HMS Triton by Gabek - 1:96 - cross-section

[Edwardkenway]

Good to see you back! I'm looking forward to the next installments. 

[mtaylor]

Welcome back.  Retirement is a transition and needs some time to sort out.   Been there, still sorting.....  Looking good on the model.   I hope you'll be able to continue.

[Gabek]

Thanks for all the supporting comments and likes, folks!

 

This was a psychologically tough stage - painting the hold.  Even drawing a pencil line on that clean wood gave me heartburn! For quite some time I guessed and second-guessed this decision but when I sat down to do this there was no hesitation.  I started with a Vallejo acrylic primer, followed later by Vallejo white.  The aft part of the model will remain unpainted.  The three forward-most pillars were painted as well.  Once everything was dry I brushed on a matt varnish to the entire hold and all pillars.
 

 

So, while things were drying I was drafting the iron pigs in Fusion 360 (free version) based on the proportions and layout according to Anatomy of the Ship:  The Frigate Diana. In photos of ballast in HMS Victory and HMS Trincomalee you can see the ubiquitous British government broad arrow so I added them to the design.  By my count, I would need over 200 pieces of this permanent ballast.    Rather than printing 200 single pigs I created side-by-side “gangs" of 10, 6, and 3 along with some singles.  I soon realized that end-to-end gangs could be used so I designed sets of 2, 3, 4, and 6.  [I plan to dedicate a post to this whole process shortly].

 

Looking closely at the Diana plans I discovered I had to add ballast cants that run parallel to the limber strakes and act as a stop for the iron ballast.  The cant can be seen in the photo of HMS Trincomalee's hold.  Yes, I had to add pieces to the FRESHLY PAINTED AND VARNISHED hold!  Well, time to scrape…



I made suitable stock on my table saw, scraped the paint + varnish so I could glue down the ballast cants in place.  I had some ballast fresh off of the printer and couldn’t wait to see how things looked together. 

After trimming and painting the newly installed cants I went to work on the limber boards. To get the bevels on the edges of such thin, flexible strips I ended up clamping the pieces between two popsicles sticks. This let me hold them  at a constant angle, making the bevels on the limber boards quite sharp.

Once shaped, I painted the limber boards (and the keelson) a dark brown based on HMS Trincomalee. I was going to cut the limber boards shorter but couldn’t find the correct lengths.  I was going to ask you folks if you knew the right dimension until I discovered it a few minutes ago! Looking at the photo of the Trincomalee's hold just now I can clearly see the cut lines.  Before I install them on the model I will chop these to an accurate size.

 

Again, I was so excited that I couldn’t wait to paint all the ballast I had printed before dry fitting to my Triton.  So, with limber boards in place, this is what the iron ballast on a frigate would look like: 

 

Iron ballast was arranged in three tiers (see the previous layout photo).  The starboard side of the hold (left in the picture) has an accurate set up with two tiers (the third tier would be just a couple of pigs next to the well).  The port side (right in the picture) is only the first tier. The broad arrows look white but are just filled with resin dust from sanding.  I took pains to print the arrows in a random pattern (using dice!). 

 

I'm amazed at the amount and breadth of the ballast on these ships!  I'm glad that I’m adding them.  Painting and installing them permanently is next (gulp!)

 

Clear skies,

Gabe

 

Edited February 13, 2022 by Gabek
Picture in wrong place

[mtaylor]

The ballast will add to the details and it looks great.  

[Gabek]

Backwards step…big step…little step

I was a bit disappointed when I painted all the ballast I had printed.  In pictures of the HMS Victory the broad arrows on the iron pigs appear to be filled with dust from the shingle ballast.  On the HMS Trincomalee the arrows are painted.  Regardless, the arrows are noticeable so, after priming and painting all the pieces black, I experimented using some white weathering powder to fill the broad arrows.  I was totally frustrated with poor results.  I couldn’t keep the white off of the areas that needed to be black: washing, sanding, scraping all led to mottled grey

 

So…I bought black resin and printed all the ballast again.  For those of you unfamiliar with resin 3D printing, there are many manufacturers of UV resin and many different formulations. Because of this variability there is always a bit of a learning phase to get good results with new resins. (This particular resin was eSUN’s plant-based product. If you want the settings I used please let me know).  After several mediocre results I was able to start up the resin foundry into full production again.  

I did find that some pieces were slightly bent after I cured them and I wasn’t sure which stage of the process was causing this.  They appeared fine before I cut them off the supports, so I printed several more than I needed and experimented with post-printing procedures.  (Again, if you’re interested just ask and I’ll fill you in on what I ended up doing.)   Another perplexing issue was that there was an artifact from printing - diagonal lines on the larger ballast pieces that were printed facing in one direction - but the pieces printed in an opposite direction were smooth.  In the resin world there is speculation that this is caused by the software used to prepare a 3d file for printing. 

When time came to add the ballast to the model I realized that the first row, which runs perpendicular to the keel, was too long for my future plans so I had to cut it back.  While this doesn’t seem to be a big deal to many, standard UV resins are remarkably brittle so I anticipated trouble.  Either plant-based resins are more resilient than the standard formulae or I was careful enough to manage shortening them without mishap.  

Something else became bothersome - sanding this resin produces a very fine, white (light grey?) powder that clung to everything.  It almost became like paint and I had to scrub the ballast clean using water.  

If I thought painting the hold was nerve-wracking enough, gluing these ballast pieces into place required a BIG gulp.  I could always sand off paint, but once these are installed there’s no going back.  It all worked fine.  I didn’t bother painting the broad arrows on these starter rows because they will be hidden by a second tier - but parts of the rest of the ballast on this first tier will be visible in places.  Therefore, I painted them using thinned, water-based Vallejo white and, once dry, scraped the paint off the surface of the ballast.  
 

Now that I know the extent of the ballast I won’t install the second tier until later after some more work in the hold is done. Namely…

…the well and shot locker are next. It all starts with a cutaway main mast step.  Poring over diagrams in Anatomy of the Ship: The Frigate Diana and AotS: The 23-Gun Frigate Pandora plus photos of the HMS Victory in Longridge’s The Anatomy of Nelson’s Ships - they seemed to indicate that the mortise for the main mast was cut through the mast step and the heel of the mast would sit on the keelson.  Starting with a block of birch 4.0 mm x 3.0 mm x 15.0 mm, I carefully marked lines with a knife and, with a very sharp chisel and xacto knife, managed to fit it quite nicely around the keelson and limber strakes - complete with a mortise through to the keelson.  In this process I discovered that there was a small warp in the keelson!  A bit of filing messed up the paint, but I can easily touch that up.

I was very happy with the fit.  That is, until…

I happened to spot a drawing in AotS: …Diana  (p. 30) where I finally could see that the mortise was NOT cut through!  Ok…I’m going to stop and collect my composure before deciding if I should repair or replace the nicely fitting step I made.

 

 I think Number One wants this step off the ship…

 

Edited April 17, 2022 by Gabek
I mixed up tenon with mortise.

[mtaylor]

Nice work on the ballast, Gabe.  As for the mortise, I suspect Number One will get his way inspite of protests from the yard workers.

 

BTW, you might consider a post in the 3D printing area on the ballasts you did.

[Gabek]

25 minutes ago, mtaylor said:

BTW, you might consider a post in the 3D printing area on the ballasts you did.

Thanks, Mark!  

Yeah, Number One is likely going to get his way.  But it fits SO nicely...😭.  Not sure if I can pull off another.  I'm glad that I didn't glue it down right away!

AND, I did plan to write in the 3D forum very shortly and offer the .stl file I created.  

Clear skies,

Gabe

[Nirvana]

Gabe, another reason for me to get 3d printer up and running, unfortunate it's not a resin printer.

[Gabek]

14 minutes ago, Nirvana said:

Gabe, another reason for me to get 3d printer up and running, unfortunate it's not a resin printer.

To be honest, Per, I think an FDM printer might produce these simple, geometric shapes much easier than a resin printer.  Printing objects flat on the build plate of a resin printer often results in failures.  So, the objects need to be tilted and supported.  It takes time to create and clean these resin pieces.  
 

You'll be frustrated at times but I'm enjoying this medium! 
 

 

Clear skies!

Gabe

[Gabek]

Third time a charm…

Thanks to everyone for their comments, likes and views!  
 

Well, I decided to remake the mast step.  First attempt did not fit well, there was a gap that bugged me.  The second attempt fit nicely but the mortise looked too shallow…when I realized I had flipped the block and cut the wrong faces!  Third time…FINALLY!

 

[Number One pointing out the one to use.]

 
Clear skies!

- Gabe

 

 

 

[Gabek]

On 4/17/2022 at 3:26 PM, mtaylor said:

BTW, you might consider a post in the 3D printing area on the ballasts you did.

Hello folks,

I posted the .stl files that I created for the ballast in the 3d section of the forums, plus a bit more info.  Thanks!  

 

 

[mtaylor]

Thanks, Gabe.  I hope other builders find them to be beneficial and as well as encouraging them to post their parts STL's.   

[Gabek]

Pandora’s Box

 

What have I gotten myself into?!
I’m really second-guessing my decision to build the well and shot locker.  I’m sure I spent more time building this little thing than I spent on building my garden shed!  And, this decision to add the well has created a ripple of changes to the model from the original MSW plans.  Thank goodness I have Ainars Apalais’ build log for reference - such a beautiful and motivating model!  My final design was an amalgam of four sources: actual photos of period shot lockers from HMS Victory, HMS Trincomalee, plus drawings from AoTS: HMS Diana and AoTS: HMS Pandora.

 

After cutting some 1.80mm square stock from birch for the stanchions I prepared planks using 1/32” - 0.8mm baltic birch plywood. The planks in the well were beveled so they fit together better, so I filed/sanded bevels top and bottom edges.  I drew arrows on the planks so I wouldn't get the bevels the wrong way, but it didn't always work!  I began with the bulkhead that separated the well and shot locker.  As I progressed I came upon several inconsistencies in my model.  Of course there were minor flaws in the existing framing and planking of this model - but they became so obvious that it drove me nuts.  (Oh yeah, building at 1/96 is another decision I’m regretting!) 

 

In the incredible AoTS books I also found a couple of errors, the biggest one was that the access door to the well was too low for a ship with all its ballast. The ballast cants are almost never showneven though they are integral to the design of the ship.  Because I have included the ballast in this model I was forced to move the door up more than in the drawings. It still looks ok, in my opinion.  

 

Some photos of the process:

After unsuccessfully trying to hand cut some brass hinges for the shot locker scuttles and the access door I decided it was time to play with some of my toys.  First off, I thought I could print these using my resin printer again.  However, these hinges were so thin that the prints failed.  I'm sure that at 1:48 scale I would have succeeded, but not at 1:96.  So I turned to another toy I have: a Jinsoku Genmitsu 1620 laser cutter/engraver. I have been doing mostly engraving hobbies with this small, desktop laser but at 5.5 watts it has enough power to cut through thin wood and some other materials.  I have been dying to try this out for some time now.  I drew hinges using basic shapes in Lightburn, the control software I subscribe to for the laser.  This could have been done in any drawing program and free laser software like LaserGRBL, but Lightburn is much more useful for the engraving I do.  My first attempt was to simply engrave the hinges into the shot locker lid.  (Top left in the above montage).  With a practice piece I got a nice result which would have been fine - it would be inside a tiny model.  But, of course, I decided it wouldn't do.  I needed something three dimensional. 

And again, 1:96 scale came back to haunt me!  I started with the thinnest maple veneer I have. The laser cut very well and could even cut the bolt/nail holes in these tiny hinges.  But even the veneer looked way too thick once I placed them against the door and scuttles.  

 

So, I switched to the only wood product that could be thinner: paper.  Some blue poster board and a manila folder provided very cheap stock for me to play with.  A black felt pen turned them into “iron” and away I went cutting and playing.  

I experimented with folding and gluing the tiny bits of paper to resemble folded strap hinges.   Another hobby came into use as I raided my fly-tying gear for fine black wire to represent pins in the hinges!  By the way, don’t use CA glue if you try this - the paper became so hard that it snapped and cracked when I tried folding them.  Just use PVA. The veneer that I had cut earlier was too thick to represent iron hinges, but it was perfect for the wooden cleats inside the shot lockers to which the hinges are nailed/bolted. So, I glued those onto the underside of the shot locker scuttles. 

After some painting and varnishing of the well and parts I made some ring bolts using the same, fine fly-tying wire.  I found an insect pin that had a diameter close to the diagrams of the ring bolts and wrapped the wire around it.  I drilled small holes and pushed the twisted ends of the wires into place.  A tiny drop of CA on the inside should hold these in.  I placed the paper hinges in place just for these photos. 

 

I won’t install the well and all the associated bits until I do some more work to the hold.  Namely, barrels, shingle ballast, lanterns, block and tackle…

...What have I gotten myself into! 

 

Clear skies!
Gabe

 

Edited June 1, 2022 by Gabek

[Edwardkenway]

Wow! Great work at that scale Gabe!!

It'll be well worth the effort with the end result.

[mtaylor]

Totally an amazing amount of detail for that scale and looks great.  Sounds like you learned a lot which will help in future projects.  

[Gabek]

Wha'?

Whoa! I can't believe it's been two and a half years since I posted to this log!  Let's see…built the Santa Maria, welcomed a grandson to our family, been designing and making lots (and LOTS) of printed parts for other people…I guess the poor Triton just kept being held up.  

…going back to February 2024: 

I have been working, sporadically, on the adornments to the hold.  Here's an overview of the casks I designed and printed.  

 

I would have preferred to find suitable casks that someone else had designed but couldn't find what I wanted.  So, I designed hollow casks with staves of scale thickness and separate lids.  I posted my design in the 3D section of MSW and you can download the .STL file: https://modelshipworld.com/topic/33934-casks-hollow-with-separate-head-lid/

 

Once I had a digital file I could easily scale and print all the sizes I needed. Here are water leaguers at 1:48 and 1:96 with Number One at scale:

Using AOTS: HMS Diana as my reference, I printed up and painted enough casks of various sizes to fill half the hold of HMS Triton.  To simulate different ages of casks I varied the painting and weathering. 

To colour the hoops black I used a felt pen.

 

 

You may have noticed that some casks extended beyond the cross section of the ship.  

I decided to try and create cross-sections of casks with various supplies inside…here's my attempt at simulating salt pork using cuts off failed resin prints.  I have found 3D-printed resin parts to be notoriously bad at holding paint, so priming is a necessity.  An added bonus:  The white undercoat makes the pieces look like they've been brined! 

 

And then there was a bit of a delay in continuing with the Triton…

[Gabek]

Hold on a minute!

After months of thinking and itching to get back to the Triton the time finally came last week.  I'm going to put the casks on the model!  But then it dawned on me:  I wanted to have one of the scuttles in the shot locker open so cannonballs would be visible.  Will I be able to work on the shot locker with all the casks set into the hold? Ah well, let's get these cannonballs over and done with now.

I returned to Fusion 360 to create a bunch of cannonballs.  First, by a "bunch" I mean a cluster.  At 1:96 these 9-pounder cannonballs are too small to print individually.  So, I had to make the individual model large enough that it wouldn't fail in the printer.  I chose to make a cluster of these in a somewhat random pattern thinking that a shot locker of iron balls wouldn't be highly organized (I could be wrong).  Second, by a "bunch" I mean several clusters so I could stack and arrange them to fill the space in the locker.  I have read about sailors knocking the rust off of cannonballs so I decided to use a weathering powder over black primer to simulate scale on these scale cannonballs.  😆.

 

 I toyed with the idea of filling the entire shot locker with cannonballs but thought it would faster and less stressful to just fill the void with closed-cell black foam and just top it off with a bunch of cannonball bunches.😆  I added a bit of rust powder to the foam, inserted it into the shot locker and glued the cannonballs in place with UV resin.

I had so big a bunch of cannonball bunches 😆 that I decided to fill both sides of the locker even though one will be closed up.

 

 

Next up…the hold is no longer on hold…🤣

 

 

Edited Saturday at 07:00 PM by Gabek
Grammatical error

[Gabek]

Roll out the barrel!

(Ok, technically they're casks.  I just wanted a kitschy 😆 title.)

 

When I first thought of putting casks in the hold it was because of this photo from HMS Victory…

 

The shingle ballast is greyish white.  It just so happens that I had a jar of silica sand that my father-in-law gave to me years ago.  I cannot recall what its purpose was…but it was for something I was doing and he advised adding a bit of silica sand.  Unfortunately he passed away a few years ago and I thought this would be a nice tribute to him if I added some to my model.  It matched the colour in the HMS Victory photograph and the sand grains could pass as shingle at scale.  
 

For quite some time I pondered how to model the shingle ballast that would stay put and hold the casks in place.  I discounted plasticine with sand pressed into its surface because it will dry out. But Sculpey might work.  I was sure I could press sand into it before baking it.  Here's my experiment…

While I could press it into shape, mould pockets for casks and push sand into it, it wouldn't maintain the curve of the hull when I peeled it off the model to bake it.

 

Eventually, I thought of silicon caulk.  As a test I built a mock deck from scraps and pieces lying around and it performed wonderfully.  Pushing casks and sand into its surface resulted in a good, solid bond.  Moreover, I could peel out casks and even peel the caulk from the wood (which I had varnished beforehand) without damaging anything if I needed to. (Which I did need to later!) Unfortunately I did not photograph this experiment.

 

A short while ago I sawed some casks in half and filled them with varying materials to represent their contents.  Water in the leaguer was simulated with clear UV resin.  Having read many novels, I almost tinted the water green but realized that algae can't grow in the dark.  Bacteria and moulds can but I chose to just keep it clear instead of cloudy. Casks with four, oatmeal, yellow and green peas were filled with caulk and then weathering powders pressed into them.  Salt pork and salt beef were tiny cut offs from failed resin prints which were painted with reddish-brown for beef, pinkish-grey for pork.  Allowing white primer to show through made them looked brined and salt-caked.  These pieces were pressed into caulk-filled casks:

 

 

Yesterday I took the plunge:

I organized the casks and then masked off all the places I did not want caulk to mess up.  I created clear plastic walls at either end of the area to provide a smooth barricade for caulk and casks.

 

The first layer of caulk was laid down and sand poured over top.  Gentle pressing with silicon-tipped clay tools set the sand into the surface of the caulk.  Then the first tier of casks were pushed into place.  I tried to make sure that the stoppered bung holes were on top.  

 

I baulked momentarily before I squeezed out a second layer of caulk on top of these casks.  It seemed wrong, but I went for it.  Pour some sand overtop and push in the second tier of casks. 

 

I realized very quickly that I was going to have to modify the layout…on the fly.  The casks were not fitting according to the diagrams.  Later I realized that the HMS Diana in the diagrams was not exactly the same dimensions of the HMS Triton or my version of it.  
 

I left everything to set for several hours.  After removing the masks this is what I was greeted with…

 I liked the overall look of the casks, but there was a fair amount of clean up on the ends required.  I was pleased and decided to attack the clean up in the morning.

 

With a fresh cup of morning coffee in my hands I sat down at the model and spotted something… the outer row of casks on the second tier were pushing higher than the deck clamps! 😭

 

But, I didn't panic.  In my testing I was able to pull out casks and remove caulk without too much bother.  So, I rather quickly replaced the offending casks with smaller ones in my surplus.  I dabbed fresh caulk on the bottoms to glue them into place.  Because it was relatively easy I also changed a few other things that were bothering me.

 

With a little clean up and some minor spot filling left to do, this is where the Triton stands (with a considerable list to port!🫢)

 

 

Clear skies and sharp tools!

- Gabe