HMS Bellona by yvesvidal - CAF Model - 1:48

[rvchima]

Yves,

 

This looks like an amazing kit. I suppose that you need something to do while your 3-D parts are printing!

 

I had never heard of CAF models but a quick search turned up their copyright infringement issues. I'm glad that they got it sorted out. Are you concerned that they might disappear before you get all five sessions?

 

Rod

[yvesvidal]

13 hours ago, rvchima said:

Yves,

 

This looks like an amazing kit. I suppose that you need something to do while your 3-D parts are printing!

 

I had never heard of CAF models but a quick search turned up their copyright infringement issues. I'm glad that they got it sorted out. Are you concerned that they might disappear before you get all five sessions?

 

Rod

 

Rod,

 

I think they are a very solid company and I am in constant contact with Tom (CAF Model) who is very responsive. They had some issues with ANCRE regarding one specific model (le Chebec) but overall, their kits are great. I have ordered Session #2, as I am closing on Session #1. Once I feel more confident about the hull (and Session #2 should help tremendously), I will purchase Session #3, #4, Copper tiles and #5 in one swoop.

 

Yves

[yvesvidal]

A quick update on the Session #1: I have finally built Bulkhead #10, which was giving me some headaches, because of its discrepancy with the plan.

 

 

 

All Bulkheads are in place.

 

I started installing the stringers. There are three sets of them: 

 

 

 

The hull is very stiff and solid without them, but now it seems indestructible.

 

All the futtocks and cross-members parts have been installed: 

 

 

 

I started sanding the PORT side (above).

 

 

 

 

 

The pictures above give you a sense of what it could have been during the construction of these massive vessels.

 

Below, you can see how large the hull is, even though the stern has not been built yet. Most likely I will build it when I am done sanding the hull. It is far too fragile to withstand that heavy hull and I need to keep it vertical for sanding it. The pictures may give you a feeling that the hull is not straight, but it is just an optical illusion. Between the Spine and Stringers, that hull is not going anywhere.

 

 

Finally, a view of the plan showing the intricacies of the futtocks and cross-parts, defining the gun ports.

 

 

I still have to build the stem and the stern. That will be done after some rough sanding to smooth the hull. Session #2 introduces a "shell" technique that will cover the futtocks and smooth the overall upper section of the hull. The shell parts are pre-cut with all the gun ports in place. On top of the overall shell, very fine planking is being installed.

 

The bottom part of the hull is still planked in the traditional way. 

 

Yves

 

 

Edited September 28, 2021 by yvesvidal

[Brucealanevans]

What a big boy! I am in awe of this build. Will follow with interest. 

[yvesvidal]

All the stringers have been inserted. Some persuasion was necessary at times....

 

 

 

 

Yes, the wood block was used to persuade.....

 

Yves

Edited September 28, 2021 by yvesvidal

[amateur]

Hi Yves,

 That looks like a serious project....

 

one question: the model is fromCAF, but the unboxing video you show is labelled ZHL. I always understood that ZHL is sometimes selling rip-offs, while CAF is not. Do you know how it is in the case of Bellona?

 

Jan

 

 

[Chuck]

CAF is OK but ZHL is not.  I have deleted the video because it had all kinds of ZHL advertising.   It should not have been posted.  

 

Tom stopped making this model for a while.     There were issues with the design and bulkheads not fitting properly, etc.   Again I suggest you contact Tom for details directly.  But it looks like he is offering it again so I can assume he has fixed all of the issues with the design.    

 

Chuck

[yvesvidal]

1 hour ago, amateur said:

Hi Yves,

 That looks like a serious project....

one question: the model is from CAF, but the unboxing video you show is labelled ZHL. I always understood that ZHL is sometimes selling rip-offs, while CAF is not. Do you know how it is in the case of Bellona?

Jan

 

Jan, yes the model is from CAF and has nothing to do with ZHL. ZHL may have been reselling CAF models at one point or another and that is when the video was done. In the video (now deleted by Chuck...), ZHL insists in showing that the model is made by CAF. They point to it, at every opportunity possible.

 

So far, I have had a couple of issues with the plan/blueprint versus the parts, not  matching. However, from a part perspective, everything fits very well and I have concluded that it is the plan which is erroneous.

 

The interesting part and rarely documented thing, is that there was some Chinese knock-offs made out of the Bellona kit (and perhaps others....) in 2017-18. The pirated kit apparently only covered Session #1, did not offer any plan or instructions (but a CD) and did not provide the nice cherry wood found in the original and genuine CAF Model kits.

 

Yves

Edited October 11, 2021 by yvesvidal

[yvesvidal]

So, I have been sanding a lot recently, inhaling the fine powder of cherry wood.....

 

 

As indicated, this is a massive model and quite heavy at that. The reason why the stern is not built yet, is because I am using the last bulkhead #18 for support while sanding the hull vertically. For the time being I am only sanding the futtocks, in preparation for the shells that will be glued with Session #2. The good thing with the charring is that it gives you a nice appreciation of when you have sanded enough....

 

 

The stem remains to be done and there is a lot of work there with possibly the removal of Futtocks #4 and their re-gluing.

 

 

 

The lower portion of the hull (below the water line) is left untouched for now. I will start the sanding and smoothing of it once all the shells pieces have been glued, providing a nice protection for the delicate futtocks.

 

 

Yves

[yvesvidal]

 -  SESSION #2  -

 

Before finishing Session #1  completely, I had to have parts from Session #2 and ideally from Session #3. We will get into the details later.

 

Session #2 package was ordered directly from CAF model in Shanghai, apparently. The parcel took close to two weeks to arrive and was severely damaged by water. As you may not know, a lot of China is under the water due to weather manipulations and enormous rains, and people are suffering a lot. My parcel was probably flooded in Shanghai and kept its humidity long enough to develop some mildew.... Session #2 is about $250 plus shipping.

 

 

Fortunately, the content of the kit Session #2 itself, was not damaged by the water since it was protected by a film. On the other hand, all the strips of wood for planking hull and deck soaked all the moisture they could. 

 

 

I have been trying to dry all of them in the best possible way, but a lot will have to be replaced by CAF. I have to say that their packaging was not up to their reputation and that all this disaster could have been avoided if the strips had been stored in a sealed bag. The cherry wood was prone to develop some mildew as you can see below: 

 

 

Tom, from CAF model, indicated that a new set of wood strips will be shipped to me (free of charge) when I purchase Session #3. I have to command his support and responsiveness. His willingness to help is a far departure from the total lack of responses from certain large European kits manufacturers for example.

 

Anyway, despite these "aleas" of the shipping process, Tom included for me two main guns which are no longer sold with Session #2. In the past Session #2 would provide 24 main guns that will be mounted on the Gun Deck. CAF changed their approach and all the guns are now made available in Session #5 (70 guns).

 

Let's take a look at Session #2 and what it offers.

 

 

The main deck, cut on a beautiful 2 mm plywood. Again as in Session #1, we deal with beautiful material, fresh and clean wood, perfectly cut and presented. When I compare the quality of CAF parts with for instance Constructo, I am glad that I am building a kit from CAF.

 

Documentation is again IKEA style, with not enough information.....really not enough.

 

 

 

If we could merge the Chuck Passaro Construction guides with the quality of the CAF models, I do not know a single human being who would not be constructing these kits.

 

 

 

 

And two 30 pounders main guns, finely cast in brass: 

 

 

Yves

Edited October 27, 2021 by yvesvidal

[yvesvidal]

So, without waiting and to verify the parts of Session #2, I could not help  myself and started gluing the central shell piece: 

 

 

The fitting is beautiful and the cuts are perfect. The shell pieces are cut in a 1.5 mm thick plywood, which do marry tenderly the curves of the futtocks. Once completed, this should give us a very nice and solid hull, for planking.

 

Yves

[mtaylor]

Very impressive kit and build.  And very impressive service from CAF.  I hope you've disposed of the mildewed wood as I understand the spores are not nice to have in the air for breating and also contaminate anything around them.

 

I've thought about this kit as a future project as I've wanted to build a 74 for quite some time, but the size is beyond what I would have to display it.   

[yvesvidal]

10 hours ago, mtaylor said:

I've thought about this kit as a future project as I've wanted to build a 74 for quite some time, but the size is beyond what I would have to display it.   

 

I will think about the display later on 🙂 For the time being I enjoy the building process.

 

I wish there was some kind of small Museum (open to the public) in the area, where people can display what they build. That model and others would definitely be perfect in such a place..... I have the same dilemma with my large Flower Class Corvette.....

 

Yves

Edited October 14, 2021 by yvesvidal

[mtaylor]

10 hours ago, yvesvidal said:

I wish there was some kind of small Museum (open to the public) in the area, where people can display what they build. That model and others would definitely be perfect in such a place..... I have the same dilemma with my large Flower Class Corvette.....

 

Yves

 

We had a local museum that did that then they changed to a "children's museum".  Now it's just a shell of it's former self.   I do think that many libraries will take model ships even it's just for a "temporary" display...

 

I'm going to give this more thought, perhaps when I finish my two current projects....?

[Hubac's Historian]

Wow, this looks like a truly fascinating kit.  I will gladly be following this with great interest.

[Kevin]

sorry im late to the party, im so interested to see what you make of this

[yvesvidal]

On 10/16/2021 at 5:37 AM, Kevin said:

sorry im late to the party, im so interested to see what you make of this

 

Kevin, I have been following your Enterprise kit and was seduced by what CAF is offering. The Bellona is a little simpler since it is Plank on Bulkheads and it has a reduced and simplified interior. It compensates in size, though.....

 

If I ever manage to do something decent with Bellona, I'd like to do the Chebec from CAF one day. I have always been in love with those sleek and fast ships.

 

Yves

[Kevin]

11 hours ago, yvesvidal said:

 

Kevin, I have been following your Enterprise kit and was seduced by what CAF is offering. The Bellona is a little simpler since it is Plank on Bulkheads and it has a reduced and simplified interior. It compensates in size, though.....

 

If I ever manage to do something decent with Bellona, I'd like to do the Chebec from CAF one day. I have always been in love with those sleek and fast ships.

 

Yves

to be honest, had i waited another year, i would have bought the Bellona, been waiting for a 74 gunner, but i have agreed to finish the AV then we will see

[yvesvidal]

A quick update, as I am moving on with Session #2 - Session #1 remaining unfinished for the time being (Stem and Stern).

 

Using the thin plywood (1.5 mm) provided in Session #2, the shell is build around the vessel, in preparation for the planking and the wales: 

 

 

Each plate takes about 4 to 5 hours to fully dry, using Titebond glue. The hour-glass shape of the hull requires a lot of fasteners to marry the shape of the futtocks: 

 

 

 

The overall result is rather pleasant with a very smooth hull sides. There may be a couple of places where some putty will be needed to compensate for a low spot, but overall, the precision of the cuts and quality of the wood is amazing, on such large vessel.

 

 

 

The Stem is still in waiting mode as I need to most likely deconstruct Futtocks #4 and reposition them to get a smoother flow of the hull: 

 

 

Futtock #4 is the dark frame which has not been sanded yet (see above).

 

 

You may be able to see that frame #4 is too narrow (see above). This is really my only complaint about Session #1 in this kit: the lack of guidance and proper alignment of the frames at the top of the futtocks. How will the Forecastle deck fit (session #3) if these frames are not properly spaced ?

 

Below is an overall view: 

 

 

For a change of pace, I have decided to start working on the main gun deck. It is made up of 10 large halves, built with a very nice plywood of 2 mm.

 

 

The gun deck is part of Session #2 and most of it will be entirely covered by the Upper deck, Quarter Deck and Forecastle deck on top. Planking is done for fun and there is no need to stagger the planks since nothing will be visible through the ports occupied by the muzzle of 32 pounds gun. Planking is done with Maple of 0.4 mm thick. The difference in color comes from the fact that the left planks were recently stained and the wood has not had the time to absorb the color. The ring is the base for the main mast. Around the mast will be located four bilge pumps.

 

In situ, below: 

 

 

Not much can be seen....

 

 

Yves

 

 

[VTHokiEE]

Looking very nice! I couldn't quite "see" the shape after the single plywood piece was installed previously, but wow, now that you've done a handful it really is looking beautiful.

[Kevin]

very nice, if you ever get fed up with it lol, i know a home for it😀

[mtaylor]

Interesting way to build and provide a planking surface (if I read that right) for the hull.  Looking good and smooth..

[yvesvidal]

I know I am going to shock a few members, but I started sanding the bottom of the hull with an electric sander and 60 grit paper: 

 

 

Honestly, unless you want to exhaust yourself and loose your arms, that is the only way to do it. We are dealing with very good 5 plies plywood, almost marine quality and it is quite hard to sand. This is not the basswood found in Model Shipways kit (nothing wrong with their kits, by the way).

 

After one hour on each side, I am getting a smoother hull: 

 

 

Below you can see one side almost done and the other side still untouched.

 

 

I will finish the stern by hand and more delicately. WOW, I did produce an enormous amount of dust and this is the kid of work that needs to be done outside.

 

With the hull mostly sanded and smooth, I can now address the stern which is the most exciting part on such vessels.

 

Yves

[mtaylor]

Hull framing is looking good and smooth.   Nothing wrong with a power sander in my opinion.  I've used them for my builds also.  Saves a lot of time and less exhausting.

[BobG]

3 hours ago, yvesvidal said:

Honestly, unless you want to exhaust yourself and loose your arms, that is the only way to do it. We are dealing with very good 5 plies plywood, almost marine quality and it is quite hard to sand.

 

The fairing looks great, Yves!

[Patrick Haw]

Yves,

 

I am so glad I found your Bellona build log. She looks great and you are doing a fantastic job. Your explanations of difficulties encountered and you solutions to them will be invaluable to future builders of this great model. I will be following closely and have a feeling that the CAF Bellona will be on my wish list when I get my Victory done!

 

Patrick

[yvesvidal]

Patrick,

 

Thank you for your encouragements and praises. Yes, it is not exactly an easy model and a few things have to be ironed out. The kit is evolving and CAF Model is fixing things on the fly, always improving their kits.

As a matter of fact, I am corresponding regularly with Tom (CAF Model in China) and he is helping me along the process to build this model successfully.

 

There are no Build Log of the CAF Bellona on the WEB and I feel at times, like a pioneer.

 

I am currently working on the Stern and hope to be able to present my recommendations in a few days. The instructions are a little bit weak, to say the least, and reminds me of the IKEA assembly guide for their furniture. It is simply not enough for a kit of that caliber. This is not a Vanguard kit, for certain.

 

Yves

Edited October 21, 2021 by yvesvidal

[hamilton]

I have the Corel Bellona kit, but this one looks incredible - and HUGE! Yikes! Looking forward to watching her come together here

hamilton

[Trussben]

Wow - what a monster!

[Kusawa2000]

On 10/19/2021 at 10:35 AM, yvesvidal said:

A quick update, as I am moving on with Session #2 - Session #1 remaining unfinished for the time being (Stem and Stern).

 

Using the thin plywood (1.5 mm) provided in Session #2, the shell is build around the vessel, in preparation for the planking and the wales: 

 

 

Each plate takes about 4 to 5 hours to fully dry, using Titebond glue. The hour-glass shape of the hull requires a lot of fasteners to marry the shape of the futtocks: 

 

 

 

The overall result is rather pleasant with a very smooth hull sides. There may be a couple of places where some putty will be needed to compensate for a low spot, but overall, the precision of the cuts and quality of the wood is amazing, on such large vessel.

 

 

 

The Stem is still in waiting mode as I need to most likely deconstruct Futtocks #4 and reposition them to get a smoother flow of the hull: 

 

 

Futtock #4 is the dark frame which has not been sanded yet (see above).

 

 

You may be able to see that frame #4 is too narrow (see above). This is really my only complaint about Session #1 in this kit: the lack of guidance and proper alignment of the frames at the top of the futtocks. How will the Forecastle deck fit (session #3) if these frames are not properly spaced ?

 

Below is an overall view: 

 

 

For a change of pace, I have decided to start working on the main gun deck. It is made up of 10 large halves, built with a very nice plywood of 2 mm.

 

 

The gun deck is part of Session #2 and most of it will be entirely covered by the Upper deck, Quarter Deck and Forecastle deck on top. Planking is done for fun and there is no need to stagger the planks since nothing will be visible through the ports occupied by the muzzle of 32 pounds gun. Planking is done with Maple of 0.4 mm thick. The difference in color comes from the fact that the left planks were recently stained and the wood has not had the time to absorb the color. The ring is the base for the main mast. Around the mast will be located four bilge pumps.

 

In situ, below: 

 

 

Not much can be seen....

 

 

Yves

 

 

Yves: Does that kit provide for full guns and carriages on the lower gun deck? just curious how the guns will laid out on the lower deck.

 

Mike Draper