uss frolick

You know your history well, Overdale. She was boarded and taken by HMS Ken.

Hire a local art student to pose in costume, while you carve it from boxwood. And take your time.

OK, if you all insist!
 
"USS Barbie hoped to blow him out of the water, settle the affair quickly, but after a long, hard engagement, it was she who got licked in the end."

EDIT: Never mind. Too risque!

EDIT: Never mind. Too risque!

EDIT: Never mind. Too risque!

EDIT: Never mind. Too risque!

I remember reading somewhere that action was a particularly remarkable feat as HMS Ken was known to be seriously under gunned. 

You know your history well, Overdale. She was boarded and taken by HMS Ken.

You know your history well, Overdale. She was boarded and taken by HMS Ken.

Hire a local art student to pose in costume, while you carve it from boxwood. And take your time.

You know your history well, Overdale. She was boarded and taken by HMS Ken.

Charlie,
 
If I'm not much mistaken, that's the figurehead of the 1820 Frigate ' USS Barbie' ?
 

Haha I have a few friends who I'm sure would love doing that mr frolick! But yes learning to carve is going to be a lot of fun, though this tiny 2 centimeter figure is going to be a challenge. Still I'd love to seek out what history exists if any so I at least have an idea of what a period figurehead from the 18th century colonial era might have looked like. Perhaps ill contact the Sultana society and see what they know if anything

Hire a local art student to pose in costume, while you carve it from boxwood. And take your time.

Hire a local art student to pose in costume, while you carve it from boxwood. And take your time.

Yes I agree and I expect at some point ill start to make a collection of such available alacart pieces and modify the detailing. The other option would be to try something via computer (3d printing perhaps?) but other than just use my imagination I am curious if a description of the original was ever documented (which I imagine unlikely) or at the very least some experts came up with some educated guesses like with Hahn's model. If not I will likely just follow the same route Chuck took as I really like that approach best but it's little things like placement of the hands or ornamental details that I am curious about. I have to assume something is known otherwise why would we know it was a woman? But if I can't find that description anywhere well then I'll just have to use my imagination which could be fun but even then I'd like a few historical similar figureheads off merchant type turned military vessels of the period with which to model off of.

Charlie, If I remember rightly, Corel make a couple of very attractive female figureheads that could be modified and used.
 
 

Here's some pics of the figurehead from the kit. For it's size it isn't awful but I would like to try something a bit more detailed looking. Additionally I have Chuck's very nicely done figurehead with Sculpey off the practicum and the replica in Delaware. This is figurehead just doesn't strike me as being accurate honestly I would imagine something a bit more... graceful? Ok fine I hate it lol. And last is a recently posted pic of the model from the Hahn diorama.

Reconciliation is going very well. I’m keeping extensive notes so when I have a senior moment, I can look up how I did something and why. So far, so good.
 
However, I note some inconsistencies in the buttock region of the diagonals of the half-breadth. They are due primarily to “angular projection” of the fashion frame, the periodicity and center of the last ‘square’ couple (after VIII, but before fillers) and, most importantly, the perspective “view”.
 
Buttocks of French ships are the least well described, and most often frustrating, portions of a model. French plans are rather inconsistent in their depiction of diagonal “view” as a function of other 3-space elements. Even the original sources, like Vial, pass it off. “Mediocrity will never do.” French had their own paradigms for plotting these lines, but that is of interest to historians. Model builders need something more substantive and determinative. So I went back to the well; back to the loaf of bread, actually.
 
Chapelle (and Wayne Kempson) put it succinctly; just slice a bread loaf. Slice along the plane of a diagonal and you get ‘options’. First of all, that plane is not orthogonal to any specific point. It is vertically skewed in accordance with the design rule, so the diagonal line will ‘project’ accordingly. If you do an accurate top-down view, accepting the angular plane-of-cut, you will get one set of curves. These will be ugly in the buttock region, and not in accordance with French practice.
 
Alternatively, once you get a diagonal “slice”, you can lay it down on the horizontal plane (making due allowance for stern to bow vertical shift). This gives another aspect to potential planking bend/flow in this critical area.
 
I know this isn’t how the French did it, neither did the English. But this is the best I can do to present the plans of a representative French frigate in a way that modelers can understand and reproduce.
 
Ok, so another half-breadth with another paradigm and buttock detail after VIII.
 
It seems like my life has zeroed down to massaging French buttocks. That’s ok ‘cause my Admiral is a Chillena and has the perkiest buttocks in the world.
 
John

Beautiful! I can't wait to see what you do with the Pegasus's stern carvings. They are very interesting figures, and for some reason, they were omitted from the TFFM books. 

The next animals are also back on the ship....  
The crowfeet are done.
Now I have to go to the shrouds and place a few other animals the rat(lines )
Next update can take a while but it will come ( one day )
 
Sjors
 
 

An account of the figurehead survives, from The American Daily Advertiser, June 5, 1799:
 
" A life-like bust portrait of of John Adams ... and which is said to be a great likeness of the President of the United States, arrived from Philadelphia some days ago, and is now placed on the frigate; it is from the masterly chisel of Mr. [William] Rush of the city, whose elegant productions have long placed him at the head of his profession."
 
Nice joke: "Head of his profession"!
 
This was the only subscription frigate known to have had only a bust figurehead, perhaps for economy reasons.
 
The stern carvings, whose descriptions do not survive, were created by the local Charleston firm of Cotton and Stattler, of Mott Street.
 
The JA had her bust removed in 1807 when converted to a corvette, and replaced with a classic fiddlehead, but when the ship was entirely replaced in 1830, the original bust, or an exact replica carved by Rush, was placed back on her. A drawing of it survives on an 1850-ish inboard profile drawing in the National Archives (which I sadly do not have), but it was reproduced in "American Figureheads and Their Carvers, by Pauline A. Pinkney, NY, Norton, 1940.
 
Just for comparison, here is what they put on the head of the similarly sounding Frigate Adams in New York, in 1799 (from the NH Gazette, June 4, 1799.):
 
"On the head of the ship is the figure of the President, represented in the attitude of addressing both houses of Congress. In his left hand is his scroll, supposed to be his address, - his right hand is raised in a spirited position, as if in the act of bidding defiance to the enemies of America - at his side is a branch of oak springing from a rock, emblematic of his firmness and patriotic virtues, in support of the rights of his country."
 
Descriptions of the stern carvings of the USS Adams and the USS Maryland survive, so perhaps the John Adams' were similar:
 
"1. USS Adams, 28 gun frigate launched in in New York from the New Hampshire Gazette, June 4, 1799:
 
"On the stern in the centre of the taffrail, are the arms of the U. States, supported by Sybele and Neptune - the latter with his left hand resting on his Trident and his right extended over our "Infant Navy", with some Attributes of Commerce. The former reclining on a sheaf of wheat with a septre in her right hand, in her left is the Key of the Earth and Supporting a Cornucopia ..." 
 
2. USS Maryland, 24 gun subscription-built ship-sloop of war, built in Baltimore , from the Federal Gazette and Baltimore Daily Register, June 4, 1799:
 
"On the Taffrail is the Seal of Maryland, representing the figure of Justice and Peace with proper insignia; It is supported on the right by a Genius with a book and pen preparing to record the honors  the ship may confer on her country, while on the left the Genius of Music is ready to strike his lyre in celebration of the rising greatness of America."
 
And just for jollies, the Frigate USS Constellation and USS President:
 
 
3. USS Constellation, 36 gun frigate built in Baltimore, from the Federal Gazette, September 17, 1797:
 
"The center is a large sphere with a constellation inserted, resting on a massy pedistal of an artificial form, with the fasces inlaid in the panel, emblematic of the Union and on the great basis on which our government rests; three large volumes and a Scroll, representing the three branches of Government and the Constitution, is reclining on the side of the Pedistal, and the Eagle and Arms of the United States on the other. Next are two of the Cardinal Virtues, Fortitude and Justice introduced as the supports, attributes indispensible with the happiness, honor and independence of a nation. Next to the figure of Fortitude on the Starboard side, is the figure or emblem of order, joined to the emblems of Industry and Agriculture ; supported by Ceres, the Goddess of Agriculture on the starboard quarter-piece ..."
 
4. USS President, 44-gun frigate, built in New York, from Claypole's American Daily Advertiser, Philadelphia, April 14, 1800.
 
"Stern: In the center of the taffrail, the figure of America the right arm resting on the base of a monument and three books representing the three branches of government; in the right hand a pen, to record the heroic actions of her sons; in her left, the Constitution of the United States; at her feet, the American Fasces erect, supported by the standards of the Army and the Navy. On her right the figure of Wisdom, and the left the figure of Strength, both inclined, and looking to the center; in the right hand of Wisdom, a spear, the left resting against the port, and the bird of vigilence at her feet.; the left hand of Strength resting on a herculean club, the right hand resting against the port as the grand supporters of America ..."

Thank you for the "likes" and the comments.
 
Well.. to paraphrase Clement Moore...  "The rudder was hung on the sternpost with care in hopes that I won't pull out my hair".   Yeah.. bad verse.. Oh well.
 
This part took some sorting out on exactly how to hang it properly rather than sort of cobbled like I did the kit models...   Thank heavens for the Optivisor as the holes for the bolts were pretty tiny.  I've half a mind to build the next one at 1:48 or 1:36 even just so I can see without eyestrain.  Like the Admiralty would be receptive to that.     
 
Next up will be the rudder coat (hopefully), the strop, and the chains.   Thanks to seeing Giampero's rudder coat, he gave me some ideas on how the Licorne's should look.  
 
Anyway, pictures.....
 
  

Hi Thistle;
 
The gun-port cills and lintels (also called cills,  actually:  upper cills)  were aligned with the curvature (sheer) of the deck,  maintaining a constant distance from the deck at the side of the vessel.  The sides of the ports are at right-angles to the keel,  parallel to the station lines (there are some exceptions,  but this is by far the general rule)
 
This means that the gun-ports are not square,  except for a few right amidships,  but are actually a parallelogram shape,  with the angles increasing towards the stern and bow.
 
To answer your question about guns moving:  when they were not being used the guns were stowed by raising the muzzle to its maximum and hauling the gun tight to the ship's side.  The muzzle then fitted into a curving recess cut into the back of the upper cill.  The gun-tackles were lashed up taut,  and an additional rope lashed around the muzzle and made fast to an eye-bolt in the side above the port.  
 
Hope this helps.
 
All the best,
 
Mark P