Hi Marc,
Magnificent is all I have to say.
Cheers,
Stephen.
Magnificent is all I have to say.
Cheers,
Stephen.
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
Stephen, you have said more than enough - thank you!
I am patiently waiting to see it in my own eyes, Mark. When is the next meeting?
Hi Jimsky,
The Shipcraft Guild won’t meet again until September. I’ve stopped bringing the model to meetings because the box it lives in is cumbersome and heavy. I will probably display it at the next Joint Clubs meeting, next April, though.
The Shipcraft Guild won’t meet again until September. I’ve stopped bringing the model to meetings because the box it lives in is cumbersome and heavy. I will probably display it at the next Joint Clubs meeting, next April, though.
The head grating was remarkably tedious to make, and I can honestly say that I did not enjoy any aspect of this process.
I began by making a series of styrene strips for the slat stock that followed the curvature of the headrails. Each segment had to be cut to fit and placed by hand:
I used a drafting compass to get approximate measurements at each location, and then it was a lot of filing and test-fitting until each slat bridged the span perfectly.
After all slats were initially cemented with styrene glue, I brushed the whole assembly with thin CA - the Crazy Glue variety. I like this stuff for certain applications. It dries with some body to it, so it is good for something like this where it “keys” into the spaces between slats, and locks them firmly in-place. This is important for the sanding/leveling process.
I made a semi-soft sanding block from sanding foam, and double-stuck a piece of 100 grit paper to its face:
Then I’d manipulate this sanding block with a pair of tweezers and a finger from my off-hand. It took a bit of effort, but I faired out the surface without dislodging any slats:
In the white, the following angles show the ‘thwartship camber of the grating pretty well:
Finally, I could fix the new seats of ease in-place:
In an episode of “you couldn’t do it again if you tried,” I impaled my left hand with a pair of pointy tweezers that I dropped and tried to catch, as I was attempting to place these seats. One tine went pretty deep! Fortunately, my tetanus booster is up to date.
Now all I have to do is prime and re-paint.
Thank you all for stopping by! More to follow..
I began by making a series of styrene strips for the slat stock that followed the curvature of the headrails. Each segment had to be cut to fit and placed by hand:
I used a drafting compass to get approximate measurements at each location, and then it was a lot of filing and test-fitting until each slat bridged the span perfectly.
After all slats were initially cemented with styrene glue, I brushed the whole assembly with thin CA - the Crazy Glue variety. I like this stuff for certain applications. It dries with some body to it, so it is good for something like this where it “keys” into the spaces between slats, and locks them firmly in-place. This is important for the sanding/leveling process.
I made a semi-soft sanding block from sanding foam, and double-stuck a piece of 100 grit paper to its face:
Then I’d manipulate this sanding block with a pair of tweezers and a finger from my off-hand. It took a bit of effort, but I faired out the surface without dislodging any slats:
In the white, the following angles show the ‘thwartship camber of the grating pretty well:
Finally, I could fix the new seats of ease in-place:
In an episode of “you couldn’t do it again if you tried,” I impaled my left hand with a pair of pointy tweezers that I dropped and tried to catch, as I was attempting to place these seats. One tine went pretty deep! Fortunately, my tetanus booster is up to date.
Now all I have to do is prime and re-paint.
Thank you all for stopping by! More to follow..
Impressive! To work at that scale and keep everything aligned is fantastic!
Very nice work Marc. The grating will look great when painted, pun intended
Kind Regards
Nigel
Kind Regards
Nigel
I decided to play around with thin metallic wash coats of gold and silver for the continental figure of Europe. As the wealthiest region of the world, I wanted her to have a shimmery, almost etherial quality.
The basecoats for the lower garb of both Europe and Asia are the same ModelMaster Random Tan. For Asia, I went over this color with a brown enamel wash. For Europe, I used a thinned application of Citadel red wash, followed by several applications of a very thin wash of bright gold. The gold collects in the recesses in a very satisfying way.
Initially, I wasn’t happy that the folds of Europe’s blouse did not really show through the Ultra Marine. That was why I decided to try a silver wash. The pictures don’t really do these girls justice.
For the backsides, I was kind of forced to end the naturalistic painting of the figures along the original part line, where I filled-in with new styrene. I wanted to follow the cyma-curves of the tafferal, but that just wasn’t feasible:
The black will fade into the black of the tafferal.
Well, that’s it for now. I’ll be on and off vacation for the next several weeks. I’m touch-up painting, and getting all of these elements ready for assembly.
I’ll post glamour shots of the whole ship, in a few weeks, when it’s all together.
The basecoats for the lower garb of both Europe and Asia are the same ModelMaster Random Tan. For Asia, I went over this color with a brown enamel wash. For Europe, I used a thinned application of Citadel red wash, followed by several applications of a very thin wash of bright gold. The gold collects in the recesses in a very satisfying way.
Initially, I wasn’t happy that the folds of Europe’s blouse did not really show through the Ultra Marine. That was why I decided to try a silver wash. The pictures don’t really do these girls justice.
For the backsides, I was kind of forced to end the naturalistic painting of the figures along the original part line, where I filled-in with new styrene. I wanted to follow the cyma-curves of the tafferal, but that just wasn’t feasible:
The black will fade into the black of the tafferal.
Well, that’s it for now. I’ll be on and off vacation for the next several weeks. I’m touch-up painting, and getting all of these elements ready for assembly.
I’ll post glamour shots of the whole ship, in a few weeks, when it’s all together.
Enjoy your vacation Marc, look forward to more pics on your return
Kind Regards
Nigel
Kind Regards
Nigel
Enjoy your time away my friend!
Thank you very much guys!
Hallo Marc alias @Hubac’s HistorianHello, Ships of Scale!
My name is Marc LaGuardia, and for the past three years, I have been extensively bashing the Heller kit in an effort to transform it into what I believe is her re-fit appearance of 1689.
The project exists in its entirely, here at Model Ship World:
The log is quite lengthy, and includes protracted discussions of contemporary sketches and portraiture that are all interesting and relevant to my re-construction. That would all be incredibly tedious to re-create, here, though. Instead, I will open with a photo-montage that brings us up to the current stage of the project.
As I write new posts for MSW, I will also post that same content here.
So, to begin - the project was born of the idea that I could make the Heller kit broader and longer, so that I could increase the number of stern lights from five to six, and create the new quarter galleries that are the focal point of my revised model.
To that end, I cut away the lower hull, and added 5/8” of extensions to either side of the stem (thanks to Henry in Boston for donating his defective hull), and 3/8” extensions to the aft edges of the lower hull and upper bulwarks. I also cut the sheer down, a bit, at the poop-royal because the Heller kit is just a bit too tall to be plausible, IMO; this is partly due to the fact that the height between all decks is exaggerated.
Along the way, I have discovered myriad ways to upgrade the kit and add missing detail. I have made a particular point of representing the iron that holds the dead-works together.
To be clear, my intent here is to produce a mostly impressionistic model that is historically accurate to the degree that it can be, but also accepting of certain flaws, inherent in the kit, which are too onerous to overcome.
The project seemed to languish in the planning/drawing phase for quite a long time, but has really started to come together in the past year.
I have received an incredible amount of help from people all over the world, and remain indebted to their research, their insight, and quite often - their spare parts!
And without further ado, I present Soleil Royal as she may have appeared after her refit in 1689. The montage will begin with the next post.
Thank you for looking in, and happy modeling!
- HH
we wish you all the BEST and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Enjoy your special day
Happy Birthday Marc, enjoy your day and the rest of your vacation
Also from my side all the best and a very Happy Birthday.
Wonderful news! My best wishes for the perfect birthday!
Thank you all very much! This is the last BIG ONE for a while. Today, I turn 50. We are finally making our way to the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, MA. I’ve wanted to go there for a very long time. It should be a great day!
Happy Birthday, Marc!
