Erycina by robdurant - Vanguard Models - 1:64 - Plymouth Ketch-Rigged Trawler

[robdurant]

Hi all,

 

The rope handles have been added to the hatches. A note for other builders here... and a reminder that no matter how good the kit, it's always worth reading ahead. The instructions tell you to glue the hatches down, and in the next step tell you to install the rope handles. Clearly, if you've already glued in the hatch covers, doing things in this order means you'll have no access to the bottom of the hatch covers to install the rope... SO... either don't glue the hatch covers in until after you've put on the rope handles, OR install the rope handles, and THEN glue the hatches onto the deck. Your money, your choice  I chose the latter, because that way I could install the hatch covers first, and know that the loose ends of the 0.5mm thread weren't going to foul the hatch surrounds.

 

It's a simple enough job, a little superglue was used firstly to make a hardened end to make threading it easier, and then to fasten the threads. No knots were necessary. On the removable hatch cover, the glue was added to the underside of the cover where the thread came through, and it was then clipped back flush to allow the hatch to be placed over the others.

Now, an admission... I began to assemble the steps and got engrossed, and completely neglected to take an afterwards photo.... It went together quite neatly. Getting rid of the char on the steps and the uprights was a little fiddly, but nothing too bad. I painted the inside of the hole in the deck where the companionway sits black to stop the MDF and plywood showing, and installed the steps. A little sanding on each side of the steps made it a neat fit. As the instructions say - don't drop the steps into the hull! I'm glad I didn't have to find out _how_ irritating and time-consuming it would be to retrieve them.

 

I completely understand the design intent of the companionways, but this is perhaps one of the few areas of the kit where I'm not a great fan of the look. The companionways in the kit have notched edges to aid in getting a neat lined up assembly - these are certainly helpful, but those tabs, (in my personal opinion) slightly spoil the look of the finished article...  If you're painting these parts, it's a non-issue. And they don't look terrible... I'm just not a great fan.

 

Here's the photo from the assembly manual - Again, in fairness to Chris and James, it's worth noting that these photos have the char left on - if you sand these edges back the notches will be far less noticeable.

Don't take any of this as a complaint. It really isn't. This kit rocks! And as is always the case with a wooden boat model - if you don't like it, scratch build it however you like... the kit's just the starting point. So here's my effort... Pear left over from the planking was split down the middle, and then glued back together to make boards of ~2mm wide planks. The original parts were then used as templates to make full sides.

Once cut and sanded to shape (leaving the spaces for the notches in place on the sides, and removing the notches on the front of the companionway), it was assembled.

Using the original parts for the front (with the tables removed) and the top, it was all assembled. Thanks to the hatch top, the assembly was reasonably sturdy. Here's a shot before the bottom edge was tidied up...

 

Overall, I'm happier with the look.

 

Next up are hinges and handles, etc... No photos of that yet.

 

Thanks for looking in.

 

Rob

 

[robdurant]

Hi,

 

A little bit more progress. I've added the details to the companionway, and installed it in place. I've also constructed the main sheet housing assembly and the eyelets in the deck. I replaced the photo-etch for these with wire versions (which I had left over from previous builds), as they're more rounded, and I think I prefer the look overall. Whether you'd really ever notice the difference is another matter entirely, but I'll know  

A (very-zoomed-in) comparison of the wire and the photo-etch eyelets:

And installed... I haven't currently glued the eyebolt holding the double-block in place as I wasn't sure how easy it would be to rig, and I wanted to keep the option open to get more access if I wanted it.

It amazes me how much slower building is these days. When I built Lady Isabella, I was working six-day weeks and it took me four months. But progress is progress, and I'm enjoying building this model immensely!

 

Thanks for looking in

 

Rob

[robdurant]

It's been a productive week. So here's an update. I've finished off all the deck furniture, and added the belaying pins (blackened photo-etch), and the chain plates...

 

 

The chain plates were marked out from the plans using masking tape to protect the hull as I put pencil marks on to show where they should go. Once I was happy with the arrangement, I drilled a hole in each to locate the first pin, and then removed the masking tape. The remaining holes were drilled, and the provided pins were fixed in, having first blackened the heads. (It's worth noting that on the top holes of the forward and rear chainplates, the hole shouldn't end up sticking out on the far side of the bulwark. To avoid this, I shortened the pin before gluing it in place with a small dab of superglue.

 

 

I've also dyed the sail set (these are the premium sails sold separately by Chris at Vanguard, and they really do add to the model). I used Rit dyes for this. About two pints of water were boiled in a big stainless steel pan, then having given it a few minutes to start cooling, I added two teaspoons of Rit Wine powder and Rit Dark Brown powder, half a teaspoon of salt, and a tiny dribble of washing up liquid. Having thoroughly stirred the mixture, the sails were added, ensuring they were completely submerged and wet through. About 30 seconds later, I took out the sails, and lay them out to remove the worst of the liquid. They were then placed on a cooling rack to dry off, turning occasionally.

 

I was really pleased with how these turned out. When I build Lady Isabella (the Zulu from Vanguard's range), I felt the sails ended up a little light... this time, I've managed to get a deeper, richer colour.

 

I'm almost onto the masts now, so soon I'll get the chance to see how they look on Erycina!

 

Thanks for all the likes and encouragement

 

Rob

[robdurant]

And... onto the masts. I haven't cut down the top of the mast yet, but couldn't resist seeing how it looked in situ.