HM Armed Cutter Alert (1777) - Vanguard Models - 1/64

Smithy said:
More work on the mast today.

View attachment 484587

My goal was to strop and fit block #9, the boom topping lift standing block. The rope that goes through there holds up the tip of the boom at the bottom of the mainsail. which is a fore and aft 'driver'. I also intended to strop and fit #11 and #15. They are both gaff halyard standing blocks. The line through them goes back and forward a couple of times and controls the angle of the gaff, the spar at the top edge of the driver. It doubles between these blocks and the gaff for extra pulling power when the wind is trying to fold the driver in half and this system is keeping it to the correct aerodynamic curve.

I thought the three were an evening's work.

View attachment 484581

Here's the prepped block fitted into the machine.

View attachment 484582

And after a few rotations, the seizing is almost done. I've dabbed it with CA to hold it together.

View attachment 484583

It looks like a potato on a sling. ROTF I've left the darker seizing thread ends attached because I want to wrap them over the knot I'll have to tie around the mast, hiding it from sight.

View attachment 484584

It was a very fiddly job getting the knot into the right place.

By the way, you can see that I've highlighted the edges of the black painted section.

View attachment 484585

It took some time but this was the result.

Note also the foot of the poorly fitted topgallant mast. I had to shim the trestletrees because the dowel for the mast had no square section. but the sloping butt of the mast is all my fault. It's the first time I've noticed it and it indicated they the topgallant mast is firmly fixed in position with a ten degree twist to starboard. I'm not happy. I am not happy. :mad:

View attachment 484586

And from the side. That thin paint hides nothing! :D

So it was stropped and fitted and looks good enough. The problem was that it took well over an hour to do. It IS a fiddly little son of a bosun, and I'm still getting up a head of steam with the rigging generally but an hour and a half was quite demoralising so I took the dog out for a walk, and contemplated just tying it all together with simple knots. It's 1/64 which is quite tiny for my big hands. In plastic aircraft I never went below 1/48 and in tanks, 1/35.

I decided to pack it in for the night and post an update. Then I came home and started on the next one.

View attachment 484588

And then the one after that. :D

They were more or less the same operation, except with longer seizings and together they took about the same time to complete as the first one. I'd have been even quicker if I hadn't made some adjustments to the machine which made it much less efficient. The knots aren't as hidden as I'd have liked but they are somewhat obscured which will be good enough against the black painted mast.

As a whole then, quite a productive day.
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Good afternoon Smithy. Way to go- plenty accurate details being included. Cheers Grant
 
serikoff said:
dive even deeper
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I have filled my SCUBA tanks and jumped right in.

PB170132.JPG

I used the standing tie block for the spreadsail yard as my test piece.

The kit instructions allow for using a big loop around the mast because that would be very easy to slip on over the heel of the mast on a model. Not so easy on the real thing at sea though. ROTF The big loop requires two fictional chocks to stop it slipping down like Nora Batty's stockings (That's a joke for the Brits, sorry). The tackle is shown correctly though with the eye at the foot of the standing block.

PB170133.JPG

Goodwin's AotS is a little more detailed but shows the loop around the mast as a fixed length. That's like trying to hold your trousers up with a belt without a buckle and no means of adjustment.

PB170119.JPG

And here's the 'buckle' as shown by Longridge. I'm repeating the picture as we have started another page.

I'm feeling a little bit of a luddite today. He dropped in for breakfast. ROTF No, seriously, I didn't want to use the big machine I was playing with yesterday. Longridge didn't have one so I don't need one. I used a vice with which I held a drill bit for the 'eye-splices' and a pair of self-closing tweezers (not shown in the photos) with which I expected to use to hold the block itself but in the event, never did.

PB170122.JPG

Step One. Making the eye-splice. This time I tied a half hitch to start the 'seizing' and then took the ends over a few times. All secured with CA glue (superglue).

I discovered that if I used a long enough length of seizing line I could hold one end in my left hand, and the other in my mouth - keeping everything tight while my right hand applied the tiny tiny tiny drop of CA to the knot.

PB170123.JPG

Step 2. The block is inserted between the strop lines and CA'ed into place. Glue marks on the block don't matter because I'll be shellacking it later and that makes CA stains invisible.

PB170124.JPG

Step the Third. The seizing is started with a half-hitch and CA'ed.

PB170125.JPG

Fourthly. The seizing is wound around the line. I find it best to go in the opposite direction to the twist of the thread of the strop. When I follow the twist, the seizing line drops into the groove between strands and leaves gaps.

PB170126.JPG

Chapter V. The drill bit from the side of the vice allowed me to use gravity to keep things tight while I made the second eye-splice, the 'buckle of the belt'. While tying the 'seizing' around this the lines were held tight by clipping small clamps to them.

PB170127.JPG

Next. The spare end is cut from the eye-splice and the tongue of the belt threaded through the buckle. Oh my!

PB170128.JPG

Antepenultimate Part. The block was carefully positioned in the place indicated on the kit scale diagram and the belt pulled tight. The eye splice is marred by the crusty CA residue. This is general purpose, slightly thickened CA and next time I'll use the watery version. I think that will soak in better and look neater. (Oh, I havent applied the shellac yet. That might make the crystaline CA less obvious if it fills the airspaces. I'll let you know.)

PB170129.JPG

Penultimate Stage. The end was arranged parallel to the loop around the mast as in the large Longridge diagram which Serbey and I posted yesterday, and glued into place. The CA here hold the lines neatly together and also secures the whole thing to the mast. The end was very carefully cut off.

PB170131.JPG

Final destination. Three fake seizings were drawn on with a fine permanent parker. I think that black paint would be more convincing and would avoid the chance of ink bleeding into any alcohol or spirit based finish applied later.

Doing it the way it was done for real (with appropriate cheats) proved to be far easier than yesterday's attempts to do it the 'easier' ways. The block is exactly where I wanted it and I'm confident that it will stay there. Even if it doesn't I can fit another one in a few minutes even in a gale or during a battle. :D

Sergey, did you know that you would provoke me to improve my technique like this? I think you knew exactly what effect your post would have on me. ROTF
 
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Smithy said:
I have filled my SCUBA tanks and jumped right in.

View attachment 484711

I used the standing tie block for the spreadsail yard as my test piece.

The kit instructions allow for using a big loop around the mast because that would be very easy to slip on over the heel of the mast on a model. Not so easy on the real thing at sea though. ROTF The big loop requires two fictional chocks to stop it slipping down like Nora Batty's stockings (That's a joke for the Brits, sorry). The tackle is shown correctly though with the eye at the foot of the standing block.

View attachment 484712

Goodwin's AotS is a little more detailed but shows the loop around the mast as a fixed length. That's like trying to hold your trousers up with a belt without a buckle and no means of adjustment.

View attachment 484713

And here's the 'buckle' as shown by Longridge. I'm repeating the picture as we have started another page.

I'm feeling a little bit of a luddite today. He dropped in for breakfast. ROTF No, seriously, I didn't want to use the big machine I was playing with yesterday. Longridge didn't have one so I don't need one. I used a vice with which I held a drill bit for the 'eye-splices' and a pair of self-closing tweezers (not shown in the photos) with which I expected to use to hold the block itself but in the event, never did.

View attachment 484701

Step One. Making the eye-splice. This time I tied a half hitch to start the 'seizing' and then took the ends over a few times. All secured with CA glue (superglue).

I discovered that if I used a long enough length of seizing line I could hold one end in my left hand, and the other in my mouth - keeping everything tight while my right hand applied the tiny tiny tiny drop of CA to the knot.

View attachment 484702

Step 2. The block is inserted between the strop lines and CA'ed into place. Glue marks on the block don't matter because I'll be shellacking it later and that makes CA stains invisible.

View attachment 484703

Step the Third. The seizing is started with a half-hitch and CA'ed.

View attachment 484704

Fourthly. The seizing is wound around the line. I find it best to go in the opposite direction to the twist of the thread of the strop. When I follow the twist, the seizing line drops into the groove between strands and leaves gaps.

View attachment 484705

Chapter V. The drill bit from the side of the vice allowed me to use gravity to keep things tight while I made the second eye-splice, the 'buckle of the belt'. While tying the 'seizing' around this the lines were held tight by clipping small clamps to them.

View attachment 484706

Next. The spare end is cut from the eye-splice and the tongue of the belt threaded through the buckle. Oh my!

View attachment 484707

Antepenultimate Part. The block was carefully positioned in the place indicated on the kit scale diagram and the belt pulled tight. The eye splice is marred by the crusty CA residue. This is general purpose, slightly thickened CA and next time I'll use the watery version. I think that will soak in better and look neater. (Oh, I havent applied the shellac yet. That might make the crystaline CA less obvious if it fills the airspaces. I'll let you know.)

View attachment 484708

Penultimate Stage. The end was arranged parallel to the loop around the mast as in the large Longridge diagram which Serbey and I posted yesterday, and glued into place. The CA here hold the lines neatly together and also secures the whole thing to the mast. The end was very carefully cut off.

View attachment 484710

Final destination. Three fake seizings were drawn on with a fine permanent parker. I think that black paint would be more convincing and would avoid the chance of ink bleeding into any alcohol or spirit based finish applied later.

Doing it the way it was done for real (with appropriate cheats) proved to be far easier than yesterday's attempts to do it the 'easier' ways. The block is exactly where I wanted it and I'm confident that it will stay there. Even if it doesn't I can fit another one in a few minutes even in a gale or during a battle. :D

Sergey, did you know that you would provoke me to improve my technique like this? I think you knew exactly what effect your post would have on me. ROTF
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Fine work! No words)))) Everything is clear, laid out on the shelves, I didn't think that you would redo it, but definitely the time was not wasted. The result pleases the eye))
 
serikoff said:
Fine work! No words)))) Everything is clear, laid out on the shelves, I didn't think that you would redo it, but definitely the time was not wasted. The result pleases the eye))
Click to expand...

I left the other four standing block as they were. They are a memorial to my earlier self.

The new process will be very helpful. There are many standing blocks on all of the spars and I will fix them in half the time. Unfortunately half of forever is still forever. ROTF
 
The Ships Cat said:
You know, with all the push button, instantly remedied, AI fueled solutions at our fingertips we have today, I can never stop marveling in absolute awe of the genius that was employed centuries ago during hand tools and candlelight.
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This is something that has been on my mind a great deal lately. I like wooden shipbuilding because it is oldschool. I like the idea that every piece of wood in my models has been shaped by my own hands.

And I built from kits to save time. I estimate that scratch building would halve the number of boats that I can build in my remaining time. Even so very few of the components in a kit are used ‘as is’ and I do try to enhance wherever possible. Except when I decide not to. :)

I do use an electric drill and an electric disc sander and of course a plank bender and a soldering iron. Not forgetting my seizing machine! And my airbrush is electrically driven too. I think of these things is being fairly low tech, if they break, I can fix them. And they were all available in the 20th century. I don’t like the 21st century. I’m not enjoying it very much compared to the last one.

I choose not to use milling machines or to design on a computer. I don’t own a printer either two or 3-D. I am impressed with the things that people make with what I think of as 21st-century Tech, but I don’t want any of it on my boats. I think it’s too good to pass for handmade. It’s far more perfect than that and to me perfection lacks beauty, though it may be interesting for a while.

The hobby of modelling is a very wide one. I’ve tried many aspects of it over the years and I’m now settling down into a small niche of my own. I enjoy the imperfections that get built into my boat either deliberately or accidentally. They all tell a little story. For example, the stropping of the blocks on the mast of Alert increase in sophistication as I work down from the top reflecting the learning that I have been doing. I like them all, not just the last and possibly best one. I’ll recall the ‘angry’ post I made about my twisted topgallant but it’s ok. I’m a bit twisted too!

I have to admit that my personal niche contains many contradictions. I will spend hours shaping my blocks so that they look authentic. And at the same time, I’m not particularly bothered whether they are the right size or not. When I plank a hole, I am particular that the joints in the planks lineup on a frame and yet I use the prettiest wood I have to hand and rarely paint over it?

Perhaps niche is the wrong word? Maybe what I am describing is the particular style that I like to bring to the models?

Ah, what do I know? ROTF
 
The Ships Cat said:
You know, with all the push button, instantly remedied, AI fueled solutions at our fingertips we have today, I can never stop marveling in absolute awe of the genius that was employed centuries ago during hand tools and candlelight.
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Being an aviation nut as well (retired Air Force) I wonder how the "greatest generation" that fought WWII on any side did what they did with slide-rules, calipers and rulers and no computer aided design tools.
 
Smithy said:
If this evening is anything to go by my posts for the next few weeks may become a little monotonous. “ I tied some string on today.” “ I tied some more string on today.” “ you know that stringy stuff? Well, I tied some on today.”

That isn’t a lot of rigging on a cutter, but it is still going to take many days’ work and each with little to show you. Don’t be surprised if I stop daily posts and save up until I have something interesting to show you or talk about.

(@The Ships Cat , you had the same thing happen when you began your planking. )
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I made some dead eye chains today, and yesterday and the day before.....but nothing much to put up on the build log. Getting prepared for rigging the foremast, so then I will be able to put up “ I tied some string on today.” “ I tied some more string on today.” “ you know that stringy stuff? Well, I tied some on today.”
 
Most of us are old and perhaps nostalgic for our glory days. I think that’s what lies behind my personal Luddism concerning computers, resin, plastic etc. I haven’t owned a TV for close to 20 years, I won’t use a kindle, I’ve never seen TikTok but I get the idea of it from YouTube (which I no longer frequent). I dislike modern music because I can no longer make out the words. I’m turning into my Dad!

BUT before we all pile in and form an old men’s moaning association on my thread, on our computerised social media forum, let’s follow the wisdom of the great philosopher Mr E Idle and always look on the bright side of whatever brief allowance of life remains to us. ROTF

One thing that ought to make us smile is that our life expectancies are decades longer than the great generation, bless em all. :)
 
Here’s a modelling question for everyone.

I’ve just had an awful night of breathing difficulties brought on by my recent use of CA during this rigging phase of the build. It’s been as bad as the trouble I caused myself by supergluing 700 copper plates onto the hull. So today I’ll be throwing out all my CA (I believe the C stands for cyanide!) and looking around for something that’s as non-toxic as mother’s milk yet welds brass, wood and cordage together as strongly as mother’s love.

Any recommendations people?
 
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