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rafine

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Everything posted by rafine

  1. rafine
    Another welcome aboard to all of you. Joshua, I've been following your log, and I'm in good company. Grant, I have no idea what happened to the photo, but here it is . Bob
  2. rafine
    Thanks so much Capt Poison, Don and the "likes". Don, I was sad about it too, but I just couldn't see how I would do it. Bob
  3. rafine
    Really nice work on the channels and dead eyes. Bob
  4. rafine
    Welcome aboard guys. Great to have you along. Joe, as with Granado, your build of PdN was an inspiration to my choice. Doug and David: It will be great to be working alongside you on this one. Al, at my age I don't have any time to waste. Bob
  5. rafine
    My thanks and appreciation again to all of you. Now, it's on to Prince de Neufchatel. bob
  6. rafine
    I will begin by explaining my choice of this kit. As some of you may be aware from my posts in other logs, I have really been taken by the barque Stefano kit from Marisstella. I decided, however, that I am no longer capable of, nor willing to commit to, such a large, complex multi-year build with endless rigging. My age (78) and diminishing dexterity in my hands, just seemed to rule out such a project. When I started Halifax, I had pretty much decided to go with smaller vessels in larger scales, but upon looking around for my next project, I couldn't really find anything that I wanted to do that would fill those criteria. I came across the Prince de Neufchatel (PdN) kit on E-bay (it has been out of production for a number of years), and it seemed to be something of a compromise for my goals. While the model is large and at 1:64 scale, it is a fairly open and straightforward build with a rig that would not be as challenging to me as the Stefano. I bought the kit as brand new in it's original sealed box and was delighted to find that the keel former and bulkheads, although 12+ years old, were straight and true and good to go. I will spare you all from another display of kit contents, as they have been shown in other logs here. I am attaching a copy of the photo from the kit box. I have not fully figured out what I intend to do to enhance the kit, but some things are fairly certain: I will plank the upper hull with boxwood, plank the deck with holly and copper the lower hull. I expect to use boxwood to replace the kit wood for the deck furniture and will certainly use Syren blocks and rope for the rigging. Other changes may be made as well. I've cleared away the debris from the Halifax build, and I'm ready to go. I hope you will join me for the ride. Bob
  7. rafine
    Since no log can be deemed complete without some overall photos of the finished model, mine are attached here. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have followed this build, who have hit the "like" button, and, particularly, those who have provided their support and encouragement through their generous thoughts and comments. It is gratifying to have such an appreciative response from such a talented and accomplished group of modelers. Thanks again. I hope to see you all on my new log for Prince de Neufchatel, which will be opened a little later today. Bob
  8. rafine
    Thanks so much Mark ,John and OC for the really great comments. They are truly appreciated. Bob
  9. rafine
    Thanks so much Grant, Thomas, B.E.and Dave for the really generous comments. Thanks also to the "likes". Bob
  10. rafine
    A remarkable piece of work Nils. Bob
  11. rafine
    Thanks so much Rusty, Lawrence and the "likes". Lawrence, I chose this kit because it had laser cut framing. I have no power tools and don't wish to cut frames by hand. With the exception of the framing, I basically scratch built almost everything. I also substituted wood from Wood Project Source for that supplied in the kit. All of that is a long way of saying that the kit suited my needs because of the framing, but if that isn't a consideration, I would go for the timbering set only. In answer to your last question, the kit contained no materials for masting and rigging, and the blocks and rigging line were all from Syren. Bob
  12. rafine
    Thanks so much Nils, Denis, Al and Mike for the kind words and thanks also to the "likes". Bob
  13. rafine
    Done! Halifax is now completed. The last work was the swivel guns and the anchors. The swivel guns were done using the barrel castings supplied by the Lumberyard, to which I added a handle made from wire with a small bead at the end. The mounting brackets were made from some brass backing links that I had on hand, which were bent to shape, a hole drilled, and a mounting pin inserted. The whole assemblies were painted black and glued in place. The anchors were entirely made from boxwood strip. The "metal" portion of the anchors were painted black and the stocks were left natural. Simulated bolts were added to the stocks, as well as black painted paper bands. The rings are wire with puddening done by wrapping tan line around the wire. The anchors were then rigged and mounted. I will post photos of the completed model in the next day or two, as well as starting a new log for my next project, Prince de Neufchatel, starting with the Model Shipways kit. Bob
  14. rafine
    Thanks so much Martin, Denis and the "likes". Martin, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I don't feel that way when I have to tie off a line with two tweezers in a tangle of other lines. Bob
  15. rafine
    Thanks so much Dirk, John, OC and the "likes". Dirk, thanks for your concern. Hopefully all will be back to normal soon. Bob
  16. rafine
    Thanks so much John, Ken, Russ , Grant and Michael for the great compliments. Thanks also to the "likes". All are appreciated. Ken, I'm afraid that you will have to wait about a week for the answer. Bob
  17. rafine
    Thanks so much Zappto, Al and Rusty for the generous comments and thanks also to the "likes". Bob
  18. rafine
    All of the rigging is now complete. Some health issues have limited my golf, which always means more modeling, resulting in a push to finish the rigging. This involved making, mounting and rigging the main lower and topmast yards, doing the braces for all of the yards, and, finally, tying off all of the lines and adding rope coils. The making, mounting and rigging of the main yards followed identically the items and procedures for the fore yards, and won't be repeated here. The lower yard braces were a bit of a challenge because they run to the shrouds on their opposite mast, making it difficult to give them tension without pulling the shrouds out of line. I think that I was finally able to do that. By far the most difficult task was to tie off and add coils to the many lines that were hanging loosely as I proceeded through the rigging. The combination of tight spaces and aging hands that aren't quite as steady as they used to be made for a lot of bad language and a few 'timeouts". All that remains to be done now are the swivel guns and the anchors. Bob
  19. rafine
    Wow, Thomas. The level of detail is incredible. Bob
  20. rafine
    For a bad night Denis, you really got a lot done -- and looking great. Bob
  21. rafine
    Well done John. Bob
  22. rafine
    It's all looking very nice OC. Bob
  23. rafine
    Thanks so much Denis, Thomas and the "likes". Bob
  24. rafine
    Thanks so much B.E. and the "likes". Unfortunately B.E., both my golf handicap and my modeling skills have been taking a beating lately, but I appreciate the thought. Bob
  25. rafine
    Thanks so much guys for all the very generous comments and the "likes". Joe, get in touch if you're going to be close. I'm afraid that it hasn't been as warm as I would like, but it sure beats being up north. Bob

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