ccoyle

Well, the Salmson took a bit longer to complete than I expected, but now I can turn my full attention to the speeljacht. Kicked things off by sealing the parts pages and beginning to assemble the hull frames.
 

 

Well, it's been a few years since I've attempted any restoration on this due to unforeseen events, but I want to give this another go.  I want to begin by attaching the bow sprit that broke free from the hull; I tried using Testor's fast-drying glue for wooden models, but it's not drying fast enough.  I think the best thing to do is insert a pin in the sprit and then insert the other end into the hull.  According to the plans, a hole was first drilled in the hull and then the 3/16 dowel was inserted into the hull.  Years ago I had a very small drill bit for models, but I apparently have lost it during several moves.  Anyway, any suggestions re:  attaching this piece would be appreciated.  FYI:  The kit (#1079) is from Marine Model Co.  N.Y.   Thanks!

Hello everybody.
Although many of the members of this forum already know us, we believe it is convenient as new members to introduce ourselves to the community.
When we started OcCre in 2000, we wanted to build more than just a beautiful, top-quality product. Our goal is to create great experiences, memories, anecdotes through modeling. To create a community to help people from all over the world find their place, their passion, their motivation, their therapy. Modeling helps us see the world through different eyes.
We hope to be able to collaborate with all of you, and with your help to continue improving day by day. Of course, all your comments and suggestions will always be welcome and taken into consideration.
Thanks again.

Der Alte Rentner no wonder you did not know what they were, to me, they looked like pole holders, to a seaman like yourself they would be stanchions.
I suspect they are there to prevent the fisherman from falling into the water wells that hold the herring. I have not permanently placed the framework that goes around the water wells and supports the wheelhouse but I have mocked this u to show the stanchions and their purpose. The wheelhouse still needs, the window frames, windows, roof and door, but they have to stay off until complete the interior of the wheelhouse. Progress is slow but sure. The wheelhouse was tricky. The angles on it require that you sand the connecting edges to a 45 degree angle.

Greetings Fellow Modelers 
 
Thanks to all for the comments, "likes" and for taking a look.
 
 
Completed Fish Hold
 
I've been working on this model sporadically and at long last the fish hold is now done.
 
Crushed/flaked ice has been added to the hold. The ice is ground glass and thanks go out to @wefalck and @FlyingFish for bringing this product to my attention.  And I thank everyone who took the time to offer the helpful suggestions on this matter.  I purchased 1oz. sample packs of different grits and the best match for the scale was 80 grit shown in the following two images.
 

 
 
The paper rule is imperial in 1:48.
 

 
 
This is what 70 grit looks like, although I suspect the package was mislabeled and is actually 60 grit.
 

 
 
And 50 grit.  This would make great looking broken glass for smaller scales.
 

 
 
This material has an insistent angle of repose, so in order to help define how it piles and slopes, I predefined the spaces with torn pieces of open-cell foam pushed into the bunkers. This also lessened the amount of material used.  In fact, the 1oz. sample packet was more than I needed.
 

 
 
I ended up using half of the 80 grit and just a portion (for size variation) of the 70 grit.  A small paper funnel with an attached styrene tube makes placement easy and accurate.
 

 
 
This particular ground glass can be found online marketed as “German Glitter Glass”.  It is used by crafters to make things – glitter.  And it certainly does do that.
 

 
 
The material is fixed into place using a method I learned from model railroaders.  I mixed up a solution of 50/50 water/PVA with a couple of drops of surfactant to break surface tension.  I use a dishwasher rinse agent for this, but windshield washer fluid works great also – or even liquid soap.  I also added a few drops of white acrylic paint and an ever so small amount of phthalo blue to keep it from leaning toward yellow.  The image below is the result.  The ground glass actually appears finer, but that is only because the solution is sort of milky and has taken much of the contrast out and the “in your face” sparkles.  Granted, the photo below is darker than the one above, but that is the only difference.
 

 

 
 
The close up below shows the floorboards have been darkened with India ink/alcohol to suggest wet wood.  On top of that a light layer of a craft store product called Gallery Glass (crystal clear) was brushed on for a watery look.
 

 
 
Finally, a little ink/alcohol in the bunkers above the ice (again as wet staining) and also here and there to add definition to areas of wood.
 

 
The LED lighting I had previously placed will be reattached when the deck beams go on next.  I'm glad to be climbing out of this smelly fish hold. 
 
Thanks for looking.
 
Stay well.
 
Gary
 
 

At this point, most of the deck structures were installed, including the pumps, windlass and pin rail that fits over the windlass.  The guns were made of bronzed metal, with good detail.  The carriages were simplified as was the gun’s rigging.  This would be another place where some research and scratch building would take this model to the next level.  The pins are nicely shaped and to scale.  Again, everything was painted before installation.  I could not figure out how to install the leeboards from looking at the pictures in the manual.  I looked at Angarfather’s scratch build log of Utrecht and was able to see how it was rigged.

 
The anchors were added next.  The hawser cable runs below the windlass and passes to below deck through a hatch behind the windlass.  I chose to show one anchor hauled in and the other hanging free.

The masting and rigging were next.  The two halves of the mast were glued together and weighted down until the glue had cured.  However, the two mast halves were warped in the plastic fret and even with weighting the assembly, it was warped.  I was able to partially correct this later with the rigging.  On this boat, the topmast bends forward and has a sheave running through it.  This can be seen in the round black bulge halfway up the topmast.  The pictures show the forestay, fore preventer stay, backstays and shrouds installed.  The manufacturer chose to show tarred like for the shroud and mainstay lanyards.  Again, I went to Hartmut’s build log for direction and he shows untarred line for the lanyards.  Additionally, the five hole block for the forestay should have eight holes, with a corresponding number of holes on the stem.  The instructions have nicely detailed sketches of the various knots and methods to rig the blocks and deadeyes.   In the last two pictures you can see that the port top rail and timbers is missing.  This broke off the model and fell into a floor register, never to be seen again!

The ratlines were installed next.  I used the same number of rows of ratlines shown in the instructions and was very frugal with the amount of line left at both ends.  There was not enough line provided to finish the ratlines.  I had line that was almost the same size and used that to finish them.  Since the model was not going to be moved much more, I installed the rudder.

 
The rigging for the gaff and yards was straight forward.  Each block is color coded, making it easy to select the correct block for the line.  These are very nicely shaped blocks, including the fiddle blocks used to haul in the gaff.  Sorry, but I forgot to take any more pictures until I started to work on the sails.
This is the premium version of the model, so it came with pre-sewn sails.  The instructions include full-sized templates for making your own sails, along with directions for installing the tabling, bolt ropes and cringles.  The fabric of these sails was of good quality but the hem was sewn very poorly, and there was fraying in several areas.  As this was an OOTB build, I did not resew them.  I would suggest to someone doing this build to not get the premade sails.  Make your own from cloth or silkspan and add the details.  I added the bolt ropes, cringles and metal rings to the sails. 

The sail rigging diagram was a bit difficult for me to follow.  There were instances where I could not tell whether a particular line was on only one side or both port and starboard.  There was one other minor issue; there was insufficient line to finish the model.  Specifically, the natural 0.25 line.  Again, I had line left over from an old kit which was almost the same diameter and used it as a replacement.  My estimate is that 50% more line was needed than provided.   I used 24-gauge brass wire inserted into some of the sail hems to give the sails some life.  Nothing was applied to the sails to otherwise stiffen them.
Finally, the flags were installed.  I cut them out and moistened both sides with dilute white glue.  While still wet, I shaped them and let them dry overnight.  They were hoisted and their shapes were tweaked by moistening them and holding them in position until dry.
 
So here she is finished.  As I said at the beginning, this was an as-built kit review.  There are a lot of nice things about this kit.  Hull, bulkhead and mast detailing is very sharp.  The resin decorations, including the figurehead are wonderful and fit perfectly.  The blocks are high quality.  There is a lot of room for improvement and correcting the inaccuracies.  As far as improvement is concerned, better quality control would have seen the miscast head timbers and the warped mast.  A modern kit should not require as much filler as this one did to correct gaps in the hull.  The photoetch windows were nice but the ringbolts should have been supplied as just that, ring bolts, not flat pieces of brass and white metal.  And finally, the inadequate supply of line is inexcusable.  If you are a plastics modeler trying to decide whether to start building ships, you are not going to have a stash of line to supplement the kit supplied material.
 
For someone who wants to detail a kit, this is a great option.  Even with the problems, she builds up into a pretty model.  There are a lot of small things that can be done to make the boat more historically correct.  The first two would be to purchase Ab Hoving’s book on the Utrecht and find pictures of the replica on the internet.  The pictures will allow you to use the correct paint scheme.  Other areas for detailing include hand laying the deck, correcting the inboard leeboard connections, properly rigging the guns, using the correct types of line for the rigging and making your own sails. Thanks for following along for this kit review.

 

A great result you can be proud of. And relieved that it's done! Congratulations!

Congratulations!  Very nicely done!

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A fantastic finish, TJ!

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!
 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She is now in the pond!
 
Pics of the launch day!  She went in along with the old model of Sackville, and our new model of the Titanic!
 
A great time!
 
 

This being the end of this project, I would just like to thank all of you who have followed and liked what I have done over the past few weeks. I realise it has not been a massive project, but it has been a learning curve for me when it comes to paintwork, and it now flies gracefully in my study/workroom.
Thanks all,
Cheers,  Peter    🙂
 

FINISHED!
Added the decals today and am very pleased with this small (1/72 scale) build.





 
Things learnt:
there are more than 30 shades of grey, don't mix your own shade of grey as you can only do it once and never match it again, look closely at instructions because they are sure to change right in front of your eyes, on a brighter note, I found I have put in as much concentration and effort into this model as any other, regardless of size, the fun is still there. Cheers,

User error I guess.  Thanks for the link.  

Log entry 39 - Finale!
 
With the anchors attached, I now consider my Flirt finished! 
 
I whipped out the old DSLR and the big flash for the images to give it justice - though of course it also showcases all the shortcomings 😉.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Overall, I am very happy with how it turned out.
 
What an absolutely fantastic kit @chris watton has made! It is truly a testament to the quality of both the kit and the instructions that a first time builder like me can achieve something like this, even with all the small rooms for improvement I know I have!
 
Big thanks to all who followed along and commented and liked along the way. This community and all your logs and helpful comments is a big part of the building experience for me. So really, thank you!
 
I will now take a short intermezzo doing other things (not least; a thorough cleanup), but I am itching to start up the next project, so it probably won't be long before I am back. The next project will also be a Vanguard Models kit, though I plan to give it a Danish twist! So stay tuned for that!
 
See you around!
 
TJM

So, I know I said that I was moving on to coppering the hull...but, a new toy (read tool) came in and just had to use it.  An airbrush.  I will admit to everyone here that I am not the best at brush painting and find it very frustrating at times.  So much so, that it will take quite a few coats for me to be satisfied.  With airbrush, it was two coats and I was extremely satisfied.  The pictures here are just primer, not the final.  I will be adding the beading (which came in yesterday) on the hull, prime them and then paint.  Then I will copper the underwater hull.
 



If you look closely, you can see black dots just below the black paint line.  Those mark the water line.  I did struggle finding a way to raise the bow 1/4" and keep the ship plumb.  I was finally able to glue together a 1/2" block and a 1/4" block with side support where the keel would snugly fit in so that the ship was plumb.  The 1/2" block was used to raise and support the bow and the 1/4" was used to raise and support the stern section. Using the hull marker that I used to mark the gun ports, I set it to 3" and marked a tick with a sharpie along the port and starboard sides.  I used the blue painters tape to get the paint lines and to prevent overspray.
 

I have seen a lot of discussion on the site concerning the rudder and the pintles.  Specifically, around the leading edge of the rudder.  The first is, should it be square as depicted on page 16 or rounded as depicted on page 19?  Also, should the pintles be "countersunk" into the leading edge of the rudder (as shown on page 19) or not?  Using the details on page 19, I have decided that the leading edge should be rounded and the pintles countersunk so that the rudder is as close as possible to the sternpost.  Using a table scroll saw I cut out the six notches for the pintle to sit in.
Since I will be coppering the hull and rudder, I am not to concerned with smoothness of the rudder.

Chris, you turned a pig’s ear kit into a silk purse—well done!

Yet another masterpiece from the master. 👍😀

The Big Reveal!
 
This one is as done as it's gonna get. It is not, in fact, as done as it could be, because I have made an informed decision to leave off some rigging lines that are both poorly documented in the kit diagrams and not well-attested in photos of either other models or real aircraft. Truth is, only die-hard purists may notice their absence. As I have hinted at before, this is not one of the better-designed kits I have worked on. There were many niggling omissions in the diagrams, which left many of the more nuanced construction bits pretty much up to the builder's imagination. I would give this kit a three out of five stars on the design and ease of assembly. The artwork, as I said at the beginning, is very nice and gives the model a good measure of 'curb appeal'. Enjoy the pictures!