druxey

My source was Micro Mark in the U.S., Sherry.

Fort that many cannon, for consistency you really need to make one master and then a mold. Casting in resin as recommended is your best bet. It will guarantee that each cannon will be identical. There is no way that you could be consistent without a lathe set-up. Even then, it would be a long process!

Brilliant! When is the first sitting for the meal? And, yes, the NMM plans often show interesting details, if you look for them in the mass of lines. You are welcome, Remco!

Nice! Well deserved recognition, Doris. Dobri!

That tuck rail is far trickier than it looks. Looks like you nailed it, Dan!

You can manage soup, Gary? That's good enough to be a ship's cook. You're pressed!

My limited understanding is that the foremost shroud is served along its whole length. Steel's Rigging and Seamanship (1794) says "…all the way to the end."

Your drafting looks good, Adam. I'm sorry that you need to sell the real boat, but that is a terrific way to 'keep' her, in a sense. She will make a beautiful model, and her upkeep will be much less expensive than the full-sized thing!

The Saw Stop is quite different to a splitter. The former keeps the kerf (slot) made by the blade open beyond the blade. The Saw Stop (Google this to see it demonstrated) is an electronically controlled brake that instantly stops the blade spinning should it touch anything soft and conductive. It can only be fitted to full-size saws, not a Byrnes saw.

Careful. Next we'll be demanding a cook-off from these two gentlemen on their stoves!

Darn, now it really looks incredible! Well played, sir. 

Doreltomin is right, Doris. I'm sure you can fix the tiller and helmsman easily. Your lanterns are outstanding!

Brilliant baskets! Well done.

All that's missing now are the soot stains on the brickwork. Terrific job, Remco!

There are excellent methods described by Justin Camerata in his book: see the SeaWatch Books website.

Looking good! And recognizable not only to those of you in the industry, but also by those of us who have waited at the bridges crossing the Welland Canal. And waited….and waited, as the ship slowly slid past us.

I imagine the boatswain would arrange to have the cargo stacked in the most economic way of using the spaces available: kind of Tetris like!

'Fish' in the sense used here refers to joining together. An example is fishing a cracked yard with a reinforcement piece. In England, the pieces joining two lengths of railway line rail together were called fish plates. It's quite possible that the word was a corruption from French 'afficher', to stick or put together.

The Saw Stop may be very effective. However it would, I think, encourage the user to be somewhat cavalier in the use of the saw. Vigilance is a far better way - and cheaper, too!

Extraordinary: even your hooks are made from bone?

That's the general idea, Alex.

There now, I knew you could do a brilliant job, Remco! Looks terrific.

You are a brave fellow to cut in all those scores on the deadwood in situ! I'm impressed.

What you see on contemporary models is pretty accurate. You might wish to look at marine paintings as well. The earlier 'ochre' was actually oiled wood, not paint. Blue on models varies from smalt (a greenish blue) to dark ultramarine. Prussian blue was discovered in 1704 and came into commercial production by the 1720's. On some models black is substituted for the blue, as in the NMM model of Mermaid.

As the models are old, it is probably safe to say that the paintwork (not having seen it, though) is oil-based. If it is on a rigid support it will make life easier. If on something soft, like canvas, it will be more difficult. You will need to support the back to prevent bending as you clean and possible cracking/flaking.

For nicotine and ordinary grime, a damp cotton bud (not soaking wet!) will remove these. Be particularly careful if the surface of the paint is cracked. You don't want moisture penetrating the cracks. If there are other issues with the paintwork, you may wish to consult a professional conservator.

A word of warning. As a professional conservator, I've worked on paintings where damage by an enthusiastic amateur has cost far more to correct than if the piece had come to me before it had been 'cleaned'.