Krelis

Many centuries watertransport was the fastest and most comfortable way of traveling on the coasts and along the big rivers in Europe. By towing with horses along the rivers and canals. By sail across the open waters.
 
The statenjacht was the Rolls Royce of this passenger ships. Used to move fx company executives or other VIPs from place to place to execute their jobs.
 
It was the time of the Barroque. So this ships were fitted out with most comfortable state cabins, bedrooms, kitchens, and last but not least magnificently decorated.
 
 
At first I had in mind to build the HMY Mary from 1670. Only her decorations and paintings were very complicated.
 
The Utrecht, however, seems to me a bit simpler decorated. Moreover, in the books of Seawatch books are very good plans of this ship.
 
I build the Utrecht in scale 1:36. As POF model. However, I'm doing the frames of10mm plywood. Since the frames are not seen through the planking, solid wood is too good for this job in my eyes.
 
Some shots from yesterday.
 

 

 

 

 
Regards Hartmut

Hi everyone!
 
A big thank you to everyone who has shared in Rainbow's journey! Thanks for all your comments, feedback, advice and, of course, the Likes! Piet, Dave, Mike and Elia - a special thanks to you guys for your last comments.
 
Well, I can safely say that Rainbow is about 99% finished. I just need to do some touching up to the hull's paint job, as well a bit more cleaning up of the rigging, but essentially, she's finished. The mainsail has been attached to the mast. The genoa is set and the port side railing has been done.
 
Here're the photos.
 
Cheers
 
Patrick

except for the yellow mast it starts looking like its straight from a Tintin movie, I am sure there will be plenty of debate among these old salts about the colours, by the way, I think that green looks really authentic, blends well with the other colours

In order for me to understand better the rigging practices for cutters of the 18th Century, I wrote to the National Maritime Museum asking if I could see some of the cutter models they have in storage, now that they no longer have a model display at the Museum in Greenwich.
 
Nick Ball, the Assistant Curator of Ship Models, wrote back very quickly saying that I would be welcome to visit and could see all of the models I had requested which are now stored at the Royal Historic Dockyard in Chatham -- except for one which was stored in another location less accessible to the occasional visitor.
 
He, together with Dave Lindridge the Store Manager, gave me a very generous amount of time to look at and photograph the models that they had taken out for inspection – during which they provided a lively discussion about their jobs and the models they were showing. In fact Nick said he was pleased to show visitors the models because it gave him more of an opportunity to review models in their vast collection.
 
I asked Nick about permission to post my pictures and he told me it was fine as long as I made it clear the pictures were from the NMM collection. He also asked to be provided to the links of the photos as he himself (as a trained naval archaeologist) was very keen on the details and would enjoy any discussion that ensued.
 
I will post the photos of the individual models under different messages, this post deals only with the first of the models.
 
I just need to add that I am enormously grateful to Nick and Dave for their patience and generosity with their time for this visit, which for me was invaluable.
 
1763 cutter NMM ID SLR0510
 
First off is their cutter referenced in the NMM as Object ID SLR0510. It is described there as “a full hull model of a cutter (circa 1763) Scale: 1:48. The vessel measures 53 feet on the main deck by 20 feet in the beam and is armed with twelve 3-pounders. The model was donated unfinished and was completed in the Museum in 1960”.
 

 
For me there were four main points of interest, apart from the fact that it is dated the same year as my Sherbourne.
 
The first is that the fore belaying pins are arranged fore-aft beside the bowsprit. Gregor, Dirk, Kester and I have been trying to figure out how the belaying pins would be set given that the kit of the Sherbourne provides no plans for such a belaying rack. Each of us have provided our own particular possibility – with Dirk going for an arrangement such as that on the AOTS book of the Alert, and Gregor going for a rack right on the stem. I had made a rack that was parallel to the windlass.
 
However, now I have seen the arrangement on the NMM cutter SLR0510, and, as you will see, the 12-gun cutter I saw had the same arrangement, I have changed my own rack accordingly.
 

 

 
The second is that the topmast is fore of the main mast. I had understood that earlier in the century the practice was to place the topmast aft of the main mast. In fact the cutter Hawke (which I also saw at Chatham and whose pictures follow in a subsequent post) was the only one of these models to place the topmast aft of the main mast.
 

 

 
The third point of interest was the windlass. The original NMM plans for the Sherbourne showed this type of windlass, and Gregor has already made one in the same style, and I followed his example – rather than following the type of windlass provided for in the Sherbourne kit.
 

 

 
The fourth point of interest is that, like the Trial that you'll see in a subsequent post, the lower hull is painted up to the wales, and not to a waterline.
 

 
The following were the other pictures I took of the1763 cutter, all of which will have details which will be picked up by those more knowledgeable than I am!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Tony

except for the yellow mast it starts looking like its straight from a Tintin movie, I am sure there will be plenty of debate among these old salts about the colours, by the way, I think that green looks really authentic, blends well with the other colours

except for the yellow mast it starts looking like its straight from a Tintin movie, I am sure there will be plenty of debate among these old salts about the colours, by the way, I think that green looks really authentic, blends well with the other colours

except for the yellow mast it starts looking like its straight from a Tintin movie, I am sure there will be plenty of debate among these old salts about the colours, by the way, I think that green looks really authentic, blends well with the other colours

here is  the real thing, welding and placing of the stud went in one go
 
some well coordinated hammering at 7:40!

here is  the real thing, welding and placing of the stud went in one go
 
some well coordinated hammering at 7:40!

here is  the real thing, welding and placing of the stud went in one go
 
some well coordinated hammering at 7:40!

Progress in the paintshop. It's a real pain in the **s to find out wich collours where to use because I have only black/white pictures but with the help of some old sailors it will be a succes. Al collours will be softened later with washes and dry brush.
 

 

 

here is  the real thing, welding and placing of the stud went in one go
 
some well coordinated hammering at 7:40!

how to bash a chain with this structure in scale cca 1-1,5 mm diam. of chain ring ?
 
Nenad, may I remind you of the swiftness of Cutty Sark? In true life bystanders did not have more  than the "galloping horse perspective" as mentioned in another blog.

All my hopes of a good outcome for your Admiral Nenad. 

Hi Nenad
 
Good luck with Mrs Nenad. Please pass my regards onto her. I hope that this is a minor setback and easy to overcome.
 
Cheers and all the best
 
Patrick

Amazing, astonishing, great

A couple of updates.....
First, I'll share this discovery with everyone.  After going through several other products, I have found the brightest metallic gold on the market.  Measurably brighter than anything I have ever tried.....Found it at Lowe's.

 
Here it is on the entry sculpting....

 
And here's the entry fitted to the ship....

 
 

In 2010 I started a blog on this first build. The blog continued for perhaps 6 months when model ended up behind cupboard doors next to the Christmas tree decorations and a pile of books on boat building and rigging. Last week the hull found its way back to the building board  for final stage of planking. .
After three years of abstinence I had to get it all back in my fingers again; wood bending and cutting, doing all the checks before application of glue, getting it right
 
My old MSW account and blog are gone, but I still got the pictures:

Purchased by my dad somewhere in the eighties

The instruction drawing, the big white area pretty much sums up the Corel planking instructions; must have left my dad with a huge question mark above his head and perhaps explains why it took a next generation to muster the courage to add glue to the various components  - with inspiration derived from internet, especially MSW.

I suppose Corel must have taken note of the work of Frederick af Chapman.
 
Fredrik Henrik af Chapman http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredrik_Henrik_af_Chapman

the Ketch, no. 3 in Chapmans' Architectura Navalis Mercatoria, published in 1768. The book contained 62 illustrations of ships and smaller vessels, both Swedish and foreign designs. Some of these were Chapman's own designs, but many were also types that he had seen during visits to foreign countries. Everything from large warships to small fishing vessels were represented (Source: wikipedia).
 

Set up of frames

Solid Surinam hardwood handle keeping everything in check
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Many planking instructions suggest you should divide the space over the frames evenly according to the number of planks and then taper and hang the planks accordingly,thats what I did with the first layer of planking. Its wrong. With 5 mm planks the planks decide how they run, they are too narrow to allow for spiling, only with wide enough planks (planks which allow for spiling) the planker may devide the space according to his will

looks like its made of match sticks
But add filler and sand it all down, and youre ok..

with first layer, that is

addition of false stems and keel (not included in kit), made from oak

Problem: the instructed planking scheme for the second layer does not match the dimensions of the first layer as defined by the frames, I therefore find it necessary to heighten the bull warks therewith altering the the side profile / the run of the gunwale.

And commence planking of second layer,
I then find this picture on the internet...

A revelation: planks do not necessary end at the bow but may turn upward and form "saddlebags" underneath the whales.

Saddlebag

After completion of the saddlebags (the segments which require dropplanks) I commenced at the keel with the lower concave sections (the sections which require stealers).
.
I let the first planks envelop the stem

The two sections meet at the one plank which connects straight and free from bow to stern
 

Another important find is that all you need for woodbending is a glass of water and a candle
 

Stick the end of the wood in the glass, and let it soak until its wet about 3 cm above the water, then you know its soaked enough...then hold it above the candle and bend it, you will feel the wood give in. Dont overbend it, you cant bend it back. If the wood burns easily it probably means you did not soak long enough. If the wood dries up on the outside while heating use a brush to keep the wood wet on the outside of the bend.
 
Do not only bend the wood but give it the right twist at the same time..

to ensure stress free gluing...

for each and every plank..
 
 
[to be continued]

some of those pigs must have made quite some flight hours before being chopped up, poor animals, all in the stench of those two heads

Thanks, Jan;  Lincoln has been consistently in the top 100 cities to live in the US.  When you've lived there for most of your life, you tend to think the grass is greener on the other side.  It's not.  No wonder the richest man in the world lives in Nebraska, and stays in Nebraska (Warren Buffet).

In fact hanging models from a ceiling is an old Dutch protestant trick to lure people into looking upwards, to the heavens I guess, so called "Church Models"
 

So, here's the model as it looks, planked, but no keel, stem or sternpost. The inner bulwarks is only test fit and not glued into place yet.
 

 
I've just installed the shear molding under the gunports, laminated many of the parts to give them thickness. I also made the mast coat, hawse pipes, prepped some of the mast top hardware, began shaping the wooden dowel mast, and glued up the anchor stocks, but haven't been added yet.
 
Parts are in the process of construction, so still look rough, particularly the round ones.

 
Some deck hatches. The only thing I'm not super happy with is the gratings since they're only printed. I know I could just make scratch gratings from wood, but it would be nice to see how the final ship looks as built from the kit.

 
View of the quarterdeck. I had a bit of a white gap at the bottom of the bulwarks and tried to even out the look with paint, but I got a little on the printed deck. After cleaning, I had to give the deck a wash of paint to even out the look.

 
 
A view of the bow showing the friezes, wales, stem and bow planking. Note the horseshoe. The one on the other side tore when I cut it and it doesn't look as sharp.

 
 
Close up of the bow planking.

 
 
Everyone who’s seen this model is amazed at how sturdy a card hull can be, including me. The lapstraked planking really makes this model solid. I also get a lot of people asking me what kind of wood was used for the deck planking, right before they say “this is paper?”
 
 
This being my first card model, I’ve learned to cut carefully and to soak parts with CA to make them stiffer and to make it easier to shape them and so that the edges don’t “fuzz up”. Plus, it makes it easier to cut very delicate pieces without them tearing up. I’ve also learned to cut out the hollow portions of parts before cutting the parts from the sheet.
    Clare

Both the bow and the stern look good. I especially like the roundness of the stern.
Marc

T e i l  4

Hi friends ,
 
 
 
 
 
 
Teil 2
 
 
Regards Karl