The ships were set up in such a way that the curve of the hull did not pose an obstacle to the fishermen as they dropped their lines into the water and hauled up their catch. This was particularly important on large ships that had a narrow upper deck and bulging sides that curved inward. The men fished from a gallery that was set up on the port side, extending from the foremast shrouds to the poop deck. On some ships, a similar gallery was set up alongside the poop deck, extending from the shrouds of the mainmast to the other side of the aftermast. If the curve of the hull was exaggerated and there was no room on the deck because of the superstructure, a gallery was set up along the outside of the ship, on both sides. When the ship did not have a forecastle or a poop deck, which seems to be the case of the Saint-André, the fishermen placed themselves along the full length of the ship.

To maintain their balance, the fishermen stood in barrels (Figure 9, A and B; Figure 10, c, d, e). The barrels were generally narrow at the top and wide at the bottom to provide greater stability. They formed a skirt around the fishermen, who placed their leather apron over the edge in order to stay dry. The edge of the barrel was padded with straw to protect the fishermen from scrapes and absorb shocks when the sea became rough. Fishermen from Normandy usually wore wooden sabots to keep their feet dry, but sometimes they worked barefoot, standing on a false bottom installed 30 cm above the bottom of the barrel. The false bottom placed the fishermen in a higher position and allowed water that entered the barrel to drain to the bottom. It was covered with a straw cushion wrapped in sailcloth. The barrel was secured to the poop deck, the main deck or the side of the ship to keep it from moving, even if the ship began to pitch and roll. ⁷⁶