EJ_L
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A few hours into today's building session and the first four planks have reached the stem.
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Very nice! After seeing your build I'm going to have a hard time arguing reasons why I can't do sails on mine. Guess I better put sewing lessons on my to do list. Loving the results and looking forward to seeing more!
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Thanks Martyn. Even though it is the largest area to cover, the middle is the easiest to cover as well. The planks only need minimal sanding for widths and tapers on the edges to line line up. At the stern and especially around the prow, much more care has to be taken to ensure that the planks lay down like they should. Glad this step ended up on a long weekend as it will be nice to have the extra uninterrupted time to think things through.
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Another update to the hull planking. Started off by doing a little rework at the stern post. Spent some time looking through pictures of museum models and I am happy now with the look. Had to remove a few planks and ended up reworking the garboard strake some and I am glad I did. Too many things were bothering me and I am trying to break those bad habits of ignoring those things that bother me in order to keep moving forward. I've always regretted it so this has been a good opportunity to interrupt that pattern. More planking has also been completed. I start making my way around the prow this weekend. While still a lot of work to do, the starboard lower hull is nearing completion. Starting a three day weekend tomorrow after work so I am hopeful that I will be able to get a bunch more done on her for the next update.
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I like the hammock and the other details as well. They are really bringing her to life! I'm not too sure about the last picture though. When up is down and down is up you have either drunk too much rum or there is a major problem...
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- mamoli
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Ah, I did not know that the planking lengths changed amidships. I have been under the impression that they remained the same length or as close to it as possible across the entire hull with the obvious statement of the ends at the bow and stern being shorter. It makes sense from a materials perspective. I guess I have been looking to long at the even, symmetrical patterns that are always stressed in model planking more than actual practices. Looks like I have a lot more reading to do. Good thing the temperatures are starting to slowly drop to make sitting on my deck reading more enjoyable!
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Tom, I knew that there is a rabbet in the keel which I rarely actually cut but can often be simulated by tucking the planking into the veneer on the keel. I thought there was something similar to that on the stern post which is why I have always stopped my planking at the post and not run over it. If like Cedric has told me the first three strakes run out over the post, (which makes sense as it would help tie it to the ship for added stability and strength) then how far out would they go and again, how does that blend into the post or do they do something different? Do they terminate into a rabbet before the aft most edge of the post? How far into the post would they go then? Please be a purist as I really do want to know if I am building wrong. I don't always correct right away but I always file the information away for future use. In this case, I am likely to fix it as it is an easy enough fix as soon as I understand fully what it should look like. As for the current progress, I have extended the planking a bit further down the hull in the slow march towards the bow. As anyone following the thread has noticed I may be redoing some of the work at the stern but the quest to reach the bow is still moving forward! As always thanks for the comments, likes and following along!
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Thanks Elijah! i have not had to do any yet but when I get to the bow I anticipate having to do some there. The leading planks should be reaching there towards the end of the week so I should know then.
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Cedric, No worries on the correction but I do have a follow up question on it. When the planks overlap the stern post do they create a "step" like the below sketch on the left or are they notched into the post so that it is straight like the sketch on the right? I'm not so far as to rule out going back in and changing it I just want to make sure I get the change right! Thanks for the help and suggestions and forgive the rough drawings. I had to do them quickly on my lunch break.
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Michael, I did this same method on La Couronne and once the final sanding is done I wipe the hull with both an alcohol wipe and then a tack cloth. This pulls up loose sanding dust that fills the joints and then when the finish is applied the joints are clearly visible yet subtle. The hull doesn't look "striped" with lines but they are there to see. Something I did notice though while looking back at those pictures is I need to find a better way of protecting the hull after it is finished. These long builds leave a lot of time for wear and tear on them. I may need to look into lining the cradle with felt or foam. Hmm.... things to think about.
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Cedric, thanks for the clarifications. I was not sure how many times she had been refitted. I was thinking three but wasn't for certain. Also the information on the wale scarfs is new to me. I tend to go past the 1/4 mark and push closer to half way more often on my build. I will start adjusting to the correct way. I also wonder how often the color was changed during sea repairs. This could be a question for any ship of the era but as its been said, blue was an expensive color and I highly doubt the ship would have carried enough to repaint that much surface while at sea so would she have become spotted with other colors such as the pearl grey you mentioned or more probably the blue was used only around the royal coats? We will probably never know and it seems like more and more questions keep popping up. Makes me want to dive into some more nautical history books. I can see the good ship Visa is going to have to go back out to sea soon!
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Martyn the Confused, Two things t keep in mind when you are having this debate are: 1. No one knows exactly what she looked like. We only have some artistic renderings of her to go off of and while yes, they are credible and come from notable artists of the time, they are by no means absolute nor do they clarify which version they are of as she underwent many changes of appearance during her career. 2. Ultimately this is your model. Unless you are under contract by a historical society or museum, (in which case congratulations) then this is a model whose purpose is to please your eye and not necessarily be historically accurate. Paint as much blue as you would like on her and be happy in your decision!
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Welcome back! Sounds like you have gotten yourself set up and better prepared this time around. Good luck to you on your new builds and by all means start up that build log! I look forward to seeing your work.
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Welcome to MSW! I wish you the best of luck on your builds and hope you enjoy wooden ships as much as plastic.
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I may be tormenting myself with all the extra work required to use small planks rather than lay a full strip but, I have found that for me, it is easier to keep my layout for the strakes and make those small adjustments when something starts to get off. Also I don't have to com back later and scribe in all the butt joints in the planking. The only downfall that I really run into is that edge bending is harder with short pieces. Not impossible but harder. Spiling techniques get used a bit more with short pieces. Thanks everyone for the comments, likes and following along. I've gone a bit further last night and plan on getting more done today so another update will be coming soon!
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Martyn, I have been told by a couple of people with far more knowledge than myself on Soleil Royal that the blue would have only extended down to the top of the 6th wale from the bottom. I had the same question on my build as my plans show it going to the 5th wale but paintings that I have seen only show it to the 6th. Your planking does indeed look very good and you are smart to switch from butt joints to scarfs as that is the correct practice and forms a much stronger joint.
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I've reached the keel! 22 strakes is what it takes to go from lowest wale to the keel. Now carry that across the hull. Double, triple and quadruple checking measurements as I go. It is easier to make minor adjustments over the entire hull than have to have drops, stealers or planks that are extremely different in widths. Now that the keel has been reached I know for certain how many strakes it will take and can keep them in line as I progress to the bow. The bow will require very careful attention as each strake will narrow considerably as they make the curve in order to not need stealers or drop planks.
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Addicted to card modeling and historical evidence :)
EJ_L replied to AmonFinn's topic in New member Introductions
Welcome to MSW Alex! Great to have you with us and of course we would love to see pictures of your work both past and current build. -
Hello all from Staffordshire England
EJ_L replied to Smudger2501's topic in New member Introductions
Welcome to MSW! I don't have any tips for that particular model other than take your time and read ahead on the instructions but I do wish you the best of luck on your build. -
Welcome to MSW Doc! I have no doubt that you will find plenty of help and great people to help you along your way.
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I will plank the entire hull twice. Starting where I did was the easiest point for me as the ports gave me the best references to dimension the wales and it now provides two fixed locations for a more accurate measurement and layout of the lower planking and the tapers I will need there. Where the blue is smeared on the upper bulwarks now is just some extra paint from my test samples. That area will get covered up with the veneer planking. I wanted to get an idea of what the blue would look like on the actual ship spread out over a bigger area. It is not painted well nor evenly since it was just extra but it showed me what I wanted to see when comparing the two colors I was debating between. My plan is to paint the wood prior to installing it on the ship so that the only painting that will need to be done will be touch ups where I make cuts for ports and butt joints.
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Done looking at the sun and I'm back to work on planking. Moving along fairly smoothly so far this week. I managed to get a small section done but I have not been able to work on her to many hours the past few days. Hoping to get a little more build time in the back half of the week and with some luck, I will be back with a more impressive update!
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Not related to the build but here are a couple pictures from today's eclipse from my house. Sorry for the brown haze, that is not air pollution just he make shift filter I used for my camera as all of the solar filters sold out around here before I could buy one and I didn't want to pay to have one shipped overnight. I've included a picture of the unfiltered sky for proof! Haha!
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Cedric, Thanks, for that information of the blue not being under the sixth wale. That was going to be one of my upcoming questions as I have contradicting pictures of that and was not certain which was correct. As to the wales being parallel or not, yes and no would be the answers. While the spacing is measured out the same and the planks are the same widths and count there is probably some slight variance to the wales themselves as they wrap around the bow. Those are some fairly thick pieces of walnut that I was bending and those bends are not the smoothest, plus there is some tilt to them as they lay on the hull. Combine all of that and the image distortion of the picture plus the gun ports that do not follow a straight line and the hull curvature and it is easy to see unevenness. In fact it has been driving me nuts trying to decide if what I am seeing is correct or not. I will measure time and again and then lay a wale or some planks and have to stop and completely remeasure everything as I begin to doubt and second guess myself. I will admit that this has been by far the hardest hull I have ever tried to lay out. Redo has been the word of the build so far. I still enjoy every bit of it which I guess makes me a little crazy!
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Good build weekend. Added the lowest wale to both sides and have started the process of laying out dimensions and strake widths. I'm planning on starting the lower hull planking tomorrow if all goes good. Still have a lot to do but I'm gaining ground bit by bit! I also started did some more test painting and I am liking the ultramarine more and more. I think the dark blue will look a lot better and since it is almost certain that it was used on S.R., just not for sure how much was used on her, I figure I cannot be too far wrong with the choice.
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