HMS Victory by Bill97 - FINISHED - Heller - 1/100 - PLASTIC

[Ian_Grant]

Bill, since we're trading woodworking tales, here are a few pics of my my last project:

 

Chess table from cherry and maple. I'd been meaning for years to build one for a nice chess set I bought in Bavaria years ago but finally decided to do it when we re-did our family room. Also tiled over the old exposed bricks around the fireplace and installed new doors, and laid down vinyl interlock tile.

The chess men came in a box, cradled in two layers in red velvet compartments. I sized the drawers to re-use these nice pieces. The drawers are stacked and open on opposite sides. It can't be seen but the corners are dovetailed using a router and jig. They use soft-close Tandem Plus slides ($$) which mount along the bottom, out of sight.

Here are the slides during construction.

The very fine trim around the bottom edge would have been wrecked by my 18ga nailer so it was a perfect excuse to buy myself a new pin nailer. What a great little tool - I didn't even fill its holes they're so small. The inlay around the playing field is banding from Lee Valley.

I fell in love with this 12th century chess set when I saw it. Very viking-looking and I love the expressions on the faces. It's a replica of the "Isle of Lewis" set which was found on a beach where they had been buried. I've seen the originals in the British Museum.

Edited October 25, 2022 by Ian_Grant

[Hubac's Historian]

Very stately and elegant in her new home.  A magnificent ship, and a Victory lap well deserved!

[Bill97]

Ian that is beautiful. Very impressive!  Did you make the legs?  Love the inlay on the top. I made a backgammon table for a client years ago using different species of wood veneer for the long narrow triangles that make up a backgammon board. We will need to share a few other project photos, even though we risk having the monitors kicking us off because our subject matter is off topic! 😊

[Bill97]

Thanks Marc. 

[Ian_Grant]

23 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Ian that is beautiful. Very impressive!  Did you make the legs?  Love the inlay on the top. I made a backgammon table for a client years ago using different species of wood veneer for the long narrow triangles that make up a backgammon board. We will need to share a few other project photos, even though we risk having the monitors kicking us off because our subject matter is off topic! 😊

Yes I made the legs. Routered the flutes too.

 

Here is the fireplace as it used to look with the old bricks. I did all the woodwork around it decades ago. Before that it was just a vertical column of bricks to the ceiling. I wanted to make this rather narrow room look wider by having the mantel span the lot, introducing a strong horizontal element. Excuse the mess.😬

 

If there's no furniture woodwork thread we could start one. I saw where one guy has his bathroom reno logged.

Edited October 25, 2022 by Ian_Grant

[Bill97]

Here is my living room with cabinets I made on each side of the slate fireplace I tiled. Our woodwork and trim is white so I painted the cabinets white as well as the TV cabinet I made. Other areas of the house include raised panel wainscoting, which was tricky and hardwood flooring I laid when I had a younger back 😊.  Also added a picture of a drawer unit and jewelry box I recently made for my wife. I don’t make nearly what I used to do. Back in the day when I was making extra money to get kids through college and nieces and nephews need wedding gifts I spent a lot of time in the wood shop. Not as much anymore. 

[Bill Morrison]

Wow!  Now I wish that I had paid attention in Shop class way back in high school!   Oh, well, life is an endless series of missed opportunities . . .

 

Bill Morrison

[Ian_Grant]

Bill you and I have much in common!  One more project that I have photos of.....this desk that I am typing at. Cherry, which has become my favourite wood. It's nice to watch the wood darken and redden over time. First four shots are when it was new. Fifth is a more recent pic of its current glorious patina. All dovetails hand cut. We really must move to a new thread..........

[Bill97]

Ian that is absolutely beautiful. I will honestly say your skill level is way above mine!  Your dovetails on the drawers are perfect. I cheat and use a dovetail router jig. 😊

[Ian_Grant]

4 hours ago, Bill97 said:

Ian that is absolutely beautiful. I will honestly say your skill level is way above mine!  Your dovetails on the drawers are perfect. I cheat and use a dovetail router jig. 😊

All you really need is an inexpensive dovetail saw, a marking guage, and a couple of freshly sharpened chisels. Nonetheless, I use a jig now too. Mine is just an economy jig; couldn't justify a Leigh jig for variable pin spacing 😢

Edited October 27, 2022 by Ian_Grant

[Bill97]

Same here Ian on economic version. 
On a ship note, what would the furled sail type description be for the two lower sails on each mast in this picture be, if this is an actual way sails would be occasionally kept?  It does not look as if clews are attached. I like this because it gives just the hint of sails without being overpowering. 
 

 

[Ian_Grant]

I think that is what is referred to as "brailed up"  i.e. not actually tightly furled. Looks like they are just leaving port and have sails ready to drop once they are clear. You don't see the clew lines when sails are hauled up to the yards because the lines are within the bundled sail. I'm having trouble picking out the sheet lines - they should be entering the bulk of the sail somewhere midway along the bottom on their way to where the clew lines pulled the clew corners upward and inward.

 

Nice picture! Where did you find it?

Edited October 27, 2022 by Ian_Grant

[Bill97]

It was on Facebook thus morning. 

[ScottRC]

Wow Bill and Ian, your woodworking skills are very impressive.

Bill, thank you for detailing how you built your case.  I have been interested, well, actually ordered by the Admiralty and our four cats, to build a case for my Constitution or else its safety cannot be no longer guaranteed in my house.  I have pretty much the same setup in my shop as yours, just lacking some experience with cabinet joinery.  

 

What were the size of Optix sheets did you get?  

 

This was a very good build log.  

 

Scott

[Bill97]

Thanks ScottRC. You won’t need any skills in cabinet joinery if you do what I did. Only special cut is the 45 degree angles to make the top. Exactly like making a picture frame. The rest of it is just straight cuts and dados. As I mentioned I was able to use my table saw for the dados because my blade kerf is wide enough for the Optix I used. If you went with wider Optix you probably need a router table or adjust your table saw fence after your first run so you could make second run to get the dado the width you want. I went with 1/8” Optix strictly for price. In this design the thickness is irrelevant except for the math part of it (dado width, dado placement, etc.). There is no pressure on any of the panels. If you think you might set heavy objects on top once finished you should go with a thicker panel for the top per chance it might sag. The only issue with the narrower Optix is they are more flexible than the thicker. This is not an issue for the four sides but when you or attempting to put the top back on, after having it off for whatever reason, the tops of the four sides can be a bit aggravating when trying to get all four into the dado in the underside of the top. The smaller cases I have made for my other ships are not as aggravating as the monster I made for the Victory. The side panels (2) are almost 4 feet long. You can imagine how much bowing in and out they can do when you are trying to get them plus the two sides to line up in a straight line dado so the top will set on the four uprights. And you are attempting this on the bottom side of the lid. Needless to say on my Victory case a few not church words are uttered when putting the lid back on. Once the lid is back on after a few choreographed minutes it is perfect and the thickness is irrelevant. But for the savings on the thickness I can take the frustration. The smaller case I made for my Constitution is less frustrating to take lid on and off. 

[Rokket]

Thanks for the info guys. And the details about the case. Beautiful.

[Bill97]

Gooday Rokket, you are very welcome. How are things in Australia today?

[seeker5cs]

Again, the Heller instructions are best employed as a spur to make you look up the real answer in Longridge.  The best illustration of this particular area is Fig 56 on pg 95. Longridge has the mainsheet block rigged with a little bracket; there are existing photos of the block just attached to an eyebolt. Take your pick; I made a little bracket just because it seemed better than the block banging against the hull.

Forgive my lack of knowledge please. I am new to building models of this level.  I see multiple references to Longridge.  What is the complete title of this book/manual and where might I be able to get a copy?
Thank you in advance for any assistance you can give.

[Ian_Grant]

The book is "The Anatomy of Nelson's Ships" by C. Nepean Longridge.  But it sounds like you have it since you mention the mainsheet block bracket ...??

[Bill97]

Had to get my finished HMS Victory out of the case and do a big correction. Doing this before I start my next project the OcCre Endeavour. I have no idea why I did it, but it was pointed out to me during the time I was building the Le Soleil Royal that I incorrectly rigged white ratlines on both ships. Again I have no idea why I thought that was correct when it is obviously not. I made the correction on the Soleil Royal as I continued the build. Now that is is finished I am going back to my Victory and making the same correction by carefully painting each ratline with a small brush and black Panel Line Accent Color. 
 

I must admit now that I have it out of the case I am tempted to design a diorama for it since it will be displayed with the Soleil Royal that is in a diorama. 🤔