ccoyle

Hello everyone,
 
I've started working on the keel. I cut the notches by using the sliding table for my miniature table saw. I have also cut the scarf at the forward end of the keel.
 
Bill
 

Hello everyone,
I'm finally getting started on the Washington. The plans from the NRG are very nice and easy to understand. This will be important as this will be my first POF. I printed out the monograph and made it into a notebook. The ship will be built from cherry. I may use something else for the deck planking. I have purchased my wood from Ocooch Hardwood and have received it. The wood is of very good quality. Ocooch was very good to work with. I talked with Ethan from Ocooch and he was very helpful in insuring I got very nice lumber. I have also started the framing jig.
 
Bill
 


 
 
 
 
 

The Journey continues with minor progress:
 
June 2, 2023:

 
 
July 20, 2023:

 
 
My first attempt at a stealer (The kit's sapely wood is awfully rough and fuzzy!):
 

 
 
And more adventures in creative clamping:
 

 
 

Hi Harry
 
been slowly making progress... Work and Family holidays getting in the way LOL
Everything is just placed together so some bits may look wonky LOL 
 
 

I photocopied the brass parts to lay out where I wanted the windows to be. I’m kind of estimating rather than doing exact measurements. The kit doesn’t match all the measurements from the plans, and I took a little inspiration from the fictional television show, too.
 
 
More mock-up work with the so far unpainted brass window frames. I didn’t want to go with the kit plans for the window frames since they’re sort of chunky compared to the Betts book, and I like the way the ship looks on the show as well.
 
 
Still frame from the first episode of "The Terror" showing the stern. My trim pieces aren't as thin but they're kind of a compromise between the provided kit parts, the Betts plans, and the TV show.
 
 
Window frames in place and stern davits installed. The brass parts still need to be primed and painted.
 
 
I was going to use some 0.5 mm clear Plastruct sheet for glazing the windows. I soon realized that 0.5 mm plastic is a pain to cut and shape. I needed something thinner and the hobby shop was closed…
 
 
I grabbed the plastic packaging from my new set of Flex-I-Files and sanded the plastic to get a frosted finish.
 
 
This works a lot better and it’s a lot easier to shape.
 
My next task is to prime the brass parts and paint them so they can be installed. I'm working on the Massey Patent Pump as well so I'm hoping to make some progress on that tomorrow.
 
I'm still at a loss as to the name of the ship on the stern. I'd like to add it but I honestly am not sure how. I have the typeface I want to use that seems to match but a vinyl stencil would be nearly impossible to use at this scale and I can't print a waterslide decal in white ink at home. I'm hoping to eventually find a place online to order something custom.

Masked...and sprayed.
 
Now to dry it for a few days, then another layer of clear epoxy coat. 

That'd be the gallery. Welcome aboard!

Hello everyone, it's been a while since I last updated my progress on the shipyard but I managed to find some time to get an update in.
 
Day 25
I was able to get most of the cabinets painted up and finally started work on the benchtops. I forgot to take pictures of the painting, but who really wants to watch paint dry anyway?
Started off with my workstation area, just a simple corner desk that will hold my monitors and other assorted computer accessories. This section will be a few inches lower than the rest of the bench, for ergonomic reasons. I've found it hard to spend 8-10 hours a day at work on a 36" desktop. 

 
All of the bracing up, painted and ready for the tops to be installed.


 
Corner top installed.

 
More of the benchtops cut and installed.

 
Day 26
My original plan for the benchtop was to build it out of MDF, paint it black, then print out a bunch of old ship pictures and plans and glue then to the benchtop, then coat the whole thing in clear epoxy resin. That was until I found out that the price of MDF has just gotten stupid expensive. So I did some re-thinking and decided to go with some OSB and matte black Formica. This cut the benchtop cost in half.

Prepping the first piece of Formica for gluing.

 
and the first section is in.

 
Moving along with the Formica.




 
Day 27
With the Formica all installed it was time to trim the edges of the benchtop out. I went the cheap method with this and used 2x4's to make the trim. I ripped the 2x4's and rounded them on both sides to give a nice bullnose edge that is easy on the forearms. Again I forgot to take pictures of the ripping an rounding process, but here is the first piece going in.

 
Day 28
With the trim work in it was time to start moving a few things in. I had to clear off my current adjustable workbench so that I could get it painted up and the top modified to where it will work in my new shipyard. The benchtop edging was given a coat of stain and varnish and I moved my organizers in.

 
Day 29
I had a few short upper cabinets left over that I couldn't figure out what to do with, when it finally hit me. The would provide great overhead storage for my reloading powders and primers. They would be high enough to keep the grandkids from getting into them and still be accessible to my reloading bench. Had planned on installing a piece of 1" flat steel on the wall in this area and use magnets to hold my building plans on. Instead I installed a piece of steel angle iron to help support the uppers and also function as magnetic plan holder.

 
Finally I started moving my stash in. I left this corner open for the sole purpose of storing my future builds.

 
And I moved my reloading bench in as well. There will be additional shelves above the bench mounted to the stringers that are currently on the wall. Just need to get those built. I'm going to also make a few modifications to this bench to help hide some of the clutter, but that will come later on.

 
I've got my adjustable workbench out of the house and is currently waiting on paint and some trim. I'll have photos of that project on my next update. Just a few more items on my to-do list and the room should be ready to start creating some sawdust again.
 
Thank you all for stopping by.
 
-Brian
 
 
 

24lb Cannon Carriages
I have now completed the basic assembly of the gundeck 24lb cannon carriages. They are ready to be painted along with the gun port openings, inner bulwarks, spirketting and upper ledge patterns. As can be seen in the two attached photos the cannon carriage tabs all locate in the slots created when planking the deck with boxwood. Although the manual suggested using 0.8 brass rods to support the carriage stool bed and quoin assembly and I opted to use 1mm brass rod as it a better fit for the holes provided in the gun carriage side patterns.
 

 
 

She is ready to get sanding and final shaping done.  If I may offer a word of advice.  There is no room for error in this kit.  Everything is designed to fit snugly and perfectly in position. So check and check and check.  I discovered when I was attaching the stringers C10 that the rough transom was not pushed all the way into its slot. Fortunately I was able to loosen the joint enough to tap it down into its correct position.  I should have noticed that it was not correct when I attached it but somehow missed it.  

The cabin top was covered with the thin fiberglass fabric, set in epoxy and when this cured, it was lightly sanded.  The layout for the locations of the necessary servo access hatches and the mainmast partner followed. Corners for the cutouts were marked using a #55 drill and connecting lines scribed.

A fine-tooth pull saw was utilized to carefully cut out the hatches and the necessary carlin framing was fitted from the underside. The mainmast partner was carved from a block of basswood and glued to the underside of the cabin top.

The skylight coaming was fashioned from basswood and glued to the cabin top. The teak skylight structure was glued up  and would later have acrylic panes fitted.

The after end of the house with its off center companionway, "turtle" housing for the companionway slide and the pieces making up the curved dodger mounting came together. Blocks were added for the future Dorades cowls and the chainplates for the main forward lower shrouds were mounted to the inside faces of the cabin sides. A laminated, half-round teak "eyebrow" was fabricated and glued to the cabin side just down from the intersection of house and curved top. This detail was designed to minimize the visual height of the crowned cabin top as well as to incidentally provide a edge for the color transition between house side and cabin top. 

During this phase of the build, the cockpit was also built up. The next post will go into that project.
 
 

Dear prospective ship modeler,
 
Welcome! If you're reading this, it's probably because you are ready and raring to get started on a first ship model. But before you do, allow me to share the following with you.
 
We get a lot of first-time builders on this forum. People who are eager to build a first ship model are attracted to the hobby for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you were captivated by a stunning model of the USS Constitution or the HMS Victory. Maybe you have a beloved relative who was a modeler. Or it could be that you just have a love of the sea, even if you've never sailed on anything larger than a rowboat. All of us came to MSW with similar motivations. Those of us who have been at this for a while not only love the hobby, but also love passing along our experience to new builders. It's a special treat to see a new modeler persevere through the joys and sorrows (and often tedium) of building a ship model and arrive successfully at the end of a build with a finished model to be proud of.
 
Unfortunately, many of those eager new members also turn out to be last-time builders as well. There are lots of reasons why a first-timer might give up. Building a nice ship model requires the learning of many new skills, a not inconsiderable amount of tenacity, and usually a significant time investment. Some new modelers get bored, others get overwhelmed, and some get overtaken by things like career changes, cross-country moves, babies, sudden illnesses -- that life stuff we all have to deal with occasionally. We understand those things happen. We get it.
 
This post, though, is written for a particular kind of first-time modeler: the modeler who takes on more ship then they can handle. Unfortunately, this kind of modeler is all too common. Bewitched by a clipper ship or sailing man-of-war, this kind of newbie believes that they can jump right in and build something similar.
 
Allow me to use an analogy. I'm not a pilot, but I love old warbirds. Suppose I go to an airshow and, having been awed by the spectacle, decide to go out and buy a P-51 and take her up for a few high-g maneuvers. All with no flying experience, mind you. I don't have to tell you how that first flight is likely to end up.
 
Sadly, many of the newcomers to MSW have a similar experience with model ships. They come brimming with pluck and determination, convinced that they can build a Constitution or Victory. In most instances, these bright-eyed neophytes wind up like the over-zealous new P-51 owner -- dead. Well, unlike the pilot, the would-be modelers are probably still alive, but their dreams of nice model ships have certainly gone to a better place.
 
Now, before I go any further, allow me to make a few things perfectly clear. Am I saying that a new modeler should never attempt a complicated model or that newcomers never finish such models? No, I'm not saying that. There are a few modelers who have attempted such projects and completed them, so it is certainly possible. But those modelers are very few in number. And we don't have any rules about what kind of model you can or can't build around here. If you absolutely, positively have to have a crack at a three-decker or frigate, then have at it. We'll be glad to help you along the way. But just be aware ahead of time how much of a challenge you are getting yourself into.
 
Let me throw some numbers at you to illustrate my point. One of my jobs here at MSW is to comb through old build logs and edit the titles of completed builds to show that the model has been finished (it makes searching for finished models easier). Obviously, as I sift through the builds I find many unfinished ones. On just one page that I was recently checking, I found twelve unfinished build logs started by first-time builders. In ten of those build logs, the new builder never made it past completing the hull of his ship. In the other two, the builder never started the model at all. Nine of those twelve modelers are no longer active on this site. I did not include among those twelve modelers any who gave a life-got-in-the-way reason for suspending their build. They're simply twelve modelers who eagerly started their project and then, usually quite early on, just gave up and quietly disappeared without giving any reasons why.
 
Those twelve builds all had one thing in common: each modeler had chosen a model that posed significant challenges for a first-time builder. Some of those models would have been a challenge even for a skilled builder. Simply put, they doomed their attempt at modeling by choosing a model that was over their head.
 
All of us ship modelers know how real the temptation is to skip an entry-level model and go straight for lots of guns and lots of sails. But here's the whole point I want to make: seriously think twice about caving into that temptation. The evidence speaks for itself - literally hundreds of abandoned build logs begun by modelers who bit off more than they could chew. Many of them not only abandoned their build, they also gave up on the hobby entirely.
 
It didn't have to be that way. Making a good start by honestly appraising your skill level and deciding to go with a simple first model is one of the surest ways to success in this hobby. Most true beginner models -- those actually designed for beginners and not merely labeled as such -- don't require a lot of money, time, or expensive tools. In a few weeks you'll know if this hobby is for you without having gotten yourself worked up over a model you couldn't realistically complete. And you know, most of us here enjoy watching the progress on a relatively 'easy' model, like a small sailboat, just as much as we enjoy watching the progress on an HMS Victory -- especially when we see those models being finished and proudly displayed.
 
And you know what? Success breeds further success. 
 
For more information on choosing a first model, check out the NRG modeling resources page.
 
Choose wisely, enjoy the journey, and I look forward to seeing you complete your first build log.
 
Respectfully,
Chris

Taping off this funnel was interesting, I attempted it with blue painters tape and it was going horribly.  The blue tape is what happened below where the zenithal highlighting overshot on to the brown linoleum decking.   Of course, I taped it off and reshot that section!   No.. I really did though, this time with Tamiya tape.   But with the smokestack, the Tamiya tape was light enough to hang onto the small surface area of the funnel.    Here’s the ship’s currently most assembled-so-far status.  I’m going to have to work out painting those turret bases.   Not sure how I missed painting those yet and then I was hoping the turrets would mostly cover them.  They’ll have to be carefully brush painted now!

I obtained the Tamiya Acrylic Flat IJN Gray paint pot equivalent to the T-69 which is…XF-77.   Why couldn’t it be the same number??    I rattle can primed the subassemblies with Tamiya white primer for fine detail which does a nice job.    I thought the lacquer rattle can laid paint too thick, too fast so I became determined to use a newish tool for me, the airbrush.  I picked up the flag ship, Harder and Steinbeck, because part of the fun of this hobby is spending money on it.   That was my victim some fateful Friday two some years ago.   It is a fine tool that I have no business owning because it’s for an expert that I aspire to be.    I diluted the Tamiya paint with 91% alcohol using the bottle top-off technique and it sprayed very nicely, dried quickly, and provided a very nice fine matte finish.  I then attempted a zenithal technique to highlight the horizontal upward facing surfaces and got a bit carried away.   The deck ended up lighter than I was hoping for but believe some weathering will tone it down.   Plus, it’ll be well covered with planes at some point, a lot of the deck stays in shadow, probably want it a bit lighter?  Happy Accident? 
  

Then I focused on adding some details to the gun turrets including ladders, arial tower, and railings.   The arial tower was scratch made from available brass.  Using a stencil, I determined a proper shape of the base pattern, marked them in piece of wood and then drilled holes in each angle to hold the legs.   Then soldered the legs together at the top, soldered the cross member and trimmed that to the proper length.   Using heat sinking clamps, I then soldered the inner support trusses.   I’ll admit that it’s a bit overscale in terms of leg thickness.   Then I mounted all the subassemblies to holders for airbrushing.  

Fashioned the Spanker Boom from 3/16” dowel. I used my poor man lathe to taper the boom. Leaving about a ½” of dowel for insertion in the drill chuck, I cut and filed the aft end of the boom down to the approximate thickness (9/64”) before tapering the boom. Made the faux sheave and added the chocks (P&S), cheek block (S only), boom cleat (S only), jaws, and jaw cleats (5.5mm from Crafty Sailor). I made the jaws from 3/32”x 3/16” stock. I cut out a photocopy of the jaws and glued it lightly to the wood strip and used it as a guide for cutting and shaping the strip. Primed and painted the boom black. I left the Crafty sailor cleats in their natural color for contrast. I added brass pins to the jaws to simulate bolts.

The Spanker Gaff was fashioned from 1/8” dowel. The gaff is only tapered on the aft end. Added the halliard stop chocks (P&S) and the jaws. The gaff jaws are a little thicker than the boom jaws, so I used a 1/8” x 1/8” wood strip. I cut and shaped the strip a la the Spanker Boom jaws. I drilled the holes for hitching the 5/32” double block for the throat halliard (Detail 5-J) after gluing the jaws to the gaff. The plan calls for the gaff to be painted black. On the replica ship the gaff is natural. I decided to make the gaff natural, so I stained it with Minwax Golden Oak. Also, the replica ship does not have the “shoulder” shown on Spanker Gaff detail, so I eliminated this and added chocks for the spanker tack. A la the Spanker Boom, I added brass pins to the jaws.

Continuing with the Spanker Gaff, I added the three 3/32” single (P&S) and one 3/32” double (P&S) blocks for the Brails, as shown on the plans.  I also seized the two 5/32” single blocks for the Peak Halliard, and the 5/32” double block for the Throat Halliard and added lacing. Note: The kit is not furnished with 3/32” double blocks, so I trimmed down a 5/32” double block. Also, the plan calls for a 1/16” single block, which is not furnished with the kit, for the flag halliard.  I used a 3/32” block. The Brails run down to the deck and are belayed on the aft fife rail. I haven't seen these on any other build log.

Another item that I’ve only seen on one build log is the clew outhaul shoe block. As noted on Sheet 5, this block is made up of a 5/32” single block and a 1/8” double block seized together. Note: The replica ship does not have this block. The outhaul tackle is seized to the Spanker Boom fore of the cheek block and is reeved through the double block and the cheek block, back through the double block and is then belayed to the boom cleat.

 I’ve studied the plan and can’t wrap my head around how the clew outhaul works with the shoe block in the position that it is shown on Sheet 5.  The way I think it works, when you pull on the tackle, the sail is furled and the leech and foot lines move in two directions with the aid of the brails. The clew line travels with the leech and foot lines and ends up below the throat of the gaff as can be seen in the attached photo or midway at the Spanker Mast (sail luff) as pictured on Sheet 5.

Getting back to the clew outhaul shoe block, I think the position shown on the plan would be the position of the blocks with the sail furled because when the sail is unfurled the outhaul shoe block would have to travel fore. I might be wrong here, but if anyone can better explain the workings of the Spanker Sail I’m all ears. At this point, I’m unsure how or if I will present the brail, leech, foot, and clew lines on the ship. In the meantime, I've fashioned the clew line as per the plans. Note: Landlubber Mike's technique for furled sails on Model Shipways has a good description of spanker sail component and how to make sails.
 
For the Spanker Boom foot ropes, I stretched a length of .012” line between two brads set in a board over laid with paper. I made tick marks about 1/4” about on the paper to mark the location of the knots. I tied a knot at each location, applied a little CA to each knot, and trimmed the loose ends. Next, I seized each foot rope to the Spanker Boom. The difficult part is trying to get the ropes to lineup. I also added the two 3/32” single blocks (P&S) that pass through the cringle at the end of clew line. Each has a block and tackle midway on the Spanker Mast. I added the 3/32” single blocks at the Spanker Mast for the Brails. The blocks were seized to the mast hoops as they appear to be on Sheet 5. The out hauls (P&S) are belayed to the aft fife rail as shown on the Belaying Plan on Sheet 6.

Lastly, I added the fair lead for the boom sheet and the 3/32” double block with ring attached to Horse in transom. Seize the 3/32” double block to the Spanker Boom.  Now, it's time to move on to completing the yards.
 
Moving on to some of the miscellaneous items, I added 1/8” single blocks to the main topmast cross tree for the topgallant braces (as per the replica ship) and the lift lines, and the sling (.018” tan) to the Main Mast for the gaff lift line.

 
 
 

Just messin'

Just a short update since I am officially done with Chapter 11.  I am still debating about adding the swivel gun but they are easily added later.  
 



Moving on to the last chapter.  I will have to keep reminding my self to be patient & take my time...
Steve

Okay, so I have made a tiny amount of progress on this build. As you know, I have a now five-month-old puppy on my hands, which is like having a toddler in the house. To make matters worse, my wife had to travel to California for a month, so I've been taking care of the toddler, er, puppy all by myself during that time. Needless to say, modeling time has been precious scarce.
 
Regarding the 3D parts we last spoke about, my initial impressions have been more or less borne out. The 3"/50s are indeed nice. Do they look like the real thing or even like the kit guns? I can't say for certain -- they're just too small for me to tell easily. At the very least, they are satisfyingly lumpy and bumpy, and I think anyone will be hard pressed to notice if they are faithful reproductions or not at stand-off viewing distances.
 
The 1.1" mount, despite the poor barrel shapes, does have some astonishingly fine details molded into it, although at the small scale a viewer may wonder whether they're details or imperfections in the print. I ran into a couple of difficulties with the mount. First, it proved impossible to replace the unsatisfactory barrels with the much better barrels that came with the earlier set of parts I received from Darius. The good barrels won't fit into the mount. So my choices were either use the bad barrels or build the mount from kit parts to use with the good barrels. I chose the first option. The 3D mount had separate parts for the trainers' seats. One seat had a footrest, but the other's footrest had broken off and was nowhere to be found. No problem there, though -- while trying to glue the bits together, the first seat's footrest likewise broke off (the plastic is very brittle), and my tweezers subsequently flung the tiny, tiny footrest off into that Dimension of Lost Parts. So now neither seat has footrests.
 
I went ahead and glued the aft 3"/50 and 1.1" mounts into their tubs. There's no rigging in that vicinity, so they should be safe from getting knocked around.
 

 
Cheers!
 

He's recommending your build log as a resource for a rookie builder working on a different kit. It's actually a bit of a compliment.

Hello!
 
Been pushing steady on this Mogami the past 9 months, starting to feel like a need a break.   When I start feeling impatient, it’s better to put it down for a bit, so I’ve been messing with a side paper model of the Koln.   I intend to create a build log for that soon.   Since our last discussion, I focused on finishing all photo etching details on the aft deck to be painted the spray can lacquer IJN Gray I’ve been using on the rest of the hull (Tamiya T-69).   I started by determining the placement of the plane carrying carts by modeling out the configuration.   It was neat to see all the planes on the model, it was a feature that initially attracted me to this subject.     Then I taped off the aft deck and hull portions to be painted, shot that section.  
 

That'd be the gallery. Welcome aboard!

That'd be the gallery. Welcome aboard!