NMBROOK

Hi Karl
Your carving is just the icing on the cake of what is an exemplary piece of model building  
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Thank you Nils     I am working on Mordaunt as well as Royal William There will be an update when I have reached the point of symetry and new things start to happen.I can't believe how long it takes to lay a deck with curved and tapered planking   Just three plank runs left to finish the deck now,but at around four hours per run and limited time on an evening,things are slow.I have also decided how I am going to make the scratchbuilt pear gratings so they will feature in the next update I just have to decide whether to go for Ebony or Pear combings,the main deck will feature profiled Ebony combings to match the black ones on the contemporary model.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Thank you Nils     I am working on Mordaunt as well as Royal William There will be an update when I have reached the point of symetry and new things start to happen.I can't believe how long it takes to lay a deck with curved and tapered planking   Just three plank runs left to finish the deck now,but at around four hours per run and limited time on an evening,things are slow.I have also decided how I am going to make the scratchbuilt pear gratings so they will feature in the next update I just have to decide whether to go for Ebony or Pear combings,the main deck will feature profiled Ebony combings to match the black ones on the contemporary model.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Thank you Nils     I am working on Mordaunt as well as Royal William There will be an update when I have reached the point of symetry and new things start to happen.I can't believe how long it takes to lay a deck with curved and tapered planking   Just three plank runs left to finish the deck now,but at around four hours per run and limited time on an evening,things are slow.I have also decided how I am going to make the scratchbuilt pear gratings so they will feature in the next update I just have to decide whether to go for Ebony or Pear combings,the main deck will feature profiled Ebony combings to match the black ones on the contemporary model.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Hi Nigel,
 
I was missing your Progress on the wonderful "Mordaunt" hull, is there a Holiday on ice in the Moment ?
 
Nils

This will be my first scratch build 
So after getting some books from ANCRE my choice fell on La Belle and the configuration it had under Cavellier de la Salle’s 1684 expedition.
It is mentioned in Frölich's book as one of the easier ships for a beginner to scrach building. (We'll see about that...)
 
Just order some pearwood from Arkowood, this will be the main building blocks for this model.
I have some boxwood I'll use for carvings and decorations, later I'll order some ebony for wales, railings and blocks.
In a couple of weeks (when my salary comes in) some Proxxon powertools are coming my way from germany.
 
One of the big reasons for this picking this build is it's relativly nice size.
 
Size of the model  
                         Length  Width  Height
Hull                     54        15        18
Model rigged      62         24        52
 

 
Links of interest:
http://olivier.gatine.free.fr/modeles.html
http://nautarch.tamu.edu/model/report1/
http://ancre.fr/en/monographies-en/30-monographie-de-la-belle-barque-1680.html

A little update - decided to start the second planking. I chose not to use the supplied mahogany planking below the lower whales. I had some leftover walnut from another kit & decided to use it.the planking on the real ship is varied with all kinds of different length & width planks with lots of scarph joints so I thought I would show some of them - not all - there`s just too many.The planking at the bow is especially odd with lots of odd shaped short planks.
 

 

 

 
As odd as the bow planking is there are only 2 stealers at the stern!
 
/Mark

Well, for better or worse, I installed the cathead supports and eking. I still wasn't entirely happy, but I had had enough of it.  After finishing that, I had a burst of activity and did the seats of ease, the anchor billboards and the waist gang board rails.
 
The supports and eking are boxwood, as are the seats and billboards. The waist railing uses the same brass stanchions that I used for the quarterdeck ladderway, with a rope railing. 
 
The remaining work on the head is the figurehead, the iron railings and supports and the boomkins. The railings and boomkins won't be done until I've made and installed the bowsprit and done the gammoning. My Sculpey and a set of clay modeling tools just arrived from Amazon, so I'll start experimenting with the figurehead. I'll probably also start working on the bowsprit at the same time.
 
Remaining work on the hull consists of the deadeyes, the hammock stanchions and netting, the anchors, the lantern and the boat(s). It is my current intention not to do any of this until I have at least made and installed the lower masts.
 
Bob

Lower deck - it will not be visible, but I made test how the deck will look with black paper and treenails. I made about 3500 pieces of treenails (diameter 0.55 mm), so I have a sufficient supply for any remaining deck.

This will mark the beginning of my project to build the prototype for the Cutter Cheerful.  The plans are completed and I am getting ready to release the plans in a few months.  I will be building her out of Boxwood or possibly even Pau marfin.  I havent decided.  This project is a POB build as you can see from the details in the plans posted below.  Its not a very cumbersome project with just a cutter rig to deal with.  She is carvel planked and not Clinker planked.  This is one of the reasons why I chose it as a subject.
 
Once I have the skeleton built and the hull planked,  the plans will be released. The remainder of the project is pretty straight forward and doesnt need much of an explanation.  I just need to prove out the design concepts for the hull skeleton.  It shouldnt take too long.  I will be writing a monograph as I build her and posting it on my website for free download as well as here on MSW should folks want to read it.  But as I stated,  I wont need to finish the entire project to release the plans as they are really straight forward.  At a 1/4" scale...the hull will be 28 inches long and 26" tall.  A nice size yet built at a larger scale to show some great details.  
 
I am finally at a point with the Syren store where my inventory is quite full and I will be able to enjoy working on both the Winnie and the Cheerful for several hours each day.  I just cant wait to get started.  Having a laser cutter doesnt hurt either.  It will save me much time.
 
Chuck
 

 

 

Ebony is a beautiful and stunning wood. But it can be a bear cat to work with. Super hard. Not easily bendable. Dulls blades and the dust is like coal. But the end result I worth. Many years ago I went to an antique show in the suburb of Winnetka at an old manor. I saw coffee table made from ebony with maple trim, a first. I almost fainted. It was perfect. I forgot the price. Today I doubt it could be done.
David B

Excellent work mate and some fabulous pictures I agree,the rigging will make an even bigger impact to an already stunning model.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Hello Nigel!
Yes I do agree. Today in fact, I looked through some nice pieces of ebony. I will definitely work with ebony soon. I wanted to give this method a thorough testing for those who might be limited in choice by conviction or pocket book
 
Always a pleasure to hear from you!
 
Bill

Hi Bill
 
With your woodworking experience I would give serious consideration to using the real deal.I used to shy away from Ebony after reading all the 'negative press' but one day I thought I would give it a go as a bit of a challenge.Now I have sussed all the little idiosyncrasies of working with this timber,I do actually find it both a pleasure and rewarding to work with.Just a thought my friend.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel 

Hi Michael,
My avatar is our dog, Buster, and he is a lovable little guy.
 
I think the consensus is that your artistry trumps any deviations in accuracy. You had me hooked with the scarf jointed planks and 3 sizes of nails back on page 1!

Wednesday, September 17, 2014
 
After a few days of inactivity due to a dental intervention that I cannot define as "simple routine", today I felt able to resume works without taking risks and so I started to cut out the bulkheads of the brig.
Usual method: printing of the bulkheads using my computer with AutoCAD, gluing the paper over the plywood and cutout of the piece with the scrollsaw . . except ending the day using the coping saw which I found to need less time overall.
Let me better explain: using the scroll saw, which as I already had occasion to write is not a simple tame horse, I'm forced to go rather slowly in order to avoid to do damages, and, always for the same reason, I cut a little generous. As a result I have a lot of work with a file and sanding blocks, making a lot of fine powder very annoying. However at the end the bulkhead is near perfect.
But then I realized that, having to work on rather soft poplar plywood, if I use the coping saw, it takes me more or less the same time to cut but the result is 99.5% accurate, and consequently the finishing stage is minimal and I save a lot of time. Moral: I save time with the same result.
Now, I do not mean that manually is better than with the powertool, but in this case, thanks to favorable circumstances, it proved to me the best method. So I guess for the remaining bulkheads to proceed manually. 
Finally here below shown the frames ready, the first six from the bow. They are dry mounted on the keel to make sure everything is well in place. 
 
01 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00322_zpsded718c4.jpg

 
02 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00323_zps321a2cd8.jpg

 
03 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00324_zps6edb10ed.jpg

 
Even the longitudinal reinforcement seem to fit perfectly. . I think I'm on the right way.
 
04 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00326_zpse004032f.jpg

A touch of color and personalization. .
 
05 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00325_zps6918e259.jpg

 
To the next message . . Jack.

Saturday, August 30, 2014  
Yesterday afternoon I decided to start to cut out the keel and the bulkheads. For the bulkheads I went, during the morning, in a timber warehouse where I had cut about thirty tablets of poplar plywood (5mm thick and measuring 15 x 20cm). 
Considering the amount of cuts to perform I setup the power Proxxon jigsaw that I show here below
 
Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/IMG_2280_zps740fa05b.jpg

 
Before working seriously I printed a couple of bulkheads and pasted them on a 5mm plywood that I already had in the workshop. Why this ? Just to avoid to waste the precious tablets bought in the morning. I had the need to become familiar with the power jigsaw which is a tool that, like as some wild horses, cannot be guided too easily and you need to know him better, otherwise it goes where he wants. . 
 
So I cut out a couple of bulkheads, with results not so much satisfactory. Then I repeated a few more tests to improve the result coming to the conclusion that I would have used the power tool for straight and slightly curved cuts but not when it was necessary to cut tight curves or corners. In this latter two cases I prefer to use the manual jigsaw. 
 
So I started to cut the three elements that make up the keel, work that I managed quite well and I used, during the refining phases, the bulkheads I cut previously just to evaluate all the joints: some were right since the beginning, others I had to adjust them with a flat file. So happily, I planned to close this first day on this new model at the pub with a nice beer . . when, at the last moment I said, "let's try one of the tablets 15 x 20".
And I've had a nice surprise: instead of being 5mm thick the tablets were 6mm !!!!! GOOD START. . HOPE A LUCKY PROJECT . .
 
Briefly all the joints on the keel would be widened, but being the keel made with a 7 layers birch plywood, rather hard, it is not so easy to remove 0.5mm on both sides of each joint, so I cursed the timber warehouse and I went to get my beer, as you can presumably imagine, a little nervous . . 
In the evening, however, I decided to redo from scratch the keel with the joints of the right width and, since I had already got to realize that all the frames included in the first project version are probably too many for a POB hull, I decided to reduce them in number, while maintaining the same number only fore and aft. 
 
This morning I already changed the AutoCAD design and when I'll resume the will to breathe sawdust I'll just make them again. For now, I propose the new version of the keel:
 
Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/V015Brick24Keel_zpsa04a44c3.jpg 

 
See you again soon, Jack.Aubrey.
 

Thursday, September 18, 2014  
Today I went out to cut others bulkheads . . now only two aft are missing, and this step will be completed. 
As I mentioned yesterday, I've been working exclusively manually with a coping saw and the matter was of my complete satisfaction, especially for wood dust in less that I created . . 
For the rest, nothing new . . tomorrow I hope to finish up the missing bulkheads and start thinking about permanently fix them to the keel.
 
01 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00338_zps7a088da4.jpg

 
02 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00335_zpsabeefbd9.jpg

 
03 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00336_zps3b2f9ed9.jpg

 
04 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00331_zps1aa1c37e.jpg

 
05 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/CAM00328_zps858a8bd5.jpg

 
Cheers, Jack.Aubrey.
 

Saturday, September 20, 2014  
Today I completed to cut the bulkheads, a small job because only few of them were missing. Below the images of the dry test that sounds pretty good, having no problems at all at this time. 
Then I did other tasks, little stuff, but I'll explain in detail in a future post. 
Regards, Jack.Aubrey.

01 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/P1090964_zps101e0520.jpg

 
02 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/P1090962_zps10a620cd.jpg

 
03 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/P1090960_zps3fd9ec32.jpg

 
04 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/P1090965_zps284caef9.jpg

 
05 Brick%20de%2024%20Plans/P1090963_zpsd56f545f.jpg

 

Yesterday I received another card ship model for my stash.  It is the IJN Fuso by Halinski in 1:200 scale.  Why the Fuso? I have lusted over this kit for a few years now after following a build log here in MSW 1.0 and since found several more on other sites.  The level of detail in all the build logs are incredible and I wasn’t sure if the kit came this way or was extra details added by the modeller.  After pouring over it again and again I can say the detail is in the kit.  There are very few items on the Halinski Fuso which could or would be improved with further detailing although more experianced people would probably disagree.
 
Compared to the GPM Bismarck I am working on the level of detail to be added is considerably more than the Bismarck which has a lot of items printed directly on to the paper and can be further detailed by the modeller if desired. The Halinski ship provides the detail or provides the info to include them such as step irons and ladders for example.  Later published models from Halinski definitely deserve the praise they receive on the detail of their kits which I will discuss later.
 
Until I came across card models the Imperial Japanese Navy ships were never on my radar but since then found them incredibly interesting.  I love the complicatedness of the Pagoda masts as multi-layered structures with access ways and ladders and passages really appeal (that’s why I am not a fan of modern boring slab sided vessels).
 
The distinctive tall pagoda masts, which were ridiculed by other nation’s navy’s as being top heavy and unstable were developed for the Japanese strategy of night time engagements.  They initially left the ship yards with traditional tripod masts but slowly got added to and climbed higher and higher with refits and upgrades over their life.  The theory being that the higher platforms would be able to spot the enemy at longer distances first with powerful search lights and get the jump on them. The pagoda’s absolutely bristles with binoculars and search lights.  Of course all this potential height advantage was lost due to the introduction of ship borne radar.
 
I love this photo of the Yamahiro, Fuso (middle) and Haruna for reasons I can’t explain.  The towering pagodas give a kind of impression of ‘on your steps’ ‘get ready’…I don’t know the image is so Japanese, like an old wood cut print or something with Manga & Anime imagery all bundled together…like I say hard to explain.

 
 
Okay enough waffling  , on with the kit.  Halinski’s reputation of being the Premium of card models is well deserved and include a few well thought out ideas.  The kit book is roughly A3 size with multiple pages of varying types and weights which is interesting.
 
The parts on the photo below are printed on to thin paper which of course for the deck needs to be stuck down to a thicker form.  The detail of printing is exceptional with a lot of detail although printed flat have a 3D look about them which I haven’t found on the Bismarck.  Some make you run your finger across the page to verify that is just printed.  There appears to be only very minimal weathering on some of the parts.

 
 
This next point I think is incredible and although it would add to the cost of the kit it would be minimal compared to the advantages and other publishers should take note.  Many of the parts pages are coloured on the reverse.  Simple but the benefits off not having to colour reverse sides on exposed services add to the finished quality of the model in my opinion.
 
The majority of parts are printed on what appears typical weight Bristol paper to me but the lower red hull panels appear to be printed on pretty thick paper. I can see both advantages and disadvantages to this.  Since no one mentions this in other builds then must be okay.

 
 
Another nice touch is the assembly drawings are printed on quality glossy paper and appear to be rendered computer images which very clearly show how things are assembled. The shading and rendering shows parts relationships very clearly compared to line drawings.  A couple of pictures showing this below.
 


 
 
Now the details (and this can be seen in the assembly drawings above) the amount of ‘iron work’ to be made is awesome.  There is a full A3ish page crammed with all the rails, braces, pipes, foot and hand holds etc necessary to fully detail the ship.  In comparison the Bismarck has a few of jack staffs shown and the rest could be done with generic photo etch as no details are given.  The Fuso wins hands down on this alone as these are the details which although tiny are many and really brings the structures to life.
 
As my philosophy is now to get laser cut forms where available also applies to the Fuso.  There are 15 sheets of laser cut details and as can be expected the majority of these are for the hull.  Although the hull is very roughly the same size as the Bismarck I would say the mount of forms used to build up the Fuso hull up is at least 50% more.  I have no doubt the laser cut forms will fit perfectly.  I have used others for Bismarck and a vehicle and they always seem to fit right.  Being Halinski I have no concerns there.

 
 
Problems/Issues: Major one, I can’t start it  .  I physically don’t have the space with the Bismarck going as well so will put it away for the time being and bring out to pour over now and then, sad as that may seems  .
 
Finally cost; not a great deal more than Bismarck in fact the forms were the same.  With conversion costs it worked out around to A$80 for the kit and A$50 for the laser cut forms.  Now the kicker, shipping from Poland to Australia was around the A$80 mark.  It was bought directly from Halinski and took around 11 days door to door.  Pretty good as the other 2 Polish places I buy from are usually bang on 14 days every time.
 
Cheers
Slog
 
 

Hi Soren
Much depends on what scale you are working to.The neatest way is to glue thin black paper to one edge and end of each plank,however obviously depending on the paper thickness,it can look too much on the smaller scales.For the smaller scales,pencil,or mixing a little black ink with the glue can be used.The result from the ink method is dependent on the absorbency of the timber so experimentation is advised.A permanent marker can be used but again do a trial run to check it doesn't bleed too much into the wood.I think in all cases making a little 'dummy' section of deck with the same timber as the model is the best way.You can make a sample of each and see what you prefer.Apply what ever finish you will be using,I use the pencil method and after sanding you can't see it,however after applying the poly I use,the appearance changes dramatically.
 
Kind Regards Nigel

I'm quite agree with Nigel.
And you have already begun semi-scratch building.
I'm sure that you are sure of your abilities to overcome scratch building.
The issue is the time, the patience and the endurance for you.
The scratch wants much more time...
And it's important to be able to enjoy all the journey as well as to reach the destination...

Thank you Michael
Like Buck,I can appreciate the frustration that this build has caused in the past.However I think you can draw from the experience in that you have learned that you enjoy another pastime.That of historical research.It isn't every builders 'cup of tea' but it can be as enjoyable as the build itself if you are that way inclined.
Besides your next project you have stashed ,the only advise I could offer looking into the future is to seriously consider scratchbuilding.I think this way you can enjoy the research and start from a blank sheet of paper with having to redo someone's inaccurate kit design.You certainly shouldn't have any reservations about your ability,I am confident you would excel with whatever vessel took your fancy.
Enough waffle from me   I look forward to seeing more updates of your Wasa
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel

Nigel,
 
I appreciate your thoughts, yes the research bit certainly makes things more interesting. Even along with all of those inherent resulting frustrations it creates The learning bit is inspiring I enjoy this very much. Translating it into a kit build is the conundrum. (:-)
 
Though the research part sort of allows me to share in the thoughts from past lives, and how those people created to the best of their abilities. A nice facet of this hobby.
 
Scratch-building is a huge leap up (for me) . And certainly makes research the leading edge of a project, one that becomes very absorbing as well. Thanks for your confidence in my potential abilities. Presently I don't have that level of comfort. Your RW, for example is breathtaking---I'm not even on the same planet as you (:-) Though my next project will, just after opening the box, benefit from all that I have learned here at MSW from so many artists. Nigel you have always been so kind with your thoughtful comments, a heartfelt THANKS...
 
I am putting my current frustrations on the back burner and will continue with this Vasa, a build that, accuracy frustrations aside, am really enjoying. Again thank so much for being a kind follower, your esteemed mate....
 
Michael
 
Michael

Excellent work mate and some fabulous pictures I agree,the rigging will make an even bigger impact to an already stunning model.
 
Kind Regards
 
Nigel