Jerry

Hello Glenn...
 
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
 
Hope all is well/
 
Best,
 
Jerry

Hello Kevin..
Your patience is definitely paying off.  Looks to me like you're going to have a beauty on your hands in a little while.  It's something special to see your photos as they are informative, clear and very sharp.  It's a pleasure to see good work as yours.
Best,
Jerry

Kevin,
Ok, thanks for the information about the pegs.  
I made sure that the tails of the eyelets were into the steps so they do not show at all.  I hope this has been helpful.
Best,
Jerry

Hello Kevin..
If I understand your question, which I'm not sure I do, I secured the blocks to the bottom of the foremast and mainmast tops with eyelets and CA cement.  I had no trouble with any of the blocks pulling out during the rigging.  I have attached a picture of the way I did it.  Incidentally, once the top is in place I would run thread through the blocks as they will prove very difficult to rig if you wait to long to do it.  David, (Shipyard Sid) gave me this tip and it was very useful.
Best,
Jerry

Kevin,
Ok, thanks for the information about the pegs.  
I made sure that the tails of the eyelets were into the steps so they do not show at all.  I hope this has been helpful.
Best,
Jerry

Hello kevin...and welcome back to HMS Victory land.
 
Good luck and please keep going.
 
Best,
 
Jerry

Hello kevin...and welcome back to HMS Victory land.
 
Good luck and please keep going.
 
Best,
 
Jerry

Hello Tom.
 
Thank you for taking the time to visit my log.  I'm happy that you enjoyed the progress of my build of the Viking ship and now I may have you recipricate.  I've been giving serious thought to making Model Shipways Constitution my next build although I haven't made up my mind.  I have been eavesdropping on your site and I love what you have been doing.  It seems to me that Model Shipways puts out a nice kit.  So, as they say, tit for tat. perhaps.
 
Have a great weekend.
Best,
Jerry

Hello Tom.
 
Thank you for taking the time to visit my log.  I'm happy that you enjoyed the progress of my build of the Viking ship and now I may have you recipricate.  I've been giving serious thought to making Model Shipways Constitution my next build although I haven't made up my mind.  I have been eavesdropping on your site and I love what you have been doing.  It seems to me that Model Shipways puts out a nice kit.  So, as they say, tit for tat. perhaps.
 
Have a great weekend.
Best,
Jerry

Good evening everyone and hello from Jerry's drydock...
 
Except for a nameplate which I will make in the near future I am very happy to say that the Drakkar is sitting on its stand waiting for a display cover.  There really isn't more to express than I have in the past except to reiterate how pleasant it is to have made so many friends here on MSW.  I wholeheartedly want to thank Keith again for the accessibility to his log for without with would have made my build much much more difficult.  I also want to thank those who dropped in to comment during the build who gave me much encouragement to press on to the finish.  I have now completed three build logs on this site and I have immensely enjoyed producing everyone of them.  I snicerely hope that someone in the future will be able to use this log to assist them when building another one of these interesting ships. A few more final photos appear here for anyone's perusal.
I wish everyone the
best,
 
Jerry 

Good evening everyone and hello from Jerry's drydock...
 
Except for a nameplate which I will make in the near future I am very happy to say that the Drakkar is sitting on its stand waiting for a display cover.  There really isn't more to express than I have in the past except to reiterate how pleasant it is to have made so many friends here on MSW.  I wholeheartedly want to thank Keith again for the accessibility to his log for without with would have made my build much much more difficult.  I also want to thank those who dropped in to comment during the build who gave me much encouragement to press on to the finish.  I have now completed three build logs on this site and I have immensely enjoyed producing everyone of them.  I snicerely hope that someone in the future will be able to use this log to assist them when building another one of these interesting ships. A few more final photos appear here for anyone's perusal.
I wish everyone the
best,
 
Jerry 

Good evening everyone and hello from Jerry's drydock...
 
Except for a nameplate which I will make in the near future I am very happy to say that the Drakkar is sitting on its stand waiting for a display cover.  There really isn't more to express than I have in the past except to reiterate how pleasant it is to have made so many friends here on MSW.  I wholeheartedly want to thank Keith again for the accessibility to his log for without with would have made my build much much more difficult.  I also want to thank those who dropped in to comment during the build who gave me much encouragement to press on to the finish.  I have now completed three build logs on this site and I have immensely enjoyed producing everyone of them.  I snicerely hope that someone in the future will be able to use this log to assist them when building another one of these interesting ships. A few more final photos appear here for anyone's perusal.
I wish everyone the
best,
 
Jerry 

Good evening everyone and hello from Jerry's drydock...
 
Except for a nameplate which I will make in the near future I am very happy to say that the Drakkar is sitting on its stand waiting for a display cover.  There really isn't more to express than I have in the past except to reiterate how pleasant it is to have made so many friends here on MSW.  I wholeheartedly want to thank Keith again for the accessibility to his log for without with would have made my build much much more difficult.  I also want to thank those who dropped in to comment during the build who gave me much encouragement to press on to the finish.  I have now completed three build logs on this site and I have immensely enjoyed producing everyone of them.  I snicerely hope that someone in the future will be able to use this log to assist them when building another one of these interesting ships. A few more final photos appear here for anyone's perusal.
I wish everyone the
best,
 
Jerry 

Good morning, Lawrence and many thnaks for your visit and complimentary words.  We are looking forward to the holiday and hope the weather will cooperate.  Even though it's June, you know, better than anyone else, that I'd better have some warm clothes with me.  Talk to you right after we get back although i will have the notebook with me in case anythng pops up.  Be good and my best to Bernie..
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Popeye...Happy to hear from you and that youi now know where the bow of the Drakkar is.  It takes a dagon to help one decide.  Have a happy day.
Best,
Jerry

Good evening everyone....
Another step in the constructon of the Drakkar has been completed today.  I have finished the 28 oars and added a touch of my own to keep track of the seven different sizes.  When the oars were deployed the shortest of the seven sizes were laid out at the widest part of the hull, the center.  Then the sizes were progressively larger as they went toward the bow and the stern.  Therefore when the oars were all in place they all reached the surface of the water at the same time.  To keep track of the different sizes I painted the paddles ot the four oars of the seven groups a different color.  It is really not my intention to put out the oars since the sail is unfurled and the oars will be stored in the two racks specifically designed for this purpose.  A few pictures of the oars construction follow.  By the way, I took CaptnSteve's advice and taped the ends of the dowels so they wouldn't split when I cut them...and they didn't...Many thanksCaptnSteve.   I hope everyone has a great evening and welcome any comments anyone m,ay have.
Best,
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Good evening everyone....
Another step in the constructon of the Drakkar has been completed today.  I have finished the 28 oars and added a touch of my own to keep track of the seven different sizes.  When the oars were deployed the shortest of the seven sizes were laid out at the widest part of the hull, the center.  Then the sizes were progressively larger as they went toward the bow and the stern.  Therefore when the oars were all in place they all reached the surface of the water at the same time.  To keep track of the different sizes I painted the paddles ot the four oars of the seven groups a different color.  It is really not my intention to put out the oars since the sail is unfurled and the oars will be stored in the two racks specifically designed for this purpose.  A few pictures of the oars construction follow.  By the way, I took CaptnSteve's advice and taped the ends of the dowels so they wouldn't split when I cut them...and they didn't...Many thanksCaptnSteve.   I hope everyone has a great evening and welcome any comments anyone m,ay have.
Best,
Jerry

Hello Everybody...
I'm happy to report that I have finally completed the running rigging and therefore all of the rigging.  Although the Viking Ship doesn't compare in complexity to most other models there were some spots that were a bit tricky due to "balance" and took some thought to finally figure out.  To be specific, there are several pairs of sheet lines emerging from the sail that head toward cleats that have to be constatnly adjusted in order to prevent any particular line from going slack.  So instead of just two lines to consider when tightening or loosening one has to think about 6 of them.  I finally hit stride when I started with the mid-sail sheets and worked my way down to the bottom.  
 
I now have the oars to make and paint and the same with the shields.  Speaking about the shields I made a very interesting discovery yesterday while researching them.  Until then almost every photo or drawing of the Drakkar I have seen showed the shields to be painted with some type of "cross" design.  But according to the "Viking Answer Lady," the shields mostly were of solid color, usually white, blue, yellow.  The hubs were metalic, usually copper colored with a thin black ring separating the hub from the body color.  Apparently, the shields were displayed by alternate color when the Drakkar participated in any type of ceremony.  I plan to follow this method.
 
In the meantime, I am pleased to post some photos that will bring me up to date.  I would appreciate any thoughts from others regarding the shield colors or on any other aspect of my build.  All comments are very welcome.
 
Best,
 
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Hello everyone..
 
Well, I began building the Viking Ship the last day of April and I'm happy to say that on this first day of June the Drakkar, except for mounting it in a display base, has been completed.  I sincerely enjoyed this build for a few reasons.  Of course I must admit, compared to the other ships I have built, this one was the easiest.  Afer all, in only took about a month to build.  The hull was far from simple but the rigging allowed the construction of this build to go quickly.  I enjoyed the challange of the clinker hull  (lapstrake) since it taught me another method i have never experienced.  When handling the 30 shields I felt as if I was sifting through antique Viking coins and that I was momentarily wealthy; and,  so all in all I'm looking forward to mounting the display and getting on to something new.  I will make one last post after I return from my holiday of two weeks when I hope to have the ship properly mounted.  Here are some pictures of the model with its dragonhead and shields mounted in place.
 
My best to you all,
Jerry

Hello Steven..
I sincerely appreciate the time you took to address my concern regarding the Viking Shields.  As you can read from previous posts of mine, I do indeed agree with you that the shields were probably displayed in alternating solid colors.  Yellow and black certainly appear to be colors of choice but according to other authorities  (The Viking Answer Lady, for example) other colors like white may have also been used.  I'm much obliged for your mention of articles where shield information could be found.  I must admit, however, that I have already reviewed the information in these articles and found much about the physical properies of the shields but very little regarding their decoration or color. Many thanks again for your interest and comments.
Best,
Jerry