29.10.2009

 

    So, let's begin the report on the work already done.
During a thorough study and refinement of the drawings, I was persistently searching for all the materials that would be needed to build the model in the future. The hardest part was finding high-quality 5.5 mm multi-layer plywood.
I ordered the 2 mm plywood from "Shipyard on the Table"; the linden blocks were bought at a warehouse, cut into the required cross-sections, and set aside to dry completely for now.
   After bringing the purchased plywood home, I began transferring all the profiles from paper…

… onto the wooden base of the future ship. 
   After that, a long process of cutting out each part lay ahead. First, from the 5.5 mm plywood…

 … and then from the 2 mm one.

   Naturally, the plywood warped almost immediately. Well, that's part of the process. Even though it is currently resting under weights, and I will be heating it with a heat gun before assembly, a building slip is absolutely essential here! That's why I started working on it.
   Many people underestimate the consequences of working without a building slip, and that is a big mistake. I have repeatedly seen the keel warp into a bow shape on a model that was already glued but not yet planked. Therefore, you know what my advice to you is, right?!
   While the building slip is in progress (the glue is drying), I am working on the mountings in the keel for the permanent display stand.  
I cut longitudinal 6 mm slots in the keel (just like for the bulkheads, but from underneath) and sealed them on both sides to create a cavity with a 6x6 cross-section. Inside, I will glue a hollow cylinder. I made it out of fabric and thread soaked in epoxy resin, wrapped around a 4 mm diameter round dowel. The pins on the display stand will have the exact same diameter.

 

 

04.11.2009

 

    While the sleeve (if you can call it that) was curing, I reinforced the glue joints of the false keel pieces. I drilled through-holes and inserted wooden trunnels on glue. Then, I cut the sleeve into pieces of the required length and test-fitted them into a slightly enlarged hole.

Once I made sure everything looked good and the two holders were perfectly parallel, I glued them in place.

After they dried, I trimmed them flush with the thickness of the keel. (Later, this area will be covered with veneer). Oh, right, I also drilled several holes along the entire length of the keel. These are for the threads that I will use to press part No. 15 against the bulkheads.

With that, almost all procedures on the hull structure are finished. The building slip is ready… (the design is simple but effective, made on the inside of the middle leaf of an old table).


… up next is gluing the framework together!

 

 

05.11.2009

 
   I worked on the hull for 12 hours straight, not a minute less. With glue in my hands and excitement in my eyes, the assembled framework stood before me by nightfall (having started in the morning).
   Now, let's take it step by step.  
First, I mounted the keel into the building slip; slid on all the bulkheads, gluing them down; lined them with parts No. 15 and 16, and dry-fitted the decks (to check for any twisting), generously applying PVA glue all over. As you can see, I used ordinary binder clips, clothespins, and thread threaded through the pre-drilled holes as clamps. I also installed cross-braces along the entire perimeter of the keel (right above the building slip rails). This will provide extra stiffness and prevent the keel from warping. The braces are made of balsa strips, 6x150 mm, placed between each bulkhead on both sides.

Once the glue dried, here is what it looked like!

Next, wasting no time, I started working on the framing strips for the dummy gun ports. These are 5x10 mm battens that needed to be glued into the slots on the bulkheads. Which is exactly what I did (holding the curve with regular thread, tying the battens down to the bulkheads).

At the bow and stern, it was impossible to achieve the required curvature naturally, so the battens at the front and rear bulkheads were slightly notched and snapped to fit the correct bend.

I also glued the side walls for the lower deck.     

P.S. Looking ahead, I want to mention that I ended up extending the lower deck, so these walls will actually be fixed in a different spot than what you see here. To do it correctly right away, scroll forward a bit. Generally, as a tip, this deck can be built out completely—meaning without the "dummy gun ports." The deck level is marked on all bulkheads... in short, you can do it the way Jotika suggests. I would have done it that way myself, but it is what it is now.

By the way, in the areas where the hatches are located, you need to trim the bulkheads (this applies to the 5th, 7th, and 11th ones). However, do not cut out the slot for part No. 16 in the 6th bulkhead, as this is the exact spot where the two sections of the lower deck join.

With pure euphoria in my soul, I could barely fall asleep after the work done. And the realization that tomorrow is painting day kept sleep away entirely.
(Oh, right! What you see right now consists of 91 parts. Just a bit of statistics.)



06.11.2009
   I woke up late, but I had to hurry—it's not summer anymore, and it gets dark early. So, having prepared everything for painting, I began.
It took three hours to paint everything in matte (I repeat, matte) black. And while the model is drying on the balcony, I can rest a little and continue the review.


07.11.2009

 
I didn't think the paint would take this long to dry. But my patience was running out, so I photographed it as it is.

The Victory turned out looking a bit "gothic" right now. But no worries, very soon all of this will be hidden beneath two layers of planking and the upper decks.


Number of parts ~ 100 pieces



08.11.2009



 Until 6 AM I was calculating the layout of the gun ports, but I still didn't manage to finish everything.
First, I calculated everything on paper according to the drawing.

*Click the left mouse button on the image to open it in a new tab

But the drawing, as you understand, is a two-dimensional image, and when trying them on the model, adjustments were made.

*By the way, please note that the gun ports on the battleship are NOT identical! They have different sizes (see the image below).

  Lower strake (14.5x12.5mm)   Two middle ones  (14x11.5mm)  and Upper strake  (13x10mm)  Double-door ports (14.5x10mm).  Dimensions for laying the port walls! The internal distances will be smaller by the wall thickness.

   Only in the morning did I transfer everything from the templates to the wood.  These are the so-called intermediate templates.  I think balsa is an excellent material for this, but the problem of cutting across the grain made itself felt. I had to cut along it first, then "crumple" it with a margin (that's the only way I can describe this process), and only then finish it with sandpaper.
In the end, this is what happened.

With minor corrections, the topic was exhausted.
As you have noticed, I skipped the option of "picking out" the ports in the finished planking.    I preferred the option proposed by JoTiKa.   
Yes, I spent 1.5 days on calculations, but I am very impressed with the result.   The great advantage of this method is that everything can be fixed on the template, brought to millimeter accuracy, and you have access from the opposite side (controlling the alignment of the ports with the strips for the guns).


Of course, it's not without flaws, which ideally should be no more than 0.3 mm, but the putty will hide them too. But more on that later, and for now, having transferred everything to plywood (1 mm, but I would recommend at least 1.5 mm), the work of cutting out the ports awaited me... cutting out, cutting out, and 100 more times "cutting out".   One huge plus! This is all done on the table, in a comfortable position, and not suspended on the model, constantly watching out not to damage it.



10.11.2009

 
And having already tuned in to the work of cutting out the ports, I tried on all the parts once again.   And here I was a little in shock!  I certainly understand everything, and let some people tell me (that they are allegedly not visible, and the boats will cover them...), BUT!   The walls (specifically parts No. 27) are very much visible if you look deep into the ship. (It's a pity I couldn't quite capture it in the photo).
From the front…

and from the back.

I scratched my "itching" head a bit and made a decision – to "change" it!
The option (very strange that I didn't use it initially) offered by Jotika was quite suitable for this. I added the changes in the drawings to the "Work on Drawings" section.
    So, what did I do?!    First, I cut off a part of the strip for the "pseudo-guns" (a new part No. 27 will be glued to the remaining piece); second, I cut off a part of the bulkhead at the deck level...
sanded everything down…

…and added an extension of the deck.
After that, I cut out new "ears" for the bulkheads and glued them into their rightful place. The same applies to part No. 27.

The result – I liked it. The walls are barely visible, and the part that remains in view will be covered by part No. 53 (imitation of the deck thickness).

119 parts on board...
Ahead - the aforementioned gun ports.



25.11.2009

 
    For several days, I was cutting out the ports themselves first...


… and then the plates on which they are located. According to the layout, I sanded everything down and painted the inside in matte black. Naturally, leaving clean the places where the plates will be glued to the bulkheads (the photo shows the view from inside and outside).  I also painted the strips, the purpose of which you will understand in the future.



13.12.2009

 
And now, the moment has come when the port plates will take their rightful place.
As you can see, all methods are good for fixation: clothespins, clamps, nails, and C-clamps. 

Immediately after the first strake of ports, I glued the inserts. They will serve as an element of fixation. So that the plates are not glued butt-to-butt, but overlapping onto these linings.

To strengthen the structure when it comes to sanding, I also reinforced the upper ends with linings. This will also add rigidity to avoid sagging during sanding and peeling of the putty.

And while there was access, I glued the lowest deck. More precisely, 4 crossbeams that hold the 3 parts of the deck glued together inside (since that was the only way to place it inside). Everything is painted black. In the future, in the places where the deck will be visible (and these are 4 triangles that will be seen next to the stairs), planked deck fragments will be placed.     Thus, visually it will seem that the deck is present in full.

Then came the second strakes with their inserts…
... and the third ones. But here I also reinforced the lower end. This will ensure good contact with the filler blocks that will cover the rest of the hull down to the keel frame.

With this, the first part of the false planking is completed. 242 parts on board, more to come!



 

13.12.2009

 

Let's summarize the result.

3 bands of gun ports were glued on each side..



Now it's up to the filler blocks, which will cover the entire lower part of the hull, as well as the bow and stern.



21.12.2009

 

But still, let's start with the stern.
I can say single-mindedly, the option offered by the kit manufacturer (according to whose drawings I am building) absolutely did not suit me!

After seeing it with my own eyes, I cut everything down to the root.


Armed with drawings from Jotika, I cut out a number of parts to assemble the stern framework. Out of the vertical walls, I left only the two side ones. I decided to make the inner ones hollow and fabricated. On the sides, there are ears where the side section of the stern will be fixed.


Then come the hull lines. After calculating the stern camber, I manufactured them, as well as the beds for the decks.


After that, it was possible to install the false decks into their designated place. In addition, in the last bulkhead, I made the lower end beveled for a smooth transition from the stern section into the hull planking.


I painted all this thoroughly...


... and finally glued the front wall of the stern. Please note, this is only the rough framework. Therefore, only the edges of the windows were painted; the entire remaining part of the gallery will be covered by layers of the final stern planking (imitation of glass, columns, and carvings).

Now it's up to the side sections of the stern.



25.12.2009

 
5 long days of work were spent on the stern framework. Today I can say it's all done.
The work on the side sections took a lot of effort. First, I had to cut out and glue the ribs. I borrowed them from the Jotika drawings, calculating the exact scale. Moreover, these ribs are double, and they alternate between solid ones and hollow "balcony" ones. The latter were a bit more difficult to fix.

Then all of this had to be painted, and I had to wait until it was completely dry.

After that, I had to individually calculate and glue the walls. First the "balcony" ones, where the columns will be located in the future...

... and then the "window" ones. I would like to note that they will remain solid only for the duration of putting and sanding. After gluing the final planking to them, holes for the windows will be cut out in the "window" walls. More details later in the review.

In a word, the entire framework is ready, /except for the lower band (with gun ports), which will be formed after the false planking of the hull/!

Next up is forming the lines of the bow section of the ship.



14.01.2010

 

At the beginning, I hurried to take care of the bed for the bowsprit, so that it wouldn't wobble in the hull but sit firmly in its place.


Then, having previously chosen the option for manufacturing the forecastle lines, I directly proceeded to its implementation. I had no desire to experience bending the strips twice in the bow section (and as a result, both balsa and lime strips would flex during sanding), so I decided to substitute the gaps between the bulkheads with filler blocks.

I left a small margin (1-1.5mm) to prevent any hollows from forming in the future. I tried to keep the structure hollow to save material and to easily create the window at the level of the second row of gun ports.


As a result, I got a fairly rigid structure, and all further work on the false planking will be carried out using this principle.

Number of parts ~ 400 pieces

 



01.10.2010



So, October 1st (exactly one year since I started building the Victory... though I didn't work on it for half a year, it's still a significant date!), and at the moment, the work on the false planking is practically finished.
As a reminder, I chose balsa as the material, and the method used is filler blocks! I believe this is better than using lime or especially balsa strips, because during sanding, the gaps between the bulkheads can flex, leaving the hull wavy. This obviously won't happen with filler blocks, as the block thickness is 6mm (alternatively, it could be more, but I worked with the highest efficiency), and the structure turns out rigid. They need to be glued with a small outward extension (I took approx. 1 mm, and looking at the result, it's enough) so that there are no hollows during sanding.


The front and rear sections were the hardest. To replicate the hull lines, I had to glue fragments of the filler blocks longitudinally, but end-grain outward.




When everything was ready, I sealed all the openings with tape before sanding and began shaping the angular crystal into rounded forms.

I was pleased with the result. All flaws around the bulkheads (and some hollows) will soon be filled with putty, followed by the final sanding.

Currently, the hull consists of 700 parts and weighs over 2.1 kg, making it heavy to hold in hand for long periods.



 04-05.10.2010

 
The false planking is nearing its logical conclusion, and before mounting the decks (for temporary fixing), I decided to align the masting. (The masts are rough versions, used only for alignment!)
I would like to remind you that a battleship has a different rake for each mast: the foremast is at 90 degrees, the mainmast is +2 degrees to the rear, and the mizzenmast is +3 degrees to the rear. The bowsprit is at 35 degrees relative to the LWL (load waterline). In many kits, this detail is missed!



As for the longitudinal axis of the ship, all masting components must align with it, i.e., at 90 degrees.
After making sure everything was correct, I turned my attention to the decks.
First, I secured the side supports (this is important because the topmost plank of the planking will be fixed to these supports, and the deck rests in the groove formed by them, becoming flush).

Then this groove transitioned from horizontal to vertical, thereby holding the deck in a cambered state. That's on one side...

... on the other side, however, the deck wouldn't have gone in this way. I had to saw off a fragment (making connecting pads on it)...

... and glue it tightly to the hull (of course, we blacken everything from the inside with ink so that it can't be seen through the ports).

After that, the main part can be temporarily fixed (I chose fixing with screws).

Having finished with the middle deck, I moved on to the upper deck. Using internal lining blocks, I created the camber. In parallel, I cut out the bulwarks.

Then I glued them. The deck fits freely between them and is not permanently fixed yet.



In the future, it's not very convenient to have clamps on the deck, so I did the same as with the upper one... glued internal inserts to provide curvature.

At this point, the huge stage called "false planking" is finished. Ahead lies the fixing of over 100 gun ports. A monotonous, long job before applying filler and the final sanding of the hull.


720 parts on board... let's move on!





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