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Hubac's Historian

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  1. Hubac's Historian
    I love the progress, Radek - very fine work!
  2. Hubac's Historian
    My method for making the window plates is well-documented, earlier in the log, so I won’t go into great detail. Some pictures: I found it best to fit the rough blanks between the pilasters, first, before relieving the negative space panels. This way, I could trace on the backside, the top and bottom edges of the top rail, thereby knowing just how thin to make the reliefs. Once all of the panels were in, and I had also glued-in the central bell-flower ornament, I could begin modeling these reliefs: It really doesn’t take much to give them a little shape and dimension. I began framing in the bulkheads: I like to glue-in positive stops, top and bottom, so that it is easier to glue-in the bulkheads and get them aligned exactly where they need to be. Keen observers will note that the bulkheads do not align, neatly with the tops of the pilasters beneath them. Instead, they fan out more towards the sides: I considered whether to re-draw the plate, but determined that this would result in less pleasingly shaped and proportioned windows: The discrepancy is a result of my decision to revise the tumblehome of the upper bulwarks. The lower tier is based upon the more vertical tumblehome of my original drawing, so the pitch of the window stiles is less severe. This middle tier simply follows the more pronounced pitch of the accentuated tumblehome. In the end, the lower balcony railing will serve as a visual interrupter that minimizes this discrepancy. I point all of this out to highlight just one of many imperfect compromises I have made, where I have deemed one aspect of the construction to carry more visual importance over another. In this instance, the whole model is more ship-like with a more pinched tumblehome, and the windows have a pleasant shape and arc of camber. Thank you for your likes and comments and continued interest in this project. More to follow.
  3. Hubac's Historian
    I agree with Mark - it’s been a long while since I’ve seen your beautiful model. I look forward to updates whenever you are ready.
  4. Hubac's Historian
    Thank you, Marc! My color choices come, in part, from Lemineur’s discussion in the St. Philippe monograph, where he discusses the likelihood that yellow ocher and red vermillion were much more likely paint choices for the deadworks. Given the exorbitant cost associated with true ultra-marine, it would only have been used as a backdrop to ornament that makes specific reference to the crown. I have been slightly more indulgent than that, but mostly, I have stuck to that premise. It also seemed likely to me that the extensive use of gold leaf, that may have been used on the ship as she was launched in 1670, would have been severely reduced by the time of her refit - especially considering they were preparing the ship for war. My lighter blue should probably be lighter still, and with a slightly greenish cast, in order to be fully faithful to the times, but I liked the way this cerulean blue relates to both the yellow and red ochers. Also, and I may be mis-interpreting the faded color, but Berain’s stern drawing appears to be shaded in a faded red color. As I had grown a little bored with always seeing SR as being tan, blue and gold, I wanted to present the possibility that a ship of SR’s importance would have used a polychromatic scheme to accentuate all of the ornamental work; this, much like the Vasa some 50 years earlier, would be an exuberant artistic expression in form, ornament and color. Here is a contemporary watercolor of a ship that I have yet to identify: My idea was to unify the red of the beakhead bulkhead to the stern, by painting the plank of the main deck battery in this same color. All of this may not be exactly historically correct for SR at this time in her career, but I do believe these colors are historically plausible.
  5. Hubac's Historian
    I’m excited to see your next update, Marc, and I’m really glad you’re back in the shipyard!
  6. Hubac's Historian
    Marc - thank you for granting me access to your pics and permission to post them. I’ve been in contact, recently, with another modeler from the UK who was also a great admirer of Michel’s work. He had just recently learned of Michel’s passing and was very saddened by the news.
  7. Hubac's Historian
    Hello Melissa - this is a very nice subject for a kit, and I am looking forward to watching your progress. You are off to a great start!
  8. Hubac's Historian
    Awesome stories all!
  9. Hubac's Historian
    Yes, there is an easy way to reliably rip consistent depth mouldings by temporarily cementing a depth stop to the Byrnes table, both before the blade and on the off-cut side. Then, one can simply adjust the fence so that the wood blank meets the stop. One caveat to this is that the fence adjustment on some micro-saws may not allow for a “soft” approach to an external stop, thereby exerting excess pressure between the blank and the stop - if that makes sense.
  10. Hubac's Historian
    That is a high compliment, Gary - thank you very much! As you know, I am likewise a fan of your super realism.
  11. Hubac's Historian
    I echo Michael’s sentiments, exactly!
  12. Hubac's Historian
    Extraordinary!
  13. Hubac's Historian
    While you may not be satisfied with the color of the deck housing, the sense of faux graining is very good. If I were doing this, that is exactly what I would be hoping to achieve.
  14. Hubac's Historian
    Thank you, Michael! It’s interesting because, while I do need to re-draft the reverse cyma curve of the tafferal, I should be able to use the kit sculptures of “Europe” and “Asia” because the tafferal width turned out to be about the same as stock. That’s a big help because those figures are very challenging to make well, from scratch. I will, however, have to carve the Americas and Africa figure from scratch because I reduced the stern height, overall by a 1/4”, and Africa’s posture is all wrong. Those will be difficult to do.
  15. Hubac's Historian
    Thank you, Mike! Kevin - I am far from quick, but I certainly am committed. I’m getting back some of my former momentum, now, and am excited to continue climbing the stern. I can also appreciate that certain aspects of the build seem a little exaggerated, like the raking angles of the stern lights, but that is all part of designing within the pre-existing architecture. For their part, Heller maintained a more or less vertical window framing for the stock stern plate. If I had gone with my original plan to use the stock stern lights, it might have looked something like this photocopied mock-up: Instead, I’ve chosen a closer approximation of Berain’s intent. Here, I’ve corrected the clearance issue for the outer pilasters: Comme-ci, comme-ca; my happy medium between what is and what should be.
  16. Hubac's Historian
    Plastic is a wonderfully forgiving material, Ian. Whatever dissatisfaction I currently have with my little squiggles will be veneered over with a top layer that I can shape to satisfaction.
  17. Hubac's Historian
    Well, guys, it turns out that I ended up having to make those side lights closer in width to the other four. After fitting of the window plate, I realized that there was not enough room left for the end pilasters. I made some filling pieces and will re-profile after dinner:
  18. Hubac's Historian
    Michael, your work is a true source of inspiration to me. There are so many things that you do with the greatest care and attention to detail.
  19. Hubac's Historian
    I think the teak effect came out quite convincingly on the deck housings, Kevin, and I really like the plank variation in the decking.
  20. Hubac's Historian
    Magnificent work, Michael!
  21. Hubac's Historian
    Bill - I am sincerely hoping for a much better 2022 for you and for all. It sounds as though you have been through the ringer!
  22. Hubac's Historian
    Roger and Dan, thank you very much! Dan, I see what you are saying about the mullions, and I will adjust for that when I scribe the clear plastic. The detail concerning windows 1 and 6 being wider - this actually reflects what Berain drew. Windows 2 through 5 are equally sized, but the outer windows are wider: This was also true of the tier below:
  23. Hubac's Historian
    Thank you for the kind comments guys. I see what you are saying Druxey. Mostly, this is a function of the windows following the tumblehome, as in the original drawing: One issue that may be exacerbating this perception is that the space my windows occupies is a little too tall. I played with shortening the windows and increasing the height of the rails above. In the end, that particular compromise was even less pleasing, so I went with the taller windows. The top and final tier of lights will be the shortest and most vertically oriented.
  24. Hubac's Historian
    I’ve done a fair amount of hemming and hawing over a number of things, but I eventually arrived at the place(s) I think I need to be. For clarification of the earlier discussion; this is the essential problem of my stern winding out of square. Note, how the starboard aft edge of the upper bulwark increasingly extends beyond port: I thought I might try drawing arcs of round-up that ranged from extreme to conservative: I started with the extreme line (far right), but ultimately - a more slight increase of round-up (middle line), appeared to me to be the most organic possibility. Here is what my ultimate choice of round-up looks like from the starboard side: It is just enough, I think, to help balance this incongruity - if not completely. It seems to me that I can also help balance this out when I make the upper stern balcony. Here, I have pulled a uniform cardboard template just away from the port side, so that the outboard edges of the stern balconies align: I think this will help align visual perception at the exact point where it is most important. At the end of the day, I am pleased with the slightly increased camber of this bridge-piece: One thing that has become interesting to consider is this: in gluing up the aft bulwarks, I was very conscious of establishing a realistic sense of tumblehome, as the bulwarks rise. Even accounting for my initial increase in breadth, in the early drawing, I inadvertently maintained the slab-sided verticality of the kit stern. In the left margin, I have noted the discrepancy between where I have arrived, dimensionally, versus where I began schematically: Pictorially, here is the discrepancy for real: What is completely fascinating is that the upper width of the stern is almost identical to the stock dimension. Here is the stock poop deck, in place: Even though this is not where I thought this project was going, when I started, the improved sense of tumblehome was well-worth the sacrifice in stern-width. This isn’t perfect, but it looks more right than wrong: A montage of development for the next tier of stern lights: The pilasters of the lower balcony rail don’t seem to align, but this is not reflective of reality. Again, it isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty close. After drafting: This isn’t perfect. The drawing can be improved upon with the carving tools, themselves. For the most part, I think this works. I wonder whether I should follow the Berain drawing a little more closely and include an extra line of horizontal window mullions. The false side lights, at this level, have five horizontal lines, but I am trying to balance this tier with the actual stern lights below. Just for fun, a different iphone filter - Le Soleil Noir: As always - thank you for looking in. Bon noir!
  25. Hubac's Historian
    Yeah, I’m afraid there’s no flex in the hull. I have gusseted and interlocked every stage of the construction, so that the whole thing is almost absurdly solid. The bowsprit would break off in a stiff wind, but the rest of it would survive an earthquake. Addition and subtraction to the aft edges of the upper bulwarks would, I think, draw more attention to those areas because they would not look right, afterward. In preparation, I glued some styrene to my brace. I’ll take better pics tonight, or at least I will try.

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