AnobiumPunctatum

For anyone else enchanted by this lovely model feel free to check out this video on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPCAArQ7APY. It depicts both of the Phil Reed's Speedwell models (Chuck's version and a Speedwell on a roiling sea). Notice the lovely catenary of the rigging, something I believe you can only do with wire rigging.

What I am gonna shoot for with color scheme and rig.  Furled sails.  Only not 3” long.  
 
Getting close to rigging so I must create my vision board of inspiration.

Your concept is working very well. It‘s looking amazing.

That is a really interesting solution for the ships framing.

Before starting on the gun deck (again) I decided to install the wales.  Per the contract the wales are hook and butt and a photo of a model of the Bellona shows this quite clearly.

I drew some 20 foot long hook and butt planks at 1:64 scale using DraftSight to make a straight plank template.

I measure off the NMM plan and converted the measurements from 1:48 to 1:64 scale. These were transferred to my timbers.

I then attached sheets of tracing paper to the model and transferred these marks to it along with some other details (gun port openings, hawse pipes holes, butt to stem post and end at the aft).

This curvature was then transposed to transparent graph paper. The printed straight plank template was cut out and slipped below and my curved templates were traced onto the graph paper.

I will be using black walnut for the wales. This stock will be cut and sanded to thickness and then two sheets rubber cemented together to allow me to cut both individual identical port and starboard planks at one time. I cannot use my black carbon paper to trace these shapes as it will be difficult to see the outline on black walnut so I’ve ordered a package of white carbon paper for the job!

Safety note: Black walnut sawdust may be toxic to some, so proper precautions must be taken when cutting and sanding. Some individuals may experience respiratory irritation if exposed to large amounts of black walnut sawdust
 
Like everything else on this build... this will be my first attempt, so wish me well.
 

My main goal now is to construct the stern balcony enough to get drawings to Chuck for the fretwork. But before that I have to build a stub deck at the end of the quarterdeck. But before I can do that, I had to build the stern of the upper deck with the rudder cover and benches, since they will be covered up once I install the stub deck above. And before I could build the rudder cover, I needed to mock up the rudder head to ensure it will turn freely in the rudder cover. And on it goes.....
 
So, here is the mocked up rudder head, checking clearances:

And then the rudder cover itself. Note in the first photo, I somehow built it too wide. The second photo below shows the trimmed down version. I had to selectively deconstruct the cover, then slice out the excess, and reassemble. It reminded me of chopping tops for hot rod models when I was a kid!
 
 

I discovered that if the rudder cover top surface stays below the level of the stern lights, there is not enough room under it to ship the rudder. It will have to be removed and then reinstalled after the rudder is in place.
 
So when I built the benches on either side, I made all of this a slide fit so the rudder cover can be taken out later to ship the rudder when I get around to building it.
 
The benches proved to be unexpectedly difficult to build. They had to accommodate different curves at different levels, since this is all sitting on the fore side of a convex upper counter whose curves are different from the upper deck upon which the benches sit. It was a lot of tedious trim and test, trim and test, for several days. But now it is done, ready to be covered up by the quarterdeck stub deck above. At least I could get some sense of the standard of living for the officers. Not bad, sitting on the bench, elbow on the window sill, looking out at the sea through the wall of windows....
 
Mark
 
 
 

Thank You!!
 
She is slowly filling out with details as I work my way aft with deck fittings.
 

The main bitts are just forward of the main mast.  This is shaped and assembled from more laser cut parts the same way as I have designed the others throughout the project.   See below.
 
With the main bitts the sides were glued together first as they come in two parts.  This was before the char was removed.  The char was removed and the top "timberheads"   were carved and shaped as before. Then the cross beam was glued to them after it was cleaned and shaped.  The ends need to be filed on the top and bottom to match the profile while being cleaned of char.  I also beveled the extreme edges on each side.  To finish it up I added simulated bolts with 30lb black fishing line according to the plans.
 
I have placed the bitts on the model but not yet permanently.  I will do that later.  The bitts were painted bulwark red as on the contemporary model.   As more fittings get completed I am still thinking about painting the belfry bowsprit step red as well.  Time will tell...what do you guys think?
 
Mast coats and elm tree pumps are next up.
 


 
 
 
 
 

Lots of dust on the model...maybe today I will clean it all up.
 
Anyway...the bowsprit step/Belfry was up next. At this point none of the fittings are glued on deck.   I am not yet sure if I will paint it red or leave it natural.  The contemporary model has it painted red but the paint is so worn and light on that model it all pretty much blends in to everything else.  So I will wait until all of the fittings are made to determine whether I paint this.  I know the heel of of bowsprit inboard will be painted red so I will wait to see if painting the bsprit step red would be too much.
 

 
Here are most of the elements laser cut for the bstep/belfry.  There is a bunch of faking it on this fitting but in the end you wont be able to tall.  First I cleaned these Cedar pieces of laser char.  Dont be shy here.  It will all come off and look clean but takes time and care.  I used some 220 grit and 320 grit sanding sticks and even a sharp #11 blade.   You can see one side of the bstep all cleaned of char.  The other has yet to be cleaned and shaped.   You must finish the top and match the shaped timberhead.  For this a sharp blade was used to make a series of "stop cuts" and then basically carve the two sides that needed shaping.  This was after char clean up.
 
The center where the bowsprit will be stepped was cleaned and assembled.  Note the aft side of the step.  I have inserted a small laser cut square to simulate the tenon of the bowsprit.  Its just easier and cleaner this way.  Leave it standing proud a bit.  The forward side sill has a nice deep mortice for the actual tenon of the bowsprit.
 
Then there were the belfry elements.  This includes a length of twisted square wire.  This will be proved.  Yes this is commercially available.   You must use the plan to shape it which is shown.   Then blacken it.  The other elements are also shown.
 

Moving along...the step is now completed and drilled with simulated bolts.  Once again these were black fishing line (30 lb).  Note the laser etched seam which should go on the outside if each side piece...dont mix up the side pieces when assembling.  I also drilled the holes for the wire belfry.   That wire was blackened.  The stock for the bell was completed at this time.  Some laserboard elements simulate the ironwork.  I glued the top on first and then the two faces.   Some 24 gauge wire was inserted into the ends of the stock.  But you can attach this to the wire frame anyway you wish.  I knew it would be a challenge to drill through the frame for most so once again this is simplified.  I just filed some slots on the inside of each frame of the twisted wire at the height needed. I used the plans to establish where.  These tiny grooves were enough of a slot to slide and glue the belfry stock in position.  Its pretty secure.   Its not under any pressure so it should be safe and secure.
 
Before doing so however, I added the handle to the top of the bell stock.  I just bent it according to the plans.   I used 22 gauge blk wire.  You can add a tiny length of rope if want to.  I have decided not to as they always seem to hang left or right or curl up and that annoys me.  The bell was simply glued to the underside of the stock.   Then it was glued within the frame as described.
 

 
There is a little bit of cleaned up needed as my fingers must have been dirty.  But this is the result.
 

 

And finally shown on deck but not glued in position yet.  The companionway hood is also not glued in position yet.  No hurry with that.  This completes the fcastle deck fittings.  Now we start the gun deck fittings.  Ignore the dust!!!
 

 
Comments and questions are always welcome!!!
 
Chuck

Dear all
 
The boat is finished! 
 
After a lot of head scratching I ended up with a solution for the davit sockets that looks reasonable. The davit it self was also quite challenging to make but I think it came out fine.

Last thing to do was to install the thole pins and the cleats.
I still need to take some proper photos, make some type of cradle and order a display case. I think it is also appropriate to order the print from the National Maritime Museum or place some compact version of these plans within the case - we ll see.









This has been a very enjoyable build and I certainly learned a lot. In future I will post pictures in the gallery.
 
In the mean time however, there is another hull that has been gathering dust waiting patiently to come back into the shipyard. I do hope you will join for the Chapelle's fishing launch. 
 
I regret I have not been able to keep up with many logs I had been following - This is a period that life demands too much from me!
 
My deepest thanks for your company and support in this journey
 
Vaddoc

Progress continues and today I got the lower counter glued on and faired in so I could finish the planking belt on the stbd side. The lower counter is laser cut with some extra material on it. I centered it over the gunports and positioned it so that it was sitting level on each side then clamped it down

once it’s in place it can be glued from
The Backside with CA, just don’t glue to the jig pieces! I also wetted the inside face of it so that it wanted to curl in the right direction.
Once it’s in place you can see where things need to be sanded. I also trimmed the lower part of the counter about halfway up The wing transom, I’m going to take an additional 1/32-3/64th off so the mounding can rest there.

Once completed the counter should have a nice curve into the outboard stern framing and the aft cant frames


once this is done the last planking strip can be added and work can resume on the last few belts.

I finished up the last remaining lower planking belt before the main wale. I will start on the black strake tomorrow and finish with the main wale and 1-2 planks  below that. 
Also testing one of the QG’s and the printed drop, which is actually going to be boxwood.

Making the hood for the fcastle companionway it is pretty straight forward but you have to be careful to align the sides properly before adding the top planks.
 

 
It is all laser cut.  Here are the pieces.
 

The two thick squares are crucial to its fit when completed. They are laser cut slightly wider than the coaming.  You need to sand the sides until the square is a nice press fit inside the coaming as shown below.
 

Then you can glue the two squares together to form an "L".  This "L" is the proper width if your squares were a nice fit in that coaming.   Then clamp the two side panels to them so you can start gluing the thin cover boards to it that form the roof.  The one thing you must be sure of when clamping the sides onto this fixture....dont glue it to the fixture!!!  Its just used to properly align the two sides the correct distance apart.  In addition, the two sides are no the same height. One side is longer than the other....the starboard side is longer.  This is because of the deck round-up.  So when clamping them to the fixture you must make sure the top edges are lined up and even.  See it below in relation to the squares on the mat.  The bottom edge shows each side being a different length.  But the top must be squared up and even.
 

Then start gluing the cover boards onto the sides.   One at a time.  But as you proceed, you must bevel the side as you are placing them on a rounded shape.  But dont over-do the bevel.  You dont need too much.
 

When you are almost done with the boards, the last final board is laser cut wider and at an angle to compensate for the bottom of the hood being at an angle.
 
When its all done you can sand the sides flush which were slightly longer than needed to clean it all up.   Then its time to test its alignment on the model.  It sits on top of the coaming...not within the coaming.   Look at it from dead on and from the side.  Make sure its straight and vertical and leaning to one side when viewed from the bow.   Make sure it is not leaning when viewed from the side.  You can sand the angle of the bottom of the hood to adjust any leaning.  Once satisfied, move onto the next step.
 

Now its time to cut small lengths from a 1/8 x 1/64" strip.  This is glued half onto the inside of the hood with the other half forming a nice lip.  This will be inserted into the coaming when done.  It should fit perfectly if your two squares and fixture was the correct width.
 

I am guessing that this hood was portable and removable.  So you dont even have to glue it in position if you have a good fit.  You can leave it natural or paint it bulwark red.  Its your choice.   I have painted it red to continue following the look and color scheme of the contemporary model.  The seams and joints and nails do show through after painting it but its very subtle which I prefer.  Mine is not glued in and it will prove useful as I may be removing it from time to time as it may get in the way of doing other work up there.  Now onto the bowsprit step....and belfry.
 

Today’s  progress on Portland. I got the first belt completed on the stbd side and the friezes on and sealed with WOP.  Think the planks may have turned out better on this side, especially the bow. Overall I’m happy with it. On to the channel wales tomorrow!
 

Hi Ronald, 
 
Thank you, it’s finally starting to look like Portland! I will only plank one or two planks below the wales, leaving the frames exposed as shown on the painting of the contemporary model.
 
The model requires at least one plank below the wales, the gundeck at the stern is actually below the wales to it would visible through the frames.

This is a lovely project, well done Scrubby. Your aproach to the building is masterly. Of course CAD helps, but one has to solve all the problems in ones own mind before drawing things.
When do you plan to release the project?
Matthias

Today I got the channel wale on, the planks are just under 1/8” thick so there’s plenty to work with when you’re finished. These are very tricky at the front and take quite a lot of bends and tapers, they end up looking like an “S”, if that Isn’t enough they also need to be tapered down to .050” at the stem. You could sand them when they are in place but making all those bends in a 1/8” thick planks is a nightmare!


a lot of eyeball testing took place as well as some adjusting once they were in place but I think I got them with a decent run.


The upper plank is missing, there’s a reason for it and it involves removing the beak head bulkhead support beam one last time to remove the jig pieces to fair up in the inside of the Hawes pieces. By the time the last planking belt is on it will be safe to remove the inner jigs, nothing will move at that point. So I will just fair that inner forward area and permanently install the beam afterwards. More to come. 
I tapered the planks to fit the guides and made sure there was a nice curve to them, from there I would mark where they need to be cut for the gunports, this keeps a nice continuity in the taper once the plank is cut up and allows the next plank below to fit nice. 
Once I got all the planks down I block sanded them out with 150/220 and applied WOP to protect them. Tomorrow the poly will be dry and I can clean up
and repaint the gunports on the upper deck.



Tomorrow I’m going to turn the model around and repeat on the stbd side. 

Really wonderful figurehead. Well done

Mati,
 
wow, what a fantastic build. I have the paper kit of shipyard also in my stock, but I like your idea to build it with wood in a much bigger scale.

Officially underway on chapter 2 now, I have all the Gunports primed, block sanded and painted. Tomorrow I will start milling wood and begin planking from the main wale up.

Today I got back to work on Portland, I faired up the lower counter and added some high build primer on all the gunport frames.

I used a solvent based high build primer to seal up the MDF, it soaked it up like a sponge. I’ve always been a little concerned about swelling when adding water based products to MDF, the primer also makes sanding and finishing the ports nice, it fills small gaps or joints in the port framing.

 
Ive also been working on planking guides that will attach to each bulkhead and assist with spilling, more on that soon.

Moving into chapter 2 I’ve attached the frieze panels and added the forward false sub deck for fairing reference.  Now it’s time to primer and prepare the gunports for paint and line off the upper hull for planking. Finally it will begin to look like Portland!
 

Construction site completed, aligned and ready for frames

Here's a simple yet brilliant idea - a frame calibrated ruler.  The applications including the creation of a construction site are many.  Take the lines off the frame profile plan and apply it to a yard stick using double sided tape. I borrowed this one off a French site I have been referencing for my build. 

Stern cant frames all installed.  Working on some progressive fairing and then on to the bow.
 
 

Port side aft cant frames complete.  On to the other side.
 

Adam