Hubac's Historian

This will probably sound absurd - HOWEVER
 
I personally like to believe that my particular instant obsession with this ship when I was 8 or 9 years old is rooted in the mere possibility of past lives.  I like to think that maybe I served on this ship, or at least saw it with my living eyes.  It is a nice fantasy 😜, and why my wife refers to her as the other woman.
 
No divorce is not yet imminent; so far, it is a happy poly-amory.

Your execution on all of this is outstanding.  If I could make one small suggestion:  I might consider reducing the almost full-roundness of the globe beneath the wings to maybe slightly less than 3/4 roundness.  To my eye, at least, that detail looks a little too full.

Your execution on all of this is outstanding.  If I could make one small suggestion:  I might consider reducing the almost full-roundness of the globe beneath the wings to maybe slightly less than 3/4 roundness.  To my eye, at least, that detail looks a little too full.

So, I had a small pocket of time to snug and snip the fore, port channel. I was able to finesse that first knot up a little higher. Really - and considering that they do tighten up just enough more under slight tension - I am very pleased with this experiment. Black touch-up paint to follow:


I am at least confident that these long links would not look better as wire. I may have over-calculated the angle of the two furthest aft preventer plates, but I was just following what the test line told me to do. Also, technically, the preventer plate links should span to the lower wale, but the first batch I made just looked over-long. I can live with this compromise. It is still a vast improvement over the stock kit. The important thing is that the chains no longer interfere with the port lids.

There are three backstay deadeyes that I have yet to prepare, but I will get to them in the next few rounds of deadeye prep.

This business of learning to make the chains continued to confound me as I discovered yet another mistake in my process.
 
For anyone who may also be new to this aspect of the hobby - BEWARE: jewelry wire (brass/copper) is coated with an anti-oxidation layer.  Brass black will not take without first stripping the coating (acetone bath, 99% purity - available at the pharmacy), and then roughing the wire surface with ScotchBrite.  I failed to do either of these things.  For your own sake, just buy untreated, soft copper wire.
 
My first dipping in JAX brass black almost didn’t take at all.  Whatever oxidation there was, was very spotty and wiped away easily.  After thoroughly rinsing the parts in acetone, my second JAX bath did much more to blacken the parts, but the depth of oxidation was highly irregular, there were still lots of completely bright brass patches, throughout, and the oxidation that was present still rubbed off too easily.
 
What to do, now?  I quickly decided that I absolutely was not going to re-make all of these fittings, as I had at least bent them into nicely uniform parts.  The only reasonable solution, IMO, was to spray-prime the lot black:
 

After inserting the deadeyes, and any necessary touch-up, the deadeye strops looked like this:

Quite satisfactory, I think.  On the inside, bottom edge of each deadeye, I placed a drop of CA, in order to fix the orientation of the deadeye.
 
I needed to make a run of split-rings, both for the gun out-haul tackles, and for between where the chains attach to the middle wales.
 
For these, I really like how tight a twist I get with galvanized steel wire.  Given that I was going to paint these, as well, it didn’t seem quite so important what the material was, but how it behaved.


I found it quite easy to close the eyes with my parallel pliers, a decent set of which are essential for this work (Thanks Druxey!), and I sealed the rings with a spot of common, brush-able CRAZY GLUE.
 
The eyes on deck:


In preparation for the deadeyes, I made ready the channels.  Because I found it necessary to shift a handful of deadeyes, so that the chains do not interfere with the gunport lids, I found it necessary to widen a number of the channel slots.  I then drilled for short sections of .030 styrene rod, so that I could favor one side of the slot:


Next I made capping strips for the outside edges of the channels, and simulated the nailing with shallow slices of triangular styrene rod.  I used the same “heat flashing” technique to dome over the heads:

With my masts in-place and a guide-string, I penciled-in the preventer plate locations.
 
The important thing, I think, was that the join of the preventer plates and the small loop-links be in a consistent plane, along the upper middle wale - just slightly higher than mid-wale.
 
Following a tip from fellow SR enthusiast Eric Wiberg, I purchased the following dome-headed rivets:
 
https://www.eugenetoyandhobby.com/products/plastic-rivets-round-head?_pos=3&_sid=320937e14&_ss=r
 
My idea was to use these with plastic cement to secure the preventer and loop links.
 
After drilling the top preventer plate/loop-link hole, I secure the position of the preventer plate with a common sewing pin in the top hole, and then swing a short mechanical pencil arc for the bottom hole location.
 
There are very slight differences between preventer plate links, so you do have to drill specific links for a given location.  It is very fiddly to fix the plates with these tiny styrene pins, but it can be managed from the bottom up with plenty of patience and a sewing pin to guide mating eyes into alignment.
 
Now, my hope for some time and results redemption depended upon whether or not I could make appropriate diameter thread look like the long connecting links.
 
Among my stash, was some really nice line that Dan Pariser very generously donated to my cause.  Although light in color, I found I could “paint” lengths of line with two passes of a black sharpie, which also gave the line some stiffness when dry.  I found that a single bow-knot gave me the ability to introduce tension to these links:
 
Obviously, it is important to ensure that the loop links and deadeye strops are in the correct orientation to each other.
 
The proof of concept on this first link gave me sufficient confidence that this idea will produce a nice result.  It is only important that one wait to stiffen the knot with CA until after you have pulled the knot up close behind the deadeye strop loop.  On this first one, I glued before doing so, and the knot is less perfectly concealed than the others will be:

This picture above was before pulling the knot up.  Eventually, when the lower deadeyes are lashed to their corresponding upper deadeyes, these chain links will pull fully taught with just the slightest tension.
 
Here is where things stand as of now:

I quickly learned it is wise to cover the gun ports, so that you are not continually losing links into the hull.  After pinning the links in place, I brushed over the link assembly with thin CA, to give it a little extra holding power.  I then left it to dry overnight.
 
Next, I will draw all remaining loops taught, and then the whole of it will receive a thinned acrylic black wash to homogenize the assembly and touch-up any bright spots.
 
There are, of course, many better ways to go about all of this.  For me, for now - I’ll take this all as a learning experience and move-on with it.
 
Thank you all for looking-in!
 
Best,
 
Marc
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I can’t escape the fact that I continue to fail at this chain-making exercise.  As the old maxim goes, though, every failure is one step closer to success.
 
I’ve now thrown away two whole batches of chain preventer plates.  While I was quite right to follow Andre Kudin’s example, for the process of their manufacture, I eventually discovered that that process is not entirely transferable from 1:48 to 1:96 scale.
 
After forming his basic links, Andre solders them closed at one end, and then places the closed link back onto the two pins so that he can crimp an eye on each end with his round pliers.
 
Well, the 28 gauge brass wire I’m using does not provide enough surface area for a strong enough bond to survive the crimping.  My success to failure ratio was pretty poor:

So, my lesson from that exercise was that I needed to do the crimping before soldering one end closed:

These soldered loops will be the lowest end of the chains, bolted into the wales.  That way, I could induce a series of bends into the upper half of each preventer plate, so that they could overlay the next small link:

Above I’m just using another preventer plate to check that the bends I’m making are sufficient.
 
So, I spent a good chunk of time cleaning up the solder and inducing bends into the remainder of the preventer plates.  The solder joint will be re-enforced with the CA glue that fixes the pin-bolt in place:

With that out of the way, I could make a new, slightly closer-spaced pin jig for the next small link, which is only crimped on one end, where it seats beneath the preventer plate.
 
Now that I have a process that I know will work, and now that I’ve had all of this practice, these next links should go fairly quickly:


I have a lot of these to make, solder and bend - about 70 to ensure I can use the best.  This has all been a colossal PITA, but it was really important to me that all of this look very clean and uniformly shaped.  In the process, I have acquired some very valuable metal skills that will only enhance this and future projects.
 
That said, I am going to experiment with using black nylon thread of an appropriate diameter to connect the deadeye strop loops to the small links.  This would essentially be a variation on the way that the stock kit represents these links, but I will do individual chain loops that draw tight with some form of slip-knot that I can pull up and hide behind the deadeye strop.
 
Andre had a great method for producing these variances, but it is all just that much more tedious in the smaller scale.
 
The advantages of doing this are several.  So long as there is not a jarring difference in appearance between the black thread and the blackened metal, it will save me tremendous amounts of time.  It also simplifies the difficulty of accurately measuring and keeping track of a series of increasingly longer links as the shroud angle increases from fore to aft.  Lastly, it greatly simplifies the placement of the deadeyes because I can add the retaining strip, in advance, and it also makes it much easier to locate and properly secure the bottom two links.  Hopefully, that will work out.  
 
Well, I keep saying that I’m going to get back in the swing of the project, and then I get sucked into coaching another basketball team - now my son’s Spring rec team.  Meanwhile, the Rangers and Knicks are just too compelling to ignore this post-season.  At least for now, I can see the end of the tunnel for these chains, which is tremendously motivating, and then I can return to the more immediately gratifying work of outfitting and arming the main deck.
 
Thank you all for taking the time to look back in on This Old Build.  More to come!
 

Happy Birthday, Marc!  I hope you and your family are well.

Thank you for the kind words.
I planted the first parts with the laurel garlands on a drop of second glue on the plywood. But then I really regretted it. My jar of anti-glue was empty, I guess it was not properly sealed and the acetone just disappeared. So there was nothing to dissolve the glue with. I risked trying to peel it off with a thin blade. I was very worried that the whole piece might burst. But it came off all right. 
So when I made acanthus branches, I did not try to glue anything. I just tried to hold it gently in my hands. That's all.
 

Beautifully done. Thank you for your comments on tagua nuts. I was given some many years ago but never tried cutting or carving it. Sounds tricky to use.

Chapter 8

In which the author is gnawing on a nut and examining the branches.
 
After finishing the flat part of the side gallery and its dome, I had to look for a new object to build. I told you in the last chapter that I was very happy to get back to carving. Even if it was just a small detail on the dome. 
I mentioned that I am now looking for areas that are better done before the balcony and its railings. So that this balcony is less in the way, and I don't have the fear that I might accidentally break something. It's a perfectly simple and logical thought, and anyone would do exactly the same thing. But now I thought there was a flaw in my plans. I had planned to completely build the entire structure of the overall ensemble. And then to do the decorating, covering the built structures with decoration details. And there's logic in that, too. But now I thought I could go the other way. When I become engaged in making decorations, I may again face the problem that in some places the construction will get in the way. For example, the same balcony will be an obstacle. After all, for the decor you need to take the dimensions qualitatively, then I will have to do frequent fitting, so that these parts are properly docked. That is, it will again be easier for me to do this work even before some of the structures.
And this thought was a joyful one for me. Because it meant that I could continue working with the same second floor of the side gallery that I had just built. And I could get on with the carving. What a great thing to do!
I mentioned earlier that on this model the decor was to be made of an unusual material. The customer wanted it to be made of mammoth bone or tagua nut. Earlier I described a little experimentation with these nuts. And now I had a full-fledged work with these nuts. 
This is a new experience for me. I have never worked with this material before. I've never "gnawed" on it. Moreover, I don't like to carve with power tools. I'm used to chisels and knives. And I even purposely try not to polish my sculptures. And I leave tool marks on them. And after working with a manual milling pen, you can't do without abrasive treatment. This tool leaves completely wrong marks, they need to be processed later.
And when I take a milling handle in my hands after chisels, it feels like a log to me. I feel like this.
 

 
So starting a new kind of work was exciting for me. Would I get the decor at the right level? But eyes fear and hands do. 
For the first time, I decided to start with these parts.
 

 
It turned out to be not so complicated. I will allow myself to tell you about my first impressions. First of all, can tagua walnut be processed with chisels? After all, if i do not like power tools, why torture yourself? Maybe we should do all the work with chisels, if they are more familiar.
In principle, cutting with knives is possible. But in spite of my attitude towards borax, I still won't do all the work the way I'm used to. Why not? You can't carve these nuts like wood. When you carve wood, you can cut large chips. But you can't do that with nut. You can work it very thin. You might not even call it "cutting the material", but "chipping". Nut is somewhat similar to textolite. It has short, thin flakes that separate when you cut it off. They don't just fall on the table, they fly off like bullets. And often I've caught myself thinking that this happens even before the point completely slices off the slice. It breaks off earlier. So this material is quite brittle. 
With the tagua nut, I have the ever-present thought that a small piece could break off much sooner. And I'd better not put any more pressure on it. It's hard to explain it exactly. The structure of the nut is strong and hard. And you have to gradually increase the pressure. And then suddenly, in an instant, there's a click and the flake comes off. The point enters the wood gradually. But in walnut, it goes in sharply. That's why it's easier to grind walnut into dust with a hand router than to cut it with knives. So I spent 80-90% of the time holding this handle. But it still had more pros than cons. The knives went on the attack occasionally. Most often it was the last stages of work, when I was tweaking something. For example, where it was necessary to remove the plowed surface after the boron, and it was impossible to reach this place with anything else. 
That's the feeling of working with walnut.
And now what you got.
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
The next details I chose were the acanthus branches on the sides of the dome. Having practiced on the simpler parts I wanted more complex ones. 
 

 
There was a whole other level of challenge to be tackled here. First, the decor now had to hug the frame molding and a groove had to be made on the inside. And secondly, the plasticity and movement of the branches should go in several planes at once. And at the top, these branches had to turn into very thin cilia. And this task was very interesting.
 

 

 

 

 
I will tell you about one more nuance. The tagua nut has one peculiarity. Because it is completely white, it makes figures made of it look quite different from the way the same parts look from wood. The white surface steals volume. The decor appears flat. This is because the light is very much cut off from it, even in the shadows. The shadows look light. You can solve this problem by making sharper gradients between convex areas and hollows. Then more active shadows will remain in the depths of hollows and depressions, and the figure will look more voluminous. But I can't always do it this way. For example, the laurel garlands that I just made can't be done with this method. The piece is thin, there's just nowhere to place the deep depressions. So the white color of the tagua nuts has its own characteristics.
In my case, however, there is nothing wrong with the garlands looking flat. It's even normal. If you look at the whole ensemble of decor, it should be varied. Some details should be more active. And they are made large, detailed. And other details should play the role of a supplement. Then the ensemble will be balanced. Just like in a musical ensemble or orchestra. Each instrument has its own role.
So the acanthus branches, which I've taken up now, should be the parts that look more active. That's where you need to make deep depressions, so that they make these parts of the decoration volumetric. So I tried to make sure that the hollows didn't go too deep, especially where the channel for the dome frame was cut on the back side. It was very exciting and interesting. To combine all the nuances together: to make sure that the depressions were deep enough but didn't pierce the body through. To make the pattern of branches lively and logical, so that the viewer would not even guess that in this place it is impossible to go deeper. So that he would say: this is how it should be, it's a real branch. So that the delicate details don't break off. 
I can say that so far this is my favorite detail on this ship. I got a lot of satisfaction from working on the branches.
I can say that my perception is not yet used to white decor elements. I'm used to more classic materials. And so far this option looks controversial to me. But I like these acanthus branches so much that I can't imagine them in any other material. The white glowing light of the tagua nut gives a special look.
In the future, when more and more details will appear and the white color will become more common, I may revise my opinion of this style. And then I will write honestly about what I think, just as I write honestly about my thoughts today.
And that will conclude this chapter. There's already a lot written in it. And the story about the rest of the dome decor details will come a little later.

Oh yes, I forgot about the photo of the finished branches.
 

 

 

 

Mark, it is amazing how complicated this whole flowing structure is.  You are doing a masterful job of drawing out all of the details and sussing through all of the convergent planes.  I’m glad to hear, also, that you are feeling more like yourself these days.

Mark, it is amazing how complicated this whole flowing structure is.  You are doing a masterful job of drawing out all of the details and sussing through all of the convergent planes.  I’m glad to hear, also, that you are feeling more like yourself these days.

Mark, it is amazing how complicated this whole flowing structure is.  You are doing a masterful job of drawing out all of the details and sussing through all of the convergent planes.  I’m glad to hear, also, that you are feeling more like yourself these days.

Good advances there, Mark! I made a considerable quantity of projection drawings for the stern galleries. (This was 30 years ago before the various computer graphic programs we now have were available!) I found the sane way was to expand in a single plane at a time. For instance, first correcting the tilt of the stern tier of lights, then flattening the round aft. Of course, you can do this in seconds and a few clicks now!
 
Cheers,

D

Hi Dan and druxey,
Your recent kind comments made me realize that I have not posted in a long time, and you inspired me to catch up a little.
 
I am still a little slow after my health issues, although things are definitely on the mend.
 
What has slowed me the most is that this stern is exceedingly complicated to construct, I have discovered. I have had to do more drawings to figure out how everyone will go together, and then fabricate a number of structural members that will eventually form the framing for the quarter galleries. This has involved cutting parts with a roundup like the decks, with a curve fore and aft, some with a slope matching the aft face of the quarter gallery and some others with a slope matching the outboard face of the quarter gallery, and then rabbets on these multi-curving surfaces for windows top and bottom. I have made many mistakes so far, keeping it all straight....
 
First, determining the location and widths of the quarter galleries relative to the hull. There are no original drawings of the Bellona stern, and only the most basic hint of the quarter gallery plan, showing the curvature of its outboard edge. So I had to reconstruct from photos of the models, and some geometry.
 

The key to reconstruction is that the stern windows to the upper deck are evenly spaced, and they all converge at a point some distance above the hull. In the drawing below, the 4th orange line to the right is the end of the hull itself, while the blue line is the outer edge of the quarter gallery window. Keeping the spacing of the windows the same, and on the correct angle, this then tells me the width of the quarter gallery at various levels:
 

Here are windows mocked up to determine the lengths of the stern mouldings forming the various levels of the stern:'
 

 

 
The following drawing shows some of the geometry involved in the structural parts. Nothing is true size in these, since they are bending and sloping. Everything will have to be measured on the hull itself, and parts fitted to previous parts.

 
Then I had to determine how to make the windows, and therefore how to frame for them. I mentioned before that Chuck has laser cut some beautiful prototypes for me, using my drawings. I have decided on .029" plastic, painted to match the boxwood of the hull. Using mica for the glass (.005" thick) means that I can build windows thin enough to bend to fit their curving surfaces. But to do that, I had to devise a way to trap the window frames and mica between the outer moulding and a rabbet in the structural frame behind.
 
You can see below how the structural frame behind the windows has a rabbet, and once the mica and window frame are put in, the moulding then presses the two tightly together. That is the plan, anyway! You can see in the drawing below how the structural frame (with the crossed lines) slants inward, and also of course bends from the outer edge of the quarter gallery at the stern, to hitting the hull further forward. The frames on the aft side of the quarter galleries also have to round up like the decks.
 
 

 
To make these curved and sloped parts, I made an adjustable angle table for my Foredom. I pre-cut each curve with a jeweler's saw, then sanded to the line making a sloped, curved, edge. I then refined these edges on an appropriately curved sanding stick.
 
 

I then set up a fence on the Foredom with the handle and bit turned upside down, to act as a router table with the bit coming up from underneath.
Below you can see the rabbet marked on the end of the structural piece (temporarily glued to the edge of a plywood handle, to keep my fingers away from the bit). The tops of the windows required an acute angle--made with a dovetail bit as below-- and the bottoms required an obtuse angle made with a straight bit.
 

 
 

And here is one set of frames (port and starboard) and moulding blanks for the sides of one level of the quarter gallery.
 

All of the sides are now complete. I am now working on the structural frames on the aft end of the quarter galleries.
Maybe someday I will be able to start putting some of this together!
 
Best wishes,
 
Mark
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Mark - 
 
I don't believe that I will ever build such a large, complicated ship in the years remaining to me.  But your explanations have been fascinating and your drawings and illustrations have been brilliant.
 
Thanks for a diverting, engaging, and educational build log.
 
Dan

Late to this discussion, but it triggers memories of many years ago when I was building Polyphemus, 64 guns of 1782. I also had a time puzzling out this geometry - particularly the jog aft at quarter deck level. This is not immediately apparent in the sheer plan. It looks like "By George, he's got it!"

Now for some analysis of geometry and construction. 
 
Fifteen years ago, I built the stern frame based on my observation of the first Bellona model, and the Admiralty drawings. I did not understand what I was building at the time, I just followed what I saw. And now I understand as I get into the details.
 
In the model, you can see a couple of strange things. first, the tops of counter timbers with the dovetail joints stand proud of the horizontal transom tying them together. This leaves a gap of about 2". I now realize that these gaps provide a space for the bank of sash windows to slide up into. It means that the windows can be opened at the bottom by about 9"; not a lot, but better than no opening!
 
Second, the side counter timbers, effectively the end of the hull frame, project out from the bottom of the balcony upwards. that is, the bank of windows are recessed back relative to the balcony, creating a shadow line between the upper and lower parts of the stern. There is no functional reason I can see here; it is a visual trick to emphasize the sweeping serpentine curve of the balcony from one side of the composition to the other.

That creates some complication in how this is constructed. The green line shows the aft most edge of the side counter timbers, or hull. There is one moulding along the tops of the window bank, just under the balcony, in red below. Another moulding runs along the base of the balcony, in orange below.
 

 
when the balcony swings out from the stern, the two mouldings split from each other:
 

The next item I did not fully appreciate until I started constructing the stern is how its design needs to reconcile  two geometries working against each other; the upper sweep of the sheer, and the flatter sweep up of the decks (red lines below). The conflict shows a little where the gun ports cut into the sheer in odd places.

But at the stern they really need to be resolved. One of the most important, I discovered, is that the moulding at the tops of the windows must align with the sheer of the deck at its upper edge (orange line below), since it sits flush under the deck itself; but its lower edge must conform to the sheer of the hull (dotted red line below), since it turns the corner and runs along the side of the quarter galleries that align with the hull's sheer.
 

And then one more thing about the stern. In 2014, ten years ago, I posted a question about the stern geometry (posting #173). I noticed a discrepancy in the drawings relative to the roundup of the quarterdeck. If I continued the deck aft with its normal roundup, it was a couple of inches lower than the deck as it was shown coming out into the balcony. There was a lot of discussion around posting 173 as to whether this was a mistake in the drawing, or something else. I finally found in Steel that the quarterdeck does indeed increase its roundup as it approaches the stern balcony, to give a lighter, more springy feeling to the visual lines of the stern. So the drawing is correct, and this needs to be accounted for:
 
 

So, construction next!
 
Mark
 

The rigging has officially commenced, 1st pair of shrouds are on, I used .20mm shroud laid line and 100wt tread for the serving. Scale wise I think looks pretty good.
 
Michael D.
 

With the modifications to the beakhead bulkhead nearing completion, this is the final test fit of the bowsprit, once the eyes for the bowsprit shrouds are fitted and the sprit sail mast rigged, it'll be glued in. Cheers.
 
Michael D.
 
 

 

 

Dressing out the bowsprit is completed with the addition of the eye bolts for the horses, I will follow Lee's explanation and use two horses. My initial plan was to install the spritsail topmast yard brace blocks on the bowsprit, but they were used later on so I'll follow Paynes plate and run them directly to the range. Currently fabricating new catheads and adding the timberheads to the forecastle rail, still a lot pre fitting left to do before installing it for good, also completed the rudder chains. 
 
Michael D.
 
 

 
 
 


 

AAAU.  All Awesome As Usual.  You never disappoint, Michael!

Well, I can tell you that the central lantern that Batavia Werf constructed for the Provincien was large enough for a grown man to stand comfortably inside.  The Provincien carried five stern lanterns.
 
SOS has one large central lantern.  It does not seem implausible to me that maybe three people could be inside there at a time.

The mesh really adds to the lanterns.

That’s an interesting idea.