Charter33

Progress from the last couple of days. Port side middle gun deck port lids are all installed. I started out with the gun port lids building one at a time, then 3 at a time, now I'm juggling 8 at a time and it goes much quicker. As is always the case with the repetitive jobs on the build, you start of shaky and get better as you go along. When you finally get good at it, you've pretty much finished the job and don't need those skills any more!
 
Patrick

Well, it has been a long, long time. My resolution to get back to Victory lapsed for a couple of years and it stayed wrapped in plastic.  In June this year I had a sort of epiphany moment following a life-threatening illness and surgery and I resolved to get back to the build...and to finish it!  I've been working on it almost every day since July and am closing in on finishing the hull and just need to to finish the gun port lids, then it'll be on to masts and rigging.  A few pictures of where it stands right now...and more to come soon!
 
 

An very impressive resource, and now right at the top of my 'must have' list.
Thank you for bring it to my attention!
For those with an interest in Adriatic sailing craft there's an impressive collection afloat on the Fosso Venarella canal, adjacent to the Museo della Marineria in Cesenatico, about 140 km down the coast from Venice, 23 km up from Rimini. I came across it when researching these types if vessel. I've only been able to explore it 'virtually' using Google Earth, but there's a wealth of detail to be seen. I recommended using the street view function and viewing from both sides of the canal. 'Photo sphere' pictures show views of the boats in different rigging stages, including full sail. Enjoy!

Hello all,
 
In June 2021 I bought Stuart Models 10V steam engine castings set....  https://www.stuartmodels.com/item/39/stuart-10v-unmachined
 
Plan being to get me more outdoors ie in the shed with the door open enjoying the great summer and nature flying and buzzing all around.
 
The build took about 12 weeks using a Sieg SC2 lathe, Proxxon MF70 Micro Mill, bench grinder/sander, bench drill, hand tools .... and a calculator.
 
It's many decades since I did 'metal work' professionally but after a few weeks a lot of it 'came back to me'. So did making mistakes and then figuring out to remedy them ;-).  This was a totally fun project.
 
I have since bought the Stuart 'Reversing Gear' kit of castings, what with this being  a 'ship' website and steam engines on boats/ships needing  a reverse gear. And that will be next summer's project.
 
Also, there is the tiny seed of an idea in my head that one day I'll add a boiler, build a waterproof model boat, fit servos etc ....add the lot together and go RC sailing...but that's in the future, maybe.
 
Anyway the Stuart box arrived in late June....

 

A simple but sturdy cardboard box, with the metal contents held in place with a strong, transparent sticky covering....they weren't going anywhere!  The 'paperwork' is a single large sheet with the parts' detail drawings on one side, a Parts List, Exploded View and very basic instructions on the other side.
 
It could be argued that the drawings did kinda dimension all aspects of the parts that needed machining, but it was prudent to study those drawings closely and also consult other sources.
 
An inventory check showed everything was present.....

 
One of the 'other information sources' is shown above  - the booklet by Andrew Smith. It has gone through a number of revisions and gone as far as converting BA thread sizes, dimensions etc into Metric... hmm.
 
Below a first look at four of the main castings...clockwise from top left, Sole Plate, Cylinder, Standard and Flywheel.

 
Castings sometimes have a very hard outer surface (due to cooling) that makes machining difficult. So I proceeded to skim as much as that hard surface off as allowable, using files and a sanding belt. Note: I say 'allowable' since some of the casting surfaces were right up against the borderline regarding what the finished size would be.
 

Above, a slightly blurry pic of the Box Bed having it's top and bottom surfaces machined flat and parallel, and square to the rest of the item. (Edit: It looks like I was actually drilling out the mounting lugs rather than milling flat the top and bottom surfaces....that milling had been done earlier)
 
The mill above really is 'micro', with the largest diameter cutter being 3 mm. However going slowly and taking no more than 0.25mm (10 thou) cuts max, a reasonable result is achievable. I had spent some time fettling the mill on arrival eg adjusting the gibs, adding ball thrust bearings in the Z axis and a Z axis digital readout. So it all worked fine...for a while (...blunt tooling tended to 'grab' quite easily).
 
Below, centre drilling the two main fixing holes. I later bought stubb drills which were the proper tool for that job and have a slightly longer reach (I think the stubb drills might be shown in the pic above).

 
OK, that's it for today. I'll post more over the next few days.
 
Spoiler alert. I have already finished the engine and successfully 'run' it using an electric drill attached to the crankshaft. Which is putting the cart before the horse, since the power is meant to come from the steam in the cylinder, which in turn drives the flywheel (attached to the crankshaft). But building a boiler, or even sourcing compressed air is for a later day.
 
Catch you soon ,
 
Richard
 
PS: I really do plan to now get back working on HMS Flirt.

I've lined the gunports on the starboard side.  I really like the look of the 3 colors together.  I slightly flared the linings inward on the lower two gunport rows to show off the red just a bit more.  Can't do it on the top row as the lining orientation is governed by being attached to templates at front and back.
 
Regards,
David

I have started lining the gunports.  They attach by a very thin edge, with 1mm recessed positioning important, so I needed a way to hold them in place while gluing. 
 
I made this jig which holds the side pieces with slight pressure, and allows them to be positioned.
 
One finished gunport positioned -- 80+ to go!
 
Regards,
David

A small update.
I managed to adjust the deadeyes to bring them in line with each other, so I don't think I really need to replace everything.  Basically I had to adjust all of them.  Where I had gone over the glue with water I have some faint whiteish discolouration on the black shrouds. I think a light application of shoe polish will do the trick.  Probably it was caused by the mixing of the bee wax, which was already on the shrouds, with the glue while I was handling them.
 
Some photos with lower masts shrouds, deadeyes and lanyards rigged in place.

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
If you notice in one of the photos, earlier on I managed to knock down the flag pole on the bowsprit.  I will fix later on.  I am really pleased I have't yet fitted the gunport lids as I am sure I would have nocked down a few of them while doing the rigging.
 
Next the catharpins and futtock shrouds. 

Hi all,
This is how my Victory looks like at the moment.

 
Taking a closer look at the shrouds on the Fore and Main masts I am not at all happy with them.  
The top deadeyes are not in line with each other.  I did a jig to keep the same distance but I think my mistake was that I did not tension each and every consecutive one I installed as I went along.  I finished them all with the knots, glue etc... then I tensioned the lanyards at the end.  To my disappointment the deadeyes  were not coming in line with each other as you can see in the pictures.  I was really angry at myself for doing such a mistake, a job which took me hours on hours.  First I thought to leave them as is, trying to convince myself that after all on real ships they are not always lined with each other.  But every time I looked at them they bothered me.  Then I tried to fix them.
 
 
 
 
If you look at this picture I fixed the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th shroud.  They look better now.  Fortunately I did not use any CA glue on the knots.  I am taking off the lanyards, wet all the knots and painstakingly sliding the the shroud thread through the knots to shorten it.  Seems to be working.

 
But for the foremast I am not sure if this will work as I also have the cleats fixed on the shrouds.  To my mind came Helli's build log were after he had already put on the rat lines he literally took all the shrouds off because he didn't like the rigging of the deadeyes on the shrouds.  Helli, I admire your guts to have taken that decision after so much time was put in the work to make them.  So with Helli's encouragement I decided to first try to fix the ones already in place, if  not satisfied I think I will replace with new ones.  In the meantime I will order some 1.3mm thread from CBM as I do not have more of it. 
 
Luckily I had realised my mistake before I finished the shrouds on the Mizzen.  Before I rigged the shrouds in place I thought it is better to fit the davit brackets and the windows on the second gunport, as it will be more difficult with the shrouds in the way.
 
I had prepared the davits and the windows at an earlier stage.  Know that the davits will be in the way whilst doing the rest of the rigging on the ship I found the exact positions for their brackets, drilled the holes for the nails and glued in place just the one side with the shaft soldered to it.  All I have to do when the time comes to fit the davits is just slide them on the shaft, glue and nail the other part of the bracket in place in the already prepared hole for the nail.  

 
 

 

 
 
Robert

The fun part of second planking is done.
Also the second fun part of sanding is also done.
Now it's gonna be time for the bulwarks.
Measure, measure, measure
But that's for tomorrow....
 
Sjors
 
 

Some good news I saw the surgeon a couple of weeks ago and was scheduled for surgery on the 20th September, this morning I was slotted into a cancellation spot on the 9th September so next week it is.
 
Michael

Finished planking the gun deck inner bulwarks.  What you see is unsanded, so all of the messy glue spots will sand out.  I'm going to wait to do that until I have lined the remaining gunports, as bulkhead sanding is required for those.
 
As I mentioned earlier, cutting out the gunports didn't seem practical at these angles, so I cut and fitted each piece.
 
Regards,
David

Hi Folks,
 
To continue the story with the miss-aligned inner gun ports …….
 
The first step was to work out how much needed to be removed from each port. To do this a length of square bar was threaded through a pair of gun ports.
 

 
The gap between the bottom of the bar and the bottom of the outer gun port was then measured. It ranged from 0.5mm to 3mm, averaging around 2mm for the majority.
 

 
This measurement was then marked onto the pattern and the ply sliced with a scalpel.
 

 
A ‘sabre’ saw with a reverse toothed blade (cutting on the pull stroke) was used to cut the ends.
 

 
The final step was to cut and glue a strip of scrap ply into place. Not pretty, but job done and work can now progress with the lining.
 

 
Cheers,
 
Graham.
 
 
 
 

Hi folks,
 
I set myself two short term goals a couple of weeks ago;  to get this build log up to date by editing and uploading previous material, and to finish planking the upper gun deck including tree nailing.  It was a close thing but both of these objectives were achieved. 
 

 

 
The planking and tree nails have now been refined to a smooth finish with a scraper and given the first of several coats of mat varnish.
 
These photographs show the second planking of the hull.  
 

 

 

 
Unfortunately I omitted to photograph this work as it progressed.  I decided to go the route of using short planks (127mm / 5”) as opposed to longer lengths and found this easier, gluing them in place (CA glue) and shaping the profile of any planks as required. Any minor gaps and imperfections were dealt with using a little wood filler. The hull has now been sanded to a good finish although I am expecting to have to give it a final going over once it’s been primed with grey primer once the wales have been completed.
 
 
There’s plenty to do in between adding coats of varnish on the deck. Cannon barrels and carriages need assembling, plus preparing the various different styles of plank for each of the wales ( jigs made but not yet tested). This will keep me busy until the final coat of deck varnish has dried.
 
 
Not until this is done can I tackle the problem of the miss-aligned inner gun port patterns. Note to self – read the excellent build logs produced by others more carefully!  When I fitted the inner patterns they were carefully aligned horizontally. The patterns slipped so nicely into the spaces in the bulkheads, with the top edge level with the outer pattern that I assumed all was well ……WRONG!  
 

 
 
As these photos show, the inner patterns need to be dropped by almost 3mm before they can be lined. My plan is to cut out the excess from the bottom edge and then graft a new piece into the top. This will be easier than pulling the whole pattern out and re-fitting it, and the final planking will hide the evidence!
 
Cheers for now,
 
Graham.

Hi Sjors,
I had exactly the same problem with my build. If you do a search for my build log you will see how I overcame it.
You'll find that it's a minor glitch, easily fixed and not visible once the planking is finished. 
Enjoying your build - keep up the great work!
Cheers,
Graham

.... sorry - forgot to add that it's in the #15 post.....
Graham

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!

More work on the boats.  I finished the outside painting.  In the kit manual it indicates to paint the outside hull of the boats Dull White.  Apparently, Admiralty Paints do no do the 'dull white' anymore, I used Matt White.  For the golden bands I used the modelling masking tape as suggested on the manual itself.  I cut strips the required width, painted them gold, secured them in place  with their own backing glue, then applied clear varnish all over the washstrake and tape to keep it secured in place.  Just for the Pinnace I used styrene strips.  
 
The Launch

 

 

 
 
The Barge.

 

 

 
 
The Pinnace.

 

 
 
The Cutter.

 

 
 

 

 
I still have to paint the oars and some more details, but I might do that later on, when I decide which boats I will fit on deck and which once I will be hanging on the davits. I really need to go hands on, on the ship's rigging.  It is quite a challenge for me as I never did rigging of this level.  I only did much easier rigging on two much smaller boats. 
 
Robert
 
 

Hi,
I used to also have access to a laser cutter at work - and really miss it now!
One way that I found to reduce char was to drop the power level and then repeat the cut several times until separation was achieved. It didn't stop the charring completely, but did reduce it considerably.
Good luck!
Graham.

I consider the Lanz bulldog and the British made Field-Marshall "honorary steam tractors". They're also great "party trick" tractors, the Lanz because it can run without the single cylinder engine completing a full revolution, and the Field-Marshall because of the unique method used to start the engine.
 
 
 
And just for good measure, some steam:
 
 
Andy
 

Thanks for the kind words, OC - and thanks to all who have looked and "reacted" favorably.
 
I have now removed all the fore-and-aft sails (4 stay sails + the jib), plus the fore topsail that I had previously mounted.  Still have the fore course, main course and main topsail to remove.  I will add stiffening wires to the leeches and feet of these sails as I remove them, and then rehang them - a not trivial task!! I'll probably have to remake a lot of rigging line, because the ones that had been installed and belayed will now be too short.  I think I can get away with replacing most of the rigging lines, but am still unsure how to handle the main yard jeers, as they were previously belayed below decks - now that the quarterdeck in is place, the belay points are inaccessible and the existing jeers are too short. The loose rigging lines now look like a rat's nest!!
 
The rework means removing the boltropes and linings, adding the wires and then replacing the linings on top of the wires, then remaking and replacing the boltropes and cringles
 

 
 
I have been experimenting with different types of wire for the stiffeners, trying copper, stainless and coated wire in different gauges from 28 to 20.  the wires are glued to the foreside edges of the  leeches and feet, and then covered by the leech and foot linings.  My conclusions are that the copper and stainless are too dark, and show through the lining cloths.  The best results were attained with white, covered copper wire used in jewelry-making.  28 gauge is a little too light for the larger sails, so I use 22 gauge for them and 28 gauge for the smaller sails. It's virtually not detectible to the casual eye, yet holds a curve well.
 
Before removing the old sails, my prototype for using the wires was the mizzen topsail. Here are a couple of shots of that prototype.
 

 

 
I have now repaired the fore topmast staysail, here are some before/after shots.
 

 
Without wires-

 
and with them.
 

 
The big test will be how the courses come out; I want to show them clewed up, but couldn't keep the billow in them without the wires.  Here is the fore topsail as originally made; we'll see how it handles with wires.
 

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!

All sorted, Jorgen - magnificent work!