HMS Pickle by mugje - FINISHED - Caldercraft - 1:64 - first build

[Ronald-V]

Hello! I already introduced myself a few weeks ago and thought that maybe a building log is a good thing, because it's my first build.

So al the help is welcome! I'm from the Netherlands, so my spelling won't always be on point ;).

 

I began this ship in 2015 but paused at the first planking stage. Life came in between and i didn't knew if i would continue this wonderful hobby.

But recently i picked it right up where i left and addicted ever since. I'm now finished the second planking and plating the hull with copper plates.

Yesterdag i spent the whole afternoon with cutting out the gunports. I didn't make use of the gunport pattern that was included because of the issues i had with installing them. So i just planked it with walnut strips and cut the ports yesterday out.

 

My goal with this ship is to just make it right out of the box with practically no modifications, because i want first run through the whole practice of building a ship.

 

 

[Ronald-V]

This is where i'm at now. 

[Ronald-V]

First question right away. I'm happy how the copper plating turned out. And it's aging by day, i like that a lot!

But there is some glue residue visible from the CA glue i used for the tiles. Now i read that you can wipe it off with some

aceton? Does it also count for the dried glue like you see in on the pictures? and what is the best technique then? Any tips are appreciated!

[Blue Ensign]

You're making good progress mugje;

Acetone is the stuff to use to remove ca. I apply it carefully with a cotton bud but be careful it will also remove the plates if it is used too liberally.

 I follow up the cleaning using a mixture of vinegar and salt rubbed over the plates, be careful not to snag them.

The plates will need to be fully clean if they are to  age evenly.

 

Regards,

 

B.E.

[Ronald-V]

Thank you so much for your comment, really helpful!

[bigcreekdad]

First build?....very nice planking job!

 

 

[Ronald-V]

Thank you so much! I'm happy with it for a first time, it was a nice learning proces. It was not exactly how i wanted it but i'm a perfectionist so maybe it's never okay haha. I didn't get the measurements right, but that was okay because the copper tiles could mask it. For a next build there's more to learn about that!

[Ronald-V]

Glued and nailed the upper deck

from front to back it's 1mm of center...well...it happens 😁. I can live with that. Dry fitted the mast also, so that fits when the time is ready

Edited July 28, 2019 by mugje

[jwvolz]

Great start, she's coming along nicely. 

[Ronald-V]

Thank you 🙂

[Ronald-V]

Just placed the stern fascia. In the manual it says that you place it after you planked the deck and the inner bulwarks. This doesn't seemt logical for me so i did it now. Definitely needs work after it to clean it up. 

Edited July 29, 2019 by mugje

[Ronald-V]

And also it seems that i have to make the wale longer, over the stern fascia, as i can see in the manual. Otherwise it looks a bit strange

[flyer]

...or you could make your own, more realistic, stern fascia.

 

Hey mugje, great work so far.

 

I think that schooners and other small craft in Pickles time usually had a more elliptic stern, similar to what I tried with my Pickle.

 

Have fun!

Peter

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

Hello Peter,nice work you do! Ease remember to clean the copper by using isopropanol before giving it a clear layer of colour - due to varnish any fingerprints that will appear in some years on the copper. 

And shouldn't the deck been planked before installing it due to lighter planking or are the manuals' advises like this?

 

[Ronald-V]

14 hours ago, flyer said:

...or you could make your own, more realistic, stern fascia.

 

Hey mugje, great work so far.

 

I think that schooners and other small craft in Pickles time usually had a more elliptic stern, similar to what I tried with my Pickle.

 

Have fun!

Peter

You have build a lovely Pickle Peter! Very clean work, something to aspire to.

I will stick to the original stern fascia, i don't really want to do modifications on this ship.

With my limited knowledge of ship building and  history, it's easyer to keep the building progress going.

 

But thanks for your input

[Ronald-V]

33 minutes ago, Heinrich der Seefahrer said:

Hello Peter,nice work you do! Ease remember to clean the copper by using isopropanol before giving it a clear layer of colour - due to varnish any fingerprints that will appear in some years on the copper. 

And shouldn't the deck been planked before installing it due to lighter planking or are the manuals' advises like this?

 

I wiped the copper plates clean with a mixture of vinegar and salt. Is isopropanol then still needed? And what do you mean with a clear layer of color? 

To varnish the copper plates?

 

And yes, in the manual they put the deck first on the ship and then planking it. Would it be better not to? (with the next ship :D)

Edited July 30, 2019 by mugje

[Ronald-V]

The stern fascia is now okay in my opinion. I extended the wale, and used some woodglue/wood dust to fill up the cracks and holes.

Everything gets painted black, so the different colors do not gonna be visible.

 

 

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

2 hours ago, mugje said:

I wiped the copper plates clean with a mixture of vinegar and salt. Is isopropanol then still needed? And what do you mean with a clear layer of color? 

To varnish the copper plates?

 

And yes, in the manual they put the deck first on the ship and then planking it. Would it be better not to? (with the next ship :D)

Af far as the fingerprints do disappear there is no problem.

 

 

The planking of the deck will get a bit more complicated as the single planks can not be easily pressed onto the plywood. The easier way next time will be to plant the deck, drill the mast and gratingpositions from the downside and after this turn the deck around. By the manuals way to build you have problems to fix the waterway and you can not lay the planks and cut the overlength down to the plywooddeck. So you have got less place to handle anything an the plywood due to the bulkwalks and you have to plan the planking very precisely - perhaps by using some cardboard pattern to cut the planks on and than transfer them onto the plywood deck? 

[Ronald-V]

Ah tnx for the explanation. It sounds like an easier progress to do the main planking first and then mount the deck on the ship.

Well, with the next ship i will keep that in mind. I had to first find out what the waterway was haha, but now i get it.

Caldercraft does not have a waterway in there plans, so i don't know if i'm gonna do that for now. It's offcourse more authentic to install

one, but i'll think about it.

The pattern of planking is explained in the plans, so i can begin planking from the midline and don't see any troubles with that?

[BenD]

If you want to get fancy with your planking you could try a three or four butt shift planking. Or do the plans show this already? 

Edited July 30, 2019 by Duncbe

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

No I don't find some troubles - less circumstances will be in your build if you copy the decks part drawing (simply on transperent paper) and work on the brench with this - seperated from the kit. So you can cut the planks to length and shape - after this you than add it onto the plywood. 

Please remember to lay. some soft cloth between ships hull and stand. This due to the pressure of adding the decks planking that may harm the wounderfull coppering.

 

The waterway can be simply build by some 1/4 circle of wood bent to the decks outline shape by hot water steam - please remember to add the scubbers by drilling through the hullside and paint it with some plumbum like metal grey. Succubers are one of the very often neglected little details that are able to push your build in the first class row.

If you have a look into Mondfeld Historical Modelshipbuildung there are several examples of scubbers to find - most important is to add one pair (port and starboard!). Placed in the line of the pumps and on tne deepest point of the deck (rectangular to the ships central line) they will be located right.

Edited July 30, 2019 by Heinrich der Seefahrer
Location of the scubbers added.

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

...as you can see there are hunderts if rraps to build something wrong. The "Santa Maria" in the Deutsches Technikmuseum has one door that cannot be opened completly as it smashes into the mast in front the bulkhead before it is opened to its half! So even highly payed professional modelship builders do wrong. So you will find minimum one fault in every modelship - is not you have not recognized it till now. So you are inngoid company - we all do wrongs in our models - sometimes because we follow a mistake or irregularity in the plan, we do reconstruct wrongly or we misunderstood a text passage, misdated a stecial feature (s.th. like putting a winch on the deck that has been invented after the ship sunk - so there is no modernisation as an excuse ).

[GrandpaPhil]

The Pickle is coming along nicely!

[Ronald-V]

19 hours ago, Duncbe said:

If you want to get fancy with your planking you could try a three or four butt shift planking. Or do the plans show this already? 

Yes the plans provide this already, so that's nice. I see that you build the some older Caldercraft kits. I assume there are not instructions in the manual to plank in three butt shift system?

 

[Ronald-V]

19 hours ago, Heinrich der Seefahrer said:

No I don't find some troubles - less circumstances will be in your build if you copy the decks part drawing (simply on transperent paper) and work on the brench with this - seperated from the kit. So you can cut the planks to length and shape - after this you than add it onto the plywood. 

Please remember to lay. some soft cloth between ships hull and stand. This due to the pressure of adding the decks planking that may harm the wounderfull coppering.

 

The waterway can be simply build by some 1/4 circle of wood bent to the decks outline shape by hot water steam - please remember to add the scubbers by drilling through the hullside and paint it with some plumbum like metal grey. Succubers are one of the very often neglected little details that are able to push your build in the first class row.

If you have a look into Mondfeld Historical Modelshipbuildung there are several examples of scubbers to find - most important is to add one pair (port and starboard!). Placed in the line of the pumps and on tne deepest point of the deck (rectangular to the ships central line) they will be located right.

Thank you for all your help and tips, they are really helpful! It's nice to see people that help beginners. It so important to keep motivated. I immediately ordered the book from Mondfeld on amazon, so that is something to look on for. Like i said...i don't know if i'm gonna modify or add a lot, because there's is so much to learn just building the kit. Sometimes i lose sight of all the information haha.

[Ronald-V]

12 hours ago, GrandpaPhil said:

The Pickle is coming along nicely!

Thanks Phil!

[Ronald-V]

Planking process happening

 

I apply the caulking with a 2B pencil, and clamp the planks with pins. By the way...the provided wood is horrible. The tanganyika planks are really brittle and rough.

 

When the deck planking is finished, you don't sand the deck right? But scrape it with a knife or something like that?

 

 

 

Edited July 31, 2019 by mugje

[Ronald-V]

Deck planking finished🎇

 

No problems here, it went pretty well, altough the planks provided in the kit were not great! I have scraped the deck with a knife blade and not sanded it. 

Now it's time for the inner bulwarks to be planked, and then varnish the deck after that.

 

Edited August 2, 2019 by mugje

[Ronald-V]

Busy with installing the inner bulwarks

[Ronald-V]

Finished the inner bulwarks, sanded them and now i only need to plank the stern at the inside and then painting it!