Revenge 1577 by Loracs - Amati - 1:64

[Loracs]

Greetings all,  Starting to build Revenge from Amati. Several reviews are available, so I won't describe the kit content but rather go right away to my build log.  Overall, great kit, excellent documentation and well printed plans.  I'm not a fan of the printed decorations.  Not sure now how to handle it later.  Either paint myself or, most likely, use commercial inlays.  I'm not there yet so I will see later.  NOTE: don't hesitate to comment.  Will take suggestions and critics alike.  That's the only way to learn.

 

The dry fit was excellent.  Frames 1-4 were a little loose, so I use the inserts 17, 18, 19 as spacer as well as the decks to glue everything together.

 

 

[Loracs]

The first step was to work with the bulkheads 1-3 for better contact in future hull planking.  Was easier to do off-ship. I went ahead and planked the first deck as per documentation. Quite straightforward when working off ship.  The deck comes in two pieces and I started in the middle using 120mm strip pieces.  The middle strips are glued only to the first half...  as many suggest here. 

 

Edited July 11, 2023 by Loracs

[Loracs]

After planking the deck, I treated the wood with "sanding sealer" and applied three coats of water-based matte polyurethane.  The brass grates were a little trickier.  First, they were oxidized with "Brass Black" and the finish seal with matte poly.  The oxidation is very thin and at the surface, they chip very easily until sealed.

 

Edited July 11, 2023 by Loracs

[allanyed]

Historical question.  Did the head ledges for the gratings round in 1577 as they did in the 17th century and onwards?    Regardless, based on your start, I am SURE your model will surpass the awful piece on sale for $42,000.   https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/folk-art/nautical-objects/henry-culver-model-revenge/id-f_18564572/#skuId=f_18564572S1   Then again, PT Barnum's comment may come into play here.   If they get that price you should get closer to $100K 

Thanks

Allan

Edited July 12, 2023 by allanyed

[Loracs]

Hello AllanYed,  Excellent question... and I'm surely not the one that can answer it with certainty.  I found this post from another member here (Note: Just realized it was one of your... after posting).  It indeed looks like it should be rounded toward the deck.

 

 

Edited July 13, 2023 by Loracs

[allanyed]

When I originally made the drawing above in 2010 it was for the Euryalus (1803) so the rounding, if any, may have been different for Revenge (1577). The height of the head ledges and coamings definitely varied over the years, getting higher above the deck as time went on but I cannot find anything based on contemporary sources regarding the rounding itself.  Not the most important thing in a build, but might be interesting to some.

Allan

[Loracs]

Allan (my God I replied using your own post lol), You are right... I even look for public schema of other ships... unfortunately, little found there. 

Note:  I find it interesting. Something I have not even though about it until you raised the question. I just assumed the kit designer had it right (they may have, but maybe not).

--Loracs

Edited July 13, 2023 by Loracs

[Loracs]

Support beams for the second deck were a little shallow and loose. Used some padding underneath and on one side using small pieces of wood strips.  Sand it to fit.  It was pretty straightforward.

 

[Loracs]

Deck planking: more of the same.  The front deck was slightly shaped (round down) before fitting by first damping the back, placing on wood spacers on the edge (5mm high) and placing weight in the middle.  Worked well. Rounded holes/squares using files and tested them before gluing. The rest was easy.

 

 

Edited July 20, 2023 by Loracs

[Baker]

Nicely done 

[Katsumoto]

Clean build, nicely done so far! 👍

[Loracs]

Thank you, I appreciate.  The hardest part still ahead of me though.

--loracs

[Loracs]

Second deck and cross beams...  slow (due to bad back) but steady progress.

 

Note for the sake of accuracy: If you look at the deck with the whipstaff assembly, I forgot to leave spaces (un-planked space) between bulkhead 12 and 13.   Therefore, parts 12b and 13b will be 1mm higher (the thickness of the planks).  Luckily, dry fit with the third and final deck seen ok....  Since everything is currently glued, reversing the mistake would have been quite some work.  For once, I appreciate the slight tolerance that the kit offers.  

 

On the plus side: not having to deal with those spaces at bulkhead 12 and 13 allowed me to perfectly align the deck planks within and across both decks.

 

Really like the model so far, the manual is great...  remind myself to follow the steps.

 

Edited August 3, 2023 by Loracs

[Baker]

12 hours ago, Loracs said:

(due to bad back)

Same problem here 
Great progress

[Loracs]

Without it.... I would spend 12 hrs. a day building.  This is a great hobby.

 

Great to meet you all.

[Loracs]

Greetings all, a small update.  Painted internal walls, added doors and assembled a small platform.  Glue to the ship and set the staircases.

[Loracs]

Wet the side walls lightly and leave it dry on the ship for a few days, then finish the curvature with a steam iron.  The front parts required more aggressive bending using a small jig.  The frames for the gun-ports were glued off-ship, but require close fitting back and forth to the ship...  a very close fit.

[Loracs]

The middle lower portion of the side panel was glued in place and the gun carriages are set inside.

Edited August 14, 2023 by Loracs

[Loracs]

In planning for the first planking, I built a number of stands to invert the ship and keep the bulkhead off the ground.  Having a worktable with rails will be handy here.  Note: found a use for the many masks left over from the pandemic.

 

The worktable is set on 2 feet circular "Lazy Susan", which allow me to rotate the table and work on either side without having to handle the ship.

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by Loracs

[Knocklouder]

Some nice work my friend.  Bad back an all ,mine is bad as well lol. But we keep on modeling lol . Looking forward to more progress.   

[Loracs]

Thanks, it is fun to keep a log.  Agree with you...  we can't keep bad back away from building models.  Just need to pace ourselves and keep having fun!

Edited August 14, 2023 by Loracs

[Loracs]

This ship has curves, which is nice aesthetically but harder for planking.  Here's my process.

 

1. I measured the length at each bulkhead, then defined the optimal plank width at each position (Fig 1).

 

2. I used a mini planer to trim the planks. I did a batch of 4 (x2) at a time (Fig 2).  The edge remains flat with a nice tapering. Don't forget to mark the tapered edge.

 

3. Using a curly iron, I give the plank its rough shape, primarily at the bow.  THEN,

 

4. I slightly wet the plank using a rag (5 sec no more), then I attached it without glue (Fig 3).

 

5. Using a hair dryer, I then dry on the ship.  Repeat 2x (wetting then dry), leave alone 15 min, then dry again (until completely dry). Figure 4 shows the upper plank in place WITHOUT any glue...  a nice fit.  It was then glued in place.

 

Rinse and repeat.....

 

 

 

Edited August 24, 2023 by Loracs

[Quimp Slattery]

Tapering eight planks at a time is a very good idea. (I've been doing that one at a time. D'oh!)

 

The hair drier idea is another massive time saver compared to my usual method of overnight drying.

 

Thanks for these tips @Loracs, they will speed my production time enormously.

[Loracs]

hey Jack, my pleasure... this is why we make logs.  Enjoy your build, it is all about the journey.  Have Fun!

[GrandpaPhil]

Looking good!

[Quimp Slattery]

13 hours ago, Loracs said:

hey Jack, my pleasure... this is why we make logs.  Enjoy your build, it is all about the journey.  Have Fun!

I might make a log of the next kit I begin. I’m currently in the middles. 

Edited August 25, 2023 by Jack-in-the-Blue

[Loracs]

Dam...  it won't fit!!!

 

[GrandpaPhil]

You just need to find a bigger bottle!

[Baker]

the bottle is not empty yet...

Need help ? 😁

[allanyed]

On 7/11/2023 at 5:45 PM, Loracs said:

I'm not a fan of the printed decorations.  Not sure now how to handle it later.  Either paint myself or, most likely, use commercial inlays. 

On contemporary models as well as modern models some,  if not all, of the painting of the friezes and other fine work is done on paper which is then glued in place.  I like to use silkspan rather than bond paper but both work well.  There is an excellent description of this technique in The Fully Framed Model Volume II by David Antscherl on pages 27-30 as well as in some posts here at MSW especially those in Siggi's buildlog of Tiger.   There are more, but one  example: https://modelshipworld.com/topic/17716-hms-tiger-1747-by-siggi52-148-60-gun-ship-from-nmm-plans/page/17/   post #499

Allan