HMS Erebus by Ship_Right - OcCre - Scale 1:75

[Ship_Right]

I am working through all the deck furniture components. Most have gone well, but bending the pump handles gave me some trouble. The piece that drops from the handle into the pump is too short at the location that is at top dead centre. I am not trying to modify these, just going with the kit.

I did purchase two Caldercraft 10-spoke wheels which I have assembled and am just about to paint. They are not yet installed so don't show up on the attached photos.

I am trying to decide what to do about the capstan. Looking at the ship drawings I believe the height of the one supplied is about right, but the diameter is small and the top is shaped improperly. I won't go too far with this, but I am wondering whether I can just beef up the top, and possibly use 2x3's instead of 2x2's for the barrel to give it a little more diameter.

I have just finished planning where to put the bottoms of the chain plates so the angles are correct - OcCre keeps it a secret. I worked it out by scale drawing the plates with respect to the tops of the masts, following down where the shrouds will go when they are rigged. We'll see how the installation goes ...

 

 

[clearway]

regards the capstan see my Terror log- i kept the base and post then scratchbuilt a new top.

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

22 hours ago, clearway said:

regards the capstan see my Terror log- i kept the base and post then scratchbuilt a new top.

 

Keith

I had never looked at your Terror build, Keith, just the Erebus - Wow! So much good information and tips. Had I looked at it earlier in my build I probably would not have understood a lot of it, and since this is my first ship build I would likely have been overwhelmed!

Your capstan looks great, and is along the lines of what I was thinking of attempting.

Where did you get your silver-coloured belaying pins - or are they from the kit but painted that way?

Just a follow up on the stern davits - as you can see in the photos I went with straight davits, no tapering, no joins. I'm happy with the result, it looks mechanically correct to me.

Edited April 30 by Ship_Right

[clearway]

1 hour ago, Ship_Right said:

Where did you get your silver-coloured belaying pins

Thank you Guy- the belaying pins are the brass ones from billings boats- cant seem to get them new anymore as they now sell wooden ones made to same dimensions (that is why my belaying pins on my Erebus are wooden though closer to scale than occre supplied ones).

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

23 hours ago, clearway said:

Thank you Guy- the belaying pins are the brass ones from billings boats- cant seem to get them new anymore as they now sell wooden ones made to same dimensions (that is why my belaying pins on my Erebus are wooden though closer to scale than occre supplied ones).

 

Keith

Do you know what the correct size is Keith? I found some 10 mm brass ones, the OcCre ones are 10 mm long. My best guess from the plans is 6 - 8 mm, but I don't know how accurate the drawings are for something that small.

Edited May 1 by Ship_Right

[clearway]

8mm would be ideal- the brass billings pins on my Terror are 11mm but don't look too overscale as the heads are a smaller profile than the Occre belaying pins- the Terror and Erebus kits are roughly 4mm to the foot.

 

Keith

[Dr PR]

I bought some very nice 9mm bronze belaying pins from Ages of Sail, 20 per package for US$9.12. Part number AM4101/09. I think these are Amati parts. Unlike some other brass belaying pins I have, these are very uniform size.

 

[harlequin]

a good read

[Ship_Right]

Thanks everyone for all your comments. Nothing new to report until now.

 

There must be a better way to do the chain plates!

After the first 20 I thought I should be getting good at making the brass wire parts ... but not so. It's interesting that the pictures in the OcCre instructions (and I have come to realize that they are pictures, not the photos that they appear to be) show loops at each end of the brass wire on some pictures, and no loops at the bottom end in others. Doesn't show an alternate method of fastening them though - just pins. I couldn't get them straight, consistent lengths to the bends. 

Ah well if I ever build another one I will invent a new approach 😬

 

 

 

 

This photo shows my version of the capstan, and the Caldercraft 10-spoke wheels installed (but not yet cabled to the rudder). On this - as on all the metal components - I am having difficulty making paint stick, even with metal primer applied. It seems ok , but if I rub my finger over it it flakes off. Is this because water-based acrylic paints are just not as sticky as the ones that fume off and give you headaches? Oh for the good old days ....

 

 

I did find some brass belaying pins at a "local" supplier (Montreal - only 500 km away). I had already ordered 10 mm ones before the discussion above suggested 8mm might be more appropriate, but these ones do fit in the holes I have already drilled. They are made by Dekam in Italy, distributed in Canada by UDISCO - found them on eBay. Size is not 100% consistent but it looks like any given batch is the same.

 

[clearway]

20 hours ago, Ship_Right said:

There must be a better way to do the chain plates!

looking good and yes chainplates bring pain (check my Terror log regards my self inflicted pain🤪)- one of the main reasons my build has faltered! Regards the caldercraft ships wheels i used humbrol acrylic primer but then used enamel paint and washes along with a coat of varnish to protect the paint and make it look more "woody"

 

Keith

[Ship_Right]

Thanks everyone for all your comments and likes.

On the subject of curved davits ....

 

Here's how I am making curved davits without laminating. Took me a while to get them to the point where the results were acceptable. I have no 2 x 2 material, but lots of spare 2 x 5 limewood so I cut strips of 2 x 2 off the 2 x 5. I made a form in the shape that conforms to the drawings in Matthew Betts book, with clamps bent from aluminum electrical wire holders. Soaked the pieces for 24 hours before working them, and applied the heat from the outside of the curve. Lack of patience is the enemy ...

 

        

 

   

 

I also created a form for completed pieces because they needed to be held in shape while they cooled and dried. This allowed me to make two a day.

Before removing them I marked the start and end points and the point where I wanted the mounting pin.

    

 

I had a fairly high reject rate, especially at first, with the wood giving way at the apex of the curve. Might have got away with this once painted but I decided to persevere - the attempts for perfection getting in the way of production as usual.

 

 

Here is one of the early ones with its pivot pin inserted.

 

 

I will post photos of them installed once I get them on the ship.

 

 

Edited June 9 by Ship_Right
Picture formats mixed up

[Ship_Right]

Just to reassure everyone who visits this build log: I've been away from the shipyard for a few weeks (except for spray painting some metal parts with etching primer, ready for a coat of paint) to complete some home projects that needed my attention, plus a week at "the cottage", a place we rent every year at Sauble Beach where the ice cream is delicious and the sunsets over Lake Huron are legendary.

Davit construction will resume in due course, but it may be another month or two before I have anything to show.

Thanks for checking in ...

 

Edited July 26 by Ship_Right

[clearway]

Hey Guy with views like that sometimes you just gotta chill and unwind😊

 

Keith