dvm27

Outstanding!

In memory of the late, great Roger Ebert I give your movie and ship's boat two thumbs up!
 
Greg

This is an admirable attempt to create the waterline with planks of differing wood species. I've only seen it done by very experienced modelers before (Hahn, Frolich for ex.).

Thanks guys, but who said I only have 2?
 
The 3rd section of the platform needed more detailing, now I can move on to adding detail to the riding bitt's.
 

 

 
 
Remco

Contemporary photos of a NMM model I'm currently working on, HMS Speedwell,  clearly show the fashion piece as Druxey has modelled it. I am currently working on this area and am constructing the fashion piece in two different sections, in effect building out the rebate . The end result will resemble Druxey's model but without the difficult task of creating the double rebates fore and aft. Very few navy board models were accurately framed and I suspect the square tuck work around was yet another convention to make the model builder's life easier. I certainly agree overlapping the transom planks with the side planking would be a heck of a lot easier!
 
Just to reference a point Chuck brought up regarding Harold Hahn. Harold was an amazing ship modeler, a pioneer who influenced modern scratch building probably more than anyone else of his generation. But he freely stated that many of the choices he made with regards to construction were conventions to suite his own taste and did not always represent full size building practice. Some have criticized him for this but he never tried to pass off his work as 100% authentic. When I built my first Hahn-style model I thought I was building a replica of the original. I was, in fact, building a replica of a Harold Hahn model. There's no way I was ready to build a fully framed model at that time and I'll forever be greatful to Harold for introducing me to scratch building.

Hello, Following the bow
soon
Isalbert

1:60 HMS Naiad 1797
Part 147– Installing the Wheel 1
Posted 8/29/12
 
Its been a few weeks since the last update – a lot of summer chores had to get done.
 
The next major milestone is to get the quarterdeck framing finished back to the bulkhead that separates the captain’s quarters on the upper deck and to get the wheel and its ropes installed so the decking aft of that bulkhead along with the other work in the cabins can be completed. That part of the upper deck framing needs to be left open for the rigging of the steering gear..
 
The first picture shows the next five beams aft of the capstan installed
 
 

 
The carlings for the hatch coamings between the capstan and the wheel are also installed, as is one half of the simple upper deck partner for the mizzen mast. This has been bored for the steering rope but not yet for the mast. The rope is for the steering gear, which is one half rigged below the upper deck aft.
 
The next picture shows a closer view of this.
 
 

 
The starboard half of the mizzen step will be left off to allow visibility of the sheaves for the steering rope that are fitted right below it. The inauthentic plank endings in this picture will be covered by the captain’s cabin bulkhead. They had to be installed this way (and treenailed) so the beams above could be installed.
 
The wheel was made some time ago. The next picture shows a step in the modeling of the wheel support stanchions.
 

 
Stanchion patterns were pasted to a strip of boxwood in line with a centerline that had been marked (with the compass). The next picture shows the boring of the bearings in the top of the stanchions.
 
 

 
This sequence assured that the bearings would be centered on the strip. The stanchions were then cut out on the scroll saw. The next picture shows them glued together with a paper joint to permit their final shaping.
 
 

 
A short bit of dowel was placed between these parts in the bearing recesses to maintain the alignment for the final shaping.
 
The next picture shows the wheel mounted on the finished stanchions.
 
 

 
The wheel/stanchion assembly was glued to what will be the central deck plank. After this glue had set, two copper bolts were CA glued from the underside of the planking up into each stanchion for strength. The excess plank will be cut off later before this assembly is installed.
 
The next picture shows the assembly set on the deck beams.
 
 

 
Once this is installed the next adjacent planks will be slotted to take the steering rope. This cannot be done until the grating hatchways structure just forward of this are installed.
 
The next picture shows the coamings and head ledges for that structure being glued together.
 
 

 
Both these assemblies are still loose. The coaming structure will need to be finished, rounded up and have its gratings installed before final attachment. The plank under the wheel has been cut to size on its forward end, but still needs to be marked and cut on the aft end.
 
Stay tuned.
 
Ed

Hi again to those following this log -
 
Progress has been a bit slow the past two weeks.  Actually, it went OK, but last week I got to do another site visit to two boats still in the marina, one with the rig set up, and the other fully uncovered.  It turned out that a significant amount of work had to be redone because of the new information.  More on this later.
 
The greatest progress was on the hull.  With the pieces together, as they were last time, the surface could be smoothed, hardened, and smoothed again.  Sanding continued down to 600 grit before the first of what turned out to be 6 layers of primer was applied and sanded down to 1000 grit.  The waterline for the color separation had been marked with a simple pencil holding jig before the upper and lower hull pieces were glued together, and this line was preserved and redrawn as needed during the priming process.  The lower hull was masked at this line with tape, starting with 1/16" width at the line, then wider to cover the lower hull.  The deck was similarly masked, starting with thin tape, but then switching to paper toweling held in place by tape.  Once everything was set the color coat, a deep blue, was sprayed from a rattle can.  Several light coats were applied, given a final sanding, and the final color coats applied.
 
After drying for a full day two white stripes were applied just above the color separation line.  These were 1/16" wide striping tape from a company called "Sig" and ordered from a hobby supply house.  They are quite opaque, are self-adhesive, and paper backed.  Once the paper was removed the stripes were carefully applied as straight as possible.  Then they were checked repeatedly and adjusted.  There is a small window of open time when the stripes can be adjusted up or down as needed.  I used pencil erasers to do this so as not to mar the hull paint.  Similarly, a 1/32" wide stripe was applied near the top of the hull following the sheer.  This is the logo of the Swan boats, with the arrowhead and tail cut from the wider tape.  The arrowhead appears on only the starboard side.  On the port side the hole for the spinnaker pole gets in the way.  Once in place the hull was given several coats of clear gloss finish to protect it and secure the stripes.  Here is how they came out -
 


 
Once the hull had dried completely I turned to the cockpit.  The first technique to master was the non-skid surface.  I tried some silkspan which a fellow modeler sent me, as well as tissue papers and other films, but none would adhere to the compound curves necessary.  I finally went with acrylic matte paint, as several of you suggested.  I got a series of 1/32" masking tapes and laid them out on the white background.  Then the non-skid areas could be painted.  This worked reasonably well, but some of the paint came up when I went to remove the tape,  Ultimately, it became necessary to carefully cut along the edges of the tapes before removing them.  Then I repainted the edges of the non-skid areas.  This looked fine, until I went to see the boats and found that the color was wrong.  I matched what I saw in my photos, but had not counted on the differences in light and how the color came through in the photos.  Using a "color preview" set from Benjamin Moore I was able to identify the actual tone and hue.  This was made up in a small sample, and the non-skid areas were overpainted the correct shade.  On the deck the hinges and latches for the hatches are cut from chrome foil and outlined in white. 
 


 
The boat designers chose to make a small nod to earlier ship construction with bench surfaces in the cockpit made up from wooden strips with 'caulking' lines between them.  These were replicated from a product called "Micro-wood" which is a very thin paper-backed veneer.  It is so thin that it can go through a common ink-jet printer.  I first laid out the design of the benches in the computer and tested size and shape by printing out the design on a sheet of paper.  When it was finally correct I taped a piece of the micro-wood over the spot where it printed out, then ran it through again, printing out the design onto the wood. The inked caulking lines were incised into the wood with the back of the tip of a #10 blade guided by a metal straightedge.  This essentially tatoos the ink into the wood while scribing grooves that can be felt.  Here is the setup -
 

 
Next on the construction list were the winches that sit in rebates in the bench backs.  The dimensions were taken from the catalog of the Harker company, whose products are specified for use on the boats.  They were turned from clear acrylic rod to match the catalog images and photos taken on the boats.  There are three pair, and none are alike.  All are made from black carbon fiber, but the ones furthest aft are somewhat thin with chrome self-tailing tops.  The middle ones are thicker, and have no self-tailing feature, just a chrome socket for the hand crank.  The ones furthest forward are thinner, self-tailing ones, but have not been turned yet.
 


 
Another surprise during the site visit was learning that the forestay furling fitting sits in a well at the extreme nose of the boat.  This is easy to do when the actual boat is hollow, but not so easy in the solid hull of the model after a lot of work has already happened around it.  The well was drilled very carefully, painted, then a plastic plate drilled with seven holes was glued in place to represent the fitting.
 

 
So, until next time, here I am, contemplating the work done and the work yet to do.  The figure is properly to scale, so the size of the boat can be better judged. 
 

 
Aloha
 
Dan
 
 
 
 
 

Bollard and hawse timbers continued...

...............
 
 
              see you soon friends
 
rekon54

Have finally made some progress on my longboat build.
 
The windless has been completed and installed. To this point I have used kit materials for the build, but decided to use boxwood for the windless barrel. I think I got much sharper edges with the boxwood. The rails that mount the windless are not vertical , so I added mounting pads to the rails. I have seen this feature in photos of contemporary drawings and models. The handle is made from a piece of 3/64 inch square pear.
 

 
Next the mast was made so the final seat with mast support hardware could be completed. I wanted to install real sheavs in the mast so the three slots were cut. The mast was then tapered to final size.
 

 
The next photo is of the mast with the block support bands installed. The bands were created of kit brass strip. The strip was annealed and formed arround the mast. The ends were silver soldered together and the hole fof attaching the block drilled. They were then epoxied in place.
 

 
 
The final seat with mast support hardware was completed and installed. The seats will be colored with some very dilute golden oak stain to help accent the scribed lines.
 

 
 
Mike
 
 
 

Contemporary photos of a NMM model I'm currently working on, HMS Speedwell,  clearly show the fashion piece as Druxey has modelled it. I am currently working on this area and am constructing the fashion piece in two different sections, in effect building out the rebate . The end result will resemble Druxey's model but without the difficult task of creating the double rebates fore and aft. Very few navy board models were accurately framed and I suspect the square tuck work around was yet another convention to make the model builder's life easier. I certainly agree overlapping the transom planks with the side planking would be a heck of a lot easier!
 
Just to reference a point Chuck brought up regarding Harold Hahn. Harold was an amazing ship modeler, a pioneer who influenced modern scratch building probably more than anyone else of his generation. But he freely stated that many of the choices he made with regards to construction were conventions to suite his own taste and did not always represent full size building practice. Some have criticized him for this but he never tried to pass off his work as 100% authentic. When I built my first Hahn-style model I thought I was building a replica of the original. I was, in fact, building a replica of a Harold Hahn model. There's no way I was ready to build a fully framed model at that time and I'll forever be greatful to Harold for introducing me to scratch building.

Aft Athwartships Aft Cabin Bulkhead
 
This bulkhead was made in similar fashion to the preceding one. The only differences are in the height and width, with the outer panels significantly narrower due to the width of the hull at that point. The doors and central panel are the same sizes as the forward bulkhead (camera distortion makes them look different to each other) :
 


 
  Danny

Thanks so much guys.
 
The second part of the fore platform is taking shape. The planking is treenailed, the scarph joint is simulated
 

 

 

 
Remco
 
ps Piet it's not on the drawing table yet....

Wonderful. Karl. I love the way you've included all the foremast spars and such.
 
Did you ever discuss your finish? It looks very natural.

THE BOAT


of the Royal Yacht HMY Caroline


part 2


After the first part of the boat was a true blockbuster, the production company decided to make a second part, and thus to present the estimated audience to them.

And here he is now, with the subtitle


- The equipment -

Under the watchful eye of the director  the next award suspicious clip is created


Here again comes the equally remarkable hostess with the drinks and chips and the incredibly large ..........................................eyes

What you believe in an family safe film to see??


But now .......... the light goes out and the lecture begins ..




The raw material for the shafts and rudders is ready
 
 
 



The blank is made
 



The preparation for the handles starts
 
   
 



The Doll Rundlinge be prepared
 
 
 



cut rudder posts
 
 
   


Now in the lathe
 
 
     



The lathe work is completed
First fitting fits .................looks good
 
 
 
 



Preparation of the rudder


To this, the cut pieces are boiled about 1 hour and mounted in a mold and dried
 
 



Now fit the bent rudder blades with shanks
 
       



Everything in boat
 
 




The first of four lifting eyes
 
   


The boat hook
 
 



the bailer
 




finished





CUUUUUUUUUUUUT



The lights go back on ...................... the movie is out

When I go out there, the Girl with here big ....             eyes (yeah) give me a small card ........
on their information line here.............. Phonenumber  ........................................... *LOL* .. ...

I finally found my way back to my workshop. Real life, other projects and a bit of modelers block got in the way. I finished beam 11 with the hanging knees and now I moved to the bow section to built the fore platform.
The footwalling already has it's final finish so the bare wood looks light in contrast.
 

 

 
Two more platforms coming up...
 
Remco
 
ps Ben, nope I'm not a brain surgeon, nor something alike  ;-)
 

Jim: once you've made a successful cast timber, you won't look back. Except, perhaps, unless you make two right-hand ones instead of a left and a right pair!

Terrific fix and beautiful model, Ron!

1:60 HMS Naiad 1797
Part 138–Stern Galleries 4 –Quarter Piece Figures
Posted 6/18/12
 
The ratio of hours spent per cubic inch of wood has been skyrocketing lately. The work is still being driven by the necessary construction sequence. As I mentioned earlier, I want to finish all the work that requires the hull to be upside down before returning to the detailing of the quarterdeck, so this meant doing all the stern detailing earlier than expected.
 
The first picture shows the stools and rim for the port quarter galleries being installed.
 
 

 
The next required timbers are the quarter pieces, which need to be in place before the quarter gallery windows are done. To do the quarter pieces I wanted to have the quarter piece figures carved so all this could be fit up together.
 
The next picture shows the final (I think) design for the quarter piece figures.
 

 
Several versions of these figures have been developed and some carved and fit up. In this picture, patterns for the figures for both sides have been pasted to pieces of European boxwood and the shapes cut out on the scroll saw.
 
There is no decoration plan for Naiad, so these figures are speculative. Naiads were fresh water nymphs so I wanted the figures to appear young and graceful. I looked at a lot of 19th century romantic artwork featuring mythological nymphs before settling on a design. In a previous post I showed an early version of the figures to be used toward the center of the taffrail. Those will be redone.
 
In the next picture these have been glued to a wood block with a layer of paper in between to allow them to be removed easily. Carving has begun. The plan was to carve these together to assure that they were at least similar.
 

 
This approach worked well. I had also made rough mockups of the taffrail figures using epoxy modeling compound. This was helpful in determining the amount of relief needed in various places on the figures. For the final carvings I started with the faces and if they looked Ok moved on to areas that needed to be deep. Both rotary tools and small carving tools were used.
 
The next picture shows one of the figures pasted in place temporarily on the starboard quarter piece to check for fit.
 

 
The figure is not finished, but the back has been sanded back to fit against the taffrail and post. The next picture was taken at the same time.
 

 
This picture helps give an idea of the proportions. I resized these a couple of times. There is a cap rail to be fitted on top of the taffrail. The figures hand will rest on this. The next picture shows the figure on the other side being fit in the same way.
 
 

 
The next picture shows the stern with both figures further along and pasted in place again. There was a lot of this back and forth.
 

 
In the last picture the figures have again been returned to the wood block for more detailing and polishing.
 
 

 
Hopefully the final refinements on these will get them to a finished state.
 
Once these are installed I will probably move on to all the windows. I’d like to do all these at once – rear and sides.
 
 
Ed

Hello,
 
Foremast, Foretop, Bibbs, Rubbing-paunch
 
Karl
 
 
 
T e i l  23

I had a little fun with the oars.  I laid out all eight oars in the boat prior to shaping and found it a bit overwhelming.  I decided to go with four oars, instead.  The red looked a little boring to me so I added a white stripe for contrast and applied the same decorative medallion found on the rudder to the oar blades.
 

Thanks for looking in again John, Druxey, Adeline, Ben, Allan and Pat.
 
 
Right on the waterline Ben. The way it's been drawn in TFFM leads me to believe it's rebated, though it isn't mentioned in the text.
 
Hi all,
 
There are three Bands around the upper section of the rudder to strengthen it. These were hammered on hot on the real ship and not bolted, although I don't know how they would have done that with the lower one - the rudder is thinner in section at that point than it is at the top. I silver soldered the two top ones and just epoxied the lower one.
 
All the pintles, bands and spectacle plate have been epoxied in place - they will also be "bolted". The epoxy makes a bit of a mess, especially when you make a slip with the toothpick. It's easily cut off after 15 minutes drying time - a lot better than trying to wipe it off when wet ... that makes an even bigger mess   .
 
The hole for the Tiller has also been cut in - this hole tapers from 9" square to 7" square at the aft end - quite a trick to get right. I made the taper on the tiller as well to ensure it will fit later on.
 





 
  Danny

......
 
 
            rekon54

You can't beat drill bit city for selection and price. They all dome on a 1/8" shank which works particularly well on rotary tools.
 
https://www.drillbitcity.com/Default.asp