HMS Erebus by Ship_Right - OcCre - Scale 1:75

[Ship_Right]

Hello Everyone.

I have opened the box ... 

After reading many posts and a couple of build logs on this site I have decided to try to deal with the "Hull Bulge" by "building out" three of the frames/bulkheads, based on Matthew Betts' detailed description, using wood from the OcCre sprue that held the frames supplied in the kit.

Results of these efforts will be posted. Modifiying the frames should be easy enough; planking is what scares me 😬

 

Guy

[clearway]

Yey another Erebus build at last- there are planking tutorials on MSW, just remember the planks taper fore and aft- how occre, amai and artesenia show in their kits is wrong!

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Initial pieces to build out frames 5, 9 and 10 shown before assembly. I interpreted the dimensions as best I could from Matthew Betts' book. Managed to find enough scraps of wood in the sprue in the kit. Rough to work with but I think it will do the job, once they are glued.

 

 

 

 

They will need final sanding and shaping so the bottom of the hull is all at the same level. Shown here with frames 4, 6 and 7 which will remain unmodified:

 

I did see suggestions that one way to eliminate the "bulge" was to sand down frames 6 and 7, but it seems to me the resulting hull shape would not be accurate.

[clearway]

19 hours ago, Ship_Right said:

They will need final sanding and shaping so the bottom of the hull is all at the same level. Shown here with frames 4, 6 and 7 which will remain unmodified:

best way is to hold a planking strip across a few frames when trimming down to find any high spots- it was me who said you could reduce frames 6 & 7 as an alternative to save building new frames but a very rounded hull would result.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Photos attached are two views with all the frames built out, glued, shaped and installed. Just for into, I'm using LePage's "No More Clamp" glue - so far I really like it. Has enough time for readjustment (5 minutes), but don't need to hold things in place for too long (10 seconds according to the instructions).

 

 

 

 

The deck is not yet glued, and I am questioning the order in which to do the deck planking and assembly. I see two serious options:

1. The OcCre instructions would have me plank the deck, assemble it to the framework, then plank the hull. This means the planking would be done on a flat deck, and the deck then (slightly) curved to fit the framework. Turning the assembly over to plank the hull then exposes the deck planking to damage during the hull planking.
2. My instinct is to assemble the deck to the frame, plank the hull, then plank the deck. Assembling the deck to the frame and gluing it in place will provide rigidity to the assembly to help maintain symmetry while the hull planking proceeds, and leaving the deck planking till later avoids rubbing and damage to the deck planking while the hull is planked and sanded to shape.

[clearway]

option 2 is the best option- looks better with the fuller frames doesn't she- also don't forget the holes for the mast holes on the main and fore will need widened if using right diameter dowelling and alterations to the slot for the bowsprit if moving to correct position as in my build log.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Thanks Keith. There are many modifications that you made that with my inexperience I don't feel I am ready to make, so will just be following the kit.

However, I am curious about the mast sizes and the bowsprit modifications. I couldn't see on your log how you handled the bowsprit angle - moving it forward either changes the angle or demands a modification to its support?

Also I looked for the new mast sizes and didn't find them. Probably because I am not yet conversant enough with the search engine? I know I have read somewhere about the increased mast size, but was it someone else's build log.

I really do appreciate your comments and suggestions.

Guy

[clearway]

if you look through my Erebus log there are pics of the modified bowsprit - just move the holes foreward , the angle is about the same. as regards the mast sizes - foremast is 7mm and mainmast 8mm- you should check out mine and Keith s HMS Terror build logs for more info as well, but at the end of the day it is your build and you are the shipwright in charge, just altering the mast diameters and adding the deckhouses makes a huge difference.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Thanks Keith - I had lost track of the Keith s build log but have now found it again.

I just found a piece of dowel in my basement that is 7.4 mm dia - which I would use for the main if it was only straight - it has a slight curve to it, it's been standing in a corner of my workshop probably for > 15 years ☹️. Need to find a source in Toronto for the right materials.

My focus for modifications to the kit is now on:

• Main Mast
• Foremast
• Bowsprit (but still don't quite understand the geometry with the new location)
• 10-Spoke wheels (The Caldercraft ones would cost me over C$60 by the time shipping is included, so I'm thinking of the ones from Syren - but I can't get a shipping cost until the Canadian Postal Strike is over. Grrr).

Guy

[clearway]

23 hours ago, Ship_Right said:

Bowsprit (but still don't quite understand the geometry with the new location

where as occre have the bowsprit going over the top of the bulwarks with the new location it goes through the bulwarks more or less at deck level

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Keith, from your build log I think this - with the photos - is the key to what I have to do with the bowsprit:

"... altered forepeak glued in place- as already mentioned i trimmed it back below the gammoning hole to look more like the admiralty plans while altering the angle slightly to align with the altered bowsprit (also had to take a little off the scarph joints)."

Thanks for the direction.

Guy

[clearway]

you are welcome Guy. If you ever have any questions about other alterations will help as best as i can.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

It may seem I'm being picky and focusing on details that I am months away from needing for construction, but I am aware that I will need to make sure the deck openings and mast steps and seats are set up for the sizes of spars I end up using. 

 

As a result of my failed searches to locate a source for 7 mm dowel I looked further into my kit and into Keith s's build of HMS Terror. He stated in 2020 that  "I've replaced the bowsprit, fore, and main. The main is 8mm and the fore & sprite are 6mm. The mizzen is the same 5mm dowel that was provided in the kit."

 

Interestingly, my kit drawings show that all the (lower part of the) masts, as well as the bowsprit,  are 6 mm dia.

Following this and Keith s's determination of sizes, I only need to change the main mast size to 8 mm (close enough to 5/16", which is readily available).

Should I increase the upper mast sections proportionally? If I decide to do that, I could use the 6 mm dowel supplied for the main mast lower section as the middle section, and the 5 mm dowel supplied for the middle section as the upper section. 

 

I'm itching to start serious building, but these are important decisions for me to make up front!

Guy

[clearway]

Keith S and myself just reduced the 8mm dowelling to get the 7mm for the foremast- i used sandpaper around a wooden block and sanded lengthways while turning it ( was a lot of sanding but got there)!

 

After asking Keith S for the mast dimensions from the admiralty plans it was found dimensions for a 10th class frigate were closest- when i matched up the other mast sections using Lees masting and Rigging Occre had got them pretty bang on so you can use the kits dimensions for the top masts/ topgallant masts- if memory serves me right Daniel D said he found references to  the yards being the same length on the fore and main to help with interchanging if damaged- while i finished my HMS Terror i am still waiting for the other keith to restart his build log- our banter and build logs helped keep me sane in the dark days of Covid lockdown.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Spent some time before the holiday season to get organized. Refurbished the workbench I built 50+ years ago, after cleaning off all the junk that had accumulated from other projects.

 

 

Thought I had sorted out what glue to use for the deck planking - I felt comfortable with contact cement especially having purchased a local brand that is easy to source and is odourless.

Then I read the fine print - it said not suitable for extra thin veneer. Some research yielded confirmation that water-based contact cement is not suitable.

I hadn't opened the bottle, so was able to return it. Brushable contact cements are few and far between here in Canada, so I did more research and found this Youtube video that gave some official validation to an approach mentioned in a few places on the MSW site. The video specifically relates to the Tite-Bond brand of PVA, but I had a local brand (LePages Pro Carpenter Glue) sitting on my shelf so I ran some tests, which were successful.

Essentially the method is:

Brush PVA glue on to both pieces to be glued. Dilute the glue with up to 10% water to make it flow better. Really spread it out to make it a thin layer.

Let it dry. I tested waiting 5 mins, and then I did another test waiting 24 hours. Both worked.

Put the pieces together, glue side to glue side. Move them around as much as you want to place them correctly.

Run a hot iron over them to press them together. The video says use the hottest setting, but I was concerned I was marking the wood with too much heat, so I dialed it back to the bottom of the "Cotton" setting - more tests on scrap veneer, successful.

Five seconds seemed plenty long enough to complete the bond.

I completed the deck planking using this method.

 

[Ship_Right]

I set up a jig to cut the diagonal deck planks. Took an hour (maybe two) to make the jig, but the actual cutting was then really quick (maybe 30 mins to cut all ~120 planks, all really consistent in length and angle.

 

 

 

I laid out the planks on modeling tape against a straight edge. Fiddly work required some patience ... Brushing glue over them also stuck them to each other which was fine - but on my second run (the other side of the ship) I finished by trimming all of them at once with a straight-edge (taking care not to take off too much!) on the side that was to butt against the centre deck planks. About 1/2 mm.

 

After the glue had dried, I marked the glued side with a yellow sharpie in case any of them fell out or I had to figure out which side was glued.

 

 

Here is the end result:

 

I used the disc knife to trim wherever I could - better a "rolling" cut than a "sliding" one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Ship_Right]

I started to panic when, having read in OcCre's parts list that I needed 75 pieces of deck plank, I realized that this number was wrong. I don't know where OcCre got it from. 120 was closer. I couldn't remember how many I had used on tests and discarded warped strips. In the end I had enough, but I was sweating for a while!

[clearway]

Coming along nicely, watch out because some of the measurements for wood strips on my occre Terror were way off. On Erebus i was lucky enough to have enough narrower veneer to make the planking more to scale- i didn't like how wide planking on my Terror looked.

for my ships i use Evo-Stick fast grab wood glue but not sure how available it is outside of U.K.?

[Ship_Right]

Wish I had paid more attention to the colour of the planks - I would have made sure the centre planks were all the same.

I'm asking myself  - do I really need to mark (with pencil) all the diagonal plank outlines, as they show in the video tutorial? I can see marking the centre planks ...

Now I have a Dremel with a drill press I'm going to drill the holes in the deck - at least the larger ones - before I glues the deck to the frame. I've also dry fitted the bowsprit and modified its support (Forepeak?) while I still have access to the centre of the frame, and I've squared off the bottom of the 8mm Mainmast and Foremast to fit without modifying the frame. Still struggling with how to reduce the new foremast from 8mm to 7mm and make it a consistent diameter.

[Ship_Right]

On 12/29/2024 at 5:00 AM, clearway said:

i use Evo-Stick fast grab wood glue but not sure how available it is outside of U.K

Evo-Stick is available in Canada - though it looks on the expensive side. Couldn't find the "Fast-Grab" type, but didn't search too hard.

[Ship_Right]

I've sanded the foremast down. Size isn't as consistent as I'd like but it will suffice.

I cut all the masts to their final length, and temporarily "stepped" them. The red gadget in the photo is a small copper pipe cutter which I used to cut the dowel - makes a perfect right-angled cut. The photo shows the bowsprit with the modified forepeak taped on temporarily. Haven't cut the bowsprit to length yet - I'm guessing I need to make it so that it protrudes in front of the bow by the same amount as the original one did when mounted further back. I need to look at Matt Betts's book (which I did purchase) to see if it gives me an answer to that question. (Edit: No it probably won't - Matt's book is about the Terror, and my understanding is that the Erebus bowsprit s different).

 

Edited December 31, 2024 by Ship_Right

[Jond]

Dear Guy

first happy New Year

 

The deck looks great and at some point you will add some form on finish to it and it will sing.  We don't have much lime wood on this side of the pond, so I found it fun to work with.  the variation helps to delineate it too. the herringbone pattern is unique too

 

I recommend you add to your reading list the wonderful book by Michael Palin on HMS Erebus.  

 

cheers 

Jon 

[Ship_Right]

Happy New Year to everyone, and thank you for all who offer me help and advice as I progress through this build. This kind of modelling is new to me, so every word of assistance is gratefully received!

I have read Michael Palin's book - along with several really good books about the Franklin Expedition, the searches and the people involved. In fact they are what led me to this project.

[clearway]

Happy new year to you too.

 

Keith