HMS Victory by dafi - Heller - PLASTIC - To Victory and beyond ...

[dafi]

After the fighting top had found its place, it was finally time to fit the futtock shrouds.

The work preparation was the blackening of the etched parts and the painting of the dead eyes. Then the irons of the dead eyes were bent open, the dead eyes inserted and everything squeezed shut and secured with some glue.



The upper hooks were then tied into the shrouds. This shroud was fully dressed, again using my technique with white glue as for my scale.



First test of the dead eyes in the holes of the fighting top and the shrouds hooked in.





Now you can see where the holes in the fighting top need to be reworked so that the irons don't sit at an angle. The lower shrouds have also been marked with a thread to hold the futtock shrouds.



Next, the dressing of the lower shrouds was completed and brought to the same height.



Finally the futtock shrouds could be hooked in, wrapped once around the futtock stave and tied to the shroud.

After trimming, this is what came out http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif







XXXDAn

 

[shipman]

Astonishing work at that scale; well done.

Nice to see your model progressing so well.

[dafi]

For the next level, I prepared the top mast shrouds. Even if Steel doesn't mention it explicitly, in most modern sources the foremost shroud is also dressed here, so that's what I decided to do. The sisterblock is also integrated between the two forward shrouds.

But first come the hangers / burton tackles ...



... then the sister blocks ...



... and everything in place.





Here you can see again the difference between the dressed and undressed shrouds. Unfortunately, in contrast to my self-made ropes, the purchased ropes do fluff a little, but this is not visible to the naked eye.



To continue working, I tensioned the shrouds down with clamps and gravity.



And dark ropes in front of a dark background are somewhat annoying even with good lighting, so I made a white cardboard template for this spot.





Here you can see again the difference between the dressed and undressed shrouds. Unfortunately, in contrast to my self-made ropes, the purchased ropes do fluff a little, but this is not visible to the naked eye.



To continue working, I tensioned the shrouds down again with clamps and gravity.



And dark ropes in front of a dark background are a bit annoying even with good lighting, so I made a white cardboard template for this spot.



Then the dead eyes were bound in as the lower ones. To compensate for the lack of a third hand, I then tied the shroud to be worked on with a thread to the yardarm, see green arrows, helps immensely.



XXXDAn

[dafi]

It was that time again. My little one had wanderlust again and wanted to get out.

Evian on Lake Geneva was the destination this time, a big meeting of the French. And as Madame doesn't like travelling, I was allowed to come along too. And a few other bits and pieces.



The SMS Trinkstein was a big hit! The number of times Joachim had to tell the story is mind boggling, as the dafi was never there, he was at all times everywhere and gossiping with everyone. Thanks Joachim for the help!



Captain Hornblower's starting scene was also well received, Capitaine sans peur as he is called in French, the captain without fear.





Various printed parts ...



... working stuff ...



... books ...



... and of course savoury slices - after all, the French are gourmets 🙂



And the little one was also very excited ...



...we had a photo session with her straight away.











Best regards, DAniel

[dafi]

Merry Christmas everyone. It's been a while since Evian, but my little fat girl with the stripes is still slumbering in her transport box in the camper van. Too much to do in the time before the contemplative time.

Nevertheless, there was some news. Late additions and news. First the late addition 🙂

Some time ago I needed some more guns. The proportions of the kit barrels are actually quite good, and with the etched parts you can also get the coat of arms on quite well. However, the most difficult part was always the part that you see the most - the muzzle. In the past, I had always closed it with some sprue and drilled a new hole, which was acceptable for individual pieces but annoying for mass production. Since I already had the basic programming for the guns of the USS Constitution, I took the Blomefield lines from the contemporary plans and updated them in the file and also added the coat of arms in the correct thickness for the scale. So I was able to reconstruct the whole set of guns quite quickly, I still use the gun mounts from the box.

Here's the old and the new together.



Here is the difference between the untreated kit carronade and the new one, once pure and once with paint.







The long tubes also benefit. The basic proportions are correct, but now the reinforcement rings are more clearly defined and the crest fits the scale.







Here is a comparison of the lengths of the 12-pounders: short, medium, long, medium, short. I also took the opportunity to attach the flint lock. Because you never actually saw the empty pan shown otherwise. Either there was a cover over it or the flint lock was fitted.







I think it was worth it 🙂

XXXDAn

[dafi]

Well, and the little fat one with the stripes is still stuck in the camper van since Evian. Nevertheless, there is always enough Victory for me to do.

I really missed the 1910 model at the last two exhibitions, as I like to show the developments on the ship. Time to take another look at my victorian black and white beauty. The first construction phase was January to March 2022, so that's already 2 years ago.

A brief look back: After sanding down and fattening up the entire side of the ship to get a level surface, she looked all tattered at first.

But the grace of the paint brought back some decency and dignity.


But in this state I realized one thing: A lot of glue and car filler had caused the hull halves to warp outwards quite a bit, 2 mm on the port side and 6 mm on the starboard side :-0

Then I was initially frustrated, but also realized that I should let the material work out in peace and see if it would still turn out any good.

And I think it's going to become something in the end. The good girl was released from her slumber and thoroughly checked. Deformation no had longer increased. However, it will take a lot of bending force, but I think the decks can manage this, with a little internal help if necessary. But that will only come when the time comes. Why?

I can only insert the decks once the window panes have been inserted. I can only insert the window panes once the outside has been painted. And I can't paint the outside until the planks are in place. So I had to take care of the planks.

In the past, I liked to use 0.2 mm ABS sheet, but the plastic glue tended to leave fingerprints. Wood was too thick for me and too time-consuming to procure. That's why I went exploring in my model maker friends' circles and found what I was looking for: 250 gram paper/cardboard.

Initial tests were quite inspiring.


In the original, there were wooden battens nailed on in two thicknesses to separate the colors. I made these from Evergreen, although I made them slightly thicker for handling reasons.

So planks cut on the guillotine shears ...

... and opened the glue pot.

First planks are slapped on ...

... and even that didn't put me off any further :-)

And at some point the port half was planked, deliberately disregarding all planking schemes.


And in case anyone thinks that the entrance gate visible today is original, no, the gate that can be seen today is from this state of construction and was installed in the ship between 1820 and 1828. One gate further back than as build. And these port parts were simply reinstalled one port further forward in 1920 and declared as Trafalgar state. Honi soit qui mal y pense.



Fortunately, I've had the parts in my supply kit for a long time, so I just had to grab them.

For me as a plastic person, the tight planking around the stern was of course something new. I'll have to clean it up a bit, then it'll fit.



And I don't know why I remembered some well-known lines in the next picture ...



"Beneath us, visible to all, lay a huge spaceship, one hundred and fifty meters long, shaped like a smooth sneaker, snow-white and maddeningly beautiful. At its heart was a small golden box containing the most sophisticated invention ever made, an invention that made this spaceship something unique in the history of the galaxy, an invention that gave the spaceship its name - 'Heart of Gold'."
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Chapter 4

But what still looks like this ...



... should develop into this :-)


Cheers, DAniel

 

Edited January 9 by dafi

[dafi]

When it rolls, it rolls, or the victory of impatience over model-building caution.

Once I was this far along, I naturally wanted to see the whole thing in paint. This was a risk because the paper planking is quite sensitive and I still had to do the whole other side. But, but, but: it just had to be done.

I had slightly oversized the separating battens, so I sanded the thicker one even thinner and broke the edges. It did the whole thing good.
I used the masking tape to protect the paper planks. This worked really well.



After the first round of white spray over everything, a beveled skewer was ideal for removing grains and impurities.



Then I generously covered the white strip with masking tape and used the profile battens to cut it into shape with a scalpel, which went really quickly. Then black spray and removed the masking and simply: JOY! It worked.



The first size sample of the rigols hung up.



Very striking on the contemporary hull are the many additions, here the downpipes, probably plumbing.





But with a little paint, they blend into the overall work of art in such a way that one thinks they have always been there ;-)





Enjoy, DAniel

Edited January 13 by dafi

[dafi]

And because it was so beautiful, we went straight on.

Some of the ports have been planked up over the years. So that it still looks very well-fortified ...



... the missing windows were simply painted on. Honi soit qui mal y pense.





The artillery has also found its way to the dressed rehearsal. In front are the three signal cannons for the salute, above them short 12-pounders from dubious historical stocks ...



... and amidships the historic Trafalgar guns - or what they were considered to be at the time 😉



And before the questions come, yes, the barrels did indeed sit on the lower portframe back then. Improperly executed changes to the port dimensions and incorrect carriages ...

XXXDAn

Edited January 13 by dafi

[AM1Mac]

On 2/18/2013 at 8:41 AM, dafi said:

... just before you all disappear into the Royal Wedding 😉

 

 

 

 

For Maurice, they are done the proper way and glued with CA. My litte helper was so kind to lift on grating up to show the underneath:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As promised, here is where the new gratings end up 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even the split into four parts can be seen 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

And just some pictures from the rest (the stairs are just mere mock ups) ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the best, Daniel

 

did you scratch build all the lower deck parts?

 

[dafi]

Hello Leo (?)

 

on the pictures most of he inside is still scrach build, but most parts are already available as print. I use my scratch prototypes as template for the CAD, as I modify the original plans to fit the different appearence of the scale concerning the accentuation of the details.

 

All the best, DAniel

[dafi]

The rigols have also found their way onto the model. Here still in the stack ...



... and here already at the scene of the crime.

My favorite detail 🙂

But I saw afterwards that the wooden panel only covers the top panel, so I'll probably have to touch that up again.



The area of the hase bolsters has already been marked on the bow and the prison cell has also been given its bars ...



... and the windows under the poop also got their window frames.



XXXDAn

Edited Tuesday at 08:23 AM by dafi

[amateur]

Mixing up two build logs

 

most pics of the black and white (sure it isn’t some light shade of pinkish-white  ?) show signs of heavy neglect. Do you have any idea on where ‘patching up’ starts and ‘the original design’ ends? And what are you going to show: the rotting outer hull with planking over, or how it could have been, given proper maintainance?

 

Jan

Edited Wednesday at 11:11 AM by amateur

[dafi]

Oh yes Jan, she was in a pitiful state. That is why she had to be removed into the drydock in 1920.

 

One of those responsible for the restoration, during which it was returned from black and white to its "Trafalgar state", remarked at the time that he could simply push through the hull in several places with his walking stick (an indispensable life-style product of noblesse at the time). That must have been one of the places.

According to my guess, this area must have housed the sanitary facilities and therefore also the shower. The resulting humid climate - together with the hormone-fertilized, corrosive sweat exhalations of young sailors - may have been responsible for the desolate condition of the ship at this spot.

If you look closely at the old pictures, you can see small straight rows of dots and a difference in color. This shows that this area was covered with a few patches of painted canvas until shortly before the photo was taken. Another way to hold a ship together 😉

 

If I will show the canvas or if I suggest that in 1910, the state shown in the model, means before the great war, the ship was still in a slightly better condition, I do not know yet. Depends much upon the way the results of imitating the canvas turns out.

 

XXDAn

[Kevin-the-lubber]

Dan, I'm sure you'll know the answer to this: was the port side quarter gallery rebuilt during that renovation? It is slightly different to the starboard side. I love what you're doing here, the ship does look a little sad and mistreated.

[dafi]

Hello Kevin, thank you for pointimg that out. To be honest, never realized too much of a difference ...

 

What I see is the usual discrepancies if parts are build without too much planning. OK Vasa was worse 😉

 

I know that she had a collision with HMS Goliath on 03.04.1797 that damaged the stern Galeries, lantherns and cutter.

 

1803 the stern was completely changed.

 

At Trafalgar the starboard gallery was crashed by the Redoutable.

 

Also there was a great makeover of the stern somewhere inbetween  1816/1820/1828/1860ies as first photographies show a different stern compared to the post Trafalgar drawings.

 

And in the 1920 there was the retrofit for Trafalgar state where the galleries changed appaerance again.

 

And McGowan shows a picture of about 1970-1980 with the larboard gallery dismanteled.

 

So one sees there were many opportunities to mess up with the design of the galleries 😉

 

They are far off the elegant look they had as build. 😞😞😞

 

XXXDAn

Edited Wednesday at 04:44 PM by dafi

[Morgan]

I’m afraid what Victory has now is the abysmal 1980’s reconstruction, they have none of the elegance of Trafalgar, or even the 1920’s reconstruction.

 

The image below is from Bugler’s 1966 as-reconstructed drawings.

 

The current quarter galleries are slab sided in my view and far too upright. Heller have them correct.

 

Gary

 

 

[Kevin-the-lubber]

The differences tend to be fairly small but there are quite a few of them. I'm only noticing it as I'm reworking this area at the moment and was having moments where I thought I was going mad, through seeing things on some photos that are different to what I thought I saw earlier (because they are on different sides)! But as you say, all those refits/repairs would explain it.

 

Poor old lady - she's once more looking a bit like that McGowan photo. I still have a 'free' visit to take, as tickets are good for repeat visits within a year, but there's hardly anything left of the exterior right now. All in a good cause though.

[Morgan]

1 hour ago, Kevin-the-lubber said:

The differences tend to be fairly small but there are quite a few of them. I'm only noticing it as I'm reworking this area at the moment and was having moments where I thought I was going mad, through seeing things on some photos that are different to what I thought I saw earlier (because they are on different sides)! But as you say, all those refits/repairs would explain it.

 

Poor old lady - she's once more looking a bit like that McGowan photo. I still have a 'free' visit to take, as tickets are good for repeat visits within a year, but there's hardly anything left of the exterior right now. All in a good cause though.

 

The successive tiers of the galleries should noticeably decrease as they rise up the ship, the current interpretation loses this vital aesthetic feature with little differentiation between tiers, much to the ship’s detriment in my opinion.

 

I would seriously consider using that return ticket to visit whilst she doesn’t have her skin on, it’s not often you get to see so much of the exposed framing close up. Also, the temporary support structures internally used to transfer the load whilst beams are removed are of interest in themselves. Collectively it’s not the kind of thing that will be seen again in our lifetimes (so says the nerdy structural engineering bit of me 🤓).

 

Gary

[dafi]

I also believe that those discrepancies seen today are simply much more a result of uneven build. As an excuse, the geometrie there is not that easy 🙂

 

Also one sees that the hull as base is not that even anyway, as the wales in the middle tier seems to have different widths. Compare the black lines and the edges.

 

McKay was often critisised for showing the wales applied onto the planking, but he only shows what was the state of build in those days. This is not to bash his superbe work but only tells one thing:

 

The exhibit in Portsmouth is a wonderful inspiration, gives a great view to the general public, is well kept over the years regarding the resources in research, available material and manpower and most important budget. I am more than happy and enjoyed having been able to visit her several times and thanking all those people involved over the last 200 years.

 

But ...

 

... my personal conclusion - that took me several years to realize - for modelling on a higher level forget the exhibit there and go back to the sources.

 

Many of the things that I had to replace on my build were inspired by anachronistic features shown there. 🙂

 

XXXDAn

 

PS: And I am waiting for the shockwave that Gary still will create 😉

Edited Thursday at 08:04 AM by dafi

[Kevin-the-lubber]

1 hour ago, dafi said:

As an excuse, the geometrie there is not that easy

I'd certainly agree with that statement! Gary, you're quite right that it's a rare opportunity to see the framework of a ship like this, which is probably invaluable for people like yourself and Dan. Me, I'm a bit shallow, I like shiny, pretty things and would rather have all the nice bits back where they belong 🙂. It grieves me that I probably won't ever see the ship with the rigging back in place, but I do enjoy wandering around the inside on a quiet day, so will probably go back down later this month while all the kids are back at school. 

[Ian_Grant]

Kevin, say it ain't so!!!  When you and I started our Heller builds, the refit was supposed to be twenty years so I hoped to visit a complete ship in my early mid 70's.  Now you say all the newly painted planking is off again? What's the new timeline?

 

(Sorry Dan for sidetracking your log!)

 

Ian