Blue Ensign

You've nailed that classic look Augie, I'd be feeling  'pretty good' about it too.

Love the build.

B.E.

Love the shot of the guns along the Quarterdeck  rail.

B.E.

Good to see a little progress Nils, nice mock up of the gun rigging.

One question have you added 'dolphins' ie lifting rings to the guns, I only ask because they are more a feature of 17th century naval guns and land based guns rather than those of the 18th century.

Regards,

B.E.

The bearding line is usually shown on the kit plan, this is simply transferred to the false keel to mark the line for subsequent tapering. I used a simple jig to give me the depth of taper required. The first page of my log gives details of how I did it.

The bearding line is shown on the Pickle plans, and is covered in the book of instructions.

 It is also useful to cut a rabbet along the bottom of the false keel and up the stem to allow for a neater finish of the planking. I didn't  cut one on my Pickle build but would do so were I to do it again.

If you are a little unsure about this whole planking business there are some useful downloads on the MSW Database.

http://modelshipworldforum.com/resources/Framing_and_Planking/plankingprojectbeginners.pdf

This basic guide to planking may be of help.

B.E.

Well done Mobbsie, and it also solves the problem of where to put completed models. If ever I get to Harwich I'll make a point of  calling in to view.

B.E.

Hi Bob, I'm not a fan of those brass etched letters so beloved of kit  manufacturers sometimes because the lettering is too modern and always because  the names were painted on  and not blocked which is the appearance you get no matter how thin the etch is. I used Letraset on my Pegasus build

.

The rules governing the names on sterns were by order issued in 1771; that ships should have their names painted on the second counter, in letters a foot high, and be enclosed in a compartment.

The order was amended in 1772 and names were; to be painted without a compartment in letters as large as the counter would permit, this was the fashion at the time of Trafalgar.

Looking at your 5mm letters they don't strike me as being 'odd' but the 8mm ones are probably truer to scale, and better meet the 1772 rule.

The last two kits I have made had etched  letters which under the kit instructions were to be painted white, personally I found this too stark at scale, and gold/ochre has a more period feel. I also tried vinyl stick on letters which were available in larger sizes, but didn't like the effect.

I understand some modellers create their own transfers on their computers using special paper and fonts to suit, but I'm not sure of the procedure.

There are also companies out there who will produce dry rub lettering to suit, but I've no experience of them.

Vanguard is coming along very nicely.

B.E.

Love what you've done Bob, very impressive.

B.E

I'm holding out for Chris Watton's Revenge yet to be issued by Amati

B.E.

Sorry to hear that Nils, hope it eases off soon to allow you (and us) to fully enjoy your modelling activities.

Regards,

B.E.

Any likelihood of some progress on your Pegasus Nils?

B.E.

Nice fix Ian, you're a great metal bashing man

B.E.

Just enjoyed reading thro' your log Nigel, what a fine model you are producing. Love your attention to detail and innovative approach.

Cheers,

B.E.

I admire your commitment to re-working the port lid lanyards Kevin, the result is well worth the effort. Your Victory looks magnificent in the photos.

B.E.

I still wonder at what you've achieved with this build at 1:100 scale hamilton, she's a fine attractive model that you should feel well satisfied with

B.E.

Masted or not she is an impressive build Len, I love that last shot of her.

B.E.

Nice fix Grant

B.E.

Nice work on those catharpins Jason, I hope I get them as good.

B.E.

That is a great post Tony, your ingenuity knows no bounds, and your turned gun looks a great improvement over the kit version.

Nice work

B.E.

Thanks for the Greenwich trip photo's Ian, you've jogged my memory to make a return visit, it's been years since I was last there. I had wondered what had happened to the Victory in a bottle model after its stint on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square, a fitting location I think.

For those who don't know about this model here's a link to the background.

http://www.artfund.org/ship/nelsons-ship-in-a-bottle

Looking forward to more progress on Unicorn

B.E.

Nice to see an update hamilton, she really is an attractive model, you've done a fine job with her.

B.E.

Hi Martin, the way I got around the Walnut stem to match the boxwood planking was by using a water based varnish to which I added spots of yellow ochre paint until I got a match to the colour of the boxwood proper. I painted it on in thin coats until I got the look I was satisfied with.

As for the scarph scoring, I simply penciled the lines on, marked them with a pointy thing and ruler, and defined the lines using an Olfa scriber.

Re the 'parquet' flooring in the Great Cabin, the British are really cheapskates when it comes to creature comforts, twas no more than painted sailcloth on the floor. (If you want to get a rolling eyes look from the Guides aboard HMS Victory keep referring to it as Lino.)

The French however had far more style fitting their Great cabins with the real thing, at least on the larger ships. The Eighteenth Century British Navy however eschewed anything that smacked of a "Frenchifying" influence, although that didn't stop them adopting the Epaulette to adorn their uniforms, long before the official sanction in 1795.

Sorry I digress

B.E

Hi Martin, good to see you start on Fly.

I did the same as Alistair and simply scored the scarph lines into the kit stem, there are a couple of them that show above the copper line.

It's not too difficult a job to open up the stern cabin and I think it is well worth doing, the same applies to beneath the Fo'csle deck. One thing I would do differently is to modify the first gunport which should really be a Bridle port, somewhat narrower than in the provided pattern.

The fffm books are well worth getting, Vol 11 is particularly useful for the kit basher as it contains a lot of detail on fittings which enhance the basic kit. Vol 1 also has useful information for the kit builder but also covers the early build stages for a pof build. I have all four volumes and I have used them all as references for my build.

Cheers,

B.E.

Hi Mark, using Chuck's bulkhead frame system I  also found reducing the thickness of boxwood frames  @1:64 scale to less than 1mm made them too fragile. I am making the ones for my Pinnace from 1.5mm thick sheet but will them sand down to 1mm. Once insitu and held by the planking I may be able to reduce the width a little more, but getting down to around 0.5mm is a tall order.

I am very interested to see how you get on with your boats.

Speaking of French boats, it seems eminently sensible to build them to nest, unlike the British Navy where there were far more sizes and shapes most of which were unsuitable for nesting. On the other hand it must have been a hell of an exercise to get at the Longboat having to remove the cutter and Barge first.

Cheers,

B.E.

What a beast, don't fall inside her Andy we'll never get you out   I think you'll need a mortgage just to buy the paint for her.

Can't say it has the same appeal for me as ships of the Eighteenth century, but an interesting project all the same, and almost certainly a unique one here on MSW.

I'll be interested to see how she looks in her finished state.

Cheers,

B.E.

Is it too late to retro fit a spider band? made in two halves around a piece of dowel the same size as the mizen, pre drilled for the belay pins and glued into place around the Mizen; maybe there's something I'm missing but I'd have thought it feasible for a modeller of your ingenuity and skill Grant.

B.E.