Artesania Latina "Swift - 1805" - 40th Anniversary of Purchase Build [COMPLETED BUILD]
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- Apr 3, 2023
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Today was sanding day. Tapering all the masts, bowsprit, boom and gaffs. Last year, when I built the "Red Dragon", I used a battery powered drill, thick gloves, and sandpaper to taper the masts down to size. I was going to do the same thing, but with crappy weather and not trusting myself not to damage the dining room table, I decided to take a different path. It actually worked out pretty well. Holding one end of the wood dowel, I used my small hand sander with 80 grit paper and went to town... Long strokes, bearing down towards the tip, while at the same time rotating the dowel with my left hand. Then once I got the taper diameter down to where I needed it, I swapped out the 80 grit for some 240 and sanded them perfectly smooth. Certainly no where near as fast a process as using the drill, but it worked surprisingly well. Another technique to use in the future...
With the foremast, I just sanded horizontally to get an even diameter at the top inch of the mast, and then used an x-acto knife to gradually whittle down the beveled ledge below it. Again, more careful sanding to round off that chiselled part, but overall, success and no blood loss in the process. I consider that a win-win kind of evening.
With the foremast, I just sanded horizontally to get an even diameter at the top inch of the mast, and then used an x-acto knife to gradually whittle down the beveled ledge below it. Again, more careful sanding to round off that chiselled part, but overall, success and no blood loss in the process. I consider that a win-win kind of evening.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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You've seen my cabins from before. But now I've wrapped up all the little deck bits that go along with them. I built a bracket for my barrel, and decided to give it a bung made out of bokapi. The brace for the bowsprit, the bilge pump, a pail and some deck mooring bits.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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Bowsprit installed, as well as the miscellaneous deck items. I decided to add some detail to the inside of the cabin areas, so I made some "bales" of mystery product, and a couple of barrels... and installed some steps to get down to them. When the cabins are installed, when you slide back the top access hatch, you can see them sitting down below. The barrels were easy as I had some spare ones kicking around from my "odds and sods" box of stuff. For the bales, I cut the basic rectangular shape out of scrap wood, and then used some gauze that I stained with espresso to use a the jute or burlap covering them. Lastly, a bit of thick embroidery thread to tie up the bundles... and voila! C'est c'est très bien, je pense. lol I'd like to take credit for the idea, but when I looked at the plans for the newer version of this kit, they now have a much larger and more detailed below deck cabin space. I liked the concept, so did what I could with what I had to work with. If it's seen it earlier on in the build, I think I'd have actually cut deeper into the interior and made a wider opening to take advantage of the full size of the cabins. The openings in the deck are less than half the width of the cabins and also less than half the length. So lots of space to work with if you decided to go that route.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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Cabins installed. But more importantly, the masts are now in place... and nicely lined up to proper angle and perpendicular to the centre line of the ship. This is always one of the parts that makes me nervous in a ship build.... getting the masts straight and lined up properly. The other one is when I use the brass pedestals to mount the hull to the display base. If it's not level and even, it's a bugger to fix.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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I built my deadeye "strops"... I used the round end of a 1/4" drill bit to round over the brass rod, and used fine tip pliers to squeeze it tight around the deadeye. A drop of cycanoacrylate to keep the deadeye from rotating around in the strop. Then I drill a small hole in the bottom of each strop to eventually take a brass pin nail.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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So now I'm done with all the hull and deck work. The boom and gaffs are rigged up with their respective blocks and pulleys. No more excuses... Time to get 'friggin' with the riggin'". We're in the home stretch now...
I bought this little gizmo a few decades ago. It makes wrapping/seizing my lines much easier to do. I've got to add a drop of oil to it though... this afternoon it was squeaking so bad it was giving me a migraine.
I bought this little gizmo a few decades ago. It makes wrapping/seizing my lines much easier to do. I've got to add a drop of oil to it though... this afternoon it was squeaking so bad it was giving me a migraine.
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- Apr 3, 2023
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- 180
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So while trying to drill holes in the top of one of the included cast white metal anchors, I managed to break the end off. Grrrrr... This is what the stock anchors look like now, missing their tops... so no way to rig a line through them without fudging some sort of fitting epoxied to them.
In the bigger picture of things, maybe a blessing in disguise. I'd purchased some flat brown paint so I could make the stocks look like wood. But since now broken... after a bit of hunting around, I found replacements from Amati. Very close to same size as the ones provided with the kit, but the Amati ones came with an actual wood stock, plus pre-formed square brass rings to put around the stock... and the ring was pre-drilled to accept a brass ring to attach a rope to. So perhaps fortuitous happenstance. Here's what the Amati anchors look like completed and installed in the bow of the Swift:
In the bigger picture of things, maybe a blessing in disguise. I'd purchased some flat brown paint so I could make the stocks look like wood. But since now broken... after a bit of hunting around, I found replacements from Amati. Very close to same size as the ones provided with the kit, but the Amati ones came with an actual wood stock, plus pre-formed square brass rings to put around the stock... and the ring was pre-drilled to accept a brass ring to attach a rope to. So perhaps fortuitous happenstance. Here's what the Amati anchors look like completed and installed in the bow of the Swift:
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2023
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Now that the Swift is complete, she's been sold to a Canadian owner and now flies a Canadian flag. The costs to ship her up here were horrendous, but I'm happy with my acquisition. Now I just have to find a decent body of water to sail her in, and that's not something I'm going to find anywhere close to Calgary. lol
Without further adieu, here's the final result of this build. Later this weekend, I'll be posting more photos in the completed model section of the forum. Now I'll take the summer off to pursue other activities, and then come winter, it will be time to get back on the Victory build...
Without further adieu, here's the final result of this build. Later this weekend, I'll be posting more photos in the completed model section of the forum. Now I'll take the summer off to pursue other activities, and then come winter, it will be time to get back on the Victory build...
My congratulations for finishing this fine model - enjoy the summer 
My congratulations also!! It looks Great! Enjoy the feeling with your favorite drink as you look at it.My congratulations for finishing this fine model - enjoy the summer
Steve
Hi, You are not the only one, who built Swift for 40 Years Ago. I did it too, and was acting as a professor at the local school, where a few students wanted to learn "How to build a Model Ship". It brings memories back.So, for better or worse, it's a done deal. I've completed the decking and "peg-work". In the photo (below, left), I've circled in red one of the 0.5mm plastic broom bristles inserted into a pre-drilled hole in the deck. I snip them off level to the wood (or as close to level to the wood as I can get), and then top it off with a dab of Weldbond glue. You can see the white glue blobs in the photo, but the stuff dries clear as it hardens. In the second photo (below, right), you can see all the pegs installed, and the ones that appear black at the bow and stern are the ones where the glue was applied the previous night and has now hardened and become clear.
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This is the result after two sanding passes. The first was done with 120 grit, and the final was done with 320 grit.
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And this is the final result after application of two coats of Floquil Amber Glaze. The lighting distorts it, but the colour is a consistent golden hue. I use this Floquil product on all my wood pieces on all my kits. Unfortunately it's no longer manufactured, so someday I may need to source a replacement product. But for now, I just cracked open a new bottle, and I've got five more in reserve. That's enough to do at least five kits of this size, or three of something larger like a 1:98 HMS Victory.
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Would I do the pegging on another project? Certainly not on something that's smaller scale, but perhaps on something around 1:50, I'd consider it again. Maybe. Possibly....
Next up.... installation of the bulwarks...
This Shift has very little to compare with a much newer Swift -build log somewhere.- have fun. el Capi
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- Apr 3, 2023
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As many companies do, Artesania Latina has, I think, taken a step backwards in the choice of assembly methods and materials provided with which to construct them. Going with a CD/DVD for the instructions I have mixed emotions about... on one hand, I appreciate all the additional photos to provide guidance during the build process... but there's also a part of me that thrives on paper plans and instructions. Oft times, I'll print out the digital files so I have hard copies that I can mark up and annotate as I work my way through how to approach the build.
When I say they may have taken a step backwards, I'm referring to the fact that the modern iteration of the kit is single plank and painted. I'm a huge fan of wood, and aside from the cross sections of the Victory and Constitution, I've never painted them. I apply a nice finish to the sanded wood and love how the wood grain speaks back to thank me for appreciating it. If you're just single planking and then painting to hide it, why not just provide a solid hull block? But on the flip side, AL has, with the newer version of the kit, provided much more detail in the below deck portions of the two cabins... and I liked that enough I made a half arsed attempted to replicate it to a lesser degree with my build. Additionally, they took a different path with some of the running rigging, which I also opted to go with as opposed to how my plans showed it to be done. That appears in a few areas, but most specifically as it relates to the aft boom where it's blocked in over the stern tiller area.
So no matter how far I went off the rails with my build, my friends and family have zero clue as to what I've done or why I did it the way I did. It's my little mystery, and only the folks on this forum may get a chuckle (or grimace) as what I've done. lol And in another three months time, winter will be here in my part of the word, and I'll have to screw up the courage to face the continuation of the Victory build.
Y/ou are right in many
You are right on many points. My Swift i older than yours, as I did not get a CD/DVD -anyway useless today with new computers. I will try to find my old material -it may even be here somewhere in SOS- El Capi
Hi, I found some, but not the whole build. will add them.- it is not always easy to find what you are looking for with a harddisk with more than 40 GBYTE
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From the research I did while building my kit, I'm of the belief that there are four distinct versions of the kit. I've actually built the model twice, albeit the first one was my very first wooden ship kit... and built over forty years ago. That first one was also the first release of the kit by Artesania Latina, and is the same as the one you built. This build log is based on the second version of the Swift kit, also from decades ago. Then there was a third version in which they adjusted some of the running rigging and added a couple of cannons to the kit. And then lastly, their fourth release which is the one using CD/DVD media and gong with the single planked/painted route.
Semi-related aside... I tend to buy my PCs from Dell, and then customize the build to meet my needs. One of those needs is to always have a CD/DVD/Blueray device available for both reading and creating discs of my own content (vacation movies and slide shows). The good news is that if someone has a PC or laptop that doesn't have a disc player, you can readily find inexpensive USB connected devices on Amazon and other sources. A quick search on Amazon yielded a PC attached CD/DVD player for $23 CAD, and a player/burner (creator) CD/DVD/Blueray for $70 CAD. I have an older version of one of these that I used to use with a Windows 10 tablet when I was working away from home. Lots of options if one needs to be able to play content from disc.
Semi-related aside... I tend to buy my PCs from Dell, and then customize the build to meet my needs. One of those needs is to always have a CD/DVD/Blueray device available for both reading and creating discs of my own content (vacation movies and slide shows). The good news is that if someone has a PC or laptop that doesn't have a disc player, you can readily find inexpensive USB connected devices on Amazon and other sources. A quick search on Amazon yielded a PC attached CD/DVD player for $23 CAD, and a player/burner (creator) CD/DVD/Blueray for $70 CAD. I have an older version of one of these that I used to use with a Windows 10 tablet when I was working away from home. Lots of options if one needs to be able to play content from disc.