HMS Agamemnon 1781 by SaskieinSoCal - Caldercraft - 1:64

[SaskieinSoCal]

Hello All,

 

I've been 'stalking' a number of really well done build logs on the for the Caldercraft Agamemnon (Mobbsie, Henke, Vicnelson, etc.) so I thought I should contribute vs freeloading.

 

This will be my second model ship, but the first in 30 years. My first was a Billing Boats Bluenose (of course I'm Canadian 😄) in 1990. Back then I needed something to do in the evenings while my wife finished studying for her nursing degree. My Bluenose has been on our mantle ever since and survived 7 moves over the years with only one major overhaul to repair accumulated damage. Fast forward 30 years, last fall I decided to jump back in to the water and go big with the Aggie, looking for a long term analog hobby. Progress was slow, but low and behold we seem to found ourselves in a pandemic and suddenly I seem to have nothing but time.

 

A series of catch up photo's are included below to kick things off. Coincidentally, I'm almost exactly at the same point in construction as Henke (who appears to be much more skilled and patient than I am) so I hope to learn together a we continue. In general, I've discovered a few things so far. First, I would/should have spent more time fairing the bulkheads before and after gluing to the keel. I have a few lumps in the hull I would rather have not had to deal with but fortunately they aren't too visible. Second, I will be doing more dry fitting going forward. I made the same mistake Henke made by gluing the port and starboard bulwarks backwards (the etching outward), which I don't think it fatal. Finally, I would have been more patient getting the quarter galleries right. This has been the the toughest part so far.

 

My wife an I will be doing our annual migration back north to central Saskatchewan at the end of this week, so I thought I should post this lump of pictures while I have a better internet connection here in civilization outside of San Diego.

 

Please feel free to offer any constructive criticism or suggestions. I've got a thick skin! 😄

 

Regards,

Trent

 

[Cosmo Vito]

Hello Trent,

 

Very nice.  I am relatively new to model ship building.  My first sailing ship, recently completed, was the Smuggler from BlueJacket Shipcrafters.  One question, where did you purchase the brads you used to secure the hull planks?  

 

Regards

Cosmo

[SaskieinSoCal]

Hi Cosmo, Thank you and I might as well be new as well given my 30 year holiday away from building. As for the brads, I found them at a local Home Depot. They are 1/2x19 (not sure of the metric size). I would go smaller if I could have found them. Also, they appear to be carbon steel, so if you are soaking your planks, they rust a bit, making re-use a potential issue, but minor. As an aside, I did try to order specific plank holders from Micro-mark hobby tools, but they have been on back order for months and never ended up getting delivered.

 

All the best and good luck with your project.

 

Trent

[Henke]

Hello Trent, Welcome to the Aggie-club. Your build looks great. It feels good to have someone at MSW who is about at the stage as I am. I hope to start with the main wale this weekend.

 

Regards

Henrik

[SaskieinSoCal]

Despite being a little tedious, I think you will enjoy doing the 2nd planking. It gives the kit a much more finished look, quite satisfying. I've almost finished the Starboard 2nd planking except for cleaning up the gun ports and re-filling the quarter gallery boundaries. The Walnut on the hull looks so good I almost hate to paint it. I'll be taking a bit of a break as we drive 26 hours north back up to Canada, so I'm guessing you'll be back in the lead straight away. All the best in the meantime.

 

Trent

[SaskieinSoCal]

Well, heading North tomorrow. 26 hours of drive time and we'll be back in the north woods. Working remotely does come with perks, usually our trip north wouldn't be until early July. Looking forward to the peace and quiet to knock out some work on the Aggie.

 

The Starboard second planking is essentially done. Just needs some sanding, filling, wale painting and the gun ports TLC.

I actually really like the Walnut. Shame to paint it.

 

Trent

[Cosmo Vito]

On 5/7/2020 at 11:54 AM, SaskieinSoCal said:

Hi Cosmo, Thank you and I might as well be new as well given my 30 year holiday away from building. As for the brads, I found them at a local Home Depot. They are 1/2x19 (not sure of the metric size). I would go smaller if I could have found them. Also, they appear to be carbon steel, so if you are soaking your planks, they rust a bit, making re-use a potential issue, but minor. As an aside, I did try to order specific plank holders from Micro-mark hobby tools, but they have been on back order for months and never ended up getting delivered.

 

All the best and good luck with your project.

 

Trent

Hello Trent,

 

Thank you for the information.  I'll take a ride over to Home Depot and pick up the brads. Did you have any problem with the "19" size brad splitting the planking?   I've been using 1/2 inch map pins ordered from Staples. They are fairly strong and can be tapped in with a tack hammer I ordered from Micro Mark.  I usually make a pilot hole which minimizes splitting the plank or bending the pin.  No shipping charge and fast delivery.  

[SaskieinSoCal]

Hi Cosmo, Sorry for the delay as we just made it up north early Sunday and we were settling in. I didn't have trouble with splitting, but my planks were soaked for at least 8 hours so there were pretty wet. I did end up inserting maybe 2mm or so into the bulkheads using small pliers vs a hammer, so maybe that helped? Kind of used a twist and push technique. Slightly thinner brads would have been ideal, but I couldn't find any. Let me know how it goes. 

 

Trent 

[Cosmo Vito]

Thanks Trent,

 

I'll give them a try.

 

Cosmo

[SaskieinSoCal]

Just a quick update after a few months up north. I finally knocked out the second planking and added the wales. Cutting our the gun port trim was much more challenging that expected. On retrospect, I think I should have marked out the outlines or used a jig of some kind. Doing it by eye and hand led to a few of the port frames being larger than others. Likely won't be too noticeable, but not perfect. Also, as noted by others, I was shocked at the difference in how she appears in real life vs. camera phone picts. I promise is doesn't look this rough in the flesh (the waterline is actually quite a bit straighter at the stern than it appears in the photo). Now likely a month or so of laying copper plate....

 

Trent

 

[S.Coleman]

Well I have to say I'm jealous because I really want this kit. She's a beautiful ship. Maybe once im done with my Endeavour I hope.  

Your build looks great. Very neat and sharp. Good paint job on the windows and all. Nice job.

[SaskieinSoCal]

Thank you Scott. She has been a pleasure to build and a fantastic COVID lockdown remedy. I highly recommend the kit. The only errors are from my inexperience not the materials or instruction.

 

All the best and cheers!

 

Trent

[Sjors]

Hi Trent,

 

I see that you are taking a deep dive with the Aggy.

When i build her i enjoy every minute of it.

She is now standing in a resthome for older en dement people.

They told me that the ship give peace to those people so i’m happy.

Enjoy the build and i will follow form a distance....
 

Sjors

 

[SaskieinSoCal]

Thank you Sjors. I very much enjoyed your build log and I'm sure it will help me a lot. You bring up a great point. I'm not sure where I will keep mine. I suppose my wife will have something to say about that...? 

 

Cheers,

Trent

[SaskieinSoCal]

A long overdue catch up post....Like most, the last year has been a little nuts, but working on my Aggie has been very therapeutic. It's made the 3100km journey from Carlsbad, CA to Central Saskatchewan twice now (and survived intact). Picking up from my last post(s), I was quite happy with my hull planking and may be crazy, but quite enjoyed the mindless work of coppering the bottom. I did this while up north during a couple of government mandated quarantines following some travel: Here are a couple of reference picts from last summer for reference. More to come....

 

Trent

[SaskieinSoCal]

Now back in California, and over last winter and into this spring I focused on the wales and the sides. I found myself messing up the upper wale and having to redux it, but it ended up ok I think. I also found myself painting and repainting the sides quite a bit obsessing about slight imperfections (hope I don't run out of Yellow Ochre or Black).  

[SaskieinSoCal]

Speaking of tedious work, I'm back at it on a pretty regular basis, but did jump ahead to the cannon work. Neither here nor there, but here are the heavy guns waiting for deck assignment....

[Ian B]

Looking good, its worth the effort  -- that's the trouble with 72 cannon ships-- lots of repetition LOL... welcome to the club...im just ahead of you in my Vanguard build

[SaskieinSoCal]

Very impressive Ian. I'm jealous you're into the rigging. Seeing yours does serve as a good kick in the rear to get focused again. Thanks!

 

T

[Henke]

Hi Trent,

Nice looking gore lines with the coppering. Well done!

 

Best regards

 

Henrik

[SaskieinSoCal]

Thanks Henrik, I've got a month or so of solid work to catch up with you. You're unknowingly acting as my guide. Much appreciated and congrats on your build, it's coming along beautifully! 

 

Trent

[Ian B]

14 hours ago, SaskieinSoCal said:

Very impressive Ian. I'm jealous you're into the rigging. Seeing yours does serve as a good kick in the rear to get focused again. Thanks!

 

T

Thanks Trent, I am just using the line to install the chains at the correct angle.  Then onwards and upwards literary ..:)