Good morning Chris. Very impressive work on this beast of a ship. Cheers Grant
H.M.S. Victory by Caldercraft - Build Log
- Thread starter team118
- Start date
- Watchers 34
-
- Tags
- caldercraft victory
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Hijack away!!!!!
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
No pictures today. I cannot bear to post or look at them.
If you look at the ones above, you can see that I perhaps did not have a good plan of attack while building the stern. The masking tape you can see created so many seams and bad paint joints that I can't even bear it!
Instead of taping off black areas, I should have painted everything yellow and then maybe either added black styrene stripes for the black panels or taped off after the fact.
Since, I have been working on fixing all of this. I have sanded where I can, added filler, sanded the filler, added some more and painted.
I have worked on the brass moldings and they are tough. I have annealed them and the more you do, the easier it is to bend them into shape. I have a bench belt/disk sander so it made it easier to create the miters for the molding. After a fashion, I was able to get them close to fitting and once attached and set, I was able to use my Dremel sander to smooth out the corners. Once done, a bit of filler cleaned them up.
I was able to finish the forward and stern cast pieces. The details on my pieces aren't the best and the lettering on the bow pieces are very light if at all. This also included the side entry pieces. I was proud of the look I got with them. When I installed them, the side pieces do not fit in between the wales. I wished I had looked at other builds more closely. The directions don't really give specific instructions, but it appears that the proper method would have been to notch the top of the side piece to fit over the top wale. I didn't do that....I notched out the lower wale for the pieces to fit. Eh...that made the stair set up a bit off.
As for the stairs themselves, I was able to use a piece of the first layer hull planking as a spacer for the steps, it seemed to fit very nicely. BUT...as you get higher, the gap increases, so be aware of that! Because of my set up of the entrance, the stairs don't quite match the plans, but the aesthetics are there.
Finally, I also started on the channels. I tried to follow a builder's path of soldering the strops over the deadeyes. That just wasn't working, it's very difficult to get the heat right on the PE strop. I tried with 5 or 6 but they were a mess.
Finally, I just tried to attach the strop/deadeye to the channel slots. With some practice, I was able actually pinch the strop in the channel groove. I would leave the lower part of the strop under the channel groove for the chain plate. (pictures will be better!!!)
The larger deadeyes were easy peasy. The small ones were just a pain. I had to trim the lower jutting piece off of them to get them fit nicely in the channel groove.
Once I had a rhythm, I was cooking with gas. I had one stutter as I did the second channel after doing the first one....should they be reversed? I stutter stepped, but just kept on going and did the second one the same as the first based on the blueprints.
There is no SPECIFIC mention that the blueprints (Sheet#2) should the orientation of the deadeyes for the starboard side, BUT that they need to be the OTHER way for the port side. I only saw that based on the diagrams in Sheet #18. Sigh. #18 has an overhead view of the channels so that the copper eyelets and cast brackets can be attached. I wish they also added the deadeyes for a better visual...or on plan #2, they showed both port and stbd channels so we would know. Or perhaps, as this is an expert model, builders would already know this from experience!
So, embarrassingly so...I have to disassemble HALF the channels I was SO PROUD of doing!!!!
Perhaps that is why this is just a written post. Tomorrow, I will finish what I did wrong and try to clean up the rest of the painting fiasco. Then I will post all the pictures...the worse, the bad and hopefully the ...NOT SO BAD?
If you look at the ones above, you can see that I perhaps did not have a good plan of attack while building the stern. The masking tape you can see created so many seams and bad paint joints that I can't even bear it!
Instead of taping off black areas, I should have painted everything yellow and then maybe either added black styrene stripes for the black panels or taped off after the fact.
Since, I have been working on fixing all of this. I have sanded where I can, added filler, sanded the filler, added some more and painted.
I have worked on the brass moldings and they are tough. I have annealed them and the more you do, the easier it is to bend them into shape. I have a bench belt/disk sander so it made it easier to create the miters for the molding. After a fashion, I was able to get them close to fitting and once attached and set, I was able to use my Dremel sander to smooth out the corners. Once done, a bit of filler cleaned them up.
I was able to finish the forward and stern cast pieces. The details on my pieces aren't the best and the lettering on the bow pieces are very light if at all. This also included the side entry pieces. I was proud of the look I got with them. When I installed them, the side pieces do not fit in between the wales. I wished I had looked at other builds more closely. The directions don't really give specific instructions, but it appears that the proper method would have been to notch the top of the side piece to fit over the top wale. I didn't do that....I notched out the lower wale for the pieces to fit. Eh...that made the stair set up a bit off.
As for the stairs themselves, I was able to use a piece of the first layer hull planking as a spacer for the steps, it seemed to fit very nicely. BUT...as you get higher, the gap increases, so be aware of that! Because of my set up of the entrance, the stairs don't quite match the plans, but the aesthetics are there.
Finally, I also started on the channels. I tried to follow a builder's path of soldering the strops over the deadeyes. That just wasn't working, it's very difficult to get the heat right on the PE strop. I tried with 5 or 6 but they were a mess.
Finally, I just tried to attach the strop/deadeye to the channel slots. With some practice, I was able actually pinch the strop in the channel groove. I would leave the lower part of the strop under the channel groove for the chain plate. (pictures will be better!!!)
The larger deadeyes were easy peasy. The small ones were just a pain. I had to trim the lower jutting piece off of them to get them fit nicely in the channel groove.
Once I had a rhythm, I was cooking with gas. I had one stutter as I did the second channel after doing the first one....should they be reversed? I stutter stepped, but just kept on going and did the second one the same as the first based on the blueprints.
There is no SPECIFIC mention that the blueprints (Sheet#2) should the orientation of the deadeyes for the starboard side, BUT that they need to be the OTHER way for the port side. I only saw that based on the diagrams in Sheet #18. Sigh. #18 has an overhead view of the channels so that the copper eyelets and cast brackets can be attached. I wish they also added the deadeyes for a better visual...or on plan #2, they showed both port and stbd channels so we would know. Or perhaps, as this is an expert model, builders would already know this from experience!
So, embarrassingly so...I have to disassemble HALF the channels I was SO PROUD of doing!!!!
Perhaps that is why this is just a written post. Tomorrow, I will finish what I did wrong and try to clean up the rest of the painting fiasco. Then I will post all the pictures...the worse, the bad and hopefully the ...NOT SO BAD?
As discussed on several posts here at SoS, did you seal the tape with a clear so the colors you apply after the clear dries do not seep under the tape?
Allan
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
No, in the past I with my other model, I would tape off the area I wanted protected and then spray over the open area with the same color as under the tape to create a barrier. I didn't do that on this model and I can tell the difference. Especially when I look as some of the other builds where they took the time to do that...
I've been working the last few days trying to get rid of these tape marks. Making progress, but it will never be perfect....
Hi Chris
Never thought of that before...... will give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
Allan
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
I'll start with the work I did on the various cast pieces. I believe I have already posted pics of the cherubs. I won't blame the materials, but the detail on the bow pieces weren't as defined as some I've seen. No matter, I think they came out fine and once the model is done (optimism!!!) a lot of that will be obscured by rigging.
The stern flowers and figures are pretty straight forward, I painted (ALL OF THE PIECES) them with Mr. Metal primer first and then painted them yellow.
The lower scrolls, I painted black first and tried as best as I could to add the yellow highlights.
For the stern trophy, I painted it white first. After it dried, I added the black for the cannons, blue for the one flag and red for the other. Once that dried, I added the gold and then made an attempt at the striping for the British flags. In the end, I am satisfied with the result.
For the side entrances, it looks like there is a tremendous amount of gold leaf detail and there was no way at that small of a scale I would be able to get it right.
On my Titanic model one of the tasks was to paint the the two skylight glass domes that are at the top of the ships Grand Staircases. They are supposed to be opaque glass with wrought iron and gold framing. Given the scale, there is no way a paint brush would be able to get that fine a detail.
The dome comes with the 'framing' recessed into the plastic piece. So you paint the whole thing black and then wipe it away with a cloth. What is left is black in the grooves to simulate the framing.
Originally, I painted all the side pieces black, but I tried to paint one gold first. Once it dried, I repainted it black and wiped it off. What was left was the gold highlighting sticking out with black in the recesses. It actually doesn't look too bad for the scale.
Once done with all the side pieces, the roof and the overhead entrance plate I added gray to simulate the metal roof and some color for the crowns on the entrances.
Installing the side entrance wasn't quite up to spec. The side pieces don't fit in-between the wales. I didn't look at other builds and the directions don't really go into detail as to what to do. So I cut out a bit of the lower wale to get them to fit. After the fact, I see that most probably filed away some of the top of the side piece to get them to fit.
The only issue with my way is that the entrance is a bit lower and will (did) affect the locations of the stairs.
The stern flowers and figures are pretty straight forward, I painted (ALL OF THE PIECES) them with Mr. Metal primer first and then painted them yellow.
The lower scrolls, I painted black first and tried as best as I could to add the yellow highlights.
For the stern trophy, I painted it white first. After it dried, I added the black for the cannons, blue for the one flag and red for the other. Once that dried, I added the gold and then made an attempt at the striping for the British flags. In the end, I am satisfied with the result.
For the side entrances, it looks like there is a tremendous amount of gold leaf detail and there was no way at that small of a scale I would be able to get it right.
On my Titanic model one of the tasks was to paint the the two skylight glass domes that are at the top of the ships Grand Staircases. They are supposed to be opaque glass with wrought iron and gold framing. Given the scale, there is no way a paint brush would be able to get that fine a detail.
The dome comes with the 'framing' recessed into the plastic piece. So you paint the whole thing black and then wipe it away with a cloth. What is left is black in the grooves to simulate the framing.
Originally, I painted all the side pieces black, but I tried to paint one gold first. Once it dried, I repainted it black and wiped it off. What was left was the gold highlighting sticking out with black in the recesses. It actually doesn't look too bad for the scale.
Once done with all the side pieces, the roof and the overhead entrance plate I added gray to simulate the metal roof and some color for the crowns on the entrances.
Installing the side entrance wasn't quite up to spec. The side pieces don't fit in-between the wales. I didn't look at other builds and the directions don't really go into detail as to what to do. So I cut out a bit of the lower wale to get them to fit. After the fact, I see that most probably filed away some of the top of the side piece to get them to fit.
The only issue with my way is that the entrance is a bit lower and will (did) affect the locations of the stairs.
Great job Chris
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Working on the stern was supposed to be easy and straight forward and I really thought the result was going to be nice.
I didn't lay out a really good plan as to how everything needed to be assembled and painted before had. In addition, the instructions were confusing concerning the installation of the two facias and glazing. The instructions state to add glazing to inside of the exterior facia. But then it says to carefully assemble both the interior and exterior facias to create a proper recess for the PE frames.
Well...the glazing basically does away with any hope of using the recess created.
I glued acetone to the back of the outside facia and I sanded both sides of the acetone before. This creates a clouded look so you can't see inside the boat.
My thought then was to tape off the black around the window openings and then when the PE was installed they would blend together.
You can actually see through the glazing and see that there would be a recess for the window frames. I think the better option would have been to install the glazing on the back side of the INTERIOR facia before installing that piece onto the framing.
After that, I needed to tape off the areas where the black accent was going to be.
I taped off the areas where the black would be and then repainted what was exposed yellow.
This was a VERY BAD IDEA. This multi layer taping caused a lot of laying high points that looked terrible. In addition, I was sloppy installing some of the PE frames and didn't make sure they dry fit first.
It was just an unholy mess.
Moving on I installed the various stern decorations. I may have placed the upper trim too low but in pictures it looked like the bottom dips needed to almost touch the tops of the window frames. In the end, the scrolls, figures and flowers all fit. I used E6000 to glue these in place. E6000 allows me to move stuff around before setting up, but does create little glue strings and gobs that need to be cleaned up as soon as possible.
Installing the trophy and the outside PE accent went fine. Some builders cut away some of the edge moulding to accept the trophy or trimmed the back of the trophy to lay flat. I didn't have to do that and it seemed to fit fine. I had to tape the trophy in place to set because E6000 is slow to set and pieces will drift if not secured.
Once done, I began work on the profiles. Using a butane torch, I annealed all the pieces. You really have to heat them till they turn a darker coppery color to know the process has worked.
I have a bench belt sander and disc sander. I was able to use the disc sander to create the proper miters. Once cut I installed using CA glue, I wanted them to set quickly. I then added modeling filler to smooth everything out. When I did all this, I sanded the bottom sections to try and clean out some of the paint marks. There was a large gap between the facia and lower hull so I added a layer of planking to bring it up.
I also decided to try and use 1mm styrene strips for the accent on the lower pieces.
There is still some touch up work to do, but given my failures at the beginning, there isn't a lot more I can do, so moving on!
I didn't lay out a really good plan as to how everything needed to be assembled and painted before had. In addition, the instructions were confusing concerning the installation of the two facias and glazing. The instructions state to add glazing to inside of the exterior facia. But then it says to carefully assemble both the interior and exterior facias to create a proper recess for the PE frames.
Well...the glazing basically does away with any hope of using the recess created.
I glued acetone to the back of the outside facia and I sanded both sides of the acetone before. This creates a clouded look so you can't see inside the boat.
My thought then was to tape off the black around the window openings and then when the PE was installed they would blend together.
You can actually see through the glazing and see that there would be a recess for the window frames. I think the better option would have been to install the glazing on the back side of the INTERIOR facia before installing that piece onto the framing.
After that, I needed to tape off the areas where the black accent was going to be.
I taped off the areas where the black would be and then repainted what was exposed yellow.
This was a VERY BAD IDEA. This multi layer taping caused a lot of laying high points that looked terrible. In addition, I was sloppy installing some of the PE frames and didn't make sure they dry fit first.
It was just an unholy mess.
Moving on I installed the various stern decorations. I may have placed the upper trim too low but in pictures it looked like the bottom dips needed to almost touch the tops of the window frames. In the end, the scrolls, figures and flowers all fit. I used E6000 to glue these in place. E6000 allows me to move stuff around before setting up, but does create little glue strings and gobs that need to be cleaned up as soon as possible.
Installing the trophy and the outside PE accent went fine. Some builders cut away some of the edge moulding to accept the trophy or trimmed the back of the trophy to lay flat. I didn't have to do that and it seemed to fit fine. I had to tape the trophy in place to set because E6000 is slow to set and pieces will drift if not secured.
Once done, I began work on the profiles. Using a butane torch, I annealed all the pieces. You really have to heat them till they turn a darker coppery color to know the process has worked.
I have a bench belt sander and disc sander. I was able to use the disc sander to create the proper miters. Once cut I installed using CA glue, I wanted them to set quickly. I then added modeling filler to smooth everything out. When I did all this, I sanded the bottom sections to try and clean out some of the paint marks. There was a large gap between the facia and lower hull so I added a layer of planking to bring it up.
I also decided to try and use 1mm styrene strips for the accent on the lower pieces.
There is still some touch up work to do, but given my failures at the beginning, there isn't a lot more I can do, so moving on!
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
After painting the side galleries black, I added the PE frames. Other builders had added additional wood strips to create a deeper look so I did the same and added filler to smooth out the joints.
Adding the extra framing made any window frame installation errors worse. Especially after painting them.
I thought maybe I might be able to add filler after the fact, but it only got mucked up in the window frames.
Adding the false balusters was fine, you need to trim a little off the ends to get them to fit into the hull. I also added 1mm styrene for the black accenting. I used white glue and they actually worked well. I created a piece of 1mm trim for the lower sides of the balusters that I rounded off to create ledges for the balusters.
But like the stern, there are so many gaps and tape ridges that it just sucked.
I added the two top pieces along with the profiles. I wanted to paint the upper area gray to simulate the tin/copper metal roofing.
While doing that, I added the profiles to the lower area and I also tried to fix some of the gaps and tape marks.
While touching things up, I ruined some of the black accenting in the balusters so I just removed them. This made it easier to clean a lot of it up and then just add new accenting after.
In the end, I opted to add styrene strips to some of the areas for accents. I may do them all at some point.
Adding the extra framing made any window frame installation errors worse. Especially after painting them.
I thought maybe I might be able to add filler after the fact, but it only got mucked up in the window frames.
Adding the false balusters was fine, you need to trim a little off the ends to get them to fit into the hull. I also added 1mm styrene for the black accenting. I used white glue and they actually worked well. I created a piece of 1mm trim for the lower sides of the balusters that I rounded off to create ledges for the balusters.
But like the stern, there are so many gaps and tape ridges that it just sucked.
I added the two top pieces along with the profiles. I wanted to paint the upper area gray to simulate the tin/copper metal roofing.
While doing that, I added the profiles to the lower area and I also tried to fix some of the gaps and tape marks.
While touching things up, I ruined some of the black accenting in the balusters so I just removed them. This made it easier to clean a lot of it up and then just add new accenting after.
In the end, I opted to add styrene strips to some of the areas for accents. I may do them all at some point.
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Doing the fenders and chess tries went ok. Cutting out the backs of the fenders to get them to fit took some time.
In retrospect, i should have added 1 fender first, painted it and the areas around it, then fit the second one and marked off where it needed to be painted.
It would have gone easier and been cleaner. Putting them together forced me to touch them up at least 10 times before I was reasonably happy with them....reasonably.
Adding the stairs was fine too. I laid out which sizes went where on the plans and then began. The original 1.5x6 limewood planking was the right depth for spacing between steps. I installed the lower step and used a piece as a spacer to lay the next one. Be aware though that the spacing increases higher up. I didn't see that and my last step is a bit too low...that will be the poor sailor's problem trying to get on deck!
Also the layout of the side entrance created some installation issues but in the long run, they will look fine.
In retrospect, i should have added 1 fender first, painted it and the areas around it, then fit the second one and marked off where it needed to be painted.
It would have gone easier and been cleaner. Putting them together forced me to touch them up at least 10 times before I was reasonably happy with them....reasonably.
Adding the stairs was fine too. I laid out which sizes went where on the plans and then began. The original 1.5x6 limewood planking was the right depth for spacing between steps. I installed the lower step and used a piece as a spacer to lay the next one. Be aware though that the spacing increases higher up. I didn't see that and my last step is a bit too low...that will be the poor sailor's problem trying to get on deck!
Also the layout of the side entrance created some installation issues but in the long run, they will look fine.
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Meanwhile, back at the factory I started working on the channels, deadeyes and strops.
One builder opted to solder the nubs on the strops together to create a pin to stick in the channel.
He received an instruction from Caldercraft on how to install the deadeye/strop
I tried to solder the strops, but it may have been a malfunction of my soldering iron and couldn't get the PE to heat up enough to suck in the solder. It may have been the needle which I was going to replace. Instead I tried to just stick them in the grooves in the channel and see if that worked...
In the end, you don't need to solder them or drill little holes in the channels.
For the larger 7mm deadeye, I squeezed the middle of the strop in the groove, wedging the upper nub into the channel. The lower nub was wedged under the channel and created the loop for the chainplate.
I would CA glue each one as I went to hold them in place. Doing so still allowed the deadeyes to rotate.
....by the end of this work, they were all little faces staring at me with their wide open mouths...screaming!!!!
The smaller ones were a little harder, in the end, I would cut off the upper nub to allow them to fit and then wedged the lower nub under. Since they were tighter I had to make sure they were aligned right before securing.
Once they were all done, I added the 1.5x1.5mm piece over them.
There are 5 channels on each side and I did them all fairly quickly. The problem is the plans on sheet #2 only show the starboard side. It didn't occur to me that the ones for the port side needed to be a mirror image...
I didn't see that until I pulled out plan #18 to get the location for the copper eyelets and sail boom bracket and support. That blueprint has both sides of the channels in an overhead view. They don't show the deadeyes, just the channel and eyelet locations. It was then I realized that the entire port side was wrong.
You can see the error below.
Even though both #200 are laying in the same direction, if they were right and I turned the upper one (the port side), the 3 deadeyes on the end would be directly across from the ones on the lower (starboard) channel....
So I had to remove all the deadeyes from the port channels....ugh
I wish the plans were a little more specific about this. I suppose since this is considered an EXPERT model, builders would already know this from previous builds or experience. Something I didn't have.
Perhaps they could have just added a note on the plans that the channels for the other side needed to be reversed.
In the end it wasn't too bad and fixing them went quickly. No harm, no foul. Just a foolish mistake...so don't be like me!!!!!
Now they are right and a mirror image of each other.
You can see the lower loops that will accept the chainplates. Hopefully they are big enough for that task when it comes up.
I added little heads from pin nails to the cast pieces to create some detail. I also sanded and shaped them a bit to look more like their real counterparts.
I used the airbrush to paint the channels. I wanted them to be clean and keep gumming up the deadeye holes. So far, 2 coats of paint. I know some of the deadeyes have drifted but they will still move and can be fixed.
One builder opted to solder the nubs on the strops together to create a pin to stick in the channel.
He received an instruction from Caldercraft on how to install the deadeye/strop
I tried to solder the strops, but it may have been a malfunction of my soldering iron and couldn't get the PE to heat up enough to suck in the solder. It may have been the needle which I was going to replace. Instead I tried to just stick them in the grooves in the channel and see if that worked...
In the end, you don't need to solder them or drill little holes in the channels.
For the larger 7mm deadeye, I squeezed the middle of the strop in the groove, wedging the upper nub into the channel. The lower nub was wedged under the channel and created the loop for the chainplate.
I would CA glue each one as I went to hold them in place. Doing so still allowed the deadeyes to rotate.
....by the end of this work, they were all little faces staring at me with their wide open mouths...screaming!!!!
The smaller ones were a little harder, in the end, I would cut off the upper nub to allow them to fit and then wedged the lower nub under. Since they were tighter I had to make sure they were aligned right before securing.
Once they were all done, I added the 1.5x1.5mm piece over them.
There are 5 channels on each side and I did them all fairly quickly. The problem is the plans on sheet #2 only show the starboard side. It didn't occur to me that the ones for the port side needed to be a mirror image...
I didn't see that until I pulled out plan #18 to get the location for the copper eyelets and sail boom bracket and support. That blueprint has both sides of the channels in an overhead view. They don't show the deadeyes, just the channel and eyelet locations. It was then I realized that the entire port side was wrong.
You can see the error below.
Even though both #200 are laying in the same direction, if they were right and I turned the upper one (the port side), the 3 deadeyes on the end would be directly across from the ones on the lower (starboard) channel....
So I had to remove all the deadeyes from the port channels....ugh
I wish the plans were a little more specific about this. I suppose since this is considered an EXPERT model, builders would already know this from previous builds or experience. Something I didn't have.
Perhaps they could have just added a note on the plans that the channels for the other side needed to be reversed.
In the end it wasn't too bad and fixing them went quickly. No harm, no foul. Just a foolish mistake...so don't be like me!!!!!
Now they are right and a mirror image of each other.
You can see the lower loops that will accept the chainplates. Hopefully they are big enough for that task when it comes up.
I added little heads from pin nails to the cast pieces to create some detail. I also sanded and shaped them a bit to look more like their real counterparts.
I used the airbrush to paint the channels. I wanted them to be clean and keep gumming up the deadeye holes. So far, 2 coats of paint. I know some of the deadeyes have drifted but they will still move and can be fixed.
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
For some reason, I kept putting off the creation of the 4 dummy gun ports by the bow and the 2 in the stern (I planked over pattern #372 on the stern).
I used one of the blueprints and tried to create a little template to mark out the openings. I used an exacto knife and then went over the edges with the blunt tip of one of my smaller files to create some depth.
I taped off the areas on the bow. This time after they were taped, I re-painted the open area with yellow...to seal in under the tape in case there was leakage.
Then I wanted to add the various hinges. The plans don't specify WHICH hinges go with WHICH gun ports. Except the 2 stern ports, they want me to use PE #489. It looks like I used a few already, not sure where, the hatches and doors for the beakhead openings use #'s 490 & 492. Got me...and they aren't the only missing PE parts!!!!
The manual towards the end does provide a diagram of the various gunports, how the hinges should be aligned and where the eyelets go, but no actual list of which PE hinges go where. I looked through all the blue prints and couldn't find anything...so if you know, please let me know. I will be starting on the gun ports pretty soon!!!!
I added 8 hinges to the stern ports, I took a stab. I also added the upper copper eyelets and then painted the area black...again! I am not sure if the grooves I cut will be deep enough to be seen, but I think they'll be ok.
For the the bow ports, the 2 little double door ports were fine and I again guessed at some of the smaller hinges and went with them.
For the two lower deck ports, I went with the larger (more numerous) hinges. They went fine, however, the eyelets are supposed to go through the hinge. I have about 20 .5mm drill bits, but there is no way I could get them through the hinge (full of CA glue)...so I just cut the eyelet part off and glued it.
I painted it with 2 coats of black and pulled the tape. With the exception of one small area, the over painting process works. I wish I'd done it for the major striping, it would have lead to perfect, clean lines. Ah...such is life!
I used one of the blueprints and tried to create a little template to mark out the openings. I used an exacto knife and then went over the edges with the blunt tip of one of my smaller files to create some depth.
I taped off the areas on the bow. This time after they were taped, I re-painted the open area with yellow...to seal in under the tape in case there was leakage.
Then I wanted to add the various hinges. The plans don't specify WHICH hinges go with WHICH gun ports. Except the 2 stern ports, they want me to use PE #489. It looks like I used a few already, not sure where, the hatches and doors for the beakhead openings use #'s 490 & 492. Got me...and they aren't the only missing PE parts!!!!
The manual towards the end does provide a diagram of the various gunports, how the hinges should be aligned and where the eyelets go, but no actual list of which PE hinges go where. I looked through all the blue prints and couldn't find anything...so if you know, please let me know. I will be starting on the gun ports pretty soon!!!!
I added 8 hinges to the stern ports, I took a stab. I also added the upper copper eyelets and then painted the area black...again! I am not sure if the grooves I cut will be deep enough to be seen, but I think they'll be ok.
For the the bow ports, the 2 little double door ports were fine and I again guessed at some of the smaller hinges and went with them.
For the two lower deck ports, I went with the larger (more numerous) hinges. They went fine, however, the eyelets are supposed to go through the hinge. I have about 20 .5mm drill bits, but there is no way I could get them through the hinge (full of CA glue)...so I just cut the eyelet part off and glued it.
I painted it with 2 coats of black and pulled the tape. With the exception of one small area, the over painting process works. I wish I'd done it for the major striping, it would have lead to perfect, clean lines. Ah...such is life!
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2021
- Messages
- 2,402
- Points
- 488
And I think I have sensory overload building a Clippership! This is waaaay out of my tolerance level for embellishment, scope and scale of ambition. I admire your dedication, determination and, not least, your skill. And I am astonished at the pace at which your project is progressing!
It's been fun to follow along.
Pete
It's been fun to follow along.
Pete
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Pete, I appreciate your response!
I think it's WAYYYYYY out of my tolerance too brother!
I actually....quickly placed the channels on the starboard side....they looked very nice!!! Then I had to go out and have a few beers!
So, who knows what tomorrow will bring.
My best;
Chris
Good morning Chris. WOW you are flying along with your Victory. I have to comment on the galleries and decorations.......absolutely brilliant. Cheers Grant
Hey Chris
Your work rate and posts are hard to keep up with. I’m not sure if all your pictures are in chronological order but the end result of the stern and transom look great.
The galleries are a difficult area to get right but you seem to have no fear of a challenge.
Keep up your enthusiastic good work. It’s nice to look upon.
Your work rate and posts are hard to keep up with. I’m not sure if all your pictures are in chronological order but the end result of the stern and transom look great.
The galleries are a difficult area to get right but you seem to have no fear of a challenge.
Keep up your enthusiastic good work. It’s nice to look upon.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Thank you sir!
Yeah, the pics are posted out of order. Because I had done so much over the past week, assembling the stern area, galleries, cast pieces, etc, I tried to lump them into similar 'topics'.
Some are out of order, but I wanted to convey the results I got and what I did after the fact to try and clean things up when necessary.
Appreciate the support!
Chris
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
Based on reviewing the stern pics above, I had to dop some touching up, which I began. You don't see that from table top level, so I got a lower chair and began cleaning things up.
Using the blueprints, I measured from the various windows to try and layout where the channels would be. I used the pins on the back of the channel to mark the hull and then after drilling out the hole, the channels fit pretty good.
All 5 went fairly smoothly and from my view seemed to follow the plans.
After doing this, I did some research to see which gunport lids I needed to do before installing the channels, so I wouldn't run into a fight later.
I wish the instructions included a specific diagram of which gunports get lids, there is a picture of the side hull to help in laying out the wales that I used.
There is also no reference in the instructions as to which lids go to which gunports. However, the parts list does:
323 - lower gun ports
324 - middle & upper gun ports
325 - quarterdeck gun ports (the 4 near the stern....with one double door port in between them)
326 - quarterdeck half door gun ports
327 - beakhead gun ports
I wish they had included this in instructions, really not sure what that isn't the fact.
The same can be said about which hinges go where...very little reference in the instructions, but the parts list does (I wish I'd look at this earlier before working on the lids!)
484 - lower gun port hinges
485 - middle & upper gun port hinges
486 - middle gun port double door hinges
487 - quarterdeck hinges
488 - quarterdeck double door hinges
489 - lower stern double door hinges
490 - beakhead gun port hinges
491 - lower gun SCUTTLE hinges
492 - beakhead door hinges
Well, there it is!
After looking at various pictures and then marking the plans, I set aside the gun ports that will need lids before installing the channels. I believe there are 7 full size gun ports, 3 smaller gun ports, 2 that need lids and 1 a double door (I think this was done so that the shrouds wouldn't interfere with the lid).
I cut out the lids and then laid out the additional wale that would be needed for each on. Once done, I sanded them clean and began installing the hinges. Having not laid out which hinges were what, I used the instructions and counted rivets to guess which ones were correct, I am not sure I picked right, but 484 & 485 look the same.
I created a simple jig with a piece of wood 1mm out so that I could stick the lid under it to create the 1mm spacing needed for proper placement of the lid into the gun port recess. Once done, I bent the hinge around the wales. Once done, I needed to add the hole in the lid to accept the eyelet.
I don't have enough small drill bits and they are just not sturdy enough to drill though the hinge and wood (especially if they were glued!)
What I did was use the back end of a small bit that had broke to mark where the hole was, then use a little bigger bit to drill the hole for the eyelets. I would add the eyelet to the hinge, glue the back of that and attach to the lid. It took some finagling to get that to work (3 hands would be better)
For the lower eyelets, I wasn't sure how to tackle them. I didn't want to drill holes up from the bottom, they would show on the top. At first I cut the heads off of the eyelets, but then they come out kind of oval shaped. I then tried to make ringlets with some .55mm wire, they may be a bit too large, but they will do fine. I just glued them to the underside. Some came loose and I'll circle back around to make sure they are all in place.
Once done, I began laying coats of black on these lids, ALL of the rigols, ALL of the chainplate assemblies and ALL of the channel supports.
While waiting for all that to dry and add additional coats, I laid out the other side channels. My biggest concern was making sure that I put these ones in the same place and as close in height as the other side. Mainly so that when looking at the boat, the shrouds synced together and deadeyes matched.
I think and hope I did that!
Using the blueprints, I measured from the various windows to try and layout where the channels would be. I used the pins on the back of the channel to mark the hull and then after drilling out the hole, the channels fit pretty good.
All 5 went fairly smoothly and from my view seemed to follow the plans.
After doing this, I did some research to see which gunport lids I needed to do before installing the channels, so I wouldn't run into a fight later.
I wish the instructions included a specific diagram of which gunports get lids, there is a picture of the side hull to help in laying out the wales that I used.
There is also no reference in the instructions as to which lids go to which gunports. However, the parts list does:
323 - lower gun ports
324 - middle & upper gun ports
325 - quarterdeck gun ports (the 4 near the stern....with one double door port in between them)
326 - quarterdeck half door gun ports
327 - beakhead gun ports
I wish they had included this in instructions, really not sure what that isn't the fact.
The same can be said about which hinges go where...very little reference in the instructions, but the parts list does (I wish I'd look at this earlier before working on the lids!)
484 - lower gun port hinges
485 - middle & upper gun port hinges
486 - middle gun port double door hinges
487 - quarterdeck hinges
488 - quarterdeck double door hinges
489 - lower stern double door hinges
490 - beakhead gun port hinges
491 - lower gun SCUTTLE hinges
492 - beakhead door hinges
Well, there it is!
After looking at various pictures and then marking the plans, I set aside the gun ports that will need lids before installing the channels. I believe there are 7 full size gun ports, 3 smaller gun ports, 2 that need lids and 1 a double door (I think this was done so that the shrouds wouldn't interfere with the lid).
I cut out the lids and then laid out the additional wale that would be needed for each on. Once done, I sanded them clean and began installing the hinges. Having not laid out which hinges were what, I used the instructions and counted rivets to guess which ones were correct, I am not sure I picked right, but 484 & 485 look the same.
I created a simple jig with a piece of wood 1mm out so that I could stick the lid under it to create the 1mm spacing needed for proper placement of the lid into the gun port recess. Once done, I bent the hinge around the wales. Once done, I needed to add the hole in the lid to accept the eyelet.
I don't have enough small drill bits and they are just not sturdy enough to drill though the hinge and wood (especially if they were glued!)
What I did was use the back end of a small bit that had broke to mark where the hole was, then use a little bigger bit to drill the hole for the eyelets. I would add the eyelet to the hinge, glue the back of that and attach to the lid. It took some finagling to get that to work (3 hands would be better)
For the lower eyelets, I wasn't sure how to tackle them. I didn't want to drill holes up from the bottom, they would show on the top. At first I cut the heads off of the eyelets, but then they come out kind of oval shaped. I then tried to make ringlets with some .55mm wire, they may be a bit too large, but they will do fine. I just glued them to the underside. Some came loose and I'll circle back around to make sure they are all in place.
Once done, I began laying coats of black on these lids, ALL of the rigols, ALL of the chainplate assemblies and ALL of the channel supports.
While waiting for all that to dry and add additional coats, I laid out the other side channels. My biggest concern was making sure that I put these ones in the same place and as close in height as the other side. Mainly so that when looking at the boat, the shrouds synced together and deadeyes matched.
I think and hope I did that!
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2022
- Messages
- 199
- Points
- 143
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!
Continued working on the small number of gun ports and chainplates too!
Finished painting the backsides of the gun port lids with a few minor touch ups to cleanup the over paint. I also saw other builders use brass tubing with a .225ID to act as sleeves for the lid ropes. This brass tubing (which I bought at our local model shop), is very thin and can be cut very easily by rolling it under a sharp exacto knife.
I cut enough for the 9 lids and installed them. I tried to see if I could fish the .25 thread through them and they seemed ok. So I did the holes for the 9 on the other side plus the 2 stern vent lids.
I also began assembling the lids for the other side and my thought was that I would install the brass sleeves while waiting for things to dry. My plan was to string the sleeves and then glue them into the hull, once done, I would tied them off to the lids after they were fastened.
I couldn't get the threads through the tubing. Despite being careful, the knife had the effect of closing off the inside too much. I didn't have anything in my work area that would open up these holes....nothing small enough or strong enough to act as a flair. I found that only about 2 out of 10 were ok...In the end, I just decided to fish the string into the holes and use CA glue to secure them. A dab of paint will hide them or at least create the impression of a sleeve at that scale.
I created a jig to lay out the lid rope holes, taking some regular masking tape, I just drilled 2 holes about 6mm above top of port opening (per instructions) and used this to drill all the holes the same. There were 1 or 2 lids that required the holes to be lower, so I did them freehand.
On the other side where I had already installed the sleeves, I just pulled them out. A few worked and I left them in....
I then installed the lids and for the most part they seemed to go in ok. I didn't quite get them all to match height wise and I will have to make sure I am better at that going forward. The one that is way too high was removed so that I will be able to add the chainplates, then I'll reattach it.
Each of the large channels have channel support brackets (#626), I painted these on the sprue and they fit under the channels with little altering. I tried to follow blueprints as best as I could in their positioning, but they are really contingent on where you place the channels.
I was nervous about the chainplates, but they go fine after some learning. The blueprints give you the basics of where then go and how they are orientated. I cut them off the sprue one at a time, trimmed them and dry fitted them. On the first one (the most forward chainplate), the main chain is threaded into the strop that protrudes under the channel. From this one, you hang the next chain that has a ring at the end...for longer ones, there is another piece that is double nailed to the hull, for the shorter ones, the second chain is nailed to the hull.
As the instructions state, snap the top chain together and add some CA glue (be sure to wipe it clean so there are no globs).
On the first one, my initial mistake was creating the pilot hole for the first nail. I had it too low and when I tried to drive in the nail, it created TOO MUCH stress on the chainplate (in fact, you can see that it has separated if you look carefully). The result is that the first one is off from the others.
After that, I would press the bottom of the chain against the hull and then create a small divot/pilot hole mark to drill out. Once done, I would add the lower/3rd chain and mark that hole. Once that was done, I would glue the structure in place.
While my channels may be off a bit from the blueprints, once I had a process, it went fairly easily. Not very fast, but with little or no difficulties. The last chainplate on the forward channel is a bit off from where it is supposed to be, but after being touched up, they look pretty good!!!! They will DEFINATELY hold the mast steady when the shrouds are put into place and tightened. Very impressive.
That's all for now. ENJOY YOUR TURKEY...if it's that kind of day for you!!!!!
Chris
Continued working on the small number of gun ports and chainplates too!
Finished painting the backsides of the gun port lids with a few minor touch ups to cleanup the over paint. I also saw other builders use brass tubing with a .225ID to act as sleeves for the lid ropes. This brass tubing (which I bought at our local model shop), is very thin and can be cut very easily by rolling it under a sharp exacto knife.
I cut enough for the 9 lids and installed them. I tried to see if I could fish the .25 thread through them and they seemed ok. So I did the holes for the 9 on the other side plus the 2 stern vent lids.
I also began assembling the lids for the other side and my thought was that I would install the brass sleeves while waiting for things to dry. My plan was to string the sleeves and then glue them into the hull, once done, I would tied them off to the lids after they were fastened.
I couldn't get the threads through the tubing. Despite being careful, the knife had the effect of closing off the inside too much. I didn't have anything in my work area that would open up these holes....nothing small enough or strong enough to act as a flair. I found that only about 2 out of 10 were ok...In the end, I just decided to fish the string into the holes and use CA glue to secure them. A dab of paint will hide them or at least create the impression of a sleeve at that scale.
I created a jig to lay out the lid rope holes, taking some regular masking tape, I just drilled 2 holes about 6mm above top of port opening (per instructions) and used this to drill all the holes the same. There were 1 or 2 lids that required the holes to be lower, so I did them freehand.
On the other side where I had already installed the sleeves, I just pulled them out. A few worked and I left them in....
I then installed the lids and for the most part they seemed to go in ok. I didn't quite get them all to match height wise and I will have to make sure I am better at that going forward. The one that is way too high was removed so that I will be able to add the chainplates, then I'll reattach it.
Each of the large channels have channel support brackets (#626), I painted these on the sprue and they fit under the channels with little altering. I tried to follow blueprints as best as I could in their positioning, but they are really contingent on where you place the channels.
I was nervous about the chainplates, but they go fine after some learning. The blueprints give you the basics of where then go and how they are orientated. I cut them off the sprue one at a time, trimmed them and dry fitted them. On the first one (the most forward chainplate), the main chain is threaded into the strop that protrudes under the channel. From this one, you hang the next chain that has a ring at the end...for longer ones, there is another piece that is double nailed to the hull, for the shorter ones, the second chain is nailed to the hull.
As the instructions state, snap the top chain together and add some CA glue (be sure to wipe it clean so there are no globs).
On the first one, my initial mistake was creating the pilot hole for the first nail. I had it too low and when I tried to drive in the nail, it created TOO MUCH stress on the chainplate (in fact, you can see that it has separated if you look carefully). The result is that the first one is off from the others.
After that, I would press the bottom of the chain against the hull and then create a small divot/pilot hole mark to drill out. Once done, I would add the lower/3rd chain and mark that hole. Once that was done, I would glue the structure in place.
While my channels may be off a bit from the blueprints, once I had a process, it went fairly easily. Not very fast, but with little or no difficulties. The last chainplate on the forward channel is a bit off from where it is supposed to be, but after being touched up, they look pretty good!!!! They will DEFINATELY hold the mast steady when the shrouds are put into place and tightened. Very impressive.
That's all for now. ENJOY YOUR TURKEY...if it's that kind of day for you!!!!!
Chris