US Brig Niagara by 6ohiocav - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64

[Srodbro]

Darrell:

I am building Niagara’s sister Lawrence, admittedly taking liberties with what is typically done by most modelers of these brigs, and was recently faced with the same dilemma as you regarding the space around the capstan, skylights and companionway. I am taking a different approach, capitalizing on differences among the authorities on what the originals looked like. 

Chapelle, in his History of the American Sailing Navy, Figure 60, (lower plan) appears to show, not a tiller, but a wheel as the helm, which frees up a lot of space in this area.

That certainly doesn’t help you at the stage you are in your build (with your beautifully rigged tiller), but might be an alternative for others to consider. Which is the course I am following, and will be adding the aftermost “skylight” as a grate. (Although this approach begs the question of where the compass would have been mounted!). 

As I’ll soon be starting my rigging, I appreciate your tip on the braces. 

[mikiek]

Steve - we'll never know the  answer for sure. My thoughts on a wheel - a lot more work to put together. I guess it depends on if you buy into the "no extra time" argument and how far you take it. A tiller on a rudder is undoubtedly easier and probably quicker to implement. Less hardware required. Chappelle did admit he took some liberties drawing up those plans, although what & where we may never know.

 

Although I added one, some might even argue about a binnacle. Since these boats were intended to stay on the lake would they need one? We do know that most of the boat traffic would sail the shorelines, the draught dictating how close. So navigation was town to town in most cases.

 

Just another line of thought.

 

BTW - your Lawrence looks great. Very unique (and cool) color scheme. At the risk of sidetracking Darrell's thread can I ask what you came up with as far as differences between Lawrence & Niagara?

[Srodbro]

Darrell:  Sorry for hijacking your topic 

Mike:  Certainly, I cannot say that there were differences between the two ships ... most texts I have read say they were identical  (which, by the way, I question, since Lawrence was launched two weeks before Niagara) ... so my differences are between what is most typically modeled, and what I (with at least a little support from other authorities or logic) frankly, like. 

Here are the differences I am modeling:

    An extra gunport on each side near the bow

    The wheel instead of tiller

    No boat davits

    No royal yards (this, based on the painting below, which is purported to be   Lawrence ... even tho it’s dangerous to base much on artwork )

    Colors, obviously. 

I may find more on my next trip to the Museum in Erie, PA, which has a model of Lawrence. 

 

Ok, Darrell. I promise no more hijacking. 

[6ohiocav]

 

 BOWER ANCHORS

Time to work on the anchors. I created the stocks out of cherry. Not an easy task.  There are tapers on three sides.  I traced a rough pattern from the plans, did a rough cut on the band saw, and finished them off on the disc sander.

I then rigged the Anchor Ropes. I used a photo of the actual ship for the pattern on the lines.

I wrapped .018 brown rope around the Anchor rings.  That was a tedious process. I ran one end into the anchor mortice, and then inserted the ring (made out of .20 metal wire) to secure one end. Then with two tweezers, began the wrapping.  I tied it off at the end and froze it with a spot of CA.

I will work on attaching the anchors this weekend. I need to construct chaffing blocks on both sides of the holes I drilled in the hull for the anchor line, and open up the front corners of the grates on my forward hatch. That means delicate destruction work on the ship again. UGHH.

Here are some photos of the anchor assembly.

[6ohiocav]

Getting a little tired of trying to figure out how to load the photos in the right order. All of the remaining photos kept loading in reverse order.

 

Come on guys, I spend more time trying to figure out how to post photos of the things I build than the time I spend actually building the darn things.

[6ohiocav]

Steve,

 

Hijacking the site, Not at all. I love the painting of the Battle of Lake Erie and the images of the Lawrence.  When Commodore Perry is done with her, Capt. Eliot is ready to turn my Niagara over to you! Now that's a real hijacking.

 

In the end, I left one of the skylights off for the simple reason that the guns clearly were too crowded. I can place the two buildings around the capstan such that they aren't in the recoil line of the carronades. It looks much better.

 

I always wondered about a ship's wheel. Steering this large Brig with a tiller seems a bit off, although I note that the replica is rigged with one.

 

Is your Lawrence scratch built, of built on a Model Shipways Niagara hull? It's fantastic.

 

 

Edited April 2, 2018 by 6ohiocav

[ronkamin]

Darrell

 

The anchors really came out great, I am envious. I am now planning to upgrade the anchors on my version of the Niagara when I get to that point. I have a high bar to reach.

 

Ron

[mikiek]

Nice puddin

[Srodbro]

Darrell:

 

My Lawrence is essentially scratch built based on the Model Shipways Niagara kit plans that I lofted to build a solid hull. I created a build log (in the scratch build forum, under the title “US Brig Niagara — solid hull experiment” ... sorry, don’t know how to make a link to it) and decided to rename my build Lawrence because there is even less historical information about her than Niagara, so I thought I could take more liberties with my model. The only parts from the kit that I have used so far are the horn timbers and the gun castings. I considered starting a log for Lawrence, but my workmanship is clearly at the lowest end of the spectrum of talent exhibited by most of the scratch-build modelers, and don’t want to diminish the quality of that forum. 

 

The helm ... I actually think they had a tiller, even though a wheel was used on larger contemporary ships. There is some real mechanical advantage contributed by all that tiller rigging. 

 

Thanks for for your compliment ... far too kind. 

[mtaylor]

Darrell,

 

The anchors came out perfect.   As for the posting order of pictures...It's one of those little gifts from the software company that our guys can't fix.     Maybe this will help with the posts:  

 

Steve,

Don't be shy about your ship, feel free to post.  You'll be happy with the help you get.  As for fear... I did too, and my first scratch ended up in the fireplace.

 

 

[6ohiocav]

ANCHORS AWAY….

Worked over the weekend rigging and attaching my anchors. I decided to bring the anchor cables through my forward hatch, and to do that, I had to so some surgery on the grate. The grating material supplied by Model Expo is a hardwood.  Trying to cut through that while placed on the bow of a crowded deck was a challenge. My exacto knife was not up to the call, so out came the Dremel. My original plan was to carve out a square in the front corners and insert a chafing block. While I was able to white knuckle the cutting, I could not get it square or clean enough to suit my taste, and decided to install the chafing blocks on top of the cut.

Obviously, this is another task that I should have done sooner. I could have easily added chafing blocks to the grates before installing them.

I also stropped the big triple blocks, and fabricated a hook with some coated black wire. The coating on the wire gives the surface some texture to simulate an iron look. It took me a while and about 10 tries to twist up a hook to look right.

I then rigged the block, and attached the anchor.  I ran into another snag. Realizing the anchor and cable weigh tons, I could not get the cable to lay flat on the deck, or get my lanyards on my triple blocks to tighten. The Brittania anchors just don’t weigh enough.  I therefore glued the cable to the deck. I stretched the lanyards on the triple blocks by attaching a small weight, and coated the ropes with a mixture of water and white glue. That froze the ropes straight.

I then tied off the haul ropes on a bulwark cleat and tied off the lanyards on pins.

My bow is just about complete.

[6ohiocav]

Ron,

I think an upgrade of the Brittainia Stocks for the anchors is worth the effort. I am a terrible painter, and trying to paint the metal to look like wood would be a lost cause before I ever started.

 

Steve,

Thanks for the heads up on your log. I actually was following it when it had its Niagara title.  I will note your change, and applaud you for taking on the Lawrence.

 

AND.... Mark, Thanks for stopping in and your comments on my anchors. I took a look on the tips you forwarded on posting pictures. In my humble opinion, the process suggested is more complicated than trying to figure out how to seize a bracing block to a forward upper shroud while manipulating through a royal backstay, top gallant backstay, and topmast backstays. The Craftsmen on this forum do incredible things, and overcome insurmountable challenges. I would think that the software guys can count to twelve, in the proper order.

Edited April 2, 2018 by 6ohiocav

[mikiek]

Darrell - the best luck I've had cutting any brand of grate is with something like some sprue nippers. The grates from ME were weird and I quickly replaced them with the ones from Syren. I will say I had problems with some of those, but Chuck stood behind his stuff and sent me some replacements.

[6ohiocav]

Mike,

I had to use a grinding bit to open up the hole. I squared the hole as best I could with an ultra fine carving bit, but in the end, I decided NOT to inlay the square chaffing blocks since the joint was not up to par. It would have been a piece of cake if I had thought of it before installing the grate. Gluing them on top was ok. Another "should have...." moments.

 

I realize I failed to answer your question of what's next. It's because I am not sure, but I will say I have acquired three HMS Victory Kits - a 1/90 Mamoli, a 1/90 Corel, and a 1/78 Mantua-Panart. It is going to be one of those with a lot of scratch built parts. Any suggestions?

 

I have milled a large supply of cherry, pear and boxwood and just picked up some Ebony from Keims that I need to rip.

Edited April 3, 2018 by 6ohiocav

[mikiek]

I had to cut squares out after the fact. Those nippers and a little filing works well.

 

Hhmmmm Victory, Victory or Victory. I may have to think on that for a while

 

If that is your direction you might do some digging and see what the differences are. Maybe a build with the best from each. I imagine after completing one you won't want to do another.

[6ohiocav]

BRACES

I finished all of my deck work. I added eyebolt rings to the deck for the haul rigging for the guns.  I should have done that sooner. I also created a slew of rope coils to hang on the pins and glued down the deck structures.

Having done all of that, I was prepared to rig the braces. I had previously tied 16 blocks, now it was time to lash 16 rigging lines to various locations (royal yards, hounds, upper shrouds, upper tree, lower shrouds) and then snake them through the blocks and tie them off on either a pin on the rail or a cleat.

This was an incredibly tedious endeavor. The upper braces had to be run down the mast among a score of other lines. Getting them through without crossing or twisting around another rope, in an area that is hard to see was frustrating. I would pull the line down to the designated tie off pin, and then look to see how it laid on the other lines, and if twisted (a frequent occurrence) would invariably have to pull it back out and start again.

I think I got it though, and while my adherence to the actual pin rail plan is loose (pardon the pun) at best, it is workable. As I look at it, while securing the yards, and giving me a great understanding how each line had a meaningful purpose, it still looked like a proverbial cats' cradle. This took all weekend to accomplish.

Boat davits, securing the hammock rails, and some minor work on the stern is just about it for the ship. Then I have to build the boats, which I have decided to scratch build with holly ship lap planking.  Should be an interesting challenge.

As I download the recent photos, I realize I have not send any large shots of the ship lately. Here is where I am so far.

[donrobinson]

Rigging looks fantastic!! The whole ship is superb!!

[mikiek]

The bracing is where the look is really transformed. She's a fine one Darrell - yours and I think the kit in general.

 

Think back to when you opened that box - the raw white basswood, plywood sheets and the rest. Think of all that has happened between then and now (big & small). Niagara will be a marker for a little chunk of your life.

[6ohiocav]

LADDERS

I had some time last night to build a couple of ladders. The plans call for them to be painted red. The red paint I chose for my ship was a mixture of MS gun red (too bright for my taste) and MS black. I unfortunately ran out of my initial batch, and I have not been able to figure out what my combination was. I will be experimenting to see if I can match the color.

 

[6ohiocav]

Don,

Thanks for stopping in and for your kind words.

 

Mike,

I actually still have most of that raw white basswood, since I only used it for the planking. That seems ages ago, and the new Niagara logs bring back memories of the "old" days. I totally agree that this is a good kit, and gives the modeler many options to enhance it. I would recommend it to anyone, including first timers like myself.

 

[ronkamin]

Boy she really looks great. How long have you been working on her? I am only a couple of months into my build and hope mine turns out anywhere close to yours.

 

Ron

[Tigersteve]

A really superior Niagara model! I think I remember you using Syren rope, but did you also use Syren blocks or the kit blocks? Also- what type of wood did you use for your project? Sorry- I’m sure it’s mentioned in your log somewhere. Look forward to the boats you craft!

Steve

[Tom E]

Wow!

What a beautiful ship!

Hope I can achieve even half of the craftsmanship you've demonstrated. 

 

Tom E 

[mikiek]

re: the paint - my lesson learned, you either:

 

1. Mix your paint drop by drop,counting the drops and writing the recipe down so you can make it again

 

OR

 

2. You make more of the color than you could possibly need for the project and store the rest somewhere

[russ]

Darrell:

Very nice work. The deck looks great. I like the color scheme as well. Your rope coils look good and I think your perseverance on the rigging has definitely paid off. Well done. 

 

Russ

[6ohiocav]

Wow.  Thanks everyone

 

Ron,

I have worked earnestly on this project for about 2 years, with a number of long term breaks due to vocational and family obligations. Shame life has to get in the way of our hobby. You are off to a great start and your ship will be a great model when finished.

 

Steve,

I have used Syren blocks, hooks, boxwood cleats, and all of the standing and running rigging rope. I used walnut Model Shipway pins that I picked up on line. As far as the wood, I substituted all of the kit wood with Cherry from stock that I harvested on my farm. The lower masts are holly, everything above is cherry. I used Cherry strip wood on the deck, and the rails, deck structures and implements were scratch built from the same cherry.  The only basswood from the kit that I used was to plank the hull, and as I look back on it, I wished I had used a hard wood for that as well. I thought it would be fine since I had decided to paint the hull per the plans, but in all honestly, the bass wood is so soft and the edges so fuzzy, that the finish is less than desirable. I have to do some touch up painting when done, and perhaps I can fix some of these areas.

 

Russ,

The color scheme was a big issue at the time. I purchased all of the suggested Model Shipway's paint for the Niagara. My first impression was the MS red was way to bright, almost orange. I decided to take the edge off by adding black. That gave the color a more flat appearance and darkened it quite a bit. I learned that it only takes a couple of drops of black. Unfortunately, I am trying to figure out how to replicate my very inexact method of mixing, since I ran out of my first batch. I also darkened the green, but just barely.

 

The yellow was another challenge.  The MS "yellow" suggested for the outer bulwarks is actually beige. The Niagara is more of what appears to be a Royal Navy yellow ochre. I ended up buying a half of dozen yellows and settle on a "yellow Chromate." It has a little too much sheen, but is more appropriate than beige.

 

Tom,

Thanks for the kind words. As I have said before, I owe a lot to the skilled shipwrights on this forum, and especially the Niagara Builders that came before us, for the tips and techniques that helped a ton in achieving these results. There is no way I could have done any of this without all of you.

 

And Mike, you are right as usual. I actually did mix up some extra, and since I have been so slow on getting this done, it dried up.

 

 

[mikiek]

To keep extra paint I use Tamiya bottles. I happen to use their paint so I have accumulated the empties. However MegaHobby sells empty Tamiya bottles. It's the tops on the Tamiya bottles that keeps the paint good. A much better seal than the cardboard "gaskets" found in most bottles. All of my mixtures - some over 2 years old now - are still usable. I highly recommend the bottles.

 

The "yellow" can be had by starting with a biege - Tamiya calls theirs Buff - and then adding yellow and white, rather than starting with yellow and then adding Buff. Instead of a French's Mustard color you get a Dijon Mustard color.

Edited April 10, 2018 by mikiek

[russ]

Darrell:

I have been using a darker red for my models and been quite pleased with it. I think you made the right call. Darker and duller is almost always better in scale. 

 

Russ

 

 

[6ohiocav]

MOORING CHOCKS, BOAT GRIPES, ENSIGN STAFF BLOCK, AND RUDDER CHAINS

I worked on the stern over the last couple of days. I carved the mooring chocks, boat gripes and ensign block out of cherry. Started by rough cutting on the jig saw, then finished them off with files and sanding sticks. Very small and tedious. But what else is new.

The plans call for them to be painted black. I decided to finish them off with tung oil instead. I might change my mind and paint them later.  I have a lot of touch up painting to do when the day is done.

Work on the rudder chain was another story.  The brass chain provided in the kit is extremely fine.  Great quality, and to scale, but very difficult to work with. The links were so small, I had no wire thin enough to pass through them for eyebolts. I had to use a black thread and tie it to an eyebolt. The thread is so fine, it is not visible so it worked fine. It was very difficult however, and I had to do this under magnification. I then blackened the chain and inserted the eyebolts in the hull and rudder.

[mikiek]

Here's one for ya Darrell. The name? I thought about that real early on and then proceeded to forget about it. Do it before you hang a boat off the stern.