HMS Victory by Keith B - FINISHED - Billing Boats - Scale 1:75

[trippwj]

Nice looking shop, and your Victory is also shaping up well!

[Keith B]

Coffee machine and T.V. now installed in the workshop,so it's back to the Victory at last!

I'm planking at the moment,which is really tedious,so while I wait for things to dry I've been doing other little jobs as seen in the photo's.

To bend the planks I've just been soaking the end,about 4 inches,and then crimping the plank with a bender I got off e-bay for about £5.Seems to work this way,although I must say that the planks supplied with this kit aren't exactly of the best quality.

[shihawk]

your moving on at speed of knots ,ill never catch you now .you must be working double shifts .   its starting to take shape nicely and yes the wood supplied is nearly as bad as the instructions but you seem to be doing a great job ,dont forget to paint the fiddley bits before fitting and keep the pics coming.have fun !! 

[Keith B]

Hi Shihawk,

I spend about 4 to 5 hours a day on it,but being happily retired now it keeps me occupied! I do have a few coffee breaks though,and do small jobs adding things to the workshop.

You're right about the instructions.Why the hell they couldn't have numbered the parts instead of only doing it on the instruction sheets is beyond me.I've nearly worn the booklet out by thumbing through it trying to find out what sheet a certain part is on!

[Keith B]

I've come to the conclusion that the wood supplied with this kit for planking the hull is absolutely rubbish,and when it's finished will have to be sanded to within an inch of it's life! I have therefore decided to add a top layer of veneer to get a half decent look to this ship.It will mean extra work and expense,but I think it will be worth doing.

[shihawk]

hi Keith ,I came to the same conclusion and have ordered 0.5 cherry to finish the hull although i dont intend coppering or painting but thought if you were you might get away with the wood provided ,plenty of fillers and sanding ??? Your pics of the decking look great .

[Keith B]

Hi Shihawk,

I'm only going to paint certain bits so they stand out,like the gun trolleys etc.I made a smaller version of Victory,and left it all wood,and it does look good. Like you,I'm not trying to make an authentically correct model,just one that (hopefully) will look nice! I will be coppering the hull though,as it's something I didn't do on the previous one.

Cheers for now,

Keith.

[Keith B]

Hi,The model isn't double planked,but it will be when I've finished with it!!

[shihawk]

Hi Keith  i suppose your ready to start rigging by now ??  I have another small query ,this time about the hole left when the grating frame is fitted to the lower deck .I see from your log you planked the part with no gratings on it and wondered if you got this from the plans as i could see no mention of it . In the cc builds there seem to be ladders here down to lower deck but then we dont have a lower deck . Am considering cutting out the ply and fitting ladders but just wondered if i had missed any other solutions on the plans ?. Did you decide what wood to finish the hull with yet ?                                                                                        Boyd.

[shihawk]

disregard my ramblings about the ladders in the last post ,have just realised i was fitting the small grating on the large hole and you have bone as the plans intended ,have fun .

[Keith B]

1st planking done at last.Started on 2nd planking now.I'm using 0.5 x 5mm beech.It's half the price of a dark wood,and seeing as it's going to get painted or stained I can't see the point of wasting my hard earned!!

[Keith B]

I've just taken delivery of the Longridge book "The Anatomy of Nelson's Ships". Looks like it's going to be a godsend with such crappy instructions in the kit!

[Shipyard sid]

Hello Keith

It's coming fine, and no the instructions don't look very good at all, but I am sure you won't have a great deal of problems and there's always help at hand. Did you not think of fitting the stairway next to the grills, it should be easy and you have time to do it. Keep enjoying it. DAVID

[Keith B]

Never gave it a thought! Never mind though,that's just another little job to do,and I've got loads of time! Apart from that,I'm really enjoying this build,hope you feel the same about yours too.

Cheers,

Keith.

[clearway]

nice work so far. at about the same stage with my billings victory. i used strips of self adhesive label (franking labels in this case) for the window frames and sandwhiched the acetate between the carcase and decorative external panels. wish i had bought the jokita one now!!!

[Keith B]

I'd have loved the Jokita kit,but can't really justify the price of it!

[Keith B]

Planking's just about done,lots of trimming and sanding to do,but a bit bored with that now,so I thought I'd try my hand at coppering for the last couple of hours of the day.Never done it before,but I'm dead chuffed with how it's beginning to look!

[shihawk]

Hi Keith ,never coppered but yours looks spot on ,did you cut out the gunports or just paint them black ? and what about the ladders ,did you bother ?

[Shipyard sid]

Hello Keith

I can only say your work and progress is excellent, everything is clean and neat and you have done a cracking job on the copper plates so far. I do agree with Boyd about fitting the stairways, but forget about jotika and enjoy your billing build. Take your time and enjoy it....DAVID

[shihawk]

Sorry Keith i didnt mean to sound as if i thought you should do stairs etc i just curious if you did 

[Keith B]

Hi mate,

Don't worry,no offence taken! I've done one of the stairways,will do the other one when I get bored with other jobs!

I've just painted the gunports,not cut them out.I don't think I've got your patience!

Coppering is straight forward so far,but I haven't got to the bendy bits yet.

Cheers,

Keith.

[Keith B]

Well,after nearly 2 weeks the coppering's done,except the rudder.About 1700 plates.I ordered 2000,so I've got some left towards the next project! I must say that it gets a bit tedious,but I think the end result is so much better than just painting it,as the kit instructions expect.

[Keith B]

Thought I'd do a bit of painting next,before I start putting any other parts on the hull exterior,as it makes it so much easier to mask up if there aren't any lumps and bumps in the way.

[Shipyard sid]

Hello Keith

Well this is coming on fine. Well done with the copper plates. Make sure you use a good quality masking tape for your wales to ensure you don't get any bleeding through. Tamiya will do the job.. Keep up the excellent progress . DAVID

[shihawk]

looking good Keith,what kind of stand are you useing it looks interesting?/??

[Keith B]

Hi Boyd,

It's a keel clamp which swivels and tilts. Got it off e-bay- 20 quid. Just search for "keel clamp"

Cheers,

Keith.

[Keith B]

Had a good couple of days in the workshop so far this week. While waiting for things to dry I've been making some of the gun carriages up,and also sizing and tapering the sections of masts.

[Shipyard sid]

Hello Keith

It's coming along fine, and the hull painting is excellent. Yes it looks like you are enjoying your build, and that will be a big bonus to have your masts ready to fit when you reach that stage. Keep up the good work.. Well done. DAVID

[Keith B]

Thanks David,

Yes,I'm really enjoying the build,especially now the coppering's done! Everything I add to it now improves the look,whereas the earlier part of the build was more structural,not visual,if you get what I mean!

Cheers,

Keith.

[clearway]

Nice work there.strongly recommend laquering the copper though- i did with my cutty sark and the copper still looks ok 18 years later. (see my pic on new to MSW post)

Keith