HMS Terror by HakeZou - OcCre - 1:75

[HakeZou]

Keith, one of my observations about OcCre is that you'll get a nice model if you make the kit exactly following the instructions. But they're generous with the materials, so there's a lot of opportunity to upscale these kits. I think they've managed to hit a nice spot in the market that balances accessibility and an encouragement to be more creative/artistic. As for the skylights...I'm not sure how much I'll do with them. There's still a little bit of time before I actually finish them, though.

 

In the meantime, the Amati chain plates arrived the other day and I really love them! There's some assembly required, but once I'd done a couple of them, I had them figured out pretty well. I ordered a mix of chain plates with and without 5mm walnut deadeyes. They're a piece of cake to assemble with the 5mm deadeyes. I'm also adapting some of them for 3mm deadeyes, which has taken quite a bit more work, though I think I'm starting to get a handle on those, too.

 

I've already installed all of the lower deadeyes on the port side. Just 35 more to go on the starboard side!

I've decided to only secure them at the bottom, so they are flopping around just a bit right now. Once the shrouds and backstays are installed, I think this will help them align better with those ropes.

 

Next steps: Finish the lower deadeyes; finish mounting cleats and pinrails on the sides; then begin installing the deck fittings.

[HakeZou]

The holiday weekend here has been a productive one! I've been alternating between working outside in the yard and working in the shipyard. I'll spend most of tomorrow tending some barbecue, so tonight is a good point for an update.

 

I've finished installing all of the lower deadeyes. I also built the pin rails and installed cleats for various anchor points. For the pin rails, I replaced the ones in the kit with some 5mm brass pins from Model Shipways. They look great, but have been a pain to work with since they're so small! So far, I've only lost two of them in the carpet... The cleats are from Falconet and are made out of some kind of wood. They don't look impressive in the packaging, but they're laser cut on all sides and once you remove all of the scrap, they look fantastic. The laser burns give them a rich dark brown color so no paint is necessary. Photos are of the starboard side in the forecastle and then at midships. (Ugh...the extreme close-ups feel pretty rough tonight! This build definitely has me working at the upper limit of my skills.)

I've also been working on the heavy bitts on the quarterdeck bulwarks (I guess they're bitts? I'm not totally sure of their function...). Two of those bitts are installed and two still need to be sanded down. I got on a bit of a roll, so went ahead and installed everything behind the mizzen mast (except for the davits, which I haven't built yet). Unfortunately, as I was posting these photos I noticed that the rope had caught on one of the wheel's handles! I'll have to fix that in my next work session.

Next steps: finish the other two heavy davits on the quarterdeck bulwarks; clean up a couple messes behind the mizzen mast; finish assembling the deck fittings at midships.

[clearway]

wow coming along there Hake- word of caution though, the ropes from the helm lead to blocks underneath the barrel for the steering rope then to the blocks in the bulwarks then to the tiller.

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Thanks, Keith! That makes sense. Thankfully, I had to redo the steering rope anyways, since there was way too much slack once I slid it off of the wheel handle. 

[clearway]

You are welcome- now would be a good time to use the Occre instructions to light the fire😁

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

A bit more progress this weekend, after a busy couple of weeks as my summer course began. I started by fixing things around the wheels and tiller. After removing the original tiller rope and wheels, I installed eyebolts with the missing blocks. Then, the wheels went back into place and I carefully re-ran the tiller rope. Things are looking much better there, though I didn't think to snap a picture. 

 

My other project this weekend has been the table for the azimuth compass. For this, I started by reviewing some of the solutions in the other logs (especially the lengthy discussion on Keith's), the RMG plans, and the plans in Betts's book. I think my understanding and interpretation might be somewhat different than at least some other folks. First, when I measured the height of the table in Betts's plans, I noticed that he had it at only about 2 feet tall, somewhat shorter than the skylight that abuts it. That's clearly too low to be useful as any kind of working table (for navigation, charts, etc.). So, I'm understanding it as a platform on which they might have stood while consulting the azimuth compass. The post seems to rise only another four feet above the 4-foot-by-4-four platform, which I think probably supports my interpretation—especially if Craig (iMustBeCrazy) was right in suggesting that the azimuth compass was in a box that slid over the top of the post (post #549 here), which would add a bit more height and bring the compass closer to face-level.

 

In building the table, I started by making the legs, using my drill as a lathe. This is still a new and developing skill for me, so some turned out better than others. The first photo shows the drill, files, and digital calipers that I relied on for this. The second photo zooms in on three of the legs in the various steps of my process: pencil markings measured out, filed down and shaped, and finally removed from the stub that was in the drill's chuck.

Next I worked on the table top. I still have a bit of 1x10mm sapele, which seemed like the best choice for the job. I cut two 16mm lengths, then trimmed them down to size with the posthole in the middle (first photo). Then I set the post up in a clothespin so I could fine tune the posthole (second photo); note that the table top wasn't at the right height here, just at a convenient height. In the second photo, you can also see that I shaped the post in a similar fashion to what Betts's and the RMG plans seem to show—which is to say that it is square at the top and bottom and that there is a more rounded portion in the middle. I whittled that portion into an octagon.

After I was satisfied with the posthole in the table top, I worked on the base of the post. I cut four pieces that I could assemble with mitre joints. Shown here with the carpenter's square that I used to keep the pieces in position during dry fitting and assembly.

Once all of the pieces were prepared, it was time for assembly! I added two cross pieces under the table top to hold the two halves together. There's still a little bit of clean up to do, but I need to wait for the glue to dry first.

Next steps: The key remaining deck fittings are the capstan and the assembly of bitts, pin rail, and Massey's pumps. 

 

 

[clearway]

coming along nicely hake- oh to have figured out the compass post and ice bridge before i had nearly finished the model!!

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Wow, two weeks have passed already since my last post! Things have been pretty busy at the office and in the yard, so I've had less time to work on the Terror. However, over the last week or so, I've been plugging away on the last two large items for the deck fittings: the capstan and the assembly around the main mast (Massey's pumps/pin rail/bitts). Both of this have required some time doing research to make sure I understood what I was going after.

 

For the capstan, I doctored up the piece provided by OcCre. I added a larger disc on the bottom to serve as the upper gear frame; you can't see it in this photo, but I carved a track into that and will eventually add some brass pieces there to serve as pawls. I shaped four short pieces of 2x4mm limewood to function as the whelps. Finally, I added four lengths of chain to create the illusion of the drop bolt chains.

The assembly around the main mast involved more upgrading from the kit. One decision led to the next and so I ended up scratch building my own based on Betts's plans. At this point, I have finished the pieces that run forward and aft; I haven't yet started on the pieces running athwartships, the pin rail and the jeer bitt warp ends. The forward bitts are simply lengths of 4x4mm sapele. The after bitts are made from several 4x4mm pieces of sapele, along with a transverse piece made from 2x4mm sapele. The cylinders are 4mm dowels with a brass tube for a spout and a channel drilled for the pistons. The piston rods are each fashioned from two eyebolts, one that runs up and down through the channel and one that connects to the camshaft. At both ends, I bent eyebolts to serve as the crank handles, and at the forward end I fashioned flywheels out of two different sized brass wires. There are only two spokes on each flywheel since I made an absolute mess of them when I tried to install more!

 

Next steps: Finish the assembly around the main mast, finish the capstan, and then begin installing the forward and midships deck fittings.

[HakeZou]

Thanks for the likes and look-ins! Some good progress to report on this dark and stormy night—I've installed the midships deck fittings!

 

I'm mostly happy with how things turned out, especially given how much my skills were challenged on the Massey's pumps. However, something seems pretty far off about the spacing between the main and mizzen masts. OcCre just doesn't seem to have given us enough space there! So, the spacing around the capstan, especially, is pretty tight. Hopefully, when everything's finished, this part of the ship will be busy enough that it's easy to forgive the imperfections. 

 

Next steps: Install the eyebolts for the anchor chains, then install the deck fittings around the foremast.

[HakeZou]

I'm going to be wrapping up a major project over the next couple of months, so am about to set aside my Terror. But before doing so, I wanted to have all of the deck fittings done. Tonight, I had some time available and I'm very pleased to say that I got that wrapped up! So, a few glamour shots to celebrate reaching this stage. First an overhead shot of the deck:

  Next, a set of shots with the masts, bowsprit, and whaleboat in place.

I look forward to catching up with everybody in September or October!

[clearway]

That is an ideal stage to pause the build Hake- she is really coming along now.

 

Keith

[BobG]

She's really looking great, Hake!

[HakeZou]

This weekend, I submitted the manuscript for my current book project, which meant I could finally allow myself to spend time with the Terror again! I have several tasks ahead of me before I get to the rigging. I will need to build the davits and the ice bridge; build the catheads, boomkins, etc.; build the bowsprit; and build the three masts. My plan is to work, generally, forward to aft, so I started off this weekend with the bowsprit. There's still some clean-up to do before painting, but at least the key components are installed. Key here were installing cleats (for the collars), bees, and bee blocks. The blocks and cleats are a bit generously sized, but I'll sand them down soon.

 

Although OcCre's plans only call for the bowsprit and jib boom, it seems like the Terror must have also had a flying jib-boom (based on Biddlecombe, Lees, and the drawings in Betts's book). So, I've built all three pieces; they haven't been fully assembled yet, so I have a couple clothes pins holding everything in place for the photos. Two notes: the bowsprit cap is at the wrong angle because of the clothes pin and I'm holding off on the dolphin striker for the moment.

 

Next steps: clean up the bowsprit, paint it, then assemble all components of it. 

[clearway]

Welcome back Hake- somewhere in my log somewhere are details of the jib boom and dolphin striker- unfortunately i didn't realise til too late she needed the flying jib boom but it will be included in my Erebus- be careful as the design of the bees battens changed and would have been altered to the 1840s  pattern when they rebuilt her bulwarks and altered the position/angle of the bowsprit.

 

Ahhh takes me back to the fun we two keiths had 😁

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

A short update covering some of the patient work over the last week. First, the bowsprit is done for now, meaning that I cleaned it up and painted it. I'll worry about preparing the rigging (collars, thimbles, deadeyes, etc.) later, once I'm closer to actually installing it. For the time being, the flying jibboom is hanging out in the storage area for spare spars. (The pieces on the deck under the boat rack are the knees for the cathead davits. Just leaving them there so that I don't lose them!)

I've also started some work on the lower foremast and its top. While I had cut and shaped all of the lower masts a while back, I hadn't actually done anything else for them. I have a new miniplane and, after spending quite a bit of time on the whetstone, I finally got to put it to use while carving down the mast in preparation for installing the cheeks. At this point, the foremast cheeks have been installed, but they haven't yet been shaped. For the mast tops, I'm following the plans for the period 1815–1833 in Lees's Masting and Rigging book. So far, I've planked the tops, added the upper crosstrees, and installed faux iron plates for the futtock shrouds. (These plates are actually .6x3 strips of wood painted with a matte black (metal) paint.) The next step will be installing the battens.

Next steps: finish the mast tops, finish the lower fore mast, start work on the lower main and mizzen masts.

[HakeZou]

Some slow but significant progress these last four evenings. I've finished the mast tops! OcCre calls for bare plywood tops, with lining around the outside. I opted instead to go with something more like what Lees identifies as a typical English top between 1815 and 1833. It's hard to tell in the photo, but these also match the contour in Lees's plans. The "iron" plates rise up .6mm above the planks, the battens rise up another .6mm, and the outer lining rises up another .8mm or so.

I'm very pleased with how these turned out, but it's been a struggle this week. I couldn't even guess how many times a batten popped off while I was sanding/filing down their ends. I ended up having better luck with CA glue, but the routine was still to work on one until a batten popped off, reglue the batten, work on a different one while the glue set, etc. In addition, I had a terrible time bending planks for the forward lining. After breaking a couple, I decided to just laminate three strips of .6x5mm planks. It was the first time I had laminated anything, so I made a real mess of it, but I did manage to clean everything up pretty nicely.

 

Just for fun, I also dry fit the fore mast top and its crosstrees. I haven't finished shaping the cheeks, so the hounds aren't there yet. As a result, some of the angles are pretty wonky. But it's still very satisfying to see this!

Next steps: Finish shaping the foremast, start work on the lower main and mizzen masts.

[clearway]

Don't forget Hake - no top on the mizzen mast just the cross trees and trestle trees but nice work on the tops.

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

11 hours ago, clearway said:

Don't forget Hake - no top on the mizzen mast just the cross trees and trestle trees but nice work on the tops.

 

Keith

Thanks, Keith! I had missed that in Betts's plans. I don't see anything in the Lees book to suggest that this was a norm (though it's definitely possible I've missed something!). Any idea why the mizzen mast wouldn't have had a top? 

 

I'll have to rethink the mizzen cross trees/trestle trees a bit. The parts from OcCre just don't make sense if there isn't a top!

[clearway]

18 minutes ago, HakeZou said:

Any idea why the mizzen mast wouldn't have had a top

looking at the model of her as built in the topsham museum she didn't have one from the start- but very common on ships (especially merchant sail)- HMS Beagle had the same set up- i suppose with no other masts up there and only the one sail (i think Matthews plans are wrong to have a mizzen topgallant mast) you didn't need a platform for the yard crews to pass?

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Storms last night and today meant that I couldn't do yardwork, so I spent a lot of time with my Terror over the past 24 hours. Tomorrow will be filled with other projects, so I'll post a weekend update now. The masts are really starting to come together. The cheeks are installed on the main and mizzen masts. The new mini-plane made very quick work of shaping them, too! I've shaped the bottom ends of the three top masts and have filed out the holes in the caps. So, I can dry-fit them and have a better sense of where I'm heading. I've also made some good progress with painting. (Note: everything on the main mast is very loose, so there are some funky angles in these photos.)

One of the simplifications I'm making is with the iron bands and hoops on the masts—I'm just painting them on, which I think will be fine once it's fully rigged. The spacing is the width of my painter's tape, so there are significantly fewer of them than there would have been on the real ship. I'm starting to put together another order of various things, including some various widths of painter's tape.

 

There is still more work to do on the lower masts. Obviously a bit more painting on the main and mizzen masts. I will also add rubbing paunches on the forward sides of the masts. The hounds are all set at this point, but off to the side; they won't be installed until I am ready to actually assemble everything. 

 

Next steps: Finish the lower masts, prepare the caps, finish shaping the top masts.

[clearway]

6 hours ago, HakeZou said:

Storms last night and today meant that I couldn't do yardwork

Nice work on modifying the mizzen top Hake- if everything stays together without glue the gluing will only make it stronger.

 

Regards the weather we are catching the back end of the two hurricanes in the Atlantic now with rain followed by rain and wind followed by rain ..........

 

sods law last weekend when we had nice weather the builders merchant didn't have the mineral felt capping sheet in stock for my mother in laws shed (base layer is already nailed on though) - i said to her it will be in stock this weekend because the weather is rubbish and sure enough!

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

It's been a busy few weeks here, so I haven't spent much time in the shipyard. But this weekend, I finally got a bit of time to relax with my Terror! I I've mostly finished up the lower masts now—just need to add the rubbing paunches. I've been debating whether to add the trysail masts to the fore and main masts...not sure what I'll do about that yet, though it will probably come down to a question of whether I have enough materials in my stock piles.

 

The main focus of this weekend's work was the fore top mast. I've already done the shaping work on the mast. As I was test-fitting the mast's cap, I starting looking at the mast's top. I was pretty dissatisfied with the pre-cut trestletrees from OcCre, which seemed too small. In particular, the gaps between the crosstrees seemed much too narrow for the top mast and top gallant mast. So, I dug into the Lees book and scratch-built a top based on his plans for the period 1815–1835. My full-scale sketch was nothing fancy and didn't include the curved ends. In the end, I opted to shape the longer crosstrees from 2x5mm planks, rather than bending 2x2mm planks.

After a bit of shaping and trimming, I had everything I needed. Not perfectly consistent, but I'll probably call this good enough, since they'll be well-hidden by sails and ropes. (Note: The holes in ends of the longer pieces are for the top gallant shrouds.) 

Just for fun, I even did a test fit with the top mast mounted in place. Once the glue is set, I have some more sanding to do, in addition to adding bolsters for the shrouds.

Next steps: Finish cleaning up the fore top mast top, then paint it; finish and paint the fore top mast; get to work on the main and mizzen top masts.

[HakeZou]

About a week ago, I realized I had a problem. I was doing a bit of planning ahead, thinking about the boat davits and the ice bridge, when I realized I had been too generous with the spacing of the quarterdeck pinrails and the cleats for the main braces and sheets (in the red square in the first photo. I had left myself without any room for the davits that provide support for the afterside of the ice bridge. Unfortunately, I had installed all of these with CA glue! However, with a bit of acetone and a bit of experimentation to find the right tool for the job, I managed to remove them. After a bit of clean-up, I'm grateful that the damage ended up being minimal. In the coming days, I'll re-install the pinrails and cleats, but for now I'm letting the paint set.

In better news, I'm making some good progress on the fore and main masts. I've now installed the rubbing paunches on the lower masts, shaped the fore top mast, mostly finished shaping the main top mast, and have done some test fits with the top mast caps and the top gallants. I made the rubbing paunches out of decking planks and painted them black. The walnut piece at the top of the main top mast is the result of an accident. While shaping that mast's head, I inadvertently thinned it too much, then snapped it off while working on the hounds. Thankfully, it was a clean break and I had a piece of walnut in my stock pile that was exactly the size I wanted. So, I cut it to length, built the hounds, and then attached it to the rest of mast, embedding some 1mm brass wire in the joint to strengthen it. 

The biggest project for tonight was the work on the top mast hounds. Following the plans in the Lees book, I made them octagonal. For the process: after shaping the mast heads, I installed two pieces of 2x5mm wood on the port and starboard sides of each top mast. Once those were set, I sanded them down to be even on the fore and aft sides. Then, I installed two more pieces of 2x5mm wood each on the fore and aft sides of the top masts. Once those were set, I sanded them down into a square block. After that, I tapered the block using my Dremel and sanding sticks, then I tapered the corners to make them octagonal. On the fore top mast, the cross- and trestletrees are sitting perfectly on the hounds (still need to build those for the main top mast).

 

Next steps: craft the main top mast's cross- and trestletrees; finish the main and mizzen top masts; paint the top masts.

[clearway]

nice save with the pinrails- the topmast crosstrees look good.

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Thanks, everybody, for looking in and leaving your likes. We had a sudden turn for cold, rainy weather last week, which meant lots of time in the ship yard. Tonight, I finished up the principal construction phase on the masts and bowsprit! To mark the occasion, a few glamour shots. First, the overall view. I haven't actually glued the mast pieces together yet, they're just dry-fit. Everything on the fore and mizzen masts fits very snugly, so they're looking great. There are three loose joints on the main mast, so some of the angles there are still a bit wonky.

Next up, a couple closer shots of the masts. Since my last update, I've added aft railings to the fore and main lower mast tops. I did a bit of a cheat with the brass bindings on the mast caps—rather than doing the metal work, I just painted them on with brass paint. The painted effect works so well in person that my wife thought the bindings were actually metal! The overhead shot gives a better view of the top mast trestle- and crosstrees. The second set I made (on the main) definitely turned out better than the first. The royals/stump poles are shaped from the same pieces of wood as the top gallants, and I used OcCre's beads and a nail to form the trucks on top.

Finally, I've attached the flying jib boom to the bowsprit and jib boom. I need a bit of touch-up paint here, since I scratched the paint while tying the faux iron bands in place. A bit hard to tell, but the flying jib boom is set off at a 45º angle, rather than sitting directly on top of the jib boom. Since there's still plenty of rigging hardware to add, I haven't actually installed the bowsprit assembly into the deck; I'm holding off on that for a bit yet.

Next steps: Time to get to work on the various davits and other projections from the hull.

[HakeZou]

Thanks for continuing to look in and leave likes, everybody! With tonight's post, I could use a bit of feedback. 

 

I've started working on the boat davits. The posts are easy enough, since they're just made from 4x4mm planks cut to length. But I'm having a little bit of trouble visualizing the arms. My goal is to do the curved arms, as some others have discussed and done. My plan is to laminate thin planks together to make the arms. But I'm not feeling very confident about the size and the curve. Any thoughts on how this mock-up looks in the photos? Note that the pin of the sheaves will be 5mm in from the end of the arm.

Height-wise, it would seem that the peak of the arms need to be slightly lower than the top of the posts, so I tried to hold the arm at that position. Distance outboard would seem to be dictated by the size of the boats and the position of the shrouds; I measured that using one of the cutters that came with the kit.

 

Do the proportions look okay here? Thanks in advance for your advice!

[clearway]

i would make the bottom of the davit where the top of your thumb is, and maybe shorten the top piece a little- maybe trial fit one and look at the plans then the model from same angle. Keith s, and myself had to guestimate ours in the dark days of no updated plans!

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Uff da, what a month. I've been traveling and work's been rather chaotic. At least we're finally down to the end of the semester! I'm looking forward to getting a bit more time in the shipyard in the coming weeks. I've managed to get a bit of work done recently, focusing on the boat davits and on the boats. 

 

First, the davits. I've ordered some brass strips that I'll use to make the brackets for the outboard arms. In the meantime, I've been laminating planks to shape the davit arms. 3 piles of planks, 4 that have been laminated, and 1 that's been rough shaped (sitting on my hand-drawn template). Lots of clean-up to do, but making progress on this first step.  

Next the boats. I decided to go ahead and use the three boats that come in the kit, but have supplemented those with six lifeboat kits from Model Shipways. The hull shapes of the boats aren't necessarily accurate, but they're all more-or-less the right length. So far, I've prepared the 30' galley (120mm, from OcCre), both 24' cutters (100mm, from OcCre), the 12' dinghy (48mm). The dinghy is one of the Model Shipways kits, made in bread-and-butter style; pretty easy to assemble. The 30' pinnace (120mm) is coming together nicely. Thus far, I've installed the sheer strake and the three below it; I've also installed the garboard strake and am currently using clothes pins to shape the next strake above the keel. This is another Model Shipways kit, made in plank-on-frame style. The materials are fine and the instructions are mostly great; the price is hard to beat, making them a good value in my opinion. My one criticism is that the same set of instructions are included for all lifeboat kits, regardless of size. Whenever dimensions and lengths are mentioned in the instructions, they seem to be appropriate for the 135mm model. So, I'm getting the hang of it, but there's been a bit of a learning curve; I started off working with the 88mm model and mangled it so badly that I will have to buy a replacement kit.  

Next steps: finish the outboard arms of the boat davits, get to work on the inboard supports for the boat davits, finish up the 30' pinnace.

[clearway]

Welcome back Hake- been away from my shipyard as well while i try and get my outdoor workshop sorted (lining out the insides now)

 

Keith

[HakeZou]

Thanks, Keith! Always good to hear from you and I hope your winter is starting off gentle and mild.

 

I've been making some slow-and-steady progress over the last week. Two key developments: I've nearly finished the 30' pinnace and I've installed the first of the inboard supports for the boat davits. I've set aside the outboard arms of the davits for the moment, since I'm still waiting on the brass pieces that I'm going to use as mounting brackets.

 

First up, the pinnace, on which the rail and bow platform still have wet paint. I mostly followed the instructions from Model Shipway, but with three key changes. I added sole boards to the bottom. I was surprised that these weren't included in the instructions, since they seemed to be there in the final photo. In addition, by the time I finished planking the hull, the keel was no longer visible, so I added a 2x2mm plank as the keel. Finally, since the measurements in the plans are for a larger version of this kit, I ended up notching the corners of the thwarts and fit them onto the ribs, so that they would have even spacing. I still need to finish painting the hull, but after that, this boat should be done. (Note: While the paint dries, I have it sitting on the boat rack on deck. I'm currently planning to put the 30' galley in this position, with the pinnace hanging off the stern davits. All of that is still up in the air though.) 

Next, I've been working on the inboard supports for the boat davits. I'm following Betts's plans and the plans at the Maritime Museum in Greenwich. I've shaped all of the posts and drilled out the sheave holes. As I assemble the other seven, I'll attach to each one a cleat, a block that sits on the rail, and a mounting bracket.

Next steps: Finish painting the pinnace; finish assembling and installing the inboard supports for the boat davits; finish preparing the outboard arms of the boat davits. After that, I'll start work on the boat rack and ice bridge.