No Idea

Hi All Some more done on my build - I decided to move to the front of the ship and make the bowsprit partners and the manger. The first job was to make the metal liners for the scuppers as once the partners were in place this would reduce the space in this area. Having read the article on using lead in model ships I opted for pewter or as some places call it brittania. The sheet I used is 0.15mm in thickness and I needed to find a solution to the angle of the scuppers. First I made a tube 4mm in diameter that would fit snuggly inside the scupper hole. I then made a simple jig to match the angle of the scuppers. This allowed me to place the tube inside and carefully sand the tube on a face sander. I then needed to roll the mouth of the tube over slightly to create a lip to stop the part from falling straight through the hole in the hull. Then it was simply a trial fit and repeat for the other side. Next I made the two bowsprit partners. Now making them was a whole lot easier than fitting them. They fit into slots that I had previously cut into the beams and they have to line up precisely. The reason being is that not only do they need to be inline with the bowsprit, they also tie into the beams of the deck above. It's not too difficult I just had to check the overall height of these pieces before gluing. Then it was onto the manger itself - I have decided after all not to plank the main deck. I did though need plank the area for the manger. I then made the back walls for the manger and pretty much got on with lining the whole thing with the pewter. I think that the results are ok - but just ok. I do like the way the scuppers just sit nicely in the corners as they should. I used cyano to glue it in and I remembered why I don't use this glue. I personally just cannot get on with the stuff. So my next job is to make the final 2 breast hooks for the bow. Cheers Mark

Very nice work Tobias I found that getting the beams to sit in the perfect position quite time consuming but worth it to save loads of sanding to bring the deck fair. I love the dovetail joints - top job 👍

Hi Kevin what a great job you have made of your carvings. Its something that I must learn too and I wish we could get some workshops here in the UK as I would attend. You have a Foredom so have you tried these? I put 6 into a mandrill and they work great for polishing wood. https://www.metalclay.co.uk/foredom-radial-bristle-discs-pumice-1200-grit-pink-6pk/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMImMWCwNebggMVS9HtCh2B8w47EAQYASABEgJ4a_D_BwE At 1200 grit they would smooth off your carvings without changing the shape Mark

I think that I would make a stencil and paint the letters on. I think it would be more subtle mate 👍

I think that the first 5 builders of the POF model are getting a very good deal here. Having scratched a frame in Castello I would estimate that the wood alone cost at least £300 ($400). This is the real deal and what a lovely ship this is going to be to build Not only that you know that its going to go together perfectly and also get the back up of the manufacturer right here. In fact I think the first 5 builders will be more than lucky and I can't wait to see their builds on here!

Hi Paul I did post this but I must have done something wrong. Here’s the link you need but remember it does have a 22mm hole so a new arbor would be needed but Jim can supply them. https://www.protool-ltd.co.uk/p/17569 Cheers Mark

Hi Thistle17 - fence alignment is very important and also really easy to do with a DTI. Since my last post 8 months ago I too have had some issues with thick wood overheating and burning. As I know that my saw is set up exactly it could only be the blade. The 110T blade can bind up quite quickly so I swapped it for a 64T blade. This got the chips out much better and solved my problem. In fact this blade goes through wood like a knife through butter. It also leaves me a good finish on the cutting edge with virtually no chip out. I’ve also noticed that the motor runs a lot cooler too. This is now my go to blade for ripping planks.

Hi All Time is not a friend of mine at the moment but I have been watching others build projects (enviously 😆). I have got some done hence the update and thanks to everyone that took the time to give advice and the very lovely comments. The first thing was to fit two more plank strakes on the bulwarks and then pierce the holes for the scuppers and hawse holes. Nothing really tricky about this you just have to be careful cutting the holes so that you don't tear the wood too much. Next was to make and fit the deck clamps for the smaller aft and forward decks. Learning from my previous attempt at placing clamps I really took my time marking these out with a digital height gauge. I think this took me about 4 hours to get right until I was absolutely happy with their placing. I also used a technique that @Tobias uses with tiny spirit levels athwartship. These things are so cheap and yet they allowed me to checked my levels even further. I used quite a lot of clamps to make sure that my efforts stayed where they were. Cheers Tobias Next was to plank the gap between the already fitted planking and the clamp. All I would say about this is if you measure and plan it accurately it's a fairly straightforward job. I can imagine it being a nightmare if you don't. The clamps are slightly thicker than the planks and just need tapering into the planks below. I've put a photo below to show what I mean. Note to self - use a lower resolution camera as these photo's show everything Ok so as always - what did I do wrong? Well I cut the planking too short - Its not a problem but I forgot to allow for the scroll to the gunwale. This is how I cut it. And this is what I missed Its not a problem as I will fix this later on when I plank the outside but for fellow builders this could save you from doing the same. I'll get some more done as and when I can - I think I need to be retired so that I can enjoy my hobby more!! Cheers all - Mark

Great new workstation - There's nothing better than having a nice place to work.

Congratulations marsalv very well deserved for such a beautiful ship. I'm looking forward to your next build.

I have to say Chuck that I really like both types of block......beautifully made and if a builder gets a choice of colour then thats even better!

I think that now I can see the difference in the mounts; you have made a very good decision. Your modifications move the eye away from the mount to the model. Beautiful work - your ship is amazing!

Hi Guy - I have pretty much ordered all of the above for my saw and I use everything that I ordered too. Over the past few years I have found that a UK builder should order as much as possible as the shipping costs here are very expensive. So here is what I have learnt as a UK builder - I don't use carbide blades for anything other that cutting down big pieces of wood. The edge finish is rough and not suitable for modelling. Also if the piece of wood moves even slightly sideways as you are feeding it through, the blade will cut sideways and leave you with a piece of wood that varies a lot in thickness through its length. Buy at least two accessory packs as you will loose screws and its a bargain for us. All of the threads are UNC which we do not use here. We are metric here so go for the metric stop. Get as least 5 - 6 zero clearance inserts - They are as cheap as chips and you will need one for each thickness of blade. You will accidentally fit the odd bade incorrectly as it will trash the insert. Get some spares. Buy a couple of belts as they do wear out over time and you need to think of the cost of shipping one here. Buy as many blades as you can! I use three types of blade now. The 4" blade for cutting planks as it had much less deflection and the 3" blades for finer work. I go through a lot less of the 3" blades. Regardless of how often you use these parts I have not regretted buying anything and I can honestly say that Jim and Donna Byrnes properly support their product. There's nothing better that I know of in our hobby and I'm very glad that I have mine Mark

I also thought the same as you - however when it came down to it I found it easier to correct the clamp. If both sides of the clamp are the correct height then you will get less roll on the beams throughout the length of the ship. Your idea can be done but you will end up doing a whole lot more measuring in the end. The clamps will look a lot more uniform too if you make them the same. We both had the same issue and same solutions to consider.

Hi Alan - Great job mate. Although I only have one clamp on my ship, I later found that one side was 1mm higher than the other in places. So I marked out the correct height and used a Veritas shoulder plane to correct it. It made easy work of the job and saved many later corrections.

Wow that is an amazing job 👍😎

What a fantastic kit it really shows the details of the small area of a ship that it covers. This is the sort of kit that I would happily build as the results are great. A top tip for any UK builders though - If you have a Games Workshop near you just drop the figures into them with a few quid and ask them to paint them for you. What they can do is amazing and far better than any of my feeble attempts.

Hope your feeling better and welcome back

Hi Marc and thanks for you comments - You are right in some ways that everything is on show and it needs to be accurate but as I have discovered there are loads of ways to hide small errors - thank goodness 🤣 Sorry for the lack of updates I'm just really busy elsewhere at the moment so I fit in the ship building as best I can. So onto the binding strakes and I soon realised that there is an easy and hard way to make these pieces. As per usual I chose the hard way in my opinion to get better results. The first front pieces at the bow are simple and pretty much more of the same. Cut them to length and carefully mark out the cuts and get going on the mill. It's difficult to explain my weird markings on the pieces that I cut too, as I use them as a guide to what I know to be correct in my mind? It works for me - it's not for everyone. Next is where you can either make the job relatively easy or a bit more difficult. The binding strakes partially pass over the top of the deck hatch openings. I really wanted to maintain the integrity of "Width A" in the picture below to keep the strake uniform in thickness along is full length. So to do this I had to scribe the strakes around these obstacles. So instead of just cutting straight joining slots I ended up with the complex joints below. Have no idea if this is how they should be made its just the way that I wanted to do it. I did find that doing it this way once again made the fitting very easy as they locked into place and followed the curve of the deck so easily. I'm very happy with the results and I have also caught up at last with the required nailing. A few pictures below I'm very tempted now to leave the main deck as it is now? I understand that everything that needs to be placed on the deck will require lifting to the correct deck height but what are your thoughts on this? I have no experience of doing what I'm suggesting but I think that it would allow anyone that looks at the model to see the work carried out inside far better. Please let me know your thoughts. So my next jobs are to make the bits, bowsprit partner, windlass supports and finish planking the inside of the bulwarks. Thanks everyone - Mark

Hi Chris - I had a similar issue with the belt rubbing on the guard at the motor end. After speaking to Jim he suggested that the motor tensioning spring was probably not as it was. So he suggested that I place a few small washers behind the spring and this solved the problem. It pulled the motor further up and also gave more tension on the belt. Even now I only have a small gap between the belt and guard but it certainly solved the problem - Mark

Simple amazing work - I can’t thank you enough for sharing your skills as I personally have learned so much from your log 👍👍. I’m looking forward to your next build 😎

Nice job Tobias - I found that planking the ceiling was a particularly time consuming and tricky job; especially at the stern where it has to rise to the top of the wing transom.

Another update from me - The inner waterway which is pretty much more of the same but is easier to make. Its made up of three sections per side. The parts were then glued into place - I found that the dovetails pretty much hold these parts in their correct place. They do nee to be clamped though to bring them down to the sheer. Then I made and fitted the first plank up the bulwark so that I could finish the bevel on the waterway. This was then all sanded down and blended in and I'm pleased with the result. So thats brings another part of the build to conclusion. The next job is to make the binding strakes. @DaveBaxt this is where I work - Its not a big area but I find it more than adequate. Its always this tidy as its our spare room so I need to make sure that the mess is always cleaned up. Cheers Mark

Hi Dave and thanks very much - I'll get a couple of pictures up of my work room sometime this week so that you can see where how it's all set up. Prepare to be underwhelmed though 😆 As always mate - thank you. I know I've said it many times but those parts are very difficult to make. The shape changes constantly and if you get the angle wrong there's a gap somewhere. The pay off though I think for any builder is when they eventually just click onto the mating dovetails need very little clamping. This is why I build - the feelings great. Thanks HH - I actually think its the other way around - Its your work thats clean and never ceases to amaze! I made a start on the inner waterway and I'll get some pictures up this week. Having just finished my nemesis parts I was expecting more of the same. But no................hooray its not the same at all. It's a much simpler part to make......well so far anyway! I have discovered that the dovetails on the beams are a little short and I think this is yet again down to my photocopier. Its no big deal really I just need to take my time. Cheers Mark

Honestly thanks for the very nice comments and the likes here - I won't lie I have found these particular parts very difficult to make and get a good fit. You have very much helped me through this particular part of my build. If anyone else is building Le Rochefort you don't have to cut the dove tails if you don't want to. You can simply cut a slot the width of the beam and it would be so much easier. I did it this way as I just want to make it as true to the drawings as I possibly can. However once done how satisfying is that feeling 😀 So I carried on cutting out the dove tails and also roughing out the bevel After a little fettling they did fit As always I've learnt some new skills and overall I'm very happy with the way these parts have turned out. You can see that I have also rough cut the scuppers too. My patience is definitely improving too which I like. So now that they are installed I can now start on the inner waterway. Cheers Mark