"material" of the ships fitting, or what color do I paint it?

[kearnold]

I searched for the answer here, but I may have used the wrong nomenclature, because I only got one answer and it didn

t have the information I was looking for..  I have added the fittings to my ship, and they are all silver in color.  I have not painted them, yet.

The only other build for the same kit that I am making has them painted matt black.  I am hazarding a guess they were made from either wood, or iron, possibly steel in the late 17, early 1800's?

[thibaultron]

Any iron fittings would be painted black, on most sailing ships.

[kearnold]

was that typical of the late 17 to early 1800s?

 

[allanyed]

kearnold

What ship/year/nation?  What items are you referring to?   Many kits put in cast metal parts even if they were wood on the actual vessel so they may need to be different colors  or replaced altogether depending on the item itself.   Examples are ships wheels, anchor stocks, moldings et al.

 

Just as an FYI, you mention steel and iron.  While steel has been around for thousands of years,  in shipbuilding, steel was not replacing iron until the 1880s, at least in the UK (Source - Royal Museum Greenwich)   They  may be referring only to hull and framing construction though, not necessarily fittings.  Still, I thought you might find it  an interesting point.   

 

Allan

 

Edited October 10, 2021 by allanyed

[kearnold]

the base model is "The Scotland"  I am changing the ship up some to something from the late 1700s to the early 1800s


The metal items included are posts (supposed to be wood) supporting the belaying pin rack around the main mast. Doors, windows, etc.  There are a series of short posts with a cross bar going through it.   I think these are called bollards or bits, I am not sure though.  One ship I built had these in cast metal and the post was "wood" and the cross bar was metal. 

 

The other build of the "Scotland" I have found here has all of the deck items painted black.

Edited October 11, 2021 by kearnold

[wefalck]

Just checked on the Internet. This kit seems to have been modelled after one of Chapman's drawings. So it would be indeed mid- to late-1700s. 

 

During this period and even more so in the Baltic virtually all substantial parts on a ship('s deck) would have been made from wood and preserved with wood tar ('Stockholm tar'), giving it a light brownish colour.

 

Iron work (no steel !) would be only some forged iron bands, rings, etc. Although iron has been mined in Sweden for centuries, it was still comparatively expensive due to not very efficient mining methods and high cost of fuel (charcoal) for turning the iron-ore into metal. Cast iron was still quite rare at the time and mainly restricted to high-value parts, such as guns.

 

In the case of the kit, these metal parts, bitts for instance, then should be painted in a light wood colour and then given washes with say burnt umber in order to simulate the Stockholm tar preservation.

 

[Jaager]

Kearnold,

 

If this is not 'one-off' model and you intend to build others, you might consider using this as an opportunity to dip your toe into the scratch build world.  Replace the wooden component castings with dublicates that you fabricate using actual scale appropriate wood.  You should research the actual scantlings of the parts to be built.  The castings may be over scale to begin with. 

If you can make friends with a near by modeler who has the proper tools, The choice of wood species available to you is much greater than that available to those who fabricate hulls.  The parts that you need can come from the same stock as those turning pens since it is all small.   The choices available as 4x4 and 8x4 lumber are much fewer in number.

[kearnold]

3 hours ago, Jaager said:

Kearnold,

 

If this is not 'one-off' model and you intend to build others, you might consider using this as an opportunity to dip your toe into the scratch build world.  Replace the wooden component castings with dublicates that you fabricate using actual scale appropriate wood.  You should research the actual scantlings of the parts to be built.  The castings may be over scale to begin with. 

If you can make friends with a near by modeler who has the proper tools, The choice of wood species available to you is much greater than that available to those who fabricate hulls.  The parts that you need can come from the same stock as those turning pens since it is all small.   The choices available as 4x4 and 8x4 lumber are much fewer in number.

It is funny you mention "Scratch Build" as I am trying to figure out where to post photos of the build.  As a kit build or with the mods as a scratch build.

 

[BANYAN]

If your build is based on a kit and you are making changes (called 'kit bashing') put it in the kit builds.  I did something similar with my Endeavour to learn the skills - I based it on the AL hull, but scratch built all the furniture, masts and rigging (bashed it :)).  Not only is this a great way to improve your building skills, you end up with a far better model.  That way, as has been suggested by the other members, you can get rid of the horrid soft (White/Britannia) metal and make it more scale appropriate.

 

Apart from some model ship accessory/part suppliers, a couple of other sources to try for scaled timber (unless you have the tools/capacity to mill it yourself) are doll house suppliers and the railroad community. 

 

Good luck, and look forward to seeing your log.

 

Pat 

Edited October 13, 2021 by BANYAN

[mtaylor]

2 hours ago, kearnold said:

It is funny you mention "Scratch Build" as I am trying to figure out where to post photos of the build.  As a kit build or with the mods as a scratch build.

 

Pat is right.  The basic rule is that if the bulkheads or frames and the backbone are unmodified, that it's a bash and goes in the kit area. You can add the word "bash" to the title.

[allanyed]

I was shown a similar progression some years ago regarding the progression of a ship model builder.    It is not only the actual building, it is the access to tools and space, as well as learned skills, and the desire to do the many hours of research that help separate the categories.     And this is not meant to say one is better than the other.   A tadpole can be as beautiful to see in the pond as the frog.

Allan

 

Edited October 13, 2021 by allanyed

[wefalck]

... and the really lucky ones find a princess to turn them into a prince 😉

[kearnold]

Scotland by kearnold - Corel - late 1700s early 1800s Kit Bashed Baltic Ketch

is where I have started to add photos of the build