Beef Wellington

Here's the 3 t'gallant yards in process.

Hi Folks,  have been away from the shipyard and this site for quite some time, and I've missed the friendly interaction.  Looking forward to catching up with everyone's builds soon!
 
@Martin - welcome to the neighborhood!  We got lucky and didn't lose power in the storms, hope you stayed safe.  We definitely need to connect at some point so I can pick your brains 🙂
@ Sjors - Good to hear from you old friend, its been a while!  Will check out your new model soon.
@ Stergios - the yards were rigged from bottom to top.  Not sure if that is the recommended way, but it made sense to me to do that way because the lower masts require quite a few items of rigging to be in place near the mast and it seemed that this would be harder if the lines from the top masts were getting in the way.  Maybe personal preference?
 
The cutter has finally been finished and the details of the final stages of construction are posted in my 'Jason' build log.  Figuring out where to place the cutter onboard Snake was a little bit of a challenge.  It seems inconceivable that a ship (sloop) like Snake would not have at least one boat, but there is simply no space to place one.  I could find no examples of solutions to this in practice (recognizing that other ships may well have had raised davits), and it seems somewhat logical to mount the supports on the coamings which would also be supported by the deck beams underneath.  Finally in position, its clear that even a modest 24' cutter has little room to spare.
 
With that done, now rigging can continue, hopefully some progress possible soon...
 

The Mizzen has arisen:
 
I can see why build logs tend to neglect rigging relegating it to a bit of a dark art - its so hard to reach a point where one can step back and say 'done' because nothing quite seems to get finished before its necessary to do something else before its too late.  Anyway, the mizzen rigging is now essentially complete.  This area proved to one of the more challenging so far 'learning the ropes', but also just because of the increased fiddliness factor and decreased access.  The plans also proved more challenging in this area due to their either lack of clarity or incompleteness.
 
Before starting, this was my last chance to address some things that have been annoying me.  The kit supplied ladders going to the stern platform just seemed too bulky, so these were ripped off and replaced with custom made items that just felt a little more to scale, and less visually obtrusive.  These proved challenging to make in walnut due to the splinter factor, but necessary to avoid introducing a new wood.  The ships wheel was also given some coats of a wash to try and make it a bit attractive from the flat brown colour I had used way back when I started (Pre-fix situation below):
 

 

 
Rigging could then proceed, planning ahead proved key due to the many elements that need to be fitted in a very tight space, especially below the tops (tye, parrels throat halliard etc).   Petersson's Rigging Period Ship Models and Lever's Young Officers Sheet Anchor provide invaluable to bridge contradictions and lack of clarity in the plans.  Items of note as follows:
Boom Sheets - went with single vs a double arrangement as illustrated on the plans as I couldn't find another example like this Gaff throat halliard - the positioning of the gaff is slightly different on each plan, I had to lower my original placement to allow for the two double 5mm blocks, luckily the pin hole was obscured Single boom horse - Common practice seems to have a knotted horses on either side of the boom.  I just couldn't get this to look right and the image of a young schoolboy with rather large and unruly ears kept coming to mind....so in the end I just went with a single and it seems to do the trick other than to purists. Blocks for main topsail brace - One of the first blocks I had installed has to be removed, a double block on the mizzen for the main topsail braces as indicated on the plans.  It was clear that this just wouldn't work with the crossjack and gaff in place as it needs to sit above the gaff.  I elected to remove and replace with 2 single 5mm blocks with a longer clearance from the mast to avoid interfering with the various rigging elements in this space as illustrated in Petersson.  These are held temporarily in place with sewing thread. Close up pictures of where things ended up that hopefully can assist others (errors are of course mine):
 

 
Finally, some overall shots...

 
 

So, the upper finishing of the amortisement has been straight-forward but surprisingly labor intensive.
 
This particular photo of Tanneron’s damaged model of L’Agreable is so instructive because it provides so much information about the fabric of his construction, as well as the shaping cues for the upper finishing of the amortisement:

My ambition, always, is to attempt to capture some sense of the magic that makes Tanneron’s models so impressive.  Toward that end, it’s a process of layering details with all of the care of execution that one can muster.
 
As has been my method, the upper finishing is made up of a series of laminations: a base layer of 1/32”, a middle 1/16” layer, and a top layer of 1/32”.
 
I toyed with the idea of using Bondo fills to fair panel recesses at a continuous depth.   I did not think the Bondo would adhere well enough to the plastic to withstand the slight flex of fixing the part in place.  Conventional model putty would be too brittle.  In the end, I decided that the 1/16” layer was deep enough to create a sense of shape without having to go through undue effort for minimal gain.  I think it worked out pretty well.
 
A montage:

Given my struggles to carve good faces, I decided to extract Louis’s radiant head from the same place on the kit’s stock quarter galleries.
 
I wasn’t sure, early on, just how much space I would have left-over, after the bellflower garlands were in place, so I left the heads oversized for the time-being.


You can see the subtle shaping of the 1/16” layer, above, as well as the slight rounding of the final window framing.

The garland and cornice were a separate 1/16” layer.  Just as they are, above, they would be fine, if I decided to stop there.  Attention to detail is everything, though, so I took the shaping a little further:

The garland diminishes, in depth, as it rises to the cornice, and the cornice, itself, is now tapered in a gentle arc from its center to its ends; this small detail helps to accentuate the convex shape of the windowed center, below.
 
I coved the inner surface of the cornice, modeled the bellflower garlands, and then I gave Louis a haircut.  I was able to incorporate just enough of the fanning rays of light, beneath his head, to satisfy the original design:


The first layer creates the recess I need to capture the acetate window:

I made up the acetate panes, yesterday, but botched the engraving on one, and will have to remake that.
 
So, now that I have all of the elements of the amortisement, it was time to see how this was all going to map out on the upper bulwarks.
 
The whole layout hinges on exact placement of the canopy section.  Although the uneven underlying ornament makes it difficult to place these pieces, and the parts have yet to be faired to each other - this placement should enable me to salvage my aft octagonal port:

I will have to drop a wing from the forward pixie, but I am now confident that I will be able to make this work.
 
With my kids back in school, and the uptick in their activities, I have found that I am not sufficiently alert, in the evenings, to do good paint work.  All of the putty fills at the bow are nicely faired and I brush-primed all of the raw plastic, but I just haven’t felt like I could give it the focus it requires.  Opportunity will present itself in the coming days, though.
 
As ever, thank you for the likes and for looking in!

These upper knee extensions have been a real challenge to fit, so far.
 
A big part of the challenge is that I raised the upper knee a solid 1/32”, in order to buy a little extra space for the trailboard.  That modification, though, did result in the need to add and shim with new plastic.
 
One upgrade that I wanted to attempt was to raise the cheeks, surrounding the hawse holes, which I think I reasonably succeeded at.  In this reverse-engineering environment, it isn’t perfect, but I think it is passably better than stock.



Be well, and thank you for looking in!
 

Painted and glued-in:

So the desk is now empty awaiting the next build 

Small update... a first layer of hull white added!

 

 

Hi Folks,  have been away from the shipyard and this site for quite some time, and I've missed the friendly interaction.  Looking forward to catching up with everyone's builds soon!
 
@Martin - welcome to the neighborhood!  We got lucky and didn't lose power in the storms, hope you stayed safe.  We definitely need to connect at some point so I can pick your brains 🙂
@ Sjors - Good to hear from you old friend, its been a while!  Will check out your new model soon.
@ Stergios - the yards were rigged from bottom to top.  Not sure if that is the recommended way, but it made sense to me to do that way because the lower masts require quite a few items of rigging to be in place near the mast and it seemed that this would be harder if the lines from the top masts were getting in the way.  Maybe personal preference?
 
The cutter has finally been finished and the details of the final stages of construction are posted in my 'Jason' build log.  Figuring out where to place the cutter onboard Snake was a little bit of a challenge.  It seems inconceivable that a ship (sloop) like Snake would not have at least one boat, but there is simply no space to place one.  I could find no examples of solutions to this in practice (recognizing that other ships may well have had raised davits), and it seems somewhat logical to mount the supports on the coamings which would also be supported by the deck beams underneath.  Finally in position, its clear that even a modest 24' cutter has little room to spare.
 
With that done, now rigging can continue, hopefully some progress possible soon...
 

Lots of ringbolts to add everywhere and you really need to be carefull not to drill to deep.

The bow is abit fiddly to get in place but slowly getting there.

14 small guns ready to be rigged!
 
So should i do this the hard or the easy way???

 
Just need some minor touch up of paint...

 

 

Wow, catching up from the very start, so glad you are creating a build log, you look to be making pretty speedy progress.  This looks like an awesome kit and you're doing such a wonderful job.  Looking forward to more....I want this one day 🙂  

welcome Jason
This is for me the ultimate build, possibly the last big scale i will ever be able to afford  do, so i am not going to worry so much about it, and just do it,
intentions are for internal decks, masting and sails, in a 3 to 4 year time scale, its a great kit, and fun at the same time, as its all the elements i have dealt with in the past and now i get to understand how and why they are made like that

Wow, catching up from the very start, so glad you are creating a build log, you look to be making pretty speedy progress.  This looks like an awesome kit and you're doing such a wonderful job.  Looking forward to more....I want this one day 🙂  

Wow, catching up from the very start, so glad you are creating a build log, you look to be making pretty speedy progress.  This looks like an awesome kit and you're doing such a wonderful job.  Looking forward to more....I want this one day 🙂  

Wow, catching up from the very start, so glad you are creating a build log, you look to be making pretty speedy progress.  This looks like an awesome kit and you're doing such a wonderful job.  Looking forward to more....I want this one day 🙂  

Day 24 keelson
 
good evening everyone
 
well i have made it this far, no where as nice and tidy as others that i have seen, but i do tend to show it as it is, and as stated many times before, i never like what i have produced, im allways wanting to do better and lol never achieving it, however the the admiral loves it and so does my doggie
 
the upper keel. i thought would be a two minute job, as i have been test fitting as the frames went in, WRONG it has taken me hours to get a decent fit on 80% the stern one will wait until tomorrow

OC the frames have laser markings where the Bevel should be, (photo shows it quite well), the frames are all made the same regardless if they are double, triple or quads

good evening everyone
 
day 5 keel and a frame 16
well after a slow start, i am getting a bit more confidence now, i have made a few mistakes, and as a result the gaps look wider than they are due to sanding with paper and not the bench sander as a result the edges are rounded off, but surprisingly it is all very tight and square

 
i looked through the wooden bulkhead sheets and picked number 16 at random
looking through the drawings i identified all frame 16 parts, as they possibly have a couple of bits from the previous frame (15) and possibly from the next(frame 17) and marked with item number

all mating surfaces went against the bench grinder
 
Parts A and B were separated

found the corresponding paper plan, tracing paper laid on top and secured

all B items were turned upside down, 
 
in this case item B4 was secured to the tracing paper with UHU glue stick, the rest of B items had wood glue added to mating edegs and again had UHU added to keep them in position 
 


 
then all A items were laid on top in a overlap

weighted for a couple of hours

 
 
 

good evening everyone
 
day 1 project Enterprise
 
Building frame
this are most of the bits for the frame, in very good quality ply

i started this yesterday, but with little success, it was after a good nights sleep that i got my head around the project,
but first the moans, the overlap baseboard are not working correctly,
nothing fits,
and non existent instructions
 
made up from two layers which overlap, and top one should line up with lasered slots on the bottom one. they are then meant to be screwed through to a decent bench 
however, it took me ages to line mine up, not all the base boards are cut at 90degs and as a result not all the lasered slot match the ones in the lower boards, but some are spot on, so it is not something i have done wrong

not everything is cut at right angles

straight keel line, but as a result some of the slots are not matching the lower ones
 

things then started to go wrong then, as i was working blind, i was making the assemblies up and putting them in place but everything is about .5mm to large, and requiring far to much force, and as the slots were off set,as well  i was fighting a loosing battle
 
 so went bed
 
Day 2
 
after some thought over night i made a plan
 
check the base again for alignment 
remove all the sub assemblies and sand everything on the bench sander, including removing the laser burn with my dremmel and all of a sudden i had a different building frame, not much i could do with the slightly  offset slots (about 20) apert from remove a bit of wood which has worked fine
 
i have a set of photos now for anyone wanting to follow the build progress 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi Mitsuaki,  I really like the additional detailing that you have put into the channels and the chains.  I have been considering taking the same approach for making the preventer links with wire.  It's a small detail, but the results you have achieved are such an improvement on the flat kit supplied part and add so much to be beauty of the model.

Post 15
 
A little more progress on the paint front
 
 
Adding the line for the watercut is fairly straightforward with the waterline marked.
 

7587(2)
Just requires some careful masking.

7595(2)
The Top rail is painted blue (Underhill Plans) which is a common theme running thro’ all the models of Muirneag, and I have followed suit.
 
 
I used Humbrol 89 darkened a little with Humbrol 25.
 
 
Far from the impression given by dark b/w photo’s from bygone years, descriptions from the time note bright paintwork was a feature of Zulu’s, and Fifie’s too I suspect.
 

7588(2)
The framing for the Poop deck is also painted blue, still dry fitted in this shot.
 

7590(2)
The false deck has now been fitted to the poop framing and will be planked with 2.7mm Boxwood strip.
 
According to the paint specification on the plan the roof was coated with black varnish.
Not too sure about this in relation to my model, I’ll do some testing and see how it looks. I do have some antique oak varnish which for all practical purpose is black.
 
I also have some antique pine which is a rich brown colour, which may provide a more aesthetic contrast.
 
 
The deck was also apparently painted with black varnish, but for me that’s a step too far.
 

7592(2)

7586(2)
 
The next step is to look at the Rubbing Strakes.
 
 
B.E.
01/10/20
 

Post 12
 
Working out revised deck layout
 
Before I proceed further with fettling the deck planking I need to work out the revised layout for Muirneag specific fittings.
The Fore hatch has been planked over, and there is a slight shift in the positions of the coal bunker hatch, and the pump deck plate.

7420(2)
The plan is a pretty good fit as an overlay.
 
A major difference relates to the steering box.
 

7405(2)
A replacement was scratched out of spare Pearwood strip.
 

7425(2)
The box is smaller than that supplied with the kit and the aft thwart sits in a rebate in the box framing rather than part of a larger fitting called the rear bench pattern which combines with a knee at the stern post.
 

7427(2)
One slight puzzlement, there is a rise in the deck towards the stern which throws the steering box out of level and will ultimately give a forward lean to the steering wheel.
 
I will need to resolve this before final fitting.
 
At this point I return to progress the Poop deck structure, the carcase of which I assembled earlier in the build.
The Pearwood panels are now added but the aft panel which includes the Companionway, required some modification to suit Muirneag.
 

7402(2)
On Muirneag the companionway is offset from the centre line to Starboard.
In fact the whole Poop roof including the fish hatch boarding is  to be replaced.
 

7407(2)
 Deck beams have been inserted to support the poop deck planking and carlings for the companionway sides.
The lower deck cabin area has been planked.
This is all necessary as I intend to have the Companionway  open and a ladder installed leading down to the cabin area.
 

7418(2)
An off-cut of thin box sheet is used to form a ‘false’ poop deck roof, over which the planking will be laid. This will bring the overall thickness up to that of the provided kit part.
I could have used thicker individual planking, but a false deck makes it easier to mark and cut out for the fittings.
 
I will next move onto fitting out the Fish hold.
 
 
B.E
27/09/20

Thanks Guys,
..and Glenn, I think the scots are prepared to defend anything from anyone 😉
I hope so John, but the alternative would be to stand something big over the Fore Hatch which isn't there on Muirneag 🙄
 
Post 11
 
Getting down to decking
 
 
I made the decision to sand down the back of the supplied deck to allow for the thickness of the Boxwood planking.
 

7334(2)
The printed deck therefore becomes a second false deck with the advantage of having the printed layout to follow as a guide.
The first task is to lay down the Margin plank.
The proper way to do it would be to fit the timberheads and fit sections between them.
However, to do it this way would impact on the provided timberhead pieces which were designed to sit on top of the deck, all individually sized and thoughtfully etched by Chris with the line of the Stringers.
 

7336
I simply can’t be tasked to remake all 98 of these tiny sections so I will follow the kit arrangement.
Once the Bulwark stringers are fitted along the timberheads very little remains to be seen of either the timberheads or margin sections, so it’s not something to be overly concerned about at this scale.
 

7339(2)
A fairly simple job to fit the margin, I am using 1.6mm wide strip which bends readily around the bulwark. Only at the stern end does the margin flare a little which is covered by a section of tapered 2.7mm strip.
The planking begins each side of the centre line, and I have utilised in part the pre-marked butt shifts on the printed version.
One edge of each plank is marked with a waterproof black marker to represent the caulking.
I use a broad chisel Pilot marker pen.
On this particular layout there is no joggling involved which simplifies things.
 

7345(2)
Nearing completion.
 

7349(2)
Completed but in need of a good scrape.

7358(2)
A check to ensure that the Poop deck framing and Mast partners fit.
 
At this point I have also beefed up the support stand, knocked up from bits and pieces but it works.
The kit provided stand is a display stand not really suitable to work on the model.
 

7370(2)
This particular hull shape is quite slippery and a stable support is necessary to hold it securely for work on the deck.
 
 
B.E.
24/09/20