Prince de Neufchatel by rafine - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1:64

[Martin W]

Hi Bob -- Great to see you at another build.  The Prince is dear to my heart, since it was my first build.  So I'll be zeroed in to see a Right Master giving her the attention she deserves!  And I recall that Howard Chapelle has a good discussion of the Prince and other Baltimore style ships.

 

Cheers,

 

Martin

[rafine]

Thanks so much Martin.

 

Bob

[rafine]

I've now done two further steps in the framing process.

 

First, I added bracing between the bulkheads toward their outer edges. These were done with 1/4" square basswood strip .Tedious, but not very difficult. I also boxed in the mast mounting slots.

 

Next, I added the false deck. The kit has a thin plywood piece with slots to fit around the bulkhead extensions. I found this unwieldy to work with, so I cut the deck into six sections, and fitted and mounted each separately. The slots required some adjustment to get a good fit, but that went smoothly. 

 

With the bracing and deck in place, the structure is surprisingly rigid, and ready for fairing, which I have begun.During the fairing process, I will also have to shape and add the bow and stern blocks.

 

Bob

[Rustyj]

All looks nice and sharp. The deck fitting so nicely together is a testament to a nice square framing job! 

[JpR62]

Great job. I will remember the tip to cut the false deck in sections for my next buildings. Thanks.

[donrobinson]

Finally caught up to you and your new build, Bob. I now have this one on "the list" so I'll be watching!!

[DocBlake]

Great idea separating the subdeck into pieces.  Looks good!  Since the subdeck will be planked over, it wouldn't even be necessary to patch any spaces between the components with filler.  

[russ]

Bob:

I always enjoy watching the careful, tedious work that will eventually make the rest of the model look so good. No one sees these steps in the finished model, but they are there and it is what makes the difference. Good work. 

 

Russ

 

 

[rafine]

 Thanks so much Rusty, Jean-Paul, Joshua, Don, Dave and Russ for the very generous comments, and thanks also to the "likes".

 

Guys, I have to admit that I decided to cut up the deck because I simply couldn't figure out how to make it fit in one piece. I am pleased with the way it turned out.

 

Bob

[Old Collingwood]

Great start bob,  just the order with the bracing pieces  I do the same thing  certainly helps.

 

OC.

[rafine]

Thanks so much OC and the "likes".

 

Bob

[popeye the sailor]

something one sometimes hates to do.......but if it has to be done      your planking over it anyway bob...no harm no foul.   not to mention how many bulwark posts there are...that would have been a complete bugger!  I also see how they seem to be segmented.....is that for the gun ports?

 

great progress Bob!   

[rafine]

Thanks so much Denis. Yes, the spacing of the bulkheads seems to be related to the gunports.

 

Bob

[Gahm]

Hello Bob, I just got me a seat to watch your new build. I was afraid that I may be too late and you are already finished with your new model . . . at the speed you  always are going . In my opinion the Prince is an excellent choice. She has very elegant lines and there is a close to unlimited amount of information available for fine detailing. I am looking forward to the journey!

 

Thomas

[rafine]

Thanks so much Thomas and the "likes". Still plenty of time left on this one Thomas. 

 

Bob

[Guest Tim I.]

Rafine,

 

I am late to the party, but I will be following along.

 

Tim I.

[rafine]

Never too late Tim. Welcome aboard,

 

Bob

[rafine]

Further steps in the basic construction have been completed. These involved making and mounting the bow and stern blocks, fairing of the hull, and making and mounting of the stem, keel and stern post.

 

The blocks were an interesting exercise. The drawings and instructions provide little, if any, help. There are no views showing them. The bow blocks were relatively simple, because the shape was pretty self evident. The stern blocks, on the other hand, are mostly a creation of imagination, since there is no guidance as to what the shape and size should be. There are a couple of photos from which a general impression can be gained, but that's it.

 

The fairing went pretty well,, after shims were added to various bulkheads. I expect the there will still be some additional tweaking  required when planking begins, particularly in the stern area.

 

 I didn't like the kit stem pieces, so I decided to make new pieces for the stem, keel and stern post. I cut them from boxwood sheet and strip, and made them slightly wider than the keel former to create a small rabbet, since none is provided for by the kit pieces or instructions. The pieces were pinned and glued in place. The joints for the stem are hardly perfect, but will be covered by planking.

 

I now need to decide how to tackle the gunports.

 

Bob

[Old Collingwood]

Looking very tidy  love the work with balsa fill ins certainly helps the planking, will you have to cut out the bearding and rabbat llines.?

 

OC.

[DocBlake]

She's coming along nicely, Bob.

[rafine]

Thanks so much OC, Dave and the "likes".

 

OC, I sanded the area below the the bearding line thinner than the keel former. I created a "fake" rabbet by making the stem, keel and stern post slightly wider than the keel former.

 

Bob

Edited March 4, 2018 by rafine

[David Lester]

Hi Bob,

I think your stern blocks look exactly right. I found them to be a bit of a challenge, as there is so little to go on in the plans or instructions. When you start adding the gunports (whether you use the provided plates, or frame from scratch) be sure you can make the rudder fit. I found there wasn't enough clearance for it at the stern bulwarks without some modification. I'm pretty sure that after that stage, this build will be straightforward. It's looking good.

David

 

 

  

[rafine]

Thanks so much David and the "likes".

 

David, I hope you're right about the stern blocks. For the rudder, I'm going to make my own and try to do it to fit. I haven't decided yet about the gunports, but it will have to be soon.

 

Bob

[Old Collingwood]

21 hours ago, rafine said:

Thanks so much OC, Dave and the "likes".

 

OC, I sanded the area below the the bearding line thinner than the keel former. I created a "fake" rabbet by making the stem, keel and stern post slightly wider than the keel former.

 

Bob

Sounds good bob

 

OC.

[zappto]

Will be a beautiful ship indeed. All frame structure seems very solid, nice build!

[rafine]

Thanks so much Zappto and the "likes".

 

Bob

[Guest Tim I.]

Rafine,

 

I would love to say that the instructions get better, but they really do not. My build of the PdN has been put on hold so many times, either due to lack of information or conflicting information in various sources. Unfortunately, this will be compounded when you get to the rigging stage.

 

There are two books I would recommend on the PdN. 

The first book is Howard Chapelle's, "The Search for Speed Under Sail: 1700-1855". This book shows a copy of the draught taken off the ship by the Admiralty when it was captured by the British during the War of 1812. Even though the rigging plan is in 1:192 scale, pages 237-239 offer some extra details on the ship (that are not well represented or present in the plans) including a belaying diagram. These diagrams are based of off Chapelle's drawings taken from the Admiralty drawings in the Greenwich Museum in the UK, and also represent the condition of the model of the PdN in the Smithsonian Museum.

 

The second book is Philip Reed's, "Period Ship Model Making An Illustrated Master Class: The Building of the American Privateer Prince de Nuefchatel". This book is a "must have" in my opinion. Although Reed takes some creative license with his portrayal of the vessel, he offers detailing options that are not mentioned in the plans, and techniques that may be valuable in the assembly of the ship. In the book he builds two versions of the model one in a water base with sails, the second on a base with running and standing rigging.

 

I hope this is helpful.

 

Thank  you,

 

Tim I.

[rafine]

Thanks Tim. I've tried to get the Reed book, but I've yet to find a copy for less than $350. No matter how helpful, that's a bit much. I have Chapelle's "American Sailing Ships", which also has info on PdN, but I'll take a look for the other one.

 

Bob

[Guest Tim I.]

Rafine,

 

Agree, it is tough to find a copy. Up until two years ago Reed's book was still being printed. YOu may be able to find a second hand copy on Abe Books.com or Amazon.com. Google Books also had a digital copy that could be viewed / purchased at one point.

 

Or if there are specific points of detail or pages, you want - I can scan and e-mail, private message them to you if that helps.

 

- Tim I.

[rafine]

Tim, I've looked on Amazon, Abe and E-bay. That's where the $300 + prices were. Thanks for the offer on the pages. Let's see how it goes.

 

Bob