chris watton
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Everything posted by chris watton
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You are right! Just changed the instructions to reflect this, so the reprint will have the correct numbers. Cheers! -
Will look at that again for next reprint, but to be honest, the plans for the hull are for the most part just complementary to the manual. The only plan numbers that matter are the mast and rig plans.
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During wartime, even well before the French Revolutionary Wars, captains ordered their crew to build up the bulwarks. It seems the Admiralty knew about this, but turned a blind eye. But it does seem that when carronades were introduced and were found to be very effective close range weapons, bulwarks were built up to perhaps help counter the recoil effect of the carronades. In peacetime, ships were ordered to have their bulwarks open (don't know why, perhaps for aesthetic reasons), but in wartime, they were closed. It isn't until the very tail end of the 18th Century do we see Admiralty plans showing built up bulwarks, first just aft, and then forward.
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Yes, railings would have been 'Berthed Up', usually unofficially during wartime, and officially in the late 1790's (from what I have read) It seems that with the introduction of the carronade, the bulwarks became solid, not open.
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Yep - Also, if people want to model the vessel as she appeared later in her operational career, the quarterdeck bulwarks would be solid, not open. This applies to the forecastle too, if carronades were to be positioned there.
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Not at all. I would think that the Sphinx Class were copper bottomed for most of their operational career.
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Very nice progress, Glenn! Regarding the vertical gun port frames, it doesn't matter so much if the tops are fragile, or if they break off even. The only thing that matters is that they create the inner surfaces of the gun port frames, the rest is more or less superfluous, so don't worry about the areas above and below the longitudinal patterns.
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OK, I have spent 45 minutes checking my cut files to make sure, the master files that are used to actually laser cut the production parts. I checked the distances from the slots in the gun deck and each bulkhead from 2-13. For example, on bulkhead 13, the distance between the tabs is 93.78mm, and the distance between the ply deck slots is 92mm, giving a whopping 1.78mm leeway. This is the same story for all slots I checked, some have a little less tolerance, but always more slack than what is required. There's even plenty of slack in the slot widths, being 4.25mm wide for slots for 4mm thick bulkheads 2-9 and 4.3mm wide for slots for bulkheads 10-13. As these are the exact drawings in the files that I use to cut all kits, there is no way they would cut any different from one to the other. What I suspect has happened is that the deck has not been fitted fully home in the slots in some areas. I know this can happen, as I did this during one of my prototype builds, but noticed just in time.
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That is very odd, I add more than enough tolerances on slots so they should all fit perfectly, you should not have deepen them by so much! Stuff like this is nailed very early in the designs.
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Cheers! I wasn't going to start this one yet, but I had the lines scanned into my PC, and couldn't help myself. I just like to nail the hull designs, as that is well over half the battle for commercial kits, even more so for commercial kits with absolute beginners in mind. Love the name of this one, 'Saucy Jack'! Because it's a much earlier vessel compared to the other fishing boats, the hull shape is more like earlier small craft, almost like a cutter with no guns. For larger kits, don't worry, I certainly haven't forgotten those..
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Cripes, you've cracked on with that!
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Very first dry fit of first off designs for a Barking Well Smack, 1836
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Nicely done, Glenn
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Do not believe or take to heart any mindless negative comments. The work you are doing on this fantastic subject is simply superb.
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Cheers, we're on it!
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Fore and aft orlop platforms were included in original designs, but decided against. Due to bulkhead positionings, I removed, but kept fore platform but no ladderway. Original designs I did still show them..
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Cheers! All sorted....
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OK, all Sphinx kits are now gone until next month, of which I am working on now, laser cutting. Hats off to my wife, Chantelle, who managed to pack up 51 kits from Friday to Sunday - damn that was a lot of foam and bubble wrap! Today, I decided to remove the original version of the Alert kit from stock, and will scrap the remaining stock, including those white metal fittings. I did not like the fact that these early kits are not a reflection of the quality I want in my kits, so rather take the hit than offer them for sale. So Alert Version 1 is gone for good.
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Just checked, it is the original 1953 copy, it even smells of 1953!
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This book is the Bible of English fishing vessels! I ordered mine from an online second hand bookstore, based in California of all places!
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It is so arbitrary, it's more like an extortion racket. When my materials are shipped in from Germany, sometimes I have to pay import duty, but other times I don't, and sometimes, the shipper will hold my shipment hostage until I pay their duties! Yet Italy, where my standard blocks, deadeyes, dowel and photo etch originates never charge any import duty (ned to double check that)! So much for the EU being one block!
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Busy day! Am laser cutting second batch of Sphinx stock and helping my wife with packing and booking the kits. But mostly Chantelle, as the 0.6mm pear sheet I am cutting requires a lot of attention... I think I already mentioned, I will not be able to laser cut anything from 19th September until early October, as our garage is having a new floor, new roof and walls insulated and partitioned, one half for the laser machines, and the other for materials (and gym..). So am keeping the laser machine running for as long as I can until then. I then get my second laser machine in late October, which I am very much looking forward to. Regarding the Sphinx second batch, the price has to be increased as I wanted the first batch to be a kind of 'special offer', as a lot of work per kit hasn't been taken into account for the first batch. I have mentioned that each kit has 6 and a half hours laser cutting/etching alone, and then on top there is much prep required after this. And to (almost) cap it all, I now have to pay import duty for my materials I get from the EU, which seems very arbitrary (with Germany being the absolute worst culprit) Finally, shipping rates, although dynamic and linked to the UPS server, so should be correct, have severely undercharged for all non-UK shipping. This business thing is a hell of a learning curve....
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She was built as a cutter (1882), hence the lovely lines. ETA to include my rough initial drawings for Nisha sail plan
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After an age sorting the 51 sets of plans and manual, and working out the best way to fit all in the box, the first has been done! 6.5kg in total (Speedy kit is 2kg and Duchess a little under 2.5kg) Now for the rest..
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I would have had an extra two, as the printers gave me 52 sets, but one of the 52 0.4mm PE sheets I have has slight damage, so cannot include.
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