aliluke

Hi Ollie I'd substitute that copper for thick card - manila folder and paint it black with a Sharpie pen or similar. Reason being copper will crinkle like hell and thick paper will obey your commands - or the commands of the glue. Guess I hate copper right now. But tight straps are much more easily rendered in manila folder paper than in metal. No one will notice the difference in my opinion except for the fact that the paper will look better unless you are a master of bending copper. Your masts look great by the way - you are certainly quick but with no lack of high quality work. Cheers Alistair

That looks great Ken - a fantastic unpainted result. Cheers Alistair

Hi David That looks really good. Fantastic work. Any chance of some zoom outs so we can get the bigger picture? It certainly seems like it would be worth seeing! Cheers Alistair

Hi Bob That is very clever work by you. Blue Ensign is the gospel and I would certainly not challenge his opinion. The 8mm does look better to my eye but I would not die in ditch over the scale. In terms of calligraphy it is more interesting. The "A" needs to be slightly closer to the "N" and the "A" slightly closer to the "R". I'm completely anal about this stuff but it is thinking about the space in between letters. Putting "FLY" on my counter is going to be a trick. The "Y" needs to be slightly closer to the "L" than it is typed here...Will send you a PM with another thought. Cheers Alistair

Your post beat mine. That looks like a very complex layout. Perhaps simplify with overlaps? I'm sure it is right but it just looks very difficult to do. Coppering isn't easy as I have found and just getting the hull coated is enough. Perhaps go for the two top lines of copper and then dress up from the keel? Or do a gore line and lay up from that? In any case I still reckon go from the keel up and you can overlap the plates as you need to. Not much help I'm afraid, others may offer better. Cheers Alistair

I haven't a clue about the right height for the waterline for Cutty Sark. Overall your build looks amazing - very crisp and clean. For the plating I suggest working from the keel upwards. That way if you do need to overlap the plates the lap will be on the upper side of the run. I found overlapping and avoiding stealers gave me the result I wanted. That said my hull is much more curved than Cutty Sark. Cheers Alistair

Sorry Mike I may have named it wrong. It is exactly the same tool that Dominic showed in post #146 in your log. Maybe a plank crimper or bender is the right word - I didn't mean to confuse. The guy I got it from called it a "nipper" and the name has stuck with me even though I haven't touched it for years. For snipping brass or other bits - very sharp scissors or micro clippers. I use high quality stainless steel nail scissors for fine brass bits and bolts. They will eat anything and their small size makes the operation more exact. Wood or brass at 2 x 2 mm would be a stretch though - that needs a saw or a guillotine cutter, for wood that is, in my opinion. Cheers Alistair

Hi Bob This is what I got http://www.letraset.com/products/107-Times-New-Roman It is 5mm high Times New Roman in gold. It arrived within a week from the UK but I think the postage was more than the cost - still pretty cheap though. I think there are at least 3 "V"'s in the set. Several here use this - Blue Ensign and, I think, a Sherbourne build as well. I have yet to try it but will be doing so soon as it needs to go on before the trims to the upper counter. Bon chance Alistair

Hi Mike Just came across your log from Hamilton's thread about the Occre vs AL Bounty. You are doing a great job. As for planking. I use the technique that Bindy linked you to. I soak the planks for a good few hours in very hot water and then clamp them around a china cup. I make the bend much greater than is needed. I then let them dry in the sun. I used to use a plank nipper but find it crushes and distorts the wood. The clamping system over a suitable former - a cup works fine - is much more kind to the wood and, if well soaked, I never get any snapping. My nipper is gathering dust and I'd argue that it is a crude tool that you don't need. Cheers Alistair

I wanted a brown look for my copper rather than green. This is based on some of the contemporary models in the NNM collection. I used urine - my own - and this was the outcome after about 12 hours. The biggest problem is undetectable bits of glue which prevent aging. I may go back and rework these little flecks. Cheers Alistair

It all looks really, really good RMC. A fantastic stern, For lettering are you using PE brass or Letraset? If the former I'd recommend the latter but the former is good too. I think set out is by eye. Layout your "Vanguard" letters on a piece of paper with the right vertical curvature and letter spacing and measure where the centre point of the lettering is. Lightly mark the centre point on the upper counter. I'm guessing it will be between the "g" and the "u" but it depends on the shape of the letters themselves. Fix the first letters around that centre and then transfer the letters from that centre point out to the port and starboard. Letter spacing is a complex thing but easier when they are all capitals. For instance the second "A" should not be too close to the "V". Place them on paper and shuffle to you get the right feel for the spacing. Mine is easier - Fly! I'm just thinking this up but that is how I'd do it and I work with lettering in another life. Cheers Alistair

Cheers all Bindy - I use Tamiya masking tape. I like it as it has a low tack so it doesn't effect the finishes underneath it. It also doesn't leave a glue residue. That said there are any number of cheaper tapes out there but Tamiya seems popular here and is easy to get. Jase - never heard of Micro-mesh but good advice. I'll have to see if we can get it here. Cheers Alistair

Hi Danny No I'm not going to try the wheel at 1:64 . It is the aft clerestory in the manner of the FFM, like yours, that I'm going to try and even that seems like a difficult prospect. On a completely different matter - I notice your gratings and coamings are quite heavily cambered whereas some models show them quite flat. Is this all guesswork in terms of historical accuracy? I like your camber but went very flat with mine for no real reason and now I wonder what is more correct (I suspect yours is given the depth of your knowledge)? Cheers Alistair

Brilliant work Danny. I looked at the info on the wheel in the FFM and couldn't imagine how it could be done - you have proved it can be with the right tools and very good skills. The skylight is a treat too. I'm going to have a go at the same for Fly but don't fancy my chances at 1:64. Cheers Alistair

Glad you like my thoughts. That's a good addition Nigel. I might try those thinners for acrylics but I have found Polly Scale to be very easy to apply and easy to keep the coats thin. Certainly some other acrylics that I've used are more difficult. My Fly is the first time I've used enamel on wood - mainly chosen because of the vast colour choice you can get from Humbrol. The AVS that I did is 100% acrylic from a variety of brands - Admiralty, Polly Scale and Citadel. It'd be nice to see other tips here. Painting the hull on the AVS was a challenge to get even and advice on white hull painting by brush would be interesting. Cheers Alistair

Hi I'm a bit surprised by the very positive comments on my painting work on my Fly model. It is a quite easy process from my point of view so I thought I'd share my technique. Forgive me to all of you who know this already or do it better. My painting technique dates back to house painting in my student years, the principles are the same. Brushes: - Do not scrimp by buying cheap brushes. Get the best quality, sable hair, that you can afford. - For painting a large area of your model use a square headed brush about 3 mm - 4mm wide with a tapered head and medium stiffness. Same as house painting but at a much smaller scale. - Look after your brushes. Clean them in lacquer thinners, turpentine or water according to the paint you use. Do not let them soak in any of these solutions. After the first clean wash them in hot water and concentrated dish wishing liquid. The idea is to get rid of any paint residue in the brush and especially in its barrel. Always clean straight after you finished the area painted. Good brushes treated well will last for years. - For clear finishes I use a larger, soft, round or oval head brush - these give a softer application and allow quicker application than a square head. I find clear finishes work best if they go on quickly. I use Testors Dullcote but that is just my choice. Application - Several or many thin coats are better than a few thick coats. If the wood behind is showing behind your first coat you are on the right track. - Do not overload the brush with paint. I take the paint from the pot or bottle and lay it with the brush on to a piece of fresh paper. I then brush out the loaded brush on the paper until it is only lightly loaded with paint. - Work in one direction from one end to the other of the ship - aft to stern or the other way round. Never start in the middle and then head aft followed by forward. - Never go back to a perceived mistake behind you in a single application. The paint will have tacked and, especially with enamels, you will get pulling which will turn a minor mistake into a major mess. You can fix that perceived mistake on the next coat. - Always allow the paint to fully dry. Enamels need at least six hours. Partly dried paint if processed will make a major mess. When you sand the paint should turn to dust. If it rolls into little slivers it isn't dry. - After each coat lightly sand with 1200 grit paper. If this takes the paint back to wood it doesn't matter there is another coat to come. Finish - After your last coat of paint, leave it to fully dry and the rub it down with tissue paper. This will even out any brush strokes and colour differences. - Apply a lacquer (or your favourite clear finish). I use Testors Dullcote. When dry, Testors can again be rubbed back with tissue paper to a dull sheen. I also do a second coat of clear and rub it back again. If you have any shiny spots 1200 grit plus a further tissue rub will get rid of them. The above only applies to easily accessed surfaces. Strakes, fenders and other things in the way will make the rub off impossible. My theory is to get the base painting about right before those bits are added. I could be proved wrong... Here is a picture of the upper works paint plus the wales paint. the upper works are a Humbrol enamel, the wale a Polly Scale acrylic. A little bit of grain shows through which suits me. This is more paint grain than wood grain. A too perfect finish would make the model too plastic looking (I'm not meaning to deride plastic models). If any of you have better ideas I'd be keen to hear them - this works for me. Cheers Alistair

Very interesting and your technique there for reinforcing the bulkheads with dowel is one that I haven't seen before. Your kits have some great subjects. I couldn't find any written description of kit contents though. What sort of timber is provided? Are they single or double planked? Any way nice to find a new kit maker (but I see you having been doing these for quite some time) and I will follow this build with interest. Thanks for posting. Cheers Alistair

Congratulations Ken. It come out superbly - the sails are just great. Well done - I love this little ship. Cheers Alistair

Brilliant ideas! Enough said. Great work . Cheers Alistair

Fantastic work Luca. The whole hull,strakes and bulwarks look great. Coppering next? Cheers Alistair

I went for Fly as I preferred the stern detail over Pegasus - much more 3 dimensional in my opinion. That said, I effectively upgraded to Pegasus through the upgrade kit. I further upgraded through Chris Watton by getting the Pegasus PE set - very reasonably priced but I don't think he is selling through his website anymore. The total cost was more than Pegasus but only just. My Fly will be a hybrid but I got everything that Pegasus has and two PE sets - makes mistakes easier to deal with! I did have to buy copper as another upgrade - slightly forced on me and an added expense that is avoided with the Pegasus kit. I guess in hindsight I'd go for Pegasus but I still prefer the Fly stern! Cheers Alistair

Also suggest a two part epoxy glue in combination with the above. Horrible stuff to work with but near on unbreakable. Epiglass Epiglue the very best of these two part glues. I hate it but when you use it right the wood will fail long before the glue does. Cheers Alistair

Brilliant work Ollie - first class in every respect. Yours is turning into the definitive model of Mermaid. Cheers Alistair

Doesn't look bad to me at all. for the wale/fashion piece sequence have a look at my log. The sequence shown there worked for me which is the planks underneath the wale first, then a temporary outer wale clamped into position to get the right lines for the fashion piece then install piece and finish the stern and then do the first layer of planks. I'm sure there are other ways. Cheers Alistair

Great work Hamilton. Have to agree, a year is very fast for what you've achieved. Blandford looks magnificent! Cheers Alistair