Cutty Sark by Bruma - Revell - 1:96 - PLASTIC

[bcochran]

Hi Bruma,

 

I want to thank you for all the inspiration I get from your build.  Mine is a cut below what you are doing, but I also don't have your skill and patience either.  Seems you, Kevin and I are having fun together, and I want to make sure I drop in on both of yours and Kevin's logs. I would not be where I am without you.

[Bruma]

8 hours ago, Jim Lad said:

Bruma, just so we're clear - are you asking about the spencer (on the main mast) or the spanker (on the mizzen)?

 

John

Thank you again, John. I'm talking about the spencer, the one on the main mast. 

The spanker (on the mizzen) is better documented.

 

6 hours ago, bcochran said:

Hi Bruma,

 

I want to thank you for all the inspiration I get from your build.  Mine is a cut below what you are doing, but I also don't have your skill and patience either.  Seems you, Kevin and I are having fun together, and I want to make sure I drop in on both of yours and Kevin's logs. I would not be where I am without you.

Hi! 
I'm really happy to see other Revell Cutty Sark being build. It's a wonderful kit of a magnificent ship! 
I'm sure yours will be far better than my modest attempt! 
Thank you for the kind comment! 

Edited May 13, 2022 by Bruma

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Bruma, can I take you way back to post #5, where you drilled the deadeye holes in line with Campbell's plan. Did you look at whether these new positions might cause any fouling, especially those for the mizzen? I'm asking because this evening I'm fine tuning my replacement bulwark rails and there is a significant difference between the spacings and positions of the deadeyes between revell and campbell. I'd much rather use campbell as this gives more space for the belay pins but I'm nervous that by moving the deadeyes aft, the mizzen backstays might foul the quarterdeck pinrails or cabin rail. I imagine this is unlikely but thought it worth asking.

[Jim Lad]

I think this one has me stumped, mate!  We know that the spencer gaff was still rigged when she was in the wool trade to Sydney, but exactly how that spencer sail operated, I'm afraid I just don't know.  There must have been a way of passing the sail over the mizzen stay, but I don't see how Longridge's "egg shaped blocks" could have worked.  Anything like that fitted on the mizzen stay would have interfered with the mizzen staysail being set or taken in.  Maybe his "trip line" is the answer.,  A light line run from the sheet cringle up to the head of the gaff which could be used to haul up the clew clear of the stay.  To my simple mind that would be the easiest way of coping with it, but it's just speculation.

 

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

 

John

[Bruma]

On 5/14/2022 at 12:04 AM, Jim Lad said:

I think this one has me stumped, mate!  We know that the spencer gaff was still rigged when she was in the wool trade to Sydney, but exactly how that spencer sail operated, I'm afraid I just don't know.  There must have been a way of passing the sail over the mizzen stay, but I don't see how Longridge's "egg shaped blocks" could have worked.  Anything like that fitted on the mizzen stay would have interfered with the mizzen staysail being set or taken in.  Maybe his "trip line" is the answer.,  A light line run from the sheet cringle up to the head of the gaff which could be used to haul up the clew clear of the stay.  To my simple mind that would be the easiest way of coping with it, but it's just speculation.

 

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

 

John

Thank you again, John. 

At least now I know I did my homework properly and that there aren-t many more info about this subject. I might give it a try in the masting and rigging section, in case this discussion has been missed by someone.

Thank you again for taking the time to help me! 

[Bruma]

On 5/13/2022 at 10:51 PM, Kevin-the-lubber said:

Bruma, can I take you way back to post #5, where you drilled the deadeye holes in line with Campbell's plan. Did you look at whether these new positions might cause any fouling, especially those for the mizzen? I'm asking because this evening I'm fine tuning my replacement bulwark rails and there is a significant difference between the spacings and positions of the deadeyes between revell and campbell. I'd much rather use campbell as this gives more space for the belay pins but I'm nervous that by moving the deadeyes aft, the mizzen backstays might foul the quarterdeck pinrails or cabin rail. I imagine this is unlikely but thought it worth asking.

I will do a quick test as soon as possible, and I'll let you know. 

Back then, when I made that decision, there were so many tings to take into account that I probably missed that one... 

 

[Bruma]

On 5/13/2022 at 10:51 PM, Kevin-the-lubber said:

Bruma, can I take you way back to post #5, where you drilled the deadeye holes in line with Campbell's plan. Did you look at whether these new positions might cause any fouling, especially those for the mizzen? I'm asking because this evening I'm fine tuning my replacement bulwark rails and there is a significant difference between the spacings and positions of the deadeyes between revell and campbell. I'd much rather use campbell as this gives more space for the belay pins but I'm nervous that by moving the deadeyes aft, the mizzen backstays might foul the quarterdeck pinrails or cabin rail. I imagine this is unlikely but thought it worth asking.

Test done: no interferences!  😅 

 

 

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Thanks, and sorry, I didn't mean to give you heart failure 😁. That settles it, Campbell it is then.

[Bruma]

Hello everyone. 

Time for a small update:

 

Main and mizzen yards painted! 

The process is the same I have used for the fore yards, but this time I documented it a little better. 

All the yards has been painted with the airbrush, with a uniform coat of acrylic tire black. I never use pure colors, such as pure black or pure white. 

Once the paint is dried, I try to enhance details and give a little less uniform look with the dry brush techniques. Oil colors are perfect for this task.

Here you can see the pre and post dry brush:

 

 

And finally, all the yards painted and weathered:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you like them! 

 

 

 

[Kevin-the-lubber]

25 minutes ago, Bruma said:

I never use pure colors, such as pure black or pure white

They look fantastic. I think this may be one area where I'm still going wrong, using pure black and white. My white's especially just looks unnatural; I also hate painting white because it's so hard to get good opacity. Any tips?

[rwiederrich]

Bruma...your yards look amazing.   You and I follow quite similar techniques.  I use chalks for my *dry brushing*.

The trick is highlighting and adding weathering.

 

Great job.

 

Rob

[shipman]

I am impressed with your yards.....does this mean you're going to weather the rest of the ship?

[Bruma]

Thank you all for the likes and comments! 

 

 

On 5/31/2022 at 3:03 PM, Kevin-the-lubber said:

They look fantastic. I think this may be one area where I'm still going wrong, using pure black and white. My white's especially just looks unnatural; I also hate painting white because it's so hard to get good opacity. Any tips?

 

Well, as said, I tend to never use pure colors. If I do so, I apply an oil filter later on (usually a shade of brown) to modulate the tone, to give some variation and to tone it a little down. 

Oil colors are really great, you can try to use them on some spare parts just to give them a try! 

 

 

On 5/31/2022 at 7:09 PM, shipman said:

I am impressed with your yards.....does this mean you're going to weather the rest of the ship?

Thank you, Shipman! 

I already did that, even if only slightly. In my opinion, a light weathering helps to mitigate the toy effect on the model. All the wood panels, the metal fittings, the hull and even the sails are  weathered. 

 

 

[Kevin-the-lubber]

2 hours ago, Bruma said:

Oil colors are really great, you can try to use them on some spare parts just to give them a try!

Do you simply apply an oil wash over the acrylic and, if so, what do you use to thin it? And why oils rather than just more acrylics? As I sit here with my 95% painted hull in front of me, I can see that it is a little shapeless if you know what I mean, especially the coppering, despite the way it catches the light. Too 'perfect' - I don't mean my painting, which is very average, but the even-ness of the colours. Even when new copper or brass sheet came into the factory for working the colour wasn't that uniform. I'd always intended to give it a bit of verdigris, though would need to practice first.

[Bruma]

Here I am! 

Yes, I usually apply the wash over the acrylics, and I like to use the Humbrol Enamel Thinner. It is less aggressive. But you should always be careful: if you insist too much, you can wipe out the acrylic beneath. 

A coat of flat clear can help, but I haven't used it on my Cutty Sark. Just make some tests and see how it goes with your acrylics. I usually use Gunze acrylics. 

Why oils and not acrylics? Well, oils are softer, they dry really slowly so that you can adjust the effect as you like. They are really fun and easy to use! 

And I have used them also for the metal plates on the hull. In that case, I have used a wash of green and blue.

[Kevin]

love the sails, just brilliant

[Kevin-the-lubber]

On 6/7/2022 at 6:18 PM, Bruma said:

Why oils and not acrylics? Well, oils are softer, they dry really slowly so that you can adjust the effect as you like. They are really fun and easy to use! 

So, I tried oils on top of acrylics for the deck furniture and very much like that method. While I love the effects you can get with inks you have to work quickly (too much so for me) and to some extent the end result is a lottery. With oils I can see that you should eventually be able to get at least very close to what's in the mind's eye. I tried weathering the muntz with some blue-green acrylic I bought especially for the purpose, but just couldn't get it as I wanted so quickly washed off as much as I could. I'll go and buy some oils tomorrow and try again.

[Dziadeczek]

3 hours ago, Kevin-the-lubber said:

So, I tried oils on top of acrylics...

You can do oils on top of acrylics, but you cannot do acrylics on top of oils!  According to an old artists/painters' principle: "fat on lean OK, but NEVER lean on fat! " (meaning oil paints are fat, but acrylics are lean (thinned with water).

[Bruma]

Hello every one! 

I'm still alive, and the build is still running, but painfully slowly...

Fully rigging the yards is a very long process. Hoping to be more effective, I'm working on both the main and mizzen yards, but it takes time and the result is not always huge. I can spend easily two hours adding detail that are invisible 2 meters away. But still, I'm making progress and I will post them as soon as they will be completed. 

I would like to post some picture of the fore course yard, hoping to be helpful for Kevin (go and check his wonderful build here:

 

 

and maybe to some other modelers in the same situation. 

 

 

  

Edited October 30, 2022 by Bruma

[Bruma]

Hello everyone again. 

First of, thank you to my long time supporters Cirdan, Shipman and Keith Black for their likes, it's really nice to see you still aboard after all that time!

 

And secondly, today is finally update time! 

Main and mizzen yards completed.
I know you are bored by my yards, and I am too, to be honest...
Completing the rigging of the yards has been a long and not so funny journey, but here I am at the end! 
Almost 100 blocks of different size with relative knots and eye bolts, 50 stirrups and 30 footropes almost stopped my Cutty Sark. But I-m glad I did them together and in one pass. 
So, here they are, main and mizzen yards completed and fully equipped:

 

Main:

 

 

 

And mizzen:

 

But there are also some other news:

Main topmast and main topgalland staysails.
Those staysails are similar to the fore ones, and I have used the same techniques, apart for a small detail that I would like you to find.
Do you spot something strange, not uniform, or simply not good enough?
If you can, take some moments and have a look at the pictures:

 

 

 

Did you notice it? Well, I sincerely hope no, but please be honest!

And here is what is concerning me:

for the fore sails, I have supported the billowing sails by stiffening the sheets on the lee side with CA glue. It worked quite well but now, on the main staysails, the sheets are just too long to be supported by stiffened tread. So, after a lot of testing and guessing, I have used painted copper wire instead. I know it's different, and it can be spotted by a close inspection, but the general effect of those big billowing sail is more important for me, so I decided to use this technique. What do you think about? Are they acceptable? 

Please, let me know your opinions!

 

Now, with all that tedious job done, I hope I can be back posting more regularly new updates!

Thank you all for your support and patience!

 

 

 

Edited November 2, 2022 by Bruma

[rwiederrich]

Your stay sails are amazing.   You used the same method I did on my Great Republic.  But I used thread size stainless steel orthodontic wire.   I did wonder how you were supporting the billowing stay sails.  
 

Super job 

 

Rob

[Keith Black]

Bruma, I think everything looks great! As the builder you're going to be much more aware of subtle building differences than we viewers.

Edited November 3, 2022 by Keith Black

[Cirdan]

I tried hard, but I can't see any difference. 

17 hours ago, Bruma said:

Now, with all that tedious job done, I hope I can be back posting more regularly new updates!

Much appreciated 😀

[kirill4]

Dear Bruma,

These two, I liked most of all!!!

Looks like real things!!!

Great job !!!

[gak1965]

19 hours ago, Bruma said:

Did you notice it? Well, I sincerely hope no, but please be honest!

Um, I noticed that the work is awesome 😎! What else is there to see.

 

 

[shipman]

Marco, hi there, so happy you are well.

 

I'm not a big fan of ship models in full sail, mounted on a plinth, there being something of the improbable.

 

However, I must congratulate you, your sails are stunning. Well done, my friend.

 

You have done us all a great service sharing this build which is the best rendition of the Cutty Sark I've ever seen; and all from the humble beginning of the oldest, most 'obsolete' kit available. A 'shock/horror' plastic one too!

 

You've demonstrated what can be achieved through determination and skill, without needing to resort to such techniques like this new fangled resin printed wot-not. (Apologies, Kevin). Plane, honest old school modelling.

 

Thank you for sharing your journey. Each installment has been much anticipated and provided endless pleasure for me.

 

May you continue to have a long and happy life.

[Veszett Roka]

8 hours ago, shipman said:

I'm not a big fan of ship models in full sail, mounted on a plinth, there being something of the improbable.

Yes, me too. I'm a big fan of clippers and windjammers, my general interest is sailing from mid 19th century to today. And my current dilemma is how to display my Pamir:

- full sail, to demonstrate the giant work to handle sails well

- furled sail, to emphasize the rigging

- no sails, to show the rigging in full glory and not obstruct by sails.

I tend to use the furled version as a good compromise between sails and rigging. But Burma's sails are extraordinary good, i do love this accuracy:

So the attach the main staysail to its stay and its wrinkles. Spectacular!

[Kevin-the-lubber]

13 hours ago, shipman said:

without needing to resort to such techniques like this new fangled resin printed wot-not.

Shipman, go wash your mouth with soap! 🤪. Dare I say, in defence of my fellow 3D-ists, there's a bit of skill on the resin side as well.... 

 

Anyway, Marco, the yards and sails are just the best I've ever seen, they are extraordinarily lifelike, and I've looked at an awful lot of exceptionally good models on this and other forums. Even after you mentioned the wires I can't see them. And thanks for all those close-up photos, I can understand the bands and rigging a lot better from these. You must be pretty close to the end now?

 

[Bruma]

Thank you all for your like and comments, I really appreciate all of them.

Once again, it's important for me to know I'm not alone in this long journey. This community is not only an incredible source of knowledge and skilled modelers, but also a great motivation for this time demanding hobby. 

 

On 11/3/2022 at 5:49 PM, kirill4 said:

Dear Bruma,

These two, I liked most of all!!!

Looks like real things!!!

Great job !!!

Kirill, good to read you again! Any new project from you? I really miss your wonderful Galleon! 

I agree: this close up shots are my preferred too! 

 

On 11/4/2022 at 12:15 AM, shipman said:

Marco, hi there, so happy you are well.

 

I'm not a big fan of ship models in full sail, mounted on a plinth, there being something of the improbable.

 

 

On 11/4/2022 at 8:57 AM, Veszett Roka said:

Yes, me too. I'm a big fan of clippers and windjammers, my general interest is sailing from mid 19th century to today. And my current dilemma is how to display my Pamir:

- full sail, to demonstrate the giant work to handle sails well

- furled sail, to emphasize the rigging

- no sails, to show the rigging in full glory and not obstruct by sails.

I tend to use the furled version as a good compromise between sails and rigging. But Burma's sails are extraordinary good, i do love this accuracy:
 

So the attach the main staysail to its stay and its wrinkles. Spectacular!

Well, I don't like them too, to be honest. And the plan is to put my Cutty Sark in water, with a moderate rough sea. It will happen only later on, once and if the ship will be completed, and I will do that only if I'll be able to create a good enough sea, but I will surely try, this is my goal. 

 

On 11/4/2022 at 12:15 AM, shipman said:

 

You've demonstrated what can be achieved through determination and skill, without needing to resort to such techniques like this new fangled resin printed wot-not. (Apologies, Kevin). Plane, honest old school modelling.

 

 

And yes, again, I was looking for this old fashion experience, without high-tech solution. For me, it's all about the journey, not the destination, and for this old lady I feel appropriate to use old school techniques. 

 

But, to be fair, I also enjoy 3d printing and this is the demonstration:

 

 

 

Yes, to overcome the boredom of yards making, I started another love affair with an Italian steam locomotive.

This time it is not a small one, but one of the biggest and most powerful built in Italy, the mighty Gr 746, 87 times smaller than the original (H0 scale).

It's made by more than 200 parts, all of them 3d printed.

I have modelled all from scratch in blender, and printed at home with my trusted Elegoo Mars 2. I hope you like her! 

Well, it's not sea worthy, but I hope you like her too! 

 

Thanks again! 

Edited November 5, 2022 by Bruma

[Kevin-the-lubber]

5 hours ago, Bruma said:

I have modelled all from scratch in blender, and printed at home with my trusted Elegoo Mars 2. I hope you like her! 

You know for sure that I like her! That's very impressive. Are you working from plans or just pictures? Over the last couple of months I've found myself looking with more and more interest at planes, trains and other types of models but have resisted as I know there is a danger of losing interest in Cutty Sark. I would still like to know of a really great model in terms of detail and quality, that I could build straight out of the box and complete in 2 or 3 weeks.