hamilton
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Thanks Augie. I used a very soft old t-shirt to lightly wipe it on. Hopefully the bulwarks will look as nice when they're done....but that is the matter of my next post.... hamilton -
Alright everyone - Happy Victoria Day to my commonwealth buddies! Or Happy May 2-4 for my fellow Canucks. Hope you're enjoying the long weekend. In other news, a bit of an update on Greyhound, which I will now stop calling Greyhound and start calling "Blandford", since it's starting to come together as such.... Here's the latest laundry list: 1. Cut out gunports - using a template I made a while back that derived from the plans. The gunports in the waist were sawed out with an x-acto saw, while the other full square gun ports were cut out using the tried and true micro-drill/x-acto blade/needle file method. 2. Inboard bulwark finishing - in Cadmium Red medium (I use Golden acrylic artist paints, which are very nice to work with). Finished off with a coat of polyurethane. 3. Installed the upper wale - Goodwin's book shows the Blandford with a really distinctive double wale. I'm using 3mm x 1.5mm line for these wales with 1mm x 3mm lime for the filling strake. The upper wale was very difficult for two reasons - first because just locating its placement was tough. Goodwin shows its top edge flush against the sweep ports/ballast ports at mid-ships and then crossing the line of these ports at both bow (slightly) and stern (where it crosses entirely and where a few of the aftmost sweep ports are in line with the filling strake....I could not really get this effect without really edge bending the wale - so I avoided doing this and went with what looked good and followed as close as possible to the natural run of the planking...though I think I may get in trouble with the second planking above the wales..... 4. Installed the counter planking - and finished it also in cadmium red medium - very straightforward. 5. Installed the stern planking on the exposed aft side of bulkhead 13 - used a diagonal pattern as shown in Goodwin's book...this was (like the filling strake) stained using Minwax Golden Oak. 6. Installed the filling strake - see notes above. That's it. I'll be laying on the lower wales tonight and then on to the outboard bulwark planking.....Bye for now hamilton
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Looking great Augie - the boat, I mean. Like other commentators, I would love to see an overall picture - but maybe you're saving it for a big reveal at the end..... hamilton
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Beautiful work, as always, Ron - and such dedication to detail! Wonderful hamilton
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Wow Ferit! Your work is really top-notch - and this log is a really joy to follow. I had taken the Berlin off my list of potential builds, but I may not add it back being so inspired by your craftsmanship here! Can't wait to see the rigging hamilton
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Thanks everyone for the comments! She's definitely coming along now. I started cutting out the gun ports last night and they're adding a lot, as well - I'll be finishing them this evening and painting the inboard bulwarks which should bring a bit more life into her. Another update probably in a few days..... hamilton
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Hello all: The first planking is now finished, and she is shaping up, I think - or maybe I should say "I'm feeling a little more pleased about her". Since my last post, here's a couple of things that have happened.... 1. I was studying the Goodwin's AOS Blandford and noticed that I had forgotten to cut a little "step" in the f'csl bulwarks.....this I did - see below. 2. finished planking the 5 bands I had lined off on the hull 3. applied liberal amounts of acrylic modelling paste to the hull and then sanded it quite vigorously on my front porch as the sun went down. 4. filed out ballast and sweep ports 5. I decided to lay a spirketing plank of 1.5mm x 3mm, and then plank the rest of the inboard bulwarks with 3mm x 1mm lime - I'm going to finish them in red once I cut the gunports and line them 6. finished the sweep and ballast port frames in red (again, and I'll have to do so a couple of times more I think.... Anyway, things are proceeding now, and the next couple of weeks will show a real transformation....I'm starting to have fun with this build - it only took 6 weeks!! Here are the photos - enjoy! hamilton
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Nice to see you're up to the challenges! A wonderful addition! Now let's see what more painful details we can request!!! hamilton
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Good detail work Harlequin - the discerning eye will see it! Now how about putting a dot of black on the door knobs for good measure!! hamilton
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Hi Harlequin: I can't believe you're laying on the planks already! Didn't you just finish the Greyhound? I thought I had a reputation for speed, but you've got me here - nice work - the yellow ochre works well to mellow out those brass parts - how to deal with that shiny brass is certainly a pressing question on my mind, though the Bellona is far away for me....I find myself wondering how the precise paint job you see on the box can be replicated, considering that there is absolutely no "tooth" to that brass to pick up the paint.....how did you get yours with such a nice matte finish? Did you treat the brass before hand in some way? hamilton
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Lots of folks call me "Hammy", so Ham suits me fine! Enjoying your build greatly, Ham or no.... hamilton
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Looks great Harlequin! If mine looks half that good I'll be well pleased. As for launching it against the wall - hahaha!! I have a miniature sledge hammer that I keep on the modelling table as I build, just in case....I've had it raised a couple of times and stopped myself at the last minute.....Anyway, great work - seeing her next to the Victory is really gratifying - must be even more so for you! Think of how it will look with the Bellona moored next to them! hamilton
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Looking great, Andy! hamilton
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Thans for the compliment, J.! Much appreciated! hamilton
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Thanks B.E. - yes I'm pretty pleased with them, though I still have a bit of cleaning up to do.... Initially when I framed them, I also put backings on them (1mm x 5mm basswood). These were added so that I could have something to root the sweeps onto when the time comes. However, I realised when I was planking that having the backings there was going to make filing them out extremely difficult, so I removed them so I could work them properly with a square jeweler's file. I thought to put them back on once the planking was complete in Band "A", but then of course I'd encounter the same problem when it came to the second planking...So now I've decided to use short lengths of 2mm x 2mm scrap wood as mounts for the sweeps that can then be inserted into the sweep ports and glued in. This will actually be the very last thing I do on the build. Hopefully having the sweeps run out will add some interest to the model. Anyway, thanks for stopping by! hamilton
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I appreciate your critique, Augie, and I'll take it under advisement....maybe it's just semantics, but I much prefer to slather and then wield the sandpaper like a Toreador to tame the filler into submission! Splitting hairs maybe, but...... hamilton
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Hello there: I'm now well into the first planking, and though it's looking pretty messy now, I look forward to slathering on some filler when it's complete and sanding it down to a nice smooth eggshell finish! For now, since the last post I've finished the bulwarks and down past the sweep and ballast ports, which I've filed out. The first plank I laid, as I mentioned above, was 5mm x 1mm along the deck line. I then planked upwards with 3mm x 1mm strips - 3 strakes along the waist; 2 3mm and 1 5mm plank for the forecastle (I'll sand this down a bit later); 2 more 3mm strakes to define the first step up to the full bulwark height along the main deck (from bulkhead 11 aft); and then 3 more for the quarterdeck.... When i first finished it up, I thought that the quarterdeck and forecastle were too high...I will reduce the height a bit, as I said, but I've also realised that with the addition of the sheer and cap rail along the waist it actually is quite reasonable - you'll have to wait to see this until the build progresses much further, but for now I ask your trust! Anyway, here are some photos - enjoy! hamilton
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Thanks Runner! Much appreciated! hamilton
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Thanks for the confidence booster, Andy. It may be in the works....have to strategise a bit first around just building the facia and then consider decorations...I might try to look around for some ready-made things I could finish appropriately and use....anyway thanks for stopping by Andy - I've been a fly on the wall (no pun intended) on your Fly build - it's a real inspiration! hamilton
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Harlequin - I feel the same way, though for different reasons - I have no idea what I'm doing! hamilton
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Hi B.E.: Good eye! I never would have caught that myself....I would definitely prefer to scratch-build the transom, but I really don't know how....Augie has brought up the carving skills - in my case, non-existent at any scale. Goodwin's book contains illustrations of several options and I may try for a simplified version of the simplest one.... Thanks for visiting! hamilton
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Hi Harlequin: Yes you can really notice the difference, right? I spent a day when I first got the Bellona kit going through the parts list and finding everything on the plans - also noting which plan sheet(s) the various parts could be found on...It certainly looks like a great kit! hamilton
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Hello there Alistair!! Good to hear from you again. I hope all is well down in NZ and you're settling in for the winter - it's a balmy 24 degrees up here with not a cloud in the sky - a very rare thing for the pacific northwest as you know... I guess I'm quick but I'm trying to take more breaks and take more time to think about things - the modifications necessary on this kit make a quick pace next to impossible....anyway, I'm still waiting for your Pegasus! I know you probably have "other things" to do - don't we all! - but seriously....your skills are far too elevated to keep from the world and horde all to yourself!! On with it now.... hamilton
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Hi Augie: Thanks! This was a trick I learned from following Bob Hunt's Armed Virginia Sloop practicum - one of those little things that I never would have thought of doing myself, but that makes perfect sense once someone else tells you to do it. As for the transom - I don't know why you would feel bad! It's Corel's shoddy work.....if I may say, I've encountered some pretty bad problems in the past with kits - the Mamoli Gretel, AL San Francisco and Model Shipways Armed Virginia Sloop were plagued by really inaccurate laser cutting and bad wood strips. I've had to shim the outside edges of the bulkheads of every model ship I've built since the Armed Virginia Sloop, so having to do that with this was not unexpected (though I didn't expect how much I would have to!) The problems with this kit are generally not the quality of the materials (with the exception of the transom), but rather the overall poverty of the instructions and plans - which to my mind are a really critical aspect of any kit. Corel uses very high quality wood and their metal parts are, I think anyway, better than other manufacturers (at least the ones I've tried - there are many I haven't!).... I will still build Corel kits after this - I have their Bellona already and am contemplating a Victory, though space considerations at present make that pretty unrealistic....And I would continue to recommend them - though maybe not this particular one unless you're really ready for some mind-bending remediation. Thanks as always, Augie, for visiting! hamilton
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