HMS Victory by fifthace - Caldercraft - Scale 1:72

[shihawk]

if you maintain that build quality on the main build this really will be special .Brilliant !!!!

[fifthace]

Thanks fellas

 

Not a great deal to report today, just some prep work on the keel and fitting the stem and keelson.

 

I've also planned ahead and am saving some time later by pre-spraying the dummy cannon port areas black on the ribs, will do the same with the beams before fitting them.

 

 

[Shipyard sid]

Greetings Dominic

I can only echo the words of all others. We have something really special going on. Keep enjoying it Dominic. DAVID

[fifthace]

Such nice comments.

 

No pressure then

[Malcolm Greig]

Those rope coils in the life boats are superb Dominic.  I've spent hours trying get a rope coil looking like that, without success. How'd ya do it? 

 

Malcolm

[fifthace]

Hiya Malcom, thanks

 

I used a spare block of balsa. Some masking tape, just cheap stuff. And a cocktail stick.

 

Fold the ends of a strip of masking tape over at the ends so you can stick it sticky side out to the block. press the ends down tight to it's laying as flat as possible. (You can use some thinner strips of masking tape to tape around the edges if you like.

 

Sitck a cocktail stick in the centre through the tape into the balsa. Mark your diameter out. Then, depending on if you need two free ends or not, press the end of your thread down in the centre and just continue to wrap around the cocktail stick and then around the thread itself. (If that makes sense).

 

When finished, use some watered down PVA glue and brush onto the thread. (Remove the cocktail stick as soon as you're done).

 

Leave to dry, then use the edge of a scalple to prise the coil off the tape. The face that was stuck to the tape is your "good face". Although with practice when brushing on the pva you can have both sides looking ok.

 

Next time I do one I will take some photo's

[fifthace]

Good afternoon.

 

Small progress made, although still not even glued the ribs on yet, just more prep work.

 

I finished spraying the cannon port areas of the ribs black, and painted the tips of bh 4 - 12 (i think) white. This was something I tried on my constructo Vic 1:96 and it worked pretty well, aside from the split rib

 

 

Next I've turned to the fist deck. I've marked the locations of the ribs and pre-drilled/pinned them ready. First though I need to plank the areas that will be visible. Prepped the planks at 85mm for teh 4-butt shift system employed on the Vic.

 

I've come up with my own method for simulating the caulking, which has worked well for me in the past.

 

 

[fifthace]

I've finished the planking on this deck, sanded smooth and coated with Dark Oak. Will allow to dry then varnish.

 

(No, I didn't add treenails...I don't like them in all honesty)

 

 

 

 

[fifthace]

I finally feel like I am actually making progress now...

 

I've drilled 2 3mm holes into the keel, and have on order 2 3mm x 100mm steel rods which will serve as mounts later on.

 

All the ribs are now glued in place, aside from the very fore and very aft ribs.

 

I'd recommend to any future builders varying from the instructions slightly, and not over sanding the slots for the ribs to fit. Dry fitting ribs 2 - 17 in place after any prep work, fitting the deck piece in place as well using pins to help locate the ribs. This deck will keep the ribs perfectly aligned. Then simply use watered down PVA to brush into the joins of all the ribs where they meet the keel and deck.

 

Next I've prepped the fore and aft ribs and fixed the bow/stern formers in place. Once dried I will fit them to the ship along with the plank termination patterns.

 

[Shipyard sid]

Greetings Dominic

Excellent progress, and explanations. As expected the same standard continues. Well done. Keep enjoying it...DAVID

[fifthace]

Thanks again David.

 

I'm just at that critical stage of fitting the gun port patterns. I've pinned the qaurter deck in place as a guide...but I've not yet got any further.

 

I am sat there looking and reading and checking the plans and doing all of that over and over. I've seen from Kevin's build this bit is critical to get right now.

 

Also I am beginning to regret fitting the stem and keelson piece when the instructions stated to. I had my concerns at the time and wish I'd listened to them...they are going to get decimated when it comes to fairing the frames

 

Saving grace is most of that will be below the waterline which is coppered...but not really the point.

 

So far everything has gone too well, too easy....

Edited July 26, 2015 by fifthace

[clearway]

Lol Dominic- you tempting fate . You certainly get a lot more frames and internal bracing with the caldercraft kit as opposed to the Billings. Keep up the good work.

Keith

[fifthace]

Keith I was right! Everything had gone too easy.

 

Fixing the first pattern was a bit of a nightmare. I ended up doing it in three parts, starting from the stern and glueing/pinning about a 3rd, allowing that to dry for a few hours and then doing the mid section and finally the forward. I did split one rib though, #17, but in a place it won't show or cause any other problems thankfully.

 

And to top it all off, I need to hope I get it 100% right, as my partner bought me some more evostik yesterday, and just noticed she picked up the weatherproof stuff...so no simple soak in hot water to remove it now

[Kevin]

Hi Dominic 

 

yes pre planning doesn't always work - great thing about it is that it can all be salvaged and redone - lovely work though

[fifthace]

Thanks Kevin.

 

The other side went on much smoother, most likely because of what I learned with the first side.

 

Currently the next sections are wet and clamped in place drying to shape, in the mean time I have been looking at the Sally Port, Vic's main entrance way, and how to model that into the ship. I've been able to find just this single photo of the inside of the port looking out, but it's a good enough photo to show what was there. The panelling looks much newer than the ship, so I have no idea if this would have been how it originally looked:

 

Source: http://www.omnilexica.com/?q=sally+port#.VbZJP_lRLgA

[fifthace]

Whist the template patterns are drying I had a look at creating the entrance sides.

 

I used some spare balsa as a base as it is quick and easy to work with, and some 0.5 veneer I had laying around.

 

This is the result so far:

 

[clearway]

I suspect the doorway was a later addition and it was originally a gunport hence the iron ring bolts on the bulwark?

[fifthace]

Possibly...or perhaps the rings served a multitude of purposes?

 

An extra/Emergancy gun port as you pointed out, or to act as a hard point for some kind of pully system or dragging heavy loads up any gangplank, such as a new cannon...no idea, I might email the RN historical society and enquire...

[Kevin]

the subject of the door way has been discussed a few times  - I believe Dafi brought it up (the subject that is)

with the history of this vessel it is amazing that the matter has not been put to bed by now - would be interesting to see if the 3D scans of her revealed anything

[pompey2]

Looks like you are off to a great start Dominic.

I will watch with interest, great work so far.

 

Nick

[fifthace]

On that note, have you seen that her colours are wrong?

 

They are thinking now she was mainly black and blue, and was re-painted after Nelson took her as his flagship, but even then the ochre would have been much much paler.

[Kevin]

poetic/artistry  licence was the word I was thing of during my last message, that this was used during paintings made at the time- not exactly helping us here and now 

[Jerry]

Hello Dominic..

Thanks to David, Shipyard Sid, I have discovered your HMS Victory site.  I hope you don't mind but I would like to follow your build, especially since the calibre of your work is top notch.  I enjoyed every minute when building my Victory and I can tell that you are also.  I wish you the best and if I can ever be of help, please let me know.

Best,

Jerry

[fifthace]

I've had a reply to my query regarding the entrance:

 

 

Dear Mr Sibthorp

 

After consulting with the team who are restoring the ship, we have received the following reply:

 

The short answer is that we don’t know. There is argument about whether the entrance ports were there or not, and so the panelling we display is an interpretation of what might have been in place if the entrance port existed. I’m very confident, however, it would not have been stained with varnish – more likely painted.

 

As for the ring bolts, the gun tackle is secured to them to allow the gun to be run out; it’s also where the breeching rope is secured to the ship’s side.

 

I hope this will be of assistance to you.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Allison Wareham

[clearway]

interesting- there is an old painting of her in plain finish before the stern galleries were closed in and it looks like a gunport was there prior to the bumble bee look.

 

Keith

 

[fifthace]

Perhaps your guess was right then, it was originally a gunport...would explain the ironworks.

[clearway]

Certainly looking that way Dominic- these paintings are famous so amazed the kit manufacturers havn't used them as a reference for re-creating the retro look. Mind billings do say their kit represents the Vic as she looks today (they got the rigging wrong in places though)!
Keith

[fifthace]

Well would be easy to build her as she appears today....just stop after the hull is finished lol

[jonny.amy]

interesting- there is an old painting of her in plain finish before the stern galleries were closed in and it looks like a gunport was there prior to the bumble bee look.

hms victory.jpg

 

images.jpeg

 

Keith

 

I think these are paintings of HMS Victory of 1737.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Victory_(1737)

 

If you look closely at the bottom image, the Mizzen mast shows a Driver-boom (large triangular sail) as apposed to the more modern style of gaff rigged working sail with a Spanker/Gaff boom above and the Driver-boom below. As far as I am aware, the plain yellow ochre paint scheme was standard of the Royal Navy unitl the 1770's/1780's due to the fact the paint/decoration of a ship came out of the Captain/Commanders pocket (or through the ships funding - Purser) and was issued as an expense to the Admiralty. The colours Red Ochre, Yellow Ochre, and Black were usually the cheapest and most readily available colours for a Captain to obtain.

 

Again, the HMS Victory of 1737 had the exposed balconies at the Stern, but the Thomas Slade designed Victory (built as the seventh HMS Victory of the Admiralty Fleet) launched in 1765 (almost 21 years after the sixth Victory sank in the English Channel) was designed with completely enclosed Stern Galleries due to an alteration to standard design practices made by the Admiralty to make the stern galleries (usually the weakest part of the ship) as strong as possible during an engagement.

 

In theory, the glasing at the stern was removed during action as to minimise damage to crew in the event of a **** entering the Stern Gallery, but the design of the enclosed galleries meant that the stern facia acted as a solid bulkhead, strengthening the stern of the ship.

 

Cheers

Jonny

[fifthace]

They have recently discovered the colours are wrong. At the time Trafalgar took place, she was a very very pale yellow, much paler than the current almost orange-yellow she is now, and dark grey, not black:

 

http://www.hms-victory.com/restoration-log/hms-victory-repainted-battle-trafalgar-colours