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

[dafi]

You got it Jason :-)

 

But not only while being hoisted, also once the topmast is in place, there is nothing else that helps counteracting the weight, as the topmast is not linked/fixed to the main cap.

 

XXXDAn

[JerseyCity Frankie]

The fid is sufficient to take the weight of the entire rig above the partners! It seams impossible but this is the mechanism that does all the work of holding that load. once the fid is put in place, the weight of the Topmast is settled onto it by easing the top rope and from this point on you don't need the toprope in the rig, its performing no function. In fact, if you leave the toprope in place, it only suffers weathering and deterioration. Topropes are carefully labeled and carefully stored and they are never allowed to be used for any other jobs onboard, the point being that all possible measures are taken to make sure this line will never be weakened or compromised. Few lines in the rig are as crucial when they are in use. A toprope that parts can cause the sinking of the ship when the Topmast arrows down through the deck like a giant battering ram.

[davyboy]

Daniel,Jason,

 

That item is called the Cap Shore. It was fitted to take the strain of the weight of the forward overhang of the Cap from the shoulders of the Mast Tenon. It was tenoned into both the Cap and the Top and was usually only fitted on 1st and 2nd rate ships.

 

Dave 

[Hubac's Historian]

Hi Daniel,

 

One question about the guns:. The scale of the barrels looks really good.  While I have this kit, it's siting in a basement in PA and I can't readily look at it.  Are these the stock cannons, or did you make/buy something closer to scale?

 

One of my issues with Heller's Soleil Royal is that the muzzle/barrel width, and bore diameter are too narrow and spindly looking.  I will have to do something about this, and am searching for a way to perhaps recycle the kit's stock barrels by, perhaps, dipping them several times in some sort of resin, in order to increase their breadth.  I could then drill out the appropriate bore diameters.  I am wondering your thoughts on this subject.

 

thanks,

 

Marc

[dafi]

Hy Marc, the barrels from Victory are the original ones from the kit, just some etch added. The Heller kit often surprises me, as many parts are quite close to the original. Most actions necessary come from the limitations in making the moulds some 40 to 50 years ago. Here is a link to the instructions of the etch parts that deal with the guns:

http://www.dafinismus.de/bilder/Platinen_ab_2015/Etch_Victory_en_5_V12.pdf

http://www.dafinismus.de/bilder/Platinen_ab_2015/Etch_Victory_en_4_V12.pdf

http://www.dafinismus.de/bilder/Platinen_ab_2015/Etch_Victory_en_7_V12.pdf

 

But even the Soleil guns look much better if some simple modifications are done: replace the trunnions and the axels and bore the hole for the breech into the carriages´sides. In the back the original, in the front the pimped version.

]

Edited October 5, 2017 by dafi

[Hubac's Historian]

Thanks Daniel!  As far as Soleil is concerned, the shame of it is that they do an incredible job of copying the ornamental details from one of the existing original cannons, but as I say, they do not capture the appropriate sense of girth that is so evident in every Van de Velde portrait ever drawn.

 

For carriage and rig updates to the guns, I am looking very closely at Popeye2Sea's excellent build log.  His carriages look amazing.

 

I'll have to look at those links for photo etch; thank you for the info.

[dafi]

Anyway, they are not too bad as they still had different proportions than the guns in later years. The pictures of the original guns recovered show a much slimmer barrel than the ones on the Vic.

 

https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/la-baule-44500/le-canon-du-soleil-royal-sinstalle-passage-de-la-ladure-1190342

 

https://www.google.de/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fi34.servimg.com%2Fu%2Ff34%2F15%2F24%2F95%2F84%2Fcanond11.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fmodelisme-naval-bois.lebonforum.com%2Ft138p50-soleil-royal-1669-au-1-72&docid=ObKeddvYMMpN1M&tbnid=qJdCqDfY3UwBqM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjy_InlrdrWAhUiDJoKHTb-D0UQMwg3KBIwEg..i&w=800&h=531&bih=789&biw=1440&q=soleil royal cannon&ved=0ahUKEwjy_InlrdrWAhUiDJoKHTb-D0UQMwg3KBIwEg&iact=mrc&uact=8

 

XXXDAn

Edited October 5, 2017 by dafi

[dafi]

Something I always wanted to tell:

 

A small portion of the upper deck laid, and one sees much better how claustrophobic the situation was ...

 

 

Ashes to ashes, earth to earth and top to tops ...

 

 

 

... business as usual.

 

XXXDAn

[Gahm]

That is very impressive! How do you build all these crew members?

 

Thomas

[Beef Wellington]

Hi Dafi, I don't remember you saying how you were ultimately going to be 'finishing' the overall model.  Are you going to leave some part of the decks open, or will the live action scenes be lost to photographic record?  Looking awesome, but that goes without saying :-)

[lambsbk]

Dafi what is the gangway on the port side?

[lambsbk]

I just realized it was the photo angle. Sorry for the previous post. Anchor cable threw off my perspective.

 

Dave

[dafi]

Hello Thomas

 

most of the figures date from mid 2015, see here for an example Film Crew

 

@Jason, for the rest, nothing is decided yet :-)

 

And Dave, no need to be sorry, that is one of the companion ways, situated in the middle.

 

XXXDAn

[dafi]

After doing the maintop, just wanted to smarten up the foretop to make some castings, as I still need several of them for some tests ;-)
Then realised that my standards improved since the top was first done. So when trying to dissemble the top it proved not a useful base any more, so a fresh construction was a must - at least for me.

Perhaps one remembers earlier posts. The top Heller supplies is quite ok, just an old version, that was only used until 1802 (and displayed on all models I know since the 1920ies). An admiral order from 1802 states to fit a top of two halves on big ships, as they are easier to replace. As the Vic was rigged in 1803 and could be considered as a big ship, so I dared fitting one, better saying two halves ;-)

Based on Lees and other sources, there should be sleepers on the top of the top with half the thickness of the crosstrees, reinforcements on the rim and a different scheme for the battens.

So got the Heller top naked, reinscribed the planking and fitted the missing bits and made new and slimmer holes for the irons.

To cut the crosstrees and the sleepers, I used a vice and with a single cut it was done.

And then a small orgy with Evergreen and the new top was done and a bit more crisp than the old version :-)

Anyway, Heller keeps surprises me, as on the "original" top the complicated planking scheme, with up- and downside looking different, was faithfully done :-)

XXXDAn

[Kevin]

Just caught up Dafi, stunning

 

[dafi]

Finally finished the step. 

Small tip in between: If all sides are stabilised with CA, one can cut 0,25 slices with the resin saw from a wooden 4 mm batten :-)

What that for? For the sheaves in the mast :-)
And that brings us back on the track. Foretop and fore topmast done.

And here compared with the "original"

Especially the wrong angle is corrected :-)

And the new detailing. The cheat in the heel is corrected, sheaves and a decent lock are fitted and the cap is made smaller, as it was the same size as the main cap.

XXXDAn
 

[popeye the sailor]

super looking redo Daniel......top has a lot more detail than the original.    nice job straightening the mast   

[JohnReid]

Looks like your doing a great job here.Cheers! John.

[JerseyCity Frankie]

Can I have all your discarded parts to use in my more mediocre Victory?

[dafi]

You are going to laugh, you are not the first one to ask this and actually there are already some left-overs spread in several builds around the world :-)

 

Cheers, Daniel the destroyer!

[nino]

Daniel,

  Thanks for all the great Links.  And keep up your great work on this wonderful Build log.

 

       Nino

Edited September 20, 2018 by nino
spelling

[dafi]

I´ll be back! Watch this space!!!

XXXDAn

[dafi]

And there she stood, well packed to be shipped far off. What the hell happend? The end of this building report?

 

[amateur]

No no, she went to see some more interesting parts of the world, and beat the French

Edited November 23, 2018 by amateur

[dafi]

Yes Trafalgar day was to come 🙂

 

The job was to be done.

 

XXXDAn

Edited November 24, 2018 by dafi

[Old Collingwood]

We wait  with baited breath................

 

OC.

[Kevin]

So have we come to the end of the journey? or have i missed so much whilst i have been away

[amateur]

No, you didn't miss anything.

It is just that parents take their beloved children with them on their holidays

 

Jan

[dafi]

In-between some necessary private restructuring, moving place, plenty of work in the office, workshop full of moving boxes, to nice weather to stay inside and other reasons I was neglecting my dear little small one. Unfortunately ...

 

But then came the day, and a job, an important job was to be done and I was able to hold my small one in my arms again ...

 

 

... and some serious cleaning was the job of the day. Time to be surprised: "Oh how did I achieve all this? Have to read the building report in MSW to believe."

 

 

She needed to be look beautiful, really beautiful. The big mess was still the slots, intended for the insertion of the upper decks. So I had to protect her. 

 

 

But all ok, the plastic protected the lower deck from the biggest dirt from the carnage of the upper decks. Then fixed the spriketting.

 

 

Then engraved the planking in situ - should have done before - and bent the water ways.

 

 

 

Added sone deck beams and evened up the knees ...

 

 

 

... and splashed some color and it looked much more clean and crisp in the inside.

 

 

The only problem with my way of building are the breaking parts on the way, even half the complement of the heads didn´t give a **** and did **** off ...

 

 

Then came the moment I was able to do a dry fit of the upper deck 🙂

 

Edited November 24, 2018 by dafi

[Kevin]

wonderful work