BLACK VIKING

Thanks, MD!  Well, this sounds like essential reading for anyone that wants to more fully understand these ships for the machinery they were.  I have one Hocker book on the Vasa - a bit more of a general overview of all the topics he expounds upon in these two volumes.  Maybe one day, when I'm feeling a little wealthy, I'll invest in volume I.  It is heartening that the people at the Vasa museum have done so much to try and understand the full import of the Vasa as an archeological find.

Thank you all for the likes and for looking in 
A little more work done on the deck furniture 
I have made the ladders and cat heads and painted the windows to the cabins 
Next job fitting the capping rails to the top of the bulwarks 
 
Martyn

One mast to go and feeling exited as I am nearing the home run.

The oil has certainly made the wood pop , very well done 
 
Martyn

Stunning planking EJ looking forward to seeing it all sanded up 
 
Martyn

Yesterday i was busy sanding the hull in preparation for a first coat of "something". Have not decided on what that "something" will be; most likely it will be a wood satin finish, clear coat, waterborne or maybe some tung oil or linseed oil. Most likely will use few planks for testing before committing..
 
Several layers of sanding were completed, started with 50, then 100, 200, 400, 600...
 


 
After that, i put some masking tape on the hull, just to protect it from dings and dents that can definitely happen during construction process. 
 
Kit plan does not have any parts that will be used to tight the mast, once installed; i have decided to put a bit of a reinforcement (and to cover some holes) where the mast will be installed. It is a small peace of extra planking, with a 6mm hole. Using my trusty bench drill press i made a hole in that small peace of wood. Miniature parts, fat fingers.... welcome to the world of ship modeling. 

On the main deck i will put a small, bolt shaped peace of wood, that will cover imperfections on the main deck where the mast will be installed. Again, i did not see part like this on the plan but there are some other builders using this method to improve appearance of the model. 
 

 

 
The next step will be to put some wood finish on the interior part of the ship, before covering the ship with main deck...
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Stunning planking EJ looking forward to seeing it all sanded up 
 
Martyn

Stunning planking EJ looking forward to seeing it all sanded up 
 
Martyn

The oil has certainly made the wood pop , very well done 
 
Martyn

Frank: Using Chuck's at Syren as well as all of his blocks - (except those 6 big ones for the three mast stays those were Corel's).
At one time Syren also had pear wood blocks, that I really liked (miss those)- sorta blended the few that I had left over here-and there.
 
Regarding his ropes and blocks I find them to be superb. Order after order the quality stays 100%. And he ships right away. 
PS: his blocks out-of-the-box are excellent but "tweak" them just a bit. hardly needed (:-)
 
FYI: His company link is on the home page right side. I'm sure that you've seen it.
 
Kier - thanks SO much for your likes 
 
Zappto: thanks for your kind words.
 
Regards,
 

Finished planking the lower hull a few minutes ago! Some sanding to do but overall I'm happy with it. Now I will set her back right side up and continue the upward planking. Plus side is this is the easier planking as it is mostly straight runs with very little if any to bend. More to follow soon!

Thanks John. With P.O.B. kits I really need to stop trying to piece in the planking board by board for the first layer like I do on the second. The supports and frame structure are not very helpful for that style of planking. Instead, that first layer should be full length pieces which would give a much better appearance and smoother surface. Then I can plank piece by piece.
 
I remain stubborn on doing it the harder way mainly because it is practice for me. My ultimate goal is to only have to do one layer of planking so I keep practicing and with each build I get a little better. I'm making my way through those 99 ways to do something wrong in order to find that one way of doing it right!
 
I'm looking forward to being able to give her a good sanding and apply the finish coat. I did a small test sample and really liked the way t came out. Now I want to see it across the entire surface. Ready to see that wood coloring at it's best! Still a little way off but with the completion of the lower hull, it is a lot closer. 

The oil has certainly made the wood pop , very well done 
 
Martyn

Superb work on the main deck she is coming together very nicely ,well done my friend 
 
Martyn

I have been busily mapping out and drilling nail impressions in the deadworks.  I haven't put a caliper to the bit I'm using, but suffice it to say that it is near impossibly small.  There was some trial and error to arrive at a bit that left a plausible impression, and that didn't overheat and clog with melted plastic too quickly.  I still have to stop the Dremel and clear the bit every 15 holes, or so, but that's much better than the 5-8 range.
 
As a quide to my spacing, I am using the exposed timber heads of the caprail.  This works out to about 5/16", on center for the most part, but there are several instances where I'll have to run a row or two at 1/4" spacing, in order to maintain overall consistency.
 
In the waist, and for about six ports aft of the waist ladder, the nailing pattern runs perpendicular to the waterline.  With the hull half sitting on the table, I simply use a try square to align my blue painter's tape guide for keeping my lines nice and straight.  As the sheer rises, further aft, it has become necessary to skew my tape guides ever so slightly, by eye, so that my nailing pattern doesn't run too far askew of the gunport framing, with which it should remain parallel.
 
After much deliberation, I have decided to mimic the alternating nailing pattern that Dan Pariser used for his very thoroughly researched and excellent Queen Anne's Revenge.  I have known Dan for a long time now, and there is nothing he does without considerable thought and research.
 
Here are a few pics of my progress, so far.  They are hard to make out in the black plastic, and after priming and painting they should just barely show as faint impressions.
 

There you have a lot of rigging, i like it goes so smooth! Beautifull sails!

Hi Mates,
Apologies for the late thanks - for the likes, and super nice comments.
Denis, Martin – so overly kind indeed.
 
Frank, she’s actually my second build. There was a 40-year gap between the Santa Maria and this current Vasa. Again you are also so kind with your compliments.
         PS: Your HMAT Supply with its “years” of weathering and barnacled hull are way beyond my skill set. Love that build of yours!
 
Henry, Somehow I intuitively sorta new that that specific ramshead needed to be off center from the mast knowing that the mizzen mast stay would attach to the lower part of the main. It wasn’t knowledge – especially looking at the three plans that I was using. Nonetheless mounted the knight off center.
Thanks for your knowledgeable clarification –luck on my end.
 
Lower main yard is now attached. Added most needed lines as well; now onto the mizzen.
 
Cheers,

 

And some more pictures.....
 
 

Every time I look at this it gets better and better stunning work my friend 
 
Martyn

The oil has certainly made the wood pop , very well done 
 
Martyn

Thank you all for the likes and for looking in 
A little more work done on the deck furniture 
I have made the ladders and cat heads and painted the windows to the cabins 
Next job fitting the capping rails to the top of the bulwarks 
 
Martyn

The oil has certainly made the wood pop , very well done 
 
Martyn

Thank you all for the likes and for looking in 
A little more work done on the deck furniture 
I have made the ladders and cat heads and painted the windows to the cabins 
Next job fitting the capping rails to the top of the bulwarks 
 
Martyn

Hi Sjors, Coming along nicely. I like the finish that the oil gives and have thought of using it myself in the past, I was unsure though if it affected glueing parts onto the surface later. What's your experience on this, also will it sand ok.
 
Ken

Today i completed the second row of oarsmen benches. I found out that if you follow the plan to the letter, you might ended up with benches that do not fit well..
 

Then i started to work on main deck. Dry-fitting of main deck planks shows that a bit of a extra work has to be done. Basically few frames are lower than the others so i needed to add some blocks that will raise the height a bit.
 




This should be bringing the planks into nice, flat position once installed. Haven't started actual planking, this will be done tomorrow.
 
Woohoo, long weekend here i come..
 
Happy modeling.