Brucealanevans

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

This is a dangerous area in the site and has led me to purchase and build things I would otherwise never known about.
Case in point: Grant's extensive build log of this Sierra West diorama model.
So, 8 months later, here is mine:
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

This is a dangerous area in the site and has led me to purchase and build things I would otherwise never known about.
Case in point: Grant's extensive build log of this Sierra West diorama model.
So, 8 months later, here is mine:
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

This is a dangerous area in the site and has led me to purchase and build things I would otherwise never known about.
Case in point: Grant's extensive build log of this Sierra West diorama model.
So, 8 months later, here is mine:
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

This is a dangerous area in the site and has led me to purchase and build things I would otherwise never known about.
Case in point: Grant's extensive build log of this Sierra West diorama model.
So, 8 months later, here is mine:
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

This is a dangerous area in the site and has led me to purchase and build things I would otherwise never known about.
Case in point: Grant's extensive build log of this Sierra West diorama model.
So, 8 months later, here is mine:
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

And to finish up, a few detail shots. Really enjoyed building this, and learning terrain-making skills along the way.
 

I've finished the masts and booms, save a coat of WOP, and everything attached directly to them. It is necessary to study both relevant plan sheets and double check with the pictures in the instruction book as there are a few things easy to miss. And this time I didn’t forget to carefully ream out the block holes BEFORE mounting them!
 
I can't put the aft mast and booms together until I get the sail. My sail maker - my wife - is having an extended stay in our Marblehead Massachusetts place, so I sent her the fabric and a sail pattern. Whether she receives it and finishes it it is unclear if she should send it back or I just wait till she returns. Either way I'll attach the sail to the upper boom and mast off ship.
Anyway, as the boat must be transported by car with all our other junk when we drive to Marblehead where it will live from here in Minnesota, it might be best not to install the masts and do the rigging until we go there for the summer in mid-May. I only have a mini-workshop there, so I need to make certain I've taken care of everything requiring my tool shop and equipment here before we go, and take my rigging tools with me.
In the meantime, I'll take a stab at building the ship's boat. With both my Morgan and Confederacy builds I left the little boats to the end which felt like an anti-climax. This little thing is small and fragile, so I suspect more than a bit of a challenge.

Mounted the ship's boats and fixed two small things I bunged while doing so.
At the end of a leisurely 2 1/3 year journey - this model is now finished!
Interestingly I tried to order a brass plate from an Amazon seller I had used for my other builds. It (or their police bot) refused to accept "Confederacy" by policy. So it's titled "United States Frigate 1778". I suppose I could have worked on getting the name on it, but at this point I didn't feel like it.
So here are some final views:
 

And here are the two of them, ready for mounting onto the ship. I'll bring her out of her case down to the shipyard for the process.
 

Finished the pinnace! These little boats took me longer than I expected them to take.
 

Finished the first of the two ships boats: The Longboat.
A bit of a challenge at this scale. The planking job was iffy but the final product looks OK.
Tomorrow I start on planking the Pinnace.
 

A big moment!
After 2+ years the Confederacy itself is done. Still have the ship's boats to build, but it's great to see the ship itself finished.
I'll move it up to its case, clean up the shipyard, and start to work on those 2 ship's boats.
Overall I'm pleased with the result, even with the warts most of which only I notice.
The most complex thing I've built, and I doubt I'll be making anything this hard (more accurately, this complex) again.
Here it is:
 

Gangways now in place.
 
I STRONGLY suggest installing the gangway hanging knees BEFORE installing the channels, chainplates, and cannon port covers. I followed the sequence in the instructions instead, and found it very difficult to install the knees without being able to brace my fingers against the exterior hull to accurately hold the knees in place both to shape them and to apply appropriate pressure while holding them in place accurately for the glue to "grab". Also, necessary to install "from above" as a more deck level approach difficult to impossible due to hands, tools, and arms interfering with the fragile hull structures on the other side. Plus, several cannon port covers were inadvertently snapped off and had to be repaired.
I'm not really happy with the placement of the knees but it will do.
 
Now for 4 gangway stairs.
 

I have finished the exterior on the port side (my "practice' non-primary view side) today.
I am actually very pleased with the photo-etch chain plates. I painted them all on the sheet, first with vallejo grey primer airbrushed on and left to cure for 12+ hours, and then airbrushed with model expo hull black suitably thinned and left overnight. This created a relatively durable finish. With a good sprue cutter the pieces are easily removed as needed.
I put the deadeyes in by snipping the round part and spreading slightly, inserting the deadeye with correct orientation, and closing by pinching the base with a fine needle nose hobby pliers. Sealed the snip with a drop of CA and touched up when dry with some black paint.
2 cautions with the other pieces: those with holes for the nails required a gentle reaming of the holes to make certain the nails would drop through easily. I did this before cutting them free. I'm glad I thought to check before actually mounting them. The other caution is not to mix up the middle links that come in 3 lengths - I avoided this by removing them one at a time (or a few sets of 3) when needed and placing them in separate small trays.
Once an entire chain was made, I mounted the deadeye in the channel groove, made sure it was pushed well in so as not to interfere with the subsequent trim strip and added a drop of CA. I found that friction alone was not sufficient to hold them in place when manipulating to mark, drill, and place the nails.
With the deadeyes all mounted, creating and placing each chainplate "chain" was very easy and quick. A bit of black paint touch up where brass was exposed due to tweezers handling, and done.
After that, glued on the trim strips to the channels, put in all the eyebolts called for on the plans, and retrieved by cannon port lids from their labeled card and glued them in. Care is needed (despite the pre-drilled holes for each) as the "pins" - the piece of sprue left on the hinges - is very fragile and buckles easily.
 
One note: There are not nearly enough eyebolts included with the kit to even come close to all those indicated on the plans. So either make or buy lots of extras. I have trouble making them that small.
 
So here is where things stand with the port hull done. I'll turn it around and finished the starboard side within the next couple of days as I have the techniques down now.
 
Then I get to finish the waist detail, step the masts and lash the anchors.  After that she goes in her case of honor till the ships boats are done. 

Finished installing the skids, steps, and channels on both sides. The cannon port covers are done, with the holes pre-drilled - I will wait to glue them in until the chainplates are done.
After all this time it is getting a bit exciting to be this close to finishing the model (aside from the ship's boats).

Finished with the beakhead today!
Since the railing was supported strongly on both ends with eye bolts, I decided to make the uprights from thin wire to make it easier to mount them into the main rail/false rail without splitting the thin wood.
I am reasonably pleased with the overall look and more than reasonably pleased to have it done. I'm now looking forward to more simple if repetitive tasks to complete the outer hull.