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JSGerson
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Everything posted by JSGerson
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Thanks for letting me know you had started a build log; I'll following along. I was not aware of the Archer 3D decals so I did not consider them when figuring out how to make the pseudo bolt heads for the hull. Would I have used them had I known about them, I don't know. You mentioned that you felt like you were "cheating" when making the nail divots in the copper plates. You didn't. You created a tool to get the job done to your satisfaction. I thought hard about making a stamp for my nail divots but decided that the results of the stamp would have been too out of scale for my tastes. Even at full scale, the indentations are difficult to see. If I didn't make divots, the copper surface would have been smooth and shiny, and that would have been wrong. So, I tried the "sandpaper" technique to suggest to the viewer there was texture to the copper surface. You may have gotten away with the same technique if you had used finer sandpaper due to your smaller scale. In the end, your copper plates will be the envy of many future builders. Those airports you fabricated are fantastic. Just remember, the port frame lies flush to the hull surface and only the eyebrow protrudes. However, once they are painted black like the hull, they will still "disappear." They even do on my 1:76 model. I look forward to your future posts Jon -
Blood, sweat, and tears is what it takes! It's looking great! Jon
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As long as you are aware that some tweeting (not twerking) may be required, then all is good.🙂
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I'm being very critical so don't take this wrong. It appears from the photos that your beautifully cut pieces may be a tad too wide/thick (for lack of a better term). Looking at the line drawing and comparing it to the cut pieces, it seems to be the cut pieces are too wide by a width of the line. It's as if you cut the pieces to the outside of the line when it should have been to the inside. This may be an optical illusion, as we are talking thousands of an inch, but these pieces need to fit on the trail board with room for the white edging. The tolerances are very tight. Have you dry fitted these few pieces yet. I would hate to have you realize, that when all the pieces are put together, they won't fit. I hope I'm wrong Jon
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It looks great! I had a lot of fun installing all the accoutrements the boats required. I still have to make the oars at least and any other goodies I may think of. It's for that reason, I plan on not covering the boats. It would be a shame to hide all of those details. Jon
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Those stars look simple enough, but are real easy to screw up. Nice job! Jon
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Well Done!!! Jon
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This looks very familiar. Now you know why mine looks the way it does. This is NOT easy. You need teeny, tiny clamps, and ultra, ultra, sharp cutting tools, and spider like fingers to hold and cut the fine pieces of wood. Even styrene will break apart at these sizes. What is needed I think, are fine watchmaker skills which I don't have. Jon
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I can't help but thinking that you are going to a lot of trouble to get accurate planking for the gun deck. The situation as I see it is that the gun deck planking will be unviewable through the open gun ports because the guns themself will be blocking them up, reducing the gun deck viewing angle to almost nothing. If the spar deck is to be fully planked, you will have no light to illuminate the gun deck to see any of its detailed planking. In order to get viewing light, that means something must be opened on the spar deck. If that happens, now you will have to at least partially furnish the gun deck that is to be viewed. My build doesn't have any spar deck planks installed yet, and already the gun deck is getting difficult to see the detail I've added. So, what are your plan? I love what you are attempting to do, but as you are already aware, what you do in the very early stages of the build, will have repercussions as you move forward. Jon
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You've got to admit, it's an interesting optical illusion 🫣😁 Jon
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Gorgeous work, but are my eyes deceiving me, it looks like the mold is only one side of the Pinnace. How does that work? Jon
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USS Constitution by mtbediz - 1:76
JSGerson replied to mtbediz's topic in - Build logs for subjects built 1751 - 1800
You have set the standards! Jon -
Placing those window bars on the skylight is tough (at least for me); nice job! Everything is coming together nicely. And that Pinnace looks like a real beauty. Other that the obvious reasons, why did you choose to scratch fabricate the boats instead of using the "bread and butter" build from the kit? How did you make the mold? I'm still dicking around on my canopy frames. Jon
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I assume you wanted the vector images for a laser cutter. Hopefully, the laser won't burn off the fine sharp details. I used the US Navy plans scaled down and hand carved the scrollwork from that. When it came to the sharp points and narrow joints, I had difficulty. My tools were just too thick to get into those areas. As a result, they are a bit rounded or thick more that I would have liked. But, if you're more than 1 foot away, it's not very noticeable. If it's not too late, the US Navy trailboard plans provides three dimensional detail that a good laser cutter could use, especially at the fiddlehead. If you want and don't have the plans, I can send them to you. Jon
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I have the US Navy gun & carriage plans for the Conny should you want them. I have already submitted them to other builders as well. Jon
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I tried styrene with mixed results. I found that CA glue made the plastic brittle. If I were to do it over again, I would use birchwood strips. Its flexible enough to tie into knots! I don't know if you can find the exact dimensions pre-cut however, so you might have to do that yourself. There are an number of suppliers on the web. Jon
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Glad to be of help. As always, if you need any additional pictures or plans, just ask. Jon
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I feel better knowing the barrels can be separated. Very nice job. Are going to show any additional details on your blog? Jon
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USS Constitution by mtbediz - 1:76
JSGerson replied to mtbediz's topic in - Build logs for subjects built 1751 - 1800
My vote is for the dark gray. Jon -
USS Constitution by mtbediz - 1:76
JSGerson replied to mtbediz's topic in - Build logs for subjects built 1751 - 1800
I am by no means an expert on "blackening," but it appears to me that the brass may still have had some fine residual oil remaining on the metal from the turning or casting process (which ever was used) or even your fingers. I usually clean the metal with acetone first. You may have done that, in which case try rubbing off the blackening, This may absorb what ever substance is covering those bare spots. Clean once more with acetone and blacken again. Still no luck? Then you presented the choices yourself, keep or paint. The argument for paint is that the rest of the ship looks pristine, fresh out of shipyard and the paint will make the guns look new. But I do like the weathered look that you achieved. I don't know if I helped or hindered. Jon -
I checked the US Navy plans and got the following gun lengths: Carronades: British Style: 5' 1 7/8" => scale: 0.81" (13/16") or 20.5 mm 1812 Style: 5' 5" => scale: 0.85" (27/32") or 21.6 mm 32 pdr: 10' 9 1/8" => scale: 1.7" (1 45/64") or 43.2 mm 24 pdr: 10' 1 1/4" => scale: 1.6" (39/64") or 40.6 mm Jon
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Gregg, My error, the USS Constitution carronades are still listed on Model Monkey. Thanks for the correction. But they are still expensive. Jon
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I hadn't discussed the carronades on my blog yet because I'm not there yet. I purchased all the 1812 carronades for the spar deck from Model Monkey a year or so back. They 3-D printed parts specifically for the 76.8 scale MS kit and they weren't cheap. In this case they printed the complete carronade barrel and carriage as one unit. I would have preferred just the barrel and fabricate the carriages myself. We'll see if I can split them apart when the time comes. However, the bad news is I didn't see those items on their web page when I checked today (1/5/25). Of course, I have the US Navy plans for both versions of the carronades should anyone want them.
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Ah yes, the carronades. Here is a "blurb" from the USS Constitution Museum: Below are images of the inaccurate British siege gun and the more accurate 812-era replica carronades. the one with the screw barrel elevator. I elected to place the more accurate 1812 version on my model. Others have decided to use the siege gun version because that is what is on the ship today save for the two 1812 replicas. The two version require different carriage designs. The choice is yours. Jon
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