Blue Ensign

Post One Hundred and Four. Fore deck considerations. Before I can do anything further with the Foc’sle the four guns have to be put into place. 6292 A production line approach is taken for painting and assembly, a repetitive job, but I do like those resin guns. 6342(2) The last thing to fit are the Quoins, the handles are represented by a pva blob. 6349(2) Once cleaned, coated with spray matt varnish, and weathering powder applied, they do look the part and I doubt I would return to brass versions. 6350 I will have to go with the kit set-up in relation to beams, but I added an additional beam against the existing bulkhead at the bow. This will provide a ledge to fix the Cat beam against its underside, and further mask the solid bulkhead. With the guns glued into place the deck beams are added. 6353 6354 I’m not sure why the two half beams either side of the mast extend beyond the carlings, perhaps it is just to provide additional support for the deck around the Foremast. I adjusted beams 460T to be flush with the inner edges of the carlings and prepared mast partners to fit in the space. 6362 A card template is used to form the partners. Once again Chuck’s ‘Winnie’ build has given me a lead, this time for planking the Fore deck. 6365 Tweaked to suit Sphinx I think I can make it work. 6367 6368 Additional planking will be required at the bow, but otherwise I will leave the deck un-planked. The next tricky little job is to work out the Cat beam position but for that I need to assemble the Catheads. B.E. 02/04/22

Neat work Glenn, good progress. 👍 B.E.

Post One Hundred and three. Fettlin’ the Foc’sle Beams. 6271 With a fresh set of sanding sticks prepared I am ready to get stuck into the char removal from the deck beams. Fortunately the last major exercise of this type. 6273 The beams are quite delicate and it’s worth repeating that it’s best to support them in a vice for sanding to eliminate the risk of snapping at the mortises. In trying to more authentically represent the deck beams of the Foc’sle I am faced with a trickier situation than with the Quarterdeck. 6274 The two carling parts (459) are not an authentic fitting. Together with the foremost and aftermost deck beams ’S’ and ‘Z’ they form a box structure to support the deck beams, with the consequence that the fitting of deck ledges is inhibited. This is not a criticism of the kit which was not designed for this level of detailing, but it means that the deck planking will need to extend beyond this point. I have decided to fit the Galley doors; the decision had to be made before the aft deck beam was fitted. Having painted the remaining beams they are trialled for fit to make sure that no nasty surprises are lurking. 6280 6284 6285 6286 It all slots together very cleanly. I have a lot of things to think about in relation to the Foc’sle. Fitting of hanging knees in conjunction with the beams, there are sufficient kit provided parts to do this. I like the look of the exposed beams and fancy leaving it more open than the Qtr deck. It will need planking along the bulwarks inboard to the outer carlings and on the solid bulkhead section at the bow. Other than that I am inclined to leave it completely un-planked but I will fit the coamings and gratings above the galley stove. There is the tricky question of the Cat beam running beneath the deck beams and the connection to the Cathead, it is not clear in my mind how to approach this yet. Still for the next week I will be enjoying the magnificent scenery of the Menai Straits. 5032 There has barely been a day over the past few months that I haven’t worked on Sphinx and I’m not sure I won’t get withdrawal symptoms, but Anglesey has its compensations, not least the wonderful photo opportunities. Cheers, B.E. 25/03/22

Well done Tim, she's a fine looking 'Swan', you've every right to feel proud of your achievement. B.E.

Thanks for looking in Gary, there is a lot of evidence for the ‘solid’ galley doors either in isolation or as part of a Foc’sle Bulkhead. The Adm plan for Sphinx does appear to show this feature. It is an interesting idea that canvas screen may have been used instead, but many contemporary models show solid doors. These were not fixed but held in place by cants across the deck in much the same way as the bulkheads across the Great cabin. I can imagine the use of canvas screens within in the foc’sle, it was a popular spot for a temporary sick room, and the Hanging cabins are recognised as a feature on the lower decks, altho’ I never been motivated to model them. Regards, B.E.

Post One Hundred and Two Bitts and pieces. 6261 This is a convenient point to fit the Main Ladderway, but the stanchions I will leave until later. 6263 I’m glad I took the trouble to shape and paint the support columns on the lower deck. A significant feature of the fore part of the Upper deck are the Riding Bitts. 6245 There are two sets of these; the aft Bitts which have a substantial cross piece, and the fore Bitts which sit beneath the Foc’sle deck either side of the Fore Mast. 6244 Shoe-horned between the aft Riding Bitts and the stove is the Galley door frame and doors. There is no doubt that these were a feature of ships of this period, but the position seems awkward and on a practical level one wonders why they are there. I suppose that when closed they do provide an element of weather protection, but little else to my 21st century eye. From a modelling display aspect the more immediate question is how much fitting this feature will further hide the pretty little stove a good few hours spent in the making of. The only way is to trial fit it. 6255(2) The view of the Stove end is not unduly obstructed. 6256 6258 … but the doors do impinge on the Riding Bitts. I’m not sure at this point if I will keep the doors but If I do I will varnish them rather than paint them red. The Marshall painting does show them fitted and painted red, but I think there is already an excess of red paint in that area. The Bowsprit step is also now glued into place. The step and the support legs of the Topsail sheet bitts are one unit in my build as the manger boards butt against the unit at the Upper deck level. 6265 I made the Manger boards back in posts 79/80, they now have to be put into position before the Foc’sle deck beams are fitted. 6268 6270 I can now move onto prepping the Foc’sle deck beams. B.E. 23/03/22

Thank you Bug, and Allan. @ Allan – In his book The Arming and Fitting of English ships of War, Brian Lavery includes a sectional drawing of a 1775 stove and conveniently gives the dimensions for each rate of ship from 14 – 100 guns. The dimensions for a 64 are given as 5’ 9½”(B) x 5’ 9”(L), and for a 20 gun 4’ 1”(B) x 4’ 0”(L) The Sphinx model Stove scales to 4’ 2”(B) x 4’ 10” (L) These measurements are for the carcase only. The inference of the table is that the stove was of the same style but scaled to fit the vessel size. Out of curiosity I looked at the scale drawings of the stove in the AotS Pandora. This scales to 4’ 5” (B) x 5’ 2” (L) The corresponding size in the Lavery table for a 24 is 4’ 2” (B) x 4’ 0½” (L) Make of this what you will, but the stove looks right on the Sphinx model and all importantly fits between the standards of the Riding Bitts. Regards, B.E.

Thank you Christian and Thomas, and for all the 'likes'. Post One hundred and One A few more thoughts on the Galley stove. Sphinx would certainly have had an iron stove, but one that pre-dated the introduction of the Brodie Stove. Up to the time of standardisation following the introduction of the Brodie stove I understand there were several manufacturers of iron stoves, all broadly similar. What we have in the kit is a sort of Hybrid, having some features common to the Brodie, the chain drive being the most noticeable. I was puzzled by the two holes in the back panel of the Sphinx stove, so I scoured thro’ all my reference books on the subject. The closest I could find is the stove used on the Dorsetshire of 1757. The Arming & fitting of English Ships of War - Brian Lavery. The position of the ‘Crocks’ (I think it should read Cocks) is close to the position indicated on the Sphinx stove. I decided to add the cocks to give a little more interest to the aft end rather than just two holes. 6238 6239 6240 I think that’s enough for a stove of this scale given the views that will be available even for the more open aspect of my build. Time to move on. B.E. 21/03/22

Post One Hundred The ships stove I have been relishing making up this little beauty and decided to do it at this point as I will soon be moving onto the Foc’sle. 6186(2) The basic carcase is of Pearwood and it slots together perfectly, taking barely any time at all to assemble. Most of the carcase is encased with brass etched panels which I have chemically blackened, but I can see potential problems in avoiding marring the finish during the fitting process using ca. There are also separate Brass fittings which may prove an easier option for chemical blackening. Either way if it fails, the blackening will provide a key for painting. As always the treatment of brass etch starts with a thoro’ cleaning, washing, a rub with fine wire wool, acid bath, neutralising fluid, an acetone dip and onto the blackening agent. 6182 Initially the recesses that form the rivets stubbornly refused to blacken, but a clearing with a micro drill eventually cured the issue. The top of the stove is unplated apart from the lids and the Flue. 6193(3) These areas were painted black before applying the plate, and were treated with a weathering powder. The blackened plate is then glued into place using a smear of ca. 6197(2) The brass etch Flue is a fold and meet assembly and I took the precaution to silver solder the join before blackening. The Chain Pulley The blurb indicates that 1mm rod be used to connect the pulley wheels and chain pulley but I think this is incorrect. The holes in the spit support crane would need drilling out to take a 1mm rod, as would the small pulley and chain wheels, a far more tricky task. 6199 The provided 0.8mm rod fits perfectly, and you won’t risk distorting the delicate drive chain. The 0.8mm rod also looks better for scale. The completed stove. 6206 I don’t know what the two holes are for in the back plate. I did wonder if the plate is the wrong way up and they were intended to be the drain cocks for the boiler, but even that wouldn’t look right. One omission that I think could be provided with the kit are the fire grating bars that sit across the open front of the stove behind the spit support cranes. The supports for these are perfect for the brass etch treatment. However, the Stove is already finely detailed much of which won’t ultimately be seen in the standard build of the kit. 6215(2) Even so I decided to add the fire grate bars knocked up from some 0.6mm wire and bits of etch left over from earlier builds. 6220 The grate bars in place with the spit drip tray that I also decided to add. 6221 The connector for the still was added to the aft top plate. 6227 The assembly in place onboard. 6226 The stove certainly looks the part sitting on the deck. 6232 There are a couple of other minor enhancements that I could make to the stove, lifting ring bolts, and a rail along the top, but for the present my enthusiasm is expended. B.E. 20/03/22

Nicely cleaned up deck beams Glenn. 👍 B.E.

Post Ninety-nine Quarterdeck planking completed From the outset of this build my intention was to show as much of the Upper deck detail as is practical and with the completion of the minimal Quarterdeck planking, bar the fettlin' I think I have achieved this. 6176(2) 6173 I have followed the line of the False deck that I had cut away which means that the two inner strakes of necessity have to be fayed into the inner plank. 6180 Altho’ not entirely authentic, this is a cut-away and I like the impression of curvature that the effect gives. This would also have applied with full planks but with a much reduced opening over the Great Cabin. 6172 The alternatives would be to step the two inner planks, more authentic, but perhaps not so pleasing on the eye, or remove them altogether. I will ponder on that awhile, I suppose it goes against the grain in terms of deck planking to bring anything to a point. In the meantime I have to make up a few more guns, and take a look at the Foc’sle. B.E. 18/03/22

Post Ninety-eight Quarter-deck planking continued. The completed ladderway/coaming set is glued to the false deck prior to planking. 6158 I start to planking down the centre line and for the shaped planks around the ladderway/gratings a pattern is made using 18mm Tamiya tape. 6160(2) The shaped deck plank. 6163 It took a couple of goes to get a pattern to correctly fit on the model. 6165 The completed centre line planking, but without any fettlin’. It will need scraping and a coat of flat varnish. 6170 6171 The coamings require re- painting, got a little marred during planking, but I think the ‘round-up’ modification gives a more authentic look. 6168 I now need to figure out the planking along the margins. B.E. 17/03/22

A sweet build James, very nicely done, love the finish you've achieved on the Windlass. B.E.

For continuity of planking material as used on the Upper deck, it is far too flimsy to stand alone. Cheers, B.E.

Post Ninety-seven Laying down the Quarter deck 6134 6133 The Lodging knees are completed but the forward ones will not be seen below the deck. It is time to cover up a lot of the work I have done and add the the ‘false’ Quarter deck ready for planking. 6138 I brushed slightly diluted pva on the underside of the deck; it took all of my available weights to clamp it down. Even so with such a large area to glue the deck failed to grab in one or two edge spots and additional glue had to be applied beneath the deck using a scalpel blade. I was a concerned not to get glue on the exposed beams. Tiller lines 6135 I had earlier in the build rigged the tiller lines below the upper deck and these are fed thro’ the QD at time of fitting. Not even sure at this point whether I will rig the lines, but I have given myself the option. If I do, I will probably splice the forward port line to the aft s/b line, and pull it taut with the splice below decks. Using the False deck option. There are implications beyond using your own planking with this option. Both the false deck and the printed deck are of the same 0.8mm thickness, so with the addition of, in my case 0.6mm thick planking, the bulwark patterns which are shown as fitting on top of the planking will be raised. I fitted the inner bulwark patterns, including the facing skins in advance of planking. 6142 These inner bulwarks stand some 4mm above the outer bulwarks at the transom which surprised me a little, as it is a fair bit to sand off level with the outer hull. Ladderway and Gratings I think these warrant a little fettlin’ to provide a slight round up both to the ladderway head ledges and the head ledges to the grating set. 6145(2) This was done by the addition of small section Pear and Box wood sanded to shape. The three gratings were soaked and given a matching round up. The Capstan partners were also planked. With the False deck secured I can begin to add the decking. As with the Upper deck I am using Boxwood strip of varying widths but all of 0.6mm thickness. For the Waterway/margin planks I use 4.5mm planking with scarph joints scribed in. It is also used to cover what would be the QD Transom beam, and QD breast beam. 6151 At this point the inner bulwarks have been painted red, prior to planking, and the perimeter planking glued into place. 6153 The grating set/Ladderway will be painted before gluing into place before planking. Toprope scuttles At the forward end of the deck either side of the Ladderway can be seen the carlings that form the Toprope scuttles. 6152 On my build they will be left as is, but for those wishing to add a degree of authenticity to their build, the raised coamings and gratings as shown in the kit are rather fanciful. The scuttle lids were more likely solid with small lifting rings, and were flush with the decking. The scuttles were used primarily as access for the tackle used in raising and lowering the Topmasts. I performed the same modification on my Pegasus build. 6149 I will now work to complete the minimal planking of the Quarter deck. B.E. 15/03/22

Nice job on the waterline Thuky, it clearly demonstrates the keel drag common to cutters. An interesting approach to the Topsides painting, I look forward to seeing the full and complete vision. With this sort of thing I suspect there is a fine line between subtle effect and perceptions of a poor paint job. Yours certainly achieves the former. B.E.

Great work Yves, that is a beautiful coppering result, well done👍 B.E.

Having a catch-up Jean-Paul, your beautiful Cheerful continues to delight. 👍 B.E.

Post Ninety-six Completing the Quarterdeck beams Seven beams remain to be fitted to support the Quarter deck, plus their associated Hanging and Lodging knees . I start where I left off moving aft to fore. Before I fit the beam I add the hanging knees where required. In this area the knees are painted red. With the knees in place the beam is temporarily fitted to check the position, after which it is glued into place. As each knee is fitted any glue excess on the bulwarks is removed using a small brush dipped in water. 06112 The Hanging knees in place. 06117 With the beams in place the Carlings are trial fitted, these are heavy with char which will all need cleaning off. 06119 False tops will be added to the knees to run flush with the beam tops and meet the lodging knees. The Carlings all slot perfectly into place, a testimony to Chris’s design and production skills. 06128 The Carlings are cleaned up and painted red on their facings to match the beams. 06127 I really like the look it’s almost a shame to add planks. 06121 The false deck is tweaked a little to correlate with the beams and Carlings. 06122 Always a good idea to check the Mizen and Capstan slot properly into place. 06124 There are still the lodging knees to fit but less of these will be seen as the planked area broadens towards the break of the Quarter deck. B.E. 12/03/22

I too missed the narrower profile for the Bridle port and left it too late to do a modification. I took the view that to side hinge the normal port would only draw attention to this omission and it didn’t really sit right with my eye. I drew a small comfort that the Sphinx did have a normal sized and hung Bridle port. Lovin’ the Pegasus figure Bug, it is a great modelling mindset to think outside the (kit) box and inside the (Toy) box. Regards, B.E.

I think you may have the bulkhead screens the wrong way around Glenn. The hinges should be on the aft side which puts the Mizen mast in the Coach rather than the Bedspace. B.E.

Thanks Glenn, so true, my only small regret is that I'm about forty years too late to take advantage of all the wonderful stuff that has come and is still yet to come out of the Syren and Vanguard stables. Outstanding designers indeed. B. E.

The modified waterline looks excellent, good decision Doug.👍 B.E.

Post Ninety-five … and still more about Chain pumps Onto the rear winches behind the Pump cisterns. 6086 These winches are smaller than the fore and are displayed in the raised position. 6088 The Axletree and connector are glued into the cistern Rhodings to hold them in position. 6090 6091 The forward winches remain free to rotate. 6096 I was going to re-work these using brass rod and section, but at the scale involved I think they pass muster so I’ll stick with them. 6103(3) The remaining four guns beneath the QD are glued into place. I have cleaned up the deck out of guilt having seen Rusty’s pristine 'Winnie' deck yesterday. 6105(2) 6101(2) I can now think about completing the Quarter deck beams and the associated hanging knees and ledges. B.E. 10/03/22

Looking good along the QD topsides and Galleries Glenn, a vast improvement on V1. 👍 B.E.