Blue Ensign

Also the futtock shroud chains...
 

 
... with the hooks ...
 

 
... turned 90° towards their rings.
 

 
So that´s the report from etching front, all parts tried and only one thing left to say:
 
Dinner is served!
 

 
XXXDAn

Some helping "shrouds" to straighten the parts ...
 

 
... and glue the irons into the slot.
 

 

 
The main channels got the missing iron support bracket - ok it is brass now - ...
 

 
... and the preventer chain plates are added on the bottom ...
 

 
... but aside this it is almost business as usual :-)
 

 

 

 

So the last part of the etch orgy: the channel chains.
 
Here the old mark 1 ...
 

 
... and as I believed that this was still too big here the refined mark 2.
 

 
And here some more details :-)
 
Either fixed on Heller´s deadeye-machine where the lanyards could be fixed before assembly ...
 

 
... or - as I personally prefere - the deadeyes being first build in and the lanyards being put later while rigging as on the original.
 

 
Deadeye with iron put into the slot and the lower parts hooked in.
 

 

 
Needels put into the Dremel and either ground by a file or the Double-Twin-Super-Drive-Technology to reduce the head in diameter and height ...
 

 
... left the original and the right the worked ones ...
 

 
... inserted half ...
 

 
... some cyano onto the needle and gentle pushed in.

Thanks every one, hopfully many more in the future. At the moment life has sort of got in the way but hoping for some time to work on her in the near future. Thanks Ed, as soon as I get back to the cannon's I keep those sizes in mind. Daniel the carpenter´s walk did go around the orlop deck but not so much like the one you show above. There was a lot of places that was not walled in and one had a good view, of the outside wall. On 74's of Montagu time there wasn't a wall all the way around the orlop deck. Here is some photo's that show how Montagu looked. In the first picture it shows the stanchion's that separated the cable tier from the carpenter's walk, followed by the fwd store rooms and finally the aft store rooms with the carpenter's walk on the outside. Have also included the plan of her orlop deck so you can compare the two. Sort of wish I had added more of the detail on this deck,like metal work and maybe even some cables, in the tier. Of course it would have been even longer to finish this deck then the couple of years that it took. Gary

Hi Jasseij,
 
You know the story : lots of "parlé" and in the end the captain decides ( that will be mrs. Barbossa )
Anyway, think positive :  the sooner you have this kind of debate, the sooner you ( we ) can resume shipbuilding    
 
Hi Mort and David I really appreciate your kind words
 
Here's the update regarding the bow section and in addition : to lamp or not to lamp ? It is still dry fit but I like it.
The blue strips weree made of paper that was overpainted with blue gloss ( humbrol n°14) I believe something similar needs to be done on the catheads.
And regarding the lamp , I'm planning to fix it with some extra supports on both sides (painted in black)

Here is a picture of the poop in preformed woodfoam(?).

I was relatively happy with the result. But it doesn't assemble like mechanical parts...
Here is another view: the forecastle. I wonder if the bulkhead existed actually. You can also see that I added a galley.
You see the chimney (of course not on the drawings).

And, finally, the type of problems I have to face now.
One of my cats appreciated very much one of the catheads.... . I didn't kill the cat when discovering that, but I was obliged to make a new cathead (still not in place).

 
I come back later with a first issue interesting to discuss: the scale of the model.
 
See you soon,
Pierre

Hello,
Some days ago Steve started his Log about his HMS SERAPIS. There are a lot of things to say about that kit.
So, I am happy to start this Log about a construction I started almost 30 yaers ago and I never finished. May be I will do it now.
Around 1984 or 1985 I acquired the HMS SERAPIS kit from Aeropiccola. At the time it was an expensive kit. It costed me about the equivalent of 500 Euros. It should be much more today.
But, I always dreamed to build an english frigate. And this one was not only a frigate but also a two-decker... I had always been afraid to build the poop galleries and this kit offered an apparently nice solution with the preformed wood  pieces.
The quality of the kit appeared to be excellent. Fine wood, nice fittings etc.
Here is a picture of my HMS SERAPIS as she is today.

In a further log I send you more pictures and I start to discuss a number of issues I encountered with this model.
Pierre

I've been missing in action the past few months as my wife had twins at the end of March.  It's been a bit hectic to put it mildly, so I haven't had time to hit the shipyard recently.  Thankfully the girls are almost three months now and sleeping better, so I'm gearing up to get back to work on the Badger.  
 
Here are some pictures of where I left off earlier this year.  Most of the standing rigging is done, and I'm about to start on adding furled sails.  I'm hoping to finish it before the end of the year as I now have the Corel Unicorn and the Amati Pegasus on my shelf.  Between kids and honey-do's, and of course being a complete novice, the build has taken me four and a half years.  

First planking:
 

 

 

 

 
Second planking:
 

 

 

 

 

 
Deck Planking:
 

 

 

 

 

 
Post-planking details:
 

 

 

 

 

 
Cannons Rigged:
 

 

 

 

 
Additional details on hull and deck:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I marvel at your build each time you update the progress Augie, excellent work.
 
B.E.

Rigging continues.
 
The rigging of the main and fore mast yards has been completed...with the exception of the braces.
 
Here are the t'gallant and royals
 

 

 

 

 
Looking forward to getting on with the braces which are strewn about the deck waiting to attach to the yards.  It will be a pleasure to get away from belaying on and around the deck as it's been really tough sometimes getting to the belaying points.  The # of lines is impressive !
 
After that it will be on to the spritsail yard

Continuing:
 

Raising the Topsail yards.
 
A word about yards.
 

Working out the details.
 

Parrals at 1:150 scale are pretty small.
 

Topsail yard in place,
 

A member of the Royal Corps of Marine Infantry gives scale to the top.
The sails were attached, dampened and pulled into position using the Buntlines, Leechlines, and clues.
 

Rigging the anchors.
 
 
 

Continuing:

Details of the sails.




These were drawn from the plans of Boudriot and are made of Modelspan
tissue .
 



 



 
Attaching reef points nearly destroyed what little was left of my sanity.



As did the ratlines using 125g copper wire.
 

Almost done.


 


 


 

 







 

Very nice work Andy!  I have the Pegasus on my shelf, and your build is an inspiration.
 
So is it weird of me to look at the third picture in Andy's post referenced above and say that the Pegasus has a lovely backside?  
 

 
 

Thanks Richard.
 
Glad you found the site of interest Lukas.
 
Hi Martin, I also have an optivisor but it irritates me to wear it too long, I prefer my extra strength  prescription specs but I think they need upgrading now.
 
Thanks for looking in Neal, this is how I did the base and water.
 
The base is constructed out of cardboard with a wooden framework.
 

The cardboard top has been sprayed with varnish to seal it, followed by coats of rattle can colours in blues and green.

A 10mm wide strip of tape surrounds the top, this will form the boundary of the ‘sea’ and strips of limewood will be fitted later, as will the moulding strips for the sides.
 
The wave pattern is then formed using a non silicone sealant working it into shape with a paintbrush handle, and then a wetted paintbrush to smooth and relax the waves a little.
 

As the sealant dries out overnight it clears to show the base coat beneath.
 

 
The 10mm x 2mm edging strips of Lime wood have now been sprayed (Regency Blue) and mitred around the edges; this will provide an even base for the acrylic case top to rest on.
 

A Georgian style moulding surrounds the base which I think is in keeping with a period look. After testing various varnish finishes, pine, dark and mid oaks, I have settled on a light oak satin varnish. This I think provides a good contrast to the dark sea.
 
I cannot completely finish the sea where it butts up to the ship until I am ready to set her in position, but a little application of sealant should then do the trick.
 

 
The colour tonings were then played around with until I reached a look I was satisfied with.
 

 
This was the final effect.
 

At this stage there was a lot left to do on the model, but the base was complete.
 
Regards,
 
B.E.

That's a neat looking rail Russ, presumably you had to cut it out of  sheet material and fine sand to finished proportions. Could you not fake the scarph joints by scribing.
 
B.E.

Detail shots of the completed model


Long boat with the sheep pens beneath.
 

Activity on the Qtr deck, the crew are converted ‘N’ scale rail figures.
 

Poop deck detail.
 

 

Crew ascending the Main shrouds.
 

Fore deck detail.
 

Crew at the Fore Topmast head.
 

 

Head details.
 


 

 

Stern Qtr details.
 
 
Full shots of the model
 


 

 
 

 

 

 

 

Secure in her protective case.
 
I think this has been the most exacting build I have undertaken due to the small scale and my
less than good eyesight, I am very pleased with the result but I don’t think I
will attempt another at this scale.
 
I am much more comfortable with 1:64 scale, as with my current Pegasus build.

B.E.


 


 


 
 
 
 
 


 



 
 
 


 


 


 
 


 


 
 


 


 


 


 
 


 
 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Hi all,

Not much to report in terms of progress as there has been a lot of waiting for paint to dry recently. I've attached a couple of progress pics to keep you know who happy though. After painting the exterior of the hull white, I removed it from the building board and attached the gunwale plank inboard before masking up and painting the interior yellow ochre. The yellow extends also to a band along the gunwale on the exterior. I was surprised at just how light the boat was when I removed it from the building board - it was like handling a piece of paper! In between coats of paint I marked out the pattern for the cap rail and cut this from a sheet of boxwood. I've also begun preparing the thwarts.

Here are a few pics as she stands at the moment. There was a tiny bit of bleed under the masking tape that still needs to be touched up, and then a coat of clear matte finish to take the gloss off of the yellow ochre.


 

 

Hi hamilton,
 
Nice work on the Transom, love the way it ties in with the Quarter galleries, and I like the  round you have achieved on those galleries which so often come out as wedge shaped.
 
Not quite so sure about the diamond pattern windows for period, here's a link to a fret supplier I have used for windows and the like, may be of use for future reference.
 
http://www.scalelink.co.uk/acatalog/Doors___Windows___Scale_1_76.html
 
Regards,
 
B.E.

Continuing:

Details of the sails.




These were drawn from the plans of Boudriot and are made of Modelspan
tissue .
 



 



 
Attaching reef points nearly destroyed what little was left of my sanity.



As did the ratlines using 125g copper wire.
 

Almost done.


 


 


 

 







 

From Le Superbe to Le Praetorian – A  Heller Seventy-four, after Boudriot

This is a summarised record of my attempt to modify a small scale plastic
kit by reference to the works of Jean Boudriot. Very few of the original kit
fittings were used in the build.
 
This was to be a first attempt at fully detailing a model of this scale,
adding sails and displaying in a waterline setting.

Early progress
 

 

Lower deck detail.
 

Upperdeck showing Galley and Pastry oven.
One unfortunate fellow is spending time in the bilboes, for swearing on a Sunday.


Restyling the Foc’sle rail.
 

 

Modified waist railings using brass strip.
 
 
 


 
 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Just for you JP I'll dig out my posts on the subject.
 
A Simple man’s guide to small scale sail making.
 
For this I used modelspan tissue at 21gsm.
 
This is where it all starts, my patent jig for sail making.
 

 
Well alright it’s a box with a hole cut into it.
 

The Modelspan tissue is taped over the hole – make sure the hole is large enough for the sail dimensions.
 

The witches brew – ear of bat, eye of toad, you know the sort of thing - actually pva diluted to the consistency of milk with a little yellow ochre  paint added.
 

Once the potion is mixed it takes on a fetching ochre colour.
 

The potion being applied, note the colour change and how the tissue has started to sag.
 

The completed effect, just needs to be set aside to dry............. but if you’re impatient like me...
 
 

A quick blast with the CPO’s hairdryer, diffuser in place – and were ready to go.
 
The tissue is now as tight as drum skin and much the same colour, a little more ochery than appears in the photo.
The sail ‘material’ is removed by cutting around the edges of the hole with a scalpel, or any other such sharp implement that is to hand, and is taped over the drawing as previously made.
 

I had previously  drawn out a scaled sail from the works of Jean Boudriot.
 
The lines are transferred and the fiddly business of making the sail up begins.
 
This will be the subject of the next post.
 
B.E.

Hi Lukas, yes I glued the hull halves together before fitting the gun deck.
 
One or two things you might want to consider before glueing.
 
Heller did not see fit to provide guide holes along the hull for the gun-port lid lanyards, but it is quite feasible to fit lanyards at this scale so the holes had to be drilled. To this end a small jig is required, I made mine from styrene strip.
 

Two strips to fit snugly within the gun-port are glued to the uprights which have guide holes positioned at the right level. It is but a simple job to then to move the jig from port to port drilling thro’ the hull.
The Quarterdeck level bulwark windows have been fitted with glazing bars of 0.25 x 0.5mm styrene strip, and backed by acetate strip.
Gun-port lids were not provided at the Upper deck level although in practice they did have wooden panels (Half ports) that could be fitted from the inside; these had a hole to take the gun muzzle and had a canvas muzzle shaped cover over the outside.
 
The aftermost gun-port at Upper deck level is interesting, split horizontally, and shaped to fit around the gun muzzle; it is glazed to allow light into the Wardroom.
 

This is not a universal fitting on French Seventy-fours but Boudriot shows it so I also included them on my effort, fashioned from brass, clear acetate and strip styrene – tricky little beasts but we got there in the end.
Over two of the Upper deck gun-ports they did fit Rigols (1st and 4th from the stern) why these two I don’t know but I replicated them with brass wire shaped over a former, and flattened a little on the anvil.
 

Inside the hull halves the bulwarks were painted, - Red ochre – what else, much easier done before assembly as the tumblehome restricts access.
Holes were also drilled to take the eyebolts for the gun tackle of those cannon visible in the waist, and on the Quarterdeck, an awkward job with the hull assembled.
Heller, for reasons best known to themselves, decided to provide that section of the bow containing the hawse holes as a separate moulding. In retrospect I think it better to glue this in place at the outset, particularly from the point of view of painting.
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.

 

A fine job you made of that windlass Richard, nice to see it can be done. I failed miserably to get it to look right and had to scratch one in the end.
 
Well done
 
B.E.

Hi Jason, I have looked at the framing on Pegasus, the ports sit between frames but there are filler frames below and above the ports some of which are extended to a timberhead, one being directly above the Bridle port, but there are also a couple further aft.
 
The knightheads were intended to give lateral support to the bowsprit, and certainly on Pegasus sit close either side; the arrangement you show wouldn't fulfil this purpose so I think there may be some doubt as to the  accuracy of their position.
 
B.E.