HMS Bellona by Nearshore - Corel - 1:100

[Nearshore]

2 hours ago, allanyed said:

There are hundreds of contemporary ship models on the RMG Collections site, many of which have photos in several views that might be of a little help.  One example is below of the Hercules (74) 1760.  All views of her can be found at  https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-66271

Allan

Hi Allen,

 

Thank you for the picture and link. I have already messed up my plan of plankning the first layer to match what the final planking lines will be. I am working on a fix to try and get the planks back in line where they should be. My mistake was not tappering the bow planks enough in the first band which is causing clinkers on the planks on my second band. Im going to have to put a couple drop planks in to straighten her out. I will post some pictures when I get a bit further on.

 

Nearshore

[allanyed]

Hi Nearshire,

Out of curiosity, what is the width of the planks in your kit?  The reason I ask is that the first layer of strakes (which really does not matter) looks wide in the photos.  Hopefully that is not the case on the second layer.  From Goodwin's The Construction and Fitting of English Men of War, page 50, the bottom planking was from 10" to 12" wide at the dead flat.  This would be 0.10" - 0.12" (2.54mm to 3mm) at your scale.    This will make it easier to prebend the tapered planks with heat (ala the method in the Passaro videos) compared with if they are too wide.

Allan

Edited March 18, 2023 by allanyed

[Nearshore]

17 hours ago, allanyed said:

Hi Nearshire,

Out of curiosity, what is the width of the planks in your kit?  The reason I ask is that the first layer of strakes (which really does not matter) looks wide in the photos.  Hopefully that is not the case on the second layer.  From Goodwin's The Construction and Fitting of English Men of War, page 50, the bottom planking was from 10" to 12" wide at the dead flat.  This would be 0.10" - 0.12" (2.54mm to 3mm) at your scale.    This will make it easier to prebend the tapered planks with heat (ala the method in the Passaro videos) compared with if they are too wide.

Allan

Hi Allen,

 

The planks for the first layer are 5mm x 1.5mm. Your correct in observing that the strakes are to wide. I did not follow my own measurements when tappering the stem planks. I was to taper the stem planks to 2.5mm but the taper was 3mm and me not following my own measurements threw the second band off. I guess i figured that being off .5mm was no big deal and could make it up if needed. I learned a valuable lesson that a model of this scale, presision is a must. I am trying to adjust the second band so that the 3rd and 4th band line up as they should. The second band is going to look pretty ugly, but I have a new respect for the scale of this kit. Numbers don't lie, and I will certainly trust them on the 2nd layer. As always, I appreciate your input and guidance. 

 

Nearshore

[Nearshore]

I received my copy of Anatomy Of The Ship Bellona by Brian Lavery from the postal service yesteday. I have been studying the contents and I must say, I am very humbled and honored to be building such a historical ship. The book contains a lot of information from her history, the captains and crews who sailed her to the construction and handling of the ship. I now understand why it is so important to research the information about the models we choose to build. I am becoming more attached to this build now that I have learned more about her history and construction. She was an amazing ship of her time and I can only hope to give her the attention to detail that she deserves. I appolgize if this update doesn't fit the content of my build log, I thought it would be relevant though.

 

 

Nearshore

[yvesvidal]

Excellent book to have. Absolutely indispensable for building the Bellona.

 

On my CAF Model (1/48), the planks were 3 mm thick x 8 mm wide. It took about 25 planks to cover one side of the hull (below the wales).

 

Yves

[Nearshore]

Hello all,

 

Well, a bit of an update on the Bellona. I feel that I have reached a milestone in the build. I have completed the first layer of planking and have sanded and faired the hull down to a pretty smooth surface and managed to not break the stem piece off. The first layer planking did not turn out as nice as I would have wanted, but it is still a good base to work from. I learned quite a bit in the process and hope to not repeat the same mistakes on the final planking that I did on the first. Since the beginning of this build, I have not liked the quality of the plywood that came with the kit. The false keel does not have any finishing schedule on the plans and reviewing other builds, the plywood that makes up the false keel just doesn't seem to look right in my opinion. I thought of possibly just staining the keel, but it still just doesn't seem right. I decided that I am going to laminate the false keel with a walnut laminate that I had left over from another project. I have reviewed the details of the keel that was included in the Anatomy of the Bellona, and the kit definitely did not include the detail of the original ship. I am not going to try and piece all the parts as shown in the book drawing, but to just apply a better finish. I started the dry fit of the stem pieces to see if it truly would be worth the effort and decided that it will and is a far better finish then what came with the kit. It will add about 1mm to the thickness of the keel, which will allow me to taper the stem as shown in the keel details in the book. It will also service as the bearding line by offsetting it away from the hull.  I will apply a walnut strip on the face of the keel to hide the layers of the plywood. Well that's all I got for right now, I will update the results of the keel modifications once I've installed the laminate. 

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[yvesvidal]

Beautiful hull and gorgeous scenery from your deck.

 

Yves

[Nearshore]

24 minutes ago, yvesvidal said:

Beautiful hull and gorgeous scenery from your deck.

 

Yves

Hi Yves,

Thanks for the compliment. Yes we do have a nice view here.

 

Nearshore

[Kevin]

your Bellona looks very nice indeed well done

[allanyed]

Very neat work, congratulations.  One thing you may want to consider fixing, and I realize this is a common kit situation, is to taper the knee of the head.  According to David Steel's Elements and Practice of Naval Architecture and the Shipbuilder's Repository, the knee tapered to less than 6" at the fore end on a 74 gun ship.

Sketch below gives a better picture than words, including a top view and dimensions at the fore end for your 1:100 scale (1.4mm)   With the width you have the figure head of the Roman goddess of war, Bellona, will be extremely bowlegged.😌

Allan

[Nearshore]

20 hours ago, Kevin said:

your Bellona looks very nice indeed well done

Thank you for the compliment. 

 

Nearshore

[Nearshore]

11 hours ago, allanyed said:

Very neat work, congratulations.  One thing you may want to consider fixing, and I realize this is a common kit situation, is to taper the knee of the head.  According to David Steel's Elements and Practice of Naval Architecture and the Shipbuilder's Repository, the knee tapered to less than 6" at the fore end on a 74 gun ship.

Sketch below gives a better picture than words, including a top view and dimensions at the fore end for your 1:100 scale (1.4mm)   With the width you have the figure head of the Roman goddess of war, Bellona, will be extremely bowlegged.😌

Allan

Hi Allen,

I did look at the taper in the Anatomy book. The keel is 5.5mm thick along its entire length. The laminate idea that I was going to do is not going to work. At the 1:100 scale and adding another 1mm to the keel will make it difficult if not impossible to fit the figurehead on and its accessories. Tapering the keel at this point is probably not a good idea. As always, I welcome your input and guidance, you certainly are one of the experts when it comes to historical accuracy.

 

Nearshore

[allanyed]

Thanks Nearshore.  The keel does taper as you mention, but as it is at the bottom of the ship it is not so noticeable.   I do not think it is as important as the taper of the knee of the head as on the picture above which tapers fore and aft as well as vertically.   On the downside, if you did taper the knee of the head provided, it might not look good as you would be going through layers of plywood that would then show through.  Regardless, have fun, your build is going nicely.

Allan  

 

[Nearshore]

Hello all,

 

Just a small update on the Bellona. My brilliant idea of installing a laminate on the false keel is a bust. I managed to thin the walnut stock I had down to less then .5mm so that the overall keel thickness would only be 1mm thicker. Well the keel is 5.5mm thick and the figurehead fits quite snug as it stands. I would have to file down the figure head to fit and the accessories that accompany it would also have to be modified.  At less then .5mm, the laminate was quite brittle and just kept breaking at the grain.  So, I just decided to stain the keel to try and cover up the plywood layers. It came out ok, not what I was really looking for, but it is what it is. Like my mom used to say, " You can't make a silk sow out of a pig's ear". I moved on and finished the main gun deck planking. Not a whole lot of progress to report, spent a lot of time trying to make the laminate work. LOL 

 

Nearshore

[Katsumoto]

A nice build of a beautiful ship. You are doing a great job. Love the step by step pictures of the proces. 

[allanyed]

11 hours ago, Nearshore said:

to stain the keel

I realize this is a terminology thing and I really hope you don't mind  but what you stained at the bow is not the keel. The keel (which it appears you also stained) ends at the point where it meets the stem and gripe.  The larger section at the bow is the knee of the head which is made of numerous pieces as can be seen in the drawing below. Picture and a thousand words, etc. below from Peter Goodwin's The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War, page 37.   

 

Edited April 25, 2023 by allanyed

[Nearshore]

19 hours ago, allanyed said:

I realize this is a terminology thing and I really hope you don't mind  but what you stained at the bow is not the keel. The keel (which it appears you also stained) ends at the point where it meets the stem and gripe.  The larger section at the bow is the knee of the head which is made of numerous pieces as can be seen in the drawing below. Picture and a thousand words, etc. below from Peter Goodwin's The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War, page 37.   

 

Hi Allen,

 

I must admit that my terminology is not correct, I am new to the model ship building and there is a lot to learn when it comes to using the proper terminology. I apologize for my ignorance, and I appreciate you correcting me to help me improve my build log and use the right terminology to make proper sense. It's hard enough building these models and knowing the proper terms to use will only improve my knowledge. Again, thank you for your input and all the resources that you provide.

 

Nearshore

[allanyed]

Lack of knowledge can be fixed with time for all of us so no worries and certainly no need for apologies.  Learning the terminology is like learning any language, it just takes time.  I cannot speak for others, but I still find new terms on a regular basis that make no sense to me at times, especially when reading scantlings in the Establishments or Steel's folios for example.    

Above all else, enjoy your build!!!

Edited April 25, 2023 by allanyed

[Nearshore]

I haven't updated my log in sometime. I have not had too much time lately but have managed to make some progress. I installed the bow deck planking and forecastle planking. I sanded and applied tung oil for the finish. I also sanded and applied tung oil to the main deck planking as well. I completed the hull planking up to the poop deck and installed the transom planking and transom. I traced out the gun ports in preparation of cutting them out. I blackened and polished the stern gallery photo etched parts and installed them. I made a template using tracing paper and cardboard to try and lay out the quarter galleries. I assembled the framing pieces and tapered them down to what I hope are the correct dimensions. I have been having a very difficult time trying to get them to line up properly and have removed them several times to make adjustments. I installed temporary bracing to help stabilize the small parts during the sanding process which I found to be very helpful. I sanded the parts from the hull side out so I could keep the outside contour of the shape and keep the port and starboard framing contours equal. It made it a bit easier. The instructions stated to install them to the hull first and then shape them to the proper contour. I have started shaping the taper on the gallery planking and dry fitting them. I have measured what I think the length of each section of the quarter gallery should be based on the dimensions of the photo etched parts that are to be installed on each section. There in only one scaled drawing of this detail showing this stage and so far, this part has been very challenging for me. It is taking me a lot of time and I still don't feel too confident that I have it right yet. I am trying to be patent and get this part right, it will affect how the final look of the quarter galleries will look in the end. So, this brings me up to date as to where I am on the Bellona. I think it will be sometime before I can get to the point of starting the second layer of planking. There is still quite a bit of work to be done before I can start to attempt that process. I will update the log as my progress moves forward. Thanks for reading and as always, your input and guidance is always welcome.

 

Nearshore

 

 

 

[allanyed]

Lots of progress, she is looking good! 

 

Have you looked at the posts on the reducing of the thickness of knee of the head?  It is a long string with many comments, but worth the read, especially the post by Chuck Passaro    https://modelshipworld.com/topic/34577-taper-of-the-keel-stem-knee-of-the-head-and-stern-post/

 

When you go to add the wales, note that the drawing in post #36 is not as seen on contemporary models or plans as the wales should be diminished in thickness at the bow in order to seat properly in the rabbet.   There is a good discussion on this at https://modelshipworld.com/topic/34868-wales-diminishing-thickness-at-the-bow/

 Allan

 

 

[Nearshore]

2 hours ago, allanyed said:

Lots of progress, she is looking good! 

 

Have you looked at the posts on the reducing of the thickness of knee of the head?  It is a long string with many comments, but worth the read, especially the post by Chuck Passaro    https://modelshipworld.com/topic/34577-taper-of-the-keel-stem-knee-of-the-head-and-stern-post/

 

When you go to add the wales, note that the drawing in post #36 is not as seen on contemporary models or plans as the wales should be diminished in thickness at the bow in order to seat properly in the rabbet.   There is a good discussion on this at https://modelshipworld.com/topic/34868-wales-diminishing-thickness-at-the-bow/

 Allan

 

 

Hi Allen,

 

Thank you for sharing the link on the wales thickness. I have several questions about the wales on the Bellona that i will ask on that forum. 

 

Nearshore

[Nearshore]

Well, the dog days of summer are here and have pushed me into the shipyard as it has just been to hot outside. No complaints here though. Here is an update on what I have accomplished thus far. I had a very challenging time installing the quarter galleries. I must have removed them from the hull 6 times before I felt that I had them right. There is only one drawing to scale that shows the placement of them, and it was not very clear in my opinion. I spent a lot of time on them and am pleased with the outcome so far. I have a little bit of fine tuning to do and will complete this before I start the second layer of planking. I started to layout the gun ports and found that the 2 forward starboard false gun ports were off by 2.5mm. I knew this early on but had not come up with a solution to make the adjustment. Pretty significant error on my part.  What I had to do was to cut out a section that was 2.5mm to the aft and install a new bulkhead. I used a small nail to handle the small piece and glued it in place. I then filled in the void that was left on the forward section of the false gun ports. It came out ok, you won't see the repair after the second planking is in place. I installed the inner bulwark planking and cut out the port and starboard gun ports. Well that brings me up to date on the Bellona. I will have another update as I continue to make progress. Thanks for reading and as always, your comments and guidance are welcome. 

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[Nearshore]

Hello All,

A bit of an update on the Bellona. I completed the inner bulwark planking and cut out the remaining gun ports. I trimmed the stern balcony deck to its final shape to accept the trim that will be installed later on. I cut the bearding and rabbet lines to accept the final layer of planking and applied stain to them to help conceal any flaws. I have started the second layer of planking, installing the first trim piece #56 that sets up the line for the wale planking. I installed pieces #57 and trim piece #58, which is the last of the trim above the wale. As I progressed, I realized that I need to start tapering the remaining planks starting with the first plank after trim piece #58. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize this until I already glued the first plank on. This through off the line of the planking, but fortunately I was able to recover and get it back in line. I diminished the thickness of the wale planks before the rabbet at the bow stem as suggested by Allen in an earlier post. I completed the planking down to the lower gallery and stopped at this point. I made a jig for the gun port post and assembled them all. I figured it would be easier than trying to install them in the gun port one post at a time. It worked out well as I used the preassembled port post as a guide to cut out the gun ports. It did take a lot of time getting them to fit just right but I am happy with the results. I have completed the starboard and port sides and it took me a couple weeks, only working on it a couple hours at a time. I was undecided on whether to keep the port post their natural color or paint them black. I have decided to paint them and dry fitted them to make sure they still properly fit after painting. The instructions really don’t explain the sequence of assembly very well. It appears that they tell you to cut out the gun ports after the planking has been completed. I felt that given my skill level, that if I covered them up, I would probably make a mess of things trying to locate them without having a very good reference of their exact location. Well this brings me up to date on my progress. As always, your comments and suggestions are welcomed. I will provide another update when I have completed the planking down to the wales.

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[hamilton]

Looks great!

hamilton

[Nearshore]

Hello All,

Small update on the Bellona. Before I started installing the wale strakes, I noticed that the false cannon ports were not lining up with the strakes as shown on the plans. I applied some tape to check the alignment and saw that the ports were too low by about 2mm. So, I marked them out accordingly and adjusted the openings up to where they would line up according to the plans. After I adjusted the cannon ports, I installed the planking on the stern and installed the remaining wale strakes. I only planked the stern area that was required so that the wale strakes overlapped the stern planking. After I installed the wale strakes, I cut out the cannon ports using the port post that I made earlier as a guide to achieve the proper size opening. After the cannon ports were completed, I installed the garboard strake as this helped with getting the proper measurements for the remaining strakes. I made my tick strips and measured off the space between the garboard and bottom wale strake. I used a planking fan to find the sizes of the ticks on the tick strips and then transferred these to the hull. I have begun the second layer of planking, starting at the wale strakes and will work my way down to the garboard strake. It’s going to take a while to complete this phase of the build, so it’s bottoms up for a while. Well, that’s I all have for now. I appreciate your viewing and as always, your comments and suggestions are always welcomed.

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[allanyed]

VERY happy to see you back here on your Bellona build log.

Hope all is well in KW.  My better half and I are hopefully taking a drive down or maybe take the jet cat ferry from Marco Island as she has been reading that the town is decorated for the holiday very nicely.  Plus, I get to meet with a client and do some research at the Mel Fisher museum so a nice write off.😀 

Allan

 

Edited November 6, 2023 by allanyed

[Nearshore]

1 minute ago, allanyed said:

VERY happy to see you back here on your Bellona build log.

Hope all is well in KW.  My better half and I are hopefully taking a drive down for a couple days as she has been reading that the town is decorated for the holiday very nicely.  Plus I get to meet with a client so a nice write off.😀 

Allan

 

Hi Allen,

Yes its been slow progress. If you are coming all the way to KW, please look me up. Would be great to chat for a bit. Let me know and ill PM you my contact info.

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[Nearshore]

Hello All,

I have a small update on the Bellona. The second layer of planking is taking some time to accomplish. The width of the planking that came with the kit, on average, is 4.25mm in width and what I need is 4mm to match the proper number of planks that are needed. As you can imagine, .25mm can add up fast and throw off the number of planks that have been calculated. The measurement from the garboard strake to the wale at the longest measurement on the hull is 96mm. Dividing that by 4mm gives me the even number or planks at 24. This matches the number of planks that are shown on the plans excluding the 3 steelers at the stern. Not trimming the planks to this width would definitely cause me problems the closer I get to the garboard.

 

After adjusting the width of the planks, I started by tapering the bow planks first and then shaped them with the plank bender. I found a pretty cool tool while wandering around the craft store. It’s a petite press by Oritz. It is basically a miniature iron. It works very well shaping the planks while they are on the hull. It’s not very useful in making the sharp bends at the stern, but once the shape is close using the plank bender, it’s very useful as a press to help maintain the plank shape against the hull. I worked each plank from stem to stern and then back to the stem fitting the stern plank to the stern trim piece, and then adjusted the stem plank by trimming it down so that there was no buckling. I always dry fit 2 planks and then glue one plank and shape another plank so I always have 2 planks that are dry fitted. This gives me a bit of a look ahead and I can adjust accordingly if there are any errors. This technic has been working well and I am pleased at how the strakes have laid up at the stern. I still have a way to go, so it’s still bottoms up for now.

 

As I have stated earlier in my log, the kit directions do not provide a clear sequence of assembly. It has taken me a while to come up with my strategy on this build. My strategy is to complete the second layer planking, and then move on to the galleries and then the forecastle and bow before I move on to the interior. I will complete the main deck first and work my way up to the poop deck, that being the last deck that gets installed. I temporarily have pinned the poop deck in place to help protect the fixtures that I have already installed. This is a very complicated model to assemble and has certainly challenged me and is a real fun project. Well, that is it for now, and as always, your comments and guidance are always welcome.

 

Cheers

Nearshore

[hamilton]

Hi Nearshore

 

Just took a look through your recent progress and I have to say your approach to the build is much smarter than mine - I followed Corel's instructions and attached the poop sub-deck before doing the main cabin bulkhead and everything on the quarterdeck, which I'm now realising was a real error....doesn't make it impossible, but definitely makes for a challenge.....

 

In any case, I think your Bellona is looking great - the quartergalleries and transom are shaping up and the planking is coming along well! I'll definitely be looking back here when I get to that stage - hopefully shortly after the new year.....

hamilton

[Nearshore]

Hello All,

Well, I have an update on the Bellona. I was able to get some shipyard time in over the holidays in between working on a life size project, remodeling the master bath, and entertaining with friends and family. I also added a new top to my workstation desk extending it another 10 inches. This has made a big difference and gives me quite a bit more surface area to work on.  I feel I have reached another milestone completing the planking from the wale strakes to the garboard strakes. This was a very challenging task, and it did take quite a bit of time to complete. I did not update this log during this task because, well its planking and quite boring. I am including pics though of the progress from where I last left off to current. I had a few challenges, as the plans call for installing 3 stealers in the planking detail. When I lined off the hull, I could not figure out how to plan for installing these 3 stealers. I would have had to taper some of the planking at the stern to less than 2mm which would have been more than half the stock plank width. It took 24 planks from the wale to the garboard on both port and starboard at the bow and 25 at the stern including the stealer.  The way I lined off the hull, only one stealer would be required at the stern. I did not want to force the issue as the planking was lining up very nicely with the way I lined off the hull and I am not very experienced in planking. The last time I planked a hull was 37 years ago. Well, I still have a way to go, cleaning up the false keel from all the nicks and scratches from the planking battle (should have seen the other guy) to finishing up the planking above the wale. I applied a coat of WOP on what I have completed so far and still have a bit of sanding and touchup. Enjoy the pics and as always, your comments and guidance are always welcome.

Cheers

Nearshore