HMS Atalanta 1775 by tlevine - FINISHED - 1:48 scale - from TFFM plans

[druxey]

Nice job on the gratings, Toni. Also nice-looking capstan partners.

[TomShipModel]

Toni,

 

A terrific job.  The gratings look excellent.  I used a similar method myself although in 1:96 scale.  The next time that I do gratings, I'm going to try using the jig that Greg H uses.  Thanks for the posts.

 

Tom

[tlevine]

Tom and Druxey, thanks.  And thanks for the all the likes.  Tom, tell me about the jig Greg uses.

[dgbot]

Nice gratings Toni. Why Costello instead of holly or pear?

[Trussben]

Your right Toni, the boxwood looks and has a really good contrast, I really thought it was holly from the pic.

 

Ben

[tlevine]

David, the color contrast of holly is too stark with the cherry coamings.  Since these pics were taken I have added the treenails and bolts.  New pictures this weekend.  

[dgbot]

I get where you are coming from.

David B

[tlevine]

Not much to show for last weekend's work.  The garden has taken over most of my free time.  I have completed the upper deck hatches and ladderway.  The head ledges are bolted to the deck and the coamings are treenailed.  Even though I used a light colored wood for the treenails (bamboo) they are barely visible.  The nails securing the grating battens to the ledges were made by making a dimple with the point of a compass and then highlighting it with pencil. I scribed the main hatch cover to simulate a three piece cover.Openings have been cut into the aft hatch cover to accommodate the main jeer bitt pin. This will not be installed until I am ready to work on the quarter deck beams to prevent damage.

 

 

 

[dgbot]

You are making a work of art. She is looking great. I wish I had my camera and could be there up close.

David B

[Martin W]

Toni -- I love the detail on the hatch battens.  That's fine work.

 

Cheers,

 

Martin

[tlevine]

Martin and David, thanks for looking in.  Thanks for all the likes as well.  I am installing the port stops on the port side only since the starboard side will be left almost completely unplanked The stops for the gun ports are 1.5" thick and the stops for the sweep ports are 3/4" thick.  The exterior planking will come up to the outside edge of the stop and the interior planking will cover the stop completely.  I am using this as an opportunity to fine-tune the size the port openings. The foremost gun port was too wide and so an extra layer of 1.5" plank was applied to correct the width.  I did not take any pictures as this is pretty straight forward.  I am still trying to decide how much planking to put on the upper deck.  The starboard side will be left unplanked (as on the lower deck) but I am thinking of leaving the port side partially unplanked as well to improve visibility to the lower deck.  I have been looking at various build logs and photos to help in my decision but am leaning towards planking the area between the hatches, the first binding strake and the outer rows of planking to provide support for the gun carriages.  

[druxey]

Decisions, decisions.... It's always a hard thing to choose, isn't it? Either way, I'm sure the result will look great. Your overhead picture gives a good impression of the complexity of even a small sixth rate's construction. I bet you are glad you aren't building a 74.

[tlevine]

Druxey, I may be crazy, but I'm not insane! 

[tlevine]

I have made and installed the waterways.  On this deck the waterway looks like a chair resting on its back.  To make the shape I took an old Dremel chisel blade and carved the shape into the end of the blade with thin cut-off discs.  The scraper was then cleaned up with a Swiss file.

 

 

I forgot to take pictures until I was almost finished, so I will describe the sequence.  I used drafting paper to make a template of the inside of the hull.  This was transferred to 5" thick stock and the segment was roughly cut out.  The waterway is only 4" thick but I made the stock over-thick in case I made an error with the scraper and gouged the surface.  The outer edge was then fit to the interior of the hull and the scarf was cut.  I used the scraper to scribe the inner edge of the waterway.  A sanding disc cut away the excess material on the inner edge and the scraper was used to form the top edge.  Various grits of sand paper smoothed everything out.  I was more concerned with a fair line on the inner edge since the spirketing will hide the outer edge of the waterway.  I started at the bow and worked aft.  After the first plank was installed, I made the next two planks, gluing them together at the scarf before installing them on the deck.

 

 

Finally, I made the aft plank.  The next three photos show the sequence of fabrication of the plank.

 

 

 

 

 

These photos show the waterway installed.

 

 

 

[druxey]

That is probably one of the most tricky strakes in the whole build. Your scratch molding cutter worked very well.

[pete48]

Hi Toni, Amazing build you have going on here . Fantastic work

 

Best Regards,

Pete

[Trussben]

Thanks for showing how you did this Toni, very nice.

 

Ben

[dgbot]

Your model is getting better and better it becoming a work of high art.

David B

[tlevine]

Druxey, Pete, Ben and David thank you.  Thanks to everyone for the likes as well.  Nothing to show this week as I am spending my free time in the garden.

[tlevine]

The upper deck planking has been installed and the first bit of sanding is complete.  It still needs more scraping and find sanding.  I used 3" holly for the planking throughout.  The binding strake would have been inset into the deck beams but since that detail is not visible I do not model it.  After looking at a lot of models, I decided to only plank the port side and the midline plank.  I wanted to be able to look into the lower deck cabins and so I only installed decking between the binding strake and the midline and the four outside strakes.  The central planks are fairly straightforward.  The open area in front of the foremast step for the bowsprit step.  The plank located by the well has not been glued in so that can be removed during installation of the bitts.  The plank edges were "caulked" with a pencil.  The treenails are bamboo, drawn down to a #77 drill and inserted into a #76 hole.  I prefer to pressure fit these rather than use glue.  The finish will bind them all together.  The blotchy color on the pictures is not real.  I had just washed the deck off for the pictures and did not give the wood sufficient time to dry.  Compare the color contrast between the inner and outer planking.  This all came from the same billet of holly.

 

 

 

 

 

[EdT]

Great work, Toni.  Its always a dilemma deciding what to leave off for visibility.

 

Ed

[dgbot]

Toni, your joinery and attention to detail always amazes me.  This is one of the times when I wish I could record your work up close.

David B

[Mike Y]

Interesting deck planking, with non-rectangular planks. Is that correct, or just for beauty? If it's correct - then would appreciate if you can shed more light on it, when such type of planking is used instead of rectangular planks?

[tlevine]

Ed and David, thanks for your comments.  Mike, the anchor stock planking gives extra strength to the decking.  It is also used in some of the ceiling planking as well as the wales for the same reason.  See page 6 of the log.

[pete48]

Hi Toni, The Deck planking looks great , Nice job

 

Best Regards,

Pete

[Trussben]

Nice Toni.

 

Ben

[dvm27]

Nice job on the top and butt planking, Toni!

[Jim Lad]

Just catching up, Toni - love the planking!

 

John

[tlevine]

Pete, Ben, Greg and John thanks for support.  I hope to get a little modeling time this weekend but I also have two water gardens that need cleaning.  Maybe it will rain and I'll be forced to stay inside!

[tlevine]

The spirketting and the quickwork have been installed.  The spirketting is installed top and butt fashion, just like the outer rows of deck planking.  It is 3" thick and the top edge of the upper row is champhered .  The quick work is 2" thick and extends to the edge of the sill lining.  I have not finalized the size of the hawse holes yet, so this area is not finished.  Both the quickwork and the spirketting are treenailed to every frame.  There is a single bolt at the butts and two bolts under each gun port.  I was unhappy with the appearance of the bolts and so removed as many as I could without damaging the planking.  I dyed some treenails with archival ink and used them instead of blackened brass for the bolts.  The appearance is much cleaner, as can be seen in the photos.  Compare the appearance of the brass with the dyed wood.  Unfortunately, the rest of the brass bolts are in for keeps.

 

I then applied a coat of Watco's, let it soak in for 30' and wiped everything down.  The next day I sanded it with 600 grit and put on a second very thin coat of finish.  The striations in the holly decking are in the wood and did not sand or scrape out. The lighting was poor so I did not have the opportunity to take before and after the finish pictures.