robdurant

She's looking really good Christian and those overall shots are testament to your work! The reworked coils look to have much more of a scale weight to them which greatly enhances the effect. 

Also thanks for all the likes , watching and showing interst

Hi,
Thanks B.E., Patrick, GMO2,kopeikin, Bob for the nice comments.
 
Adding sails came certainly accross my mind and many members face the same dilemma
- sails make your model really complete but hide on the other hand the rigging ( shrouds, ratlines, etc... )
- other MSW-builds already proved me wrong but for myself , I'm a bit reluctant if whether or not the 1/64 scale is appropriated for adding realistic sails (even the  furled ones ). This is only my personal opinion but if it were a 1/48 scale ship  I would give it a go. 
This question is quite rightly and I'm curious to read/hear other members experiences/opinions about this matter.
 
Next project ?
After a (small) break, different possibilities :
- a typical chebec starting from the OCCRE Cazador kit
http://www.modelships.de/Schebecke,_arabisch/Gesamtansichten Schebecke.htm
- I have HMS Pegasus on the shelf
 
- and perhaps a semi scratch build starting from Boudriot's La Vénus 1782 : the idea is to realise -at first- the hull from paper/card. From the latter I shall learn about the inner structures and allow myself to make (lot's) of mistakes. The wooden hull is to follow. HMS Diana is to feature as a sort of a  Benchmark when it comes to detail and the finishing. I already updated most of the plans to a 1/64 scale version.

She's wonderful, Christian.
 
Bob
 
 
 

Very nice indeed.

Beautiful ship and almost finished.
Do you have an idea what your next model will be?

She looks so impressive Christian, I hope you have somewhere to show her off to best effect.
 
B.E.
 

continuation
 
Glad I'm almost done with the rigging part

They may be the smallest cannons you have worked, but they are coming along beautifully.
 

Continuing building the deck works and shot racks. The instructions say to drill partial holes for that tiny tiny shot? I finally just drilled the semi-holes with a sharp #2 pencil. It worked just fine. These are the smallest cannon shot I've ever had to work with.

Shot rack factory with my #2 pencil drill. A miracle  has happened ....I have not dropped one mini cannonball to be lost forever on the floor of my shipyard!

However you decide to finish her Jason she will be a stunning model.
I had the same issue about fully rigging a model when I built my Victory, mainly around the space she would take up.
I have always liked  the look of models rigged with just the lower masts and standing rigging, ever since I saw a drawing by Bjorn Landstrom in his book The Ship.

So I finished her on this basis, altho' I did include the Topmasts in the lowered position 'just in case' I decided to return one day to fully rig her. (which won't happen)

Models rigged to this level are far more manageable whilst still allowing some added interest, and the absence of yards makes a huge difference in display options particularly in a domestic setting.
 
Regards,
 
B.E.

I installed the top rail. I'm not very good with three dimensional puzzles. That's exactly what trying to install all those pieces involved with the top rail are. It's far from perfect, but it's the best I can do. Now I have to clean up excess glue, etc.

Looks great Jason - the bitts came out fantastic!
 
I completely get where you're coming from on the rigging.  Personally I think these models look a lot better fully rigged, but at the same time, the space they take up pretty much triples.  I was surprised once I rigged my Badger how much more space it took - I can only imagine what things look like on a bigger model.  Then of course there is the cost if you want to encase it, which goes up a lot if you need to account for a rigged model.  Not sure that helps you, but I would certainly say that your Jason will looked fantastic rigged or not.

Hi Jason,
 
Splendid work on the bits
Just a thought on "to rig or not to rig, that's the question"
The decision is yours but it's obvious that you succeeded brilliantly in altering lots of features to the hull, the rigging will probably also be subject to improvement. Meaning : as you went already this far, you won't settle for a straight forward built out of the box for rigging matters ( which I was more inclined to do, I admit ). This will of course require a lot of research and trial and error situations, I guess
(For myself : the rigging is not my favorite part)
On the other hand : If you were to go all the way...what a splendid ship, she would be...
My suggestion : why not first complete the rigging on your previous ship. This can only be a positive experience on which you might benefit-presumely- for HMS Jason. Regarding the space issue : family & very close friends are a safe harbor for already completed models. But that is only me speaking.

Wow. I love this bit of the build where the deck - and so the ship - starts to spring to life. It begins to feel like a place you could walk round. Great work.... and an inspiration for when I reach this stage. Love the bitts and manger!

Nice work Jason, those bitts and the manger look great.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Those bitts look fantastic, Jason. Definitely worth the extra effort.

Thanks all for the "likes" and looking in.  Think a point has been reached where all of the known big challenges have been addressed, or at least an approach developed, so I can start to have a bit of fun tackling some of the other odd pieces on the deck.
 
I am starting to seriously consider not rigging this model... the reason being that I certainly still have plenty ahead of me (and I still haven't even finished rigging 'Snake' yet) even without rigging, also the size of the hull is already quite large and adding the masts and spars will increase the needed space significantly.  Curious on other's thoughts on this, hopefully it is not anathema.  The other consideration is that I would like to move onto another build sooner than I realistically would if I were to fully rig.  What this means is that I may spend a little extra time adding some details that I otherwise wouldn't, as I'm also wanting to leave my options open to possibly leave open some of the upper deck planking/scuttles.
 
4 additional standards have been added, 2 fore and 2 aft (still in process on larboard side) as these will be visible when the upper deck is in place.  You can see the kit supplied riding bitts in place.

 
The scale of these bitts is actually pretty accurate, but I didn't like the shape so decided to make up my own...and while I was at it also made up some fore riding bitts following guidance from TFFM as the AOTS book is a little sparse on detail.  These were fun little projects.  I believe the forward elm battens were nailed on for easy replacement but I haven't tried to simulate that, not sure how this would be done however, or whether this is a "less is more" situation.

 
Previous mods allowed the bowsprit to be secured within the hull on a bowsprit step so this was also constructed.  Going a little crazy some manger boards were also made up, these will not be readily (understatement) viewable but I think could add to the sense of depth when undergoing close inspection through a gun port , and help mask the obvious edge of the bulkhead against the deck.  The dimensions of the bowsprit step are a little ambiguous, in retrospect I would have made it 2-3mm narrower, but given the likely visibility, this will not be redone. 
 

 
The placement of the bowsprit step is a little dependent on some of the foremost beam, to be obsessive this should be a little further forward, but think it will be just fine where it is.  The foremost deck beams required modification to work around some of the other alterations made up to this point but this was simple enough.

And with everything in place a couple of deck shots to get a feel for things...

Hi Rich,
 
Everything is ok but very busy with other things.....
Re- decorating the house and work of course.....
The hull of the ST is almostclosed.
After that a lot of sanding and a few minor things i will post an update.
But i don't give youa timeframe 🙂
Say hello to Judy from us and Anja is saying Hi to you in the back ground 👋
 
Sjors

A brief update... I've begun the second planking with 0.7mm boxwood veneer. I've also taken a little time to look at the stern to make sure everything's lined up. This required taking the stern elevation (from AOTS) and stretching it (the plans are square to the stern, whereas the stern itself is angled so the top is further astern than the bottom. The difference seems small, but the picture below demonstrates how  much difference it actually makes. I'm planning to attempt Dirk's method of using veneer to make the stern lights (windows) when the time comes, as the Photo-etch stern lights will not fit.
 


The Admiralty (Caldercraft) ebony stain arrived, and the wales were given a couple (four?) of coats to bring the walnut base into line with the blackened boxwood. I wanted to do this before I began the planking to get a perfect line on the wale.
 
Then it was time to put some planks on. Four planks above the black strake, and one below the wale so far. It's worth noting if you reach  this stage that there are two types of surround for the gun ports. The sternmost three ports and foremost one have lids, and so the second planking stops 1mm short of the port. The remaining ports are planked flush with the edge of the gunport, as they will have no lid. At least, that's my interpretation. I'm looking forward to seeing how the hull looks as all the messy red around the gunports disappears. It's been looking like someone attacked it with lipstick up until now.

Overall I'm impressed with how neat the veneer looks. It's thin enough to be easy to shape and get to stick on to the hull, but not too thin that it disintegrates. It's excellent quality wood (prepared and sold as stringers for instruments and marquetry), and definitely a whole lot cheaper than buying boxwood from the United States, given I'm in the UK. In fact, it's sold by a company about 30 minutes down the road from me that I discovered through google (http://www.originalmarquetry.co.uk/), so really easy to get hold of. I love the rich honey colour of the box. It will really stand out, and look good against the blues, blacks and reds on the hull as I get further along.
 
Happy building
 
Rob
 
 

A brief update... I've begun the second planking with 0.7mm boxwood veneer. I've also taken a little time to look at the stern to make sure everything's lined up. This required taking the stern elevation (from AOTS) and stretching it (the plans are square to the stern, whereas the stern itself is angled so the top is further astern than the bottom. The difference seems small, but the picture below demonstrates how  much difference it actually makes. I'm planning to attempt Dirk's method of using veneer to make the stern lights (windows) when the time comes, as the Photo-etch stern lights will not fit.
 


The Admiralty (Caldercraft) ebony stain arrived, and the wales were given a couple (four?) of coats to bring the walnut base into line with the blackened boxwood. I wanted to do this before I began the planking to get a perfect line on the wale.
 
Then it was time to put some planks on. Four planks above the black strake, and one below the wale so far. It's worth noting if you reach  this stage that there are two types of surround for the gun ports. The sternmost three ports and foremost one have lids, and so the second planking stops 1mm short of the port. The remaining ports are planked flush with the edge of the gunport, as they will have no lid. At least, that's my interpretation. I'm looking forward to seeing how the hull looks as all the messy red around the gunports disappears. It's been looking like someone attacked it with lipstick up until now.

Overall I'm impressed with how neat the veneer looks. It's thin enough to be easy to shape and get to stick on to the hull, but not too thin that it disintegrates. It's excellent quality wood (prepared and sold as stringers for instruments and marquetry), and definitely a whole lot cheaper than buying boxwood from the United States, given I'm in the UK. In fact, it's sold by a company about 30 minutes down the road from me that I discovered through google (http://www.originalmarquetry.co.uk/), so really easy to get hold of. I love the rich honey colour of the box. It will really stand out, and look good against the blues, blacks and reds on the hull as I get further along.
 
Happy building
 
Rob
 
 

A brief update... I've begun the second planking with 0.7mm boxwood veneer. I've also taken a little time to look at the stern to make sure everything's lined up. This required taking the stern elevation (from AOTS) and stretching it (the plans are square to the stern, whereas the stern itself is angled so the top is further astern than the bottom. The difference seems small, but the picture below demonstrates how  much difference it actually makes. I'm planning to attempt Dirk's method of using veneer to make the stern lights (windows) when the time comes, as the Photo-etch stern lights will not fit.
 


The Admiralty (Caldercraft) ebony stain arrived, and the wales were given a couple (four?) of coats to bring the walnut base into line with the blackened boxwood. I wanted to do this before I began the planking to get a perfect line on the wale.
 
Then it was time to put some planks on. Four planks above the black strake, and one below the wale so far. It's worth noting if you reach  this stage that there are two types of surround for the gun ports. The sternmost three ports and foremost one have lids, and so the second planking stops 1mm short of the port. The remaining ports are planked flush with the edge of the gunport, as they will have no lid. At least, that's my interpretation. I'm looking forward to seeing how the hull looks as all the messy red around the gunports disappears. It's been looking like someone attacked it with lipstick up until now.

Overall I'm impressed with how neat the veneer looks. It's thin enough to be easy to shape and get to stick on to the hull, but not too thin that it disintegrates. It's excellent quality wood (prepared and sold as stringers for instruments and marquetry), and definitely a whole lot cheaper than buying boxwood from the United States, given I'm in the UK. In fact, it's sold by a company about 30 minutes down the road from me that I discovered through google (http://www.originalmarquetry.co.uk/), so really easy to get hold of. I love the rich honey colour of the box. It will really stand out, and look good against the blues, blacks and reds on the hull as I get further along.
 
Happy building
 
Rob
 
 

Time for an update.
 
As always, thank you for the likes and encouragement. I'm not quite sure where I'll go with the decorations, but thankfully I still have a while to ponder that. Perhaps some fishes... I will take that advice and check out the alignment of the lower cheek. I'm somewhat dreading trying to get everything to line up, but as you say, fore-planning will hopefully take some of the pain out of the process.
 
In the meantime, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Portsmouth historic dockyard. It was wonderful to be able to go round Victory again, and I was quite taken with the white bulwarks on the gundeck. Not sure if they're a little anachronistic on Ethalion, but I thought I'd have them white instead of red or ochre. We'll just assume that the captain fancied having them that way. I'm hoping it will allow a little more light to see everything once the quarter deck, foredeck and gangways are on. It also created a nice contrast with the walnut waterway(?) I added between the deck and the bulwark. The walnut wasn't in place when I took the photo below.

The gunports are all lined now and remain the red ochre.
 
The second task attempted was to build up the templates for the quarter deck bulwarks. Having decided that I wanted to have the railings on the quarterdeck (as per the NMM plans, rather than the AOTS plans), I thought I needed to modify the ply templates by cutting them down. However, when I checked the templates they were way off. In the photo below, the template sat on top of the ply is the kit provided template. The outline of this template can be seen faintly drawn on the ply below, along with the ports that are defined on the NMM and AOTS plans, which are all approx 5mm further towards the stern of the boat. The heights of the carronade and cannon ports are also different. 
 
When built, Ethalion (as per AOTS) had a quarterdeck armament six 32lb Carronade and six 9lb cannon in the following arrangement.
STERN – Carronade – Cannon – Carronade – Carronade – Cannon – Cannon – WAIST
 
This is reflected in the size of the ports.


I decided not to cut out the ports until the bulwarks were planked, in order to keep them strong, and allow any minor adjustments to be made.
 
Main Wale
 
I wanted to plank in line with the wale, so the wale needed to go on first. That gave me another challenge. To get the wale in the right place, I needed the waterline, and that wasn't marked yet. So. It was a job of propping up the hull (with 6mm clearance off the floor at the bow, and none at the stern), with masking tape to stick it in place, then using a jury rigged contraption to mark out the waterline. Once the waterline was marked, the wale could be carefully measured and marked out. These measurements were taken from the AOTS plans.
 
Once I was satisfied with the sweep of the wale, I put the first of the 3mm strips in place. I built up a layer of 3mm strips, then the black strake was created with 4mm black-stained boxwood strip. Then the wale below was built up with more 3mm walnut and covered with black-stained boxwood. Once sanded and scraped to smooth it, the whole was stained with admiralty ebony stain to bring the walnut into line with the boxwood.
 


 

 
 

Thanks Jason,
 
Yes, the more I thought about it overnight the more I came to the same conclusion... the figure overall is about 1cm longer than the Diana figurehead, and most of that extra height is above the head (although the legs are longer too). Thankfully Aethelion gives a solution - for the brave! I launched in to remodel the figure to have a dolphin's tale - one fluke on each side of the beakhead... I can't claim credit for the tail - it was part of a plastic dolphin ordered on Amazon.
 
After a LOT of hollowing out using a Proxxon drill/engraver, the figure sat much lower on the beakhead, and was able to lean forwards more. That solved the clearance issue, and then it was "simply" a case of cutting off the legs with a mini-hacksaw, splitting the dolphins tail vertically with a craft knife, and using 1mm wire and CA glue to strengthen the join between the figure and the halves of the tail.
 
There's still a little work to do to make the join invisible, but here's the progress so far (with some shots against the plans to show how the jib boom at AOTS angle should clear the figurehead).
 
Here's the figure with the dolphin tale attached, but no filling / painting. The white is where I've carved the tail back to fit the figure.
 

 
And after some filling / painting:
 

 
A bit of work to do to hide the join, but I think I'll make his clothes come down to the join - that'll hide the join more easily.
 

 
Oh, yes... and I got two more gunports lined... onwards and upwards! Thanks for all the advice, likes, and encouragement.
 
Rob