The San Marco mosaic ship c. 1150 by Louie da fly - 1:75

[GrandpaPhil]

The hull in the background was washed with the strong tone.

The soft tone gives a much better slightly weathered look.

[Louie da fly]

Thanks, Grandpa Phil. That Quickshade is interesting stuff.

 

I've been doing more experimentation with the colour of the weathered wood and I think I've got a result I can be happy with. This time I mixed black and white enamel to duplicate the colour of the weathered timber in our garden (posts, fence palings etc). Then, when I was happy I had the colour right, I painted another sample piece and immediately rubbed it back off, and finally went over it with mineral turps on a brush and wiped again. I did the same thing with my earlier sample piece as well. Here's the result. The one in the foreground in the first photo and on the right in the second is the one I did newly from scratch, the other is the old sample piece I re-painted. Not that much difference, but I think the new one looks better, even though one plank seems to have resisted the paint somewhat. Still, maybe that makes it more interesting. 

  

Knights for the halyards.

For the foremast (which on a lateener is usually the biggest). Note that the base is angled, because the knight follows the slope of the halyard.

  

Dry fitted. I had to keep re-cutting the angle of the base till I got it right.

  

Three knights complete, one for each mast.

And then I realised that because knights basically go all the way down to the keel, the one for the mizzen was wrong - it's out on the poop with no structure beneath it except that of the deck. I'd wondered why why the ship in the pic below has a block at deck level for the mizzen halyard, not a knight. Now I know.

Unfortunately I'd already cut a slot for the mizzen knight in the poop decking, so I had to repair it.

And yes, I finally decided to removed the 'bow brace' from the stempost. As I'd cut into the stempost to locate it, I now have to restore it to shape.

  

Once the glue's dry I'll carve these pieces down flush with the stempost.

 

Steven

Edited January 8 by Louie da fly

[Glen McGuire]

Nice job on the weathering, Steven!  The last sample piece looks really good.

[Louie da fly]

I just tried weathering the windlass and the knights. Here's the original colour of the windlass:

And here it is after weathering, using the technique described above. I'm quite happy with the result. I might do a little more detail work in the weathering, so it's not all the same colour throughout.

And as I weather different things at different times there's bound to be some variation in the colour of the various parts, but I regard that as a good thing as that's probably what would happen in nature.

 

Steven

 

 

Edited January 10 by Louie da fly

[BANYAN]

Very nice work Steven, that very much looks like salt water bleached wood.  

 

cheers

 

Pat

[Ferrus Manus]

On 1/8/2024 at 2:44 PM, Louie da fly said:

even though one plank seems to have resisted the paint somewhat.

That plank was found to be suffering from dry-rot before the voyage, and was replaced, hence the cleaner appearance. 

Edited January 11 by Ferrus Manus

[Ferrus Manus]

On 1/8/2024 at 2:44 PM, Louie da fly said:

in the pic below has a block at deck level for the mizzen halyard, not a knight. Now I know.

See my Sao Paulo. I came to the same conclusion! More on that later. 

[Louie da fly]

2 hours ago, Ferrus Manus said:

That plank was found to be suffering from dry-rot before the voyage, and was replaced, hence the cleaner appearance. 

Pretty much the story I'd thought of. In fact, it's all radiata (Monterey) pine, which has clear demarcation between soft and hard growth-rings, and this one must be the hard stuff.

 

Steven

[Louie da fly]

Stempost tidied up - trimmed and re-painted after the 'bow-brace' was removed. I also used filler to get rid of the mortise where the bow-brace met the gunwale, and also to smooth off the tops of some of the bitts standing up at the gunwale and some minor gaps here and there.

 

 

 

And one last test piece for the weathering of the decks. Trouble is, with all the deck equipment in place it would be very difficult to effectively wipe off full-strength paint as I'd hoped to do, without breaking something. So I've decided to go ahead with the 'wash'of grey enamel paint I'd mixed from black and white and diluted with mineral turps, and only wipe off here and there.

 

The back and left-hand ones are the previous test piece, using full strength paint and then wiping off. The new one is at the front in one photo and to the right in the other.

Good enough, I think, to go ahead.

   

And so I've taken my courage in both hands, full speed ahead and damn the torpedoes. Here it is with the decks weathered. Compare the colour of the decks, railing etc.  with the picture above.

It actually seems to have turned out well. I'm rather pleased. I also weathered the inside surfaces of the frames where they stick up from the deck as well as a few other surfaces here and there. I'll re-visit later and do some more touch-up to make it look still more real, but for the time being I'm very happy with the way it's ended up.

 

Now on to other things. I need several more crew - I think at least half a dozen, plus the other owner, named Rustico, who also appears on the mosaics. Here he is under way. This is apricot wood from a tree in our garden that went the way of all flesh. Doesn't look much at the moment, but give it time . . .

And a couple of mariners who I'll be working on simultaneously with Rustico - the piece of wood split disastrously and I had to glue it back together before I could start, so I haven't done anything on them yet. The top one is the steersman and the other will be ascending the stairs from the owners' cabin, perhaps carrying a full chamber pot. I thought of doing the same as Woodrat on his Mediaeval round ship and putting a thunder box on the poop deck (sorry!)but decided that as this is a pretty modest ship but instead there would be just a chamber pot in the cabin that some poor matelot would have to carry up to the deck and empty over the side.

 

Steven

Edited January 15 by Louie da fly

[Louie da fly]

I've finally glued the aftercastle in place. To get it in the right spot I had to dry-fit the mizzen mast to make sure it was upright. Sliding the aftercastle sideways would have made the mast lean over.

 

And to ensure everything lined up I also dry-fitted the other masts. Yep, all in line. Unfortunately either the aftercastle is slightly out of square due to the gunwales being unequal heights or, (as I aligned the masts in relation to the stempost) the stempost itself is out of square.

I didn't notice this until I'd sighted along the line of the masts once the aftercastle was in place. And if it's that hard to see I'm not prepared to do all the work of changing it. Just put it down to experience and keep it in mind for the next build.

 

And some more pics with the masts dry-fitted and the aftercastle in place.

Progress on Signore Rustico, the co-owner.

Unless I make HIM Buono and repaint the other guy to be Rustico. We'll see.

 

And here are the halyard blocks I've just made and weathered. I may need to make one more, as one of these is rather smaller than the others.

 

 

Steven

Edited January 16 by Louie da fly

[Ian_Grant]

Wonderful work! She looks great, Steven.

[BANYAN]

Great progress Steven, a real little gem emerging.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[Glen McGuire]

10 hours ago, Louie da fly said:

Unfortunately either the aftercastle is slightly out of square due to the gunwales being unequal heights or, (as I aligned the masts in relation to the stempost) the stempost itself is out of square.

I stared at the dang picture for 5 minutes and could not see what you are talking about.  Looks really good to me.

 

Regarding your carving skills on Buono/Rustico, now I am the one that is "gobsmacked"!!  

[Mark Pearse]

Your post raised an issue of modelling accuracy - not accuracy to history but how close to square, how consistent in size & shape, etc. My boating experience is with smaller traditionally built yachts, & even boats that were built by recognised boat builders of the day have many inaccuracies. It's clear many things were set out by eye, & quickly at that. Hatches well out of square, portholes not aligning on each side of the hull..... I suppose I'm pointing out that what you described is probably more true than a high level of accuracy & consistency.

[AnchorClanker]

On 1/14/2024 at 10:31 PM, Louie da fly said:

Now on to other things. I need several more crew - I think at least half a dozen, plus the other owner, named Rustico, who also appears on the mosaics. Here he is under way. This is apricot wood from a tree in our garden that went the way of all flesh. Doesn't look much at the moment, but give it time . . .

 

Steven

Do you carve them using carving tools or using a Dremel-type tool?   What suggestions do you have for beginners in this area?

 

Keep up the good work!

 

Mark

 

[Louie da fly]

Thanks for the likes and comments. They're much appreciated.

 

Glen and Mark, it's not far out of square - it's just something I (forever picky) noticed when I tried to line everything up by eye. I think the fault lies in the slightly different heights of the two gunwales - I noticed the clearance to the deck was a little different when I was installing the belaying points for the shrouds.  I'm prepared to accept it, but I'll keep an eye out for this issue in future builds. And yes, it's probably within the bounds of precision that would have been used at the time - I've noticed some pretty bodgy work on some of the wrecks that have been uncovered in archaeology - not due to them being wrecks, but because they were built that way. But if I'm going to have a detail like that, I'd rather do it on purpose, not because I stuffed up. 

 

Chief Mark, I first saw the wood to approximate size and shape (after having first drawn the figure on one plane surface) then I use a No. 11 scalpel to take the rest of the wood off. I use both a "craft knife" with a No. 11 blade and an actual surgical scalpel, also with a No. 11 blade - the craft knife is better for removing wood, the scalpel is better for fine work - and it stays sharper longer - but it is easier to break if you twist it too far. Basically removing wood that "doesn't look like the finished figure" (sorry, that' the best description I can give you - it's done very much by eye and what looks right.) To see the full technique, refer to my dromon build here and subsequent pages.

Nowadays I try to do the face as early in the carving as possible - if that turns out wrong there's really no point in continuing with the rest of the figure and I'm better off starting again on a new one. But I have got quite a bit better on faces with experience.

 

I have tried using a dremel clone but I found the scalpel gave me better control.

 

As far as being a beginner, experience is the key. Your first attempts will probably be abysmal. Have a look at the first figure I made for the dromon (page 3 of the build log). I cringe every time I see it . But with practice you do get better. I find it very rewarding, and I'd highly recommend you have a bash at it. And don't let early failures put you off - it's really worth persisting with it.

 

Steven

 

 

Edited January 17 by Louie da fly

[AnchorClanker]

Steve,

Thank you for the suggestions and helpful hints, especially about keeping at it if the first attempts don’t turn out correctly.  Starting with the faces is good advice.  Glad I asked.  

 

I have a set of mini gouges and chisels, probably for this kind of work.  Your suggestions about a scalpel and a craft knife sounds good.  My dad left me three of this Exacto knife sets.  They should have some fine blades.  Considering the scale I am using, 1:96, a finer blade might be required.  As a couple craftsmen and craftswomen over the years have advised, if you don’t have the right tool, make it for yourself. 🤩 Finding a craft knife should be easy to find around here.  Finding a scalpel might be a little more challenging.  Hmm, I do know a couple doctors and nurses.  🤔

 

Mark

 

[Louie da fly]

Chief Mark, it's good to hear you're considering embarking on the endeavour of carving. It can be very frustrating but even more rewarding. I've carved figures at 1:200 scale, so I know it's possible. They don't have a lot of detail at that scale, but then the eye can't see all that much detail anyway. I started out at 1:50 and learnt a lot, then progressed to 1:75, which I'm using now. The 1:200 was for the Great Harry. The matchstick gives some idea of scale.

I'll never build a sailing ship in that scale again . What was I thinking?

 

Steven.

[Louie da fly]

A few other tips regarding carving. The type of wood you use has a huge effect on the ease and precision of carving - I've got good results with the wood of fruit trees - pear wood is good, but I've found the grain of apricot is finer and the results better still. I'm told English box (box) is best of all, but I've not had a chance to try it so far.

 

Also  I find it useful to make your piece of wood longer than needed so you have a 'handle' to hold it by while you work on it. Sometimes I put two figures on opposite ends of the same piece of wood, so each acts as the handle for the other.

 

Cut around the outline of the figure with a hand powered coping saw or fretsaw, making sure you leave *plenty* of room around the outline so you've got some room for error. It's easier to trim off extra than to make up for cutting off too much. I cut each side of the head as well, making sure there's *plenty* of extra wood - make the head too wide, and the shoulders much too wide, so you can trim both down to the size you want.

 

Drill holes for openings such as  between the legs, making sure you don't remove too much wood.

Working on the head, I first cut the features roughly to shape. It usually looks like Megatron at the beginning.

Then gradually remove sliver by sliver, refining the shape, defining the nose, forehead, cheeks, chin etc.

 

Then onto the body

 

Here's one figure almost to completion. Just needs a bit of tidying up.

 

 

Note. The difference in colour is from home-made wood filler (fine sawdust and white glue) because I realised I given him too little hair and beard.

 

Steven

 

 

 

Edited January 19 by Louie da fly

[Louie da fly]

A few pics I missed out from the previous post, which might help it make a bit more sense:

 

4 hours ago, Louie da fly said:

I cut each side of the head as well, making sure there's *plenty* of extra wood - make the head too wide, and the shoulders much too wide, so you can trim both down to the size you want.

 

  

And here are some more progress pics on Rustico that I hadn't included earlier - after I'd added the filler for the hair and beard but before I'd trimmed it.

  

And the first of the ordinary blocks, also carved with a No. 11 blade (the holes are 1 millimetre)

 

  

 

Steven

[Louie da fly]

Thanks everybody for all the likes.

 

Progress on the helmsman and the 'cabin boy'. Working on the faces first, so if I stuff up I'll be able to chuck the figure away without having wasted a lot of work on the body first.

  

And here's the steersman with his arms separated. 

  

The idea is that he is standing with the tiller in his hands. I had to make him before I make the hole in the rudders for the tillers so I can get their height correct.

The 'cabin boy' was originally going to be coming up the stairs from the officers' cabin carrying a full chamber pot to empty over the side, but I decided that was a little too tacky, so I'd just have him holding onto the sides of the staircase.

  

Unfortunately, my estimate of where his feet should be on the stairs and so where his legs should be was inaccurate. So I had to remove one leg and re-do it. It was either that or making him all over again, and I certainly wasn't going to do that.

  

  

Turns out I'd got the legs wrong on the steersman as well - so much for me getting cocky enough to tell other people how to carve figures. Hubris is a terrible thing . . . But at least in this case all I had to do was remove one foot and replace it with one pointing the right way. Look carefully - it's the left one. The joint was so fragile that I carved the foot to shape before I glued it in place - if I'd glued it and then shaped it, it would have come undone. A little gentle tidying up still needed, but not enough to force the joint to break.

Another inaccurate estimate - this time the cabin boy's hands. Too close together, and weirdly angled - they look like the hands of 'Clamps', the robot from Futurama

So I smothered the arms and hands with filler made from fine (powdery, in fact!) sawdust and white glue to bring them out to the right width and allow the hands to be re-carved. Still better than re-doing the whole figure. I'll post photos of the re-done hands when finished.

  

And I've done the helmsman's hands, hollowed out to take the tiller.

   

  

I'm still learning how to do hands. They're better than they were, but there's still plenty of room for improvement.

 

Steven

 

 

 

 

[BANYAN]

Doing a lot better than I ever could Steven; coming on very nicely.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[Cathead]

14 hours ago, Louie da fly said:

So I had to remove one leg and re-do it.

You didn't by chance have a career in the medical field, did you? Always love watching your carving evolve. 

[mtaylor]

Carving, to me, is one the dark arts that needs lots practice.  You seem to be mastering it very well.

[Louie da fly]

Working on it, mate. Working on it . . .

 

Steven

[Louie da fly]

Thanks everybody for the likes and the flattering comments on my carving.

 

I've also been working on the fiddly bits - blocks, bitts, knees (I can get a bit bored with carving after awhile).

 

First I've made blocks - unfortunately nobody back in 1150 bothered to show how the shrouds were tied down - they didn't start showing that till about the 14th century. I looked at those representations - some had pairs of blocks (whereas in later vessels deadeyes would have been used),

others had a single block.

All were similar shapes, oval or egg-shaped. Originally I worked out I needed about 60, but that was when I was thinking of a pair of blocks for each of the the shrouds. Then apart from the difficulty of inserting an eyebolt into a large number of such small blocks, I also decided that the earlier the ship, the simpler the rig was likely to be. So I opted for a single block per shroud.  I've so far made about 18.

I was a bit worried that I'd made them too small, but as you can see, they look just about right when in place, and the "single block" method seems to work.

Plenty more to make yet.

 

Bitts - two per mast and knight, to tie off halyards etc.

Knees to support the aftercastle, which cantilevers out quite a way at the stern and would be likely to work loose in heavy seas if it wasn't supported properly. Though not shown on the mosaics, there must have been some kind of support of this kind, and multiple knees are shown being used this way in other contemporary pictures.

 

Then I weathered everything. Not very visible in this photo, but they've just been "dulled down" a bit.

I ended up having to re-do quite a few of the knees to get them to fit properly and be consistent, and add an extra pair because they were originally too far apart. I still have to re-do the weathering on some of the replacements so they all match.

And here are the bitts fitted.

I won't be adding the knights until later - it's going to be a bit fiddly running the lanyards through the sheaves once the knights are in place and I plan to do that before I install them.

 

Steven

[liteflight]

Good knees, Steven

and blocks

and owners/crew/cabin boy

[Baker]

Great work. 

Your buildlogs are always nice to follow.

[woodrat]

This painting of the stern of Venezianos nave shows somewhat less substantial supports for the stern castle than yours but of course it doesnt project as much as yours either.

Dick

[Louie da fly]

Yes, those supports seem fairly common in contemporary pictures.

  

 

but they may not be able to support such a large cantilever, and as we have evidence of knees I'm quite happy to use them on my model.

 

Steven