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

[mtaylor]

Danny, I suspect you're thinking ahead to a 74... production runs would be needed.     Then again...that jig would speed up even a 22 gun brig build.

[lamarvalley]

Darn it Danny... even your jigs are works of thoughtful art!

[JPett]

Ahoy Dan

 

Great tutorial on cannon construction  

 

Thanks for sharing

[Dan Vadas]

Thank you Greg, Adrieke, Mark, Randy and JP .

 

Mark, I have absolutely no plans to build a 74 - 16 guns (well, half of them   ) is more than enough . In fact, I doubt I'll be doing another 18th Century or earlier ship - I might get into a few "working ships/boats" like Tugs or Offshore Supply vessels, maybe a modern battleship .... we'll see.

 

  Danny

 

[Dan Vadas]

Trucks

 

I gave a bit of thought on the easiest way to make the Trucks (wheels) without resorting to using dowel - the grain would run the wrong way, although at this scale it would be difficult to pick the difference.

 

The Trucks are 4" thick, the Hind Trucks are 10.5" in diameter and the Fore Trucks are 12" diameter. On larger guns they were made from four pieces of timber with the grain running crosswise to each other and bolted together, but a 6-pounder's trucks were made from one solid piece.

 

I started off by cutting a strip of timber a little wider than the required diameter. I set up a simple stopper jig on my mill vice by CA'ing a couple of pieces of scrap to the top and drilling the 2mm centre hole. Then I cut the piece off square on the table saw.

 

 

To hold the piece into the lathe for turning the outside diameter I used a spare mandrel from my Dremel accessories. The screw was only 1.7mm, so I turned up a small brass sleeve to give a snug fit to the hole. When tightened it held the piece of timber beautifully.

 

 

 

 

I found it difficult to remove the truck from the mandrel, so I drilled a slightly smaller hole than the truck in a piece of scrap. By placing the piece over the hole I could easily remove it by pushing it into the hole :

 

 

There was a burr on one side of each piece after turning it, so to hold the rather awkward round piece without damaging it while sanding I drilled another hole in my piece of scrap which was slightly larger than the diameter of the truck and a bit less than it's thickness. The piece protrudes slightly from this hole, and a couple of wipes with a sanding stick soon removes the burr :

 

 

 

 

A view of the progress so far. The carriage sits on top of a 5 cent piece :

 

 

  Danny

[gjdale]

Now that's just brilliant Danny! I don't know how you come up with these ideas, but I'm sure glad you do!

[newbuilder101]

Beautiful work! What a great idea! You definitely are King of the jig makers. After seeing your comments about the number of guns, I'm beginning to think I'm in over my head with 108 of them to make!!

[st george]

Nice looking carriages Danny and I like the jigs you've been producing mate. Great to watch your build in progress.

[jaerschen]

Much thanks Danny. Your explanation will be a great help.

[The Ships Cat]

Learnt a ton from this build.

 

Clear, concise and precise descriptions with a wealth of knowledge usually bought not given.

 

Thanks. Absolutely awesome, a thoroughly compelling read.

 

Thanks again.

 

Charlie TSC.

[Dan Vadas]

Grant, Sherry, David, Brian, Juergen and Charlie - thanks very much for the kind comments .

 

I don't know how you come up with these ideas

 

 

Usually over a quiet smoke and a glass of Glenfiddich (of which I have one glass remaining   ).

 

I'm beginning to think I'm in over my head with 108 of them to make!!

 

 

I certainly don't envy you the task Sherry   .

 

Welcome to Model Ship World Charlie. From the poem in your Signature I'm guessing you may be building the "Norfolk Sloop"?? Here's your old mate Trim :

 

 

  Danny

 

 

[Dan Vadas]

Bed

 

The supports for the barrel at the aft end consist of the Bolster, Bed and Quion.

 

The Bed is nailed to the top of the Bolster, and is supported at it's fore end by the Bed Bolt. There are rebates in the underside of the bed to accept both :

 

 

The Bed Bolt has two functions : Supporting the Bed and preventing the upper parts of the carriage from spreading. The Transom at the fore end of the carriage has a similar bolt at it's upper end :

 

 

 

  Danny

[Dan Vadas]

Quoin

 

Between the Bed and Barrel is a wedge-shaped piece called the quoin. It's function is to change the elevation of the barrel. This was accomplished with the aid of crowbars, and the quoin was either pulled backward to elevate the barrel or pushed forward to depress it.

 

I made the quoins from English Box for a bit of contrast. The handle at the aft end is a cut-off and lightly blackened brass belaying pin :

 

 

Here are some progress pics of one of the guns so far. All that's left to do is make 56 eyebolts and 16 breeching rings, and fit another 64 bolts   :

 

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Shazmira]

Beautiful work Danny, your attention to even the smallest of details is inspiring.

[mtaylor]

Sweet looking guns and great tutorial..

[Dan Vadas]

Thank you Robbyn and Mark.

 

Hardware

 

The final details of the guns are the various items of hardware - the five Loops for the Training Tackles, the eight Bracket and Transom Bolts, and the two Breeching Ring/eyebolt assemblies.

 

The breeching rings and eyebolts were the most difficult parts to make, as they are joined together but silver-soldered independently so they actually work. :

 

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Kevin]

Danny - they look fantastic

[Sjors]

Unbelievable…..

Really great Danny!

 

[mtaylor]

Beautiful... very well done.

[rdsaplala]

Stunning work on the cannons, Danny, and thanks for sharing your jigs and techniques at mass producing them, simply ingenious

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks again to Kevin, Sjors, Mark, Janos and Aldo - I'm really pleased with the way the guns have turned out too. It was well worth the effort and expense of buying the barrels and capsquares, there was NO WAY that I could have made them as well as this , although it took quite a bit to "finish" them.

 

Here are a few pics of all the completed carriages. Rigging them up will be the next job :

 

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Dan Vadas]

Breech Rigging

 

The Breeching is a 4" rope on a 6-pounder. As with all ropes and lines it was measured by it's circumference. The diameter is about 1.25", which is 0.66mm in 1:48 scale. The line I'm using is 0.7mm - as close as I can get.

 

The first thing I had to do was work out exactly how long the Breeching should be. TFFM specifies three times the length of the barrel, but I wasn't sure whether that was the whole rope including the half-hitches and seizing around the ring in the hull and the loop around the cascabel or the overall length without any twists and turns.

 

I've made up an overlength piece which has already been tied and seized around one of the rings. I figured the best one to try out the length on was the port with the most obstructions behind it - any further back and the pumps would be in serious trouble .

 

I used a piece of double-sided tape to temporarily fix the gun to the deck, fitted the eyebolt on the ring into it's hole and looped the rope around the cascabel. This now gives me the measurement I need - I'll undo all but the seizing and make all 8 breechings the same length :

 

 

 

  Danny

[Michiel]

thanks for sharing your wheel method, I was having nigtmares getting them right. I think it deserves a separate post somewhere in ships furniture...

 

Best,

Michiel

[mtaylor]

Ah... the lady has teeth....  wonderful work, Danny.  

 

I think Janos is right.  Isn't there a ring in the deck for pulling the cannon back?  Too much breeching and you'll foul the ring.  Maybe such that with the cannons in full recoil, there's just enough room for the gun crew to service it even if they have to lean partially out of the port?  I thought I read, 2-1/2 times the barrel length...or maybe it's three times the bore length?  I'll have to go do some digging as I'll run into that sooner or later.

[BANYAN]

Hi Danny, great work on those cannon mate; they look very good.  I think you are using the same technique I tries (but to a higher level of finish).  I found that after determining the length I made up all the breeching ropes in a jig off the model and seized the rope to the rings.  I then glued the rings into the prepared holes in the bulwark walls.  I found this much easier; is that your technique also?  I note you are wrapping the rope around the cascabal rather than using a cut splice; I ended up reverting to a cut splice but I am modelling the year 1768, and found some advice as to the use of the splice rather than a wrap.  What are your thoughts on this please?

 

cheers

 

Pat

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks for the input Janos, Michiel, Mark, Brian and Pat.

 

Janos and Mark - quite right. The tackle you are both referring to was called the "Train Tackle". It was used to hold the gun inboard for reloading when the ship was heeling sufficiently to need it.

 

My Breeching may be a fraction long, but as I am going to show the guns as "run out" it won't be at all noticeable. There is actually enough room for the train tackle and eyebolt on the gun I used as a "template" (I actually shortened the breeching by 2mm after taking this pic). You can see the position for the eyebolt in the pic below marked with a red X. The gun isn't quite centred in the port in these pics - when it is correct everything SHOULD line up :

 

 

Pat - yes, I'm using exactly the same method for rigging the breeching as you describe.

 

I note you are wrapping the rope around the cascabal rather than using a cut splice; I ended up reverting to a cut splice but I am modelling the year 1768, and found some advice as to the use of the splice rather than a wrap.  What are your thoughts on this please?

 

 

TFFM says that either method would be suitable for the time period.

 

  Danny

[Dan Vadas]

are you making your own ropes on a ropewalk machine Danny ?

 

Not yet Brian - I managed to score some really nice stuff from a deceased estate (a former ship modeler's son). I think there is enough in the box I got to do the whole ship .

 

  Danny

[Mirabell61]

Danny
I was so much surprized and amazed from what I saw when I read through your buildlog. I find it breathtaking ! When I was a 8 year old child, a brother of one of my pals in Capetown once showed me a 17th or 18th. century and about 1m Long shipmodel he was working on. I could not believe that someone could be so much knowledgable of the techniqes and skills applied in those "ancient" days and being capable to adopt this into a scaled model. All the workmanship, the Features, the particular Wood connections looked like what you are doing. Because all The following years to date I never came across something alike again, except from Special models in maritime Museums etc. I would love to see what your model Looks like completely rigged, with or without sails. Are you perhaps intending to build an admiralty type demonstrator model ?
This also applies to the other high skilled modellists introduced in this Forum as well, their babies basing on TFFM plans and in scale 1:48 eg, Toni`s Atalanta I read through just before. At the time I picked the Plan of the Pegasus because I loved this ship classification for my own Project, I was not aware of what is being built in several model shipyards at this time. I have myself amoungst others,finalized Tallship models like the threemastbarque "Gorch Fock" in Version of the 60ties and the flying P-liner fourmastbarque "Pamir" in the Version she foundered in 1957

Nils

Edited July 20, 2013 by Mirabell61

[tlevine]

Danny, I've been very quiet on you build log for the last several months since the rebirth.  I used this time as an opportunity to review all the old, reposted work as well as things that I ordinarily would not have looked at.  I saved the best few for last (ie Vulture and a few others).  Love what I see and hopefully, when I get to this point in my build, I can do almost as well as you have done.  Question...what was the lead time on your cannons?

[Dan Vadas]

Hi Nils,

 

I'm glad you have found my build log useful in your construction of Pegasus. Feel free to ask me for any future advice - happy to help out . I've had a look at your build - a very interesting way you are building her. It's a little bit like the way I built a kit of the Bounty with the more open framing to give a better view of the insides - not "historically accurate" as you mention, but a lot more visible.

 

I too got my inspiration for ship modelling when i first saw a couple of brilliant examples years ago and thought I'd love to build something like that one day - still doing it .

 

Hi Toni,

 

Good to see you back on my build log . "Lead time" for the gun barrels was about 3 months - at one stage I thought they would NEVER get here   .

 

  Danny