Venetian Polacre by Cristiano - FINISHED - XVIII century

[Omega1234]

Hi Cristiano

 

I agree with you about 'it being a chain reaction', because like any project, you can't move onto the next thing until the current one is fully finished. So, I can understand how you must feel-the stays and blocks need to be done before the shrouds, etc, otherwise you'd be in strife.

 

The good thing is that once it's all done, you can the look back with satisfaction at a job well done!

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

Edited March 27, 2015 by Omega1234

[Cristiano]

Thank you Patrick!

Thank you Robin!

 

What generates my headhache (and the days of study) is to find the correct way to place the running rigging.

The correct position of some rigging is the result (in real life) sometimes of centuries of ship sailing.

The final result is an harmonious overall view of the rigging of the model, where a simmetry is present and no odd cables crossing are present.

Well, I have rather clear which are the cables that MUST be present and their role, but if I place them wrong, the final result can be a messy overall view (to an expert view).

When I made the Endeavour, following its monography, the final result of the rigging was an "huge quantity of ropes", but everything was placed in the right position and the final result was an harmonious view....

Just to explain better what are the various reasons that sometimes slow down my construction...

Edited March 26, 2015 by Cristiano

[cog]

Work tends to interfere rather forcefully into our hobbies ... Those ratlines, and stays can really ty your brains up into a turkish head. So far you've achieved all your goals, even with those lovely cannons I'm convinced you'll have it up in no time

[Cristiano]

Thank you Carl!

Making a model from scratch in that way is like writing in a completely empty blackboard, so sometimes doubts raises.

 

This saturday I will proceed with the ratlines and installing the mizzen mast stays.

 

by the way, "LOVELY CANNONS" should not be the right term to call a weapon that bring death and destruction.... :D

[cog]

Cristiano,

 

You do not need to use them for balls, you can shoot daisies

[Cristiano]

These days I focused on ropes of every type...

First of all, I finished the ratlines of the main mast! :cheers:

 

Since I was forced to evaluate the rigging of the mizzen mast, I prepared the two sails of the mizzen mast.

As said before, I cannot proceed further with the main mast until I attach the mizzen mast stays on the main mast base.

That can be seen in one of the photos, where the multiple blocks are showed (the decorative bundles of ropes are not yet placed).

the mizzen mast it is not yet glued.

 

The short term objective will be to complete the two bilge pumps.

I prepared the pieces, but are not yet ready.

 

after that, I will return to the main mast rigging, with all my clouds of doubts, that surround it like a mist...

[cog]

Cristiano,

 

I hope I will get my sails and rigging as good as yours when the time comes!

[kees de mol]

Wow it looks very good. I am not formiliar with al these rope-things so I am not an expert but is look pretty convincing to me. Regards, Kees

[Cristiano]

Thank you Kees for visiting the shipyard!

 

Thank you Carl!

 

I hope I will get my sails and rigging as good as yours when the time comes!

 

 

Thank you for your smart comment, but it is just a matter of patience...

If you have it, you can do what you want!

For these steps craftmanship is not involved (but the extensive use of tweezers is highly suggested).

 

The ratnails are made using one tweezer for each hand and the knots fixed with cianoacrilate glue.

 

The result are straight shrouds, not suject to bending...forever, since the cianoacrylate expands inside the rope and everything became rigid.

The final result to the eye is good.

But this can be done only with the black ropes, otherwise the stains of glue are too much clearly visible.

so only patience is involved!

[Omega1234]

Thank you Kees for visiting the shipyard!

 

Thank you Carl!

 

 

 

Thank you for your smart comment, but it is just a matter of patience...

If you have it, you can do what you want!

For these steps craftmanship is not involved (but the extensive use of tweezers is highly suggested).

 

The ratnails are made using one tweezer for each hand and the knots fixed with cianoacrilate glue.

 

The result are straight shrouds, not suject to bending...forever, since the cianoacrylate expands inside the rope and everything became rigid.

The final result to the eye is good.

But this can be done only with the black ropes, otherwise the stains of glue are too much clearly visible.

so only patience is involved!

Hi Cristiano

 

 

I think you're being a bit too modest when you say 'craftsmanship is not involved...' Not everyone, regardless of how patient they are, can do rigging as well as what you've done. In fact, the only other person that is just as masterful with the rigging would be Nils (Mirabella61) and his Pegasus model. Of couse, this is my opinion only, but I'm standing by it!

 

Cheers and all the best.

 

Patrick

[Cristiano]

I finally find enough time for proceeding further with the model...

The truth is that I started many sub-sections which are all incomplete, so sometimes the results are not as they will be when finished.

I installed the three sails of main mast, but of course are loose, since 90% of their rigging is still to be done.

Slowly I am adding the coils of ropes on either the belaying pins and cleats.

When the boat will be complete, a lot of coils of rope will complete the rigging (as it should be).

I finally complete the accessories of the service boat: I made four oars and a coil of rope.

I stopped to four, since six oars probably cover too much of the boat surface and the internal part of it cannot be seen.

Maybe in the future I can add a small barrel of water, but now I have too much things left to do.

The boat must be placed and tied now, since later it will be too much full ropes around there...

I almost finished the two bilge pumps, but are not complete, so I cannot show them.

[Omega1234]

Hi Cristiano

 

I really like the last photo, in particular. The ropes are nicely coiled on their belaying pins, the gun carriages are rigged to the blocks in the deck and what's more, the deck itself is beautifully planked. All of these add up to heaps of atmosphere and character.

 

Really, really nice stuff!

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[Cristiano]

Thank you Patrick,

The scale of the model is rather big (around 1:55 or similar, i don't remember), so it became "mandatory" to add some details.

In addition, coils of rope are accessories easy to be made (even if boring) and helps on hiding construction mistakes.

In anycase I don't like the decks so empty that remind a dance floor.

In these ships there were always tons of ropes present.

Eventually all orderly placed, but always tons of ropes.

So "tons of ropes" become my mantra...

[Cristiano]

Another update

I am proceeding with the rigging of the main mast.

the cleats around the main mast and the belying pins in front of it are now completed.

Various coils of rope have been added, since it is better to proceed with them too, otherwise this boring part become too much big.

I completed the two bilge pumps, but will be glued in place only when all the rigging that end at the main mast base will be done.

There is a comparation between the old and the new ones.

In another photo there are the pieces used for making them...

It is difficult to show a real update, since the rigging apparently appears not too different from previous posts, but I am really proceeding with it!

 

[cog]

NIce progress Cristiano. She really looks the working vessel with all the details

[Omega1234]

Hi Cristiano

 

I love the details and life that you're putting into your ship - Beautiful, crisp and clean.

 

Well done

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[Cristiano]

Another update

The largest part of the duty is making the running rigging.

I done around 80% of both the main mast and foremast running rigging.

One of the photos is a "view from the stern deck", where I placed the bilger pumps, too (not yet glued in place).

As said previously, "tons of rope" is my mantra.

It must be considered that none of the photos show a complete work.

In all of the photographed sections the rigging is not complete.

I finally glued the mizzen mast, too.

But before starting the work on the mizzen mast, a lot of work in the other masts is still to be done.

The stern deck at the moment is still completely "naked".

Are not present neither cleats, blocks, ring, nothing at all!

 

[cog]

Cristiano,

 

I don't know about the tons, but you must have kilomters spun on here ... Looking good. I do hope it is not that famous 20:80 rule for that whould mean you still have 80% of the work to do on the rigging

[Cristiano]

Thank you, Carl

 

theoretically the rigging that complete a ship like this can be far more than the one that I planned to install, but I decided to stop and avoid the minor and less important rigging.

Otherwise for the external viewer it became only a big mess of ropes.

So, I am pretty sure that my 80% (even if related only to the main and foremast) is a real 80%! 

Or mabe a 75%...

But keep in mind that the mizzen mast is still frozen to 0%! 

In addition:

-I have not yet installed the anchors;

-the flags are not yet done

-the boxes for cannon balls are not yet done;

-the label for the basement has not yet done;

-the tackle for the service boat is not yet done.

 

So there is still a lot to do...

[Cristiano]

A tiny update:

I finally installed one of the two anchors.

It was a very tormented process, since I didn't find the right way to secure it to the hull.

I consider the final result a compromise that doesn't satisfy me.

but probably nothing more better can be done since the cathead is in my opinion too much near the bow of the ship.

In addition, the cannon near the wolfes heads doesn't allow to place the anchor in a different way.

 

But I am convinced that the BLACK TRIANGLE present in many paintings (and in my polacre) was simply a zone were the anchor touch the hull more often, so it was more often repaired/painted.

So the black colour, simply to mask the wear of the wood (just my thought of course).

 

In the painting of the venetian ship "La Forza", the anchor is placed exactly as in another contemporary model of a venetian gunboat, which is in the Venice Naval Museum (other photo).

But unfortunately in my polacre the bulwark is higher, due to the presence of the windows, so the same arrangement cannot be done.

 

So I reached a compromise (life is an ethernal compromise!! :D ).

 

In another photo can be seen the three bundles of rope related to the anchor blockage.

Note: I avoided to install the buoy, since I judged the ship too small for this kind of accessory.

 

Another update: I installed the tackle for lifting the service boat.

 

 

 

[cog]

Nice compromise Cristiano. It hardly looks like one, not to say, it looks the propper way

[Cristiano]

Thank you Carl,

the problem is that in many painting and contemporary models the anchor is "forgot" and results completely absent, so I have few evidences on which was the usual approach used for these kind of ships.

The problem is even more tricky, considering the presence of a cannon very near to the cathead and of the high bulwarks.

But maybe there was not a defined way to secure the anchor in such small ships...

[Cristiano]

Update:

I have almost finished the rigging related to the foremast and main mast.

It lacks only one anchor.

Well, it is not easy to see the difference from the previous photos, but the difference exist!

In addition, I started to prepare the cannon balls boxes.

I excluded the shot garland, since it is of typically Anglo-saxon design, so it was not yet diffused on the Adriatic sea.

I made several research and I have found many informations, including a complete Venetian artillery handbook, but unfortunately it seems that no rules were made by the Venetian for the way to store the cannon balls on the deck.

In a photo can be seen an original drawing of a Venetian cannon contemporary to my model.

As it can see, I was not lucky and the cannon ball box is not drawn.

Probably was not judged something that worth to be regulated by norms.

 

If someone is interested (and can understand the old Italian language), the Venetian artillery manual can be downloaded freely here:

 

http://www.arsang.org/Z-Frames%20STORICHE/Trattato_del_artiglieriaT.Moretti-%20Integrale.pdf

 

Well, the same site that hosts the manual is interesting,too:

http://www.arsang.org/STORICHE.htm

 

in this page can be seen the various cannons showed on the Corfù fortress, which belonged to Venice for various centuries.

The forth cannon from the top is a Venetian naval cannon.

 

http://www.arsang.org/Z-Frames%20STORICHE/Cannoni_corfu.htm

 

Is interesting the reconstruction of the cannons carriage, made by Italians artisans.

each cannon is provided with a photografic presentation of the carriage manufacturing.

 

Returing back to the cannonballs holder, I decided to avoid "dull" square boxes and I choosed to make the more "fashionable" triangular arrangement, for 10 balls, of French origin.

So this is probably a deviation from the historical accuracy, but I have no further informations to evaluate.

In two photos can be seen how I made them (using hunter plomb balls for rifle cartridges) and how they will appear when placed in position.

I decided that one triangle will last for two cannons, so 8 must be made.

In the other photos can be seen that I started the stern deck, so the cleats are finally installed and the standing rigging of the mizzen mast is slowly starting to be made...

 

 

[cog]

Nice Cristiano. I would say: As long as those cannon balls don't freely role over the deck it's alright

[Cristiano]

I would say: As long as those cannon balls don't freely role over the deck it's alright

 

NOT on my ship!

they are glued in place....forever!

I carefully avoided the more famous pyramid of balls, which probably was used mainly in castles/fortress and rarely or never on ships...

[Cristiano]

I am procceding with the rigging...

The foremast is complete now.

I installed the second anchor too...

I started to install the blocks related to the mizzen mast sails.

this weekend I will focus on the ratlines of the mizzen mast.

In the meanwhile I prepared the drawings of the flags.

I seached on the web and I found plenty of digital images of the Venice Republic flags...unfortunately only one was the needed one!

In the photo take from the browser can be find it in the lower right corner.

This is the flag that belong to the Venetian Navy, the so called "San Marco" by the sailors.

The original one should have a bigger cross, but I am too lazy to modify it.

I prepared a banner too, and a bigger and longer one for the lateen sail of the foremast will be done.

The flags will be later printed, glued in the right shape, painted over to give them a more "antique" appearance.

But before that, I must proceed further with the mizzen mast section.

In the next two week I will be very busy with work, so very few update will be done.

[cog]

Cristiano,

 

She is coming tohgether nicely.

[Omega1234]

Hi Cristiano

 

She's looking great! I can't wait to see the flags on...it'd be a bit like the 'icing on the cake'.

 

Cheers and all the best

 

Patrick

[Cristiano]

Thank you Patrick and Carl for your agreement!

You are my "loyal supporters" in this smart adventure!        

 

Considering the few time that I will have in near future, I think that there are still various weeks before completing the model.

The flags will be printed on paper, and the final result will be like the flags I made for the Halifax and Endeavour, both made in the same way (printed and painted):

 

http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/gallery/image/8298-hal-5/

 

http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/gallery/image/1933-img-9090-7/

 

I will darken a bit the colours of the flags, otherwise too "flashy and new".

 

[Omega1234]

Hi Cristiano

 

Whilst Carl (Cog) and I may be the most frequent contributors, please be assured that there are most likely many more admirers in the background enjoying your ship as much as we are!

 

Keep the great work going.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick