Blue Ensign

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.

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.

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.
 

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.

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.
 
 

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.

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.

Fixing the Main Wales.
In the kit these are represented by (3) 1mm x 4mm walnut strips, 12mm o/a. This incidentally accords well with the Swan book drawings.

I had thought of using the black strip but this would need laminating so I have had a change of heart and will use Walnut.
I had been pondering for a while my decision to mark the top line of the wale using a black strake over which the wale would fit. Increasingly I had thought that where the wale meets the prow it rises too far up the stem although that was its natural lie.
In the Swan books they refer to the ‘apparent reversal of the sheer curve’ where the wale appears to flatten as it rounds the bow, mine didn’t seem to flatten at all.
Nothing for it but to remove that section of black strake which may otherwise appear above the repositioned wale.

 

 

I was pleasantly surprised and a little relieved at the ease with which I was able to remove the sections of the black strakes.
In about an hour the job is done and the forward section is fitted with boxwood strip, just a little sanding and filling of the lower edge which in any case will be covered by the wale.

 

Nobody likes going over old ground but there is very little that can’t be rectified when working in wood and I mention this to demonstrate the point.
 
The new wale line is marked by the tamiya tape.

 

The next major question is whether to just slap the three strips on or go for a little more detail with Top and Butt for the lower two strakes. The top strake can in any case be fixed and this will be the next job.
 
B.E.
   

Very much a working boat Martin, the last remaining coal-fired paddle steamer in operation in the UK today. She was built in 1924 at Dartmouth but her engines date back to 1904. Perhaps of interest to yourself she was loaned to the US Navy during WW11 as a harbour tender. She was restored at Chatham over 15 years and offered River trips on the Medway. In 2013 she returned to the Dart where she continues to provide river trips. Might have a trip on her later this week.
 
B.E.
 

Cheers gents.
 
Christian - I'm being consistent in using the Admiralty paints yellow ochre which I quite like.  Constant handling of these parts seems to be no match for any paint and paint rubs off the high spots despite an undercoat.  Should not be a problem to get looking OK when the time comes.
 
Cannon Conundrums (or "Armament Angst")
 
I felt I needed a bit of a change of pace while continuing to work slowly on the stern, and decided to get a head start on the cannons as I foresee these being a rather repetitive activity.  Psychologically, it feels like I'm getting a head start on things a little by commencing work on these now rather than waiting until I have to do them.
The first decision was to finally decide on which barrels to go with.  Photos below show 3 options, specifically left to right, Chuck's Syren offering, RB Models and the kit supplied barrels.  I know I posted these pics in Andy's Diana log, but can't remember if I did here so pls forgive any repetition!
Kit provide barrels - Painful as it is, the kit provided ones just don't cut the mustard with the bore being too large, the muzzle not being the right shape and the pommel just way too big. Chuck's barrels are very nice indeed, while the length certainly works, the bore seems a little small and for a 1:64 18lb'er and overall the barrel is a little dainty to my eye RBs Models (44mm) are also very nicely shaped and to my eye seem to fit the needed proportions best.  Each barrel is also supplied with a scale precut trunnion of high quality, so some labour would be saved there.
Next up, carriages.  I had ordered a set of Chucks Syren carriages a while ago and finally got round to building one up in addition to a kit carriage for comparison.  Pictures are self explanatory and show the kit carriage with kit barrel (left) with Syren carriage and RB models barrel (right).  Making these up allowed all the possible permutations to be tried, but these are best comparison.  Note - these were built over a number of very brief 10 minute sessions when I could escape to the boat yard, i.e. very quick and dirty, with quick paint job and no fittings. 
 
Couple of things are apparent:
The kit walnut is not great, being very splintery with pronounced grain, and would require a lot of work to get an acceptable finish.  The carriage is noticeably a little more squat, and the 2mm thickness of the ply looks less substantial, and the trucks a little on the small side. Similar level of finish work on the Syren laser cut parts gives a much better result.  Dimensions all around look a little more pleasing to my eye.  
The width of the Syren carriage were made slightly wider than the plans indicate to try and better scale to the RB barrel.
 

 
Final comparison was to place in situ.  The RB/Syren combination seemed to sit nicely mid port.  Placement of a quoin will need to be thought about as the barrel is probably already at approximately the right elevation.  Feel the RB/Syren combo is  clear winner, despite the additional investment that will be needed my view is that this will ultimately provide a more enjoyable building experience, especially as 28 of these puppies will need to be made up...
 

 
 
 
 

I prefer the RB guns too.  For what it's worth, I am replacing my Pegasus guns with the RB guns, not only for better scale but better looks.

Very much a working boat Martin, the last remaining coal-fired paddle steamer in operation in the UK today. She was built in 1924 at Dartmouth but her engines date back to 1904. Perhaps of interest to yourself she was loaned to the US Navy during WW11 as a harbour tender. She was restored at Chatham over 15 years and offered River trips on the Medway. In 2013 she returned to the Dart where she continues to provide river trips. Might have a trip on her later this week.
 
B.E.
 

Fabulous, BE, thanks.  Would that handsome vessel serve as someone's habitation, or does it work for a living?

Thank you Martin, Steve, and Michael.
 
The dolphin image I found online; reduced it in size, printed it off, coloured it, cut it out with a scalpel, and fixed it with pva.
Here you are Martin a holding pic of one of the Dart's iconic residents.

Cheers,
 
B.E.

Superb work on the coppering Jason.
I had a similar issue with the Quarter figures when I decided to retro modify the stern on my Pegasus, and replace the flat etched figures with angled relief figures.

 
 I had to chop quite deeply into the transom for my modification and I spent some time visualising how I would approach the task before I took knife to the stern.
 
I wonder if the raised arm of the figure would present a problem. If the figure is simply placed at an angle the arm would be away from the face of the transom unless the figure is set into the edge and the angle of the arm can be modified somewhat.
 
I think I would make a stern mock up using some stuff of the same thickness and see how it worked out. 
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.

if you've got some flexibility in the arm Jason, then I think you're good to go .
look forward to seeing the final outcome. 
 
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.