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Louie da fly

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Everything posted by Louie da fly

  1. Louie da fly
    Hoo boy. This aft-facing tiller business is a pain in the neck to get my head around. I can understand how you hold a tiller crosswise or forward-facing, but aft-facing has me bamboozled. I finally made a full-size test-piece and got my lovely wife to take photos of me holding it in what I think is the most likely grip and stance for the helmsman - but who knows? Note - we're having our summer (all four days of it) in autumn. A series of 34 degree (93 F) days. Ballarat's like that. (we sometimes get snow in November, too). And I changed the tiller sockets to be slightly angled inboard from the rudder blades - otherwise the tiller would be fouled by the railing when turning it outboard (if you get what I mean). So I had to close up the existing holes with wooden plugs, and also change the shape of the rudder shafts to allow for the rudders being somewhat higher up than I'd originally thought. I hope this works! Steven
  2. Louie da fly
    Still a fair few things to do - she needs a railing and a red and white striped awning for the roof. As I mentioned before, this is a prototype for a "good" model double the size, to see what works and what doesn't. Unfortunately one of the things that doesn't work is the uprights that support the awning/roof - they're made of bamboo toothpicks - in this version they were cut to exact length and went into "stopped" holes in the deck and roof, but due to inherent lack of precision this meant several posts didn't reach all the way from floor to roof, but hung supported at only one end. So I've removed the roof again and drilled holes that go all the way through both deck and roof, and I'll use the toothpicks full-length so they stick out the holes, and cut the ends off when the glue is dry. Steven
  3. Louie da fly
    That looks much better, Dick. Very threatening. But I do wonder whether the occy shouldn't be facing the other way, as that's the direction the ship is travelling. Or are the tentacles facing forward, all the better to deal with the enemy? Steven
  4. Louie da fly
    Hi Chickpeas, and welcome to MSW! Regarding planking, many kit manufacturers' instructions are incorrect- the planking method they advise is more about what's convenient for them than how it was done in the real world. I'd recommend you have a good look at the planking tutorials here - I don't regard myself as a planking expert - far from it - but I'm gradually improving, model by model, by following the instructions here. Don't get too upset if you make mistakes - we all do. But take heart from the fact that your second model will be better than your first, and your third better still, and so on and so on. I'd also recommend you start a build log for your model - put it in the section named Kit build logs for subjects built from 1801 - 1850 - you'll find instructions on how to do that here - And I'd also recommend you have a look at the other build logs for Occre's Polaris - I think there are quite a few of them - to get ideas and tips on how others have overcome problems you may face in your own modelling. And welcome to the ranks of ship modellers! Steven
  5. Louie da fly
    Hi Vivian! Good to hear from you again. I'm looking forward to seeing you back on the forum when your ships arrive. Steven
  6. Louie da fly
    I'd agree with Jaager. If the kit doesn't cost too much, buy it and use the pieces as a template to build a proper model from decent timber. Steven
  7. Louie da fly
    I really don't know. But perhaps you could take a few hints off Richard Braithwaite's Trireme Olympias build log. I know that's Greek rather than Roman, but a galley is a galley, and his build is based firmly on what was used on the real Olympias reconstruction. Steven
  8. Louie da fly
    That's just amazing work. A pleasure to see! Steven
  9. Louie da fly
    Glad you think so, mate. I'd thought it was rather boring, compared with most paddlewheelers (it doesn't even have a funnel!). Glad to know someone else disagrees. Steven
  10. Louie da fly
    Seats added. Ready to add the awning and railings. I've learnt from doing this one that for the "good" version I need to make some sort of jig to ensure all the seats are identical. I was a little too casual about making these ones. Steven
  11. Louie da fly
    Superb work, Patrick! Steven
  12. Louie da fly
    That's just exquisite work! Steven
  13. Louie da fly
    I went over to where the Golden City is berthed today and showed off the model in its current configuration to the manager of the museum and the skipper who takes her out on the lake. They were pretty chuffed with it even though it's not complete. And I took lots of photos. A lot of things my initial photos didn't tell me, which I can incorporate into the larger model. I'm not going to change the smaller one - it's my test piece after all. And I measured everything I could think of (units are millimetres). And some progress pics on the seats -I need 17 of them - which I thought were going to be really difficult to make in quantity, but turned out to be fairly easy (touch wood!) though time consuming. Here are the bits that make them up - most of them, anyway. Here's the first one (prior to painting). There's still an intermediate crossbar to be added. And here are the bits that make up the seats now they've been painted. Plus the remaining posts that will help support the awning. I'd had a sneaking suspicion that the seats weren't all the same size, and it's turned out to be correct. Not only that, but most of them aren't symmetrical - the sit-upon part has a curved end inboard and is cut straight at the outboard end, to fit in with the straight railing marking off where the lifebuoys are stored. And I've started painting the hull and temporarily added the first seat - the position is subject to change now that I've measured everything up. It looks a little boring at the moment, but I think when the railings and mesh and the striped awning roof with wavy edges is added it will look a lot better. Steven
  14. Louie da fly
    I was wondering why the names Ethel and Ferret seemed familiar. But of course what I was really thinking of was Michelle and Ferret -
  15. Louie da fly
    Oh, yes . . . The clue is in the caption - a "naval odometer" according to Vitruvius (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvius ) Steven
  16. Louie da fly
    That might be the problem. I may have done that. I've done that, and it worked that way, but I think I might have done it too many times. Thanks, Tony. Liteflight has promised me the wood from a box hedge he removed and I'm looking forward to that, but it'll probably need to season for a while. In the meantime I wouldn't mind having a try at the stuff you've got. I'll PM you with my address. And thanks, mate Steven
  17. Louie da fly
    Thanks for all the suggestions, guys, but I've decided to go with wood - it just works better for me and I'm more comfortable with it. Steven
  18. Louie da fly
    Well, I've given up on wire - I'll be using wood instead. I feel more comfortable with it and I think I can produce a better result, even if it isn't an exact reproduction of the real thing. For the uprights, I've used bamboo toothpicks. Here's the hull with paddlewheels and deck equipment attached (I still have to work out a way to mass-produce the passenger seats), plus the awning upside down with some toothpicks attached, to mate with corresponding holes in the deck. Here's the hull (upside down) with the deck glued to it. And the awning dry-fitted to the hull. Starting to come together. This is my half-size test piece. I've learnt a few things that will help make it easier to make the full-sized model, and subsequent mass-produced (simpler) half size models for sale. Steven
  19. Louie da fly
    First, an update on the fires. They're still going and it's likely to be hot and windy on Wednesday - https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-25/vic-fires-ballarat-beaufort-raglan-bushfires-warnings/103509258 . Here's a map showing where everything is relative to Ballarat (it's the outlined area - where the "Sovereign Hill" sign is - one of our most popular tourist attractions). Most of the surrounding area is pretty sparsely populated. The firies are preparing containment lines in preparation for Wednesday to protect nearby Beaufort and Lexton, which are fairly small towns. The surrounding areas are farmland - mostly grassland. The fire is at Bayindeen and surrounds, in rugged forest country, which is why the firies are having trouble controlling it. Fortunately, though there have been property losses, people have been sensible and left home before they were in danger and there have been no fatalities. Residents of Beaufort and surrounds have been evacuated to Ballarat and nobody has been allowed to return home yet. Unfortunately, bushfires are a fact of life in Australia, and the mild, fairly wet summer has provided perfect weather for foliage growth this year. Hopefully, the hot weather will break fairly soon and if we get heavy rain it will take care of the fires. Looking at happier news, here's some progress on the build. Even though I've got a fair way into carving the steersmen I think I'm going to need to re-think them yet again. I've worked out where the tillers will be and though the faces have turned out quite well and the arms are pretty much in line with the test photos, and these guys' arms seem to be in the wrong position to control the tillers. The tiller acts totally opposite from the standard one for a stern-mounted rudder - instead of running forward from the pivot point it runs aft, and I'm still trying to get my head around how that works. I either need to correct that (reorientation of the arms) or make a whole new pair of steersmen. More test photos needed, I think. Also, one of the steersmen has his head rather too far from his shoulders - look a bit like the Sphinx. Either replace him completely (as above) or a headectomy and move the offending piece lower down. I'll play with them a bit and decide what to do. I don't really want to waste all that work on the heads and faces, but they may just be beyond fixing. Next point - I stretched some silkspan on a frame and painted it with dilute acrylic paint - but it seems to have developed fine wrinkles or puckers in the surface. I think you can see them in this photo. I'm not so concerned with the larger wrinkles - I can probably just avoid using the bits that have them - but those fine ones seem to be right across the surface and just look wrong. I think I applied too many coats (it was quite a lot - I was trying to make the silkspan translucent instead of transparent ). I think this is beyond saving, and I need to try again, with fewer coats of paint - perhaps with more acrylic in the mix, just be satisfied with it still being a bit transparent. Any comments or suggestions? Steven
  20. Louie da fly
    Going west at the moment, mate. Away from Ballarat. 14 degrees at the moment and they've predicted 24 degrees today. Steven
  21. Louie da fly
    Absolutely amazing - and incredibly beautiful. Steven
  22. Louie da fly
    Mark, thanks for the concern. No, the fires are around Beaufort, about half an hour's drive away - in fact people from there have been evacuated to Ballarat. And though the fire's still going strong, the weather's cooled down (it was 36 degrees here yesterday - about 100 degrees F - but today was only 18 (64 F). Tony, thanks for the suggestion - I'd heard that, but so far haven't come across any at a decent price - or at all, to be honest. Steven
  23. Louie da fly
    This is such a beautiful build and very inspiring. Magnificent work, Patrick! Steven
  24. Louie da fly
    Wonderful stuff, Greg! I'd always been disappointed that the previous screen versions of Dune wimped out on the ornithopters - no movable wings in any of them. And though this isn't how I'd imagined them (I was thinking they'd be more like the ones in Sky Captain) - - these ones are beyond brilliant. Really looking forward to seeing your completed model. Steven
  25. Louie da fly
    Thanks, Druxey. I'd thought it needed to be full strength. So you've saved me from making a ghastly mistake.🙂 Steven

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