wefalck

I am soon going to experiment with this idea: I redrew the scroll-work in my graphics program on another layer over a photograph (that was corrected for the perspective distortion); this then will be laser-printed onto some clear decal sheet; on this basis I will build up the scroll-work using artists acrylic gel that will be coloured with some yellow acrylic paint in order to be better able to see the sculpting and as a basis for the gilding. I will not need this in the present case, but one could incorporate twisted wire or rope to represent such elements in the scroll-work. I will cut the 3D decal as close as possible to the scroll-work and apply it to the model. The scroll-work is supposed to be gilded on a black hull. I am still not sure, whether I should do the gilding before transferring the decal, or whether I should transfer the scroll-work before painting the hull, spray-paint the hull, and then gild the scroll-work. The latter sequence may ensure a better adhesion of the scroll-work. I would not like the idea of sealing it with some acrylic varnish all over, as this would change the shine of the black hull paint in this area.

Starch-glue, in Europe based on wheat, rather than rice, once was commonly used in all sorts of paper-craft and book-binding. As druxey noted, it is still used in book restoration and other kind of paper restoration, as the joints are reversible by soaking. The inconvenience in its use is that it needs to be freshly prepared, as it will go mouldy after a couple of days or so, depending on the environment. Also, the items glued have to be kept dry, not only because of a possible failure of the joint, but to prevent them from becoming mouldy. There are starch-based glues on the market, that have fungicides in the formula. As a note: the parboiled rice that is very popular with housewives wouldn't work very well for preparing the paste, as the starch that makes the grains stick together has been washed off. I don't think there would be much use for starch-glue in ship modelling. We tend to rely too much on the glue for keeping pieces together, without any mechanical interlocking. Also, the glued surfaces are too small for the size of the pieces and the possible force on the joint. Starch-glue works well for any kind of laminating work, e.g. paper on wood or cardboard, where the glued surface is large compared to the size of the parts. Once could use it also for dowelling work, to prevent dowels from falling out of holes.

@Bob, didn't notice this comment until just now: in fact, doing this with PVA, which I believe 'Titebond' is, seems to be fairly common in the German modellers community. You can use any temperature-regulated soldering iron for this together with a chisel-shaped bit in it, that allows you to press the plank in place. As I am currently not building in wood, I have never used the technique myself. @Dr Y, just search around the forum a bit; people use home-made clamps, push-pins, rubber bands, etc. depending on the location and accessibility.

I like in particular the 'antique' look of the brass-work etc.

That lady Doris here on the forum does wonders with a FIMO like material in terms of sculpting. The advantage over two-component epoxies is that you have an infinite open time until you take it to the baking oven.

Christos, drawings for galleys you kind find on the database of the Rigsarkivet-Orlogsvaervet (Danish National Archives - Naval Shipyard): https://www.sa.dk/ao-soegesider/da/other/index-creator/40/3353816/17149179 from No. G 4570 (scroll down) on. It is a bit tedious to work with the digital archive, as there is no preview and the drawings take time to load. There are dozens of drawings of galley from the 18th to the 19th century. In some cases also the way of how the stove pipe is led through the deck is indicated. Sometimes it looks a bit like the one HERMIONE, but in other cases it may have been something like a grating around it. The stove pipes would have been either copper or sheet iron, but in both cases rivetted. There was no welding at the time and soldering would have not withstood the temperatures possibly.

Check out Michael Mott's build logs, he describes a neat gadget to hold yards etc. for fitting out. I think it would be near impossible to do a good and clean job fitting out the yards when up - apart from a stiff neck and strained muscles in the arms ...

I don't know anything about this particular ship and how the rigging-plan was developed. However, running the main-stay down to the base of the foremast and having a fore gaff-sail together seems to me rather unsual. I would expect the main-stay to go down to the cap of the fore-mast. Then the gaff would clear the stay underneath. The square sail should clear the gaff, but would need probably some sort of brails to lift the sheets over the stay - the sheets are drawn above correctly with one leg hanging over the main-stay. In the current arrangement, when tacking, the fore-sail would need to be clewed-up to the gaff/mast and then the sheet lifted over the stay, which would be rather awkward. As only one sheet is drawn, it would need to be unfastened and fastened again. A rather strange arrangement. However, the early 19th century (which is the period of the ship in question, I believe), was a period of experimentation and not all arrangements were fully thought through, I suppose.

There are loads of 18th and 19th century drawings of galleys on the site of the Danish Rigsarkivet/Naval Yard. Perhaps one can find something there. I think chimneys did not swivel until tubular ones came into fashion sometime in the 19th century. However, hoods my have been turned by 90 degs.

No, these are plain wires used as raw materials for various purposes in horology. The key word would be 'bushing'. When a jewel in a watchplate is worn out, it has to be replaced. Jewels are not set directly into the watchplate, but with bushings. One can obtain tubes to cut one's own bushings or ready-to-use bushings. However, their interior diameter is relatively large compared to the outside diameter, so such bushings probably are not useful for this purpose here.

Probably closer to 2.5 mm. One needs to look at period drawings or originals to get the proportions right.

Thanks, Johann ******************* And a little speed update: the hawse pipes were made from some 2 mm x 0.5 mm brass tube. First the angle with the hull was cut and then an oval ring from 0.4 mm copper wire was soldered onto this surface. The part was then taken into a collet on the watchmakers lathe and drilled out to 1.7 mm ID. Finally, the funnel shape was formed with diamond burrs and polished with silicone burrs. The hawse-pioe then was cemented in place and the end above the deck ground down in situ flush with the deck. The cover on deck is an etched part I made already several years ago. It was cemented on using CA and then another funnel was shaped with diamond and silicone burrs. Hawse pipes ready to go on board Hawse pipes installed, but still some cleaning up needed

... that's why I put the comment in brackets My brass spur gear (for an anchor whinch) was actually about 8 mm diameter and he used an 8 mm end-mill to make a recess in a piece of scrap aluminium. I think with a piece of hard wood, a 3 mm (which is what he needs), and a jewellers piercing saw and a very fine blade it should work.

... in some parts of Europe trees growing in/near towns are pretty much unuseable as timber because of shrapnel from WWII aerial bombs etc. imbedded in them 😱

To follow up on post #20 - something an old mechanic showed me, whoe run the students' workshop at my university: take a piece of thick stock, somewhat wider than the diameter of the sheave, clamp it into the vise and drill a hole a few millimeters deep (preferably with a wood drill to give a flat bottom) with the diameter of the sheave, change the drill to the diamter needed for the axle, drill right through, take the piece out and with a piercing saw cut a slot all across the the seat for the sheave and beyond. Now when you clamp the piece in the vixe again, it will be slightly compressed and hold the sheave tight for drilling. (I love my watchmakers lathe and milling machine, for which I have collets and arbors, that can hold such small parts for machining without the need to make jigs ... 😏)

Well, then a rough estimate of the real block dimensions would be 4 mm long, 3 mm wide, and only about 2 mm thick. This means that the sheave should have a diameter of 2.5 to 3 mm and be only about 0.8 mm thick. There are very fine round files in jewellers' supply shops, but they are pricey and difficult to get. I think, if you are plan to stay in that business, the best thing would be to convert the electric into a simple lathe with hand-rest, using the horizontal stand as a starting point. There should be some examples for this on the Internet, or even here on the forum. For turning the grooves you then can use the back of a drill, ground to an angle, like a chisel and held in a pin-vice. I know you Americans have a somewhat strained relationship with China these days, but the Chinese are selling on ebay very primitive miniature wood-turning lathes: (Example from ebay offer https://www.ebay.com/itm/Basic-Edition-Micro-Lathe-Beading-Machine-Woodworking-Tool-Set-DC12-24V/153089968149?epid=9021229608&hash=item23a4df8815:g:5HkAAOSw~SNbQIdu) You can buy one for around 40 USD or use its design ideas for setting up your electric drill. I think, over here in Europe one can actually buy such sheaves from model supply houses. Not sure, though, as I would turn them out on my own lathe.

On a model you can reproduce this kind of spiral pattern by taking one half-hitch around the bar after another. By taking three lines in parallel you should get a pattern similar to the one on the top picture.

I am wondering about the dimensions of your sheave, i.e. 2 mm diameter and 1 mm thick. This is rather thick for the diameter or rather small for the thickness. Proportions change over time, but a relation of somewhere between 1:5 or even 1:10 seems to be more normal. In a sheave 1 mm thick the groove would be 0.5 mm deep, which doesn't let much much material for the axle. Kit blocks are not likely to be a good starting point, as the shell proportions are usually wrong, namely they are too thick. I would check against sources for the period of your model. Otherwise, yes the lathe would be the best option, a rotary tool the second best. For a working model you may want to look into some suitably coloured plastic, as this is easier to work free-hand than metal.

Actually Araldite normally keeps for many years. So either the ratio between the components wasn't right or it wasn't mixed thoroughly enough.

Copper ions (can) interfere with the polymerisation of cyanoacrylates, so its use is not such a good idea. Copper forms in ambient an oxide layer (that feels slightly 'greasy'). This oxide layer becomes easily detached, as the glue/cement adheres better to it than the oxide layer to the metal. So the copper surface has to be made bright immediately before glueing, e.g. by burnishing it with steel wool, and then degreased, e.g. by rubbing it with acetone. Then epoxi cement and contact cements should work. It may depend on the formulation of the epoxi, as copper ions can also interfere with that polymerisation. If your expoxi does not set, you may have used not enough hardener or there is the problem with copper ion inhibition. It is never a good idea to glue parts on painted surfaces. The bond will only as strong as that between the paint and the surface that is painted. I would glue parts, such as the gudgeons before painting. At least one should scrape off the paint at the place where you want to glue something.

Thanks for your kind comments ! ********************************** After weeks and months of drawing parts to be etched, I felt the need to apply my hands to something else then the keyboard. Also, I accumulated lots of little parts that at some stage need to go together. A step that I have been procrastinating, thinking that certain manipulations are easier to do, when everything is in pieces. When building a ship from scratch, deciding on the sequence of assembly can be crucial. So, the first step was to glue on the main deck, which had already been prepared a long time ago from a piece of bakelite. The holes for the various fittings where marked out over a drawing and then drilled. The translucent property of the bakelite is very helpful for marking out. Once glued on, the deck was carefully sanded to the contour of the hull. I spent a lot of time deliberating the best way to make the plating of the hull and the bulwark. The shape is quite simple, as the sides are vertical from just below the waterline (probably to facilitate the production of the armour plating that needed to be curved in only one direction). The original idea was to cut the plating in one piece from brass shim stock. This would have resulted in near scale thickness of the bulwark plating. I considered this too flimsy, even if the handrail was soldered on. Another option would have been to use 0.13 mm styrene sheet. Again I considered it too soft. Bakelite sheet of 0.1 mm thickness would have been closer to scale, but rather brittle. For practical reasons I decided to use 0.2 mm bakelite sheet. The layout of the freeing ports, the location of stanchions, the ash chutes, toilet drain pipes, and port-holes were drawn onto an expansion of the bulwark that was developed from the original drawings. The drawing then was laser-printed onto an overhead projection foil (remeber these ?). This foil was taped to a piece of bakelite sheet and the drawing ironed onto it, using what is called the toner-transfer methodBakelite sheet for the hull plating with layout by the toner-transfer method The plating was cemented to the MDF hull using cyanoacrylate glue (CA). I am not very fond of CA glue, but it forms secure bonds with bakelite. Hull plating attached On the prototype, the bulwark plating was attached to the hull by an angle iron (8 cm x 8 cm) running along the top of the hull. I simulated the vertical part with a 0.5 mm wide strip of self-adhesive aluminium sheet into which a row of rivets had been embossed. The horizontal part would disappear under a thick layer of tar-based paint that was mixed with sand and onto which sand was dusted to provide a non-slip deck. To be continued soon ...

Squaring up the edge of a plank, when it clamped flat onto a surface with a spacer is actually a common technique. I made myself a little tool for short lengths, but this idea can be adapted to longer lengths: Here I use sanding blocks, rather than a plane, which works better for smaller scales. Likewise, one could make a 'safe-edge' sanding block to bevel the upper edge of the plank. As to marking off the planks as described in the video, you need to have access to the inside of the hull. Could be done on a plank-on-frames construction, if you are working upright and not upside down. Though workmen prefer to mark off on the real thing, on a model you better make templates from tracing paper, I think think.

Gerhard, according to the dates on the files, it is about 3.5 years ago since I downloaded them. I did not keep the URLs. However, if you search in Google with 'Kameke 1837' they should come up. There were 10 files with the text volumes and lithographic tables at the time. The bibliographic references are: KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Sammlung von Zeichnungen die Einrichtung von materiellen Gegenständen der Preußischen Artillerie darstellend nach den neuesten Bestimmungen bearbeitet. Vte Abtheilung: Die Geschütz-Röhre und die Gegenstände zum Anfertigen und Untersuchen derselben.- 30 pl., Berlin. KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Erläuterungen zu der Sammlung von Steindruckzeichnungen durch welche die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie bildlich dargestellt ist. Ite Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Festungs-Artillerie.- 118 p., Berlin (Naucksche Buchdruckerei). KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Sammlung von Zeichnungen die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie darstellend nach neuesten Bestimmungen bearbeitet. Ite Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Festungs-Artillerie.- 25 pl., Berlin. KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Erläuterungen zu der Sammlung von Steindruckzeichnungen durch welche die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie bildlich dargestellt ist. IIte und IIIte Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Belagerungs-Artillerie und die Mörser-Lafetten.- 124 p., Berlin (Naucksche Buchdruckerei). KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Sammlung von Zeichnungen die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie darstellend nach neuesten Bestimmungen bearbeitet. IIte und IIIte Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Belagerungs-Artillerie und die Mörser-Lafetten.- 28 pl., Berlin. KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Erläuterungen zu der Sammlung von Steindruckzeichnungen durch welche die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie bildlich dargestellt ist. IVte Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Feld-Artillerie.- 163 p., Berlin (Naucksche Buchdruckerei). KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Sammlung von Zeichnungen die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie darstellend nach neuesten Bestimmungen bearbeitet. IVte Abtheilung: Die Lafetten, Protzen und Wagen der Feld-Artillerie.- 30 pl., Berlin. KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Erläuterungen zu der Sammlung von Steindruckzeichnungen durch welche die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie bildlich dargestellt ist. Vte Abtheilung: Die Geschütz-Röhre und die Gegenstände zum Anfertigen und Untersuchen derselben.- 159 p., Berlin (Naucksche Buchdruckerei). KAMEKE, H.F. (1837): Sammlung von Zeichnungen die Einrichtung der materiellen Gegenstände der Preußischen Artillerie darstellend nach neuesten Bestimmungen bearbeitet. Vte Abtheilung: Die Geschütz-Röhre und die Gegenstände zum Anfertigen und Untersuchen derselben.- 30 pl., Berlin. KAMEKE, H.F. (1847): Die Preußische Feld-Artillerie nach der Konstruktion vom Jahre 1842. Mit Berücksichtigung der neuesten Veränderungen bearbeitet.- 72 p., 72 kolorierten Lithographien, Berlin (B. Behr).

There are many more volumes, including lithographs, of the work by Kameke (1837) that can be downloaded from Google and/or archive.org.

What about making them yourself ? If you have at least a hand-held drill, this is not too difficult.