Force9

Fantail Details
 
Basilone’s fantail was pretty cluttered with winches, hatches, vents etc ….

 
I scratched most of the details like the boat winch:


 
The bits, bollards, and horizontal hatch are kit supplied. The stern light array, winches and their bulwarks, vents, towing pad eye and the 55 gal drum and jettison rack are from scratch.


The only items left to add to the fantail are the lifelines and the prop guards. One item I decided to leave off is visible just to the left of the 55 gal drum in the first pix - a large and ugly garbage chute.

Flight Deck Nets
 
The kit provides some nice PE safety nets for the sides of the flight deck (they were not added to the aft part of the flight deck until several years after the time I am depicting). The instructions call for installing them in the raised (vertical) position but since I will show the DASH on the deck I chose to mount them in the lowered (horizontal) position, which would require some modifications. Since PE is inherently thin if viewed side-on the PE would appear under-scale for thickness. I decided to line the PE nets with brass wire to give them more depth:

But after making the wire frame I thought I might try adding my own netting using some fine plastic netting from the craft store (I think it is intended for floral arrangements). As you can see from the attached photo the netting should be very fine, almost invisible.

Here’s my first attempt after spray painting (2nd from the top below) - not too good, the paint made a mess of the netting. Next I tried adding the netting after spray painting the frames (the 3rd from the top in the photo below), better but the frames still looked bad so I threw out the spray paint, painted the frames by hand and then added the netting (bottom one in the below photo) - much better. The craft store mesh is to scale and as an added bonus the openings are diamond-shaped, just like the real things!

After making and installing the nets I wanted to add the “guy wires” (for lack of a better term) that support the nets in the lowered position. I decided to drill a hole in some small strip plastic and insert a piece of 3X fly fishing leader material, cut off the small piece of strip stock, paint it and install it. Here it is being assembled and after installation prior to trimming:


Here’s the finished product:


Next step will be the whaleboat and davits.

Thanks for this overview. I'm hoping Santa sticks this under my tree this year.
 
Evan

Thanks for this overview. I'm hoping Santa sticks this under my tree this year.
 
Evan

Santa visited me this morning, my copy of this beautiful book has arrived.
 
A worthy addition to my library.
 
B.E.

Thanks for this overview. I'm hoping Santa sticks this under my tree this year.
 
Evan

Thanks for this overview. I'm hoping Santa sticks this under my tree this year.
 
Evan

Matt - Thank you for the generous comment... I think third time might be a charm?  I'd encourage anyone to take a crack at the Revell kit using a few extra touches to produce a very substantial representation of the great ship during her glory years.  Time and patience are the key factors...
 
The ring bolt below the first shroud is for the lower stuns'l boom... The Martingale tackle hooks to this point to hold the boom in position in conjunction with the topping lift.  I won't display the boom swung out, but I thought the ring bolt should be there for accuracy.  I'm glad someone noticed it!
 
JCFrankie - I'm not too familiar with the intricacies of square rig seamanship, but my understanding is that the block would allow the forward shroud to be eased when going to windward or making a hard tack so that the courses could be pivoted around just a little bit more... That is why they aren't there on the mizzen - obviously no such thing as a mizzen course on the crojack yard.  Those with more knowledge are free to correct my explanation...
 
Thanks for taking an interest and thanks again to all for the "likes"!
 
Hope to make a bit more progress on Father's day - modeling time is gifted to me already!
 
Evan

Frank -
 
I see you've started in on the sails for your Victory.  I like your initial effort with the spanker.
 
So sorry that I've neglected my log... I have a few updates to add and I will have a good few weeks to do some modeling during the holiday break.
 
I hope to have the hull halves glued together, the gun deck in place, and the false keel done.
 
Thanks for your continued interest!

Finished. The ship looks better to me as time passes. I no longer see my mistakes. If I were to build it again I would have done a better job. That is not going to happen. It makes a beautiful model . I used a BlueJacket display case .I glassed it with acrylic sheets. It looks good, not intrusive and it was not that expensive.

Frank -
 
I see you've started in on the sails for your Victory.  I like your initial effort with the spanker.
 
So sorry that I've neglected my log... I have a few updates to add and I will have a good few weeks to do some modeling during the holiday break.
 
I hope to have the hull halves glued together, the gun deck in place, and the false keel done.
 
Thanks for your continued interest!

Frank -
 
I see you've started in on the sails for your Victory.  I like your initial effort with the spanker.
 
So sorry that I've neglected my log... I have a few updates to add and I will have a good few weeks to do some modeling during the holiday break.
 
I hope to have the hull halves glued together, the gun deck in place, and the false keel done.
 
Thanks for your continued interest!

Frank -
 
I see you've started in on the sails for your Victory.  I like your initial effort with the spanker.
 
So sorry that I've neglected my log... I have a few updates to add and I will have a good few weeks to do some modeling during the holiday break.
 
I hope to have the hull halves glued together, the gun deck in place, and the false keel done.
 
Thanks for your continued interest!

Frank -
 
I see you've started in on the sails for your Victory.  I like your initial effort with the spanker.
 
So sorry that I've neglected my log... I have a few updates to add and I will have a good few weeks to do some modeling during the holiday break.
 
I hope to have the hull halves glued together, the gun deck in place, and the false keel done.
 
Thanks for your continued interest!

Lads...
  I've been laboring away at the build but haven't taken many photos along the way... And some that I have taken have gone missing in the nether world of my old hard drive.   I'll pick up here with my progress and get the build log up to snuff.   Firstly, I decided that my original location for the main sheet sheave holes was too far forward.  They really should've been positioned aft a bit - centered in the gap between the main and mizzen shrouds.  So I filled in the first version and laid in a new row of inner planking with rivet detail, etc. and painted it all to match.  Then I redid the sheave holes and moved the cleat.     You'll notice the addition of more cleats along the bulwark.  My understanding is that halyards were NOT tied off to pin rails... Those tie off to cleats or bollards at the ends of the pin rails.  I used the guidance from Olof Eriksen to position appropriate cleats to tie off the various halyards on either port or starboard.  The cleats were quickly fashioned from Styrene I-Beams from Evergreen using the handy Chopper:     Once sliced off of the stock piece, one end would be snipped and the remainder filed to shape and glued into a hole drilled almost thru the bulwark to maximize the surface area for holding power when glued.  After the glue dried, I came back and painted with wood brown.   Deadeyes:     I've got the deadeyes all primed and painted to resemble wood with iron strops and light tarring (just smeared them with a dark wash).  I wanted them to be wood-like- not entirely black.   I've reamed out the holes in the channels and test fitted the initial batch on the fore channel.     You'll also notice that the forward most shroud will lead to a triple block instead of a standard deadeye.  (I've got a test version mocked up for now and should have something in place after I put the solder iron to work on the wire strops.)   The Hull model in the Peabody Essex museum clearly shows the triple blocks fitted on the forward shrouds on the fore and main channels.  The mizzen does NOT have this block - just the standard deadeye.       This contradicts the guidance from Larry Arnot in the BlueJacket kit manual, but Mr. Eriksen confirms this approach against the Brady Naval Apprentice Kedge Anchor (Ed. 1841)  Apparently these first shrouds would be eased or tightened as the ship changed tacks.  As such, Eriksen refers to these as "Swifters" - although that term is a bit ambiguous to me.  I know, for example, that the aft most shrouds on a channel were often referred to as the "Swifters" - they are not paired with another shroud when rigged and seem to have evolved from some sort of backstay in an earlier time.   All part of the mysteries of rigging as I venture forth.   Sorry for the delayed update and thanks again for all the Likes and interest.   Evan

I think your feline Boomer will rightly want to supervise construction - it is after all a "cat" boat and not a "dog" boat!

Tom, Popeye, Marcus...
 
Thank you for your very kind remarks!  Much appreciated.
 
I should comment further on some of my color choices... The chain pump color is NOT authentic.  In fact, I have no idea how these were painted in August 1812.  Likely colors would be black, red, white, or natural wood.  I wanted these pumps to stand out - but not too much.   I ruled out red since nothing else on that deck was red.  Black seemed too much - the anchor, camboose, and gun barrels already would  show enough black on this deck.  Wood would blend too much with everything nearby and they'd disappear... White was too blah... I had mixed up some roof red and roof brown to make a mahogany color for possible use for the captain quarters panelling.  I decided not to go that route, so I re-purposed that color for the pumps.  Seemed like a good compromise - a neutral color that still stood out enough to make the pumps interesting.  Certainly NOT how they were painted during her battle with Guerriere... purely artistic license on my part.
 
Also - the Revell instructions specify the gratings to be painted black.  This is likely because of the Hull model.  But that artifact only shows black gratings on the spar deck - the gun deck still shows the gratings in natural wood:
 

 
I elected to avoid black for the gratings on this deck... I'll have to give it careful consideration for the spar deck.
 
The camboose and anchor were both primed and then airbrushed with Vallejo Air "Gun Grey".  Next came a thin coat of MicroLux "Engine Black".  Lastly, I used a fine sand paper to expose the underlying gun grey along some of the edges and corners.
 
The brick tray under the camboose was first airbrushed with MicroLux "roof red".  Individual bricks were then picked out with either gray, black, or a mix of black/red using a small brush.  Lastly I re-scribed the lines between the bricks to expose the white styrene underneath.
 
Thanks again to all who follow along.
Evan

The Camboose

Aside from the guns, the last major component for the gun deck is the ship’s stove – historically referred to on the Constitution as the Camboose.

From Wikipedia:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caboose'>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caboose

The camboose is probably not too difficult to create using styrene and wire, but it turns out that I had the opportunity to cheat a bit with an aftermarket version.

An oft repeated lament is the fact that the explosion/proliferation of aftermarket Photo etched brass does not include sets for the common plastic sailing ships. This seems especially strange considering the proven popularity of kits like the 1/96 Revell Constitution. You’d think it’d be a no brainer for a PE company to put together a set that includes the hammock cranes, eyelets, and various other small pieces that would benefit from finer detail. (Maybe even throw in a laser cut wood veneer deck kit.) It is a real head-scratcher…

But it turns out that one company DOES, in fact, offer a PE set for the 1/96 Constitution… And not just any company, but the leading model ship company in the USA - The good folks at Bluejacket Shipcrafters (http://www.bluejacketinc.com/kits/ussconstitution.htm'>http://www.bluejacketinc.com/kits/ussconstitution.htm). Their PE set is a subset of their terrific 1/8” scale Constitution kit and it is not listed in their catalog, but if you give them a call and pitifully beg them, they’ll sell you the PE set as a standalone item. Well… truth be told, you don’t really have to beg. They are very nice and are happy to part with a set as long as they have enough spares on hand. Call and ask for Suzi (or Lisa) and tell her I sent you – if she doesn’t slam the phone down right away, then you’ll probably be in luck. You can also email them a request at info@bluejacketinc.com. (Reference Part No.s BJ-31, BJ-57) Bluejacket doesn’t make their own PE (they farm it out to a subcontractor), but it is very high quality and is a bit thicker than other PE sets I’ve used. The set is sold in two sheets (you have to purchase both) and includes a camboose as well as the hammock cranes and other goodies. There are also some gratings and an entire plate for the stern that the wooden kit utilizes.







The hammock cranes are of particular interest to me – really the reason I went after this PE. The kit provided ones are clunky looking and easily broken. I had thought to utilize brass micro tubing and the small Jotika eyelets to replace these, but stumbling upon these PE versions will save me many units of effort and ultimately provide a much nicer replacement. Utilizing these PE hammock cranes is many steps farther down the line in my build, but I did want to show folks this option sooner than later so that those who are doing similar builds can add these to Santa’s list (along with the 1/200 Bismarck?).

Here is my camboose fashioned from the Bluejacket PE version and slightly enhanced with some brass railing with styrene doors and firebox tray:







A little fine tuning and maybe the condenser and a spit and this'll be ready for painting.

Thanks again to those who follow along...

Now it is on to the deck details - starting with the capstans.  The one provided in the kit sucks and begs for replacement. I also need to provide one for the gun deck.
 
But how to do the drumheads - especially when using styrene?  I pondered and pondered and finally came up with an approach that worked reasonably well.  The key was to visit the local hardware store to acquire some metal washers of appropriate size - 1/8" (#6) did the trick.  The washers will serve as the outline of the circles as we spin everything around on the drill press and use a file to shape the drumhead.
 
Here are the raw materials:

 
After outlining the circles on some sheet styrene (using the washers as a template), I punched the centers and rough cut the shapes.  Those were then mounted on a bolt sized to the washer opening with two washers sandwiching each side of the styrene.  Everything was then clamped tight with the nut:


 
I mounted the set up in the drill press, gave it a whirl, and filed the blanks even with the edges of the washer templates:

 
After removing the styrene from the bolt - viola!  


 
Next I snipped some small styrene stock (.040 x .080 Evergreen 144) and glued them around the perimeter leaving spaces in between to represent the bar openings:

 
After sandwiching those between two of the styrene "washers" I nipped off any protruding material, mounted the rough drumhead back in my bolt assembly and gave it another spin with some light filing to clean the final shape.

 
The whelps were easily managed - just stuck some short pieces of .080 x .080 (Evergreen 164) styrene to some tape and used a round file to carve out the centers:

 
Everything was glued to a small length of styrene rod (6.4mm - Plastruct 90864) and a few small details were added to complete the effect. Coincidentally, the rod fit exactly into the center openings defined by the washers.
 
Here is the gun deck capstan:

 
I wanted the spar deck capstan to look more like the one on the Hull model in the PEM - more mushroom shaped and svelte in comparison to the stockier gun deck capstan:


 
Thanks for enduring the process explanation!

I think your feline Boomer will rightly want to supervise construction - it is after all a "cat" boat and not a "dog" boat!

I think your feline Boomer will rightly want to supervise construction - it is after all a "cat" boat and not a "dog" boat!

I think your feline Boomer will rightly want to supervise construction - it is after all a "cat" boat and not a "dog" boat!

This past spring, ussfrolic reached out to me about collaborating on a project with the US frigate John Adams. He got me access to a copy of a design draught for her and I duly reconstructed it from there. I’ve been sitting on it for a couple months since then and hadn’t started the proper thread for it. At frolic’s prompting I’m finally getting it started. He’ll fill in more of the background in following posts.
 
I intend to do more with the drawings, including an attempt to illustrate later versions of the ship, including the sloop and jackass frigate years. I also found spar dimensions for her as of the Barbary Wars, so I’ll be drawing a sail plan as well. The bare hull isn't entirely finished yet either, there’s still a few bits here and there missing, but it’s overall complete. I suppose “fitted out” would be a better term…
 
I reconstructed the steps, side lights from a deckplan that showed them, the bridle ports, and the head and waist rails. I’m going to fiddle with a couple different designs for the rails as far as waist and forecastle, but this is a start.

There is much to unravel when attempting to lock in her appearance on any given date - especially August 19, 1812!!!
 
Very nice start.  I will sit in the first row to watch.  
 
Evan

Ahoy Popeye!
 
I will also elbow my way thru the crowd to watch...
 
I have the Commemerative edition of this kit that includes Pontos PE and decking.  I don't think it is the most accurate version of the Titanic, but it is certainly representative  of the great ship.  I'm not a Titanic fanatic so I'm not counting missing port holes and worrying about much minutiae, but I did take the trouble to add the openings on the forecastle and stern decks.  I also put some edging around the stern to help support the PE railings
 

 
I didn't like the fit of the deck towards the bow so I scraped off the kit's molded ledge and replaced it with my own styrene version to help the deck sit even.
 

 
Otherwise, I really like the fit and finish and have found it to be a terrific kit.
 
Unfortunately, this is about as far as I've gotten, so I'll look to you for guidance going forward.
 
Good stuff!
Evan