hollowneck

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

Thank You druxey, what a good suggestion. Your fix would certainly make this area present better.
 
Should I end up scratching the entire top rail, I can likely fashion a small transition piece to make the cathead support and ekeing rail a better fit. It's occurred to me more than once that ship modeler's of 18th century frigates need to develop a unique vocabulary all our own; it's a good thing we both speak English!
Ron
 

A few progress photos for today with helpful descriptions hopefully!
 

Dos Oros Liquidos. I decided to use two slightly different shades of "gold" on Camilla's P/E decorations. I believe this helps to add a little more visual interest to these pieces. Still in the category of "less is more" for my build. Vallejo offers several "metallic" paints and they are not inexpensive...however, they have no equal in my experience, other than applying gold leafing! 
 

A delicate repair job. A tiny piece of the upper rail that joins the bulwarks at the foc'sle broke off; I have no idea how this happened with my obsession to make these curvy gems a special feature of my build. Oh well...I snipped a piece of pear from some scrap and carefully glued it with white glue and then sanded it. I was envisioning a little "divot" showing-up - a gap when I am ready to paint all the gunwales black. In this case, a "divot"  (and not a "davit") is not desirable.
 

Drilling-down again. Don't forget to drill-out the numerous lasered square holes along the edges of the quarterdeck pattern, immediately adjacent to the built-up bulwarks. These will receive eyebolts for various rigging lines and trying to get into this area after the entire q'deck is completed will be a challenge better resolved sooner than later. The long, thin (.06mm pear) finishing pieces fit extremely well along the edges that meet the q'deck; be aware that it's very easy to swap the two sides and you'll hide the small engraving the defines the rigging pulleys on both sides of the q'deck.
 

My Quarterdeck pattern came-up a little short of a snug fit to the transom's interior boarding. I'll add a small strip of .6mm boxwood to hide this tiny, yet very visible gap. The transom knees, various cleats and the ensign supports haven't been mounted yet, but I still think a gap here would be unacceptable. I maintain a supply of "small section" hardwoods (pear and boxwood, 1mm strip and smaller) for fixing problems like this one where my joinery has been less than perfect.
 

Pthalo Blue acrylic paint to be applied to the area where I removed a portion of the ill-fitting rail pieces that fall under the cathead supports. Both sweeping top rails are in-place but I'm going to stain them in a darker oak color to better match their surrounding elements of darker pear.
     The various lasered wood pieces in this kit match-up very well generally - except in this instance. This kit's laminated rail piece is a clever build-up to this difficult part of the model's headworks. This is one of the most difficult areas to execute well - whether scratch or kit provided - but here as you can see, the mismatch in the wood color stands out like a sore thumb if not toned-down in appearance. The shape and the build-up design is fine, but not the resulting coloration. This may not be the case with other's kits where the differences in the lasered pear stock may not be so evident. If, after I stain the top rails a darker tone to compensate for this visual disparity and it still doesn't look right to me, I'll scratch pear replacements using the kit's "spare" pattern as a template. 
Ron
 

Back at the bench. A week of distractions. Here are some photos of progress in several areas of my build. All these show critical detail work.
 

Introducing Lady Camilla, a Sphinx if ever I saw one. I'm following my philosophy with Vallejo Liquid Gold paint: less is more. The resin cast figurehead is a beautiful thing, ready to mount (more or less- I had to do some minor filing to get the fit to the stem). Camilla is indeed a Satyresque being and thus, her brown, furry, feral body. But she does have golden wings! - and a human head and protruding human breasts which I suspect my painting details will get a few snickers here by the "guys." The dangling headworks rail is only temporary; there's an ugly gap at the forward support which I think I'll fix with some flat black paint post-gluing.
 

Gangway pattern "tweaked." After aligning the mid-ship gunwale in its optimum position, and then placing the starboard gangway tight against it, I needed to remove a tiny sliver of where the gangway met the multi-stacked volute detail. The gunwale is temporarily aligned with a small nail. This view is looking toward the prow, the foc'sle deck pattern. The five layers that comprise the volute are quite evident and again, the gunwales will be painted black along the entire model. This volute has been carefully sanded and filed and will look good when all is completed. ANOTHER REMINDER FOR ALL WHO ARE BUILDING THIS MODEL: the tolerances are quite tight nearly everywhere throughout this build. I recommend dry-fitting every wooden component. In this photo, to make everything fit nicely, I had to do the complete opposite of what is instructed in the manual by retaining the full width of the gangway and relieving the areas where it meets the forward and aft volutes on both sides; it also varied slightly with the port gangway fit. I suspect others might not face this change, but it does illustrate (at least with my execution) how critical the tolerances are to this overall design. A Good Thing- but demanding an extra dose of patience - and careful sanding!..🤪
 

The gangway at the starboard quarterdeck: a slight sanded "relief" to mate the parts; the last gangway support (not seen, below the wide portion where it meets the beam) is a little high and I'll alter it to lower the position of the gangway when I mount it. There are additional parts to add in this area, a "step" of sorts and this needs to fit properly as it will be very visible when completed. Once again, note the five layers that comprise the aft volute. The fit requires precise fitting of all the layers to look right. Be careful on these wonderful decorative details; it's tempting to file and sand too much and destroy these delicate embellishments.
 

Problem areas; my fixes include some post-gluing paint, (on the left) and removing a little of the odd curved piece just below the cathead support. I haven't stained the pear support (nor the curved upper piece temporarily in position - forgot its name!) yet which will better match the surrounding details when completed. The magnification here is another reminder that attending to the minor details does matter. Scary, but necessary IMHO!
 

Glue time for the quarterdeck pattern. The only way that I could think of to get a tight fit to the multiple curved beams and a full alignment front-to-rear, was to temporarily place the bulwarks build-up pieces against the sides and clamp them down against the deck. Same for the alligator clips on the front beam (with anti-marring scraps). The temporary mizzen mast also has a clamp that's pressing down the middle of the pattern which wants to rise up. Even with all this, I found myself holding and pressing the pattern with my fingers. I did apply white glue across every beam (there are many as we know), especially at the outer ends that meet the bulwarks on both sides. The aft end of the deck pattern needs to fit tightly against the thin plywood support and flush against the inner transom. Phew! After overnight drying, everything seems to have worked well. No buckling or huge gaps AFTER Removing the temporarily placed, bulwarks build-up pieces. They're next to mount- three per side. These all do align nicely and will require only minor tweaking (a small gap to fill) but a single long pear piece (.6mm) - watch for the engraved side only evident at the brace bulwarks pulley ! - will cover the gap.
 

Another glue view. Get those clamps ready. Careful where you place them. I did knock-off one channel support in error, but it was easily re-attached. As Salt n' Pepa sang in the 80's: "Push it. Push It Real Good!"
 

Ahhhh, yes. My continuing obsession with these volutes. Doesn't this detail look good? Just wait 'til it's painted and forms a continuous sinewy, snake-like undulation along the length of her entire svelte body... there will be a lowering of the gangway support here too as well as getting the final pear interior bulwark of the quarterdeck to more precisely meet-up with the volute.
 
 

Arrow indicates where I'll sand the deck clamp (it got too elevated here) so it drops the gangway into a better, slightly lower position.
 

This gluing task was fun (not); the toothpick performed an essential job to hold the thick (2mm) pear build-up volute piece in position as it dried. After dry-fitting this area it became immediately apparent that I had to mount the volute pieces out-of-order from the instructions. This area can easily be messed-up if you don't double-check all your fits before moving ahead. You'll also note I foreshortened one of the gangway supports (that won't be viewed by anyone unless they break their neck peeking), so I wouldn't need to wrestle the angle of the gangway when It comes time to glue it in-place.
 
That's my story, and I'm sticking....
Ron
 
 

I mentioned "Simulated wood carvings to P/E" in my last post. Here's what I use to turn the Vanguard's multilevel P/E into "wood:" 1. A base coat of Liquitex acrylic Raw Sienna and 2. a Citadel wash of Seraphim Sepia - both water soluble.
 
With Vanguard's "multi-level" P/E in the Sphinx kit (and I believe all other Vanguard kits with decorative P/E), it isn't necessary to add more than a paint and wash. However, on single level P/E, I simulate the thickness of a wood carving by applying a gesso - or a matte medium (both by Liquitex) - before painting. The gesso or matte dries fairly quickly and you may need more than one application.
 
The results for "carved wood" simulation are so much better looking than just sticking on a flat piece of P/E. I realize not all this P/E was actual carving on some ships but it is a good approximation of a hand painting technique which is difficult (to say the least) at modeling scales below 1:48.
 
Ron


The arrow points to the column decorations on the beautiful HMS Bellona model in the U.K. This also shows very clearly the colorations of these elements. I have chosen to paint my HMS Camilla gallery and stern light columns in white and the window sash and mullions in brown to simulate varnished wood, the reverse of the chosen colors in the kit's manual. I believe this choice creates a more historically accurate rendering. The frieze decorative painting on this particular model (trompe -'loeil - "fool the eye") is stunning; I want to do this someday - either directly on the finished bulwarks or by painting off the model on a piece of paper and then applying it. This won't happen until I build my first 1:48 model!
 
A correction: actually, the Sphinx manual shows that the decorative columns for both the galleries and the stern in gold, the window sash in white. Similar to this model of the Bellona, I'm using the gold color (Vallejo Liquid Gold as recommended) very sparingly and predominately on the stern where the color will act to highlight the one-piece, detailed resin casting; you can see the edge of the model's stern carvings finished in gold.
 
 

Building out the foc'sle and some related details.
Ron
 

I've used small nails to accurately help position the gunwale for gluing to the forward bulwarks. The nails are pushed through holes in the gunwale pattern and when it's carefully aligned along the entire (curved) length, the nails are gently pushed into layered wood of the bulwarks. This helps to keep the gunwale piece accurately aligned during subsequent gluing.
 

Close-up of a properly mounted cathead in the slot through the bulwarks layers. The gunwale will fit tight against the cathead after gluing. 
 

A cathead slot after two additional inner bulwarks pieces have been mounted. I will again use a small handsaw, a new sharp blade in my X-acto and small diamond files to prep this slot for the final cathead mounting to the deck. You'll need to remove all the layers right down to the deck surface in order to properly mount it. This angle is quite steep, nearly 40 degrees from vertical to the deck is my best guess.
 


Two views of the positioned starboard gunwale, ready for gluing. No cathead knee yet. The eagle-eyed among you will note the tiny sanded "relief" on the underside where the gunwale meets the cathead. I could have filed a slight notch in the cathead too, but opted to delicately sand into the outside of the thick gunwale that will get black paint and no one (except you guys) will be the wiser!
 

Nailed it! A location nail thru the gunwale pattern, a clamp for downward pressure (holding on to a nail); the tiny gap will disappear with some paintable filler (and black paint).
 
 

Ta-da! a completed starboard bulwark, all pieces glued, alignment nails removed. The pear pieces are dimensioned with extremely close tolerances, so take your time getting these built-up items to fit properly. The next step is the port side and the thin pear finishing pattern (.6mm) needs to meet its twin to starboard very precisely at the deck's peak.
 

Mind The Gap. A little stainable wood filler here and no one will know that there was a .3mm gap. The open area under the downward "lip" will be covered by a combination of the gangway and mid-deck gunwale patterns.
 
 

The starboard side decorative volute at the foc'sle bulwarks. Including the rail patterns on the hull's exterior there are five (5!) layers here to match-up. I've done a little filing/shaping here and again, a 500% magnification will show EVERYTHING. I'll do a tad more, knowing that this piece will be painted black to match the gunwales. The gunwale fit to the volute is very, very close as seen in the previous photo.
 

Drilling down, guys. The tiny laser holes in the foc'sle deck (and the q'deck) are for rigging eyebolts and when I attempted to push and glue one into a hole, the P/E part bent! Another assignment for Mr. Thumb Drill! Open-up those squarish holes so eyebolts can be glued into the deck(s).
 

Here's a bird's eye view of the twin "thrones" - sometimes referred to in 19th-century literature as "seats of ease." This arrangement must have encouraged quality bonding experiences with your shipmates... uh, back to facts: I've fixed the offending gaps, did some paint and stain touchup and added a strip of molding pear (1.5mm) below the lower rail to better join the slotted planking to the hull. I'm still not 100% happy though; I'll add another tiny piece to fill the obvious space in the lower rail.
 

I clamped onto the temporary "alignment nails" to get downward pressure on the gunwale after applying wood glue to the bulwark. There may be other techniques to get this critical part of the model properly built, but this worked a treat! Even pressure applied and no ripples or gaps. After glue dried, I simply removed the clamps and pulled the nails out of their small holes.
 

Glenn, this kit is a gem - however, it is not for the faint-of-heart. The tolerances are the tightest I've yet encountered in a kit build - which, is a good thing. Despite little niggling details that are for the most part, very minor annoyances, the results of Chris' design is that he demands a level of attention that kicks the entire build up by several notches. One of those notches being the one at the prow!...haha (joke).😂
 
I see on your log that you've taken delivery of a second Sphinx kit from Vanguard. Bravo.
Measure once, build twice, I say!
 
Ron
 
 

Continuing with work on the bow of HMS Camilla. Affixing the cathead and support knee. Delicate P/E application tool. Filling the "GG" the Gunwale Gap. Pics first, commentary to come. I know, I know: there's char on the edge of the gunwale pattern: see the next photos.
 

The sticky bit on the end of this handy tool is wax and it's a lifesaver for applying tiny stuff like P/E decorations. It can also help for placing tiny wood parts in hard-to-reach places. It rarely happens, but If a bit of residual wax is left from the "Pulp Dent" tool, no problem, just wipe it off. These plastic sticks come in packs of two dozen (see other photo). A couple will last the better part of a single build.

You'll need to remove the lower portion of the curved molding in order to get a proper fit for the cathead support knee. As can be seen, I just used my X-acto to slice off the offending bit and then it popped right off, clearing the area for the subsequent mounting of the knee (to a flat surface!). I could have hacked all the other molding pieces away to mount the knee directly to the hull, but this degree of surgery is not called for with this model ... wait!..I changed my mind.
 

...This detail is still slightly awkward; On reflection and seeing this enlargement, I'll do something to fix it. I'll carefully slice off the leftover bit of the upper curved molding and paint the area blue. This, indeed, is small stuff to think about; unfortunately for me, I often sweat these details... There is more touch-up to come: CTBR, the residual char on the knee (aaarrrgh) and adding some paint to the simulated wood carving of the decorative P/E.
 
Note Bene: If for no other reason, I'd recommend to all my colleagues to take good close-up photos of your model as it's being built (like this and others logs); you'll really see where future problems can crop-up and you'll undoubtedly discover how much more time you need to invest to sharpen your skills (and eye)!🤣
 
 

Described previously, the handy applicators. A dental practice staple I'm told. I think I got them from a dental supply company: Google it.
 

Love that stainable wood filler! It won't be stained here however since the gunwale is painted black. But the gap, even at .3mm, would have been awful looking.
 

The "spikeys"...The spikes show why the holes are important (should you choose to rig/prep her anchor rigging). The little nails run through the cathead pulley holes are just a reminder to test fit the size of the rigging rope for the anchor tackle - before  I get too much further on the build.
 
With this kit, it pays to look WAY AHEAD of where you are in the moment. This is a good rule-of-thumb, of course, but it's especially important with a high-calibre model like this one.
 
I think it's important to mention at this point in my log that I am only loosely following the sequencing of steps outlined in the (well done) manual. I have departed from the step-by-step approach for a number of reasons. Generally speaking, if you do follow the manual page-by-page you'll be fine.
Ron
 
 
 

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

Building out the foc'sle and some related details.
Ron
 

I've used small nails to accurately help position the gunwale for gluing to the forward bulwarks. The nails are pushed through holes in the gunwale pattern and when it's carefully aligned along the entire (curved) length, the nails are gently pushed into layered wood of the bulwarks. This helps to keep the gunwale piece accurately aligned during subsequent gluing.
 

Close-up of a properly mounted cathead in the slot through the bulwarks layers. The gunwale will fit tight against the cathead after gluing. 
 

A cathead slot after two additional inner bulwarks pieces have been mounted. I will again use a small handsaw, a new sharp blade in my X-acto and small diamond files to prep this slot for the final cathead mounting to the deck. You'll need to remove all the layers right down to the deck surface in order to properly mount it. This angle is quite steep, nearly 40 degrees from vertical to the deck is my best guess.
 


Two views of the positioned starboard gunwale, ready for gluing. No cathead knee yet. The eagle-eyed among you will note the tiny sanded "relief" on the underside where the gunwale meets the cathead. I could have filed a slight notch in the cathead too, but opted to delicately sand into the outside of the thick gunwale that will get black paint and no one (except you guys) will be the wiser!
 

Nailed it! A location nail thru the gunwale pattern, a clamp for downward pressure (holding on to a nail); the tiny gap will disappear with some paintable filler (and black paint).
 
 

Ta-da! a completed starboard bulwark, all pieces glued, alignment nails removed. The pear pieces are dimensioned with extremely close tolerances, so take your time getting these built-up items to fit properly. The next step is the port side and the thin pear finishing pattern (.6mm) needs to meet its twin to starboard very precisely at the deck's peak.
 

Mind The Gap. A little stainable wood filler here and no one will know that there was a .3mm gap. The open area under the downward "lip" will be covered by a combination of the gangway and mid-deck gunwale patterns.
 
 

The starboard side decorative volute at the foc'sle bulwarks. Including the rail patterns on the hull's exterior there are five (5!) layers here to match-up. I've done a little filing/shaping here and again, a 500% magnification will show EVERYTHING. I'll do a tad more, knowing that this piece will be painted black to match the gunwales. The gunwale fit to the volute is very, very close as seen in the previous photo.
 

Drilling down, guys. The tiny laser holes in the foc'sle deck (and the q'deck) are for rigging eyebolts and when I attempted to push and glue one into a hole, the P/E part bent! Another assignment for Mr. Thumb Drill! Open-up those squarish holes so eyebolts can be glued into the deck(s).
 

Here's a bird's eye view of the twin "thrones" - sometimes referred to in 19th-century literature as "seats of ease." This arrangement must have encouraged quality bonding experiences with your shipmates... uh, back to facts: I've fixed the offending gaps, did some paint and stain touchup and added a strip of molding pear (1.5mm) below the lower rail to better join the slotted planking to the hull. I'm still not 100% happy though; I'll add another tiny piece to fill the obvious space in the lower rail.
 

I clamped onto the temporary "alignment nails" to get downward pressure on the gunwale after applying wood glue to the bulwark. There may be other techniques to get this critical part of the model properly built, but this worked a treat! Even pressure applied and no ripples or gaps. After glue dried, I simply removed the clamps and pulled the nails out of their small holes.
 

An update that shows some steps to mounting the foc'sle deck pattern and bulwarks finishing. Like elsewhere to this build, it pays to take one's time with the fitting of all these components. It has helped me immensely to gather ALL THE VARIOUS PIECES, prep them and then sand and/or file to get an optimum fit. This is pretty critical at two points: the volutes lining-up at the deck's edge and at the peak of the prow. As you'll discover there are a total of four (4) layers that comprise the bulwarks. I have also removed and fitted the forward gunwales to ensure the bulwarks patterns are in the right configurations and have close fits.
 
First, a quick pic of the boarding steps and some cautions.

The Boarding steps. These are trickier than they look to get right.  If they're slightly off on the horizontal plane, you'll see it immediately; so will others. Sand the char completely off on each thin (0.6mm) piece (2 pieces /step) and carefully place and glue the first one. I started in the middle purposefully: I chose the step on the lap strake and then worked up four more steps and finally adding one below on the wale. This way I made certain the completed steps were as closely aligned as my eye (and tweezers!) could place them. One's eyes are very unforgiving on the horizontal plane; when there is even a slight misalignment of parallel elements, it is easily noticed.
 
On we go to mounting the forward deck, mates.
 

Bending the bulwark build-up boards. After soaking in hot water and then clamping in-place as the manual advises, I let these two pear wood items dry overnight. Once properly fitted into place they'll make the prow's bulwarks nearly complete. After this step, there is one more layer to add: the twin "skins" of .6mm pear pieces (2).
 

The bulwarks pear pieces on both sides have been soaked in hot water and then clamped into place along the plywood shell of the hull. Make sure these are butted tight against the forward MDF hull-forming  filler pieces before you clamp the wetted wood in-place.
 
 
 
 

The circled area shows how four(4) total layers of wood comprise the forward bulwarks. The .06mm pear "skin" will bend easily to conform to the thicker one (3mm) that has been soaked and clamped overnight. Note how the layers overlap here.
 

This is the final "skin" layer of thin pear. This thin piece will butt against it's opposite side piece and should form a near-perfect butt joint. I will slightly sand an angle on the ends of both mating pieces so the abutting line is as visually narrow as possible.
 
 
 

The foc'sle deck pattern now mounted. As you see, this step will require lots of clamps - be careful, clamps can damage and/or mar the exterior, delicate pear rails. Work fast with your white glue; I didn't dilute mine so it would remain "stickier" as it takes a couple minuttes to accomplish this preparation. I applied glue across most of the underlying superstructure (beams and carlings), insuring that the glue extended to the very edges near the bulwarks so when all had dried, the curvature/camber on the deck wouldn't randomly spring up along the outer edges. This isn't critical but it will deliver a better fit with the final pear bulwarks items that have been previously described. The items under the large 'gator clips are to protect the edges of the mounted deck pattern while it dries.
 
 

The alignment of cathead slot/holes isn't perfect here, but not to worry. If you've previously made a tight-fitting cut to accommodate the catheads in the outer pieces (ply) this will help immensely to prep this area to present well in the end. After the final two layers of formed pear are glued in-place, I'll use my precision hand saw - and using the previous cut in the ply as a guide - I'll carefully remove each inner layer of pear and subsequently fit each cathead. Make these cuts slowly; better to remove less than too much. File and sand these layers after the saw cut for a more precise fit. The cathead pieces should mount flat and straight against the deck just below the "slotted opening" when it's all said n' done.
 
Ron

Before I button-up and mount the patterns to the beams for the forecastle and the quarterdecks, one last look at some details. The engineering in this kit is particularly impressive with the extensive provisions for the upper deck beams, stem and stern (foc'sle & q'deck). Again, the tolerances with all these pieces are exacting, the fits precise; this can be easily verified by placing one of the two deck patterns into position and seeing if there is much "play" from side-to-side, or front-to-back: I measured less than .15 -.20 in both deck positions. Stated in fractions this is approximately 1/64". If you've sanded and glued all the (many) beams in place carefully you'll be pleasantly surprised how easy it is to mount and glue a precisely-cambered deck in-place, with a minimum of sanding and trimming.
 
 

A view of what you'll see peeking out from under the foc'sle after the deck gets mounted. Not much. Goodbye beautiful little oven...
 

The quarterdeck beam and carling structure: impressive. CTBR (Char To Be Removed), my new acronym for builder/followers of this log. Correct: I didn't bother making or installing the second cabin screens beyond the capstan. None of this additional fine detail will be viewed in my particular build. Perhaps, if someone uses a high-intensity flashlight and looks through the stern lights they might see the parquet flooring in the captain's cabin. No cannons in the officer's quarters. No hinges, window mullions nor doorknobs on the cabin screens, despite these superb little gems (mostly tiny P/E) that are provided in a revealed "Admiralty-styled"  version of the kit.
 
 

The foc'sle deck pattern should be flush with the engraved pear MDF beam overlay. The kit provides plenty of sanding margin for these deck pieces. I actually sliced-off about 3/64" with an X-acto, since it's a straight cut across the pattern at the rearmost beam. The fit all-round to the pinnacle of the stem and along the sweep of the bulwarks revealed very little "play." Circled here, this is what you want to shoot for, tight to the edge of the beam and all the way across from starboard to port interior bulwark. I removed a little residual overhang with a sanding file to flush it, side-to-side.
 
 

Char removed from the foc'sle beams and carlings. Cathead slots are not deep enough here (fixed). One set of the "Y" bitt posts are glued in position; this will help to locate the proper position of the deck pattern. Builders of the kit will see I also omitted the clever little doors to the galley area: this detail covered-up what little would be seen of my oven.
 

Test fitting the quarterdeck pattern to the interior bulwarks. The clamp is holding one of two additional bulwarks pear finishing pieces that build-up the thickness (and adds the attractive pear boarding) in this quite visible area. Note how precise the volute layers line up, three layers visible on the left. This area will also get MORE thickness with additional layering so it is reasonably critical to get this part of the build correct in the previous build steps. Here, my oak stain colors the edges. Once all components that make-up this volute are in place, I'll use a recommended small file to shape these attractive elements of this ship's decorative pieces, then re-finish. The interior gangway and the gunwale will fit into this tight area very precisely.
 
 

Another close-up view of the fit at the quarterdeck. Make sure the deck meets the forebeam area flush like the foc'sle pear decoration. I also trimmed this part of the deck pattern with a straight across cut that removed about 1/64". The slots above the gunport are for the gangway supports. The hanging knees on the far side of where a cannon will be mounted will hardly be visible, but for me, they're worth the time to make and mount. The etched spirketting piece, deck clamp and added waterway are visible, as is the added bit of pear to the sill I added to all my (visible) gunports (14).
 

A good view of the highly-detailed oven that few will see besides me (and my wife). This is made from a clever combo of pear and P/E pieces. For realism, I even rubbed grey chalk on the bricks to simulate ash, thinking this might invoke an aroma of a tasty roast beef pudding for Camilla's officers. Only I will ever know this detail: sometimes this can be part of the fun of doing what we dedicated ship modelers do.
 
That's still my story and I'm sticking to it.
 
Ron

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

Thank You druxey, what a good suggestion. Your fix would certainly make this area present better.
 
Should I end up scratching the entire top rail, I can likely fashion a small transition piece to make the cathead support and ekeing rail a better fit. It's occurred to me more than once that ship modeler's of 18th century frigates need to develop a unique vocabulary all our own; it's a good thing we both speak English!
Ron
 

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

Mike,
Thanks. Gilding wax, something I've never heard of! Perhaps, I possibly could have used some of that on my granddaughter's doll house! I actually "coppered" portions of the Victorian Mansard roofs - wait for it - with copper foil. Harry Potter wands. Kool. They'll treasure those wands forever I'll bet!
 
If you do use the gilding wax on a build, I'd like to see the effect, the outcome.
 
Modelers here have also added "weathering metallic" to the black resin cannon of their HMS Sphinx builds to impart a more metallic look; it does render a nice, realistic look to the metal cannon but I'm of a different mind about this: I prefer the dull, flat, nasty black iron appearance of the Vanguard cast resin cannon.
 
The gesso build-up I employ on flat P/E (or on some of the stacked decorative pieces) helps immensely to better depict wood carving. It's another step to add to the multi-step painting/finishing process but I think it is worth the effort. Here's a pic showing how I used this "fake wood" technique on my HMS Swan (nee' Pegasus) model.
 
Best to you - and your family - on this Thanksgiving Eve!
Ron

Bob, thank you. I haven't demonstrated my technique on a Build Log here, however I did an in-person demo a couple years ago at the annual Joint Clubs Northeast Ship Modeler's Show. Here is a link to a video that was made of my demo: https://www.philadelphiashipmodelsociety.com/presentations/
 
I've basically created an amalgam of various techniques of others plus a couple new processes that I conceived. There aren't that many different ways to create realistic-looking set sails; virtually all typically involve making them from either paper or the material, silkspan - or both (in my case). Creating set sails was a challenge that I set myself to somehow solve and come up with ways to make sails look like they're actually working: e.g.; "blowing (billowing) in the wind" so-to-speak.
 
The photo here shows me doing a little maintenance on a nave model I built for a church in New York: my model, HMS Godspeed, is a four-masted schooner with 17 sails if I recall. These sails had only a slight set to them as all the sails are lateen, fore-to-aft rigged typical of these ships. It was after this build that I experimented and figured out how to make set sails on square-rigged ships look like they were doing the work!
 
Ron
 

Mike,
Thanks. Gilding wax, something I've never heard of! Perhaps, I possibly could have used some of that on my granddaughter's doll house! I actually "coppered" portions of the Victorian Mansard roofs - wait for it - with copper foil. Harry Potter wands. Kool. They'll treasure those wands forever I'll bet!
 
If you do use the gilding wax on a build, I'd like to see the effect, the outcome.
 
Modelers here have also added "weathering metallic" to the black resin cannon of their HMS Sphinx builds to impart a more metallic look; it does render a nice, realistic look to the metal cannon but I'm of a different mind about this: I prefer the dull, flat, nasty black iron appearance of the Vanguard cast resin cannon.
 
The gesso build-up I employ on flat P/E (or on some of the stacked decorative pieces) helps immensely to better depict wood carving. It's another step to add to the multi-step painting/finishing process but I think it is worth the effort. Here's a pic showing how I used this "fake wood" technique on my HMS Swan (nee' Pegasus) model.
 
Best to you - and your family - on this Thanksgiving Eve!
Ron

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

Mike,
Thanks. Gilding wax, something I've never heard of! Perhaps, I possibly could have used some of that on my granddaughter's doll house! I actually "coppered" portions of the Victorian Mansard roofs - wait for it - with copper foil. Harry Potter wands. Kool. They'll treasure those wands forever I'll bet!
 
If you do use the gilding wax on a build, I'd like to see the effect, the outcome.
 
Modelers here have also added "weathering metallic" to the black resin cannon of their HMS Sphinx builds to impart a more metallic look; it does render a nice, realistic look to the metal cannon but I'm of a different mind about this: I prefer the dull, flat, nasty black iron appearance of the Vanguard cast resin cannon.
 
The gesso build-up I employ on flat P/E (or on some of the stacked decorative pieces) helps immensely to better depict wood carving. It's another step to add to the multi-step painting/finishing process but I think it is worth the effort. Here's a pic showing how I used this "fake wood" technique on my HMS Swan (nee' Pegasus) model.
 
Best to you - and your family - on this Thanksgiving Eve!
Ron

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉

A few progress photos for today with helpful descriptions hopefully!
 

Dos Oros Liquidos. I decided to use two slightly different shades of "gold" on Camilla's P/E decorations. I believe this helps to add a little more visual interest to these pieces. Still in the category of "less is more" for my build. Vallejo offers several "metallic" paints and they are not inexpensive...however, they have no equal in my experience, other than applying gold leafing! 
 

A delicate repair job. A tiny piece of the upper rail that joins the bulwarks at the foc'sle broke off; I have no idea how this happened with my obsession to make these curvy gems a special feature of my build. Oh well...I snipped a piece of pear from some scrap and carefully glued it with white glue and then sanded it. I was envisioning a little "divot" showing-up - a gap when I am ready to paint all the gunwales black. In this case, a "divot"  (and not a "davit") is not desirable.
 

Drilling-down again. Don't forget to drill-out the numerous lasered square holes along the edges of the quarterdeck pattern, immediately adjacent to the built-up bulwarks. These will receive eyebolts for various rigging lines and trying to get into this area after the entire q'deck is completed will be a challenge better resolved sooner than later. The long, thin (.06mm pear) finishing pieces fit extremely well along the edges that meet the q'deck; be aware that it's very easy to swap the two sides and you'll hide the small engraving the defines the rigging pulleys on both sides of the q'deck.
 

My Quarterdeck pattern came-up a little short of a snug fit to the transom's interior boarding. I'll add a small strip of .6mm boxwood to hide this tiny, yet very visible gap. The transom knees, various cleats and the ensign supports haven't been mounted yet, but I still think a gap here would be unacceptable. I maintain a supply of "small section" hardwoods (pear and boxwood, 1mm strip and smaller) for fixing problems like this one where my joinery has been less than perfect.
 

Pthalo Blue acrylic paint to be applied to the area where I removed a portion of the ill-fitting rail pieces that fall under the cathead supports. Both sweeping top rails are in-place but I'm going to stain them in a darker oak color to better match their surrounding elements of darker pear.
     The various lasered wood pieces in this kit match-up very well generally - except in this instance. This kit's laminated rail piece is a clever build-up to this difficult part of the model's headworks. This is one of the most difficult areas to execute well - whether scratch or kit provided - but here as you can see, the mismatch in the wood color stands out like a sore thumb if not toned-down in appearance. The shape and the build-up design is fine, but not the resulting coloration. This may not be the case with other's kits where the differences in the lasered pear stock may not be so evident. If, after I stain the top rails a darker tone to compensate for this visual disparity and it still doesn't look right to me, I'll scratch pear replacements using the kit's "spare" pattern as a template. 
Ron
 

Back at the bench. A week of distractions. Here are some photos of progress in several areas of my build. All these show critical detail work.
 

Introducing Lady Camilla, a Sphinx if ever I saw one. I'm following my philosophy with Vallejo Liquid Gold paint: less is more. The resin cast figurehead is a beautiful thing, ready to mount (more or less- I had to do some minor filing to get the fit to the stem). Camilla is indeed a Satyresque being and thus, her brown, furry, feral body. But she does have golden wings! - and a human head and protruding human breasts which I suspect my painting details will get a few snickers here by the "guys." The dangling headworks rail is only temporary; there's an ugly gap at the forward support which I think I'll fix with some flat black paint post-gluing.
 

Gangway pattern "tweaked." After aligning the mid-ship gunwale in its optimum position, and then placing the starboard gangway tight against it, I needed to remove a tiny sliver of where the gangway met the multi-stacked volute detail. The gunwale is temporarily aligned with a small nail. This view is looking toward the prow, the foc'sle deck pattern. The five layers that comprise the volute are quite evident and again, the gunwales will be painted black along the entire model. This volute has been carefully sanded and filed and will look good when all is completed. ANOTHER REMINDER FOR ALL WHO ARE BUILDING THIS MODEL: the tolerances are quite tight nearly everywhere throughout this build. I recommend dry-fitting every wooden component. In this photo, to make everything fit nicely, I had to do the complete opposite of what is instructed in the manual by retaining the full width of the gangway and relieving the areas where it meets the forward and aft volutes on both sides; it also varied slightly with the port gangway fit. I suspect others might not face this change, but it does illustrate (at least with my execution) how critical the tolerances are to this overall design. A Good Thing- but demanding an extra dose of patience - and careful sanding!..🤪
 

The gangway at the starboard quarterdeck: a slight sanded "relief" to mate the parts; the last gangway support (not seen, below the wide portion where it meets the beam) is a little high and I'll alter it to lower the position of the gangway when I mount it. There are additional parts to add in this area, a "step" of sorts and this needs to fit properly as it will be very visible when completed. Once again, note the five layers that comprise the aft volute. The fit requires precise fitting of all the layers to look right. Be careful on these wonderful decorative details; it's tempting to file and sand too much and destroy these delicate embellishments.
 

Problem areas; my fixes include some post-gluing paint, (on the left) and removing a little of the odd curved piece just below the cathead support. I haven't stained the pear support (nor the curved upper piece temporarily in position - forgot its name!) yet which will better match the surrounding details when completed. The magnification here is another reminder that attending to the minor details does matter. Scary, but necessary IMHO!
 

Glue time for the quarterdeck pattern. The only way that I could think of to get a tight fit to the multiple curved beams and a full alignment front-to-rear, was to temporarily place the bulwarks build-up pieces against the sides and clamp them down against the deck. Same for the alligator clips on the front beam (with anti-marring scraps). The temporary mizzen mast also has a clamp that's pressing down the middle of the pattern which wants to rise up. Even with all this, I found myself holding and pressing the pattern with my fingers. I did apply white glue across every beam (there are many as we know), especially at the outer ends that meet the bulwarks on both sides. The aft end of the deck pattern needs to fit tightly against the thin plywood support and flush against the inner transom. Phew! After overnight drying, everything seems to have worked well. No buckling or huge gaps AFTER Removing the temporarily placed, bulwarks build-up pieces. They're next to mount- three per side. These all do align nicely and will require only minor tweaking (a small gap to fill) but a single long pear piece (.6mm) - watch for the engraved side only evident at the brace bulwarks pulley ! - will cover the gap.
 

Another glue view. Get those clamps ready. Careful where you place them. I did knock-off one channel support in error, but it was easily re-attached. As Salt n' Pepa sang in the 80's: "Push it. Push It Real Good!"
 

Ahhhh, yes. My continuing obsession with these volutes. Doesn't this detail look good? Just wait 'til it's painted and forms a continuous sinewy, snake-like undulation along the length of her entire svelte body... there will be a lowering of the gangway support here too as well as getting the final pear interior bulwark of the quarterdeck to more precisely meet-up with the volute.
 
 

Arrow indicates where I'll sand the deck clamp (it got too elevated here) so it drops the gangway into a better, slightly lower position.
 

This gluing task was fun (not); the toothpick performed an essential job to hold the thick (2mm) pear build-up volute piece in position as it dried. After dry-fitting this area it became immediately apparent that I had to mount the volute pieces out-of-order from the instructions. This area can easily be messed-up if you don't double-check all your fits before moving ahead. You'll also note I foreshortened one of the gangway supports (that won't be viewed by anyone unless they break their neck peeking), so I wouldn't need to wrestle the angle of the gangway when It comes time to glue it in-place.
 
That's my story, and I'm sticking....
Ron
 
 

I mentioned "Simulated wood carvings to P/E" in my last post. Here's what I use to turn the Vanguard's multilevel P/E into "wood:" 1. A base coat of Liquitex acrylic Raw Sienna and 2. a Citadel wash of Seraphim Sepia - both water soluble.
 
With Vanguard's "multi-level" P/E in the Sphinx kit (and I believe all other Vanguard kits with decorative P/E), it isn't necessary to add more than a paint and wash. However, on single level P/E, I simulate the thickness of a wood carving by applying a gesso - or a matte medium (both by Liquitex) - before painting. The gesso or matte dries fairly quickly and you may need more than one application.
 
The results for "carved wood" simulation are so much better looking than just sticking on a flat piece of P/E. I realize not all this P/E was actual carving on some ships but it is a good approximation of a hand painting technique which is difficult (to say the least) at modeling scales below 1:48.
 
Ron


The arrow points to the column decorations on the beautiful HMS Bellona model in the U.K. This also shows very clearly the colorations of these elements. I have chosen to paint my HMS Camilla gallery and stern light columns in white and the window sash and mullions in brown to simulate varnished wood, the reverse of the chosen colors in the kit's manual. I believe this choice creates a more historically accurate rendering. The frieze decorative painting on this particular model (trompe -'loeil - "fool the eye") is stunning; I want to do this someday - either directly on the finished bulwarks or by painting off the model on a piece of paper and then applying it. This won't happen until I build my first 1:48 model!
 
A correction: actually, the Sphinx manual shows that the decorative columns for both the galleries and the stern in gold, the window sash in white. Similar to this model of the Bellona, I'm using the gold color (Vallejo Liquid Gold as recommended) very sparingly and predominately on the stern where the color will act to highlight the one-piece, detailed resin casting; you can see the edge of the model's stern carvings finished in gold.
 
 

Progress on the Q'deck.

A balustrade on the q'deck, shaped and mounted (finger for scale). It is upright, parallel to the  vertical, not cocked; my camera was at a slight angle. There are six of these little guys. The first one took me about 30 minutes to shape the lasered pearwood pattern. Five more to go!
 

Better "upright" view of a balustrade. The manual says to paint them black. I'll likely leave them in stained natural wood if they all turn out this nicely after shaping. The natural wood tone will emphasize the shapes of these delicate pieces; black paint would partly disguise their attractiveness. This one of my favorite parts of a build for ships of this era. Art and design mattered to the craftsman and the officers alike, nearly as much as speed and firepower of these hunter-seekers.
 
 

The tools I use to shape the delicate pear pieces. Gentle curves and squared-off angles: diamonds (and patience) can be a ship modeler's best friend. Take your time with these little guys; they will be quite prominent when completed, whether black or natural.
 

A work-in-progress midships view. Eyebolts and cleats mounted along the q'deck bulwarks. I'm contemplating a couple critical decisions now: whether to add a slightly darker stain to the quarterdeck and whether or not to stick with my original plan to build-up the bulwarks on the quarterdeck so that Camilla can carry four additional, new-fangled carronades.
 
The thin fife rails along the entire length of the quarterdeck are very appealing to my eye. I've tested "the look" of the delicate woodworking pieces and studied the temporarily placed timberheads against the overall lines of the hull; I'm now less inclined to add these carronade "upgrades" to her. NOTE: the P/E hammock cranes along the q'deck bulwarks are NOT SHOWN in the manual prototype build - but shown prominently on the plans). Decisions, decisions.
 

My same technique for gluing the sweeping quarterdeck gunwales to the bulwarks: nails and clamps exerting downward force so the gunwales are evenly attached along the entire length of the pear wood pattern- on both sides. Post gluing (white glue BTW), the nails are removed. The nails were inserted into drilled holes, unlike the foc'sle gunwales patterns that have lasered holes for these temporary positioning pins. Doesn't matter: the little mounting holes will be filled with stainable filler, sanded and then painted flat black.
 

The capstan and a q'deck look-in. The manual calls for painting both capstans in red (to match the interior bulwarks). I prefer a natural look to all these components. I retained the red as a minimal contrast to the interior and the thin "line" on the exterior bulwark sweep. Like gold paint, less is more. The brass pins on the capstan's cam locks will be painted black., the über-delicate pear wood ladder will be stained natural. As I've noted previously, I paint, stain, and finish as I build. Don't forget to "break" all the sharp edges of the lasered pear, like the capstan drum head components, the coamings and grates.
 
 

The stern transom support: the Q'deck- to - bulwark/gunwale connection. This piece is tricky to get right as it needs a reverse, double sanded angle to fit correctly. The clamp is holding the gunwale firmly in-place as the glue dries. The brass nail had a positioning hole drilled into the wood to secure the gunwale after glue was applied. All this to prevent this piece from rising-up and having visible gaps. Speaking of which: the tiny gap between the bulwarks finishing strip and the deck I can live with. It's about .002-003 under this magnification. Despite this minor annoyance, the tolerances with many of the components of this kit are impressive.
 

The leading timberheads at the Quarterdeck. The thin edges will get painted black with a smaller brush better suited for this task than the one I used to get the black on the larger surfaces. DON'T FORGET TO GIVE CHARACTERISTIC SHAPE TO THESE four pear wood pieces; all the "heads" along the gunwales require precise shaping to render an accurate depiction of these utilitarian posts.
 
 
Another close-up of the transom area. In keeping with my visual preferences, there is no red paint here. Because my one-piece quarterdeck pattern didn't fit flush to the angled transom, there was a small gap (noted in the previous post). I added two pieces of 1mm square section of pear to either side of the ensign mounting base at the deck. Looks fine, like it belongs.😉