Bill97
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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.
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Robert it is the Revell 1/96 scale. Yes the Cutty does have a lot of sails to hand make! We will see how I do.
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Appreciate it Robert. Believe it or not I also have the Heller 1/100 HMS Victory to assemble some day. Family surprises me with model kits for birthday and Christmas celebrations. Will have to toss a coin to see if next is Victory or Man O War. Will probably be around November-December time frame I think unless sail making for Cutty takes longer.
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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.
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Robert do use acrylics or enamels, or a combination of both? Bill
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Absolutely beautiful work on the painting. I was wondering how you got the billow n the sails. Modeling wire is the secret. Great idea.
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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.
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Lou that looks incredible! Are you building it from wood? It looks way to sharp and clean to be a plastic model, or my skills are needing some work. One thing I noticed on your Cutty Sark, and have noticed in photos of other builder’s ships, that I am curious about. It looks as if you used a tan thread to make a the lower deadeyes. I like the looks of that and wanted to paint the molded rope in the plastic deadeyes on my Cutty Sark a rope tan color. Everything I read says the standing rigging was all black. Is it just a preference thing and OK to do it that color?
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Thanks Robert. I will go with the more or less. At least once it is completed and I display it on a shelf I don’t have to tell people it is just a pretend ship like something from Disney. Even though there was not an actual British Man O War the ship’s design and structure replicates a Spanish gallion. I can live with that.
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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.
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Thanks Backer. Really appreciate it. I looked all over the site and even used the search button. This will be helpful.
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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.
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Began working on the ratline assemblies today. Since Ravell has these as molded replicas of the actual ratlines it was not necessary to rig the actual blocks and eyes. I have seen a number of builders on this site create them with excellent results but since I have yet to attempt that I stuck with the molded pieces.
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Assembled the masts and yards today. Since I will be adding sails (Rob’s paper technique I hope) I set the yards at 25 degrees. Always a bit of a challenge to get all the yards level. Getting them set at the consistent degree is not to tough using a protractor but getting them all level requires me using clamps, tape, and or string. I ultimately go with “eyeballing” to get them as close as possible. The connection points on the yards are not substantial and in fact seem as if they will be fragile. Will see after the glue drys. I know it is not authentic but I painted the molded connection points for attaching the yards to the mast metal gray. I like the visual interest it adds.
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Spent some time preparing all 16 yards for painting today. The Ravell 1/96 Cutty Sark is in pretty good shape out of the box, but still some areas need to be cleaned up of stray plastic left by the molds. Since I am airbrushing the mast components I sprayed a surface primer on all the yards and will let them dry overnight before spraying them black tomorrow. I thought it wise to leave the plastic scrap piece on the end of each that has the molded piece number. Would have been crazy trying to find which goes where after painting if they were to get accidentally mixed together.
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Began the mast construction over the last few days. Worked with several color and pattern ideas before deciding on the one I used. Took some ideas from other CS builders on this blog and went with a color combination that matched the deck houses. This is probably not authentic in actual color scheme but I think it makes for an attractive display. Anxious to get the yards on to see the full effect. Mast are currently just setting in place and will come out to attach the sails. Curious about the studding sail booms. Not sure if i should add them or not?
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To add sails or not? What is your preference?
Bill97 replied to Bill97's topic in Masting, rigging and sails
Rob another question I have, I feel like Luke Skywaker asking the Jedi Master Obi Wan Kenobi, is that it seems you leave the Studding Sail Booms off the yards. Just hang sails on the yards not the extensions. Is that correct? And if so, is that a preference you have arrived at for specific reasons? I included them on my recent USS Constitution but left the sails off. On my current Cutty Sark I am going to attempt your paper sail technique, but am curious about the studding sail booms. Have not added them to my yards yet. -
To add sails or not? What is your preference?
Bill97 replied to Bill97's topic in Masting, rigging and sails
Thanks Rob. As I hone my skills I try to pick up hints and techniques from you guys I consider masters of the craft. I am beginning the mast construction for my Cutty Sark and was going to wait to include the yards at this time if that is what you recommended. Based on your reply, and that I hope to make paper sails following your method, I will go ahead and attach the yards in the up position and at about 20 degrees. Bill -
Thanks Popeye. You have been extremely kind and helpful. Appreciate your information and advice.
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Thanks popeye. Very interesting. Looking at the davits I did not consider having the life boat pass through them one end first then the other. I was trying to figure out how it could be done with life boat parallel to ship. Whoever designed it that was genius. So for the chain on the rudder it is OK to just attach the ends of the chain to the eye bolts on each side or should I run them inboard somewhere and attach them to something?
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To add sails or not? What is your preference?
Bill97 replied to Bill97's topic in Masting, rigging and sails
Hey Rob I noticed in some of your post photos, and photos from other builders, that it seems as if you do not attach the yard to the mast until after you attach the sail to it? Is that correct? The instructions show attaching the yard to the mast during assembly. If I am correct in what I think your photos show, do you find that better, and I guess possible? -
Thank you popeye2sea! Now it makes sense. Thank you as well John. This site continues to be a wealth of knowledge and help to model ship builders with limited knowledge like myself! I am even learning nautical terminology! Had no idea the lines used to lower the lifeboat were called Falls. So Popeye2sea, if I understand you correctly the Falls are simply rigged either up and down or crisscrossed on the davits for safe keeping (lack of a better word) until needed to lower life boats. They are not actually attached to the lifeboats at this point, but to the other cleat on the davit? And John you are saying the same thing only having the falls attached to the life boats as if about to be lowered or returning to the skids? Looking at the design of the davits, I am curious just how they worked? Did they pivot in some way allowing the life boats to be extended out over the side of the ship? Just trying to picture how they would have worked. With the falls attached to the life boats it seems that no matter how the davits were rotated the lifeboat would hit one or the other and not be able to extend over the side. Since you were so very helpful I wonder if I may trouble you with one other question? On the back of the ship the instructions show attaching an eyebolt to the top of the rudder and two additional eye bolts on each side. Then either rigging rope or chain (I have seen in some of my research) from the side eye bolts to the rudder eyebolt. When I have done this it really looks odd and does not appear as if it would have accomplished anything in reality. What am I to do here? Instructions are limited at best.
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Looking for help from anyone familiar with building the Cutty Sark. I am building the Revell 1/96 but I think any build would provide an answer to my question. Read everything I can find on MSW but at a loss. I am trying to rig the two lifeboats to the divots. Revell instructions show vertical lines. Other instructions and actual photos show an X pattern. But nothing explains what to actually do. Anyone have an idea?
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Back at it a little today. Had to step away a few days because of busy schedule. Nice way to relax and spend part of Independence Day. Working today on life boats and davits. Weathered the davits, life boats and top of deck house with some black and white wash. Instructions simply had the 3 pair of oars glued in. I added tan thread as tie downs for a little more realism. Instructions showed rope (tan thread) attached at ends of life boats and then running to davits. However there was no place on the life boat ends to connect a pulley so I fabricated a set up using left over parts from previous builds.
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