Over the last few days I have been working with blender and three.js. As I have used blender before, there is not as much of a learning curve than with three.js. I have began by modelling an outline of the factory with help from the drawings done by William. It is important at this stage of the project to make sure that the scale is correct. When I get the outline of the factory right, I will begin to model some of the things inside.

I have been getting used to three.js over last last 2 weeks. I am doing tutorials and familiarizing myself with it. In the next week I hope to bring some of my own model into three.js and start to work on them.

Over the last week I have been doing more research on the bomb factory so that I will have an accurate description of it before I begin modelling. I feel that I now have enough information to start. I have to arrange to meet William Fitzgerald so that I can collect the grenade and the moldings off him so that they can be scanned using the 3D scanner.

I have also been doing some research on three.js along with other technologies that I could use. I have decided to use three.js and have been getting familiar with it over the last few days. I am going to do the modelling in blender as I am already familiar with it. I looked into using 3D studio max but decided against it as I have used blender before and it was the best option.

Tomorrow I plan to get started with blender and begin with some of the modelling. I will also spend some more time getting familiar with three.js as well as doing some additional research.

Yesterday i met with William again and he gave me a copy of the drawing of the factory. It is on a A1 page and it is much clearer that the pictures I previously posted. We are trying to source a A1 scanner so that it can be digitized. I must also get the grenade and the castings off William so that we can scan them using a 3d scanner. The drawing paints a clear picture of what the factory may have looked like and the layout seems to be realistic.
At the moment, I am doing as much research as possible on the factory and trying to get as much detail as possible before I start modelling. The dimensions of the factory differ slightly from the different sources. Over the next few days, I will also have to decide what I will use for the modelling. At the moment I am thinking of using 3d studio max. I will also have to decide what format I want to use, whether it will be a serious game etc.

These are drawings of what the factory possibly looked like. We cant be sure of what exactly it was like as we are only going by a written description of it and one drawing by Ned Fitzgerald.

On either side of the furnace two household fire machines were placed in order to generate more heat. A short pipe was then placed from these machines into the furnace approx 1 foot from the bottom. The normal wheels were taken off these and two wheels off furze machines were used so there would be sufficient air blast to generate the heat needed. These wheels were approx 4 feet in diameter. A big pulley was then inserted at the foot of the machine and a belt placed from those right around the wheels of the furze machines. This meant that the big wheel of the furze machine was driving the small wheel so that great speed was achieved.

A small oven was then placed in the corner of the dug out which also had a pipe to allow smoke out. This oven was used to bake the cores for making the bombs. Chills (which is pictured below) were also needed for the moulding and making of bombs. The chills were in two parts, it is a block of iron approx 9 inches long by 5 inches wide by 4 inches deep. One half of these chills were fixed permanently to a sleeper on the side of the factory. The other side fitted in over the bolt and would have been kept in place using a pin. In the factory there was also a ladle which was used for pouring the molten material into the chills. The ladle had a three foot iron handle with a ring on one side, into which was places a metal pot which could take approx 1 gallon of liquid and had a spout for pouring. The operating of the factory took six men, one on each fir machine, one placing the cores in the chills, one tapping the barrel into the chills and a man for sealing the furnace when the ladle was full. In one night it would have been possible to make ninety bomb castings.

The entrance to the factory was concealed by placing two short railway sleepers on either side of the hole and on top of these sleepers a notch was cut out. A timber box was then made with two groves on top which would fit into the notches cut out of the sleepers allowing it to swing like an axle. When someone was entering the factory a box could be lifted up and a stick put under it to support it and when leaving the factory the stick was taken out and the box came down into the hole. The entrance was then covered so that it could not be seen.

While the dug out was being prepared, Ned Fitzgerald was gathering all the equipment that was needed and these were put into the dugout. We are not sure exactly what equipment was in the factory or where it was all placed. There was a barrel lined with firebricks which were set in marla (a soft putty like substance). There was a hole of approx 4 square inches cut in the bottom of the barrel for the purpose if tapping to get out the molten metal. Firebricks were placed against the hole and a further hole was made through these blocks of approx 2 inches into the center of the barrel. This furnace was standing about 2 feet from ground level. Over the furnace a hole was cut in the roof of the factory into which was placed a foot long earthenware pipe which went up through the ditch to leave fumes out of the furnace.

This is a sample of the notes that were written by Ned Fitzgerald. It is very difficult to read and it has not been rewritten in legible writing.


Ned Fitzgerald was an engineer in UCC. While in his final year, he approached Martin Correy to offer his services in the struggle for independence. He was sent to the bomb factory in Blossomgrove. Having seen this operation he found that it was not being run efficiently. he made recommendations for change but they were ignored. He then decided to set up a new factory in Knockraha East. In setting up the factory, it was important to keep it secret. It was decided that the dug out would be 35 feet long by 8 feet wide. it was dug 9 feet deep. Horses were used to draw away the earth into a furze-brake so that people passing wouldnt see it. Hundreds of tons of earth had to be removed. At the top of the dug out a shoulder was cut into the ground 3 feet deep around the top of the whole. This was used to place the beams in and to support the roof. Railway sleepers were used that were found on a local farm where they were used to cross over drains. These sleepers were put side by side to support the roof and 2 feet of earth was put on top along with a sod of grass so it wouldnt be noticed. A hole was then dug to make an entrance. This was sloped into the factory and was big enough for a man to pass. Steps were made from the hole down to the floor of the factory.

Over the past couple of days I have been doing some research on Knockraha and in particular the bomb factory and Sing Sing prison. The bomb factory seems to be a more interesting site as it is no longer visible. I visited the site on Saturday and there is no indication that there was ever anything there.

There are very few artifacts that still survive. The trough was half full of sand and the casting would have fallen into it and left to cool. 

This is the only drawing that exists of any of the equipment that was in the bomb factory.