Wasa by md1400cs - FINISHED - Corel - 1:75

[md1400cs]

So Michael..what was your final decision on how to rig those dead eyes? I too have been struggling with the planning of the deadeyes on my Revell plastic model. I have been toying with the idea of replacing the pre-formed ones and creating my own. My challenge has been the scale (1/96 is really small) and the technique (not to mention my sanity). Both of these seem to be current issues  for you in this build.

Dave, Yes it seems to be learning step for both of us. This Vasa will be my first attempt at properly rigging and preparing shrouds, and lines with proper wrapping. My first build was a simple beginners ship 40 years ago. So no seasoning help there. As I noted above I'm taking the advice of seasoned artists and I will mount the deadeyes without ropes, adding them after the shrouds are in place.

 

In you case, at 1/96th, I think that you almost have to pre rig the deadeyes if you plan on using actual ones. They will be soooo small. Your ship is so way beyond Revell's expectations that real deadeyes may be the way to go. 

 

Regards,

 

Michael

[lambsbk]

OMG! I didn't realize...this is your first ship. I am now REALLY amazed. Well done.

[md1400cs]

OMG! I didn't realize...this is your first ship. I am now REALLY amazed. Well done.

Dave,

 

Thanks for your encouraging post (:-)  though I must say that in the almost one year that I have been a member at MSW, my skill set has shot way way up. Kudos would also go to all of the amazing builds that I follow here, as well as the wealth of insundry topics from which I try to absorb and learn from as well. Discovering tools specific to our hobby was also of great help.

 

Again thanks, your thoughts are much appreciated.

 

Regards,

 

Michael

[NAZGÛL]

Oooh, that's brave to put her on the nose Michael. I put the model between my knees when I need a few seconds to fit stern details. And that's enough to make me nervous.

 

Nice start on the rigging. I like your jig idea.

 

 

/Matti

 

/

[md1400cs]

Hi everyone,

 

Well it took about forty years, but I finally took some pics of my first build. Here are a couple of pics. I will put some together and post them in the completed ships section in the next couple of days. I was in my early 20s and it was the Mantua Santa Maria. She has been untouched in all of these years. She held up fairly well. 

 

 

[Blue Ensign]

Nicely done Michael, a clear sign of things to come!

 

B.E.

[NMBROOK]

Your Santa Maria looks fabulous Michael Does she look as she did when you finished her,or has the patina developed over time?Absolutely love that look!

She has withstood the years perfectly,a testimony to how well you built her in the first place.

 

Kind Regards Nigel

[md1400cs]

Hi everyone,

 

Thanks for the nice words about my first attempt.

 

I just posted several pics in the completed ships section, if you care to visit that would be very kind.

 

Nigel she looks as she did forty years ago. I attempted, then to "age" her a bit. The stairs for example. I also used an air brush to highlight certain areas with stain, then Watco oil to preserve the wood.The oil was rag applied.

 

Then finished the rigging. My nineteen year old girlfriend did the sewing for the sails (She's still by my side). The only changes are with some of the rigging which has lost some of its original color and "relaxed a bit. I hesitate to go in and adjust things.

 

Here are a couple more pics. Thanks for dropping in. Its been almost a time capsule looking ship, hard to believe that it was such a long time ago. A couple for footnotes; I paid $70.00 USD, and I only had sandpaper, a basic Dremel and rarzor blades. Whoa how our hobby has improved with helpful machines. I note that this ship is still being produced today with full color booklet instructions (:-)

 

OK now back to the Vasa.

 

Regards,

 

Michael

[Blue Ensign]

She looks immaculate Michael, if she's an uncased model after all those years, quite remarkable.

 

B.E.

[fmodajr]

Hi Michael,

 

Thanks for letting us view your Santa Maria. Great work. You haven't missed a beat in the last 40 years!

 

Get ready for another big glass case for your Wasa!

 

Frank

[md1400cs]

She looks immaculate Michael, if she's an uncased model after all those years, quite remarkable.

 

B.E.

B.E.

 

Thanks, no she has resided within her own protected home for many years. Though she has travelled across the Atlantic twice. A small pea within a huge container ship.

 

Please note (for our U.K. members) that small painting on the staircase wall (the yellow building). We had a flat in this building located in Saint John's Wood (NW8). Apparently Bonaparte II slept there at one time, so the building got "listed". It took us almost two months to get approved to have a TV cable hooked up to the flat. This was back in the mid 90's much has changed in NW8 from what I understand. A wonderful elderly gentleman did the painting for us. I so loved living in London, a great moment in my family's lives. The building is called Eagle House.

 

Cheers,

 

Michael

Edited January 31, 2014 by md1400cs

[Blue Ensign]

I'm relieved to see she has been cased Michael otherwise I would have had to seriously up my game in the cleaning stakes

 

Nice story about your time in the UK  and the painting.

 

Cheers,

 

B.E.

[CaptainSteve]

Really nice work on your Santa Maria !!

 

 

Just wondering, was it from a kit ??  

Which one ??

[md1400cs]

Really nice work on your Santa Maria !!

 

 

Just wondering, was it from a kit ??  

Which one ??

Capt. Steve,

 

Thanks for your nice remarks. Yes from a kit;

 

http://victoryshipmodels.com/ship-model-santa-maria-wooden-static-kit-mantua-christopher-columbus-flag-ship.html

 

Michael

[dafi]

What an enjoyable build :-)

 

XXXDAn

[md1400cs]

What an enjoyable build :-)

 

XXXDAn

Daniel,

 

Thank you so much for your kind words, and all of those so many "Like This" clicks, SO kind of you to look through my log. The feelings are very mutual. You HMS Victory is a beautiful build.

 

Regards,

 

Michael

Edited February 1, 2014 by md1400cs

[schiffebastler]

Hi Michael,

 

wonderful post, you have shown here since my last visit!

 

Your Santa Maria is really a wonderful model and you can really be proud of it !!

 

And your work with the deadeyes is fantastic! But the technical realisation I have not fully understood, what is the J.B.Weld product? How does it work, have you soldered the pieces?

 

 

Regards, Joachim

[md1400cs]

Joachim,

 

Hi, thanks for your nice compliments about the SM very much appreciated.

 

With regards to the deadeyes, I did not solder the deadeye frames. I have no experience with soldering and feared taking the risks. I knew that I wanted to replicate the flat look of the chainplates as they are on the Vasa. So I needed to, at least, glue the lengths together.

 

This J.B. Weld product, which is for all-intense-and-purposes a glue for metal seemed to offer the solution. The product label indicated that once dried it could be sanded, bent, and painted. After seaming together each side, which also filled in the gaps, I could then sand the chains "flat". In this instance it seems to have worked well. Bending them did not crack the glue. I have just finished, and installed the first channel and will post an update. The results seem visually acceptable. 

 

Regards,

 

Michael

[md1400cs]

Hi everyone,

 

Here is the second part of the chainplates/deadeyes installation. Continuing from the first part, with the deadeye chainplates matter resolved, now it was time to shape, drill new holes (for the nails), then cut their lengths, thin their bulk where the nails would be added, and touch up with flat black paint. I decided to have that flatter look at their ends in order to make them appear more as flat plates, so Dremel-ed the front and back faces.

 

I then realized that the nails, though they had flat heads, were actually too wide. A bit of Dremel trimming and black paint resolved the issue. I added a comparison photo.

 

I then borrowed from Ferit's spectacular Berlin build and used his rubber band concept to align the chains correctly for nailing. This technique allowed me to drill holes into the wales at properly angled locations. Great idea Ferit a big thanks, again!

 

There are some errors, of course. The deadeye rings are not correct. They should be actual rings with longer lower lips that clamp to actual plates. Mark's Vasa (marktiedens) really captured that correctly! His looks perfect.

 

Also the deadeyes should be triangular as well. So it goes. Lastly, I was so concerned about sourcing deadeyes that had similar staining that I totally overlooked, what I now see glaring at me- in some of them the three holes are not properly spaced. These were all machined parts so I assumed (there's that word again) I will fill-in some of the worse offending holes and re-drill them. OK now onto the main mast, then the port side. Again, as always thanks for dropping by, its always so appreciated.

 

Regards,

 

Michael

 

 

Edited February 2, 2014 by md1400cs

[schiffebastler]

This looks really wonderful!! 

And I love your deadeyes, really well done. I have never seen a comparable product to J.B.Weld in Germany. It is really interesting.

 

Regards, Joachim

[NMBROOK]

Looking good Michael  ,it is a shame about the holes,if you do decide to plug any and redrill then some small walnut pins made in the dremel 'lathe'should do the trick

Kind Regards Nigel

[marktiedens]

I agree - nice job.You may recall my deadeyes were not all drilled on center either but I think that after the lanyards are rigged it won`t be noticeable.There are so many other inaccuracies that I am not going to spend all the extra time to fix them.Besides that if I break or damaged one I don`t know if I could find a replacement as mine are triangular & I don`t have any extras.I would really hate to try & make one to match.

[Blue Ensign]

Just love looking at pics of your Wasa Michael, presumably the deadeyes will swivel in the strops so you can get the right orientation when you come to rig the lanyards.

 

B.E.

[Vivian Galad]

Micael, gratz on your second build, as she is turning to be a real view from Wasa on all details. As everyone, loved your job with the deadeyes - nicely fitted to the ship. On the couch waiting for the next pics! Keep it up.

[fmodajr]

Michael,

 

Thanks for the detailed description of the deadeye assembly with the pictures! You have put a lot of thought into the process. 

Well done!

 

Frank

[md1400cs]

Looking good Michael  ,it is a shame about the holes,if you do decide to plug any and redrill then some small walnut pins made in the dremel 'lathe'should do the trick

Kind Regards Nigel

Nigel,

 

Thanks for the idea. I will try it. Though as Mark said the errors will be much less noticeable with the lanyards rigged in. Three, for sure need to be re-drilled.

 

MIchael

[md1400cs]

Just love looking at pics of your Wasa Michael, presumably the deadeyes will swivel in the strops so you can get the right orientation when you come to rig the lanyards.

 

B.E.

B.E.

 

Yes I will swivel them. As usual, thanks for covering my back (:-)

 

MIchael

[md1400cs]

Micael, gratz on your second build, as she is turning to be a real view from Wasa on all details. As everyone, loved your job with the deadeyes - nicely fitted to the ship. On the couch waiting for the next pics! Keep it up.

Vivian,

 

Hello thank you so much for visiting my build. It is nice you. I am also so happy to see that you are from Brasil. I have been to your amazing country many times. I have been in the northern, central and southern parts as well. Your city (São Paulo)  makes New York look like a small town. I met a wonderful, and of course beautiful,19 year old from Porto Alegre. That was 40 years ago and we are still by each other's side. Her family now lives in Florianópolis one of the many beautiful cities in your country.

 

 

PS: Love your language, your version of Portuguese not the original from Portugal. Brasilians have softened the sounds so beautifully and of course 60-80's Brasilian music.

 

Muito obrigado pela sua visita  that means Thank you very much for your visit. 

 

PS: 2 I have been following your Caravel, very nice!

 

Michael

Edited February 4, 2014 by md1400cs

[md1400cs]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm working on completing the stern deadeyes and I thought of Joachim, who was asking about J-B Weld. He is a link for their information in case others are interested as well.

 

http://www.jbweld.com/products/product-family/epoxy-adhesives/

 

Cheers,

 

Michael

[schiffebastler]

Thank you for this link. I'll try to find an online-store...

 

Regards, Joachim