Barrel cargo and cannonballs are stacking up nicely!
Thanks for sharing your build!!!
Thanks for sharing your build!!!
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Good morning Henry. Welcome to SOS. Thanks for sharing you build so far. You are owning this cross section. I really like all the detail you are including - Kudos. Cheers Grant
Thanks Grant, Mike, Brad and the others who have responded or given me a Like. Yes, I like to include what paints and stains I use in case someone likes the color and would like to use it on one of their builds. I know I am not a master modeler but enjoy spending part of my retirement building these kits. For people who have expressed interest in my hobby, including relatives, friends, ex-co-workers, etc. and even my hygienist and eye doctor, I make 10 - 20 minute videos with commentary when I post my build log on SOS, to my Drop Box account for them to view. If any of you would like to receive a link to my current video, please send me a direct SOS message with your email address and I will add you to my mailing list. Hopefully I am not violating any SOS rules suggesting doing so.
Stick with it. It's looking really nice.
Works in progress beside Bonhomme Richard Cross Section:
Billing Boats Calypso (radio controlled)
Completed
Mamoli USS Constitution Cross Section with sails
Mamoli USS Constitution with sails
Mantua Combat Station
Mantua Command Station with crew
Artesania Latina King of the Mississippi with passengers
Occre HMS Titanic
Occre San Francisco Cable Car with passengers on cobblestone street base
Have but not started
Corel HMS Victory Cross Section with sails
Aeropiccola USS Essex Cross Section with sails
Corel Wasa Cross Section
Aeropiccola Bonhomme Richard with sails
Model Shipways USCG Harriet Lane with sails
Discar Model Navio Rayo Gun Decks
Artesania Latina HMS Victory Cannon
Artesania Latina HMS Victory Carronade
Scientific Robert E. Lee
Billing Boats Calypso (radio controlled)
Completed
Mamoli USS Constitution Cross Section with sails
Mamoli USS Constitution with sails
Mantua Combat Station
Mantua Command Station with crew
Artesania Latina King of the Mississippi with passengers
Occre HMS Titanic
Occre San Francisco Cable Car with passengers on cobblestone street base
Have but not started
Corel HMS Victory Cross Section with sails
Aeropiccola USS Essex Cross Section with sails
Corel Wasa Cross Section
Aeropiccola Bonhomme Richard with sails
Model Shipways USCG Harriet Lane with sails
Discar Model Navio Rayo Gun Decks
Artesania Latina HMS Victory Cannon
Artesania Latina HMS Victory Carronade
Scientific Robert E. Lee
Since my last posting I have completed all the work below Deck 1, the upper or upper gun deck. I am not sure why, as I do not think I made any mistakes, since I used the supplied templates to mark both where the deck support beams and the gunports go; but neither the large nor the small sized cannon would fit through the gun deck (Deck 2) open gunports, as they were too close to the deck planking. Also, the brick oven from the accessory kit was too tall or the space between the gun and upper decks was too small, as one of the upper deck support beams ran into it, instead of above the oven. I checked on-line and found there was a problem with the deck and gunport templates in the initial release of this kit. So, I am assuming I have one of those kits. Luckily, I was able to re-cut the gunport opening upwards 10 mm so the large sized cannon fitted through the opening, as I had not yet glued the outside hull planking. For the brick oven, I cut the middle out of the upper deck support beam that would have gone through it, to be against the sides of the oven at its top. When I plank the upper deck, I will not plank over the top of the brick oven. While not perfect, in my opinion, this solution does not look too bad.
The gun deck has purposedly been partially planked as you can see in the photos below. I placed three of the small barrels on this deck near the ceilings. I have now used all but one of the 48 small barrels the accessory interior upgrade kit made. Next to the barrels, are the cannonball wooden racks. Each of these racks have 10 of the same 3 mm black metal round shot cannonballs made by Caldercraft I previously placed in the shot locker.
The upper deck support beams and ship knees are in place, as well as the 2 mm x 2 mm strips that go through the laser-cut support beams and 8 of the 12 laser-cut strips of upper deck planking. I will add the other four after I do the ceiling between and upper deck and the quarterdeck.
The slats around the mast are in place as is the brick oven and hatchway cover from the accessory kit. The top of the brick oven is painted with Model Expo Primer and their Bright Red paint; while the shelf and its support had the Primer and Model Expo Medium Grey paint.
All the new wood not painted had been treated with the usual wood conditioner, golden oak dye and satin varnish. The gun and upper deck planking have faux nail heads, one above each support beam. They are filled as before with Minwax Walnut Wood Fill.
I added ceilings between the gun and upper decks. They have been painted with Model Expo Primer and their Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paints. I painted the faux nail heads of the ceilings with Model Expo Hull/Spar Black paint.
For the cannons, I painted the gun carriage and wheel axles with Model Expo Primer and their Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paints and the gun carriage wheels Model Expo Primer and their Hull/Spar Black paint. All the metal parts (gun barrels, trunnions, trunnion covers, nail heads, eyebolts and rings) have been painted with Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint.
For the bitts and blocks, I painted the little bit of wood between the corresponding holes in each row of pre-drilled holes, with the Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint, to represent the pulleys.
The two ladders going between the gun and upper decks are in place between the hatchway cover and the I-shaped bitt. Due to the issues with the upper deck support beams, the top of the ladders stick a little above the framework at the upper deck level that goes around the stairwell opening.
All comments or questions appreciated.
The gun deck has purposedly been partially planked as you can see in the photos below. I placed three of the small barrels on this deck near the ceilings. I have now used all but one of the 48 small barrels the accessory interior upgrade kit made. Next to the barrels, are the cannonball wooden racks. Each of these racks have 10 of the same 3 mm black metal round shot cannonballs made by Caldercraft I previously placed in the shot locker.
The upper deck support beams and ship knees are in place, as well as the 2 mm x 2 mm strips that go through the laser-cut support beams and 8 of the 12 laser-cut strips of upper deck planking. I will add the other four after I do the ceiling between and upper deck and the quarterdeck.
The slats around the mast are in place as is the brick oven and hatchway cover from the accessory kit. The top of the brick oven is painted with Model Expo Primer and their Bright Red paint; while the shelf and its support had the Primer and Model Expo Medium Grey paint.
All the new wood not painted had been treated with the usual wood conditioner, golden oak dye and satin varnish. The gun and upper deck planking have faux nail heads, one above each support beam. They are filled as before with Minwax Walnut Wood Fill.
I added ceilings between the gun and upper decks. They have been painted with Model Expo Primer and their Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paints. I painted the faux nail heads of the ceilings with Model Expo Hull/Spar Black paint.
For the cannons, I painted the gun carriage and wheel axles with Model Expo Primer and their Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paints and the gun carriage wheels Model Expo Primer and their Hull/Spar Black paint. All the metal parts (gun barrels, trunnions, trunnion covers, nail heads, eyebolts and rings) have been painted with Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint.
For the bitts and blocks, I painted the little bit of wood between the corresponding holes in each row of pre-drilled holes, with the Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint, to represent the pulleys.
The two ladders going between the gun and upper decks are in place between the hatchway cover and the I-shaped bitt. Due to the issues with the upper deck support beams, the top of the ladders stick a little above the framework at the upper deck level that goes around the stairwell opening.
All comments or questions appreciated.
Congratulations Henri, This is charming model. I like it a lot.
Reading your blog there seem to be a lot of challenges in this kit but you have persevered and created a unique and interesting X-section.
It's a joy when you get to this point and start "decorating" your build! The colors, barrels, etc are really giving it character. Please keep us posted on your progress!!
I blew up a photo of your hatch cover. With a bit of sanding or filing of the beam circled, I bet it would fall flush with the deck. I love those curved ladders, they look awesome!!
I blew up a photo of your hatch cover. With a bit of sanding or filing of the beam circled, I bet it would fall flush with the deck. I love those curved ladders, they look awesome!!
Hi Brad,
I will be able to fix that as I took these photos before actually gluing the stairwell frame and the ladders in place as I have one more coat of varnish to put on the stairwell; but wanted to make my posting prior to taking time off for the holidays.
Thanks to everyone for your encouraging words.
Henry
I will be able to fix that as I took these photos before actually gluing the stairwell frame and the ladders in place as I have one more coat of varnish to put on the stairwell; but wanted to make my posting prior to taking time off for the holidays.
Thanks to everyone for your encouraging words.
Henry
Since my last posting I have completed all the work below Deck 0, the Quarterdeck. The upper deck has purposedly been partially planked as you can see in the photos below. I placed two cannons and two cannonball wooden racks on each side of the upper deck. Each of these racks have 10 of the same 3 mm black metal round shot cannonballs made by Caldercraft I previously placed in the shot locker and wooden trays on the gun deck.
The quarterdeck support beams and ship knees are in place, as well as the 2 mm x 2 mm strips that go through the laser-cut support beams and 6 of the 10 laser-cut strips of quarterdeck planking. I will add the other two after I do the bulwarks.
All the new wood not painted had been treated with the usual wood conditioner, golden oak dye and satin varnish; while the faux nail heads are filled as before with Minwax Walnut Wood Fill.
I added ceilings between the upper deck and quarterdeck. They have been painted the same as done for the previous ceilings.
The upper deck cannons have been painted as detailed in my previous posting for the gun deck cannon.
All comments or questions appreciated.
The quarterdeck support beams and ship knees are in place, as well as the 2 mm x 2 mm strips that go through the laser-cut support beams and 6 of the 10 laser-cut strips of quarterdeck planking. I will add the other two after I do the bulwarks.
All the new wood not painted had been treated with the usual wood conditioner, golden oak dye and satin varnish; while the faux nail heads are filled as before with Minwax Walnut Wood Fill.
I added ceilings between the upper deck and quarterdeck. They have been painted the same as done for the previous ceilings.
The upper deck cannons have been painted as detailed in my previous posting for the gun deck cannon.
All comments or questions appreciated.
It's all coming together and looking "Ship-shape"!
The rigged cannons and the holders for the cannonballs look great!
Thanks for sharing!
The rigged cannons and the holders for the cannonballs look great!
Thanks for sharing!
Since my last posting, I have completed all interior work of the model. The quarterdeck has been entirely planked. The bulwarks were painted with Model Expo Primer and their Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paint. The two cannonball wooden racks on each side of the quarterdeck are the same 3 mm roundshot cannonballs as I previously placed in the shot locker and wooden trays on the gun and upper decks. The two cannons are the same as on the upper deck as are the ropes, blocks, eyebolts and rings. All of these have been painted as described in a previous posting.
I painted the belaying pins with Model Expo Dark Brown paint.
The breastwork and ship's bell archway are from the accessory interior upgrade kit and replace the ones supplied in the basic kit.
The unpainted wood was treated with the usual wood conditioner, stain and varnish. The faux nail heads in the quarterdeck planking were 1 mm drilled holes filled with Minwax Walnut Wood Filler.
Please enjoy the attached photos.
All comments or questions appreciated.
I painted the belaying pins with Model Expo Dark Brown paint.
The breastwork and ship's bell archway are from the accessory interior upgrade kit and replace the ones supplied in the basic kit.
The unpainted wood was treated with the usual wood conditioner, stain and varnish. The faux nail heads in the quarterdeck planking were 1 mm drilled holes filled with Minwax Walnut Wood Filler.
Please enjoy the attached photos.
All comments or questions appreciated.
Very nice.
This is the final posting of my building of Unicorn Models’ Bonhomme Richard Cross Section as the model is finally finished. Since my last posting, all the outer hull features have been added. I decided to plank the entire outer hull and ran out of the supplied cherry wood strips and since I could not find any cherry wood in the size I needed, I ordered some limewood strips of the same size from my favorite overseas hobby shop, Cornwall Model Boats, in Cornwall, England. Since I was painting the hull, it did not matter if the bottom 8 planks on each side were not cherry. In order to firmly affix the planking to the hull ribs opposite the cargo area non-fence end, where I could not use my clamps due to the ballast and barrels, I put super glue at the end of the planking. Thus, I only had to hold the plank down for about 5 minutes versus 15 minutes with my normal wood glue, for the planking to stay in place. The painting scheme I used on the outer hull is based on the color photos of an Aeropiccola’s wooden model kit of the entire Bonhomme Richard that I have owned for 40+ years but not yet built (Aeropiccola went out of business in the 1990’s after their factory was destroyed in a massive fire). All the painted wood had one coat of Model Expo Primer. There are two coats of top paint. Below the waterline, I painted the outer hull and the keel with Model Expo White paint. There is a 6 mm stripe of their Hull/Spar Black paint a couple of planks above the waterline, at the gun deck, at the upper deck and at the quarterdeck, with Model Expo White paint between the last three black stripes. All the non-painted outer hull had one coat of Model Expo Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner, three coats of Occre Golden Oak Dye, with sanding with 320-grit sandpaper after each coat and finally, two coats Of Occre Satin Varnish with using the same grit sandpaper after the first coat and a green kitchen scouring pad after the last varnish coat. This is how Occre had you do the decks of their RMS Titanic kit. I liked that look of the Titanic's decks and so have used that same method on all my subsequent builds.
Since the addition of the 2 mm thick planks to the hull bottom raised the keel out of the display stand by 2 mm, I glued two 1 mm x 5 mm strips of cherry wood to the bottom of the keel (the kit had no 2 mm x 5 mm strips). That way the model still sits firmly in the display stand.
I painted the outer hull gangway steps with Model Expo Hull/Spar Black paint.
The channels plus their supports and the 2 mm x 2 mm strip against the hull at the top of the channel, all have been painted with Model Expo White paint. All the iron work for the deadeyes and the gunport doors plus the channel eyebolts and hull eyebolts and rings have been painted with Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint.
The inside of the gunport doors is painted with Model Expo Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paint while the edges and outside are painted with Model Expo White paint. Although not called for in the plans, I added the following: I attached the thicker of the two provided ropes to the rings on each of the gunport door hardware and glued the other end of the rope into a hole I drilled partly into the hull above each of the doors for each ring. I also added two eyebolts to the lower inside of each of the gunport doors.
I really enjoyed making this kit as I favor cross section kits over whole ship models. Elapsed time from start to finish was 14 months and I estimate actual time working on the kit was 720 hours.
Please enjoy the attached photos.
All comments or questions appreciated.
BTW … I already started posting a build log for my next project that I commenced while waiting for paint, stain and varnish to dry for the Bonhomme Richard. That project is building Model Shipways' 1:96 scale model of the USRC Harriet Lane (MS2270). Please check it out if interested
Since the addition of the 2 mm thick planks to the hull bottom raised the keel out of the display stand by 2 mm, I glued two 1 mm x 5 mm strips of cherry wood to the bottom of the keel (the kit had no 2 mm x 5 mm strips). That way the model still sits firmly in the display stand.
I painted the outer hull gangway steps with Model Expo Hull/Spar Black paint.
The channels plus their supports and the 2 mm x 2 mm strip against the hull at the top of the channel, all have been painted with Model Expo White paint. All the iron work for the deadeyes and the gunport doors plus the channel eyebolts and hull eyebolts and rings have been painted with Model Expo Iron/Cannon Black paint.
The inside of the gunport doors is painted with Model Expo Bulwarks/Gun Carriage Red paint while the edges and outside are painted with Model Expo White paint. Although not called for in the plans, I added the following: I attached the thicker of the two provided ropes to the rings on each of the gunport door hardware and glued the other end of the rope into a hole I drilled partly into the hull above each of the doors for each ring. I also added two eyebolts to the lower inside of each of the gunport doors.
I really enjoyed making this kit as I favor cross section kits over whole ship models. Elapsed time from start to finish was 14 months and I estimate actual time working on the kit was 720 hours.
Please enjoy the attached photos.
All comments or questions appreciated.
BTW … I already started posting a build log for my next project that I commenced while waiting for paint, stain and varnish to dry for the Bonhomme Richard. That project is building Model Shipways' 1:96 scale model of the USRC Harriet Lane (MS2270). Please check it out if interested
congrats on completion of your kit !
It's nice to complete a project! Congratulations!!!!