Timmo

Thanks Jerry, the side mounted servo is something I hadn't considered.

I understand the concept of a drum enclosure to trap slack line but I'm with you in that it feels like there's too much reliance on what would have to be close tolerances for it to work consistently.

Plenty of trial and error ahead.

Jason. You are right about the jackstaff hindering the headsails. It'll have to go for sailing days and slips out easily enough.

Big improvement there with the cheeks Joe. Nice work.

Happy new year all.

Some of the cool bits that'll make this thing go have been either completed or temporarily knocked up in the last month or so.

First among these is the steering rig, which was built up as per the earlier test. The servo drum was wound tight enough and is close enough to the fairlead up to the deck that it gets around the issue of tension.

This all works quite well and gives about 45 degrees of rudder each direction.

This was also the first opportunity to wire up the battery, receiver and use the transmitter. Lots of fun although my wiring needs some work. I've also filled my ballast tube with about 9kg of lead which works well in the bath but is awaiting testing in a friend's pool. The threaded rod mounts have been left long to allow it to be adjusted to allow it to sit either flush to the keel or hang below to increase stability if needed. This will be sorted once the amount of stiffness needed is worked out with all sails on.

The other interesting bit has been rigging up a temporary spanker. This is pretty much a test of materials for the sail (not the final version) and to see how it all behaves with the rigging. It sprang out of just wanting to see some flags rigged.

The servo is a simple arm arrangement with (temp arm) and works well. I wanted to use a double block arrangement on the boom as per the original but after some experimentation realised this also doubles the pull of the sheet needed for the same distance of travel. This is possible with a winch servo but results in issues of keeping tension on the line to stop tangles on the drum.

Simple seems best, hence the arm and a single sheet with a dummy block for looks.

I've got a plan to jury rig the foresails and servo and try a small, controlled maiden voyage so have installed some temp stays on the foremast in preparation for the this. These follow the same tent guy rope style of the martingale stay to allow for adjustment. It works so well I'll likely keep it but tidy it up to make the little slides less noticeable. This can easily be taken off as before the masts can be permanently with shrouds etc as I've still got to make underdeck blocks to guide the yard braces up from the servos. In the pic below you can see the lines for the foresail sheets emerging from the fairleads in the forward bits.

I've added a little jack staff on the bowsprit with a union flag. I'm not sure it is accurate so comments welcome.

A little history of the real Harrier's adventures and reason for the blue ensign to come in a future post.

That's a good looking deck Joe. Nice tidy work on the treenails.

The chainplates have all been completed with about half installed. These were made as one piece of brass rod bent to shape on a simple jig (nails in a board), silver soldered and held in place with a small brass plate pinned into the hull side. It's not the multiple chains of the real thing but it's a good compromise between looks and strength.

In somèthing of a milestone the first elements of rigging have been installed with the stand rigging of the bowsprit added.

This is a range of synthetic braid from about 2mm on the forestay collars to 1.6 on the gammoning and 1mm for things like the bobstay and bowsprit shrouds. They range from 25-150kg breaking strain. The hemp lines are .5mm line dyed with some left over outdoor decking stain. Once installed it's all very solid with the load spread across multiple lines.

It makes you realise what an exercise in physics a sailing vessel is.

The forestay collars were cut from sheet acrylic left over from the clear rudder extension. Timber at that scale would not be strong enough.

The martingale stay is added with an adjustable plate to change the tension on it. It's like a tent guy rope. The jib boom is removeable for transport so the stays attached can be slipped off and tightened again once reattached.

One set of studdingsail irons have been made from brass for the main yard. These will serve no functional purpose but it's the sort of little detail that'll make the rigging look busy and real.

A very helpful vid there Gerry. That brace moves very smoothly.

I'm not far off mast installation and having to think about such things so I'd be very keen to think only one active set of braces per mast would do the job rather than having multiple drums etc.

Would I be right in thinking if it'll work for a larger three master vessel like yours it'll work well for the Harrier brig with the same servos?

That's a lot of detail to hide under the deck Pawel. A master builder at work there with the confidence to not have to show it off. Well done

Thanks for the kind words all.

Progress continues with the yards with four completed while I await more brass rod to finish the chainplates. Pics will come soonish. Once the yards are sorted I'll arrange the passage of the yard braces from the servo positions up through the deck and to the yards. This is one of the most important bits of making it all 'go'. I'll be stealing ideas from luminaries like Gerry Todd for this.

Once the underdeck blocks and tubes for this are done I can install the masts. This will be a crucial step and mean I can revisit the square sails later on and possibly just get the driver and foresails rigged to get Harrier on the water in a partially rigged fashion. It's coming up 20 months into the build and time we saw some sailing action but the mad dash to Christmas is here and progress may slow.

Jason, if you ever want to borrow the Irene book, just shout.

The hawse bits were made with bass tube running vertically through the uprights. . These exit facing forward and will allow the lines for the foresail and jib the travel from servo to sail. You can see the holes here

The aft face of the bits has a single timber half round facing as per Petejus, his was to stope hawse chaffing. The brass chimney is painted and sits loosely to cover the ballast rod and nut when installed.

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Also most of the rest of the deck furniture is installed minus the little raised windlass (proper name escapes me) aft of the main mast and the pumps. Also pinrails and belaying pins added. Chainplates are next.

His majesty's brig Harrier as she stands...

The 3D printed long guns are painted and finished minus the rigging blocks. These are quite cool. Thanks to a Tim Bowman for the files. The crest pops out nicely with a light rub of graphite. The retaining chaining is from RB models.

In other developments.... the steering gear has been completed with a wheel from RB models mounted on a bespoke frame.

Brass tubes protrude through the deck under the wheel to deliver the cable from the servo.

These are topped with wooden blocks cut to hide the tube. A fake cable will run around the wheel drum and down to the fake blocks. The live line will run from the tube/ block assembly and out through two working blocks to the tiller. I wanted I keep the exit tubes as near the centreline as possible to avoid water across the deck getting into the hull.

There was a bit of test fitting to get it so the rear most carronade wasn't fouled.

The proper arrangement would have another block on the tiller for extra purchase but this seems to work best without the added complexity.

Thanks Mark, it was a bit of a test to see if carving decorations on future projects would be feasible. This is only two dimensions but an encouraging result.

The base circle made of ply is a little smaller than it should be due to measuring only once rather than twice before cutting but it looks ok so not worth changing.

A bit of progress.

The capstan drum was turned on the proxxon lathe with the square holes cut with a square and file.

The axle was a simple square section filed and planed to shape with the flanges cut on the jigsaw.

The fancy finishing touch is a little bespoke harrier hawk, to personalise the vessel, carved for the top of the capstan drum.

This was sketched up using a bird photograph from google as a reference and draw onto a piece of Castello boxwood.

It's the first time I've used a piece of this and I was very impressed with its density and ability to hold fine detail.

The shape was cut with he jigsaw and and the rest carved with a no11 blade and files.

The piece was sanded thin from the bottom.

The final result

Well done Jerry.

She looks great on the water. It must be very fulfilling seeing her cut such a graceful line.

So is there just the one set of braces running up each mast to the tops'l yards on the opposite mast? I presume the other yards just follow around by dint of being attached by the sails? Will you leave it like that or add more braces in future?

I'm hoping just the one set on my brig to save stacking servos with drums as I'm not blessed with a cavernous interior.

That's a great tone on the copper Joe. Nice work without the drama I had! Mine is evening out nicely now too.

Great looking copper there joe. The jig worked a treat

That is a thing of great beauty Jason. Well done.

That's a shame to hear Jerry. Would have been good to see a pic of her on the water.

Hugely impressive build you've got going there Mike. Plenty for all to learn from.

I'm looking forward to more.

You're right about the lack of specifics of individual ships Joe.

I would have liked to model Pelorus as she did a lot of charting work on the NZ coast late in her career but I couldn't have been confident of details. After1810 higher bulwarks, built up head rails and more metalwork in the rigging seem to become more common. You see this in the war of 1812 vessels but these individuals have more of a record given the notable single ship actions.

I went with an early vessel like Harrier (1804) as it doesn't feel wrong using the 1797 Cruizer plans in Petrejus which have the very simple lines without raised anything.

Plus I liked the name and her role in the 1806 Java campaign where she got a mention in the Gazette for an action alongside a frigate where she raked a Dutch frigate and chased down some merchant vessels.

It will likely be no fore and aft platforms on Harrier as I didn't want to complicate things with a lack of access to the rudder and headsail fairleads given she's a working RC model. Now the rudder is largely sorted and I'm not far off servo installation I think they could be added later if I want. We'll see.

I'm at the stage where I can do without The Petrejus book for a while so if you want to borrow it let me know and I can put it in the post. It's better to have the detail early in the build. Flick me a PM if you are interested.

Wayne

We are all our own harshest critics Mike. You have a superb build there.

We all benefit from a fresh set of eyes to see what we can't. It's the old saying 'can't see the wood for the trees'.

I hope to tackle fully framed one day as you have been confident and skilled enough to do.

Keep it up.

Just had a look back at old pics and it's nice to see the copper is mellowing nicely one month in. I'll post a pic in daylight in near future.

In the meantime work on the deck furniture continues.

The gratings have all had coamings added. These are just the sort of thing I could cut and have installed, a side at a time, in a spare half hour before going to work each morning. That seems to be my main building time now with the odd bits in the weekend aimed at prepping to line up a series of these bite-sized chunks that could be knocked each morning before heading off to the salt mines.

The shot garlands have been added on this grating section for the rear access hatch and there's plenty more to come. I'll have to get more 4mm caldercraft shot (32lb carronade rounds) as I've woefully underestimated how many I need. It'll be somewhere around 120 in the garlands.

For the garlands a basic measurement was taken from a sample made by eye to look right. Pilot holes were drilled with a pinvice using a 1.5mm bit and a 3mm bit in the dremel drill press used to finish. Some are a bit off but most are ok so it's not noticeable. I'll get a proper drill press one day.

Here's why we need shot - his majesty's armoury has provided guns.

Rather fellow modeller Tim Bowman and his expertise on CAD software has. Tim is building a 1/24 scale Cruizer from a SC&H kit but has redesigned practically every part and had it 3D printed. Check out his highly impressive build here http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1716548.

Have a look if you want to see what the future of the hobby holds.

Tim was kind enough to rescale his 6lber long guns and 32lber carronades. A carronade on the printing sprue is pictured in the background. It's a result that would have taken me weeks to do by turning a master and casting in resin. I love working in wood and will never give it away but I hope to develop some rudimentary CAD skills to print some of the finer mechanically oriented or repetitive parts of future builds.

The long guns even have crests on them that should pop out after painting and weathering. The carriages were home made on the table saw using the anatomy of the ship Diana as a guide scaled down from 18lb carriages. The carronade is shown mounted with Royal Navy issue Blutak (not) on a sample slide knocked up to check the fit. They will have brass elevation screws from the hardware store and assorted block and tackle and ironwork rigged eventually.

The rudder has been prepped for mounting. Bolt Holes have been drilled in gudgeons and pintles ready for blackening and a tiller made.

This is mounted in a brass sleeve through the rudder head to prevent wear. The tiller is made of a piece of timber with a slot cut in it and brass rod epoxied in and the slot timbered over and sanded to shape. The seams are on the bottom so they won't be seen.

A hole drilled vertically through the rudder head into the tiller's brass rod allows a secure fixing with a pin made from an old railing stanchion. It's very strong and should stand up to the lateral pull of the tiller cable. The blue you see is the clear acrylic rudder extension covered in tape to prevent damage. It should be invisible in the water.

Next up it's the capstan and also the main entry hatch housing on the grating section pictured above and a chimney for the ship's stove. Those later two will be removeable and cover the nut and threaded rod poking up through the hull to secure the ballast keel.

Good luck Jerry. She's looking the business. Any current there to worry about? I'm thinking it'll be only still water for me when I'm at that stage.

Superb work Liberto. That's a masterclass in scratch building. The simplicity of the longship leaves nowhere to hide mistakes and you have made none that I can see. Very impressive.

I'd be struggling to make even your tools like that brilliant shield making jig.

Welcome to the Cruizer class Joe.

They sure are endearing vessels and given the start you've made I'll be expecting you to overtake me yet again with another fine result and I'm looking forward to it.

Good move on replacing the long guns with carronades. It would be nice if Caldercraft gave the option of switching armament.

Have you got a copy of Petrejus' 'The Brig Irene'? It's well worth it's there are plans of the Grasshopper as Irene and also the original Cruizer, which is what I'm going off, with some minor alterations on deck furniture.

Wayne