Mullions are brilliant! How did you create the scribe?
Soleil Royal by Heller - an Extensive Modification and Partial Scratch-Build by Hubac’s Historian
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- 1689 heller hubac refit soleil royal
Thank you, Paul! Super easy, actually -
while the paper design is still craft-glued to the acetate, I make a few light scoring cuts with a number 11 blade against a steel rule. I take care to also make somewhat oversize border scores for each pane, so that I have a little glue surface, later.
Then, I soak the acetate to remove the paper and craft glue residue. Now, I come back to each mullion line with the steel rule and the #11, but this time I take 3-4 moderate pressure engraving passes with the back side of the blade.
I should mention that the acetate I’m using is .030 thickness, so there is plenty of latitude for a deep scribe that will hold the paint well.
The artist tube acrylic then wipes on and into the engraving, and I immediately wipe off the surface excess with cotton t-shirt scraps wrapped over a q-tip swap.
The only tricky part of all of this is ensuring that your blade doesn’t track away from the ruler during the engraving process.
while the paper design is still craft-glued to the acetate, I make a few light scoring cuts with a number 11 blade against a steel rule. I take care to also make somewhat oversize border scores for each pane, so that I have a little glue surface, later.
Then, I soak the acetate to remove the paper and craft glue residue. Now, I come back to each mullion line with the steel rule and the #11, but this time I take 3-4 moderate pressure engraving passes with the back side of the blade.
I should mention that the acetate I’m using is .030 thickness, so there is plenty of latitude for a deep scribe that will hold the paint well.
The artist tube acrylic then wipes on and into the engraving, and I immediately wipe off the surface excess with cotton t-shirt scraps wrapped over a q-tip swap.
The only tricky part of all of this is ensuring that your blade doesn’t track away from the ruler during the engraving process.
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Once again stunning work Marc,
One good thing about a big project like this is that when you have had enough of working on one section you can take a break and work on something else.
Cheers,
Stephen.
Excellent work as always Marc.
One tool you may find useful and one I use all the time when scribing lines in styrene but would work equally well on Acetate is a Tamiya panel line scriber.It has a perfect vee and a bit like a reverse gouge.You don't have to apply any pressure and it is very consistent with limited amounts of practice.
Kind Regards
Nigel
One tool you may find useful and one I use all the time when scribing lines in styrene but would work equally well on Acetate is a Tamiya panel line scriber.It has a perfect vee and a bit like a reverse gouge.You don't have to apply any pressure and it is very consistent with limited amounts of practice.
Kind Regards
Nigel
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unreal is a good adjective ......oh...probably a silly question, but i was wondering if the acetate is a dust collector, and if so, is there anything that can be applied to resist that happening............i know that some plastics have awful static electricity......
Indeed, Victor, the acetate is a major dust magnet. I once tried to feed the straw attachment of a canned air (keyboard cleaner) into the lower window tier area (from the inside of the hull), but the aerosol clouded the windows with condensation, and I was a little worried they wouldn’t clear. Fortunately, they did. Unfortunately, white plastic dust continues to find its way into the model. There won’t be any internal lights, so I am not too concerned about it, although I sometimes wish I had done all of the windows in the stylized fashion of the lower QGs.
Yesterday was a milestone day as I completed the main deck gallery of stern windows and finally completed the wrapping balcony.
Per usual, there was quite a lot of touch-up, but here is where we are after applying the walnut ink wash:
Somewhat remarkably, I managed to avoid breaking the aft bulwark supporting knees, the angle of which had to be faired a little to match the corresponding rake of the corner joint.
Because the nature of this reverse-engineering project precludes a comprehensive drawing, from the outset, the build is always evolving, in-process. I realized, for example, that increasing the camber on this main-deck tier of windows ultimately necessitated adjusting the camber of the bulwark railing, if those two things were ever to agree with each other. Even though I thought I had set the camber of the windows to match that of the bulwark, it didn’t quite pan out that way, in actuality. Unfortunately, this only became manifestly evident to me AFTER I glued the bulwark in place. For the sake of comparison, here is the relatively flatter camber of the bulwark, prior to alteration:
Fortunately, there was enough solid-bond glue surface to enable me to re-shape the bulwark, in place.
The bulwark cap-rail, itself, was determined by making graphite rubbings along the top edge with masking tape. This gave me the precise shape, as well as the location and depth of all of the pilasters, so that I could arrive at a reasonable overhang, without making the railing appear too heavy.
The forward end of the side cap-rails required some allusion to timbering, considering the need to cover the relatively large-scale expanse of the wooden end-piece beneath it.
My big idea was to wrap the side railings over the corner join to the aft bulwark, thus re-enforcing the construction.
A few different perspective shots with all of the paint re-touched:
So, now the stage is set to make the pass-through archways that also serve as supports for the figures of Africa and the Americas. My adaptation of the Berain design is as close as I can keep it, while still respecting the particular slope of tumblehome on this model. Here, I’ve drawn my proposal directly to a cardboard pattern:
These will be fun to make, as I’ve made all other things like this, before; there will be a primary sandwich of three layers of styrene, with two thinner appliqués that make up the acanthus brackets, and applied mouldings that continue the lines of the upper stern balcony. There will be pierced fretwork and applied ornaments and all kinds of fun that add up to about a week of effort to make each bracket.
I’ve extracted two of the Four Winds carvings from the stock QGs, that will be fitted to the outboard surfaces of these brackets. I didn’t bother to draw them on the template, but here they are beside said template:
They will be reduced, accordingly, to fit between the upper and lower scrolled volutes.
As always, thank you for looking in, and for your kind comments and support of the project.
More to follow…
Yesterday was a milestone day as I completed the main deck gallery of stern windows and finally completed the wrapping balcony.
Per usual, there was quite a lot of touch-up, but here is where we are after applying the walnut ink wash:
Somewhat remarkably, I managed to avoid breaking the aft bulwark supporting knees, the angle of which had to be faired a little to match the corresponding rake of the corner joint.
Because the nature of this reverse-engineering project precludes a comprehensive drawing, from the outset, the build is always evolving, in-process. I realized, for example, that increasing the camber on this main-deck tier of windows ultimately necessitated adjusting the camber of the bulwark railing, if those two things were ever to agree with each other. Even though I thought I had set the camber of the windows to match that of the bulwark, it didn’t quite pan out that way, in actuality. Unfortunately, this only became manifestly evident to me AFTER I glued the bulwark in place. For the sake of comparison, here is the relatively flatter camber of the bulwark, prior to alteration:
Fortunately, there was enough solid-bond glue surface to enable me to re-shape the bulwark, in place.
The bulwark cap-rail, itself, was determined by making graphite rubbings along the top edge with masking tape. This gave me the precise shape, as well as the location and depth of all of the pilasters, so that I could arrive at a reasonable overhang, without making the railing appear too heavy.
The forward end of the side cap-rails required some allusion to timbering, considering the need to cover the relatively large-scale expanse of the wooden end-piece beneath it.
My big idea was to wrap the side railings over the corner join to the aft bulwark, thus re-enforcing the construction.
A few different perspective shots with all of the paint re-touched:
So, now the stage is set to make the pass-through archways that also serve as supports for the figures of Africa and the Americas. My adaptation of the Berain design is as close as I can keep it, while still respecting the particular slope of tumblehome on this model. Here, I’ve drawn my proposal directly to a cardboard pattern:
These will be fun to make, as I’ve made all other things like this, before; there will be a primary sandwich of three layers of styrene, with two thinner appliqués that make up the acanthus brackets, and applied mouldings that continue the lines of the upper stern balcony. There will be pierced fretwork and applied ornaments and all kinds of fun that add up to about a week of effort to make each bracket.
I’ve extracted two of the Four Winds carvings from the stock QGs, that will be fitted to the outboard surfaces of these brackets. I didn’t bother to draw them on the template, but here they are beside said template:
They will be reduced, accordingly, to fit between the upper and lower scrolled volutes.
As always, thank you for looking in, and for your kind comments and support of the project.
More to follow…
Excellent work as always Marc.If I may make an observation.Could the roof of the next quarter gallery level do with being a touch narrower than that on your template? This will bring the angle of the vertical support carving inwards as at the minute the overall line is going to appear a little truncated and not in harmony with the tumblehome.
As a side note, have you tried washing Acetate sheet in warm water with dish soap?This removes the static from normal Styrene and is another reason for washing injection moulded kit parts.
Kind Regards
Nigel
As a side note, have you tried washing Acetate sheet in warm water with dish soap?This removes the static from normal Styrene and is another reason for washing injection moulded kit parts.
Kind Regards
Nigel
I see what you are saying, Nigel, and you maybe right about that. One thing that I’m compensating for is the fact that the side lantern quarter pieces have been lowered a full 1/4” than on the stock kit. This means that the rounded portion of these carvings interferes a little with the space needed for Africa and the Americas. I already know that I will have to remake these figures, as the stock pieces are too tall. I was hoping, though to give them enough of a stool space to sit upon, so that they don’t look plastered up against the quarter pieces, if that makes sense.
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Would it be possible to narrow the section level with the top not the windows but leave the very top the same width? I know it will soften the angle of the concave slope slightly.
That is definitely a suggestion worth playing around with. I’ll have to see because when I apply the Four Winds faces to the vertical support, the outboard profile of this element will go from narrow at the scrolled foot to even wider, at the break of the cornice “roof”. I will mess around with the idea, though. I certainly appreciate the insight.
I may not be fully understanding you, though; I wonder if what is triggering your observation is the way that the balcony pilaster, in-line with the pass-through archway, has a definite inclination toward the hull. Is that what you mean by truncated?
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Wow, never knew about this it looks amazing, where is it located?
Just found your build log, incredible work and probably a reason I have no plans to tackle this ship as I could never do it justice.
, I’ve been puzzling over my initial drawing, in relation to the Berain drawings, for about an hour and I think I see a path toward what Nigel is suggesting. I’m going to do a bit more drawing - on vellum, this time, and we’ll see where we end up. Thank you, Nigel, for speaking up. These arches are an important element of the stern, so it is pretty high on the priority list to nail it!I meant to mention, Nigel, that I have not thought to wash the acetate; this makes perfect sense, as it is always covered in static-electric-inducing film. Always learning as I go.
Hello, Richie - Welcome to my log! I am glad you have found this project. This interpretation of Soleil Royal resides in Brooklyn, New York. Thank you for the kind words - ‘much appreciated!
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I shall observe with interest.
I meant to mention, Nigel, that I have not thought to wash the acetate; this makes perfect sense, as it is always covered in static-electric-inducing film. Always learning as I go.
Hello, Richie - Welcome to my log! I am glad you have found this project. This interpretation of Soleil Royal resides in Brooklyn, New York. Thank you for the kind words - ‘much appreciated!
Is New York where the Thomesen brothers fleet of Dutch fleet in the 17th century resin vessels are located, is it something anyone can visit.
Hi Richie,
This is actually in a small museum at the island of Texel Netherlands.
Expositions
The diversity of Museum Kaap Skil is clearly visible in the exhibitions. In 'World Voyage', you follow the ships in the 16th, 17th and 18th century to their destination all around the world. Be amazed by the great value of the cargo in the Palmwood Wreck exhibition and dream away whilst viewing...
www.kaapskil.nl
You can find something about the build here.
VOC – Artitec
artitec.nl
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Excellent thank you Maarteen, that was quite fascinating looking through those links as I had no idea of it's existence.Hi Richie,
This is actually in a small museum at the island of Texel Netherlands.
Expositions
The diversity of Museum Kaap Skil is clearly visible in the exhibitions. In 'World Voyage', you follow the ships in the 16th, 17th and 18th century to their destination all around the world. Be amazed by the great value of the cargo in the Palmwood Wreck exhibition and dream away whilst viewing...
You can find something about the build here.
Will put it on my must see list if I ever get back that part of the world.
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I see, now, that I was mis-reading your question Richie - hand to face; my apologies! Thank you Maarten for clarifying. If you do get a chance to see the Texel diorama, Richie, it is absolutely worth the trip.
Marc when I say truncated, I mean the out profile of the quarter galleries start to taper inward to follow the tumblehome but then your template has them jutting outward again.
Regarding matching the arch to those over the windows, visually I think you can get way with these arches being slightly narrower over the open gallery as visually the panel below in the balustrade appears narrower although dimensionally it may not be.It is less above measurement and more about what the eye sees and one's perception of it, if you know what I mean.
Kind Regards
Nigel
So, I’ve re-drawn the bracket. The roof is the same, but the angle of the pillar has changed, as well as it’s heft, and the acanthus carving and scrolls are improved. Is this more what you were thinking Nigel?
And Before:
And Before: