The main anchor line is fairly stiff and difficult to get into nice curves when dry. So I first applied a bit of water to the length of the line to make it much more pliable. I then pulled one end through the bow anchor hole and towards the winch. Then there were three loops around the winch and down through the hole in the deck. I did not trim any rope at this point.

I then adjust everything so I had what I though was a nice length of rope at the exterior of the bow, hanging in a smooth fashion, and applied some watered down wood glue to the loops on the winch. Then I sat there for about 10 minutes watching some garbage TV as I let that glue dry enough to hold the loops in place. I also applied a dab of glue where the rope passes through the bow. This will help to ensure the rope doesn't pull itself inward and downward onto the deck and instead makes sure that it retains the nice look all along and outside the bow.

I let the whole thing dry overnight and the next day I trimmed the rope where it goes through the deck. The instructions call for creating a pile of rope to be placed on the lower deck and have the anchor rope go through the deck and into the pile. I wish I had thought of this earlier and would have placed these piles of rope prior to closing up the decking and planking. Now I just did not see a way to do it. And, even when shining a light into the hull there just isn't enough visibility for this to matter to me. So I instead chose to forgo this park and simply trimmed the ends of the rope so they would go through the deck, but not hand obnoxiously into the lower deck area.

As you saw with the canons, I prefer to do similar tasks at the same time. So I saved all the culverins and assembled them at this point. Before applying any paint I carefully cleaned up each part and also gave them a short bath in some white vinegar.

To paint these small bits I placed them on the adhesive side of some painters tape. I do not press them into place and instead prefer to just let the small bit of friction from just the weight of the piece and the adhesive do its thing. it is just enough to hold them steady while paint is applied and still allows for them to be moved/flipped over very easily when the time comes.

Once all pieces were painted I assembled all 10 per the instructions.

Wow! So close to being done with this build...the time went so quickly.

I purposely left the stern lanterns until the very end, or in this case, second to last. Before adding the masthead I want to get these things into place.

I carefully bent each arm as needed and marked where to drill holes on the stern. Then I glued each arm into place and carefully adjusted the angles until the lantern sat nicely. These things are super delicate, so be very careful.

It has taken slightly over a year to complete this build at a relaxed pace. Now that I see the finished product I have decided I want to build a custom stand for it. I do not like the stand that is provided with the kit. It is the dead of winter right now so I am unlikely to get into the workshop and cut pieces for the stand so this will have to wait until warmer weather returns.

Regardless, this build is done and it has been a blast sharing it with everyone. In the coming days I will take some random photos of the completed ship and post them here.

Thank you everyone for following along and looking forward to following your builds and meeting you in other threads.

Cheers!

Here are some more images. Please excuse the quality. I am doing what I can with the limited photography capabilities I have.

And now a few shots from the port side.

And here are some final shots from various angles.

Thank you for your kind words and following along. This was a fun build and a decent challenge. It will be displayed in full view for any visitors. Now I just need to get a case for it.