Erik W

Good morning colleagues, the holiday was too short as always but that's life. Now to Le Rochefort, the whales have been installed, the port side has also been planked and the captain's cabin has got its doors. I would also like to thank you for your visit, the comments and your likes.
 

 

 

 

 

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

This week I've been in assembly line mode with fashioning the breech ropes and attaching them to the carronades, and then attaching the carronades to the deck.  Chuck's advice on the seizings above has been invaluable for a newby like me.  Six down, four to go . . .
 
*note:  It looks like I'm using different color red paint.  It's the same bottle of Vallejo red I've used all along, but I've noticed it looks more orange when newly applied, but for some reason darkens to more red over time.  Weird.  At any rate, when not under the bright glare of a closely positioned halogen light for photos, the variation is not noticeable to the naked eye.
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

Looks really good and clean. I’m sure the rigging will look awesome
Steve

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

I finished the breech ropes.  I definitely got better at the seizings as I did more of them.  It's hard to see, but the seizings on the starboard side are a bit more clean looking than the port side.  More importantly, I feel more comfortable with this intro to rigging stage of things.  So, I may actually be able to do a credible job of rigging this thing after all.  Now onto the gun tackles . . .
 
Erik

This week I've been in assembly line mode with fashioning the breech ropes and attaching them to the carronades, and then attaching the carronades to the deck.  Chuck's advice on the seizings above has been invaluable for a newby like me.  Six down, four to go . . .
 
*note:  It looks like I'm using different color red paint.  It's the same bottle of Vallejo red I've used all along, but I've noticed it looks more orange when newly applied, but for some reason darkens to more red over time.  Weird.  At any rate, when not under the bright glare of a closely positioned halogen light for photos, the variation is not noticeable to the naked eye.
 
Erik

Thank you scrubyj427, the black wood is blackhornbeam, not ebony. Black hornbeam is a bit easier to work with than ebony .
Installation of wales completed.

Hi dear friends photo Anson 

This week I've been in assembly line mode with fashioning the breech ropes and attaching them to the carronades, and then attaching the carronades to the deck.  Chuck's advice on the seizings above has been invaluable for a newby like me.  Six down, four to go . . .
 
*note:  It looks like I'm using different color red paint.  It's the same bottle of Vallejo red I've used all along, but I've noticed it looks more orange when newly applied, but for some reason darkens to more red over time.  Weird.  At any rate, when not under the bright glare of a closely positioned halogen light for photos, the variation is not noticeable to the naked eye.
 
Erik

But for the next model you do, Thukydides! It's amazing the problems one can avoid on a subsequent model. But there are new pitfalls and traps instead....

Hello all!
 
Before adding the port frames,  I cut a  1/4" x1/4" strip into the length of a gun port (17/32") and placed it on the plans to make sure it's the correct gunport length.  I then would use this as a gunport template to make sure all the gunports have the correct length.
 
I noticed there are 4 gunports on each side where the aft facing frame is 1/32" wide.  I added those first.  After that, I added the rest of the aft facing frames so all 12 gunport frames were framed on the aft side.
 
I then used the gunport template I made to gadge the width of the other frames.
 

Some required me to use 2 different width strips to make sure the gunports are all the same size.
 

You have to make sure each frame is a little bit bigger outboard and height wise so you can match the curvature of the hull properly.  You also have to bevel the bottom of quite a lot of the frames so that they sit flat against the sills.  This is super important because any gaps between the frames and sills will be very noticeable once it's painted and planked.  Doing this correctly means you don't have to add wood filler later and hope to sand the frames/sills correctly such that it doesn't change the shape of the gunport.   It took some time making sure the all fit properly but it was worth it.
 
After adding in all 6 gunports on each side, I sanded outboard to match the hull and also sanded the top of the frames into nice curve.  While doing so, i checked the curvature by placing the same batten I used while faring onto the hull to check the curve.  I needed to do this so I could create the correct measurements on the front gunports.
 
The gunport that we have to cut out was tough but fun!  I read the instructions, looked at the plans and marked out the gunports on both sides.
Notice i have 2 lines running vertical down the hull.  The inner lines are the actual size of the gunport to position it correctly.  The outer lines are 1/32" away from the gunport.  This is where I will actually cut out the frames.  I do this so I can add boxwood sills and frames afterwards.  I do not like the look of plywood in my build.  BUT most importantly ( and the real reason),  I know with my skills, I wouldn't be able to create truly flat and even sills/frames by cutting the plywood alone.  So i decided to frame them like the rest.
 
I first indented the top part of the frame with a hobby knife to help start the cutting with the saw.  I then cut the outmost lines I created.  I forgot to mention that I also marked 1/32" lower of the sill to be able to frame that as well.

 I cut down 17/32" using the saw. (The gunport is suppose to be 16/32")
 
I next made diagonal cuts with the saw to start removing material.

Luckily, because plywood has layers, cutting the diagonal made some of the plywood just come off because of lack of glue between some layers.  The picture above had no sanding.  The plywood just came off without pulling or anything!
 
I then took my time and cut out the remaining gunport material.

I had to make small adjustments and use files to try and place the 1/32" sills down flat.

I then added the aft frame first on both sides.  This was a 1/32" wide strip.  I then used the gunpoet template to figure out what width i needed for the other frame.  I then added those and sanded.
 

 
I think they came out great!
 
Thanks everyone for reading and for all your likes!
 
Jeff

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.
I went on to build the winch. All measurements were taken on a copy of the plan and noted directly on it. This enabled me to determine the wood cuts to be made. I used cherry wood (with the exception of the winch drum, which will be turned from a boxwood plank).

To simulate the two small sprockets, I decided to make them from two 2.5 mm Amati brass sheaves. At least I'm sure I'll get two perfectly round sprockets... To simulate the teeth, I simply filled the pulley slot with two-component epoxy putty and used the point of a needle to create the hollows between the teeth.

The handles are constructed from metal wire and small sections of micro-tube. All parts are ready for winch assembly.

The wooden parts of the winch are glued together, with the exception of the drum.

Airbrush coloring. The metal parts have been chemically blackened.

Then all the parts are finally assembled.


A great little project that was finished and gave me a lot of pleasure. I'll be moving on to the last elements of the ship's deck center.
 
 
 
 

This week I've been in assembly line mode with fashioning the breech ropes and attaching them to the carronades, and then attaching the carronades to the deck.  Chuck's advice on the seizings above has been invaluable for a newby like me.  Six down, four to go . . .
 
*note:  It looks like I'm using different color red paint.  It's the same bottle of Vallejo red I've used all along, but I've noticed it looks more orange when newly applied, but for some reason darkens to more red over time.  Weird.  At any rate, when not under the bright glare of a closely positioned halogen light for photos, the variation is not noticeable to the naked eye.
 
Erik

It's been a nerve wracking week . . . I started rigging the carronades, haha.  This represents a milestone on this build for me.  It's my first rigging done on the Cheerful.  Rigging is the element of this hobby I have the least experience with, and really don't feel like I know what I'm doing, so I'm actually quite nervous as I tackle this part of the build.  Taking a page from Mike's (Stuntflyer) Cheerful build log, I made a 3/32" (.010") spacer to put between the bulwarks and the front gun carriage wheels in order to get the spacing uniform as I attach them to the deck.  Chuck's monograph, and build log posts, were spot on for making the breech rope.  I manged to get the first one, pictured below, made on the first try.  My seizings need a bit of work, but these early attempts are fine.  The more I do, the better they'll get.  Since the gun tackles will be positioned directly above them I'm not too worried about them being less than perfect.
 
I'd like some advice from you folks with rigging experience.  What, if anything, are you using to hold the rope when you seize the ends of it?  I don't have anything currently to hold on to the main rope, so what you see below was done while simply holding it in my hands.  This was quite awkward, not ideal, and I could tell I was at least one holding point short of what what I needed.
 
Thanks,
Erik