hamilton

Great work on the Glad Tidings!
hamilton

hamilton, you built a beautiful Pinky. I’ll be referencing your build log often 

Beautiful work! A nice family project!
hamilton

Beautiful work! A nice family project!
hamilton

Beautiful work! A nice family project!
hamilton

Beautiful work! A nice family project!
hamilton

Beautiful work! A nice family project!
hamilton

Ahh - sorry Alan....I thought I had deleted that post (will do so now) - it was a bit pre-emptive, as the "snag" I identified was not the result of kit deficiencies, but my own stupidity - I had spent some time studying the Victory Models HMS Fly kit that I have on the shelf, and mistakenly returned the Fly cannons (with cast metal carriages.....ugh) into my Bellona box - then tried fitting the 1:64 Fly canons to the 1:100 Bellona.....this is the kind of thing that happens when I try to squeeze in some future planning alongside a current build.....
 
Anyways, progress continues on the hull planking - I've completed band "A" (first 6 strakes below the level of the main deck) and commenced on band "B" - 6 strakes below that. Then I'll turn to the garboard and band "D" - 4 strakes up from garboard and finish from there. I won't be posting progress on this until I'm done the first planking - might be a while given limited modelling time....but until then....
hamilton

That's good to hear, Nearshore - and thanks for the compliment - not sure about "outstanding", considering some of the present company, but I'll be happy to provide help where I can! Since I'm a slow modeller now, I may end up reaching out to you here and there too!! 
hamilton

Hi Hamilton,
 
Yeah I get what you're saying. The pics I posted were of the dry fit. I haven't glued anything together yet as I am still adjusting the parts. I always have had the motto that "If you have to force it, it doesn't fit". I may be spending a bit more time on the dry fit than usual, but I also believe that this stage will set the tone for the rest of the build. I welcome your advice. I have seen your build log of this ship and its one of the main reasons I decided to go with the Bellona. You are an outstanding modeler and I look forward to your guidance on this. 
 
Nearshore

Good start to the build!
 
The instructions are no substitute for a study of the plans - they will be much more useful for getting a feel for the build and its requirements. I've been working on this model over the last several months but spent the year prior studying the plans, making tables and plotting out the build. This is a complex model! I've already discovered that, despite my best intentions, I have to make major adjustments to the gunports - even though from outboard they run in a nice line, they do not present even heights fore the guns to protrude through them. I worry that any adjustments I make will result in a really wonky-looking arrangement....but we'll see....a lot can be corrected in the second planking!
 
One worry I have about your build is that you've put that transom frame on prior to adding the quartergallery fillers, completing the frame fairing and first planking layer. This might make those jobs a bit more tricky for you - especially in sanding down the q-gallery fillers (which require a lot of finessing to get the proper run of planks aft). These parts need to be sanded down to nearly nothing along their top edge - I used a sanding drum in my dremmel for this. Getting into the tight corner between the transom frame and the filler will be tricky - though perhaps not impossible. 
 
Anyways, the instructions don't state this, which is, of course, annoying - but the order of the framework construction is laid out on the plans and shows the addition of the transom frame after the completion of first planking. Not sure how difficult (or dangerous) it would be to remove that frame now - it's a thin part, so removing it could result in breakage - careful sanding of the quartergallery fillers should produce a good result - it just might take a little longer a be a little more finicky....
hamilton

Good start to the build!
 
The instructions are no substitute for a study of the plans - they will be much more useful for getting a feel for the build and its requirements. I've been working on this model over the last several months but spent the year prior studying the plans, making tables and plotting out the build. This is a complex model! I've already discovered that, despite my best intentions, I have to make major adjustments to the gunports - even though from outboard they run in a nice line, they do not present even heights fore the guns to protrude through them. I worry that any adjustments I make will result in a really wonky-looking arrangement....but we'll see....a lot can be corrected in the second planking!
 
One worry I have about your build is that you've put that transom frame on prior to adding the quartergallery fillers, completing the frame fairing and first planking layer. This might make those jobs a bit more tricky for you - especially in sanding down the q-gallery fillers (which require a lot of finessing to get the proper run of planks aft). These parts need to be sanded down to nearly nothing along their top edge - I used a sanding drum in my dremmel for this. Getting into the tight corner between the transom frame and the filler will be tricky - though perhaps not impossible. 
 
Anyways, the instructions don't state this, which is, of course, annoying - but the order of the framework construction is laid out on the plans and shows the addition of the transom frame after the completion of first planking. Not sure how difficult (or dangerous) it would be to remove that frame now - it's a thin part, so removing it could result in breakage - careful sanding of the quartergallery fillers should produce a good result - it just might take a little longer a be a little more finicky....
hamilton

Beautiful work as always, Ron! Love to see this beauty moving along!
hamilton

Beautiful work as always, Ron! Love to see this beauty moving along!
hamilton

Thank you cisco.  Thank you, Johann--your model is extraordinary, and I can only aspire to the accuracy and detail that you are able to accomplish!
 
I have been working--very slowly.
 
First, I realized that I need to remove the carronades to make the breeching ropes.  Unfortunately, I had glued them to the deck!!  Fortune smiled though, and the upper part of the carriages were NOT glued to the lower bed (except for one), and I was able to remove the carronades--
 
 
Here they are, with breeching ropes partly done.  They need to have the correct knot and iron ring attached to each end of the rope.  The first five (including the one carronade that I had to forcibly remove from the deck) are done.  Beyond those are the rest which have the first end done, then the line threaded through the breeching ring, and the beginning loop of the second knot lightly glued to hold it for seizing--

 
This is my method for completing the breeching knot after the first seizing is done.  Using a short piece of line, and tweezers, form a simple overhand knot--
 

Get it oriented correctly--

Position it at the right spot and pull it tighter--

Finish up by giving it a good tug--

 
The loose ends are then wrapped a turn around, and glued with a dab of white glue.  After dry, the ends are snipped close.  It's a shortcut, I know, but looks fine.
 
Now the carronades can be reinstalled, and the eyelets glued into predrilled holes (done many years ago now!!) in the bulwarks--
 



 
Next, I will need to make about 30 more of these training tackles--

 
Closing with a couple photos of Oneida--


 
Ron
 
 
 

Hamilton,
GOOD FOR YOU.  If you do replace the wood provided by the kit, which is a GREAT idea, you have the luxury to choose from a number more appropriate species that will lend themselves well to spiling or edge bending ala Passaro and replace all the walnut which is usually brittle and almost always porous rather than tight grained.
 
Allan

I'm finding Chuck's method very effective so far - it seems like a slight modification on the approach laid out in David's primer - if I were working with wider sheet wood instead of strip stock I would probably try to spile the planks in the strakes above the waterline at least, but since this is the first layer, I'm more interested in building up a solid foundation - I have some 1mm walnut sheet stock that I might use to spile planks above the waterline in the second layer, since it is a decent colour match with the strip wood supplied by Corel, but I'll have to consider this.
 
So far, using Chuck's method I'm nowhere near needing any drop planks at the bows, so it seems to be working. I also think that a much more attentive fairing job has contributed to this....in the past I've tended to rush through that part of things, so I hope that I've finally learned my lesson! Maybe in a few builds from now I'll actually be able to not stress out too much about hull planking!
hamilton

Either this or the Primer on Planking by David Antscherl in the Articles section here at MSW will serve you well.  I have used both methods and find them to be equally effective in yielding tight fits and proper tapering, especially at the bow to avoid, or at least minimize, the use of drop strakes.
 
Allan

A very quick update - I've been away with the family for the last two weeks, and I'm taking my sons to visit with my dad back East tomorrow for the next week, so not much time at the bench at all - when I'm back I'm also heading back to work, though it'll be a relatively slow start (I hope!) and I'm really hoping to finish the first layer of hull planking before things kick back in come September.
 
In any case it's nothing spectacular - finished the first band of hull planking - looks pretty pocked and gappy, but it's coming together ok - some filling sanding and so on will result in a good enough base layer, so I'm trying to do things carefully while not beating myself too much about the results.
 
Here's a photo to show the progress. Back later!
hamilton
 
 

Keep up the good work!!   I realize this is the first layer of planking so far.   On your second layer of planking, will you be following the same sweep of the strakes where they follow the line of the gunports or more like how the planking actually laid as in the contemporary model of the Bellona below?  I marked the run of the planking with a black lines so it is easier to see.  For those that have not seen them, there are 8 great photos of the contemporary model of Bellona at RMG which are pretty clear even at the lower resolution and show the planking very clearly as well as the photos in Yve's Bellona build log here at MSW.
 
Thanks for sharing your build!
Allan

A very quick update - I've been away with the family for the last two weeks, and I'm taking my sons to visit with my dad back East tomorrow for the next week, so not much time at the bench at all - when I'm back I'm also heading back to work, though it'll be a relatively slow start (I hope!) and I'm really hoping to finish the first layer of hull planking before things kick back in come September.
 
In any case it's nothing spectacular - finished the first band of hull planking - looks pretty pocked and gappy, but it's coming together ok - some filling sanding and so on will result in a good enough base layer, so I'm trying to do things carefully while not beating myself too much about the results.
 
Here's a photo to show the progress. Back later!
hamilton
 
 

Very impressive work Yves!! Been out of town for the last couple of weeks, but you certainly have not been idle! 
hamilton

Very impressive work Yves!! Been out of town for the last couple of weeks, but you certainly have not been idle! 
hamilton

Bellona is looking amazing!
 
Have you thought about just making your own window frames and pilasters for the starboard quarter gallery?
 
 

Hi All -
 
SeaWatchBooks.com is now live! Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy the new store.
 
Mike