Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007

December 29th, 2007 - Prow gratings

I'm now back to you with news about the gratings installed in the prow area, with its (now) completed supporting structure.

This new image shows the gratings seen upwards. The complex has evolved since my previous message of December 19th. I have completed the structure and I have definitely fixed it to the hull.

The gratings are now surrounding in their back the hull, filling completely that area. It was a matter of testing in place and adjusting something a little bit somewhere for several times before I decided to use the glue, but now it's definitely in place !!

Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2008

I'm back with the S.S. Trinidad and a new task I'm achieving: the completion of the rudder. This time, to help understand the complex terminology, I have used a new powerful tool (multifunction laser printer bought yesterday) to scan a page of the book "Anatomy of the Ship - The 32-gun Frigate Essex". The image is here presented first, followed by my own rudder.

More in detail the task consists of:
1) - fixing of the pintles (26), seven in total, to the pintle straps (20);
2) - installation of the gudgeon straps (25), in their correct place:
3) - insert the nail heads in the proper places at the gudgeon straps;
4) - painting the straps with a 1st coat of paint (primer for metal) and another 2nd coat with Humbrol gun-metal.
5) - installation of the eyebolt (12) and the ringbolts (13);

1): The second image shows the rudder as it was left unfinished some weeks ago, with only the pintle straps installed and painted. Now it is time, following the instructions of the kit manufacturer, to install the pintles where the red arrows in the 2nd image point.
The kit instructions say: "with a fast adhesive for metals, fix the pintles . . .".

Thinking more about I had three choices to do this:
a) use the cyan acrylic glue (gel), needs few seconds to dry but probably not strong enough;
b) use the epoxy resin glue (not too fast, at least 15 minutes to dry, 24 hour to be completely hard), probably the best choice among glues;
c) don't use any kind of glue but perform a tin welding; this last option forces me to fix the pintle on the gudgeon straps instead of on the pintle straps which are already installed; it's probably the best choice at all provided I'm able to make a welding.

Finally I decided for option c) and I started to train myself to weld.
I already had the electric welder tool, the tin and the welding acid (from my father in law) so I made some trials with some brass strips and rods several times until I was sure of my technique.
Then I performed the real task, achieving a very good result.

2): Now it was time to mount the gudgeon straps at the sterpost and there was a significant problem: the thickness of the first (close to the pintle) was lesser than the thickness of the latter. So I had to perform seven grooves in the sternpost in order to match the two. The difficult thing was to do the grooves in the proper position. A lot of patience ...

But finally, by using the epoxy resin glue, I fixed them in place with a very complex operation involving: masking tape, few nails, clamps and seven hands ... and now the rudder is totally in place and is also turnable right and left without any fear thank to its high breaking strength.

3): Third I started to drill and insert the nail heads into the gudgeon straps. Here I had to reduce a little bit the head of the nails to simulate the proper scale. I achieved this with the Dremel power tool, inserting the nail in place of the drill bit and working on the head with a fine file until it is reduced properly. Again, a lot of patience ..

4): I have finally applied a coat of primer on the straps and now I'm waiting the paint becomes dry to continue . . . .

. . . so my amazing story ends here . . . see you next time. Jack.

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008

Today, being the gun metal paint completely dry, I have removed the masking tape from the rudder and the result can be seen in the next two photos.

The work is not yet terminated because now I need to perform the final cleaning of the few places where the paint is penetrated below the tape but it is a quite simple task.

Last I have to apply a coat of transparent, matt paint.
This for two reasons: 1) I don't like the gloss finish and 2) I have to recover the wooden areas around the straps that I damaged during the istallation of the rudder.

Kind regards. Jack.

Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2008

Yesterday there was a sunny day here in Milan, after a lot of days of snow, rain or clouds. So I took the opportunity and I shot some new photos from the terrace of my house to my favorite vessel.

As special gift of the new year I attach here some of them.

Kind regards

You are right, nevertheless may be still interesting. It was my return to shipmodeling after more that 40 years of inactivity and I got a bit rusty at the beginning.
Thanks for your comment, Jack.

Thanks Paul, I appreciate you comment, Jack.

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008

January 24th, 2008 - The stern galleries

Having, for the moment, finished to work around the rudder, I started a new task: the stern galleries and decorations. This will be a long and complex work, so I don't expect a quick final achievement in the near future but a lot of step by step intermediate milestones towards the final objective.

The first step to do is to build two structures on the hull sides. These structures will became the background of the right and left quarter galleries: the work consists of 1) preparation and 2) installation of three bulkheads per side that will be later planked vertically with strips of mm. 2 x 5 of ramin wood.

The first image shows, highlighted in the circle, the starboard side gallery structure when finished and sanded. This was the first I have built and I started planking from left to right. The result of this method was some troubles on the right portion of the structure where I had to perform additional refining work to achieve a reasonnable result. Anyway the result sounds good to me.

The second image shows the same structure on the larboard side.

Here I adopted a different method of planking: I started from the left, applying two shorter planks before, then a second plank on its right side with a blunt-ended upper side, and finally all the other planks to cover the structure until its end. Very much simple and quick: power of the experience . . . sometime I believe one should build at the same time a model twice to obtain the perfect one . . . the first to make experience and the second to make excellence . . .

That's all for today. See you next time. Jack.Aubrey

Posted: Sun Jan 27, 2008

I have recently found, surfing on the net, the complete plans of the Santìsima Trinidad. These plans are for the "Occre" kit but are also perfect for mine. In fact my model, published on a weekly magazine by DeAgostini, is an enhancement of this spanish kit.

The availability of these plans is of strategic importance for me and other people building the same model from DeAgostini because the latter doesn't supply any kind of plans. So you can understand the great benefits of having them, especially for the future rigging activities. It also can help very much in foreseeing/understanding some works and consequently plan better the future tasks.

I want also take advantage of this message to explain and show you my last works. They are very small details on the ship but very, very difficult to achieve.

1) Installation of the two lower gallery supports: they are made with cast metal and, as usually, do not absolutely fit in their place. I have spent two to three hours in adapting them and their cradles in order to achieve an acceptable result. Finally I have definitely mounted them using epoxy glue (very strong). Anyway there where many long narrow openings that I had to fit and fill with small pieces of wood. Last, the usual final refinemens and three coats of golden paint.

2) Installation of the catheads and its supporters. The holes in the hull were previously done but I had to adapt the whole to match the right angle (determined by the two horizontal cathead supports made with cast metal). Here I have some images to show you detailing this latter work.

That's all for today. See you next time. Jack.

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008

I'm still working on the poop galleries. It's a never ending story . . .

The new work around the stern side galleries consisted of several things; first of all I realized that the ivory color paint I applied on the windows frames (made with brass and in accordance with the instructions) was at risk.
I wasn't sure the paint was able to remain strongly achored to its brass ground using the cyanacrilate glue, so I decided to remove it and to come back to the original natural brass.
This means that my Santìsima Trinidad will have golden window frames instead of cream . . a good point of personalisation.

Second I had to apply around the window frames some wood strips that are clearly visible in the attached images.
This was a work of great patience but nothing more. As anticipated I used the cyanacrilate glue for this task.

Last I had to apply the two upper galleries supports. They were made of cast metal and, again, they didn't fit at all in their place.
So with time, a lot of patience and a file I removed the exceeding metal to make them fit properly. To fix definitely them I used the bi-component epoxy.

Later I finished the whole areas by painting with gold both the lower than the upper galleries supports. I also tried to age the golden parts but my efforts were not enough and it is now quite invisible. I have to find a better aging method.

I believe that the proposed images here below are much better (in terms of quality and colors) them the same I attached to my previous message: here the colors are influenced only that the winter light, nothing else. . .

Kind regards. Jack.

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008

My first attachment shows the next battlefield: the stern galleries.

After the experience I made with the quarter galleries I believe this new task will be a much simpler battle . . . but I'm ready for any kind of hazard . .

The other images show one of the main pieces of the stern galleries, made with a cast metal that can be easily manipulated and adapted to the surface where to position it: the stern frame (or framing ?).

Before to install it, it's better to paint it, it's much simpler now than once mounted in place.

First I have applied a coat of blue paint and after two (for the moment) coats of golden paint. The gold paint is applied with a "customized" brush, with the bristles cut very short. The brush is used "quasi" dry to avoid painting the area that needs to remain blue.

Some really lovely detail there Jack.
Regards
Paul