BLACK VIKING

I would like to use this one 

The Rudder Continued…
 
Let’s make a scratch-built rudder for the Trumpeter 1/200 Titanic.
 
I started with a sheet of .030 thick styrene.  This is not so thin that it’ll warp, and not too far off from scale.  It is also easily cut with common paper scissors.
 
Step 1
I traced the general outline on the sheet using my previously modified Trumpeter rudder as a template.  This provides a good shape while allowing exact alignment of the pintles to fit the kit.

Step 2
 
I cut out the gaps between the pintle positions and did some initial test fitting:

Step 3

The rudder outline was snipped using scissors to get a rough outline that was refined with a hobby knife and smoothed using a coarse flex file.
 
Step 4
Before adding the bolt flanges, I cemented some half round strip to the pintles to give them a cylindrical shape…
 

I used .080 No. 242 half round Evergreen that was filed a bit thinner to better match the scale before cementing.  I affixed a single length and used a chunk of styrene to press against the rudder edge for tight alignment of the half round strip.  After a few minutes I came back and snipped between the pintles to remove the excess.  Worked one side at a time.  These will later get filed flush on the ends as I fitted them to the kit.
 
Step 5
Now to attend to the bolt flanges.

I needed to find a method that would produce consistent wedge shapes for all the needed elements.  I determined that strips of .020 x.060 could be stacked in the approximate shape and glued side by side to some scrap sheet (only glued down at the ends) to allow me to file them all at the same angle to shape the flanges.

I needed ten for the job, but I made them in two batches of 7 each to get some extras just in case.  The thick chunk of styrene in the picture was used to press against each stack during gluing to make sure everything stayed aligned.
 
Step 6

Once dry, I came back and filed the wedges at a consistent angle and then cut them free from the sheet.  They didn’t need to have a perfectly smooth slope – just enough to represent the wedges.
 
I carefully separated them with the hobby knife blade:

Step 7
Next, I flipped over each of the newly made wedges so that the factory smooth side was on top and cemented them to the rudder with plenty of overhang:

These were carefully positioned in relation to the pintles according to the historic photo references.  Note that the last flange is set slightly BELOW the last pintle.  The overhangs were trimmed to fit and the whole process repeated for the other side.
 
Additionally, small styrene rod was used for the bolt heads on the pintles.

Step 8
I added the zinc anodes based on what appears in most of the historic photos. These were .010 x.030 strips that were pricked with a push pin to represent the small bolts and flipped over and cemented in place.
 
As @Tsm209 noted in an earlier post, there are discrepancies in how some folks think the rudder anodes should be represented.  Robert Read shows a “double-wide” version rather than what is seen in most historic Titanic photos.  It may be that Mr. Read has access to other photos and/or documentation that he used to source his drawings.
 
The talented digital artist Vasilije Ristovic’ also shows this type of rudder anode in his stunning 3D illustration:

(Image from Mr. Ristovic’s terrific Facebook page )
 
I chose to stick with what I could see on the historic Titanic rudder photos that are most referenced in online searches.
 
Step 9
I added the rudder stock to the top of the rudder using Evergreen .080 rod (No. 212).  The stock was made long enough to easily extend into the hull.

Step 10
Adding the details

The Titanic had stops mounted on two of the pintles to limit the maximum rudder angle to 40 degrees on hard turns.  Small snips of .020 x .040 styrene were added for these.  There is also a small piece of .010 x.020 strip on the outer edge for a future hasp (?) ring that mounts here.  I’ll add that just before priming/painting since it’ll be fragile.

Also included are the small stops mounted on the kit where the rudder pintles would meet the hull.  I should also note that the small hole under the counter was drilled wider to accommodate the new rudder stock diameter.
 
Some sample views from aft to show the overall effect:


Not quite up to the level of a 3D printed version, but it was fun to build and likely cost me less than $5 US in materials that I already (mostly) had on hand.  (I did need to purchase the half round and smaller rod for the pintle detail.)
 
Thanks again to those who’ve been following along.
 
Bow Hawse up next.
 
Cheers,
Evan

Such a beautiful boat.  It looked like such a simple build from the picture in your first post.  But following each of your steps along the way has shown me that there is a lot of hidden complexity in the build requiring a lot of skill.  Well done (with the finish line near), my friend!

Getting very close, Bob. A vessel to be proud of.
 
Is it too early to ask what you plan to make next?
 
Steven

And the finish line is near, Bob.   You've come a long way on learning and it shows.   Very well done.

Very very nice, Bob. Wonderful job. 

Well I am getting there, installed the floor, false keel. The false keel has quite the bend to it and I was looking for a spare because I was sure it was going to break, but it didn't  lol. 


After that it was the cap rail , they almost fit with out any bending , just a little bit of heat and they fit perfectly. 

 Then I made the oars, rudders, davits, and stern  peice. So I have the benches to make and prep the sails, run four rigging  lines, no wait six  lol.  I will be done rigging in a day lol. Yep getting  close on this one. It has been a blast. The bending of the wood, the making of the amber shellac,  it was all so much fun to do. I am sure  The First Mate will  love this  as she does say it looks beautiful  every time she comes to visit me in the ship yard, lol.
 So just a bunch of things to put together and I call it done , maybe a week or less.
 Thanks so much everyone  it has been fun hanging out with you all.  

Just a pic of some progress the nose decals need some touch-ups kinda a PIA they were.I used the decal for the ban on the fuse an order from SB  coming this week swastikas for the tail and a Eduard Tempest courtesy of Dan's build and insignia yellow.

Additional work on the cathead and work in the knee for the cathead are included below.



 
Positioning of the knee and cathead tried out and secured - nothing glued yet as there are additional works remaining.

Now that I'm finished with the OREGON and WYOMING, I've started on the 1/64 scale 82' WPB kit.  This will be a typical BJ solid hull kit with laser, resin, britannia, and photo-etched parts.  Hull length is 15.5".  The intent is to create a kit that will allow the builder to replicate any of the 79 boats built.  The focus will be 82301, the first boat in the group, but will include additional basic details to modify it to later boats.  This will include different radar, towing gear, and deck details, plus stuff to do the boats in Viet Nam.  The hull master is done and Randy carved me a couple hulls with which to experiment.  I've templated one and added the skeg so far.  
 
This is the basic kit configuration - WPB82301.  That below, WPB82347 POINT BONITA, is one of the later boats.  A third general arrangement drawing will show a Viet Nam configuration.

As a Coast Guard veteran, I remember these 82 footers very well. It's great to see you developing this model especially since Coast Guard models are few and far between.

Greetings from Wisconsin!
 
Had a spell there with very little time in the shipyard but kept making progress bit by bit and now the planking is done.  Solid basswood, random width.

I've just added the bowsprit grapnel and its chain. The grapnel is a survival from the original build. It's made of 4 staples (i.e. the things that you staple pages together with) glued together at right angles. The chain I got from some tacky jewellery from a thrift shop ('op shop' in Australian).
 
There are only three ships on the Anthony Roll with grapnel and chain - the Great Harry, the Mary Rose and the Peter Pomegranate (named after the coat of arms of Catherine of Aragon's family, for those who are interested in such things). As far as I know they were the three biggest ships in Henry VIII's navy. Interesting point - Landström shows the chain looping several times - presumably somehow attached to the line that pulls it in and lets it out, running through blocks or something. The original picture shows it running straight up the bowsprit.


It raises the question - does the spritsail yard foul the chain, or at least stop it falling down properly as it should, so its full extent is unencumbered? If you look at the Anthony Roll picture, the spritsail is not attached to the bowsprit, but is stored somehow down at the bottom of the forecastle. This ties in with R.C. Anderson's statement
 
"At the beginning of the 17th century the spritsail became for the first time more or less permanently attached to the bowsprit. Before that it had been the custom to take it bodily to the head, yard and all, when the sail was not set." Unlike these vessels, the Great Harry doesn't have a beakhead, and it's an interesting question as to how that spritsail was secured against the forecastle. It's shown the same way in all the big ships in the Anthony Roll.
 
As Landström is showing the ship with all sails set, he's had to show the spritsail in position, and he's had to figure out how to show the configuration of the chain so the yard doesn't get in the way. I don't think it's right, and if, as many believe, the grapnel was for securing an enemy ship to allow boarding, it wouldn't have worked very well.
 
Another interesting point is that in all the other pictures I've seen of vessels (carracks) with a grapnel on the bowsprit, there is no spritsail and the grapnel has an easier fall.

The development of the spritsail must have posed a bit of a problem, and perhaps the Great Harry and its sisters were among the last vessels to have a grapnel and chain.
 
All that being said, I've chosen to follow Landström, as I'm already committed. Looking back, I might have chosen a different way of tying up the loops of the chain, but it's as it is, and I'm happy with it. Disregard the background bits and pieces, I was in the middle of doing something else and couldn't be bothered tidying up for the photo.

  
 
Steven
 
 
 
 

Here are some pics of the Victory middle deck port side with the planking recently removed. As it shows some frames that may be older than the others, I thought pics may be of interest. If anyone knows when these frames might date from, please let us know.
 
Middle Deck. Port side looking towards the stern.
 

 

 
Middle Deck. Port side looking towards the bow.
 

 

For many years this Honda was only second to Guzzi's fabled 500 V-8 as the most exotic motorcycle in the world.
 
Thanks for letting us peek over your shoulder.

I didn't know about the riders, Gary, but I've seen some of the iron strapping. It's particularly evident on the orlop - see pics, below.
 
It's wrong that you're not allowed to see the British Library records. There's no good reason to restrict access so long as they confirm your ID and ensure you're aware of how to suitably handle them. The National Archives at Kew are really good about this; they make it very easy to view their records.
 
 
Orlop Deck. Port side looking forward - Cable Tier (aft entrance to Port Carpenters Walk can be seen on left)
 
Orlop Deck. Forepeak, looking to Starboard 

Thanks everyone for following along. I have reached the end. I'll cork it, wrap, and gift it to my brother. I won't seal the cork, if I ever happen upon some .stl figures that I can turn into the pirates before printing, they should be easy to add. But as far as this build goes, I regard it as finished. 
 
What a difference the surface waves makes. I was a bit heavy on the white, but it is a cartoon after all. At least that is what I tell myself. 
 
The two other projects are still going, albeit no progress this weekend. Mothers day took over, rightly so. I'll add photos of those as they progress. I don't want to push them hard on those. 

Soon

Life has been getting in the way of modeling lately but I've tried to do a little each day, be it ever so small sometimes. Added the tach mount and tachometer, painted and then added the front fender. Small parts and fiddly, but it's all good. Not pictured is the fairing and attachments which are painted in silver lacquer to match the front fender. The fuel tank will be red lacquer. Decals will trim out the tank and fairing assembly.
 
 

My 16 year old grandson bought a boat. He decided he would strip it down and paint it in camouflage colors. He's used a good quality marine grade paint as his base coat and Rustoleum for the camo colors. He bought some stencils (Amazon maybe?) to do the camo pattern. Doing a very good job for his first boat painting project.
 

Well, not to bad. The plan worked. 
 

 

Planking is definitely one of the more challenging aspects of building a ship. Yours looks good so far.

Spare parts on order. OcCre has an awesome parts request section on their website just for this issue. Outstanding. 
 
I’m not a master at planking in any way. I laid the first plank in place. The top most plank of this section needs to be just under the “skuppers”, deck drains. I didn’t want to shave any off the planks so I’m building up backwards send to the aft on the top and fore on the bottom. It’s meeting up well.
 
Section J K and the first part of L don’t match the video 10 and 11 well. 12 and 13 videos all seem to run together. It arrives at “oh look a planked boat”. I’m having to study to see what parts are not spelled out. It looks like the left inside is a show face and needs stained in the inside with 19211. But I’m not sure. 
 
Nailing and gluing planks is deceptively challenging. Using the push handle doesn’t work well. A small hammer and pliers to hold the nails works best. No water was used. The wood provided behaves well with curves. 
 
I’m wingin it, and hoping it turns out ok. 🤞🏻
 

 

 

 

 

I’ve discovered I needed and or was missing 2mm x 3mm walnut sticks. The kit had 2mm x 4mm sticks of walnut so I used them. I need 12 2x4x40mm pieces to make inside pieces. I can make 3. There is no more 2mm x 4mm walnut. The parts list is awesome for what is needed for parts and sizes, but it has no list of what is in the kit. I can muddle thru some of it without the walnut, I have to learn where to get small fancy wood like in the kits. I was moving along good too. Boo.