HMS Crocodile 1781 by Pirate adam - 1/48 scale - POF

[Pirate adam]

After completing my Washington Galley, I am ready to start a new project.  I will start on the HMS Crocodile of 1781.  The Crocodile was a 24 gun Porcupine class post ship.  It is a sister ship of the famous HMS Pandora of 1779.  It was a ship of no particular significance and was wrecked off Prawle Point, England in 1784.  I chose the Crocodile for several reasons.  Firstly, I was looking to do a small frigate that would be a "reasonable size" at 1:48 scale.  Secondly, I wanted to do a ship that I have never seen anyone build before.  Thirdly, I really like the look of the ship in the drawings that are available from the NMM.  

 

I purchased the plans of the ship from the National Maritime Museum.  The plans include the figurehead and stern carvings.  I am blown away by the beauty of the original drafting and that the plans are still in good shape after over 240 years.  I have been working for several months drafting working drawings in TurboCad.  I am hoping to finish the model over the next 8+ years.

 

I would like to thank a number of people before I even get started.  I followed Wayne Kempson's article Drafting Ship Plans in CAD from the NRG homepage almost from start to finish to draft the lines plans for Crocodile.  I also have worn out the drafting section of Ed Tosti's Naiad book and David Antscherl's Fully Framed Model series.  I do not think it would have been possible for me to draft a set of plans for a fully framed model without all of their work.   Allan Yedlinsky's book Scantlings of Royal Navy Ships 1719-1805 has also been immensely helpful.  Finally thank you to all the members of MSW going back to the original MSW for all the inspiration and for answering questions over the years.  I don't think I would ever have even dreamed of starting a model of this complexity without seeing all the great work done by so many amazing modelers over the years.

 

Adam

[Pirate adam]

I have collected a number of references for building this ship.  I started with a printed copy of the lines plans from the National Maritime Museum.  I have also made a lot of use of "The Elements and Practice of Naval Architecture 1812" which is available as an electronic download from Google books.  I have also taken a lot of dimensions from "Scantlings of Royal Navy Ships 1719-1805" by Allan Yedlinsky.  That book contains information from "The Shipbuilders Repository" of 1788.  Both "The Elements and Practice of Naval Architecture" and "The Shipbuilders Repository" are believed to have used the Porcupine class in the tables of scantlings for 24 gun ships.  I have found the dimensions from "The Shipbuilders Repository"  seem to more closely match the dimensions from the Admiralty Draught in many cases vs. dimensions from "The Elements and Practice of Naval Architecture."  I also have the "Anatomy of the Ship The 24-Gun Frigate Pandora" book by John McKay and Ron Coleman.  This book is a treasure trove of information for a very similar ship. 

 

I have finished all the basic drawings that I need to get started building, but still have work to go to have a "full set" of working drawings.  I have little concern that it will be easy enough to keep ahead of construction with the drawing development.  I am far enough along that I have confidence that I can start building without any regrettable mistakes to have to deal with later.  

[Pirate adam]

I have started working on a building board following the description in Ed Tosti's Naiad book.  I used a similar, smaller board for by galley Washington.  I still need to build the gantry and accessory parts for holding the keel, aligning frames, etc.

 

[davec]

I'm impressed by your research and the drawing on the building board.  I'm really looking forward to seeing your progress.

[allanyed]

On 3/24/2024 at 5:16 PM, Pirate adam said:

Secondly, I wanted to do a ship that I have never seen anyone build before.  

For many of us that is one of the best reasons to choose a model to build!!  Good for you!!   

Allan

Edited March 26 by allanyed

[druxey]

Looks like you are off to a very good start, Adam. 

[Pirate adam]

The fun begins.  My references indicate the keel should be built up in 5 segments 13" square.  I am using swiss pear for the keel and frames.  My plan is to cut the scarphs for the keel on the mill and cut the boxing joint with chisels.  We'll see how that goes .  I glued a copy of the stem to a piece of plastic to use as a template for shaping both the boxing joint and the stem later.

 

[gjdale]

This looks like a really interesting project Adam. I’m pulling up a chair in the front row (next to the bar of course!).

[Pirate adam]

I've managed to cut the scarphs for the keel as well as the section with the boxing joint.  It only took me 3 tries to make the section with the boxing joint without messing something up   Plenty of good size pieces for the scrap box.  

[Pirate adam]

This is what I am going for in the end.

 

 

[druxey]

On a project of this nature, there will be more scrap. One needs a decent sized box. The good news is that much can be re-purposed along the way. Also, you will find the failure rate will go down as you get more experience under your belt. Been there, so I know!

 

Boxing joint looks good now.

[jpalmer1970]

This will be interesting to follow. 👍

[robdurant]

She certainly is a handsome subject. I wish you all the best as you set out to build her.

[Pirate adam]

Glued up the keel and false keel.  I used black tissue paper between the joints after testing it for color fastness when applying finish to a scrap piece.  The black tissue paper comes with a level of frustration that I was not prepared for, but it does end up in a crisp black line between the parts.  I am finding tiny pieces of black tissue paper all over the house, as it static clings to everything.  Hard to believe it has already taken 11 pieces to get to this point.  I am following the steps in The Fully Framed Model, so next up is the lower stem.

 

Adam

[druxey]

Nicely done joints and seams.

[allanyed]

On 3/31/2024 at 2:53 PM, Pirate adam said:

I used black tissue paper

I have used black tissue on deck planking with good success.  For other joints such as scarfs an alternative that I have found to work very nicely is to add a drop of black acrylic paint to a puddle of PVA glue, mix and apply.  These joints have held up for many years so I am confident the little bit of paint has not weakened the joint.

Allan

[druxey]

I've used many different methods over the years. I began with black tissue, graduated to Allan's paint/PVA mix, and now use dark brown acrylic paint (burnt umber) along the outer (show) edges of joints on one side before gluing up. I find black a little too visually contrasty, but that's a personal preference. For minor seams such as planking, soft pencil along the show edge does the trick for me.

 

Try different methods until you settle on the one(s) that you like.

[Thukydides]

21 minutes ago, druxey said:

now use dark brown acrylic paint (burnt umber) along the outer (show) edges of joints on one side before gluing up.

By this do you mean you just paint the flat of it so that the line shows once you glue them together?

[allanyed]

53 minutes ago, druxey said:

I find black a little too visually contrasty, but that's a personal preference

I agree, burnt umber is a better choice.

Allan

[Pirate adam]

2 hours ago, druxey said:

I've used many different methods over the years. I began with black tissue, graduated to Allan's paint/PVA mix, and now use dark brown acrylic paint (burnt umber) along the outer (show) edges of joints on one side before gluing up. I find black a little too visually contrasty, but that's a personal preference. For minor seams such as planking, soft pencil along the show edge does the trick for me.

 

Try different methods until you settle on the one(s) that you like.

Druxey,

 

I used the pencil approach for my last model. I liked the look especially on the deck. It is especially effective with lighter colored wood. The only thing I found is certain pencils have waxier lead that can reduce the strength of the joint. The joints on my keel scarphs should be bullet proof (fingers crossed), as I put 6 copper bolts in each joint with some CA as well as wood glue on the joint faces. 
 

I am going to switch to the brown glue approach when I get away from the timbers for the keel and the knee of the head. I don’t want to mess around with potential de-lamination when I get to the frames. I have loads of colors of Vallejo acrylic paint from plastic airplane modeling during the pandemic so will experiment with that approach as well. I agree with you and Allan that the more understated look is nicer
 

Adam 

[druxey]

Thukydides: I just paint the outer edges of the joint on one side. The majority of the joint remains wood/glue/wood.

[Pirate adam]

I experimented with adding some brown acrylic paint to some Titebond glue.  I liked the look of the joint on some test pieces.  I may have added too much paint though, as I was able to pull the test pieces apart rather easily after the glue had dried.    I will parallel path trying druxey's approach of painting the edges along with just adding less paint to the glue.

 

Adam

[Pirate adam]

I diverted from the steps in TFFM to build the knee of the head.  I will work on fairing this piece to the stem and then put it away for safekeeping until the fore cants and hawse timbers have been installed.  It still needs to be tapered in both directions and the slot for the gammoning cleaned up a bit.

 

I used druxey's recommendation of painting the edges of the joints brown before gluing.  I like the way it turned out.  I am expecting some powdered brown pigments from the Amazon guy today that I will try mixing with glue going forward.

 

Adam

 

[druxey]

Lookin' good, P.A.

[Pirate adam]

Knee of the head Mk. II.  I messed up the first one when I was sanding the backside to fit the stem.  I learned my lesson and made up a sanding block with the same profile of the stem to sand back the second version.  This time I used brown artists pigment mixed into the Titebond glue.  The lines are hardly visible, but show up nicely when the wood is damp.  I will stick to that approach for the rest of the build. The stem, keel, and knee of the head are just on the bench for show and not glued up yet.

 

Adam

 

 

[Michel Bénard]

Nice ship an good start. Good luck for the rest.

[Pirate adam]

I am back at it after some time away for work travel and family stuff.  I have completed the layup of the aft deadwood.  The top and fore surfaces still need to be cut back to the line so are a bit rough looking.  My drawings didn't include the layout of the deadwood, so I made some choices based on similar ships, Pandora Anatomy of the Ship book, Ed Tosti's Naiad books, and David's HMS Swan series.

 

Adam

[Pirate adam]

I have switched to an artists pigment mixed with wood glue to add color to the seams.  I am very happy with the results, as it adds nice color as well as providing some gap filling capability.  The lines on the stern deadwood above are totally smooth to the touch and not actual gaps.

[Pirate adam]

Staring at the stern deadwood for a while made me realize it wasn't right.  I didn't leave enough wood on the forward portion of the deadwood to allow the last few square frames to sit properly and fair into the bearding line.  I'm not sure how I missed this in the other examples.  I adjusted my drawing and remade the deadwood.  I actually ended up making two more because I accidentally rounded off the portion on the second version in a way that would have interfered with the proper alignment with the underside of the wing transom.  I am happy with the final version.

 

I knew that this model would require so re-do's, as it is a big step up in complexity from the kits I have done as well as the Washington galley.  There is some additional complexity with using my own plans.  Things should be a bit more straightforward as I get to the frames.  The very nice thing is I now have a couple practice pieces for cutting the steps on the deadwood.

 

 

 

 

 

[Michel Bénard]

Your work is going well. Keep up the good work.