US Brig Niagara by mikiek - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64 - First wooden ship build

[mikiek]

4 hours ago, Elijah said:

Hello Mike! Here is a picture I found of the Niagara replica's fife rail. 

Very cool Elijah. I don't know what it is called but you can see they used the 'other' way to belay the ropes. They pull the end of the coil thru the loop then over the top of the coil and that's what gets belayed to the pin. The coil itself is hanging in front of the pin. There is a lot of debate as to whether this method was used or if the whole coil was laid over the pin. There's even a few that say you do a couple of figure 8's around the pin and the remainder is semi coiled and left underneath on the deck (this one I kinda doubt). From what I gather, the method shown in your pic is how it was supposed to be done, but once out of the harbor is another thing.

 

The more I look at your pic it appears something is out of scale on my build. I think it may be the spacing of the pins. I don't think I could get that much of that size rope and have it look decent. The pins are just too close.

[mikiek]

I believe rigging is almost over. I'm at a point where I don't plan on adding any additional lines. I need to go back and tighten a few of the first ropes I put on. Already done 2 and broke them both. Meaning they had to be reinstalled with all the other rigging in place.

 

I'm still working on the coils for the belay pins. I'm not real happy with how they are coming out. Rather then throwing the whole coil over the pin, I've gone back to looping the fall thru and around the coil and then looping that part over the pin - at least for now.

 

No pix until I can figure out how to get some decent shots. I'm tired of all the crappy looking pix.

 

So I'm about to get into clean up mode. Finding all the unfinished odds & ends, like brass eyebolts that need painting. The other thing I need to start is getting all the dust & bugs off. My shop is the garage and she has spent some time 'on the shelf' so there's plenty of nastiness around. I guess just small brushes and a lot of compressed air.

 

I need to go ahead and put in the order for the display case. Not looking forward to that bill 

 

Yup, starting to sound like this one will be done in a few weeks.

[Mickgee]

Hello Mike,

 

That's a fine looking model, you've done well, I really like.

 

Question please:  The lines you show for the rigging,  I suppose these aren't those supplied with the kit.  They look a lot better than anything I've ever had.  Could you give some insight?

 

Greetings, Michael

 

 

[mikiek]

Hey Mike - thanks for looking in. The ropes are a mixture from the kit and Syren Model Ship Co.  Blocks. deadeyes and hearts as well. Most of the long runs are the Syren rope. Cheap guy that I am, a lot of the short and inner runs are from the kit. If you could notice from the pix, you have a good eye. The Syren products, particularly rope, is a step above anything else out there.

[Mickgee]

Thanks Mike, I appreciate you stepping up,  now I'll have to find out if Syren sends to Europe.

 

Your lines do look good, easily seen as you have nice sharp closeups.  I agree with you too,  not every single thing has to be absolute top notch as lots of lesser quality items and areas are only seen with a camera.

 

I'll follow your project along towards completion.

 

Greetings, Michael

 

 

[mikiek]

Welcome aboard Michael!

 

I would suggest a PM here to user "Chuck". He's the site web admin and also the owner of Syren. I'd be willing to bet he ships to Europe, but I don't know what the postage would be. If you made a big order it might not be cost prohibitive.  I really wish I had kept track of all the sizes and quantities of rope I used. I do know it was a lot more than I expected. It packs pretty small.

[mikiek]

Man, some really bad timing. I have had a few spells in the last couple of months where I just couldn' t do any tasks requiring eye/hand coordination. Doctor says it's fatigue, your hands just won't do what your brain & eyes tell them to do. At any rate, it's hit me again and I just can't get the rigging finished off. I have 8 blocks that need line seized to them and the tiller. Two hours Wednesday nite and one hour tonite and I don't have a single one done. I do have at least a half dozen Syren blocks somewhere on the floor. Very frustrating.

 

So I started some of the cleanup tasks. I never mounted the anchors I made over a year ago, so they're in place and look pretty nice. I made a cheezy stand for the cutter and glued that to the deck. And I started rigging the rear davits to hang one of the yawls - I'll only be going with 2 ships boats.

 

Guess I'll wait and try the rigging again tomorrow. Here's a few shots of tonites work:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, I know the boat is blue. I got tired of red everything.

 

[donrobinson]

She all looks good Mike. Take a break buddy, have a cool one and take in some quality coach time. No big rush to finish, I'm in the front row and don't feel like moving too soon anyway, I'll just have a little rest here while you re-generate.

[Mickgee]

Hey Mike and Don, mind if I join you?  It's a little stormy outside, shooting the breeze and telling good stories sounds right to me. 

Michael

[mikiek]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.......

[Mickgee]

Mike,

On another note, don't fret with the current hand/eye syndrome.  In my case, I call it 'age'.  I'm 66, slowly learning to 'listen' more, it'll work out.

Your good times will come tomorrow, or whenever you feel like doing some intricate procedures.

I'm with ratlines currently, and realize when the shakes set in just take a break,  soon after I can continue.

There is no rush.  False is, thinking the project will soon end!  Not good.  Keep on keeping on at your own pace and prevail.  No time limit.

You are doing just fine.

Michael

 

Edited November 3, 2017 by Mickgee

[mikiek]

Michael - I appreciate the encouragement. I'm not too far behind you  - 61. I've been taking care of my father at a senior place - he's 91. I've watched the slow deterioration over the years (aging). I've also seen it in other residents and his friends at the same place. But it has been a slow gradual thing. What I am dealing with I can almost tell you the day it started. Within about 3 weeks I went from no problem to reaching to pick something up and completely missing it. I had an ongoing joke with myself, when I sat down at my bench it was almost a guarantee that I would drop something on the floor within the first 30 seconds.

The latest doctor is calling it exhaustion. But I come home and build all night. That's supposed to be R&R. Go figure.

 

Anyways, one good thing about this hobby - if you are having a tough time with a task, you can put it away and work on another. One reason for keeping 3-4 builds going at one time.

 

OK, back to work

 

And thanks guys!

[mikiek]

I tried again to get some pix. Brought the boat in the house. Put it up against a blank wall, Used the flash every time. I'm still not happy with the outcome. My one last try will be with a different camera. Here's a few of the ones that came out better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keep in mind this is only the standing rigging and maybe 1/2 of the running rigging - sheets, halyards and braces. But I think it is enough to give the general impression. Can't imagine how busy the thing would be had I added all the lines for sails. Maybe even too much.

 

Left to do:  rudder chain, tiller and boom rigging, trim loose ends of ropes, clean the deck (dust bunnies), name on sides & stern.

 

Regarding the last item. I tried some dry transfer decals with minimal success. Seems like that would have been the easiest way. I found some lettering that I liked - good font, good size. But they just don't transfer very well. Of course it is hard to hold the boat at the right angle, hold the transfer sheet still, then burnish the lettering. I'm wondering if a sort of 'name plate' would work where I take a strip of wood, paint it, apply the letters then glue that on the boat.  Gonna need something like decals for this - painting is out of the question.

 

[mikiek]

More pix with a different camera. Not a lot better, but I still get to flood this thread with pix.

 

I'm at a point where I am having to think up things to do. I believe all the tasks are done. Added the rudder chain. Got the tiller and boom rigging done, although I kinda bashed the design in the plans. I just couldn't do it that way. I even started the boat name using dry transfer stickers but I ran short one "A". More on order and I will probably paint over what you will see in the pix and try again. Those decals ain't easy.

 

Got out the compressor and began blowing as much junk as I could off. Found that some make up brushes are very good at brushing lint/dirt around without doing damage to things. They are very soft and come in all sorts of shapes & sizes. Got quite a set at Walmart today.

 

Also ordered the display case today. This one is going to my dad's. Back a few months when Joel passed I said I was dedicating the completion of the build, particularly the rigging to him. So at some point I will put together a few words in his memory. If you have anything you'd like to add on his behalf be thinking about that. We'll figure out how/where to publish it.

 

Well here's a few more pix.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 7, 2017 by mikiek

[donrobinson]

She all looks real good Mike, your Dad will be super impressed!! It would be good to see his reaction when he first lays eyes on it

[mikiek]

Thank you Don. And thanks for staying along for the ride, It's been over 2 years since this journey began.

 

Display case was priced today   $860.  That's for the clear top and a black pedestal. Turns out the pedestal almost doubles the price. It's considered a box just like the clear upper part. Even though it is only 2" tall.

 

It will all sit on a marble mantle with a huge mirror behind it. I'll be sure and post a few pix when she's "docked".

[Nirvana]

Mike,

How about building your own pedestal?

860 dollars seems to be extremely steep for a case.

Does it have gold inlay?

Edited November 7, 2017 by Nirvana

[mikiek]

Per - If I were going to have it stand from the ground I probably would try to make some sort of cabinet looking thing. Since this will be on a mantle the pedestal will only be about 2" tall.  The pedestal has to be considered a 2nd box. It is completely optional. I could have just had them do a removable top piece and it would have been around $425.

 

Also don't forget the size 44"x28"x16"  using 1/4" plexi. It's a big box.

 

I was trying to add one of the images but the uploader is failing. Go to the last page of either my Arrow build or Cross Section build (links in my signature) and you can see an example.

 

Joel and I used to always joke about making Niagara an admiralty style build so I wouldn't need such a big display case. Time to pay the piper.

 

 

[Tigersteve]

I agree with Per. Seems awfully expensive for the case. Regarding the photos- try placing it near a window with daylight. No flash. Don't shoot the photo towards the daylight though. 

Steve

[mikiek]

I'll try that Steve although the way my house runs getting direct sun in a place where I can set a boat may be challenging.  I did try it outside one time. I guess I wasn't overly impressed. Maybe I need one of those bluebird days where it's perfectly clear, no haze and around lunch time so the sun is over head. I will be home tomorrow so I'll check the forecast later.

[robdurant]

Mind if I add my tuppence on taking photos?

 

If you're outside, I'd try shade (with the background in shade) or a cloudy day. Direct sunlight tends to cause burn out (where the whites and blacks have no detail vecause the sensor in the camera can't cope with the extreme range)... clouds act as a natural diffuser. 

 

If you can get a background that's a long way behind the model you may be able to get it blurred (setting the aperture to be wide - a small f number accomplishes this too) and that helps to make the detail stick out more. 

 

That said, your pictures to this point show a very handsome model!

[Elijah]

Very nice job Mike! That is one expensive display case ! 

[mikiek]

Got a cloudy day today robdurant. I will go give the cloudy option a try. Also had not considered playing with the f stop. A big fancy camera and I leave it on Auto 99% of the time. Blurring out the background will make a difference. That was killing me on the workbench - too many little things behind it tended to blur out the subject.

[mikiek]

Welcome back Elijah. And thank you for all your support. I know you have been on this wagon for a long time.

 

I know everyone is hammering me about the case. I have had some buyers remorse but not enough to call it off. I keep saying the pedestal is what jacked up the price so much. I have the same arrangement on 2 smaller builds and it looks fantastic if I do say so myself. However for something this large, I believe next time I will go with one box and a removable top piece. That would have run a little over $400 which is about right.

 

It's just a fact in our hobby. Cases cost more than most kits. But they do add a lot to the final presentation, reduce maintenance and keep the kittys away. Take a look here and you'll see what I mean about maintenance. This build spent 60-70 years in the open.

[Mickgee]

Great looking model Mike!

 

I always liked the Niagara model, just now I see it's too intricate for me nowadays.  You've done well, be proud.

 

Michael

[mikiek]

Thank you Michael - putting this one to bed is a good feeling for a lot of reasons.

 

re: the rigging - I only hung about half the running rigging that is called for in the plans.

[mikiek]

The mount arrived today. Just the usual 2 brass keel fittings and a slab of walnut. Installation looks straight forward. Anything to watch out for? Do's or Dont's?

[mikiek]

A very nerve wracking couple of minutes while drilling holes in the keel. Shoulda done that a LONG time ago. There's a sign that you're close to done.

 

 

To anyone out there with a Niagara kit - built or on the shelf. Did your kit come with a stand? The instructions reference one, but I sure didn't get one.

 

[Tom E]

My kit does mention a stand, but none was included.

 

[Tigersteve]

Nicely done!

Steve