EJ_L

Thank you for all the encouraging comments and likes. This is one of the most anticipated and dreaded portions of this build but I am feeling more and more pleased that I took the path to make my own decorations. 
 
Marc, you have given some very wise advise. I had originally planned on completing one side before switching to the other but now I am thinking that you are correct in thinking that it may be best to work them both together. As you said, that will keep the quality of the carvings more closely matched from side to side and as they (hopefully) improve over time, both sides of the model will improve as one. I think I will finish up with the pieces I am on now so I don't lose that train of thought and then fall back a little to catch the other side up so I can begin decorating evenly.
 
I'll have some pictures of where I am at soon. I'm fighting another round of sickness (story of my life for the last 3 years) so I don't know when they will be up but probably within the next few days.
 
Thanks again for stopping in and happy building!

First carving has been completed and installed. A few defects but overall I’m satisfied especially considering my limited carving experience. 

Ken, this piece is just basswood. I have a bunch of it laying around so I figured it would work for some of the simpler carvings. I'm probably going to switch to something harder like boxwood for the statues and ornaments that need to take on more detail.

Here it is, the first completed quarter galleys roof. Starting to add the first of the decorative trim. I’ve also started to carve the upper wreath. So far so good. 

No glass in the windows. I thought about it a lot and tried a couple different materials and discovered that it is easier to look inside the cabins without the glass than with it and also I fear that the glass will get dust built up in the individual panes and I will have no way of cleaning them off. I decided that was a detail I could live without as its absence allows for better viewing of other details. Kind of like leaving the hull planking off  to view framing.

Thanks Marc! I'm still experimenting with the top of the quarter galley as I'm trying to figure out exactly how it is built especially on the aft side under the statues. I have a plan in place that I am trying since these photos were taken so I will let you all know how it turns out. I did think about carving the tops out of a solid piece and dug around in the wood scraps out in the shop yesterday to find some that may work. My current plan still has me planking the roof mostly out of stubborn persistence to see if I can do it this way and make it look good.  
 
As for the ornamentation, I am using the kit supplied ones for reference and spacing but my plan is to carve them myself. Not yet sure how well they will turn out but I am looking forward to trying!
 
Anyway, probably won't be too many updates for the next several days. A friend of mine from the Navy is coming to visit over New Years and so there won't be much if any ship building going on. We are going to try to get the curio cabinet that will house La Couronne (and a bunch of the Admiral's collectables) built so there will be some ship related work happening.
 
I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and I wish you all a wonderful 2018!

Started building the balconies and quarter galleys. Lots of guess work here and a bunch of building and rebuilding to try to figure out how but they are coming along. Yes, there will be a third one at the bottom. Just haven’t got to it yet.

Added a little color the past couple days. Wanted to see how it would look with some paint. I think it turned out ok so far. 

Martyn,
 
Don't know how I lost your "follow" along for this amazing built. Back with you now.
Oh what a great amount of work. Your stern work is indeed so excellent. 
 
Glad that I "surfed" recent updates to re-locate your log. Again Whoa! Those Dec, 14 shots are brilliant.
PS: Your Vasa looks to be just as impressive - Poss. a few pics would be nice (;-)
 
Regards,

Hi Dave.
Excellent choice of wood throughout the build.
Model ship's don't need painting if you choose your timbers types like you have done.
Your work is very neat and clean..not a fuzzy edge to be seen anywhere.
 
Regards Antony.
 
 

Nice work Dave, I just bought the plans for this model so I'll be watching close to what you are doing

In getting prepared to lay the deck beams, I realized that bending the relatively thick stock was going to be a problem. The kit says to "build up" the beams from 2 layers of stock held in shape by nails or pins. When the glue dries the deck beams should be good with the proper camber. How much can go wrong there? 

So I asked a friend if he could cut out the 15 deck beams I needed out of beech with his laser. Each beam is 4 mm wide and 3 mm thick. They turned out great! A little trimming and sanding and they fit perfectly. I'm going to start laying the beams and finishing up the hold. You can see the limber boards in the photo. I'm also planning a small section of decking in front of the shot locker where the two transverse mini-beams are in the photo. There are also 4 support pillars in the hold under the orlop deck.  There is no finish on the model except for the well/shot locker.

Guess if I'm framing out the decks, might as well see all that work looks like from below...

And from aloft...

Thanks for the comments guys and the likes 
A little bit more work done on the SR . I have finished fitting the shrouds to the lower formast and have completed the fun job of the ratlines. Now moving on to the mainmast . Once all the lower masts have been completed its on to the next level.
Thanks for following 
Martyn 

The masts are in, and I've made a fair amount of progress with rigging.  The three stays between the upper parts of the masts are in, as are the stays running from the foremast to the bowsprit/jibboom.  The halyards for the main topmast stays'l, the two jibs, and the fore stays'l are rigged and secured (they were belayed previously).  I rigged the foremast yard braces and started to belay them, but realized that I needed to get the foremast stays to the bowsprit in place first so the mast would be stable.  I'm going to be away for a week, will continue with the rest of the running rigging when I return.

Doug and Mike: Thanks guys

Very nice Don!  They are going to be a really nice touch.

who knows,  she may like it more when your finished and the ship is in her case     super progress!

glad to see your finding a little time to relax......loose term for a sense of frustration     I hope Janet is feeling better

Very nice Don.  And a useful little tutorial for me.  I can hardly wait 'til my lathe arrives - but I guess I'll have to order it before that happens.  Too cold here for the next month or so to work out in the shed so there is no real hurry  to order one.  Good thing our Stefanos need lots of planking - that'll keep me busy until the warmer weather.  
 
Prairie winter storms - I don't miss them!

Hello everyone, I'm hoping you are all having a good day and your shipyards are active.
 I have been busy planking the hull and now the deck, two layers, for what now seems a eternity so yesterday I decided to turn my attention to something required further on in the build.
 The aft cabin has a rail on top of it that needs to have stanchions, these are made from 3 mm dowel and then shaped accordingly. Although nothing real fancy or anything, I thought you may want to see how I made them.
 

3 mm dowel in chuck 
 

First cut is made, .100 from the end and .021 deep
 

second cut made, .460 from the end and .01 deep
 

Shaping is done using a sanding stick on the backside
 

 
Final shaping done and parting groove is cut at .560 from the end. Final parting was done with a razor saw, with lathe turned off
 

Culling out the rejects, on the left
 

Length when parted from lathe is .560 inches or approximately 14 mm, which allows for 1 mm to be sanded off each end to arrive at a final measurement of 12 mm. When I tried to make these at the exact length the 1 mm collar would chip or break so making them longer prevented this. I used a Byrnes disc sander for sanding the ends which made this part of the job very easy.
 As you can see nothing out of the ordinary but it was lots of fun, and Doug(Heronguy), if you are reading, this is the reason you NEED a lathe
 For anyone considering buying a mill, having a DRO(digital read out) really helps for something like this when there are repetitive cuts. It saves on mistakes and time, I would defiantly recommend buying one when ordering a mill.
 
 You all have fun and enjoy the weekend. It's snowing here now so it looks like I'll be storm stayed for the weekend , luckily enough the food and refreshment fridges are both well stocked!!

Don:
 
I've just caught up to this log, and your beech planking looks wonderful.  I love the way you did alternating boards and lined up the joins.  I'm going to sign on to see the rest.
 
Regards,
David Robinson (the "other" one)  

Hey David, Thanks for looking things over. There is always room for more

I’ve made and installed a few more decorations today. Working on the ones for the opposite side now. Still have a lot more to go just on the roof! I might have gotten more done but I ended up spending some time on the floor playing with my dogs. They got a new toy that needed breaking in. 
 
As always thanks for stopping in, the likes and comments. More to follow! 

I’ve made and installed a few more decorations today. Working on the ones for the opposite side now. Still have a lot more to go just on the roof! I might have gotten more done but I ended up spending some time on the floor playing with my dogs. They got a new toy that needed breaking in. 
 
As always thanks for stopping in, the likes and comments. More to follow!