chris watton

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

Cheers
 
Not sure about adding a bomb or mortar vessel, never gave that type a single thought. To be honest, I have little pasion for that type of vessel. I don't think people will be too disappointed with kit number 18, though.

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

OK, I have just competed the hull designs for Harpy (1796), now onto masts. Here are a few pics of the (sacrificial) 'pre-prototype', again, used only to check fit of designed parts, so this has really been taken apart and put together a lot. (And is in fact the third of my builds for this)
 
Again, the only planking required will be at the level below the main wale down, with everything above this all pre cut/engraved, including the main wale (this is why they take so long to design)
 
Armament is absolutely typical of this vessel, 16 x 32-Pounder carronades and 2 x 6-Pounder long guns.
 
64th Scale, as I am sure someone will ask, and a hull length of around 545mm, with a lot of detail..
 
ETA - The hatch coamings sit on the deck beams and carlings, and not directly onto the deck, and the deck sits directly onto the deck beams, instead of ply sub deck and lime deck, for better scale appearance.

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

OK, I have just competed the hull designs for Harpy (1796), now onto masts. Here are a few pics of the (sacrificial) 'pre-prototype', again, used only to check fit of designed parts, so this has really been taken apart and put together a lot. (And is in fact the third of my builds for this)
 
Again, the only planking required will be at the level below the main wale down, with everything above this all pre cut/engraved, including the main wale (this is why they take so long to design)
 
Armament is absolutely typical of this vessel, 16 x 32-Pounder carronades and 2 x 6-Pounder long guns.
 
64th Scale, as I am sure someone will ask, and a hull length of around 545mm, with a lot of detail..
 
ETA - The hatch coamings sit on the deck beams and carlings, and not directly onto the deck, and the deck sits directly onto the deck beams, instead of ply sub deck and lime deck, for better scale appearance.

Cheers
 
Not sure about adding a bomb or mortar vessel, never gave that type a single thought. To be honest, I have little pasion for that type of vessel. I don't think people will be too disappointed with kit number 18, though.

OK, I have just competed the hull designs for Harpy (1796), now onto masts. Here are a few pics of the (sacrificial) 'pre-prototype', again, used only to check fit of designed parts, so this has really been taken apart and put together a lot. (And is in fact the third of my builds for this)
 
Again, the only planking required will be at the level below the main wale down, with everything above this all pre cut/engraved, including the main wale (this is why they take so long to design)
 
Armament is absolutely typical of this vessel, 16 x 32-Pounder carronades and 2 x 6-Pounder long guns.
 
64th Scale, as I am sure someone will ask, and a hull length of around 545mm, with a lot of detail..
 
ETA - The hatch coamings sit on the deck beams and carlings, and not directly onto the deck, and the deck sits directly onto the deck beams, instead of ply sub deck and lime deck, for better scale appearance.

Photo Etch
4 heavy gauge sheets, comprising, of chain plates gun port hinges, windows, doors and railings, 

Fittings
again its pleasant to see some detail without a lot of clean up being required, there are a few seam lines, but in most cases hidden from view
this is the figurehead, i think some homework is required to find out what it is meant to be

1/4 galleries, don't think i have worked with metal ones before, the detail is quite crisp, im sure some dry brushing will bring out the detail
 

the anchors are nice a clean, but to me they look a little over scale

a small selection of the ships teeth

cannon balls

lots of metal strips to help make up chain plates

trays also contain all the rest of the required bits 


 
rigging thread and sails
lots of thread is provided in various sizes and two colours natural and brown, this does not look so fluffy as my last build, but i personally will be replacing the brown with black
a full set of sails comes as standard, i cannot tell you at this time if they are in scale to the build, but they look very well made indeed, i may use these to achieve my first ever rigged vessel with sheets set
 
 

Saucy Jack is done and the "new" Sphinx is about to begin.
 
I put all of the "other" Sphinx stuff back in that box (including all the plans) so there is no chance of my being caught by a plan or instruction manual update unawares.
 
So back to page 1 and hopefully this time pay more attention to how things fit on each side. Seems that is REALLY important.

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

OK, I have just competed the hull designs for Harpy (1796), now onto masts. Here are a few pics of the (sacrificial) 'pre-prototype', again, used only to check fit of designed parts, so this has really been taken apart and put together a lot. (And is in fact the third of my builds for this)
 
Again, the only planking required will be at the level below the main wale down, with everything above this all pre cut/engraved, including the main wale (this is why they take so long to design)
 
Armament is absolutely typical of this vessel, 16 x 32-Pounder carronades and 2 x 6-Pounder long guns.
 
64th Scale, as I am sure someone will ask, and a hull length of around 545mm, with a lot of detail..
 
ETA - The hatch coamings sit on the deck beams and carlings, and not directly onto the deck, and the deck sits directly onto the deck beams, instead of ply sub deck and lime deck, for better scale appearance.

Thank you Chris and a very nice kit

Very neat work!

First layer of planking complete and faired ready for the second layer.
I used tamiya tape to get the width's of the last plank

 

 

 

 
 
Trying out my new Japanese mini Plane to remove the scorch marks from the keel I might leave this face unpainted 

 
 
The outer bulwark layer was dry clamped to the roll of tape and left for a couple of days 

 

 
The outer Bulwark layer was glued with dabbing on small dots straight from the bottle and the fit looks to be very good.
 
Thank you Lee

The kit 
Scale: 1/90
Width: 385mm
Height: 765mm
Length: 1085mm
Difficulty: Medium
Number of pieces: +6,600
 
First impressions were wow, there is a lot of kit for the money, in what is quite a heavy box. like a lot of Occre kits the package is similar to others in the range, a simple folded base keeps everything in place with a generic coloured lid with a pasted photo of the build, having said that one of the plastic cases had been damaged, allowing some of the contents to be loose, but everything was accounted for, this was not caused in transit as noting was around it to do that sort of damage

wood package
the wood stock provided has been cut well with no splintering, for me the veneer is the best i have seen in a kit, although its a long time since i purchased a kit with it contained
bulkheads are plywood,
 lime for first planking
sapelli veneer for the outer hull
sycamore decking
and a variety for the rest

it would be nice if some of the wood stock could be identified rather than bundled together
 
The rest of the wood package is lasered stock and the lines are very clean with very little scorching on either side
its nice to see the wooden boats enclosed rather than the metal ones
 
However no deck camber has been built into the kit, i think this applies to all Occre vessels. including the new release HMS Victory i will try and raise the centre line when it comes to building this, i just need to work out what else would need to be changed like hatch coamings, skylights 
 


 
 
 

Cheers
 
Not sure about adding a bomb or mortar vessel, never gave that type a single thought. To be honest, I have little pasion for that type of vessel. I don't think people will be too disappointed with kit number 18, though.

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

Saucy Jack is headed for the display case.
 
I will denote this build log as "Finished" once I figure out how exactly to do that.
 
Here are a bunch more pictures.

OK, I have just competed the hull designs for Harpy (1796), now onto masts. Here are a few pics of the (sacrificial) 'pre-prototype', again, used only to check fit of designed parts, so this has really been taken apart and put together a lot. (And is in fact the third of my builds for this)
 
Again, the only planking required will be at the level below the main wale down, with everything above this all pre cut/engraved, including the main wale (this is why they take so long to design)
 
Armament is absolutely typical of this vessel, 16 x 32-Pounder carronades and 2 x 6-Pounder long guns.
 
64th Scale, as I am sure someone will ask, and a hull length of around 545mm, with a lot of detail..
 
ETA - The hatch coamings sit on the deck beams and carlings, and not directly onto the deck, and the deck sits directly onto the deck beams, instead of ply sub deck and lime deck, for better scale appearance.

1:90 Belle Poule
OcCre
Catalogue # 15007
Available from OcCre for 449,99€
 
The "Belle Poule" was a 60-gun French Navy frigate. Frigates were versatile and fast warships designed for speed and manoeuvrability, performing roles in both combat and exploration. Frigates like the "Belle Poule", were known for their speed and manoeuvrability, making them ideal for a variety of tasks, including pursuing and attacking enemy vessels, as well as for exploration and patrol missions.
 
Although its construction began in 1828, the Belle Poule was not launched until 1834. It was one of the first ships to be built in a covered shipyard, allowing builders to delay construction when political and financial circumstances were unfavourable. Its design was inspired by the USS Constitution frigate class. It was commissioned in July 1835 and displayed quite good sailing properties. What really made this ship "Belle Poule" famous was the repatriation of Napoleon's ashes aboard the Belle Poule from the island of Saint Helena to France. An event that will be remembered as it marked the end of the Napoleonic era and left a significant impact on the course of the history of France and Europe.
 

 

Cheers
 
Not sure about adding a bomb or mortar vessel, never gave that type a single thought. To be honest, I have little pasion for that type of vessel. I don't think people will be too disappointed with kit number 18, though.

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

Cheers, I never know until they go on sale.
 
The last time I did an 18-gun brig was 25 years ago, so I wanted to make sure this one's a little more special and not a rehash of what I have done before. I do try to implement stuff I have thus far learned from previous designs, and also take on board constructive criticism of certain aspects. Harpy will be the latest iteration of that learning curve - plus I wanted to do this little fighter justice, being the longest served of her class and the most widely travelled, in action from the French Revolutionary to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Plus she has great lines, being not nearly as 'Flat' as the Cruiser Class, but more like an much larger Speedy Class, lines wise.
 
When I started this, my first stipulation to myself was that I wanted to include a stove. This meant that I would need to show the lower deck, so the model also has scale upper deck beams (4mm thick pear) and adding more lower detail, which does increase the material count by quite a margin.
 
The deck planking pattern is actually copied from an original copy of a Cruiser Class deck plan, which includes the deck planking lines. As per usual now, anything directly glued to the inner and outer bulwarks have slots for their respective positions, eliminating the need to measure where they go, and because they are slotted as well as glued, the channels and pin racks are very strong and secure. I did make one change from the original plans, and that was to add stern davits, as I have a painting of her showing these, and I have no doubt these would have been added at some point in her long career. I will include at least one 3-d printed cutter, perhaps two, one for the deck and one for the stern davits. (Modeller can always leave the stern davits off, if they so wish)

As I said at the start, I have no idea how this will sell, but I certainly didn’t want to simply produce yet another run of the mill kit with just bulkheads, keel and upper deck, like the ones I did 25 years ago - no fun in that. This will be my 17th and final kit for this year. Jim will be doing a build log for this later this year - I still have much to do before then, though.
 

Nope! 😝