zoly99sask

I have an AL Nina in the stash, so I'll be watching your build, Joe.

So, let's make some more saw dust.
The hardest thing when you get back after a long delay is to remember where I left of. First I cleaned up my workbench and tools and sorted out what I had in boxes etc.
 
I decided to modify the spar deck a bit. I cut more beams away, but am adding a few more planks towards the bow along the starboard side. That way I can add one more canonade in that position. I am also adding four of the horizontal knees along that side.
Meanwhile I have to continue with the slanted knees on the gun deck. You can see them lying in the foreground to the left.

Now that all the breech lines are fitted but not glued in place and all holes for the tackle lines drilled I have moved on to the rigging of the tackle blocks using the 3 mm hooks, 3/32" single and double blocks and .008" light brown rope, all from Syren and again Chuck is to be complimented on his quick order fulfillment. Now onto the tedious, slow and eye straining work.
First I blackened the hooks while still attached to the master carrier sheet using "Novacan Black Patina". One tip for blackening is to heat the cleaned brass sheet under a light bulb and then add the patina to both sides using a brush or Q-tip and may require up to two or three applications to attain the depth of color.

 
Next I made a fixture to hold the tiny blocks by gluing two lengths of 26 gauge wire into the edge of a piece of hardwood spaced apart the same distance as the holes in the blocks. One is longer than the other by the thickness of the block which makes it much easier to index one hole at a time rather than two. The hardwood strip is held at a 45 degree angle in a panavise to add the first end of the stropping rope. Next each of the block holes were enlarged using #76 drill bit, this makes it easier to add to the fixture and insert the rope ends into while rigging the blocks and also smoother to adjust in the final adjustment. I did the double blocks first to develop the technique and these were the easier to do since they only need the hook to be added.

 
One thing to note is when gluing the first end pinch the block and glued rope end and bend the rope at 90 degrees while the glue is still wicking in the rope; this will make it easier to add the hook. Also avoid gluing the block to the fixture wires and hardwood.

 
Next the hook is added and centered on the end and the rope carefully wrapped around the complete block and glued in place and set aside. The excess end of the rope should be trimmed once the glue has set.

 
While waiting for the glue to set drill the holes in the next double block.
 

 
Here is the finished double block and also how I made a double ended CA glue applicator to carefully add the CA without gluing the block to the fixture. The CA will build up over time on the ends and they are easily cleaned with an Xacto blade

 
Next can the single blocks which required not only the hook but the tackle line as well. I held a #76 drill bit in the jaws of a Panavise with the smooth shank end up to form the rope hole. I wet the end of the rope with water and bent the end and inserted the bent end through the loop formed by tying a common knot in small whipping thread. The two were then set on the end of the shank and the thread knot carefully tightened against the shank. The a half hitch can the be tied to hold the rope in place while whipping the rope end in place. The end is tied off again with a half hitch. CA is then carefully added to the whipping thread and short end of the rope (bend end away from tackle rope first) and the hole end around the drill shank last and move the rope back and forth to prevent the CA from setting on the shank. Just FYI I started with a 5" length of rope this may be able to be shortened to 4". 

 
Here is the rope end with formed hole.

 
Next the single block is rigged with the hook and then the rope is added with the stropping end inserted into the rope hole and then wrapped around to the last side and glued in place. The assembly is removed from the fixture wires and set aside to allow the glue to set before trimming the end off. Note that the hook and rope hole need to be centered on their respective ends of the block when wrapping the stropping rope. The hook should be able to move while the rope will glue in place.
 
 
 
Here are the first two tackle ropes in place. The were completely soaked with water before adding to the eyebolts and once added the tackle was pulled tight on each side centering the carronade in the middle of the gunport. Water can be added to both once set in place and be careful not to drip water on the deck and allow the ropes to dry in place and take a set. The end of the rope was tied off at the sled eyebolt per the reference of photos of the restored ship. It looks like a length went back to the waterway eyebolt after being tied and lashed to a rope. I am assuming that in a real scenario a rope coil was in place on the deck adjacent to the eyebolt on the sled end. Can anyone verify this assumption? 

 
Now back to tying holes in tackle ropes and adding to the single blocks. Glad I only have 42 more to do.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Thanks Zoltan and thanks for the likes everyone. I am moving at the pace of a snail but am honestly enjoying this build. I just finished painting the inside and am getting ready to lay the deck down. I am going to paint everything except the deck black.
 
Ian
 

Cobr@ and Patric: I will probably go with "matt metal black from Admirality. if nothing because I like that particulary paint. It really looks like the old painted cannons and anchors you see in museums etc.
 
Enemeink: I have visited that homepage before but forgot about it. Thanks for reminding me and giving me the link.
 
Tiny update:
 
The decoration:
 

 
And where it will go eventually:
 

 
The blue/white/red shield was a pain to paint, the whole thing only 20 mm high. Hopefully the fuzzy lines will not show as much when the whole stern is completed.
 
Now only the anchor left, then another 5-6 weeks of waiting. But next time theres 4 issues coming, maybe they will last a week at least... 

Its been awhile since I've posted anything on my Triton. But I've been a little busy on her this weekend. The exterior planking is complete now. And the gun ports are being framed. While framing the gun ports I found out why I should have built a framing jig. While looking at the framing without any planking they looked pretty good. But when I started it work on the ports I found that there was some leaning. It wasn't a hard problem to solve, filing and planking will work. I'm going to stain the lower framing a darker color than the upper framing. What does wipe on poly do compared to a minwax stain? I'm also finding that before I do a full scratch build I'll get myself a few more power tools. As I go along again I'm glad that I chose this over a Triton full build. The lower deck is under construction right now and will be fully planked over but the upper will be more open, so my skills will need to improve. Sometime this month I will also resume my subscription to my Sovereign. Looking forward to it. As y'all can see in my pictures I included one of my Constellation. It was started around fifteen years ago, but got heavely damaged and has sat all this time. Does any one know if a set of plans can be gotten for her? If not there are enough build logs to use. As I was telling my wife that the only problem with this forum is that I've gone from a couple of ideas for future builds to seeing many, many wants and desires. Whoa is me. Thanks guys and gals for all the amazing work that is shared. As I lay in bed waiting to fall asleep I scroll through different logs more than I read now. With all my heart felt gratitude till later, Mike.

I am slowly building the lower floor of the Triton. I thought that I would show my home made guide for cutting slots. Still more pieces to cut out. I enjoy building by the kit, but this first try at scratch building is a pleasure. I ordered some wood and cannons from the Lumber Yard but I'm not sure if I ordered the right size. I got nine pounders but then they emailed me about nine pounders and nine pounders long. Does anyone what the difference is? I also ordered some rope and blocks from Syren. Well time to get back to building, till later Mihael.

I finished the lower shrouds on the Mizzen Mast today
 
Here're the pennants.
 

 
Here are the shrouds and swifter ready to install
 
 

 
Here are few pictures of them installed.
 

 

 

 
Now on to the top mast shrouds.

The planking is looking good so far!

Pretty much there now. Just bit of tidying up and a few more rigging lines.
 
Sorry about the small photos again but I will be doing a finished set of photos with a proper background so I'll try and make them bigger then.
 
 

Started the planking of the lower part if the hull.
So far so good. Some mistakes but I am not too worriedaboutit since this is the first layout.
This is definitely a learning curve!!

I built a plastic airfix kit years ago and used this website for reference. It's a big archive of info if ever needed. One day I will build this ship in wood, just as soon as I have a place to put it when it's done, and the budget to buy it...
 
http://www.wasadream.com/Index/indexenglish.html

Decided to drag this model out of the closet at build it to try and break my model building blues. I became a bit distracted by other life events and modeling took a back seat. Am hoping this will rekindle a fire. 
For starters, here are a few pictures of what I am building. Will add a simple photo etch set and a wooden deck to give a little flavor.
 



 
I started by building the anti aircraft guns and secondary guns. The parts are so small and detailed, it's hard to believe plastic can be molded in that fashion. Plastic models have come a long, long way since I was a kid. For the youngsters among us, that was just after Noah built his ark. 

For those who might be following or just reading through this thread, I thought maybe some of you might be unfamiliar with photo etch (PE) and particularly the micro small stuff. Lots of times, PE must be folded to represent a 3D object. When folding is required on micro small PE, some special tools come in very handy, maybe absolutely necessary to get an accurate fold. I wanted to show you a couple of the tools I use and how I use them.
 
1st is a magnifying light combination. I am sure most of you have something like this but if not, you will need to acquire one if you are going to work with small PE parts. My daughter bought me this one quite a few years ago for my birthday (what a sweetheart).
 

 
The next essential tool is a photo etch bending device. It measures about 6" x 4", is made of a machined aluminum plate with a spring loaded steel machined plate that slides up and down by turning a set screw (the large black knob). This tool I acquired about 15, maybe 20 years ago. I am not certain it is production anymore as it was a cottage industry product when I bought it. In any event, this or a similar tool is a must.
 

 
Next I am going to show you how to use the tool. The PE is slid under the steel plate precisely where it is to be bent. It is then clamped down and using a single edge razor blade to slide under the part, then bent up to a 90 degree angle (or whatever angle is required). If a second bend is required as in the case of my example, it is unclamped then repositioned where the second bend is required and the folding process repeated.
 

 
 

 

 
The finished product looks like this. These are ammo box racks that are glued to the AA guns. A little plastic ammo box fits inside the ammo rack.
 

 
At the present time, I am still laboring to finish building the AA and secondary guns. Next post, I will take some photos of the built, unpainted guns. Man, these things are so small! It's very tedious work to say the least, but quite fun in a certain masochistic sort of way. 

Bob:
The wood is great quality, as is the laser cut. I guess the pre marking helps a beginner a lot. You'll have to be illiterate and blind to glue the parts in the wrong place. (I hope this comment won't jump up and bite me later on...)
 
Jan:
I've been thinking of one of these: 
 
 
Attached the frame and supports yesterday. Der FRAU has some strange idea that I should go to bed so I didn't post them last night...
 
Frame #7 (the 4th frame), foremast support and bottom "deck":
 

 
 
Cannon deck/frame supports glued on:
 

 

 

 
She'll be one big tub, 4th frame 172 mm wide!
 
 
Next is the anchor. Instructions say to paint it "metallic grey", gives the color code RAL 5011, which is labelled "Steel blue".
I'll probably go with Admirality's matt metal black.
We'll see.

Thanks all!
Meanwhile, all gunports lids were fitted into the ports.
Only the last pair is still to be finished. They are for the gun port in the bow on the port side.
This gun port is a special case, because of the rounding of the bow.
The fit of this cover halves at this place requires special attention.
This couple also receives a dropfront as a protection against the armature.

 

 

 
To be continued ...
 

Well, after a few restarts, a bunch of wasted copper, and a few lessons learned, I have started the task of coppering ! I just hope I have enough copper, but I can always get some more from model expo for free, as they have a great replacement parts policy. Anyway, this is going to be a great learning experience! I am using the rubber/plastic gloves to keep from getting finger prints on the plates.


That's all for now. Thursday, I am going on an 8 day vacation, so I will be gone for a while. I wI'll come back with me next ship, and will start building that after my phantom. I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I? It will give me some incentive to finish.
Until next time!

Time to add the bulkheads. The big beams down the center assure things are kept true.

It's with a little trepidation that I start my first build log on MSW. The Roter Lowe is my third plank-on-bulkhead build, the first being Constructo's Enterprise, followed up by AL's Renard. It's by far the most complex build I've undertaken, and my first with multiple gun decks and decorative woodwork. In this kit, the decorations are a mix of inlaid wood and printed cardboard. Not sure how I feel about the cardboard, yet. The materials look nice and the instructions come on five dual-sided sheets of plans.
I'm a bit concerned because the guns on the enclosed gun deck are to be mounted on carriages - I worry about them coming loose during the build and rattling around in the hull. I have to figure out some way to address that.
I picked up the kit a couple of years ago when Model Expo was having a moving sale. 
I'm a very slow builder, with lots of starts and stops, so be warned.
All that being said, let's post some pictures.

Hi. 
Well its been plastic ships that I have built and when I saw this wood ship on E bay I had to have a go.
Got it cheap, well cheaper than the real price.
The frame was made up, so I took it apart and re did the frame.

The box art which many here must know.


Next it was the frames, with a bit of work I made them up.
Needed something to strengthen in between the frames, so went for balsa.






I decided to make this into a sloop with 10 carranades and two smaller pop guns on the poop deck.
The barrels that came with the kit I will use but need new carriers as the wood one's that come with the kit did not seem right.

Will double plank but also use mahogany sheet for the top half.
Well that's the plan.
More soon.
Frank.

At last the second shipment arrived!! 6 weeks of waiting has come to end. (For this time.) One of those weeks the shipment spent circulating around the neighborhood as it was too large to fit in our letterbox, and some moron at the post office could not copy my name and address from the parcel to a piece of paper without misspelling the lot. 
 
Anyway, 2 issues with this shipment, next month there will be 4 issues so a little more to do then.
 
This is what I got today:
 

 
Parts for the deck:
 

 
One frame:
 

 
false keel part 2 and anchor stock:
 

 
One anchor:
 

 
Stern decoration:
 

 

 
A booklet:
 

 

 
Looks like most of it it is from this book:
 

 
 
I will start building frames and keel this evening so until then...

Thanks Antony
                       The sacks are one of the easier thing to make once you get your head around what the drawings are meant to be depicting
After looking at them for a while i didn't like the knots in the outer sacks so i removed and retied them, they look a lot better now

Hi Cobr@
 
This is a picture of the Gun equipment on the Victory, it might help.
 
I think you will find that they are, from left.
Water bucket, Sand bucket for placing a smouldering Linstock (prior to gunlock or as a backup) The linstock was a length of wood with a piece of rope attached. The charge carrier for carrying charge bags to the gun. And the ready box which held one or two charge bags in preparation.
 
Balls or other projectiles were either local to the gun or from a ball locker.
 
I hope I got that right.
Nick

Moved on a little bit further
Cut away the rear supports from the 3 main frames and fitted the 6 pillars that support the upper deck frames


 
Started to make the containers (not sure what they contain though LOL)
Cut 10mm dowel to length, rounded one end and cut a groove in so it looks like they have a lid on them
Cut and bent some brass wire to make the handles.
All i need to do now is to get the inclination to fit the handles and paint them up

Cannons fitted in place and fully rigged