Blue Ensign

Very nice work on the rattlin' down Derek, and those crowsfeet look spot on. I would go with what pleases your eye best. B.E.

Post Eight Dressing the dio. No Galley display should be without a cook, and thanks to Chris Watton, a cook complete with wooden leg, at 1:48 scale, is available to give scale effect to the Galley Stove. For this dio I will be painting the figure, not one of my favourite or best skilled talents, but needs must. I have used Vallejo paints throughout. The following pics show the figure after the colours have been blocked in, and the macro is used to torture myself with the deficiencies in my skill. 9064 I am using a fairly muted palette, the one splash of colour being the cook’s red headscarf. 9059 At this stage no washes, or highlighting has been applied, but overall, I am happy with the colour scheme applied. 9060 Still a way to go, the macro reveal where touch-ins are required. 9088 9090 The base of the figure will have been removed in the final version. B.E. 30/10/2022

Thank you, Yves. Post Seven Making the display base. I utilised part of the kit display base but decided to put it on a deck setting. 9025 The brick design is washed over with Vallejo Black/grey. 9036 It is glued to a 1.3mm thick rectangle of Boxwood, which will then be planked also using Boxwood strip. 9039 The planked base is glued a thicker 3mm piece of Boxwood sheet to counter any risk of curl. 9051 The basic display base, work in progress. 9066 9068 The deck boards are finished with wipe-on-poly. 9082 9084 The ‘rust’ element on the stove has been toned down. Next time I will be looking at dressing the display. B.E. 29/10/2022

Thank you, Glenn. Post six Playing around with weathering powders is great fun, I used powders from two brands, Revell, and Vallejo. Revell - Dark brown, Rust red; Vallejo – Slate grey. 9048 9047 9046 9041 9057(2) I think I will tone down the rust a little, no self-respecting cook would be happy with the state of that stove. I do like the ash effect in the grate tho’. The beauty of weathering powders is that they can be endlessly tweaked at least until interest or patience wanes. Moving on to the display base preparation. B.E. 28/10/2022

Thank you, Rusty and Yves, I'm enjoying this little fill-in project, having fun playing around with the weathering powders. I'm thinking mini dio for the presentation. Cheers, B.E.

Post Five Work continues to add detail that wouldn’t be clearly visible on a stove installed on a model. 9020 Lifting rings, top rails, and pot lid handles, are prepared. 9023 The access hatch to the lower chimney/flue is added. 9035 9034 9029 9028 With the basic structure now complete I move onto the weathering, and hopefully turn wood into iron. B.E. 27/10/2022

Post Four The Spit support cranes are delicate pieces that require gentle handling. Laser cut from wood they are susceptible to breaking of the spit iron support cradles. 9000(2) Fortunately, a couple of spares are provided. 8999 Having secured one crane, the second is tweaked to ensure the spit is horizontal before the pva sets. (A further tweak is evidently required) 9002 That’s better! 9001 From this point on care is required not to catch the spit cranes as they will surely snap off. The next stage is to fit the pulley mechanism for the spit. 9010(2) These are laser cut assemblies supplied in three different sizes to suit individual builds. These are also delicate fittings requiring soft handling to avoid breakage. 9006 Fitting the spit assembly is a tricky business. The stove does need to be securely held, and the spit iron held in place whilst the upper spindle position is marked. 9013 Once in place I secured the non-pulley end with a spot of ca beneath the iron. 9016 9019 Detailing will continue in the next post. B.E. 26/10/2022

I have sympathy with your view Derek, the kit is likely to have a hefty price tag £1000 + and the kit looks to be ideal for a Navy board style where a lot of the stuff won't be needed. I have a hefty stack of stuff left over from my Sphinx build, but of course the overall price was lower. B.E.

Post Three The next task is to detail the oven doors. Laserboard straps are provided to represent the door furniture, but these can be enhanced a little by adding hinge and latch representations. 8982 Pieces of styrene strip are used for the purpose, sanded to shape post fitting. One of the trickiest fittings to make is the hinged pot arm which sits inside the open fire grate. 8991(2) Would have been much easier to fit this before completing the open grate. 8981 8988(2) The brass drain cocks for the two boilers have now been completed. Two coats of paint have been applied; I am using Vallejo acrylic Black Grey for the paintwork. I think this gives a better scale colour than full black. From around nine inches it doesn’t look too bad at this stage, but the macro eye tells another story. It will need more attention before I move onto the next stage. B.E. 24/10/2022

Post two The basic assembly is fairly straightforward, just need to ensure that all the parts are properly aligned. The trickiest build areas for me were assembly of the chimney (the narrow sides need to go inside the wider sides) and the forward end of the hood has an aft slope which needs to be sharply cut to reflect a ‘metal’ appearance. 8948 The hood slope angle was taken from the plan, marked on the piece, pared down using a scalpel blade, and sanded to finish. 8951 I may yet change the configuration of the chimney. The first modification is to add the fire grate. 8958 Conveniently provided by a section of the kit fret. This is fitted from below. A piece of black card will be used to make the ash tray that sits below the grates, not that this will be seen. 8953 Black card is also used to form the back plate to the open hearth. 8962 The aft end of the stove is modified to give a more realistic impression of the boiler drain cocks. 8963 Brass cocks, yet to be fitted with the valves. 8966 At this point I have used double sided taped to secure a small square of wood to the base of the stove, primarily to protect the delicate legs from damage. A small block also provides a convenient grip to hold the stove during painting and working. 8967 The hood has been attached to the stove body along with the connector for the still. Now glued into place, final fettlin' will be applied to the Hood. A little cleaning up and it will be ready for a first coat of black paint. B.E. 23/10/2022

Thankyou Yves, Your Bellona stove is nicely detailed, and at least you have the photos to show it is there, now hidden below decks. I like the detailed boiler drain cocks, something I have to replicate on the Syren version. The Sphinx version is a combination of a wooden core with brass etched facings, and had Vanguard done a 1:48 scale version I would have bought it. The Syren stove is nicely designed, as are all of their products, and it does provide scope for detailing which always piques my interest in a build. I am looking forward to turning wood into iron, or at least trying to. Regards, B.E.

8818 This is a rare sight in my office and not one that can stand for long. When I started Sphinx I had the idea of including in the display case a larger model of the Galley Stove. I did the same with the Double Capstan, where I had previously made the 1:48 scale Syren model (ex-Winchelsea) There is a very nice stove included with the Sphinx kit. 6240 6226(2) but of course, it is largely hidden beneath the Foc’sle deck. For this display stove I am again using a 1:48 scale kit from Syren also ex Winchelsea. This is an all-wooden kit, no brass etch involved, and the main challenge will be turning wood into iron using weathering powders. So, the trick is to turn this…. 8814 … into this Chuck’s stove If I can achieve a finish close to that produced by Chuck, I will be well satisfied. The stove for Winchelsea is designed to fit beneath the Foc’sle deck and detail has been simplified as much of it would be hidden from view. My version will stand as a model open to full view and therefore added detail will be required. The proposed additions will consist of: Lifting rings Side rails Back plates for open hearth Drain cocks- brass (1mm) Fire grate Pot arm And maybe a few other things that come to mind as I progress the build. B.E. 22/10/2022

I would have concerns about using lime wood for decking. If it’s anything like the hull planking strips it would be too soft to get a good scraped finish and subject to dinks. There is also the question of even colouring if a slightly darker colour was required. I have no experience of Alder. I’ve never really been a fan of the pre-engraved decks because the shadowing always catches my eye, altho’ I did use it on the lower deck of Sphinx as it wouldn’t be seen. It is an aggravating situation for you Chris, but you can’t carry on wasting money on unsuitable material. I will continue to use 0.6mm Boxwood strip in multiple widths from Original Marquetry, Bristol, both for hull and deck planking. I do hope you resolve the issue. B.E.

He looks like he’s dancing a horn pipe, or maybe a spot of highland dancing. I’m sure he will continue to give good service, in good company with Captain Ahab with a nicely turned whale bone leg. B.E.

Post One hundred and Seventy-three A question of display I thought about making a support arrangement of keel blocks supplemented by small cradles much in the way that I did for Pegasus. (below) It is quite a time-consuming set-up and has implications for Sphinx where the display case height is already fixed. 5408 Fortunately, I rather like the clear acrylic stands provided by Chris, they are nicely designed, unobtrusive, and fulfil the purpose. 8794 The engraved nameplate for Sphinx I like very much. How to display the other items within the case is also on my mind but having made them I certainly don’t want to omit the three ships boats. 8777 At present Sphinx sits atop Cheerful purely for convenience but this won’t be the final display location. 8768 I could play around endlessly with positioning the other items within the case, but this is fairly pleasing on my eye, and Life is simply too short. 8775 The case also provides a convenient home to display Syren’s splendid little Double Capstan model. 8773 8774 8761(2) Cover on time…. 8800 This is where Sphinx will be displayed at least for the present. Not ideal as the low level means clear viewing of her highly decorative stern is tricky. Not that it matters as I’m not open to the public, and I know what it’s like.😉 8808 By pure good fortune the base slips neatly between the legs of the Console table currently displaying Pegasus. It is perhaps appropriate that the two ships are displayed together, both being sixth rates of the same era. The models also share a common heritage, both being designed by the talented Mr Watton, altho’ with a good number of years in-between. It was partly that I already had a fully masted and rigged Sixth rate that I didn’t feel too badly about consigning the kit masting and rigging elements to the spares box. This is not quite the end of my Sphinx journey as I now have to move onto compiling a pictorial build record book as I have done with all my builds. I will return with something considerably smaller for my next project. Regards, B.E. 14/10/2022

Beautifully detailed Nils, as we have come to expect from your unique subjects. There is always something new to spot when the photos are re-visited, love the kettle on the stove. Well done. B.E.

Re: The Ensigns. Altho’ the Ensigns are not always worn at sea, I like to show them, but the Commissioning pennant is always worn at the Main T’gallant head. I don’t think the Union flag is usually worn at the Jackstaff when at sea, and unless a model is displayed ‘bare stick’ I would leave it off. Nice work on the crew figures Ron, they look convincing. You may already have them but there is a nice little paperback book by Osprey publishing called ‘Nelson’s Sailors’ detailing the clothing of sailors, and companion books Nelson’s Midshipmen and Officers, and Nelson’s Navy. Modestly priced and readily available on Amazon. I see that the two crew figures you show are taken from the artwork in the Nelson’s Sailors book, and very nicely done. B.E.

Great stuff Jason, beautiful crisp work. 👍 B.E.

Cheers Guys, much appreciated, and thank you for following along. Regards, B.E.

Post One hundred and Seventy-two Completion So, after fourteen months of fairly consistent work I have to declare Sphinx finished, but of course this does not include the masting and rigging element that would have taken at least another twelve months. 8792 For the purposes of the shoot, I have added the instantly detachable Boomkins. Strangely they don’t Jarr on my eye as they did a post or two back. 8778 8783 8782 8795 8797 8780(3) Thoughts about the Sphinx kit I have thoroughly enjoyed building Sphinx and it offers significant kit design improvements over my previous build of the small frigate, Pegasus, back in 2010. It produces a fine model as an oob build and provides options for the more experienced builder to apply tweaks where kit simplifications can be improved. In the case of Sphinx these have mainly related to the internal Quarter gallery and great cabin areas, which have been addressed by Chris in his latest development of the frigate Indefatigable. There have been concerns expressed that the Sphinx kit has too many pre- made parts such as the outer planking and Wale patterns, but this is no assembly by numbers project, great care is necessary to produce the finish that this kit deserves. The use of some resin components allows for finer detail, and the very fine brass etch decoration is pretty close to ‘painted on’ The design of this kit includes a complete lower deck with main fittings, and if fore and aft lower platforms are added there is a view thro’ the hatches from the upper deck directly down to the hold. Not many kits offer this level of detail below the upper deck level. The provision of scale deck beams for the Quarter deck and Foc’sle was one of the reasons that attracted me to the kit providing the option to make a ‘Navy Board ‘style model. I did have to make my own Lodging knees, but this is also something Chris has addressed in his latest design. I have to thank Chris for providing the makings to build Sphinx, and for the ongoing support in providing additional and replacement parts. His service is second to none. I am also grateful to Jim Hatch for his pathfinder work in constructing the prototype and providing many helpful photos along the way. I also thank Chuck Passaro of Syren who has assisted me with the decorative panels on Sphinx, and whose wonderful model of Winchelsea has provided much inspiration and ideas adopted on my own build. Finally, I would like to thank all those MSW members who have supported me throughout this build, providing encouragement and advice. Regards, B.E. Ps I now need to work out how to display Sphinx within the case and decide where to put it.🤔

Thank you, glad you like it. 👍 B.E.

Thank you, Ron, and Glenn, and for the supportive 'likes' Post One hundred and seventy-one The trouble with cooks. In a moment of whimsey I thought I would discreetly add the ships cook standing by the galley stove. 8737 The base was removed to give a free standing figure, and a very fine fellow is he. Sadly the 1:64 scale figure stands at 28.5mm which equates to a tad shy of 6 feet tall. 8736 He’s going to have an uncomfortable time at the galley without developing a distinct stoop. 8734 It’s not a good look with his head sticking above the deck beams, and a visit to the ships surgeon and carpenter may be in the offing. A quick foot ectomy and a reshaped peg leg may solve the issue and may not look too obvious with the angles invoved. Worth bearing in mind tho’ if you’re thinking of adding the figures to your build. B.E. 10/10/2022 Postscript 8739 Surgery complete Surprisingly he doesn’t look out of proportion, the long apron helps. 8749 8756 He looks a lot better for scale, viewing between the beams. Job done. B.E.

Thank you, Ron and Jesse, @Ron - I just love your description of the cranes, such an image it conjures up. 😄 Post One hundred and seventy. Final fettlin’ I have now reached the stage of tidying up bits and pieces, and re-checking to see if I’ve missed anything. The Upper Capstan pawls are one item; I found the teardrop shaped kit versions a little unconvincing and were replaced. 8728 I followed the arrangement in the ffm Vol11 as I did with my Pegasus build. Another decision to be made is whether to add the passing ropes thro’ the guard stanchions and cranes or leave them unadorned. I doubt I will be able to look at the cranes in the same light again after Ron’s (hollowneck) apposite remark black prickly bits randomly popping out of her hull, an image I have some agreement with, but will probably not get out of my mind’s eye. I used 0.31mm ø Syren line to check the effect. I needed additional eyebolts to take some of the seizings. 8705 I added an eyebolt and secured the aft end of the quarter crane rope using false splices as the neatest option. 8709 Securing the Foc’sle passing ropes. 8726 The two double cranes at the break of the Quarterdeck are still a puzzlement, there doesn’t seem a sensible way to finish off the passing ropes on the inboard side or a clear indication of how and where they extend to. The Pandora book drawings seem to show a line secured to the Quarter rail; the kit instructions seem to pass over this awkward little detail. 8713 Fixing of the double crane ropes. 8715 8714 A small eyebolt is fitted to the Quarter rail timberhead to secure the inner crane passing rope. The above photos show how I finally decided to tackle the passing ropes in this area, which is my best guestimate, but I offer no guarantee of authenticity. 8712 The Foc’sle end is less problematic. 8731 8722 8720(2) 8725(2) 8723 I think on balance the model looks better with passing ropes in place, so they will remain. I’m also finding lots of little areas needing paint touch-ins, a process that will probably continue for a while. Then there’s the dust.🙄 B.E. 09/10/2022 Night of the Hunters Moon 🌕

Nice work on the pillars Jesse, there is a view of one pair thro' the main ladderway, but the main thing is you know they are there. The stern frame modification is a bit of a scary one, but they look so much more authentic. Builders of Chris's new Indefatigable kit will benefit from a stern and Quarter gallery upgrade that reflects the proper arrangement. B.E.

She looks beautiful Chuck, a worthy successor to those 18th c models. Your build is a fine example to follow and I have used your Winnie build as a guide to my own efforts on Sphinx . Congratulations on a job very well done, your artistry is much to be admired. B.E.