Blue Ensign

Nice work on the guns, Bug 👍 B.E.

Thanks Chuck, a case of not seeing the wood for trees, and I have been looking closely at your Winnie set-up as well. I'm glad you looked in.👍 B.E.

Thank you Ron, I do have a suitable 1:64 scale figure in mind for the role, a laser cut substitute part 45 would have been useful tho'.🙂 Post Forty-six Modifying the Gallery Time to clear the deck and get the scroll saw into position. 1488 The first trial to see how the mdf holds up. 1491 So far so good, the mdf has withstood the scroll blade without splitting. 1494 Final finishing is done gently by hand with sanding sticks. 1502 A trial fit. 1503 The forward end is drilled and pinned. 1506 Adding the other patterns which thankfully won’t need replacing. 1510 The line looks good to my eye. 1511 I think the modification is doable so I will try one cut from Boxwood sheet. On any final piece, once it is in place the back and inner sides would be fined down further. Back to the scroll saw B.E. 02/12/21

Post Forty-five Fitting facia and counter I first glue the upper counter in position with the facia still temporarily pinned in place. The gap at the bottom is filled with a narrow Pear wood strip. 1482 With counters dealt with, the facia is removed and re-glued into place. It is a bit of a milestone having the facia in place, it transforms the model into an 18thc naval ship even in its basic form as at present. I now reach the the point of a major modification. It concerns the middle pattern (of three) that form the shape of the Quarter galleries. This one carries across what would be the gallery space and block the doorway. 1478 This is an initial template of the piece that would have to replace the solid part 45. I’ll have a play around and see what material works best, possibly Boxwood sheet will provide the makings. I will start with cutting an example out of mdf and see how I go. Although I may ultimately decide that the result is not worth the effort, I’ve nothing to waste but my own time, and a little material, and I rather like the idea of a little figure making use of the seat of ease. B.E. 01/12/21

You could always ring them up (0)1905 776 073 and ask. Personally I haven't used Jotika/Caldercraft for some years, just providing the link I have. ps I have just checked with Jotika they do have them in stock, but for some reason they haven't appeared on their online store. Cornwall Model Boats do have them, I've just checked.

Hi Admiral Beez, I have had a look back thro’ my records, and I hope this info helps. All those rings for the tackles and port lid lanyards, and almost every other instance where an eyebolt or ring was required are 0.3mm Brass etched eyelets obtained from Jotika. Here’s the link JoTiKa Ltd. ~ Fittings, 0.3mm Brass Etched Eyelets. (jotika-ltd.com) As regards the port lids, this is what I wrote at the time. The port lids provided by Heller are little projects on their own, each lid requiring nine separate operations before they are ready for fitting; at least there are only twenty-eight of ‘em. For some strange reason Heller have moulded the grain running the wrong way, vertical instead of horizontal. The hinges are adequately formed but will require the addition of lanyard rings, these rings should be inside the hinge straps, but I have attached them to the straps as I think they look better. Horizontal boards had to be scribed on the outer face, and vertical (lining) boards on the inner. The usual sink holes on the inner sides of the lids had to be filled, before scribing, painting the usual red ochre, and marking with the diamond head nail patterns. How to fit the ports is something of a puzzle; the lugs on the top of the lids are offset from the back so that the lid should fit flush to hull when closed. Unfortunately, they are too thick to allow the lid to sit flush without thinning down. For open ports there is no recess on the hull to take the ‘hinges’ and the Heller instructions give no clue as to fitment. I notice that looking at other Heller 74 builds on the net that many completed models do not have the lower port lids fitted, I wonder why. In any event each lid required individual tailoring to fit – chamfered edges and thinned down lugs. For the closed ports they were such tricky beggars to fit that all my fine painting of the lids and brackets came to naught as the paint mostly rubbed off whilst handling. In fitting the lids a line was temporarily secured to the rings to guard against the lids being lost inside the hull during the fitting operation – easily done. 0.1mm line was used for the lanyards which were threaded thro’ the previously prepared holes at Stage One, fished thro’ knotted and pulled taut. For the open ports a slightly different approach was required. 0.4mm holes were drilled in the top of the lid to take short lengths of telephone wire super-glued into place. The moulded lugs were removed. Corresponding holes just above the port openings were drilled to take the lid wires which once fitted into place can be gently positioned for angle once the lanyards have been fitted. Such was the good fit of wire into hull gluing was not necessary, but a lot of re-touching of the paint was required where the lids had been gripped by pliers and tweezers during the process. Were I to do the job again this is the sequence I would adopt. 1) Fill sink holes and scribe planking. 2) Drill holes for lanyard eyelets. These operations can be done whilst the lids are attached to the sprue. 3) Select and pare down lids to fit for closed ports. 4) Remove lugs from ports selected to be open. 5) Drill holes in top of open lids to take wire lengths to fit into hull. 6) Glue outside lanyard eyes into place on lids, (all lids) 7) Drill and fit inside lid eyelets on open port lids only. 😎 Paint the lids and straps. Port lids detail On the subject of Gun tackles For the smaller Foc’sle and Qtr deck guns I used 0.1mm ø line for the Breeching ropes, and for the larger lower deck guns 0.2mm ø line. I don't think I seized the breeching lines to the bulwarks , merely passed them thro' the rings where fitted, pinched them, and sealed with a spot of ca. These are very tiny things and the knot would be too big. Foc'sle gun detail This is what I wrote: Once installed the first job is to fasten the rings for the Upper deck waist cannon. The holes were drilled before assembly of the hull halves – impossible once the hull is assembled. There is not an option to omit any cannon as all the ports are open on this deck. The 0.3mm brass etched eyelets are just perfect for this job. For the six cannon beneath the Gang-boards in the waist I had fitted bulwark rings, and what passes for the breeching ropes on French cannon were attached to these. For the others Breeching ropes were attached and super-glued to the deck, as on the Gun-deck. Waist gun detail On the Lower deck I have represented the breeching ropes only, which are super-glued to the deck to provide additional security. Lower deck gun detail. Cheers, B.E.

Good to hear from you Michael, I hope things are good with you. Regards, Maurice

Nice detailing Ron, for me one of the most enjoyable parts of a build. B.E.

I have found that painting directly over Pear wood with Vallejo paints worked very well. I think James on his prototype build sprayed directly onto the bare wood, but applied wipe-on poly before brush painting the interior bulwarks. With a hardwood like Pear I don’t think it necessary to seal before painting, maybe varnish post painting to protect the surface. B.E.

A few questions there Admiral, I will have to dig out my old log record and see what I did. I will get back to you. B.E.

Post Forty-four That stern business I had intended to fit the port linings next, but with the stern patterns and Qtr galleries on my mind, I won’t settle until it’s sorted. I have to admit that I approach this task with a deal of trepidation. I have not actually fitted a Qtr gallery for over thirty years, Pegasus had a Badge, not a gallery, and that was tricky enough as I recall. This is one of the critical areas of construction with multiple parts requiring to be aligned. Additional self inflicted difficulties arise because my intention is to open up the galleries and install seats of ease, which means a deal of modification to the Quarter gallery patterns. Whether I can pull this off, or come to the conclusion that it’s not worth the effort I don’t know until I get into the assembly. I had done some preliminary work when I fitted the lower counter, so I will start with the Stern facia inner and work everything from that. This needs to be high enough to allow for the 1mm Quarterdeck rail with 1mm to spare. The Upper counter (inner) requirements will then be clear. The assembly will be looked at concurrently with the Qtr Gallery fitting as the top and bottom edges of the counter are critical to the mouldings that match up with those of the gallery. There will be a lot of temporary pinning and fitting before I finally commit to glue. To begin the process I separate all the parts relating to this area so they are handy to check fit as I go along. Identifying, locating, cutting, and sorting all the parts took a surprising amount of time. 1451 The Inner stern facia is pinned into place; tape is used to mark the line 2mm below the point where the bulwark meets the facia. A check is made to ensure the extensions are equidistant each side. The upper counter can now be tried in place. 1469 As can be seen there is a gap between Facia and counter, not unexpected but I need to decide whether to fit the upper counter hard against the facia or fill both sides. 1474 At this point I am also trial fitting the Quarter Gallery pieces to get a feel for how the assembly will hang together. 1465 I think I will bevel and butt the upper counter against the facia bottom, the lower gap is less important as is more easily filled and covered with a moulding. 1462 The line of the galleries suggests to my eye that the positioning is ok so tomorrow I will glue the facia and upper counter in place. B.E. 30/11/21

Hi Bug - on Pegasus I think I used thin slices from small diameter aluminium tubing flattened on the anvil. As I recall there was a big attrition rate to get the dozen or so required. @ Chuck - Thank you Chuck, I am leaning heavily on your wonderful Winnie build for ideas, and I hope to replicate the minimal planking pattern design of the Foc'sle and Quarterdecks. I do hope you don't mind. 🤞 Regards, B.E.

Exciting times👍 B.E.

Thanks Glenn, I think I meant 'Ironwork' black rather than 'dull' black, I used it on Cheerful as well. The dull black is just too shiny for my taste, it's an odd name given the effect. B.E.

Thank you Thuky, I'm strictly a brush man, but I'll keep your advice in mind. Post Forty-three Completing the Wales. With the wales in position, the holes filled, it is time to think about colour. Damn! I’ve just realised that I forgot to thin down the back side of the wale strips for the first cm or so to give more of an impression of it fitting into the stem rabbet. Too late to do this now as it would destroy the planking lines, but I would suggest that future builders do this as it is more authentic. Before fitting the wales I looked at and trialled two different finishes as a change from my usual Humbrol matt black, or Admiralty Dull Black. These are Vallejo Black Grey and Colron dark Jacobean Oak wood stain. 1370 Vallejo Black/Grey (left) Colron dye (right) I dismissed the wood stain as it would have to be applied post fitting of the wale and it presented too high a risk of bleed onto the surrounding woodwork. I start with Vallejo Black/Grey thinking the less than hard black may provide a more scale appearance to the wale finish. Thin coats are applied as I am anxious not to hide the T&b plank lines. 1423(2) This is the result after two coats, I will leave it at that for the present. 1418(2) Wales do tend to get marked during the build process and there will be the need to apply more coats. 1420(2) Not set in stone, but I quite like the muted black effect. Above the wale is the black strake; not always black but on the Joseph Marshall painting of 1773 it is, so black it will be. The kit provides pre-spiled strips for these, no fitting issues but it is perhaps strange that the engraved plank butt lines match those to the top wale strake. This is of little consequence as they don’t stand out under the paint. I used ca to glue these strips to the hull. 1444 The outlets for the scuppers were drilled from without but I didn’t risk drilling completely through to the waterway. 1439 The flanges for the outlet pipes will be added later. 1437(2) The next job is to re-do the Port linings, what joy.🙄 B.E. 29/11/21

I wish I could offer some incisive comments and useful thoughts on the Quarter gallery construction, but I have little idea at this point, and the thought of building them is giving me the yips.😕 Your experience will no doubt prove invaluable to me. B.E.

Beautiful work Rusty, those Quarter galleries are a wonder to behold. Great artistry. B.E.

Your perseverance is paying off bug, and you're very brave drilling thro' the strake to the deck for the scuppers, something I passed on, I had little confidence I would hit the right spot. B.E.

Thank you James, that's reassuring to know, I am very much impressed by the box art photos of your build which clearly show the plank lines. I do hope I can replicate the effect; I am hand painting so I think fine coats are the order of the day.🤞 B.E.

Post Forty-two Fixing the wales. It may be thought that this is a fairly straightforward procedure, given the marked lines of fitting on the hull coupled with pre-formed wales, there is no working out for yourself that critical wale position. I considered constructing my own t&b wales as I had with Pegasus, but the thought lasted but a nano second. 1367(2) The kit supplied pieces are nicely engraved with the Top and Butt planking lines, and it would be a pity not to use them. The trick will be colouring it without covering up the plank lines. I followed the given procedure and used fine pins liberally to secure the wale strip against the hull for the shape forming process. The hull was then left overnight to fully dry out. Probably due my increasing decrepitude I didn’t find fitting the wales the easiest of tasks. They have to be correctly positioned, and held in place while pins are inserted to hold them fast, all before the pva starts to set. Preparation is the key. I have the fine pins inserted in a balsa block for quick access, a micro pinvise, a jar of water and brush to clean off any pva overspill, and the pin pusher close to hand. 1376 The pva is decanted into a small jar and is slightly diluted. It is applied by brush as the wale is fixed along the hull. The hull is secured in the keel clamp, better to see the required line and piled towels are used on the opposite side to support the hull against the pressure of the pin pusher. 1377(2) Tamiya tape is applied above and below the wale position to mark the glue line and reduce the risk of overspill marks. The forward end of the wale strips needs a slight bevel to fit tight against the stem. 1381 On my build the wales required a lot of pins to hold it firmly against the lower edge and additional pinning and clamping on the upper edge. 1387 1388 A prime objective is to get the wales looking symmetrical at the bow. The stern area is the tricky part where the aftermost lower edge needs to curve downwards laterally very slightly, to meet the round of the hull. 1393 I was able to clamp this by using a pin head on the wale and the rudder port as anchor points. The set-up was then left overnight for the glue to fully cure. 1402(2) 1405(2) 1408(2) 1410(2) Before I move on I need to resolve a puzzling issue with the pre-drilled scuppers, of which there are six. 1412 The forward two are offline against each other and the preceding four, which run along the top edge of the wale. This is not reflected on the plans where they all run along the top edge of the wale. This in itself is an issue as they are too close to the top of the wale with no allowance for the flange that would surround them. I rather think they should exit thro’ the Black strake above the wale, which is how I will position them. The holes on the wale will be filled before painting. This is a small thing and overall the wales look good and surely save an awful lot of T&B cutting. B.E. 28/11/21

Nice work Chris. 👍 B.E.

Thank you Derek, Bug, and Ron, it's a great relief not to have to mark-in that waterline. @ Ron - had I thought it necessary to cover up planking deficiencies, which was a distinct possibility, I was thinking of coppering her. Sphinx was coppered in 1781 before the modifications to her ordnance in 1794. In that event I would be going for the flat brown old penny look rather than bright. I had also thought about a painted finish, in which case I had in mind 'Light Ivory' a shade in the Admiralty paint range. Still none of that has come to pass and I can move onto the wales, I too am curious how I'm going to handle them. 🤔 Regards, B.E.

Thank you Jason and Glenn, and for the 'likes' Post Forty-one The moment of truth A coat of w-o-p is applied to see if the result is now good enough to leave the lower hull unpainted. On balance I think that it just about makes the grade. A further two coats are applied; the keel and stem areas are brushed with w-o-p and immediately wiped off with a clean rag as I move along. 1337(2) I do like the look of the knee of the head with its engraved constituent parts, the lines pop out once the w-o-p is applied. 1319 As a bonus, I avoid the troublesome task of marking the waterline, and I wasn’t really keen on that vast expanse of white paint anyway, at least not in relation to the Navy Board style of display I am seeking to achieve. 1317(2) 1330(2) 1323(2) 1315(2) 1333(2) 1331(2) 1347(2) 1329(2) I can't be sure that I won't indulge in a little further fiddling with it before the point of no return, but for now, I'll move onto the Wales. B.E. 26/11/21

Thank you Rusty, but things don't always go well as you will see below. 🙄 Post Forty A step backwards. Just as I was getting ready to finish the hull my eye was drawn to the forward end of the Garboard strake on the Port side and the two adjacent planks to it. The finish against the stem wasn’t good enough and no minor filling however well matched would mask the deficiency. The problem was caused by the protective tape on the stem overlapping the inner edge resulting in a fractionally short fit against the stem. Nothing for it but to remove sections of planking and replace. 1297 1298 1300 Marking a template for the Garboard replacement. 1308 1309 The removals went better than I could have hoped greatly assisted by Swann-morton chisel blades, and carefully applied Acetone to assist with ca de-bond. 1306(2) These chisel blades are perfectly sized for delicate work and very sharp. 1313 A mornings work and the issue is resolved. There is very little on a wooden model that can’t be rectified and where it is possible it is always a good idea to go back, otherwise these things tend to catch your eye forever. B.E. 25/11/21

It seems to me that the area you are now approaching is all about mouldings and mitres. To look anywhere near good they need to line up so a lot of trial pinning and fitting and jumping ahead to check out stage 310 is probably necessary to avoid any nasty surprises. B.E.