I had drilled a hole in the top of the bolt to push the wire through, but it would be far easier to just make the hexagonal head and glue that by itself. Do you think that would look better? Do you think I should use these "bolts" on the davits or just use the kit brass nails? Thank you for any suggestions Jeff. I really do appreciate your advice.
However, I think just making the "bolt head" and gluing it in place with save you a bunch of work of you use them to any significant quantity. 
Good morning Reg. I think you have pulled these tiny bolts off brilliantly. Cheers GrantVery slowly! LOL! I have several sheets of brass plate that are 5" x 5" (yes, us old guys still use inches here in Canada sometimes) and the sheets are 1/64" to 1/16" thick. So I did some 1/48 scale conversions and determined which sheet would do the job. Then I inscribed the sheet with the bolt head size(s) I wanted, and drilled out the 0.5mm shaft holes first. After that I just used my Byrnes tablesaw with a fine metal cutting blade and the angle gauge that came with the saw. It worked well, but my fingers kept slipping. Thus the 50% completion rate. I think that skill is improving, hopefully.
Good morning Rev. That is handy work! Your notches for the rail are neat and accurate- something I don’t get right. I agree with Alan re the rope, however those metal hand rails look very impressive and unlesss you are going for a replica model I would leave them - just my opinion. As for the steps themselves- fantastic. Love the colour and that close up photo. Cheers GrantWorking on hull exterior detailing. The A.I. plan called for embarkation ladders using 1.5 x 2 and 1.5 x 3mm walnut strips. I tried this but was unhappy with my results. So I changed the dimensioning to 1.0 x 4 and 1.0 x 3mm walnut. I found it impossible to get sharp edges on the step treads, so I used highly diluted poly varnish to coat these pieces first, then the edges stayed sharp. Poly varnish dries in seconds.
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The plan also called for making the load hoister rails from multiple pieces, which seems dubious to me. So I made a template and made the four of these rails from a single piece of walnut.
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I plan to have this model in a case once completed showing the port side. So, my experiments are always applied to the starboard side to see if they work.
This photo shows my version of the embarkation steps/ladder.
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I am generally satisfied with the steps now, but disappointed that the left rail is not exactly parallel with the step edges. Shrug. I'll get it right on the port side
From my photos of the actual shi[p, I noticed that the rail had a metal elbow support. The kit does not include such tiny pieces. So I made my own to match the photo:
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Maybe next time I'll remember to dust off the model before taking photos. Maybe.
If you are concerned about working with the stain, you can probably come close to the same color with the paint by toning down the orange with some tan and white added. Just keep track of how you mix it in case you need more.
Thank you for your suggestion Jeff. I already mixed a couple of stains to reach the caramel colour in order to match the actual ship. The photo colours are very close. I have an accurate mixture measurement for making more, if required. A single bow-to-stern stripe will not require much stain, but a heap of patience with masking of the canons. I'm still learning the concept of patience... but age is helping LOL!
Good morning Reg. I like the transparent colour as it fits nicely with the natural wood of the lower hull. This is always the question wether you want to go for an authentic ship or a good looking model. Just my 2 cents. Lovely build so far BTW. Cheers Grant
I fully understand your dilema - I know this feeling(s)
