gieb8688

good evening everyone
 
the Bowsprit is presently being built up and seams to be going together ok
i have asked a question about the size of the Martingale/dolphin striker in  the relevant subheading
 

Good evening everyone
 
today the main parts of the bowsprit were made up, a 3mm block is required under the mast support to get the requited angle 33 degs i think

good evening everyone
 
mess about with the fore mast and getting some of the extra bits in place, plus more practice at soldering
 
the radar cage is my design as a improvement over the kit and a bit of a copy of @schiffebastler, lol after all its his fault im doing all this extra work
 

good evening everyone
 
its getting to the stage now where everything i do is being remade (hopefully better
 
Foremast
on the lower part of the mast there is a coller  and 4 holes need to be drilled into it, and  pintles inserted  through which a wire hoop is fitted, this has hooks hanging from it an supports the cope coils from the pin rails  (Just below the awning)

this is the kit way

i can do better i said

 
the searchlight platform fitted

 
the radar according to the kit is hung below  main top in fact it is not and forms part of the planform
also other things are changing as i go along like extra holes on the top for lines to pass through

 

tonight she looks like this

 

 
why are parts of the mast painted white?
 

good evening everyone
 
after several attempts to make a pin rail i have one that is very nearly how i would like it, i have increased the belaying pins from the kit qty 7  to 19 and keeping the footprint the same size, it could possibly be made a bit narrower 
under the pin level i have managed to get the right amount middle pullies from 7 to 12 but the ends should be 5 where as i can only get 2 and possibly 3, i may run with this for now 
 
i have now decided to build up the foremast, to ensure my colour scheme works and to get an idea on how the revised rigging will work

this is the main mast 

 
so if i remake the foredeck ones, i have a real issue with the fittings already in place, boy its going to be cramped up there

 
one good thing is that not everything is secured in place, and those that are have been pinned
 

good morning everyone
 
i was recently given access to a lot of Amerigo information and there is a lot of it, 
of course most of the drawings relate to masts and rigging, and pin rails of course
 
these are provided as part of the kit 

 
i remade one pair to replicate a build here on MSW  to double the size
but it seams i am still out by 50%
 
but
 
 

good evening everyone
 
i must be 80% complete on the deck fittings now, and half of them are now fixed into position, 
i have thrown my toys out of the pram quite a few times over the 1/1 deck plans are they dont bear any resemblance to the instructions and certainly not the ship its self, going to interesting when it gets to the rigging as the plans are about 2/3 the scale of the 1/84
 
most of the kit items are being adapted to take more belaying pns, but in the same size  carcass 

 
 

Good afternoon everyone
nothing much to write about on this build, its just a matter of keep adding bits to it, hopefully i will attract new followers when it comes to masting, and making my own rope and sails
but for now its more brass, wheelie bins and some sunshine

in my time working with wood,  varnish has been this 'soft' finish to me.   when I worked in a cabinet shop back in the '70s,  I worked with lacquer,  and haven't turned back since.   it is a hard durable finish that resists most minor dents and dings.  great for me,  since I probably manhandle my models more than most.  it still is something to look into......experiments are kind of my thing   
 
didn't get to the model as much as I wanted to yesterday......but while I was at my desk,  I did a bit more than pay attention to the computer   when I assembled the .50 cals,  I just centered everything,  using bits of brass to create a locator pin {there are holes molded into the parts}.   but after painting them and setting them in the carriage,  I noticed that they don't look as straight as they could be........they are good,  but I think they can be better.  even in the holes of the cooling shields.......you can see right through them....there is no evidence of a gun barrel    I have another set........and so,  the second attempt begins.   finding suitable diameter brass rod was not a problem,  lengths were cut and fitted,  and the cooling shields were added to the gun part.

....leaving enough to put the muzzles on

when they were assembled,  they were painted in Testor's Gunmetal,  rather than flat black.  I still will dry brush them lightly with flat steel afterwards and I painted the carriages and gun placement tubs in the Army green.  the props will remain in the bronze color,  but I lightly painted them with bronze to freshen them up,  and to paint the nut and ring in the back.

 

 
the comparison doesn't show too much of a difference.......other than the absence of daylight through the shield holes

 

 
which is which?  they look straighter........the cooling shields have a backbone.  the test is bittersweet though........because it's too bad I can't put them all on the model    {ohhhhh..........such an evil thought I am thinking  }
 

Continue with rigging work...
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Happy modelling...

the stuff I used came from a rattle can.......I've never tried a varnish before.   does it give a hard finish?  
 
I'm sure some were wondering why I was on during the work week.......I'm usually a missing link    I wasn't feeling up to snuff,  so I stayed home,  since I had enough 'protected' time to use  {I can use it and it won't count against my matrix}.  so I called in and went back to bed......later on I sort of poked around.  the pull got to be too much........so I painted the upper part of the hull.   the weather being what it is,  I just laid a layer of newspaper over my seat and sprayed it........put a fan in the window to exhaust the smell {for the admiral}.

there are a couple small imperfections that I have to fix.......I'll just decant some paint and touch her up later.

 

one imperfection can be seen at the stern........I was a tad to high with the masking.  the other one is on the same side further up......surprisingly,  it's hard to see.......just a bit of over spray.  the masking must have pulled away on me  

...a slight refine of the bow.  after masking,  I gave a shot of red along the masking,  before I shot the green.  I feel better about the bow with the way she looks now    in using the resin,  I probably should have laid a primer coat first.  the red has definitely calmed down......the wrinkling {which I noticed on the bow as well} is over 90 % gone........I'd call it a win!    when I can give her the once over,  then the hardware can be installed......and then let playtime on deck begin!   only one of the many panel joints along the hull skin shows up....the others are either very faint or totally hidden.  it on the bottom,  so I can live with it.   my week end starts........I'll have more for you when I get back to her!

CHAPTER 5. Marking Out the Plating.
 
Unfortunately, with their full lines and slab sided hulls, models of Great Lakes ships can look just like what they are: a block of wood.   Before beginning this project many years ago, I decided that the model must include an accurate depiction of hull plating, both to add interest and accuracy.  The need for this has interrupted progress on the model several times  while I tried out and abandoned different ideas and plating materials.  I now think, or rather hope, that I have found a solution and will cover this in a future chapter.  Before beginning actual plating, however, the hull must be Marked Out.
 
Marking Out was the ship design office’s name for arranging the individual hull plates on the plating model.  That’s right, I said model.  BC (Before CAD) a half model was carved and the individual plates inked to scale on the surface.  A Takeoff of the plates could then be made and a bill of material created to allow the steel to be ordered.  One contemporary author has written that the draftsman’s skill was judged by the amount of scrap created in building the ship compared to his bill of material.
 
From the plating model a Plating Expansion Drawing was also created for use in the shipyard.  The plating expansion drawing shows the true location of each frame and vertical plating joint on the X (horizontal) axis but the GIRTH of the hull at each frame location on the Y (vertical) axis.  It, therefore, shows the same information as the plating model but in a two dimensional format.
 
Here is my copy of the bow section of the original plating expansion drawing for. Benjamin Noble:
 

 
The vertical stem is not distorted as it’s “girth” is equal to its vertical height but as we move aft it bulges upward as its girth increases.
 
In marking out the hull for my model, I am going to reverse the process used by the ship’s designer.  Rather than use the model to create a planking expansion drawing, I will use the drawing to mark the plates on the model.  It is highly unlikely that my model will exactly match in all three dimensions that carved for the ship over 100 years ago.  First, I used digital information, a table of offsets, to create a lines drawing then I used the lines drawing to carve a hull. Regardless of my skill or that of the original designers our results will differ however slightly.   With this in mind the plating expansion drawing becomes a guide, not an exact design document.
 
I started the process using a homemade arbor, an inverted U, to mark selected frame locations; more closely spaced at the ends than in the middle body.  Here the two half models worked to my advantage as I could lay the centerline surface of the hull on a flat surface.
 
I then used Tick Strips, narrow strips of paper to record the girth dimension of each strake of plating at each of my selected frame locations and these were transferred to the model.
 
From my canoe restoration days I had saved several long strips of clear grained spruce.  These were ripped into battens with a cross section of 1/8in x 1/4in  From another project I had a drawer full of 3/8” very fine steel nails. The idea was to tack the battens along the hull at each frame location and mark out the strakes.  My collection of tools for doing this is shown in the first photo.
 
For the most part, my system worked well and I gained confidence as I proceeded.  As you can see, the plating makes a sharp turn near the stern and I broke several battens.  While some points didn’t line up, in general things followed the drawing.  I was also pleased to see that a number of surfaces that appeared difficult to plate worked out quite nicely in 3D.
 
It was not necessary to mark individual plates within a strake as almost all are a standard 24ft long, 3in to scale, so once the registration of each strake is determined one plate follows the next.
 
Roger
 
 

I thought I'd do another quick update as I've managed to put a little colour on things.
 
Before paint, all the areas which would be under colour were first brushed with a little polyurethane varnish to prevent the paint soaking into the timber and looking grainy. For paint, I've used Humbrol 25 Flat Blue and Vallejo Flat Red. These are just brushed on by hand. I've purposely gone a little into the rail area so I know there won't be any areas I need to later touch up. You will still notice some areas where the channels will be fitted. I just want a solid wood - wood connection with no varnish in there.
 

 
 
The rails are now added to the sides, making things look a little tidier. The sections over the cannon ports are part cut through with the laser, so I just snip them out.



 
 
Fenders fitted:

 
 
The last thing I've done is to get some paint on the quarter galleries and stern, prior to be doing the decoration within the next week. My next update should see things looking quite different.


 
 
Until then...
 
 
 

Morning!
 
I was hoping to have more to show you, but finishing off the hull underside to get a nice even and homogenous surface really is a labour of love. Nonetheless, here's my work so far. The main wales are now fitted to the model, after a 30 minute soak in hot water for the forward half. Positioning this is very easy as it simply follows the line of the lower outside pattern parts that were fitted earlier, and covering the first two laters of later cut planks. The wales are pinned in position whilst they dry. This is left overnight as pear can expand quite a lot when soaked.

Once dry, the wales are glued with PVA and pinned in place. 

 
 
After fitting the main wales, a narrower and thinner wale is added to their upper edges. This is supplied in halves.


 
 
The inner stern upper counter and stern fascia are now fitted. Both these have inner and outer panels. I bevel the edges of these slightly as they butt up against each other. Some minor measurement is done to make sure the parts are central.


 
 
Now it's the turn off the quarter galleries to be fitted. The core of these are some MDF frame parts.

 
 
These are now fitted. Before gluing, they are trimmed at the rear end to the size of my particular build, and bevelled to match the angle of the stern fascia. The edges are bevelled to accept the exterior parts. This will be explained in the manual, and it's dead easy. All of these parts are supplied with extra material so there's no need to worry about things not fitting. Note also the small ply part (51) between the frames. This is there to get the angles of the frames to the hull, correct.

 
 
 
Now the gallery frames are fitted, the model is masked up so I can spray the wales and the inside of the upper quarter gallery areas. I used Plastikote aerosol to do this as the coverage is excellent and is ok straight onto timber.


 
 
The stern upper counter and fascia outer panels are now glued onto the hull. Note how the outer fascia now creates rebates for the window glazing parts.




 
 
The quarter gallery window areas are constructed in the same way as the stern, with an inner part fitted first. Again, these parts have a little extra on the front and rear to cater to individual builds, and there will be little to nothing needed to be trimmed along the upper/lower edges. A thick pear 'roof' is then bevelled to the engraved line and these are fitted to the top of the quarter galleries.




 
 
 
The gallery berthing panels are now added below this.

 
 
 
 
MDF parts are now used to construct the lowest areas of the quarter galleries. These are assembled to each other on the model (but not glued to the model just yet), then set aside to dry. They are then shaped to match the gallery, checking progress by test fitting to the hull. Once shaped, some pint is scraped from the wales and the sections are glued into place.


 
 
 
 
Out comes the waterline tool again. Checking this against the hull profile so both the prow and stern are at the same height, the line is added and the model masked again. More sanding, filling is then done. This took me about 4 days to get into a position where I was happy enough to paint.


 
 
 
Plastikote White paint is now added. This is done in thin layers and more rubbing back and filling will need to be done to get a smooth, even surface. It is tedious, but the results pay off.

 
 
 
The last task I did was to take the bow rail patterns and soak these before clamping into position on the hull so they can dry in shape. 



 
 
 
With these taken off, the hull can now be selectively varnished in places before applying the red, blue and black exterior panels. You'll see that in my next update.
 

You'll be able to see into the cabins via the cutaways in the quarterdeck:
 

 
 

thanks Lou........thanks to those who hit the like button    I was a bit bummed about the dead rattler,  the darker color might have looked better,  but the lighter color will highlight added detail.  I still intend on trying to harvest whatever I can get out of that can.  not a lot of progress of late.....the admiral was adamant on the lawns getting their first mowing.  I agreed......they were beginning to get a bit shaggy     anyway...........
 
I did get 'round to assembling the .50 cals.......happy to report that enamels will stick to this type of plastic.   the base of the 20 mm and the .50s were sprayed too

 

I'll do some dry brushing.....some form of weathering.  I still have another set of .50 cals....in case something breaks.   the deck was marked off for the planking........but I switched gears.  to move forward,  the hull needs to be painted and hardware in place.   the hull was sanded to remove all the 'hairs' that the resin raised,  and to finish off blending in all the panel joints,  so they will be invisible after paint.  when ready.......and with a nice sunny day here finally.....the hull was brought out to the garage,  and the bottom paint was done.  first coat was laid down........allowed to dry for a couple of hours,  and then I gave it a lighter second coat.  that's when I got scared...........the second coat caused the first coat to become active again,  and it began to wrinkle around the stern area.  hoping it would settle down,  I left it to dry.  it did settle down,  but it left the appearance of wrinkled scarring.....faintly,  and enough to feel it.  does it cause a problem........in reality,  no.  to think of these boats in dry dock,  receiving a new coat of paint from time to time,  scrapping the hull and repaint might leave the hull surface in this condition.  I would imagine that the hull was not as smooth as a baby's bottom.  what I wasn't happy with,  was that a couple of the joints are still visible.....not by a lot...but not as I would have liked.

the hull and rudders

 

with the masking tape removed..........

I think I should have simply stayed with the chine for the bottom........I may change this

 

seen in these pictures is the panel joint visibility.......these are the worst ones.   we'll see what happens when the paint is fully cured.

The artist was george Chambers. He died in 1840 and Donegal was still in service at that time so it is a contemporary painting.
There aren't that many good detailed contemporary images of boats being handled so I thought it worth posting.
 

Little update to show how I tackled the coppering on the next phase.
after 5 rows I temporarily pinned a piece of spare lime allowing it to follow the hull naturally. It also helped to match up the rows to the stern and bow. Leaves me a few stealers to fill in. 
 

 
 

Well another week and a great couple of days in the great British summer I have completed the first side ! I have learnt soo much so my port side should be even better ! 

Lovely day in the sun, think it’s finally getting there with the coppering ! 

Spent the last few days making up some of the deck fittings, grates, ladders. Didn’t use the suggested 3x1mm walnut for the ladders as I thought it was too thick. Used some 0.5x2mm instead. 
 

Think I am going to stain the deck as I am not too happy with what I have done for the ‘nails’ I used Indian ink, have any of you any suggestions ? I am going to try a watered down walnut on the fittings to finish.
 
Looking at the quarter gallery next, I have temporarily pinned the rear as the instructions, does this look about right ? Just before I trim the two top edges. The cables are for a set of candle flicker bulbs. Thanks Chris
 

Had a great day yesterday as it was chucking it down I spent most of the day until early evening finishing off the second planking. What a feeling ! It’s like a major milestone I didn’t think I would get to. It will need a little tidying up, filling etc. I have learned so much and on my next build will definitely be better.
 
What do most if you use to fill the walnut ? Be interested to know.
 
Mext will be the round house’s for the front. 
 
Thanks Chris

Hi I acquired my Agamemnon kit from Jotika a few years ago. They are actually only 10 minutes away from where I live in Droitwich, really useful when looking for replacement bits and pieces. John is really good and has helped me out. Quite often taking the time to show me around the factory and the new products and improvements they are bringing in. And taking a look at the completed models in the showroom gives one a feeling of awe.
 
Well initially me not not being totally prepared to be honest the build struggled or should I say I struggled. Now a few years later having a major declutter in my hobby shed I have reinvigorated my initial passion to build a scale model ship. I know it’s not the easiest kit to start with but with perseverance and help I am sure I will finally get there, even if takes a few more years.
 
What has helped is the fantastic members and their build logs, without these the kit would still be in the box. I can only thank the members for their time and commitment it must of taken to compile the posts. I only hope that my meagre attempt might help another builder.
 
Well the sunshine has spurred me on and I have now second planked  one side and about a quarter of the way through the other. The hardest part has been the gun ports as you can see I still have a little making good on these. I would like to suggest to Caldercraft that they look at pre formed ply section  like the Victory kit. It would make the build a lot easier for us newbies ! 
 
Sorry if I have blurbed on a bit but but I hope my log will help someone who has been going through the same issues as me, well here’s a few pics to start. My only hope for the next few weeks is to find the stand as this has disappeared from my shed or no doubt as the norm been thrown out by mistake.
 
Thanks all Chris

Finished!!  Kit bashed Mantua-Sergal Cutty Sark.  12 years of part-time labor of love.  Modified per Longridge and Underhill.