Ondras71

After a really long break, I made progress again. Fore and main mast heads created. Just grooves for ropes and fittings... 🔥

After a really long break, I made progress again. Fore and main mast heads created. Just grooves for ropes and fittings... 🔥

After a really long break, I made progress again. Fore and main mast heads created. Just grooves for ropes and fittings... 🔥

I slowly continue on the masts..🔥
 





 

After a really long break, I made progress again. Fore and main mast heads created. Just grooves for ropes and fittings... 🔥

All the frames are in place, it's time to make the mounts for the stand screws. After gluing the keelson will not be visible.

To Hubac´s Historian: Thank you for nice comment, but be careful, we're just at the beginning (that was a joke ).
The most beveled frames are done, the frames in the middle part don't have as much beveling anymore so it went a little faster.

Thank You Michael!
Indeed, it occupated my brain a several years allredy..need to do something with it!!! :)))!!!
Im thinking about decoration now...  for me it is most difficult part of the project...due to lack of my own imagination :),
I would like to combine/or making mix of some decorative elements of Piter Kirsch studies of his english galleon, Eugen Troppmann galleon reconstruction based on Aker 's "GH" galleon reconstruction 
https://www.segelschiffsmodellbau.com/t6619f952-Alternative-Rekonstruktion-der-GOLDEN-HIND.html
and famous art picture by Vroom( that of" Repulse."  - in the right corner ofcthe picture ...galleon decor I like very much! ..

I decided to finish and fit the frames in the front and back of the model first - these frames require more beveling and I want to get this done as soon as possible.

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.
 

 

 

 

Frames on the stern.

All wales on the clinker planking are installed.

On the starboard side a beam has been simulated where the swivel cannons will later be placed

And the thinning of the frames has begun
First a pencil line.

Then the more "heavy tools", used carefully of course.

One side is from 6 to 5 mm, the intention is to later make the frames even thinner above the beam of the swivels to 4 or, if possible, 3 mm

I struggled with silver soldering for some time until I found a system that works for me virtually every time. First off, the mini torch I was using did not generate enough heat for silver soldering. I have since had excellent success with the Blazer Torch https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017Z8KD3S?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details. More importantly I switched to silver solder paste from Euro Tools. It comes as soft, medium and hard so you can solder adjacent pieces. Otherwise I use the medium https://beaducation.com/products/silver-solder-paste-medium. I also use Battens Flux on the joint prior to soldering but I'm not sure if you need it with the paste. You only need a speck of the solder on the joint and you have to move the torch the second it flashes. At any rate if you're having unsuccessful solder joints more than 10% of the time maybe give this a try. Also, as Druxey has pointed out, it's best to place the joint on a linear plane.

Chapter 7 (unplanned).
About how the author reflects on time and finally gets to the main thing.
 
As I said at the end of the last chapter, the original plan was to put the issue about the side gallery dome in one issue. But then I decided that it would be better to split it into two parts because the text was too long. It was too tedious to type a large text. And even the online translator began to hang, swear and complain. So I decided to publish half of it before the translator completely destroyed everything I had time to translate.
In the morning, when I decided to continue publishing the story, I thought of one nuance.
 
And indeed, it is now the last days of May. Just a moment more and summer will come. Which means that about a year ago and took up this project. And I saw it as my usual carving work. I put my lion projects on hold because now was my chance to tackle new ways of carving. Except that in order to start carving for the Fulminant, I'd have to prepare a bridgehead first, build the stern of the ship. I expected it wouldn't take me very long. And what happened? It's been almost a year and I'm not even halfway through building the stern yet. I have the most challenging design and fabrication phases ahead of me. When will I get to the point where I can do the carving? And that realization was kind of scary to me. It told me that I had misjudged my strength. And one has to accelerate a lot to keep this project from becoming a perpetual thing. On the one hand, doing what you love and building a ship is wonderful. I certainly don't dare to start building my own ship. And this opportunity to do the ship is ideal. If I enjoy it, then let it go on for as long as possible. But at the same time, the thought makes me very sad. If it were my own project, I would not rush, but rather stretch the pleasure of each stage and each new task. But I made a promise to the customer. And I've already broken it. I've missed deadlines. And it's always weighing on me. 
Also, as much fun as it is to build the stern structure, I get a sense of longing when I look at the lion figurine I've put aside. When will I get back to this project? So eager to get back into carving again. I really miss the process.
And now, while finishing the dome structure of the side gallery, I realized my dream of returning to chisels and cutters. But first things first.
 I put the arch in its place and began designing the rest of the dome. 
 

 

 


On the historical sketch this element is drawn loosely. And this drawing can be represented in the finished design in different ways. I was faced with the task of making the design look realistic and at the same time not too different from the original. There were a lot of questions, for example, how to make the dome look three-dimensional, because in fact it is a flat part. Or what kind of materials to use so that the end result would be a balanced combination. Some time ago I already tried to rebuild Beren's drawing into my own version, and they differed from each other, as the ship's hull and the historical drawing had many differences. So now I was faced with having to make changes for the second time. I was not quite satisfied with what I had drawn once. I needed to look at certain nuances in more detail. For example, I came to the conclusion that I should change the original shape and size of the false window. 
The painted version now looked too big compared to the windows on the stern. And I didn't like it. I also decided to correct the dome and make it smaller.
Unfortunately, I can't show photos of intermediate stages of production. They just do not exist. At this point, my son left for a few days on a small trip with friends and took the camera with him. And before that, I broke my phone, so there was nothing to take photos with. So right after photos with paper templates will immediately follow photos with already finished dome.
 


This picture is the only one that can be called intermediate and working. Here I glue the inner part into the frame. At the same time I will explain a little what is this strange bar, which “stuck” to the dome. I made the frame of the dome the way it would be made in life. And in a shipyard, it would be assembled from several separate segments. And the sides would be made of separate boards. And because the joints are so small, it's easy to break off when working. So I glued a temporary strip on top of this joint, which gives additional rigidity. So now it will be a little clearer to look at the following shots, where you can also see this temporary detail.
 

 


And this is how the dome looked after I removed this temporary stiffener.Now there is no point in it anymore. I've already done all the work, so it's not so dangerous to accidentally break off the gluing point. Besides, now the inner field has taken over the role of a rigid base. And the frame will be safe. 
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
And now for a historic moment in the history of this project. I have finally gotten to the stage that can be called carving! Yay! Opening the champagne, setting off the fireworks and dancing on the balcony! 🙂

 

 

 
 
And the final frames are now left. This too can only conditionally be called a finale. Other elements with decorations will appear here in the future. But these details will be made of another material, not wood. So it will be a different story. And I am finished with the wooden part at this point. 
Carving has appeared so far in a very small form. But it is even more logical to begin with. The first appearance by all laws and should be small and insignificant, like a fresh sprout. Some time will pass and it will turn into something more significant and big. Maybe even like a huge tree. Hopefully my story too will someday be filled with carvings that will finally become many and will finally become the main theme of this story. We'll live to see...
 

 

 

 

I've also had this problem to solve. I cut a blank, longer than the finished ellipse, and PVA glued it to a backing block. This reduced the chance of breakage cross-grain. I then very carefully scratch molded the section. After soaking the piece off the backing, I was able to cut the joints with the straight sections of the moldings.
 
If there are any 'tricks' to this, a really good piece of boxwood is needed and patience while running the molding along it.

Nothing special, just another part of decoration. Still the same since last october🙄
 
Jan
 

Thank you all for your comments and likes 😊
 
Another parts of the decoration added.
Just one notice: I wanted to start to make the decoration according to the Mc Cay´s book - but I couldn´t,  check it with the engrawing. So I started to make parts based by Payne.
I noticed it in several cases  the pictures in the book are sometimes a mix of both authors .
 
Jan

Making the hawse holes at this stage was a mistake, so I blinded them with a wooden plug and will drill them again after the planking.

I continue to complete the bow.      

Thank you guys for nice comments and likes.
I continue with the construction of hawse timbers.

And now I tried them on the model hull.

Саша ,  Gary , Roel, Ricr  and that's all, thank you for your kind words and attention to my topic!   
 
  The photo shows a small number of nickel-plated parts.

Keith, I do not use spray cans when painting, as they do not give the desired uniformity to the paint layer. I use airbrushes with nozzle diameters of 0.3 and 0.5 mm.
 
As for the light stripe, this is not the waterline. This is a strip of variable waterlines, it indicates the level of the minimum and maximum permissible draft of the vessel.
  Very often this strip was painted with a special antifouling paint (patent). Mostly these paints had pink, green  shades. Pink paints contain mercury oxide, which kills microorganisms and gives the paint a pink tint.

And now some paint on top.  

I welcome everyone!
  The painting process took some time.
The photo shows the hull of the model after covering it with primer.