Blue Ensign

Love those deck shots Jason, ery fine work indeed.
 
B.E.

Nice work hamilton, great effect.
 
B.E.

Smart as paint she looks Richard, you must have a nice warm glow of satisfaction having completed her.
 
Well Done
 
B.E.

Nicely shaped Kevels Michael, they were used for belaying the heavier lines, sheets and tacks .
 
B.E.

Well I thought I would just quickly update the results of my re-doing of the mizzen crowsfeet (and adding the crowsfeet on the main mast). Thanks to Alistair for the encouragement & BE for the tips on materials.
 
Now that this is figured out I can finally move ahead - first to the main topmast and then to the foremast shrouds & stays and on and on....
hamilton
 

 

 

 

I started with the first part of the head rails, the cheeks. After a bit of experimentation I found a technique which seems to work for me. I use pear wood as it allows for more precise carving of the scrolls due to its higher density. However, this advantage turns into a disadvantage when the molding lines need to be done. The grain of the wood very easily derails the impression of straight lines. Therefore I took the laser cut negative shapes of the cheeks (which are left when you cut out the cheeks provided by the kit) as guides to impress and carve the lines into the pear wood (images 1 a d 2). I finished the lines and the carving of the scrolls before I roughly cut out the cheeks with a (manual) scroll saw (image 3 and 4). All that remains to be done is sand the pieces to the right shape (image 5). Images 6 and 7 show the first prototypes temporarily mounted to check for the right fit.
 

Copying of the cheek contour onto the pear wood
 

Impressing and carving the molding lines into the pear wood 
 

Lines and scroll are done before cutting out the cheek
 

The cheek is roughly cut out with a manual scroll saw
 

Finished cheeks after sanding 
 

Temporarily mounting of prototype cheek to check for correct fit
 

Finally completed the carronade/cannon rigging. Next time, I would definitely like to work with some better line, both for visual result and ease of use.
 
On the cannons, I decided to stick with mounting the tackles to the aft most eye after trying a number of options. One thing that swayed me was looking at a picture of some cannon mounting which actually shows this method, there are examples in a few paintings as well, so I suspect it was done. This also allowed me to keep the hooks consistent across all armaments which I personally like.
 

 
Overall pretty happy, so a few pics to celebrate before moving on.
 

Little more update on finishing the stern gallery.
I have been carving addtional statues from Sculpey. It is almost done, I just need to do a little patina effect and glue those on their places.

Hi all,
 
so here comes some more progress on the ornaments from Sculpey.
 
Regards,
Jan

Hi,
 
after a month here comes some upgrade on the work on my RC.
Mostly I have been working on the stern gallery. I have made substantial changes to it, all of the decorations were remade from Sculpey. The work is still not finished but it is slowly coming to an end.
 
Last picture shows what the stern gallery looked like on the previous version so that you can compare the difference.
 
Have a look and let me know what you think.

Hello everyone,
 
Small update, still working on adding details to the weather deck. I started the first series "mooring stays"? Is that what these are called?
 
In any case here is the first example. I will follow that with the second style, which is still in progress. Pics are self explanatory, assuming they post in order (:-)
 
PS: Those upper and lower deck cannon entries are so irritating to look at. I should have recessed the framings Grrrrrrrrrrr. Much too late for that fix...
 
Regards,
 
Michael

Cap Rail and Hull Finish
 
I have been able to put a little more time into the Syren this week.  Finishing the hull with the cap rail, and paint.  I have let the treenail holes blank up until this point, and I am considering leaving them that way.  I like the effect that they give in contrast to the planking they inhabit.  I know on the real thing that would not really be noticeable, except to an inspecting eye and at close range, but for an informative piece showing landlubbers and nautical neophytes how a ship is constructed, I think it fits the bill.
 
I should note here, that I have not stained or painted the planking in between the sheer and the wales, it has been oiled using white mineral oil.  I have been using this in other woodworking projects and for model stands for about a year now.  How it holds up beyond that I do not know, but for the items I have used it on so far I am pleased with the results.
 

 

 

 

I have made fair progress on the coppering.  As I earlier wrote, wherever possible I have attached a strip of plates rather than singles.  I was concerned however, that the strips would be damaged in the process of breaking. The following method worked quite well. The strips were broken off using two pieces of balsa: one on top of the set of plates; the other applying pressure to the strip to be broken off.
 

 
Here are some pictures of progress.
 


 
Like Mitsuaki, I have overlapped the plates where stealers are necessary.  This shows some trimmed plates that were later overlapped by a full strip of seven plates.

 
I have concentrated on the bow which I have found so far to be far more difficult than the stern.

 

 
The apparent gap shown in the photograph below between one of the plates on the hull and the corresponding plate on the stem is just a reflection.  Photographing the shiny plates without reflections turned out to be a bit difficult.
 


 


 
 
 
 
 
 

Cheers guys, I'll do just one layer, that should be just enough. I don't see how I would be able to make a layer on the inside.
 
 
I think that the crude hull turned out quite good for my first attempt. Now it is time to sand it, cover the pin holes and finish the fittings
 
 

 

 

Hi Hamilton, no problem. Here she is:
 

 

Rigging on the ship has also been attached. Finished also all the rope coils.
 
For large and more detail photos see also:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilhan_gokcay/sets/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilhan_gokcay/sets/72157626433922489/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilhan_gokcay/sets/72157626433922489/page15/
 

She looks very impressive Andy, great shot of the rigging at the Main Mast top.
 
B.E.

Keep the faith, Sam. That's what I'm doing -- just fighting my way through.
 
I returned to the bow to make and add the bow filler blocks. While doing them, I redid the fairing and refined the shaping. I think it looks better and works better. I also made a decision with regard to the bow arrangement. I didn't feel comfortable with the kit set up of the knight heads and the bow planking. The kit shows the knight heads as stand alone items, spread wide apart and without any covering hull planking. Since they are extensions of the bollard timbers, it would seem that they would be close to the stem and the planking would cover them up through the forecastle. I decided to to follow the Takakjian drawings in AOTS which show them this way. I cut down the keel former and the bow framing parts and made the knight heads from boxwood, filed out the opening for the bowsprit and attached them to the former. I also added strips to them to aid in attaching the inner planking.
 
Now, it's time to do some planking. I just haven't decided yet which planking to start with.
 
Bob

Well... this will probably be the last little bit of "fun in the sun" until next spring. I expect to leave Thursday morning, so the shipyard will have to be tidied up before then, and I don't plan on any more building until I get home in December... and by then it's too snowy for outdoor pics. As it is I had to wait until just before noon for enough sun to filter into the backyard... Another sign the days are getting shorter and cold weather is coming.
 
Hopefully this will satisfy a few of the photo-addicts that lurk around here..... (you know who you are.... Sjors.... ).
 
 
Incidentally... based on the number of questions I've received from people... I may have to consider writing my own rigging manual.... and for some reason that strikes me as rather odd.... since I'm far from an expert on the subject.... I dunno.... Something to ponder over then next few months anyway.....
 
 
Andy

Promised no more updates until I was done with carronade rigging, still not done so this is a 'notation to self for the future' rather than an 'update'.  One lesson I'm learning is that I'm going through a lot of rigging line, and each spool seems different to the last.  The stuff supplied in the box was very nice to work with, new line bought separately, though allegedly the same is much springier and surface seems much rougher and prone to snagging so harder to work with.  Not sure why there is a difference, whether I was lucky with the kit supplied stuff, or unlucky with the replacement line.
 
These are far from consistent with the outcome, so I'm moving around the deck randomly to mix earlier and later efforts so I don't have a gradual transition from 'bad' to 'better' along one side.
 
Apologies for the photos not quite being in focus, I didn't notice when I took them...
 
Step 1:  Simply rigged using the blocks prepared earlier....

 
Step 2: Rig as taught as possible and thread through the eyes of the hooks, aft first and then the bulwark hook...

 
Step 3: Thread line around the line near where it is tied to the single block, care needs to be taken not to foul with any of the other lines.  Simple overhand knot and piece of wire to help position the knot and keep everything taught seems to work best.  Purpose of this is just to secure the line to allow the frapping to be positioned

 
Step 4: Wrap around the tackle 4 times and secure the end through the last loop.  Once complete, soak in dilute PVA to ensure everything stays positioned

Work has really been heavy lately, so I have not been able to get much build time in.  However, over the last week, I have finally been able to work on the Syren.  I decided to produce the port lids at this stage, because I did not want to have to sand the ports to the curve of the hull after the hull was finished.  There are a couple of things that I changed on the ports.  First, I decided to make them in two layers.  I copied this out of Goodwin's The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War: 1650 - 1850.  To do this, I made the first layer as described gluing the pieces together.  After sanding them true to the outer curve of the hull, I traced the port frame on the inside of each lid.  A 1/32" thick planking was added running perpendicular to the axis of the outer planking.  Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures at the moment, but I will put them up when I finish the ports.
 
After labeling and mapping the port lids to ensure that each one goes back to the port it was made for, they were placed aside for finishing and installing at a later date.
 
I have also drilled the holes for the treenails, which up to this point I have left unfilled.  I kind of like the contrast they offer in that state.  As I get further into finishing the hull, we will see if they stay that way.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi guys and thanks for your kind word's. I finally have a little bit of a up date of Montagu. Work is keeping me very busy these days but did finally get the metal work done on her tiller. Do believe I will have to take the tiller out to get a good picture of it. Also have installed the sweep, gooseneck along with the tackle for the rope for the ships wheel. The plan is to try to install it like Ed did in one piece but being her wheel is two decks up might just not be the easies thing in the world but we will try. Enjoy the photo's folks hopefully I have more time in the future to work on her. Gary
 

 



 

The quarter deck open rails have now been completed, and also, the top rail across the top of the stern has also been added, and some more of the the side decoration strips have been added, just a bit of paint touching up is required.
 
Completed open quarter deck rails

 

 

 

 
Stern  rail
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

The quarter deck open rails
 
 
I looked at the photos in my books and worked out a hight for the top rail, and then drew out a template, (see photo), which would give me good idea of what it would look like,  I also used the template to cut out the uprights. Firstly I made a trim to go at the top of the bulwark and under the bottom rail. The bottom and top rails were made from 5x2mm beech which bends really well even after a short soak the uprights were fitted into slots in the bottom rail which when they were all made were painted and glued on, the top rail was bent to shape, and all the upright positions marked, the rail was then drilled to just under the breaking through point,and then cynoed onto the uprights, one down one to do.
 
Rail profile drawn out

 
trim added under bottom rail


 
bottom rail

 
bottom rail and uprights

 
Top rail ready to fit

 
Top rail fitted

Looking at your photos JP I think she is going to turn out just fine once the bulwarks are planked, I see a very attractive model developing.
 
Regards,
 
B.E.