USS Constitution by mtbediz - 1:76

[mtbediz]

7 minutes ago, JSGerson said:

I'll add that to my list of a metal lathe, 3-D printer, router, and dedicated drill press.😁

A very good decision  wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. 

Edited December 24, 2024 by mtbediz

[GGibson]

Excellent production line, Mustafa!  Nice looking carriage units.

 

Yes, my Proxxon mill will get plenty of work once I get to my Constitution!

 

Happy Holidays to you gentlemen, as well.  You've been great as I've been watching your progress.

[woodartist]

1 hour ago, GGibson said:

Excellent production line, Mustafa!  Nice looking carriage units.

 

Yes, my Proxxon mill will get plenty of work once I get to my Constitution!

 

Happy Holidays to you gentlemen, as well.  You've been great as I've been watching your progress.

My congratulations too each of you.

[mtbediz]

6 hours ago, GGibson said:

Excellent production line, Mustafa!  Nice looking carriage units.

 

Yes, my Proxxon mill will get plenty of work once I get to my Constitution!

 

Happy Holidays to you gentlemen, as well.  You've been great as I've been watching your progress.

Thank you Greg. Merry Christmas!

[mtbediz]

4 hours ago, woodartist said:

My congratulations too each of you.

Thank you!

[mtbediz]

I continue to build gun carriages. I spend a lot of time because there are so many details. I drilled holes on the bases to represent the bolts, I glued the gun beds onto the bases, I am making the carriage trucks out of wood because I dont have the tools or skills to make them out of metal on this scale, they won't be very visible anyway.

Edited December 28, 2024 by mtbediz

[GGibson]

These are looking really sharp, Mustafa!  Great work and very consistent.  How are you filling the bolt holes?  Anxious to see how you will create the trunnions, as well.  (See how much I have learned about cannons and carronades in the past few months?!? 🤣)  The wooden trucks will look great at this scale and being under the carriages, they will look realistic.  Awesome work, sir!

[mtbediz]

2 hours ago, GGibson said:

These are looking really sharp, Mustafa!  Great work and very consistent.  How are you filling the bolt holes?  Anxious to see how you will create the trunnions, as well.  (See how much I have learned about cannons and carronades in the past few months?!? 🤣)  The wooden trucks will look great at this scale and being under the carriages, they will look realistic.  Awesome work, sir!

Hi Greg, thanks. The holes that will represent the bolts are not very deep, they are just a mark on the surface (I would say 0.2-0.3 mm deep). Therefore, I will not fill it with anything, I will just paint the carriage red and leave a mark inside these holes with a mechanical pencil. I tried it on the prototype before and saw how it would look, here is the photo.

Edited December 28, 2024 by mtbediz

[GGibson]

Looks good, Mustafa!  The reason I was asking was because, in my recent work on researching other build logs like yours, I had just read on xken's (Ken Foran's) Constitution build log that he had used a black ink dot from an old-school Bic pen to create the bolt mark.  So, sounds like you have a very similar solution!  Amazing work you gentlemen continue to do!  So lucky that I have such great tutorials to follow.  You are appreciated!

[mtbediz]

The carriages were painted red and the trucks were installed.

Edited December 29, 2024 by mtbediz

[mtbediz]

I tried to blacken the carronades with chemicals, but it looked like this. Carronade did not blacken everywhere, but it looked as if it had been worn out. Now I will have to decide whether to leave the carronades like this or paint them black. Anyone have an idea?

Edited Monday at 07:36 PM by mtbediz

[JSGerson]

I am by no means an expert on "blackening," but it appears to me that the brass may still have had some fine residual oil remaining on the metal from the turning or casting process (which ever was used) or even your fingers. I usually clean the metal with acetone first. You may have done that, in which case try rubbing off the blackening, This may absorb what ever substance is covering those bare spots. Clean once more with acetone and blacken again.

 

Still no luck? Then you presented the choices yourself, keep or paint. The argument for paint is that the rest of the ship looks pristine, fresh out of shipyard and the paint will make the guns look new. But I do like the weathered look that you achieved. 

 

I don't know if I helped or hindered.

 

Jon

[Der Alte Rentner]

Geez, Jon,

you just beat me to the punch.  I went back to my build log, where you posted the photos of Conny's carronades.  By the time I got back, here you are - being all reasonable and coming up with good ideas.  I'll copy your photo here so Mustafa can compare his work to the present day guns and decide between weathered or like new.   (My guess?  He's going to try for the uniform finish.  In which case, you're prescription should indeed provide the cure.)

 

 

 

[mtbediz]

7 hours ago, JSGerson said:

I am by no means an expert on "blackening," but it appears to me that the brass may still have had some fine residual oil remaining on the metal from the turning or casting process (which ever was used) or even your fingers. I usually clean the metal with acetone first. You may have done that, in which case try rubbing off the blackening, This may absorb what ever substance is covering those bare spots. Clean once more with acetone and blacken again.

 

Still no luck? Then you presented the choices yourself, keep or paint. The argument for paint is that the rest of the ship looks pristine, fresh out of shipyard and the paint will make the guns look new. But I do like the weathered look that you achieved. 

 

I don't know if I helped or hindered.

 

Jon

Thanks for the feedback, Jon. Before applying chemicals, I soaked the Carronades in alcohol to clean them, but it seems that this did not help much. Now I will try acetone as you suggested. The worn-out look of the carronades also attracted me, but they seemed incompatible with the rest of the ship. A uniform finish would make it look more elegant, and a look like the one in the photo Peter posted would be more appropriate.

Edited yesterday at 03:32 AM by mtbediz

[mtbediz]

6 hours ago, Der Alte Rentner said:

Geez, Jon,

you just beat me to the punch.  I went back to my build log, where you posted the photos of Conny's carronades.  By the time I got back, here you are - being all reasonable and coming up with good ideas.  I'll copy your photo here so Mustafa can compare his work to the present day guns and decide between weathered or like new.   (My guess?  He's going to try for the uniform finish.  In which case, you're prescription should indeed provide the cure.)

 

 

 

Thank you for the feedback Peter.

[Dr PR]

Mustafa,

 

I guess I agree with you that on your very nice pristine model a uniform finish would be more appropriate.

 

But the finish you got on those carronades would be perfect on a model of a ship that had taken a beating in weather and combat! They actually look really nice!

 

****

 

Note: I have had difficulties getting uniform blackening on brass parts. I always wash them first with liquid dish detergent and rinse with hot water to remove oils. Then I wash them in acetone to remove the soap and anything the soap missed. Sometimes I wash again with alcohol, but that is just to remove the acetone. Then I dry the pieces.

 

Some people always etch the parts with Sparex No. 2 Granular Dry Acid Compound (sodium bisulfite) to "pickle" the surface. It needs to be heated and some users suggest getting a mini "crock pot" just for this purpose. 

 

I have tried using the blackening solution straight out of the bottle or by diluting it 1:1 with water. I have tried short (1 and 5 minute) blackening periods and longer (10 to 20 minutes). In every case I have gotten uneven coating. Longer blackening times seem to produce more surface coat that rubs off easily.

[mtbediz]

Thank you so much for your contributions my friends. 

 

I decided to paint the carronades as I found it more appropriate to match the general appearance of the ship. I made two attempts for this, painting one of the guns black and the other dark gray. The black doesn't look very realistic to me, as if the dark gray one is closer to the guns on the real ship. Do you have any idea my friends? Thanks.

 

Edited 18 hours ago by mtbediz

[CiscoH]

i personally like the dark grey better.  Maybe a mix of the 2 paints?

[GGibson]

If you would have asked my opinion of choosing black over dark gray for the carronades without the pictures, I probably would have chosen black.  But in your pictures, the ones painted dark gray look (to me) more of a "dirty black" and seem to show their lines better than the solid black ones.  So, I'd maybe select your dark gray ones, but I'd be consistent with all of them on the spar deck.  Great work, Mustafa! 

[JSGerson]

My vote is for the dark gray.

 

Jon

[mtbediz]

Thanks for your comments gentlemen. I'm on the dark gray side too. I'm guessing it will take on more of a metal look once it's varnished.

[Thukydides]

I like the dark grey better. You could also look into dry brushing with a slightly lighter colour on the top to give a bit more contrast. Looking good.

[Unegawahya]

I think the dark gray is better just everyone else. lol It gives your guns a weathered look!

[Der Alte Rentner]

I'll chime in for the dark grey as well.  Looking good!