Blue Ensign

I have been slowly progressing the internal fittings below the Quarter-deck before I turn again to the exterior hull. The deck beams have been fitted, partitions installed, and the chequered Sailcloth floor covering fitted. The two hatches beneath the Quarter-deck are in place along with the Lower Capstan. The four gun carriages are pinned thro’ the bed down to the Lower deck, but at this stage can be removed. The recess in the deck beam to allow connection of the Upper and Lower Capstan. The pawls will lock the lower Capstan in position. Trial fitting of the Bitts and foremost deck support, these will be removed to allow easy access for fitting the aftermost waist bulwark gun tackle iron work . B.E.

Complications with Cap squares Amati have provided pre drilled and pre scored brass etched cap squares for the guns, (they call them trunnions- something lost in translation perhaps) Wonderful thinks I, but when it comes to forming the little beggars they become tricky in the extreme, the pre scoring hinders rather than helps, and they are very prone to snapping off. Having scrapped two at the outset a little jig is essential I think. It is not advisable to bend them over the gun with the barrel in situ, the pressure is likely to snap the axles. My approach has been to bend them over a trunnion bar set in a groove, after first trying to start the bend holding them in fine long nosed pliers. A shallow groove and a deeper groove is required to progressively increase the bend whilst trying to ensure that the thing remains central and the pre scored ends don’t break off. I’m not even sure if I like them, they look a little too long to my eye, but then I don’t see how they could be any smaller in a practical sense to pin to the carriages. Perhaps they will look better once blackened. Amati suggest that the cap squares are pinned to the top of the brackets using cut down brass pins, which look a little thick to my eye. Not much room for error here the bracket is only 1.43mm wide and the hole is 0.4mm ø I think the 0.3mm brass etched eyelets of Jotika fame may come in useful to represent the cap square retaining bolts on the forward end . B.E.

Meanwhile down at the Gunwharf things are moving apace.............. I decided to go with the black filler method of representing the truck bolts, adequate I think for this scale. I surely am glad I'm building a Sloop and not a Seventy-four. Enhancing the Guns Quite a time consuming little exercise adding all the bits to the carriages, still, assembly of the guns had to be done by this stage so the build can continue; the (6) guns placed beneath the Quarterdeck and Foc’sle will be required earlier than the remaining (8) in the open waist. All the guns were assembled so that the best specimens can be selected for the ‘show’ guns. There are a few enhancements that can be made to the guns, the major one which I have already done is to replace the kit barrels with 32mm turned brass jobs from JB Models. The kit provides (18) gun carriages. I only need (14) so there are some spares to play with. Note: Although Pegasus is pierced for 16 guns she carried only 14, it was only from 1779 that Swans actually carried 16 guns.(Winfield) Pegasus unfortunately had a very short Career, she was launched on 27 Dec 1776. She sailed on her first commission on 3 April 1777, and was lost with all hands in a storm off Newfoundland in October 1777. Apart from adding the tackle rings etc, there are other little modifications to improve the carriages. The front axle (axletrees) incorporates the transom which should really be angled backwards and have a recess cut into the top to allow gun depression. This is easily addressed. I have already replaced the wheels, and marked the six bolts that would hold the two halves of each wheel together, I used a 0.4mm drill, and filled with blackened filler to represent the bolts. The axles were pierced for the truck pins which hold the wheels on. I used the 0.3mm brass etched eyelets to make the truck pins. The squared ends of the axletrees still need to be rounded off at this stage, but it is a delicate operation the bally thing break under the lightest pressure. The bed of the carriage sits on the rear axle and extends to the bed bolt (a piece of brass wire which spans the two sides of the carriage) I filed a recess in the underside of the bed to sit on the bed bolt. Quoins are not provided with the kit and will have to be made. Iron work on guns Gun tackle loops – in scale 0.6mm internal size Breeching ring bolts - in scale 1.19mm For the ring bolts I used 2mm eyebolts and 2mm brass rings. The eye of the eyebolt was reduced in size a fraction and closed around the ring. The side tackle loops were formed using Amati fine 2mm copper eyebolts again with the eye reduced in size. I also tried to take the round off the back edge of the eye by counter sinking the bolt holes a little so the pins would sit well into the gun carriage sides. Once assembled the ring and eyebolts were dunked in Metal black before fitting. The final action is the trial testing of the barrels for fit and adjusting the sit of the trunnions on the carriage to ensure they are square on. No further work will be done to the barrels until I have decided about the insignia, but they won’t in any case be required for a while yet. For those six guns that sit beneath the Foc’sle and Quarterdecks the carriages will be fitted and pinned to the deck, and the barrels fitted just before the decks are put into place. Each gun has been marked for its position in the broadside so I can make minor adjustments to achieve an even line of barrels thro’ the ports. Fine sanding of the bed and use of Quoins should allow sufficient leeway. (that is why the beds have not been finished off) A little more fine tuning to go but then I can fix the under deck carriages in place. I am thinking that if I can pin the capsquares at one end it should be fairly simple to bring them over the trunnions and pin and glue if the holes are pre drilled. Once done the beams and partitions can then be added, and I can move on to further work on the outside of the hull. B.E.

THE SUBJECT OF GUNS The supplied guns measure 35.38mm. this equates to a length of 7.42’(excluding the cascobal - 38mm incl) Details in the Swan Class sloop books suggest that short six pounders would have been fitted to a small vessel such as Pegasus. These have an o/a length of 6’ 6” with a bore of 3.66” Converting the 1:24 scale drawing to 1:64 would give an o/a length of 31.63mm. a muzzle diameter of 4.11mm. Max dia (at the Base ring) of 5.44mm and a bore of 1.3mm. In terms of Length and bore the Amati version gun is somewhat out at 38.03 length o/a and bore of 2.40mm. Maximum diameter (at the Base ring) is close at 6.09mm, the muzzle less so at 4.75mm. Although they look superficially ok I don’t know if the bronzy cast guns will take a blackening procedure and I would have preferred turned brass versions. I ordered a sample 32mm brass turned gun from JB models and this is much closer to the given scale dimensions. o/a length 32mm, muzzle dia 4.19mm, max dia (at Base Ring) 5.96mm, and bore 1.7mm. Here’s a comparison of the two. The JB version is closer to the British model and is nicely turned and reasonably priced at Euro 0.60 each. To arm Pegasus would cost Euro 9.60.( £8.37) Jotika also do brass turned barrels , but not at present in six pounder configuration. Their four pounder guns are £2.99 for two which would equate to £23.92 to kit out Pegasus. My own view is that the JB brass guns look nicer than the Jotika ones and are considerably cheaper. The muzzle swelling is a better shape than the Amati gun but it does lack the representation of the vent, which is present on the Amati item, something that I think could be easily addressed. The overlarge muzzle bore is also an issue for me with the Amati gun. I also checked out the provided gun carriages for scale and they are pretty much on for size. So a sample carriage is assembled, there are a couple of extras in the kit, so I can afford to play with one or two of ‘em. Already I can see things that need fettlin’ The transom piece (that what fits between the carriage sides) at the front looks a little low and should properly have a convex shape to it to allow depression of the gun. What Amati call the gun quoin is really the bed (part 302) so quoins will need to be made additionally to adjust the barrel angle. They also call the cap squares the trunnions, but all this is probably down to translation. The carriage is shown here in a completely raw state but the oversize of the provided gun is clearly apparent. Note how the cascobal overhangs the carriage. Note the bore, got a gaping mouth like a siege gun. The guns are a disappointment, to me, anyway, given the effort Chris Watton went to design the kit it's a pity Amati cheese-pared on the guns by using old stock items, the kit deserved better. The kit provided guns on the Fly version are even worse, sporting dolphins. By contrast the JB gun looks in scale. The barrel looks like it belongs to the carriage. A temporary styrene quoin in position. The finish of the muzzle is light years ahead of the Amati model , note the clean muzzle face and realistic bore. I rather think it is a no contest. Gun carriages At first sight the parts look a little thin but the dimensions are not far out according to the information in the Swan series books by David Antscherl. The trucks and the brackets were both the same thickness, 3.625" which scales to 1.43mm, spot on for the kit pieces. The wheels (trucks) are given as 12" diameter Fore, and 10.5" diameter rear, at scale 4.76mm and 4.16mm. Working from the Peter Goodwin drawings in the Cutter Alert the wheels at 1:64 scale work out at Fronts 5.65mm rear 4.76mm with a thickness of 1.23mm The kit provided wheels work out at around 6mm ø for the front and 4mm ø for the rear. I say around but round is a debatable point in relation to the rear wheels. The kit wheels (trucks) leave something (a lot) to be desired and require some work. The rear wheels in particular suffer from poor moulding with off centre holes. Visually, regardless of scale, I think the front wheels look a little large in relation to the rear and my feeling is that a 5mm ø wheel would probably look better. In the end I couldn’t live with the wheels and I bought some 5mm and 4mm Amati wheels from CMB. Here’ s a comparison of the carriages fitted with the original and replacement wheels. They are of a much better quality than the ones provided with the kit and the ratio of 5 and 4mm diameters looks far better, to my eye at least, albeit the thickness is a little over-scale, but this can be addressed. One additional benefit of the replacement wheels is that the guns sit more central in the port allowing both elevation and depression of the gun. The larger wheels tend to push the barrel higher in the port, in some cases only just clearing the upper edge. I like to make a little jig to assist with gun assembly, here’s my humble effort, not very pretty but effective. Note the splay towards the rear. Bed fitted, and that’s the basic carriage completed. Two spare carriage sides are used as templates to mark the holes for the ring bolts and loops for the gun tackle. The kit provided carriage parts cut from 1.5mm walnut sheet are quite delicate and need careful handling. The axles in particular are very prone to breaking. My next post will cover additional detailing of the guns. B.E.

48 hours and two coats of Admiralty Dull Black later and the wales are finished. It is as I suspected quite difficult to get a good image of the Top and Butt, but it is apparent on the next few pics and in reality it shows thro’ as well as I had hoped. This is a modification I would recommend to any Pegasus/Fly builders at little extra outlay. Now I must turn my mind to that interesting question of the Guns. B.E.

Completion of the Main Wales Everything went fairly smoothly, the trickiest part is the last short plank of the lower strake which has to be shaped and follows the curve beneath the counter, but even this is fairly painless given the 1mm stuff which bends easily. Had I thought about it earlier I would have done the Upper deck with the correct top and butt planking for the outer four strakes but I had advanced the deck planking too far by then. Something to bear in mind for the future. Hope this looks fairly matched port and starboard, too bad if it isn’t at this stage, there’s no going back. I am satisfied with the sheer of the wale. Joint gaps that are a little too wide will be filled and re-scribed for the caulking, but thankfully there is not much of that to do. How well defined the top and butt will be once the wale is blacked I don’t know at this stage but I’m hoping the joins will show thro’ the black paint. How that translates to photos remains to be seen. B.E.

Considering Top and Butt Main Wales As mentioned previously the depth of the wale is a scale 12mm which is fine. In considering Top and Butt some 2mm of the overall depth of the wale is lost using the standard 4mm strips because the lower two strakes are tapered to half their widths and the middle strake has to start with a 2mm plank rather than 4mm. The rules for Top and Butt are one edge is straight, each end tapers to half its width with a short taper one quarter of the length in, and a long taper to the opposite end. In each case a long taper meets a short taper at the butt where two such planks meet. I first needed to work out the plank lengths in relation to the hull, and decided as follows: Top strake: First plank from bow 130mm = 27.29’ (Short taper =32.5mm) Middle Strake: First Plank: 65mm = 13.’ (no taper) Lower Strake: First Plank: 97.5mm = 20.5’ (short taper = 32.5mm. This gives around a seven foot shift between the butts on adjoining planks. In order to achieve the overall 12mm depth of wale and given that the top strake of 4mm stuff is already fixed I am going to have to use 3mm stuff for the initial middle strake plank, and 5mm stuff tapered to 3mm for the rest. Looks like another order to the Model dockyard. Here’ s my rough sketches and a mock up to get a feel for the layout. About 16 planks cut top and butt will be required to complete the wales and whilst waiting for the timber to arrive I need to work out a method for replicating accurate cuts. The general run of the planking can be seen here with the short and long tapers. One of the problems with doing Top and Butt is that the whole arrangement may disappear under the sanding and painting, the trick is to have it apparent but not too much so. The width of the wale is now up to the scale 12mm. This modification is not too difficult to do and adds a little more authenticity to the build. All that is required are a few wider walnut planks, a ruler and a fresh scalpel. B.E.

The top Strake of the Main Wale is fixed. I cut a little mortise in the stem to rabbet the strake into to assist the hold. Quite easy to cut into the stem, a piece of Walnut cake one might say Fixed with ca the strake presented no problems, individual plank lengths of 130mm will be marked and scribed. I prefer to do this where a plank follows a sheer so that an even curve is obtained. Getting the wales to look right is a critical part of the build and it is a relief once the top strake is in. If I had a criticism of the plans it would be that an extra drawing should have been provided bow shot on purely for the wales position at the stem. The only drawing of this view is cluttered with other fittings. So crisis over, I can now progress to seeing how well I can cut Top and Butt planks for the lower two strakes. B.E.

Fixing the Main Wales. In the kit these are represented by (3) 1mm x 4mm walnut strips, 12mm o/a. This incidentally accords well with the Swan book drawings. I had thought of using the black strip but this would need laminating so I have had a change of heart and will use Walnut. I had been pondering for a while my decision to mark the top line of the wale using a black strake over which the wale would fit. Increasingly I had thought that where the wale meets the prow it rises too far up the stem although that was its natural lie. In the Swan books they refer to the ‘apparent reversal of the sheer curve’ where the wale appears to flatten as it rounds the bow, mine didn’t seem to flatten at all. Nothing for it but to remove that section of black strake which may otherwise appear above the repositioned wale. I was pleasantly surprised and a little relieved at the ease with which I was able to remove the sections of the black strakes. In about an hour the job is done and the forward section is fitted with boxwood strip, just a little sanding and filling of the lower edge which in any case will be covered by the wale. Nobody likes going over old ground but there is very little that can’t be rectified when working in wood and I mention this to demonstrate the point. The new wale line is marked by the tamiya tape. The next major question is whether to just slap the three strips on or go for a little more detail with Top and Butt for the lower two strakes. The top strake can in any case be fixed and this will be the next job. B.E.

An update on the paint saga. I really wasn’t happy with the pinky purply look of the enamel red ochre I had used for the Spirketting so I hunted out a pot of the water based version to trial on the bulwarks. Here’s the result. The shade difference can be seen here between the bulwark and the bulkhead piece. This is the shade I had envisaged, a deeper darker colour bordering on dried blood in tone. Now happy with the colour I will leave the final coating until after I have drilled for the gun tackle rings and cleats etc; and have painted the insides of the ports which will be approached from outside the hull once the sanding sealer has been applied. Couldn’t resist putting the deck fittings in place to see how it looks. B.E.

Having done a comparison between the false fixed blocks and the separately inserted versions I think no real benefit is gained either in appearance or function for the effort of making the separate blocks. The final piece of the jigsaw along the inner bulwarks is now fitted, the angled face of the waterway thro’ which the scuppers are fitted. This along with the Spirketting has been coated in Red Ochre, the rest of the Quick works will be done later once I have finished messing about with the ports. The scupper positions have been marked and drilled, I have gone with the Swan books and fitted seven along the hull including the larger Pump dale and Manger scuppers. They are quite small at scale, 1.5mm ø for the scuppers and 2mm ø for the Pump dale and Manger scuppers. All the scuppers except the Manger scupper outlet thro’ the Black Strake (which isn’t black in my case) ; the Manger scupper seems to outlet between the first and second strakes of the Main Wale so this will be fitted once the wale is in place from the outside only. The bulkheads up near the bow prevent a more accurate representation. Decided not to risk the angled drill thro’ the hull from inside to out, seemed fraught with difficulties in getting the scuppers all in line on the hull, I opted for the safe option of drilling from outside. I’m still pondering on the question of the scupper flanges, I’m sure something will come to mind. (hopefully) Don’t know why but the Admiralty Red Ochre strikes me as having a distinct pinky look to it, more so than on my previous builds, leaving me to wonder whether it could be tad brighter. Maybe it’s the contrast with the Boxwood planking, that will disappear once the whole bulwark is painted, I’ll have to reserve judgement until then. B.E.

Spirketting Some 1mm thick limewood strip is used for the Spirketting, divided into two planks where it shows in the waist but otherwise a single strip. Above this three strips of 3.4mm boxwood forms the Quick works with some 4.5mm stuff to form the top planking below the rail. For the sake of clarity and neatness I am thinking of using some 1.5mm quarter round styrene strip, flattened off, for the angled face of the waterway thro’ which the scuppers will be cut. Port side Spirketting and partly completed Quickworks planking. All this will be painted Red Ochre when the time comes. Two items not previously mentioned are the fixed blocks to take the Fore sheets and Spritsail sheets, (Double sheaved fwd of Gunport 4) and the Main Tacks. (Single sheaved aft of Gunport 2) These should go thro’ the bulwarks so that they can be removed for replacement. They do however lie flush with the internal and external planking. On the Starboard side I have tried two methods for the fitting of these, the aftermost larger double sheaved block I have allowed for separate fitting with a hole cut thro’ the bulwark to take the separate block. For the smaller single sheaved block I have cheated a little by fitting a representation of the block face on the inside and simply scribing the face on the outside planking. The sheaves are then drilled thro’. Before I fit the Port side I will decide whether the effect of separate blocks is worth the extra effort involved. The fixed block in progress Alternatively the kit rigging plans show simple holes drilled thro’ the bulwarks just beneath the rails to take the lead of these lines. With the inner planking all but completed I can verify that the thickness of the bulwark above the Spirketting works out at 4.1mm which equates to 10.4” and seems to accord with the drawings in the Swan books. Perhaps more importantly it looks right to my eye. It is the very devil getting clean lines around the ports both Gun and Sweep, so as an aid I will take a series of close-up photos that I can relate to each port showing where the scalpel needs to be applied to square them up. I am finding it quite difficult by eye alone – we shall see how successful it is. B.E.

As a small diversion from the seemingly endless port linings, I have returned to the stern to progress the internal area and prepare as far as possible for the stern gallery fitting. The remaining item in the Great Cabin is the Rudder head trunk, a version of which I have cobbled together from bits of boxwood. This feature is visible thro’ the centre light of the stern gallery. The internal bulwarks within the cabin area will be whitewashed to reflect what little light there is but even so very little will be seen within the Great cabin. The main purpose of giving depth behind the glazed lights will however be achieved. This is a good point to do a little preliminary work on the Rudder and check its fit up thro’ the counter to the deck. A bearding has to be put on the forward face of the rudder, effectively to allow it to turn whilst fixed close to the stern post. This is not mentioned in the kit instructions but is a necessary modification. This having been done and its movement within the rudder trunk checked , it may be put aside for a while. The gallery fit is not too bad and only the minimum of fine tuning will be required. The join lines between the gallery and counters will effectively be covered by the mouldings. onwards, ever onwards B.E.

A small but important milestone in the build - time now to remove the three bulkhead extensions in the waist. No problem with the aid of a veneer saw and the foresight to partly cut tho’ the pieces from outboard before the first planking. This allows for a clean cut and no splintering. With the extension pieces removed deck planking can be completed. I have fitted a waterway plank along the exposed waist. This is scaled to 4.5mm at the widest point. The waterway is divided by a hooked scarph. The decking has now been completed allowing for the inner bulwarks to be progressed. Once the inner bulwark planking has been completed the deck will be scraped and sealed with flat varnish. Bulwark thickness The Swan book drawings would suggest 11½” depth at the port stop which equates to 4.5mm at scale although it does diminish in thickness at the port top to 10.4” As touched on in my previous post I have used 1.5mm lime-wood strip to line the inner bulwarks, later to be faced up with stuff for the spirketting and 0.6mm boxwood strip for the quick works. First layer of Limewood planking. An exercise in pure frustration... Opening up the sweep ports whilst trying to keep them nice and square. For this job the model has to be lifted to eye level, and it is a long., slow, and tiresome business, how lucky modellers are to build models sans sweeps. Still some way to go with the sweep ports. How one is supposed to line sweep ports with an internal measurement of only 3.3mm square I can’t get my head around at the moment Before the second planking is applied the port stops have to be fitted as the spirketting runs up to meet the back edge of the stop and the quickwork planking runs over the side pieces. There is not a lining to the upper edge of the port. According to the Swan books the thickness of the Port stops is 1½” which equates to 0.6mm at scale, the boxwood strip is just the right thickness for this. The Swan book also suggests that all the ports are lined not just those with lids. The kit instructions make no mention of such niceties, maybe ignorance is bliss afterall. Looking at the gunports with a little more concentration as I line them, I note that the aftermost three ports are some 2mm narrower than the others although the same height. This threw me for a while until I checked the plans which confirmed the relative sizes. Still puzzled tho’ because the Swan book drawings seem to show all the ports the same size. I am not at this late stage inclined to adjust these latter ports. This is the most fiddly part of the build thus far and there will I suspect be a lot of finishing work involved to make the ports look presentable before any paint is applied. B.E.

Baulking at the Bulwarks My attention over the past week or so has turned to the bulwarks and the planking thereof. There are quite a few things to consider if slightly more detail is to be included beyond simply planking up the top. What scale plank lengths are to be used – I have decided on 28’ planks = to 135mm. Where do the scuppers emerge from the hull - not on a plank join I hope, except for the pump dales. What width planking is to be used, I know the black strake is 10” wide which equates to 3.96mm but should be slightly wider than the remainder of the planking. I have therefore gone with 4.5mm for this first plank to be fitted above the Main wale line, and 3.4mm thereafter. How does the sheer strake fit in relation to the gunports, a modified planking arrangement may be required at some points. Life would be much simpler if the kit plan was followed, but where’s the fun in that. First up the Black strake, which is not necessarily black, and on my Pegasus I am fitting it as a boxwood strip. Around the area of the Gunports wider planks have been used to meet the top or bottom edges of the ports where otherwise thin slivers of planking would result, these planks then taper back to the standard size of plank. With the Black strake fitted attention now has to be given to the stern. The counter has already been planked, but there is a gap between the lower counter and where the stern gallery pattern fits. This needs to be attended to now so that the side planking can run over and cover the end grain of the counter planking. The kit blurb suggests just planking this over, using the kit 1x4mm stuff but beyond this has little to say on making up the stern pieces, and a degree of trial and error is required to get all things to fit together properly. This part is quite a tricky little operation, making this Upper counter to fit with the right camber to meet the bottom of the stern gallery at the right height. The shape was taken directly from the plans and transferred to a piece of stuff used as a backing piece for the planking. Once satisfied with the shape it is glued to the stern extensions and top of the lower counter. Constant checking with the stern gallery pattern is required. When fully satisfied the pattern is again transferred to a boxwood strip which is glued over the top. Planking then continues. Above the Black wale four strakes of 3.4mm stuff fit between the gunports and sweep ports. This is a fiddly area of the build, I prefer to fit and clear the ports as I go along rather than almost plank over the openings and trim back later. The remaining space in the waist is completed by the addition of the Sheer strake. This has an interesting feature, a hooked scarph in the centre of the waist which I have attempted to replicate. This was cut from 6mm stuff as 4.5mm was barely wide enough to meet the waist rail top. This did mean that the two hooked scarph planks had to be reduced to 4.5mm planks where they butted at the Foc’sle and Qtr deck points to match the planks forward and aft of the Sheer strake. The position of the butts above and below the strakes between the ports has been taken from the Swan books drawings. For the purposes of this model I see no point in marking out the frames specifically as the number of visible butts are quite few. A final squaring up of the ports and sanding is now required before a coat of sanding sealer is applied. I can then move onto removing the waist bulkhead extensions and complete the deck planking. B.E.

Second Planking completion So just over three months from the laying of the keel the lower hull planking is completed. I will spend a little more time fussing over the sanding and filling any tiny little cracks that are apparent. For this I use the model lite filler with a few drops of yellow ochre and natural wood acrylic paints to simulate the boxwood planking. I am fairly satisfied with the result and can now start to think about the bulwark planking. Just to show that it didn't all go smoothly........ One sprung plank caught me out. B.E.

To Spile or not to Spile – a no brainer really Once a strake refuses to sit flat even with a taper it is time to spile. Some lateral twist is possible with 0.6mm planks, but to force it into position with lateral twist is not a good idea. Even if the glue can be made to hold, the problem will be repeated lower down, and with only 0.6mm planks to play with I cannot afford to sand out the difference. Small spiles have been used at the bow but along the Starboard side a larger gap appeared which needed to be rectified. Tamiya tape is placed over the gap, cut to shape using a scalpel, applied to a planking strip, and the pattern cut out whilst the plank is wet. The spiling plank in place, barely noticeable. Planking now continues to completion. Looking a little rough but only a light sanding will be required to smooth everything down. Final push The two planking lines converge, and I am pleased to note that gaps Port and Starboard remain constant. At this point odd shapes start to appear in the planking line which will necessitate a little spiling. One advantage of using bought in planking is that different widths are available, which allows for larger than standard plank widths which are better to cut spile planks from and avoid too many very narrow pieces of planking. What you see here is my version of a spile cum half stealer arrangement. The plank is cut to fill the space and at the stern the half stealer is cut out and fitted as a separate piece. Might cause the purists to shudder but hey the whole thing is to be covered by copper plates. On this build I have used 4.5, 6.0, 8.0, and 10 mm plank widths for the second planking, with the standard being the 4.5mm plank. At the sharp end the remaining space is a little too narrow to fit a standard plank without a sliver being left to fill in further along the hull. The answer is a Drop plank which allows the final remaining space to be filled with two planks of similar breadth. The remaining space is spiled using the Tamiya tape method and the resulting plank is halved to make the two planks. The Spiled plank cut out. The spile plank has been halved and is fitted as two separate planks. Remaining space for the final plank. The final piece of the jigsaw is put into place. B.E.

Second Planking As a first step I fixed a length of 4.5mm black strip which is effectively the top line of the wale. The wale will later be built up using black strip over this and the two strakes below. The rest of the main hull planking is done in Boxwood strip. At this point I have also attached the stern post having taken the first planking on the bearding line as thin as I dare. The lower counter was then planked using 4.5mm black strip. A moulding strip will be fashioned to cover the join of the lower counter and the hull planks. Very little sanding is required to bring the planks flush with the stern post. The garboard planks were next fitted using 8mm strip, planking then proceeds. I decided against cutting a second rabbet at the stem, using the thin boxwood strip made it unnecessary, had I used the provided 1mm stuff then a rabbet may have been required, and would be easier to cut. The planks at the bow hold well using thick gel ca. I dampen the hull a little to accelerate adhesion. B.E.

The stern counter has now been fixed, and I now need to blend the stern timbers into the counter allowing for the planking yet to be applied. The broken plank from my little accident can be seen on the Starboard side For some obscure reason Amati have chosen to leave a gap between the stern counter and the stern gallery piece which they just suggest is planked over. This will have to be done in conjunction with ensuring the stern gallery piece is properly aligned. I’ll return to that later. Marking the wale position is a critical part of build and it is very important to get this right. Using the plans the measurements were taken from the top of the gunport pattern (as suggested in the blurb) at each port and transferred to the hull. Tamiya 10mm tape was then used to position the wales both Port and Starboard. In practice where the hull meets the stem the wale top is right on the line between the gun-port pattern and the top planking strake, it is on my Pegasus anyway. Measurements were then taken on the plans from the gunport bottoms to the wale top and checked against the tape position on the hull. A minor adjustment from gun-port six aft was required both sides. At the aft end the wale seems to take on an interesting profile where the planking starts to go under the counter, according to the Swan book this is how it should be. For the second planking I am using Boxwood strip obtained from Original Marquetry. One of the advantages of using non kit wood strip for the second planking is that differing widths can be obtained which is a great help. B.E.

One of the things I found with the Gunport strip was that it had tiny irregularities along the length where it was pinned to the bulkheads. These needed a small amount of filler, but very little filler has been required overall. One thing to note is that the hull is handled a lot during the sanding process, and I don’t think I would have liked to fit the deck fixtures and deck beams prior to this stage as suggested by the instructions. The dust marks on the Upper deck, would mar nicely finished gratings and fittings, and there is a real risk of damage to the beams. I think I've had enough of sanding now, I'm going to do the blind feel test, and in the absence of anything significant - I'm moving on. The next job up will be the marking of the Main Wale, and fixing of the lower counter. B.E.

That sanding business I forgot to say in the previous post that Amati had provided more than enough lime wood strip to do the first planking even given my usual excessive use of such material. The planking was of good quality strip with clean edges, and uniform thickness. I did initially have reservations about the 1.5mm thick first planking but I think it is probably needed to allow for adequate sanding. For sanding I use those flexible sanding pads in different grades, along with profile sanding sticks and home-made sticks and blocks with the paper stuck to them with either pva or super-glue. For filling I use Model- lite filler which dries quickly and sands easily. So the burning question that has been occupying my mind over the past four days is how smooth is smooth enough. I may be in danger of not knowing when to stop and end up sanding away the entire planking. I think I may be getting a little obsessive about it. My main concern apart from sanding out the joint ridges was to re-establish a bearding line at the stern. A considerable amount of material has to be taken off to allow for the second planking to lie flush with the stern post with only a light sanding. You can see here how much tapering at the stern was necessary. Near enough a mm per side was removed where the stern planking will butt up against the stern post. It’s amazing once you start this process how many irregularities keep popping up. Just when you think you have it sorted the light catches yet another little bump or depression. I suspect you could go on forever to achieve a perfectly smooth and even surface but how smooth is smooth enough to take the second planking without any irregularities showing thro'. The photo has highlighted yet another little bump that needs attention on the starboard side near the false keel. B.E.

I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating, cutting the rabbet in the stem surely does aid fixing the planks at the bow , and assists with a neat finish. The earlier damage to the stern has been repaired, and I’m not displeased with the run of planking up to the stern counter. So now it’s a period of sanding and smoothing, and hopefully only a little filling, to turn this ugly duckling into a Swan. Now where did I put that dust mask. B.E.

The first planking is 1.5mm Lime, thicker than I would have liked but I think it needs it to allow for sanding back to the bottom edge of the gunport pattern. The downside is it barely fits in the rabbet, and there will be a lot of sanding down at the bearding line. The lengths are 24” and look to need some taper both ends, there is quite a curve along the bottom edge of the pattern. A soaking along the full length is therefore required. I intend to fix the first strake beneath the pattern and then the Garboard strake and then try to calculate the degree of taper for those in-between. Here she is sitting on the ‘invert’ building board on which the planking and ultimately the coppering will be done, the degree of curve is clearly apparent. I hope to do the first planking run as neatly as I can but I’m not intending to apply the niceties of drop planks and correctly cut stealers as all this will be covered up, probably not least by filler First Planking 5mm x 1.5mm Lime wood strip is provided for the first planking. The Garboard strake was fitted first and with only the slightest of bevels slotted into the rabbet. There is quite a twist in this strake from the ninth bulkhead aft, less so from the fourth bulkhead forward, but the soaked limewood strip took it well. It is instantly apparent that the bearding at the stern has been filled by the 1.5mm strip thickness, and will need to lose around 0.7mm to allow for the second planking. The uppermost plank below the gunport pattern was soaked and required a taper down to 3mm from the third bulkhead to accommodate the curve around the bow. The benefit of cutting a rabbet at the stem produced dividends when it came to securing the planks. The round of the stern and upsweep of planking to the counter always presents some difficulty. The benefit adding the balsa blocks right up to the counter made things a lot easier to achieve a smooth round to the planking and avoid those ugly angles sometimes seen in this area. A slight taper was also applied to these planks from about bulkhead 8 to the stern counter. Looks quite odd in this shot but I think it’s the angle; one of the subtle curves in the plywood pattern that the planking will have to follow can also be seen. There are some imperfections where this strake meets the pattern, but I couldn’t see how to avoid them. Hopefully the ample 1.5mm thickness will allow for them to be mostly sanded out, and a spot of filler covers a multitude of sins. With the Garboard plank and top plank beneath the pattern fitted the number of planks at the widest bulkhead (6) and the smallest (1) can be calculated and thereby the required taper which works out at just shy of 2mm. The balsa wood blocks were sealed with diluted pva to prevent too much absorbs ion of the glue. Medium ca was used around the bow area, across the balsa fillers and bulkheads, and pva along the plank edges which are clamped up tight to the one above and temporarily pinned at the bulkheads and allowed to set. Extra care needs to be taken to ensure that the planking is well secured, unlike with my Pickle build it is not possible to get inside the planking as it progresses to apply diluted pva to provide additional security. I hate this part of a build which seems to go on forever, I’m only achieving four planks a day and the planking never looks right until it’s been sanded and the ridges are taken out, but everytime I look at it I think it’s cr**p But... one must persevere so it’s on with soak, mark, fit, taper, refit and pin, and hope it all turns out ok in the end. Oh Dear Just when things were progressing nicely fixing the last pin in the last plank of Thursday's session ended in this: A slip of the pin pusher and half the internal stern fittings are demolished as effectively as a raking broadside of round shot. I have started to repair the damage but better had it not occurred. Lesson to be reminded of - when resistance is met, don’t push harder, the end result may cause the onset of model rage . At the moment my satisfaction level is not high, but planking has recommenced, with a little more care. I have now started to add planks from the keel up as well as from the gunport pattern downwards. Once the garboard plank has been fitted, I allow the following planks from the keel upwards to fall naturally at the stern, although I do add some taper at the bows. The result at the stern is that gaps are left requiring filling by the use of stealers. In reality stealers would not taper to a point, but as this is only the first planking layer, later to be covered by a second layer and copper, I simply haven’t bothered to rebate the planks top and bottom of the stealer to reproduce a more authentic arrangement. On an un-coppered hull I would feel the need to show the proper arrangement with the second planking layer. As planking progresses I use little wedges as well as pins to hold the plank up tight to the one above. Only light pressure is applied to avoid indenting the plank edges. As the planking progresses I work both down from the top and up from the keel. The aim is to get an even gap, in my case nearly but not quite. Has it really been only twelve days since I started, it feels like half a lifetime, but the planking is at last done. The last few strakes resulted in some interesting spiling shapes, but I’ll gloss over that. B.E.

No going back I should declare that I have deviated somewhat from the kit instructions for fitting the patterns. It is recommended that the deck beams be fixed at this stage to provide some rigidity to the hull and help form the hull shape. Because I am fitting out the decks beneath the Quarterdeck these beams will get in the way, but the first beam 2A beneath the foc’sle can be glued in to provide stability in that area. The three bulkhead extensions in the waist are removed once the external planking is completed and to this end the external faces of the extensions are nicked with a razor saw before the Patterns are glued on, to assist the removal process later. Double sided tape is applied to the external faces of those bulkheads again to ease their Later removal. Before starting I once again soaked the pattern in hot water for a short while to allow lateral conformation to the bulkheads. So with everything to hand pva is applied and the port pattern is glued on using clamps and pins for the lower edges. No real problem and three hours later the pva has cured. The Starboard side is temporarily clamped in place and the across deck level checked thro’ the ports. Close enough I think. It is advisable to make up a gun to gauge the likely fit thro’ the port. The glue process was then repeated on the starboard side, but didn’t go quite as well, and the bally thing had to be removed because I detected a slight mis-conformation around the bow area. but I got there in the end. The rear gunport patterns Shorter and less complicated than the forward patterns these fit into a jigsaw pattern just aft of the ninth bulkhead – should they have met on the bulkhead, who knows, but the rear of the pattern is pretty close to the end of the stern counter patterns. It does present a weakness where the adjoining patterns meet so a small supporting tab was glued in to beef up the arrangement. Don’t want to risk a sprung plank happening sometime down the line. This shot amply demonstrates that you can’t have enough clamps when it comes to this type of build. All done now and fairly shipshape and Bristol fashion; according to the blurb the external planking should now be started having already glued in the deck fittings and beams. The Quarter deck support beams can’t really be fitted at this stage if the Upper deck is to be fitted out as I intend, and I don’t see why the lower hull first planking can’t be done before any further detail work is undertaken. The two additional sweep ports at the rear of the forward pattern can be seen here. Deck beams temporarily in place, a notch has been cut out on the Foc’sle beam, which would otherwise cut across beneath the galley steam grating. The modified stern framing and cut out for the Quarter Badge light can be seen here. A huge sigh of relief that this task has been done, and on with the Hull planking. B.E.

Getting to grips with Gunport patterns The fixing of these is a critical part of the build, and although a simplification in terms of model making there are lots of background niggles to creep into the mind. Will the ports be the correct height above the deck, will they match port and starboard, will they adhere properly to the subtle curves of the bulkhead frames; will the guns sit in the correct position thro’ the port; It is easy to think oneself almost into inertia at the prospect of this part of the build but get it wrong and I’m in deep doo doo and forced into fiddling with the ports or trying to prise the bally things off to start again. This has to be correct or it may affect the whole look of the model, and have repercussions down the line. Prior to anything else I cut out two additional sweep ports and an opening for the Quarter badge light. A soak for an hour in hot water and a trial bending and fitting can begin. An initial trial left me thinking that I needed three pairs of hands to correctly position, clamp, and mould the pattern to the frames. The starting point is at the bows and to this end I found it helped to clamp a piece of wood to the stem to mark the lower edge of the pattern and insert a piece of dowel to represent the bowsprit around which the pattern template is pre-cut. A further piece of wood strip is temporarily glued to the stem to help hold the pattern close to the hull framing. There is quite a sharp bend around the hull at the bow, but even further along there is a shape to the bulkhead extensions to which the pattern needs to adhere. When this Part of the operation begins it helps to ensure that everything needed to perform the job is to hand. One handed clamps; small G clamps; spring clamps; push pins; brass pins; pin pusher; I also made up a gun to check the fit along the ports. The port side is trial fitted using just clamps and a few pins; the starboard side is then fitted in the same manner; now it should be possible to gauge if the port height matches each side by running a length of 8mm square stuff thro’ opposing ports and checking the level. Marking the bottom line of a gunport on a piece of strip quickly indicates if the height levels are the same along the broadsides. As it worked out having the top edge of the pattern level with the top edges of the frames did result in an even deck to port cill level along the broadside; what will matter will be to ensure this remains the case when glue is applied. The thing is then set aside overnight to allow the bow curves to retain some memory, which thankfully they do. I am now all set to go. B.E.