jfhealey

Having spent an hour reading Matiz's HMS Euryalis and Johann's French Corvette logs in increasing bewiderment at the skills those two possess I'm reluctant to post any pictures of my own far more humble - but perhaps more accessible to the majority - efforts but I have a spare moment so here goes. I provisionally hung the rudder and formed the tiller. For a reason I cannot fathom the tiller comes out shoulder height to a 6' tall man. I don't think that can be right. I shall work on it. The mast coat is OK. I may have another go. It looks a little flat - rather than rounded - in the middle section. The ladders were a cinch with my new Proxxon mill. I cannot decide whehther to paint or not. Flushed with success making the winch I decided to re-make the bowstrip step so the formed bits at the top match the winch. I used the mill to cut the grooves. I pinched this idea from Glenn's Cheerful log I think. And the catsheads are underway. Here placed temporariy in position prior to a bit of final fettling. To paint or not to paint - and single colour or two tone. I cannot decide. And here some overviews of where I am now. All the best everyone and thank you for the likes. Fred

I was dismayed to read of your ill health Jean-Paul but delighted to read you are on the mend. I had a heart attack in 2015 and thought it was the end of the world, but I do the exercise and take the pills and, fingers crossed, I feel fine. Keep well and best wishes Fred

Any progress on your Cheerful Jean-Paul? Fred

Thank you Ian. Thats a lovely looking Cheerful. I'm using boxwood from Hobbymill EU (highly recommended - its beautiful wood and beautifully cut). I wish it was a wee bit darker. Your Cheerful is to my eye spot on on the darkness front. In the meantime I have shaped the topmast and test fitted it. For a first attempt at scratch building a mast ( scratch building anything in fact) I'm very pleased. The proxxon mill is a godsend. Cheers everyone. Fred

Thank you chaps for the comments and likes which I appreciate. Glenn - I understand soccer (football on our side of the ocean) is not high on the US's list of sporting priorities but I wish I shared your confidence. The newspapers over here are full of reminders that in two world cup final meetings England has not yet beaten the USA. JJ - I look at my Winnie on a high shelf in what I fondly call my workshop (my wife takes issue with the term) every day and I think I'm getting quite fired up to get going again; but I must finish Cheerful first. All the best Fred

Thank you all for your comments and likes. I have been plodding along quietly with Cheerful. I initially made the chimney stack from wood but I didn't like it that much so I re-mad it in brass. I'm much happier. I purchased a lovely little plain and made a board for planing a square stick down to an octagon prior to turning to round in the drill. I've not made a mast from square before but it all proved very straightforward. I cut the square bit at the top on my new Proxxon mill which, again made a tricky task simpe enough. There is a little bit of run out on the mill so the square section, viewed from above is, if you are very picky, a little bit parrellelagram-ish; but not enough to worry me. The instructions with the mill relating to adjusting the run-out are very vague. When I was researching the mill before purchase I read lots of useful advice on this site. i only have to find it again now. I can see looking at Chuck's build that I should not have rebated the cross trees so they fit flush with the fore and aft bits but no matter. And here is the bowsprit just resting, like the rest of the deck furniture, in position. Carronades next I think. I may now spend a little leisure time watching the World Cup. England v USA on Friday. England has yet to beat the USA in 2 meetings in WC finals including that momentous defeat 1-0 in 1950 when the Americans ran out an amatuer side against an England team containing a number of players good enough to play in a World XI. Lets hope we don't have anything like that again! Cheers everyone. Fred

Thank you Chuck. I'm really enjoying Cheerful - though sometimed I look at Winnie and think its time to dust her off and get going again. Still, I'm going to finish Cheerful and then have a long hard think about Winnie. The dilemma is that I have learned so much about ship modelling over the last couple of years that I think I'd make a better fist of Winnie if I started over: and its such a lovely ship that I want to make the best I possibly can of her. I guess most of us part time hobbyists start a new model thinking "this is going to be the best model I shall ever make" - or at least I have found it so. But in the case of Winnie I really mean it. I'm determined if not much else! Fred

Thank you everyone. After much indecision I decided to treenail the hull and deck. It came out OK. The problem - and I don't see a way around it - is that the filler necessarily occupies every little planking defect. See the picture above where the drill knocked out the bottom right corner of the butt joint. The deck is now finished and I'm pretty pleased with it. I left off all the deck furniture because the treenailing requires a lot of sanding of the filler and an absence of furniture makes that much easier. Here the furniture is not glued. I bought a Proxxon mill. It gets mixed reviews - I suspect the low scores coming from those that want to mill metal. i've only used it a couple of times but I think its a fantastic bit of kit. it made forming the mouling on the top of the winch pot.sts a doddle. I was also able to drill - with the mill - a 1mm hole through a 2mm brass tube to form the handle for the winch. I couldn't have done that otherwise. And this is where I am at: All the best Fred

Hi Mike - I had my cataracts done in September. I now look out on a different world full of extraordinary light, vibrant colours and definition I'd long ago forgotten. Its a miracle opertion. I hope your second op goes well and wish you the very best outcome. Best wishes Fred

What a lovely idea. It's intruiging to think about the circumstances in which your message might one day be read. What sort of a world will the reader live in I wonder. Best wishes Fred

You are not really serious about just 100 "kits" are you? I predict a riot if you are!!!

As far as I can see this is faultless. Keep going at this standard and you will have a superb Winchelsea. Best wishes Fred

I've been working on the outside - the steps and the channels for both of which I cut brass scrapers. The plans show the corners of the channels rounded off but I struggled to achieve an acceptable result and decided in the end to leave them square. Here is the Syren Windlass. Te instructions indicate that orientation is important. I didn't appreciate quite what that meant. You install an octagon onto a square stick so there is a risk, unless you understand what is required by way of orientation, that you will be a quarter turn out - as I was. But I don't mind. Here are some overviews. Best wishes everyone Fred

Absolutely exquisite. A model that would grace any museum collection anywhere in the world. Fred

This is exquisite. A model that generations still to come will admire. Fred

Could you post a photo showing what it is about the starboard side that falls below the standard you set yourself. I just want to understand how far behind the ball game I am. Fred

I have no idea what the answer is to your question Allan but its a Chuck Passaro kit and I have no doubt therefore immaculately and exhaustively researched. Perhaps someone with far more knowledge than me can explain because its an intriguing question. Best wishes Fred

You are creating a wonderful model Chuck. I've put my Winchelsea aside while I have a go at Cheerful but, golly, looking at these pictures I can't wait to get going again. Inspirational stuff!

Thanks chaps. Allan - no port lids on the Cheerful save the stern chasers which have lids. Glenn - I have read your log and all the other Cheerful logs several times over. Another really good log, well worth a read, is Cutter Alert 1777 by Dali: a fantastic build. What a incredibly useful club - is that what it is? - Model Ship World is. Fred

I wish I counted the difference between my port and starboard sides in hairs. Fingers is closer! Fred

May I second Frank's view of the lamps? I suspect they are tricky to do in the sense that done well (beautifully executed, in the right place and to scale) they look really good and done badly they look like a plastic dolls house - and yours look really good as does your build generally. I am sure I am not alone in thinking the standard of Winchelsea builds is remarkable. I hope Chuck is very proud of his achievement and that you are of yours. all the best Fred

Thank you JJ and Glenn and for all the likes. I have started work on the deck. I just have the tricky hooked joints still to do. They did not come out too well on my Winchelsea but I am better prepared this time, I think. I have purchased the Syren mini-kits available for the Cheerful and started putting those together. Nothing is yet fixed to the deck. Therein lies a conundrum: Is it simpler, and likely to lead to a better outcome, if all the deck fittings aare left off so the deck can be more easily sanded or should the fittings be fixed to the false deck before planking? I went for the former first because I intend to treenail the deck (in the approved Chuck fashion with a small drill, very sharp pencil and wood filler) and I want real ease of access to sand away the filler and secondly because, as I discovered with Winchelsea I am nothing like as good as I should be (and I hope I am better at it now than I was) at cutting planks to length. The downside is you necessarily omit that very fine detail where the grating coamings are rounded above deck level and left square at deck level so it is a balancing exercise. Here are some photographs. This is the super Syren windlass kit. I cannot bring myself to cover it in paint. The seats of ease are not yet finished of course and will be painted in due course. Have a good day everyone. Fred

This looks absolutely faultless Frank. Superb. Fred

Looking wonderful Glenn. You must be very pleased with her (the Winnie that is; though your wife's cutting out of the friezes looks pretty spot on). Fred

Thank you Chuck, Glenn and JJ and for the likes. Progress here is slow not least because I've had cataract surgery on both eyes. Its a miracle operation: I can see long distances with sparkling clarity and detail and without specs for the first time in 50 plus years. But reading and model work is all to pot. Over the counter reading specs are OK for reading but not adequate for model work. I have to wait a few weeks for everything to settle down before getting some prescription readers - and then with any luck I shall be up and running again. In the meantime I've done those little shaped pieces at the bow, The margin planks (too wide, I think, but I'm hoping the waterway, cannons and deck clutter will disguise that) with scarf joints ( practice required!), the companionway housing ( a bit dollshouse-ish possibly. I'm still thinking about it) and some preparation for the deck planking. I was very unhappy with my deck planking of the Winnie - all down I can see now to a lack of preparation. There is no substitute in this hobby for experience and I don't have much. But I'm learning! There is a gentle bend in the deck planking though it does not really show in the pictures. The planking was cut in Imperial sizes by Hobbymill EU. In metric the planks I will use are a smidge over 5mm and I will sand them down to 3.5mm at bow and stern remaining 5mm at the centre. I wonder about the central planks remining un-sanded -5mm straight through as Chuck shows them and as, no doubt, is authentic. I think I prefer all of them gently curved. My deck furniture bits and pieces are winging their way across the pond from Syren as I write so I'll put those together and have a play around before deciding. At the moment the only finish on the planking is sanding sealer. At some point I will have a jolly good clean up and apply a permanent finish Matt varnish I guess. All the best everyone Fred