Chuck

Beautiful work Ben. I wouldnt have expected anything less!!! Really looks good with exposed frames.

Boy she does look pretty. You did an absolutely masterful job on the Cheerful project. I do hope you enjoyed building it!!! One of the best Cheerfuls I have seen and I have seen a whole lot of them.

Yes that stuff...but the matte finish.

One thing you might want to try is a spray fixative. I will spray the entire model with a light spray of matte fixative or dull coat. This really evens out the red paint. You should give it a try on those extra pieces. I spray from about 18 inches away from the model and it really does wonders for the finish.

No not yet. I havent had time to make the new rope yet. I am still using the cotton/linen stuff. I am hoping to have more rigging kits in about a week. I am stuck working on a few things on the house now. I have to knock off a few on the honey-do list or I will be out on the curb. If you know what I mean....😂

Nicely done!!! That is some fine work. Chuck

Good to see you back Bill.....any updates on the SOS?

Be sure to text me if you go for lunch and I will meet you there!!!

Looking Good Ryland...... I am also looking forward to the show next month. It will be great to see you guys.

That is looking excellent!!! Its good to see someone taking such care with their paint work. Very nice progress.

The hull fairing is now completed. Nothing unusual to report. I didnt break any bulkhead extensions and the binder clips worked out great. This is a big hull so it took a few days per side to fair. As is typical there is a fair amount of material to remove at the bow, especially close to the keel at the bottom of the bow fillers. I just took my time and before I knew it I was done. Once completed, I used a batten (scrap 3/32" x 3/64" strips) to locate a smooth run for the TOP of the gun port sills. The top of the batten was initially lined up with the laser-etched reference lines for the sills. Then after viewing it at many many angles I tweaked it untle I got a nice run from bow to stern. There are no dips and it matches port and starboard. Even though there are laser etched reference lines there are so many factors that could cause them to be higher or lower by just a hair. This will throw off the run of the ports so the batten is an absolute must. Its the only way to spot where the run of the ports needs adjustment. Then I used a sharp pencil to mark the top of the batten and then removed it. Next up I will start adding the port sills and then follow that with the remainder of port framing. You can check my run of those battens in the photos!!! I think they are almost good to go. I hope you can see the laser etched reference on the sides of each bulkhead and my new pencil lines on the outside and along the top edge of the batten.

Thanks for the mention.... Rich, that "rope" that comes with the model shipways kit is not natural fibers. In fact its Nylon. Its plastic so using water wont do anything because it wont absorb. It just evaporates right off the surface. They really shouldnt have wrapped it so tightly around those little cards. The stuff they use is literally Griffin Nylon beading thread...see here. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HK928W6/ref=twister_B01HK928Y4?_encoding=UTF8&th=1 There is no getting the kinks out of that. The thick stuff is wound so tight around the large cones that it will literally flatten out and not have a round profile. Thats also why it wont hold a knot.....its too slippery because its nylon. You may want to replace that with some softer natural fiber rope. Chuck

That looks very good. Well done!!!

Just to give everyone a really good idea of what this model will eventually look like....here is the first plan sheet. No worries about piracy as this one is just a pretty drawing. No part templates. Download a pdf.....Winchelseasheet1a.pdf

Yes it will be made available if you want to upgrade to CNC milled boxwood carvings. There is a whole set including the stern decorations and drops. There will also be a less expensive resin set and I am sending these boxwood carvings out to be cast. So depending on which ones you want there are some options. Here are some of the boxwood carvings placed on a test stern transom for sizing. These beauties were created for me by Jack our fellow MSW member (HJX). He is also working on his own line of kits and they will be outstanding as well. I cant thank him enough. You guys will soon have some incredible kits to choose from made by companies that dont have a history of pirating others. And I failed to mention that a Cherry version of the Winnie will also be made available and that should look great with these boxwood carvings.

Now where was I?? 😁 Last I reported, I had completed the backbone with the keel and stem parts. This was secured to a large baseboard with brackets to ensure the bulkhead former doesnt bend. Using three brackets on each side ensures that the bulkhead former is completely straight. Fast forward to today.... I have glued the 27 bulkheads in their slots. I was careful to make sure they were squared up to the bulkhead former. This is probably twice as many bulkheads than the usual POB kit on the market. This will ensure that the planks lay nicely without any issues. Now you might notice all of those clamps. These are simple binder clips. They come in a variety of sizes. I often see many people trying some wacky things to try and prevent the bulkhead extensions from breaking while you fair the hull etc. I have tried many things as well. This time I am going simple. If you just angle the clips so they are both on the extension and on the main bulkhead, they will stiffen up the area that is prone to splitting and breaking. It really does make a difference. I encourage all of you to try this at some point. In addition, if you have some longer bulkhead extensions like those shown at the stern, they have an even bigger tendency to break off because they are longer. So for these you may want to try using some "L" brackets. These metal brackets are really cheap and also do a great job protecting the bulkhead extensions. You can place them on one side or even both sides of a bulkhead extension and use the binder clips to hold them in place. This will absolutely prevent the extension from breaking while you fair the hull. When installing the bulkheads I made sure that the laser etched reference marks were facing the correct direction. All of the numbered bulkheads have the etched side facing aft......the lettered bulkheads are facing forward. This is very important. A photo of those "L" brackets being used... At the bow, the three "bow fillers" were glued into position following the plans (BF1,BF2 and BF3). These were pretty straight forward although I made sure that the tops were level on both the port and starboard sides. You will also notice the wonderful CNC milled boxwood figurehead that Jack made for me. Its a pretty darn good fit and looks great. Much better than I could ever carve by hand. I havent applied any finish to it yet. Note the bow filler pieces (BF1,BF2 and BF3). Rather than add the stern frames at this point, I will start fairing the bulkhead first. This will make it easier to install the gun port framing for the sills, etc. That will be the next step after I finish fairing the bulkheads which will take a while. This hull is a beast. I will post again once the fairing is done and I have started on those port sills. Its really good to be working on the Winnie again. Its time to finish this thing. And yes the stem and keel parts are all Alaskan Yellow Cedar. The entire model will be made from it except for a few boxwood accent pieces and moldings etc. Chuck

Its a chucky "Syren Brand". You cant buy it in any store. I get it custom made and dyed in Europe. Unfortunately I dont plan on selling the raw stuff retail. That is a trade "secret" of sorts. The only way to get it is to buy my finished rope. Its too expensive for me to start supplying the raw stuff to folks and I wont make any $$$. Sorry. Unfortunately you are left with trying the usual suspects that have been talked about on this site. I want my Syren Rope to be special and I only want it to be available in rope form from my store. Too much competition out there and I need avery edge I can get. I have been asked before but unfortunately that is the case. Sorry. Chuck

Basically he takes existing contemporary models and just draws his diagrams from them as the models are rigged. He doesnt stray from the few models he has chosen. There may be many errors on those models or at least "modeler's conventions" shown on the model are redrawn faithfully. So rather than base the rigging from these few contemporary models as fact.....you would be better off using in some cases....lees masting and rigging for English warships. But you cant go wrong with the Underhill stuff. That is what I would get. For the clippers....I think there was a book by Longridge on building his model of the cutty sark.....I have no idea how accurate also see ..... Running Her Easting Down: A documentary of the development and history of the British tea clippers, culminating with the building of the Cutty Sark by william baker.

that looks absolutely wonderful. You have done a masterful job with the kit....I must thank you for terrific work, i just couldnt buy a better testimonial for the kit!!! Amazing work.

Looks good....but I hope you dont mix those up!!! One slight shift and you will have a hard time figuring out which is which.

No, plans are NOT available. You must buy a kit. They are just out of stock and should be restocked soon. Waiting on some 1/32" cedar sheets to make another ten kits. As soon as I get them I will finish them up. I will announce here that they are available.

No it wasnt that....The software we use no longer has that as an option. Something about compiling all of the larger topics takes forever to make printable. It was causing issues especially with the larger topics. So you can still do it but you must copy and paste it yourself. Chuck

A perfect start!!! Enjoy the project

Yes I also agree that yours is way too white. I would not go with that color at all. If its a modelers convention, it is one used by modelers who havent yet figured out that it shouldnt be white, LOL. Never saw a contemporary model like that. It just hits you and its hard to focus on the other wonderful items you built. I prefer the natural look like on this contemporary model.

Very nice work...the breech rope looks a bit heavy for those guns however. You might want to try a smaller diameter and see what it looks like, at least as it wraps around the button. But its very neatly done. Chuck