jfhealey

Beatiful, beautiful, beatiful. I love it. The only problem I have with it is this. I look at your work - and Siggi's and Johann's and Chuck's to name a few and I think: "B*****, I am going to take up gardening or ball room dancing or something....." Best wishes Fred

Johaan - would you post a few photos of the whole ship as she stands - as distinct from close ups of your extraordinary rigging? This truly is a remakable build. One for the ages. best wishes Fred

Especially folding the friezes around the chesstrees and achieving continuity in the pattern.

I love it. Really nice work. Best wishes Fred

Good-oh

Hi JJ I'm sitting in the early evening sunshine with a beer thinking about model ships - and the absence for the best part of a month of an update from you on your wonderful Portland project. Any news? Fred

Wonderful - simply stunning. If, now I have retired, I take up international burglary for a pastime, your house (and those fellows Siggi and Archjofo in Germany and Giampieroricci in Italy to name a few) is one I plan to visit. Would you be very kind and send me your address and a list of any days you will be away on holiday? Many thanks Fred

It's diffficult to see how it would be possible to build a finer version of Cheerful. Nothing, as far as I can see, could be improved. Superb. Fred

Thanks Thukydides. That is hugely impressive painting. I am only just discovering (a) how hard it is to paint and (b) how doubly difficult it is to paint direct on to the ship. So hard,in fact, that I've given up on my feeble attempts to paint acanthus leaves: a loy more practice required. Instead I'm using the Syren friezes albeit the wrong ones - I know its inaccurate but I prefer the look and I won't be the first to say: "It's my ship........"! I painted over the friezes a bit to add a few highlights. Probably a mistake but still....Curiously overpainting the friezes has been a good learning excercise in painting. I think I'd make a better job of acanthus leaves next time around. But overall, and looking at what others have achieved with this model i just wish I had 10 years more experience at this hobby than I have. Still, onwards and upwards as they say. Best wishes Fred

That looks fantastic. Incidentally I agree with your analysis of the rake of the masts posted on my log. On re-measuring I think there is a very small aft rake on the foremast, a little more aft rake on the main mast and still more on the mizzen. I bought the Enterprize plans from Cornwall Model Boats which ships internationally I'm sure. They are actually produced by www.model-shipyard.com in Poland so they should be readily available. I do hope you rig: I shall follow with keen interest and learn! Fred

Thats wondeful metal work. Making one can't be that hard. Making six identical parts takes a skilled and patient hand. Fred

I had a go at acanthus leaves. I might leave things overnight and see what I think in the morning. Just at the moment I'm not completely convinced. I painted a continuous string of acanthus. I think it would look better broken up into shorter lengths with a small division between. And I don't like the bit over the third gunport from te stern: funny how little things that you know will get lost in the bigger picture have the capacity to bug you disproportionately.

Thank you Thukydides. Yes, it is a big expanse of blue. The dustsheet of the Swan Class books, which I followed closely-ish, shows two tassels - I guess to avoid the issue you identify. I originally intended to include two but thought they might be much harder to paint than turned out to be the case. I may think on it further though, that said, when the model is in its cradle that lower transom area is not conspicuous because of the overhang. The Syren friezes break up the blue with a sort of subtle smokey - both black and white smoke - effect which I like but I don't see how that can be effectively painted except with an airbrush. Thanks for your thoughts. Fred

The QGs and in particular the scraped fancy rails proved a right old trial for me. I could not get the rails either to sit correctly on the compound curves of the lower portion of the QG or to follow a nice line. I ripped off the QGs twice and eventually settled upon filing the upper edge of the lower portion more or less vertical. That was the only way I could get the rail to sit nicely. Then I didn't like the join between the rail and the adjacent former. So I cut a piece of very thin boxwood to cover it. I think it finishes off the rail nicely. I wanted to paint the lower transom. I followed the design shown on the dustjacket of Antscherl/Herbert's Swann Class Sloop: I just liked the look of a lion's head even if that forsakes historical accuracy. I also followed the painting directions found within that work - though without success. Painting direct on to the ship is very diificult. Here I am transferring the design using transfer paper. And here is the lion's head ready for paint. And here I have painted the transom. But I dont like it. So I painted the design on paper and stuck that on. It's much easier. I used the Syren friezes. I had intended to paint the figures but it proved far too difficult. Instead I painted on a few highlights and lowlights intending that that should give a bit of a hand painted feel. A cheat I know..... I also painted went over the letters in yellow and the blue background to match the lower transom. Its all actually quite uniform though the pictures suggest otherwise. Far from perfect - I think my lion looks anxious/sad rather than terrifying and the right hand drape is a bit of a mess - but I will stick with it. Thanks for looking in. Fred

Hi Frank Thanks for your message. I located the masts by reference to both the markings on the false deck and the plans which show the mast and bowstrip stubs. As far as i can tell (and this is what I worked to) the main mast is vertical - 90 degrees to the waterline) while the mizzen and fore mast are raked. I took the angles from Chuck's plans. The plans for the Enterprize are available from Cornwall Model Boats. Here is the box and the plates for the masts. I took the plans down to the local copyshop to scale them up to 1/48. I do not know how accurate the Enterprize plans are for Winchelsea. The 2 frigates are 10 years apart so more or less contemporary. I also have HMS Diana from the Anatomy of the Ship series. To my un-schooled eye the Diana masts look pretty much the same as those shown by the Enterprize plans. At all events these are the best I have and good enough for me! Looking over some of the build logs I am lost in admiration not only at the skill levels others achieve but also by the depth of scholarship others possess. Best wishes Fred