Beef Wellington

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Agree with everyone's comments, your barricade is so much more in keeping with your model.  Nicely done!

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Agree with everyone's comments, your barricade is so much more in keeping with your model.  Nicely done!

Agree with everyone's comments, your barricade is so much more in keeping with your model.  Nicely done!

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Agree with everyone's comments, your barricade is so much more in keeping with your model.  Nicely done!

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer:
Happy New Year everyone!  Lots of work over the holidays has finally resulted in what I consider to be a major milestone, namely the final shaping of the hull, installation of tafferal and plansheer.  Before I could proceed, had to finally deal with some cannon dislocations that I had been putting off for a while - two of the rear cannons has become loose, the carriages were still firmly fixed luckily, but the barrels had broken away.  Thank goodness for those long thin CA tubes that allowed these to be re-glued through the gunport...panic over.
 
Once the volutes had been installed and the gunports were cut out and finished (photos below show the aft and fore positioning), it was possible to install the remainder of the quarterdeck drift which was installed parallel to the main wale.  This then allowed the final shape of the upper hull to be determined, once again parallel to the main wale.  The topside of the bulwarks should be horizontal, and I found that the easiest way to do this was to use a long enough file that would reach from one side to the other, fine tuning one side at a time. 

The upper edge of the tafferal was also tweaked to ensure it was parallel the keel (even on the original NMM drawings, it was not possible to determine whether this should be parallel to the sheer of the quarterdeck or keel.  After making a template, the tafferal was cut out of a pear sheet, and pre-bent on a template previously made when originally making the stern fascia - this needs to be made from 3 pieces.  This seemed the most reliable way to get this done given the compound curves, and the pear wood was soaked and steamed on the former before being left to dry for 24hrs to ensure it was fully dried.  Once the main section had been installed, the two small sections over the quarter galleries needed to be made.  To do this, a separate former was made up to introduce the different curvature - these pieces are small, and proved to be quite challenging to shape (The second photo illustrates this step, but shows a 'reject').  Painting the edge highlight also proved 'challenging' to say the least.
 

It was also realized that the rear edge of the hull planking needed to be extended further aft - this is needed to account for the counter timbers which of course are not present in the POB kit.  I debated doing this, but felt it would be necessary to ensure the tafferal fife rail can terminate properly and not be left hanging in space.  The tops of the counter timbers will not be added until the tafferal fife rail is installed down the road as I suspect this will be a magnet for damage.

Not much more to be said, here are some overall shots of the finalized stern and quarter gallery area.  I am satisfied with the way this turned out, but as anyone who has built this kit can testify, getting the positioning and sizing of all these elements 'right; is a challenge.  Overall, it has been an exercise in constant compromize and adjustment between the original plan dimensions, the AOTS diagrams (which are not all consistent or fully representative of 3D reality) and the kit dimensions.  I will likely need to reduce the dimensions shown on the plans of the decorative upper finishing fretwork that will be installed on top of the quarter gallery roof by 1mm or so to avoid it protruding above the stern fascia - another decision for down the road.

Gunports were tested with anticipated armament, in this case Vanguard 9lb carriages and Syren barrels.  Had I been only using these, I'm sure I would have used the Vanguard barrels as well, but I wanted to keep the use of brass barrels for consistency...

...and finally some overall shots of where things stand, the lights are only temporarily installed for now.

 

Very nice build. I bought Diana a couple of year ago and finally took it off the shelf. when going through the box I must of got the one that was started on a Friday and finished on a Monday. Parts were missing and it didn't even a blocks in the kit. My question is how many sheets of drawing are there? I got 6 (1-6) in the kit. Its seems there should be more. The scale is out, says 1:64 but some are much larger. Can I get some input on this matter before I got to the company.
 
Marty

Very interesting.  The absence of a figure-head is a real surprise.

Thanks everyone for the likes and comments.
 
As a change from fixing and rigging masts and Also while I’m waiting for further supplies of rope from Ropes of Scale, I am turning to making some of the ship’s boats.
I started to make up one of the supplied boats in the kit but soon realised that they just wouldn’t do so as a sort of Christmas present to myself, I order a 32’ pinnace, 26’ launch, and 24 and 18’ cutter from Chris Watton.
I have begun with the pinnace and launch, reasoning that the two larger boats might be the most straightforward. Well, if they are, I’m going to have fun with the other two.
The bulkheads for the pinnace all slotted into the baseboard easily and without any sanding needed. The sternboard went on easily too. I added some extra support at the prow and the stern because both looked quite vulnerable.
The launch however, required the slots in each bulkhead to be opened up a touch. Almost inevitably, when trying to fit the sternboard to the launch, the keel piece snapped. A drop of superglue was enough to fix it back in place and more support blocks at stem and stern will hopefully protect both.

The forward and aft bulkheads were faired on each boat and the first planks have been fitted.
 


David

I think the specific problem though is that the beams really hinder the ability to fair the interior face.  Is it possible to mount and fair as you go, e.g starting midships and adding a couple of frames immediately fore and aft and fair these, then add a few more.  The access will diminish, but there would theoretically be less and less to fine at each step.