ScottRC

All the yards are now in place. Onto tying ratlines (first attempt) Can't believe I have been working on this ship for a year. Then add the final rigging.

I wish I knew about this earlier….
 
I’ve been spend the last week or so getting ready for the last big job on this build - rigging the cargo booms. I’ve been fabricating cargo hooks, drilling out and painting britannia blocks and doing what seizing I can off the model.
 
About 50% of the rigging will represent manila line which I will tie off with seizing wherever possible. The other half will be representing wire rope, both greased (slushed) and painted. I’ve been mulling over is how to tie-off the wire rope. Knots would look pretty bad and seizing, while better, is still not realistic since wire rope was not seized - the eyes are either secured with poured sockets or clamps. I didn’t think I could pull it off with just glue but then I saw something on Mahuna’s amazing build log for the skipjack Kathryn here on MSW, he used crimping tubes to secure some of his rigging. Crimping tubes are used in jewelry making and, lo and behold, my wife happened to have some on hand:

When I squeezed them with needle nose pliers they secured the eye in the line OK but they were inconsistent in how the lines led into them and were too flat and broad for my eye.

 
After poking around on that great repository of knowledge, YouTube, I found the trick is to use crimping pliers.

The pliers use a 2-step process, the first flattens the tube but also leave a crease down the center of it, in the second step the tube is moved to another spot on the pliers and the tube is folded over the crease leaving a nice, tight and consistent seizing that is realistic for wire rope:

These might be useful for anyone wanting to secure rigging that represents wire rope, radio antennas or even “rope” where there is not enough room to put on a seizing.

I am back! Some months passed, things in Brazil got strange, I've married, moved yet again but could get back to my sails! I'll show you some of my progress:
 

This is the main mast's Sail. I've got all three already sewd and soon will rigg them in place. It's great to see them taking shape!

Raymond, I'm pleased to come back and see I'm not forgotten! My many thanks for the videos and, well, here I'm again! Got my hands back on them ships and am working gladly on their sails, recovering broken parts and having fun! How are you? Hope all is rlly fine!

I thought it was high time to update this build. The last year, and the beginning of this year has been insanely busy for me. The mother-in-law passed away and then to top it off my wife has been stuck with all of the executor work as both her parents are now deceased which is brutal. Between Revenue Canada and lawyers it’s amazing how they can keep a person alive once they’re gone. So henceforth, I have been supportive of the Vice Admiral, and the hobby has taken a bit of a back seat. 
 
Work has been really challenging as we’re going through a major change management phase. Thank goodness I have managed to come through unscathed!
 
I shelved the Preussen for first to third quarter of this year, as I have HMS Wivern on the blocks to put it into a light bulb for my eldest son’s birthday coming up in June of this year. Presssure is on, however it will be done come Hell or high water! Then it will be back onto the Preussen to finish it for Christmas of this year as a gift to my youngest son.
 
If you want to see the Wivern build you’ll have to please log into the Bottled Ship Builder forum and look for Chasseur. Also I am now the editor in chief for the Bottled ShipWright which is a free journal we offer to our members. The first Journal came out for Christmas of last year and I have the next one coming out in June of this year.
 
So if you’re into ships-in-Bottles then by all means sign up for the journal. When you’re on the site please hit the clubs tab at the top and sign up. This would be my shameless plug here and now. Please come back here in the Fall and look to see the Nitrate Clipper finished and into the bottle by December 23rd.
 
Jeff

This actually turned out better than I expected. Once my sweetie and I figured out the build and install process it moves very quickly. I have a couple outside tie downs done and will work to complete all eight of them and then start the tie downs on the inside. Add's a nice detail and was a challenge to figure out how to make it work. So far so good. I'll paint and stain in place very carefully. They are sewn in place after the ca dries for the wood mounts, then just very gently  up and down with the tightness on the 2 mm nails drilled in place and glued with ca also.
 
I'll post them finished for the outside tie downs hopefully tomorrow, and show a couple inside tie downs done too. Without adding the extra bass wood planks for the top of the bulwarks, these added details couldn't have been done to this plastic model and look close to historical information.
 


 
 

Hi Rob,
 
My mother, who got me into ship modeling, bought a Scientific Sea Witch back around 1976 and never built it.  I now have it and really think it would be a good candidate to try some small scale scratch building. It computes to 1/158th.  I just need to get two other projects completed and then I can start the Sea Witch.  
 
Scott

Hi Rob,
Your documentation of your rigging process is going to be invaluable for me since I am interested in working in the smaller scale.  Everything is looking very refined.
 
Scott

And here they are installed, and also the deadeye channels.

I soaked the waterway planks overnight, then pinned and taped them into position. After drying for a day, they held their shape just fine.

And the rudder is attached to the hull.

Here's the bowsprit assembly finished for now.

Here's the decking applied.Main and poop are glued in, Forecastle is just placed in, needs trimming.

You found a good strategy for dealing with deck shear and camber.  The attached picture shows the deck buildup on my Brigantine Newsboy of 1854 build.

Testing the fit, I guess I have about another 1/4 inch to go.

I also have to carve out a notch to fit the bowsprit. I cut the sides of the notch with a razor saw, and used the chisel blade in my Xacto handle. Slow going, but not difficult.

 

In my working on the Red Jacket, I neglected to sand in the deck camber before I put the bulwarks on. So now I have 3 choices:
1- ignore it
2- rip the bulwarks out
3- get creative.
 
I can't do #1 because the laser-cut deckhouses have the curvature cut into the bottoms already. As for #2 - NO WAY JOSE !
 
So I got creative, and made a spine and ribs to the 3/32 camber. I made sure the ribs supported the deckhouse edges, fiferails, and mast locations. I think it will work just fine. tapering the ribs is much easier than trying to sand the entire deck, anyway.

So over the w/e I sprayed the hull bottom.

And its time to drill the keel and get the model mounted before doing any more finishing, just in case I have to make surgery to mount it. luckily, it mounted just fine on the workboard.

Next step is fitting the rudder to the sternpost. The plans call for tapering the sternpost a bit, then tapering the back edge of the rudder as well.

Finished all the Stuns'l booms on the Yards. Forgot to take a picture of them finished before I started adding them. Have added the Main and Fore Lower Main Coarse Yards. Lanyards, Jeer Lines, Lifts, Leech Lines and Bunt Lines.  I'm not very good at photography so I'm not really able to show all this detail like I want to.
 
  Rigging the falls and tackles for all this is becoming much more difficult for me with the nerve damage in mu hands and fingers so it takes 4-5 times longer than it should but I get through it. I do find it fascinating to actually see haw all this rigging works and where everything is belayed.  I think about how they had to figure all this out over time in the History of sailing. 
 
  I tried to rig the lower Yards without pinning them to the masts like the instructions say. Wanted to let the rigging hold them like the real thing but found out that with a model gravity is not the same and the rigging pulls the Yards upward and they wont sit facing forward like you want then too without pinning them in place.
 
   Beginning the Main and Fore Topsail Yards Rigging now.
 
Jesse

Thanks again for the likes...   Welcome aboard gentlemen.   
 
Carl,
What else do I have to do besides read MSW and play with the pup?  
 
Druxey,
I this better?  I think I got it.
 

Second wintch done !
Nothing without little assistance

Five working hours, and it worth !
 


Temporary on position
 

And one from "bird" view
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 320 – Running Rigging Continued
 
The last 1% always seems to be the most difficult to complete – or perhaps its just the most exhausting.  It seems like not a lot has gotten done since the last post almost three weeks ago.  A fair amount of time was spent adjusting tension on the 60-odd main mast belaying points – a time consuming task – and one that is dangerous for completed work that gets in the way.  Not a lot to show for that effort. That is now complete and the pins should be ready for rope coils.
 
Work has also been continuing on the mizzen yards, as shown in the first picture.
 

 
The upper topsail and the topgallant were installed in the past couple weeks.  Below is the view from aft.
 

 
Below is a picture of the poop deck pin rail about half full and the last main deck rail forward of it – almost full.
 

 
Installing mast trucks and signal halyards is in progress.  In the next picture one of the trucks being bored to fit the its mast pole.
 

 
The top is left a bit flat so the sheave holes can be drilled without slipping off the side.  The next picture shows that work – with a very short bit extension.
 

 
Below is a picture of the house flag, pre-assembled with its truck and halyard.
 

 
The flag is painted with thinned acrylic gouache on some very old drafting linen that has had its wax sizing removed by boiling then washing.  It is the house flag of the William Daniels Company of New York that owned the ship from its launch in 1853 until 1859, when it was sold to another shipper.  The truck will be fitted to the mast pole without glue, held down by the fit and the halyard that runs down to the deck.  This will allow it to be removed and replaced – a possibility.  The last picture shows it flying from the top of the main mast.  
 
 

 
Similar trucks with halyards are being fitted to the other masts but without flags at this time. 
 
Ed
 

Hello dear friends!
Thank you very much for your comments and kind words, that´s a great honour for me and also a large motivation and commitment
to build my models as well as possible to be worthy of your words.
For making models I use mostly card/paper (I prefer it, because i have a lot of experience with this material and do not need any special tools). Some details are made of wood (nut or fruit trees) to reach more solid/stronger result or sometimes it looks better and the work is easier than using paper. For example the lower part of capstan is wooden

but the upper round part is completely made of paper and finished with self-adhesive foils that look like a real wood. The star on the top is also made of foil.
The base under the capstan is made of card and also modified by wooden-look foils. The small wedges on the base are wooden.
 
Crew members and all decoration on the model are hand made from modeling clay (FIMO). I do not use 3D printer ( but it is perfect machine, i know...). I prefer (and i like it more) to create anything on the model by my own. I know, there are mistakes and things i should improve, so I have still motivation to search new ways and techniques.....
I have no special tools and workroom, so I try to use the simplest way and process as possible.  Here are most of my tools and things i use for making models:
 

 
 
 
Kind regards,
Doris
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
.