vessel.

Figure of Eight Knot – Knot put in end of rope or fall to prevent it unreeving through a block or sheave.

File-rail – A rail around a mast.

Filibuster – Originally, a buccaneer. Now applied to any lawless adventurer.

Fill – The thread that runs across sail cloth from edge to edge.

Fill (a Sail) – To trim a sail so that wind acts on it.

Filler – A paste applied to fill the grain of wood before applying varnish or paint.

Filler, Filling – Piece put into a made mast to complete its shape.

Fillet – A fillet is a cove shape made with putty on an inside corner. The term is most often used in reference to Stitch-N-Glue boat building. A fillet is made with activated epoxy resin, thickened with various fillers, to a putty consistency. The putty is “globed” into place and smoothed with a rounded tool. (See Boatbuilding Methods: Stitch- N-Glue.)

Filling – Name was formerly given to a composition sheathing — placed between frames of a wooden vessel to close seams and exclude vermin. Almost anything that fills a gap.

Filter – A screen or barrier for separating foreign matter from a liquid or gas.

Fine – No rain or precipitation. A sharp hull shape.

Fine Lines – Said of a ship that has a fine entrance and less than average beam.

Fiord – An inlet or enclosed area of deep water formed from a flooded glacial valley. Also fjord.

Fire Appliances – Usual name for fire-fighting appliances.

Fire Booms – Booms rigged out from ship’s side and carrying a rope secured at head of each boom. Used for keeping off fire ships and other hostile craft.

Fire Ship – Comparatively worthless vessel loaded with combustibles and allowed to drift amongst fleet of enemy ships at anchor; fire ship being ignited just before contact.

Fire Wires – Towing wires hung over the bow and stern of a ship usually at an oil terminal for tugs use in an emergency.

Firefoam – Preparation for extinguishing oil fires by spreading foam over oil surface, and smothering the ignited layer.

Fireman – Man who shovels coal into boiler furnace.

Firing Point – That temperature at which a given liquid gives off vapour in sufficient quantity for the surface layer to ignite when vapour is ignited by flash.

First Mate – Deck officer next in rank below Master. Officer holding a First Mate’s Certificate of Competency. Also called Chief Mate or Chief Officer.

First Meridian – Prime meridian. Meridian from which longitude is reckoned. By general consent the meridian of Greenwich has been adopted.

First of Exchange – Stamped and No. 1 bill of exchange when more than one copy make a set.

First Point of Aries – That point in which Equinoctial and Ecliptic intersect and Sun passes from south to north declination. It was, originally, in constellation Aries but, due to precession of Equinoxes, is now in sign of Pisces. Sun enters Aries on March 21 (about).

First Point of Cancer – That point in Ecliptic which is farthest removed from Equinoctial in a northerly direction; Sun reaches this point about June 21. Owing to precession of equinoxes this point is now in Gemini.

First Point of Capricorn – That point in Ecliptic that is farthest removed from Equinoctial in a southerly direction. Sun reaches this point about December 21. Owing to precession of equinoxes this point is now in Sagittarius.

First Point of Libra – That point in which Equinoctial and Ecliptic intersect and Sun passes from north to south declination. It was, originally, in constellation Libra but, due to precession of Equinoxes, is now in Virgo.

First R.C.C. – RCC affiliated with the shore station that first acknowledges a distress alert, and which will accept responsibility for all subsequent SAR coordination unless and until coordination is transferred to another RCC.

First Rate – Old classification for war vessels carrying 100 or more guns. ‘First Turn of the Screw (propellers) Pays all Debts.* Seaman’s remark when leaving a port at which he owes money.

Fish – A marine animal. To catch fish. To hoist the flukes of an anchor up on the gunwale. To strengthen a spar by fastening on other pieces.

Fish Block – Lower block of a fish tackle.

Fish Bolt – Used for replacing a missing rivet in ship’s plating. May be drawn through hole by line led through hole and floated to surface. Alternative type has spring fins in extremity of bolt; these open out when clear of hole and allow washer and nut to be screwed up.

Fish Davit – Davit taking upper block of fish tackle.

Fish Eye – Name sometimes given to streamlined connecting piece in Walker’s log line.

Fish Fall – Fall of a fish tackle.

Fish Farm – Where fish are reared by man as food.

Fish Front – Rounded timber on fore side of a made mast.

Fish Plate – Name given to boundary iron on outboard side of a superstructure deck.

Fish Sides – Convex timbers on sides of a made mast.

Fish Stakes – Piles driven out from the shore used to trap fish or suspend nets.

Fish Tackle – Small tackle at head of fish davit. Used for lifting flukes of anchor to billboard or anchor bed.

Fish Tail – Name sometimes given to rotator of patent log.

Fish Tail Plate – A dovetail shaped joiner plate usually recessed into timber so as a to resist movement.

Fisherman’s Staysail – A fore and aft triangular sail set on the triatic stay between the two mast heads of a ketch or schooner.

Fisherman’s Bend – Useful bend for securing a rope to a ring. Made by taking end twice through ring and then over standing part and between ring and turn put round it. Additional half hitch round standing part is optional, and rarely necessary.

Fishery Cruiser – Armed vessel whose duties are to preserve order on the fishing grounds, to maintain rights of fishing vessels and to prevent smuggling and unlawful practices.

Fishes – Pieces of timber lashed to a yard or mast to strengthen it.

Fishing – For the purposes of the NSCV Part B, fishing operations means: a) the farming, taking, catching or capturing of fish for trading or manufacturing purposes; b) the processing or carrying of the fish that are farmed, taken, caught or captured; or c) activities in support of fishing operations, including—i) the feeding, storage or transport of fish farmed, taken, caught or captured by the fishing vessel; ii) the provision of food, fuel and other supplies to the fishing vessel while it is engaged in fishing operations; iii) the transport of crew members or special personnel to and from the fishing vessel while it is engaged in fishing operations; and iv) the maintenance of fish farms.

Fishing Boat – In Colregs terms a vessel fishing with nets, lines or trawls which restrict her manoeuvrability. Also Fishing Vessel.

Fishing Boat’s Register – Certificate of registry of a fishing boat.

Fishing Lights – Statutory lights required to be shown by a vessel engaged in fishing.

Fishing Vessel – For the purposes of the International Regulations For Preventing Collisions At Sea, 1972, the term vessel engaged in fishing means any vessel fishing with nets, lines, trawls or other fishing apparatus which restrict manoeuvrability, but does not include a vessel fishing with trolling lines or other fishing apparatus which do not restrict manoeuvrability.

Fishmeal – Dried and ground fish used for animal feed or fertilizer.

Fitting Out – Supplying and fitting hull of a vessel with all the additional fixtures, rigging and attachments it requires.

Fitzroy Beacon – Type of dan buoy used by surveying ships. Is somewhat similar to Ormonde beacon, but is floated by two 25-gallon oil drums and has a heel weight of 1 1/2 cwt.

Five Eight Rule – Used for finding area of plane surface having one curved side. One of Simpsons Rules.

Fix – Position of ship when found by intersection of two or more position lines.

Fixed Costs – Operating expenses that continue despite lower levels of income producing activity.

Fixed Fire Fighting System – A dedicated extinguishing system fitted to an engine room.

Fixed Laydays – Laydays that are specified by number, and not derivable by calculation, rate of working, etc.

Fixed Light – Applied to a navigational aid that shows a continuous light, without eclipse or occulation.

Fixed Signs – Four signs in which weather was supposed to be less variable than usual when Sun was in them. They were Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius.

Fixed Stars – Name that distinguishes stars from planets. More particular, to distinguish stars that have no proper motion from those that have.

Fizgig – Steel or iron implement with two or more barbed prongs. When attached to a shaft carrying a line, is used for spearing fish. Neptune’s trident is a form of fizgig.

Fjord – A deep, narrow and winding gulf.

Flag –  A coloured piece of cloth (bunting) hoisted where best sighted, used as a symbol or signal. See code flags. To highlight an item or occurrence for consideration.

Flag Lieutenant – Lieutenant in R. N. who is on staff of, and personally attends, a flag officer.

Flag of Convenience – A foreign flag under which a ship is registered to avoid taxation etc., at home.

Flag Officer – Naval officer entitled to fly the flag of his rank. Includes RearAdmiral, Vice-Admiral, Admiral, Admiral of the Fleet, and Chief officer of a yacht club.

Flag Ship – Warship carrying an admiral in command of a squadron or fleet.

Flag State – The nation of a vessel’s registration.

Flags of Convenience (FOC) – The flag representing the nation under whose jurisdiction a ship is registered. Sometimes referred to as flags of necessity; denotes registration of vessels in foreign nations that offer favourable tax structures and regulations.

Flagstaff – A flag pole.

Flake – To coil a rope so that each coil, on two opposite sides, lies on deck alongside previous coil; so allowing rope to run freely.

Flaking a Mainsail – Lowering a gaff mainsail and disposing of it in bights on either side of boom.

Flam – Former name for flare of ship’s bows.

Flame Arrestor – A screen capping a fuel line as a barrier to flames from vapours. A screen placed over a carburettor intake to prevent backfire from igniting bilge vapours.

Flamming Tackle – Purchase used for hauling an anchor to ship’s side when stowed vertically outside a flared bow. Was manned between decks; and outboard end of purchase was passed through a ‘flamming port’.

Flange Bows – Flared bows.

Flare – A pyrotechnic device for signalling or distress. The concave curve of a vessel’s sides or bow. The opposite to tumble-home. It keeps decks dry.

Flash – Smart. Sudden. See flashing.

Flash Flood – A short duration flood.

Flash Point – Temperature at which there is sufficient vaporisation of a flammable material to permit ignition.

Flashing – Applied to a light that suddenly appears, shows for a short interval and then ceases. A recurring light that shows for a period that is shorter than the interval between its appearances. 2. Morse signalling with a lantern or other light.

Flashing Lamp Lantern – One that has mechanism for quickly showing a light and quickly obscuring it, so that Morse signals may be made.

Flashing Light – Navigational aid that shows a light for a period that is less than its period of eclipse.

Flat – Expanse of low-lying ground over which tide flows. 2. A flat-bottomed craft. 3. A flat floor. 4. Working space below decks in a warship.

Flat Aback – Said of a ship, or sail, when wind is on fore side of sail and is pressing it back.

Flat Aft – Said of a fore and aft sail when sheet is hauled to fullest extent.

Flat Bottom – A hull shape that is flat such as a barge etc.

Flat Floor – Girder or timber going athwart bottom of a vessel and having no upward curvatures of outboard ends.

Flat In – To haul aft the sheet of a fore and aft sail to fullest extent.

‘Flat Iron’ – Shallow draught war vessel specially designed for river and coastal work. Had abnormal beam and bulged sides. Correct name was ‘River gunboat’. 2. Steam vessel designed for carrying coal cargoes to berths above bridges of Thames. Has very low superstructure; masts and funnel are hinged

Flat of keel: This is the amount of flat bottom plating on each side of the centre girder.

Flat Plate Keel – Shaped plating running along centre line outside ship’s bottom, being strengthened by an internal vertical girder.

Flat Seam – Made in canvas by overlapping edges and stitching edge of each cloth to standing part of other cloth.

Flat Seizing – Used for binding two parts of rope together with small line, spunyard or wire. Eye is made in small line and line is passed round parts of rope and through its own eye. Taut turns are then passed, being finished by a clove hitch between the two parts of rope and round all turns of seizing.

Flat Sennit – Usual name for ‘English Sennit’.

Flat: A deck built without curvature.

Flat-Bottomed – Said of a craft whose bottom has no curvature.

Flatten – To flat in a sail.

Flatten sheets: To pull the sheets of sails tight.

Flaw – A gust of wind.

Flax Rope – Made of Irish flax, and has a breaking strain more than twice that of manilla hemp rope of same size.

Fleet – Number of ships under one command or ownership. 2. To overhaul a tackle and shift moving block to a position further away. 3. Area in which a man, or party, of men can work without shifting. 4. Flat land covered by water.

Fleet Auxiliary – Vessel, other than a warship, attending a fleet for repair service, bunkering, hospital service or other duties.

Fleet Policy – Contract of marine insurance that covers all vessels under one ownership.

Fleeting – Shifting the moving block of a tackle from one place of attachment to another place farther along. Moving a man, or men, from one area of work to area next to it.

Flemish Coil – Successive ovals, or circles, of rope so arranged that each coil lies closely alongside the previous coil, end being in centre.

Flemish Eye – Made in end of a rope by unlaying the rope to a distance marked by a whipping, and unlaying strands. Using a round bar, one yarn is brought up on either side and half knotted together, the ends lying along rope. When all yarns are hitched, the eye so formed is served or marled. Ends of yarns are tapered and served.

Flemish Horse – Foot rope on yard, from yard arm to band of slings, or to strop of brace block.

Flense – To remove the blubber and cut up a whale or seal.

Fleur de Lys – Used for indicating North point of compass card. First introduced in 1302, by Flavio Gioja, as a compliment to the king of Naples, who was of French descent.

Flexible Steel Wire Rope – Has 6 strands around central fibre heart. Each strand has 12 wires around fibre heart. Breaking stress is approximately equal to tons denoted by twice the square of circumference in inches.

Flinders Bar – Sections of cylindrically-shaped soft iron that are mounted vertically on fore, or after, side of binnacle to compensate for vertical-induced magnetism of ship. Named after Captain Matthew Flinders, R. N.

Flinders, Matthew – 19th century British naval officer and explorer known for the first circumnavigation charting of Australia, and the popularisation of that new name. Also the namesake of the flinders bar.

Float – To be waterborne. 2. Abbreviation of ‘paddle float’ or ‘float board’. 3. Name of a file having cuts in one direction— not cross cut. 4. Buoyant ball or cylinder operating a valve or cock.

Float Board – One of the boards on a paddle-wheel.

Floating Anchor – ‘Sea anchor,’ ‘Drogue’.

Floating Battery – Heavily armed, shallow draught warship, formerly used for harbour defence.

Floating Clause – Clause inserted in a charter party to stipulate that vessel shall always lie afloat.

Floating Dock – Buoyant dock that can be flooded so that keel, blocks are below level of keel of vessel to be docked; and pumped out so that docked vessel is lifted entirely above water level.

Floating Drydock – A semi submersible craft that can be placed under a vessel and then de-ballasted to lift it clear of the water for slipping works.

Floating Harbour – Expanse of water protected by buoyant breakwaters.

Floating Policy – One made in general terms and for an overall sum of money. Generally taken out by shipper when goods are to be carried in more than one ship. As each ship loads, the value of cargo is declared, and is deducted from overall sum to be covered by insurance.

Floating Power of Spars, etc. – Positive buoyancy of a spar, or other floating body, expressed as a weight that can be carried by it, or suspended from it.

Floating Trot – Line of baited hooks made fast, at each end, to the mooring rope of a buoy.

Floe – Area of floating ice, up to 3 ft. thick, that has broken off a sheet.

Floe Berg – Heavily-hummocked ice from a pressure ridge. Is usually separated from floes. Built up by rafting and freezing.

Flood – The rising tide. When excessive, temporary water covers normally dry land.

Flood Anchor – That anchor by which a ship rides at flood tide.

Flood Stream – Horizontal movement of water that is causing a tidal rise.

Flood Tide – Rising of water level due to tide.

Flood Warning – Advance notice of the potential for flooding at a named location.

Floodable Length – The length of the hull that can flood without immersing the margin line.

Flooding – Deliberately admitting water into a hold or compartment for the purpose of extinguishing a fire, or for improving stability.

Floor – The bottom of a vessel.

Floor Boards – Planking laid on floors of wooden vessels.

Floor Head – Upper end of a floor timber.

Floor Hollow – Concave form of upper edge of a floor.

Floor Plate – Reinforcement to floors.

Floor Riband – Longitudinal strip that supports floors below heads.

Floor Timber – That part of the floor, in a wood built ship, that crosses the keel beneath the keelson.

Floors – Transverse members, erected vertically, that connect lower ends of frames on opposite sides of vessel.

Flota – Spanish fleet that formerly sailed every year from Cadiz to transport cargo from Spanish South America.

Flotilla – Fleet of small vessels.

Flotilla Leader – Comparatively large, high-speed vessel that leads, and has charge of, a destroyer flotilla.

Flotsam, Flotson – Goods and fittings that remain floating after a wreck.

Flounder – An edible flatfish. To thrash about.

Flowing Sheet – Sheet that is eased off and is controlling a well-filled sail of a vessel running free.

Flowing Tide – A flood stream.

Fluid Compass – Liquid compass.

Fluitschip – See fluyt.

Fluke – Flattened triangular extremity of arm of an anchor terminating with a point, the bill.

Fluky – Said of wind when it is of no great force and varies in strength and direction.

Flurry – Sudden gust of wind. 2. Passing rain storm. 3. Agitated water caused by death throes of a harpooned whale.

Flush – Level with.

Flush Deck – Upper deck that extends the whole length of vessel that has no poop or topgallant forecastle.

Flushing Plug – A fitting at the lower unit of an outboard motor to enable a hose to be attached for flushing the cooling system.

Flute – Boat with flat floors, rounded stern and broad beam. See fluyt.

Fluted Shackle – Has a grooved pin and a corresponding groove in lug. When these grooves are aligned a locking-pin is inserted.

Flux – A surface coating medium applied during brazing and welding in order to limit impurities in the hot metal resulting from oxidation.

Fluyt – Dutch 17th century flat bottomed cargo sailing ship.

Fly – Lengthwise expanse of a flag. 2. Old name for a compass card.

Fly Block – Double or single block used as upper purchase block of topsail halliards.

Fly Boat – Fast boat used for passenger and cargo traffic in fairly sheltered waters. English name for Dutch Vlieboot.

Fly to – To come to the wind quickly while under sail.

Flying Bridge – Light fore and aft bridge above main deck. A control station on top of a deckhouse that providing high visibility for the helmsman.

Flying Dutchman – Phantom vessel, commanded by Vanderdecken, said to be met with off Cape of Good Hope. Was sighted and reported by H. M. S. ‘Bacchante’ at 4 a. m., 11th July, 1881.

Flying Jib – Sail set on outer fore topgallant stay (or flying jib stay). Foremost of fore and aft sails. Sometimes called a yankee.

Flying Jib Boom – Either the outer length of jib boom, or a separate boom extending forward of it.

Flying Kites – Fine weather upper sails.

Flying Light – Said of a vessel when in ballast and her draught marks are well above water line.

Flying Moor – Alternative name for ‘Running Moor’.

Flying Pier – Light and temporary pier erected for embarkation or disembarkation.

Flying Skysail – Skysail with yard attached to sail and sent aloft on truck halliards; clews being stopped to royal yard. Was the earliest form of skysail.

Fo’csle – See forecastle.

Foam – Whitish froth that appears when water is agitated. It is generated more quickly in salt water than in fresh, consisting of a mass of bubbles containing air.

Fodley Hatch – A hatch around the smokestack.

Foehn – Air that having risen over a mountain and lost moisture by precipitation descends on the lee side as a dry, warm wind.

Fog –  A dense mass of small water droplets causing restricted visibility. See Advection fog, Radiation fog, and Arctic smoke. Meteorologists consider fog to exist when visibility is less than half a mile; seamen make this limit one mile.

Fog Bank – Low-lying dense fog.

Fog Bell – Bell rung by anchored vessel in fog, in accordance with international regulations. Sometimes applied to a bell rung in fog by a lighthouse, or at a pier end. Occasionally applied to bell on a moored buoy.

Fog Bow – White ‘rainbow’ sometimes seen opposite to Sun during fog.

Fog Horizon – Near horizon as observed in foggy weather.

Fog Horn – A sound signal device.

Fog-bound – A vessel when forced to be idle due to fog.

Fohn – A warm dry wind blowing down the leeward slopes of a mountain range. The katabatic dry mountain wind that raises air temperatures over the Alps into Central Europe.

Following Sea – Sea that runs, approximately, in direction of ship’s course. An overtaking sea that comes from astern.

Fomalhaut – Star α Piscis Australis. S. H. A. 16°; S. 30°; Mag. 1.3; Name is Arabic for ‘Mouth of the big fish’.

Food Scale – Statutory scale of food for seamen. Laid down by Merchant Shipping Act and Order in Council.

Foot – The lower end of a sail or mast.

Foot (of Sail) – Lower edge of sail.

Foot Brail – Lowest brail on a spanker.

Foot Hook – Original form of ‘Futtock’.

Foot Outhaul – Tackle for hauling out foot of spanker.

Foot Waling – Former name for the ‘ceiling’.

Footing – Tack to windward less fine than close hauled to optimise sail thrust and consequent overall speed.

Footing Down – Method of getting a rope as taut as possible. Man stands midway along it so that his weight causes a small bight to be formed. As he takes his weight off it the small amount of slack rope is gathered in and rope is turned up.

Footrope – Rope stretched under a yard or jib boom for men to work on when handling sail. Sometimes called a ‘horse’. Also, the boltrope along foot of a sail.

Footrope Knot – Diamond knot worked round a rope by using the four ends of two pieces of small line passed through the rope.

for lowering.

Foraminifera (ous) – Very small and elementary type of marine life that lives in a shell. ‘Foraminiferous’ is adjective used when describing ooze, or other sample of sea bed, that contains foraminifera.

Forbes’ Distance Recorder – Attachment used with Forbes’ log to record the distance run.

Forbes’ Log –Consists, basically, of a manganese bronze tube that can be protruded through bottom of ship at a position near her turning point. Bottom of tube carries a vane that rotates as ship moves through water, sending an electric signal every 0.01 of a mile travelled. These signals operate the ‘Distance Recorder’ and Elphinstone’s Speed Indicator.

Force Majeure – A common clause in contracts, exempting the parties for their obligations as a result of conditions beyond their control, such as earthquakes, floods or war.

Force of Wind – Velocity, or momentum, of wind expressed by a figure in the Beaufort Scale. Seldom exceeds 20 Ib. per sq. ft.

Force P – The fore and aft component of vessel’s permanent magnetism.

Force Q – The athwartships component of vessel’s permanent magnetism.

Force R – The component of vessel’s permanent magnetism toward or away from the keel.

Forced Draught – Air supply, to a furnace, that has been increased beyond normal by subjecting it to pressure, by increasing its speed, or by expediting the removal of exhaust gases.

Forced Points – Alternative name for ‘By points’ of compass.

Ford – A shallow spot to cross a river.

Fore – In or towards the forward part of a ship.

Fore and Aft – Leading or lying in the same direction as the length of a ship. 2. Embracing the whole length of a ship.

Fore and Aft Schooner – Vessel having fore and aft sails only. Used for differentiating such a vessel from a topsail schooner.

Fore Bitters – Songs sung on forecastle during dog watches. (R. N.)

Fore Cabin – Passenger accommodation that is inferior to saloon.

Fore Course – Sail bent to fore lower yard.

Fore Ganger – Short piece of rope, grafted on harpoon, and to which harpoon line is bent.

Fore Halliard – Halyard. Rope by which a foresail is hoisted.

Fore Hold – Foremost hold in a cargo vessel.

Fore Hood – A foremost plank in side of a wooden vessel.

Fore Hook – A breast hook.

Fore Peak – Space between fore collision bulkhead and stem plating.

Fore Rake – That part of a vessel forward of a vertical line passing through fore end of keel.

Fore Reach – To continue making headway while going about under sail. Sometimes used as meaning to overtake, or shoot ahead

Fore Runner – Name sometimes given to bunting that marks end of stray line in line of a log ship.

Fore Sheet – Rope or tackle by which clew of foresail is controlled and adjusted to wind. Fore Ship.* Former name for bows, or forecastle.

Fore Shroud – Standing rigging that supports and stays a foremast in a thwartship direction.

Fore Stem – Former name for the stem of a vessel.

Fore Top – Platform, at head of foremast, to give spread to fore topmast rigging.

Fore Topmast – Mast next above fore lower mast.

Fore Triangle – The area forward of the forward mast in which sails can be set. A sail that fills that area.

Fore-and-aft – Lying in the lengthwise line of a boat.

Fore-and-aft Rig – The sailing rig, with sails bent to masts, booms, and stays parallel to the centreline of a boat, allowing closer hauled courses to be achieved.

Forecastle – The raised part of a ship’s hull forward. The crews forward accommodation.

Forecastle Head – Merchant Navy name for topgallant forecastle.

Forecastlehead – The deck over a forecastle.

Forefoot – Lower extremity of stem, usually curved, where it joins keel. Generally regarded as part of keel, the stem being said to rest upon it.

Foreign Agreement – Articles of agreement, between Master and crew, entered into when a vessel is going outside Home Trade limits.

Foreign Going Ship – Ship trading to ports outside British Isles and other than ports between Elbe and Brest inclusive.

Foreland – Land projecting some distance seaward.

Forelock – Flat piece of metal that is passed through protruding end of shackle pin to prevent its accidental withdrawal. Lower end is split so that it can be splayed.

Forelock Hook – Winch in ropemaking tackle block. Used for twisting yarns into strands.

Foremast – Forward mast in a vessel having two or more masts.

Foresail – In a vessel having two sails, is the foremost sail. In fore and aft vessels having two or more masts it is the foremost gaff sail. In square-rigged vessels it is the fore course.

Foreshore – Land that lies between high and low water marks on a beach. 2. Inclined surface on seaward side of a breakwater.

Forestaff – Cross Staff used when facing an observed object.

Forestay – Stay of foremast, extending from head of mast to a position forward of it.

Foretopman – Man whose station is in fore top, or at fore topmast, when working aloft. In R. N. the name is still used to denote a man belonging to one of the four quarters into which a watch is divided.

Fore-topmast Staysail – The second foresail set on a sailing ship inside the inner jib, outer jib and middle staysail.

Forge – A furnace for the purpose of melting metal. To move onward with momentum. To force. Sometimes applied to forcing a vessel over a shoal.

Forge Ahead – To go ahead by extra effort.

Forge Over – To force a vessel over a shoal. Forge Test. Applied to rivets. Head is heated and then hammered until diameter is 21/2 times that of shank. There must be no cracking around edge.

Forged – Metal hot worked by hammering, bending or pressing.

Fork Beam – Half beam supporting a deck in way of a hatch.

Former – A jig to bend or shape timber upon.

Forming – Shaping a beam, frame, or other member, to exact form required.

Forties – Fishing ground off S. W. coast of Norway. Has an almost uniform depth of 40 fathoms.

Forty Thieves – Forty line of battle ships built, by contract, for Admiralty during

Forward – Towards or at the bows. Fore part of a vessel.

Forward perpendicular (FP) – A perpendicular line drawn to the waterline at a point where the foreside of the stem meets the Summer Load Line.

Forward: In front; at the front of the vessel.

Fothering – Closing small leaks in a vessel’s underwater body by drawing a sail, filled with oakum, underneath her.

Fottinger Clutch – Hydraulic clutch in gearing of Bauer Wach turbine to propeller shaft. Used for smoothing out variations in torque.

Foul – To entangle, obstruct, or collide with.  The opposite of clear.

Foul Anchor – Anchor when foul of its own cable. Sometimes said when anchor is foul of an obstruction on bottom.

Foul Berth – Anchorage in which there is not room to swing at change of tide.

Foul Ground – Sea bottom in which sunken wrecks or other obstructions may cause anchor to become foul.

Foul Hawse – Having two cables out and one across, or foul of, the other.

Foul Water – Area of water containing menaces to navigation.

Foul Wind – Wind blowing from direction a vessel wishes to sail, or in a direction that may set her into danger.

Fouled – Any piece of equipment that is jammed or entangled, or dirtied.

‘Foulweather Jack’ – Name given to Admiral Sir John Norris (1660-1748) and Vice-Admiral Hon. John Byron (1723-86) both of whom were singularly unfortunate in the weather their ships experienced.

Found – To be equipped. To fit firmly.

Founder – To fill with water and sink.

Four Cycle – Applied to oil engines in which the operations of charging, compression, ignition and scavenging are done in four piston strokes.

Four S’s – Four matters to have in mind before sailing. They are, steering gear, side-lights, side ports, stowaways.

Fourcant – Four-stranded rope.

Four-Point Bearing – Direction of an observed terrestrial object when bearing is 45° from ship’s course. Distance to position when object is abeam is equal to distance off when abeam.

Fox – Made by laying up three or more yarns and smoothing them down.

Foxon’s Log – Early 19th century towed spiral log made of wood.

Foy Boat – Used in Tyne and other N. E. coast ports. About 15 ft. long, 4 ft. 6 in. beam. Pulls two oars and has a lugsail. Attended mooring of ships.

Fracto – Term used in meteorology. Means ‘broken’.

Fracto Nimbus – Small and irregular pieces of nimbus cloud, generally known as ‘Scud’.

Fragata – Spanish 16th century pinnace used to assist mother ship in battle.

Frame – Steel or iron member that extends vertically from outer end of floor to outer end of beam. Supporting skeleton of a vessel.

Frame Spacing – Fore and aft distances between successive frames.

Frame Timbers – Parts that make up a wooden frame.

Frames – Either in timber sawn, laminated, bent or in metal riveted or welded, they are the transverse construction members that create the base for the planking or plate to clothe.

Framing – System of frames, floors and intercostals to which outside plating of a ship is attached.

Franchise – In marine insurance is the maximum amount, usually 3 per cent. If insured value, that cannot be claimed under a policy when a loss is incurred.

Frap – To lash with many windings of line. To lash lines around a sail to keep it from blowing loose. To lash ropes around a damaged vessel.

Frazil – Small, cake-shaped pieces of ice floating down rivers. Name is given, also, to newly-formed ice sheet off coast of Labrador.

Free – Said of a vessel under sail when she has wind abaft the beam. 2. Legally, used as indicating that no responsibility attaches to a named party in specified circumstances.

Free Alongside Ship – Stipulation that no charge or responsibility falls on ship or owner of cargo until goods for shipment are alongside ship in which they are to be loaded.

Free Fall Lifeboat – A lifeboat designed for rapid release (notably in tankers) by being dropped into the water down a launching railway.

Free In and Out – Stipulation that carrying vessel is not to bear any expense incidental to loading and discharging.

Free of Address – Stipulation that specified charges shall not be made against a ship at port to which she is bound.

Free of Average – Inserted in policy of insurance to relieve insurers of liability for payment of specified losses.

Free of Capture and Seizure – Included in a policy of insurance to relieve insurers of liability for loss sustained by attack, capture or seizure made by a belligerent or enemy.

Free of Damage Absolutely – Inserted in policy of insurance to relieve insurers of liability for damage incurred. Policy would cover total loss, general average charges, salvage charges, three-fourths of ‘Running Down’ charges.

Free of Expense – Stipulation that loading and discharging of cargo shall not entail expense to ship.

Free on Board – Stipulation that no expense shall fall on ship for the putting of cargo on board.

Free Overside – Stipulation that no expense shall fall on ship after cargo is put over the side.

Free Puff – Yachting term for a gust of wind that requires weather helm to be applied, and causes yacht to sail closer to windward.

Free Ship, Free Goods – Proposition that, in time of war, enemy goods, other than contraband, carried in a neutral vessel are not subject to capture.

Freeboard – The distance from the load waterline to the lowest watertight deck. Colloquially, the distance between the waterline and the deck line.

Freeboard Certificate – Load line certificate, issued by an assigning authority acting on behalf of Government, stating the statutory freeboards of a vessel in specified areas and seasons.

Freeboard Deck – The uppermost complete deck open to weather and sea, and which has permanent means of closing all openings.

Freeboard Depth (D) – The moulded depth measured amidships, from the top of the keel to the top of the freeboard deck beams at side, plus the thickness of the stringer plate if no wooden deck is fitted.

Freeboard Length (L) – Taken as 96% of total water-line length, situated at 85 % of the least moulded depth or, if greater, as the length from the fore side of the stem to the axis of the rudder stock on that water-line.

Freeing Port – Opening in bulwarks, allowing water shipped on deck to flow overside.

Freeing Scuttle – Non-return flap that allows water to drain from deck to sea, but prevents sea entering.

Freeze – Change from a liquid to a solid.

Freight – Freightage. Goods loaded for transport in a vessel. 2. Money paid for carriage of goods by sea. In marine insurance, includes value of service in carrying goods of owner. Does not include passage money.

Freight on board (FOB) – or that the shipper will put the freight on a truck, but the consignee pays shipping charges.

Freight Rate – The charge made for the transportation of freight.

Freight Tonnage – The total cubic capacity of a ship available for the carriage of cargo. When expressed as a weight, 1.13 m³ are taken as 1 ton.

Freight/ing – Load/ing a ship with cargo.

Freightage – Freight. Payment for carriage of goods by sea.

Freighter – Sea-going vessel carrying cargo. 2. One who ships cargo into a vessel.

French Bowline – Similar to bowline except that two bights arc made, instead of one, before finishing off.

French Fake – ‘Flemish Coil.’

French Sennit – Made with an odd number of strands, passing outside strand over other strands to centre, and working from each side alternately.

French Shroud Knot – Joining of two 3-stranded ropes by marrying them and making wall knot on one side and a crown on the other side.

Frequency Modulation – The varying of frequency to the radio carrier wave to enable encoding for the simulation of audio messages.

Fresh – A sudden flood.

Fresh Breeze – Wind of Force 5 in Beaufort Scale. Speed 17-21 knots.

Fresh Water Allowance – The number of millimetres by which the draft changes when a vessel moves from fresh to salt water.

Freshen – To increase in strength (wind). To renew or ventilate.

Freshen Ballast – To turn over shingle or stone ballast.

Freshen the Nip – To veer or haul on a rope, slightly, so that a part subject to nip or chafe is moved away and a fresh part takes its place.

Frictional Current – Water dragged along by a vessel when due to friction with her underwater surface. Reduces effectiveness of rudder.

Frictional Wake – Effect of frictional current as manifested at rudder; pressure of water being reduced on fore side of rudder when angled.

Frigate – Historically a 28 to 60 gun three masted warship, smaller than a Ship of the Line, designed for cruising. Now used more loosely it is the general purpose warship of modern navies.

Frigate Built – Term applied to vessel having a raised forecastle and quarter-deck.

Frigatoon – Venetian vessel having a square stern, main and mizen mast but no foremast.

Frigid Zone – Area of Earth’s surface around N or S geographical pole, and bounded by Arctic or Antarctic Circle.

Front – Used in meteorology to denote a line of demarcation between warm and cold air masses. The boundary of two dissimilar parcels of air masses having different characteristics. See Cold, Warm or Occluded front.

Frontogenesis – Birth or development of meteorological front.

Frontolysis – The fading away, or disappearance, of a meteorological front.

Frost – Atmospheric state in which water freezes.

Frost Smoke – Congealed fog that forms over Arctic waters.

Frustration – Circumstance or event that is outside control of contracting parties and prevents fulfilment of contract.

Frustration Clauses – Included in a war-time policy of insurance not containing the ‘Free of Capture’ clause. Relieves insurers of liability to make good a depreciation of freight, or cargo, caused by frustration of voyage through restraint of princes.

Fuel Coefficient – Ratio between fuel consumed and effective work done. The Admiralty coefficient for ship propulsion is based on: D – being displacement in tons, V- being speed in knots.

Fuel Consumption – Amount of fuel used in (a) going a given distance, or (b) one hour at a given speed: (a) varies as square of speed, (b) varies as cube of speed. These are approximate values.

Fuel Injection – The process where fuel is injected under pressure into the engine cylinder.

Fuel Oils – Viscous oils, of petroleum group, used in marine boilers. S. G. 0.9 to 0.96; flash point 150°F to 180°F.

Fuel Tank – A tank or tanks for the vessels fuel.

Fuel/Oil Ratio – The mix of fuel and oil which is used in most two stroke outboard engines.

Full – Said of sail when full of wind.

Full and By – Sailing close to the wind but with the sails full.

Full Due – Used as indicating finality or permanency; e. g. ‘Belay for a full due.’

Full Moon – Phase of Moon when in opposition, and her disc is entirely illuminated.

Full Rigged – Said of a vessel carrying a full suit of square sails, to topgallants or above, on all of her three or more masts.

Full Scantling – Applied to a vessel with flush main deck—but may have raised forecastle, bridge deck and poop and having such constructive strength that allows her to have minimum freeboard.

Fullering – Closing edge of lapped plate by forcing down its lower edge of lap with a fullering tool and hammer.

Fully Rigged Ship – Three masted vessel with square sails on all masts.

Fulmar – Small sea bird met with off St. Kilda island and in Arctic Ocean.

Fumigation – Destruction of vermin, insects or bacteria by application of fumes, gases or vapours.

Fundamental Formula – Equation cos a = cos b x cos c+ cos Ax sin b x sin c. Used in navigational problems to connect latitude, altitude, declination and hour angle.

Funnel – An external casing through which engine exhaust ducting is routed into the atmosphere.

Funnel Cloud – Upper and visible part of water vapour arising from sea to form a waterspout.

Funnel Draught – Natural draught caused by convection and by top of funnel being considerably higher than furnaces.

Funnel Net – Fishing net in form of a tapering tube.

Funnel Temperature – Temperature of exhaust gases in funnel. Usually between 600° and 700°F.

Furl – To roll and secure sails on their yard or boom.

Furling – Gathering in a sail, or awning, and confining it with stops.

Furling in a Body – Harbour stowing of a sail. Sail is gathered in towards bunt and there arranged in smooth and neat stowage, the yard being clearly defined.

Furling Lines – Name sometimes given to gaskets.

Furnace – That part of a boiler in which fuel is burnt. Can be internal or external.

Furniture – The essential fittings of a ship, such as masts, davits, derricks, winches, etc.

Furring or Girding – The practice of adding one or more layers of planking on the outside of a vessel in way of her waterline to improve her stability.

Furrings – Strips of timber applied to frames in order to fair their faces for attachment of cladding.

Futtock – One of the pieces of timber forming a rib of a wood-built vessel.

Futtock Hoop – Iron band, near head of lowermast, that takes lower ends of futtock rigging.

Futtock Plank – Ceiling plank next to keelson.

Futtock Plate – Iron plate, at edge of lower top, to which deadeyes of topmast rigging are secured. Upper ends of futtock shrouds are attached to its lower edge.

Futtock Shrouds – Short lengths of rope, wire or chain connecting futtock plate and lower ends of topmast rigging to futtock hoop.

Futtock Staff/Stave – Length of rope, or band of wood or iron, to which the lower ends of catharpins are secured.

Futtock Timbers – Middle futtocks in the built rib of a wooden vessel. Situated between upper and lower futtocks.

Gibi

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