lambsbk

That link was a really good explanation about the LOS. I wondered why the blacken-it continued to oxidize the metal after rinsing...in fact I had learned to very carefully rinse it off the treated part. Thanks for the link John.

John: It looks like you painted the brass sheet...but IF you blackened it you will need to paint it with dullcoat. The brass is so thin that blackening will eat right through it over time. Just a thought. It looks FANTASTIC. Now...where do I get a 'draw plate?'

BTW Joe - welcome aboard and good luck with your build. I am sure you will have fun with it. I look forward to your log. My shipyard should be open again soon - then it's back to work on the elm pumps and capstan.

This question was discussed earlier in this log. Check out the following from Evan (Force9): "The color of the mast hoops is interesting - there is much debate on what is appropriate. I think it was most common across the world's navies to paint them black to contrast with the mast color up until the battle of Trafalgar. We know that going into that battle, Admiral Nelson had his fleet painted a uniform pattern as an IFF measure... Having been in so many fleet engagements, nobody understood the fog of war better than Nelson. And he knew that his upcoming tactics would entail an incredible intermingling of the combatants with banks of gunpowder smoke obscuring everything. Oftentimes it would only be masts looming above the smoke or a bowsprit emerging from a gray haze that would indicate a nearby ship. With this in mind, he ordered that all of his ships paint over their iron hoops to match the mast color as a way of making the British ships distinct. (The combined French/Spanish fleet was still utilizing rope wouldings instead of iron hoops) It is interesting to note that the HMS Victory was restored in the 20th century to the most accurate historic Admiralty records available - which clearly indicated the black iron bands on the masts. This is surely how she emerged from her Great Repair shortly before Trafalgar and that is how she appeared up into the 1970's. But research revealed the Victory's signal log with an entry showing Nelson yelling at a couple of his ships to paint out their @#!*&^ mast bands to match the rest of the fleet as they formed up for the great battle. Apparently these were outlying units that hadn't gotten the word to paint them out to match the masts, which suggests that Nelson had ordered this change very shortly before Trafalgar. It should be pointed out that the Turner painting and the Clarkson Stanfield work both sat showing the painted out mast hoops for over 150 years. These paintings were heavily influenced by veterans of the battle. Gradually the British navy adopted the Trafalgar painting practices and the American navy generally followed suit. The Hull model shows the mast hoops on Constitution painted out and the credible contemporary paintings do as well. But all of this, of course, can/should be superseded by artistic license - it is your model. Happy modeling! EG" I hope that helps.

I just knew you'd find a good excuse to try out that mill...(noooo, I'm not jealous). :) Really nice job Michael.

Augie it really is looking very sharp. Beautiful work.

Sjors I am not sure I understand the problem you are describing exactly. If the line does not need further adjustment later in the build then you could stiffen the line with plastruct liquid cement. It is very thin and applied and dried made my tackle lines behave when they wanted to follow their own direction. Once I had the lines exactly where I wanted them I applied it then kept the tension on the line while it dried. They have not moved - as of yet...

It does indeed. Check your scale however. It is tricky to get the 'just right' look. The sheets are formed in brick red color and you wash in the gray mortar paint for the total brick wall effect. Maybe it was my technique but I was not very happy with these results on my build - I was going to use brick for the camboose floor but shifted away for 2 reasons: 1) with research it appeared to be a floor of lead or weathered copper and 2) I failed to achieve the brick effect described.

It is HUGE Andy. Maybe I missed it but how will you display the finished build?

That is a sweet looking machine Michael. Now my question is: how do I get on your son's 'nice' list? :)

I am using fiber optic to transmit the light from a single high output LED source with a 3000K white output ('warm white'). The small low current LED's you are using should not put out much heat but do test them by leaving them on and touching. On wood models it is not as important as plastic. If a 'lamp light' effect is needed you should look for the 3000K low current LED's from an online supplier. They are usually very affordable. You can also carefully reshape the LED by filing down the LED case. You can not go all the way to the anode/cathode assembly inside but they might be made a little smaller and more useful with reshaping. Your project is getting more interesting at every turn...

Denis: what is the LED lighting for? Just curious. I have dabbled into the LED realm for my project. Dave

Aye...!!! With a one legged captain and canons made of hearts!

Really, really nice work. The depth of quality just shines out.

Amazing stuff! You are a micro-blacksmith. Beautifully made.

If we are betting, I'm with Mark - Dafi on the right. :)

Sudomekh: If I can ask, where did you get those tiny turnbuckle screws?

Wow. You are really flying right along John. Looking nice.

Beautifully detailed artwork on the figures. I like the washes that simulate a 'worked in' look.

If I can chime in... The bulwark is not full thickness in the plastic kit and the styrene gets the thickness back to a more correct scale. I would have done this modification on my build but I was past the point of the addition before I learned about the problem. With or without the changes it is a great build. I look forward to following.

Denis: I just read through it...I could have saved myself a lot of thinking through on some of these items in my build had I seen it had already been worked out. Amazing detail. I could use some lessons... :)

I was just introduced to your build - absolutely amazing. What a pleasure to see.

I'll bite here Denis...Dr. Dafi? The name is familiar but I am not sure why.

Sorry to hear about the gale damage and I am glad to hear that isn't slowing you down.

Kim: in answer to a previous question you posted - the furniture is all made of styrene (with the exception of the camboose floor - made of styrene base, brass square tube for the frame, thin blackened brass floor to simulate lead, and copper tape mounted on the collar). I don't have a large sampling of the parts but bought some styrene tubes, squares and a sample pack. They are measured, mixed, and matched for the piece needed then glued, sanded, and finished. Wood grain is simulated in some pieces by 'roughing' them slightly with a wooden nail file along the grain. The parts are scaled from references on this site (i.e. other modelers), books I own, and via web search. When I am reasonably happy with what I need to make I start sculpting it - I hope that answers your question.