Yacht Gretel Mamoli 1:54

Oh, it’s Sunday again.
The nail bench on the deck is finished, as is the clamping bench for the bowsprit.
The crane beams are supported by a small amount of golden timber. The hole for the anchor rope has been drilled and stained on the inside.
The square-edged timbers from Mamoli were also of extremely high quality here – very commendable.

Best regards

Right then, everyone,
apart from the tiller and the lettering in the side window, the hull would now be finished.
I’m not really keen on the metal part from Mamoli that’s meant for the rudder. So I still need to think about how to make a replacement.
The lettering that’s supposed to go on the oval area in the little hull ornament isn’t really legible in the plans. I’ll have to give some thought to how to do that as well. Just blue looks a bit boring.
Incidentally, I had to give the figurehead a thorough reworking with a file and re-gild it before it could be fitted.
Next up is adapting it to the stone I want to use as a model stand.
I’ve got two options in mind for this, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on them.
The first idea would be to cut slots in two places in the stone to fit the standard wooden stand into them.
The second idea would be to drill two 1.5mm holes and effectively impale the little ship onto two brass rods through the keel.
With both options, the ‘Gretel’ lettering from the kit would also be carved into the stone.
I’ll sleep on it for a few nights and seek the Admiralty’s opinion. After all, it will be my first ship to find a home here.

Wishing you all a lovely, wildfire-free weekend

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That bit with the stone didn’t work out at all. I’m not exactly sure what sort of stone it is. All I know now is that it can’t be drilled or cut with a diamond blade on an angle grinder. Both the blade and the drill bit were ruined within seconds.
So, without further ado, I built another one. The frame is from the kit; the top was just lying around here.

I’ve come up with a better idea for the stone. I’ll probably use it for my Oseberg project and build a jetty out of it. It’ll certainly fit better in terms of proportions.

Have a lovely Sunday

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The Time comes to start Rigging

Hello everyone,
Now that I’d finished the hull, I handed it over to an artist I know.
As she must be used to working with fine brushstrokes, I’ve asked her to work her magic on the decorative details on the rear oval ornaments.
I reckon if I were to do it myself, I’d have to apply a new base coat countless times.

So, in the meantime, I’ve been working on the tiller. Firstly, once again, I don’t like the metal part from the kit. And secondly, it doesn’t really fit the rudder itself very well.
Next up was the work on the mast and the yards. Here, I’ve replaced the light-coloured lime wood with darker walnut. I wasn’t keen on the light-coloured blocks for the rigging either, so I’ve made some myself from lovely dark walnut.

Now, unfortunately, I have to wait until the hull comes back. It seems the lady of the arts hasn’t been kissed by the muse just yet.

Well, knowing myself, I’ll probably start sewing the sails then. Incidentally, this will also be the first time I’ve done this myself. With the San Martin, I’d left it to a seamstress, as they were made from silk that’s difficult to sew. Back then, I had to wait half a year for them, which is why that lady is no longer an option and I’m going to have a go myself.

Best wishes to you all, and I hope you have a lovely week

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Hello everyone,
Here I am again.
The piece is back home. Unfortunately, though, it hasn’t been altered. The talented artist I gave it to is, sadly, struggling for inspiration.
Too many personal problems have meant she didn’t feel confident enough to paint such a small inscription. At least, that’s what she said. Well, luckily, I’ve since come up with an idea of how to sort it out myself. But more on that later.
At the moment, I’ve unfortunately spotted a mistake in the construction plans – the first one so far.
The angle specified in the plans for the bowsprit was completely wrong, which is why I had to do a lot of sanding down at the bow.
But now everything fits just as it should.
Regards

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Pfälzer said:

But now everything fits just as it should.

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And I don't expect less from you

There he is again, sooner than I thought.

What sort of little flag does Peter have on his account there? Where’s he up to now?

There was another little problem.

Either I didn’t fit the deck quite right, or the hole for the mast wasn’t laser-cut properly in the centre.

Anyway, because of that, I unfortunately had to make the hole bigger.

Which, of course, meant that the mast couldn’t simply be slotted in. Now it actually came in handy that I keep all my fine wood to hand. So I was able to build a mast base from a scrap of wood from the Lady Nelson.

To ensure the hole was square, I quickly clamped together a jig using angle brackets.



Have a lovely weekend


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I begin Rigging

Pfälzer said:

I begin Rigging

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Lovely rope work.

Next step

Hello everyone,
It’s been a few days now, but we had a village festival. Every year, it’s three days of drinking and having fun.
In between, I quickly sorted out the basic rigging and set the washing machine alight.
My wife said I should have a go at using it myself, and of course it went wrong straight away – the bearing overheated.

Now it’s about time to sew the sails.
I’ve decided to make them by hand using old stitching patterns.
As this will be my first time doing something like this, it’ll probably take a while.

Cheers, everyone – keep your hands off machines made for women


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Beware! Sail making involves the handling of a clothes iron!

No no, i bend it over hot stones

Hello everyone,
About the sails.
Well, I started by dyeing the fabric with coffee.
For the leech line, I used slightly thicker ropes from Corel.
I ‘tacked’ these to the edge in places using superglue, and then filled the gap between the sail and the rope with cheap strong adhesive.
This hardens to a transparent, flexible finish, so the join is sturdy and barely visible.
That’s why I decided not to sew the leech rope to the fabric at all. I also decided to leave out the vertical seams.
The fabric is too thin and the ‘Pfälzer Finger’ ropes too thick to achieve a neat result.
I only glued the reinforced corners.
Now they just need to be rigged and the Gretchen would be complete.
Oh wait, no – the anchors still need to be fitted.

Best wishes to you all

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