SMS WESPE 1876 by wefalck – 1/160 scale - Armored Gunboat of the Imperial German Navy - as first commissioned

[wefalck]

The problem was that the the tactical concept for which they were designed became quickly outdated a few years after they were built. The idea was to put an extra-heavy gun behind some armour plate and then fire from a safe distance at enemies (thinking mainly of the French) that could not get close enough in the tidal waters of the German North Sea coast or in the narrow and shallow sunds of the Baltic. They were meant to be a sort of mobile detached fortress for coastal protection. However, when they went into service, the mobile torpedo was invented and successfully made operational. And then a few years after that QL guns were designed. So they became quite vulnerable and were not particularly seaworthy. They were refitted in the later 1880s with two underwater torpedo-tubes in the bow, two QL 8.7 cm guns in the rear and two Hotchkiss 3.7 cm revolving guns that could be switeched between different pivots.

 

SMS WESPE was the first ship of the Imperial German Navy that was designed to make do without any sails right from the beginning. While the class was commissioned, some other, larger armoured ships without any sails were built, but this SACHSEN-class was also conceived as coastal defence ships, the naval doctrine under Bismarck being entirely defensive. Hence they had a limited range of action, relying on the home ports for recoaling.

[wefalck]

Postscriptum: in a German Forum I received comments on the man-handling of the shells from a colleague, who observed the available historic drawings more attentively than me. These show in one case a winch located inside the deck-house and marked as ‘shell-hoisting winch’. In another, presumably somewhat older drawing, a substantial bracket is drawn above the shell hoisting hatch. Both features are not shown on the oldest drawings that were the main basis for this model reconstruction. I will install the bracket that was presumably used together with tackle, when the winch was not yet installed.

 

 

Anchors

 

The WESPE-Class was fitted out with two Inglefield bow anchors and (presumably) a standard anchor as stern or reserve anchor. The bow anchors are stowed on chutes and handled with two small cranes on each side.

There is no drawing for the stern anchor, but the drawings seem to show chocks for its storage. There is also a hawse-hole in the stern and a crane above it. So it is likely that there has been a stern-anchor. What is not clear at all is, how the chain would have been handled and there are no stoppers or similar to belay the chain when in use. Neither is there a chain locker drawn in the stern. So there is de facto conflicting evidence.

Inglefield-anchors a are complicated affair, but seem to have been rather popular at the time with the Imperial German Navy. In an instruction book for drawing in shipbuilding a nice detailed drawing of an Inglefield-anchor was found and used as the basis for the model reconstruction. Its size is taken from the WESPE-lithographs in the German Technical Museum in Munich.

 

Drawing of an Inglefield-anchor from WAAP (1910)

 

One could have perhaps sawn out the parts from a 0.5 mm brass or styrene sheet, but considering an overall length of the anchors of 12.5 mm this seemed to be a rather daunting task. For this reason the individual parts were drawn for the laser-cutter and cut from 0.12 mm Canson paper. The shaft and other parts were built up from several layers that were cemented together with fast-drying lacquer, resulting in some kind of composite material.

 

Drawing of the components of an Inglefield-anchor for laser-cutting

 

The parts then could be easily shaped using diamond and other files. After a certain amount of filing more lacquer was applied in order to prevent the fraying of the paper.

Finally the built-up parts were assembled using lacquer.

 

One half-completed anchor and parts ready for assembly of the second (I should stop taking these quick-and-dirty close-ups with the iPhone and take out the SLR camera again ...)

 

Instead of the traditional way of shaping the shackles from wire, I decided to also cut them from paper. The bolts on the smaller shackels would have been too small to represent and were omitted. I think they turned out quite convincingly.

On the other hand, the bolts that keep the parts of the anchor together were turned from steel and blackened before assemply.

 

The standard anchor possibly could have been cut from brass and soldered together, but then, once it is painted, no one really will know the difference. So I also made the respective designs and employed the laser cutter again. The proportions were taken from an anchor drawing in the Danish Naval Yard archives of the same period.

 

Drawing of parts for one standard anchor

 

Laser-cut parts for the stern anchor

 

The shaft and arms were build up from six layers this time and after lacquering them together the part was shaped using a diamond nail file and various needle and echappement files. As usual more lacquer was applied to keep the paper consolidated.

Finally the flukes were lacquered on and the large shackle also cut from paper attached.

 

Turning the stock for the stern anchor

 

The stock was the biggest challenge, as it is only 0.3 mm in diameter in the middle and tapering off. It was turned from thin steel rod. As the anchor will be stowed in the stern, the ball at the end of the bent side will not be visible and therefore left off. The visible ball was formed by a tiny drop of white glue.

 

Assembled anchors ready to be painted

 

 

Painted anchors

 

To be continued ...

 

Edited November 5, 2020 by wefalck

[BANYAN]

A great result on those anchors Eberhard.  A very effective process you came up with; I would not have liked to cut those out of sheet stock also   The drawings and process would be equally effective using PE also I think.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[Keith Black]

Great detail work, Eberhard. 

[KeithAug]

1 hour ago, wefalck said:

two Inglefield bow anchors

Eberhard, I was not aware of this type of anchor although in concept it seems similar to what I would call a Danforth anchor. The stern anchor is what I have always called a Fisherman’s anchor. Both very nicely made given the limitations of scale. Taper turning 0.3mm steel rod is a bit of an achievement. Was it a case of very light cuts or did you conjure up some other technique?

[Moab]

Wonderful craftsmanship...Moab

[wefalck]

Thanks, gentlemen !

 

Pat, many of the drawings were originally made to be used as etchning masks. I would have build up parts from layers of etched parts soldered together (and actually did). However, I found mobilising the etching process quite onerous and my workshop is not really suitable, as I don't have a 'wet' bench space. PE parts though would have come out much cleaner and with a smooth surface, In addition, the PE process allows 'surface' etching, which doesn't work so well with the laser. Of course you can engrave surfaces, but removing layers with the view to let e.g. rivets stand proud of the surface results in a rough finish due to the steps of the laser head. The laser-cutter has the advantage to have near zero mobilisation time and you can change designs and settings quickly, if they don't work. If a PE part doesn't work, you have to change the desing, make a new mask, cut a piece of brass sheet (and if it's not coated already, apply the photoresist), expose it, develop it and then finally etch it. Not quite an 'ad hoc' process. For commercial projects, once the design and process have been settled, they PE parts are very good, but so much for the kind of experimental project development I am undertaking.

 

Keith, there have been literally dozens of 'patent' anchor models since the early 1840s or so. As ships became bigger, they needed more holding power per weight of anchor, otherwise the anchors would have become too big and undwieldy, as it still took decade bevore steam capstans and winches became common on ships. It seems that Trotman, Martins, and Inglefield were the more popular models before Hall (I think) came up with a really stockless anchor that could be hoisted into the hawse-hole, making anchor-cranes etc. unnecessary.

 

Turning such thin parts obviously requires a lathe with good bearings and little run out. I turned the stock in steps, first one side, applying the taper with a fine file with rounded edges; then, supporting the end in the smallest female dead-centre that I have, I turned the other half and tapered it again with a file. Of course cuts have to be light, say 0.03 mm or so per pass. I found this only possible with steel, as I never found hard enough brass. The steel I am using are copper-clad welding electrodes. Easy to get and turn well with HSS-tools, not too soft and not too hard. Not sure about the composition of the ones I have, as there seems to be quite a range. Probably some Si and Mn.

[Boxbuilds]

Awesome

 

 

 

....did you use the match?🔥🙂 

Edited November 11, 2020 by Boxbuilds

[wefalck]

Display Case

 

The project has progressed to a point, where soon major parts will be painted and then will have to be protected from dust during the further building process. Hence, I constructed a Plexiglas display case. From another project some 40 years ago I had lots of 2 mm sheets of Plexiglas left over that I now put to good use.

Ideally, the sheets would be cut to size on a table saw, but I do not have one big enough. However, Plexiglas up to 3 mm thick can be scored and then snapped. A procedure recommended by the manufacturer, if you don’t have a suitable saw.

 

I put a sharp-edged angle-iron along the edge of the work-bench, laid the Plexiglas with the marked-out cutting line exactly over the edge and a heavy steel-ruler exactly (minus half of the thickness of the cutter) over the line and clamped the assembly firmly down. The sheet is then scored a few times with a box cutter, followed by a cutter with a hooked blade until a groove 0.5 to 1 mm deep is made. Finally, you grab firmly with both hands (the faint-hearted may use leather gloves) the part sticking out, take a deep breath and with one decided jerk you break it off. The result is a clean, straight cut with only a little kerf that needs little cleaning up.

 

Arrangement for snapping Plexiglas sheet in a similar case

 

In theory, the kerf is desirable. When professional make such Plexiglas cases, they mill on such a kerf to provide room for the cement. The kerf should face inward.

 

The cement used was Acrifix 192, one of the proprietary cements for real Plexiglas. It is essentially, liquid, uncured Plexiglas and will have the same refractive index once cured so that joints are invisible, when executed professionally. I know the theory (as I have a full version of the manufacturer’s handbook), but my practice is far from perfect. I found that the very old Acrifix 192 I was using has a very short open time and curing begins as soon as a light quantum hits it. Unlike for other formulations, curing is set off by visible light and not only by UV light. It is also very runny and it is easy to smear it over places, where you don’t want it to go, basically fusing into any Plexiglas it hits. So I used it rather sparingly to be on the safe side.

 

The less than perfect joints don’t matter too much, as the corners will be covered, according to my house-style, in L-shaped brass edges. Still have to mail-order them in Germany, as I have not found a affordable source yet for milled (not drawn !) L-shaped brass here in France. The edges will also add to the strenght of the assembly. There will be also wooden, polished plinth.

 

The base is a piece of 16 mm fibre-board that I happened to have lying around. The Plexiglas case will be secured to it with two screws eventually.

 

The case will be completed at a later stage, as for the moment only its function as dust-cover is important.

 

Plexiglas case in its raw state

 

 

To be continued ...

Edited November 13, 2020 by wefalck

[Roger Pellett]

Very nice!

 

With your overhead view the actual proportions of this craft are astonishing. In any sort of sea state it must have pitched and rolled like crazy, making any sort of accurate gunnery impossible.  I would not visualize the shallow waters off the North German Coast as being placid.

 

Roger

Edited November 13, 2020 by Roger Pellett

[FriedClams]

Beautiful work on those anchors.  As said many times before yet worth repeating - extraordinary detail at this scale.  Excellent.

 

Gary  

[wefalck]

Thank you very much indeed for your kind comments !

 

These boats were not very stable gun-platforms and presumably very wet in any kind of weather up from dead-calm. Both, the North Sea and the Baltic tend to have short, choppy seas.

 

************************************

 

Display case – completion

 

The display case was given a wooden plinth or frame from four strips of wood with 10 mm x 20 mm cross section. They were carefully cut to length with a mitre-saw and glued together ‘in situ’ to obtain a close fit. The wood was sanded, slightly watered, sanded again and then stained in a light mahagony colour. I decided to follow a simplified French polishing procedure. The wood was given a coat of sanding sealer and lightly sanded, so as not to sand through the staining. Shellac was applied twice with a soft cotton ball and the surface lightly rubbed in between with 0000 grade steel-wool.

A short while ago the mail-ordered brass profiles arrived. I used a 2 mm x 4 mm rectangular cross-section for the bottom frame and 4 mm x 4 mm x 0.5 mm L-profiles for the corners. The bottom frame was first cut to size and the 45° mitres ground on my micro-grinding machine. These allows to achieve a perfect fit at the corners. The four stiles were polished bright with steel-wool and degreased with acetone before glueing them into place using ordinary craft glue of the UHU-brand (it’s solvent-based general glue). The next to go on are the four upper corners. The L-profile are sawn to length, the corners cut away with a side cutter and the precise mitre ground on. During the fitting and re-fitting the stiles are held in place with short lengths of low-tack tape. After glueing these into place, the four vertical corners can be tackled. First the two mitres are fitted into the existing corners, but each stile is cut a tad too long to have material for fitting. It is easier to grind them to length on the square lower end, then on the mitred one.

 

The finished display case

 

The Plexiglas and the wooden frame had been pre-drilled on the two narrow sides for a couple of brass screws that will eventually hold the case to the MDF-bottom.

 

The seascape will be tackled just before painting the hull, so as not to damage the paintwork while sculpting the sea around the hull.

 

To be continued ...

Edited December 2, 2020 by wefalck

[Boxbuilds]

I like the metal trim.  nice touch to a nice case

[cog]

wefalk, how did you attach the brass to the Plexiglas? Soldered the brass frame first?

[wefalck]

Not at all, no soldering. As I wrote above, the stiles are simply cemented on using the brand cement UHU Alleskleber. Seems to hold on well for several decades now on glass and some five years on the first case I built from Plexiglas.

 

I must admit, that I took the design from McCaffery's book on Miniature Ship models. He uses silicone to cement together the glass panes, as well as to stick on the stiles. At one time I found that I ran out of silicone and because of the weekend resorted to UHU. It is much easier to clean up than silicone, which tends to creep around (which of course is the purpose). Also, although McCaffery is really preoccopied with the longevity and stability of materials, he kind of ignores the issue of acetic acid fumes that form, when silicone cures and penetrate into the case.

[wefalck]

Further work on the hull

 

The bulwark in the aft part of the hull is supported by a number of stanchions that were cut from sheet metal and rivetted together. The looks for these stanchions is reasonably well documented on a number of photographs.

 

The aft part of a WESPE-Class-Boat (Lavverenz, 1900)

 

The stanchions I had drawn already years ago and depicted the rivetting by surface-etching. The material is 0.1 mm thick nickel silver. They were made in double as mirror images and soft-soldered together in pairs with soldering paste so that the rivetting appears on both sides.

 

Etched and soldered together stanchions (they are about 5.5 mm high)

 

The location of the stanchions was marked on the bulwark before this was put into place by thermo-transfer of a drawing, i.e. a laserprinter printout was ironed on. The stanchions were cemented in place with fast-dryining varnish.

 

The bulwark-stanchions in place

 

Already a short while ago I had fashioned the boiler-ash chutes by milling to shape little blocks of acrylic glass. They were cemented to the bulwark inside and outside at this stage too.

 

To be continued ...

Edited December 12, 2020 by wefalck

[Keith Black]

Eberhard, cleaver work resulting in nice attention to detail.

[Bedford]

Beautiful work as usual Eberhard.

 

The photo of the aft deck / helm station shows beautiful work by the ship builders too, from a time when even a war ship was beautifully made.

[wefalck]

Thanks, gentlemen !  Bedford, that's why I like those 'Victorian' warships. They were certainly utilitarian, but camouflage and grey all over was not an issue. There was a lot of varnished wood and polished brass/bronze to add visual interest (and keep sailors occupied with maintenance) and to give captains and bo'suns something to be proud of.

[BANYAN]

That is some nice etching Eberhard, how did you achieve the nice rounded rivet heads (or is that just 'photographic' perspective/contrast at work).   They certainly made up nicely soldered together and look very effective in-situ.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[KeithAug]

On 12/12/2020 at 7:05 PM, wefalck said:

They were made in double as mirror images and soft-soldered together in pairs

Nicely done Eberhard, did you do the etching or did you contract it out.

[wefalck]

Dear Pat and Keith, the etchings were the result of my foray into that field in about 2008. I tried to develop for myself the technique as a sort of ad hoc process, i.e. you draw a few parts and then go away and do the etching, as you would go to the lathe or milling machine.

 

Not having a 'wet laboratory', I tried to reduce the volume of liquids involved to a minimum and worked in plastic film-containers (still have a good supply from my intensive slide-photography days, before I went fully digital in 2009). In consequence, the 'frets' were the size of two large stamps the maximum.

 

I found the idea of contracting out the production of the masks and of the etching difficult to organise, because one has to fill an A5 or even A4 sheet to make it cost-wise viable. This means that you really have to have a very good idea of all the parts and their exact sizes. Which in turn means that the project has to be fully designed, before you start making any chips or swarf. That's probably fine, when you work from commercial model-builders drawings, but is difficult, when you are trying to interpret some contemporary drawings and images as you are going along. Perhaps I should have done it like this ...

 

The more or less round rivets and the 'draft' along the raised edges are probably a (wellcome) artifact of my etching method. The sheet to be etched is agitated by moving it vertically in the film container or rotating it. This results in a predominantly lateral flow of the etching solution, which leads to quite a bit of 'underetching' underneath the photoresist. In the commercial process of spray etching, the solution is sprayed vertically onto the sheet to prevent exactly that underetching, resulting in much sharper and vertical edges.

 

I gave up etching (for the time being), because the main problem was to obtain films with sufficiently dense blackening with neither my laser-printer nor my ink-jet printer. Given the small sizes of the parts, this was difficult to correct. If you make printed circuit boards, you can easily touch up your lines and areas with a permanent marker, but here I was really pushing it to the edge of the technology.

 

I was thinking of giving it a try again by coating the sheet metal in black paint and then burning it away with the laser-engraver. Should work for single-side etching, but my little cheapo laser-engraver has no facility to sufficiently precise (say within a 1/50th of a mm) register a piece, once you have flipped it over.

[KeithAug]

6 hours ago, wefalck said:

but is difficult, when you are trying to interpret some contemporary drawings and images as you are going along.

Thank you Eberhard. I had been thinking of trying for the very reason you identify. However I don't think that I will use it a lot and newer technologies might come to my rescue first. I am waiting for good quality 3D printing to become more affordable.

[wefalck]

It seems that only the technology that uses UV-curing resins is good enough for our purposes, but that involves messing around with volumes of monomer, which is not so nice. Prices have come down dramatically, but you are still talking a couple of thousand Pounds, Euros, US Dollars ...

[KeithAug]

43 minutes ago, wefalck said:

Prices have come down dramatically, but you are still talking a couple of thousand Pounds,

Yes I have been following the market developments. I think a high quality inexpensive machine is several years away.

[wefalck]

I have a colleague in Germany (retired engineer with a good pension and no family), who got himself a Formlabs 3 printer, which I think set him back by some 6500 €, but it quite amazing what he is turning out after only a short learning period. The main hurdle - apart from the money, is being sufficiently CAD-savvy. He used AutoCAD in his job, so he knows what he is doing. A lot of the stuff he prints he has actually professionally cast in brass - the company get the models and he gets one set of brass parts for free, while the company sells them to other customers. The brass parts seem to need very little clean-up.

[Keith Black]

Eberhard, Merry Christmas to you and yours and a Happy New Year.......Keith

[wefalck]

Thank you very much and Merry Christmas to all the others too !

 

[KeithAug]

Merry Christmass Eberthard, here is hoping for a better 2021.

[mbp521]

Wefalck,

 

Just ran across your build and spent the last hour catching up. I have to say this is an interesting boat and a magnificent display of model building mastery. Looking forward to following along on future updates. 
 

-Brian