Robert Taylor

Bill, 

The picture of the Sail I submitted at the end of my Golden Hind is a completed kit. I may have bought those sails, but I had to insert the modelling wire down the sides without bursting the stitching which was very tricky, then rig the sails up to the ship. 

You can go to my log on here for my Airfix 1/72 Golden Hind kit, which has all the appropriate photos and stages.

Robert.

On 8/4/2020 at 3:21 PM, Ian_Grant said:

Very nice!  Love the sails - how did you get the sail artwork to be so crisp on the cloth?

This set of Sails I actually bought separately, albeit they are expensive, about the same price as the kit itself.

I only bought them because they were printed with the Elizabethan designs.

Unless I can get printed Sails for other kits I have, I will make my own sails in future.

Bill, I am still learning as well, but I have decided that anything I can't do authentically, I will find another way to do it and still making the ship look as  authentic as I can without anything being shabby or poor. Sometimes we need to cut our cloth accordingly to what we can and cannot do in all aspects of life.

I too love building these ships, the architecture, the rigging, the sails and of course the historical aspect attached to each one, bringing history to life is a labour of love for me. I have my late father to thank for that, as we always watched the old swashbuckler films when I was child, and that's when I started to build these kits albeit with a lot less patience then lol..

No probs Bill, that's kinda why I done my sails before I actually started the kit, to see whether I could do them well enough or if I would need to fork out money for them, as the plastic ones just wouldn't do it justice.

14 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Thanks Robert. I really like your sails and adding the block at the bottom corners. Are you still hand sewing them?  In that one close up where you show the block, your stitching is excellent!  It looks like you have two rows of stitches along the bottom edge, and maybe the sides also. Is that where you add the 3mm wire on the sides?  I like the wood color blocks as well. Still not sure if Ravell included enough of the plastic ones in the kit to rig the sails that way but if not I have a bunch left over from previous builds. I will just use them rather than buy new custom wood or metal ones. However I will paint them wood color instead of the standard Revell brown plastic. I am still studying the pictures in the instructions to determine the different lines in relation to the sails. It is hard to tell if the sails between the masts and at the bow are hung on the previously installed standing rigging or if a second line is run for the sail. How about you fly over here from Scotland and help me rig this thing? 😀

Hi Bill, 

Firstly I must say that this set of sails I bought, but they were expensive thus my decision to make my own. 

Secondly I can see from your instructions your kit does have blocks with it regards to the bowsprit sails etc.. so it may just depend whether you want to swap them for wooden ones or just paint them,  I  would just paint them like you have decided mate, saves a lot of unnecessary spending as I have used the plastic ones with this kit.

Normally sails will be attached to the running rigging which should be of a tan or brown colour thread, not the standing rigging which is usually black thread, so if you have not started your running rigging you may need to check bk on your rigging instructions to when to do it stage by stage. 

P.s. 

Just send me over your private jet and I will happily come over to help you out ✈😉

7 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Thanks Robert. That is what I thought I understood. My instructions are not real clear on if there are blocks tied or sowed to the bottom corners. May just be thread tied directly to the bottom corners. There is extremely limited text explaining anything. You just have to study the picture. See what you think. 

Hi Bill, 

Very similar to my own, being a Revell Kit. In mine I have followed the instructions and have blocks rigged to the yards, but I have also still to rigg the blocks to the sails.

In most cases I think it's more down to the individual preference whether sails are just rigged with thread or if you want to add rigging blocks for mor authenticity. 

Here's a pic of my instructions albeit the blocks that come with this kit are clearly I identified.

And another pic of blocks I bought and tied to my Golden Hind kit I finished 3 months or so ago.

Myself I prefer to rigg blocks to the sails and take it from there. 

43 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Ok Robert I am going to start practicing making your sail technique later this week. I have to get my 3 mm modeling wire. You said you only sew it into the sides of the sails, not top or bottom, right?  I am going to wait to sew in the lines until after I see if my practice sails come out. Will sew the lines in the ones I actually make for the ship. 

Hi Bill, 

Yes only sew the modelling wire into the sides, top and bottom get sowed as normal, as top will be rigged to yards, and the two bottom corners will probably have blocks sowed onto them to be able to have them rigged, depending on your preference or the instructions in from your kit.

13 hours ago, Bill97 said:

I am in Kentuck, USA. May have heard of Kentucky Derby. Track close by my home. Love Scotland. Spent some time in the north. An area called Dornoch, I believe. And of course looked for Nessie!

Nice on Bill, yes I have heard of the Kentucky Derby albeit I am not a horse racing fan. Haven't been to Dornoch myself but have been  to John o'groats and wick many years ago.

Did you spot Nessie at all 😉 and have ever been looking for "The Haggis" 😉

3 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Good morning Robert, or morning where I am. By the way, where on this beautiful planet might you be? I think your wire and cloth method is the first way I am going to try. I also learned how to sew from my mother many many years ago. Of course machine sewing would be faster and more uniform in stitch spacing. But what the heck. I am sure the original sails were hand sewn back in the day. 

I stay in Scotland,  Bill, yourself ? 

34 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Thanks again Robert. The wire idea does seem less messy than the white glue “paint” on the sail to form it to the molded matching one. 
 

Yes it definitely is. Although I have never tried the Pva glue way, I have watched at least half a dozen videos on YouTube, and i thought to myself that there had to be a less messy time consuming way to billow sails. I've known how to measure and sew since I was 7years old and that's why I decided to do it that way with modelling wire.

8 hours ago, Bill97 said:

No I have not. Many years ago (over 50) I built the he USS Constitution and Cutty Sark. I put the molded plastic sails on it that came with the he kits. Now that I am retired and have more free time I recently decided to get back into it. I finished the Constitution a few months ago and decided to leave the sails off so as to fully appreciate the rigging. I think the molded plastic sails don’t really look that good. So when I started the Cutty Sark I was doing some research and stumbled on this web site. Through it I have read of quite a few builders making their own sails. I think all I have seen look really good so I thought would try it. Watched YouTube videos and read instructions from builders like yourself. Anxious to try my hand at it. 

Hi Bill 

Another cracker in that USS Consitution.

On the Sails part I would suggest also when you use the plastic ones as templates, add an extra 1cm or so all round, this will act as the flaps which you fold over and sew thus keeping the Sails to scale size, also it gives you the space to insert the 3mm modelling wire to billow the sails before sewing up and finishing them off.

Enjoy Bill, that's the main thing.

Just wondered have you ever made your own  sails before?

That looks Fantastic Bill, what make and scale is it? Don't  fancy doing all those sails lol..

I've heard a lot of good things about the Heller Victory and Soleil Royal 1/100 kits, I would love to have one of those preferably the Soleil Royal  but my budget just now doesnt reach that far and I do have a lot of Galleons in my stash waiting to get built. Also heard that both of those kits usually take between 1-3yrs to complete, obviously depending on how much time you can spend on them, but with both having over 2000 parts it's not surprising I guess.

13 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Thanks again Robert. Again looking at your Man O War it is obvious that large portions would have to be hand painted. Impossible to airbrush unless you did a crazy amount of masking and unmasking. I really appreciate your thoughts and advice. It is fascinating reading the building blogs of different highly talented builders and seeing how each feel very strongly about their preferred way of doing things.  As I am honing my skills my mind is fully open to all techniques and methods. I will be making my own sails for my Cutty Sark. This will be my first attempt. I like your cloth sails and I like Ron’s (Great Republic) paper sails. Going to experiment with both methods to see which, if either, I can pull off convincingly. 

Nice one Bill, key is just to take your time, no rush mate.

Any more questions don't hesitate to ask.

Btw The Cutty Sark and I think the Victory are two kits I haven't built.

I kinda prefer more period Elizabethan galleons, even Carracks and some of the Heller kits are cracking.

3 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Robert do use acrylics or enamels, or a combination of both?

 

Bill

Enamels all the time, while Acrylics are to a certain extent easier to work with, they are brittle and easily scratched unless you want to double or triple your work by putting a clear gloss or lacquer finish o  top.

To me Enamels incorporate all of this in one go, ok slightly longer drying time, but long term made to last.

I try and use Matt enamels all the time as gloss ones are the worst for drying and mixing sometimes, so where I can, i try and substitute one for the other as long as it doesn't take away that original look.

Hope this helps Bill 👍

3 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Robert I just keep looking back at your build log. I am so impressed with your work. It is making me want to get to my Man O War build. I still have a ways to go on my Cutty Sark and need to be patient. I have so many questions and I hope you won’t mind me asking. If you do, please say. In the first part of the log you show all the hand made cloth sails. Are those the same ones you show later on the ship?  Also was the ship painting a combination of airbrush and hand painting?  I saw you holding a brush in one photo and I expect some areas are so detailed it has to be hand painted. Other areas look so smooth and even it looks like airbrush. 

Hi Bill, 

That's ok, i don't mind you asking questions.

Yes the sails in my first log is the same ones I will be rigging up for this kit.

I also inserted 3mm modelling/jewelry wire in the sides only before sewing them up, so I can bend/mould them so that it makes the sails billow out. A lot less time consuming and less messier that pva glue on cloth etc..

The Kit is all hand painted, it's all I have ever done, as usually Galleons is all i ever build and with these kits you can't really airbrush much, the time you do take to set up paint &airbrush then mask pieces off, you could have painted by hand. I also don't own an airbrush, which is kinda weird as I was a spray painter for 10yrs. 

Everyone has their own opinion on airbrushing regard finish etc.. but for me i think its lazy. I guess it just depends on what Kit and size your making too.

Hope this helps Bill 👍

19 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Good morning Robert. I just received this Ravell kit as a very pleasant surprise. Will be starting it in the Fall. Currently working on the Revell 1/96 Cutty Sark. I guarantee I will be referring to your build log as I tackle the project. Excellent job!  I am curious about your sails. What technique did you use? Are they cloth or paper?  Very realistic. Paint color scheme is fantastic as well. 

Hi Bill 

I made my own sails using a cream coloured pillow case, just a mix betwee cotton and linen, using the plastic sails with the kit  as templates, then hand sowed everything.

Also the paint colour scheme I thought long and hard about as I definitely thought it needed changing from the kit instructions,  took me a lot longer than I thought. I knew what I wanted to do with the hull, and a little of the galleries but most decisions were done stage by stage per the instructions. Sometimes you can have a vision in your head but it's not till it's in front of you that you can decide for definite sometimes. I also done a little rengraving of the architecture on the galleries too.

Like any model though you can paint it whatever way you think suits.

20 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Has anyone on this site built the Ravell 1/96 British Man O War?  I recently received the model kit as a surprise gift. It is unopened and setting on a shelf right now as I continue working on my Cutty Sark. I searched this site for any build logs for the Man O War but have had no luck. My ship research indicates it/was not an actual historic ship, but more a artist’s rendering of a Spanish gallion? Don’t know if this is true or not. Would love to find someone’s build log if there is one. 

Yes that's more or less true,  I found the kit is an actual mix of both English and Spanish Galleons, it is of course the same kit as the Spanish Galleon but for a few alterations, and the Spanish Galleon kit came out before the English one. 

It's not an actual model of a particular English Galleon, only in parts.

 Progress update on my English Man O'war 1:96 Revell. Slight change in plan, rather than doing all the ratlines first, I decided to do the standing rigging as per mast, then the ratlines for that appropriate mast, a lot easier to work inside to outside of the ship albeit it is still a long process.

I have also painted and rigged the rest of the Bowsprit as well as the Figurehead so that is more or less finished now, just rigging up the ratlines for the foremast.

Next stage is the main mast.

Yes these are the rigging instructions from revell, and I think a lot of them are OTT. Sadly I do not have access to accurate rigging instructions(if anyone has accurate details at all of any ships from this period) I will just have to go with the flow and try and adapt the more OTT instructions.

I would also say this kit is not based on any whole English ship, only in parts. 

The kit is probably more based towards the "Spanish Galleon" kit from Revell as this came out first, this is essentially the same kit apart from a number of altered parts, so I would assume they have not changed the rigging instructions either.

English Man O'war Revell 1:96 update. Foremast, Main mast, Mizzen mast & Bonaventure mast all reinforced built and painted, in place and rigged to stage. Now rigging the deadeyes for the ratlines that will be rigged before moving on to the 2nd level.

6 hours ago, historyguysteve said:

Hi So far great job on this kit- I have this in my stash so I'm really happy to see a build log on this. 

    A piece of advice; use the plastic masts/yards as templates for wooden ones. Just replace the plastic with wood. The reason why (ask me how I know) the plastic is already 20-30 years old and will get really brittle and positively will fail and at the WORST possible time. 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤔Also consider this; by the time you reinforce the masts/spars, sand them to get rid of the seams and paint them and place them you could have used a dowel, shaped it and have a MUCH better outcome long term. Wooden masting and sparring will absolutely look light years better and will be soooooo much more resilient. I tell you plainly- replacing the masts/spars with wood is a win win- you will save time, the ship will look better, and it will last muuuuch longer.

    thanks- just friendly advice based on experience😃😃😃

   historyguysteve

Hi Steve, 

I would love to do that, and move on to wooden kits, but I dont have enough space to set up a lathe etc.. I am using the kitchen table atm as this is the only space I have, no spare room or Shed/workshop. This is my only option unless i make them by hand with the aid of Rasps and Files. 

Regards 

Robert.

Hi Bill

As I decided to change the colour scheme I scoured lots of different colours and makes, this one stuck out for me, its...

Revell Matt 84 "Leather Brown" 

Regards 

Robert.

1 hour ago, Bill Morrison said:

Beautiful paint job!  What shade of brown did you use on the hull?

 

Bill

Revell 1:96 "English Man O'war" update.. Sanding preparation, Reinforcing, building, painting & Rigging of the Bowsprit.

⚓⚓⚓🤺🤺🤺

6 hours ago, Jeff T said:

I like the colors!

Thanks Jeff, took me ages to decide on the colour scheme, stop, start, stop, start, abandon, start, stop, start.... 

Never thought it would take as long, guess I was just used to going along with kit colours or minor changes.