hamilton

Hello there:
 
Over the last couple of evenings I've managed to complete another couple of small things on Bluenose - the chain box and the rudder. The chain box is not featured on the deck plans, but included in a lower corner of a plan sheet that documents the deck fixtures, dorys and mast/spar construction - it could easily be overlooked.
 
What isn't clear is if there was one such box on either side - the plans say to locate the chain box just aft of the engine box, which is located on the port side. I included two boxes on my 1:100 scale Bluenose, since it made sense to have one on each side for each anchor....but what is the consensus on this?
 
Anyway, this feature was constructed out of 5 pieces of 1/32" thick basswood cut to measure. The front and back of the box were installed on top of the base and then the sides added after - the inside faces of each strip were painted black prior to assembly and then the outside and edges finished white after.
 
The rudder was pretty easy - especially since I had already made them man years ago when I cut out the final versions of the keel pieces and bulkheads - this much have been back in 2016 or 2017!! Sheesh!! I was reading another modeller's log today and he was calling himself "lazy" for not treenailing his deck - but I bet he never waited 7 years to install a rudder!! 
 
Anyway, the rudder and stern post were made from 3/16" ply and needed only some minor adjustments to fit properly. The pintles and gudgeons were made using 1/64" x 3/64" bras strip gently bent first around a 1/16" brass rod and then again around a scrap 3/16" piece of ply to get the rough shape. The short sections of 1/16" brass rod were glued to the pintles and gudgeons with CA and then attached to the rudder first. I installed the stern post onto the model and then the tiller extension was added - made from a 3/16" dowel and shaped accordingly. I masked off the rudder and painted the pintles and gudgeons before installing the rudder on the model - I felt that this would be far less messy than using the blackening agent I have or trying to paint them on the model.
 
Next I'll probably mount the model on a stand I made about a year and a half ago and then finally move onto the windlass and other works at the bow....this, along with the scrollwork and name plates as well as the chainplates & shroud deadeyes will see the hull more or less complete! Then I think I will return to my Bellona build for a while and let Bluenose rest before moving onto the masting....
 
In the meanwhile, enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton

Looks great Jason!

Hello there:
 
Over the last couple of evenings I've managed to complete another couple of small things on Bluenose - the chain box and the rudder. The chain box is not featured on the deck plans, but included in a lower corner of a plan sheet that documents the deck fixtures, dorys and mast/spar construction - it could easily be overlooked.
 
What isn't clear is if there was one such box on either side - the plans say to locate the chain box just aft of the engine box, which is located on the port side. I included two boxes on my 1:100 scale Bluenose, since it made sense to have one on each side for each anchor....but what is the consensus on this?
 
Anyway, this feature was constructed out of 5 pieces of 1/32" thick basswood cut to measure. The front and back of the box were installed on top of the base and then the sides added after - the inside faces of each strip were painted black prior to assembly and then the outside and edges finished white after.
 
The rudder was pretty easy - especially since I had already made them man years ago when I cut out the final versions of the keel pieces and bulkheads - this much have been back in 2016 or 2017!! Sheesh!! I was reading another modeller's log today and he was calling himself "lazy" for not treenailing his deck - but I bet he never waited 7 years to install a rudder!! 
 
Anyway, the rudder and stern post were made from 3/16" ply and needed only some minor adjustments to fit properly. The pintles and gudgeons were made using 1/64" x 3/64" bras strip gently bent first around a 1/16" brass rod and then again around a scrap 3/16" piece of ply to get the rough shape. The short sections of 1/16" brass rod were glued to the pintles and gudgeons with CA and then attached to the rudder first. I installed the stern post onto the model and then the tiller extension was added - made from a 3/16" dowel and shaped accordingly. I masked off the rudder and painted the pintles and gudgeons before installing the rudder on the model - I felt that this would be far less messy than using the blackening agent I have or trying to paint them on the model.
 
Next I'll probably mount the model on a stand I made about a year and a half ago and then finally move onto the windlass and other works at the bow....this, along with the scrollwork and name plates as well as the chainplates & shroud deadeyes will see the hull more or less complete! Then I think I will return to my Bellona build for a while and let Bluenose rest before moving onto the masting....
 
In the meanwhile, enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton

Hello there:
 
Over the last couple of evenings I've managed to complete another couple of small things on Bluenose - the chain box and the rudder. The chain box is not featured on the deck plans, but included in a lower corner of a plan sheet that documents the deck fixtures, dorys and mast/spar construction - it could easily be overlooked.
 
What isn't clear is if there was one such box on either side - the plans say to locate the chain box just aft of the engine box, which is located on the port side. I included two boxes on my 1:100 scale Bluenose, since it made sense to have one on each side for each anchor....but what is the consensus on this?
 
Anyway, this feature was constructed out of 5 pieces of 1/32" thick basswood cut to measure. The front and back of the box were installed on top of the base and then the sides added after - the inside faces of each strip were painted black prior to assembly and then the outside and edges finished white after.
 
The rudder was pretty easy - especially since I had already made them man years ago when I cut out the final versions of the keel pieces and bulkheads - this much have been back in 2016 or 2017!! Sheesh!! I was reading another modeller's log today and he was calling himself "lazy" for not treenailing his deck - but I bet he never waited 7 years to install a rudder!! 
 
Anyway, the rudder and stern post were made from 3/16" ply and needed only some minor adjustments to fit properly. The pintles and gudgeons were made using 1/64" x 3/64" bras strip gently bent first around a 1/16" brass rod and then again around a scrap 3/16" piece of ply to get the rough shape. The short sections of 1/16" brass rod were glued to the pintles and gudgeons with CA and then attached to the rudder first. I installed the stern post onto the model and then the tiller extension was added - made from a 3/16" dowel and shaped accordingly. I masked off the rudder and painted the pintles and gudgeons before installing the rudder on the model - I felt that this would be far less messy than using the blackening agent I have or trying to paint them on the model.
 
Next I'll probably mount the model on a stand I made about a year and a half ago and then finally move onto the windlass and other works at the bow....this, along with the scrollwork and name plates as well as the chainplates & shroud deadeyes will see the hull more or less complete! Then I think I will return to my Bellona build for a while and let Bluenose rest before moving onto the masting....
 
In the meanwhile, enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton

Hello there:
 
Over the last couple of evenings I've managed to complete another couple of small things on Bluenose - the chain box and the rudder. The chain box is not featured on the deck plans, but included in a lower corner of a plan sheet that documents the deck fixtures, dorys and mast/spar construction - it could easily be overlooked.
 
What isn't clear is if there was one such box on either side - the plans say to locate the chain box just aft of the engine box, which is located on the port side. I included two boxes on my 1:100 scale Bluenose, since it made sense to have one on each side for each anchor....but what is the consensus on this?
 
Anyway, this feature was constructed out of 5 pieces of 1/32" thick basswood cut to measure. The front and back of the box were installed on top of the base and then the sides added after - the inside faces of each strip were painted black prior to assembly and then the outside and edges finished white after.
 
The rudder was pretty easy - especially since I had already made them man years ago when I cut out the final versions of the keel pieces and bulkheads - this much have been back in 2016 or 2017!! Sheesh!! I was reading another modeller's log today and he was calling himself "lazy" for not treenailing his deck - but I bet he never waited 7 years to install a rudder!! 
 
Anyway, the rudder and stern post were made from 3/16" ply and needed only some minor adjustments to fit properly. The pintles and gudgeons were made using 1/64" x 3/64" bras strip gently bent first around a 1/16" brass rod and then again around a scrap 3/16" piece of ply to get the rough shape. The short sections of 1/16" brass rod were glued to the pintles and gudgeons with CA and then attached to the rudder first. I installed the stern post onto the model and then the tiller extension was added - made from a 3/16" dowel and shaped accordingly. I masked off the rudder and painted the pintles and gudgeons before installing the rudder on the model - I felt that this would be far less messy than using the blackening agent I have or trying to paint them on the model.
 
Next I'll probably mount the model on a stand I made about a year and a half ago and then finally move onto the windlass and other works at the bow....this, along with the scrollwork and name plates as well as the chainplates & shroud deadeyes will see the hull more or less complete! Then I think I will return to my Bellona build for a while and let Bluenose rest before moving onto the masting....
 
In the meanwhile, enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton

Wow, Yves! It's been a while since I came by here and you have not been idle! Somewhere above you mentioned that you weren't doing treenails on deck because you're lazy - no offence, but given the results here I have to doubt that self-assessment!! 
hamilton

Looks great Jason!

Wow, Yves! It's been a while since I came by here and you have not been idle! Somewhere above you mentioned that you weren't doing treenails on deck because you're lazy - no offence, but given the results here I have to doubt that self-assessment!! 
hamilton

I realized that I have not provided an update in a long time. Most of the time has been spent doing non-related model building activities and trying to replicate on the starboard side, what was done on the port side, during a previous post: Overall, a lot of the same thing....
 

 
The quarterdeck is now complete with all the guns in place: 
 

 

 

 
Decals are delicately set along the side of the hull: 
 

 
As usual the hull is prepared with multiple coats of Future Floor Gloss. Then the decals are installed with SOL (by Micro-scale), followed by one or more applications of SET (also by Micro-scale) ...or is it the other way around....SET and then SOL....and finally sealed with multiple coats of Future Floor Gloss. I like the glossy results but if I get tired of it, a coat of mate clearcoat can always be added, to tone down the numerous paintings done on the hull.
 
A few more pictures....
 

 

 

 
With the exception of the railing on each side and rear of the poop deck, the stern is pretty much complete.
 

 

 
At that stage, I need to now shift my focus and work, on the bow: 
 

 
Yves

The poop of the ship is almost completed: 
 

 
Lots of small details went into it. The assembly is done bottom to top, starting with the rear balcony: 
 

 
First, the foot space rail is glued all around the platform (above). The curve is obtained after soaking it in the alcohol and bending carefully with some heat. To prevent the decorative railing from going in all directions, I have placed five tiny strips of wood, to retain it. These helps immensely the positioning and gluing of that delicate and wild resin part: 
 

 
Gluing is done carefully, one side at a time, using slow curing CA glue, to keep a hand in the position of that delicate and reluctant part.
 

 
The breast rail is then placed and that strengthen considerably the railing, overall. The breat rail is treated with some oil, to give it that nice dark and deep color.
 

 

 

 
Next is the complex assembly of the taffrail going on top of the stern. This part is a royal pain in the **** as we need to bend cherry wood (which is never easy). The taffrail is made of three layers of strips to be glued with two curved planes. Not an easy thing to do. Again, CA glue is your best friend.
 

 

 
A little bit of paint: 
 

 

 
We can move on with the decorative gold leafed parts on the stern. All parts are fist painted matte black (Tamiya) and then airbrushed with Gold Leaf (Tamiya). All the parts are made of resin.
 

 
The first part to be positioned is the "necking of the taffrail" if I am not mistaken. 
 

 
Then we assemble the pilasters on each side of the rear windows. And we can then place all the decorative sculptures, munnions and carvings.
 

 

 

 

 

 
 Overall view of the PORT side: 
 

 
Of course, I still have to do the starboard side: It looks quite bare in comparison.....
 

 

 
That's all for today, folks.
 
Yves
 
 

Wow, times flies. It has been a month already. 
I have not worked much and was distracted by various things. However, I managed to make some progress on the Port side of the hull: 

There are quite a few decals to install, after finishing all the woodwork with various small strips of wood (not provided in the kit). I debated using the 2 x 3 mm strips (included in the kit) and decided against them, as they are too large and too thick for some of the wood rails. Instead I went with 1.5 x 1 mm strips.

 

 
The decals are placed using MICROSCALE SET and SOL chemicals. Then, a couple of coats of Future Floor is brushed to seal the decals and to protect them from handling.
 

 
The surface is treated with Future Floor before applying the decals, since we need to have a glossy surface for optimal adhesion of the decals. Above, the Forecastle railing has almost been completed on the port side. I will work on the bow, before finishing the railing in the front.
 

 
The small pounder guns have been completed. A total of 70 guns were put together: it was quite tedious and there is no room for mistakes or losses. In fact, CAF Model does not provide a single spare parts for these guns: 280 wheels, 140 axles, 70 brass barrels and numerous other parts with absolutely zero spare parts. If you loose a wheel, you are on your own. If you break an axle while sanding them to make them fit into the wheels, you are on your own again. It is regrettable that on such kit, there is no room for errors.
 
Yves
 

With the exception of the six 9 pounders guns and the rails, there is nothing else to be done on the decks.
 
I installed the two long ladders provided in the kit and the short 2 steps ladders that Tom designed for me: 
 

 

 
And now a few pictures to illustrate the work: 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Yves

Finally, the planking can be started.
 

 

 
As usual multiple coats of Wipe On Poly give that warm and nice finish to the maple floor.
 
To be as close as possible to the magnificent model of the Maritime Gallery, I added a small beam at the rear edge of the forecastle. This is done with a 3 x 2 mm strips, painted and glued in place under the subfloor. It finishes in a more realistic way, the edge of the deck. 
 

 
The Forecastle is equipped with two hatches, the box for the stack, a Belfry and some stanchions: 
 

 

 
The Belfry is a little kit in itself, quite delicate to put together and the bell can be actuated for real. No sound gets out of it....
 

 

 
Overall view of the Bellona model: 
 

 
Yves

Time to build the Forecastle. Planking of the Forecastle is normally the last step of Session #4.
However, we have left long time ago the official instructions and are taking a different path.
 
Before installing the sub-floor of the Forecastle, you need to place the rails along the hull and the bow. Before doing the rails you need to install the Catheads. Totally different from the official instructions.
 

 
In the picture above, the cathead has been installed and the two rails along the hull and the bow, cut to length and installed by clamping them with the open hull on the other side. Afterwards, the subfloor can be glued: 
 

 

 

 
After installing the subfloor, you have to prepare the bulwark: 
 

 
These do not fit because of the curves and the way the ship has been built and do require some adjustment and additional coverage.
 

 
Railing is next: Here again, the large part is cut in two to allow a better fit with the curvature of the bow.
 

 
For the other side, we will follow the same approach: cathead, rails, subfloor, bulwark, railing.
 

 

 

 
The bulwarks are filled with additional pieces of wood for extra strength and to provide a perfect seating for the railings.
 

 

 

 
Yves

Some progress on the mid-ship section. 
 

 
This part took some time for completion because of two major issues: lack of ladders to go from the gangways to Quarterdeck/Forecastle and the length of the booms supporting the long boat and pinnaces. Fortunately, Tom from CAF Model was very quick to correct the problem and sent me some extra parts to remedy the situation.
 
The assembly of the gangways is done in the following way: 
 

 
It is overall very delicate, but once glued to the bulwarks, it is not too bad.
 
The first issue is illustrated below: How do you go from the gangway to the Quarterdeck (or Forecastle, for that matter)?
 

 
 
 
Obviously, something is missing. Tom was kind enough to design some small ladders with 2 or 3 steps and that solves the issue: 
 

 
The second problem was the short length of the booms used to stow the pinnaces: 
 

 

 
About 5 mm on each side, were missing. Again, Tom designed for me six additional booms to remedy the situation: 
 

 
One of the kit boom was used as a beam at the front of the Poop deck. Overall, we now have a mid-section that looks decent: 
 

 

 

 
I have only assembled half of the main capstan, as I need room to work on the forecastle.
 

 

 
Overall views: 
 

 

 

 

 

 
To complete the quarterdeck, I still need to assemble six small guns: 
 

 

 
Et voila the entire beast. Time to migrate the working crew to the boom and forecastle: 
 

 
I hope you are enjoying the progress of that huge model, as much as I do... :-)
 
Yves

Headworks (Part 1):
 
The shipyard has not been very active recently, partly due to lack of time, but also trepidation of the fact that I can no longer delay work on the headworks - something that has caused some anxiety if I'm honest given that this is another aspect of the model that is so important to the overall look of the ship (...and especially considering that the TFFM devotes 17 pages to this!).  I had completed the main rail back in 2018 (Yikes!) which are detailed here (Post #513) for reference. 
I tried to follow the guidance and approach described in the TFFM as this will all need to be scratch to replicate the original plans as closely as possible, but did probably simplify some steps.  With the final profile of the bow having been finalized, the position of these can be determined.  This was done by eye in the absence of any definitive measurement, ensuring that the head of the mainrail is perpendicular to the keel and vertical when viewed from the bow.  These were drilled and pinned to hold in position for now.   Together with the standard, the 4 head timbers were rough cut and sized to their respective position, the outer face being cut to the angle formed by the head rail.  The curvature of the head timbers was estimated from the AOTS diagrams, but left a little oversized at this stage (the interior profile has also been ignored for the present and will be cut to final shape later).  The main consideration was to ensure that the position of the bottom of the main rail was determined, and this was done by multiple fine tunings and a sanding stick.

The position and fitting of the lower rail proved to be the more challenging aspect.  The TFFM indicates that it should be straight when viewed from above, and the plan profiles suggest that it should be position midway between the main rail and the upper cheek..  On top of that, it needs to clear the interior hawse hole, and will also need to taper in profile at the bow.  The seats of ease on the Artois class are outboard, and will also clear the lower rail.  I do not know the thickness of this piece, but estimated it should be 2mm thick which seems consistent with the proportions shown and described in TFFM for the Swan class.
 
I started by drawing my own simple scale mini-plan using the measurements of the hawse hole, position of head timbers and length of the lower rail.  This allowed the depth of the slots to be determined on each head timber, at the point mid way between the bottom of the main rail and top of the upper cheek (This will also determine the required final curvature of the head timbers to ensure that the lower rail sits neatly behind the covering boards which will need to be added in the future,

Once these had been roughly determined and cut into the head timbers, the theory and application was proved using some of the kit supplied white metal decorative strips which are very easily bent.  (The kit indicates that these should actually be used for the lower rail which seems to be a very reasonable compromise, but think Jason deserves to appropriately proportioned and profiled wood rail).  The curvature of this metal rail can then be used to determine the curvature of the top of the lower rail that will be cut from wood.  (Note:  The forward head timber has been ignored for now, I will need to recut this piece so it extends higher over the standard, as it is, its not think enough to accommodate the lower rail).  The white metal strip is also very useful because it allows the length of the lower rail to be determined.

A cut first approximation of the lower rail was then cut from some boxwood sheet and temporarily placed in position to again prove the approach.  This proved to be successful, and I was happy with the general profile that resulted.  This looks overly bulky to my eye even though the dimension are appropriate, but I suspect that this will be corrected once it has been profiled.  The next step will be to cut and profile the actual pieces.  This also shows that I will likely need to adjust the hawse bolster to allow the lower rail, and the yet to be fitted eking rail (see last picture, the lower rail does not clear the top of the bolster. Even though there is still much to do in this area, I'm feeling more optimistic with this complex area.

 
 

Yesterday I had a go at the catheads, which were one of those elements that I was kind of puzzling over. In the end, I decided that my metal working skills and the resources at my current disposal for achieving good results were pretty limited, so I took another route.
 
I used 3/32" square basswood stock for the the "head" and 3/64" brass rod for the shaft. I marked off the basswood to the length of the out portion of the cathead and filed out a notch in the end, first making a gentle cut along the centre of one end of the strip and then using first a triangular and then a round needle file to widen out the end to simulate the sheave. I then drilled a hole behind that and widened/filed it out with files to complete the sheave. I then drilled small holes to receive eyebolts in the bottom and side.
 
Only after that did I cut off the portion of the basswood stock, drill a hole in the square end of it and attach a length of brass rod for the cathead "shaft". I then whittled and sanded down the end of the wooden "head" portion to blend it in with the brass, painting the whole assembly black. They're definitely out of scale (the head portion anyway) but I'm hoping that they won't look so bad once all the other elements are built up around them.....
 
I did have to make some 1/16" thick cap rail extensions, since I forgot to mark out those when I was making the caprails a while back...this was very straightforward. Here are the photos - enjoy and happy modelling
hamilton
 

Yesterday I had a go at the catheads, which were one of those elements that I was kind of puzzling over. In the end, I decided that my metal working skills and the resources at my current disposal for achieving good results were pretty limited, so I took another route.
 
I used 3/32" square basswood stock for the the "head" and 3/64" brass rod for the shaft. I marked off the basswood to the length of the out portion of the cathead and filed out a notch in the end, first making a gentle cut along the centre of one end of the strip and then using first a triangular and then a round needle file to widen out the end to simulate the sheave. I then drilled a hole behind that and widened/filed it out with files to complete the sheave. I then drilled small holes to receive eyebolts in the bottom and side.
 
Only after that did I cut off the portion of the basswood stock, drill a hole in the square end of it and attach a length of brass rod for the cathead "shaft". I then whittled and sanded down the end of the wooden "head" portion to blend it in with the brass, painting the whole assembly black. They're definitely out of scale (the head portion anyway) but I'm hoping that they won't look so bad once all the other elements are built up around them.....
 
I did have to make some 1/16" thick cap rail extensions, since I forgot to mark out those when I was making the caprails a while back...this was very straightforward. Here are the photos - enjoy and happy modelling
hamilton
 

Continuing with the foredeck....this update covers the forward companionway and engine box. Oh - and I added some ringbolts to the deck....
 
I ended up making the companionway twice - I probably should have made it a third time, but my patience ran out!! I approached this the same way I did with the skylight. I glued up a couple of 1/16 x 1/4" strips for the sides and used the same material for the panels. I glued a couple of 1/16" square strips on the inside of the sides, set 1/16" back from the aft edge to act as a stop for the panels. 
 
The engine box I built up out of 6 pieces of 1/4" x 3/16" basswood (for the larger section) and a tetris style assembly of random wood strips to get the proper dimensions. Once these were filled, sanded and finished, I marked out the two openings on the smaller section, drilled holes to eventually receive the rod for the winch (starboard side) and for the anchor chain (forward). The two sections were glued together, the seam filled and the entire thing painted and lidded. I used, once again, 1/16" pinstripe tape to simulate the hinges. The assembly is not glued to the deck yet, since I want to first construct the jumbo jibboom rest, winch and windlass to make sure all these parts are situated correctly relative to one another....I only have a couple of small jobs to do before moving on to the windlass, winch, etc., which is going to be a challenge for me....I've been spending a bit of time over the last couple of weeks wrapping my head around these items and I have a couple of possible approaches in mind - but that is for the future!
 
Until then - enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton
 

Continuing with the foredeck....this update covers the forward companionway and engine box. Oh - and I added some ringbolts to the deck....
 
I ended up making the companionway twice - I probably should have made it a third time, but my patience ran out!! I approached this the same way I did with the skylight. I glued up a couple of 1/16 x 1/4" strips for the sides and used the same material for the panels. I glued a couple of 1/16" square strips on the inside of the sides, set 1/16" back from the aft edge to act as a stop for the panels. 
 
The engine box I built up out of 6 pieces of 1/4" x 3/16" basswood (for the larger section) and a tetris style assembly of random wood strips to get the proper dimensions. Once these were filled, sanded and finished, I marked out the two openings on the smaller section, drilled holes to eventually receive the rod for the winch (starboard side) and for the anchor chain (forward). The two sections were glued together, the seam filled and the entire thing painted and lidded. I used, once again, 1/16" pinstripe tape to simulate the hinges. The assembly is not glued to the deck yet, since I want to first construct the jumbo jibboom rest, winch and windlass to make sure all these parts are situated correctly relative to one another....I only have a couple of small jobs to do before moving on to the windlass, winch, etc., which is going to be a challenge for me....I've been spending a bit of time over the last couple of weeks wrapping my head around these items and I have a couple of possible approaches in mind - but that is for the future!
 
Until then - enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton
 

A couple of additions to the Bluenose to report - working on the bowsprit and deck assembly for the samson post & bowsprit bitts. Nothing particularly tricky about these. For the samson post mortice, I drilled through the 3/16" square stock I was using, squared off the hole using needle files and then plugged up the back of it with a 1/8" square bit of basswood. Filed down and painted over it blends in perfectly. 
 
The alignment was a bit fiddly, but once the samson post was positioned, things went together more or less easily. Enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton

Another quick update while the ham is in the oven. Working still n deck superstructures and features, specifically, the fore boom sheet buffer, the water pumps, the dory frames and the fore deck skylight. All were pretty straightforward, though you'll see in the photos that I initially mispositioned the water pumps - the later photos show them in their proper spot aft of the fife rail.
 
I'll also admit that, because I was not feeling up to the challenge of making the pumps from scratch, I repurposed a couple of pumps that I had in a little drawer of unused parts from other kits...they are not exactly to scale (on the small side), and they are likely somewhat anachronistic in terms of design, but I don't think they look too awful. Here are the photos - enjoy and happy modelling.
hamilton
 

Continuing with the foredeck....this update covers the forward companionway and engine box. Oh - and I added some ringbolts to the deck....
 
I ended up making the companionway twice - I probably should have made it a third time, but my patience ran out!! I approached this the same way I did with the skylight. I glued up a couple of 1/16 x 1/4" strips for the sides and used the same material for the panels. I glued a couple of 1/16" square strips on the inside of the sides, set 1/16" back from the aft edge to act as a stop for the panels. 
 
The engine box I built up out of 6 pieces of 1/4" x 3/16" basswood (for the larger section) and a tetris style assembly of random wood strips to get the proper dimensions. Once these were filled, sanded and finished, I marked out the two openings on the smaller section, drilled holes to eventually receive the rod for the winch (starboard side) and for the anchor chain (forward). The two sections were glued together, the seam filled and the entire thing painted and lidded. I used, once again, 1/16" pinstripe tape to simulate the hinges. The assembly is not glued to the deck yet, since I want to first construct the jumbo jibboom rest, winch and windlass to make sure all these parts are situated correctly relative to one another....I only have a couple of small jobs to do before moving on to the windlass, winch, etc., which is going to be a challenge for me....I've been spending a bit of time over the last couple of weeks wrapping my head around these items and I have a couple of possible approaches in mind - but that is for the future!
 
Until then - enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton
 

Continuing with the foredeck....this update covers the forward companionway and engine box. Oh - and I added some ringbolts to the deck....
 
I ended up making the companionway twice - I probably should have made it a third time, but my patience ran out!! I approached this the same way I did with the skylight. I glued up a couple of 1/16 x 1/4" strips for the sides and used the same material for the panels. I glued a couple of 1/16" square strips on the inside of the sides, set 1/16" back from the aft edge to act as a stop for the panels. 
 
The engine box I built up out of 6 pieces of 1/4" x 3/16" basswood (for the larger section) and a tetris style assembly of random wood strips to get the proper dimensions. Once these were filled, sanded and finished, I marked out the two openings on the smaller section, drilled holes to eventually receive the rod for the winch (starboard side) and for the anchor chain (forward). The two sections were glued together, the seam filled and the entire thing painted and lidded. I used, once again, 1/16" pinstripe tape to simulate the hinges. The assembly is not glued to the deck yet, since I want to first construct the jumbo jibboom rest, winch and windlass to make sure all these parts are situated correctly relative to one another....I only have a couple of small jobs to do before moving on to the windlass, winch, etc., which is going to be a challenge for me....I've been spending a bit of time over the last couple of weeks wrapping my head around these items and I have a couple of possible approaches in mind - but that is for the future!
 
Until then - enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton
 

A couple of additions to the Bluenose to report - working on the bowsprit and deck assembly for the samson post & bowsprit bitts. Nothing particularly tricky about these. For the samson post mortice, I drilled through the 3/16" square stock I was using, squared off the hole using needle files and then plugged up the back of it with a 1/8" square bit of basswood. Filed down and painted over it blends in perfectly. 
 
The alignment was a bit fiddly, but once the samson post was positioned, things went together more or less easily. Enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton