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newbee

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  1. newbee
    After my last post I had a day off from the build and, by the time I finished, it was too late to add an update on Monday. Added to this I've installed an computer clean up system and now can't get a preview of my photos. Anyway I have now added the decks as well as the filler blocks to the bows. I have also added the stern gallery piece which was made harder by the elastic bands pinging off the bulkheads. This was fixed by placing other elastic bands across them and the decks. There is no mention of having to soak the stern piece to get it to bend to shape. Out of curiosity I looked at the fit of the metal gallery surround and, of course it is flat. 1mm wood panel is easy to bend into the correct position but 4mm metal ??? Any suggestions welcome here. At present I am waiting for the glue to dry and have another go tomorrow night. I'm now convinced this is not a beginners kit. Here's the photos so far.
  2. newbee
    Well the President arrived today, 2 days earlier than expected so I cleared the deck, or rather the desk and opened the box. On first look she doesn't look to bad. The guide book has a step by step guide with great photos, but, as with Artisania Latina the how to do it instructions aren't really there. Also before ordering I checked the length as I didn't want a very small ship. The length is similar to Mamoli's Golden Hind which I was happy with. Thus I was a little disappointed with the length of the false keel and the height of the bulkheads. After dry fitting, eventually, she may not be as small as I had thought. Looking at the sheets of wood supplied I am a little worried that I will run out of strips fairly quickly if I am not careful. The rest of the small parts look sufficient with the possible exception of the blocks. There do not seem to be all that many. My biggest disappointment though are the cannons. The barrels, although short aren't too bad but the carriages are hopeless especially without wheels, despite the instructions saying to carve them into shape. I am also a little disappointed that the decks are laser etched with only 2 strakes. I would have preferred to plank it myself or have 3 or 4 planks between butts. Regarding the dry fitting this was a challenge and a half. The Bulkheads and false keel have 0.00 tolerance so each notch needs to be filed down quite a lot but , little by little, to get a snug fit. When this is achieved the next hurdle is to attach part 15 the deck support. I thought I had filed down all the notches on both the deck and the bulkheads, only to snap it aft of bulkhead 5 as I tried to push it down. Luckily I had a couple of 4mm wide and 2 cm strips of wood which fitted into the notches in the bulkheads to tap the deck into place. (I didn't think I'd need to find them until too late.) This is as far as I have got this evening but have already found out this is not ideal for a beginner. No mention of filler blocks and timber having to be sanded or filed to fit never mind snapping by accident is a bit too much to ask of a novice. These are the photos of contents and progress so far though nothing is glued but considering the tightness of the fit, I'm not sure it needs to be!!
  3. newbee
    Thanks so much for the comments and thumbs up. Since the build I have left wooden ship kits to build plastic aircraft and then some military models with the idea of making some dioramas. Partly as they are smaller, they are cheaper but mainly I don't make so much mess. In the meantime we have moved home and I now have the end of a garage I can use as a workshop. I have ordered HMS President which was nearly my first build a few years ago. I hope to start a build log on her next week sometime. Really looking forward to attempting another ship. See you all again soon.
  4. newbee
    Well, after 2 and a half years, I am final nearly there. With time outs it probably works out at around a year of spare time to get this far. All the ropes are belayed and tied off now with coils attached. This week I have sprayed starch on the sails and placed a hair dryer behind the sails and achieved the shape I wanted. I still need to tie off the anchors to the fore channels and finish off the ships boat, but apart from that she is complete. Thanks for all the comments and encouragement I have received. This has been a fascinating build with a mixture of everything. Some frustration, excitement, disappointment, and achievement. Research took so much time with very little success. Excitement with overcoming a challenge. Disappointment with mishaps or things not working out. And achievement with finally getting there. I am not sure I will be building another wooden ship. My captain says she likes how this one looks but not sure if she wasn't to wait another year or two for another especially having to put up with the dust and bits of wood and thread everywhere. But we shall see.
  5. newbee
    At last I have returned with an update. Having taken a few weeks away from the build. I now have all the rope coils made with only a few to be attached to the belaying pins. A couple of the pin racks coming adrift have also caused small set backs. I was not happy with the shape of the sails and have removed the thin wire I had inserted into the seams. I then wound 3 strands of the wire together and re inserted them. I had added the tack lines but now need to redo them to avoid the sails folding inboard. I have also redone the aft most lateen sail line, which, I think looks more practical and hopefully correct. At present I have not fitted the ships boat yet. There are few ropes crossing the main deck that I am delaying making the oars until I need to. I have attempted them but not yet achieved the effect I want. A couple of deck cannons have come unstuck so I am leaving them loose until the rigging is complete.
  6. newbee
    Hi again Warnerade. I've finally managed to drop in on your build. She is coming along very nicely. There are a lot of differences between your kit and my version. Especially not having the gratings cut out in the deck. However, there seem to be a lot of things that don't match up either. These, combined with mistakes I made on top, have led me to much research as well as hair pulling. Good luck with your build and I will look in from time to time.
  7. newbee
    Thanks for looking in Caroline and EJ again. I feel humbled by your comment considering how your San Francisco looked. Like yours mine has been a real challenge and considering a lack of work space and better tools is shaping up quite well. There are a few things I'm not 100 per cent happy with but, overall I am very content. I still need to remember the names of a lot of the ropes as well as figure out where they are going to be secured. I have now fitted the yard braces and completed the mizzen sail apart from redoing the rear stays. Again I am still combining the rigging plan supplied and the plans from the Golden Hind. I am not happy with tying ropes onto the hand rails so have drilled holes to add belaying pins for the main yard stays? I am heading in to the home straight now I think. There are still a lot of rope coils to put on the belaying pins as well as fitting the tack lines on the fore and main sails. I then need to add the lines to bring the sails out slightly which I shall try to replicate from Caroline's build. Also, before I add more pictures I'll get a better back ground for the photos.
  8. newbee
    Progress has been slow for the last few weeks mainly due to getting the ratlines finished though I have also started on the rope coils for the belaying pins. I originally tried making a false pin rack and wind the coils but couldn't get them the way I wanted. Instead I marked out a thin piece of board and drew 2 lines 1 cm apart. I then divided these lines into 1cm sections and drilled holes into which I inserted sections of toothpicks. I wrapped .25mm thread 8 times between them and tied them in the middle. I then used a drop of superglue to hold them in place but moved the thread up and down to stop the coils sticking to the wood. Once the glue had dried, however, I found that the glue had darkened the colour of the thread so had to redo them but this time only added a small drop of glue to the knot. These looked much better. There will be pictures of these later. I have now also finished the stand for the ship. All the sails are in place with only the main topsail now needing to be rigged. It feels like the end is in sight now. I will, however be redoing a little of the rigging on the lateen sail. I am not happy with the way it looks. The last of the rigging for the yards also still needs to be finished.
  9. newbee
    I'm not sure what happened but I added to this 2 weeks ago but it hasn't appeared so am re posting with additions. The fore mast with sails has now been completed but I have not yet added the tack lines. The mizzen sail has been fitted with a few additions. One of the tack lines is meant to go to a pin rack blocking the steps, this I attached to the poop deck handrail. I have added a block to the bottom corner as well. I will need to redo the lifting tackle as I am not happy with the angle it is sitting at. The shrouds have also been added to the main mast and the main sail fitted. It looks far too large but need to stick with it. If I was any good at sewing I would try to redo all the sails as the seams now look far too big. I still need to tie the ratlines on the main shrouds and tops as well as cut the last of the thread from the pin racks but still need to perfect the loops first. I also do not want them held fast yet due to snagging the thread and losing the pins, along with being certain they are actually where I need them to be. I have found a good way, I think, of making the blocks with loops which I hope could be useful for other builders. I tie a piece of thread around a needle, then hold the needle in place with bluetack and tie the block on top of the needle and then, add a drop of superglue to the loop. As soon as the glue is added slide the block along the needle a few times to prevent it sticking and then remove the needle. see bottom photos.
  10. newbee
    I finally bit the bullet and cut off the lanyards at the top and bottom of the shrouds as well as the on the crows nest. I have now re-done them but have got them a little tighter than they were. All going well the ratlines will look much better when I rig the tops now. This photo shows the original problem. Having redone the lanyards at the bottom of the shrouds I re did the upper shrouds. Over the last few evenings I have completed the ratlines on both sides of the fore mast but was not able to tighten the upper shrouds too much as the dead eyes were lifting off the crows nest slightly. I had tried attaching them to the crows nest but the holes I had drilled were not large enough for the knots used to tie the deadeyes to the shrouds. I have been able, however, to tie the deadeyes to the main mast crows nest so at least that one won't be as problematic. I ordered more 0.1 mm and 0.25 mm rigging thread along with what i hoped would be better gold paint. Humbrol and revell used to be good years ago but now their gold looks very dull and too yellow. These arrived mid week and I have been able to redo all the gun ports, lids and shields. I have left the door frames as they were as, without removing, them will be impossible to do. I have now completed rigging the bow sprit and sprit sail. I have dry fitted the lateen sail annd added the bitts to the fore deck. The next step will be ensuring I have everything in place before attaching the yards and sails to the fore mast. I found that the lateen sail has 10 parrel beads in the instructions but found that only using 9 fits better. I am expecting the yards to be similar.
  11. newbee
    Thanks for your comments EJ. I really appreciate them. I thought the rigging was coming along ok too. Funny how everything looks good until you think you have finished. Need to decide now whether to leave it as it is or try to redo the top shrouds, or worst case scenario redo the whole thing. I prefer for it to look right rather than just ok. Will see how it goes over the weekend.
  12. newbee
    Once the shrouds had all been fitted I tightened them as much as I could with the halyards before tying them off. I then drew a series of lines 5 mm apart as a guide for the ratlines. I then worked my way up each side with 0.1 mm thread. After many attempts at tying clove hitches I gave up. This was mainly due to them unraveling and becoming half turns. I realize that the reason for clove hitches is to have the ratlines running straight but I found that as the thread is so thin it actually looked better this way. Once I was happy with the positioning I added a drop of super glue to each knot, and, Cut off the ends with a sharp knife. After I had added the shrouds to the crows nest dead eyes I noticed that the shrouds had not been as taught as I had thought and are noticeably lifted up and out from the top of the lower mast
  13. newbee
    Finally I've returned with a progress update. I am still in the process of making the oars for the ships boat, however, over the last few weeks I've concentrated on rigging the fore mast and bowsprit. These can be rigged now as it wont affect the space between the fore and main masts. On the bowsprit I found that I needed to remove the rear most double block and tie it the center of the yard. on the drawings it was shown attached to the bowsprit. The fore top stay was also changed with the addition of a violin block and 2 double blocks. All the lines were put through the belaying pin holes and a pin tapped in to hold them in place. This will allow me to make any changes later.Once I am happy with their positions they will be glued in position. The yard and sail were then attached to the bowsprit and rigged ensuring the rigging lines did not obstruct each other. At this point I am not sure if my belaying points will be even similar to the plans though I am not sure they are accurate anyway. For me the main thing is that all the lines run freely and are symmetrical on port and starboard. I was not sure whether to rig the shrouds and rat lines before the yards were attached to the foremast or leave them til after After consideration I decided whichever I did first would still complicate the last so I started on the shrouds. As these were done I numbered each with small strips of masking tape.Attaching the dead eyes was really fiddly but I found that by tying 3 small bits of thread above the dead eyes I could maneuver them higher or lower without the dead eye falling out of the loop. I made up a jig using 2mm piece of wood and pinned the dead eyes in position and started to rig them However, I found that even with this they finished up being slightly uneven.
  14. newbee
    I have now knocked up a decent base to at least hold the ship in position. I still need to finnish off the boat. The oars are holding me up. I have decided to start on the rigging The instructions for this stage, both in the book and the plans are pretty much hopeless other than a very basic guide. I am attempting to combine ideas from previous posts, (Shaz, Vulcan Bomber and Desertwolf especially. Thanks in advance to you guys even after so many years. My ship won't quite be up to your standards but will still look good I think.) I am also incorporating the rigging plans from Mamoli's Golden Hind. along with AL's. I have put together the main stays. When dry fitting the main stay to the bowsprit I have found the fore mast is in the way. I am not sure if this is my fault or not. However I have decided to Have the stays running from the fore mast to the bowsprit and have the main mast running down to the fore mast. I have also drilled 5 holes in the crows nest and tied a block through each of them. 2 double block fore and 2 single block aft. The double block for the yard tackle has been added in the middle hole. I also have an eye pin inserted in each of the cheeks which will have a single block with an eye to run the line from the channels up to, and down to the deck. The parrels have been made up but I am not sure whether to fit the yards with sails before the shrouds(which looks like will complicate adding the rat lines. Or fit the shrouds and rat lines which will complicate rigging the yards to the masts. I will try dry fitting both and see which way is best.
  15. newbee
    Hi Warnerade. Just come across your build log. Sorry if I forgot to say hi to your addition to my post a while ago. I am still reading up on techniques for future reference as well as finding out what I could have done better. Firstly I kind of wish I had waited 2 years before choosing this kit as a present. I have wasted many months figuring out how to make the gun carriages never mind the boat and the channels. Like Y.T. mine were very crude metal. The photo etch parts, pre-made channels etc kit parts look so much better now. Building my kit in the living room wasn't a great idea either, too many distractions never mind on-call interruptions. You seem to have made good progress with the planking. My version came as single plank hull using 2 X 5mm strips. Luckily I had plenty of 1 X 5mm strips to double plank instead. Even 1.5 mm lime was hard to bend and shape on my first build. If you find you need to change your mind you will find it a lot easier with 1mm thickness doubled. Your ships boat does look very impressive. I didn't use any wood stain or oil on my build. I have only added a coat or two of varnish. Good luck with the rest of your build. I look forward to seeing how she progresses.
  16. newbee
    By the end of October I had finally managed to complete the hull. However, we thought we were going to have to move on November the 5th. Everything was boxed up ready to go and then found out we would be staying for a while longer. Everything is now unboxed again and I can show the progress. The masts and yards have been constructed but not yet stuck together. I have also mounted the sails to the yards. I have insurted thin brass wire into the seams using a needle. This seems to give the sails a realistic look I think. I have decided to replace the ships boat with an Amati 90mm version which looks much better when placed on the deck. The bitts are still not glued in place as I am hoping to partially rig them after dry fitting the masts. Trying to tie line onto them with the masts in place will be too troublesome. I will see if this works out or not over the next couple of months. Before attempting any rigging I want to construct a firm base to hold the ship in place. The boat will also need to be finished and fitted before then.
  17. newbee
    I forgot to mention that the top of the rubbing strakes were filed to a curve before I added the rails. and also the bitts have been added but temporarily as I may need to rig them prior to fitting permanently. The modified bowsprit deck has also now been added. The bowsprit pin rack is also now attached.
  18. newbee
    Well at last I have returned to update my progress. At least mostly progress. Amongst other things while looking at the rigging plan I noticed the quarterdeck handrail needs 12 holes where I only had 6. I have now re done the top rail with 2 holes between columns. The main deck rails have also now been added. It finally occurred to me to trace the shape on grease proof paper, stick on my cutting board and pin a long strip of 5 by 2mm over this, I then laid another beside it butting up close and pinned a third next to that one, then repeated this again to make 2 pieces. I then removed the middle batons and soaked them in boiling water and after an hour fitted them back between the 3 pinned batons. I left these in place overnight and, in the morning found I had maintained the basic curve I needed. There was still enough play to bend them slightly further so they were then cut slightly overlength and filed down to the correct fit. I also found that there was a big gap between the top of the rail and the top step so I added another step on each side. I spent a good part of the weekend trying to scratch build the ships boat but by yesterday afternoon I gave up. I was running out of scrap wood as well as patience. I am not too happy with the size of the metal boat supplied. I have seen other builders have not been happy with the quality of this metal version either, however the golden Hinds boat was also crude metal but I made a decent job of that one so will go with the provided one instead. I have been able to improve the stairs I had made by simply sanding them down further so these have now been added. The quarterdeck handrails have now also been added on each side. The columns had to be filed down slightly top and bottom for the rails to fit but I think they look really good. I have added eye bolts to the main and fore channels to be able to attach the mast stays (I think that's what they are called) The front one will go to the crows nest and the rear one leads up to the tops. Again the Golden Hind had them so I expect other ships would have as well. The down side if this was I have needed to add another bitt on the other side of the fore mast to attach the line to.
  19. newbee
    I finally got back to work on the ship last week although I have also started removing a few things I am not happy with. The steps are going to be redone if I can improve them, The handrails on the poop deck have been removed and I will probably also remove the quarter deck ones, fit the columns and then re fit the rails. After much thought I have added the main mast channels but have reduced the gap between chain plates to avoid the gun ports. I have finally managed to add the upper guns although I found trying to drill holes in the hull for the rigging eyes impossible I added 1.5mm X 2mm strips either side of the gun ports with pre drilled holes. I was then able to insert the eye pins into them all be it very fiddly. The handrails on the decks have had holes drilled in between each column for extra belying pins should I need them. These were also removed and still need sanding and varnishing before I glue them back into place. Along with the main channels, the main deck hand rails were the greatest reason for taking time out for the last few months. I still have to deal with the handrail problem but, have at least got the channels and chain plates finished. Although I am fairly happy with the deck gratings I have still to varnish and attach them. I am aiming to have the hull completed within the next 3 weeks so hope to add another post or 2 during this time.
  20. newbee
    Thanks for your comment Geoffrey. With patience I am sure yours will be as good and probably better. For me this is a challenging build. I seem to spend more time figuring out what to do 3 steps ahead of what I should be concentrating on. The most important thing seems to be to dry fit and triple check everything before fixing in place. Even then mistakes can happen. A proper workspace and decent tools are a definite bonus. I have an old coffee table and a trolley in my living room. My captain is always complaining about wood chips, pins etc. on the carpet. I try to do all the sanding outside. She will be less happy when I start the rigging and have strands of thread hanging everywhere, but will worry about that when the time comes.
  21. newbee
    I really like the idea of having shiny brass cannons to adorn the ship but have decided to go for a more realistic effect. I first painted the barrels matt black and the dry brushed with a very dark grey to highlight the edges. Pretty happy with the result though am happy for ideas to improve them. The railings for the fore, quarter deck and poop deck are now in place as well as steps and the wheel house. The gratings are dry fitted along with the bitts. These still need to be varnished. I have not been sure what to do about the captains cabin windows. I decided to paint them gold and then paint the internal squares with gloss red and blue paint to simulate stained glass. As I have now glued them in place it is too late to change my mind now. I must admit they look better without the camera flash. The fore mast channels are complete and the mizzen need to be finished. After 3 attempts I have removed the main mast channels again. I hope to replace them this week or next month after I come back from holiday. The Hauser plates have also been added to the bows but, as the lower whale curves up at the bows I have placed them below the whales instead of above.
  22. newbee
    I have found it hard to concentrate on the build for the last 3 months but have been working on bits and pieces during this time. The stern gallery has been completed and I have added the shields on the stern and port side. The cat davits and beak have also been glued in place. I spent a while trying to research how the davits should be rigged and, not finding any info, tried several times to find a method that looked ok. Over the last 6 months I have also been searching for ideas for the deck cannons. Again I gave up and finally, last weekend completed the 10 I needed. I read somewhere on this site about using masking tape on the sides of the pieces of wood and then using PVA glue to stick them together to create identical pieces. I was a little skeptical but it worked a treat. I stuck 6 or 7 gun carriage sides together and the filed the edges down to get 20 identical sides.
  23. newbee
    I have also made a start on the chain plates. These are very fiddly and have been done by first tying thin rigging thread around the dead eye and tying this to the end of the piece of chain. Once these have all been made they will be glued into the notches in the channels and a strip of 2x2mm strip added across them. I still have not decided on the cannon carriages yet but have cut the sides for them and am cutting the notches for the trunnions and axles. I will probably only have front wheels attached though. I have also re made the steps provided as I was not happy with how the originals looked.
  24. newbee
    Finally I have got back to adding some more photos and updating the post. Progress has been slow over the last couple of months but things have progressed a little. I have given the hull it's 1st coat of varnish and painted the rubbing strakes and gunwales black. The upper gun ports have also been added along with the gun ports that will be closed.. I have given up on making gratings for the bow, mainly because I have run out of them as well as them constantly breaking while being cut. and have improvised instead. Once the beak is fitted they should look good.
  25. newbee
    Finally I have returned to this post. I have taken some time out and continued researching without much luck. There seems to be very little information regarding 16th century Spanish cannon carriages or anything else. I have also spent more time reading up on the rigging and have now fitted the channels. I have cut out notches for the dead eyes which will be enclosed by 2 X 2mm strips. I have no idea how I managed it but when I added the hull steps to the sides I found that I had cut out one of the gun ports where the steps should go .This error occurred on both sides. I tried adding the steps further forwards but this meant that they ran up and would interfere with the main mast pin rack. I had no choice but to redo the gun port in the correct position and plank over the wrong one. I thought this would be almost impossible but was actually much easier to fix. First I had to cut out the planks between the 2 gun ports and move the dummy gun carriages to their correct location. Then I added 2 batons with a blob of glue top and bottom and, with tweezers pulled them into place inside the wrong gun port and the edge of the new one. I then cut 2 strips of 2 X 5mm to fit and pushed them onto the batons. Once they were dry they were sanded smooth and the steps attached. The notches cut into the channels were done after dry fitting the lower masts and running line from the crows nest to the channels and aiming not to have the chains obstructing the gun ports. The after most rubbing strake still needs to be re done as I was not happy with the way it looked. I also still have a few gaps between planks along the hull to fill in. The wales are going to either be stained or painted black but I've not decided which yet. Again the holes from the pins will need to be filled first. The bow gratings are also posing a problem for me to get them symmetrical without filing them down too much. I have also been looking to see if gratings were actually used at this time as well but with no success. It is a shame that cameras were not invented that long ago. Research would be so much easier.

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