Mike Y

Thank you gentlemen. The prospects are good, tissues were clean. We are optimistic again. But this shook me more that my own cancer adventure last year. It does not feel fair for a 42 years young women.
Back to modelbuilding.

Well, I happened to be one of the three people (together with Herbert Tomesen and the late Cor Emke) who were responsible for the present design of the 7 Provincien, the ship on the stocks of the Batavia wharf. Regrettably the built was stopped a few years later as a result of a lack of funds. It was decided than and there not to apply the shell-first method, but to use a more modern way for safety. This was because the first effort to build the ship shell-first failed as a result of a lack of experience with the method. No criticism about the volunteers on the ship-yard, but they are not always as well informed as could be hoped for.
 
As a rule ships in the 17th century were built shell-first in Holland, although there are indications in literature of a different method of construction for the Rotterdam area. However no archaeological find has confirmed this so far, so about some aspects of this matter we are not quite certain. In the eighties, when I discovered the different methods described in contemporary literature, I tested both methods in model scale and both appeared to be successful. Maybe one day we are lucky enough to find indications of this deviating method somewhere on the sea bed.
Like you I am proud to see the beautiful ships that were made in Holland, in spite of the simple tools and the tough materials that were used. Modelbuilding is one way to spread the word...

Kurt, for the next few years it would be still in the building jig, at least until I plank it and install some deck framing. Too risky to remove until then, the hull will get skewed and frames will go out of alignment. When in the jig, the keel is hanging in the air, and the hull is fixed in place by gluing frame tops to the jig. For example, you can see it on this photo: https://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/topic/7297-oliver-cromwell-by-mike-y-148-1777-pof-hahn-style/&do=findComment&comment=436953
 
But if we just speculate and throw ideas around - I was thinking about a small building slip, like it was in real shipyards (wooden blocks and slippers under the keel). And a tiny supporting structure (not sure what is the name of it) on the planked side of the hull, that follows the shape of the hull underside. No supports on the bare-frames side. To make it work and avoid tipping over, planned to use magnets - one glued in between the frames, hidden under the planking, another is embedded into the supporting structure.
 
Here is an example from the maritime museum in Hamburg. With magnets, there should be enough support even without these tall vertical timbers that "hug" the entire hull.

 
This is just a plan so far, but since magnets will be totally invisible - I will glue them in strategic places just in case, maybe they will become useful later.
Magnet mount will also make it very easy to get the model out of the case, which necessary to show the model where two sides are very different (I will leave one side fully bare, and one side fully planked).
 

After few more dry fits and verifications, I made recesses and rabbets to hide the ends of "floor planking" and potential backing sheet on the back side of the case. So far I am planning to just have a bare wallpaper there, but if not - the recesses will allow to properly feet a sheet of some material (white acrylic or similar).
So now the best part - finish sanding / scraping. Mostly scraping - with rectangular objects it is a walk in the park, and yields a better surface without rounding:

Finish scraping with xacto blade, it is perfect for that:

 
Applying danish oil. Irregular grain pattern leads to slight "curls" when oiled, looks sweet. Picked danish oil instead of tung this time, tung oil sips too deep into the wood, is too dark for that case and takes forever to dry.

The case is dry assembled, and after some fine tunings and adjustments everything fits perfectly!
It has a bit more flex than I thought, 3mm plexiglas is not so strong. Who knew! I used some test pieces to pick up the glass thickness, but when you have a larger plane - it flexes differently. The photo is a bit distorted, it actually have just 1mm of sag in the front and no sag in the back  (there is a 20mm square pear stock there).
To prevent sagging, will add a reinforcement to the top part of it, which will lock the front glass frame with the front frame of the case.
 
Now I can finally sand, finish and assemble it. Will use silicone to mount the glass and epoxy for the joints. When the top part is done, will rebuild the base out of thinner plywood - the base is probably 5x heavier than the case itself  
 
Also not sure how to plank the "floor" of the case (flat surface where the model will be). Planking it with pear would be boring, but I am on the edge between a lighter colour (that willow I cut down might come in handy) or a darker one (walnut).
Aaargh, hate do to the colour choices!
 

Looking so clean and crisp! You and Mike (Stuntflyer) definitely share a style and a quality level  
Glad that you are back!

Looking so clean and crisp! You and Mike (Stuntflyer) definitely share a style and a quality level  
Glad that you are back!

Erik, thank you! Your build is one of my inspirations too  
 
Greg, thanks, that is a clean shot! Though so far it was actually easy to sneak on a good fit, since with wide Hahn spacing and no chocks it is easy to put a part to the edge of the next frame and mark a clear line. But time will tell  

Looking so clean and crisp! You and Mike (Stuntflyer) definitely share a style and a quality level  
Glad that you are back!

Looking so clean and crisp! You and Mike (Stuntflyer) definitely share a style and a quality level  
Glad that you are back!

Not a ton of progress this week.  I did finish fashioning and installing the boarding ladders and channels though.  I must say ripping the boards by hand out of sheet stock to make these parts is a bit of a pain in the rear.  lol.  Also, it was tough getting the pattern cut into the scraper to make the boarding ladder profile.  I think my limitation there was my lack of precise small files.  I deliberately made the filed notches in the channels that will house the chainplates narrower than they'll be.  I just wanted to get the notches placed correctly and the angles in, according to the plans.  I'll finish the notches up when I fit and attach the chainplates.
 
And lastly, I'm patting myself on the back.  My third photo below manages to capture the elusive and hard to photograph lower step of the Cheerful's boarding ladder (located on the wale and painted black).  Haha!
 
Erik

As always, thanks for the likes folks.  I finished a few different things over the last week.  I spent time shaping the rudder.  Using the plans I drew the lines that I would sand down to on the rudder faces and sides.  Doing this gave me the visual cue to not over or under sand.  Once the rudder was done I cut out the rudder port.  I made a paper template from the plans that I used to get the shape correct.  Next I made the top of the rudder post.  This took way more time than it should have.  I accidentally removed too much material from the laser cut piece.  So I would up gluing on a chunk of scrap wood to that piece and then shaping the whole thing again.  Sometimes it's the one little piece of wood that is the biggest pain!  The last thing I did was shape the 6 timber heads.  This was a bit nerve wracking as a newbie, but they turned out OK.  The photo below shows the tools that wound up working best for me (as well as a rough cut timber head before clean up).  For some reason, on any model I build, I'm most comfortable using either a #17 or #18 X-Acto chisel blade with no handle (rather than a #11 blade w/handle).  I know it's weird, but it gives me more control by holding the blade directly.  The overall height of the timber heads match the plans, but my angled faces are not as tall as the plans.  No big deal really since all 6 look the same.
 
The next thing I'll be working on is the boom crutches.  Wish me luck!  Haha.
 
Erik

Thanks, CiscoH, Håkan, davec and JJ, and all who are looking in and liking.
 
Yes, I like the "workaday" stowed look better than perfectly coiled lines.  The inspiration came from seeing how the working carronade on the Niagara replica ship had been tied down.   There is a photo of it earlier in this log (post #116), but here it is again--

 
My take on it is a little different (simpler to accomplish), but retains the idea of wrapping the tackle falls back and forth across the top of the carronade.
 
The 6-pounder long guns have been installed--


 
Now it's time to put the ship away again--


 
And continue work on Oneida's spars--

 
All for now,
Ron
 
 

Yes, Håkan, more practice!!
 
I had cut out the trestle trees, and glued the crosstrees down to a piece of paper, to "hold' them while I filed the tapered undersides.   But a nagging feeling that they were too big wouldn't go away.  After holding the topmast close to them, I was pretty sure of it.   I looked at some photos of other models and then got out Lee's "Masting and Rigging", and calculated the length of the crosstrees according to that source.   Sure enough, it appeared that I had made them about 50% too long.   While I love Petrejus' book, this is the second time I've gotten burned using his illustrations without checking the scale accuracy.   Although the caption for the crosstree illustration read "full size" (meaning full scale size), it was actually quite a bit larger.
 
Here are the new crosstrees, roughly shaped, compared to the previous ones--

 
I glued them down and tapered the undersides--

 
I cut out new trestle trees, and here they are along with the crosstrees, and a wrong sized trestle tree and crosstree--

 
The crosstrees need some more work, generally narrowing the depth and breadth a bit, and cutting notches for the trestle trees.  The trestle trees need deeper notches, and some further shaping, then I'll try assembling them and see how they look on the topmasts.
 
Ron  
 
 

Happy New Year!  Thanks CiscoH and jereramy, and those liking and looking in.
 
To replace my toothpick topmast fids, I filed a pair from brass--

 

 
Next these were blackened, along with some eyebolts, ringbolts, and four hooks that I need to finish the carronade tackle blocks--

 
Next task is the topmast crosstrees, following the illustration in Petrejus' book "Irene"--

 
I glued six blanks together so I could do the rough shaping for all of them at once--





 
When I was satisfied that the rough shape was close, the block was given an isopropyl alcohol soak to separate the pieces--

 
I notice some irregularities, mostly the right side end is a little "bulbous", and they look just a bit chunky to me, but there is still a lot of work to do on these: drilling holes in the ends, notching for the trestle pieces, tapering the underside, and refining the overall thickness and curves--

 
All for now,
Ron

Mast steps are not complicated, but struggling with pattern transfer. 
Feeling like I miss some obvious tricks? Even thought about making a miniature duplicator tool with toothpicks instead of metal pins
Would appreciate your advice!
 
First I tried to make patterns like on a full scale - by gluing small rectangles on a piece of card. That way works great for real boats, but is very awkward and potentially messy on a small scale.
But I like that tiny plastic vernier gauge! Got a few of those to measure spacing inside the hull without scratching it.

 
Then I just traced a frame pattern on a piece of card and eyeballed the other side. That is less complicated than I thought, but takes a lot of fine tuning (counter light helps too). But feels like an art rather than a reliable and repeatable method.
Though should admit - trimming and cutting card is quite satisfying!
Is that how everyone is doing it or is there is an easy way?   

Practicing the quiet modelling (in preparation for the evening sessions) - tried a coping saw instead of a bandsaw. The dust extraction problem solved itself, vacuum hose fits perfectly between the clamps:

Finally - the rough pear blanks are cut and I hope to shape them into beautiful parts in the upcoming days! 
I really aint much, but a little symbolic step towards the healthy hobby routine

Hmm, where was I? What is this thing? 

With an active family life and outdoor activities I barely had energy in the evening to plan the next step of the build. And while kids even nudged me to make some sawdust - the main problem was the planning. Planking does not take much brainpower once the markup is done, but now I need to make mast steps, breast hooks and so on - need to analyse plans, mark out locations, get the necessary dimensions, etc. These details are omitted in the Hahn plans, and I wanted to build the model after the British modifications (including the fore mast that was moved ahead two feet).

Just imagine - once everyone is asleep you open up books and plans, mark and measure and scratch your head, and in no time the brain just says "nah, lets watch some movie and go to sleep" 😇 
Next day you are really worried about mistakes the tired brain might have done, and so you get a mental block and put it on hold.
 
But now I am trying to break that barrier and spend some quality hobby time while family is away for Easter. Feeling very rusty, forgot a lot of things (including the location of some tools) and everything is slower than it was before. Also discovered that my Proxxon disk sander broke entirely (motor is humming, but not moving).
 
It was slow to start before and was a bit unstable (I think I bumped it during an apartment move), but after a couple of years of downtime it failed entirely. Could not find any obvious failure once opened it up, so really hope Byrnes shop would eventually reopen and I can upgrade to the sander I was dreaming about.

Shaping thick parts without it would be quite a challenge...

I have a shameful confession: since the beginning of the build, I've never actually read who Oliver Cromwell was further than a basic summary. "Some aristocratic British dude, whatever, I like the model". In hindsight that was not the smartest thing, it's like picking a rare name for your child without googling it first 🤦‍♂️
Over the last year I found more and more articles about him and his legacy, and it started to smell pretty bad. History (and the present) have had enough brutal authoritarian tyrants, and Cromwell was a pretty dedicated one. I started feeling shame and disgust when opening my own build log, like it's a dirty word that may be actually offensive. I hereby apologise to Irish for my ignorance..   Luckily, there is a way out without deviating from history - that ship was renamed once it was captured by HMS Beaver. The new name was very creative - "Beavers Prize" - probably to make sure nobody would contest the origin of the vessel   It's great! It has no relation to any historical figures, a bit humorous and may work as a conversation starter  The spelling is not so obvious (Beaver's Prize is also used), but I would use the simpler spelling with no apostrophe, same as on the original NMM plans.  So from now on this log is renamed accordingly.  Horrah to the Beaver!      There are a few modifications that need to be done. When captured, it was measured and the plans were drafted. While there, some improvements were suggested and then implemented: * Second double-level capstan (I guess capstans were like clamps - you can never have too many) * Improved lower deck layout * Fore mast moved ahead a bit * New galley stove installed   Quote from the Hahn's book "Ships of The American Revolution":   Suggested changes are drawn as a dotted line on the NMM plan:    I really like that changes, especially the second capstan - it would make the quarter deck a bit more interesting.   P.S.: the actual construction is going well, all treenails are in place and I'm sanding and scraping the internal planking. Will post photos once that phase is completed.

I use small pieces of index card held together with white glue. Just keep building them using small pieces of card. On some patterns like the mast step I'll have assembled 7 or 8 pieces of card. The unplanked side is a bit tricky. You can either extend the bulkhead all the way to the frame or stop where the planking would have been (leaving a gap). See Chuck's  Speedwell below. As you'll find, it is much easier to leave a gap then achieve a perfect mating with the planking!
https://modelshipworld.com/uploads/monthly_2024_03/forecastlebulkhead5.jpg.9ce18fb61c7a32f2595493a29fab12d3.jpg

Mike,  I'm glad to see you're back at it!  Your build was always one of my favorites.  I have the Hahn book on Ships of the American Revolution, so have always had an interest in Hahn's designs.  I too know the feeling of life getting in the way of my build.  Back when I took what I thought would be a short break from my Cheerful build, I had no idea it would be 6 1/2 years before I started working on it again.  When we're working on something that requires such precision and concentration, it's hard to have the energy a lot of times at the end of a full and busy day.  That said, I've always had the saying, action breeds motivation.  Sometimes if you can just find a little energy to sit down and start, the motivation follows.
 
Erik

Hello everyone,
Just a small note today, perhaps the information will be helpful for some of you.
The fancy moldings of the TRE KRONER are an important element, so I have been looking around to see if it is possible to get an ornamental scraper wich is more precise than I can achieve by hand with a file and saw.
After several inquiries, I ended up at the company MetallEhrnsberger in Teublitz/Germany, which also accepts such small private orders. I had to send them a CAD drawing of the desired profiles and of course select a material for the scraper, that was all I needed. I chosed 1 mm thick steel, the costs were €40 altogehter. I am very happy with the result. I couldn't have made the scraper that nice.
The material thickness of 1 mm also makes it possible to sharpen the burr several times if it gets a bit round.
I used boxwood as the material for the strips. I had sawn up a supply of it some time ago and left it to dry.
 


 

Matthias
 
 
 

Hello Everybody,
 
just a small update on the construction of the Quarter-Gallery.
I started with the horizontal frames of the construction and added the lower front-panel.

 

 

 

 

 

Having glued everything to the model, always checking the plans, I added the vertical parts and the seat of ease.
The corner, where the Quarter-Gallery touches the stern gallery is not correct yet. I think now it must be round and not flat. I will overwork that next. It is hard to see this on the plans or on the contemporary model, because it is almost completely covered with the sculpture of the two-tailed merman.
 


 

 

 
Matthias

Hello everyone,
The planking work on the hull segment is now almost complete. All the visible planks have also been nailed and the black surfaces such as the whales and bulwarks have been painted.
 

 

 

 

 
The template shows the position of the quartergallery and will later be used to precisely position the horizontal sections of the QG. The sets of drawings from the Danish National Archives are very accurately drawn. There are hardly any contradictions between the actual construction plans and the ornamental drawings. This is very helpful.
 

 
Here are the prepared parts for the next construction stages
 

 
The prospectus for the lower gallery windows follows next. It is moulded in advance with moisture and heat.



The first structural elements of the quartergalleries now follow. The curved frame elements form the horizontal structure. On top there will be the fancy moldings. These are curved and also jump back and forth in several positions. That will be fun. The surfaces up to the windows are closed in line with the shape and are later subdivided into individual fields, which are filled with ornamental carvings. The overall composition is very much the French Baroque style and differs a lot from englisch ships of comparable size and age.
 



Matthias

Hello Everybody,
 
the last weeks I was busy, planking the model. Bending and twisting of planks with dimenson of 2/13 and 2/11 mm was more challenging than I thought ist would be. The curves in the lower areas of the model are very narrow. Here you can see some pictures of the progress.

 

 

After this was done, I faired everything.
 



The colours will be like other contemporary models from the Krigsmuseet in Copenhagen. 
 
Model of CHRSITIAN DEN SIETTE
 

 
Model of FYEN
 
I decided to nail the bright parts of the hull.
 

After finishing this, I will paint the black areas of the hull an start building the stern and quartergalleries.
I already made the drawings of most of the parts and tested them on the model and prepared the wood to be laser-cut.
It ist all pear-wood I cut in a garden close to the place to our village. 
 

Matthias
 
 

As it is a holiday weekend I was able to spend a little more time on the model. I did cut out the boxing joint on the forward section of the keel with my small chisels but I wasn't happy with the result as I shaved a little too much off the 'tooth' (it probably has a proper name but I'm not sure what it is!) at the end. The temptation just to tidy things up a little is very strong - until you go too far! Consequently I remade that part of the keel again and redid the joint, this time taking much more care with the chisels and only working on specific sections of the joint at a time. The second iteration of the joint was much better that the first attempt and so I'll see how I go when I cut out the lower part of the stem joint before deciding whether this is a keeper. I used my mini mill as a spindle sander to help shape the curved sweep of the top of the piece.

Here is the second version of the forward section of the keel with the boxing joint.

I also cut out the lower and upper stem pieces and the outer keel post from the 12" stock. I experimented with tracing out the shapes on the wood and also gluing templates on the stock before cutting them out on the scroll saw. I'm not sure which is the most accurate way to use going forward but the cut out templates certainly seem to be easier to see, for me at least. I'm also finding difficult to judge how much excess to leave on the piece with the scroll saw - I realise you need to be close enough so you don't have to do too much sanding to shape but at the same time you need to have enough excess to make sure you are not going to end up with an undersized piece. No doubt I will get better at this when I start cutting out the dozens of pieces that make up the frames!

I also used some 6mm acrylic to make the support mounts for the stem and the stern. They may not be the prettiest supports ever but they are square and after lining the cutout with sticky backed felt a 12" timber fits in there nice and securely.

I think the next job will be to trim the keel sections to length and cut the scarph joint for the forward section of the keel.