ZHL Royal Caroline Kit, scale 1/30

[neptune]

Had a little bit of drama yesterday, I had tucked the wiring for the lights under the deck out of the way,
and did not realise it when I glued the gratings in place , luckily I was able to remove the rear grating
without any damage, and push the wires down through the hole in the keel



The wires rolled up and tied beneath the keel

 

[neptune]

The messenger in place, I made a new one as the one in the kit was green and a bit fuzzy, this is the first thing I have had to replace and will probably do so with the rest of the ropes



Closer view

 

[neptune]

A couple of views of the ship at the present time.

 

[neptune]

Thanks Donnie,

best regards John.

 

[neptune]

The hole that was pre cut on the very first bulkhead that the bowsprit goes through was too big for the bow sprit supplied see pic above



So I took some thicker dowell I had and turned and sanded it to size, keeping the out board end to the originals dimensions,



but having the inboard end a little thicker.



The fit of the new bowsprit






The heel of the bowsprit, I just used a stainless steel thick rod to connect it to the board,

 

[neptune]

And a big thank you to Donnie for sorting out the upload problem,

best regards John.

 

[neptune]

The galley stack fixed in place



Looking forward



Deck view, there is not a lot of room for the port cable to pass between the stack and the riding bitts, The Anatomy of the ship book shows the stack a little more to the port side giving a bit more space.



General view under the focsle



and a closer look at the stack.

 

[neptune]

Three views of the focsle glued in place.
The bowsprit can still be removed.
And I think I have cut off a little bit of the rail that will go under the cat head,
will have to fix it up when I attach the cat heads

 

[Peglegreg]

G'day John
Sorry I've been away for a few days, my BP was low again and I felt like sh#t, as the expression goes.
:grin:
Well all I can say mate you are doing a fantastic job on the stairs, carvings on the sides etc. I know that this kit is absolutely brilliant, but with your exquisite workmanship, you are making it look so easy.
By the way, did you ever found the door hinges and handles in the pile of stuff in the kit?
:greetings-clapyellow:
Havagoodone mate.
Greg

 

[neptune]

G'day Greg, hope your feeling a little bit better now, and yes I did find the stuff for the hinges, it is provided as wire and thin strip, I ended up just gluing the companion way doors, I may give it a go on the skylights, will have to do a mock up first to see what they turn out like, have you bought yours yet, I was in touch with ZHL and they have now sent me the full English instructions and parts list, I will go through them later, but they should be a great help,

best regards John.

 

[neptune]

I am starting to attach the beginning of the head rails,
these are two, ( one each side ) of the very lower supports, I forget the correct name.
I have soaked them for five minutes an d I am now using my Hi Tech device to curve them to shape.




Shaping the very lowest decoration, these have to be positioned and attached correctly as the figure head sits right on top of them.



Starboard side after drying out, attached in place.



After I had attached the starboard side I drilled a very small hole through the stem right at the top of the tip of the support rail to act as a marker for positioning the port side support rail. The pic shows the hole from the port side.



Once the lower decorative rail is in place I can work out where the Princess will sit.



Closer view.

 

[Peglegreg]

G'day John
No, I haven't ordered the kit yet, just sorting a few things through first.
:?
Love your high tech bending device! It looks very complicated......
:text-lol:
Just looking at the second last photo....... I'm wondering if there will be enough space between the queen's head and the bowsprit for the crown? Have you checked to see if there is?
Just checking and putting my penny's worth in.
Havagooday
Greg

 

[neptune]

I have to cut away a portion of the head of the stem to sit the Princess on, so that is why it is critical that I get the lower supports and rails right, I have every confidence that it will be OK or maybe , got to have a laugh, thanks for pointing it out though,

best regards John.

 

[Peglegreg]

I also have every faith in your ability to get it right.
Just wanted to put my noise in, just in case mate. ;-)
Happymodelling
Greg

 

[neptune]

No worries mate, I was just taking the Michael out of myself,

 

[neptune]

Well Greg had me thinking and I just had to fix the lower rails and see if everything went together OK,


The lower glued in place



The Princess trimmed and just sitting on the stem



and with the bowsprit sitting in place, looks like ev thing will be OK.

 

[Peglegreg]

G'day John
Looks great........No need to be concerned!
:text-imsorry:
I'm sorry for giving you the anxiety and worries!
You are doing a beautiful job and I promise not to doubt you again.
:handgestures-thumbup:
Keep up your standard work and everything will be apples.
:roll:
Happymodelling
Greg

 

[neptune]

Shellby right mate, no worries,

 

[neptune]

G'day John
Looks great........No need to be concerned!
:text-imsorry:
I'm sorry for giving you the anxiety and worries!
You are doing a beautiful job and I promise not to doubt you again.
:handgestures-thumbup:
Keep up your standard work and everything will be apples.
:roll:
Happymodelling
Greg

no worries Greg, if you ever see something that you think is not right or might be a problem along the line, let me know, I would rather check it now than find out later on,

best regards John.

 

[neptune]

Thats the hawse pieces attached and also the back suport board for the Cherubs that hold the crown over the Princess head



Another view. I will not attach the figure head till later on so as not to damage it whilst turning the model around when working on it.