hamilton

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

Beautiful work! So clean!! Very impressive - thanks for sharing
hamilton

...

OK, ok!... Don't get all bent out of shape...  
 
I've got the battens done on the main top, next step will be to do the bands and cleats, then the main mast will get painted up.
 
Foremast all painted and the wooldings put on, I had to joggle the spacing a little bit, but it's not really noticeable unless you attack the thing with a ruler.
 
Also got the bowsprit all cleated and painted up, and yes according to the plans, those cleats are supposed to look like that.
 
And just for good measure, a couple of overall shots.... nevermind the mess on the workbench... the paint revolution has not yet come...
 
 
Now... is that better?
 
Andy
 

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

BE has some eye for detail.  Now about your carving skills.............

Hi Augie:
 
I think I will leave the cabin natural wood - it will be shadowed by the quarterdeck anyway, so it won't be too "high contrast" except on close viewing. But who knows....maybe I'll change my mind once I start painting the inboard bulwarks and slosh some paint on the cabin.....
hamilton

bulkhead1  is only slightly visible on the finished model and is covered too by the belay pin rack, however I did plank mine too as the lighter colour of the bulkhead would still stand out.

Alright - another update after some time. To tell the truth, I have had only a little motivation lately to work on the build - perhaps it's the nice weather here, perhaps it's the nature of this kit....who knows. Also my mother-in-law's in town, so there are family commitments that have kept me away from the "bench".

 

Here's what I've done since last post

 

-- added backings to the sweep ports so that I can later fix the faux sweeps in them - my son helped me paint these black

 



 

-- painted the inside of the sweep frames red (I didn't have an appropriate brush so I used a toothpick - my sone helped here, too (at 2mm x 2mm, these were quite finicky and I only remembered to do it after the backing had already beed added on one side...

 



 

-- installed the main deck - though I have to trim the edges, and I kind of wish I had done this while the thing was not fixed on the framework....Hopefully I can make the necessary adjustments during the fairing.

 



 

-- scratch built a cabin bulkhead following Goodwin's drawing in the Blandford book - here are the stages

 

1. I made a template from the Goodwin book and traced the outline onto a 1/16 sheet of basswood. I then cut the basswood out and shaped it to fit between the extensions of bulkhead 12 and so that it was flush against the main and quarterdecks - I decided to fit it flush across the forward edges of the extensions and build the cabin bulkhead across both the piece I made and the extensions.

 



 



 

2. After dry-fitting the quarterdeck, I noticed that there was an issue with the quarterdeck ladder hatch - as you can see.....

 



 

3. The grain on the quarterdeck ply is on an angle, but the hole for the ladder hatch is also off plumb. I shimmed it at the back to compensate for the scratch-built cabin bulkhead, and then also filed it out forward a bit to keep the dimensions and straighten it out - no photo of this - sorry

 

4. I first fit a piece across the top to simulate a deck beam - this marks the top of the pillars, doors and panels. I made the pillars (4 in total) out of 2mm x 2mm walnut, rounding a section through the pillar and leaving a square base and head...

 



 

5. I then used .5mm x 3mm walnut cut in half (to 1.5mm width) to make the door and panel frames and 1mm x 1mm to make the molding at the bottom. You can see I've stained the bulkhead extensions, but being a different wood they're a bit contrasty. A brass nail simulates the knob...I'd run out of blacken-it, so I've left it brass.

 



 

6. I then installed the bulkhead and built up the two outboard panels after installation, since they run across the seam between the piece I made and the bulkhead extensions. I'm fine with the port side one, but you can see that the starboard side one looks very clumsy - I rushed it at a time when I was also not entirely in a modelling head space...I will have to re-do it....

 



 

Anyway, you get the impression.

 

-- the final thing I've done is to plank the aft face of bulkhead 1. I'm not sure how much this will add to the look of the thing, but it seemed to me that the bulkhead would be visible under the forecastle - even with the half-bulkheads I plan on adding. So I thought to be safe I'd plank it - .5mm x 3mm walnut for this.

 



 

So now I have a question - I'm planning on painting the inboard bulwarks red. But I had thought to leave the cabin bulkhead & half f'csl bulkheads natural wood....wondering what people's opinion on this might be....I've seen period builds that either leave all natural or paint all red, but I've not seen any that have red bulwarks and natural wood cabin bulkheads....if there are no objections, I might just go ahead......

 

hamilton

UNBOXING THE BEAST (1)...
 
Although my workspace is not ready yet, i moved to a new home shortly, i will start my build log already today.
Today getting my hands on my new kit, i could not resist opening it. So i decided to take the first pictures of
unboxing the beast...
 
I did a lot of reading and researching on the internet and some books, which model should be the first for
me. A bloody beginner in model ship building. After all that reading i took as my only technical rule of thumb -
beginners should start with a model in scale 1:50.
 
During this studys i stumbled over different descriptions about the quality the different kit manufacturers deliver.
After all the different opinions and experiences (until now not my personal opinion or experience), CalderCraft
seems to be some of the better quality makers.
 
So, today i walked into my local model building store. I think we have quite a excellent one. The store serves
all types of model building, not only ships. Astonishingly i found a far better range of wooden static ships, as
i expected. Softening my only rule of thumb, 2 models were identified as the right canditates.
First the HMS Bounty from Constructo, Italy, scale 1:50 and second the HM Brig Badger from CalderCraft, scale
1:64. 2 Reasons took me now to my decision, why i have chosen the HM Brig Badger kit. 1. the manufacturer
and 2. the HMS Bounty has no cannons... 😉
 
Ok, back to the kit... As i mentioned, today i bought my kit from the HM Brig Badger.
More info here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Badger
and here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Badger_(1777
 
Contents of the kit are:
2 Building Manuals english 2 Building Manuals translated in german (nice work at krick, the distributor of CalderCraft kits in Germany) 10 scale plans of the model:
1 of 10: Hull Assembly
2 of 10: Deck & Bulwark Fittings
3 of 10: Hull Fittings
4 of 10: Mast Assembly
5 of 10: Bowsprit & Yard Assembly
6 of 10: Blocks & Horses
7 of 10: Rigging Stages 1 & 2
8 of 10: Rigging Stages 3 & 4
9 of 10: Rigging Stages 5 & 6
10 of 10: Rigging Stages 7 & Belaying Plan plywood first & second planking mast parts brass etchings copper cannons and rope The contents were complete and no part is missing as far i could check it now, without tearing every plastic bag open.
 
So for now i let the pictures speak...

Hi Augie:
 
Thanks for stopping by! Yes there will be a lot of fairing to do - you probably noticed that the shimming on bulkheads 9 & 10 appears in the photo to be a little dippy...in reality it's not as bad as it looks on camera - it's just the angle. However, I've been rough fairing the bulkheads at the same time as I'm shimming so that I can try to get as accurate a run of planks as possible. The real fairing will begin after I install the deck, which needs some minor adjustments to the outboard edge in order for the planks to run smoothly. This is undoubtedly the most extended and tedious framework assembly I've yet done on a kit - though I imagine there are worse cases out there....
hamilton

Hamilton I'm equally looking forward to seeing your kit of greyhound progress especially with the planned improvements. The rigging is proving to be as awkward as the rest of the kit but I would have been disappointed if it were not. There will be several (loads) of inaccuracies with the rigging on my kit but I am using my completed corel kit HMS Victory as a guide and can live with the mistakes I have made. I am a builder who is not overly concerned if my build includes historical inaccuracies. She is now coming alive as you say, in fact I too am beginning to smile as I look at her. I am sure you will improve on my build and as you progress if I can help I will. With the rigging you will undoubtedly do it different to mine. You will notice in the greyhound instructions that the book differs from the sheet plans which differs from the picture on the box. Confused you will be, but your pre-planning regarding the belaying will prove invaluable. When all is done and dusted Greyhound looks beautiful and you will have bad moments and good moment but will end up with a model you will be glad you have completed.  

OK, time for an update. 
 
The running rigging, up through the addition of the yards, has been completed  .  Basically we're talking stays and halliards.  I apologize for the photos as it's seemingly impossible to get the right background to show what's going on.  The rope coils on the finished lines are in place.
 

 

 

 
 
Will now be moving on to the YARDwork, which I hope will go as well as mast construction.  I may need to take a break to do some real yardwork like planting tomatoes simultaneously.  This will at least beat shoveling snow in between stropping blocks.
 
This next phase will take a while so stay the course 'til I return!

Time for a small update.  Didn't want Andy to sail off without some fond memories.
 
We have ventured into the realm of running rigging (the brown stuff) with the installation of the spanker boom and gaff.  Their addition has certainly filled out the stern.
 
It was a little hard getting the right background but I think you'll get the idea.  She has now reached her full LOA.
 

 

 

 
Will be moving forward now with topmast halliards, etc. before we get to YARDwork  .

Can we have a drum roll.........please!!!!
 
 
The standing rigging has been completed !!!!     :)                                     
 
 
In spite of a few ham-handed mishaps (see 'where the he_ _ did the Martingale go'),  I think it went well.  She is really taking on some character.  For the very first time, she looks better in person than i the photos.  But with Sjors looking on, ya gotta have pics.  Let me know what you think as I take a break for a day or two to shovel out from the in-process blizzard:
 
 

 

 

 

 
I am happy with the bowsprit as, just a few days ago, it looked like an explosion in a rubber band factory.  I need to complement designer Chuck Passaro (again) for not only the intricacy of the layout but also for taking the time to explain everything so clearly in his Practicum.  THANKS CHUCK!
 

 
And here's my favorite shot
 

 
OK, it's time to do some 'yardwork' and get the spars and yards together.  I'm thinking I will leave them in a natural finish but not decided yet.  After adding the dimensions of length and height into the ship, I look forward to now providing width    
 
Finally, thanks to everyone here on MSW for providing advice, encouragement and positive thoughts (you too, Sjors).
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

OK, we've played this tune before on the main mast but now we've moved forward!  In spite of Sjors recent allegations, I did not 'forget' to rig the foremast.
 
The upper foremast shrouds, shear strips/futtocks, cleats, sister blocks and catharpins are complete.  Even better, the last of the ratlines have been tied.  I am stuck as to which title to bestow upon myself........'King of the Clove Hitch' or Edward Tweezerhands.    Anja can now return!!!!
 
We shall now be moving on to the more sweeping aspects of the forward standing rigging.  Looking forward to seeing the bowsprit once again
 

 

 
 
 
 

Some work on the 'chain gang' making the links for the deadeyes.
 

 
And here are the deadeyes mounted on the channels
 

 
As long as we have deadeyes, might as well start with the shrouds.  These are Morope
 

 
 

Mast construction
 

That's about enough for me for today.  What's posted so far took 800 hours in the shop ----- and doesn't fill up a page here!!
 
I'll pick up tomorrow with mast construction.
 
Just want to encourage everyone to get back on board if you can.  We'll get the site back up to make us all feel proud again (once we survive the shock).
 
Best regards to all.

Stern davits and hammock nettings added.
 

The carronades were mounted on the sleds and set on the deck temporarily.
 

 
Once satisfied, the carronades were permanently mounted and the breech ropes attached.  I could not manage the gun tackles this time around.
 
Deck fitting were begun with hatches, shot racks and the capstan.
 

 
This was followed by the companionway and the binnacle/belfry.
 

The headrails and timbers, bumpkins and figurehead were added to the stem.

The bulwarks were thinned down to 5/32" and then painted red.  The cap rail was added and also painted.
 
The deck was then completed, treenailed and stained.
 
The bottom was coppered using the supplied tape and the fine tutorial presented here on MSW by Gene Bodnar.
 

The gunport sills and lintels were added using the templates provided in the kit (as well as measurements from the plans).   This was followed by adding the stern frames making sure the 12 lb. cannon fit properly in the stern ports.  A paper template was thoughtfully provided of the completed gun to accomplish this.
 
At this point, painting the gunport frames was required so it was time to decide on the red color to be used for the build.  I concocted a few colors and settled on what I felt came closest to a deep, blood red (it's the color on the right side of the photo).

Bellona has had its box opened and a first dry fit of the keel and frames. My daughter plays rugby for a club side(Liverpool St Helens) a county side(lancashire) and a divisional side(The North of England) so have been busy getting her to matches and training sessions so have not done much on Bellona yet. Watch this space.