ScottRC

Man Andy, great build.  your making me want to build this kit and add it to my 1/96 Connie as well.  Looks like a lot of fun and thanks for the build log.

Scott

Great job Andy, now maybe your fine work will keep me motivated to finish my Connie.  Love the case.

Scott

I have been working on and off on this model.  It had been kinda hard since my dad passed away a few days before Christmas and I was building this for him.  But I started back up and now began the base coat of paint on the flight deck.  Also picked up planes and decals from Starfighter.  Still need to add railings and other details.

The smaller ones had be heated next to an iron and formed to shape.  I tend to now, as Jud said, use them as patterns and make them out of wooden dowels.

The larger ones should be two-piece assemblies.  With these, you can put a small steel, or wooden rod in them and glue the halves together.  Makes sure to use a lot of clothes pins to clamp them down with.

I am really enjoying this build and am glad you have been able to work through many of the issues for this kit.  Learned a lot.

Scott

Hi there, Popeye.  There are 2 wooden dowels (one on each side) that extend through all but the aft most bulkhead.  It appears that they serve as both additional reinforcement as also for aid in maintaining alignment.

The holes would be practical in keeping the frames aligned.  Using steel rods would be better since there is less warp.  The process is like how a model airplane wing is laid up using a jig. 

If there is ever a kit I wish would still be in production, it was this one.  I look forward to following your build.  I have built two Aeropiccola kits (Mayflower and Endeavor) and unless you are good with Italian and draw mentally in your mind what the plans are actually describing, they are a challenge, however they turn out to be really nice models.

Scott

These are slot and tab models.  I got the War Junk and have built the Turtle Ship from some friends who live in the Orient.  They are not bad kits and are quite easy to build in an evening.  The laser cutting and fit is great and they take paint and stain well. 

Great to hear your feeling better and that you got some more kits in your stocking from your husband. My wife got me a 1/96 Constitution when we were first married.

Keep at it on the rigging, it is looking fine.  These kits are great to allow you to take small steps at developing skills with both the standing and running rig of the ship.  Trust us, what you are learning on the Columbus ships will make building the large Constitution much more enjoyable.

I found it easy for me to make photo copies of the rig plan, enlarge it, then use a colored highlighter to trace the thread that I needed to follow.  I got this technique from watching the electrical engineers I work with trace wiring diagrams and it worked well.

Scott

A project like this is why its a mixed blessing when wives and sweethearts take an interest in this hobby.  I myself cannot deny a time when I accepted a similar request only to find myself feeling like a knight facing to slay a dragon with a pocket knife.  What you have shown us looks like she is being transformed into quite a fair looking maiden.

My favorite subject as well, god speed ahead and I will be looking in on your progress.

It is the same kit with an added set of parts for added roundhouse on the poop deck.  This kit pops up on the auction sites quite a bit.

Vivian,

I seem to always end up with one opening, usually cabin windows, too high or too low.  It is better to have the cannon low so that all you need to do is shim it up. 

In regards to canon use, it really all depends on what the ship was contracted to do.  Ships of the period we are discussing were "multi-purpose" so at least they would have one cannon to use for signalling, or could have in board a dozen or more if contracted for military expedition.  As was explained earlier, cannon of this period were still regarded to be used for artillary support for soldiers.  This is why this period is so interesting. Like the combat evolution of the airplane, which started out just to be an observation platform to support the infantry, the ship was used primarily to carry, aid, and support the infantry, and not to be used as a primary offensive weapon, yet we see within a period of 200 years ships evolving into single-purpose fighting vessels.

Scott

Great tutorial.

Vivian,

I just linked from the other post you have and am quite impressed with your work with this kit.  We welcome you to MSW and hope that you continue to enlighten us with results of your research of the progression of ship design up to the 15th Century.

Scott

I have always admired the lines of the Essex and wanted you to know that your build is very, very good.

Looking very nice.  Your are making a lot of headway on improving how that kit looks.

Yorkie?  what Yorkie?  All I see is the model of a furry whale you intend to use as the prop next to your Morgan, just using the Santa doll as filler. :D

Merry Christmas to all of you as well and happy building over of the holidays.

Scott

I will use Beeswax when setting up knots and hitches in tight spots and using thin thread.  The coating makes the thread more controllable and easy to grab and hold with tweezers the tread through small openings. Otherwise I use my thread as is and either mist the line or run through a damp cheese cloth to take off the fuzzy.

Missed a few days of your posting, looking better every time I check into this build log.

Scott

I agree, that oven looks fantastic in regards to dimension and scale.  A wash to tone down the red would really make it balance with the rest of the details on the ship.

I am really diggin this built.

Scott

Great to see your work again.  Despite the size and simplicity of this model, it is still a good one to practice that basic techniques of ropework on.  Sorry about the physical mishaps.

I am really enjoying all the detail you are doing. 

Those duckbill clamps look to work really well, about how many planks can you clamp at a time?

At one of my previous places of work, I used print binders and had a binder extension on my drafting table.  Before the computer, used to do a lot of size D prints with overlays on one table.  About a year ago, I picked up a large drafting table and some binders from a company that was throwing them out.  Please ignore the airplane, this is the only current pic I have of the table.  Under the plane is a print clamp and scale.  The table is great because it is adjustable and I can also attach my drafting machine and scales to it to lift measurements off the print.  The binder allows me to stack multiple prints and keep them in order.