yvesvidal

I finalized Frames #71, 72 and 73. These have been glued and a segment of keelson installed to keep everything in place: And the usual perspective pictures: I am working on the #80's frames which are really delicate and require a ton of adjustment to fit correctly. By far, the most difficult part of the hull. Yves

Incredible model and assembly. You are turning this Plastic kit into a little marvel: Pimping it up, should I say ! I remember assembling the Heller Royal Louis some fifty years ago, but it was far from your level of expertise. Looking at the stern of that vessel, one can see the differences of richness and decorations between the French and British vessels. The French builders were definitely putting more emphasis into the glamor and opulence. That "Chateau Arriere" is absolutely amazing. Yves

Very nice standing rigging. Masts are perfectly straight. Great job. Yves

WOW, what a little marvel you have done. I really enjoy the shapes of the hull and the moderate height of the decks, so different from these ugly floating skyscrapers we see on our seas. Yves

What a lovely ship and great model. It deserves to have the wood (or even plastic) equivalent for modelers to enjoy. Yves

Here is the finished part: It looks like the skull of a Longhorn.... Once the oil and wax is absorbed by the wood, I will come back with fine sand paper and polish it in a smoother way. The pictures are very revealing even though the parts look good with the eyes. Yves

After studying the instructions (there are none) and the plans mainly, I decided to steer my attention to the stern. Instead of building Frames #71 to #80, I concentrated on the very last frames indicated by the plan and the Monograph. The reason is the lack of space, if you decide to glue the frames located before #80. The reasoning and the same approach were also used for the bow. There is a rather complex assembly taking place between Frame #84 and Frame #M. The three frames must be part of the same set and must fit perfectly on the stern keel. As usual, the first step is to fit the frame footing on the keel, after using my Dremel to start fairing the frame. Verification that it fits well on the keel. Then the sides are glued in position, in the cradle. The same is done for the following Frame "J". Finally, the intermediate parts are glued (after some fairing) and the two frames are positioned and glued together: It is all extremely delicate and I am not even sure this assembly will look okay with the rest of the hull and frames. The third frames "M" is glued as well without forgetting the intermediate parts and set in position as described above. We end up with something that looks like the picture below: It is all extremely delicate and the two openings for the guns must be carefully carved on each side. The part is now finished and I will post more pictures soon. Yves

You pulled that one very well. These kits are not easy to put together and your finished model is stunning. Yves

Yes, the infamous Supersized match..... Yves

Make sure that the "bucket" is absolutely waterproof. Resin manages to find the smallest hole or crack by capillarity. It is worse than water. Yves

Frames #61 to #70 have been completed. These are a lot more difficult and do require to be taken as a little project, one at a time. Consulting the plan and the Monograph helps tremendously, as well as creating a routine and sticking to it. All frames are made of cherry wood and finely sanded, oiled and waxed. The most delicate was #66, composed of 5 parts and rather difficult to fit it into the cradle: All the new frames are being dry fitted. No glue yet. Just 18 more to go..... Last segment of the keelson is not glued yet. Yves

Time to move to a larger scale.... Yves

Kevin, There are no silly questions. Thank you for following up this log. Yves

A few updates on this passenger car: I have just completed the ends. I gave up on the couplers provided by OCCRE, as they are not reliable, are not prototypical and makes no sense. Instead that Spanish car will be equipped with American knuckle couplers from Kadee. This way, I will be able to pull this car with an American engine and it will look better overall. I still have to paint the trucks, which is not an easy task as the wheels have to be protected from the spray. We are coming to an end for this kit. Yves

A little update, still working on the frames. It seems endless.... Frames #51 to #60 have been built. These frames are still part of what can be considered "easy frames" as they do not require very much of a fairing (inside and outside) and are composed of only three parts. At this point, Frames #1 to #60 have been installed and glued on the keel: I also dry-fitted the keelson. Yves