HMS Sovereign of the Seas - Bashing DeAgostini Beyond Believable Boundaries

The hull sides are being reinforced quite well from the added wood. The ship is getting noticeably heavier too. Still adding more planks. This is as far as I'm going for now, since the lower and middle gun decks now have finished bulwarks and are ready for decking and outfitting. Oops, still have to spray the latest strips with lacquer. I'm working on a method to allow viewing of these decks, Richie. Cameras are one idea. Unused gun ports which are able to be opened are another, but that only provides access at the bow and stern, and a narrow field of view. Internal LED lights provide illumination. One idea I thought of is a camera with a mirror on the end that acts as an internal periscope, accessible through a hole in the bottom of the ship, and can be elevated to see each of the covered decks, and swivel 360 degrees for a complete view. It requires only one borescope camera, and an apparatus under the display cabinet to position it. Thinking outside the box again. . .

484 More Mahogany Strips Added.jpg

485 View of Lower Gun Deck.jpg
 
The frames which line the middle and upper deck gun portals are fabricated from square wood tubes made from 2mm basswood cut into strips and glued around a steel bar. Thre bar was waxed and removed from the wooden tube just before the glue dries, so the wood won't stick to the bar.

488 Making Gun Portal Linings.jpg

489 Glued Strips of Wood Around Steel Bar.jpg

Sanded the outside surfaces of tubes to eliminate protruding strip edges. They are now square.
490 Tubes to Make Gun Portal Linings From.jpg

MORE demolition! The arched gun ports under the side galleries need to be cut out by drilling and filing.
491 Cutting Out Arched Gun Portal.jpg

The inside corners at the stern look like crap. Let's improve their appearance.
491 Remove Wood From Stern Corners.jpg

MORE demolition! Using a needle nosed pliers on my Leatherman tool, I reached in and crushed and tore all the offending remnants of the hull supports.
492 Remove Wood From Stern Corners.jpg

A drum sander on the battery powered Dremel tool Completes the removal of the supports, maximizing the amount of mess I can make.
493 Made a Mess Sanding Gun Portals to Size.jpg

Added some wood to fill each corner.
494 Port Corner Rebuilt.jpg

495 Stbd Corner Rebuilt.jpg

The wood tube in inserted into the gun portal until it is flush with the bulkhead on the interior. The tube is marked where it will be cut flush with the hull.
494 Insert Gun Portal Tube and Mark for Cutting.jpg

Remove the tube and cut on the pencil line using a band saw.
495 Cut on Line Using Band Saw.jpg

Glue the finished portal frame into the portal.
496 Glue Lining in Portal.jpg

All starboard side portals on the middle gun deck were installed today.
497 Glued Linings in Stbd Side Portals.jpg

Looks good. These will be painted red ochre later on the outside edges and inner surfaces. The interior edges will be stained brown.
498 Looks Good so Far.jpg
 
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That is a LOT of work that you have done. The gunport frames look very accurate and your method of devising them - ingenious. Well done! Thumbsup
 
The hull sides are being reinforced quite well from the added wood. The ship is getting noticeably heavier too. Still adding more planks. This is as far as I'm going for now, since the lower and middle gun decks now have finished bulwarks and are ready for decking and outfitting. Oops, still have to spray the latest strips with lacquer. I'm working on a method to allow viewing of these decks, Richie. Cameras are one idea. Unused gun ports which are able to be opened are another, but that only provides access at the bow and stern, and a narrow field of view. Internal LED lights provide illumination. One idea I thought of is a camera with a mirror on the end that acts as an internal periscope, accessible through a hole in the bottom of the ship, and can be elevated to see each of the covered decks, and swivel 360 degrees for a complete view. It requires only one borescope camera, and an apparatus under the display cabinet to position it. Thinking outside the box again. . .
The camera concept is outstanding. Fine build and demolition work done. I think you enjoy the art of demolishing :D:D
 
The frames which line the middle and upper deck gun portals are fabricated from square wood tubes made from 2mm basswood cut into strips and glued around a steel bar. Thre bar was waxed and removed from the wooden tube just before the glue dries, so the wood won't stick to the bar.

View attachment 272509

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View attachment 272511

MORE demolition! The arched gun ports under the side galleries need to be cut out by drilling and filing.
View attachment 272512

The inside corners at the stern look like crap. Let's improve their appearance.
View attachment 272513

MORE demolition! Using a needle nosed pliers on my Leatherman tool, I reached in and crushed and tore all the offending remnants of the hull supports.
View attachment 272514

A drum sander on the battery powered Dremel tool Completes the removal of the supports, maximizing the amount of mess I can make.
View attachment 272515

Added some wood to fill each corner.
View attachment 272529

View attachment 272530

The wood tube in inserted into the gun portal until it is flush with the bulkhead on the interior. The tube is marked where it will be cut flush with the hull.
View attachment 272516

Remove the tube and cut on the pencil line using a band saw.
View attachment 272517

Glue the finished portal frame into the portal.
View attachment 272518

All starboard side portals on the middle gun deck were installed today.
View attachment 272519

Looks good. These will be painted red ochre later on the outside edges and inner surfaces. The interior edges will be stained brown.
View attachment 272520
Your idea and execution of making wooden tubes is ingenious to say the least. Never would have thought of it. . . one of those gems in plain sight but not seen until you showed it. The installation and finishing shows the value of your method. Rich (PT-2)
 
Already snowing in Minnesota...

493-made-a-mess-sanding-gun-portals-to-size-jpg.272515
 
Nice. I think I saw @Mr.Deep do the boxes the same way. Was it a lot of work? Did it take a long time?
It's actually a great shortcut that creates perfectly square portals of equal size. What takes the longest is using a diamond file to open up the portal openings large enough to allow the tube sections to fit in. A sanding strip works at about the same cutting rate as a diamond file. Cutting the sections off the tube at the pencil mark takes literally 6 seconds with the band saw. I think this method is far more consistent and easier than trying to cut and fit four tiny wood strips into each portal whole. It the angles are off, the portal would look terrible. Later, you would cut the final planking strips at precise lengths to leave most of the red painted frame visible, yet cover the seam where the frame meets the edges of the first layer of planks.
 
Oh, and the number of cannon barrels I've snapped loose from clumsy bumps and handling is up to 7. No damage to the gun tackles. Occasionally a trunnion cap needed to be recovered and glued back on. It's a problem you just have to live with because there is no way to install rigged guns and carriages after the deck is covered over later in the build.
 
Oh, and the number of cannon barrels I've snapped loose from clumsy bumps and handling is up to 7. No damage to the gun tackles. Occasionally a trunnion cap needed to be recovered and glued back on. It's a problem you just have to live with because there is no way to install rigged guns and carriages after the deck is covered over later in the build.
I have set the over/under for snapped off barrels at 42 before the end of this build. PM me your wagers... ROTF. House takes 3%.
 
Frames were made for the arched gun ports which are under the side galleries. Two layers of thin mahogany strip were soaked in water and curved over shaft of the electric hot iron. The base of the ports is made from linden wood strip. It was difficult to curve the wood for the arches without breakage, but after a few attempts, enough parts were made place in the gun ports. The port frames were then painted.

Port Side.504 Port Side Gun Port.jpg

505 Port Side Gun Port..jpg
Starboard side.
506 Stbd Side Gun Port.jpg

507 Stbd Side Gun Port.jpg
 
Added more mahogany and basswood planks to the bulwarks.

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More demolition! The middle gun deck gun ports were roughly cut out with the oscillating cutter. When these are trimmed up and lined, they will establish the vertical location of the middle gun deck at the sides.

View attachment 272334View attachment 272335
That is going to be a nice looking ship. The hull looks very well shaped. Was wondering what you think of your oscillating cutter?
 
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