wefalck

That's quite a high-tech stand !  ... somehow it reminded me of those eerie-looking outside braces doctors use to align broken legs ...
 
Perhaps the camera is challenged with the illumination and contrasts, but I found that the underwater body doesn't quite stand-off from the mounting board. It seems to make it difficult to appreciate it's wonderful lines and the artful planking job.

I am not an expert on the Vickers, but I think your photographs shows a tripod-mount as 'heavy' machine-gun for land-use. There, the tactical situation is different in the sense, that when you combat attcking infantry, you only need small changes in elevation, as the enemy is approaching or for spraying enemy positions at greater distance, you don't want to change your elevation once you are sure that you hit those positions. Hence the elevation screw. 
 
In naval combat situations, your own boat and that of an enemy are moving fast, hence you constantly have to adjust the elevation to keep the target under fire. I think naval light guns, including machine-guns had some sort of friction-brakes on the pivots and horizontal bearings. One sometimes sees little hand-levers with which these brakes can be adjusted or completely locked. These friction-bearings probaly are just split rings that can be pulled together with a screw that is operated by the hand-lever.

That's quite a high-tech stand !  ... somehow it reminded me of those eerie-looking outside braces doctors use to align broken legs ...
 
Perhaps the camera is challenged with the illumination and contrasts, but I found that the underwater body doesn't quite stand-off from the mounting board. It seems to make it difficult to appreciate it's wonderful lines and the artful planking job.

Well, we all seem to suffer from more or less from the same problem: the narrative I hear from time to time goes "why don't you do something useful with your fancy tools, such as making jewellery?"
 
While I am quite capable of repairing things around the house (and do it, given enough urgency and inconvenience  ), I prefer the creative aspect of 'making' things over 'fixing' things ...

That's quite a high-tech stand !  ... somehow it reminded me of those eerie-looking outside braces doctors use to align broken legs ...
 
Perhaps the camera is challenged with the illumination and contrasts, but I found that the underwater body doesn't quite stand-off from the mounting board. It seems to make it difficult to appreciate it's wonderful lines and the artful planking job.

Despite the continuing cold weather and many hours discretely studying my next build I did brave the worksop to finish the display cradle. I wanted the model to be lightly clamped by the cradle at deck level so I turned some eccentric rings to act as clamps. I also machined an "o"ring groove in the rings to provide a soft bearing surface.

I also machined a spigot at the lower end of the supports to fit into a cross brace. The cross brace is necessary to prevent the supports splaying under the weight of the model. The cross braces were machined from 1" x 1/4" aluminium bar and polished to finish.

The base was given 5 coats of wipe on poly and wire wooled between each coat. The supports were then attached to the base using 6mm screws.


Then it was time for germania to say bye bye to the building frame that she had occupied for the best part of 3 years.

The critical element of the move was the tolerance between the model and the keel slot. Fortunately I got the cradle dimensions right.


The position of the clamping rings was also a bit tricky but this also turned out well.



And finally the most critical check------------

That was a bit too close for comfort - about 3/8"
 
Now just a few finishing touches required - a good clean, make the pig stick and burgee and the ships flag. Then it will be time for a major photography session.
 
I must think about starting my next build log.
 
P.S. Damn - I just remembered that I installed the for top fore mast back stay as a single fixed back stay when it should have been a pair of running back stays. Im sure no one will notice but that's not the point!!!!!!!!! 5 more blocks required and some rigging rework.
 
 
 

The question is also of what period we are talking. CUTTY SARK for instance has a release gear fitted, which allows to safely let go the chain without using a sledgehammer. This kind of release gear, where the chain is hooked up to a rotating bar with thumbs sticking up, was used until stockless anchors came into use that pull up into the hawse-pipe. The bar has a lever at one end that is rotated by hand to lower the 'thumbs', thus relasing the chains.

I am wondering, musing about the physics involved, how the recoil would be distributed ... part of it obviously would act backwards (depending on the type of locking mechanism) and part of it sideways ...

The question is also of what period we are talking. CUTTY SARK for instance has a release gear fitted, which allows to safely let go the chain without using a sledgehammer. This kind of release gear, where the chain is hooked up to a rotating bar with thumbs sticking up, was used until stockless anchors came into use that pull up into the hawse-pipe. The bar has a lever at one end that is rotated by hand to lower the 'thumbs', thus relasing the chains.

How big is this thing actually?
 

Today I made good progress on the bullwarks. All are drawn. The last things missing are the slits for the backbone and the mast. They will be added in he next session 

Well , as promised, these are the latest photos of my miniature Maxim. Still need to make the operating handles and the support brackets for the MG post. From top to bottom you have : mainspring housing, sights, receiver and water cooled barrel. On the left are the double trigger. Following are the charging handle and the belt feed tray. Finally the MG mount assembly. Love this job.

 

My point was that the self-levelling of certain acrylics are not very good, which is related to the viscosity of their medium and hence also the capability to keep the pigments in suspension. It seems that the Valejo hand brush thinner overcomes just that problem, if it congeals wiithout drying and initiating the cross-linking of the acrylics particles. Acrylic paints are actually very complex gels (in the physico-chemical sense).

Thanks very much Elmer and Ken, and also everyone for the likes. I'll add a little more "soot" to the Chimney prior to installing.  In the meantime …
The Loading Docks
While waiting for the additional shingles to arrive, I have made progress by constructing the Loading Docks. These are all made in basically the same way, with a couple of variations.
 
All the docks have a paper template that the dock is built directly upon. Here is the Left Loading Dock template taped down to my glass plate and ready for action.
 

 
Some guides made from scrap wood are then attached with double sided tape and the frame is built up.
 

 
The decking is then added and nail holes applied before giving the deck a final light wash with the black ink/alcohol mix.
 

 
Finally, dock legs are cut to length and attached to the underside of the frame.
 

 
The Right Loading Dock is made the same way, only this time some bracing is added to the legs.
 

 
The Barge Derrick Dock is similar again. A hole is left un-planked to receive the derrick later on.
 

 
The legs under the larger left-hand end of the dock also receive some barnacles around their lower sections. These were represented by a mix of three different shades of ballast.
 

 
The Sales Office Porch is once again constructed in the same way, this time with the addition of some lattice work. (Propped up on one of the other docks in this photo to show the lattice work.)
 

 
The Main Dock, together with the Foundations for the main buildings are constructed at the same time in the same manner. In this photo, the framing is complete along with a series of joists for the Main Dock.
 

 
A staggered "shift of the butts" was used on the Main Dock decking, except where the Dock will be covered by the main buildings. The Main Dock also receives a set of railway tracks as part of the construction. I couldn’t source separate track easily, so I bought some FlexTrack and “deconstructed” it to remove the tracks from the plastic ties. I also blackened the tracks to remove the bright brass look they came with.
 

 
That completes the Loading Docks. We now move on to some more of the out buildings….
 

Thanks Gary.
Details, details, details…
While waiting for the additional shingles to arrive, I have begun work on some further details. First up is adding the Pitch and Tar Tank and it’s platform. A 1:1 scale drawing is provided as a template upon which the platform is built. A couple of scrap wood guides are first attached to the template with double-sided tape.
 

 
Three support beams are then cut to the size specified on the drawing and these are also attached to the template using double-sided tape.
 

 
The five joists are cut to size and glued atop the support beams.
 

 
We are then instructed to cut 10 deck boards from the 1/32” x 1/16” material. As can be seen from the first picture above, the drawing shows these 10 deck boards in place. The only problem with this is that the completed platform measures 7/8” x 7/8”. 10 deck boards that are each 1/16” wide are only ever going to cover 5/8” (or very slightly more allowing for a little size variation and potential small gaps). In the end I needed 13 boards to fill the space, with the last one trimmed back a little. I checked the size of my completed platform against the drawings, and it matches these. It is also a good fit for the size of the tank. No big deal, but there is definitely a discrepancy in the drawings/instructions/materials here.
 
Anyway, once the platform is completed, some bracing is added to all sides. Here is a picture of the completed platform.
 

 
The Pitch and Tar Tank is a resin casting. This is our first foray into the plethora of resin and metal castings included in the kit. It is prepared by painting a light undercoat and then dry-brushing a darker brown over the top. It is then given a dusting of dry chalk powder to finish.
 

 
Subsequent to this photo being taken, I decided to give the entire tank a dunk in my Alcohol/Ink mixture and was quite pleased with the result.
 
Here are a couple of pictures of the completed structure in place atop the Warehouse roof. Note also the addition of support blocks around the platform legs. Prior to final placement, the metal pipe was prepared, blackened and attached to both the tank and the roof. As with previous metal fixtures, black paint was added to the epoxy glue to represent tar and pitch where the pipe enters the roof. It has yet to be finally finished off with some chalk to dull it down a little further.
 

 

 
The Chimney and Stacks for the other roofs were then prepared. These are all white metal castings. With the exception of the Chimney, they are simply cleaned, blackened, polished, and dusted with some grey chalk powder. The Chimney itself has a multi-phase preparation. An undercoat of AK11007 (Rock Grey) is used in place of the Pollyscale Concrete called for in the instructions. This represents the mortar between the bricks. AK 11087 (Scarlet Red) is then used in place of Floquil Scarlet Red and dry-brushed over the top. The aim is to colour only the bricks, leaving the mortar seams untouched. This project has been my first real attempt at the dry-brushing technique, so I’m learning as I go. From normal viewing distance I think it looks okay – the macro lens of the camera is a little brutal though. The top of the Chimney is painted with AK11021 (Basalt Grey) in place of Floquil Grimy Black and finished off with a dusting of black and grey chalk powders to give a “sooty” appearance.
 

 
All of these parts, except the Pitch and Tar Tank pipe, have now been set aside and will be fitted in place once the Yard Master’s Office roof has been completed and that building attached to the Warehouse front.
 
Next up, I’ll be starting work on the loading docks…
 

Thanks again for all the kind comments and the likes.

The Warehouse
Not much work in the Shipyard over the Christmas break, but back into it now. The next order of business is the construction of the Warehouse, which is attached to the front of the main building. All of the techniques used in the construction of the main building are repeated here, so I won’t go into detail. The exception is that the Warehouse doors are steel, so a good rust covering is achieved by applying a combination of two orange chalk powders (one light, one dark) over the brown base. The effect seems to be quite realistic (at least to my eye).
 
I didn’t appear to have any of the stained strips left over from the main building, so had to raid my stash to find some substitute timber. I found some of the correct width, but a little too thick. That was soon remedied by passing them through my thickness sander. Of course, even though I applied the same technique, this batch came out a little differently to my first batch. Unfortunately, I wasn’t as careful as I should have been in the application of glue, and I ended up with a number of glue stains on the walls. I gave them a sand, some further treatment with a wire brush and applied more chalk/alcohol mixture and that made them a little better.
 

 
Subsequent to this photo being taken, I gave them another go with a wire brush to bring them closer in tone to the main building.
 
Here is a close up of the left wall with the rsuty steel doors.
 

 
The walls were then glued together and the whole assembly glued to the front of the main building. The roof was tar papered in much the same way as the rear dormer and the roof was fitted after a view block had been inserted.
 
Here are few overall shots to show progress to date.
 
Rear Wall:
 

 
Right Wall:
 

 
Left Wall:
 

 
And Front Wall:
 

 
The gap is where the Yard Master’s Office will go, and that is next up…

Thanks again for the kind comments and all the likes.

Roof Construction (continued) 
Shingling continues….
 
The first task for the other side of the roof was to complete the Dormer roof with Tar Paper and glue into position. In this photo, I haven’t yet finished the weathering of the tar paper. Shingles were then placed as per the previous side, up to the level of the chimney.
 

 
The Chimney was then placed temporarily in position while the flashing was added on the top and sides of the chimney.
 

 
The chimney was then removed while flashing was added to the lower side.
 

 
Shingling then continues, working around the flashing, up to the level of the Cupola, where the lower flashing for it was added.
 

 
And shingling continued up to the ridge line, again with a special row added along the top edge. In the photo below, you can see that some additional weathering has also been added to the dormer roof.
 

 
Ridge capping was then added to the main roof and the two dormer roofs. The Cupola roof was also built and shingled at this stage, but I was so engrossed in what I was doing that I forgot to take any pictures of the construction process.
 

 

 
Rafters were then added to the two large gable ends, and to the two dormer gables.
 

 

 
Rafter “tails” were then cut and added to each side of the main roof.
 

 
As well as to the sides of the dormer roofs.
 

 
That completes work on the roof for now. There will be more details added a little later in the build, but for now we turn our attention to the construction of the Warehouse and the Yard Master’s Office….
 
 

Well, I made my decision.  I pulled the planks off the hull and will replace them with 1/16 thick strips.  As I was advised, the thicker strips will bend, without breaking, to the extent I need.  So far, I’ve installed 9 strakes and the results look much better.  I’m going to start from the keel for the next strakes and, looking at the planking so far, it will be interesting when the two sets of strakes meet. 
 

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to plank the hull.  (Three attempts have been removed and replaced.) I’ve now got 7 strakes installed on the starboard side and I see problems with the overall look of the bow.  The planks look OK (1st photo), but they are rising way too fast (second photo).  I’ll need to use at least two drop planks in order to finish.  The real solution is to use edge bent planks.  However, I can't get the 1/32 inch thick, ⅛ inch wide cedar planks to bend enough; and the planks don’t hold to whatever bend I do achieve.  I think my only solution is to order some sheets and cut strips out in the shape I need.  
If anyone has any advice, I’d appreciate it.

 

Before I started planking the hull, I wanted to put in the wood work around the deck.  There is no rail.  I used walnut, which is the same as the lining of the hatches.  I’m happy with the result and think, so far, the hull looks a lot like the photo in the book.  I still have to apply some Wipe-On Poly; and now the hull planking can now commence.
 

I’ve decided to try something different for my next model.  I acquired a book called, “Pilots: Volume 1. Pilot Schooners of North America and Great Britain”, editor and principal author Tom Cunliffe.  For some reason, I grew attached to these boats; and specifically, the boat, Mary of Norfolk, that is pictured on the dust jacket.
There is evidence of Pilot Boats operating on the East Coast from the early 18th century.  In Virginia, pilots were independent and competed with each other for customers.  Therefore, the boats had to be fast enough to get to incoming ships and thus be first in offering their services.  They also needed  a low draft in order to navigate the various river inlets flowing into the Chesapeake Bay.  The boats  lacked shrouds and bulwarks.  In fact there are no lines ‘holding up’ the masts.
The problem is that there are no plans for Mary of Norfolk.  But the book does have plans from the late 1700s and early 1800s that have these same characteristics.  So I’m going to commit the ‘sin’ of making a model based on an artist’s painting.  
The watercolor below is from the dust jacket and was done by George Tobin in 1794.
 

WARNER, W.E. (2022): Warships of the First Schleswig War (1848-1850): The Rise of Steam Naval Combat.- 209 p. (independently published through Amazon), ca. 32€.

Since 1460 the Danish Kings ruled in personal union as dukes in Schleswig (as a fief of the Danish Crown) and Holstein (as a fief of the German Confederation). This constitutionally complicated situation was exacerbated by the fact that German and Danish populations were mixed in the north of Schleswig. The efforts of the government in Copenhagen to tie both duchies more directly to the crown in the mid-19th century led to counter-movements by the German population, which culminated in the first of three wars in 1848, the 1st Schleswig-Holstein War (known in Denmark as the ‘Three Years' War`).
Since there are only a few works on the subject and these are usually kept rather short, such a 200-page book seemed a desirable addition.
But even at first glance one can see that it was cobbled together rather hastily. There is at least one, if not several, typos on every page that should have been easy to spot when proof-reading, if not already with the spelling-checker in the word processor. A striking example is the legend on p. 13, in which Flensburg appears in Danish spelling once as Frensborg, twice as Flenborg and once each as Flesborg and Felsborg, sometimes in the same sentence ... In addition, there are incomplete and incoherent sentences on practically every page. Some paragraphs and whole chapters look like automatic translations from Danish or German. For significant stretches the text actually reads like German or Danish with English words.
Speaking of 'Flensborg': it is not entirely understandable why the Danish spelling of the place names was predominantly used, even for Holstein areas, where this may have only appeared in official documents in Copenhagen. A Danish-German-English comparison table on page 202 indicates that for place names in the text predominantly the German version was used, which is de facto incorrect.
It is also frustrating that the text and action maps do not always match, i.e. the text mentions places that are not marked on the maps, so you have to constantly consult an atlas to understand the text.
Such a lack of formal care usually undermines any confidence in the reliability of content. The historical overview then indeed suggests that the author only deals very cursorily with the complex history of Schleswig-Holstein and has not developed a deeper understanding of the mixture of conflicting interests. However, I did not check the factual accuracy of the historical outline against the literature available to me. As a curiosity, Appendix 4 could be mentioned, in which the Danish Espignol is described, but a quick Internet search reveals that the author did not bother to really understand the function and arrangement of this volley gun.
The title of the book suggests that it is about the warships used in this conflict and we are lucky that the Danish archives are quite rich on virtually every ship named in it, including various of those used by the German forces, as they were either of Danish origin or ended up in Danish hands. I would have expected to see this source material mentioned and perhaps referenced for easy look-up. Instead, the ships are only illustrated by way of drawings that presumably are based on an interpretation of this archival material and reproductions of some historical works of art that were often made decades after the event. Similarly, the armament of the ships used is discussed only briefly, with the exception of the espignols mentioned above, which also appear to have been used abord of Danish ships.
Interesting is an appendix that discusses the housing in Copenhagen of PoWs and civilian detainees, including the seamen from German merchant ships taken as prizes or seized in harbours. Hulks of old navy ships were used for the purpose, as in the days of e.g. the Napoleonic Wars.
The list of references in such works is always interesting to peruse, as it shows how thoroughly the author has consulted the contemporary and secondary literature. It is quite striking that little German literature was used. For example, there is a sub-heading for ‘official Danish sources’, but noting corresponding for German sources (which admittedly are more scanty due to war losses).
One can easily see from that that the book was obviously hastily pieced together from various contributions in a Facebook forum (mentioned in the foreword) without having undergone a thorough editorial processing (NB, the author put proudly his PhD onto the front cover, but if it were his thesis, the supervisor would have turned it back to him after reading a couple of pages …).
The final question: “Is it worth buying the book?” can be answered with a pretty clear ‘no’. The book has a lot of potential, but would need to be revised very thoroughly in terms of content and form. 

Concerning the submachine gun that fired around the corner: it is a German MP40 and apparently this kind of barrel extension was actually experimented with for urban warfare during WW2. Today, with video-cameras, GPS etc. for aiming it might work ...

Concerning the submachine gun that fired around the corner: it is a German MP40 and apparently this kind of barrel extension was actually experimented with for urban warfare during WW2. Today, with video-cameras, GPS etc. for aiming it might work ...

Or, perhaps we are the intelligent ones that survived ... 😇
 
Considering the 'fully comprehensive insurance'-attitude of modern attitude, the future development of our gene-pool is quite worrying  🤔