HMS Vulture 1776 by Dan Vadas - FINISHED - 1:48 scale - 16-gun Swan-class sloop from TFFM plans

[lamarvalley]

I can't wait to see the door knobs... I bet they'll be operational and locking with microscopic hand cut keys... yes?

Danny, you do make it look easy. Outstanding!

[Shazmira]

Intricate, and beautiful work as usual Danny. I am, and will be, forever in awe!

[Sjors]

awe………gee, I need my dictionary again…...

 

But Danny, great job 

Is there also coming a door knob? And maybe some glass in the windows?

 

 

[davyboy]

Danny,

 

What wonderful workmanship you are accomplishing on your HMS Vulture. Your bulkheads are superb. FWIW,in Goodwins´ Construction and Fitting on Page 116 he states when fitted under the break of the poop the upper section was glazed. I would think this would be the same under the quarterdeck, anyhow yours look great.   

 

Also says that each bulkhead section was located at the bottom by the retaining sill which spanned the entire length of the bulkhead,no mention of cut-outs for the doors. He states that these sills were secured to the deck with Muntz keybolts. I would assume that these were easily removeable to allow the sills to also be taken down below when clearing for action. Didn´t have pip-pins in those days

 

Look forward every day to reading your log.

 

Dave

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks Laman, Robbyn, Sjors and Dave.

 

I can't wait to see the door knobs... I bet they'll be operational and locking with microscopic hand cut keys... yes?

 

NO .

 

Is there also coming a door knob? And maybe some glass in the windows?

 

Door knobs and hinges are below Sjors - go back a couple of pages to see how I fitted the "glass".

 

Also says that each bulkhead section was located at the bottom by the retaining sill which spanned the entire length of the bulkhead,no mention of cut-outs for the doors.

 

And from Lavery we have this :

 

 

So who do you believe? I think it depends a lot on the period, and also the type of ship.

 

  Danny

[Dan Vadas]

Hi all,

 

Apart from a Finish the bulkheads are completed. The Hinges came from the Admiralty Models PE set, and the doorknobs are the heads off brass pins. They have all been epoxied in place :

 

 

There are doorknobs on both sides of the doors. To give you an idea of the actual size of these, the pic below is about twice the size of the real thing (on a 22" screen) :

 

 

  Danny

[Jim Lad]

Delightful work, Danny!

 

John

[mtaylor]

Very well done.  BTW, what did you use for glazing?

[Dan Vadas]

Very well done.  BTW, what did you use for glazing?

 

The top off a packet of nails . I haven't been able to get any microscope slides locally (actually I haven't looked all that hard yet) or I would have used them instead. I'll be doing that with the stern lights though.

 

  Danny

[st george]

Danny, there's plenty of the microscope slides up on ebay.

 

David

[Sjors]

Great work Danny,

 

I ask something and I have results directly…..

Wish my tax refund was that quick…...

 

[Dan Vadas]

Wish my tax refund was that quick…...

 

So do I Sjors, then I could get on Ebay and buy some of those microscope slides   .

 

  Danny

[Sjors]

Mine is saved for the Agamemnon…...

But that takes at least one year before we go again to Mobbsie….

In the mean time I take a look at your build and try to pick up some ideas 

 

[dvm27]

Microscope slides can be a bit thick. Microscope cover slips are more to scale but they are the devil to dimension. Some people grind them to their final size. Conventional glass cutters are not successful in my hands for these.

[BANYAN]

That is some very 'sweet' work Danny; they look great and even survive the 'close-up' inspection where the camera will portray every little blemish!

 

cheers

 

Pat

[ianmajor]

Back in the '60s there were several magazine articles by model makers on making windows from microscope cover slips. They cut them using good quality scissors whilst holding the slips under water to stop the vibration from shattering the glass. It appeared to be successful though I have not tried this method so have no personal experience.

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks Sjors, Greg, Pat and Ian.

 

That's a good tip Ian - I'll try it out when I get my microscope slide covers. Naturally, I'll get at least THREE times as many as I think I'll need - glass-cutting has never been one of my greatest skills so far .

 

I've found a supplier of very thin glass : Schott Glass  Some incredibly thin stuff on this site.

 

 

  Danny

[druxey]

That is an interesting idea, Ian. I wish I'd heard of that years ago. I managed to go through a box of 100 microscope slide covers without making one successful piece of glazing! I am now using mica. That is easily cut to shape. It's what the old-time ship modelmakers used. 

[texxn5]

Wow, what a project.  Well done.  I look forward to learning from your build here, and strive for your success....

John

[allanyed]

I just went through 6 glass covers trying to cut them underwater.  I tried with two different VERY sharp scissors, but no luck.  If someone succeeds, please share your secret!

Allan

[newbuilder101]

Okay....beginners luck.   I went digging until I found a couple of slide covers, scored them with an exacto knife (not much more than a scratch or they crack) then positioned one over the edge of a board with a crisp edge and quickly tapped it with the eraser end of a pencil! It worked!  The first one cracked when I tried to score it too deeply. The second worked better when I made 3 passes with lighter pressure. Now I don't have any more to see if I can repeat the result or if it was truly luck.

[lamarvalley]

At the moment I don't need any glass but I am intrigued by the mica.... where do you find it?

[Dan Vadas]

Sherry, I don't know a real lot about glass cutting but there are a couple of things I DO know.

 

1. You should only score the glass ONCE. You must have got lucky .

 

2. Score the glass ALL THE WAY across the cut - don't stop just before it goes over the edge. That may have been the cause of your failure.

 

Here's a link to a site about cutting glass. It has some useful tips : The secret of cutting glass

 

  Danny

[allanyed]

Great lesson in that posting, especially the rule to NEVER run over the score a second time.  Thanks for putting it up for us.

Allan

[druxey]

Mica is a naturally occurring material, Randy. Rockhounds' shops will have it. It comes in layered sheets that are slightly tinted. You peel the layers apart. The individual layers are very thin and also somewhat flexible. As it is a natural material, there are usually spots and flaws in it and you will need to select areas that are flawless. Cuts easily with sharp scissors. If the scissors are dull, the edges tend to crack and become opaque.

 

That said, it's easy to work with if you are careful.

 

In the old days, mica was also used in enclosed fireplaces as it is semi-transparent in thicker pieces and heat resistant. When I was young I recall 'Otto' stoves in England that had mica windows in the front-opening doors.

[Trussben]

Very interesting discussion about glass and mica uses for glazing, I would never of thought of using actual glass on a model but now I will.

 

Ben

[Dan Vadas]

I have some mica, but it's way too thin and very discolored - might be OK in a 1:200 scale model .

 

Longitudinal Aft Cabin Bulkhead

 

There is a longitudinal bulkhead separating the Captain's Sleeping Quarters from the Coach. This is made in similar fashion to the two athwartships bulkheads. At this stage this bulkhead - and the forward one - are only dry-fitted. Both cabins in this area share accommodation with a 6-pounder, and all the eyebolts etc for them will need to be fitted first. I still have to cut the beams and ledges into it's top edge, fit the Cants to the bulkhead and give it a coat of finish :

 

 

  Danny

[gjdale]

Sweet Danny! Nice joinery (as always).

[Dan Vadas]

Thank you Grant.

 

Upper Counter Planking

 

As it's time to do some more work around the stern area - framing the lights will be next - I planked the Upper Counter and trimmed off the excess planking at the side :

 

 

  Danny

[Jim Lad]

Coming along very nicely, Danny!

 

John