chris watton

5 minutes ago, Morten said:

How is it going on with HMS Surprice ?

It's going well! The more complex the designs, the longer these things take.

A lot of CAD work, so nothing to show as yet. I can tell you the decal sheet is done and has been delivered, and most of the resin print production is done.

It is quite a large and complex kit with many pre cut and pre engraved parts, the latter more than even Indy, and all of this takes time to develop. Once I start cutting my final designs and build it up, for Jim to follow, I can post pics of my final prototype build, but until then, it is all just on CAD, on my PC. This applies also to the photo etched files. I need to complete these at the same time the laser cut designs are more or less cooked, and those are 90% done.

Rest assured though, this is all I am working on, although I do get side tracked a lot due to having to produce more stock for current kits....

My fault, I really should have added an explanation in the manual.

The tiller that you see is auxiliary - there is another tiller arm a little further down the rudder. If you look at the rudder, you can see I simulated the start of the lower tiller arm (a little stub near the top, but lower than the deck tiller arm)

If you also showed a picture of the actual rudder, the lower tiller stub would be seen.

Very beautiful job you have done. I have sad many times, I am always amazed at the very high quality of work I see on this forum, and your Alert is right up there!

I like pre cut timberheads for kits - the alternative is a very tedious job for the kit purchaser....

Very well done, Kevin, you should be proud!

Those look fantastic!

Damn, I thought I put more than enough deadeyes in - I shall add a few extra for future kits.

I did already email you with my answer, so here is a portion of that emial I have already sent you you:

I have used MDF for the past 18 years, starting at Amati - I am very surprised you did not know this!
 
As I have explained countless time now, for some of the more complex designs, ply was no good, why? Because the tolorances on the thicknesses are comical, they can be anything between 2.7-3.4mm for a 3mm thick sheet. This is OK with very simple kits (just a simple keel and a few bulkheads), but not when so many parts need to slot and interlock well - using ply would be a disaster, as batches can vary a lot in thickness.

Also to add, when sanding the bulkheads, it is much easier as the material is all the same.
 
 

OK, now in stock (Finally...)

The Viking ship "Oseberg" Version 3 (Ships of Pavel Nikitin) – Vanguard Models

Captain John Smith's Shallop - Ships of Pavel Nikitin – Vanguard Models

I finally have my Pavel Nitikin shipment! They will be live on the website later.

On a separate note, I should have my shipments of Pavel Nitikin Viking ships and John Smiths Shallop kit arrive next week - I can tell you that the shipping costs were horrific...

This morning I was sent the renders for the alternative figurehead for Surprise (and I suspect the one that most will use). Both versions will be included in the kit.

Still have a lot of time to spend on this development...

33 minutes ago, Blue Ensign said:

Sound advice Chris, the only thing ca is of use for in rigging is forming needle points on lines to assist feeding thro' sheave holes, and sealing the  cut ends of polyester line.

 

Cheers,

B.E.

Yes, I use CA for the same thing, but that is never left on the model, it is just to make it easier to push the rope through the holes in the blocks.

Always best to glue as little as possible for masts and rig, because if something is accidentally broken, things are so much easier to repair. I do wince when I read that some use copious amounts of CA on their rigging, rather than a little dab of diluted PVA..

Harpy looking fantastic!

8 hours ago, Kusawa2000 said:

Call me crazy but I always enjoyed planking above the wale. I find the individual planks really gave the hull a lot of character. I agree most of the hulls will be painted so if its individually planked or a template etched with the planks and treenails it may be hard to tell the difference. Maybe have it as a option at the time of purchase? Just floating the idea out there... 

Well, being a wooden kit, there is nothing to stop you doing this and discarding the kit parts. I see this with the pre made decks, some plank their own. Nothing wrong with doing this at all. Indeed, I expect it from some modellers.

37 minutes ago, Mike_H said:

Plus one vote for the template!  Seems amazing to me that either the pear is sufficiently elastic or that the curvature in the vertical plane so slight that it will sit on the frames so well. But clearly it does!

The pear is 0.8mm, the 0.2 doesn't seem a lot compared to standard 1mm thickness, but it does seem to make a lot of difference when manipulating the sheet to shape, plus there is less need to soak the part before bending to shape. Pear does like to hold onto that water for at least a day or so (sometimes much longer), making it look as though the part is way too big before shrinking back to original size.

I know that Cutty Sark was an Hachette parts work development, which I thought was a shame, as I think that was a great looking model and very detailed.

Not sure about Prince, I know I did give it a redesign about 11/12 years ago from my earlier 2002 original, with gun ports incorporated into the hull:

Even a fully detailed Royal Mail carriage!

Well, I worked all day today, continuing Surprise stuff.

This morning, I decided to make the templates for the fore and quarterdeck bulwarks, which are to be pre-cut. So first, the upper deck and beams were to be removed. My initial idea was to do the same I did for Indy, with most of the outer sides planked. 

However, I could not get the thought out of my mind just how nice the sides would look if they were pre-cut and engraved, with treenail detail - that would look great when painted ochre (or just varnished). So, with this in mind, I made a template for the whole of the hull side down to the top of the main wale line (or in Surprise's case, where the planks get thicker).

The pics show the end result of a day’s work, with many templates laser cut in white PolyBak, with each successive template (and there were many) tweaked a little more until, eventually, the final template is cut in the material that will be used in the kit, pear, shown in the pics. There was no warping to the undersides near the bow, and curved around very nicely on my disposable 'mule hull'

The downside to this, and the reason I initially dismissed doing this, is cost (0.8mm pear sheet needing to be 800mm long and 4 required just for the outer hull) and time. It will increase the overall cost to the kit. But it does mean planking, like on the smaller kits in the range, is relegated to the bottom half of the hull only, with all upper sides being completely pre-cut and laser engraved. It also means I can work slots into the bulwark sides for the fore, main and mizzen channels, these worked very well for the new Speedy and Harpy.

I hope I have made the right choice..

Oh, for the rudder fixing, I am doing the same as I did for Indy, with 3-d printed gudgeon and pintles that simply slot into the rudder and rudder post, I do very much like this method as it is both simple and looks accurate.

6 minutes ago, Nipper said:

Chris

 

From your last photo I see that you get your Easter egg on Good Friday.  I have to wait until Easter Sunday!

 

Nipper

Me too! Will eat it whilst watching Ben Hur tomorrow!

36 minutes ago, Kusawa2000 said:

Chris: Good point. You will might have to sacrifice the eyebolt for the inhaul tackle but as mentioned having visual access to the gun deck is a great addition to the kit.

Cheers - although this has been the case (visual access to the deck below) with Sphinx, Indy and Harpy - but this will be the first with no ply sub deck at all. Assembly more than strong enough to not need a sub deck.

3 minutes ago, Kusawa2000 said:

I do like how you are opening up the spar deck to the lower gun deck. Just gives it additional neat detail to the hull!

The deck openings will be a little different for the finished model, as I need to make sure there's enough depth for the 18 Pounder carronades to sit.

OK, I added the upper deck beams, all fine, and then added my one off special 0.8mm ply deck, ready for next stage of development.

1 minute ago, François de Saint Nazaire said:

Hello Chris,

I confirm it's a pleasure to be backstage. Regarding the figurehead used for testing, I assume it's the original ? When you mentioned it matches the original, did you mean the one from La Tourterelle

?

 

Thanks in advance.

Yes, we used the one from La Tourterelle as it is a lot more detailed than that of the Unite/Surprise, It seems the only real difference in overall shape are the flags angled upwards on each side. To make it more or less what the Surprise plans show, it would just be a simple matter of removing the flags. (I always assumed most will use the other figurehead anyway):

Another figurehead will be included that is more in line with the fictional version from the novels and film.

2 hours ago, glbarlow said:

I agree with Ronald, fun to see the design process as it develops. So much thought required for every step.

Cheers!

I usually don't show too much of this stage, as it is very long and boring, and newly designed parts are usually cut from crappy scrap materials, as they're only used to check fit and ultimately discarded. 

I am hoping this second hull is the last I need until I cut for the hull that I shall use (fully planked and complete with all laser cut parts) to take pics of the stages for Jim to make the final prototype model and build log on this site - but still quite a long way to go. 

So, before this goes on sale, the hull has been fully assembled, keel, bulkheads, gun ports, decks, beams etc. at least 5 times to 'tune' the parts as much as they can be - always need a little wiggle room, as some will sand the hull slightly different to others, so have to cover most eventualities. 

For mine, I just sanded the edges and then added the PE (PE-24 R&L) on top