Le Soleil Royal by Bill97 - FINISHED - Heller - 1/100

[Bill97]

I do have the unused (based on belay point diagram) kevel you see in the photo. It is on the bulwark on the next stepped down deck. Anderson does mention the belay point of the brace was sometimes on the next deck down. I think I will tinker with finding a good place for a sheve hole and tying off to the kevel. There is a mizzen back stay very near there I will need to avoid, as well as a round cannon port. 

Edited November 18, 2023 by Bill97

[Bill97]

I decided to go with a sheave hole through the bulwark next to the kevel in a place that does not interfere with the backstay or the cannon port. I took the brace through the sheave and belayed it to the kevel. 

[popeye2sea]

Bill,

 

I have set up my brace in a similar fashion.  I cut in a sheave hole just aft of the ledge for the backstay. It comes through on the aft side of the kevel.  The standing end of the brace will be spliced on to that eyebolt that is just forward of the quarter gallery on the top plank strake. But, now looking at the angle your brace takes, I see that I might have mis-placed that sheave hole.  The lead of the brace will lie directly on the back stay ledge. I may have to shift the sheave hole forward like you have it.

 

Regards,

Henry

[Bill97]

Henry I will be anxious to see how your’s looks. Strange that Heller had the standing end tied to the base of the flag pole. I am moving on up the main mast now rigging the topsail and topgallant. Glad I have made my last parral. Not sure why, but I do not enjoy making them. 

[Bill97]

Main mast yards rigged with parrals, lifts, and braces. I have not secured the braces because it looks as if rigging the yards on the mizzenmast might be easier if I can temporarily move the main yard braces. 

Edited November 20, 2023 by Bill97

[kirill4]

Good day Bill,

Volume of your  rigging works is  impressive!

However have some questions... but why all ratlines, deadeyes lanyards and all runnung rigging You made all in white color? Are You going to dark staining them later on? They shouldn't be such bright color for sure... deadeyes lanyards and ratlines should be same color as shrouds, and running rigging should be color of "hemp" but not white...which looks strange a little, when white color choosen, why..?

Wish You all the best!

Kirill

Edited November 20, 2023 by kirill4

[Bill97]

Kirill4 the photos are a little deceptive. The lines you listed are not white. All of the lines that look white are actually a light hemp/tan color. Not as dark as some sold by model ship companies but also not as light as some sold by others. Since I began making my own shrouds and ratlines years ago I have always preferred a dark shroud and lighter ratline. I like the contrast. 

Edited November 21, 2023 by Bill97

[Bill97]

Of course kirill4 every time I look at your galleon I come away inspired by your work. Maybe my next build I will go darker colors. I have always thought of the deadeye lanyards as running rigging instead of standing rigging since they would be tightened from time to time like other lanyards throughout the rigging. Would that not be the case?

[Bill97]

Just out of curiosity I did some MSW research on the interesting question Kirill4 brought up. Pretty good discussion from a number of years ago. 

[kirill4]

Good day Вill,

As I could see on the replicas and museum models , there is no too much contrast in colors of ratlines, deadeyes lanyards...the last ones were tarred often as well.

Of couse, if contrast colors is just your own choice  ,than it is another question and not a subject for discussion, but it looks a bit unusual... 

Edited November 21, 2023 by kirill4

[kirill4]

"White " color of the ratlines on the pictures gives interesting effect, first what I see looking on the model , it is rows of solid white horozontal lines of the ratlines but vertical running of shrouds,which should be seen in the first turn, as a dasic veiw , somehow visualy disappears...:)))... "white" color gives visual eccessive thickness to the ratlines, they are very thin ( approx 1/6 diam of the shrouds ) ropes compare to the thickness of the shrouds... but not as almost  half of the diam. of the shrouds...

[Bill97]

All very good points kirll4. I will consider taking a small brush and applying a thin wash to the ratlines. 

[Bill97]

Kirill4 you convinced me. Staining my ratlines. I have to admit I do like them better that way. However I am going to stay with the tan color deadeye lanyards to match the running rigging. 

[kirill4]

Good day,

Bill,

Now, with stained ratlines, it looks much more better, more realistic and much close to museum models...as You could see,  ratlines now looks more proportional and in garmony with shrouds... deadeyes lanyards , it is part of standing rigging,I doubt we could name them "running" ...they often tared as well, tar doesn't make any troubles if they need to be retighten sometime...

I would say, your running rigging could be stained in a few tones darker as it is now, for staining running rigging You could use 

umbra natural with added golden ochre... there is link ,how it looks like on standing and running rigging - models of D.Shevelev

https://www.shipmodeling.ru/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=71120

He paints his rigging in this way...

"for coloring white threads with artistic oil paints, you can dilute the composition in half a liter container, for example - a tube of paint is mixed with liquid oil - teak, for example  (you can add more white spirit - to make the composition more liquid) Natural umber is used for standing rigging.  On running, ocher is added to this paint.
 It is dyed by pulling a thread through a can or a poured puddle of paint.  Then the thread is pulled several times through the cotton glove and hung out to dry.  Can be used in a day. https://www.shipmodeling.ru/phpbb/search.php?keywords=умбра+ленинградская "

Edited November 21, 2023 by kirill4

[Ian_Grant]

Bill, I agree that the ratlines look better darker. What did you do to stain them?

 

Reading Kirill's recipe I wonder if it would affect the longevity of the thread as a display?

[kirill4]

Good day Ian,

As far as I knew, it is long life receipt... artists oil paints on artificial threads, at least 200years duration 👌😊

[kirill4]

Seriously, D.Shevelev models more than 20 years in private collections and still no "troubles" with them...

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  How about the Mona Lisa.  Leonardo painted her in oils some 500 years ago and she's still smiling.

 

[Bill97]

Ian I used this panel line accent color with a tiny tip brush. 
kirill4 I think I am going to meet you in the middle for changing the color of the ratlines and running rigging. I could darken my tan thread I intend to use for running rigging on the sails. That thread is obviously not on the ship yet and I could use some recommend method to do so. However I think trying to paint all the running I have already installed would be much more difficult than painting ratlines. I would be further concerned about lack of uniform color and stray tiny brush strokes and droplets accidentally getting on ship parts. As a result I would have possibly two different colors of running rigging. 

[kirill4]

Good day Bill,

this is from Kirill :))),

Please consider , that I'm not at all experienced  ship model builder, and all I posted this is just my solely private thoughts / point of veiw ...:) 

When I saw models of D.Shevelev , it made a very big impression on me and later on I tried to find more information about him and his works... and tried to follow his findings and style , ? in my own work, of couse in very small conserns ,due to absolutely different levels of outcome :)))

but ok, back to our questions... if You like idea to darkening your running rigging lines, I would like to reccomend to use water deluted artists acrylic paint - ochre + umbra natural... in such extand which will give You desired "hemp " color... it could be easily applied on installed running /standing rigging... by soft wide brush, desired intensive could be reachead by appling a few coats... or You could use artistic oil paints as D.Shevelev used, I didn't use them yet, but it is in my plans for my next palstic model///

Edited November 21, 2023 by kirill4

[Bill97]

All the ratlines redone. I definitely like it better. In fact I will eventually get my HMS Victory out of it’s case and paint the ratlines. 

 

 

 

Edited November 21, 2023 by Bill97

[Ian_Grant]

She does look even better.......

[Bill97]

Thank you Ian my friend. I thought we finished my HMS Victory 😊.

Now I am going to have to get her back out of the case to make the ratlines black!

Edited November 22, 2023 by Bill97

[Bill97]

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all my MSW friends who celebrate it!  Thanks so much for all your help and support this year in this unique hobby we all love. 
 

Bill

[Ian_Grant]

40 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all my MSW friends who celebrate it!  Thanks so much for all your help and support this year in this unique hobby we all love. 
 

Bill

As you know Bill we in Canada had our Thanksgiving some time ago; hope you enjoy yours!!

[Bill97]

Ok Gentlemen I come to you again seeking guidance. I am rigging the different yards on the mizzenmast. All was going great until I ran into two lines I am curious if I have another Hellerism. In the two pictures you can see lines 1049 and 1050 colored green at the top. Heller instructions have the line tie to the mizzenmast mast top, then go up to block pendants on the foremast topgallant yard arm, then back to blocks on tied near the top of the mizzenmast upper shrouds (e179 and e180), then down to belay points on the deck. No problem with doing that but if I do lines 1049 and 1050 will have to pass right through the top of the sail.  I am thinking this is not right unless the two blocks are to be tied to the shrouds above the yard. 

[Bill97]

[Ian_Grant]

Definitely a Hellerism. Those are the main topgallant braces, led back to the highest practicable point on the mizzen mast. My old instructions have the same error in DIA "Les Voiles Sur Le Mat d'Artimon". Yet those same instructions, on the cover sheet, have the large side view that clearly shows these lines meeting the mizzen topmast just below and just above the crosstrees, above and clear of the sail as you suspected they must be. What I would do is tie them off on the topmast itself above its shrouds (or maybe to the forward crosstree each side??), pass them up and  through the main topgallant brace blocks on their pendants, then down through a couple of blocks attached to the rear crosstree each side of the mizzen topmast, and down to wherever on deck. Just my opinion.

 

Interestingly, French for mizzenmast would appear to be "artimon", which is the same word given in my books for the forward-projecting spar at the bow of a Roman galley which can be likened to a bowsprit, sort of.

[Bill97]

Thanks Ian. That sounds like a plan. On a side note, wonder what is going on at the bridge?  

[Hubac's Historian]

Bill, the shrouds look immeasurably better now.  I always want to respect people’s aesthetic choices, but Kirill makes a really solid point about how the darker colors improve the scale effect of the ratlines.

 

I wish all of you (Americans and foreign ex-pats) a Happy Thanksgiving!