Thukydides
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Posts posted by Thukydides
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3 hours ago, Blue Ensign said:
Cutters make fine looking models, and I think you will enjoy the experience of building this kit.
Chris has done a great job in simplifying those areas that may present difficulties for those new to kit building, but the main challenge remains the hull planking; take your time with that and make as good a job as you can with the first layer planking as a rehearsal for the top layer.
Regards,
B.E.
Thanks for the advise. I do plan to take this very slow.
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Log #1: And So It Begins
I have always had a keen interest in model ships, but never realized that kits existed or that there was ever the possibility of me making one. A few months back a video popped up on my youtube feed of the Amati Lady Nelson being built in a timelapse. This was my inspiration to start researching the subject and I discovered the wealth of information available online and in particular I discovered MSW.
Over the past month or so I have been reading many of the build logs on this site and trying to absorb the wealth of information here. I had originally wanted to start with a more ambitious project, but a number of posts on the subject here on MSW convinced me to start with a more modest one.
My model making experience has tended more towards things like this:
So this project will represent a bit of a departure for me from my normal hobby activities and I fully anticipate making many mistakes over the coming months. Hopefully as I document them in this build log they will be of use to those that follow afterwards. Please feel free to critique any mistakes you might see as I progress through this build as I suspect I will need all the help I can get :).
I would be remiss if I did not mention up front how thankful I am for all the completed Alert build logs on model ship world that I have to follow along with. I found the logs by Blue Ensign and glennard2523 particularly helpful.
I know that one of the selling points of Chris's models is the lovely big build manual. But I guess I never really grasped how nice and big it is till it was there in front of me. Every part is clearly labeled and numbered in the manual making everything nice and clear.
Having double checked that the contents of the box were all there, I was ready to begin. Unfortunately it was at this point that I ran out of time and the start of construction will have to wait for the next log.
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Table of Contents
Welcome to my build log for documenting the making of HM Cutter Alert by Vanguard Models. In order to keep this organized I have reserved this first post for a table of contents in order to allow future readers to jump ahead to sections they are interested in if so desired.Log #4: Final Assembly and Faring
Log #5: Planking and then Re-Planking
Log #8: The Stern Bulkhead and Counter
Log #10: Concerning Drop Planks
Log #11: Adjusting the Second Band
Log #13: Planking Retrospective
Log #14: Building the Transom Part I
Log #15: Building the Transom Part II
Log #16: Building the Transom Part III
Log #18: The Inner Bulwarks and Fixing the Boom Crutches
Log #19: Cutting the Gun Ports
Log #22: Painting the White and Blue
Log #23: Painting the Inner Bulwarks and Edge Highlighting
Log #25: The Cap Rail, Timberheads and Catheads
Log #26: One Step Forward Two Steps Back
Log #29: Blackening and Bending
Log #30: The Cannon Carriages Part I
Log #31: The Cannon Carriages Part II
Log #32: Painting the Deck Fittings
Log #35: Cannons and Other Fittings
Log #37: Painting the Transom Images
Log #39: Rigging the Guns Part I
Log #40: Rigging the Guns Part II
Log #43: Rigging the Guns Continued
Log #44: Hiding the Super Glue Spots
Log #45: Blocks for the Gun Tackle
Log #46: Blocks for the Gun Tackle Continued
Log #48: Hull and Fittings Complete
Log #50: First Attempt at Serving
Log #51: The Shrouds and Standing Backstay
Log #52: Running Backstay and Fiddle Blocks
Log #53: Puzzling about the Mainmast Standing Rigging
Log #54: The Mainstay and Preventer Stay
Log #55: Preparing the Mainmast
Log #56: The Boom and the Gaff
Log #58: Revisiting the Rudder and Windlass
Log #59: Finishing the Mainmast
Log #61: Shroud Batons & Running Backstays
Log #63: Rigging the Preventer Stay
Log #65: Tying of the Stays and Shrouds
Log #67: Ratlines, Ratlines & More Ratlines
Log #77: Experiments in Lashing
Log #78: Methodology for Preparing Small Ropes
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9 hours ago, Jim Lad said:
Hello, and a warm welcome to the forum from 'Down Under'. if you're from the North Atlantic fishing grounds, I hope you're not getting too damp!
John
We do get a lot of rain drizzle and fog 😃.
- Keith Black and mtaylor
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2 hours ago, Moab said:
A warm welcome aboard. Love to see some of your plastic models...Moab
This is my latest project that I am trying to finish up. Almost done, just a few minor bits then I need to assemble them and add a dash of snow. Then on to the alert.
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1 hour ago, allanyed said:
Thukydides,
Welcome to MSW!!! Is there a story behind your screen name in that you have taken the name of a famous general and historian rather than an admiral of old such Themisocles 😄
Hope to see some of your build in the near future!!
Allan
Not really, I have always had a keen interest in history and many years ago when I played computer games I needed to pick a character name for an MMORPG I was playing. I had been reading about the peloponnesian war at the time and so the combination of Thukydides being a bit obscure (so was not already taken) and me being fascinated with the melian dialogue tipped the scales. Since then I have consistently used it as an alias.
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2 hours ago, kurtvd19 said:
I have used Stynylrez for many wood models and it has filling properties. I would use wood varnish myself. Have no idea if plastic varnish would work - actually I don't even know what you mean by plastic varnish other than the Tamiya name denotes plastic.
Reverse the question - would you use wood varnish on plastic? Not trying to be a smart*** but I find it a logical question that can guide many decisions with unknown materials.
By plastic varnish I just meant the primary audience is for plastic models (see the picture below). I wouldn't use "wood varnish" on plastic models because the only ones I am familiar with are designed for use on say furniture. In a pinch I could use a spray can of clear varnish from the hardware store but where it is not specifically designed for small models the results might not be as good or I might get a bit of a tint etc... I guess my question relates more to if I can use many of my acrylic based products that I already own on wood such as the below Vallejo product.
- Canute, mtaylor and Ryland Craze
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Hi everyone. I figured I should do a new member post as I have been hanging around the forums silently watching for a while.
I hail from the fishing grounds of the North Atlantic near where the HMS Pegasus went down.
Though I am new to building wooden ships, I have a lot of experience in plastic models particularly on the painting side. I have ordered the vanguard models alert kit and am planning to start a build log once it arrives.
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On 7/14/2021 at 5:33 PM, James H said:
Seal the filler using a varnish or primer before painting. Painting on top of filler will generally mean a bad finish.
I. Very familiar with the processes for getting a good finish on plastic, but what to do on wood at this scale is a bit new to me.
Do I need to use a wood specific primer or can I use a plastic model primer I have on hand such as vallejo or badger stynalrez?
For vanish again do I need to use wood specific ones or can I use hobby plastic model varnishes such as vallejo?
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HM Cutter Alert by Thukydides - Vanguard Models - 1:64 - first build
in - Kit build logs for subjects built from 1751 - 1800
Posted · Edited by Thukydides
Fixing the pictures
Log #2: Assembling the Frame
Having checked that all the pieces appear to be in the box I proceeded to dry fit the frame.
I also took the opportunity to mark how much I had to thin the keel using a 1.5mm strip I cut off some masking tape. This is one of those places where the knowledge shared on build logs here at MSW has been invaluable. This is the sort of thing that would never have occurred to me, but likely saved me a lot of hassle and I suspect the thinning would not have been nearly as even.
Having done this I then drew in an estimate for the bearding line and sanded it down to prepare for planking. Based on what I had read I figured this was easier to do at this stage before I assembled the frame.
After that assembly was straightforward. I know that it had been mentioned in a few logs that the pieces fit together well and should hold themselves straight, but given some of the problems I had read about in other (non-alert) build logs I decided to be extra careful and ensure each bulkhead was square using the tried and tested lego block method. It was at this point I finally understood why everyone keeps saying you can never have enough clamps...
As many of the other Alert logs have mentioned I had some trouble fitting the stern frames into position. The problem is the outer two frames. The inner ones slotted in fine, but the outer ones required a slight bit of bending to get them to fit. I was worried they might break as I was doing this, but managed to get them in fine and the rest of the assembly proceeded without incident.
The final piece to add to the puzzle before beginning the faring of the bulkheads was the false deck. However, that will have to wait till the next log as I decided I wanted to try and replicate the deck pattern done by blue ensign so that needed to be measured and marked out before I could proceed.
Next time on Thukydides’ Alert Build Log: A novice tries to draw a deck planking pattern...