Glenn-UK

Work has stalled on the Harpy build as I am pondering the distance to set between the channel and shroud deadeyes. On my initial research it would seem the lanyard spacing between the deadeyes should be 5 times the diameter of the deadeyes, noting 4 times is also used and 3 times infrequently, this equates to 25mm, 20mm and 15mm respectively for 5mm deadeyes. On this basis I decided to set the lanyard spacing to 20mm (4 x 5mm deadeyes) on the foremast. To my eye this spacing looks very large. Looking at photos of the HMS Trincomalee and HMS Victory the lanyard spacing seems quite small. When looking at the rigging plans provided with the kit the measurements seem to be 20mm from bottom of channel deadeye to the top of the shroud deadeye and the lanyard spacing, as measured from top of channel deadeye to the bottom of the shroud deadeye, is approx 8mm. The lanyard spacing, as measured from top of channel deadeye to the bottom of the shroud deadeye, on the main mast shrouds is much more appealing to my eye but still a bit more than those shown on the rigging plans at about 13mm The foremast lanyard spacing will need to be reduced. I am currently undecided if I should reduce the overall lanyard spacing to approx 8-10mm which means I will have to redo all the shroud deadeyes. I have much to ponder over the next few days whilst my wife and I travel to Bramhall for a few days to help look after a couple of our grandkids. My current thinking is that I should remove all the shroud deadeyes so I can reset to the lanyard distance to approx 10mm, as measured from top of channel deadeye to the bottom of the shroud deadeye.

Following on from my last post this is the method I am using to add deadeyes to the shroud lines. It may not work for you, but for me it is a method which produces the most consistent, yet not perfect, results. The best item I bought for model making, especially for the rigging phase is the quad hands. I form a loop in the shroud line and then using the quad hands it can be held in place, as shown below. Next I add three simple cross over knots on the top. In the photo below I am in the process of adding the third crossover knot. The loop can then be closed up by pulling the free end (blue arrow). A deadeye is then placed in the loop, which is pulled tight around the deadeye. After a quick visual check against the other shroud lines a touch of ca glue is added to the seizing and the excess thread cut away. The lanyard is then added as a further check and if necessary the seizing can be removed and redone. The process is repeated until all the deadeyes have been added to the shroud lines. The are not perfectly level but they do tend to follow the slight upward slant of the channel beneath which is to be expected.

Stadler and Waldorf is a great feature in the garden.

Progress has been a bit slow over the last couple of weeks due to the very nice weather. I decided it was time to revamp the garden pond. I ended up digging a new larger hole (7ftL by 4ftW by 1.5ftD) and fitting a new liner. The fish seem happy in their new home and I added a few more small ones, plus a filter and fountain. Moving on the Harpy progress. I decided to follow @ECK lead and to fit and rig the yards to the masts before starting with the shrouds. It was certainly much easier to do at this stage. Next I started to rig the shrouds. I did an initial check that the method for adding the deadeyes would help to ensure they look reasonably level. It appears to work, noting I will need remove the left-hand lanyard as the deadeye needs to be rotated slightly. The method I am using is to place a jig in the channel deadeye. The shroud is passed through a hole and held in place using a clamp. The seizing thread is then passed through the shroud line, as shown in the next photo, using a needle. The jig is then removed from the channel and the shroud and seizing is then pulled back through the hole. The final check is to make sure the seizing thread for the adjacent shrouds looks level. In my next post I will detail how the deadeye is added to the shroud.

The deadeyes and blocks look great and much better quality than the kit supplied items. In particular I am having to sort through the 3mm deadeyes for usable ones as the position of the three holes is very erratic.

Much appreciated Mark

Many thanks Jim

A mixed bag of items in this post detailing what I have been working on over the last few days. I have made all the main and fore mast shroud lines. They have been position on the two masts but they can be removed if required before I a, ready to add the lanyards. I have also made the main and foremast stays and preventor stays, and one pair is shown below. Next I moved on to adding the various blocks and footropes to the main yard. The first task was to seize threads to all the blocks. The yard was then held in position, using my quad hands. In the next photo the central blocks have been added to the yard. The footropes have also been added. Moving outwards the next three blocks were added to the yard. In the next photo all the blocks and footropes have been added. The yard was then then test fitted to the mast. The next job was to add the deadeyes to their respective strops. Next I started to add the chain plates and links. Using the shroud line as a guide I marked the position for the first chain plates and link. The first four chain plates and links have now been added.

Work has been progressing slowly on the Harpy, partly due to a short holiday and partly due to enjoying the mini heatwave. I have completed all the work related to the main and foremast, such as: a) The platforms have been added b) The various PE parts have been added c) The various blocks have been added d) Cleats and iron banding have been added above the platform I have also added the channels to the hull. I am waiting a new supply of blackening solution so the strops and chain plates can be blackened before they are added.

Ditto, I had also noted the belaying of those "hidden" cleats so I have not fitted the ladders

I am now prepared for around 2 to 4 weeks work of adding the various blocks and footropes to all the yards and masts. I have cleaned up the work area and brought out the quad hands and homemade thread dispenser so I am now ready to make a start. Today I concentrated on the topgallant yards for both the main and fore masts. It is a simple task as there are only two blocks and two footropes to add per yard. The one central and two end flying leads will be added later on in the rigging process. I started with the footropes. I cut 4 lengths of black thread and created loops on each end, noting the loops position can be adjusted and closed up as required. The footropes were added to the central section of the yards and the loops closed up. The other ends were then thread over the ends of the yard and the position of the loops seizing was adjusted as necessary and the loops were closed up around the yard. In the next photo I have added the footropes and I am using some clamps to double check overall shaping looks symmetrical. I have also brushed on some very diluted pva glue to the footropes to help maintain the shape once the clamps have been removed. Once that was done I added the blocks. The completed topgallant yards, noting the locating pins will be trimmed. I will not be in the shipyard until early next week as my wife and I are taking a short break away.

Thanks Mark

Work over the last few days has been making the various yards. I used my mini lathe to add the tapers. I used a sanding stick to create the hexagonal mid section of the main and topsail yards (both fore and main). In the photo below I have added all the PE parts. The various blocks and footropes still need to be added. I have added the required camphor to the driver boom jaw. I found fitting the driver boom to the main mast a bit difficult as the mast cheeks hindered the fit of the jaw. I ended up opening the jaws to compensate for the cheeks. The eyebolt has not been glued in place as this will be removed so a 4mm double block can be seized to it. The next photo shows the stun sail boom in place. I have added the hole in the stun sail booms, as can be seen in the photo below. The heptagonal shaping can also be seen in the next photo. After varnishing the masts they were painted black. I am now making a list of the various blocks and deadeyes required for all the yards and masts and I will spend a few days preparing these items ready for installation. For example the main mast will require: 2 x 3mm single blocks with thimbles seized with 500m long threads. 8 x 3mm single blocks 2 x 5mm single blocks 2 x 5mm (inner) & 3mm (outer) single block pairs 2 x 3mm single blocks each on a 42mm flying lead. 2 x footropes

Work still continues with making the various masts and yards. After I had made the bowsprit, spritsail and jibboom I completed the work in this area by making the spritsail yard. All these items will require the various block, deadeyes and footropes adding. I plan to add these items once I have completed making the remaining masts and yards. In the two photos below the spritsail yard has only been pinned in place. Next I moved to to making the topsail and topgallant masts for both the main and foremasts. The Harpy is slowly coming to life, but there is still many more days work required on making all the yards.

Great idea

Today I have made the spritsail and jibboom masts. As can be seen in the photos everything looks OK when they test fitted with the bowsprit.

Following on from my last post I thought I would show, in a bit more detail, how I shaped the fore mast. Starting with squaring the end I tape the start point. I then make a small cut, using a razor saw. I use a craft knife to remove most of the material. A sanding block is then used to remove the remaining material and to smooth the surface. I use a pencil to indicate any areas which require a little bit more work, after checking the width with a vernier gauge. In the next photo a vernier gauge is used to check the width have been reduced from 8mm down to 6.5mm. The above process are then repeated on the opposite side so that the overall width is reduced to 5mm, as shown below. The process is then repeated on the other two side so the dowel end has been shaped to a 5mm square, and the final check is fitting it with the platform frame. This is shown in the next two photos. The next task is to round of the top section. The area is marked with tape. I use a craft knife to change the shape to an octagon. Sandpaper is then used to round the end to a 5mmD. Once rounded the end cap is test fitted, as shown below. The excess material above the cap is cut away, as can be seen in the next photo. Any gaps will be filled with wood filler. And now a few photos of the completed fore mast. I then made a start with making the bowsprit.

Today I started work on making the main mast. The first task was to construct the main platform supporting frame. Once that was done I shaped the upper section of the main mast. Starting with a length of 8mmD dowel I created a 5mm square section on the upper section. This was done using a combination of a craft knife and sanding block. I worked on one side at a time, using my digital vernier to check the dimensions as I went along. The final check was to check the fit with the main platform supporting frame. Next the top section of the dowel was rounded off to 5mmD, using a sanding stick and sandpaper. The mast cap fit was the checked. I also check the fit of the platform. I will use some wood filler to hide the gaps when it is time to fit the mast cap. The mast cap will then be painted black. Next I added the flat surfaces for the two cheeks. It was necessary to reduce the dowel width from 8mm to 6mm for this. I used a combination of my craft knife and sanding block for this task. Using my sanding block I created a flat edge for the fish. I used tape to ensure I was sanding the right area. After coating the mast varnish it was painted yellow ochre and then test fitted on the deck. Next up was to add the ring for belaying pins and the support for the main boom, these parts were painted black before they were fitted. The next couple of photo's shows the Harpy with some of my other Vanguard models. The next task was to add the iron banded strips. These were cut from black card. The final task for today was to add the two bibs.

Many thanks Mark

It has been a good couple of days in the shipyard as I have now completed all the deck work and I am now ready to start work on making the various masts and yards. The work I have completed over the last couple of days include the following: a) adding the shot garlands. These were painted black and then once fitted the shots were added. b) adding the hawse rope and fitting the hatch cover where it feeds through c) adding the mast rings, which were painted black before fitting d) The position of the winch assembly was reversed, as its alignment is incorrectly shown in the build manual. e) all the deck eyebolts have been fitted. f) The binnacle and ships wheel have been fitted. I opted for a red and black painting scheme for these items. I will add the rigging for the ships wheel when I am ready to start the rigging phase of this build. Here is a collection of photos showing the completed deck details.

I have spent the last couple of days working on the deck items, With the exception of the ships wheel and shot garlands I have completed all the work. The various parts have been painted and installed. The deck eyebolts and belaying pins also need to be added. Starting with the bow area the bitts have been painted flat red. The shot garlands have been painted black but, as yet they have not been properly positioned and glued in place. The coaming that sits in front of the stove is not added, as I need to add the hawse rope. In retrospect it would have made more sense to do that before the fore mast bitt assembly was installed. Moving toward the main mast area everything has been added. I did add the hand pump drain pipes in the wrong place, but I am sure nobody will notice if when looking at the model. I did paint the capstan top with a black iron band. Shot garlands still need to be painted and glued in place.

I know the ships wheel is wrong way around. I will look at the skylight also. Thanks

Today I have been building and painting all the various hatches. Each hatch comprises a number of parts so there is a nice curve to each finished coaming. In the series of photos below everything has been placed on the deck but they have not been glued in place. I still need to build the hand pumps, capstan and bitts which is the planned task for tomorrow, however if the nice weather continues I may end up in the garden soaking up the sun as I did this afternoon. It is very crowded where the ships wheel, binnacle, skylight and aft companionway are located. I will paint the front edge of the companionway hatch black rather than the olive green as is at the moment.

Over the few days I have started work on adding all the deck item. Starting with the stern area I added the rudder housing and rear hatch. I opted to paint the rudder housing and outer framework of the rear hatch black. I used an olive green paint for the rear hatch cover. I have just noted there is some dried glue to remove on the top right side of the rudder housing. I still need to add the eyebolts to the gun port openings. I then turned my attention to the bow area and added the fore platform assembly which I painted flat red. I also assembled all the Harpy's ladders, 6 off in total. The two ladders for the fore platform have been added. Next I assembled both the companion hatch and skylight. The companion hatch cover was painted olive green, the basic frame work was painted black and the decorative patterns were painted flat red. The skylight framework was painted black and the window panels were painted flat red. The PE window frames were chemically blackened. In the following photos these assemblies have only placed on the deck and I will glue all the deck items in place once I have completed the assembly phase of all the various deck items. The companion hatch ladder has been fitted however. I have started to assemble the ship wheel. My current plan is to paint the wooden parts black and the ships wheel (which has been sprayed with a primer) a wood colour. The following photo shows my initial dry fit of the various ship wheel parts. The dowel will need to be trimmed to the required length.

A little bit more progress over the last few days. The chess trees have been fitted, one per side. Next two side fenders per side and the ships steps were added. I should have spent a bit more time cleaning the char for the step edges, so I will need to tidy that up. Next I attended to the stern area and added the two stern davits. Various cleats were added to the transom, noting I still need to add the eyebolts around the gun port openings. To finish of this post I did a bit of work around the bow.