CaptainSteve

Great update, Markku !! Your gun-deck looks fantastic .. you are making me re-think my decision to not to do the internal decks.

Also, Harv', less vacuuming is needed afterwards ...

That be the business, indeed, Matt !! I can just imagine the back-story already: ... the Nutz Brothers on their extremely dangerous and highly-classified secret night-mission ... their target ... the Imperial army's latest and most deadly weapon !! ... the tale of their stunning success !! ... followed by tales of their daring-do as they turn the weapon against them dreaded Red-Coats !! (Whoops !! Wrong era !!)

Mine quite often IS, Matt ... this is why my accountant recommends I buy shares in Isopropyl !!

I love the planking job the Nutz brothers have done ... but, err, what's going on with the platform a-stern ?? (Looks a little like a rotunda for a band to play on)

Welcome aboard, Grant. (By the way ... I should have the REAL table-saw early next week.) I should be organizing an official CDO/OCD stand .... only problem is that my build would be finished before we could all agree WHERE it should be located.

Yep !! JP is correct. Except mine came from cans of Jim Beam & Cola (ZERO sugar) Thank Ye, Nenad. But only when I can conduct some trials. And only IF the idea actually doest work.

Arrr ... It be most goodly to have ye along fer the ride, Mobbsie !!

Guilty as charged, Boyd !! I'm looking forward to seeing the results of your OCD work,

That remains to be seen, JS. I'll try a test this weekend. First up, I'm trying to find some copper foil (thinner than the tape included in the kit for doing the copper plating). My thinkin' being that using a thinner medium would make it easier to press the foil into the ring-pull. I had always figured on doing some form o' colouration to the patina, so having different thicknesses/textures should not matter.

Michael !! A beautiful work from stem to stern !!

This is something I was wondering, also, Harv'. On the one hand, once installed they could easily be removed if they don't work ... On the other, mayhaps I should do a test before putting them on.

For those o' ye who ha' not a-followed Our Hero through his Bounty Launch build, and be yet to discover the vagaries of CaptainSteve, then ye shall soon learn-eth that he doth have a tendency to go off on tangents, at times. Most verily, this be one o' those times !!! "If you wouldst recall," CaptainSteve didst begin-eth, "'t'other eve there be three drink can ring-pulls a-sitting on me work-bench ..." These were not there, as one might assume, simply because Our Hero got lazy and couldst naught be bothered to clean up after his-self. "I be a-seein' this pic," he were to announce-eth, "in me copy of Marquardt's AOTS." It got Our Hero to thinkin', and this eve he were to take-eth up his Dremel and his pin-drill. "Now, they be a-lookin' like this !!" CaptainSteve stated, somewhat emphatically. Hmmm ... 'pon reflection Our Hero may consider a re-do ...

That lantern is just stunning, Buck !! I'll take a dozen, please. (My credit card number is 513. .... .... .... )

Harv', I have been giving lots o'thought to the various matters such as number-of-windows and white-over-yellow stripe etc etc Briefly, for my own model, I would tend towards a six window arrangement, as I prefer the Hull model for details such as this. As to the stripe ... well, for my money, that has to be white. (And no red strip above the copper-plating ... I believe that came in much later.) As to the gun-deck, well, I had planned on going with the kit on this matter .... BUT, having seen what Tom (UsedToSail) did with his Connie, then I am sorely tempted. Admittedly, Tom's whole cannons are a vast improvement over the dummy guns ... but this is before the gun-ports are added. My concern, however, lies with just how much of all his additional work - stunning as it is whilst we can see it - will actually be visible in the end.

Not too late at all, Ken. I'm only just laying the keel ...

Thanks, Ken. That's a pretty cool concept you have there. I'd have to give it some consideration. Having sea-sounds or birds calling or occasional gun-fire (with battle sounds) or, even, snippets of the Star-Spangled Banner playing at random intervals is definitely worthy o' further thought. However, that wiring connector has been fixed fast using two-part epoxy. Thus, there is no chance now of adding wiring for volume control. Although, in theory that (as well as track selection controls/bass and treble controls) could be installed in the base stand OR be done wirelessly.

Arrr... Thanks, Boyd. I am yet to give a lot of consideration to the specifics o' the electronics, but I wanted to get power to the inside a-fore it was too late. Me either, Jp. Welcome aboard, George !! Jus' be leavin' the stewardesses in an upright position, if you could. Thanks, Nenad. I'll be checkin' Kit-Basher's frequently to see if you have left any ideas I can use. Likewise, Matt ... it's shaping up to be a wild ride.

Beautiful AND precise workmanship !! Bravo, Grant !!

I'm sure your Connie and MSW will still be here when you are ready.

USS CONSTITUTION by CaptainSteve RE-DUX “Avast and Ahoy !!” announced CaptainSteve, most whole-heartedly. “Firstly, may I just say that it doth feel-eth most good t’ be back." Now, for those o’ ye who be a-reading this log from the beginning, and have-eth arrived to this very point and be a-wondering just what the heck a ‘re-dux’ be, then please do read-eth on … “I be back,” he were to explain, “from me self-imposed hiatus whereby I didst take a brief, fourteen-month, break to be a-building me Bounty Launch." (Now, 'twas during this time that CaptainSteve were to discover this somewhat twisted persona what doth possess-eth most annoying penchants for referring to its' ownself in a convoluted mix o' the First-, Second- and Third-person, as well as fer talkin' in Ye Olde English ... ) "Ahem ... !!" “Fer the rest o’ye,” Our Hero were to continue, “who didst link from me Launch build, please feel-eth most free to go back to the beginnin's o' this log and check out me boats.” Anyways, o’er the past couple o’ years, CaptainSteve hath always kept in the back o’ his mind that one day he be a-returning to his Connie build. “But firstly,” he were to go on, “I didst be a-needin’ to do that little side project as a warm-up.” Indeed-eth, with that matter now done and dusted, the time hath now come-eth to be returnin' to the USS Constitution. “And, thusly, THAT," Our Hero were to summate, "wouldst be-eth why I be callin’ this a ‘Re-dux’ !!" And so, wi’ his Launch now behind him (”Pics be in the Gallery !!”), the first thing to do wouldst be a complete clean-up o’ his modellin’ room … “Ye shall be not a-seein’ me benches so clean ‘n’ clear fer the next few years, methinks.” Now, a-fore he begin-neth in earnest, Our Hero doth wish to ha' a few handy links close at hand … “These shall be a-coming in most handy fer me,” he went on, by way of explanation. “First up, just a few o’ the superb modellers who I be a-followin’, and who also be building (or ha’ built a-ready) the Model Shipways kit o’ the USS Constitution.” Bob Riddoch CapnHarvey Modeler12 Geoff Matson PatrickMil UsedToSail Cookster XKen “I be a-plannin’,” CaptainSteve were heard to whisper conspiratorially, “to be a-plagarizin’ much from the above very fine builders.” Next up, here be a brace o' links to discussion forums which Our Hero didst also find-eth ‘round MSW: Constitution Yellow Stripe Constitution Stern during 1812: 5 or 6 windows These were to be most useful fer when CaptainSteve were contemplating some o’ the changes and bashes he be a-plannin’ on makin’. “I be a-goin’,” he were to inform everyone within ear-shot, “fer an 1812-era look. But there be time for more on that later.” And this link will make it possible fer Our Hero to check out the real Connie anytime he doth so please … USS Constitution on Google Maps (Many thanks go out to CapnHarv2 fer that one !!) Another brace I be findin' most useful: Old Ironsides Is Getting a Makeover ConnieCam (Thanks also to JerseyCityFrankie fer that las' one.) And so, wi’out further procrastinations, let’s be a-getting’ this here show on the road !! “Firstly,” Our Hero were to commence-eth, “a quick check o’ the keel and false-keel pieces which ha’ already been cut, bearded, sanded and faired.” One little piece didst require some glue-ing and clamping … “One o’ the bashes,” CaptainSteve didst interject, “which I has been a-plannin’ from the out-set, wouldst be the addition o’ LEDs.” At this early stage, 'twouldst be nigh on impossible for Our Hero to give specifics – given that he hath been known to change his mind most frequently – but plans are a-foot for lighting in the stern galleries, as well as deck lanterns on the spar-deck. As such, he were next to be a-fixin’ the wiring connectors … Thusly, e’en wi’ CaptainSteve’s extremely tenuous grasp ‘pon matters o’ Electrification, he were to proveth his-self to be a Man ahead o’ his Time … for, most verily, Thomas Edison were not to be born for another 35 years hence !! "These wires," he said, "be jus' fer connectin' power to me circuitry." Verily, the lower o' the connecting connectors shall be installed in the base-stand, along wi’ a battery-pack and a switch fer’ turning the lightin’ off an’ on again. “I be a-figurin’ to have the plastic surround o' the upper connectin' connector to finally be extending jus’ below the false keel. Me reasonin’ ‘twouldst be to prevent a short-circuit occurin’ wi’ the to-be-installed copper-platin’.” But, as the weekend didst draw to a close, Our Hero were needin’ to be wrappin’ things up … “Now, I be not sure how many o’ Ye doth recall,” CaptainSteve didst reminisce. “But many moons ago, I didst groove-eth out a channel, one-a-side, to aid in strengthenin’ me keel piece.” One last point: “Those wi’ a keen eye,” CaptainSteve were to close, somewhat paradoxically, “may notice three drink can ring-pulls in the lower right corner o' the last photograph.” Our Hero, most verily, doth ha’ plans for these, so stay tuned ….

Ooops ... My apologies, Izzy. I didn't look that closely.

Fantastic job !! Now ... it's off to Kit-Basher's with that idea !!

Nope. Can't see anything wrong with that picture, whatsoever. (O'course, I'm used to the metric system and have no probs dividing/multiplying by 10)

Abso-fooken-lutely stunning, Dafi !!!!! Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go pick up my jaw. I dropped it some three or four pages back.