_SalD_

Sjors, Mark, Piet, George- glad to have along! popcorn sounds good to me too! Popped the old way right? Not this new fangled microwave crap?
 
Well after every imaginable delay possible ( & a few unimaginable) I finally got started!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Somehow I missed getting pictures of my beginning steps of gluing the rabbet strip on the bulkhead former & cutting the bearding line but I did get these steps done. I like the way the instructions have you make a rabbet. My other kits didn't have this.
 
Tapered the stem knee & glued it & the keel to the bulkhead former. Taped the temporary false keel on now ready to move on to the bulkheads.
 

The templates that I cut from Sheet #2 of the drawings worked out very well.  I marked the locations of all the gun ports and sweeps and then proceeded to cut and assemble all the pieces.  After installing each group of pieces making up the gun ports and sweeps I sanded them down to their rough shape.
 

 
 
After the sweeps were glued and dried I sanded everything down to their final shape.   This was a lot of sanding.
 

 
 
For sanding I used my dermal to take off a majority of the material, for the final sanding I used the sanding blocks shown below.  I had seen the red blocks in Marsares's Syren build and liked their shape so I purchased two.  The 20mm wide sander was very handy for doing the inboard side of the bulwarks, the 40mm wide one was good for doing the outboard side with its rounded surface.  The one I made from a cardboard tube with sandpaper taped to it also worked very well for the outboard side.  The emery boards and pencil sander I used to clean up the inside of the gun ports.
 

I finished placing the two 5/32” wales below the top most wale and the first 1/8” plank below them.  I also completed placing the garboard plank and the two 1/8” planks above it.  To shape each plank to conform to the shape of the hull I soaked and steamed each plank and then temporarily pinned them to the hull.  After letting them dry in place I removed them and glued them back into position.
 
The one deviation I made from the instructions was that I decided to skip Step 2 and not install the counter planking or the transom at the stern until I finished planking the hull.  I decided to do this for two reasons.  1)  Because of the way the counter planking and transom fit over the ends of the hull planking, I thought it would be easier to shape the counter planking if the hull planking was already in place.  And 2) I thought it would be easier to ‘tuck’ the hull planks around the counter if the planking was not on the counter yet.  I guess I’ll find out if it was a good or bad decision.
 
 
Forming the second wale in place

 
Wales glued in place and forming the first 1/8" plank

 
Bending the plank around the 'tuck' of the counter

 
Garboard glued in place

 
Forming the first 1/8" planks above the garboard. Did both port and starboard sides at the same time.  Push pins seemed to work very well at holding the planks in position.

 
Planking at the counter


 
Garboard and first two planks in place

 
Port side with simulated butt ends of planking on wales to get an idea of how the second layer of wales should look.

 
Stern.  Pencil line on the counter denotes, what should be, the location of the bottom edge of the last plank of the counter.

 
Sorry for all the photo's, just a few more
 

I tried a little different approach for placing the planking above the wales than what is described in the instructions.  After pondering the pros and cons of placing these planks in a number of pieces as per the instructions or in one continuous piece I went with the one piece.  I know it’s not the way it was done way back when but the practical side of me took control and decided to deviate a bit from the norm.  Before setting the planks I use my jig to pre-bend the bow end of the planks.
 

 
 
Prior to setting the first plank I cut in four grooves across the plank to denote the faux ends that would have been made by the individual pieces.  For the second plank I notch out for the gun ports and sweeps but kept it as one long plank.
 
Clamping the first plank in position

 
First and second plank above the wale

 
The remaining five planks were all set as continuous pieces from stem to stern.
 

 
 
Then using the notches in the second planks as guides I cut out the gun ports.  I still need to do the sweeps.
 

 
I took care not to get glue on the exposed portion of the gun port frames so the planking would not stick there.
 

After a little procrastination I started plating the hull. For me, plating is a little like taking a bath when you’re a kid, you hate to get in but once you are you hate to get out.  To start I cut 30” long strips of copper tape to put through the jig.  I then cut that strip into smaller more manageable segments.  I have to say that the chisel blade on the stamp worked out very well.  Before I started the coppering I attached a temporary piece of wood to the deck so I could hold the ship in my keel vise.  This made it much easier to work on the inverted hull.  The screws holding the wood are positioned where the hatches will go and the deck will be repaired after the wood piece is removed.
 
 
 
The actual plating went well with no major boo boos.  In fact I found this ship to be easier than when I did the Phantom’s plates.  Not as much cutting of the plates and the larger size plates are easier to handle.  To keep finger prints off the copper I wore latex gloves and to fix the plates in place I went over them with a wallpaper seam roller.  Please excuse the photos, it's hard taking good pictures of the plates
 
Started with the keel

 
Continuing on

 
Finished the port side

 
No dressing belt yet

 
When I got to the dressing belts I thought to myself, self, the only real difference between the hull plates and the dressing belt are four additional holes along the top of the plate.  So instead of making two new stamps for the dressing belt plates, even though I had all the material ready to make them, I just used a burnishing tool to place the four additional holes in the plates I already had.  One thing I found that helped a lot with placing the dressing belt that I really didn't plan but worked out well was that when I painted the waterline I had taped off it's exact location.  Afterwards I thought it would be a good idea if I painted a little below the waterline to give me some room for errors. What happened was I got a nice tape line marking the position of the waterline between the two applications of the black paint.
 
Dressing belt
 
 
Started the starboard side                                            Finished the starboard
 
 
Done, time to get out of the tub , on to the rudder

It's a great kit, take your time and enjoy. I'm also in the process of building her.  Good luck

It's a great kit, take your time and enjoy. I'm also in the process of building her.  Good luck

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

It's a great kit, take your time and enjoy. I'm also in the process of building her.  Good luck

Thanks George, thanks Augie.  As for the 'fiddly bits', being that my carving abilities are slim to none I need to make due with what I have.  Lets see what a coat paint does for them.

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Starting chapter 9 – Hull Details
I decided not to try my hand at carving the stern decorative pieces or the quarter badges but to use the castings provided.  I cleaned them up a bit by removing the flash and mold lines then primed them.  I’m in the process of trying out different paint colors before painting the actual pieces.
 

 
While experimenting with paint colors I continued by making up and installing the split rings aft of the quarter badges.  I used the eye bolts and split rings that came with the kit and not knowing how much force would be applied to these rings I decided to solder them together.  After soldering the pieces were cleaned and blackened.
 
 

 
Still trying different colors for the badges so I went on to make the sweep port lids.  After reading the instructions for making these lids I discovered that I made the openings in the planking a little too big.  The instructions say to use a 1/8” wide strip for the lids but my ports are closer to 3/16” square.  In my defense however when making these ports back in chapter 5, the ports were to be 1/8” square plus no more than 1/32” all around for the lip, which would give you 3/16”.  No big deal though, so I used a 3/16” wide strip for the lids that fit the port fine.  I also chamfered the edges on the back of the lids, similar to how Dirk did his, which made them fit better.
 
 
 
The ‘U’ shaped hinges I used as provided and did not thin them down like some others had done with theirs.  I thought the thicker hinge would look better on the bigger lids.  I also decided not to remove the little tab on the front of the hinge that’s used to hold it in place on the photo etched sheet.  (There’s probably a proper name for those little pieces but I don’t know it). I bent the little tab down to use it like a nail to help secure the hinge to the lid.  The hinges were blackened and then installed.  I will try cutting tiny pieces of wire for the ends of the hinges but I’m not sure how I’m going to cut pieces that small yet.
 
 

Not a big update today. I installed the rudder pretty much as outlined in the instructions.  I did add some simulated nails which were sewing pins with very fine shafts cut to length. Next time I think I won't use so many.  And in case you’re wondering why the nail heads are dark and not copper in color it’s because this shipyard used bronze nails instead of copper.  The bronze being a little stronger than the copper brings me to a question.  Would the actual pintles and gudgeons really be made from copper or would they have used bronze?  Copper just seems to soft a material to use for parts that would take such a pounding from the constant movement of the ship.
 
 

Richard thanks for the advice, you saved me from breaking some drill bits.  I did break one because I guess I wasn't going slow enough, though I thought I was.  What I finally did was when lowering the drill bit I would barely touch the surface with the bit until it bit into the copper then very slowly advanced the bit.  I found also that even though I scribed a mark at each hole location the bit would still wander somewhat.   I used plenty of 3 in 1 oil too.  Now I just need to find some tiny nails.
 
 
Drilled and all cleaned up                                                         Pre-bent the gudgeons to fit the hull.
         
 
 
I would like the thank everyone for all the 'likes' also.

Continuing work on the quarterdeck, the waterways and margin planks were prepared from Swiss Pear and installed P/S:
 

 
Although the deck will only be partially planked (to leave visible some aspects of the gun deck and Great Cabin), I wanted the margins all around for the sake of appearance.
 
Next was to prepare the lower stanchions for the quarterdeck rail.  The simulated sheaves are 'functional':
 

 
Aligning these lower stanchions behind a deck beam requires that they match the curvature of that beam.  To assist in this, a photocopy of the rail was made and attached to the beam:
 

 
The stanchions were then glued behind the deck beam:
 

 
The planking of the starboard side of the quarterdeck (up to the centerline) may now proceed.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

thanks John........had to think a bit,  but it worked out 
 
I didn't get to do much yesterday.......the bow vents were cemented in place.  I have to make two more.
 

 
the starboard counter weight was hung on it's chain.  this is Model Master flat black.......I was hoping it would be less glossy.
 

 

 

 
...then the port side was hung.   I tried to keep them pointing toward the front,  but I think as time goes by, and the model is moved,  they are going to settle any way they want      I had dabbed a small section of chain with white glue,  and fashioned it into a pile.   after making another hook,  the stanchion was set up.
 

 

 
this is the last day of my vacation / time off....sad to think it's over.    quite a bit was done during this span,  but she's not finished yet.    the day is still young though 
 
 

no.....I promised......she won't leave the table,  until she's finished.  although,  there was a time today,  I wanted to remove the cover off the Boulogne {she's on the other table,  along with the Syborn},  and do some work on her too.  but........I was a good boy........I didn't.    .....or maybe finish the funnel work on the Syborn.......NO!   ......got to stay on track!  
 
rest assured Augie.......
 
.......which brings me to what I DID do today.  I did find out that cutting those larger diagonal pieces of round stock,  really wasn't working for me.   I went back to my earlier attempt,  and I made it work.   I managed to come up with two,  of the four that I will need.
 

 
one looks longer......and that will get cut down to match.   once they are sanded to shape,  I'm suing white glue as filler for the tiny cracks and gaps.   since I'm not a big fan of watching glue dry either,  I thought I'd do some checking,  for the diagrams of the parts panels.  since I found that the counter weights were made of wood,  I pulled up the PDF's for both of Billing's instructions,  for the two versions of this vessel.  both were made of wood......but I got to see what the parts look like 
   I made some adjustments on my tin snips......got them working much better....and I cut out the main parts.   there are the two center parts and four wing parts.   shaping them was a bit dangerous.......I cut one of them in half,  so I had to make another.   I had also drilled the ring hole .
 

 
I needed a jig.......cut a slot down the middle for the center piece,  which needed to be set in place at an angle......and sculpt out an angled area to meet it.
 

 
the parts were set in place,  matching them up,  so it all looked even
 

 
it still ended up being a little wobbly.....helped a bit after I anchored the board to the table with a clamp,  but still had to use tweezers to keep the pieces in line.   what came of this was these.
 

 

 
now comes all the filing.......removing the excess solder and round off the sharp edges.......smooth out all the cutter marks, and it was time to balance them.   I had a hunch they would hang weird on the chain.   now,  it's a good thing I drilled those holes,  because the diagrams of the weights show that they have what I would refer to,  as a balance bar running through them.   using one of my picks,  I ran it through the hole and let it hang.......the front dropped down.....not good. 
     drilling another hole 2-3 mm beside the hole,  and adding this bar,  made the difference
 

 
here's a better picture
 

 
I don't know folks can take pictures of their fingers.......the one hand camera thing........is not my thing      here is the other one after I balanced it
 

 
so,  here are the counter weights,  ready for paint.  I did it Piet!   I did it! 
 

 
the two vents got their brass locator tabs fitted and a paint job
 

 
I drilled three of the holes in the fore deck already.........just need to do the one on the port side,  by the pilot house.

No problem, Sal.  Getting good information is part of what MSW is all about.  Somebody always 'knows'.

Jim, thanks ever so much for the input.  The pictures are great.
 
Augie, thanks again for asking Jim.

Jim, thanks ever so much for the input.  The pictures are great.
 
Augie, thanks again for asking Jim.