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Katsumoto

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  1. Katsumoto
    Continuation of the small boat The holliday season gives me so time off and so I can also do some work on the ship. While we are celebrating Christmas, my friends in the USA are fighting for their lives. I sincerely hope you guys are allright and live to tell the tale. It's some storm that's getting the USA on it's knees if I may believe the reports. Some updates on the small boat. It's a lot of figuring out to build it. I have no drawings and only a few pictures to scratchbuild it. I'll take you along the way what I have done within these two days.... Next on the planning is the planking of the second layer on the hull.... until then, stay safe and to be continued.... regards. Peter
  2. Katsumoto
    well, no one can blame you for not taking your time on this model. 😅 Love your work Chris, it's neat and tidy. I have this kit on the shelve, but not the upgrade kit. Must order that one as well if I have understood you correctly for wooden gun carriages and the small boat.
  3. Katsumoto
    Hello guys! This weekend I continue my work on the small boat. It's sometimes all try and error really. Exploring if I have any "scratch-skills"... 😁 Soms denk je iets gemaakt te hebben dat werkt, moet je het toch weer afbreken en opnieuw opbouwen. Dus ook aan de voorkant van de boot... Also worked on the mast and yard. regards, Pete
  4. Katsumoto
    Philemon, I think Ab Hoving deserves much credit and respect. It is easy "behind the keyboard" to take a man down or attack his reputation and I think it is really shamefull reading through your posts how you seem to "dislike" Ab and show him no respect. It doesn't matter to me if you agree or dissagree with his research, just show the proper respect and be professional. He is a very kind and helpfull man with a lot of knowledge on 17th Dutch shipbuilding. I'm not even going there to debate his knowledge nor his many books written on the subject. To answer your initial question, and this is more to the one who are interested on the subject. The Dutch didn't make drawings in the 17th century because they had no real need for it! The knowledge was passed down from master to apprentice who worked for years to learn the trade and there were strict rules within the guild. Talk to the master shipwright Willem Vos who build the Batavia replica. He did it the "old school" way and he did it the right way without cutting corners. He researched all the known books and he "listned" to his old collegues in those books. He stated that The Dutch shipwrights of that day used "known proportions" to build a ship. So if you know the length, you know the width, the heigth, the size of the gunports etc etc. Everything was build by these " golden rules". He said, you really need to dig in and think in the way they did then in these old days. The answers were in these books if you understand them. If you know the standards, rules and point of views. It took him a lot of years to understand and learn these rules so to say. If you look at the old "public tenders" of the day, those measurements were always stated so the master shipwright knew how the ship should be build. The shell first method called in Dutch "vlakbouw methode" or "schaalbouw methode" was an art and a real craftmanship that sadly has been lost because ships of the late 18th century were build differently, so new knowledge was more necessary above the old. Not all the Dutch shipyards used this method those days, some put some of the mayor frames up first. However, the same calculations, proportions and measurements were used. These were the golden rules everyone followed. There is a known example where these "golden rules" were not followed and the result is known as the Vasa story, we all heard of! Even Willem Vos stated that some of the Vasa's constructions for example the gratings are done different than the Dutch did it those days. That's because the local craftmanship used different methods even when the master shipwright was a Dutch person. So to me it's okay to debate and argue the Dutch building style, how they did it and so on, but respect the ones who did their research and have a solid track record. Don't make it personal, keep it professional please! regards, Peter
  5. Katsumoto
    The boat - part 1 Hi guys, today an update from the warf. I start working on the boat which is placed on deck of the ship. It's a big one, almost 18cm in length and more like a shallop than a boat. However, OcCre did do a nice design for this small boat but I'm going to make a lot of changes, correct errors and give my own twist on the matter. Some changes I'm going to create are: - Change overall design and dimensions - Change false keel into walnut keel - Change rudderdesign and stern design - Change all the frames, ribs - Change floorboards - Double plank outside - Add decorative carvings to port and larboard - Add anchor and rope - Add mast - Some other small things.... So this is what OcCre had in mind, not too bad at all! The kit provides with a lasercut plywood bulkhead and false keel and a small jig to work on. It does the job nicely but as you can see, something is weirdly wrong at the stern where the rudder is placed. The rudder should be placed there, but this will sink the boat in a real situation, so I will change this. I use a scrap part of the plywood to add the piece I need. I cut it larger than needed for allignment and gives me a bigger glue surface. With some sanding I correct the final shape after the glue has dried. Time to remove some of the height of the keel. This is needed so I can place the walnut version later. First layer of planks added to the bulkheads. The walnut keel constructed and placed on top of the false keel. Removing the bulkheads and replaced it with walnut ones.... Didn't like the design of the bulheads. The walnut parts is an better upgrade but the bottom in the boad is flat and I didn't liked it at all. So I decided to rip it all out and made new frames out of stacked veneer strips (laminated). I changed the design a bit and added a strip to both sides. The top is blackened with ink. I made a small storage hatch Next part will show the second layer of planking of the outside of the hull. Preperations are being made. Regards, Peter
  6. Katsumoto
    One finished Oar...
  7. Katsumoto
    Mike: At the stern, the upper bulwark should look like this:
  8. Katsumoto
    "The oars" Well, firstly I have to apologize that you guys and gals have had to wait a long time for a new update. Second, I had to figure out to make the oars in a way that I can repeatedly get the same result without using "fancy" tools. I had to make 18 identical oars and didn't want to use the ones from the kit. Didn't like the metal parts. I had some walnut lying around, so I used that instead. I use my Proxxon multitool on a stand for some drilling and basic milling actions. This is not exactly the setup you want for your milling job; however, I use the tools I have to get the job done. In this case I milled only three slots to create the oar handles. I used the fence behind the vice as a guide and moved the vice from sideways, so the bit passed through the wood. The max. depth can be determined on the left side of the press. I used a couple of passes to get to the correct depth and so I didn't take too much wood off at a time. For each milled slot I needed to correct the distance of the fence so the milling bit would get into the right position. This very small machine is allowed on the dining table. I tried to get a permanent mill and lathe combination installed on the table, but it got rejected by the admiral unfortunately.... 😕 So, the oars are not finished yet.... part 2 will follow soon. regards, Peter
  9. Katsumoto
    Hi Mike, To me it doesn't matter if you are asking a thing in the beginning or end of the build. Questions need to be answered. 😁 So, answer 1) Yes, a bit lower than deck level. Use a guncarriage to get the correct height. Just take a carrigae + cannon and put it together and place it on deck. It should be in the middle of a gunport. This will help to get the right height of the pre-fab bulwarks. answer 2) I used normal PVA (white woodglue) and some brass nails to hold the bulwarks in place. answer 3) I do not like to place wet wood on the model. It will shrink and leave gaps. Always dry wood on the model. Pre curve / bend the plywood with an bending iron or something with heat like a soldering iron. Hope these answers will help you a bit on your way. 😉 regards, Peter
  10. Katsumoto
    It's good news kits like Santa Ana makes a comeback into the stores. Hopefully this will also happen with their HMS Victory kit and the HMS Surprise kit. It is a matter of opinion if it's a re-lease or revision. To me it doesn't matter that much. However some small changes has been made and also bigger things has changed if you look closely. The previous version of Santa Ana was a hardwood / single hull planked vessel, mostly walnut was used for planking, knees, decktimbers etc. They replaced the walnut for limewood or basswood and added some ramin veneer strips or coralwood veneer strips. (reddish, mohagony-color kind of wood) Also most parts are now lasercut-plywood instead of lasercut walnut and ofcourse the price remains more or less the same as the previous kit. So, less quality wood, paying extra for paint or stains or replacement wood to me this is a pitty...but they call it a "limited edition" In the end, you can still build the ship of course so that's most important I guess...but personally I don't like the cheaper and inferior choice of woods in their "new generation" kits.
  11. Katsumoto
    Chuck, all I can say that this is not only a masterpiece from a master shipbuilder, but also a true work of art. You guide others and make these kind of ships possible to build for other model shipbuilders. Just great leadership is all I can say. I'm sure you raised the bar with this one! Deep respect!
  12. Katsumoto
    Hi Max, Great you're working on your F.W. zu Pferde again. The updates looks great. It is a challenge to build without a good manual with step by step pictures. The model is expensive and not much people build this beauty. I wish you luck with the progress and I keep following for sure! Peter
  13. Katsumoto
    Hi André, It was nice meeting you and your beautiful ship at Duizel. Thank you for showing her to me and explaining some of the story behind the build. Regards, Peter
  14. Katsumoto
    So, this weekend was the Historic Shipmodelers expo in The Netherlands and two of my ships Santa Maria and Cazador were there. I wanted to make the central railing on the quarter deck. I did not use the one from the kit and I made my own. With help of a jig, see pictures below I made a new one and placed the swivel guns on top.
  15. Katsumoto
    It is really impressive what you bring to the modeling world Chris and I love it. I hope the copycats in Asia will stay away! regards, Peter
  16. Katsumoto
    Bonjour Neko, just a lovely kit and beautiful ship she is. The castings are one of the best I have seen in a kit! I'm just wondering who the kitmaker is as all the mailorder companies like Deagostini, Hachette and I'm sure Altaya also use Artesania Latina, Occre, Mantua as a source of the product / kit. Do you know? None of these companies has this kit in their catalog, so this is a " big" mystery for me and I would really like to purchase and build this kit. Altaya only sold this in France or Spain but not in other countries.... Are the parts / numbers being sold in France in local shops as you know? Maybe I can drive to France one weekend... 😁 I follow your build! Arigatō / thanks for answering my questions. 🙂 Salut, Peter
  17. Katsumoto
    Great work Daniel, love your attention to details, carvings etc. Keep following your log with great interest. Peter
  18. Katsumoto
    I also had flashbacks to the big crash of 2013. Luckily this is not the case and cudo's to the admins! 👍
  19. Katsumoto
    Super Gun Blue is an blueing agent that’s been used on firearms. It gives a patina (steel blue/ grey) on zamac or pewter parts. There are a lot of topics on how to blacken guns. For brass I use a different bottle named Brass Black. both are from Birchwood Casey.
  20. Katsumoto
    Hello everyone, In between the rigging of the cannons, I did some "ironwork" needed for a few things on my to-do-list. I began with the anchors. The once provided within the kit didn't look to bad and they were already blackened. After inspection I decided to change them a little bit and blued them with Super Gun blue. I also made an anchor for the "little boat".... i made a few eyebolds and rings which I used for the oar port lids.. All the gunport lids are placed included with the ironwork.... I made two of four knees which I placed to reinforce the catheads . Two down, two to go....I'll remove the cleats above the knees and give these another place. As last I worked on the swivel guns. They are made out of zamac and are cast. I bored out the barrels, cleaned them up and blued them with Super Gun Blue. I dry-fitted these on the quarterdeck, so they are not glued down yet. That's it for now, Until the next one, happy modeling. Pete
  21. Katsumoto
    For the rigging of the cannons, I use a simple but effective jig so I can rig the cannons off the ship. This makes life much easier because I can turn the jig with the cannon in all directions. Also it prevents damage on the ship doing it this way. So to me the jig has a simple but effective purpose. I can clamp the carriage to the jig so the cannon stays on it's place. I can use both hands, And to be sure, I sometimes during the rigging progress I wish I had 3 or 4. 😁 Now, this jig is simple like I said, It's functional and pretty easy to make. I used some scrap plywood that came with the kit and made a single gunport situation. It's not important how the jig looks, how fancy it is but only that the distance between the carriage and the hooks and bolts on the jig are the same as on the ship. I made the jig a bit smarter by drawing some lines on the bottom. The first line is the line were the back wheels needs to stop so I can cut the length of the breach rope. The second line is the place where the rear tackle positions. I used my drill to make a small hole for the bolt and ring. There are many ways to make a jig and I'm sure there are much better ones than I made for my cannons, but in the end it's the result or outcome that matters.... After finishing rigging a cannon on the jig, I simply remove the jig and place the cannon already fully rigged on the ship. I can do 1 sometimes 2 per evening depends on the cooperativity of all the materials....☺️
  22. Katsumoto
    Hello guys, A sunny summer update from the wharf. Where should I begin, I did so many "small" things this time. So I placed a column, some cleats were placed, barrels placed, did a lot of ironwork (nails, bolts, rings etc), redesigned the position of the stairs to the quarterdeck (one is made, the other not finished yet) For one, I did some major work on the rigging of the cannons. I use the rope and cable BenD from Ropes of Scale made for me and it's a pleasure working with high quality rope. The breach rope is actually 1.1mm cable and not rope. I used 3mm blocks to rig the first cannon. I did it 5 times over, because I wasn't satisfied with the result. Also I did not go for the rope coils on the deck. The breach rope goes through the carriage and the ends of the tackle rigging are just wrapped around the knob of the gun. 1 down, 19 to go... De positie van de trap en het plateau naar het halfdek heb ik volledig anders vorm gegeven en geplaatst. Dit is meer in lijn met de Franse Xebec's. that's it for this update, Pete
  23. Katsumoto
    The ropes and cables of Ben are of exceptional high quality. I'm rigging a cannon for the Xebec Cazador with a 1.1mm / 0.043 inches cable and 0.5mm / 0.019 inches polyester rope I ordered from Ben at ropesofscale. It's great news he offers a price reduction so hopefully everybody can enjoy these wonderful ropes on their ship!
  24. Katsumoto
    Hi guys, Some progress on the yard I made some improvements at the focsle construction that holds the fore-mast. To do so, I had to put my saw into the current construction. A bit nerve breaking kind of work.....The part I inserted is a slightly different color. Both walnut, so in time the color difference will be less visible. The mast is on a certain angle and the fit is just what I was looking for. From fore to aft. Some scratch build parts made and placed on deck. And yes, it's not being placed in the center of the quarterdeck due to the place of the mizzenmast. The supportive "arch" I made out of a single piece of solid walnut was a difficult job. The amount of angles this thing has is ridiculous. It's an add on I see on other Xebecs and I kind of liked it. It supports the spanker boom. Regards, Pete
  25. Katsumoto
    Congratulations on completing your Santa Maria. She is a beauty. 😃

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