HMS Alert [1777] 1:48 POF by serikoff. (Two hulls: skeleton and fully rigged)

[serikoff]

Since the lower deck will be practically invisible, the main parameter in its implementation is speed. Therefore, I made all the filling, as we say: “dendrophycal” method (excuse the expression) “from shit and sticks.”

That is, I used all the leftover materials, scraps and uncalibrated blanks. I did this so that there was more space for experiments with coating with oil and bitumen. I'm thinking of covering the hull with Rustins Tung oil, but with the deck either the same or Danish Rustins oil. I'll see how it all turns out under the bitumen.

So, I installed walls and imitation doors on fragments of the deck. I repeat! The location of the walls, the height of the deck itself and other elements may have errors (they will still not be visible). And there were no central walls near the mast at all (I installed them as a visor from the lighting that I am planning).



I made primitive stencils to create the outline of the doors, and scratched them with a needle.



























Oil coating is next... uh...

 

[serikoff]

So now comes the most interesting part – the oil coating.

It's not for nothing that I did all the things that won't be visible... I'll be experimenting with exactly all of this.



First, I polished everything with Borma Wachs 000 steel wool (a fantastic wool, all the varieties from 0000+, 000, and 00, highly recommended!!)

Then I made a special jig for applying oil. This was used by masters of the day who applied shellac paint and varnish to musical instruments, but the principle can be used here too.

The idea is not to coat the oil with a thick film with a brush, but to polish with at least a 1:1 ratio of oil and solvent (I use thinner for artists' oil paints, it's odorless).



I experimented with two oils at once (Tung and Danish oils from Rustins).

First, I dilute the oil in a separate container, then pour it onto wool threads or pieces of fabric and wrap them in cotton cloth, making a sort of teddy bear. This creates a marker effect. The excess oil is always inside the wool, preventing it from dripping, and the oil evenly saturates the wood through the cloth. If you notice less oil, simply press harder on the wool, and the cloth will become damp again, but not dripping wet.

This method isn't very convenient in corners (there, it's better to use a damp, but not wet, brush with oil diluted more than 1:1)... and it's better to use it on larger surfaces... but since I was simulating the effect by applying it to the upper deck, I did it this way. Apply along the grain with a buffing motion, then wipe off any excess with a paper towel.

And here are the results:









It's hard to tell the difference in the photos, but Tung's color is more brown and rich, and therefore darker. Danish's is lighter (like a faded color), but it's a cool beige. My wife, like me, liked the result of Tung's, even though it's darker, which isn't ideal for a deck. But the issue with the pear wood... it'll be dark anyway, and how dark it is isn't that critical.

Now we'll wait a month and see what happens, and then in a month I'll coat it with bitumen. Speaking of which, I used Idea Patina 710 before, but it's difficult to work with. It's thick like resin and needs to be thinned with solvent, but the problem is that it's impossible to calculate the proportions, and that's definitely not the case with it.



The one I want to try (Antique Bitumen) is already liquid, and you can calculate exactly how much you need and how much solvent, which is convenient. Incidentally, it's from the same company as the steel wool. There's also Antique Patina from the same company, but from the video review, I realized it's not brown, but more of a gray tone. That's not quite right, since I want a dark, dark brown, not a dark gray. Anyway, I'll show you the results in a month.