French Ironclad Solferino 1861 by GrandpaPhil - FINISHED - Orel - 1/200 - CARD

[Canute]

Now that's a different rabbit hole. Van Gogh.

[GrandpaPhil]

Indeed it is.

 

You can see his madness in his work.

 

At the same time, that madness is what made it so unique.

[clearway]

lets face it everyone on here is also unhinged when you see what we put ourselves through, Vincent would probably go through the build logs and think "these guys are nuts"😁, Build coming along great by the way Phil!

 

Keith

[GrandpaPhil]

Thank you very much!

 

He very likely would call us nuts!

 

Speaking of which, I got my deadeyes so I can make real shrouds with real ratlines:

The Magentas take almost 300 of them.

[GrandpaPhil]

I finally finished my puzzle.  It took me nearly three weeks.  A typical 2000 piece puzzle takes me about 4 days.

Continuing on, I made another ladder jig a la Zu Monfeld:

 

It doesn’t look like much, but it will work most adequately.

 

Although, I probably shouldn’t have used balsa for the top strip.  Oh well, live and learn.

Time to make the boarding ladders!

 

Also, until Model Expo discontinues selling ZHL products, those deadeyes that I bought are the last Model Shipways products that I will buy.

Edited October 22, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

For future reference, balsa is a definite no-no for model jigs:

It didn’t work particularly well (it disintegrated when I took my ladder off of it).

 

And, it became a single use item.

 

But, I salvaged the ladder (still pending railings).

Edited October 22, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[clearway]

i am doing hellers 1/100 pourquoi pas and will be using 2mm and 3mm deadeyes so i can appreciate your pain there Phil- oh god they are small but at least mine doesnt have as many shrouds as yours!

 

Keith

[GrandpaPhil]

I don’t really mind the small deadeyes.

 

The tricky part is that the channels are internal!

 

I have no ideas how I’m going to rig the lanyards on the deadeyes!

 

That is going to be very much a case of make it up as I go along!

[clearway]

i use two pieces of "u" shaped brass wire glued into a piece of wood bent to the distance apart i want the deadeyes to be, then rig the shroud to the upper deadeye with the "spacer" attached to the shroud deadeye and channel deadeye- once the shroud is secured to the deadeye release and move along to next- i normally do the shrouds in pairs starboard to port (Hope all that makes sense).

 

Keith

[GrandpaPhil]

Those pieces of wire are a life saver.  I first started using them with my Prince de Neufchatel.

However, the tricky part about this particular model will be rigging the lanyards inside the bulwarks, instead of outside, like normal.

 

This is the only ship I’ve ever seen like this.

 

It will make tensioning the shrouds interesting, especially with the small deadeyes.

 

Although, it is also the only ironclad that I have ever built.  
 

So, maybe this became a thing in the latter half of the 19th century.  I will have to do more research.

Edited October 26, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

Quick note, and good news, for anyone looking at this model or any of the rest of Orel’s line, I got a newsletter from Orel’s retail website, Plastic-Model Store.

 

Orel Models got their building, with all equipment, back and will be restarting production with their full line of kits and extra detail sets in the near future.

 

Orel has a very large range of transition era ships and predreadnoughts.

 

Most are 1/200 scale!

Edited November 16, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

Thank you to everyone for dropping by, commenting and for the likes!
 

Here’s where that port side boarding ladder is at:

This model needs finished so I can finish my other two that are half built!

 

 

 

Edited November 19, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

While waiting on glue to dry, I started making eyebolts:

I need about 500 of them, between Solferino and Mercury.

[GrandpaPhil]

I started with 100 eyebolts.

I’ll make more, when I use these up.

 

These should get me through Solferino, if not, I’ll take an hour and make more.

 

They are very easy to make and cost almost nothing.

I use annealed wire from a hardware store.

 

I remade my ladder making jig twice.

 

I finally just used a piece of 1/16” balsa stock left over from a model airplane from long ago.

 

I only have one ladder left to make and I have no plans to make another 1:200 scale ship anytime soon, so it doesn’t matter if this jig gives up the ghost when I pull the ladder off it.

 

I’ll take another side on shot once this ladder is installed.

[GrandpaPhil]

I’ll make another tutorial on how I make rigging fittings using basic hand tools later on.

 

I typically make my own eyebolts, deadeyes and rigging blocks.

 

They aren’t hard to make.

 

The only reason I bought deadeyes for Solferino is because of the size of them.

Edited November 20, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

The starboard boarding ladder is installed and is awaiting railings:

Working on the catheads:

I didn’t like the paper ones, so I scratch built them.  At 1/200 scale, there’s not a lot of detail to them.

The braces for the catheads:

 

Starting miscellaneous hull fittings:

I’m almost at that point where I start at the bow, and work my way aft, crossing everything off as I go, so I don’t forget anything.

 

That is how Zu Mondfeld recommends working in his book, Historic Ship Models.

 

For those starting out in this hobby, I cannot recommend that book enough.

 

That book is how I learned this hobby even existed and made me want to build model ships, nearly 30 years ago.

 

Starting forward and working aft will start after I install the catheads and finish the starboard ladder.

Edited November 23, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

I need to prep the hull for rigging when I start adding the rest of the fittings, too.

 

That will mean using the eyebolts that I just made.

[GrandpaPhil]

The boarding ladders and catheads are on:

I started the bow sprit, since I am going bow to stern, and it is sitting next to some hull fittings that need painted:

The bow sprit started out life as a bamboo kitchen skewer that I slimmed down and cut to size:

All installed fittings will be getting edge painted and sealed shortly.

Edited November 24, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[bobandlucy]

Amazing work! Between modeling and doing puzzles you'll stay sharp!

[GrandpaPhil]

Thank you very much!

 

The bow sprit is on:

The first sets of eyebolts for rigging are installed:

I still have a couple detail pieces to add to the base of the bow sprit.

[GrandpaPhil]

A lot of the detail rigging ties off to thin pieces of card.

I think with those locations, I am going to do as I did with the gunport lids and just stiffen up some string and preform them all.

 

All the stays will actually be rigged where I can, but those vertical supports are too thin to tie off to and have it look even halfway decent.

 

So, I am going to ad lib again and just do as I think best.

[GrandpaPhil]

I just ordered the gummed tape and my tissue paper (silk span) for Solferino’s sails.

[GrandpaPhil]

On the Paris model, the posts along the side of the ship are round.

I don’t really feel like making these out of card due to strength issues, so I’m making them out of steel rod, until I run out, then I’ll switch to wood.

I’ll paint them on the model, because they are very small.

 

It should be noted that many of my models turn into games of, “Let’s Make It Up As We Go Along.”

 

That’s when the models are the most fun.

Edited November 25, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

I just bought myself Victory Models Granado plan set and Amati’s Sovereign of the Seas (SOTS) plan set.

 

The Granado plans are to go with my AOTS of the same and the SOTS plans are to go with my John McKay book on the SOTS.

I will have fun with those.

 

Edited November 27, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

I’ve been working on hull fittings and prepping the ship for rigging.

 

In order to prepare the ship for rigging, I had to figure out what rigging would be real and what rigging would be for show.

 

I like real ratlines, so I anchored mounting points below the channels to secure the deadeyes to.

 

 

I put eyebolts where the stays for the bowsprit will tie off to.

I put eyebolts for the stack stays.

I put eyebolts for the gaff lifts and the mizzen boom traveler.

I put eyebolts for sheets and braces to tie off to.

I used all 100 of those eyebolts.
 

I just bought two more model ships, and I figure I should finish the four I have going before I start another one, lol.

Edited November 27, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

Today is anchor day:

I’ll do all catch up edge painting and touch up painting when I paint the anchors.

 

I’ll try to get them rigged and installed today too.

 

I might rig the stack stays too, today.

[GrandpaPhil]

4 anchors:

I made the hoop on the end of the anchors out of wire to facilitate rigging.

 

 

These are not the best I’ve ever made, but they are not the worst either.

 

This is the first time I’ve built a ship with multiple sets of anchors like this.  So, this will be a learning experience.

 

They need to dry completely, then I’ll seal them prior to installation.

[GrandpaPhil]

The stack has stays:

One side has anchors:

The second side has an anchor, but I am letting it dry for a minute before proceeding.

 

It should be noted, there will be more rigging involved with the anchors, where they are lashed to the side of the ship, but I am not quite there yet.

[GrandpaPhil]

Solferino has four anchors installed.

 

She now has standing rigging, shrouds for the bow sprit,

and, stays for the stack:

 

Here are side on and overhead views:

Next up will be the last four guns with carriages!

 

Edited November 28, 2022 by GrandpaPhil

[GrandpaPhil]

All four gun carriages:

And guns:

Installed, along with the spare masts:

That’s about it for the deck fittings.  

That’s a very momentous moment for a model ship.

Edited December 2, 2022 by GrandpaPhil