HMS Bellona by Yves Vidal - CAF Model - 1/48th

[Luchon]

48 pages of extreme detailing and more than 54,000 views are what I remember of the original thread posted on the defunct MSW 2.0 forum. Describing again the complicated and tedious assembly of such a kit is impossible as I did not keep any pictures or document. I will simply post a few information from the CAF Model web site.

The Bellona kit comes in five installments (or sessions), which makes it very easy to spread the expenses and to stall the construction if you feel like it will not be possible to complete it. I started with the first session and after some surprising and encouraging success, I quickly acquired the other four sessions. In fact, it is not possible to go beyond the first session without the other ones, as some delicate decisions and assembly questions must be solved with parts included in Sessions 3, 4 and 5. The kit is presented in "Admiralty" fashion and has no rigging or masts, besides 4 stumps of dowels provided in the kit. The model is a smaller copy of the HMS Bellona model (1/36th) located in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London.



Some of the CAF model characteristics are:

Scale 1/48
Length 1250 mm
Width 300 mm
Height 335 mm
External keel: Simulation of cherry wood splicing
internal keel: wood plate
Ribs: cherry wood plate
Deck: Maple
Gun: Brass
: Brass
Rudder hinge: Brass
Tail window: ultra-thin glass or transparent film
Sculpture: resin version​

My finished model weights about 25 pounds, which makes it hefty and heavy. The length of my model was increased by one foot, due to the bowsprit that I built. It took me about 2 years to complete the model and its stand.

Session 1 comes with the following plan and is all about building the frames and keel:





Once you are done with Session 1, you have in your arms a heavy baby of close to four feet long.

More to come.....

Yves

 

[Luchon]

Session 2 as far as I remember is about planking the hull and building the gun deck. Here, planks of 8 mm wide and 3 mm thick are provided as well as thicker planks made of another darker wood, for the wales. The hull before and after planking, is extremely solid and robust. It is impossible to warp it.

Sessions 3, 4 and 5 are addressing the various upper decks and all the parts to complete the model. Guns and anchors are coming in Session 5; as such you will have to procure Session 5 if you intend to place some large guns on the main gun deck. The figure at the bow is made of 3D print and is nicely rendered. The kit also provides two large decal sheets of extreme beauty:





I installed the decals after coating the sides and stern with Future. Additional coats of Future were used to seal the decals, in place.

The instructions are pure drawings and there is almost no text, besides a few Chinese inscriptions that you need to translate with your Smart Phone. CAF Model is like IKEA and does everything with figures and drawings:









The overall plan comes with Session 4, if I remember correctly:



It is a fantastic kit to put together. It is not easy and requires some commitments to bring it to completion. A lot of thinking has to take place as the order of assembly suggested by CAF is not always the right way to do it. All the pitfalls were clearly detailed and illustrated in MSW 2.0, unfortunately.

Yves

 

[Luchon]

I found two pictures of the construction on my Phone:





That is all I have from the construction phase. I will post pictures of the finished model, in a few days.

Yves

 

[Luchon]

A few pictures of the finished beast. I intend to add a couple of things on the deck, in the future. As such, it is still a work in progress.....













About 2400 tiles were cut and embossed, before being glued. The tiles are done with 3M copper tape of 8 mm wide and 28 mm long. That tape is self sticking and has been working really well. The tiles are sealed with multiple coats of Future, which protects them from handling and allow them to tarnish at a very low rate.





The bowsprit was built using the Anatomy Book, since the kit has no spars and rigging. I wanted to present something more exciting than a piece of dowel. The bowsprit adds another foot to the model.













More pictures to come....

Yves

 

[Luchon]

The beautiful decals are pivotal in making the stern look great:



Note that the kit does not provide the two stern guns, nor does it have any opening for them. The stern and bow planking are done with 0.8 mm thick maple planks, glued on the first planking.



The stern balcony is made of wood and 3D printed parts for the walls.



The kit offers PE lights which are not very realistic in my opinion. Instead I went with the 1/48th Syren lights designed by Chuck and have been very happy with them. And yes, there are partially burnt wicks inside each one of them.











All decks are fully detailed with cabins, doors, and floors. Unfortunately, not much is visible once the decks have been planked and built: Below, view of the kitchen and its oven (barely visible).












s are made of solid brass and weights an hefty amount....





The model by itself, weight about 25 pounds. The base is also very heavy and the four handles are required to carry the whole assembly safely.



Yves

 

[Y.T.]

Amazing model! By saying you used a Future for protecting it what substance did you actually mean? AI tells me that Future Floor Polish is out of production for decades.

 

[Luchon]

Well, it may not be the Polish bottle, but it is called Future for giving a shine to floors. I bought the bottle in 2021 from Lowes.



Yves

 

[FriCap]

Hi, Luchon! Congratulations on finishing the work!
Your model is magnificent and looks very much like the museum one. The impression is enhanced by the dock simulation and the sailor figures.
It’s a pity, of course, that the materials from MSW have been lost… But the final part still gives a good idea of the scale of your effort!
I’m really interested in everything related to this ship, since I’m building its model myself. True, I took the COREL kit as a base, but I’ve long gone beyond its scope.
At this stage, I’m working on the decoration, and I think the photos of the CAF decoration sheets you posted will help me with that.

 

[Luchon]

Alex,

I have been following your Corel Bellona on MSW 2.0 and now on DDM. You are making a fantastic model, especially in such small scale (1/96th-100th).
The book HMS Bellona Anatomy of the Ship by Brian Lavery is essential at completing a great and detailed rendition of your model:



I know that book was absolutely necessary for me, during the entire building phase. It also helped me build the bowsprit which is not included in the original CAF kit. The book has tons of information on the masts and rigging.

Yves

 

[FriCap]

Thank you, Yves! I have this book, and I’m definitely using it!

 

[FriCap]

Yves, I have one more question. Was the surface you applied the decals to painted with acrylic paint? When I paint wood with acrylic, it turns out a bit rough, plus the plank strips might not be perfectly aligned. How do the decals sit on such a surface? Or did you treat it with something beforehand?

 

[Luchon]

Yves, I have one more question. Was the surface you applied the decals to painted with acrylic paint? When I paint wood with acrylic, it turns out a bit rough, plus the plank strips might not be perfectly aligned. How do the decals sit on such a surface? Or did you treat it with something beforehand?

- After carefully sanding the wood/planking, I painted/brushed with a blue acrylic color (Liquitex in that case). Use two coats, preferably.
- Then I brushed the Pledge/Future glossy product to the acrylic surface. It will seal the acrylic coat(s) and provide a glossy surface for the decals.
- The decals are then placed with warm water and carefully set with a brush to conform with the painted surface.
Occasionally, I may use a decal softener to match a difficult surface. Most of the times, it is not necessary.
- When the decals are set, dry and you are happy with the results, I used the Pledge/Future product again to seal them. You may use a matte or semi-gloss varnish, based on your preferences. The beauty of the Pledge/Future is that it will not attack the decals and you can place as many coats as you want for added protection.
With varnish, you have to be more careful as they tend to heat up the surface of the decals.

Yves

 

[glennb17]

A beautiful model of a beautiful ship! I'm glad you had anything from your earlier postings and could share pictures in its current state. I never thought of floorwax to be honest, but your finished product looks very nice. And if you decide one day you want to get the brown penny effect on the copper, you just need to use some floor stripper.

Nicely done!

 

[Magic Mike]

I found two pictures of the construction on my Phone:

View attachment 631772

View attachment 631773

That is all I have from the construction phase. I will post pictures of the finished model, in a few days.

Yves

Welcome Yves to the forums and greetings from Texas! Magic Mike

 

[FriCap]

- After carefully sanding the wood/planking, I painted/brushed with a blue acrylic color (Liquitex in that case). Use two coats, preferably.
- Then I brushed the Pledge/Future glossy product to the acrylic surface. It will seal the acrylic coat(s) and provide a glossy surface for the decals.
- The decals are then placed with warm water and carefully set with a brush to conform with the painted surface.
Occasionally, I may use a decal softener to match a difficult surface. Most of the times, it is not necessary.
- When the decals are set, dry and you are happy with the results, I used the Pledge/Future product again to seal them. You may use a matte or semi-gloss varnish, based on your preferences. The beauty of the Pledge/Future is that it will not attack the decals and you can place as many coats as you want for added protection.
With varnish, you have to be more careful as they tend to heat up the surface of the decals.

Yves

Yves, thank you for the detailed instructions!