fnkershner

Jesse - Did you drill a hole for the main mast first? And did you drill that hole with the slight rake as shown on the plans? It is hard to tell from the pictures.

I always worry i wont get the masts glued at the right angles. I made these jigs hold the at the same angles on the plans. Each one is precisely made to fit around the mast and around, over in between, etc. all the stuff in the way to hold it exactly into place. Used small triangle squares to make sure they are not leaning on the sides. I had all this down with a combination of clothes pins and masking tape until the glue is set.
 
Jesse

I rigged the lower lift blocks, jeer blocks and slings before gluing the masts in place.
 
Jesse
 

Other pics of current status:
 
The model will have illumination, so there is already installed cables for for powering LED diodes.
 
Best regards 
Doris

Hello dear friends,
I am spending plenty of time studying literature and browsing historical ship models and paintings to achieve more realistic result in my work. I also made several plastic kits to relax and enjoyed something easier. For example Yacht Atlantic, Yacht Corsair ii (ITC models), CSS Alabama, USS America, Constitution, Napoleon and others...). You can look through them here:
 
http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=114818
http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=109487
http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=118521
 
 
Now I continue with the upper deck and details below. Soon I will start creating first decorations and I am looking for relevant information based on original design.
I have for example this book, but it is in Swedish language.
https://www.archaeology.su.se/english/about-us/news/new-book-by-niklas-eriksson-riksäpplet-arkeologiska-perspektiv-på-ett-bortglömt-regalskepp-1.348854
It is a problem to understand the text, unfortunately I can't find this book in English. Please, could you help me? Don´t you have this book in English language? [Admin Edit: Pls do not ask for pdf versions of commercial books!] I will be very gratefull.

And here it is modified black strip on wales:
 

Hello dear friends,
I did not continue on the model during the summer, but now the conditions are better and more free time, so I am here again with new pics.
Thank you very much for your compliments and kind words, this is really honour for me and your advices and ideas are much appreciated. 
 
There were added some details/moldings on the hull and I also decided to change colour on wales to achieve more realistic result - I proceeded according to the original painting. The black stripe is now situated about 1cm lower.
 
 
 
Best regards

Current look - after painting and weathering:
 

Dear friends, 
thank you very much for all your comments and praise. I appreciate your attention and support. That is a great honour for me. 

Now I have a lot of duties and work around the house and I also spend much time on cars´ care/detailing, but I try to continue with RK whenever possible.
 
How I achieve these accurate and clean results with card and foil planking.....  I use ordinary but very sharp scalpel from Tamiya manufacturer and long ruler to cut foil strips. I do not need any special tools. The strips are cut on a hard cardboard pad. In the same way, I cut cardboard tapes and other parts, but I have to repeat cutting more times because the material is thicker - sometimes up to 2mm. These cut strips are always straight. I shape and bow them during sticking to the model using hot air for attaching foils while I stretch them slightly. For bending the cardboard into the curve I use hot steam. I always attach the strips slightly tightened.
 
The "wooden" planking is ready and improved with Tamiya colours (thinned with original thinner and retarder - it is easier to apply on the surface then) to achieve more realistic appearance.
Before painting:
 
 

During the weekend I made wooden finish of the hull using foil stripes. Later, it will be modificated with darker colours and of course I will create treenails and pins in wooden planks as well.
 

Almost. She is very skilful for making varied holes in card by her beak and is able to split up most of the wooden objects - especially tiny blocks in rigging... Sometimes she takes something away and then does not want to return it ... She likes to cling to the ship and then falls asleep.

Thank you very much, dear Piet. I appreciate your words a lot. 
The ship is already placed on the pedestal and the gun ports are framed, so now I can begin to cover the surface using "wooden" planks - of course made of foil strips.
 
My feathered assistant almost fell asleep so I stayed alone on my job again ...

Hello Dan,
You are right, I understand you. Thank you very much for sharing.When I look at the pictures, it's hard to find the most accurate solution. I'm very interested in the stern gallery in this image - it looks flat compared with the cylindrical shape of galleries on all existing RK models. I plan to make those galleries more flat on my model.
Thank you for bringing me these useful materials and ideas.
Best regards
Doris

Dear Thomas, 
your help and advice are much appreciated, thank you very much.  If you have more photos of that model, please share here or send me ( my email is doris.obrucova@seznam.cz).
I have thought about the position of entry and tried to simulate on the model, and also my colleagues from the Czech forum helped me and provided additional pictures of RK and other similar ships together with photos of real guns with tackles. The entrance near the gun port also appeared on some other ships including the aforementioned HMS Prince. It seems that even in this position it would be acceptable, cause there is not needed too much space for tackles.
http://www.modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&p=2004276#p2004276
Of course I am not sure, if my solution is O.K.,  but I try to make the model according to the painting which is the primary source of information for me.
I have noticed that the already existing RK models have many similar elements. I do not know where the modelers had the information from, but when I compared the models with information from professional literature and historical models, I have found some discrepancies that do not correspond to the construction habits of that period. For example the gangway which is done on all models of RK, was used on the real ships after the beginning of the 18th century. But RK is much older and the depicted ship in the painting by Humphrey Vale represents approximately the status after adjustments in 1667-1668.
http://www.modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=110763&start=75#p1995721
The gangway could be probably used much later - rather after rebuilding and renaming the ship to HMS Ramillies in 1706. That's just my deduction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Royal_Katherine_(1664)
The bowsprit was out of axis on the real RK, while the models have it always in the axis... Well, it is difficult to determine exactly what is and is not right...;-)
 
Best regards
Doris

Dear friends,
I appreciate all your comments a lot and thank you very much for your compliments. I am really pleased you like my work.
 
 
Dear Dan,
Thank you very much for the right remark. Yes, the entrance is close to the slot, although it corresponds to painting, but from a practical point of view this would not be ideal. I will think about it. I browse many ship models from museum, and really there is often the entrance situated in the center between the slots. 
http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/65963.html
http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/65964.html
http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/65962.html
But for example on the model of HMS Prince there is the entrance also very close to the slot. 

What is right now? Steps will only run up to this entrance, no longer to the top rail. There will be not such a problem to place them suitably.
 
Kind regards,
Doris

The treenails and bolts are imitated using soft graphite and in the end oversprayed by matt clear varnish. BTW, soon there will be finished the podestal and the ship will be placed on it.
Best regards,
Doris

The girdling is probably unknown technology in ship modeling, but the relevant records prove that it was necessary to perform on some ships, whose hull had excessive draft and lower gunports were just above water. The girdling helped to improve the displacement. Of course, it was an unnatural interference into the original construction.
My target is to make the model as accurate as possible based on historical accuracy, and according to records Royal Katherine was girdled soon after launching.

And here I am starting with the surface finishing..... Again with foil stripes, that I attach using hot air/hair dryer....
 
 

On the recommendation of the Captain K.L., who is an excellent expert in the field of  shipbuiliding and the history, I have decided to add another layer of planking = the girdling.  Some information about this technology, that was used on real ships in 17th century,  you can find in the book by Brian Lavery: The Arming and Fitting of English Ships of War 1600-1815; pages 57, 60. 
More information are also in the Czech forum, but you need to use translator.
http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=110763&start=105#p2001324
http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=110763&start=105#p2001751
 
 

Wooden-look planking on underwater part of the hull.

It takes me sometimes more than 2-3 years, than the model is finished. There is no problem with these card models, I use high quality and efficient impregnation, so the models are similarly durable as wooden. At home i have more than 20 years old card models and they still look like new.
 
************
Here you can see the finished second layer of planking, made of cardboard as well.I use various thickness of this material - from 0,5mm to 2mm.

The deck in the central part of the ship is covered by tapes from plastic foils, that I use on all my card models to imitate wooden look..
 
The inner parts of the model are already covered with a second layer of carton and bases for the upper decks.
 
I have also a handsome helper who makes me a companion during model-builing.
 

And here I have started with lower deck and center part reinforcement. The hull  -
 although it is made of cardboard - is very solid and heavy - it weights more than 3 kg.

Dear friends,
I appreciate your kind words a lot and advice. Thank you very much. That is a great honour for me. I have to say I was thinking about HMS Royal Katherine for a long  time. Finally I have found the courage to start this large project and would like to share it with you...
Here you can see the complete stern of the model, some gunports and other details on the hull were changed to be more accurate and corresponding to the position in the painting of the real ship. 

This is not a plastic kit anymore....it is a brass model !!!
 
Yves