Looking good Alan she is a stunner
Martyn

Stage 124 Contents: Catheads and Pin Rail Fret, Belaying Pins and Decorations

Separate chain wales CW1 and CW3 from the fret supplied in stage 122 and retrieve two 2x2x300mm wooden strip from the same stage. Following the same process described in the previous stage for the chain wales CW2, prepare the chainwales CW1 and CW3. Shape the inside edges to fit the curvature of the hull. Then glue a strip along the outer edge. Shape the strip then paint or stain them. The outer edge of chain wales CW3 should be painted yellow (RAL1023).

Use the detailed steps from the previous stage to prepare and fit chainwale CW1, and ten chainplates CWS3, eight of with deadeyes DE1 and two without. Paint the nails black then repeat the process on the starboard side. Now fit chainwale CW3 on the port side, forward of the upper gallery. Prepare five chainplates CWS2, four with deadeyes DE1 and one without. Fit them into positions and nail the ends in place. Touch up any paint as necessary then paint the heads of the nails black. Repeat this on the starboard side.

Separate three cathead parts CD1 from the fret supplied with this stage and glue them together. Use a 0.5mm drill bit to create a hole through the square end of the cathead, 4mm in from the wider end. Make two small slots in the square end of the cathead, 8mm deep and 1mm wide, then insert a length of 0.5mm brass wire through the hole. Apply a drop of glue to where the brass wire protrudes from the cathead. Once the glue has dried, cut off the excess wire leaving about 1mm on each side. Repeat these steps to create a second cathead.

Now open the hole at the bow for the bowsprit. The 9mm end of the bowsprit needs to be able to enter the hole so use the dowel to test-fit. Retrieve the assembled stem from stage 107 and place it in position at the bow. Mark the points where the side panel intersect the raised strakes. Remove these parts of the strakes then test-fit the stem in place again. Adjust the shape of the stem to fit flush against the hull. Paint or stain the parts of the bow from where the strakes were removed.

Test-fit the figurehead (from stage 111) in position on the stem. If necessary, sand the end of the stem to better accommodate the figurehead. Paint or stain any sanded areas then glue the figurehead into place. Glue the lion’s tail from stage 111 to both side of the stem.

Remove any burrs or flash from the belaying pins supplied with this stage. Insert the pins into some soft wood or sponge and apply a coat of metal primer to them. Paint them brown. I chose to paint them dark brown. Now glue 19 of the belaying pins into the holes in the pin rails in the stem. The pins along the sides should be vertical. Paint the bottoms of the pins with your chosen paint.

Now glue the stem onto the bow. You may find it adheres better if you remove the paint from the points of contact. If necessary, apply a little putty along the joins between the stem and the hull. Once dry gently sand smooth then touch up the paintwork.

Remove parts PR6 and PR6a from the fret and glue them together. Then sand the edges smooth. Paint the assembly, along with part PR6b and the two catheads. I chose to paint these dark brown to match other fitting on my build. Paint the areas around the wire at the ends of the catheads black.

Retrieve decorations C122 and C138 from stage 111 and glue them into position at the aft end of the stem side panels. Now retrieve decoration C123 from stage 111 and one of the catheads. Glue the decoration onto the stem and the cathead to the deck and the decoration, as shown in step 23 of the instructions. Retrieve decoration C139 from stage 111 and the second cathead. Glue them to the stem and the deck in the same way on the other side.

Glue decorations C124 from stage 110, into the holes in the rail (parts PR6 and PR6a). Now glue the rail onto the catheads, between the tops of frame 1. Apply some putty to the gaps between the rail and the frame. Paint the putty when dry. Glue rail PR6b to the top of decorations C124. Make sure the rail is properly aligned.

Now shape the outer edges of rails PR5 with groove E of the shaping tool. Take care during this process as the rail is easily snapped. Remove rails PR1, PR2, PR3 and PR4 from the fret and paint or stain these along with rails PR5. Then paint the shaped edges of the rails PR5 light grey. I painted these to match my builds colour scheme. Glue the belaying pins into the rails, then paint the bottom ends of the pins. The rails should be kept in their pairs.

Store any unused parts in a bag labelled with this stage number.

This stage is now complete.

Thanks Mark, appreciated... .. You're absolutely spot on. This is probably one of the most time consuming builds I've been involved in, especially with the detailing. To top that, the further you get into the build the more intense the build stages become, each one taking longer to complete. That aside, she is still a very enjoyable, if not challenging build to put together....

Regards

Alan

Looks a value for money model Alan in terms of the build tome it gives you.

Really like your latest pictures which shows how lovely that hull finish is you have used.

Tony

This is an absolutley amazing build Alan. The figure painting looks stunning!

Regards,
Phil W.

Your doing a cracking job on this one Alan. This appears to require the woodworking skills of a master carpenter and the painting prowess of an artist.

Stage 125 Contents: Black Thread, Single 5mm Blocks and Decorations

Retrieve the 10 pin rails prepared in the previous stage. Glue rails PR3, PR4, PR1 and PR2 along the inside of the port bulwark in the positions shown in step 1 of the instructions, then repeat on the starboard side in the same order.

Now retrieve the correct pin rail PR5 to be fitted on the port side. File the port end of the bow rail so that pin rail PR5 can fit between the end of the bow rail and the gunwale. Cut a 13mm length of 2x2mm wooden strip supplied with stage 121. Glue it into the forward hole of the pin rail PR5, with 7mm showing above and 4mm below, then paint it brown. Cut a 33mm length of 2x2mm wooden strip and paint it brown. Then glue it to the forward end of the waist, (Test fit rail PR5 to ensure the correct position of the strip, the exact position may vary on your build). Glue rail PR5 in position 4mm above the lower rail, with the aft hole over the post just fitted. Cut a 34mm and a 33mm length of 2x2mm wooden strip and paint them brown. Glue the 34mm strip into the 3rd hole in the rail PR5 (from the bow) and the 33mm strip into the 6th hole and against the inside of the bulwark. Prepare four 14mm lengths of 2x2mm wooden strip. Paint them brown and then glue them into the remaining holes in the pin rail, with 7mm sowing at the top. Fix the join between the bow and pin rails with a little putty and paint it brown when dry. Repeat these steps on the starboard side.

Use slot ‘F’ of the shaping tool to shape one side of each of the eight remaining 2x2x200mm wooden strips. Also retrieve the 2x2x300mm strip already shaped in stage 64. Paint the strips brown and the shaped sides light grey. Cut one of the prepared strips to fit on the tops of the pin rail posts then paint the cut end brown. Repeat on the starboard side. Now cut five 7mm lengths of 2x3mm wooden strip supplied in stage 121 and paint them. Glue the five posts onto the rail on the waist at the points shown in step 15 of the instructions, aligned with the posts below. Cut one of the prepared strips to fit on top of the posts, between the rails forward and aft and glue it into place.

Cut four 7mm and two 3mm lengths of wooden strips. Paint them and glue into place on the rails as shown in step 17 of the instructions. Now glue one of the 2x2mm prepared strips onto the posts, up against the aft rail. Prepare three more and two 2mm lengths of 2x3mm wooden strip, paint them and glue into the positions shown in step 19 of the instructions. Cut a prepared strip to fit on the posts from the aft rail to the first post, glue into position. Prepare five more 7mm lengths of 2x3mm wooden strip and glue into positions shown in step 19 of the instructions. Cut a 105mm length of prepared strip and glue it onto the posts just fitted, with the end 6mm aft of the last post. Prepare two 9mm and two 3mm lengths of 2x3mm strip and glue them in position as shown in step 23 of the instructions. Cut a length of prepared strip to fit onto the posts just fitted. Now complete all these steps to complete the rails on the starboard side. Touch up the paintwork where needed.

Retrieve the decorations C170, C171 supplied with this stage and C170, C171 supplied with stage 120. Remove any flash or burrs and apply a coat of metal primer. Paint the decorations as outlined in the instructions and leave to dry. Glue one of the decorations C170 and the two C171 decorations to the port side, as shown in steps 28 and 29 of the instructions.

Retrieve the fret containing the parts for the crosstrees and mast caps supplied with stage 121. Remove the parts from the fret and assemble them to make up a total of four crosstrees. Now remove three mast cap parts MC1 and glue them together, aligning the holes and sides. Sand the sides smooth and remove any glue from the holes. Repeat to make a total of four mast caps.

Store any unused parts in a bag labelled with this stage number.

This stage is now complete.

This build really is mind-boggling.
If the finished model doesn't end up in a maritime museum there's a crime afoot...

That's what put's you at the top of the tree Alan the amount of time you spend with your builds we are all grateful.

Regards

Trev

Thanks Mark, appreciated as always.....

Regards

Alan