Louie da fly

I've been having a few problems with the rigging - particularly with belaying points, but I'm making slow but steady progress. My original idea for the foretacks was to run each one to a turn around a "bollard" on the forecastle which acted as a fairlead, to a point aft of the mast so the yard could be pulled back behind the mast when tacking.
 

 

 
Only problem was - it wouldn't have worked (which I realised when I was in bed, where all one's best ideas arrive - usually at some ungodly hour of the morning). I had run the tack under the benches would have made it impossible to pull the yard back.
 
So I re-ran the tacks, still with a turn around the "bollard", but then outside the shrouds. (The clothes-peg is just holding the rope in place while the glue dries on the bollard.)
 
 

 

 

 
Fixed the "bitter end" around an upright of the pavesade aft of the mast, and tied off the free end to the pavesade rail nearby.
 
Then the vangs. One end of the port vang is fixed around an oarbench, the other to the rail of the pavesade. The starboard vang is still loose:
 

 
And both fore-vangs tied off:
 
      
 
Now for the after yard. I added the crewmen hauling up the yard:
 
  
 
Unfortunately the rope they're all holding just couldn't be a straight line due to the one of the guys standing on the hatch cover. In the real world they would have adjusted their grip to allow for that. Not so easy with carved figures . . . However, it's a small issue and I'm not going to bother about it. I know about it, and now you do as well - but I doubt anyone else will ever notice . . .
 
Here all the ropes for the yard are loose - bosun very unhappy.
 

 
So I put the fellow in yellow to work, holding the port tack so the yard doesn't swing around as it's raised. Sorry about the picture quality.
 

 
The other tack will be loose, as will the vangs, as the yard is in the process of being raised. 
 
Now I'm trying to work out how to produce a natural catenary curve in the loose ropes. Cotton thread is "springy" and doesn't naturally fall into such a curve. I'm experimenting with wetting the thread and with soaking it with a weak solution of PVA (white) glue. But if anyone can make suggestions or has been in the same position I'd be grateful for advice.
 
 
 

Well as I mentioned before, I've re-jigged the blocks at the bottom of the shrouds. Naturally enough, since I was shortening the block assembly, the shrouds needed to be longer so I had to replace them. I was lucky enough that one shroud in each set could be re-used, and that I seemed to have enough dyed cord to make the rest. Until the last moment, when I discovered I was one shroud short!
 
The existing shrouds are darkened to look like tarred cordage. I dyed another lot of cord, having to re-insert it into the dye bath three times to get the colour to match . Of course as soon as I'd finished, I discovered I actually had just enough of the old cord to do all the shrouds after all. Ah, well, at least I've got some nice dark cord that I can use for other things. Here is the ship with shrouds undone and incidentally the yards lowered to allow new shrouds to be installed. The bosun is going to be in big trouble from the captain for that horrible raffle on deck.
 

 
 Here is the new, shorter, block arrangement. (Sorry about the vagueness of the photos - I don't know what went wrong the day I took them). I'd originally put cleats inside the hull walls to belay the downhauls - I'd used modern cleats because none have been found in archaeology but I really wasn't happy with them. Then when it came to it I found it was much easier and probably more sensible to belay them to the oarbenches. At least as strongly fixed as a cleat and much more convenient to use. You'll note small clothes-pegs hanging from the sides of the ship - they're holding the downhauls in tension while the glue dries. After that I removed the pegs and tied off the downhauls. That raffle of unsecured ropes is getting gradually less. The bosun will be happy.
 
  
 
    
 
After I'd replaced the shrouds my lovely (and observant) wife, all unsuspecting, pointed out that the after yard was hoisted inside the shrouds (instead of outside where it should have been). Oops. So I had to loosen off the tacks which I'd temporarily tied up, undo the toggle that held the yard to the halyard, and take the halyard off and re-set it outside the shrouds. I'm very glad she noticed it. It would have been murder to fix it later in the build.  
 
And here is the after yard in its correct place - you can see the toggle which joins the halyard to the yard itself, as well as the trozza (truss) that holds the yard to the mast.
 
  
 
 
 

 
  
 
 

 
The guy lying on the deck isn't dead. He's "in storage" - when the four guys are put in place hauling up the yard he'll be holding the tack to keep the yard under control.
 
To provide belaying points for the ropes of the after lateen sail (tacks and vangs) I need to install the xylokastra (wooden castles). But first I have to add the shields to the pavesade - the castles would make it impossible to reach in and tie off the ropes holding the shields on.
 
In an earlier post I showed the ochanos (straps) at the back of the shield. To hold each shield in place I tied a piece of cotton sewing thread (to resemble rope, same as I've been using for the rigging) through the ochanos and around the railing and each upright of the pavesade, then added a dab of glue to make it permanent. That holds it fairly securely, though I may also glue the bottoms of the shields in place to stop them from flapping around.
 
Here are the shields about half-way installed on the starboard side:
 

 

 
And here's the starboard side complete.
 

 

 
 
It's nice after having painted all these shields some months ago and having had them in storage all this time, to finally be able to put them in place. I'm pretty happy with the way they look. Certainly makes the ship look more colourful.
 

I've been having a few problems with the rigging - particularly with belaying points, but I'm making slow but steady progress. My original idea for the foretacks was to run each one to a turn around a "bollard" on the forecastle which acted as a fairlead, to a point aft of the mast so the yard could be pulled back behind the mast when tacking.
 

 

 
Only problem was - it wouldn't have worked (which I realised when I was in bed, where all one's best ideas arrive - usually at some ungodly hour of the morning). I had run the tack under the benches would have made it impossible to pull the yard back.
 
So I re-ran the tacks, still with a turn around the "bollard", but then outside the shrouds. (The clothes-peg is just holding the rope in place while the glue dries on the bollard.)
 
 

 

 

 
Fixed the "bitter end" around an upright of the pavesade aft of the mast, and tied off the free end to the pavesade rail nearby.
 
Then the vangs. One end of the port vang is fixed around an oarbench, the other to the rail of the pavesade. The starboard vang is still loose:
 

 
And both fore-vangs tied off:
 
      
 
Now for the after yard. I added the crewmen hauling up the yard:
 
  
 
Unfortunately the rope they're all holding just couldn't be a straight line due to the one of the guys standing on the hatch cover. In the real world they would have adjusted their grip to allow for that. Not so easy with carved figures . . . However, it's a small issue and I'm not going to bother about it. I know about it, and now you do as well - but I doubt anyone else will ever notice . . .
 
Here all the ropes for the yard are loose - bosun very unhappy.
 

 
So I put the fellow in yellow to work, holding the port tack so the yard doesn't swing around as it's raised. Sorry about the picture quality.
 

 
The other tack will be loose, as will the vangs, as the yard is in the process of being raised. 
 
Now I'm trying to work out how to produce a natural catenary curve in the loose ropes. Cotton thread is "springy" and doesn't naturally fall into such a curve. I'm experimenting with wetting the thread and with soaking it with a weak solution of PVA (white) glue. But if anyone can make suggestions or has been in the same position I'd be grateful for advice.
 
 
 

The work with furnishing the hold continuous, but I'm also looking into the mast and just can't figure out how to fasten the yard to it. I created a thread for it and would be grateful if anybody has any ideas of how to solve it.
 
 

Thank you so much Phil for your kind words! Yes, I agree that it will look wrong with this kind of nails in smaller scales, this scale is just on the edge I think

Amazing work! I'm struggling with the idea of depicting nailheads at 1/50, but yours at 1/20 are already so small, it's hard to imagine how I would approach the problem at 1/50. I guess the standard method of scribing nail holes in the planks before painting may have to do.
 
Your work is inspiring! Keep the pics coming!

Thank you Jim and every one else for the likes!
 
Next up was completing the decks.

The worker hasn't learned his lesson and is yet again using the wrong kind of axe.
 

The shipswright deems the work tolerable, but that it needs another coat of paint after all the sanding.
 

Planks and knees are fastened with treenails to the beams, but I run a line of nails to also fasten the planks to the hull.
 

I bought the thinnest pins I found and use their 1.3mm (3/64") heads for nails after blackening them. Quite fiddly work.
 
I have also started nailing the hull, but will spare you the sight of it until it's all painted as I know that some of you are quite sensitive to too obvious nailing 😛
 

Fore deck also done. The opening in the front is of course for the bowsprit.
 

There almost isn't anything left of the decks in the wreck I base this build on, but I take inspiration from other similar wrecks from the region.
 
I alternate the standing knees with rider beams with knees in the ends to strengthen the decks. The fore deck also has a stanchion underneath.
 
The primary cargospace is of course aft of the mast and it will have ceiling and bulkheads but I think they also had cargo fore of the mast. But that area had not any ceiling on it and I think it would look weird to leave that area "naked", so I enlarged the fore deck and argue that one can load heavy stuff like barrels and bricks under it and lighter loads on top. The watercourses in the rider beams can be used for belaying. And the space underneath is of course also used for spareparts, tools and ballast.
 
An early thought of having a large fore deck was to have it act as shelter for the crew, but it proved too cramped. The ship is so small that it wasn't used for any longer travels any way.
 
Next up is to furnish the main cargospace and having gangplanks on the sides.

Sorry to hear about all the difficulty you've been (still) having with the planking. Unfortunately I can't suggest any remedies. Is this a "thing" with kits of clinker-built (i.e. Viking) vessels? As you know, you're not the only one having trouble, though Balclutha's is a from different manufacturer. As I'd been considering making a (scratch-built) clinker vessel, it makes me very wary - though I suppose if I get to cut my own strakes to shape I've nobody to blame but myself if I get it wrong.
 
Regarding Ragnar's height, I wouldn't worry too much - Harald (Hardrada) Sigurdssen was reportedly 7 feet tall - according to the sagas, before the battle of Stamford Bridge his opponent  Harold Godwinson of England promised him a grave larger than usual because of his height. Harald had a mailshirt that reached to his ankles, known as Emma (the mailshirt, not the ankles).

Cathead, I think your post above will be valuable to anyone who takes on - not only this, but also other model kits.
 
One thing I'm particularly impressed by is that you've put the time and effort into working out what went wrong and why - that some of it was the fault of the kit's inadequate instructions and some was your own assumptions - particularly when it doesn't really matter any more because you've already worked out how to remedy it and moved on. But that you've shared this information and your conclusions with all of us is a tremendous boon.
 
It's good that you're now in a position to (once you've fixed it) leave this planking issue behind and carry on with more interesting and enjoyable aspects of the build.
 
Keep up the good work, mate. This is one of the better logs to follow, simply because you are doing this extra work and explanation as you go - we all hit problems, but it's very good when the nature and cause of the problem and how it was overcome are explained.

That's very good. He looks a lot better. I'm a big fan of shiny.
 
Here's the helmet I made to wear at the battle of Hastings re-enactment event (on the actual battlefied) in 2000. 
 

 
I've always been a great exponent of the idea that if you could afford a helmet you'd have kept it shiny.  You could see your face in this one. And I inscribed the nasal with 11th century "Ringericke" style knotwork (with wolves on the eyebrows). Unfortunately after I got home we moved house and the helmet vanished - I suspect the moving men who I was silly enough to show it to. After all that work! 
 
Yes, combs were very common. Usually made of antler (which I discovered is actually bone - it's just an extension of the bones of the body - but is configured very conveniently for making combs and falls off the deer's head each year - how convenient is that?). I got right into bonework at one point and made one comb for my lovely wife and started another but never finished it (ran out of antler). There are huge numbers of Viking and Anglo-Saxon (for lack of a better word) combs in museums, and it's possible to date them by their shape and decoration. The fineness of the teeth of some of them is unbelievable - I've no idea how they managed it with hand tools. Very highly sophisticated technology. 
 
And yes, the concept of "Englaland" was, if you like, created by the Vikings. They destroyed all the independent English kingdoms except Wessex, and when Aelfred the Great defeated them, the treaty divided the land into Danelagh/Danelaw and Aelfred's realm, he became the "king of the English folk". His kingdom was expanded by his successors, taking more and more of the Danelaw until everything south of the Scottish border was one kingdom. Several of the pre-Viking Anglo-Saxon kings had achieved the status of Bretwalda [effectively High King] by defeating their neighbouring kingdoms, but none had managed to unite the whole country under one rule as the Vikings did by default. Interesting - if there hadn't been Viking invasions, there wouldn't have been an England . . .
 
 

Eric, that's a very well thought out reply. I didn't realise Sihtric was the lowest status of your figures. In which case I  think you're right emphasising the contrast with the other two. Generosity to your underlings was very much part of the Viking (and generally northern mediaeval) culture. Lords were referred to in poems as "ring-givers" and their generosity was made much of. - it's one of the main things that kept their followers loyal. Maybe Sihtric was poor but had distinguished himself by an act of conspicuous bravery, so was rewarded by his jarl?
 
The account relating to English reactions to Viking cleanliness is a single instance, and was written several centuries later. Doesn't mean it's not true, but needs to be taken with a grain of salt - in my view too many people take this one mention as a blanket description of all Vikings everywhere - and for example it;s contradicted by Ibn Fadlan's account of them as "the filthiest of God's creatures", describing how they shared the same washing bowl and each man washed in it, spat in it, then handed it to the next. However, Ibn Fadlan was writing for a fastidious Arab audience and I think he's likely to have sensationalised his account to increase its effect.
 
Don't take too much notice of what re-enactors do. A lot of them get it very wrong - I ought to know; I got the reputation of being an authenticity fascist when I was re-enacting. Some of the stuff was pretty damned bad, but mention it to the person (politely and helpfully) and overhear one of the older guys saying to a newbie "Oh don't listen to him . . ."
 
And no need to put quotes around the word "English" - that's what they called themselves; the Englisc folc [folk] (sc pronounced as we now pronounce sh) or the angelcynn [English kin]. The word Saxon would have made a pre-conquest Englishman think you were referring to someone from Germany(!)

I like the look.
 
Am I right in thinking he's wearing ankle boots and leg wrappings (known to the Vikings as wickelbander and to the English as winningas)? If so can I suggest making the boots and the leg wraps different colours so you can tell which is which? Although modern re-enactors usually make wickelbander out of strips cut from a piece of fabric, back in the day they were woven (from wool) as narrow strips.
 
One other comment - as someone rich enough to have a sword and helmet he looks a little scruffy. The Vikings were great show-offs and would flaunt it if they had it. So I think the helmet, for example, would be shiny silver rather than blackish or rusty. Maybe he's been living a hard life recently. And perhaps a design on the shield? (see http://members.ozemail.com.au/~chrisandpeter/shield/shield.html for some info on that).
 
(well, you did ask . . . )

Thanks for the info.I use white glue as well, and I've just tried the water on q-tip method. Seems to work well.
 
That's beautiful clean work, by the way.

That's a much more interesting name than the English one - just boring "mast cap". The Italians, on the other hand, call it a testa di moro - "Moor's head". But we make up for it with deadeyes - because they look a bit like a skull. The French call them caps de mouton - sheep's caps (unless it's an old name incorporating the Latin capitum - "head". Somehow sheep's head sounds more poetic.

Very nice. Looking forward to seeing he rigging in place.
 
But should you also be looking at having mediaeval pyrate figures (such as Eustace the Monk ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eustace_the_Monk ) or Roger de Flor ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_de_Flor ) rather than 18th century? Or am I being too picky? 

All the shields of the port side are in place. Check the sixteenth and seventeenth rowers, Boxbuilds!
 

 

 
And I've finally glued the xylokastra (wooden castles) into position.
 

All the shields of the port side are in place. Check the sixteenth and seventeenth rowers, Boxbuilds!
 

 

 
And I've finally glued the xylokastra (wooden castles) into position.
 

Thanks everybody for the likes.
 
Me too  . (Plus a chance to show off my heraldic knowledge . . .)
 
 
More a labour of having painted myself into a corner . . . once I'd carved the figures to go on the poop I was committed to having oarsmen. Then when I discovered I couldn't cast them in resin within any sort of reasonable budget - and knowing I had a lot of free pear wood - I was committed. There were certainly times when I regretted ever starting on them . . . 
 
However, I actually do enjoy carving - I just wasn't expecting to have to do so much of it . . .
 
 
Ha, ha. Funny man . . . Should I mention that there are no port side shields in the photo, or would that spoil the joke? 

That's a much more interesting name than the English one - just boring "mast cap". The Italians, on the other hand, call it a testa di moro - "Moor's head". But we make up for it with deadeyes - because they look a bit like a skull. The French call them caps de mouton - sheep's caps (unless it's an old name incorporating the Latin capitum - "head". Somehow sheep's head sounds more poetic.

You really need to switch those shields.... or at least let the guys switch seats! 
 
Seriously, remembering the trials the castles caused, they are a magnificent "crown" to your achievement ship.
 
 

All the shields of the port side are in place. Check the sixteenth and seventeenth rowers, Boxbuilds!
 

 

 
And I've finally glued the xylokastra (wooden castles) into position.
 

Hey guys! Thank you! I have made a bit if progress... I have planked false keel and rudder attachment place with hull walnut planks. I could not stand the raw material and painting/staining option was not looking good either.
 
I just hope that there is enough walnut 1mm x 4mm planks in the kit.
 
Also, Amati instructions could be better... but that might be just my lack of experience.
 

 

 

 

 
I just noticed some little glue spots shining in the photos... I will have to clean those until the next time

I will re-read all the relevant Billings kit builds again tom see if a 1mm overlap on the strakes is a good aiming point.  The strakes will end as marked at the bow and stern, so the 1mm overlap will govern where the midships strakes land.
 
My plan is to:
Mark the 1mm "land" on the GS, Mask the rest of the strake with masking tape Apply thinned glue to the land and allow to dry completely Clamp the new strake (already sanded with the scarf joint) in position Activate the glue with heat - applied with an appropriate electric device* Since the new strake will be clamped in place I will iron between the clamps, allow to cool and then remove the clamps and iron down those areas *Note:  I will try this before spending money on a suitable heating gadget.  The household Iron (with protection) or a modified soldering Iron will be used for trials.  Good shapes of tool appear to be a Plank Bending Iron, a Covering Iron or a tiny craft/ travelling iron
 

 
Amati Iron - good shape but expensive.  Not variable heat, but a dimmer would take care of that.
 

Covering iron for film covering.  Good controllable shape to apply (a little) force.  Excellent temperature control (said to be within 4 degC)  I had one of these but gave it away as I do not use film!   I'm an old-fashioned tissue and dope freak afficionado

Something like this would be manageable.  May or may not be temperature controllable (but a dimmer switch would sort that)
 
I have many soldering Irons, including a solder station I do not use any more with a threaded (M6) iron tip.  I think I can make this into a suitable device with a "shoe" threaded into the heater.  To be tried!
 
Sorry no progress photos at present - family challenges.  But I can think and sketch while waiting!
 
Thank you all for the "likes"

It's just the figures that were at hand. I'll post pics later on with more Norman-looking fellahs.
One of my goals with this project was to model a pre-gunpowder era ship. So it would kind of defeat the purpose if I used 18th-century pirates armed with flintlocks.

All the shields of the port side are in place. Check the sixteenth and seventeenth rowers, Boxbuilds!
 

 

 
And I've finally glued the xylokastra (wooden castles) into position.