James H

I've never removed char from connecting joints. There's no reason to think that your glue won't penetrate those surfaces like it does with others. 

 

It won't fall to pieces.....I promise.

10 minutes ago, Strata said:

That joint between two halves of false keel looks really nice. Does it still leave some room for error or is it so good that you can't get a bent frame?

 

What I did was lay the keel halves out on my bench, which is kitchen worktop stuff and perfectly flat (you could use a glass sheet if you weren't sure about the bench being flat). I then glued the parts together with a straight edge to absolutely make sure they were even, and sat a weight on top of joint for extra insurance. Also remember that the MDF is perfectly straight too. When that glue set, I added the reinforcement plates, locking parts and keys.

 

You're extremely unlikely to get a bent frame or create any error. Those parts slot together very nicely and the whole joint was absolutely rigid when done.

2 minutes ago, mugje said:

I had that glueing issue...that it dry's so fast already with the Pegasus, so I used also a wood glue that takes longer to dry. I can imagine with this model, you want indeed a slow drying glue. A lot of bulkheads in this design again, looks really good!

 

 

I'm also not a very disciplined builder, so the extra time helps with my approach. 

Onto the last steps now.

 

Why are there variations for these panels? 

 

5 minutes ago, BobG said:

Once I get a bulkhead perfectly squared up and set I'd like use a glue that gives me a little wiggle room but sets up quickly enough that nothing moves. I can then move on to the next bulkhead without waiting a long time. Is there something about the size of this model that makes getting the bulkheads set properly that requires you to use Titebond Extend instead of regular Titebond or a similar PVA glue? 

Just that my regular glue sets very quickly...minutes. That stuff is Titebond Original and Evo-Stik PVA.

 

The orlop is good enough to line everything up properly, but with so many bulkheads and large glue faces, I want the glue to be workable when I drop those deck sections into place. I didn't want to lift the whole lot up with 17 loose bulkheads and heavy orlop, to try and paint glue into the joint areas. This is a very large hull.

12 minutes ago, Kevin said:

love the locking of the pieces, would that interfere with a rabbit rebate

 

Not at all. The bottom of the reinforcement plate doesn't protrude past the bottom of the bulkheads.

Ok, time for some studio photos for the eventual instructions. 

 

I'd already jumped the gun a little when I posted a dry-fit of everything, but these pictures are far clearer. Work started on the LARGE hull cradle as that's the order I'm doing this for Amati. This is constructed of 6mm MDF, as per the bulkheads and keel of Victory. This thing pushes together and is locked together with small keys. I use Titebond for glue. Before work started, I spent a day numbering the parts on the various sheets in the kit. Many parts look the same, but are definitely not. This isn't a kit where you want to get stuff mixed up.

 

By the way, all photos will be properly annotated with parts numbers in the manuals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The size of the model calls for the keel to be supplied in halves. Instead of just gluing the keel together, everything is also reinforced. A lock and key mechanism is also supplied for this. I glued the keel halves together first and left them to throughly dry. After this, a reinforcement plate was glued to one side and then two lock pieces slotted through this, followed by a reinforcement plate on the other side. Two keys were then slotted through the locks and glued into position.

 

 

 

The original instructions say to drop the bulkheads into position, followed by the orlop, and then apply (paint) glue around the joints. Now, that would normally be my own way of working too, but my glues set very quickly. I didn't want to screw this up, so I've ordered some Titebond Extend to help. This aliphatic resin glue takes up to 24hrs to fully cure and lets the modeller work for quite a while before it starts to set. In the absence of that at the moment, I'll show you the basic assembly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the glue (when it gets here) on the bulkheads, the two-piece orlop is then dropped into place. these sizeable chunks add a lot to the hull rigidity and will allow me to move things later when I start to fair the hull.

 

 

 

 

 

Next time, I'll partially plank the orlop, add a few barrels and get ready to fit the grating frames. The sheets I got from Italy were cut in the wrong material, so I'm now waiting for the replacements to be sent. 

 

 

 

Some people have asked me what the weight of this kit is.

 

Ok, remember that this isn't a final product, and the Lady Nelson was also in the box. But, offset that against the lack of cast cannon and the plans sent separately, plus the shortage of lime plank, then I think we can take a semi-educated guess. 

 

The weight of this box was listed with DHL as 20kg. I think that is roughly the weight....maybe minus 2 or 3 kg for proper boxing etc. 

Why don't you try the new HMS Flirt from Vanguard Models?

 

Currently on pre-order, but released very soon.  https://vanguardmodels.co.uk/product/order-164-hms-flirt/

 

Check the build link in my signature. 

I must get that lathe, but want it with the bed extension.

 

Nice to see Speedy get the treatment  

15 minutes ago, reaver1467 said:

I am so glad this is finally happening. Can‘ wait for the next posts.

 

At least I can now stop saying, 'the kit will be with me in a week or so' 😆

Very nice! What sort of paint are you using on that hull?

As my interim article project isn't happening yet, I've spent a day numbering up the parts on all the sheets. It's a BIG job!

 

I've also removed the two-part keel and locking device parts, the bulkheads and the orlop deck sections and dry-fitted them all to get an idea of the size of this thing. I thought you might light to see...

 

 

 

The gilding does look very good. Would this survive a modeller ageing the sail material?

49 minutes ago, Paul Jarman said:

 

When you paint, will it be pink or the IMO correct scheme of yellow?

 

Having seen the insipid excuse for what is being called the 'correct' colour, I think I'll be sticking with the traditional yellow ochre.

8 minutes ago, chris watton said:

I'm just glad I don't have to build it again!

 

I bet!!!! 😆

 

One HMS Victory will be enough for my lifetime, so I'm glad it's this one.

Well, this one has been a LONG time coming. 

 

 

I mean, this lockdown seems to have lasted a lifetime, so the original notice of Amati's now almost mythical 1:64 HMS Victory seems to have been such a long time ago! A lot of water has passed under the bridge since 2013 when Chris drove to Italy with the original design model in late 2013. Amati had enough general interest about their Victory from modellers to warrant then asking me to build a production prototype for the new format instruction manuals they now use. There were a few changes from Chris' original kit too, and Amati wanted those incorporated in the new manuals. 

 

Those manuals (yes, plural!) will contain (tentatively) around 1500 build photos, and be perfect-bound, glossy productions. I've already broken down Chris' construction into a multitude of chapters, with each depicting a specific sequence/task. For example, there will be a chapter for building each size of gun, each of the launches, the stove, first planking, but also for fitting out whole decks. 

 

For this build, I will use the existing manuals that Chris made when he finished his kit.

 

 

Since Chris designed the model, Amati's laser manufacturer had changed the specs on sheet size that they could cut, so the sheet layouts needed to be rehashed for the new sizes. That was done earlier this year, but just when everything looked like it was going to plan (again), Italy, then the rest of the world, went into lockdown. So here we now are on the other side....just about.

 

DHL delivered the HUGE box not long ago, and it is fantastically heavy! What is omitted at the moment are some first layer planks that they will ship when back in stock, and the cannon and figurehead. They won't be needed for a long time. They are also waiting on the copper PE, but I do have all the sheets of brass PE here. So, we have bags of laser-cut material (MDF, ply, timber), sleeves of strip (lots of them!), bags of PE and a whole bag of various fittings. I already have the thirty-one sheets of plans. 

Remember, this isn't a review, but just a build log. I cant review something like this which isn't quite complete. That's not the purpose. 

 

 

 

Inside the box, all the laser cut parts were bagged into two thick poly sleeves. These packs were of course the real weight behind this delivery. I'll open them later to look through them but I've included a few images they sent me of the parts before they shipped out.

 

 

 

The sheer quantity of strip and dowel in this model is bewildering. The only time I've seen as much as this is when I've been in a hobby shop!

 

 

Fittings. Usually Amati pack these into trays, but for this purpose, all the stuff is in little bags and sleeves and bundled into this substantial bag. You name it, and it's in here...

 

 

Photo etch: Here's all the brass sheet stuff. I am waiting on the copper parts yet, but thought you'd like to see these.

 

 

 

 

 

As I've been promising this kit arriving for a long time, I felt the need to stick my flag in the ground and start a build log showing the stuff that I now have.

 

I won't be actually starting this until after 3rd August as I'll be away, plus I also have a project I need to take care of before that (written article, not a build).

 

So....there we have it!!!

 

**Apologies for phone camera pics too. The build will be done like my typical studio photos**

Hi Medy,

 

Nice to see you and your work here at MSW. Those models are beautiful, especially the top photo. That's very classy!

 

Fantastic stuff! Not long to go now 🥳

55 minutes ago, *Hans* said:

David, I'd like to make a small comment: the wood for the masts is beech wood 🙂

Hope you don't mind me saying this.

Your models are wonderful, Hans. 

You can't tell these from a fully wooden model when built.

You're making such a lovely job of this, so I'll watch as I have this kit too.

 

Oh...welcome to MSW!

 

2 minutes ago, Suzdal said:

Wow, that means the packing "crate" must be at least 1 meter in the diagonal.

 

Richard

It will just come in whatever they have. I don't know the diagonal measurements of HMS Vanguard box etc. but there is a lot more material than the Vanguard anyway.

20 minutes ago, Morgan said:

You’d better weigh this thing so we can load test our work benches! 🤪

 

Gary

The only thing this will be without (at the moment) are the cannon and figurehead as they need to be cast. Those won't be needed until the hull is complete and just before masting anyway. Amati were also a little low on their 1.5mm x 7mm x 1000mm lime strip, so sent me what they had until the rest comes in. That's for the first planking, but there is a LOT of work to do before even reaching that stage, so that's no issue. 

I promise that as soon as the stuff lands, I'll do some photos and they'll form the start of a Build Log that I'll link here and in my signature. The kit is scheduled to be here on Monday, so you can bet by the end of that day, or Tuesday, there will be a proper log for it. 

 

Work on it won't start for about a couple of weeks after that as I'll be going away, but at least you'll see the materials and it'll be 'official' 😆

It's there now. The product didn't want to show on a specific kit category, but now it's sorted.

 

You can pre-order!

 

https://vanguardmodels.co.uk/product/order-164-hms-flirt/