USS Constitution by Jasseji - Revell - 1/96 - PLASTIC - ON HOLD - Most Parts Destroyed/Damaged

[Jasseji]

Firts and foremost Hello and thank you for reviving this forum (i was browsing it once and almost had a heart attack when it went down).

 

I have been thinking around a Tall Ship Model for some time now and i think i am now ripe for it.

 

A few words about me:

I am 32 years old, from Poland and i love the years 1600-1850 in different aspects (artillery mostly as i am an reenactor).

I dont have much experience in modelling, but i was painting and kitbashing figures for Table-Top Wargames and i did actulally build a 2-person wooden sailboat with all rigging etc. which is still afloat somewhere

 

So, now i want to do it, wife even said she's help out.

 

Build: 1/96 Revell Plastic USS Constitution

 

Although i havent started the build yet, i am already keen to get some insights and comments, as the box is due to arrive after the weekend

 

So my Plan is for a refitted/kitbashed Revel 1/96 Connie model.

 

I also own the paper plans from the C.Mamoli Wood Model and the Mamoli Cross-Section plans (courtesy of a friendly Modeller) plus the "Anatomy of the Ship" book so some ideas/changes will be taken from there

 

Breakdown of changes planned:

- pumps as per Force9's idea 

- same for gratings and on-deck furniture

- changes in armament: 30x 24pdr long guns, 14-16x 18pdr long guns, 6-8X 32pdr Carronades (Modified 1804-1807 armament)

- Boats lowered with crew in them (idea is for a scene where the crew picks up supplies from some island)

- Water base

- Furled sails installed on the yards (no idea how to do them yet though)

- No Name

- Extended Crew

 

One idea was to make a  wooden planking + perhaps wooden frame as per the Mamoli plans (ideally discaring the plastic hull completely) but i will think about it when the box arrives and i see how much work i need to put into the hull.

 

Any insights, welcome and i will post pics when the box arrives.

 

One question about the Bluejacket Store - do they list the scales in their catalog or the given item sizes ? I dont know about US scale transliteration too much.

[lambsbk]

I believe they are 1/96 inch scale for the Connie brass. Simple metric conversion should not be a problem if you are used to the decimal system.

[Jasseji]

i mean if 1-5/8" means 1 and 5 8ths of an inch ? - i know how to do conversions, just not used to the way it's written down

[RiverRat]

i mean if 1-5/8" means 1 and 5 8ths of an inch ? - i know how to do conversions, just not used to the way it's written down

 

That's correct. Though you may sometimes see just a space instead of a dash.

 

Brian

[lambsbk]

Sorry. I thought you were asking about the actual scale of the BJ items. I only have the Constitution brass set for the camboose and it is in 1/96 inch scale. Good luck with your build. I look forward to your progress and posts.

[Jasseji]

no prob - do you have the part numbers for the camboose and the girders perhaps ?

force9 already wrote that not all parts are listed on BJ's webpage.

 

I need to check their shipping costs to europe tho - might need to settle with something dfferent

[lambsbk]

I got the same info from Force9 so I have nothing new to add. The brass came with a transom as well as various coamings, cable stays, backing plates for cable stays, & hammock sling braces. I don't remember if anything else was included. I will not be using it all (at least not foreseeably). I am thinking of using the brass transom on my ship mount base (plaque like) and wiring it as a touch circuit for the lamp box of the fiber optics in my build. That is still a long ways off however.

Edited June 8, 2013 by lambsbk

[DCooper]

Welcome Jasseji! we can't have too many USS Constitution builds going.  Your program of works looks most impressive.  I look forwards to how your build progresses.

 

Dan

[Jasseji]

So, she finally arrived so tomorrow it's off to the hobby store to get paints, primer, glue etc.

 

 

After inspecting the parts, i realised how much pain it will be to clean the pinrails etc. so propably will try to order at least the pins somewhere.

 

 

I was surprised that the eyebolts, deadeyes and bullseyes look cleaner than the pins

 

She's definitely getting a new wheel and capstan tho

 

Plan for tomorrow:

- Clean and Prime the Hull

 

 

[lambsbk]

Those eye bolts are not as clean as you think. The flash is on the inner diameter as well. When they are clean they are VERY fragile. I will be making stronger ones for supporting rigging down the line. Several members have suggested it.

 

I am glad to see you getting started and I look forward to following your progress.

 

Dave

[DCooper]

Great to see you have the kit in hand.  Good luck and don't rush.  For replacement eyebolts I have been using the cut off ends fine fish hooks from KMart or Target.  Much stronger than the plastic ones from the kit. Remember to have fun.

 

 

Dan

[ZyXuz]

nice to see she reaches your house door!

looking forward your build log

[Jasseji]

Found the Evergreen strips at a local hobby store, got all paints, primers, putty and cement (although forgot to buy copper paint).

 

Didnt make anything yet tho - the weather over here is crazy, sweat is pouring everywhere, degress around 35 Celsius (95F), not even the slightest wind...

 

Thank goodness i have a lake close by - takes 5mins by bike

 

EDIT: No, i am not living in any tropical climate - just mid-east europe

Edited June 20, 2013 by Jasseji

[Jasseji]

So, got back home and started some work on the model.

 

I might say that switching from Wargames painting to this proves challenging, the paint behaves completely different than that used for table-top wargaming figures (or maybe it's just the Revell paint ? Hobbyshop didnt have another).

 

1st i took a long gun for test, cleaned it up, painted the carriage and barrel:

 

As you can see, the result is crap so will try a different approach with the rest.

 

Previously i cleaned up the hull halves and applied a coat of Primer (using Vallejo Model Spray).

 

Next i masked the gunport strip and applied the first coat of white paint:

 

 

The stains on the hull are only visible on the pictures, you can barely see them when pointing a flashlight at a specific angle

 

 

The masking tape i got seems to suck a lot, i can already see bleeding but i will touch it up when i'll do a second coat of black onto the hull.

 

tomorrow i will apply a second coat of white on the strip and see how it will look and much bleeding i have - i am painting only one hull half at once so i dont have to correct both and any lessons learned with one half will be applied to the other.

 

Next actions:

- paint second coat of white

- after drying start with gunports lining

 

Things to get:

- GLASSES (i am getting blind )

 

[Jasseji]

Sorry for posting only minor steps but the GF/Wife figure (well, future wife) is forcing me out of the house due to sunny weather - sunbath and swimming in the lake

 

Second coat of white on the gunport strip, some touchups after removing tape and first coat of copper:

 

 

 

And this is what was happening a few weeks back on the lake:

 

 

 

 

Yesterday some guys in those "Dragon Boats" were there as well but i didnt have any camera with me

 

Edit: Painted first layer of white and copper onto the starboard hull half now as well, waiting now to dry

Edited June 21, 2013 by Jasseji

[lambsbk]

Looks good (yes, the lake too). I used Model Master acrylic paint for the gun carriages. At first I was not as happy with this type of paint versus enamel but found myself liking it more as I use it more. The hull is looking nice. The paint makes a nice difference doesn't it.

 

You may want to ask yourself at this point how you are going to mount the completed build. In some kits there is a place for keel mounts but they are not drilled out. The insert is for a square nut and the keelson and keel can be CAREFULLY drilled out to accommodate a bolt for pedestal mounting. The square nut has to be placed before gluing the hull halves together (well, it can be placed after but then requires some repair). You then drill top down with a small diameter bit for a pilot hole (through the eye of the square nut) and then flip the ship keel up, change the bit size, and drill the exact diameter hole to accommodate the bolt, stopping short of the nut.

Edited June 22, 2013 by lambsbk

[Jasseji]

I think i'm gonna order the guns separately (model dockyard in UK have metal barrel + wooden carriage) because the quality of the carriage cast is horrible (no wheel is round)

 

Just finished the second coat of copper on the port hull half and removed the masking:

 

 

(if you have to ask, my car is the black volvo between the red and white cars )

 

Here on the shelf where she will be placed when finished:

 

 

Some touch-ups required and another coat of black paint needed too (little accident with the copper paint in between ):

 

I didnt think about the stand yet, maybe will use the one supplied, i am planning a diorama anyway (with the hull submerged in some gel-like stuff) so the bits wont be visible anyway.

 

Before i glue the hull together i have to thicken the bulwarks still so have until sunday propably (GF is out for the weekend now so have time to work on the model)

[runner63]

I built one of these many years ago but yours looks better than the one I did. Keep up the good work!!!!!

 

runner63

[Jasseji]

Thank you runner63, this is my first tall ship model build ever and first model since some 8 years so i appreciate the comments

[Jasseji]

Both Hull halves ready and drying:

 

 

Had to repaint here by hand because of the "copper paint accident".

Hope it will dry evenly:

 

 

Starboard hull half requires only minor touchups (technique improved )

 

Now waiting for it to dry and will start with the gunport linings.

Edited June 22, 2013 by Jasseji

[Jasseji]

Progress on Gunport linings and bulwark supports:

 

 

Sure looks better from the outside now:

 

 

Little Test-Fit on the shelf:

 

 

The black paint looks bad now after the attempted fix - might need to re-spray somehow:

 

 

Styrene used for Gunports and bulwark supports: Evergreen .080 x .156 - 3,5 strips used for one hull half (pack contains 8).

 

Cutitng the styrene is a pain in the hands literally but after all is cut, rest goes fast

[Jasseji]

Port side bulwark lining complete:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Used up 5,5 Strips of .040 x .156 Evergreen Styrene - still have to line the waterways and some fillings up to the spar deck but one should calculate 1 pack of .040 x .156 Evergreen per hull half.

 

Bit of cleanup to do and will start with second hull half

[Jasseji]

Spar deck bulwarks lined:

 

 

Test-Fit with one cannon in place (i will fit the last strips of bulwark lining when i'll be installing the gundeck):

 

 

Also, i ordered some clutter-ups from Model Dockyard UK:

Gunpowder Barrels, gundeck capstan, Metal Anchors, cannonballs, belaying pins plus 2 different cannons (metal&wood + brass&wood). 

 

one of them will go as the chaser (want something nice-looking there).

 

[Jasseji]

Sorry for lack of updates lately, weather is perfect so GF pushes me for walks, bike trips etc

 

Some new stuff:

 

Amati carriages with brass barrels from Model Dockyard UK next to original Revell long gun:

 

 

New Capstans:

 

 

Carronade Carriages primed and painted:

 

 

Anchor and different Barrels for Gundeck Clutter:

 

 

Still havent decided but i believe i will order the guns for the whole gundeck - they do look nice.

 

Capstans will be mounted on Gundeck and on Spar deck and connected together.

[texxn5]

The cannon really look great. Can you get the carronades also? I would replace all of them. These really look like cannon and have more detail. Looking good.

John

[Jasseji]

Was thinking about it but while the cannons cost would be ~3,50$ per piece, the carronades would be over 12$ each.

 

Another option i was thinking about was to replace all carronades with long guns (perhaps a bit shorter barrels to simulate 12pdrs)

[lambsbk]

The Connie in 1812 had only carronades on the bulwark of the spar deck. These are different from cannonades which have trunions. The chase guns were a later addition. Unfortunately the refit ship has BOTH (incorrectly). The 24 pounders were of english manufacture and the knowledge of their make and size pretty much comes from the sister ship America.

 

Nice anchor and barrels. I used thin pieces of wiring shrink wrap to mimic the bands on mine. It worked well. Jasseji: I was wondering where you plan to put them?

Edited July 2, 2013 by lambsbk

[ZyXuz]

nicely done Jasseji..

hope to see those fittings on deck soon!

[Jasseji]

@lambsk: i know about the armament, although here is the question of authenticity vs sanity (as in: it would be insane for me to spend so much on carronades vs loosing authenticity and have nice looking long guns on the upper deck)

 

I still havent decided on the "clutter" placement for the gundeck, propably will follow your pic and place some stuff in the "galley area", i have already some 2mm steel balls to act as cannonballs, so have to make some rails for them too, also there will be a capstan on the gundeck which will be (hopefully) connected to the upper capstan, some buckets (ordered), maybe i will build pumps too

 

Before i come to that though, i still need to line the starboard bulwarks as i did on the port side, then finish the gundeck itself (re-scribe planks, apply drybrush or wash, paint the grating), drill holes for gun rigging (placing 3 eyebolts between each gun, one to hold the main tackle line of 2 guns as per original model plans, 2 for some additional rigging to add a bit of detail), build a stove, rider bitt and of course glue the gunport lids so it's still some stuff to do before i start placing them

[lambsbk]

I like the way you are thickening the bulwarks. Very nice. I am also working my way aft of the deck. Like you I have a capstan, shot racks, and pumps to build yet...then onto the spar deck where additional detail will really be seen the most.  I am looking forward to following your additions to this build. Right now, like you, I am re-thinking the side tackles for the guns and their attachments.