CharlieZardoz

Eventually I will visit the model of Congress in Norfolk. The only stern decoration I've even seen is from the 1991 film (looks like some eagle carving). I'd like to track down and visit a lot of model exhibits over the next few years as I'm hopeful the model makers did some of the research to help me make some inferences as to what the ship probably looked like.  

 

Here is Chesapeake. I'd like to draw these carvings over the admiralty plans however I believe the history was that the stern was hastily reconstructed with many of the carvings removed before her capture? If I wanted to put a template together for a model should I assume the ship still had "mullions" (assuming that's the right term) at the time of her capture? I'll keep working on these and add as I find more info out. Cheers!

Next up is Brandywine, I see a x shape in the center and two figures by the quarter galleries, some other eagle-ish looking carving above the x.

This was the portrait of USS Constellation mentioned to me a ways back 1825 when she hit a storm and you can see she has a stern similar to the Java/Constitution/Potomac stern style with 3 windows. Anyone know more about this portrait if I may be able to find a better quality pic of it? Would love to see a closeup to the detailing it looks similar to the 16 gun sloops of 1838 in Chapelle's book page 403. 

I would imagine that Congress' carvings are probably a lot like her contemporary Jamestown, which has a very, very similar stern design.
 
http://usgwarchives.net/va/portsmouth/shipyard/ships/jamestown/jamestown4.jpg
 
I'm also reminded of this painting you linked a few years back.
 
https://modelshipworld.com/uploads/monthly_06_2015/post-15936-0-73522300-1434438090.jpg
 
Also welcome back!

Www.tineye.com is a good resource for tracking down the source of any image OR finding a better version of it. To get this image I clicked on then saved the picture posted above, went to tineye.com and uploaded the picture with a single click. Tineye comes back instantly with every version of the image available on the web, and convently they give the number of pixels for each choice so you can chose the biggest one. AND they give you the link to the website that has the image.

Hi guys! So yeah I'm back after a bit of a long hiatus which consisted mainly of getting my business on track plus I have a busy nightlife in performance art.  I've been tinkering a lot with laser templates (which an update will be posted shortly for the cutter) but also been doing a lot of research and immersion. Sometimes a break from ones hobbies helps offer perspective. So with that out of the way, nice to be back (and wow the site is real different now lol). For this page my plan is to start making some templates on how various ship sterns and bows might have looked. First off is Potomac which I got started but not sure about quite a few details. I took the initial steps on the windows and overlaying the detailing from the builder plans. So lets have fun and happy to hear your informative opinions. I'm not sure about the windows if they should have one or two horizontal bars. I'm also assuming that the stern had mullion pillars like Constitution? Also I'm seeing a shadowy vertical detail that looks similar to the stern plan of Columbus, open to thoughts as to what sort of plant or scrolling that might be? What I'm seeing is a lot of navy ships from 1820 onward had a repeat of basic imagery, stars, eagles, wreaths, etc. A lot of the problems i'm having is the contemporary source materials I currently have are images from books that are 2" or so large. If larger versions of the source material exists for viewing would like to check it out. I'd like to do similar to Congress, Brandywine, Constellation, Chesapeake and other similar ships trying to get as close as possible to what they may have looked like.

 

This was the portrait of USS Constellation mentioned to me a ways back 1825 when she hit a storm and you can see she has a stern similar to the Java/Constitution/Potomac stern style with 3 windows. Anyone know more about this portrait if I may be able to find a better quality pic of it? Would love to see a closeup to the detailing it looks similar to the 16 gun sloops of 1838 in Chapelle's book page 403. 

Next up is Brandywine, I see a x shape in the center and two figures by the quarter galleries, some other eagle-ish looking carving above the x.

Here is Chesapeake. I'd like to draw these carvings over the admiralty plans however I believe the history was that the stern was hastily reconstructed with many of the carvings removed before her capture? If I wanted to put a template together for a model should I assume the ship still had "mullions" (assuming that's the right term) at the time of her capture? I'll keep working on these and add as I find more info out. Cheers!

Eventually I will visit the model of Congress in Norfolk. The only stern decoration I've even seen is from the 1991 film (looks like some eagle carving). I'd like to track down and visit a lot of model exhibits over the next few years as I'm hopeful the model makers did some of the research to help me make some inferences as to what the ship probably looked like.  

 

On the original picture I have there isn't anything between  the figures, there is a round hole not centered, looks like a shot hole(?).  It seems the fit the arch over the windows on the stern, at least by the wood cut of the Philadelphia entering Tetuan,Morocco.  I need to learn how to post pictures, this old dog needs to learn new tricks.
Update: was able to post a picture of different ideas for the taffrail, any opinions?:

To gorington: The caulking is simulated with black paper glued to the planks.
Steering whell - the quarter deck is finished.

Thank you Nils.
I added some small items on the qurter deck, now remains the last item which will be placed on the quarter deck - stering wheels.

Thank you guys for your nice comments and all likes.
Carronades are completed and mounted on the deck. The quarter deck is starting to fill up nicely.
 

Hi all -
 
Two days of carving and the first figurehead is rounding into shape.  Here is how I am going about it. 
 
I do almost all of my carving with a rotary tool and a series of ever smaller burrs and bitts.  Here they are for the first stage of the carving.  It includes a 1/4" diameter sanding sleeve for the Dremel plus a set of Disston burrs. Over the years I have added to the set when I found other shapes that could be useful. 
 

 
Here are the ones I use most often.  The sanding sleeve is at the top.  From left to right we have a straight bit with a rounded tip; a straight bit with a square tip; a reverse cone; and in the Dremel is a sharp cornered reverse rounded cone.  This last one is very useful for 'drawing' thin lines onto the wood that serve as landmarks for deeper carving with the other bitts.
 

 
The first carving was done with the sanding sleeve to round off the square corners and planes left by the band saw, and to get the basic side to side shape.
 

 
Now the arms are defined, which will fair into the basic shape of the lower body.  The mane is rounded, which will frame the shape of the face.
 

 
The tail was pencilled in on both sides and defined, which then set the depth of the lower body.  The crown was detailed, which adjusts the top of the mane.  The mane was given its initial texture, which then required reducing the height of the shoulder, etc. etc.  This is how I carve, with each step or detail that is worked on leading to a further defining of the adjacent detail. 
 

 
So here is the current look of the first figurehead.  The head is still too broad, but that is OK, as it gives me the depth of material that can be carved away for the final detailing of the face.
 


  
 
Next time, the final detailing.
 
Be well
 
Dan

Hello again to all.  
 
Thanks for the likes and comments.  I am glad that I can pass along some of the tips, tricks and techniques from my own teachers and from decades of trials and lots of errors along the way.
 
This will be the final installment of this build log.  The model is done and is waiting to be picked up for crating and delivery.  The final touches include: the stern lantern; mounting the anchors and anchor buoys; fitting the ship's boat and the spare spars.
 
The lantern was done in the round French fashion, rather than the hexagonal English style.  This meant that I had to scratch build it, rather than buying one of the well-designed and detailed ones from Syren Models.  In any event, here is how I went about it:
 
The lantern is not really round so it cannot be simply turned to shape, as you can see from the reproduced sections of the plan it is skewed towards the stern.  The central body was the most difficult to create.  Attempts to carve wood and acrylic were both completely unsatisfactory.  Starting from a cylindrical shape I could not get the proper angle to the lamp body.  Instead, I tried Sculpey, a clay that is hardened by baking in an oven.  After shaping it to the basic form by hand it was hardened according to the package directions.  When cool and hard it was still easily refined and smoothed by sanding.  The brass rod is for convenience in holding and shaping.
 
1
 
Here is a close-up of the body.  Examining the photograph I saw that I still needed to bring down the sharp ridge between the upper and lower portions.
 
2
 
When the body was brought to shape it was given several coats of primer, then a final light grey color coat, with light sanding in between.  The cap was carved from pear wood in a floral design.  I tried to get 16 petals around the circumference, but this proved too fiddly, so I have 12.  The finial on the top is turned from pear.  The mullions to hold the glass are cherry veneer cut to 0.030” x 0.015” strips.  Each was wet bent at the top end then glued in between the petals.  When that was dry and hard the rest of the strip was glued down the body of the lantern.  I put in the first four to quarter the body then marked out thirds in each section for the rest.
 
3
 
Here is a composite photo with two views of the lantern with all the vertical mullions installed.
 
4
 
The cross pieces were cut from the veneer strip and individually installed in three bands around the lantern.
 
5
 
A floral base was carved and a round drop at the bottom were made out of pear.  The finished lantern was sanded to remove any sharp corners then finished with a light stain/neutral carrier mix.  I let the stain pool a bit in the corners, which gave the panes some depth and shadow.  Each section was filled with white glue which dried to create a glossy ‘glass’ pane.
 
6
 
Mounting hardware was fashioned from a 0.062” brass rod with two pieces soldered at right angles.  The mount was bent and trimmed to fit a trio of holes in the stern.  After blackening the mount was installed and the lantern fitted to it at an appropriate height.
 
7
 
And here is how the lantern fits in with the look of the rest of the stern.
 
8
 
Next I turned to the anchors.  In an earlier segment I went through how I constructed them.  Here are the two finished sets of four anchors for each model.
 
9
 
To hang them I needed a triple block for each of the largest ones which would be mounted at the catheads, as well as an anchor buoy for each.  The blocks were made from 7mm triple blocks which were detailed by drilling a second set of line holes and rounding the resulting ‘sheave’ in the middle.  The hook was bent up from 0.035” annealed iron wire with the shank wrapped around the block in a deepened strop groove.
 
The buoy bodies were ¾” long, turned from maple.  Two ropes were seized together forming a small loop and spot glued at either end.  The lines were led down the body and under a cinch line about ¼ of the way from either end.  The vertical lines were doubled back on themselves, glued and trimmed. 
 
10
 
Here are the anchors mounted on the starboard side.  They are the two middle sized ones.  They are hung with strong lines from timberheads at the rail as well as the hooked block at the cathead.  A sense of weight is imparted by hanging a weight from the anchor then stiffening the supporting lines with dilute white glue.
 
11
 
Here is the buoy tied to the shrouds with a loop of line that is ultimately secured to the anchor shank.
 
12
 
And here are the two on the port side similarly secured.  These are the largest and smallest of the set.
 
13
 
The final tasks were to secure the ship’s boat in the waist and add two spare topmasts and large spars.  These sit between the gaps in the rails at the edges of the foredeck and quarterdeck.
 
14
 
Various rope coils were added to each belaying point, the model was cleaned and a few spots of paint were touched up. 
 
So here she is, ready for pickup and shipping. 
 
15
16
 
And one final photo of a future crewman, grandson Eli, who is almost four and already very interested in what his Poppy Dan does with his boats. . .
 
17
 
It was an interesting build, and radically increased my appreciation and respect for those modelers who rig sails.  As always, questions, comments, and critiques are very welcome.
 
Back soon with another project, the SS Andrea Doria in 1:200 scale.
 
Till then, be well,
 
Dan
 
 

I posting this picture again because after reviewing above I determined that I left out a step.
 
I cut filler pieces and inserted them between each of the stern timbers to set the curve at the stern and to fill the gaps.  Each one is also cherry.

I will begin now on how I constructed the stern on my model.
 
As stated above, all went well with all the filler pieces supplied in the kit for shaping the aft section of hull to where it meets the counter.  The final counter piece however proved to be problematic.  Because I installed the stern, stem and keel pieces prior to planking, there were also issues with the counter fitting flush with the planking, in addition to the problems associated with the little piece of rigid plywood provided for the counter,  It required thicker material for the counter and it needed to be planked(or at least appear to be planked) up.   I also needed a new solution for the transom and fashion piece.  It also needed to be planked up. 
 
Below is and image for the stern from above showing the stern timbers I created from cherry stock.   The transom and counter are made from cherry.  For the timbers I shaped the stock so as to approximate the proper angle of the transom to the deck.   In order to fit the timbers to the hull and deck  I cut slots into the lower deck on my table saw. I did not plank the deck prior to this operation.  I turned the hull up side down on the table saw, and after careful measurements between cuts(must have measured at least 10 times) and after carefully aligning the hull with  the saw and fence(probably did this 20 times) I cut the first slot.   All the measurement before cutting was to insure the timbers would be parallel  to the keel or center line of the model.  I experimented with some scrap to determine the width of the cut, saw blade kerf and thickness of the timbers.  I got lucky, the kerf of the blade turned out to be the thickness I needed for the timbers. I cut the timber blanks just a hair wider so I would have an extremely tight fit.   I did not worry too much about the length of the cut as it would be covered by the planking.  The cuts are not too deep, perhaps just over an 8th of an inch. Because the deck could not be flush on the table saw, the cuts were also at an angle. This required additional work on the stock pieces to finalize the angle of the transom.  As you can see, I got them in parallel to each other and the center line, and equidistant from each other.
 
That's all for now.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Bulwarks, wales, and transom
 
This was an interesting process of adapting my skills and intentions to poor instructions and kit layout. Lots of photos below.
 

 
The bulwarks begin by gluing two thin strips of walnut together lengthwise, overlapping halfway. You're then supposed to bend and glue these to sit over the edge of the deck, so that the lower strip forms the first strake of planking and the upper strip sits inboard atop the deck. The photo above sort-of shows this cross section, along with the beginning of my take on the transom.
 

 
Here's another view. Look at the starboard rail, and you'll see one reason why I don't like this approach: it's really easy to get waves or dents in these thin strips as you try to attach them firmly to a narrow strip of the hull. I'd prefer setting up thin stanchions first and gluing strips to those. This photo actually shows the next step, adding several more layers of thin walnut inside the outer bulwark to stiffen and thicken it.
 

 
Here's how I bent these strips, using a plastic dish with about the same radius as the bow, soaking the strips overnight, then clamping them into a curve until dry. This thin walnut is really prone to breaking, and the kit offers no extra material, which has been an annoyance throughout the build so far. I had to glue several strips back to together after they shattered, and attempt to hide the joint as I had no spares to replace them.
 

 
After you're done with this, you're supposed to have a ledge on the outboard side, along which you run two thicker square strips of walnut to widen the top of the rail. The directions show these two strips lining up perfectly with the inner bulwarks to make a nice, smooth surface. They don't. In the photo above, you see the significant gap remaining between the top of the inner bulwarks, and the much higher outer line of square walnut strips. This was most annoying, and I decided I had to fill that gap with wood to bring the whole thing level. Having no spare walnut, I had to use scrap basswood from my stash. I didn't think this would matter, as this whole assembly gets painted anyway.
 

 
Here I'm inlaying the basswood at the bow, after bending it to a proper curve. On the port side, you can again see the gap I'm trying to fill. Interestingly, by the time I'd finished and sanded everything smooth, it ended up looking really good! The thin basswood strip sets off the darker walnut nicely, and Mrs Cathead cooed when she saw it. "You're not going to paint over that, are you?" Hmmm.
 

 
So after some thought, I decided to see if I could finish the above-deck area as natural wood. I formed a transom to my liking, and laid a strip of basswood then a strip of walnut across the upper curve, which also turned out nicely, blending the basswood inlay along the rails with the walnut exterior.
 

 
I planked the stern with scraps of remnant decking, and smoothed everything to fit. It's not the transom I set out to make, but I think it works. I still can't easily envision the 3D geometry of the curved transoms some of these craft had, and since this is a fictional one anyway, I'm going with what looks pleasing to me.
 


 
So here's how she looks now, with the first line of the wales attached. I rubbed everything down with a natural wood oil I use on my kitchen counter, to protect and darken the wood (actually, the lower wale hasn't been oiled yet, so it looks lighted, which shows you the difference). I like the effect, and so does Mrs Cathead, my primary audience. I should have taken a higher-angle photo of the basswood inlay inside the rails, but you can see a hint of it.

Oohhh. Touchy subject
 
One thing almost for sure. It wasn't painted the colors of the MS kit - fire engine red and French's yellow.  Several paintings show both either all black or black and gray or buff at the gunwales.

One reason that American Revolutionary War privateers might carry decorations, would be to blend in with the rest of the sea traffic. There is nothing more suspicious that a bland, austere ship edging down on you, giving you an early chance to make your escape. So both merchant built conversions like the Oliver Cromwell (ex-Juno) , and purpose built privateer like the Rattlesnake, were richly adorned, just like the average merchantman would be. 
 
But by 1812, however, the 'baltimore clippers' were so fast and weatherly, that it didn't much matter. Their rig alone would have given them away. The few surviving plans and paintings show them to be rakish, mostly black, plain and sinister looking. The general naval and private style of that period was to replace full figureheads with busts or fiddleheads, and to substitute the stern figures with scroll work and rope tracery, in the "French Fashion". 

Taken from Volume 5 of 'The Naval History of Great Britain', by William James.
 
"In the latter end of October, 1813, the two French 40-gun frigates Etoile and Sultane, Captains Pierre-Henri Phillibert and Georges Du-Petit-Thouars, sailed from Nantes on a cruise. On the 18th of January, at 4A.M., latitude about 24 north, longitude (from Greenwich) 53 west, these two French frigates discovered in the north-west the British 24-pounder 40-gun frigate Severn, Captain Joseph Nourse, escorting a convoy from England to the island of Bermuda, and steering west by north, with the wind a light air from the south-east. At 7 h. 30 m. A.M. the Severn proceeded in chase; and at 8 h. 40m., finding the strangers did not answer the private signal, the British frigate bore up north by east, and made all possible sail from them, signalling her convoy to take care of themselves. At 10 h. 30m. A.M. the Severn commenced firing her stern- chasers at the leading enemy's frigate, and at noon lost sight of her convoy steering to the westward. At 4 h. 5 m. P.M. the headmost French frigate, the Etoile, hoisting her colours and broad pendant, began firing her bow-guns. A running fight now ensued, which, without doing the slightest injury to the Severn, lasted until 5 h. 30 m. P.M. ; when the Etoile then distant less than two miles (the Sultane astern of her about one), ceased firing. The chase continued all night, rather to the advantage of the Severn. At 8 A.M on the 19th the two French frigates gave up the pursuit, and hauled to the wind on the starboard tack. The Etoile and Sultane afterwards proceeded to the Cape de Yerds, and anchored in the port of English Harbour, island ot Mayo. On the 23rd of January, at about 9 h. 55 m. A.M., the two British 18-pounder 36-gun frigates Creole, Captain George Charles Mackenzie, and Astrea, Captain John Eveleigh rounding the south-east end of Mayo on their way from the neighbouring island of Fort-aventura, with the wind at north-east, 125 blowing fresh, discovered over a point of land the mast-heads of the two French frigates, and of two merchant-ships, one brigan- tine, and one schooner, lying in their company.
 
At 10 h. 15 m. the two British frigates having cleared the point, wore and hauled to the wind on the larboard tack, under their topsails. On a supposition that the strangers, whose hulls were now plainly visible, were Portuguese or Spanish frigates, the Creole hoisted the Portuguese, and the Astrea, by signal from her, the Spanish, private signals. No answer being returned, the strange frigates were considered to be enemies ; and at 11 h. 30 m. A.M. the Creole and Astrea wore and made sail for the anchorage in which they lay. At noon, when the two British frigates were about a mile distant from them, the Etoile and Sultane, having previously hoisted their topsail-yards to the mast-head, cut or slipped, and made sail free on the larboard tack, with a strong wind still from the north-east. The two former now set topgallantsails in chase ; and the Astrea, owing to a gust of wind suddenly striking her, had the misfortune to split all three topsails, the mizen- topsail very badly, to replace which a fresh sail was soon got into the top. At about 30 minutes past noon the south-west end of the island of Mayo bore from the Creole, the leading British frigate, east-north-east distant four miles. In another quarter of an hour the Creole, both British frigates having previously hoisted their colours, fired a shot ahead of the sternmost French ship, the Sultane, then on the former's lee or starboard bow. The two French frigates immediately hoisted their colours. The Creole continued firing her bow-guns occasionally at the Sultane until 1 P.M. : when the former discharged a few of her larboard-guns, and then, as she ranged up on the Sultane's lee beam, received the French ship's first broadside. The Astrea also opened her fire in crossing the stern of the Sultane, and then gallantly passed between the latter and the Creole, just as the two ships had exchanged the fourth broad- side. After giving and receiving two broadsides, within pistol- shot, the Astrea, at 2 h. 15 in. P.M., stood on to engage the Etoile, then about half a mile ahead of her consort, with her mizen topsail aback. Having extinguished a fire that had caught in the foretopmast staysail and mizen chains, the Creole, at 2 h. 30 m., recommenced the action with the Sultane, and presently shot away her mizenraast. About this time the wad- ding from the French ship's guns again set the Creole on fire, in  the forecastle hammocks and on the booms.
 
The flames were again extinguished, and the action continued for nearly half an hour longer ; making about two hours from its commencement. Having now had every brace and bowline, tack, and sheet shot away, her main stay and several of her shrouds cut through, her three masts, particularly her foremast, badly wounded, the Creole put her helm a-lee, and, steering to the north-west in the direction of the island of St. Jago, abandoned the contest. It took the Astrea, when at 2 h. 15 m., she had quitted the Sultane, until 2 h. 30 m. before she got alongside of the Etoile to leeward. After an exchange of broadsides, the Astrea, having, from the great way upon her, ranged too far ahead, luffed up and raked the Etoile on her starboard bow. The Astrea, just at this moment losing her wheel, fell roundoff ; and the Etoile, Avcaring, passed close astern of her, separating her from the boat she was towing, and poured in a most destructive raking fire; which cut the Astrea's lower rigging to pieces, shot away both deck- transoms and four quarter-deck beams, burst a carronade, and ripped up the quarter-deck in all directions. Backing round, the Astrea soon got her starboard guns to bear; and the two frigates, each with a fresh side opposed to the other, recom- menced the action, yard-arm and yard-arm. In a few minutes Captain Eveleigh fell, mortally wounded by a pistol-shot just below the heart, and was carried below. The command now devolved upon Lieutenant John Bulford ; and the engagement between the Astrea and Etoile continued in this close position, with mutual animation, although it was no cheering sight to the Astrea, at about 3 P.M., to observe her consort, on the starboard tack, apparently a beaten ship, and the Etoile's consort approaching to double the force against herself. At 3 h. 5 m. r.M. the .topsail, which lay in the Astrea's mizen top to replace the split one, caught fire, but the flames were soon extinguished. Seeing the near approach of the Sultane, the Astrea would have boarded the Etoile, and endeavoured to decide the contest that way ; but the motion of the ships was too great, and the British frigate could only continue to keep her antagonist under her guns to leeward. At 3 h'. 30 m. the Sultane, as she passed to leeward, raked the Astrea, and did her considerable damage. In five minutes the Sultane wore from the Astrea, and stood before the wind, leaving the latter and the Etoile still in close action. At 3 h. 45 m. the Etoile also wore round on the starboard  tack ; and in five minutes afterwards the Astrea's mizenmagt, with the topsail a second time in flames, went by the board, carrying some of the firemen with it.
 
In a short time after she had wore and ceased firing, the Etoile stood towards her consort, who was waiting for her under easy sail ; and the Astrea, having by this time had the whole of her lower and topsail braces shot away, and being otherwise greatly damaged in rigging and sails, was in too unmanageable a state to follow. At 4 h. 15 m. the Sultane's maintopmast went over the side ; l and the Astrea, having soon afterwards partially refitted herself, wore round on the starboard tack with her head towards San-Jago. At this time the Creole was not visible to the Astrea; and the two French frigates were about four miles distant in the south-west, steering south by west. At 4 h. 30 m. P.M. the Creole was discovered under the land, standing into Porto-Praya bay ; where at 4 h. 45 m. she anchored, and where, in about an hour after- wards, the Astrea joined her. The principal damages of the Creole have already been related : her loss, out of a complement of 284 men and boys, amounted to one master's mate, seven seamen, and two marines, killed, and 26 petty officers, seamen and marines wounded. The Astrea, besides the loss of her mizenmast and the damage done to her rigging and sails, had her fore and main masts wounded, and was a good deal struck about the stern and quarter. Her loss, out of the same complement as the Creole's, consisted of her commander and eight seamen and marines killed, and 37 petty officers, seamen, and marines wounded, four of them dangerously and 11 severely; making the loss on board the two British frigates 19 killed and 63 wounded. The two remaining masts of the Sultane, and all three masts of the Etoile, were badly wounded : and, that their hulls escaped no better is most likely, because the acknowledged loss on board of each, out of a complement of 340 men and boys, was about 20 men killed and 30 wounded, or 40 killed and 60 wounded be- tween them. Here were two pairs of combatants, about as equally matched, considering the character of the opponent parties, as could well be desired ; and who fought so equally, as to make that a drawn battle, which, under other circumstances, might have ended de- cisively. Had the Creole, having already witnessed the fall of the Sultane's mizenmast, been aware of the tottering state of that 1 The logs of the Creole and Astrea concur in stating it to have been the mainmast that fell, but both ships were mistaken. The frigate's maintopmast, Captain Mackenzie would not, we presume, have discontinued the engagement, simply for the pre- servation of his wounded foremast ; especially when the Creole's main and mizen masts were still standing, as well as all three of her topmasts, and when, by his early retirement, he was exposing to almost certain capture a crippled consort. No frigate could have performed her part more gallantly than the Astrea ; but two such opponents, as the one that had so long been en- gaging her, were more than she could withstand. Fortunately for the Astrea, both French frigates had seemingly had enough of fighting ; and the Etoile and Sultane left their sole antagonist in a state not less of surprise than of joy at her extraordinary escape.
 
"On tho 26th of March, at 9 A.M., these two frigates (the Sultane with jury topmasts and mizenmast), when about 12 leagues to the north-west of the Isle de Bas, steering for Saint Malo, in thick weather, with a moderate breeze at south-west, fell in with the British 18-pounder 36-gun frigate Hebrus, Captain Edmund Palmer, and 16-gun brig-sloop Sparrow, Captain Francis Erskine Loch. The latter was so near to the French frigates that, in crossing them, she received seven or eight shot from each ; which greatly damaged her rigging and sails, killed her master, and wounded one seaman. The brig now tacked towards the Hebrus, who was on her weather-quarter, standing on the larboard tack. The latter, as she passed the French frigates to windward on the opposite tack, exchanged distant broadsides with them, and fired her weather or larboard guns as a signal to her consort, the 74-gun ship Hannibal, Captain Sir Michael Seymour. At 9 h. 30 m. A.M., the Hebrus again tacked, and in 10 minutes afterwards, on the fog clearing, observed the Hannibal coming down under a press of canvas. At 10 A.M., being joined by the 74, the Hebrus crowded sail after the two French frigates, then bearing from her south-east by east distant about four miles. At 11 A.M. the wind suddenly shifted to the north-north-west, and blew very fresh. On this the two French frigates, finding their pursuers rapidly approaching, separated : the Sultane changed her course to east by north, and the Etoile hauled up to south-east. Directing by signal the Hebrus, as the best sailing-ship, to chase, in company with the Sparrow, the most perfect frigate, the Hannibal herself went in pursuit of the other. At 2 P.M. the Hebrus lost sight of the Hannibal and Sultane, and at 5 P.M. of the Sparrow ; and the Etoile then bore from her south-east by east, distant three miles. Soon afterwards the Etoile gradually hauled up to east-north-east, but was still gained upon by the Hebrus. About midnight the French frigate reached the Bace of Alderney ; when, the wind getting more northerly, the Hebrus came up fast, and took in her studding- sails. At Ih. 35m. A.M. on the 27th, having run the length of Point Jobourg, the Etoile was obliged to attempt rounding it almost within the wash of the breakers.
 
At 1 h. 45 m., while, with her courses hauled up, the Hebrus was following close upor. the larboard quarter of the Etoile as the latter wore round the point, the French frigate opened a fire upon the British frigate's starboard bow. This fire the Hebrus quickly returned within pistol-shot distance, running athwart the stern of the Etoile, to get between her and the shore ; and that so closely, that her jib-boom passed over the French ship's taifrail. The Hebrus was now in eight fathoms water, and the land within musket- shot on her starboard beam. At 2h. 20m. A.M., while crossing the bows of the Hebrus to get again inside of her, the Etoile shot away the British frigate's foretopmast and foreyard, and crippled her mainmast and bowsprit, besides doing considerable injury to her rigging, both standing and running. It had been nearly calm since the commencement of the ac- tion, but at 3 A.M. a light breeze sprang up from the land. Taking advantage of this, the Hebrus succeeded in pouring several raking fires into her antagonist, and at 3h. 45m. shot away her mizenmast by the board. At 4 A.M. the Etoile ceased firing ; and, after a close and obstinate combat of two hours and a quarter, hailed to say that she had struck. No sooner was possession taken of the prize, than it became necessary to turn the heads of both ships off the shore, as well to prevent them from grounding as to get beyond the reach of a battery, which, having been unable in the darkness of the morning to distinguish one frigate from another, had been annoying them both with its fire. The tide fortunately set the ships round Pointe Jobourg, and at 7 A.M. they anchored in Vauville bay, about five miles from the shore.
 
Although the principal damages of the Hebrus were in her masts and rigging, her hull had not wholly escaped, as is evident from her loss ; which, out of a crew of about 284 men and boys, amounted to one midshipman (P. A. Crawley) and 12 seamen killed, and 20 seamen, 2 marines, and three boys wounded ; four of the number dangerously, and six severely. The Etoile's principal damages lay in her hull, which was extremely shattered, leaving her at the close of the action with four feet water  in the hold : her loss, in consequence, out of 327 men and boys (including the wounded in the former action), amounted to 40 killed and 73 wounded. The guns of the Hebrus, one of the new yellow-pine frigates, were the same as those of the Belvidera. The Etoile mounted 44 guns, including 14 carronades, 24-pounders, and two 8- pounders on the quarter-deck and forecastle. Of her acknowledged crew of 327, we shall allow 12 for the badly wounded, and not yet recovered, of the action of the 26th of January.  As the crew of the Hebrus was quite a new ship's company, with scarcely a single draught from any other ship, while the crew of the Etoile had been formed out of the united ships' companies of the Arethuse and Eubis, and had even since fought a creditable, if not a victorious action with an equal force, a great share of credit is due to Captain Palmer, his officers, and crew, for the successful result of this action ; con- sidering, especially, how near it was fought to the French shore, and how critically circumstanced the Hebrus was, both during its continuance and at its termination. We formerly concluded, that the stock of ammunition on board the Etoile must have been considerably diminished when she fell in with the Hebrus ; but it has since been proved to us, that, after her capture by the latter, the Etoile had a considerable quantity of powder and shot left: consequently we erred in our supposition, and are extremely gratified that the inaccuracy has been pointed out in time to be corrected in these pages. We must not omit to mention, that Captain William Sargent, of the navy, who was a passenger on board the Hebrus during the action, evinced much skill and intrepidity ; as is very handsomely acknowledged by Captain Palmer in his official letter."
 
Note: HMS Hebrus was a fir-built sister ship to HMS Euryalus, identical except for the square-tuck stern

Thanks for the support with comments and likes.
 
I've become a believer that ripping things out and re-working them works best for me.  I can think of too many places on this ship that it was make, finesse, offer up and scrap box.  Some areas were pretty radical or seemed at the time, but worth it.... like those pesky stern transom timbers, etc. 
 
I ended up taking up more of the planking than I originally thought.   Things just didn't look right on the drawing so....  ripped and redrew much of the planking.  I received a much needed re-supply of boxwood from Jason at Crown and was pleasantly surprised at how fast and how nice the wood is.
 
So... I did more research and staring at other people's models on the web for inspiration along with Frolich's book.  Seems to a bit of a pattern in that plank butts on one beam must have 2 strakes between them.  If possible 2 adjoining planks must have 2 beams between them.  But... there's the random factor.  So, had to think like shipwright in the yard and look at the pile of what was available. I took 5 planks varying from 25 feet to 50 feet in length and then randomly picked one up.  Drew it on the drawing and the repeated the process until the whole strake was cut and installed. Duplicated that strake for the other side.  Lather, rinse, and repeat as they, until done.  
 
There's some gaps that need attending to, but I'm sanding and scraping away.  Getting there....   The char on plank sides seems to be working out.  Just lightly sanded off the loose stuff.  In the pictures, the lighter "caulking" is where everything came together perfectly.   The black caulking still needs more sanding to get the fit flush.  There's a few areas that need some filling.  Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the deck.
 
Here's the pics....  as always, I'm open to discussion and learning.
 


 
 

Thanks for the likes and support.
 
My eyes are bit off as it turns out that I need new glasses... so still in a holding pattern but doing odds and ends.
 
I've worked with the laser and set up for the cannon carriages to be cut.  Even managed to get one cut but not assembled yet..  these things are tiny....    Anyway photo of what I've done and hopefully I can get them cleaned up and start figuring  out a jig for building them.  I'm not going to put guns in the foreword most port on each side as apparently they weren't normally filled and there's next to no room to serve them.  Once the first is cleaned up, assembled, and checked at all ports, I'll either revine it if needed or go for production.   
 
Tomorrow's another day and hopefully for my mental well-being the new glasses will show up this week.