druxey

Formidable! Just catching up on your beautiful build. Lovely work!

Beautifully done, Valeriy.

Thukydides: I just paint the outer edges of the joint on one side. The majority of the joint remains wood/glue/wood.

Adroitly done, Steven!

Very well done indeed, Steve! Congratulations on a complete (I almost wrote 'string') quartet. Now you have the skills for even more advanced models. What's next?

Yes. The cut splice in the swifter is slipped over the masthead. Place the upper deadeye on one side where you want it, remove the swifter and turn the deadeye in. While on the bench, it is easy to position the second deadeye on the other leg of the swifter.

I appreciate your problem - we've all been through this at one time or another! There are a number of ways to deal with this. Ideally there is a small amount of stretch in the shrouds that will allow for micro-adjustment. However, don't overdo it or either the lanyard will give way or the mast will pull out of line. For the main part of the process I will loop the end of the shroud up (once it is in place over the masthead) until the bottom of the loop is at the level you want the deadeye to be. (A bit of water on a brush applied to the shroud at the bend will help it behave.) I then secure the deadeye in this loop with a spot of glue. Take the shroud off again and complete the lashings around the deadeye on the bench rather than in the air. Then re-install the shroud pair and reeve the laniard. Other folk will doubtless provide you with other remedies. One size doesn't fit all - try them until you find one that works for you.

Aleksandr: I just rotate the gouge without moving it sideways at the same time. That is asking for trouble! Just rotating it in a groove the right size in the wood wedge does it. The wear is evenly distributed and the tool remains at right angles.

I've been honing the chisel blades on very fine grit (1500) carborundum paper by rubbing the back of the blade. The gouges are more problematic. I made a small angled wood block to maintain correct angle and roll the gouge over the paper. It's not perfect, but acceptable.

Looking very good, Toni. It helps to use your chisel bevel down to control depth of cut when eight-squaring the spar.

I've used many different methods over the years. I began with black tissue, graduated to Allan's paint/PVA mix, and now use dark brown acrylic paint (burnt umber) along the outer (show) edges of joints on one side before gluing up. I find black a little too visually contrasty, but that's a personal preference. For minor seams such as planking, soft pencil along the show edge does the trick for me. Try different methods until you settle on the one(s) that you like.

Patrick: Unfortunately, due to the current international situation, you will be unable to get these.

Nicely done joints and seams.

Almost a Lego figure! Nice square-headed nails, Aleksandr. Who produces such a punch set?

Coming along! There are always mistakes which only you will notice. Every step is a learning experience, so the upper deck framing will be perfect. Right?

Nice classic model appearance with those cutaways. A hit, I think.

You continue to amaze, Eberhard!

Painstakingly accurate work and construction sequencing, JD. No wonder it was so long since we last saw a post from you! Well done, indeed.

On a project of this nature, there will be more scrap. One needs a decent sized box. The good news is that much can be re-purposed along the way. Also, you will find the failure rate will go down as you get more experience under your belt. Been there, so I know! Boxing joint looks good now.

Wrinkled paper suggests that you were using a water-based varnish. Paper does not like moisture. For the length of a build, rubber cement is a good alternative 'glue'. Eventually it will turn paper brown and peel, but that usually takes more than ten years! Enjoy the process of buldign up a model like the real thing.

Sorry to contradict, but regular beeswax is acid! Use Renaissance (conservators') wax, if you have to.

I quote a retired civil engineer (I hope she won't mind) who designed bridges world wide: I saw the newsreel of the bridge collapse in Baltimore yesterday. I had always felt that these American 'girder bridges' were too lightweight (part of America's planned obsolesce design practice in place in those years). But I was astonished to see how little protection was provided to the main supports. It's a no brainer - if you knock out a main support, the bridge collapses! And the main supports next to the navigation channel require special attention. On the Queensferry Bridge, which was downstream of the Forsyth Naval Dockyard where they build and maintain aircraft carriers, we carried out a study, including model simulation, of just such an event and designed the main pier caissons not to fail. Luckily, the Americans loved simple span construction for their approach viaducts and this acted as a fuse . . . [for] progressive collapse of the whole crossing! . . . . what happened using 'the past is a foreign country' adage. It was opened in 1977! I was working on the Itchen Bridge then in a similar, but not as exposed, location upriver from the port of Southampton. Our River piers were protected by a massive caisson that extended out from the main columns by sufficient distance to guard against the superstructure hitting the bridge even as the hull of the vessel crumpled onto the caissons. So, there you have it.

Well done - particularly with such a tricky specie of wood! Impressive work.

Looks like you are off to a very good start, Adam.

Fascinating and amazing detail!