Blue Ensign

Final pics, lot 2
 
 

Project completed !
 
The 26 month duration journey has come to an end, and I would like to thank my international fellow builder freinds for following this build, for their suggestions and helpful comments along the way. 
All the appreciative and kind compliments have given me very much drive to get the project complete, in a way that I am myself satisfied with the result.
I´ll choose a representive bunch of pics for exponating into my gallery in a couple of days.
 
Here come the final photos of the ship as built and in a large set of four lots, and without comments as all pics are self explaining.....
I made a few more detail shots for all those that like details. The only thing missing are the rudder blades and the tillers for the the open lifeboats (paint was`nt dry yet), but I`ll get them on before the KWdG goes into her glass case
 
Nils
 
Final pics, lot 1
 
 
 

Igor,
thank you very much for your words,.....
I am momentarily doing the last little bits in fitting out...
now the benches on the upper decks are on and also the radio aerial wires (antenna). The three story staples of collapsible boats have received securing holding down chains, and I`ve started to fit rope coils to the davit fall belaying cleats...
 
Will still have to do all the flags and some rigging (pulleys, blocks and hooks ) to the cargo load beams and to the winches...., but now its all not long any more
 
Nils
 

this pic was taken with a flash, that really shows up the dust again settled on the detail surfaces
 

aditional benches for passengers enjoying the sun and the salty sea air
 

 
 

Acc. to my information the KWdG was the first German civil oceanliner to be equipped with sea surface radio (operated by Marconi operators)
 

 
 

 
 

chains lashing down the boat staples....
 

 
 

the antenna wires lead down to the radiostation booth (oerated by Marconi officers)
 
 
 

last update....
 
today the KWdG went into it`s glass case in my hobby room....
The shelf was lowered a bit in order to compensate the case hight, an with the admirals help the glass surfaces were cleaned inside / outside before closing the bonet and everthing was fitted into position. This now closes the project...
 
Nils

Thank you Steve, Mark and Martin.
@ Mark and Martin - With a single banked arrangement the rower should be close to the opposite side  to the tholes, to gain maximum leverage.

Here's a modern version of single banked rowing and you can see the rowers are close to the sides. These modern oars don't seem to have the old style looms but rather a slightly thickened and protected area where the oar passes thro' the oarlocks, although in this case not all the oars are set the same.  Not sure Martin that the extension outboard of the oar should change with the forward/backward movement of the rower, but I base this purely on my very limited experience of having an occasional scull up the river. 
 
Cheers Guys,
 
B.E.

Thank you Steve, Mark and Martin.
@ Mark and Martin - With a single banked arrangement the rower should be close to the opposite side  to the tholes, to gain maximum leverage.

Here's a modern version of single banked rowing and you can see the rowers are close to the sides. These modern oars don't seem to have the old style looms but rather a slightly thickened and protected area where the oar passes thro' the oarlocks, although in this case not all the oars are set the same.  Not sure Martin that the extension outboard of the oar should change with the forward/backward movement of the rower, but I base this purely on my very limited experience of having an occasional scull up the river. 
 
Cheers Guys,
 
B.E.

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Cheers Guys for your input and support, I think I did go down the right route for the treenails 
@ Steve, I didn't see the treenails on Chuck's build before I magnified the pics on his log, and as he didn't mention them in his blurb I assumed they weren't there.
On with the build.
The internal planking is completed, I used Boxwood strip.

9811
The Capping rails were cut out of Boxwood Sheet on the Scroll saw.

9817
No real problems here, it's just a question of sand, trial fit, sand, and when the size is close enough glue it on and finish the final sanding.

9822
At this point the paintwork required a further rub down and re-coat, once again the parts to be left natural were taped over.
The knee at the bow was also fashioned out of a bit of Boxwood and glued into place.
 Chuck makes reference to a 'fancy profile moulding along the edge of the cap rail'  I thought I would give it a go.

9831
Using a single edged razor blade I filed the profile which is a mere 1.7mm overall, basically two narrow slits close together with a fine point in the middle. The one on the right is the one used.

9852
Not sure how well this would work using the provided Limewood , too soft to get a clean line.

9846
I also made the thwart support stanchions out of some 1.5mm Boxwood square stuff.

9841

9842
Not quite got down to the elegance of Cap rail as demonstrated by Chuck, but move on we must.

9844
A little more fettlin' of the interior flaws that keep catching my eye before I move onto that tricky business of the panelwork.
B.E.
 
 

Thanks Michael for looking in
The seat back has now been thinned down to 1.5mm overall and has been fixed into place.
With that done the Cockpit trunk could be completed and the Bench seats put into place together with the aftermost Thwart.

9803
The seat back top will need a little final shaping once the Cap rail is in place and the Splash guards are added.

9802
I also installed the helmsman seats.
At this point I also reduced the strake extensions at the stern to their correct lengths which allows me to get some paint on the transom. 

9795
As a short diversion from the main event I turn my attention to the Decorative Transom. I do wish to add this distinctive feature of Pinnaces and Barges of the Mid 18thc  but I'm not sure about the provided cast kit piece with its less than clear  raised design. I am guessing it is supposed to represent the cipher of George 11 or 111 with a Crown and the letters GR.

9788(2)
My thinking is that such a feature may well be appropriate to a Royal Barge, or even that of Flag ranks, but for a Pinnace perhaps a little too much.
My plan is to make a replacement out of Boxwood with a simple inset panel.
I will groove slots to take the Strake ends and provide a better purchase.
A card template is first made to get the positions.

9798
The Thwarts are also now fixed.

9804
Now moving onto internal planking.
B.E.

Thinking about Treenailing.
To do or not to do, I am drawn by the effect achieved by both Mike Y and MikeB4 on their Pinnace builds regardless of the work involved but I note that Chuck did not add this feature on his own Pinnace build, a question of scale perhaps?
The smallest drill that would make the job even worth considering would be a 0.5mm ø. but this equates to a tad under ½"dia at full scale or a circumference of just shy of 1½" which seems somewhat over-scale.
Below this drill size, the effect would not be apparent, and above perhaps too much, but having said that regardless of scale the two Mikes result is very appealing to my eye.
Using a 0.5mm drill I have added the treenail holes but because my Boxwood strip was only 0.7mm thick before sanding, and slightly narrower than the kit stuff, I was concerned that using toothpicks may split the already very fine planks.
I have therefore used a fine filler toned mix to represent the treenails which border on subtle approaching invisibility. They are apparent to the naked eye from certain angles and light which is good enough for me.

9814
Difficult to photograph but this close-up shows  the effect before cleaning up the hull.
I expect the effect to be more pronounced once the hull is varnished.
B.E.

Thank you Steve, Mark and Martin.
@ Mark and Martin - With a single banked arrangement the rower should be close to the opposite side  to the tholes, to gain maximum leverage.

Here's a modern version of single banked rowing and you can see the rowers are close to the sides. These modern oars don't seem to have the old style looms but rather a slightly thickened and protected area where the oar passes thro' the oarlocks, although in this case not all the oars are set the same.  Not sure Martin that the extension outboard of the oar should change with the forward/backward movement of the rower, but I base this purely on my very limited experience of having an occasional scull up the river. 
 
Cheers Guys,
 
B.E.

Thank you Steve, Mark and Martin.
@ Mark and Martin - With a single banked arrangement the rower should be close to the opposite side  to the tholes, to gain maximum leverage.

Here's a modern version of single banked rowing and you can see the rowers are close to the sides. These modern oars don't seem to have the old style looms but rather a slightly thickened and protected area where the oar passes thro' the oarlocks, although in this case not all the oars are set the same.  Not sure Martin that the extension outboard of the oar should change with the forward/backward movement of the rower, but I base this purely on my very limited experience of having an occasional scull up the river. 
 
Cheers Guys,
 
B.E.

I like the way you're sorting out the problems here, B.E.   Question. is it possible that  your rower is to far outboard?  I'm thinking he should be inboard a bit more so both feet are on the foot planks.

Hi BE -- Just to add a thought to Mark's suggestion:  judging from the photo you have underneath the first one introducing George, I'd say that the rowers are leaning farther forward than he is.  That might explain why your oar comes a wee bit more inboard???
 
Ahoy William, you ol' Sea Dog (or River Dog) -- there's nothing like feeling the breeze your long floppy ears!
 
Cheers,
 
Martin

I like the way you worked through the scale of the oars. Looking forward to the final presentation.
Steve

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Those look beautiful Martin, I would be reluctant to paint such fine work, whereas my own utilitarian version certainly required blackening.
 As far as height is concerned, if your Captain is Captain Silver of the Amati Line, then he stands 27mm high including his Bicorn hat, so just about his head would appear over the rail, Having said that he is quite a slight figure at around 5' 6", but then so was Nelson. I used an Artesania figure to Captain my Pegasus, not much taller but a more substantial figure wearing a long frock coat and Tri-corn Hat more uniform appropriate for the period I thought.
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

The Decorative Transom
As I commented earlier in the log I decided not to use the kit provided metal piece  partly because I wanted a Boxwood version and partly because I didn't particularly like the indistinct raised design which appears to be the Royal cipher.
Our boat is a small Pinnace not a Royal Barge, so I doubt the Royal Monogram would feature on such a vessel.

0394(2)
On my version I have however included a Dolphin design, something a moderately comfortable Captain with a few spare Guineas in his purse may afford.

0402

0407

0417
I also made the decision to paint the oars red overall, but leaving the handles natural.

0426

0436
Getting close to completion now just the Splashboards and Tholes to add, but they will have to wait as I'm off to the South West for a week messing about on the River Dart.
 
B.E.

Thank you Martin, Mike , and Thomas.
@ Martin - I don't think I did anything special with the Breast railings, although I did drill sheave holes in the lower parts. The lathe extension really comes into its own for the  larger scale models, and it came in very useful for the Pegasus masts and yards..
@ Mike - I love all the Proxxon machines, they're perfect for my level and range of ship modelling.
@Thomas - I doubt you need any tips from me having looked at your Syren build.  I've also got the Long boat kit, along with 'Cheerful' but I'm very much drawn to Chuck's latest offering the 'Royal Barge'
 
The Rudder
Before I attend to the Splashboards and thole pins I think it better to make and attach the Rudder.
I used the kit provided piece as a template to make one out of Boxwood.

0377
The tiller is cut from Boxwood sheet and shaped with files. For the ball on the end a Boxwood parrel bead was brought into service.

For the Gudgeons, pintles, straps, and iron band around the tiller head I used brass strip chemically blackened.

0371
Speaking of gudgeons and pintles I have deviated from the kit.
Lavery (Arming and Fitting) indicates a different approach to hanging the rudder to that suggested by the MS kit.

0379
The rudder was hung on the sternpost by only two gudgeons and pintles. Unlike the rudder on a ship it was likely to be hung and unhung every time the boat was used and it needed to be easily removeable. The lower pintle was fitted to the sternpost rather than the rudder. It was very long and extended almost up to the waterline. The upper one was shorter and fitted to the rudder.
This makes quite a lot of sense if you imagine trying to ship a rudder in a pitching boat with the gudgeon below the waterline. Having a long pintle at the lower end would make for easier and quicker location of the rudder.
Looking through some of the drawings in the AotS Books – The Frigate Diana, Endeavour, show the ships boats with long pintles on the sternpost .

The arrangement is clear to see on Victory's Barge.

0383

0391
From a modelling aspect I find this method of hanging the rudder somewhat easier that the other method of having both pintles fitted in the rudder.
 
B.E.
 
 

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Back from the fair county of Devonshire, William had a fine time on the Dart.

0720
Here performing his lookout duties as we cross from Dittisham to Greenway.
Back to the build and in relation to small boats I like to have a scale figure to check the  relevant proportions of any model I build, and here is George one of the oarsmen.

0922
Here you can see that with George in position the oar loom doesn't quite reach where the thole pins will fit.
Is this correct, should the loom fit between the thole pin centres? the plans would suggest that this width would allow the thicker section of the oar to pass thro'.

In this contemporary model the looms  appear to just catch the thole pins.
I was interested in the oar proportions and the relationship to the tholes.
There's a lot more to this oar and thole business than you might first think.
The Length of the oars has a direct relationship to the width of the boat, and whether it is single or double banked; the tholes to the distance from the aft edge of the thwart.
On our model the centre of the chocks scales to 13" from the relevant thwart edge which puts it about mid centre between thwarts.
Looking at boat plans this seems to generally be the case.
Our boat is scaled to a width of 5'11" The oars on our boat are 186mm length overall with a Loom length of 37mm. This gives a length of 14.6' and  a loom length of 2.9'.





0929
This is the link to the online reference tables by Steel.
https://www.thebigrow.com/?p=659
I must admit I couldn't make any sensible correlation  between the Steel figures and our model. Looking at his tables relating to Barge,Wherry,or Skiff  the oar lengths seemed much longer for an equivalent breadth to our Pinnace.
This of course is all academic as the oars as modelled look proportional to my eye, and resting along the thwarts there is no direct reference to the thole positions.
 
Need to fix the Thole pins and chocks now.
 
B.E.

Looking good Snow, and you seem to be enjoying your first build, which is the prime objective of getting into this fascinating activity. 
 
If your ships boat is 70mm in length it scales to a small boat of around 14 feet, so as finger in the wind job I would say oars of between 7' to 8' in length which scales to 40mm.
You could try the formula based on width between the oarlocks/tholes;
Firstly measure the width of your boat in mm between the oarlocks and scale up to full size eg:  scale width 20mm;  multiply by 60 then divide  by 25.4  = full size in inches. (47.24")
The formula is then:
Divide by 2, then add 2 inches. take this number, multiply by 25, divide by 7, and that's your approximate answer in inches. multiply this by 25.4 and divide by 60 to give the scale length in mm. for your model.
 
Hope this helps rather than confuses
 
B.E.