popeye the sailor

poking my head in here Rob and marveling over the progress you've made.........very nice indeed! mast and sails look superb.........just hate to be you when it comes time to terminate all those lines I know few folks that do it this way........I'd be too concerned I'd lose track. very well done!

it always a treat when I poke my head in the scratch build forum and I see an update from you and your fabulous ship your work is so amazing and always brings a smile to my face.......I even show the admiral your work. darned if she doesn't say........."so, what's the matter with you!" I could never emulate such beautiful work.........your pieces are so delicately made I am though.........hard pressed where you put the shield in post #380?!?!?! you said "bow decorations"...............where did you put it? I hope you are well and your problems are light {or on the mend......you had been ill a while ago}.

awesome progress Michael.......she's look'in really good

your progress so far is some really superb work........gonna be a smooth hull when your done awesome stuff!

thanks CDW.........appreciate ya say'in so she don't look like much right now......but once she has some paint, she'll start to look like something. I'm doing more planking today.....I hope it's not a super long process thanks for the good word! thanks for the likes all...........I'll be sure to report any weird stuff that comes along

the main problem would be access........with the spar deck cemented in place, it might be hard to accomplish. you could try fitting the cannons in like they do with ships in a bottle

hi all..........thanks for the likes very kind of you folks to look in! yes........progress is still progressing on the Progress..........I started planking the bulwarks. I had this nagging feeling about the width of that wrap around part for the stern....it just didn't seem wide enough. I didn't have any problems with the Nordkap, when I planked that hull. if you've read the post I placed in the Nordkap thread, you see what I'm talking about. so, after looking at the two sets of instructions....which should have been identical {and finding that they are not}, I measured the width of the part in question, and found out that it wasn't 30 mm wide. this is what I get for thinking that both of these kits being the same. they should be.......but no. so a different direction must be taken here. I already have an idea. taking two strips of the 7 mm planking and comparing them to the deficit of the part, I saw that they would work instead.............so, I will fill in the bulwarks with one 10 mm and two 7 mm planks. first though, the top plank for the port side need to be laid. I found that I needed to break and reset the aft section on the starboard side because it was sitting too low.......not much, but it would have been a problem. when dry, the first of the 7mm planks was laid on the starboard side. I wasn't too worried about the excess glue along the inside at the bow........but from the bow cabin wall aftward, I made sure I cleaned them up. I don't need a bumpy inner bulwark . the second strake of 7 mm was laid after it was dry. if you read the other thread, you'll see what I did to cover the bulwarks at the bow. me at the time, being a total newbie, came up with the idea to follow the deck line with the second and third strake, and leave a gap, to be filled with stealers. I figured that it would straighten the planking and make it easier as I went along. in a way, I wished that the wrap around part {the transom} was a little thicker. it was printed on the same sheet of thin plywood, that the Nordkap's part was printed on, which is probably only 1 mm thick. I will have to look further in the Nordkap pictures to see what I did for this. but for the time being, it's nice to know that I solved the problem at hand. I could make another transom part from some 1/32 flat stock {1/64 would be better........I think they make it}, and thicken the transom up that way, I will make a tracing of it, just in case I decide to do it. with the two 7 mm strakes on the starboard side, it closes the bulwark totally........now to get the port side into the picture. but, the bow still has a way to go yet. I even have a thought about the planking as it continues. seeing that I have eight of those 10 mm plank strips left, I may use it to hasten the planking process. I have some 5 mm plank strips, my though is to jog two as I reach the stern, and it may make it easier to fill in the contour that shapes it. once the hull is sanded and painted, this will never be seen. looking at the fore deck, it makes me think..........the fitting kit came with hold covers. they are larger than the printed deck plan you see here. I may make the two aft of the mast larger, and make use of them. something to think of........

the Revell instruction diagrams may not be totally correct, but they are better than what Sergal shows. in some cases, rigging can become part of the ship's structure. standing rigging sometimes acts as a basis for the running rigging. say you have standing rigging that pulls a yard or mast in the downward direction. it may distort the way the yard or mast should look.......that is, until you add the lifts, which pull the yard back up to where it is supposed to be positioned. this is one reason why this scale is so terrible for a ship of this type.........you can lose so much detail, especially if one is not adept in working with such a small scale. even the manufacturer of the kit leaves out so much.......they can leave the builder with so many questions, like how things work, for instance. I'm sure that bracket assembly is a lot more intricate, than Sergal shows. some will insert a brass pin in the mast where the yard should go, and then rig the jeers and halyards, the lines that hoist the yard into position. the lifts mainly keep the yard horizontal, but are also used to position the yard as well. now, for this type of yard assembly and attachment, of course the rigging is different, having no halyard to rely on. some folks can make the fittings and add the detail that missing........some can't. to have an understanding of the part in question, it's function, and all that affects it, is an important learning curve........once you know that, you can better come up with a solution to any problem you encounter. the more you dabble in the medium, the more you will learn. it will make you a better modeler as for my Thermopylae.......she is on my main table, waiting for me to get busy on her. I've been messing with a couple other projects at the moment, but I've been ribbing myself to get the Nordzee finished and out of the way. I have the masts already assembled.......now to fit the brass on them and paint. I want to try those fittings I got.......I hope they will work out OK. if not, I might look at cornwall and see what they have. this model would be so much better if it was at a larger scale......UGH! it's pretty sad too, 'cuz it's not a bad little kit.......it's just that Sergal didn't stay within the scale of the kit. some of these parts are out of scale and don't work for the model.......anchors, railings, the lack of life boats, are just a few of the misgivings. for anyone who wants to try scratch building, this kit would be perfect. the itch to finish the Nordzee is becoming too much to bear........I hope I can find an opening to get her done very soon I had other ideas for the main table as well. sorry 'bout the picture.......I took it this morning after reading your post. I was going to replace the Nordzee with one of three other projects......seen up above. from left to right......#1 is the fishing boat from the Holiday Harbor project.......hoping it will turn out like another Andrea Gail. #2 is the Half Moon {Halve Maen}......I'm almost at the rigging end of the project. #3....and then there is the Trawler Syborn........so close to being finished, it's scary! I have been looking for the right life raft containers for the scale. I was going to have a couple of life boats, but there isn't too much of a stern deck....it may become too crowded. hopefully, I will find a quick end for that project.....it's only......what?.......four years in the making, I think. life goes on here at Wenzel's Wharf.......I've been seeing a dentist, taking care of a problem I should have dealt with earlier. yesterday I had two more teeth removed and was fitted for dentures. four more to go, and then I will have false teeth I feel pretty good since I started seeing this guy........due to some bad experiences, I haven't seen a dentist in quite a while. but it's time to take care of business. I think that as this happens, I'll feel more myself and will want to spend more time at the tables {I have two........I'm a confirmed glutton for punishment}.

superb progress since I last looked in Danny really looks great!

looks good OC.........margins........waterways. shaping up nicely

my-t fine spider work there! look'in awesome!

thanks Klas.....I mentioned that size....looks good you may want to cement the stock in place though....it seems to have fallen short of trying to bend the hook to capture the ring on the yard bracket, you could cement it in place. since the rigging is similar, here is the halyard and lift diagram for the Revell Cutty Sark these yards are in the raised position, so this is how the lifts will look when rigged. I'd have to look at the Sergal diagrams to see how they have it, but the lower topsail yard is a fixed yard. it does sit on a pivot point so it can be moved by the braces. it is held in place by a brace, called a crane. here is a picture of the assembly, as shown in the Cutty diagrams: this is a plastic kit.......but what this shows is important to note. looking at the upper top sail yard, you'll see that there are two locations for it.....one in the lowered and one in the raised position. it gives you this choice the rest of the way up the mast for the other yards. I just figured these might help you with the yard arrangement. those are the lifts that your working with........the halyards are for the upper top sail yard, the topgallant yard, and the royal yard. the main mast will be the same, but there is also a sky sail yard in addition to the others. but yea, you could attach it with a bendable hook, or create a U shaped brad {made from a piece of brass rod}, to fasten it to the mast. I did order the brackets for these yards, but I think they are too big......I'll have to try them and see. once I cut the yards, I should know more. I hope I gave you an idea

the day has come........booked the appointment with the dentist to have the rest of my teeth taken care of. I go at noon, but I thought I'd get some stuff done this morning....I took the day off from work. I had done some organization of the fittings last week, but this morning I ran across the organizer case I had bought a few weeks ago. this caused me to reconsider what I had done. I even cut out all the plastic part on sprues and separated them. this will work out much better, I think. going a bit further with the cabin structure, I added the two doors along the sides, and the support knees for the second level decking. these will get painted the same color, so I can do it all at once. the porthole in the doors were drilled out, using a 5/32 bit. time draws near........hope to get more done when I get back {Custer's last words}

that method you showed to make ratlines looks really neat. it looks like it would be just the ticket for smaller scale ratlines, since clove hitches would look out of scale. very nice progress......she's looking super too bad about the flag.

just caught your build on the radar Jack........looks to be a very interesting project. quite impressed with your portfolio......quite a background I look forward watching this project.

good to see your able to continue........you did a my-t fine job there

looks good OC

wonderful job on the rigging Jesse very well done!

very nice

thanks Zappto....it would look better if I had more planking done, but I'll get to it soon enough. I'm thinking for a change with the helm room structure, and if I start doing that, this will drag on too long. thanks for look'in in thanks Tom......I've lost track too glad to have you look'in in! thanks Nils.......I love this scale too I can better handle most of the parts and keep better mind to the scale. detail perks are not as pronounce anymore, since kits put out lately can produce a lot of detail, or can be easily dressed up with accessories. besides, if I want to do a model of this size, if it were up to the admiral, it would be of wood thanks for the good word thanks all for the likes

glad you got it sorted out. the usual termination for it though would be to come up from the stem {or down from the bow spirit} and wrap it around at the center of the loop, effectively tying the loop together {like a figure eight}. not sure if this is the common practice, but I have seen it done.

short of cementing it as you make each winding, it's hard to say. perhaps if you were to pin it with an alligator clip when you lap over the bow spirit, keeping it taught, you might fair better.

congratz on hr finish Jack.........this has been a very neat subject to build on the sails look great and you did a great job with the rigging and the fittings. really nice bit of modeling!

the stern arrangement looks sweet! she's a beautiful model.......very well done

thanks for the likes all......the cabin structure was a really fun part of the model to assemble. but it does seem to steer me off the direction I was going......this part wasn't done till a lot later. this is where the bulk of the modifications are...I couldn't wait to get into it I got back to it last night and fitted the rest of the portholes. the drill and the sandpaper dowel didn't work out.........during the procedure, it broke a couple of times, so I ended up doing it by hand the rest of the way. they still came out alright. I really should get back to planking the bulwarks and get that done. then I can fit the margins and do a few things around the deck. I've also been beginning to sort through the fittings.......earlier I showed the differences between the old and new fittings kit, and what was added to the new fittings kit from the kit part sheets. there will be more of these comparisons peppered in here, for those who have the Nordkap kit and need reference in building it. the similarities between these two kit should be helpful enough, but a little more couldn't hurt from the brass parts, I assembled the radar and the searchlight, waiting for paint before they can be seen as finished. I will have more soon