Peter, thanks for the great (and helpful) picture!
I had some fun and asked one of my AI models to "measure" the stripe in that photo, which used known dimensions of the hull at midships, from waterline to deck. This resulted in 6-7” wide or 2.5-2.8mm at 1:64 scale. If I consider the size of the men on deck, this seems about right.
However, the model also found the Model Shipways' waterline position (which I used) generally sits higher than the real thing (seems fair if you compare the photos). Once I gave it a picture and my hull measurement, the
proportional result was 1.3-1.5mm (actual 3.25-3.75") for the stripe. This seems consistent with the common use of really narrow stripes.
However, I'm also considering your advice for widening the stripe at its ends (esp. at the stern) to help the visual. So, I'll likely lay down a 2mm wide stripe and take advantage of 2mm tape. In my humble and newbie opinion, this is safely inside the range of “historically correct”.
OK, this concludes today's class on 'how to over analyze".

. Thank you for tagging along.
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