Eurus

Thank you! And you are right, the instructions are definitely not the best!

Thank you for following! There's still one more, final update that I'm working on, and also the gallery.

What a fantastic ship! 😮

We have arrived at the end of the journey. Thank you all for your comments and your support. In picture 1 you can see the oarlocks and harpoon crutch glued in place. Picture 2 shows the line tubs in their correct places, along with the rest of the deck accessories. In pictures 3 and 4 the completed model is displayed, oars peaked, on its driftwood base. The small compass and hatchet are added near the loggerhead. The whaleboat is officially completed, and only one final step is left.

Thanks Rob for your kind comments. I will post the finished gallery very soon! And yes, the Cuauhtemoc is waiting, but not for long!

Those who know about whaling will notice that one accessory was still conspicuously missing from the build. It’s the whaling line tubs, and there was a reason for that. I had serious doubts about the technique for storing the coils. If you look closely at them, you’ll probably understand why. After two or three layers, it will be hard to preserve such a pristine appearance. After some research, I decided to go with what most modellers did, instead of a more realistic—but unsightly—approach. Picture 1 shows the small tub, which holds the spare line. This is the start of the coil. Picture 2 shows the tub in its finished state. I did not like the result, and is probably one of the few details I regret not correcting in time; certainly the most noticeable one. In contrast, the second tub, shown in pictures 3 and 4, is much better. I learned the lesson. A close-up of both tubs can be seen in the big picture 5 at the right. With the lines in place inside the tubs, the only thing left is to glue them inside the Providence and arrange everything so that it looks good for the final set of photographs.

What a beautiful ship! And such clean lines, superb attention to detail. Great job!

The diameter might be perhaps 1-1.5 inches, I agree, 2.5 seems too fat, especially considering that it is not like a bullet (the impact and penetration made to kill) but rather, the harpoon is a means of fastening the whale to the boat, preventing its escape. The whale is killed by a stab with a lance, a much longer device designed to penetrate and come out easily--as opposed to the harpoon, which is made to stick thanks to the flues. The killing blow is delivered by the boatheader with said lance, and usually aiming at the heart or the lungs. Harpoons won't penetrate as deep. For reference, look at these: https://www.liveauctioneers.com/en-gb/item/65159530_antique-single-fluke-harpoon Perhaps a pin or a common embroidery needle might do the trick at that scale. Edit: the wonderful picture that John Ruy found shows the harpooneer holding a lance, not a harpoon. Lances are typically longer, and are not meant to detach from their wooden shafts. Harpoons are expendable, lances are prized possessions.

Welcome to the forums! Those ships look awesome!

Traditional whaleboats are steered in two ways: with a very long oar or with a tiller. Usually the oar is better, but it can get cumbersome, especially in the final stages of the hunt. Depending on whether the propulsion was by sail, paddle or oar, the boatheader would decide which one to use. When the tiller is not in use, it can be disassembled and stored. At this point I had enough confidence in the processes of wood dyeing, painting and varnishing, so this step was relatively fast. Both the tiller and the rudder were dyed in cherrywood color, then separately varnished, and finally glued together. In picture 1 you can see the wooden rudder already carved and dyed, as well as the brass fittings to be used. This shape was achieved using a small wood file. The brass strips were cut to adequate size and then bent in shape to hug the rudder board. The very simple fittings are made of a bent brass wire and brass eyebolts. The metal pieces will be left without any finishing, since I want to preserve their looks. Tiny holes were needed once the brass fitting was attached, and then through the wood to fit the wire. This can be seen in picture 2. These strips are repurposed material, since the kit’s instructions do not mention the creation of the fittings. Once again, I added them for authenticity’s sake. A suggestion of bolts or nails was made by puncturing the brass with a nail and a small hammer. The piece is so small that any detail is hard to see. Also, to do this by inserting real nails would have been impossible: the rudder’s thickness is ~2mm. The big picture 3 on the right shows the rudder and tiller in place, before gluing. I had to insert a tiny wooden wedge to keep the tiller from falling (only for the pic). Picture 4 shows the upper fitting already installed. In picture 5 you can see a detail of the previous step: the three different wood types—basswood, boxwood and cherry—involved in the building of the oars can be better appreciated prior to dyeing and varnishing. Picture 6 shows the Providence on her base with the tiller and sails, but without oars or accessories. In picture 7 I have put everything in its place, just prior to gluing. Up next: the two missing accessories, and finishing touches.

Traditional harpoon dimensions can vary wildly, depending on where and who made them. In general, I can suggest a length of 80-100 cm for the iron and 120-140 cm for the wooden shaft, for a total length of 200-220 cm--since the wooden shaft locks partly inside the hollow section of the iron, some total length reduction can be expected.

Very nice! The flags are fantastic!

Very beautiful ship!

Excellent idea!

Good luck, and have fun. Following!

Hello, and welcome aboard! For a first model I recommend a small one (size) but big scale. As you mentioned, Artesanía Latina has several good options, adequately priced and with excellent materials, but their instructions are somewhat lacking. If you have never worked with wood, I suggest a boat with a solid hull. The Phantom by Model Shipways looks like a great option. As Beef Wellington advises, finds something that you love. Is it racing boats? Schooners? Fishing? Whaling? Take a look at the forums and the build logs. You will surely find something that catches your eye.

Beautiful indeed! I did not know that the screws could be painted red too--yet it makes sense, if they are subject to the same corrosion as the rest of the hull below the waterline.

Thanks everyone for your very useful answers! I don't know a lot about trains, but definitely that appears to be the best option. Well, that's exactly what I need! Thank you MCB for the picture. Now I know what to look for. There's a model train supplier nearby, I hope they have one of those. The size seems perfect. As long as I can get my hands on one of those photo-etch cards, I can make the doors out of scrap wood or tiny metal pieces. That would solve the problem. Thank you!

Yes, it's for the Cuauhtemoc. That's a pic of the real ship that serves as an excellent reference. I re-checked the scale and measurements and probably a 3-4mm diameter wheel would do the trick as well. I agree that these are very small details, and that is why I want to avoid scratch-building them if possible. I believe such a part exists--there's lots of WWII warship models which potentially use these wheels or hatches. I am considering cannibalizing and repurposing small jewelry pieces, chain links or even steering wheels from Hot Wheels toy cars.

Hello friends! I need your kind help. For one of my builds I am in need of a particular type of door, as shown in the picture: The main problem here is that the doors supplied in the kit are totally different, like so: Even if I decided to carve the inner, wooden door directly from the ship's wall, I need the second, outer watertight hatch. I am thinking of transforming the zamak part provided, but then I need the wheel. These would need to be around ~2mm in diameter. I don't know how to solve this situation, or if any such aftermarket part would be available somewhere. I have so far looked in some stores without success. I do not want to have to manufacture these tiny pieces myself: I need 12 of them! What should I do? Your opinion is welcome. Thank you!

The oars in this model are quite interesting: three different types of wood are involved. The manufacturing process was somewhat tedious, though. I watched some tutorials on YouTube of people using drills and power tools to shape the oar shafts, and especially the handles, however, their results were always sub-par, even if they saved some time. The risk of damaging the wood is also quite high. So, I decided to carve all handles by hand using a small wood file. In picture 1 you can see all six oars—five regulars plus the steering one—sanded and assembled but unglued, and ready to paint. As mentioned before, I had to make one from scratch, since the kit only provides for five. Luckily, there was enough scrap wood left. Notice the hand-carved handles. In a whaleboat each rower position has a name and a distinct responsibility, and in order to reflect this even the oars are personalized. In some instances, they have different lengths. That is why they are marked here with their corresponding number. In picture 2 you can see the oars dyed and varnished, ready to be marked with their numbers. There is also a small to-scale diagram depicting how they should be painted. Picture 3 shows the finished oar blades. The topmost one is the steering oar. They were covered in masking tape and then carefully spray-painted in bright red.

Looks really nice!

While I prepare the next set of pictures, here are some close-ups of the Providence, showing a bit more detail of the previous stages:

Very nice! So you're a Warhammer fan. Those miniatures have lots of detail indeed, considering how tiny most are. If you have the attention and patience to paint those, you'll feel right at home here. I am a fan of WH myself, but only play on PC; mainly Total War, Blood Bowl and Mechanicus. 🎮

Same here! 😀