Beef Wellington

Thank you, John and Mark!
 
There is often a temptation to rush things along, a little, here and there.  I am always happy when I manage to resist.
 
The Four Seasons are secure now, and re-touched.  I used styrene cement, first, for a welded-bond, and then later allowed capillary action to draw-in thin CA for a little added insurance.  As compared with Berain’s drawing - absolutely, these figures are a little too broad.  The overall impression, though, is good and I think the adjusted posture of these figures conforms nicely with the new architecture:



 
Part of me wishes I had thought of the stylized false-window treatment earlier.  If I had, I probably would have done that throughout, as I like the way it looks, and it would have eliminated any concern for dust accumulating on the i side window surfaces.  Anyway, c’est la vie!  I can still get canned air in there to blow away most of the plastic particles.
 
The open-walk bulwarks took a while to paint because I insist on not simply dry-brushing the top surface of the frieze elements, but cutting-in to the ground.  One realization was that I did not need to thin the Vallejo artist acrylic yellow quite so much because I wasn’t painting broad surfaces; so, instead of a 5:2 ratio of paint to water, I could get away with 5:1, or even 6:1.
 
Painting yellow over red is particularly difficult for achieving good color saturation. Nevertheless, by not thinning the paint so much, I was able to get there in two passes, as opposed to five.
 
I discovered, on Kirill’s Spanish Galleon build, a very clever little hack for adding depth to the gold brightwork; He uses two different shades of gold paint.  Once I had that in my head, I couldn’t get it out, so I went to the Warhammer shop over the weekend, and picked up their bright gold.  This gives an idea of the contrast:

In practice, the effect is much more subtle.  Here, the lower bulwark piece has had the highs and edges of the ornaments brightened:

The yellow ocher has a way of muting the gold effect, a little, so whatever enhancements one can make are helpful.  I will gradually go back and add these highlights to all of the other gold ornaments.
 
I decided to leave the nameplates untouched by the walnut ink wash because I wanted them to really pop.  The lattice, here, gives a good impression of what the main frieze will look like.  As I did with the bellflowers flanking the name plate, I will continue to search for opportunities to incorporate silver gilt.
 
Once these bulwark pieces were finally painted, I could do a final fitting and secure them in-place.  It was necessary to pre-bend these bulwark pieces so that they would conform easily to the curve of the gallery.  I found it was easiest and safest to induce these reverse curves with my fingers.  The heat experiments I tried with a hair dryer and open flame on scrap sheet plastic were way to difficult to control.
 
Fingers are also, often, the best glueing clamps.  The forward edge/pilaster is CA-glued to the wooden return, while the bottom edge is weld-bonded with liquid styrene cement.  Inevitably, there will be touchups, but at this stage I declare these quarter galleries a successful marriage to the amortisement:
 







 
Next, I will pattern the back bulwark, in cardboard so that I can design an exact layout of all of the ornamental elements.  I won’t be able to install this back bulwark until after the main deck level of stern lights is in-place and painted, but making this part is a good small-work project.
 
I will probably do a short series on its creation because it will be made from several layers and the process of getting where I want to is a little more involved than other parts I’ve made so far.  I can also make up the bulwark cap railing that will finish this structure, while simultanously re-enforcing the corner join of the bulwark pieces.
 
In the evenings, I will begin finalizing the upper bulwarks and preparing them for paint.  I have to drill new fairleads for the sheets and tacks, and secure all the kevel pieces.  Without the stock stern plate to anchor the aft bulwarks to, construction of the upper stern takes on a few shades of complexity.  I have some ideas for a work-around, there, that should provide for a much more robust construction.
 
She’s a BBG (big beautiful girl) - Soleil Royal!  Little by little, we are getting there.  As always, thank you for your likes, your comments and for looking in.

Rudder now in. Looks like picture on the cover.
 

Loving the progress and especially the figures.  I'd definitely be tempted to continue working with the Royal Watermen, a full compliment would be a really striking addition to enhance the model.  Think if you can get a little more 'flounce' to the bottom of the jacket to differentiate from the breeches they'll look great.

I finished the Syren longboat. The following pictures show the making of the gratings (Img 1), the finished cockpit (Img 2), the bowsprit holder (Img 3), the knees (Img 4), the oar locks (Img 5), the rudder with hinges (Img 6), and some images of the finished boat (Imgs 7-10).
 
Thomas
 

Image 1
 

Image 2
 

Image 3
 

Image 4
 

Image 5
 
 

Image 6
 

Image 7
 

Image 8
 

Image 9
 

Image 10
 
 

Hello Will,
Your description of the 'rope coiling tool' is pretty much correct. I used a basswood base of roughly round shape and about 1.5 cm diameter. The base has a little hole in the middle, so that a needle could just fit into it. The hole does not go right through but stops somewhere at 3/4 of the base thickness. For that reason the base needs to be a little thicker (about 7mm) to provide enough support for the needle. The needle is cut off at the end - the end needs to be flat. The idea behind this arrangement is that you can fix the end of your rope with the needle in the hole so that the rope cannot escape when you turn the arrangement. Once the coil is finished you just remove the needle and the rope coil comes free. The top layer of the tool is a transparent plastic piece. It needs to be sturdy enough to provide a flat stable surface and transparent for you to see what you are doing and how the coil develops. The felt pad is just to make sure that the whole device turns easily without leaving any scratches on deck.
 
The process goes like this: you put the end of the rope into the hole in the wood base, move the needle with the flat end through the middle hole in the plastic cover and by sticking it into the hole in the wood base (with the rope end in it) you fix the end rope in the hole so that it cannot escape. Now you add some diluted white glue on the wood base and lower the plastic cover. Applying enough pressure with some tweezers (with the right hand) on the plastic cover to keep it sitting flat on the wood base you turn the base slowly with the left hand always watching how the rope coil develops. Once it is big enough you carefully remove the plastic cover and the needle, with some tweezers lift the rope coil, cut off the rope piece which was in the hole and transfer the coil to its final location on the deck. If necessary you may need to flatten out the coil again and stabilize/fix it with diluted white glue to the deck.
 
Hopefully this description is not too confusing . . . 
Good luck with the coils!
 
Thomas 
 

Post Forty
 
The Royal Watermen
Back from a break in Dorset and not yet ready to tackle the hull carving I decided to play around with a Waterman model.
 
The doner piece is a 1:24 scale figure of an American Vietnam era soldier by Dean’s Marine.
0920
I used the same (modified) figure to represent a rower for my 1:24 scale Pinnace build.
This time the dress would be different and I wanted to model the figure holding the oars in the vertical position.

2472
Early stage modification; the first action is to remove unwanted clothing and turn trousers into knee breeches.
The figure is made of hard plastic and the Dremel was necessary to achieve this.

2479
The arms with this model are separate so it was not too problematic to position them correctly.
It is then down to using modelling paste to create the uniform of the Royal Company of Watermen.
 
A little research revealed that The Company of Watermen dates back to the 16thc and details of the uniform are available.
It is from the ranks of this company that the Royal Watermen were chosen.

A skirted scarlet tunic, coupled with breeches, and a navy/black cap.
 
A prototype Royal Waterman is completed.

2533(2)
 

2521
I have reduced the Queen Ann monogram from the Barge kit to provide the plastrum on the back of the tunic.
 

2528
With the proper oars the arm/hand positions may need to be adjusted.
 

2526
I’m far from satisfied with the result but it does give me an idea of what is involved.

2519
Despite the antiquity of the uniform style, I’m not sure it looks right on the model, but at least he sits ok on the thwart.
 
Time to stop messing about with this and get back to completing the model.
 
B.E.
21/06/2021
 
 
 
 

Thank you Chuck, better than I had imagined I could achieve, which is not necessarily saying much. 😉
 
Post Thirty-nine
 
External decoration and the dark art of weathering powders.
The first thing I add is the ‘iron’ strap that runs over the stem, rather than use wire to represent the bolts, I used fine pins.

2298(2)
I rather like the resin impregnated fibre board that Chuck uses for the purpose, so much easier than the blackened brass strip, I would otherwise use.

2292
A light dusting of dark brown weathering powder and a realistic impression of iron is achieved.
 
I next attended to the provided resin decorations using weathering powders, as suggested by Chuck.
I am using a combination of Revell, and Vallejo powders, Light Yellow Ochre, Sand Yellow, Snow White, and Dark Brown.

2262(2)
Once the coating had been applied the piece was lightly sprayed with fixative.

2264(2)

2280
The full set.

2303(2)
The Queen Anne bust is glued into place on the Flying Transom.

2338
I found fixing the Bow decoration a little tricky, not least because of the marring of the paintwork once again, as I secured it into place.

2337(2)

2339(2)
I will almost certainly continue to tweak the highlighting and shading of the resin decorations up to completion of the model.
 
 
I will leave the remaining decorations until I have trialled the fit of the acanthus leaf friezing along the stern sheets, which I must now get back to whittling.
 
 
B.E.
04/06/21
 

Post Thirty-Eight 
                   
The making of a Queen. (Sort of)
 
Before I continue with the Barge I re-visit Queen Anne.

1850
Previously I had modified the head to reflect an 18th century hairdo, added a coronet, and sculpted the skirt area to fit the barge seat.

2201
Primarily the sleeves need to be made looser, again using the modelling paste to build up the fullness.
Layers are built up and as the paste starts to set it is shaped and smoothed.
 
Early Eighteenth century dresses were close fitting at the waist but very full in the skirt and often hooped.
The model as presented is quite good with the folds gathered around her but requires a little more fullness spread out over the seat.
To achieve this, I needed to make a mock-up of the bench seating of the barge so I could form the folds around her.
Parcel tape covers the benches to prevent the paste sticking.

2205(2)
The idea is to get sufficient paste around her that can be shaped and smoothed, and the figure removed once the paste firms up a little.

2215
The built-up areas are primed.
 
I have dressed her by reference to styles of the early 18th century. In my mind for a trip upriver to Hampton Court Palace, a favourite of the Queen.
 

2260

2248
Acrylic paints were used, and altho’ I belong to the Blind man on a galloping horse school of figure painting she looks ok from normal viewing distance, better than the macro would suggest.

2259(2)

2258(2)

2257

2252

2250

2261(2)
I will leave the tricky question of the Bargemen until later.
 
B.E.
01/06/21
 

 

Thank you Hubac, I did scrap a couple of them, but fortunately Chuck  had the foresight to provide a few spares for us finger fumblers.😀
 
Post Thirty-seven
 
Completing the inboard works.
 
The Bow bracket is completed.

2131
Still to drill the socket in the Fore deck to receive the Flagstaff heel.
The final part to assemble is the step down into the stern sheets.

2179
A simple assembly job of four pieces.

2183(2)
I added the Royal Monogram to the Flying transom, and the Boxwood moulding.
The Monogram I whittled earlier, and a coat of wop was applied before I fixed it in place. Again, micro spots of ca were used for the purpose.
 
I also applied a coat of wop to the Boxwood frieze panels using a fine brush.
 
 
Three months work has brought me to completion of the internal work on the model, with the external decoration and fittings now to do.
 
 Some photos to mark this milestone in the build.

2159

2161(2)

2164(2)
 

2185(2)

2186(2)

2191(2)

2192(2)

2198(2)
 
B.E.
29/05/21
 
 
 

Post Thirty-six
 
Applying friezes.
 
Before I started I re-sprayed the friezes using Windsor & Newton fixative.

2079(2)
An improvised spray booth.

2077(2)
A  kit was put together to aid this rather tedious task.

2080
Diluted pva applied with fine brush was used to glue the friezes in place. A centre blank attached to a toothpick is used to press the friezes into place.

2091(2)
The addition of the friezes  transforms the look of the barge.
 
At this point I add the support bracket for the bow Flagstaff.
This probably also doubles up as a hull brace.

2085(2)
Quite a tricky little beggar to fit, ensuring it is central and sits as best it can down on the bow frieze panels. Even so a touch of filler is required to smooth out the edge joins.

2083(2)
I ran a bead of diluted pva along the joins. Once that has cured, I will complete the filling and paint the bracket.

2084

2089(2)
 
Best part of a day to see this task completed, time to crack open the Merlot I think. 🍷
 
B.E.
26/05/21
 

Post Thirty-five
 
Adding the Decorative panels.
 
Chuck emphasises the fragility of these fancy little frames, but at least had them laser cut saving a lot of time and effort.
I well remember forming the mitres for the panels on the 1:48 scale Pinnace and have even less fond memories of doing the same for the 1:64 scale Pinnace I made for Pegasus.
The first issue that comes to mind is how do I glue these frames to the inboard planking without marring the paintwork that I have just spent hours fiddling with.
The majority of pieces fit simply enough guided by the thwart edges, but I can’t afford to have excess glue squeezing beneath the outer edges or be faced with any form of hard-edged clean-up.

2056
 To fix the frames I decided on minute spots of ca applied to the back face. With the bottom edges sitting on the thwart the question of moving around to fix position does not arise.
 
As advised by Chuck I did minimal cleaning up of the frame edges, using the centres to support the piece whilst light pressure was applied.

2058
I wet the curved bow pieces for a few minutes, clamped them into place, and applied heat for a few moments. This was sufficient to de-stress them before gluing into place.
 
The panels that gave me the most trouble were those for the Sternsheets. There are no fixed points of reference for height and distance, and the shape and dimensions of the Boxwood patterns differed slightly from those shown on the plan.

2061
I used Tamiya tape to define the inboard position of the larger frame, (7mm) and the distance between the two frames, (6mm).

2059
A 1.5mm thick piece of scrap wood was used to get a uniform height above the benches.

2064
 The final item is the Frame to fit on the Transom, to get this centred I used a cut-out from the plan.

2073
Careful as I was, the paintwork was marred a little as can be seen on the benches here, but I managed to get thro’ this exercise without any breakages.
 

2074
Further evidence of paint scuffing on the Fore deck.

2072(2)

2068(2)

2070(2)
 
A small repair to the paintwork and then the panel friezes to fit.
 
B.E.
25/05/21
 

Post Thirty-three
 
Inboard Planking.
 
Spiled Laser cut strips are provided for the purpose, but these still need tweaking to fit properly.
The bottom edge sits tight against the riser top and across the thwarts, the top edge is required to run up to the lower edge of the capping rail.
In the case of my build the strip simply requires sanding of the top edge to reduce its width a tad.
I marked the position of the thwarts on the strip and measured the distance between riser and capping rail using a tick strip method.
The marks were transferred to the strip and the sanding line marked. It was then simply down to sanding and test checking.

1966
Once satisfied, the strip was clamped into place and given the hairdryer heat treatment to take the tension out of it before final gluing into place.

1972(2)
Note the rabbet formed with the Capping rail.

1971
Both strips fixed into place.
 
The trickier element of the inboard planking is a shorter section that runs forward around the curve of the bow.
These are also pre- spiled but will need some fettlin’ to fit.

1976
The first task is to water/heat bend to fit the curve.

1977
 The forward end is firstly trimmed to fit beneath the rail.

1987
By degrees the top edge is sanded and the length cut to meet the long strip.

1988
To support the panel I added an additional ‘false’ frame each side beneath the rail.
This something Chuck mentions in his pdf Instructions and is worth doing to properly secure the panels.

1993
Sections glued into place.

1995
 The final assembly of this part is to add small sections to provide a wider surface for the thole pins to sit.
These sections are laser cut, and simply require sanding flush with the capping rail.

2002(2)

1998
A little filling and smoothing and she’s ready to lay some paint down.
 
I suspect there will be several sessions of paint, fill and sand, before she is ready for a final coat.
 
B.E.
23/05/21

 

Post thirty-one
 
Progressing the seating
 
This involves placing sections that fit between the thwarts centrally down the boat.
 
The main objective is to get a tight clean fit up against and either side of the thwarts.
 
I start by gluing a section into thwart one, the forward end fitting into the Fore deck edge.
 
The sections will require cutting of one edge to fit the space, the length is marked and cut sufficient to leave a final sanding trim.

1880
To this end I made a simple jig to hold the thwart and centre section for sanding. I took this process very slowly with constant test fits.

1877
I moved progressively down the boat until each thwart had a centre section that fitted into the thwart forward of it.
 
My decision to notch the thwarts around the frames proved the right one.
On three of the thwarts, I did need to tweak the fit to get the centres in line; had I initially trimmed them to sit only on the risers, one side may have been left without support.
Once I had completed the whole thing I reviewed and replaced three centre sections where I thought the joint insufficiently tight.
Fortunately, Chuck includes a few spares no doubt for this purpose.

1882(2)
 One of my concerns is that viewed from the side the centre line planks run in a subtle sheer line from bow to stern without any hint of an angle.

1885(2)
Being unglued at this stage the centre planks can move about a bit but once I have confirmed I can achieve a look good to my eye, I trust I can replicate it as I glue the sections into place.

1895(2)
Worth getting my oarsman in to check the seating arrangement.

1898

1896

1888

1891(2)

1890(2)
At this point I am torn between painting the thwarts red or leaving them natural, sealed with wipe-on-poly.
 
 
B.E.
18/05/21
 
 
 

Post Twenty-nine
 
Still in attendance to the Queen
 
Before I put paste to Royal head, I had a trial on a spare figure to get a feel of the how the paste worked, and its working and drying times.
 
The Queen will be wearing a small crown or coronet and I need to establish how this will fit on her hair.

1838(2)
Having made a brass ring to form the base of the crown, I could start to form the hair and when the paste had started to set, the ring was placed on the head leaving an impression for the final fit.
 
I then had the task of making up the crown, a tiny thing of 5mm diameter by 5mm high.
 

1823
The fit looks ok.

1833(2)
The parts were silver soldered together and gemstones added in the form of seed beads.

1846

1847

1850

1854

1857

1853

1856(2)
Still some tweaking to do, I think the hairline across the forehead needs softening, but I feel that she will now make a credible 18thc figure.
 
I will leave it there now and return to fitting out the barge.
 
B.E.
14/05/21

Post Twenty-six
 
A little more whittling
 
I continued to fettle the Monogram using a combination of micro chisels and sanding sticks shaped to fit in the nooks and crannies in an effort to impart some round to these tricky areas.
 
 Chuck makes reference in his log to ‘Analysis Paralysis’

1759
Each check of the macro lens reveals tiny areas displeasing to the eye that are not there at a viewing distance of eight inches, and even less so on the model.

1763
Once I reached the point of satisfaction to my admittedly old eyes, but assisted by the optivisor, I  brought proceedings to a halt.
 
The Monogram was placed in a small container of Isopropanol to free it from the backing.
I had used a thin smear of dilute pva (non waterproof) to secure it but even after four hours it showed no sign of releasing.
 
At this juncture I did what Chuck wisely advises against.
 I tentatively slipped a scalpel point beneath the top part which has the least fragile parts, and gently eased it a fraction before replacing it in the alcohol.
I repeated the process a few times until I could get a sliver beneath it thus allowing greater access to the alcohol. Over the next two hours, by degrees, I eased the part until it came away intact.
 
Macro views of the Monogram temporarily in place on the Flying Transom.

1793(2)

1788(2)

1790(2)
 
From a normal viewing distance as gauged below, it looks ok to my eye.

1783

1792
I will leave as is for the present and turn my attention to the hull decoration.
 
Even tho’ I escaped without issue with the Monogram, I think the pva is perhaps a little too strong for the purpose, so I purchased a Pritt stick to temporarily secure the hull decoration.
 
I took the precaution of doing a test piece before committing to the real thing, and release was much easier after around four hours.

1771(2)
The decorations have been labelled to run fore to aft and I was careful to ensure I had the Portside decorations the right way up to mirror the Starboard set.
 
Looks like I’ll be whittling away for a while yet.

 
B.E.
07/05/21

 

Post Twenty-four
 
Stretchers
 
These are bars running athwartships across the floor boarding for the oarsmen to brace their feet against to give purchase when rowing.
They are secured by chocks cut into long timber strips that run along the inner sides of the boat above the decking.
 
The question is how to approach the job, it seems quite tricky at first thought.
 
The strips that hold the stretchers need to be even on both sides, remain vertical, but have both a convex curve on the horizontal plane, and a concave curve on the vertical plane, to follow the frames on which they sit.

Chucks Model
 
The plan in my kit (2018) does not reflect the required set-up, and the exact positions can be seen in the instruction photo’s as shown above.
 
My approach.
The two easily determined points are at either end of the strip.
 
I glued the Port and Starboard strips at both ends to the frames in the correct positions and used temporary cross pieces (stretchers) to check the squareness before the glue fully set.
 
At this point I have not glued the remainder of the strip length to the frames.

1692
The related temporary thwarts were put into place to check they ran in line with the stretchers.

1694
One side of the strip was then glued down using weights until the glue grabbed. Small wedges were used to make sure the strip didn’t move downwards towards the decking.

1697
I then glued the stretchers in place at the two end positions followed by the remaining contact points on the opposing strip, which was also then weighted.

1720(2)
The remaining stretchers were then glued into place having checked that all the thwarts lined up with the stretchers, and that the stretchers were level across the deck.

1708(2)
I had an issue with the laser cut thwarts in my kit which Chuck has quickly sorted out, but I used the now scrap (inverted) thwarts for test fitting purposes.

1711(2)
The thwarts sit well along the risers and I am content with the result.

1712(2)
Satisfying to see that the stretchers are not a bad fit for the test oarsman.

1713

1716(2)

1717(2)
 
While I wait for the new thwarts to arrive there is plenty of other stuff to get on with, not the least the carving aspect to the decoration.
 
B.E.
01/05/21

He first put in an appearance on my Pinnace build also at 1:24 scale

0922
His origins are a Dean's Marine 1.24 scale figure, but he underwent some serious surgery.
Originally he was a Vietnam War period American soldier in Jungle gear. His arms were broken in two places, his uniform and jungle hat cut away and he was given some clothes from the slop chest.
I was pleased that at a given 1:24 scale he fitted the boat spot on, as he seems to do on the Royal Barge.
 
 
I am seriously tempted to crew the barge in the style of the Museum model, but it won’t be cheap having a crew of nine plus the Queen at 1:24 scale made.
 
B.E.
 
 
 

Thanks Guys for your interest and nice comments.👍
 
Post Twenty-one
 
Internal stern fittings
 
I am following Chuck’s suggested order of work for the internal fittings, starting with the stern area.
 
Progress has slowed a little mainly due to a relaxing of covid restrictions, and a spell of fine weather tempting me out with the camera.
This next part also bears some thinking about, even tho’ Chuck has laser cut all the parts, careful positioning and a little tweaking is still required, and I wanted to take my time with this important area of the build.

0172
The bench armrest were fitted first followed by the stern sheets internal boarding.

0173
For these I made card templates to tweak the fitting requirements before I committed to the Cherry versions.

0175
These were trimmed to fit and heat treated whilst clamped in place.

0183
I also made card templates for the bench seat supports before fitting.
The ‘T’ square is used to mark the frame positions for the supports, taken from the plan, and to check the vertical line.
A spacer is taped to Frame 10 to position the aft support piece.

0186
The pinky red colour reproduction on these photos is not realistic. On the model the Vallejo flat red is true.
 
Once the glue has set, this area will be painted before moving on.
 
 
 
B.E.
21/04/21

 
 
 

Post Seventeen
 
Adding the nails
 
Following on from my last post I have applied wipe-on to the decking and the framing below the hull planking, and a further coat to the keel pieces.
 
I now need to consider the nailing.
 
Having applied some several thousand copper nails to the clinker hull of my Alert build, this seems like light relief.
 
20lb black Filament is supplied and a#74 drill bit is recommended for the purpose.
Some 1650 mm of line is provided which is sufficient for 330 5mm lengths, more than enough to fulfil Chuck’s suggested arrangement.
 
I’m not familiar with either filament or #sized drills, but converted to metric a #74 drill = 0.5334 mm ø drill
                                                                                                                                           #75 drill = 0.5334 mm ø drill
 
The filament has a 0.5mm diameter, and I used a corresponding drill to suit.
 
0.5mm ø at scale equates to 0.47” which seems somewhat overscale, and less than half of this is probably more appropriate.
However, I appreciate that the whole nailing set-up is purely artistic license, but I rather like the effect.
 
For the lower plank I have restricted the nails to only where the plank crosses a frame, it seemed pointless to insert a nail into a plank without anything to connect it to.
 
In reality a clinker-built boat would be planked from the keel up.

1520
For this operation I inverted the boat for ease of working.

1522
I eyed the position of the nails and used a simple jig to fix the drill point at 1mm from the edge.
 
For the upper plank nailing I followed the kit scheme, again sighting and marking the position, and using the jig for the drilling.

1532(2)
This time I had the boat the correct way up for marking and fitting and inverted for drilling.

1542(2)

1543(2)
I have decided not to apply any more wop to the planking until I have fixed the moulding rails which is the next stage of the operation.
 
B.E.
07/04/21
 

Post Fifteen
 
Completing the fairing of frame and rail.
 
The method I trialled on the first few frames worked out well.
 
Use of the scalpel speeded up the process, and I also used the scalpel to carefully reduce the width of the rails which saved a lot of sanding.
1414
Having sanded the outboard of the rail flush with the planking I used dividers to lightly score the near finish line which was sufficient to prevent the scalpel point running off-line.

1421(2)
I used a template from the plan to guide the shape at the bow where it meets the stem post.

1428
Not there yet but getting closer.

1433
Using the width gauge to check a uniform width of 2mm
Once satisfied with the rail I turned my attention to fine tuning the frames.

1434(2)
The simple width gauge can be seen lying on the frame centres.

1438(2)

1435(2)

1442(2)

1444(2)

1445
The prominent sheer is apparent in these shots.

1439(2)
It can be difficult to know when to stop, but I think I’m there with the rails and frames.
Test fitting of the floors may prove me wrong in relation to the frames.
 
I think some tidying up is required before I proceed to the next stage.
 
 
B.E.
01/04/21
 
 
 

Thank you Rusty.👍
 
Post Fourteen
 
Fairing and thinning.
 
I felt myself getting a touch of the modelling yips trying to decide on the best approach to this task.
 
At first glance the fining down of the frames and thinning of the rails seems a task fraught with danger given that there are some 46 delicate frame sides to reduce to a uniform and elegant shape.
 
I decided to start at the stern area taking in the aftermost five frames.

1410
I am using a No11 scalpel blade to pare away in an upward motion to achieve a narrowing curve up to the rail.
This reduces sanding time, creates a nice clean line, but has its risks in that I am working with the blade coming towards my steadying fingers at the rail.
For this reason, a fresh blade is used every two or three frames, keep it sharp, keep it clean.

1411
Once I have pared down the frame to rail level, I sand the rail horizontally and repeat the exercise.
I use a pair of dividers set a tad over 2mm to score the width of the rail which I then line with pencil as a guide.
 
I picked up on Rusty’s log where he describes his use of a simple width gauge to check the rail width as he progresses.

1412
The difference to the yet unworked frames is clear.
At this point I decided to move forward to the following frames and reduce them to the same degree before returning to fine tune the whole set.

1413
In my next post I hope I will show the successfully completed frame reduction task, but this may take some time.
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.
29/03/21
 
 

Post Twelve
 
A Barge emerges.
 
A point in the build that I suspect many builders are pleased to reach.
 
The hull is removed from its building board. I took this slowly and carefully as advised by Chuck, and it didn’t prove too onerous.
I now have my first sight of the model the right way up unencumbered by the board.

1235
Front part of the board removed, so far, so good.
 
At this point I was tempted to add the Garboard strake as shown in Chuck Seiler’s build, which would also no doubt help to counter any tendency for the hull to hog, given the length and fineness of the keel.
 
I rather liked to look of it, but I also liked the view of the deadwood at the stern which would be obscured by the Garboard strake.
Decisions, decisions, but in the end I opted for the original Chuck presentation.

1238(2)
I modified the building board for the second stage of the build as suggested in the instructions. Stem and stern post supports are necessary to hold the hull secure.

1242(2)
I am a big fan of Balsa blocks to support models whilst working.
They are endlessly re-worked to suit each new project.

1244(2)
The barge is now held firmly in place for me to begin the business of frame centre removal.

1246(2)
For this delicate operation I am using an etched fine-toothed scalpel saw.

1286(2)
The whole process went very well, a few of the frames broke away from the planking but were easily re-glued, and there were no breaks in the frames themselves.

1281(2)
Once cut, the centres came away easily using a gentle rocking  motion. The discarded centres will no doubt come in for other projects.
 
 
My covid hairstyle continues to develop, and still several weeks away from a barber, but who needs a barber when you’re busy building a Barge.

1278
With all the centres removed I can now sight along the hull and clearly see whether my fitting of the Transoms looks right.

1287(2)
 It looks ok to my eye, but stare at something too long and……….

1290(2)
A chance to compare this 36’ Royal Barge to my 21’ Pinnace, both at 1:24 scale.

1292(2)

1295

1298(2)
Four weeks fairly steady work to reach this point and I have what looks like a Barge in Frame.
 
Back under its cover for the Pinnace, and onto what Chuck describes as the most delicate stage of the build.
 
I suspect progress is about to slow down.
 
B.E.
24/03/21
 

Thank you Michael and Kirill.
 
Post Ten
 
Completing the planking.
 
Three planks per side to complete what is the Sheer strake.
For this work I have the hull the right way up as I find it easier to see and check the fit.

1126
I work with the model atop of the kit box which gives me a comfortable working position.

1128
The first bow plank (5) requires a bend to follow the bow curve into the rabbet and also a little twist so it lays square to the rabbet.
 
A little tricky this one, on my build anyway; getting the plank to sit tight down on lower plank between the first Futtock and the rabbet was the main concern but a hairline gap should be covered by a moulding.
 
The middle section (6) simply requires cutting to length and ensuring a close butt joint to the previous plank.
 
The aft section (7) required a little shallow bending to round Futtocks 9 and 10 without tension, but I found it the most tricky to attach to the Transom and the extended plank run.
 

1135
I devised a bamboo pole support system to hold the plank tight against the Transom. Balsa wood support blocks prove useful in this situation.

1138
The final plank is put into place.
It may all look a bit dramatic but the pressures are light and hopefully sufficient to produce a good bond.

1142
I left the hull to cure overnight.

1148
I have started to feather the clinker towards the stern, more to do but I think I will wait until I have fitted the Flying Transom which will stop any flex in the planking.

1145(2)

1146(2)

1155
The next stage is to fit the Flying Transom.
 
B.E.
20/03/21

Post Nine
 
 
Fitting planks 3 and 4
 
 
This is where the clinker comes into play.
 
Port and Starboard can get a little confusing when it comes to these pre spiled planks. What initially looks like the outboard face of Plank 3 on the fret is in fact the inboard face.
 
When working with the hull inverted I have to remind my addled old brain that Port is on the right and Starboard on the left.
 
Having bevelled the inward face of plank 3, the corresponding bevel of plank 1 is carefully pared down at the bow to allow  plank 3 to fit into the stem rabbet with a feather edge.
 
I find the 2mm Swann-Morton chisel blade perfect for this.

1071
The plank is water/heat treated to form the bend around the bow, and a small amount of lateral twist is imparted to the end of the plank to allow it to sit flush against the stem rabbet.

1069
With the plank temporarily in place the aft end can be marked for trimming on Futtock 2.
 
As with the first planks I prepare both sides before any glue is applied.
 
 The Portside plank went on without trouble using ca, but I keep a small pot of acetone at hand to clean off any overspill on the face of the plank.
 
The main concern now is to ensure that the opposite side plank has a uniform meet at the bow rabbet.

1073
For this reason and to give me a little tweak time I used pva for the rabbet join and the first two Futtocks.
 
This allowed me to sight along the bow and make any minor adjustment before clamping in position. Use of ca would have precluded this.
 

1078(2)
Light pressure is used and the model is set aside for the pva to cure.

1083
Plank three successfully (I hope) attached. I continued to use pva which worked out ok.

1084(2)
It will stand a little more feathering into the bow but that can wait awhile.
 
 
Onto Plank 4
 
Very little fiddling needs to be done, I did impart a little twist towards the end to allow the plank to lie flat without tension across Futtocks 9 and 10 and the Transom.
 

1100
At the sternpost I added a balsa support piece to brace the planking for gluing the extensions beyond the transom.

1106
The final plank 4 goes on without incident.

1113

1108

1111
At this point the clinker has yet to be feathered out at the stern.
 
 
Onward and upwards to the sheer strake.
 
 
B.E.
17/03/21