waspy

looking stunning Kevin!

some progress......planking is a sloooow process but I'm getting there: all planked down to the lower gun-deck. I have to admit, that me and Jasper were worried about how rough the planking was.....but after a quick sanding I'm really happy with how it's going now

I received some 2mm cannon balls from Cornwall model boats today.......probably a bit shiny for most of the purists round here, but I love how they look

progress so far: all decks on and planked and the first 3 planks on each side of the hull. So far I've only needed some slight bending with the plier-type plank bender.....won't be log before I find out exactly how tricky it is to bend them round the sharp curves

some practical uses for Lego bricks in the build so far: And even as miniature sanding blocks to "holystone" the decks!

lower deck hatch covers, stairs and ammunition racks all installed. I used some pure button polish (thats been in my shed for best part of 20 years) which has brought the deck up just how I wanted .......but it's far too shiny on the sapele....gonna have to dull that down again

newbie mistake #1 .... made my first set of steps without sanding the burn marks off the stair rails first. hopefully there is enough spare rail left for the rest! Waspy

looking great Paul. Although I'm probably at least a year away from that stage.....the masts and spars look really daunting, so your log will continue to be a mine of information for me!

lower and middle decks planked and installed I simulated the tree nails in the lowest decks, but to be honest, I think I prefer the look of the deck without them but I'll make a final decision once I've put a coat or 2 on this deck to make sure Gotta be honest, when I opened the box and started reading all the instructions and pictures I was rather overwhelmed and wondered if I'd taken on way more than I was capable of......but with the first little hatch cover completed, I'm feeling much more confident! Waspy

that was always going to be my first method - and it seems to be working great - except I found a 2B pencil worked better. HB was fine for the treenails. QUESTION: what is the best varnish/finish for the decking ?

so, with the grandkids exhausted and despatched off home earlier than expected, I cracked on with some ship-building... made myself a stand/vice to keep the the keel as straight as possible and with the aid of some lego bricks, glued and squared the bulkheads to the false keel. most of the bulkheads were a bit loose, so I used some .5 mm fillets to fill any gaps in the slots. next......to experiment with the planking on the lower decks (that will never be seen) to try and work out the best way to replicate the caulking..... Waspy

Hi Ian. it's 1:94 scale I meant to put that in the title, but can't seem to edit the title now....

So, Christmas has been and the family has been gone long enough for me to examine my Victory. I've known it was coming for a while, so I've spent the last 2 months studying all I can from build logs here and all sorts of other places. I've made several plastic kits of sailing ships in the last few years, but nothing on a level of detail like this, and I've never modelled with wood at all - thankfully most of my Christmas wish list of tools has been filled by my wonderful kids! Having never seen any other wooden kits for comparison, I don't know how this one compares with others, but my initial impression is "WOW" at the amount and quality of the materials, instructions and plans! I know the "pack-shots" have been done before, but I aim for this log to be complete as possible. I know I'll have tons of questions as I go along, but from what I've seen of you wonderful people here, there'll be no shortage of helpful answers to all I can think of. I know this kit is kind of large and advanced for someone with know experience with wooden ships, but I have always loved the Victory, and only live 20 miles along the coast so am well placed for plenty of visits to Portsmouth as I go to give me the incentive to get it right! At the moment I intend to leave it unpainted and build it pretty much like the box as I love the look of the different colour woods, but that might change if my planking isn't as pretty as I hope. More family engagements tomorrow but thats followed by another week off work, so I hope to make a little progress before work kicks off again in the new year. Regards to all, Waspy

That stern is looking fantastic! If I can get my Victory to look half as good as yours I'll be over the moon!

Thanks for the detailed build log Paul - I'm getting this kit for christmas from the wife and like you, I've never made a wooden ship either so the info in here will help immensely! I don't for a minute believe I'll get mine to your standard but at least I know what is possible from the kit! Christmas can't come quick enough! /Waspy