HMS Victory by robipod - Caldercraft - 1805 version - first build

[robipod]

Finally back at the Victory! Snowboarding season has started and the time I set aside to get this done in October and November has just passed away... Will get this done when not in the mountains... LOL... aiming now for completion January 1, 2014... (better not be 2015)

 

[robipod]

Close to meeting my January 1, 2014 deadline for the copper tiles. We will see how much snow falls in the mountains... LOL..

Trust you didn't mind not reporting tile by tile report...

Oh, hope all had a Merry Christmas forgot to post the "Greetings":

 

 

 

 

[robipod]

Thanks Lawrence. Getting there. I've not wanted to post each week or so as it is as you know just tile after tile. I am going to make a short video on the tools I've used the do the coppering and make some suggestions to someone who is going to be 'laying tiles'... We've had Chinooks blow in and out this past week which causes wacky temperature changes... like +9 to -21 in 12 hours but it is winter... and there is a saying here: 'wait fifteen minutes and the weather will change'... am taking a look at tonight's photos. I take them each session to see if areas need to be 'fixed'. Have the bow just about complete... now for the stern before Tuesday evening. (Not going to the mountains tomorrow -- )

[md1400cs]

Beautiful work coppering the hull Rob. Looks spectacular.

 

Enjoy the "white", we are sadly missing any "winter" where I am. The driest rainy season in recorded history (:-(

 

Michael

[robipod]

It's New Year's Day, my deadline for finishing the second side of copper tiles has arrived. It is a good thing this shipyard invokes no financial penalties for not meeting target dates. Came close. Will be finished by the weekend. (At least I expect to be finished).. Happy 2014 to all.

 

 

[robipod]

ALL DONE! - JANUARY 15 -- THE HULL IS DONE!!!! - just the rudder now. I want to go celebrate somewhere. Am pleased with my effort. It is by no means perfect nor is it exactly how the real Victory was coppered but what the heck. Only we know. Going to stop for a few days. Will gather the images together for a video "How I coppered the hull".. Will see how it turns out. Will start to read everyone's posts now. I just had to get through this! Wonder if I can get a bonus from the shipyard for finishing only two weeks late. Heck, most get that from governments when they are even years late building ships.. LOL.. oh ... it's not finished!   Guess a couple more years at my speed!

Now what do I do with the copper? Do I apply a clear coat? Do I leave it alone? Maybe that will be the next reading on the weekend. Will find some ideas here on site.

 

 

[Glenn-UK]

Well done on completing the copper phase, a job well done, I have that pleasure to look forward to in a few weeks time, or maybe a few months time, depending on how my build progresses.

Glenn

[Glenn-UK]

Hi Rob

Just watched your second video. nice idea to assemble and paint the gun port linings before fitting to the gun ports. I can see this will made the installation much easier, assuming the assemblies are correctly made to fit the openings. Food for thought

 

I was planning on fitting each lining strip in turn to the gun port openings, and am currently fitting support battens to aid the installation process before I fit the gun port strips to the hull.

[gil middleton]

Hi Rob,  Just getting around to catching up on your log.  The coppering is beautiful and so well done.  A time to celebrate before moving on to other tasks.

We knew there was flooding in Calgary but your photos were sobering.  Having lived in Edmonton, it would never have occurred to me to worry about flooding in either city.  Glad you made it through.  Gil

[robipod]

Thanks everyone. Looks like I will continue with the plates and finish the rudder. May as well. Pulled the bubble pack away from the base and have the model open now still upside down. I am pleased that I did cover the ship during the coppering as it really would have taken a beating if I had left it unprotected. Figured that I best do the rudder while it is in this position. Oh to Glennard - I lined the ports but decided to drill the holes for the cannons when I got the outer hull done. They actually don't seem to end up lined up exactly right. But the best part is -- you can't tell. Even looking in with the cannon barrel to the right or left of centre on my backgrounds one can't see that they are off, right on or even upside down. It does lighten the interior of the lower gun ports however. I just shut off the lights and looked at the model again "in the dark" with the interior lights turned to the on position. Heck, the copper tiles don't glow!!!! LOL...  maybe a few volts would help them sizzle...

Well I'm on to reading and catching up on everyone's posts. I've got a lot of catch up to do. I'm so used to putting those latex gloves on I'm even keyboarding now with them on. Yikes... hope it they don't make me want to become a medical student or .....

 

I made a video (under 3 minutes) about putting these copper tiles on the hull. It may help someone who is thinking about how to pull it off. Here is the list of materials that I used that is listed in the video.

 

Latex gloves – 3 boxes of 100
Glue (medium) and debonder
Q-tips
Clear plastic ruler
Xacto knives – 2 sizes
Sharp modelling scissors (I bought Tamiya Craft Tool 12A7)
Tweezers
Small brush
Clothes pins (wooden)
Various small pieces of wood
Pencil(s)
Model masking tape
Phone (nearby)
Radio
Video screen (computer, tablet) (for streaming netflix etc.)
Comfortable chair
Lighted magnifying glass
Clear Plastic floor mat
Empty plastic containers and lids (coffee, margarine work well)
Light coloured working surface (easier to find dropped pieces)
Digital camera
Monitors to examine photos of work
Corner to put your feet up and relax
Fan and window (fresh air)
Munchie space

 

Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_zfinxM9a8

Edited January 19, 2014 by robipod

[robipod]

Hi Gil: hope all is awesome this 2014 for you and family. It was a chore to finish the tiles. Should have taken a way less time but that flood didn't help matters and the cleanup. And we have had another bonus season for snow in the mountains and they are forever calling me to go snowboarding. However, it is done (well except the rudder).  At one point I could not imagine it being finished. But, the second side went a lot faster than the first. First side I did each tile one by one. Second side I did them two at a time. Most important thing is that it is done and when I look back it was great to have the diversion away from other matters here in the city. Now to figure out the next steps after the rudder. I've run into a small roadblock in that i can't find the Hat 8098 British sailors anywhere. Have had three on order since October but have not come in. If I don't get them, I won't be able to put sailors on the first gun deck. But, I still have some time before I close it in. Thanks for your compliment on the tiles. Good to hear from you.

Rob

[md1400cs]

Rob,

 

Big thanks for your video link. It will be a big help for my next project. Thanks for sharing. 

PS: Your copper platting work is brilliant. Looks so nice.

 

Michael

[robipod]

Hi Lawrence. Thanks for the comment. I enjoy making the videos. Am not as creative though as my younger snowboarding friends. I should turn one project over to them to create one. Just the facts for me... LOL... and Michael made it worthwhile doing the video as he suggests he got an idea out of it. That's all I hoped for in making it. It could have been more detailed but I am told nobody really likes videos over 2 minutes. (I break the rule all the time!)

Rob

[robipod]

Well, you might laugh at this one but I pulled the rudder out, placed a couple tiles on it without glue and said to myself "no way".... LOL... I couldn't start copper tiling the rudder.. so I decided to turn her over. To protect the tiles I draped clear food wrap over them and taped them. Now I wonder if I am asking for trouble. My thinking is if I create a humid area between the tiles and the wrap there is a possibility the glue on the tiles will start to do weird things. I also wonder if the wrap will make the tiles oxidize in a weird way. Does anyone have any thoughts/experience do this? Would appreciate some feedback/suggestion.

Here is my Victory right way up now. The edible food portion is wrapped in the clear wrap.

 

[robipod]

Have another question and thank anyone who may care to respond.

 

In an earlier part of the build log I showed how I took three pieces of the "real Victory" and cut them so I could make the beakhead deck from these cut 'planks'. I got thinking yesterday as I saw all the extra pieces sitting on the saw -- Why not make the coaming and other parts of the decks features from the 'real Victory' as well. So I cut some more pieces and my first piece is the coaming for the main companionway on this the upper deck. (I intend to make the coaming of the each deck of the main companionway in this way, plus whatever else I can create.

 

Now the question I ask is about painting/staining the 'real thing'. Would you stain or paint the wood or leave it "as is"? I am leaning towards staining the coaming with the Caldercraft walnut stain that I have on hand. The images I have of Victory show the coaming as very dark but most seem to leave the wood just shellacked or varnished. Should I go ahead and stain it or leave it 'as is'. I've attached photos that show the original wood and the pieces for the beakhead ect. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

(Oh, I pulled the clear wrap down and have exposed the tiles.)

 

 

[Patrick Haw]

Hi Rob,

 

Just catching up on your build.  Very nice job on the coppering.  Mine took forever to do, but I'm pleased with the result.  Once I completed the coppering I polished the tiles with copper polish and then sprayed two or three coats of clear satin polyurethane on the copper to prevent oxydation.  So far it's holding up just fine and my workspace is subject to big changes in temperature, humidity, etc.  Hope this helps.

 

Patrick

[robipod]

That is great to know Patrick. Thanks for the tip. I just might do the same. Better decide soon though. 

[robipod]

Have been working on the fixings and one ladder for the week. If you had told me it would be nine days to get four pieces done I would not have believed you. Below are the first.  I ended up putting walnut stain on the 'real Victory' wood. What the heck. The real one is covered with paint too!

 

And what a mess I've created in my shipyard. It was relatively tidy with just the copper tiles -- not a big mess at all. I've got stuff all over the place now.. LOL... it's worse than the bedroom ... Must figure a way to hang the plans on the wall behind my desk. The floor just doesn't cut it.

 

I did a couple stupid things... decided I should paint the coamings on the outside of the grates first and then glue to the grates. So what did I do on the first one. Glued the coaming to the grate without painting them. Had to laugh at myself. At least did the right way around on the second. Also didn't put a weight on the first grate so it dried a bit "off" shall I say -- it was not close to flat... LOL... Am happy the first one won't show up so much.

 

Was thrilled to see the numbers on the rope supplied by Caldercraft. When I read the instructions my initial reaction was "how am I going to figure out 0.25 rope?"...Thank goodness they numbered the rolls.

 

Here's where I'm at. Only the main companionway is glued in place. The others are sitting on deck for right now. Oh, I put the sandpaper (rough side up) on the deck and moved fixings a bit to get them to form to the deck. Worked quite well. Fortunately didn't require too much sanding.

 

 

[pompey2]

Hi Rob

 

It's good to catch up with your log

The copper looks great, a lot of effort.

Difficult decision on finishing, I polyurathaned mine.

I remember what a huge relief it was to get that behind me and move onto something more interesting.

I have finished with the hull now and have been getting into masts and ratlines.

Like the idea of using your 'Victory' for coamings etc, a nice touch.

Have you given any thought to putting on the brass sections?

The manual seems to suggest fitting them last.

But I decided to do them early, weilding rigid brass about with delicate gun port lids etc seem a bit daft.

And I would recommend that too, much more room to measure, trim fit etc.

And more space to fabricate something to hold them in place for gluing.

I will be following your progress.

 

Nick

 

 

 

[GTM]

Hej Rob,

 

She's looking great !!, just keep the pictures coming.

 

By the way:

Another way to find out of the (real) diameter of the rope is to wind it around a piece of wood in for eksample “10” turns 

Measure it with a  caliper and divide the number by the used number of turns 

 

 

The diameter of the rope in the picture would be: Ø 0,65 mm  

[robipod]

Lawrence still haven't figured out what to do with the tiles. I like Patrick's idea. Will let it sit for a while longer... figure I can wait a bit longer before I decide what to do about the copper -- shiny or dull to corroding... Nick says he used polyurethane... I must ask him if it was a can of spray like Patrick suggested...

[robipod]

Hi Rob

 

It's good to catch up with your log

The copper looks great, a lot of effort.

Difficult decision on finishing, I polyurathaned mine.

I remember what a huge relief it was to get that behind me and move onto something more interesting.

I have finished with the hull now and have been getting into masts and ratlines.

Like the idea of using your 'Victory' for coamings etc, a nice touch.

Have you given any thought to putting on the brass sections?

The manual seems to suggest fitting them last.

But I decided to do them early, weilding rigid brass about with delicate gun port lids etc seem a bit daft.

And I would recommend that too, much more room to measure, trim fit etc.

And more space to fabricate something to hold them in place for gluing.

I will be following your progress.

 

Nick

Thanks for the ideas Nick. Yes, that is a super idea re the brass. Will look at it as I go along now... Did you use a can of spray poly to coat the tiles or did you brush it on? I just figured out how to do this... It was an interesting day... found a full box of Hat British Sailors and Marines in Vancouver. They say they can get more so I might have solved the 'seamen' problem I was having. One box of 98 pieces on the way... will have some sailors etc. for this deck even if I only get this one set...

[robipod]

Theo... that's how it is done! I've got one of those calipers too ! Thanks for that idea....

[robipod]

This is where I'm at tonight... I didn't go to the mountains so stuck to the shipyard...

Question: I am thinking my red boxes are too big. Do you agree? (You may have to make the image larger) Thought they were the right size but they just appear too big and I am wondering if I should use them as much as I am thinking. One per gun! Have decided to put 'items' on the grates and have the one dude carrying a bag down the ladder. With the sailors and marines coming for sure am looking forward to 'populating' this deck. Only the dark coaming and grates, 2 x ladders are solidly glued at this point. Everything else is just sitting for the decision process. One more ladder to complete!
Oh, guess I better figure out how to do the cannons too...

I wondered about the dark walnut around the grates on this deck. I've noticed two styles in the photos of the real ship. Decided to go with the dark as it provides a nice contrast... Sometimes it is about appearance...

 

[pompey2]

Hi Rob

I brushed.

Clear, matt finish.

You wouldn't know it was there once dry.

Nick

[robipod]

Hi Rob

I brushed.

Clear, matt finish.

You wouldn't know it was there once dry.

Nick

 

So you just brushed it on. I wouldn't have thought that easy. Did you use a wide brush? I've got one about 1/2 inch do you think that would do it Nick?

Rob

[robipod]

Lawrence the little red boxes are supposed to be the same ones on the current ship. I just remeasured them again and they still seem big.

Here is what I'm trying to duplicate. (Nick did it well on his ship)

[pompey2]

Rob

 

To be honest I dont recall the brush. But I imagine it would have been about 1/4", I know I have a couple that would have suited.

i also recal trying to size the red boxes. My logic was - box was 15" to 18" long (best guess) so to scale .2" to 1/4".

But I agree that seemed a little large on the ship, so I kept mine down to about 5mm, the lower end of the scale at about 14"

Then adjusted height and depth to seem correct.

 

Nick

[robipod]

Nick

I cut the boxes depth and am making new 'smaller' ones. Keeping some of the larger ones now as 'extra decoration'. I've been totally off-track the last couple days and bought some 1:72 scale figures and practiced painting them. One of my three sets of Hat Industrie 8098 British sailors is arriving this week so decided to do some test painting... The set I got is an American revolution British soldiers so a bit out of date and of course not marines but did them up. I've discovered that the bases are great when left on to hold the figures... LOL... won't be doing that... It is going to be somewhat difficult to paint these sailors when they arrive. Oh, and it helps to bathe the plastic in dish soaped water overnight. I am really pleased with the extra boxes and goods that I've found. Went to the model shops and the extras are from those 'country scene' HO scale. They work out great. Here's a sample. Am looking forward to the sailors arriving. Am putting off the cannons for the moment... Oh, discovered that it is advisable to paint the hands as well as face... Oh well, only practice...

I know I cheated with the black baseboard on the deck...

 

Edited February 11, 2014 by robipod

[robipod]

Lawrence: A m looking forward to the Hat figures. I see there seems to be a new batch released in Europe. The store I bought from in Vancouver - Imperial Hobbies - has two more sets on backorder for me. Maybe I should order another. So anyone in Canada, looks like Imperial can get them if you are interested. Here is their website. http://www.imperialhobbies.ca/