HM Brig-Sloop Flirt 1782 by James H - FINISHED - Vanguard Models - 1:64

[VTHokiEE]

5 minutes ago, James H said:

Chris actually does taper the sternpost in his instructions too.

I am building the Alert so the instructions are slightly different (I can only look at the build logs for Speedy), but the end goal is the same. Thanks for all the details/explanation!

[glbarlow]

The goal is simply to wind up with the second planking the width of the stern post, really either approach will do it - gotta sand something.

[Suzdal]

Was looking at the above pictures while waiting for my Lady Eleanor to be delivered; the Flirt will be my next venture. Have a couple of questions.

 

Will there be some variation to expose the lower deck now that it is engraved and has an open door? Also to have some deck furniture to be placed on it in that case?

 

What are the pins that you are using in the first planking? I assume that they don't come with the kit?

 

Richard

[James H]

7 minutes ago, Suzdal said:

Was looking at the above pictures while waiting for my Lady Eleanor to be delivered; the Flirt will be my next venture. Have a couple of questions.

 

Will there be some variation to expose the lower deck now that it is engraved and has an open door? Also to have some deck furniture to be placed on it in that case?

 

What are the pins that you are using in the first planking? I assume that they don't come with the kit?

 

Richard

Hi Richard,

 

There won't be anything different with regards to exposing the lower deck, but it does mean you can now leave a grating over to one side, so you can see the lower area and engraved deck. The pins I use in first planking are the ones that come with the kit.....very fine (and sharp) brass pins. 

[Suzdal]

Wow, the kit really is complete. Thank you Chris, un grand merci beaucoup.

[James H]

Instead of just posting my work in regular build order, I thought I'd post an idea of exactly what I've been doing, including working on stuff that's further ahead than the regular sequence. As this is for the manual, it doesn't allow me to sit idle and twiddle my thumbs as parts and paints dry. Instead, I go off on a tangent and work on other things. First up, I'll show you where I currently am with the hull.

 

One task I love doing is removing the bulkhead ears from above the deck. At this point, I feel like I'm actually getting somewhere with a build. These are just snapped off with a pair of pliers and the stubs sanded flush with the false deck. Before I can fit the deck, I spray some red oxide primer around the inside bow and stern areas, as these would be difficult to paint later. The standard laser-engraved limewood deck is then installed using Titebond and then clamped down around the edges to make sure it sits perfectly to the false deck.

 

 

 

Once the deck is down, the inner bulwarks are planked. All planks are first painted. Painting the lowest plank at least helps to stop paint splashing onto the deck. I was unlucky with my planking as the gaps I needed to fill meant that more or less all paint was stripped back down to the woodwork so I could apply some acrylic wood filler. This was then sanded smooth and the various holes in the ply bulwark drilled through to the inside for the various eyebolts etc. The red oxide paint is now reapplied after completing the exterior pear planks and sanding the whole hull exterior smooth.

 

 

The only wales I'll be visiting this year with lockdown are the ones I'll be gluing to the exterior of this hull. The top of the first per plank that was laid is now marked with a pencil to identify where the 3mm x 1mm pear strip will fit. This is two planks below the bottom of the newly cut gun ports. 

 

 

After fitting the 3mm wide plank to each side, a 4mm plank was then butt up directly below it. Masking tape was now applied to either side so I didn't damage the surrounding pear. Sandpaper is now used to smooth the exterior.

 

 

Things start to take further shape as the outer prow is fitted, along with the keel and stern keel post. Some of the supplied clamps are used to keep everything in alignment.

 

 

Whilst that was setting, I made the rudder. Although you'll see copper gudgeons and pintles on this, they are a leftover from the original Speedy kit I have. There Flirt kit will be supplied with these in brass as there's no copper plates on this kit. Cartridge paper is used for the iron bands at either side of the tiller arm location.

 

 

The original masking tape for the wales was removed, simply because I didn't want to risk any sanding dust being lodged in there. The outside edges of the wales were again carefully masked, followed by the rest of the model, and Plastikote black spray applied. There will be no black paint on the bow area as this is being left in bear pear, along with some new laser-engraved per parts. 

 

 

I did say I'd been working on some other stuff, and here it is. We have some grate frames, bitts, windlass, ladders, pumps, capstan and cannon. I still have a lot of work to do on the cutter yet, but as you can see, things are moving at a nice pace.

 

 More when I have it...

[James H]

Couldn't resist putting the finished deck stuff on the hull, to see how this will look later. Nothing here is glued on. It's now all removed and work on painting the lower hull in white is now underway.

 

[glbarlow]

Nice! I like the black and red paint scheme. The stem looks like it has a smiley face, or is that just me...

 

You’re going to make us all feel bad about our planking and photography skills, are you shooting that in a white product box?

Edited May 16, 2020 by glbarlow

[James H]

1 hour ago, glbarlow said:

...are you shooting that in a white product box?

 

No. Those are generally far too limiting for something like this, especially when comes to having to photograph something the size of Victory. My setup has two formats. I can switch from small scale which is what I've been using in these photos, to large scale which is what I'll use when I start masting this. The screen is a pure white blind that I just draw down from high up on the wall.

 

All images are processed with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Camera is a Nikon D5100 DSLR

 

[BobG]

On 5/15/2020 at 9:44 AM, James H said:

The standard laser-engraved limewood deck is then installed using Titebond and then clamped down around the edges to make sure it sits perfectly to the false deck.

How did you clamp the deck down since the hull is already planked?

 

I'm really excited about this model and can't wait for it to become available to the public.

[glbarlow]

I’m a Nikon shooter as well and appreciate the setup description. Photography Is my other ‘hobby,’ I’m primarily a nature and wildlife guy. http://glennbarlow.com.  I only pull out the portrait stuff for important things like my grandkids. I’ve shot photos of them on large curved white paper. I’ll have to get it out next time I shoot a completed model. 
 

Your photos are well lit, not as easy to do as some might think. The mesh in front of the lights is a nice touch, your own soft box. 👍🏻

[James H]

33 minutes ago, BobG said:

How did you clamp the deck down since the hull is already planked?

 

I'm really excited about this model and can't wait for it to become available to the public.

Is is very easy to clamp the outside edges of the deck down onto the false deck below. I use a lot of 2 inch clamps for this, with rubber tips.

 

 

25 minutes ago, glbarlow said:

I’m a Nikon shooter as well and appreciate the setup description. Photography Is my other ‘hobby,’ I’m primarily a nature and wildlife guy. http://glennbarlow.com.  I only pull out the portrait stuff for important things like my grandkids. I’ve shot photos of them on large curved white paper. I’ll have to get it out next time I shoot a completed model. 
 

Your photos are well lit, not as easy to do as some might think. The mesh in front of the lights is a nice touch, your own soft box. 👍🏻

 

I just use lengths of bubble-wrap for this, suspended on lollipop sticks taped to the reflectors 🤣

[Ronald-V]

You are doing a very...very clean build! Really nice to see  

[James H]

14 minutes ago, mugje said:

You are doing a very...very clean build! Really nice to see  

Cheers.

 

I'm building the little cutter at moment, as I'm still waiting for my blue paint to use on the upper, outer bulwarks.

[BobG]

26 minutes ago, James H said:

I'm building the little cutter at moment

What cutter are you building, James?

[James H]

2 minutes ago, BobG said:

What cutter are you building, James?

The little 18ft one that sits atop Flirt's deck.

[glbarlow]

I just finished the one I have for Speedy, not as easy as one would think. I built 4 for Vanguard, not really all that fun. 

[James H]

7 minutes ago, glbarlow said:

I just finished the one I have for Speedy, not as easy as one would think. I built 4 for Vanguard, not really all that fun. 

 

They sure are fiddly. I find the stern more difficult than the bow, and this one is planked with 2mm x 1mm strips (narrower than Speedy's 3mm strips). Still, it should look ok when done, fingers crossed.

[glbarlow]

I'm not sure I'm all that proud of mine, I had a good deal of fun planking it. Frankly I think it might be easier with 2mm planks.

[JpR62]

Thank you for sharing this beautiful build.

I really love the red color that you are using.

You mentioned the term 'Red oxide primer'. Can you give me more information about the brand and your painting method ? This red is really perfect !

 

[James H]

2 hours ago, JpR62 said:

Thank you for sharing this beautiful build.

I really love the red color that you are using.

You mentioned the term 'Red oxide primer'. Can you give me more information about the brand and your painting method ? This red is really perfect !

 

 

Sure can! It's Plastikote red oxide primer. I generally give all parts a finish with 320 grade paper and then spray. If necessary, I will sand an d reapply.

 

https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Plasti-kote-25002-400ml-Primer-Oxide/dp/B006XBST08/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=plastikote+red+oxide+primer&qid=1590226003&sr=8-1

 

 

 

[JpR62]

Thank you for your answer. I will follow your build with great interest !

[Bill Morrison]

Chris,

 

From what I've seen, this is quite an impressive kit.  Well done, sir!

 

Bill

[James H]

Time for an update. 

 

The hull is now pretty much built, down to the various rigging points on the outside hull. Here is another abridged series of photos which will feature in the instruction manual.

 

It had been decided very early on that First was to look very different from Speedy. That wasn't just with the white bottom hull and earlier riggings, but also with selective use of period colours. The kit itself is quite different to Speedy, with different materials used in places, necessitating new laser cut files specifically for this release. Instead of leaving the upper bulwarks in pear, I sat the swivel gun post support patterns against the cap rail and marked the area to be painted blue, with a pencil. The adjoining areas were then masked and several thin coats of Humbrol 25 Blue brush painted into that area. The patterns were then glued into position and the areas they lay over the gun and oar ports, snipped away and trimmed back.

 

 

 

The catheads were now assembled and painted before being installed. These were very much a perfect fit, which really pleased me!

 

 

The bow timbers and head rails were now fitted. This was probably the most fiddly aspect of the model so far, and what I thought would be a 20 minute session turned out to take about 3hrs before I was happy enough with it. I also fitted the depth markings etc. The dark area you see around these is where I've sealed them in polyurethane varnish to give them extra protection. Those areas will blend in to the last full coat of varnish I apply. Note I also added the vertical swivel gun timbers, but in Humbrol 74 Linen (ochre) to give some contrast against the other elements.

 

 

Thought I'd have a small diversion and make the four anchors. The only metal in these is the ring. The stocks are also made up from two parts as per the real thing, and black cartridge paper used for the bands.

 

 

All belaying pins and racks are now fitted. These are also pinned as well as being glued with PVA. I prefer this glue for things like this, as CA can fracture if stressed. 

 

 

As with the belaying pin racks, the channels are also pinned and glued with PVA. The chainplates in this kit are provided as single pieces. You need to open them up to sit the deadeye in them, then close back up. Some touching up with black paint is also required. All chainplates are now fitted and pinned to the wales. 

 

 

All my previous work in making the deck fittings and furniture can now be put into play. The small steel balls for the cannon shot, are burnished in metal blacking fluid.

 

 

And here we are so far! Hope you like it.

[James H]

7 minutes ago, SpyGlass said:

Thats really really lovely  but a bit depressing as I am sitting looking at refixing the broken MDF bits of Speedy.

I am a slow worker but its a bit  of a blow to have a new model designed and built before I have even got the gunport strips  properly on Speedy  !!

 

Crack on! Fix those parts and get planking!

[DelF]

Your whole build looks great so far, but I particularly like your etched deck. I don't think I would have planked over my Speedy deck if it had looked like Flirt's.

 

Derek

[JeffT]

I like your use of the black cartridge paper for the anchors. I've been debating on how to do my anchors for the conny. Now I know 🙂

[BobG]

This ship is definitely on my tick list! She looks great!

 

The only thing so far that I do not like so much is the wood anchors.  I like the wood stocks but I would have preferred the shank, arm and flukes to be made from metal for more realism. I think the wood on those parts shows too much rough grain. Otherwise, she's a beauty.

[chris watton]

13 minutes ago, JToma said:

I like your use of the black cartridge paper for the anchors. I've been debating on how to do my anchors for the conny. Now I know 🙂

I have used this for years now, for mast 'iron rings' and anchor stocks. Better scale thickness than copper strip that used to be in the kits I made years ago, and easier to manipulate.

 

I hear what you say about anchor shanks, Bob, but the truth is I do not like white metal castings so much. The flukes I have for Alertand Speedy are only and do the job fine, but I note the hole for the anchor ring is already filled in on some castings, and the customer should not be expected to have to drill it back out. I used the same method of designing the anchors for Flirt as I did Victory, in the latter's case because they were so large. I was more than happy with the result, and they were exact scale and shape. With a little more spraying, the surface can get as smooth as a casting.

[BobG]

13 minutes ago, chris watton said:

I hear what you say about anchor shanks, Bob, but the truth is I do not like white metal castings so much.

Thanks Chris for your reply.

 

I haven't worked much with white metal so I respect your choice for using wood. The grapnels on the Medway Longboat by Syren were also made from wood as were things like the the pintles and gudgeons. I was able to make them look more like metal by painting them with Vallejo black acrylic and then using some Doc O'Briens Rusty Brown Weathering Powder lightly on them. That burnished them to look quite like metal. So I think this would work well for the anchors on the Flirt too.