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

[Tallshiptragic]

Great work EJ! And the lovely world of correcting and modified Sergal kits!

[EJ_L]

I'm not looking forward to the sanding on this one either. La Couronne was bad enough at her size and S.R. is even bigger! I can already feel the sore elbows. Plus side is she is big enough that I should be able to use the power sander for some of the initial knock down sanding.

 

Correcting, improving or just general bashing model ship kits I have decided is just part of the hobby and what sets this type of modeling apart from others. This is not a follow the instructions step by step connecting part "A" which paints red to part "B" which paints black and adding that assembly to hull "C" and truthfully, I don't think I would like it if it was. When I buy kits I buy them mostly for the materials and a starting point with the hull. I know after building a few now that they will have problems and I will need to and want to change and add more to them. My goal is to be able to scratch a fully framed ship and so I want to have to push myself far beyond written instructions. I need to be able to think through the design and building processes and by being forced into bashing kits, I can learn a lot while still having a good starting point and guidance towards the completed ship. With each build I do a little more. Add in missing frames, furniture and interiors and all the while I cut out more and more of the pre-cut, and molded pieces. While I am still a kit or two away from that full scratch build, I am gaining that confidence to ate least try a cross section scratch build. That much I owe to having to improve kits. 

 

Thanks for the nice words and all the likes! More soon!  

[Kelp]

E.J.,

 

Great job on the deck planking!

 

Don

[EJ_L]

Just a quick update/preview of the Captain's quarters. Bulkheads are going up, floor is planked and doors and furniture will be appearing soon.

[donrobinson]

Nice work E.J. Going to be a sweet addition when complete

[ca.shipwright]

I am also going to super detail my Victory. It will be interesting how much these ships will resemble each other.

 

I now how you get so much done so fast. I spent my first ever 8-hour shift in the boatyard, even skipping lunch, and was amazed how much I got accomplish. This is the way to go.

[EJ_L]

Thank you as always to the compliments and the "Likes"! Always appreciated!

 

Those long build days are wonderful! The down side is when you spent 8 hours straight and only have one side of the shrouds ratted down and you have to point out what you did to the Admiral as in her eyes it looks the same as it did that morning....

 

Well, I didn't spend 8 hours today but the couple I did manage to get in real quick allowed for the completion of the Captain's cabin. Next up I need to start building the framework for the stern. As I will not be using the kit provided window frames as they are set to the 5 window pattern and I am going to model the 6 window pattern, I will have to scratch all the framework for it. Truthfully this is a better solution anyway as the cabin build outs have caused the floors and side bulkheads to change alignment and no longer fit the kit piece very well. The other thing this allows is for me to run the wiring up inside the framework for the stern lanterns. Once those wires are in place I can close up the remaining hull and begin the dreaded sanding phase... 

[Eddie]

Hey howya goin E.J. mate, the lights look great mate, I love it when people go that extra mile and do the interior keep it up.   

[Tallshiptragic]

The interior is looking great EJ! 

[Hubac's Historian]

Great work on the interior, EJ!  One thought that occurs to me has to do with the "dreaded sanding phase".  Naturally, there will be a ton of dust.  What is your plan for making these interior compartments, at least temporarily airtight, so that they don't fill up with dust?

[popeye the sailor]

it's too bad there aren't to be any windows along the sides of the hull.........shame to obscure such wonderful work     I kinda get the dust thing.......you don't want that going on,  but what about the constant jarring and moving the hull around?   it could cause something to come loose.   closing the stern at this time may put you at a disadvantage.

[Sjors]

Table for two please !!!!!!!

 

Very, very nice !

 

Sjors

[EJ_L]

Thank you all very much for the nice words and to all the "Likes". I love modeling details like this as these are what create those surprise wow moments when people peak in the windows and discover there is stuff to be seen. It was always one of the fun things I like to do on my model railroad for the same reason. It just adds more awe and wonder when you can not only see a great exterior but also a detailed interior.

 

My plan for sanding the hull and protecting the interior is simply tape at the moment. When I go to do the heavy sanding, I will close off the openings to the cabins as best I can with blue painter's tape. That should keep the majority of the dust out. However, I do know that it won't hold it all off and so once done I will take my airbrush and just use a light pressure to blow out the remaining dust. I always blow off a model when I'm done sanding anyway so this isn't anything unusual I will just have to be careful to not knock anything loose. In the event something comes loose which is likely with those chairs, I will still have access through the stern windows. The framing I am doing prior to the sanding is just the rough outline framing to allow the planking to install where needed. The windows and doors will not be fully framed and so I will have plenty of room to get in with tweezers to reset anything that comes loose.

 

That brings me to recent work. As you can see some of that framing has already started. I also had to run the framing on the taffrail to allow for the lantern light wiring to install as well as the start of the framing for the quarter and poop decks. With the wiring in place I can tie them all together to clean up that mess of red and black guts spilling out of the hull and close up the starboard side as well as topping out the planking on both sides. I ran out of the wood I was using to frame the gun ports so a run to the Hobby Store is in order soon so that can be completed. I will have to get the Admiral's permission to take out the Good Ship Visa though as she knows a trip to the hobby store for $10 worth of wood means I will return $100 poorer financially but richer in wood, tools, supplies or just something cool I could not live without!

 

Enjoy the picture updates and thanks for stopping by!

 

[EJ_L]

With a hull this big, there will be plenty of elbow pain no matter what power tools get used. And I get to do it twice with double planking!

[Tallshiptragic]

Who you trying to kid EJ, you love it like the rest of us hahaha!

[EJ_L]

Hahaha!! Well it's true. I think everyone of us must enjoy some degree of torment in order to build these things!!

[EJ_L]

A little more work over the past couple days. I went ahead and laid up some more planking and now the rough profile can be seen. Lots of fine tuning to go but it is nice to finally see her full shape.

 

 

I also finished wiring up the lights and got the wires tucked away inside the hull, and pulled down through the bottom. I plan on tucking them in tight to the keel on the side that will face away from view and turn down the display stand. I have a switch that I will hook up that will allow me to turn them on and off.

 

Time to rest and I have a busy weekend with the Admiral as she is graduating with her Masters degree so I do not know how much build time I will get but, when I get back into the shipyard it will finally be time to start closing up the starboard hull.

[CDW]

That really looks nice. Only another modeler can appreciate how much work is involved in laying down that much planking. 

The added interior and lighting are very nice detail features.

"Admiral" is definitely the correct term for a spouse graduating with their master's degree. This is her weekend.

[popeye the sailor]

wicked sweet job..........and congratz to the admiral!  

[EJ_L]

Well, she is rough, lumpy and in desperate need of filler and sanding but I now have a complete hull for my S.R.. I also finished laying out the starboard gun ports and am ready to cut them out. Once that is done then the long hours of sanding begin along with fine tuning the shape of the hull can begin. Now that the hull is built up, her actual size can start to be truly appreciated as she is a large model and sitting next to La Couronne, that size is even more impressive. I will take some side by side pictures soon when I uncover Couronne to continue her work. Should be tomorrow unless something comes up. 

 

Enjoy the updated pictures and as always thanks for watching!

[Tallshiptragic]

Looking good EJ! She's a beast that's for sure

[popeye the sailor]

awesome!   really nice work    one of your earlier side profile pictures is kinda cool........looking at the stern,  the doors and rooms can be seen.  nice view of internal framing  

[EJ_L]

Thank you Anton and Denis for the nice words and to the likes!

 

Here are the comparison pictures of Soleil Royal next to Couronne. I could fit Couronne's entire hull inside S.R. she is that much bigger! Of course this is just the size difference between the models, not the actual ships as they are not the same scale. While S.R. would have been larger than Couronne in real life, I do not think she would have dwarfed the other ship that drastically! 

 

Well, enough playing around. I have a lot of work left to go on both models so I better get back to them. Till next update, enjoy!

 

 

 

 

[popeye the sailor]

nice deck work on both........  

[Tallshiptragic]

Wow that is drastic! Haha 

In reality weren't they only about 10m length or there abouts difference? 

[KenW]

That is one big boat!  Hope you have a big shelf.

Great work.

[Sjors]

Nice builds EJ

 

Question,

Are you sanding that hull by hand or are you using a sanding machine like a mouse or palm ?

There should be a lot of sanding and I think it's double planking ?

 

Sjors

 

[EJ_L]

Thank you all very much for the compliments and likes! 

 

I have no idea yet where SR will be displayed. I'm still working on the details for La Couronne's display as she is needing a fairly big shelf also. May need to build a marina off the back of the house... 

 

Sjors, it is a double planked hull for which I am thankful! Right now I plan on planking her in mahogany with the wales and trim in walnut much like I did with Couronne. The kit calls for everything to be walnut and while I like the look of walnut, I like the lighter mahogany on the hull better. This also keeps the color schemes similar between two ships of the same nation. 

 

As for sanding, I will be able to use my power palm sander for a lot of the initial rough sanding, knocking down high spots and evening planks. I will have to do most of the sanding though by hand in order to get the curves properly shaped and smooth. Also I can already see a lot of wood filler work and that will be by hand also. I have a 3 day weekend the last weekend of May and that is one of my plans is to start sanding on her then. 

[EJ_L]

Ship yard is open again and I'm back working on the starboard gun ports. As you can see from the many re-drawings and a couple of patched back in sections, I have been fighting this layout. Since I decided to model the interiors I had to build the interior decks. The kit was never designed for this and so the gun port layout did not need to follow a deck until the main deck and upward. When I added actual decks in the hull I quickly saw that the gun ports were not going to align and many were ending up in very odd places. As I began to modify the ports to align with the new decks I started to see more and more that the sheer at the stern seemed to be much more pronounced than I felt it should be. The more I looked at it the more it bothered me and so I began the process of leveling out the decks slightly which in turn lowered the sheer. This of course threw off my gun port layout again.  

 

After the nice long break that I took to work on La Couronne I am seeing the entire layout much clearer with all my adjustments and now I just have to once again re-draw the ports but now I can finally cut them out with confidence that they are where they need to go. The downside is I have to adjust a few on the port side so they match. Oh well, I tell people all the time that it is better to fix something that is bothering you now than leave it till it is too late. Then it bothers you forever. I guess it is time I start to take my own advice!

[EJ_L]

I've put it off long enough...... sanding the hull starts now.... Well, as soon as I add a little more bourbon to this glass... 

 

Pics will follow soon.