dafi

I retook the entry ports and reworked the steps:

 

 

The crew went happy as they got redefined toilet seats :-) No one to fall through the too big holes any more ;-)

 

 

The beakhaed grating got its supporting structure following the frames plan and the small slides are implemented to save the gammoning from the sailors shi..... ;-)

 

 

The stem got the splitlines of the single parts that it was composed from. Impossible with the once horizontal woodstructure ;-)

 

 

And the entry ports got some facimilie paneling painting

 

 

 

And finally I was able to redo the painting. Hallelulja!

 

 

 

 

And finally the overview that looks on the first look so much like 6 month ago!

 

One feature on my list of major changes are the decks: That I am not a fan any more of the wood structures I mentioned already, didn´t I ? 

 

;-)

 

Consequentely this applied for the deck planking too - off course!

 

The idea is to replace the visible decks by real wood: Painted wood in plastic, visible woob in real wood. Tests were carried out to find the suitable technic and hre are the results:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So I can easily show the 3- and 4-but-shift system for the planking including the waterway, whitch will be a great addition to the detailing :-)

 

I think, the two materials work great together and give a nice feeling to the ensemble :-) Looking already forewards for the first visible deck.

 

This addition of materials would also apply to the masts and spars, whitch by the way will replace the too flexible plastic parts of the top rigging

 

Be warned: There are a lot of questions upon the deck planking coming up :-)

Next came the lower gundeck:

 

New elm tree pumps:

 

 

The cain pumps

 

 

The capstans

 

Manger and riding bits

 

 

 

The overviews

 

 

 

The pillars will still come and there is in the moment the question how the ancer cables and the mesanger will be presented: manger up/down, where doe the messanger go exately, loops over the riding bits etc ...

As I already damaged the original painting it was  no more thinking as I discoverd the following: The stern ports are far too high and went straight into the deck framing. On top of it the original flow of the stern planking looked strange on the model.

 

So I decided to put the ports lower and also to lower the moulding for about 3 mm.

 

 

On the left the new position, right the delivered one. For the moulding I used wood profiled with a shaped razor blade. It made a tremendous difference onto the now gracious lines of the stern!

 

Once on the go I looked at the window glazing bars that look quite like Alcatraz: No escape possible! As we know they were not part of the structural integrety of the stern and the galleries I made some tests in filing them down, what worked unexpectedly easily. I use a small file of about 1£ and sanded away the sides untill the width was about 1 mm. One has simpely to work without pressure: No pressure from the file onto the part and no presure from the mind onto the "Oh I have to finish soon!"! The thickness was alternately reduced by scraping carefully with the back of a old scalpel. The with is now about 3 to 5 tenth/mm

 

The file is to be seen on the far left:

 

 

The results were amazing! Here are some stages:

 

 

Not all windows done yet for comparisson. A detail that is difficult to see on the picture: on the lowest row of windows, the windows of the cabin have the lower 2/3rds steped back for the sliding mechanism.

 

 

and before and after:

 

 

And in sitiu

 

 

 

The glazing is made of transparent foil for overhaed projector presentations. Works well!

 

Warning: There will be soon posted some questions about the stern in stern section thread :-)

Another reason of the action was that I was already thinking of reworking the gunport rigols. I now was free to find a new solution for this: first tests proved the right direction and the risk of sanding them without having a solution yet was luckily justified: On the left the original one.

The mass production was fiddled out:

Here the real tings on the living object:

As you can also see, the inside of the gunports were lined with 0,5 mm sheet ABS to give crisp forms.

PS: McKay speaks of "Wriggles", usually I know them as rigols: who is right or what is the more common english expression?

I was about to begin the coppering, when I got suddenly fed up with the omnipresent woodgrain imitation and my old painting efforts. Decision was taken on the second and the Proxxon pen sander started to do his job. Everybody called me crazy! They were right ;-)

 

When I bought the model I loved the structure, as it realllllllly looked like wood to me; At least at the start. But then I got more and more irritated about it. Just look at the real thing: any wood structure to be seen apart from the lower gundeck? And plenty of people already complained for as long as I remember about the overdone structures, but actually I never saw a picture of a model with sanded down surfaces. OK, today I know why, as it was a hell of a job as I was not able to remove all of the applications that were already fixed. 

 

But once this step taken it opened up a whole new world, as all parts were now subject of rethinking and redoing – no more prisoners :-)

 

The poor lady looked a little bit wrecked in the meantime

 

 

 

What a pityful appearence! My god, I got bashed by the other ones in the forums ...

 

:-o

The following period was my own research for how far I would like to go in the details.

 

Most time went into the chainplates, as I don´t like the photo etched parts to much because of their flatness and as I could not find in those days any reference on the internet onto how to massproduce these parts in a sufficient quality. I had to learn how to solder and I finally got the results that I was searching for:

 

Hellers interpretation of the chainplates im memoriam:

 

 

and my interpretation on a test piece

 

 

 

Further came the cannons with all necessairy bolts and breeching rings ...

 

 

... and the carronades with wheels and elevation screw

 

 

 

The chimney got the handles and the frontcover and the belfry it´s handle

 

 

One big decision was taken at this stage too: the lower gundeck got it´s riding bitts, manger and the pumps and will still recieve full traetment :-)

 

 

The last of the "normal" adaptations was to try out the selfadhesive Tiffany copper foil for the copperworks which worked marvellously and will be used. The picture does not pay justice to the apparence.

 

 

At this moment, the directions for me were set :-)

So let the story unfold :-)

 

First of all is a good research, changes are based on the usual suspects: "HMS Victory" from Alan McGowan," The 100-Gun Ship Victory (Anatomy of the Ship Series") by John McKay and lots more books. I had three visits on the ship, one guided tour with a handsome officer who had to answer all my curious questions: poor bloke ;-)

 

Therefore I have tons of pictures in the various stages of the presentation of the ship: sterndavits yes-no, namesign with cartouche and without, hammok nettings natural or black, chainplates yellow-black and pure black and so on ...

 

I tend not to be a rivet counter and take my artistic freedom on what I call "my" interpretation of the model, but I usually try to research facts as best as I can and be able to relate onto reliable sources.

 

But you know it is easy to build a Victory that is close to the original: one just has to know what day, best to know the hour as things sometimes change fast ... 

 

The changes of the pre 2008 period were:

 

Side entry and first version of the steps

 

 

The painting was done with Humbrol/Revell and not really cleand up yet.

 

To get even distance I used a Dremel in a stand with a 1 mm milling cutter

 

 

The painting was done with Revell/Humbrol but not cleand up yet. Then came a break that I took to reconsider a lot of details.

Once upon a time ...

 

Better saying in 2002 I started my Victory as a side project to my Soleil Royal. The next years I finished painting the sides, fixed the Stern and the galleries fixed the lower gundeck and worked on the side entry ports an the steps – even though I personally believe they weren´t there at Trafalgar, it is s toooooo nice detail to skip :-) Also fixed plenty of small details that I will still show here.

 

Came start of end of 2008 and I got my Soleil mostly finished and – more important – got my working space right. and this is where the craziness startet. So please give me  some time to slowly catch up and put you up to the story:

 

This was the state in end of 2008:

 

 

This is the state a mere 2 years later.

 

 

And now in 2013 ... still working on the lower deck ...

 

 

What happend before, in between and what is still to come will be part of this story ...

 

 

Greetings Daniel

Late summer 1805, the sun is burning inexorably from above, the wind is completely asleep, the sea is smooth as glass.

The dispatches have already been exchanged. The master of the small cutter has just returned to his tiny vessel. Behind it there is towering the enormously massiv silhouette of the huge black and ocher striped three decker. Through the open gunports the lashed up guns can be seen. Also the officers' cabins ports are wide opened by the order of the Captain's to ensure an optimal ventilation of the hot and steamy lower decks.

Clatter of activity on some guns being ran out cuts through the silence. The rumble of the heavy guns rolling over the decks and the trampling of countless bare feet and the short shouted commands supported by a multitude of hand signs originate from the ordered gundrill for new gun crews and their officers. In competition between the three decks they are fighting for the fastest rate of firing. The rest of the ships crew is occupied with cleaning and mending duties. The holystone are scratching on the decks.

Above all the sails hang slack in their yards. No breath of wind moves them. They are nestled heavily over stays and fighting tops. The captain took advantage of the hot calm to put up all the canvas possible for airing. One of the studdingsails is taken in, the spar tied up with its inner end against the shrouds, in order to mend something on its fittings. Sitting on a swing seat pendent from the fore top, a crew member just is finishing painting over with ocher the originally black coloured mast loops.

On the poop Captain Hardy monitors the young cadets´ training in navigation, supported by Lord Nelson, who uses the opportunity to entertain the cadets with stories of his actions and the ideas of his tactical concepts.

But in the back of everybodys mind there is just one question - When will there be wind again ...