capnharv2

Thanks John. But wait ...... there's more .
 
I've made and fitted the Anchors, Anchor Chains and Cranes. The chain is after-market stuff from Builders in Scale. The kit chain (printed version seen below) measures out at 25 links per inch, the "real" stuff is 27 links - CLOSE ENOUGH :
 



 
Apart from the Masts and associated rigging, and rigging the boats she's finished (although these could take a while ). After I took these pics I finished the final touch-up on the damaged printed areas and gave her a coat of Matt Clear.
 
  Danny
 
 

Fig- 76 - The Keelson, Side Keelsons and Bilge Keelsons in place, ready for the side Stringers to be assembled.

Fig- 75 - Here can be seen the benefit of the Carbon Rod soldering unit at work, as against the end bit of the modified soldering iron.  With this unit only the very tip is heated and that for the split second necessary to make the previously tinned joint.  It was improved still further at a later stage by making a simple tube of paper, to slip over the exposed part of the rod to insulate it from the rest of the model.
Even with the modified soldering iron bit, it took forever to heat up, and was very cumbersome in such a confined space, with always the possibility of heating and unseating other parts in the process. 
At each point where a longitudinal member, crosses a Frame, a small length of angle iron is riveted to the frame, so the cross member can be held in place by 4 rivets to each frame.  These, it may be remembered were soldered in place while the Frames were being individually made up (Fig-41)

Current look - after painting and weathering:
 

All the Railings are now fitted. They were a quite enjoyable area of the build. I have a lot of touch-up to do, especially on the black printing. I'm not at all happy with the quality of the printing, I don't know if it was the wrong choice of paper, ink or Setup but it flakes off if you look at it sideways :
 


 
A bit of fun - the cranks for the forward Pump. I made this from a scrap of the PE used for the Railings - it was almost a perfect length fit between the sections :
 

 
Some more bits that I've fitted - the Cranes, side ladders, lifebelts and Navigation Lights :
 

 
An overall look at my progress :
 

 
  Danny

Jonathan,
After my experience on the Niagara making one piece yards from dowel the challenge was getting a clean transition from the center hex section to the tapers. I was not happy with the results and decided to do it this way instead with perfect transitions and is much faster to build. Of course having a lathe and a combination slide is required.
 
As for jackstays yes the stretched wire passes trough the eyebolt. Here is a link to the bulk pack needed from ME. http://www.modelexpo-online.com/product.asp?ITEMNO=MS0429B
 
Much easier to buy them than make them and they are great for other eyebolt applications as well like on the ends of the yards and saddles. 
After the holes are drilled I start in the middle of the yard and insert the jackstay after dipping the end into a small puddle of Gorilla glue which is a 20 second set so it allows for positioning using a small rod for visual aligning with the yard. I just work towards the ends adding one at a time. Also on bright yards blacken them first before using. 
 
Here is a quick picture for you.

Hmm ... a scary thought seeing as I'm building a paper model . Thanks Greg and Nils.
 
I've made all the Bollards. Four of these, the Towing Bollards, are rectangular (1.4 x 1.0mm) and made wholly from paper. The other 9 probably disqualify this as being a Card build, as I made the round bits from wooden dowel instead of trying to roll the 17 0.8mm diameter pieces from paper . I'll let them dry thoroughly before painting them matt black:
 


 
To try to prevent losing the tiny pieces as I was cutting them I built a "dam". It worked too, I didn't lose one :
 

 
  Danny

Thank you Eddie .
 
I bought a sheet of generic Railings in 1:250 scale which I painted before cutting anything off. These replace the awful printed kit railings :
 

 
These are the smallest PE I've used to date, 0.15mm thick, and the railings are the same width. The piece of wire next to the offcut is 0.5mm, which looks huge in comparison :
 

 
The railings have 3 bars, so I cut off the lower one. Then I marked and drilled 0.35mm (#80 which is my smallest drill bit) holes for the legs to go into. I've drilled all 3 decks, a job which would have been MUCH easier while the decks were off the ship but I only got the railings a couple of days ago. All the holes so far have lined up perfectly, which was a bit of a nice surprise . Another surprise was that the spacings for the posts nearly ALL fit each deck with a post right in the corner - what were the odds of THAT happening ? I'm quite happy with the way they've turned out so far, the job while fiddly is a bit easier than I was expecting. The hardest part is actually finding the holes :
 


 

One deck down, two to go.
 
  Danny

PROGRESS UPDATE....
Since I haven't posted anything lately, I guess this is mainly to say howdy to all, and show evidence that we're still toiling away in the ship yard every day.
Since finishing the copper plates and turning her upright on her new base, I began adding most of the fixtures to the spar deck bulwarks, which were created off ship in order to do all those little bolt heads.  So here's where we are on that  task....
Forward end - both sides:

Aft end - both sides....

The belaying pins were turned from the end of tooth pics....

I am still not ready to install these bulwarks at this point because I still need to add a few more planks to the spar deck and fill in the forward decking around the bow area.
And.... before doing any of that, I must return to the gun deck area where EVERYTHING needs to be worked on.... beginning with 30 cannon installations.
So.... Here I am building cannon carriages because I refused to build a few each week along the way, as planned.
 
Looks like I'll be working on gun deck cannons for a long while.
 
Cheers

I spent Memorial Day weekend helping the wife at her Art show so not too much building; however I did start some yard work. I started with the Royals and worked my way up in size. Here is a sequence of pictures showing various building steps. On the larger yards I build in sections to have a better transition from round to the hexagon center sections. One step on the larger yards I did change was once the center square was planned to size and ends drilled I then press fit the round sections, clamped them in my vise and drilled the jack stay holes starting from the center and working out drilling to the center depth so that once turned the holes would be in place. Much easier to index and drill while still round before cutting the tapers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Now back to the larger remaining yards and waiting for more jack stays to come from Model Expo.

Hello Everyone,
I've been feeling a bit embarrassed about my build log for some time now which I've allowed to become virtually non-existant. I became very lazy about taking photographs and making updates, and then the more time that passed the less inclined I become to update. Nevertheless, I finished my Constitution in April, so if I upload photos of it now, I hope you'll forgive me for the huge gap in the middle. I pretty much had the hull and its details finished when I last checked in, so it's primarily the masts and rigging that I haven't reported on.
The rigging end of things went quite well generally. Making the masts and yards was very enjoyable and not particularly difficult. I didn't find the rigging too difficult either, but at times the shear volume of it and its finicky nature were a bit daunting. It was very frustrating to stop for lunch (and a quick fix of CNN) only to return to my shop and discover that I had tied a whole set of lines on the wrong side of something. I'm sorry to report that this happened to me more than a few times. However, every time it did happen, I tore it out and redid it. I am certain that there are many errors in my rigging, but at least I can say that none that were apparent to me went unaddressed. 
This was my second build and I couldn't have enjoyed it more. It was the model I wanted to do from the outset, but I chose to build the AVS first as a practice piece and I'm glad I did. I didn't find the Constitution to be especially difficult (although it had plenty of challenges), it's really more a matter of the volume of the work it requires that might be overwhelming as a first kit.
I used Bob Hunt's practicums for both the AVS and the Constitution. The one for the AVS is excellent and as a complete novice, I don't believe I could have worked my way through the model without it. For the Constitution, the first half of the practicum is also excellent and I found it an invaluable resource. However, when it came to the rigging, it was quite a different matter. This part of the course is so full of errors and omissions and with a confusing approach that in many ways it hindered rather than helped. I did buy the Lennarth Petersen Rigging Period Ship Models and it was a very helpful resource.
 
I know for a fact that my family is glad this project is done. They seem to take great delight in teasing me about how much I tend to talk about it and at what great length. At Christmas, my sister-in-law innocently asked "how's the model coming along?" at which point my son jumped in with "Oh my god, whatever you do, don't ask - do not engage - do not make eye contact - do not show fear!" But their respite is to be short lived as I have now started on the Rattlesnake.
 
Here are some pictures of my completed Constitution.
 
 

Well,
I didn't expected I would come to this point.
But here is my build log of the Syren.
I feel a presentation of the kit is not necessary.
 
Reklein and I are both members of PSSM, so this could be considered as a club build.
Our President has already started the build but has had the bit at a stand still for a long time.
 
I had started the kit, but the keel for BF was to warped and twisted to be used, even after two weeks of straightening.
I even tried with the inserted bulkheads and filler blocks to get it straight"er" but to no avail.
I contacted Mr. Mosko at ModelExpo via email and got a quick respons the following morning.
I have shaped the bulkheads, put the templates together and will do other work while waiting for the new BF to arrive.
 
The build jig is made and ready to go to.
 
The current BF and bulkheads are just put together without glue and I am using them to bend the planking.
Thought they could come to good use for that purpose.
 
Lastly, I would like to extend a big thank you to all other members who has build Syren, as your logs will provide a lot of extra information needed for the build and how to avoid pit holes along the way.
Now picture time
 

 

My first attempt at building a Ship's Boat turned out rather well. I had no idea how it would have to fold as the instructions told me NOTHING . I cut out the hull from a spare thin sheet and soon got the idea - very simple and a fairly good design .
 

 
I made a work platform by carving out a piece of balsa to hold the very slippery customer :
 


 
The completed boat. Only 5 more to go :
 



 
  Danny

Jonathan, yes that was the one with the drawing, it provided clues on how it should be done. 
 
Making rope....so easy a 4 year old can do it!
 
Here is my granddaughter learning how to make rope. She saw my setup and asked what it was for and then we were off making rope. She was not so interested in the first step, but the second step really peaked her interest once she could see the rope twisting. Who knows perhaps a future model builder in the making. 
 

Sunday (5/21) past was the Baltimore Port Expo for National Maritime Day.  I couldn't get the model ready to sail in time, and the pool was to shallow to allow it anyway, so she sat on her cart on display.
 
She did wear all 17 sails and a lot of folks asked a lot of interesting and intelligent questions about her.
 
I took another shot at the parrel I gave up on back in December and I think I got it this time. I'll get no offers to make jewelry or clocks, but I have a parrel.

It's a 1/4 wide strip of 1/16" thick copper bent into a two-part ring. 1/16" i.d. brass tubing was soldiered the the ends to make hinges. The post for the yard's yoke is a brass #4 screw threaded and soldier to the copper band. A section of brass tubing was threaded onto it to cover the threads where the yoke will ride, and prevent the retaining nut from being over-tightened. It's lined with 3/8" tall, 1/16" thick bass, CAed inside the parrel so it doesn't mar the mast.  I'll grind down that hex-nut smaller at some point.

Just two more to go.

Since I am still a rookie at ship building and still learning I thought I would go the extra step and learn about Crowfeet. It did take a little research but thanks to a post by Johnathan I was able to crack the code and sequence to rig them through the 10 holes at the fighting top. I did find that there are at least two different ways to rig them and this version does not have a line coming from the top of the euphroe to the top. Once done it was well worth the effort and really adds a nice detail for the eyes to explore.
 

 

 

 
Now to do the foremast.
 

Yeah, you're probably right John. There are a LOT of things I'm not completely happy with, but I'm using this model as a training exercise for my next one   .
 
I thought I'd take a pic with my giant oversize fake hand :
 

 
  Danny

Thanks for the extra info vossiewulf, much appreciated. I intend to spray all the sheets of my next model as soon as I get them, so they'll have plenty of time to dry before sanding while I start on the hull framing (or spend a week looking at the plans ).
 
I've rolled and glued all six Air Ventilators. I'm reasonably happy with the results, considering their size. They look pretty good without magnification . I tried my hand at dry-brushing the yellow one, using Artist's Acrylic straight from the tube. The Yellow Ochre is a pretty good match for the printed colour. I'll give it another coat or two before fitting :
 

 
The Skylights were a step up from anything I've made so far. They haven't turned out perfect, but acceptable. I learned a few new techniques while constructing these which will come in handy later on :
 


 
These are the parts for the Capstan. I'm getting rather good at cutting tiny circles, if I say so myself . The one on the right is only 1mm in diameter:
 

 
  Danny

Dan, Thank you for your kind words and do hope you get back to your Constitution soon.
 
Tom, there may be a solution in the near future for those !*#@! ratlines if all goes well.
 
I finished up the lateral lines on the bowsprit which was a little fun sorting out. Here is a picture of it completed.
 

 
While waiting for glue to set on lines I painted and located all the small belaying pins in their appropriate locations. For those following I would recommend doing these before stepping the masts. Why I did not recognize this myself is beyond me. 

 
One of the things I am doing is to make ropes as needed in the sizes needed as I go since I have space constraints. I modified the MS rope walk to be able to use a hand drill for rope turning and actually enjoy the rope making process now that I have it down pat. Here is a picture of the modifications and set up that works very slick especially with the socket drive.
 

 
Next I have moved on to the royal and top gallant stay lines; nothing real exciting but just pay attention to not pull the royals out of alignment when tying off at the eyebolts. They flex very easily. The eyebolts were made using the 26 gauge black beading wire.
 

 

Now to finish up the foremast stays.

More tiny rolling. These Ventilators are the smallest ones on the ship - 8mm high by 0.8mm diameter. I was particularly happy with the way the cone turned out, especially as I used the 160gsm paper :
 


 
  Danny

An exercise in tube rolling. This tube is only 1mm in diameter. The Kit has the part on 160gsm card. I tried rolling that and the yellow ink came straight off, and it finished up at 1.8mm diameter. So I used the part from the 80gsm paper that I'd printed the Instructions etc on. Much better, although it has a small bulge in the middle. This can't be picked up with the naked eye . The drill bit is 0.5mm :
 


 
  Danny

Learning from mistakes, part 2 (or is it 14 ). The major error earlier was the alignment of the Flying Deck. I came up with this solution to ensure it didn't happen again. One problem I found was that the black printing didn't like Tamiya Masking Tape - it came right off when I did a test on my spare main deck. So I made up two pieces of scrap paper which I folded to match the main deck just behind the fore and aft bulwarks to keep the tape away from the printed surface. Then I taped the ship to my cutting board to ensure it couldn't move. I taped a piece of balsa in the exact position of the rear of the flying deck as a "stopper", with another piece of tape on it to mark the side of the deck :
 

 
Next I added some balsa scraps to the inside of the structures to which the deck is glued to give a much larger gluing area. I made sure that all the pieces were flush with the tops of the little structures with a steel rule. Some of them were a little high, some a touch low, so these were adjusted by either a bit more sanding or by filling the gap with another piece of paper :
 

 
When I was satisfied that all was correct I glued the deck down and placed a small block of MDF on top to hold it down while the glue dried :
 

 
  Danny

Cheers Slog, that worked . Thanks B.E., welcome to the show.
 
There are 12 Davit Brackets to fit under the Flying Deck before it gets glued on. They have a 0.4mm slot in their ends into which the Davits will fit - to trim out the inside portion of the slot I used a scalpel blade with a broken tip (I have quite a collection of them by now ) the end of which I sharpened with a wetstone into a tiny chisel point. Worked fine :
 


 
Next I glued the Flying Deck on :
 

 
Then I glued in the Deck Supports :
 

 
  Danny
 
 

Thanks Popeye, I've used nail clippers on the odd occasion before.
 
I've made the two Gun Turrets. I used a piece of scrap Castello to make a support for the base. This is slightly smaller than the finished diameter as I want to wrap the sides under the top for a better finish on the join :
 

 
I cut two slots into the timber to house the gun barrels, which I made from some aluminium tubing I had lying around. These were painted matt black after this pic was taken, and then glued to the base with PVA :
 

 
After gluing on the side and top I trimmed off the slight overlap using a variation on Slog's method whereby I rested the TIP of the blade on the cutting mat and chopped off tiny slivers while rotating the turret. It was a bit easier to do this way as I couldn't see the piece I was cutting with the BASE of the blade on the mat due to the height of the turret :
 

 
Not too bad at all . Note the Vents have been fitted UNDER the top for a bit of depth :
 

 
One turret fitted to the deck. The ventilators etc will be fitted next - they would have been badly damaged if fitted at an earlier stage :
 
 
 
 

Here's a question, probably for Slog - I've used a Faber Castell PITT marker to edge colour the sides of the hull/deck joint. It all worked fine until I got just over one side done and the tip dried up. Any tips on getting the ink running again?
 
 
  Danny

Be my guest Ken .
 
The sides of the hull fitted up pretty well, but there's a fair amount of thouching-up to do where the stark white edges of the paper join the black of the sides of the deck :
 

The damage to the paint here was caused by attempting to get a hollow out of the superstructure deck :
 

 
I'm using an Archival Ink pen to fix the problem. I've done a bit around the top of the stern bulwark and it looks like it'll do the job :
 


 
Most of the Superstructure fitted :
 

 
  Danny