hamilton

Hi Richard:
 
Wow! You're working at a feverish pace - or at least it looks like it from here in the land where no modelling is getting done! The first planking looks great - what elegant lines on this vessel!
 
I agree with Alistair's suggestion - when I was dealing with the ports on Blandford, I constructed one of the cannons and made a little square of the deck planking to set it on. I could then move this little mock-up around on the deck and get a good impression of the size of the gunports, and their location. Using the kit-supplied gunport pattern as a guide to locating the ports is a great idea (and avoids the issues with the pattern that others have noted on Pegasus/Fly). But you may find that the ports sit either a little too high or too low - double checking always to be advised!
 
Anyway, I'm really impressed with your speed and accuracy - I've been told I build fast, but my results are nowhere near as nice as yours!
hamilton

Hi Augie:
 
Great work - the sheaves look particularly good. 
hamilton

Hi Richard:
 
Wow! You're working at a feverish pace - or at least it looks like it from here in the land where no modelling is getting done! The first planking looks great - what elegant lines on this vessel!
 
I agree with Alistair's suggestion - when I was dealing with the ports on Blandford, I constructed one of the cannons and made a little square of the deck planking to set it on. I could then move this little mock-up around on the deck and get a good impression of the size of the gunports, and their location. Using the kit-supplied gunport pattern as a guide to locating the ports is a great idea (and avoids the issues with the pattern that others have noted on Pegasus/Fly). But you may find that the ports sit either a little too high or too low - double checking always to be advised!
 
Anyway, I'm really impressed with your speed and accuracy - I've been told I build fast, but my results are nowhere near as nice as yours!
hamilton

Thanks for the tutorial Jason - the tops are looking great!
hamilton

Now finished page 4 out of 6 and started page 5 with the Gaff Boom now attached.
 

 
 
Have done Gaff Boom different to plans, thought it was less complicated and was following Petersson's Rigging Period Ships.
 

 
 
Also have done Fore topmast stay plus preventer stay whereas kit only has the topmast stay so it required an additional piece on the bowsprit.
When checking on Frank's (Riverboat) Supply on his making of the Traveller noticed he had done the same with the stays...... 'Great minds think alike...' or maybe it's the the other bit of the phrase which I can't quite remember......
 

 
The kit supplied 1.25 mm thread for the Main Stays I thought looked too thick compared to the 1.0 thread, so used 0.8 (Occre) natural thread dyed with black ink
Where thread is tied off to cleats will at a later stage be adding coils.
 
 

 
 
 
Overall view...
 

 
 
Regards
 
Doug

Progress on the windows, name of ship and last ornament on the stern. In next step i´m gonna do gallery

Hi Pavel, looking good.
 
I like your colour scheme, it looks sort of familiar. I got mine from the front colour dust cover of MacKay's AoTS book.
 
Cheers,
 
David.
 
 

 
 

Next progress, finishing patina and the sides.

Everyone likes pics, so here's another one

This shot really accentuates the lovely lines you get when you go back to the original draughts for the roughtree rails. Having a correct lantern helps.

I received my lantern kit from Chuck Passaro the other day so I spent most of today building it, very fiddly work but the end result is very good, Really well designed Chuck! The first pic is the lantern supplied with the partwork that I replaced.

Thank you very much B.E., Alistair.
 
Bill, thanks.  All of the recent work, and most of the model, is Swiss Pear.  The hull and deck framing is American Cherry, the deck is Maple, and there is some (only on the stern at this point) Castello Boxwood trim.
 
I'm not counting this as an official update, but I did get some work done today, just not much worth showing.  I epoxied the bulwark pin rails, and some additional cleats.  Did some work on enlarging the bowsprit hole with a file, and started locating the hawse holes--
 

 
 
There is a piece of wood marked with the correct (I hope!--using Charles G. Davis as a reference for this) spacing, sitting on the stem.  Rather difficult locating the holes along the angled bow, but they look pretty close in the photo.    The holes vary from where they are drawn on Chapelle's hull plan drawing--  
 

 
 
However, in this case I trust my locations more than Chapelle's drawing--I suspect he "eyeballed" them rather than working it out.  Not a big deal, but it might end up having some minor effect on the head rails vs. how he drew them.
 
Ron

Thanks Hamilton. I suppose it's a little funny that I advise others not to do the kit ,while pushing ahead myself.
 
Bob

Hi Richard
You are moving along very well. One suggestion is to make the gun ports narrower than the pattern suggests. I take this from my Fly pattern where the ports are arguably too wide. That might not apply to Mercury though however it is easy to widen a narrow port and much harder to make a wide port narrower.
 
Cheers
Alistair

Thank you Joe and Pete.
 
Well, the first planking is done now. After sanding the hull I've marked the gunports by using the gunport pattern.
 

 

 
And some more pictures of the hull as of today:
 

 

 

 
 
 

I have now completed one side of the inner bulwark planking. To begin with, I added some filler pieces to the edge of the false deck to cover up the sizing errors. I used material from the laser cut sheet from which the deck had come. After that, I cut, and bent as necessary, boxwood planks for the spirketting below the gun ports and installed them. Following that, I made up three plank units of boxwood to fit between the gun ports for the quickwork and installed them. Lastly, I did the boxwood planks for the waist, forecastle and quarterdeck clamps. Planking of the forecastle and quarterdeck bulwarks will be left until the framing for those decks is installed later.
 
All of the planking has caulking simulated with pencil on one edge and one end of each plank. I did not do any treenailing since I expect to plank this side of the upper decks and such work will be totally invisible. The caulking was done out of force of habit, although it too will not be seen. I finished the work with a coat of Wipe-on Poly.
 
I'm now starting on the other side, which will be at least partly visible after the upper deck framing and planking.
 
Bob

Sjors, Mike, Jim - as always your comments mean a lot coming from you guys, and always good advice!
 
Frustrating I've found that I'm two cleats short (and Cornwall Model Boats are out of stock!) so can't complete the mizzen mast just yet so started to attach blocks to the other masts.  Lots of pictures below on approach to the under blocks under the tops, Mobbsie was very kind to send through a lot of info that he had accumulated, found this modified method worked well for me.  Only had 4 to do, but thought it good practice to do it authentically as possible for practice even though I could probably have lived with blocks attached to eyebolts.
 
High tech jig assembled (i.e. 2 pins in spare wood about 9mm apart)  Block placed on one pin and knot tied at top of block to secure it in place.  Loose ends then tied over the top of other pin....

 
...knot tied on other side of pin to make a loop.  At this point applied some GS Hypo glue to the knots and the 'loop' to secure it.

 
After glue had dried, trimmed loose ends and served the line in between the loop and the block...

 
...which resulted in the finished item.

 
In place with wire pegs inserted into loops to keep them in place.  1.3mm holes were drilled and the hoops pulled through with thin thread.  Took a bit of teasing.

 

Hi Jason,
 
My approach will be to fit the lower masts and then the shrouds before I add the topmasts and caps. I will make a 'mock up' of the Masthead on which to form the shrouds, and then transfer them to the actual model, less tiring that way.
 
I would leave the  Mast top rails until much later, on many models there are lines that have to be worked around the tops, or even belayed there, and those rails tend to be fairly fragile.
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.

Looking good Mobbsie - I'm trying to picture my Blandford standing on her stern at your mid-ships....just to get a sense of the scale.....
hamilton

Hello all:
 
First of all, for Ferit I have the photo of the port side fore lower shrouds and ratlines (first photo below) - hope this is what you're looking for.
 
The night before last I shaped, finished and outfitted the spritsail yard, and this evening I installed and began rigging it. I had hoped to add the clews and sheets as well, but I only managed to add the sling, the halliard, the lifts and braces. I also added jibboom guys and guy falls (as noted in Lees), but ended up removing them because I felt they made the model look too cluttered. I'm now cursing the absence of a fairleader block on the bowsprit - which Goodwin features, but which I didn't feel confident in making - now I'm not satisfied with the chaos of lines at the bow, and yet don't feel up for dismantling all my work.......I will live with it, I suppose.
 
Anyway, I'll hopefully have a chance of finishing the spritsail yard rigging tomorrow - from there I'll start the spars from the mizzen mast forward.....Enjoy!
hamilton
 

 

 

 

 

Hi Guys,
 
My turn to add an update on progress made so far.
 
Well I ripped out all of the eyebolts from under the platforms and followed the advice from Grant on how they should be done, he kindly sent me some information from one of his practicums which illustrated it perfectly.
 
The big question was "How in _ells teeth am I going to do that", but it wasn't as bad as I first thought. So it was with some trepidation that I drilled my first hole in the Main Platform followed by another 11. The results you will see.
 
The railings and netting was fitted next.
 
I have since fitted the Mizzen Platform to the mast but the Main and Fore Mast Platforms are only dry fitted.
 
Next came the Burton Pendants, I made hard eyes for these out of 4mm dowel, I drilled out the centres with a 1.8mm bit and filed them down to the size required. I then had to serve rope for the Mizzen Pendants, Then it happened, my super duper server fell apart, the gearing got all jammed up and kept jamming, so I had to pull it apart and virtually start all over again. I now have a server that's got more holes in it than a colander, still it works which is the main thing.
 
With the rope served I attached the eyes and served the ends, it is now fitted to the mast.
 
So that's it, not a lot really, but unfortunately life has a habit of getting in the way of building, plus the fact that I have had a bit of builders block, at least that's behind me now.
 
Some pics.
 
Top of the Main Platform showing the retaining pegs.

 
The completed Platforms

 
The underside of the Platforms

 
The Burton Pendants on the Mizzen Platform

 
 
The served rope seized around the mast

 
The 3 masts with platforms

 

 
So there we have it, next step is the Mizzen shrouds.
 
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie
 
 

Wow Richard - I was just getting into your Endeavour build, and now I find this!! You are prolific! It's interesting to note a nice model like this with no logs attached. Certainly there are some very famous subjects out there (Victory, the other Endeavour, Bounty) that get a lot of hits - but there are others like this one, the Corel Bellona (though Harlequin started one a while back...), and as demonburger noted the Mary Rose that get missed....hard to say why....I'll watch this one attentively. And please don't neglect the Endeavour! A very exciting build
hamilton

Hello, a few days ago I started a second project: The Russian brig Mercury.


The original

The Russian 20 gun brig Mercury (Меркурий) was laid down in Sevastopol on January 28, 1819 and launched on 7 May 1820. She was designed as a patrol ship to guard the Nothern Caucasus coast. The Mercury fought in many important naval battles during her career.

The kit

The weight of the box is really notable. The shipping details showing the kit weighed 6 kg. No wonder, the 5 mm MDF for keel and frames weighs more than plywood. Furthermore the kit contains many brass etched parts, 17 plan sheets, a flag set, a 20-page step-by-step instuction (hull assembly only) and much more.

Scale: 1:64
Length overall: 860mm
Height overall: 654mm


 


I wonder why there are no building logs. In fact I found only one in a Russian forum. Is there something wrong with this kit? Or with the ship?
Anyway, let‘s start!


 

 


The false deck and the gundeck are a special feature of the kit. The planks are laser-engraved.
 

 


It looks pretty nice. Unfortunately it‘s plywood.

Next stage and the first problem was to fit the plywood gun port patterns. I‘ve soaked the parts for one hour, but for all that it wasn‘t possible for me bending the patterns vertically. So I planked the bulwark with 1x4 mm stripes. That means a little more work but much more easy on the nerves. Later on I can use the gun port pattern for marking the gunports.
 


The planks are only glued among each other, not to the frames.
 
And here we have the bulwark; still without the gunports:
 

 

David,  As I said, I couldn't respond to your private message because it put me in Internet Explorer 11 and I was unable to up-load photos.  Firefox lets me up-load.
Attaching the lines from the bow sprit is difficult to see on my photos of the real ship, but their location is clear.  Photos from my log shows them rather clearly due to a better camera angle.
 
Two photos from the real ship.  Eyebolts with blocks are seen attached to the lower rail just above the round house.
 

 
Four photos of the model show the eyebolts with blocks, forming a part of the tackle.
 

 
I hope this answers the question.  Cheers, Gil

A bit more on the clue, sheet and tack blocks. The photos I have of the Victory show the blocks held together with shackles (which hadn't been invented in 1805.  McKay's drawings show a monkey fist and loop arrangement.  I've simply prepared the blocks and lashed them together.  I suspect McKay's illustration is more accurate.  Fashioning the clue block.  All line including the strop and eyes are served.  Brass rod used to maintain the eye.
 

 
One eye completed.
 

 
Forming the second eye.
 

 
Sheet block