Le Soleil Royal by EJ_L - FINISHED - Sergal - Scale 1:77 - 1669 Version

[Fright]

Your ship looks amazing!!! Fantastic work on this!!! How large is this one? 

[Hubac's Historian]

Just catching up with your build, EJ.  Your carving skills are steadily improving and the work you have done, here, is really outstanding.  This is such a better model than when you first opened the box 

 

Also nice to see the upper decks in place, so that you can soon begin fitting them out.  One area of research I will have to delve into more deeply is the question of belaying points.  Popeye2Sea has done a truly excellent job of factoring the utility of the running rigging into the practicality of where to belay and to what.  I will begin with his log, which I’ve been following but not fully digesting yet, in its entirety.

 

All of these single-post belaying points, arrayed around the mast are interesting, but I would think they clutter and interfere with steady operation of the guns;  that being the number 1 priority of this type of ship.  I still can’t help but wonder whether the French had warmed to the use of pinrails, by this stage, in the latter half of the 17th Century.

[popeye the sailor]

looks super EJ.........the deck fascias look very well done.   like the way you kept the door windows in line with the rest of the windows  

[EJ_L]

As always, thank you all for the nice compliments, suggestions, likes and following along. 

 

Passed a huge time milestone this weekend by rolling over 1,000 hours over 19 months. Still have a long way to go so there is no telling what the final numbers will be but, as there is no rush it shall take what it takes. 

 

The work that crosses that line was the frieze work on the upper stern. Still struggling with carving humans and faces in particular but, I am fairly happy with the horses. 

 

Up next is the trim trim on the sides and the cap rail trim. That will finally allow me to give the taffrail it’s final shape as well as giving the LEDs for the lanterns their final location. 

 

While I still have a lot of decorations to go, especially on the sides around the gunports, other areas will be entering into the build schedule. The rudder and stern chasers are probably up next and then I’ll be spinning the ship around to start work on the bow. Piece by piece she is coming together! 

[yancovitch]

horses are great, and the fellow.........well he's just an old greek man, and you done very well replicating an old man :)...to me it adds a lot of character......i have a problem with people, maybe cause we're so complicated compared to animals..........and that ring looks very mysterious.....like it contains secret electronic devices......

Edited July 8, 2018 by yancovitch

[EJ_L]

Thanks Vic! I wasn't really sure what the "ring" shape was supposed to be either so I guessed at a wreath since they are in high usage anyway. On the other hand, maybe it was a alien radio receiver. It was what allowed King Louis to control all his subjects.....

[KenW]

You're a good wood carver!  Very impressive.

Good job.

[yancovitch]

haha.....was referring to the ring on your finger rather than the wreath

[Hubac's Historian]

The horses really came out well, EJ.  And the middle stern balcony is a stand-out job of integrating the ornamentation.  Congrats on your work, so far!

[EJ_L]

Vic- Hahaha!!! I bet the admiral wishes it had special powers... maybe electronic shocking to motivate me when she wants me to do something...

 

Ken, Marc, Thank you both very much for the kind words. Wood carving, especially at this scale, is proving to be one of the harder skills I've had to learn and while far from perfect, I am still very glad I decided to take this route and give it a try. Honestly, it will be exceedingly hard to ever go back to using the cast fittings provided in a kit again which I guess is a good thing since my ultimate goal is to be able to completely scratch build these ships. 

 

 

[John Allen]

15 hours ago, EJ_L said:

While I still have a lot of decorations to go

EJ,

 

The wood in the palm of your hand box, bass. looks fuzzy.

 

This is one hell of a build so far Kudos!

[yancovitch]

interesting......never thought of this before, but i think your scratch carvings actually have a more dynamic emotional appeal, than factory ones.....ship has more of a  life force which effects those who see it..............

[Hubac's Historian]

You know, Vic, I think you’re right about this.  EJ has imparted so much of himself into his interpretation of the carvings that this model is completely unique.  This phase of his build was what I was waiting for most eagerly because EJ seems an ambitious builder, and I wanted to see where he would take it all.  Well, he has not disappointed in the least!

[EJ_L]

John, Thank you very much and yes indeed it is basswood. I had a 50% off an entire purchase at Michael's one day and I bought their entire rack of basswood! It has been a great source of random materials and also great for practicing carving. It is really soft and yes, a bit "fuzzy" which is annoying. I've been digging through my cutoffs in the shop and I think I have found some better woods for carving the larger statues. 

 

Vic, Mark, you are too kind and I deeply thank you for those compliments. I too have been looking forward to seeing where I end up taking this part of the build. It is both scary as I worry about doing it "right" and also exciting as I never know how something is going to turn out. In all reality though, it is fun and I am learning more and more each time I sit at the table.

 

Everybody refill your popcorn and stay tuned, there is a lot more ship to build!

[kpnuts]

What an inspiration you are, I would not even know where to start. Keep up the incredible work mate. Gobsmacked.

[BLACK VIKING]

Brilliant job on the carvings Elj totally inspirational 

Martyn

[md1400cs]

E.J,

 

Just catching up. Your build is really "over the top" brilliant.  Your work with carvings is also very inspirational indeed.

She will be an awesome build when completed !!!!

[EJ_L]

Thank you all so very much! The comments and likes mean a lot to me and are great encouragement. 

 

This is has been a very productive week and weekend. I now have a completed taffrail and stands for he lanterns. Added a few more decorations and now I have a final shape for the stern. 

 

Next up I will start working on the statues that rest on top of the taffrail. The lanterns will not be installed till much later in the build so as not to damage them during rigging or general accidents. 

[Hubac's Historian]

SPEC-TAC-U-LAR

 

After shaping the tafferal and compartmentalizing for the zodiac symbols, all of your hard work is rounding into form.

 

Excellent work on the quarter pieces that support the side lanterns!

 

I’m excited to see what you do with The figures of Europe and Asia, whom recline upon the taffrail.

Edited July 16, 2018 by Hubac's Historian

[jay]

EJ,

 

every year you never cease to amaze me with your Great work just when I think you can’t get any better you do something like this...you are a Prized member of MSW. 

 

Jay

[KenW]

WOW!  I'm very impressed.  It seems when you can't be more impressive, then you submit another post.

Excellent work.  Excellent carving.  Excellent everything.

Keep it up!

[Old Collingwood]

Stunning work you are  doing - look how far you have come and what you have achieved,  I take my hat off to you for your Imagination,  your self belief, and your courage to try new ideas  and make them work.

 

OC.

[popeye the sailor]

the stern looks awesome........kudos!   the decorations make it pop!

[md1400cs]

E.J,

 

Woa !! just as the above five members just said - Splendid. Your decision to take a risk with carving and sculpturing was indeed a good one.

That is a big step forward in you skill set. Well done!!

And that specific blue that you chose makes the gold really POP. Your attention to scaling that entire stern area looks brilliant as well.

 

Cheers,

[EJ_L]

Thank you all very much!!!! This has been an exercise in patience and persistence far beyond what I was expecting and I was expecting it to be a giant pain!  Still, I am grateful that I chose to take this route as it has enriched the building experience to a whole other level. I set out to kit bash this model as I wanted to add a few of my own elements to it, namely the interiors and now by the time that it is complete, only a few pieces will be "as is" from the kit. Canon barrels and hinges for the rudder and port lids are the only metal parts that will be used and the only other pre-made kit pieces that have been used to date are the false keel and bulkheads, though some of those were highly modified to allow for the interior cabins.

 

The carvings though feel like an entire project in and of themselves. The research to try to identify what is being portrait in the cast fittings and art of the ship as well as other models of the vessel is just the first step of many. Once I have an idea on what I want the decoration to look like I then have to determine if I have the ability to draw and carve it at a 1:77 scale. Many things can hinder this, wood used, pencil thickness, tool sizes and above all my own skill set which is still learning and then I have to actually carve it! Still, the more I do and the more complete the model becomes which allows me to sit back and see the overall effect and appearance of the carved pieces compared to the cast ones, I doubt I will ever choose to use the cast ones again. (May kick myself the day I build the Vasa...)

 

As for a current update, I am working on the first reclining figure that will sit atop the taffrail. She is coming along okay at this point. I am hoping to have both Europe and Asia ready this weekend but we will see. The horses will follow after.   

[Sjors]

Hi EJ,

 

I thought you will be finished by now but......

I'm glad you didn't !

That stern looks just great !

You did an excellent job on it.

I will follow close again!

 

Sjors

 

[EJ_L]

Sjors, thank you very much!

 

This is going to be one of those really long builds as I am over a year and half into it with a lot more to go. Would not surprise me if this is a 3 year build especially if I start up another build which I am likely to do as I still want to build a cross section to go with La Couronne. 

 

I never thought I would hear myself say it but, I think when I reach the rigging phase the build will speed up. Then again, I've never tried to carve all the decorations before either!

[Elijah]

Wow, the stern and all of those carvings are looking great EJ! 

[EJ_L]

After a hard working week and weekend, the Europe and Asia figures and the horses are in place. This tops out the taffrail minus the lanterns. Now I’m down to the figures over the quarter galleys and bottom balcony supports. 

 

As a comprisson I have included a photo of the cast decorations that I have replaced. While I have no illusions to my own carving work, I am still extremely satisfied that I went this route instead of using the cast ones. 

 

As always, thank you all for the comments, likes and looking in. More to follow! 

 

 

[testazyk]

That comparison really shows you made the right decision!  And I like the way you've been able to make modifications to make your build even more unique.  Well done.