TRE KRONER 1742 by Beckmann - 3"/8' scale - Transom-Model

[TJM]

Wow, this build is so next level. I am amazed and humbled every time you update this thread 😁

 

 

[Keith Black]

 Absolutely amazing!

[CiscoH]

the interior looks like a real, full-sized ship!

astounding attention to detail Matthias

[Beckmann]

Thank you all for your encouragement and the likes!

 

Today, I first need to address an issue, namely my incorrectly constructed window in the upper side gallery.
I had a window here that was actually intended to have double glazing bars, but I inadvertently constructed it with a single central glazing bar, which resulted in horizontal window panes that should otherwise all be vertical. The problem is that the window is glazed and curved under tension. So replacing the entire muntin bar was out of the question. I would never have been able to fit the new window cross neatly into the curve. The only option was to carefully cut out the centre muntin bar and insert new muntin bars. Here is the result:

 

 

 

 

Next, I turned my attention to the gallery railing, a task that I had been puzzling over for a while and which, at least on the starboard side, has not yet been satisfactorily resolved.
The gallery railing consists of a balustrade, similar to those often found in stone on elaborately designed Baroque balconies or staircases. The individual gallery balusters feature multiple coving, thickening and tapering. To make matters more difficult, they are tilted, in the case of the side gallery backwards and inwards. At the rear, they are later tilted backwards and outwards. One could make things easy and make them all the same and tilt them accordingly. This is sometimes done in architecture for staircases. Then, in the transition to the inclined contact surfaces, wedges are simply placed underneath and above. To illustrate this, here is a drawing from the 17th century:

 

 

However, since the TRE KRONER model has a tilt here, I have to try that too, of course.

 

 

I then drew and cut out the tilt towards the rear.

 

 

 

The profile was roughly pre-cut on the circular saw and then finished with a file.

 

 

The inward tilt was also worked on as best as possible at the front ends with a file and a carving knife.

The railing rail was drawn on a template.

 

 

A hole was drilled and fitted with a small wooden dowel to secure it to the contact surface. Finally, everything was inserted, aligned and glued to the upper railing rail.

 

 

 

 

Some of the inclines are not quite right. If you build the whole thing two or three times in a row, it will probably get better and better. But I'll leave it like this for now, as it's a lot of work.

Best regards,
Matthias

 

Edited July 30 by Beckmann

[druxey]

The window reworking was a really good 'save'! Well done. Compound curved balustrades are a real challenge that you met too.

[igorcap]

Matthias, this is magnificent, I have not seen anything better.

[Beckmann]

Dear fellow model builders, thank you for your kind words.

I have recently been studying 18th-century Danish artillery, as I would like to include it in my stern model and possibly another section model of the TRE KRONER. As is well known, the sources here are quite good, as is generally the case with the Danish navy. There are several instruction manuals for cadets and the shipyard, where you can find contemporary drawings of gun barrels and carriages. As always, you just have to keep an eye on the chronological development. Of course, it is possible that my approach contains errors, as the carriages used specifically for the TRE KRONER are not explicitly named in the plans.
First, here are a few illustrations from the mid-18th century.

 

 

One significant difference from the English gun carriages is the arrangement of the aiming wedges, another is the color scheme.
First, the gun carriage:
There are different drawings in the archives showing an older and a newer design.

 

 

I assume that the TRE KRONER already had the newer gun carriages and that the older ones belong more to the 17th century. I cannot prove this exactly, but the transition was probably a smooth one.
Examples of both types have been preserved, which I find very helpful.

 

 

The aiming wedge on the more modern gun carriages was apparently pushed under the end of the barrel from the side in the normal setting and rested on a kind of crossbar, as can be seen in the drawings and the illustration of the cannon. Apparently, the crossbar could also be removed for particularly high settings and the wedge could be placed directly underneath from behind. The first two images in this article illustrate this nicely. From the early 17th century until around the 1820s to 1830s, the colors were largely fixed: red iron oxide for the wood and yellow to light orange munium (a mixed lead oxide) to protect the wrought iron parts from rust.

The gun barrels are also depicted in several publications.
Here is a depiction of the 36-pounder gun barrel.

 

The TRE KRONER had 36-pounders on the lower battery deck, 18-pounders on the upper battery deck, and 8-pounders on the quarterdeck and certainly also on the forecastle.

A model-building colleague from Copenhagen (TJM), who has the necessary technology, kindly printed out the artillery for me and added the monogram of Christian VI. 

 

I drew the gun carriages accordingly and had them laser-cut from pear wood.

 

 

In addition to the installation in the stern model, I plan to build a section of the battery deck showing the arrangement of the artillery. There is a model at the NMM in Greenwich that serves as my model here.

 

Finally, here is a picture of the unpainted gun mounts with the gun barrels, still without fittings and wedges, which are next on the list.

 

 

I painted the gun barrels black and finished them with Tamiya aging powder (soot color).

Best regards,
Matthias

 

 

Edited October 15 by Beckmann

[Hubac's Historian]

Brilliant stuff, Matthias

[TJM]

This is so great! I really look forward to seeing them fully painted and rigged! 

 

When I have the time, I will start a thread on the 3D printing sub-forum where I will post stl files for Danish canon, in case someone else might want to go down this particular rabbit hole at some point 😅.

 

I have a whole series from 3 to 36 pounders from the 1740's-1750's, but I am also looking into earlier designs from the 17th century and later ones from the end of the 18th century 

 

 

[Beckmann]

Dear fellow model builders,
Today, just a quick update on the construction of the gun mounts, along with some more pictures of original naval guns that are now kept in Copenhagen.

 

And finally, a look at preserved gun barrels with, if I interpret correctly, the monogram C6. Christan VI Was Kinc of Denmark when TRE KRONER was built. Perhaps they were once on board the TRE KRONER.

 

Best regards

Matthias

Edited October 19 by Beckmann

[Beckmann]

Hello everybody,

Small progress has been made; the columns supporting the transom arch, are now in place.
Attached are a few pictures of the corinthian capitals being made and the finished columns on the model.

 

 

 

 

 

The corinthian capitals are difficult; apart from the scale (they are 7x7 mm at the base), they are tilted outwards and forwards.
I'm trying to manage without the 3D specialists and their milling machines for this model. Of course, they can do this kind of thing better, but somehow you want to try it yourself. Let's see if I can keep it up until I get to the figures...

 

 

 

 

Here are my cardboard laser-cut strips for the gun port hinges. The parts were dabbed with Tamiya aging powder, color: soot.

 

 

Best regards,
Matthias

 

Edited Tuesday at 03:26 PM by Beckmann

[Keith Black]

 This is such an amazing build, Matthias. Truly inspirational. 

[Ronald-V]

That's art

[Chuck]

Lovely....so elegant!!!

 

 

[glbarlow]

Very inspiring and such high quality and detail. Amazing. 

[westwood]

just amazing !

[scrubbyj427]

Very nice work Matthias! What an incredible build. This Would be an awesome subject to tackle!

[druxey]

Those tilted Corinthian capitals are exceptional! Well done.

[Beckmann]

Thank you everybody for your kind words and likes,

 

Today I would like to shar this invitation with you:

 

4th International Ship Model Building Days at the International Maritime Museum Hamburg on 10 and 11 October 2026

 

We are pleased to announce that the International Ship Model Building Days will be held again next year at the International Maritime Museum Hamburg (IMMH) on 10 and 11 October 2026. The event, which has become a fixture in the museum's calendar, will take place for the fourth time next year. The set-up day is Friday, 9 October 2026.

The International Ship Model Building Days are an excellent opportunity for ship model builders of all disciplines to showcase their models and exchange ideas in the historic rooms of the IMMH in Kaispeicher B on Koreastraße, in the heart of Speicherstadt and Hafencity. At the last exhibition in September 2024, around 45 exhibitors from several European countries came together and displayed around 1,000 ship models. Models from all areas of ship model building were on display. The scale ranged from large remote-controlled models up to 3.5 metres in length to tiny works of art made of cardboard, which are only a few centimetres in size when built to a scale of 1:1250. Fantastic dioramas and presentations in a wide variety of scales were also on display. One focus was on 3D printing, which was presented by several exhibitors. This new technology is playing an increasingly important role in ship modelling alongside long-established methods.

As in previous years, ship model builders from all over the world are invited to meet in Hamburg in October next year. This includes individuals who wish to participate, as well as model building clubs or associations that want to present their models together. Those wishing to participate should register with the IMMH at A.Reineward@imm-hamburg.de or directly with the exhibition's organising team at f.ilse@t-online.de. The registration should include which model building category – historical ships, cardboard, wood, plastic models or RC-controlled models – is to be displayed. Photos of some models are a good reference point. In addition, the approximate space required should be specified. Exhibitors who would like to give a presentation on specific aspects of ship modelling, their group or the historical aspects of their models are kindly requested to indicate this briefly in their registration form. There is no registration deadline, but please note that very late applications may not be considered as there is limited table space available for the exhibition. Once registration is complete, confirmation of participation will be sent. The organising team will then contact clubs and individuals directly to inform them about the exhibition preparations and keep them up to date. This applies in particular to all details concerning set-up and dismantling as well as the course of the exhibition itself.

So if you would like to present your model ships in the extraordinary setting of the International Maritime Museum Hamburg, please get in touch. The IMMH and the organising team look forward to receiving lots of registrations.

 

Matthias