Barbossa

Thanks Patrick and a thanks for all the likes. As from the start of this project it was always the intention to paint the model, for two reasons 1)Lack of patience and talent 2) Quality wood ( boxwood,...) is as good as unavailable First pics are some experiments : I'd like to insert black or darkgrey paper between the planks in the gunport area. Following pics : a careful start ( wood = ramin ) Last pic I took from the additional monography ( Franco Fissore ) raised some questions and I submitted this color scheme to French MSW-colleagues ( forum actif 5500 ) and Mr. G. Delacroix himself was so kind to answer that the color scheme was an artist's view and a bit a questionable one as everything under the waterline should be coppered. In addition French frigates don't seem to have this distinctive black belt ( wales ) you often see on their English counterparts. On the contrary : the black painted area seem to continue till the waterline ( La Renommée, La Belle Poule 1765,... if painted of course ) Even more : The Boudriot Monography shows the front side ( towards the bow ) the first gunport included in black color. This is convenient as the bow area describes funny curves ( see point 1 in this post 😅 ) . But this is the path I intend to follow.

Last update : painted the inside of the gunports with AV Flat Red 70.957 Later on I would like to submit some ideas about the color scheme

I forgot to mention in my previous post that the blue lines above the gunports indicate the position of the channels. Now a word about the stern : to obtain a proper fit, I had to reduce the camber by < 2 mm. This was the unavoidable consequence of my doubts regarding the correct heigt of the gundeck. In my opinion this is a minor setback and it is be hardly noticeable I also applied the first plank of the second planking and it is a crucial one as it dictates the position of all other planks that are to follow Meanwhile some plankbending using what we may call " the chuck-method" ( including ironing )

Hello, another update concerning the finalisation the shape of the gunports + checking their transversal position other content is to follow

Thanks Patrick and all members showing interest. I'll post some pics showing Venus' present status, in a few days Also happy X-mas and many shipbuildingfun for 2020 for all MSW-staff & members ! About Fluffy ( "Pluis" in Dutch) : she's up to her 17th birthday ( in 2020 ) We had two cats, the eldest passed away this year ( 18 years ). " A cat has servants" : I agree 100 %

You're welcome Edward, here's a (last) few pics to bring us back in real time, so updates will be less frequent. The area under the stern is delicate : lateral planking (wales,...) and bottom planking : it comes all together. Off course : "Fluffy" couldn't care less😃

Yet another update : 1) continuation "filler method" : the advantage of this approach : no drilling for the gunports 2) and measuring 3) next update : the stern arera, which is (always) delicate

Hello, It may (perhaps) help to start every different part as a separate project, e.g. the mizzen mast or one gun carriage,... Having said that, once the hull completed, starting the rigging part is IMHO the turning point and one I'm a bit reluctant to do....

Great work. I assumed this type of vehicles were only available in a 1/35 scale, which makes this achievement even more impressive.

Wonderful lines...pure elegance Well done

Hello G.L. You're more than welcome. Don't hesitate for input or feedback. Made some additional measurements, gunports required some minor extra filing & adjustments. According to plans position of the gunports coincides now with channels and the 3 masts, at least at the portside . While I'm at it, why not post the continuation of the filling-up proces ? I guess the pics speak for themselves, to connect the blocks, I had to pivot the sawtable

Hi ETNZ, The eternal story of pro's & con's, I guess. The advantage : the dimension of the blocks I inserted between the bulkheads ( except those in the bow & stern area) allowed me to follow the shape the hull is to receive after ( minimal) sanding. To avoid any warping : I alternated the inserting process port & starboard side Aside from that, you have noticed that the position of some bulkheads obstructs some gunports. Related to present approach, this is but a small inconvenient ( cfr. last pic post Friday 22, nov. ) Although I have no clue , but designers must had good reason for this.

and here's the bow section. As we all know, a straight wooden strip tends to lift upwards while applying on a spheric shape. If you force the strip in a unnatural horizontal position, a gap becomes unavoidable once you want to fix an adjecent strip. Thus I obtained a solid base for the final planking in the future. I agree, the second planking will require decent soaking/bending, but a have a solid base to work with That's all for the moment folks. Back to the workbench, see you next WE

Previous post : the only reason why the ends of the bulkheads were connected was for strength purposes. Made some reinforcements Another thing that confused me while studying the plans . I was not sure if the width on the drawings included two layers of planking, assuming I would apply a double planking above the bulkheads. Aside from this, I felt uncomfortable with the use of filler blocks especially in the bow and rudder sections. I felt insecure if I were to achieve identical shapes on both port and starboard sides. For this reasons, I decided to try out a different approach, a step by step filling method. The bulkheads, the closest to bow and stern were to be filled up with soaked and bended double planking 1,5 x 5 mm ( lime or birchwood, I guess). So in total 3 mm to make sure I had enough material while sanding and realising the curves in the delicate area ( stern & bowsection) The central bulkheads were filled with blocks that had to fit inbetween. (thickness 4 mm and height 9 mm). The latter were cut out from 2,4 meter strips , 18 mm width and 4 mm thickness). Again, all this would not have been possible without an electric saw machine. You can find these strips in every DIY-store, at least here in Belgium Was this time-consuming ? It definitely was, but I'm satisfied with the result. French modelling expert B. Frölich's book was a true source of inspiration

Another update (I have the unpleasant feeling, just as if I'm spamming) Assembling the false keel Removed the unecessay wood from the bulkheads, above the gundeck line. This process took some time : every seperate bulkhead, I had to remove and reinstall the sawblad of my Proxxon tool. The gundeck : first produced a fake one from card to make the necessary measurements ( alignment & position gunports....etc)

Very nice work , Patrick I was wrong to assume, the "dovecote" had something to do with pigeons...

Hi ETNZ, Thanks for showing interest. Updates with photo's this WE. With accordingly some explanations, that's a promise !

Continuation previous post : the "gundeck-gunport-position-issue" Here's the pics. Let's imagine a worst case scenario : If I were to reduce the size (just a little bit)of the wheels belonging to the gun carriages....would someone notice? Probably unecessary. let's call this beginners luck 😊. The false gundeck ( that is to be covered) is made of birchwood (0,5 mm) At present : working on the correct size of the gunports.

Hi Peter, Nice ship and great job on the taffrail. As I can hardly imagine the boxwood strip was included in the box, may I ask from which supplier you obtained this precious ingredient ? It seems a bit hard to find on the Old Continent (Though I may have overlooked the info while visiting your log). Anticipated thanks

Well done, Sir. Aside from the ship, I like the approach. I'll learn from both. Take care

Hi Mark, Thanks for the input, but there's no harm. I'll post some close up pics as I assembled one 18lb gun and it seems to fit inside it's gunport. The raise by adding 1 mm extra planking ( to cover the deck) should be compensated by inserting a rectangular frame/profile ( +/- same thickness) in each gunport. A least that is the plan. Perhaps some extra filing will be required. All feedback is welcome, this build (and other builds, perhaps) might benefit from it.

Continuation. The last pics describe an attempt to check the alignment of the bulkheads. As you have certainly already noticed, until now no CAD neither other software is involved in this project. On the other hand, whenever it comes to sculptures, figureheads,...3-D printing came already across my mind....

Hello, Another update. B.E. thanks for showing interest. While uploading the pics, I'll try respect the exact chronology and also sharing mistakes/difficulties I encountered. E.g. one thing that puzzled me was the height of the false keel. Plans describe a dotted line which describes the position of the gundeck. Question : does the dotted line indicate the gundeck at it highest (central) point or the position where the gundeck meets both port and starboard sides and by consequence a misinterpretatioin could jeopardise the position of the gunports. I didn't want to take any chances and build myself a fake 18 pdr gun and accordingly with quite some measuring managed to figure this out. (see next range of pics) just for info : I started this project medio 2018 Mark, I totally agree, except perhaps the release of Lafayette's Hermione kit I'd wish to see more French frigates. Besides I humbly admit that my favourite , La Renommée, is probably a too big challenge for me Dag Patrick chips & drank helaas nog niet beschikbaar ( translation : chips & drinks not yet available, I'm afraid ), but take a seat. Now back to the pics For the insertions necessary for the bulkeads, into the separate parts of the false keel, I fored a hole just big enough to allow my sawblade to make a turn of 90 °. At this stage all parts were still (of course) dry fit

Thanks Mark I'm afraid I'll have to consult my French grammar 😊. about the LE ou LA Vénus. My guess is "La" as ships are related to the female genus. But I'll gladly comply to MSW staff rules. Anyway, thanks for correcting the title. A few years ago, the original monograph was a birthday gift from Mrs. Barbossa. So after completing Jotika-Caldercrafts Diana it was about time to do this very nice present justice. Later on I purchased the second monograph by Franco Fissore. On French fora as well as at MSW despite her elegant appearence , this model seems rather scarce. Hi, Kikatinalong you're welcome. Starting a buildlog was obvious as from the start, on the other hand I wanted to achieve the "first planking" phase. Although first planking seem not appropriate as the first post indicates, I chose for the filling method between the bulkheads. The pics may suggest the opposite, but the surface of the hull is quite smooth already. More details and explanations are to come very soon

The bow section is a separate piece and until now dry fit. Cheers