RMC

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

The bobstays are now done. While a little fiddly, they were far easier than I expected. The first photo shows bulldog clips on the lashings to provide some tension. I left them over the weekend, then made any adjustments necessary to make them taught. Tying off the lashings was a bit awkward, but I have found wetting the thread here (and elsewhere) makes it far easier to handle.
 

 
Here they are, complete.
 

 

 

 
Meanwhile the ratline saga continues while I look for any excuse to avoid them. The port side is now done, those for the main and mizzen masts on the starboard side are yet to do.
 
 

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

I have just lost  a post in the ether. I accidentally hit the right mouse button and that was that.
 
So here I go again.  I have completed putting on the waterline battens.  I used lime wood as it is flexible and, as it is light coloured, shows up any mistakes. With a few adjustments here or there it has come out quite well. As some of the curves are quite tight it was easiest to put the battens up in pieces making the joins wedge-shaped to make them unobtrusive.  The battens will be painted black later so that any minor blemishes should (I hope) disappear.
 
I have put four coats of yellow over the upper gundeck ports, sanding between each coat. It took a week as the Humbrol takes about 36 hours to dry sufficiently to sand.
 





 


 
 

Alstair: In the morning all sorts of things feel alright, but just not so often.

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

The bobstays on the Victory are apparently doubled as the two following photos show. Is this the usual method for 74 gun ships too? Advice is very welcome.
 

 

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

Fixing the bobstays in the same way as the Victory's seems to be a success. It was far easier than I anticipated. I have tried to show the process in the following photos.
 
First, make a loop. The length of thread hanging down shown in the first photo, may be pulled back or forth to adjust the length of the loop.
 

 

 
The loop is tied off at the stem.

 
This shows the bobstay fitted (none of the lashing has yet been finally tied off).
 

 

 
In the two following photos I have tried to show the doubled ropes in a manner similar to those shown on the Victory.
 

 
 
Once the bobstay was fitted, it then occurred to me that with the adjustments that were necessary to make the figurehead fit under the bowsprit, the figurehead may impede the bobstay. Fortunately when I dry-fitted the figurehead there wasn't a problem, though my man looked a little uncomfortable with the rope between his legs.
 

 

 
 

The futtock shrouds for the mainmast are complete. It was another quite fiddly job where competent knot-tying is required. Unfortunately this is not my long suit. There is very little room between the shouds and the thin thread went everywhere but where I wanted it to go. Finally the only way I could make it behave was to apply 50:50 PVA:water to it as I bound the futtock shrouds to the main shrouds. The result is just acceptable.
 
I used a small bulldog clip as a weight on the futtock shrouds to maintain tension while attaching them.  The Syren thread I have been using also provided some thrills.  The sizes of the thread are specified in imperial measures .  For the futtock shrouds, the plan specifies 0.75mm thread. The nearest Syren thread converts to 0.88mm - not much difference. When I went to thread it through the holes in the hooks which are attached to the deadeyes, it wouldn't go through. I then put a drop of CA on the end of the thread to keep it from unravelling (something it does tend to do if you are not careful). This then made the thread fractionally thicker! I tried trimming the CAed end to a point.  No joy - again it unravelled..  By this time I was certainly not rejoicing. The answer was of course, an inspiration . Apply medium CA to about the last 5 or 6mm of the thread. While still wet, twist the end of thread so that it becomes tighter and thus. smaller diameter. A bit of CA on your fingers is neither here nor there; the CAed end went through the holes, and once through, the thread followed, though it was a close thing.
 
The following two photos  show the bulldog clip weighing down one of the futtock shrouds.

 
With threads going all over the place, I found it difficult to see what was going on. Some white paper placed behind the shrouds made things a little easier to see.
 

 
Finished.

 

 
 
PS: Len -thanks for the like. I hope things are going well for you.

I have finally completed and fitted the screen bulkhead assembly. The 'glass' turned out well.  The two pillars closest to the sides need to be trimmed a little (about 1/2mm ech ) to fit which was a bit awkward.
 
Incidentally I have found Super Glue Gel (CA) is ideal for positioning pieces of decoration. It doesn't run, and a few small drops applied by a pin gives you time to position the piece. In Australia you can get it at Bunnings (Selleys Quick Fix in a small green tube) or ZAP Gel at hobby shops.  For most other things I now use slow setting (it's still fairly quick) CA (either ZAP or Delta with the yellow labels).
 
I have now decided to paint the hull before coppering the bottom.  I will follow Arthur's method in layng the plates with the vertical nail impressions towards the stern and the horizontal impression towards the bottom.
 

 

It's certainly a shame that all of the data has been lost.  It was a wonderful resource.  I still have some of the photos of my progress on the Vanguard and I will try to put these up now. I have just competed the wales and the first of the decorative strips (above the top wale) and I will post these when I get a chance.
 
I have just looked at this post and the photos have apparently gone up in reverse order. As well I was only able to load 9 files to the post, rather than the 10 that was advised elsewhere. The new format will take some getting used to. I hope my next attempt will be a bit less chaotic.
 
I have tried to add some more photos with comments and have tried to preview the added post. I'm afraid it looks like a dogs breakfast.  I'm going to submit it and see what turns up. It is VERY frustrating.
 
 
This photo and the two below show my solution to the placement of the last timber strip to the main wale.
 
Here is the stern view of the completed main wale.
 
Starting the top wale.  I first soak the first strip for a couple of hours, then clamp it in the correct position, leaving it overnight. This gives the correct curvature,  I then glue it to the model complete and then cut the holes for the gunports. The remaining strip can then fitted easily below the first. 

The bobstays on the Victory are apparently doubled as the two following photos show. Is this the usual method for 74 gun ships too? Advice is very welcome.
 

 

The fore and fore preventer stays are now finished; snaking, and crows feet done. The main and main preventer stays are snaked (?) and the crows feet will be finished over the next couple of days. Here are some photos of progress.
 
Lashing of the fore stay. I don't known if this is correct, but it seemed the most obvious way to do it.

 

 
The mizzen stay - not a very good photo.
 

 
Snaking the main and main preventer stays. I have used Arthur's method which was surprisingly easy (I am a highly reluctant knot tier ) and effective (as expected ). It is however quite difficult to see what is going on. Consequently I hung a sheet of paper over a piece of thread tied between the fore and main topmasts to highlight the two stays and show the process more clearly.
 

 

 
Snaking the fore stays.
 

 
This is what it all looked like before the crows feet for the forestays.
 

 
The crows feet for the fore stays turned out to be a small disaster. One of the holes in the euphoe through which the thread passes was partially blocked. In attempting to unblock it (I used a pin as I don't have a drill bit small enough), I made the hole too large and the euphroe was hanging together by a thread  - but not for long . I made an attempt to salvage it (sticking fine electrical wire along top and bottom) which almost worked and possibly would have if the damage had been somewhere other than the second hole.
 
Here is the sad result (I would have painted it, had it worked ...)

 
I then tried some of the same brass from which the euphroe came to make another.  The brass proved too hard for the drill bit which kept slipping from the spot. By this time I was not rejoicing. Fortunately I then remembered that I had a little copper strip of a similar thickness and width of the euphroe. Here is the result of a rather fraught process.
 
This is the copper strip in process - the holes are a bit wonkey, and further apart than I wanted.
 

 
The finished ersatz euphroe - a bit longer than the original.
 

 
The crows feet after the drama. The new euphroe doesn't appear to be noticeable, though the smaller, original euphroe for the main stays may look a a bit odd. I'll worry about that when I get to it.
 

 

 

 
 

While trying to avoid doing the ratlines for a while, I decided to revisit the ship's boats. Fitting all the oars while trying avoid the appearance of clutter is a bit of a problem. I have experimented by 'fanning' about half of the oars to make space for the anchors and other bits and pieces. It seems to have worked though I have no idea if the result is 'authentic'. Nothing is yet fixed except the crewman.  I will certainly use Jdieck's excellent ideas of putting three or four barrels into the boats, and his rope coils tied to the anchors.
 
Incidentally, the smallest boat in my has an enclosed bow, unlike Jdieck's - this gives his boat a little more room to stow things. Even the short oars do not properly fit into mine.
 
This is how I propose to arrange the oars. Suggestions are welcome.
 

 

While trying to avoid doing the ratlines for a while, I decided to revisit the ship's boats. Fitting all the oars while trying avoid the appearance of clutter is a bit of a problem. I have experimented by 'fanning' about half of the oars to make space for the anchors and other bits and pieces. It seems to have worked though I have no idea if the result is 'authentic'. Nothing is yet fixed except the crewman.  I will certainly use Jdieck's excellent ideas of putting three or four barrels into the boats, and his rope coils tied to the anchors.
 
Incidentally, the smallest boat in my has an enclosed bow, unlike Jdieck's - this gives his boat a little more room to stow things. Even the short oars do not properly fit into mine.
 
This is how I propose to arrange the oars. Suggestions are welcome.
 

 

In making up the crows feet for the main stays, the fragility of the euphroes supplied in the kit again became apparent. The first couple of holes towards the bow leave virtually no material around them for support.  Touching the euphroe is enough to bend it - bend it a couple of times or so (and it's hard not to) and it will break.
Consequently I decided to make replacements for the main and mizzen. This time I used a Dremel drill press to make the holes (something I should have done with the fore stay euphroe).  The results are quite good. They are far sturdier than the kit euphroes and very close to their dimensions.  If here is a choice between authenticity and practicality, in this case I think the kit got it wrong.
 
Making the euphroe for the main.

 

 

 
The resulting crows feet have turned quite well after all the trauma. Here the thread has not yet been made off. I will give it a day or so to settle in before making any necessary adjustments.