garym

Hi 
Now about 8 weeks in and I have done the first part of the second planking.
 
I decided as the planking was to be covered by the copper tiles and paint I would use Pva glue rather than the superglue and that I would need to fill the odd gap. I used Ronseal wood filler which I happened to have and I think that was a good idea as it seems better than the polyfiler type (Less dust and harder) but time will tell.
 
I started painting the gun strips as instructions. What a shame I didn't do this before the gun port strips were fitted rather than have to paint through the gun ports.
 
 Anyway onwards and upwards to the stars and beyond  !!!

Virtually finished the first planking, 5 weeks work but I am happy with the results particularly as it gets covered with the second planking and paint. Finished 30 cannon and made the tops so progressis being made.  Managed to damage the top gunport pattern when the hull was upside down by snapping the thin strip which runs over the gun port but a repair will be possible later. I keep telling myself to keep the table clear but I dont do it so only myself to blame.  
Thanks for the help given to date.
Just started making the foremast lower section which was fun.

Thanks for the all advice, which I know is dead right given the errors I have made so far.
 
Anyway I have managed to get diverted into gratings and canon building and got carried away with the long canon. I am amazed at the intracy of the canons. It takes a while to find the best technique and after a few tries I found that assembly of the carriage is easier if the two side frames are put onto the 1mm brass wire bed bolt which holds things in place whist the axles are fitted. I found it dificult to fit the trunnion brackets particularly in forming them over the trunnion.
 
I am very pleased wiith the results so far although I am rather daunted with the fitting of the eyelets not to mention rigging them.
 
My wife has lost our big table (but we dont use it anyway)

Its nice to have a change from copper plating and get back to building bits.  I have been on the gratings. I had trouble deciding which way round the comings went. I found the plans difficult due to the line thickness but ended up with 4mm wide and 3mm high. Still not sure its right so my companion ways may be a bit small. Found the shot garlands fiddly but I am OK with the result. My mitres on the comings are not as good as I would like.
 
I have also had problems with the hull painting. I tried low tack masking tape but the paint bled under the tape. The same with normal tape so I am trying to touch in by hand.  It would be nice to get an air brush and mitre guide but its time & money.
 
Here are a few pics
 
Does anyone have any tips for drilling the holes for the dummy gun barrels? It seems to me its difficult to get them central and at the right angle. Has any tried a guide fitted into the ports and a spirit level, it looks fiddly?

Well I am almost finished with the tiling!!!
Despite my best efforts I managed to get some tiles to overlap and there are some that are misaligned but I sure aint taking them all off.
 
I am going to try a bit of copper paint for the white gaps. There is a limit to how small one can cut and fit slivers of copper. The problem also arises where the fine end tends to curl up and get caught. Super glue would solve the issue but generally I found the "No nails worked well.  I also managed to get some glue on the top and missed wiping it off so I have some cleaning up to do.
 
I am not too sure about the stern tiling and may take it off. In doing the bow I clad the sides and trimmed the tiles back to fit and then tiles the narrow underside. I am in the process of cutting back the edges of the keel tiles and the result looks OK. There is an issue where the tiles come off if I am too  heavy handed in filing the edges but I think so far this is a better way of dealing with the keel. If ever I do this again I will have to find a way of dealing with the little bits where the keel joins the  hull. An under layer of copper tape looks worth trying.
 
Anyway here are a few pics

No Nails still seems ok.
 
It cleans off when dry with a damp cloth so here are some pics of work in progress

I have started rigging cannon. I am not used to such fiddly work so its not easy, my fingers seem to have turned into carrots and its very annoying when the block ping out of the tweezers or forceps. Si far i have retrieved about 4 from strange places so I will find out in due course how many I lost.
 
I finally sorted out a rig for hopefully getting the rear tackle all about the same length and to help with whipping the excess line around the rigging as pic in instructions.  Given the difficulty i decided to only do the visible cannon even thought I need the practice so five done five to go!
I also think it is easier to for the eyelets after the rigging.It very difficult to thread the rigging through the eyelets when in the hull. Time will tell
 
I also need a moan about the build instructions. Given the cost of this kit and the time its been around It would have been nice for the errors to have been sorted. The most recent issue is on page 16 where the main companionway balusters are numbered (724) whereas the parts list has them as (723) which is correct. Not a major issue  but!!

I am about done with rigging the visible cannon.
 
I think it would be easier to rig the eyelets before they are fitted to the hull because I found it difficult to get the tread through the eyes when in the deck.
I did that with the back tackle drilled holes in the deck and popped the eyelet in.
 
I gave up trying to thread the breaching tackle heavy thread through the eyelets. I am inclined to remove the eyelet and drill holes in the planking just to poke the thread through. I think it will give the thread a more natural line. 
 
On advice I don't intend fitting the steam trunk so main deck will be fitted shortley

Hello everyone
 
I have been busy building and discovering problems with my build and seem to have not posted anything for ages. Sorry.
 
I think there are lots of good build logs on this site which show you how to do it so I thought I would add some of my pictures to show how not to do it, in the hope that those who follow can avoid making the same mistakes.
 
My main issue has been in fitting the forecastle bulkheads. When the stubs from the main hull bulkheads were removed there is nothing to locate the forecastle bulkhead (part 276). it seems impossible to glue ply edge on to a curved surface so I ended up removing some hull planking and gluing on some wide timber and then super gluing the ply bulkhead onto the back. Lots of filler and paint will hide the join. I also missed the clue where this bulkhead is fitted in line with the step on part 270, page 5, so I now find the space between the forecastle and quarterdeck bulkhead where the capping rail 392, page 21, is fitted is 6 mm too big. Having said that the error in my placing of 276 is nothing like 6 mm so something else is amiss.
A
I know its seems silly but I was looking for the galley stove chimney as on page 21. No number is given so I had to search the parts list and there it was part 646. There is no picture so I hunted through the white metal and there it was , I think!. See photo
 
By way of a little light diversion I started looking at the Bows page 30. Here we find hawse hole balusters and again the part is not numbered. It turns out to be part 172. There is no good illustration of this but the part supplied has three groves which I assumed are to take the two hawes ropes. Two into three don't go so I decided to make my own version the same size as the original but with two groves to take the two hawes. I don't know if I am right but !! 
 
I also managed to get in a muddle on the planking having decided to mark the plank lengths with a shallow saw cut and pencil marks. I tried to take the module across the central gap over the skid beams and obviously with hindsight  got it wrong. If I every do this again I think I will try cutting planks to the right length and sticking them one by one. It cant be as bad as the copper tiles.
 
Anyway onward and upward
 
 

Hi All, I have been very lax in posting pictures so sorry. Anyway I have been busy building and her are some pics to prove it

I was going to hold on to this,  until I had a little more meat with the potatoes,  but awwww what the heck.......I may as well post it now.....it's Friday's progress.   it's the beginning phase for the paint work of the hull.   if I'm going to attempt lighting this model,  I thought it would be cool to drill out all the portholes.   the admiral had to go to a doctor's appointment......I began at the table,  but soon retreated to the front porch.   when she came home......I guess she was unnerved with not finding me in the house.......I dunno.....she seemed relieved when she finally tracked me down.  
 

 

 
it took a while..........I used three different size drills to do this.....but they are all done
 

 

 

 

 
now I guess I'll try and touch up those screw tunnels 

this week has been busy......I've been bouncing from the table to mowing the lawns......to raking up a particularly nasty area by the garage......wiring up outlets and motion detector lights on the garage.  I think this week has been very productive so far      ahhhhh,  but this is the last day of it........I had taken Monday off and it will be back to work for me on Saturday.   I think I'm going to book another vacation........soon...............I want it! 
 
the roofs on the structures that populate the boat deck,  have a pretty distinct bit of paint work.   the funnel platforms need to be painted......but one does not have a distinct platform.......but still has the pattern design to be laid out for it.   I was thinking about it,  while working on another aspect......and then it hit me........make a masking template     grabbed the masking tape and laid a strip over one of the funnel platforms......cutting out the center where the funnel is to be cemented.
 

 
then I cut around the shape of the platform.
 

 
the area in question is here........
 

 
removing the newly formed template and laying it down on the area,  I found that I didn't need the entire template.  so,  I cut off the extra and folded it over.   painting went well.
 

 
then,  I took care of the anchor chain,  painting it black.   I was going to simply replace the chain......but this will be good practice for me.....   I also added the winches on the lower level of the part.
 

 
here is the hole that I mentioned Ben.   yes,  the hole to the very aft is for a flag staff........but I went through the entire set of instructions,  and could not find a part that goes here. I will probably end up blanking it out later.
 

 
I almost had an oopsie moment.....adding enhancement #3 to the cranes.   I wanted to drill a couple holes near the tip of the booms,  to add cables.   they look silly without them.   the drill slipped off it's mark......not just once.......but twice!   it was looking pretty bleak for this to work,  but after patching up the damaged crane with some plastic putty,  I got an idea.
     I would simply lay the ends aside the pulley at the tip and call it good.   I can touch them up afterwards.
 

 
I soon had them all rigged.......
 

 
I was painting up the ship's wheel and helm.....such a tiny part.........and finally cemented it in place.   I added a couple more parts,  and that finishes the stern / poop deck assembly.   I can put it aside now.
 

 
for the bow.  the last two parts to be added are the extra anchor,  and the stanchion.......I believe it would be used as an aide with hauling up the anchors......not completely sure.
 

 
I'm beginning to miss wood

I'll post the change made to the anchor chain......shouldn't be too tough to touch up.....thanks again John 
 
before I begin with this update...wanna get in on the fun too    well I got an e-mail from Model Expo today...they are offering the Minicraft Titanic for almost half price!   reg price: $119.99......down to $65.95......and it even has the P.E. upgrade!  I forgot to look at the scale........but it has to be 1:144...it's a little over 30" long!  so, don't be the LAST kid on the block , to own one of these buggers.......promo code  JU2!
                                                    >commercial's over<
 
anyway......I can make amends  to the second enhancement I planned for this kit.   But,  I can't do anything about what I did here........on the first enhancement I started with.  the railings are supposed to have four rungs to them.  I began with that in mind......but in the interest of keeping the integrity of the parts that I'm trying to save,  I settled for a bit less.   I did some electrical work in the garage today.   when I finished,  I managed to out aside a short piece of 16 gauge wire.   Stripping it down,  it revealed the many strands it has.
 

 
setting up the helping hands on my desk,  the sprue with the bulwark part on them,  was clamped in place.   I began with the bow parts.
 

 
the wire was cemented on using CA.......for some reason,  it wouldn't stick too good.   I'd put a dot of CA on and then wipe the excess away.
 

 
finally,  both sides were done.........the best I could do was two rungs.   any more than that,  and I'd be looking at the same thing I cut out in the first place.
 

 
the stern part {the ones that gave me the most trouble}  actually came out looking better than the bow parts.
 

 
the bow parts were painted white...there is a little bit of clean up that needs to be done.   even though they are not quite right,  I'm happy with the results.
 

 
I did a bit of mess'in around,  doing some testing on  'White Star Buff'.    the TRMA site gave a couple of suggestions for paint......one of them was a color called  British Gulf LT Stone  #2137.   I happen to have a bottle of it.   I did a swath on a piece of sprue...there is some ghosting,  but the paint isn't mixed well enough yet.   the separation of the paint was pretty extensive...it's an older bottle.
 

 
I think the orange of the funnels will tint it well enough.   the stern parts were painted as well......a couple touch ups need to be done,  I think this is a better way to go.....rather than the alternatives
 

 
 

Some more...

GRANADO IS FINISHED !!!!! 
 
After 13 months and two days, she is complete. I do still have to make a permanent mounting and case at some point. It is a bit of a bittersweet moment, with things wrapping up, but I am very pleased with how she looks. A big thank you to Timmo for the inspiration and ideas I "borrowed" from his Granando build log, as well as everyone else who looked in, "liked" commented or made a suggestion along the way. Thank you!
 
On to the pictures. I'll put them in the gallery soon. 
 
 

Thanks to all for the nice words.
 
All of the slings, halyards, and lifts are now complete as well as a few of the clew lines, and I have started work on the braces. Things are getting a little tight in there and I think I'm going to stop and add all of the rope coils I can before the deck becomes completely inaccessible 

As promised a few outdoor photos in good natural light. All of the yards other than the spritsail are hung, and ties, halyards, parrels, slings etc... are complete for all. She really looks like a ship now!
 
 

I completed the lower stays over the weekend. The mainstay is effort number three. Number one came up a bit short, and I almost left it, but my wife told me I'd never be happy long-term, and I made a new one. That one I nicked the serving while I was installing it, completely unraveling it.
 
Third time was a charm. 
 
I also installed the mainmast futtock staves. 

The lower shrouds have been completed. I think I'm going to put off ratlines for the moment and work on the lower mast stays first. 
 
 

Well now that my work area is complete, I've actually gotten back to work on Granado. I've spent the last week or so constructing all of the yards, gaffs, and booms, as well as the ensign and jack staffs. Now on to horses, blocks etc...
 

 
Speaking of blocks...I also spent some very tedious time last night rounding off blocks; got all of the 5mm, 7mm and sister blocks done. and re-stained.  I'm not looking forward to the smaller ones...
 

The stern and quarter gallery decorations are now installed, as well as the capping piece. No real issues here. The trim was made from boxwood strip, similar to the sheer rail. 
 
I guess I have to venture around to the bow now. I've been putting it off...
 
 

For a change of pace I went to work on the stern and quarter gallery decorations. I really liked Timmo's idea of the ochre/wood look with the blue, rather than the unlikely garish scheme Caldercraft shows. 
 
I did mine a little differently than Timmo. First, I prime all the parts followed by base painting with the Polly Scale colors I've been suing elsewhere on the build. Next I gloss coated with the airbrush, using Future floor polish, which is an acrylic polymer. Those of us who also build plastic models know how useful a product this is for gloss coating prior to decaling or weathering. Next, I applied a thin wash of burnt umber artist's oils which gave the very nice Caldercraft castings some depth. Next came a flat coat, again with the airbrush followed by drybrushing with lightened versions of the base colors to bring out the highlights. Finally, spare photo-etch runners were used to make window frames in the quarter galleries, another brilliant Timmo idea...

Got the forecastle capping rail trim molding installed. This is something not even called out for in the instructions, however it is there in the AOTS book. This is a narrower molding than the sheer rail, so I ripped a 1x4mm piece of boxwood lengthwise to about 2.5mm wide, and carefully scribed the recess into that. This one I painted black, which is how it appears on the AOTS cover, though it is so small it is hard to tell. The finishing piece on the end was done with a 4mm strip laid on an angle an cut oversized, and finally trimmed to shape and scribed in place. Railing were all touched up and given a final coat of paint, and the quarterdeck timberheads were installed and painted. 
 
Pretty happy with how the trim work came out. 

As I wait patiently for my HobbyMill order to arrive to complete my outer planking, I continue with some detail and deck work. I completed the quarterdeck bulkhead/screens which is a very fiddly little assembly with number of components that need to be dry-fitted and all squared up. I think it is a bit over-engineered, but so be it...
 
Instead of the fragile ply provided for the actual screens I instead used styrene (oh, the horrors, plastic!!). It flexs better in the curved frames and provides a nice smooth surface for paint. 
 
After an initial coat of blue (Polly Scale B&M Railroad Blue) I decided to try my hand at hand painting the designs in more "period like" colors, as opposed to the black decals provided in the kit. I shamelessly took the method from Timmo's wonderful effort to hand paint them. Thanks for the brilliant example!
 
I started with a base coat of Polly Scale CP Yellow (the railroad colors are very useful...) and then once fully dry used mixes of white, yellow ochre and raw umber oil paints to shade and highlight the designs. Although I'm no artist, and these are attempt number three, I think they pass the test, though I may do a little touch-up here and there. I did some slight modification to designs for aesthetics and to better fit the design on the panel. 
 
The panels still need their final trimming to shape at the top, and are merely dry-fitted in these photos. It will probably be a week before the oil paints fully dry. 

I got a bit of insomnia last night.......the admiral and I are trying to cut down....to eventually quit smoking.   so I messed around some more at the table.
 
the crane bases were touched a bit more and set aside to dry
 

 
I added the rest of the hold covers to the bow and stern
 

 
the boat deck has no tab slots,  nor the structures have tabs......I'm not liking this.   I was getting used to no glue marks to touch up.   the forward structure was cemented in place.
 

 
there are 11 stair cases that need to be assembled.   they will be cleaned up and painted later,  once they dry.
 

 
the starboard side chain was cemented in place......the port side will be done once this has had time to dry.
 

 
I am still curious how  these decks will assemble....especially without making a mess.   I'll try and show you how they stack up.