Enterprise by src - Constructo - 1:51 - or Lessons in Adapt Improvise and Overcome

[russ]

Sam:

Nice work. I agree that lanyard needs redoing, but the one deadeye being a little higher does not necessarily need to be redone. Sometimes, deadeyes were not perfectly lined up. In the natural course of working the ship, they could easily get slightly out of line. It is up to you, though.

 

Russ

 

 

[src]

Thanks Russ and also all who hit the like button. I figured that a working ship would never have perfectly lined up dead eyes and I'm ok with a 32nd or maybe even a 16th of an inch but this one was so far off that was all I saw. Off it came. Of course now its a bit lower than the others!! LOL. I am good with it now.

Sam

 

[russ]

That you are satisfied with it is the most important thing. We all do the same thing at some point on our models. Myself, several times on each model.

 

Russ

[popeye the sailor]

still learning in that dept as well.   to have them all equally spaced, is just a modeler's taste.   it's quite a common practice for a museum quality model to have evenly spaced dead eye lanyards.  you get right down to it,  a lanyard off here and there,  is actually added detail and makes the model look more realistic.   movies show this as well.   working with plastic models all my life,  I never had to worry about this.......my first wooden model showed me I have some learning to do     I made up a jig.......but I suspect I'll be making a few more,  depicting the difference in scale.

[src]

Thanks everybody for checking in, I do appreciate it. Not really much to show lately, summer is here. Went camping last weekend, annual fishing trip with the brothers is coming up and in August we go back on to Ludicrous Speed. I have the Port Ratlines mostly done and hope to get the rest and the Starboard rats done this weekend (RIGHT!! Who am I kidding!!!!)

Russ, Dennis, I am finding I need to reign myself in sometimes, otherwise if I start slacking off I will let myself get sloppy.

I will try to get some pictures up this weekend.

Sam

[src]

Ok then promised pictures - in a bit - I need to ramble.

I have learned a few things doing the Fore Shrouds and Ratlines.

1. No coffee or alcohol, they both lead to poor results and additional redo's. There are enough of those to begin with.
2. As I commented earlier I have had issues getting that first knot tied correctly. I found if I take my Third Hands and extend them all the way up I can use that as a crutch to hold the end of the line. It makes tying that first knot faster and easier for me.

I am still learning how to keep a consistent swag in the ratlines, the Fore lines are better than the Main but as you can see in the close up some are still a bit flat. I think once I have finished the Port side I will have to go back and redo a few on both masts. I am not going to try to get them perfect just a little more consistent..

 

Ok then pictures.

 

 

 

[russ]

Sam:

The ratlines look pretty good to me. The knots are very well done to my eye. They look like they are in scale. Nice work.

 

Russ

 

 

 

[mtaylor]

Looks good, Sam.  On a side note, I draw the line at no coffee. 

[jct]

Nice, for me the hardest part is getting them consistent, they look good Sam

[src]

Thanks for the good words everybody and to all who hit the like button.

Russ, scale was probably the biggest reason I threw the kit string in the scrap bin, the smallest as I recall is close to the diameter of the main shrouds.

Mark, I am experimenting with just one cup this morning while working.

Jay, agreed, it doesnt take much to make a big change. too much and they look like something off a roller coaster, too little and they look like high tension power lines.

 

Sam

[src]

Lower Rats are done, on to the stays.

First challenge of the morning was how to make a mouse? My lath wont grip a piece of dowel smaller than 1/2" and I needed something on the order of .165 -.170". I chucked up a piece of dowel in my hand drill and started grinding away with a small rasp. I finished up with sand paper and needle files. The next head scratcher was how to get a .060 hole centered all the way through. Never did solve that one, I am close but off by a couple thousandths, I can live with it. I bit-O-paint and I was ready to go.

Now a question, as I have mentioned several times I am using Chucks Syren instructions as well as TFFM for my rigging. They are at odds as to where to belay(?) the Main Stay. Chuck has the stay going down to the Foremast and (lashed, reeved, belayed??) to hearts. TFFM has the Stay passing by the Starboard side of the Fore Mast and anchoring to the Head. Any thoughts as to which would be more common here? I can certainly do either and be fine with it, like usual though I am interested in information for the future.

Pictures below, I have been too lazy to clean my bench lately so I have cropped the junk out, no full hull pictures today.

Oh! An additional question, is the stay run properly around the head?

Thanks

Sam

 

 

[russ]

Sam:

Nice work on the ratlines and the mouse. It looks plenty good enough to my eye. I think it will do well.

 

Russ

 

 

 

[popeye the sailor]

I agree ....shrouds look great......and yes.....the stay looks alright ...right where it is  

[Sjors]

Very nice Sam!

Lessons learned well😄👍

Stay looks perfect...

 

Sjors

 

[cog]

Sam,

 

Rats ... the stay, it depends on where and by whom the rigging was done. If you've got her rigging plan, it is quickly solved, else it might as well be: Take your pick.

 

The mouse ... why do you need a mouse with all those rats? ... I wouldn't use wood for the mouse but some sort of epoxy/plastic. Paint it black, and after weaving it onto the stay, you won't see the material it is made from anyway. Pat (Banyan) has a nice tutorial on weaving it, but I presume you already know.

 

She does look nice without all the clutter

 

Cheers

[SGraham]

Beautiful shrouds and ratlines, Sam!

[src]

Carl, why not wood for the mouse? I have not installed it yet and can remake it if needed. And the ships cat was supposed to take care of the rats and the mice, but she is more interested in the lizards outside her window. I did see Banyons tutorial, seemed like more work than I was willing to do. Thanks for making sure I knew about it though, I do appreciate it.

 

Steve, good to see you thanks for dropping in, will you be getting some bench time soon?

 

Thanks to all for the good words and likes, always appreciated.

 

I was hoping to get the main stays on, I got some direction on where to run them in the rigging forum. However, I have spent ALL DAY trying to make one stupid collar the right size. I feel like Goldilocks, this ones too big, this ones too small. Lol!!

 

Its our Independence Day here, time to go blow some things up!!

Thanks to all who have served and to our UK friends, no hard feelings??

 

Sam

 

[SGraham]

Hi Sam,

Yup, things have calmed down a bit around here. I just got done reorganizing the shipyard and plan to put a set of sails on the cutter. Have a happy Fourth!

 

Steve

[cog]

Wood splits easily at that size, but you can use anyting you want, at least, if you can shape it to your requirements. Banyan's tutorial, yes it is a lot of work, but it is the way most modellers do it. Saw a build log from a Polish chap on the net whom did it the same way, although he used some kind of putty for the mouse (might have scared the cat away ) O golly, you didn't blow up your ship Yesterday ...!?

[src]

HA! Nope I wouldn't blow the Enterprise up, she aggravates me at times but we have been together for too long to end it now. I was concerned about splitting the mouse also, after I got the first pilot hole drilled out I started slowly working my way up to the right size that would just pass over the serving. Once I felt I was getting to a point where it might split, I took a lesson from VossieWolf and soaked it in the thinnest CA I have and let it site for about an hour to harden. Then finished drilling. It worked on two, now that I have showed it to the world the next one will probably split!! Time will tell.

 

Now if Better Half will go watch her programs tonight and the neighbors will lay off the sky rockets I just might get my next collar made. Poor dog HATES things that go boom. He managed to chew through his crate last night, knock a vase off the counter top trying to get on it and generally had a really bad night. (no, I didnt contribute to the noises) That was AFTER he was given meds. And he is a hunting dog..... Poor guy.

 

Sam

[popeye the sailor]

I hear ya.......Gibbs spent the last couple of evenings in the cave {under our bed}.   TV wasn't the same without him  

[src]

Ya, animals and loud noises just dont always go together. Sometimes they do, my ex has a pit/lab rescue mix, nothing phases her. The first year she had her when we noticed boomie things didnt bother her we took her to the scholl where the fireworks were going to be shot for the 4th. We were sitting outside the fence waiting for the show to start and people in the houses behind started shooting bottle rockets off. She would turn her head to track the flight and when they popped she would bark at it. "Shwoosh! CRACK! Woof!" for the next 15 minutes or so. When the show started she was up on all fours wagging her tail and barking the entire time. I dont know what recieved more attention, the show in the sky or the four legged show on the ground.

 

Ok Back to building, what little there has been. I am using a picture I have of the enterprise after the refit to help with the Standing Rigging. I couldnt figure out where the Main stay should end. The picture reads as if they both ended on the Fore Mast, but after I built my collars and ran my lanyards that looked wrong. My mind was running in circles - Syrens plans, TFFM, picture and back. I wasnt getting anywhere then one day at work I was watching one of the carpenters agonizing over a drawing of a simple project. It was bid as 12 hours of fabrication time and he had just spent 6 staring at the plans with out even getting a piece of material off the rack. I had to go over and tell him I quit staring at the #@%$ plans and *&^% build it!. When I got home that night and sat down to agonize over my own project that conversation was still bouncing around in my head. As I looked at the picture for the umpteenth time, this video popped in my head from The Holy Grail:

Edit, It seems that I cannot post a video. this was supposed to be a link to a youtube video of various characters from the movie saying Get On With It. Oh Well.

 

So, I Got On With It. Right, Wrong or otherwise both sets of stays are on. I still have some tinkering to do. I still have some cleanup to do and the Fore Stays need some tinkering, I dont like how the collars and lanyards are sitting. Not sure atm how to fix it though. 

 

Obligatory photos, sorry for the over exposure, bosses wedding is today and I kind of rushed through the pictures. If I dodnt post today it would be September most likely before I posted again as we are back on a 6-7 day a week schedule, 10 hour days. My paycheck loves it but man, I am getting too old for this:

 

 

Lots of spaghetti still, I kept making my lanyards too short.

 

 

I didnt like how the lanyards looked tied to the hearts so I made eyelets and ran the lanyards through them, more work but I feel it looks cleaner. Not sure where I saw this, somewhere in the rigging forums. I have also chosen to seize the ends rather than frapping turns. Now I have to go back to the Bowsprit and redo the lanyards there since those were frapped.

 

Not my best seizing job, but I really struggled with this one. It should be ok once I clean up the loose ends.

Till next time!

Sam

Edited August 5, 2017 by src

[russ]

Sam:

Very nice rigging details. What looks bad to you will probably look better within the context of the entire model once it is completed.

 

Russ

 

 

[HIPEXEC]

It's another beauty!

[cog]

Got lost mate ...? Thought you to be on holiday ... got a few spare hours to pester us Nice rigging though

[mtaylor]

She's coming together, Sam...  Now if we just figure out a way for you to have a few days off....

[rony]

WOW. Really looks realistic

[src]

Thank you gents!

Russ, you are probably right sometimes the forest and the trees get in each others way.

Rich good to see you.

Carl, Mark, nope, No time off for another month or so. We are going to Portland OR in Oct though.

When I got back from my fishing trip in mid July we were already waist deep creating an overlay for the bosses wedding; something like 60 sheets of styrofoam routed on our cnc into Moroccan themed panels, floor lanterns and molding details. I dont know how many sets of LED floods and theatrical style lights as well as the controllers to drive them. This in addition to a very large Halloween overlay for a local park that is due at the end of August. I am sure glad I am not on the wedding clean up crew though, he bought somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 hand held confetti cannons made from what appeared to be 2" pvc tube about 20" long. Twist the end and several cubic inches of confetti gets launched 20-30 feet. One of the art directors we work with brought half a dozen co2 powered cannons also, those had at least 2x the confetti. There was 6" of confetti on the floor in some places.  

 

OK Last day off lets see what kind of trouble the gremlin and I can get into today.

Sam

[src]

Rony, your too kind, thank you for the kind words and for dropping in, I love seeing new faces here.

Sam

[cog]

You certain you didn't loose your build below a heap of confetti