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This weekend I will be updating this thread with what I hope will be a master class in creating a perfect replica cannon using some simple and easy scratch building additions and amendments. areas to be covered will be wheel hubs, bolts and joints. chain, brackets and hinges. carriage corrections and finally painting and weathering. as always i will be doing my now infamous walkthroughs complete with step by step photos. “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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recreating the carriage.I wanted to make the carriage look more authentic this time around and it is surprisingly easy to do... 1. I began by filling in the grooves as i am painting my carriage. if you are not painting the carriage i would recommend just facing the grooved side towards the inside of the carriage. I filled the grooves with some milliput epoxy filler spreading it with an old knife blade. once i had worked the filler into the groves i scraped of the excess. my tip for scraping of the unwanted filler is to dip your blade in water. this stops the filler sticking to the blade and acts as a lubricant. i removed the thimble of of the barrel and filled the gap at the same time using the same method.  2. once the filler was set i lightly sanded the carriage sides to ensure all was smooth. the next job was to add the two bolts visible on each side... the first step is to mark out there positions. the front bolt i marked at 3mm from the top and 3mm back from the front the rear bolt i marked at 3mm down from the top of the first step down and 7mm from the front edge. next i used a .75 drill to drill through the marked spots.  to create the bolts take the brass wire that is supplied for the trucks (i will be mounting the trucks in a different manner) with a needle file shape one end of the wire into a dome. then gently push the wire through the first drilled hole from the filled side until the dome end of the wire protrudes through the other side looking like the bolt, snip the wire of and repeat for the other three holes. the wire should be tight in the and not need glue if they are a bit loose then use a drop of superglue. file the cute side of the wire smooth. if you are not painting your cannon i think the brass wire looks really good!  3. at this stage i built the carriage as per the instruction but that needed some additions... first i took some scrap material from the launch build to make the front plate (bear in mind we have a number of cannons to make so ensure you have enough of the same material to complete all the cannons) I cut a rectangle 5mm long and 3mm deep. this was then pushed into position sloping pack slightly (see issue 1 page 7 for reference)once in position i Superglue in place. next was to add the two wooden blocks under the carriage that hold the trucks on. the front piece of wood is 6mm long at the back edge and 5mm long on the front edge and 2mm x 2mm square. the rear block is 7mm long and again 2mm x 2mm square. i cemented this into place with wood glue lining them up with the blocks used for mounting the trucks. once dry i sanded the blocks smoothly in line with the carriage frame.   “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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Having completed the build of the carriage I gave it four coats of thinned Admiralty paints yellow ochre and set aside to dry fully. I then turned my attention to the trucks. adding detail to the trucks is very easy and the return for the effort is huge... 1. I mounted the truck on some masking tape and the I cut a groove down the centre with a razor saw  2. Using issue 1 page 7 as a guide I drilled the six bolt holes. you don't need to go to deep as the intention is that the painting process will highlight these  3.next job was to make the wooden bolts the trucks are mounted upon as i think the wire is to thin for an authentic look. to achieve this I took a cocktail stick and sanded it down until i achieved a diameter that looked right (2mm. Next I marked the depth I wanted for the hub head again 2mm looked about right. At this point I considered cutting of the four hubs to fix onto the trucks, but i did not like the idea of painting them on the trucks. instead I chose to file a thinner shaft behind the head this goes through the hole in the truck and then into the carriage holemounting the trucks. creating the shaft was a bit tricky due to the overall size.  “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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Next i turned my attention to the cannon. 1. I took a cocktail stick and sanded down to a size that snugly fit the brass brackets provided in the cannon kit. 2. I open up the hole in the barrel to accept the cocktail stick and sanded of the burrs. 3. next I rested the whole assembly on the carriage and marked the length. the stick was trimmed to the correct length and re assembled. Again the assembly was positioned on the carriage and the barrel aligned. adding a small drop of superglue to fix the barrel in place (but not onto the carriage) 4. I fabricated a new thinmble by forming some wire around the thin end of some round nose pliers and then trimmed to size, finally fixing on the barrel with superglue. 5. Finlay the whole assembly was given a couple of coats of thinned admiralty paints matt metal black     “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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 Rank: Pro Groups: New Members, Unapproved Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Looking good Jase, I like the thimble.
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 Rank: Amateur level 2 Groups: Registered
Joined: 20/07/2010 Posts: 49 Points: 148 Location: UK
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Looking good this m8, thanks for the detailed guide, I'm total novice to this kind of thing  so these walkthroughs are like gold dust to me  MD Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.
Albert Einstein
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Rank: Pro   Groups: Registered
Joined: 22/03/2010 Posts: 369 Points: 1,150 Location: Broadstairs
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Nice finish Jase, I like the improved trunion on the barrel, looks far better for it.
Well done.
TIS
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Rank: Pro  Groups: Registered
Joined: 27/03/2010 Posts: 188 Points: 614 Location: Llandudno
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Dam  Time to send off to DeAg for 2 new cannons  Nice work mate. Trunnion is much better the way you have done it. Bob
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adding the trucks... While the barrel was drying i came back to the trucks. the carriage and the truck hubs had already been painted yellow ochre but i needed to paint and weather the trucks before fixing to the carriage. in addition to the items in the photo i also used a pallet, if you don't have one you can always use a plastic milk bottle top!  1. I began by mounting the trucks on cocktail sticks and painted the backs of the trucks with two coats of Tamiya XF-55 deck tan thinned with Winsor & Newton acrylic flow improver, this is a great thinner available in most art shops and inexpensive, the only down side is it evaporates fairly quickly so keep your eye on the paint as it will thicken between coats. once dry I i turned the trucks over and did the same again MAKE SURE YOUR PAINT IS THIN OR YOU WILL LOOSE THE BOLT HEAD DETAIL 2. next I mixed one part raw umber with one and a half parts burnt sienna and 8 parts water. this is a 'muck wash' i have gone heavy on the burnt sienna to replicate the staining i have seen on some photos of the trucks. 3. with a fine brush i ran the wash into all the corners and detail on the carriage and then i gently drew the wash over the whole of the truck. as the water evaporates the pigment settles in all the recesses adding depth to the detail even subtle detail like on the trucks. if you applied to much or the pigment is settling in the wrong place try gently smudging it out with a wet but not soaking cotton bud; worst case apply another thin coat of the base color and start again. 4. While this was drying i took a very fine brush and carefully painted a thin black stripe at the base of each truck hub to simulate the metal band on the real thing. 5. once all dry i pushed the hubs into the trucks and trimmed the protruding wood from the back of the truck I then fixed these in place with super glue. quick tip at this point super glue lifts the admiralty paint so apply the glue with a piece of wire or a cocktail stick to the back of the truck and then position.   tomorrow I will mount the barrel and super detail the cap square. thanks for all the comments its great to know that i am offering some inspiration and not just typing to myself!!  “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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Rank: Pro  Groups: Registered
Joined: 26/03/2010 Posts: 146 Points: 473 Location: Plymouth
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Jase This is excellent. Like you I'd like to perfect the cannons but I need to be led by the nose. Your pics are great. ArtfulBodger Previous Build: HMS. Bounty
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Rank: Pro Groups: Registered
Joined: 22/03/2010 Posts: 369 Points: 1,150 Location: Broadstairs
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Fine detail coming out there, looks really authentic, I'll probably try to emulate your modelling, that's if you have no objections?
TIS
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Rank: Pro Groups: New Members, Unapproved Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Nice work Jase, cant wait to see the completed cannon!!!
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finishing the construction... nearly! The next step was to drill out the eight holes for the eye hooks. Again I used the the first magazine as a guide to positions. I used a drill bit that appeared to be the same diameter as the wire I used to make the eye hooks. Once done it was time to mount the gun. Before doing this I sanded Quoin to resemble the shape in the 12 ponder blow-up in the first issue and positioned in place but did not fix. Then the gun was positioned in place now for the cap square.... I would like to say the next bit was easy but truth is it was very fiddly, you may want to eat a bowl of carrots before attempting this!! 1. using two tweezers I bent the two cap squares supplied until they lay flat correctly once done they were super glued into place being careful not to get any adhesive on the trunnion 2. I snipped two pieces of fine wire 2mm long and placed them on the front of the cap square to simulate the rounded front end that i assume was used as a hand grip. using a piece of the same wire I applied a small drop of super glue to fix. 3. next i cut two 2mm pieces of wire slightly wider in diameter. flooding the two front holes of the cap square with superglue i carefully placed the two pieces of wire in the holes to replicate the locking block that the cap square fits over and the chain locks into 4. finally i cut two 1mm pieces of the supplied wire and fixed them on the very end of the cap square to give the look of the hinge. sounds easy writing this but it took me two hours trilling different ways of building a good impression of the actual cap square  the keen eyed amongst you will note i have not drilled the eye hook holes on my cannon before doing the cap square... lets just say I am giving you the benefit of my learning  5. Next came the task of fabricating the eye hooks, this is very simple. using thin copper wire I wrapped the wire around the tin end of some round nose pliers, a round needle file is just as good. and then sniped of with a bit of a tail; repeat 8 times. using the same method i also made two larger loops, these would be threaded into the inside eye hook on each side. 6. carefully test fitting the eye hooks i trimmed the tails down dabbed with super glue and carefully fixed in the holes   hopefully i will complete the build tomorrow by adding the fine chain and final painting and weathering. “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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finishing off!! So last job on the cannon construction was to add the fine chain. i have used photo etch chain. it can be a little difficult to find but they are available. my favorite brand is ABER but Eduard and gold Medal are also good. the advantage of photo etch is they can achieve scales that reel fine chain can not. I cut the chain to length i will not give you the length because the position needs to be in relation to your rivet heads. I fixed into position on the to first and when dry carefully bent the chain around using a knife blade a dab of glue and its done! next i painted all the metalwork including the barrel in metal black. Once dry I gave the muzzle a lick of red ochre. I assume that the cannons were well maintained so the only weathering i chose to do was to the barrel with a touch of pencil. areas that may get the paint chipped or worn such as the muzzle can be given a gentle rub with the tip of a pencil to simulate worn metal. it does not cum up well on the photos but is pleasing to the eye. This is by no means the definitive way to 'perfect' the cannon but i believe there are some easy detail in my build for all skill ranges and just a small amount of detail can really add life to the cannon and subsequently the whole finished model as a certain chief would say.... 12 pound cannon, Done!  http://i772.photobucket.com/albums/yy1/jase1970_2010/victory%20build/IMG_2806.jpg    “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
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 Rank: Elite      Groups: Registered
Joined: 22/03/2010 Posts: 2,065 Points: 6,295 Location: Gorleston-on-sea
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Nice job Jase...like it very much mate...  Current Builds: Deagostini HMS Victory: Deagostini HMS Sovereign of the seas. Completed Builds: Del Prado: HMAS Bounty: Hachette: RMS Titanic: Del Prado: Cutty Sark...
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Rank: Pro  Groups: Registered
Joined: 20/03/2010 Posts: 226 Points: 647 Location: Merseyside
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Good job there Jase. You've given me a few ideas for which I'm grateful. Dave H
Current builds :- Hachette 1/16 Tiger Tank
H.M.S Victory, Santisima Trinidad (Section), 1/8 scale Aston Martin DB5, 1/8 scale McLaren, YNWA
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Rank: Pro Groups: Registered
Joined: 08/05/2010 Posts: 236 Points: 808 Location: Manchester
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Well done matey. All your new additions and mods look very good and clean. Keep up the good work. i dont know what weapons will be used in ww3 but ww4 will be sticks and stones.
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Rank: Pro Groups: Registered
Joined: 22/03/2010 Posts: 369 Points: 1,150 Location: Broadstairs
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A very good job done there. Looks very impressive, well done.
TIS
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Rank: Pro Groups: New Members, Unapproved Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Rank: Pro Groups: New Members, Unapproved Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Jase, I really like your upgrade of the 12-pounder, I'm gonna try follow your perfection.
I've noticed another possibility for the upgrade but I'm not sure that I'm right (I'm rookie in wood modelling).
I had a look some photos from the Victory in Porthmouth and it seems to me that the two sides of the carriage are parallel to each other. On the model they are not parallel.
If they are not parallel it should be some difficulties during the moving the pounder because in this case the wheels are not parallel on the two sides.
Or the holes for the axes should drill in angle.
So... my idea is to replace the middle of the carriage (trapeziform piece of wood) to a rectangle shaped wood. The width of the new piece should be equal to the wider end of the original part.
I'm looking forward for your opinion.
Sorry, I didn't attach any photos because I didn't make this modification yet.
Happy building for everyone.
P.S.
I'm sorry if my English is imperfect, I'm originally from Hungary.
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