US Brig Syren by WalrusGuy - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64 - Second wooden ship build

[WalrusGuy]

Finished working on the bowsprit.

 

Here are some pics of the cap: The notch was made with a round needle file

For the iron bands, I used a cut a black tape using a 1/16" wide strip as a guide:

 

I put stuck the strip with some white glue and CA at the termination. I also wanted to make it look a bit rusty (like actual iron), and got inspired by Ryland's bands shown here:

So I crafted up some homemade rust powder (a mixture of a little bit of cinnamon, turmeric, and chili powder) and applied generously to the tape. Then removed the excess. Some powder remained on the tape giving a subtle effect of rust. I also taped up the surrounding wood to make sure the powder does not stain it. Here is how the bowsprit looks right now:

Any thoughts or suggestions on how the iron bands look (or anything else) would be very much appreciated! It's my first time trying something like this.

Edited January 11, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Rach10199]

3 minutes ago, WalrusGuy said:

Finished working on the bowsprit.

 

Here are some pics of the cap: The notch was made with a round needle file

For the iron bands, I used a cut a black tape using a 1/16" wide strip as a guide:

 

I put stuck the strip with some white glue and CA at the termination. I also wanted to make it look a bit rusty (like actual iron), and got inspired by Ryland's bands shown here:

So I crafted up a homemade rust powder (a mixture of a little bit of cinnamon, turmeric, and chili powder) and applied generously to the tape. Then removed the excess. Some powder remained on the tape giving a subtle effect of rust. I also taped up the surrounding wood to make sure the powder does not stain the it. Here is how the bowsprit looks right now:

Any thoughts or suggestions on how the iron bands look (or anything else) would be very much appreciated! It's my first time trying something like this.

I am by no means an expert in ship building. I am, however, experienced somewhat in aging techniques on a miniature scale. The rust looks great! I would add some darker color (stain, watered down acrylic, etc) around the edges of the bands on the bowsprit for a more weathered look if that’s what you’re going for. Excellent detail here Walrusguy😀

[WalrusGuy]

2 hours ago, Rach10199 said:

I am by no means an expert in ship building. I am, however, experienced somewhat in aging techniques on a miniature scale. The rust looks great! I would add some darker color (stain, watered down acrylic, etc) around the edges of the bands on the bowsprit for a more weathered look if that’s what you’re going for. Excellent detail here Walrusguy😀

Thanks for the tips! I'm afraid I'm not too confident with weathering and am scared of messing things up 😅

I do plan on having at least one project where I can try more weathering, but not sure if I'll be able to pull it off. I feel like it's an art on its own. Thanks again for the comment! 

[WalrusGuy]

Jibboom and flying jibboom have been shaped and painted. Now to assemble the whole lot 😁

Edited January 11, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

The bowsprit assembly has been glued together.

Here are the traveler rings, and the two iron bands connected: 

 

I used a wirey black thread for the intermediate piece of the traveller ring. 

And I finished making the dolphin striker and jack staff. Just need to paint them.. 

Next step is to attach the single blocks to the cap and end of the flying jibboom. 

Edited January 12, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Overworked724]

Brilliant work!  What kind of tape is it?  Manufacturer/etc?  Looks great!

[WalrusGuy]

22 minutes ago, Overworked724 said:

Brilliant work!  What kind of tape is it?  Manufacturer/etc?  Looks great!

Many thanks Patrick! I'm not sure on what tape it is.. There is no labelling or brand written anywhere. I just found it in the stationary cabinet 😄. If I did not have it I would have purchased some black masking tape from either Staples or Michaels. Another option I was also considering was using paper, as Robin did for his model.

 

Also, the adhesive of the tape was very weak, so I had to put some wood glue and CA to secure it

Edited January 12, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Keithbrad80]

Your bowsprit looks awesome! Very nice work, I have always thought the bowsprit really brings it all together, which yours did nicely. 

 

Bradley 

[WalrusGuy]

Thank you Bradley! I had no idea how much different the ship looked with it on. 

 

Almost done with the bowsprit assembly. Lashed the single blocks onto the eyebolts with some 50wt dark brown thread. Then stuck the dolphin striker, jack staff, and the relevant staples. 

 

Another thing I never knew is how long it is comparing to the ship's length! 

I also checked whether the holes in the blocks, sheaves, and fairlead would accommodate the rope, and had to enlarge a bunch of them. The fairlead also needed much larger sized holes, and as a result, it cracked a bit, but did not disintegrate.. 

 

Next is to lash the jibboom to the bowsprit, then make the collars. I want to attempt to serve the collars following the guidelines from TFFM Vol 4. After these are done, the assembly will be glued in permanently. 

Edited January 13, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

A bit of a small update. I learnt how to serve rope, and make a collar. Got to be honest, it's really fiddly and tricky work. My first attempt didn't go so well because of the wrong length, but the 2nd one went much better. I measured up 4.8 cm of served rope, then made the eyes, and then seized it with the heart in place. 

Also, this is my first time serving and trying to rig a ship properly (no shortcuts 😄), so please don't hesitate to point out any mistakes! 

Edited August 5, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[NovaStorm]

Looks perfect from where I'm sitting  

[WalrusGuy]

11 hours ago, NovaStorm said:

Looks perfect from where I'm sitting  

Thanks Robin! I also took a photo with better lighting. I'll continue making the rest of the collars using the same technique, and will post a series of photos on how I do them. 

Edited January 15, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Cathead]

Great job with the tape, makes very realistic iron. One suggestion on the rusting, I love using simple artists' pastels for that kind of weathering. You can easily get a cheap box of different colors at any art store, and hobby suppliers sell sets weathering pastels in subtler shades of color (I have one box that's all shades of red and brown and another that covers the black-white spectrum). They're very handy and add lots of texture to materials like wood, tape, and paper.

[WalrusGuy]

7 hours ago, Cathead said:

Great job with the tape, makes very realistic iron. One suggestion on the rusting, I love using simple artists' pastels for that kind of weathering. You can easily get a cheap box of different colors at any art store, and hobby suppliers sell sets weathering pastels in subtler shades of color (I have one box that's all shades of red and brown and another that covers the black-white spectrum). They're very handy and add lots of texture to materials like wood, tape, and paper.

Thanks for the tip Eric! 

Edited January 16, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

I finished all the collars (for both the closed and open hearts). Here are a series of photos of the process: 

 

For the closed hearts: 

I first served 4.8 cm of rope

Then the ends were cut at an angle with a sharp blade 

 

I then glued the ends to the rope to form an eye, which was then finished by serving with the excess string

 

After they were lashed with the hearts on to get the right shape. 

 

For the open hearts: 

 

9 cm of rope was served, then an angle was cut out with a sharp blade on either side, and glued to form a loop

 

The joint was then served. It was hard to get a seemless joint, but I hope to better my skills as I make more of these. 

Next they were lashed on the ends to form the eyes, and glued to the open heart before lashing it on the slots 

Edited August 5, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[VTHokiEE]

This is really nicely done. I’ve cheated some when doing the loops so far but after seeing this post I’ll have to try this out next time.

[Overworked724]

4 hours ago, WalrusGuy said:

Next they were lashed on the ends to form the eyebolts, and glued to the open heart before lashing it on the slots 

Great tutorial and stellar work.  But I’m not certain exactly what you mean at this point. Having a hard time visual what you were doing after you formed these closed served hoops. 

[WalrusGuy]

3 hours ago, VTHokiEE said:

This is really nicely done. I’ve cheated some when doing the loops so far but after seeing this post I’ll have to try this out next time.

 

Thank you Tim! Got to warn you though, it's really time-consuming 😄

 

I hope to speed up a bit the more I get into the process.. 

[Justin P.]

I don’t know how I missed all this progress!  It looks fantastic, you're moving into my favorite part of a build, I love seeing it come together with masts, spars and rigging.   Great photography too!  Really elevates the build log and illustrates the work when the lighting and background is simple and well done.  I really must do something about that myself!

[WalrusGuy]

3 minutes ago, Overworked724 said:

Great tutorial and stellar work.  But I’m not certain exactly what you mean at this point. Having a hard time visual what you were doing after you formed these closed served hoops. 

I may have missed adding some info 😅

 

So first I squished the hoop, gluing where the rope contact's to form a doubles rope, keeping the splice (the section where the two ends meet) in the middle. After, to form the eyes in the two ends, I used a granny knot at the approximate location and served it. (also realized my typo, meant eyes not eyebolts in that comment 😄). Then I glued the rope onto the heart, and seized it on the heart's legs. I hope this explains the process better! 

[WalrusGuy]

14 minutes ago, Justin P. said:

I don’t know how I missed all this progress!  It looks fantastic, you're moving into my favorite part of a build, I love seeing it come together with masts, spars and rigging.   Great photography too!  Really elevates the build log and illustrates the work when the lighting and background is simple and well done.  I really must do something about that myself!

 

Thanks so much Justin! I'm having a lot of fun with this part of the build. My eyes are always drawn to the rigging of a model first before anything else, so I hope I can do some justice with this one. Also, this is my first time attempting a square rigger, so trying to not rush things too much and doing some research before each step. Thanks again for the great comment!! 

Edited January 17, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

The bowsprit assembly is finished and glued permanently to the hull. Here are some pics: 

 

 

Next is the splash guard, then will commence on the rigging.. 

Edited January 17, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

The splash guard has been installed, and also finished up the gammoning. 

 

For the gammoning, I first formed a false eye splice (using wood glue) 

 

 

 

Then threaded the rope through it 

And made 9 turns 

Then came the cross frapping turns (which I think I screwed up a bit..). It's not as neat as it's supposed to be, but I carried on anyways since I felt I'd mess it more if I redid it. I wasn't sure how to make the half hitches neatly as they all got scattered while tightening. Also was really tough to tighten in that crowded spot! I'd love to hear if you guys have any tips for next time! 😊 

 

I also realized most of the rust effect on the iron bands vanished from all the handling. So for next time I'll be sure to apply the powder at the end prior to gluing. 

Edited January 18, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Gahm]

Great progress! Your serving results look really good!

 

Thomas

[WalrusGuy]

Many thanks Thomas!! And thanks all for the likes as well 😄

 

I finished installing the bobstays and bowsprit shrouds. From what I gather, these two were server for their entire length. For the bobstays, the line was looped through the hole in the stem, and the splice was located between the stem.

I used 50 wt dark brown thread to make the knots (2 granny knots in each location).

 

I was not 100% sure on how to lash the hearts, so first I tied the loose end to the one next to it with very fine silk thread. After making a couple of these I found it looks better without it, so from now I'll just glue the loose end to the heart instead. It'll give a nice clean finish. Anyways, enough ramble, some pics! 

 

Next are the martingale stays. No idea how I'll lash these to the eyebolts deep inside the railing web, but let's see how it goes! Also a bit nervous of threading it in the fairlead... 

 

Another note: The dolphin striker is the most annoying piece yet, I keep knocking it out with my clumsy hands as I work on the rigging. I can't wait to get that thing rigged....... I must have glued it back like 10 times now!! (I think it's like 5 times, but feels like 10.....)

Edited January 21, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[WalrusGuy]

Thanks all for the likes! 

 

Finished rigging the bowsprit assembly. Rigging is one of favorite parts so far! It's very satisfying seeing how everything connects and works together. Especially when tightening the lines 😁

Lashing the stays to the eyebolts was not that difficult, but it definitely required some patience. Also, somehow I found the foot ropes the hardest part of this chapter. I think it's because I wasn't 100% sure how to seize them and had a lot of trouble putting it on the jibboom. I settled by cheating with some CA glue instead. The place where it connects seems hidden to my eye, so am a bit happy with it! Also, the martingale stays were served where they touch at the bottom of the dolphinstriker: 

 

Anyways, here are some pics: 

Edited January 23, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[abelson]

Nice work. Well done.

[WalrusGuy]

Thank you Steven! 😊

 

Made some progress with the masts.. I'll let the photos explain the process: 

I still need to detail the bottom of the masts with cleats and the boom rest, then will start working on the tops. 

Edited January 25, 2021 by WalrusGuy

[Justin P.]

That bow rigging is really bring the thing together, and your execution is fantastic.   Are you using any supplemental reference materials or going by the plans and kit provided stuff only?   Those masts look great too!   

[WalrusGuy]

1 hour ago, Justin P. said:

That bow rigging is really bring the thing together, and your execution is fantastic.   Are you using any supplemental reference materials or going by the plans and kit provided stuff only?   Those masts look great too!   

 

Thanks Justin!

 

I have been using TFFM vol 4 and Rigging Period Ship Models  by Lennarth Petersson as reference materials. TFFM is really good, explains every single step in detail, including how to create eye splices. I have tried to show the processes used as well in my previous posts. I also want to get Rigging English Ships of War 1625-1860 by James Lee, read a lot of good reviews for that book.

 

Edit: also using TFFM to see which lines would be served, and to what length.. 

Edited January 25, 2021 by WalrusGuy