The Gimps Chimp

You're a braver man than me Stuglo. I tried passing a naked flame very quickly under the 0.15mm thread and didn't have anything left. To try that after fitting to the model when access is limited, well as I said, you're a braver man than me Chimp

Hi BranPie, I was talking with a mechanical engineer friend about making a ropewalk and about gears and bearings. He then quickly found the files for a 3D printed ropewalk which had been posted on another forum by someone called "epicdoom". My friend then printed and assembled the device and gave it to me to do my worst. It functions well but has some limitations. I'm still experimenting with it but it does produce reasonable rope. It uses standard 608Z skateboard bearings which I managed to get from Amazon at £7 for 30 bearings (you only need 5 for the ropewalk). I've attached the files needed to this post. Chimp Ropewalk.zip

A quick update on where I am with rigging thread: I've just got hold of a crude 3D printed ropewalk and some Guttermann mara 100 thread. Here is a photo showing the different threads/rope. Leftmost is the base Guttermann mara 100 thread 1st right is the supplied 0.15mm OcCre thread 2nd right is my first attempt of rope with three strands of mara 100 Rightmost is the supplied 0.5mm OcCre thread The photo below shows two coils. On the left a coil of OcCre 0.15mm thread and on the right a coil of my homemade rope. I know my homemade rope isn't perfect but I'm very happy with the result so far. I now need to practice my ropemaking skills to try and perfect the process. The mara 100 thread and the resulting rope is much less hairy/fuzzy than the supplied thread so I'm now happy to spend the time rigging my ship. Chimp

I've just received my order of Tacky Wax and have given it a go. It certainly appears to work well and the resulting thread is significantly less hairy. My only concern is, after having applied a layer of this wax will it remain tacky and encourage airborne dust to stick to the rigging? Any thoughts? Chimp

Hi JayBee, welcome to MSW. As a relative newcomer to model ship building myself, I thought I would give you my thoughts. Like yourself, I had previously enjoyed modelmaking for many years, mainly plastic kits. I found moving into building wooden ships a significant step up in many areas. I had briefly transitioned from plastic to wood by building a few cheap laser cut models which can be built in a few days. I'm now on my second ship build, which incidentally is Occre's HMS Beagle. My first build was Caldercraft's HMS Ballahoo. I chose Ballahoo as it was relatively inexpensive and looked straightforward, with limited rigging. To be honest, I was half expecting to not finish the build but I stuck with it and was very pleased with the final result. I then moved onto something a little more complex, Occre's HMS Beagle. I'm finding this build has a number of challenges compared to the Ballahoo. There are a complete set of instructional videos on the Occre website which are very useful for the beginner. However, the supplied instructions are often confusing, contradictory or wrong. Many errors are highlighted in the numerous build logs on this site. The quality of the parts are, in my opinion, not as good as Caldercraft parts. I'm finding the rigging thread particularly hairy/fuzzy. Unfortunately I don't have any experience of other manufacturers yet. I think one of the main drawbacks of HMS Beagle as a first build is the amount of rigging. Compared to the Ballahoo it's in a different league. My suggestion would be to 'cut your teeth' on an easier kit. As suggested above, I would encourage you to start a build log of your kit. This allows others to follow your progress and also allows subsequent builders of the ship to learn from your experiences. I relied very heavily on build logs during my first build. It also keeps you in touch with other members of the club. Initially I was a little embarrassed to post my inexperienced progress in a build log as I thought it would be judged against the expert builders here. I shouldn't have worried, as members here will give nothing but praise and encouragement. There is no competition here, we are all just trying to do our best. I hope you find some of my thoughts helpful and whatever you chose to build I wish you the best of luck with it Chimp

Progress over the last couple of weeks has been slow but sure. I now have all the deadeyes fitted. Getting this complete makes a big difference in the ship's appearance. I've used 0.4mm wire instead of the supplied 0.5mm wire, mainly because I have 20m of the 0.4mm wire which I had left over from my previous build and there didn't look to be a huge amount of the supplied 0.5mm. I think the twisted wire looks better than the plain wire and was easier to fit. I've also got the rudder fitted. Again, this was a bit fiddly but I think it turned out okay. With each of these tasks being completed my confidence is increasing. I've also done a dry fit of the bowsprit and completed foremast. It's becoming clear just how big this model is going to be. Now I need to progress all the deck fittings. I'm surprised just how cluttered/packed the deck is. There wouldn't have been much room to manoeuvre on deck in addition to the many trip hazards. Chimp

That's exactly what I've ordered and from the same supplier. Delivery was a bit pricey but that's what it is. Many thanks Chimp

Getting hold of the Gutterman mara thread is proving difficult here in the UK, not sure what it's like in other parts of the world. I've now ordered some mara 100 to give that a go. This will be my first experience of rope making so will be interesting to see how it goes. As you say Gregory, this whole topic is a 'can of worms' and I do wonder if I'm overthinking things. My current skills of ship making are, shall we say, 'limited'. This is only my second model. However, as I'm going to be spending many hours of time and effort on this I would like to be happy with the result, and I'm always happy to learn new skills. Many thanks for your help Chimp

I've just ordered some. Let's see how I get on with it. Many thanks Chimp

Just a quick update to my original post: I've now got some beeswax and given that a go. As previously suggested, this makes things a little better but doesn't solve the problem I'm now looking into making my own rope. Everything I read on this site suggests it's relatively straightforward. Having started to look into the topic I'm generating more questions than answers. The kit I'm currently building is HMS Beagle at 1/64 scale. The supplied thread is 0.15mm and 0.5mm. Would it be unreasonable to expect to make 0.15mm rope? Should I just use Gutterman polyester thread, if so which size ...... mara 120, mara 100, mara 70 ...etc. I think three strands of Gutterman mara 70 should give me a good 0.5mm rope. Chimp

Hi Dean, Sorry to hear of your current situation and I hope your good lady makes a full recovery. Don't feel embarrassed about any aspect of your build, she's looking fine. I too feel I could do better especially when compared to some of the work we see on the site. I know I've still a long way to go but we are all learning and gaining experience the more we do. I'm hoping my skills improve along with my confidence. I'm also working on the Beagle but some way behind you after also taking some time out. I'm now back in the game and progressing, albeit at a slow pace. Hope you get the time to progress your build. Best wishes Chimp

Progress over the last week has been limited. I've now all but finished making the bowsprit. The foremast has had a few bits of metalwork added. I've also assembled the six ladders, primed and painted a base coat. These ladders were a lot fiddlier than I expected. Not sure why they are made from brass in the kit. Maybe if made from wood then they might be too flimsy given the thickness. Chimp

What an interesting documentary.... Thanks

Allan I've also asked myself the same question. Is it just indicative of hammock storage, was it just intended for hammocks, would it have been used for the storage of other items? How big is a hammock (and bedding) when rolled up for storage? What's clear is there isn't a lot of room for 74 people so I'm sure the space wasn't wasted. Chimp

Hi Allan, Many thanks for your comment. I'm not in any way an expert on such things but my understanding is that the OcCre kit represents her as a survey ship after she was modified in 1825. According to that well known 'source of truth' Wikipedia: "On 27 September 1825 The Beagle docked at Woolwich to be repaired and fitted out for her new duties. Her guns were reduced from ten cannon to six and a mizzen mast was added to improve her handling, thereby changing her from a brig to a bark (or barque)." This also appears to be consistent with the Beagle AoTS. Chimp

Over the past week I've fitted the channel supports for the deadeyes and started to makeup the deadeyes and chains. I then realized that some of the chains won't be vertical but will be angled. I don't want to follow the instructions here as it's clear the instructions are wrong, which has luckily been pointed out a few times in other build logs. Therefore, to enable me to workout what angle they should all be I've decided to start building the bowsprit and masts. These won't be permanently fitted just yet but will be temporarily positioned so I can get the right angle for the chains. I'll then remove them and complete the deck fittings. I started with the bowsprit as that looked easier than the masts. I used a David plane to get the taper before sanding smooth. I must admit, I find that process very rewarding. There were quite a few small holes that need drilling and I did worry that one slip here could mean a couple of steps backwards. Again I shouldn't have worried as it all went to plan. Then on with the masts, starting with the foremast: I'm currently about halfway with the foremast and things are looking okay. Let's hope I can keep the progress over the coming weeks. Chimp

Hi guys, many thanks for your replies. It sounds like a common issue. I think the thread supplied with the Occre kit is particularly hairy. I've taken a screen grab from another build log of the same ship to show what it's like: I've just ordered some beeswax to give that a go. If that doesn't help then maybe I'll have to order some from a supplier that I know are better. Looking at Gutterman polyester thread they don't appear to give thread diameter but weight e.g. 25g (0.9oz). Does anyone know how to convert or have a lookup table? Chimp

Hi guys, Sorry if this has been asked before but I couldn't find an answer anywhere. I'm currently building the HMS Beagle kit from Occre. The rigging thread seems to me as being overly hairy/fuzzy. I've previously build a kit from Caldercraft and the thread was much cleaner/smoother. As I will be investing many hours on the rigging I don't want to get through it only to be disappointed with the result. I have considered purchasing some Caldercraft thread from a supplier but wondered if there was anything I can do with the thread I have. I've seen some posts which talk of using beeswax on thread. Will this solve my problem? I've seen other posts which state beeswax shouldn't be used. In the following photo I show some original 0.5mm thread (left) alongside similar thread which I've passed over a flame to burn off the hairs (right). Although much better I don't think this is the solution to my problem as I tried it with some 0.15mm thread and it quickly disappeared in flames. Many thanks Chimp

Hi Rob, many thanks for the advice. I have actually already drilled and filed the hole for the bowsprit. Making that hole didn't come easy to me as I didn't know what or where I was going. Turned out I had nothing to worry about as I was only really opening a hole in the planking. I'm now making the bowsprit, a little out of sequence according to the instructions. Photo's in my next post. Chimp.

Gun port hatches are now fitted, that was straightforward. Some needed a little trimming to fit but that's expected. I've also started looking at fitting all the bow details. The instructions aren't best I've seen and there is still some confusion in my mind as to whether they are consistent, as I've often found the instructions and assembly photos do tend to conflict with each other. Anyway, I think I've ended up with something which looks half decent. These are the brass sections after cutting and bending This is what it looks like after releasing my glued fingers from the bow. Not perfect, but I'm happy with it. It will be interesting to see what it looks like after painting, if I can now get the brush in to paint it!!

After spending time making sure the surface of the hull is clean and smooth the next step requires you to drill a 5mm hole through it! Just a little bit unnerving to say the least. It's to allow the rudder to fit up into the hull. I need to become more confident during these times but after spending so much time and effort on it I worry that doing something silly can set you back weeks. Anyway, I overcame my fear of doing something wrong and got on with the task in hand. As it turned out everything was fine. I suppose that's given me some confidence for the next time I've also spent some time on painting the hull so she's starting to look like the Beagle. One area which I've found particularly challenging has been the wooden trim around the stern. The piece on the top does need to bend in two directions, vertically and horizontally. The vertical bend isn't a problem. The horizontal bend, whist retaining the vertical bend becomes a challenge. My first attempt failed. Thought the best approach would be to make the first bend the horizontal one. That was performed around a piece of scrap wood. Then I fitted it to the hull by gluing just the center section using CA glue. When dry I then applied water using a paint brush and gave time for it to soak through. I then glued further out from the center, until eventually got the full length attached. Even then I wasn't happy that I had got the correct amount of horizontal bend on the port side. To remedy this I glued on a piece of scrap wood and when dry I shaped to look correct. It's not perfect but I'm happy with the result. The side pieces were also a challenge but with tighter bends. I applied the same logic and technique to this problem and I think they came out okay.

The next step has been to make up the gun port panels. Luckily I had saved these when cutting out the gun ports at the start of the build. It would have been easy to see these as scrap wood and to throw them away. Covered them with Sycamore for the inner face and Sapelli for the outer. The outer face was then painted black before fitting the hinges. I found cutting the hinges from the brass sheet a bit difficult as my side cutters were too bulky to fit in between the tightly packed fittings so I had to cut away much of the outer sheet which was really too thick for the side cutters. Anyway I got them all cut out okay. I got the hinges glued onto the gun port panels. They're not perfect and could be better but I think they're good enough. The hinges are longer than required so needed to be trimmed to the right size which was straightforward to achieve. They will require a bit of a touchup with the black paint to try and hide evidence of the glue. Chimp

Hi guys, After a bit of a break I'm "back in the saddle". The break was due to many reasons, nothing untoward just so much other stuff going on. I suspect I have a couple of months of relatively intense building before I get waylaid with other stuff. However, I'm absolutely adamant this build will be completed. Picking up from where I left off, I now have all the second planking complete. The ship has had a couple of coats of paint and I'm currently working on the deck fittings. Here are some photos to show where I currently am with the build:

Excellent work, that's a fine looking model........ Well done!!!

Hi Pete, You are making such rapid progress with this model. (I'm just getting to the end of the second planking with mine. I'm hoping to pick up the progress in the coming weeks. Work has been a bit busy recently ) Good to see that not only do you have great speed but the quality of your workmanship is extremely high. This build log is providing some fantastic insight into what lays ahead for me. I shall be following your progress very closely as you advance with the rigging. Keep up the excellent work. Chimp