The Cutty Sark - a build log {part 5}

     tying on all those blocks, the tackle required to rig the various lines on the Cutty, took quite a bit of time.  soon, they were all in their perspective places, ready to take on the rolls they were soon to play, in this “string art” collaboration with Revell.  the blocks, depending where they were place, performed different tasks.  a few of the blocks and dead eyes are to be used for the standing rigging, lines that do not move and are, in a sense, part of the framework of the ship.  they do not require pulleys.  there are the fore stays, that keep tension on the masts in a forward direction.  it runs as follows: the bow spirit and boom are held in place by their perspective bow fore stays and the chain gear rigging from underneath the structure, serves as it’s back stays.  they keep the spirit and boom secure.  from there are the fore mast stays.  the bow end serves as an anchor as they pull the fore mast forward. from there is the main mast stays.  they in turn use the fore mast as their anchor and pulls the main mast forward.  the mizzen mast, in the case that your ship is a three master, will be the last and final mast in the chain.  the mizzen mast stays use the main mast as an anchor and pulls the mizzen forward.
     to complete the support that the mast need to stay erect, even in the roughest of waters, are the back stays.  on all three masts, the back stays perform the same task, using dead eyes that are connected to the deck structures, as their anchor.  they are connected at different point of the mast, to pull them back and keep them perpendicular to the deck.  to look at the setup of these structures, you will notice that they are supported at three points, in a triangular configuration.

     in this picture, most of the fore stays are installed.  the lifts for the three lowest yards have also been installed.  they are only attached by a singular pinnacle, the need for extra support was called for.  there are a few ways to accomplish this task.  some like to start from the back to the front and some do each mast individually, but I prefer this method.  I do the bow head gear rigging first, making sure that the chain aspects are taught, as well as the bow fore stays.  the word “taught” refers to the word “tight”, a variant.  what is needed to be achieved here is the degree of tightness…..I refer to it as “absolute zero”.  to give you an idea of what I’m talking about, take a piece of string and hold it in your fingers.
     pull it, stretching it as much as you can.  with your little finger, reach it up and flick the string…..it’s very tight.  now slowly relax the string, while flicking it at different stages.  what you are looking for is tightness in the string, without a lot of tension.  too much tension and the mast will bend, distorting it being perpendicular to the deck.  when you can find the taught, without being tight….that is absolute zero.
     the fore stays on the rest of the ship should be rigged, so that they are just before zero, but not too taught.  this will be taken up when the back stays are installed.  this is where you will see what each line does.  to gauge the tension of the back stays, take your index finger and gently pull back at different points of the mast that you are working on.  you should see lines tighten up, but you will also notice that the bow moves up and down as well.  it’s pretty cool to see one line transfer tension from one line to another.  you should also see lines that relax and go limp.  if you see this occur, you will know to adjust the tension for that back stay.
     by the time you are done, you should have a ship with lines taught enough to support you jibs and stay sails without them sagging with the extra weight.  after allowing you ship to dry overnight, the next step will be the lifts and halyards.  halyards are running rigging lines that are attached to the yard and tied off to a pin, in close proximity to that particular mast down on deck.  they raise and lower the yards, raised when they are fitted with sail and lowered when they are in port and the sails have been removed.  there are two types of lifts, the running lifts that are manipulated with pulleys and blocks, which in turn, make them adjustable and there are the standing lifts, which give support when the yards are in their lowered position.  they do not move, but do require adjustments from time to time.  if you plan on equipping you ship with sails, as i am, these particular lifts need to be slack enough to hang down below the yard, long enough to lend credibility that they will be taught when the yard is in the lowered position.  lastly, your standing rigging should be done in black thread, giving the impression that it has been coated with tar, to protect it from the elements and your running rigging should be done in tan thread, not coated with tar, so they can be manipulated freely.  your instructions will tell you otherwise if something special needs to be done.
    when this step is finished, it’s time to tie on some more blocks.  I like to look ahead and tie these on so I don’t have to stop in the middle of the next step, which I think is the best step of all…..installing the sails!  if you thought this bit of rigging was tough, wait til you rig your sails.  the only hint I can give you at this point…..if you don’t have any “long reach tools”, like tweezers, scissors, and picks, you better get some.  as my Cutty sits on the table beside me drying……I can’t wait!

The Cutty Sark - a build log {part 4}

   the problems in making the depth markers took a lot of wind out of my sails.  between the time of thinking just how to go about making the markers and actually holding a viable set in my hands, I occupied myself with the building of another model kit….something that I don’t usually do.       I hate to leave a kit undone before i start another one.  after that one was finished, I started back on the Cutty Sark.  I did a little here and a little there, but was having a hard time getting back into the swing.  then a wooden ship called the Nordkap fell into my possession.  I have never done a wooden kit before, but this is a opportunity of a life time.  my mind started to see the potential and I even saw where I should start on it, being already started by the person I got it from.  but no….I couldn’t!  what about the Cutty?  I just couldn’t see myself tabling it…I’ve gone so far on it.  the threat of forgetting even the most minute aspect of the scheme I was following, was too great.  I have to finish the Cutty first.
     I turned to playing a video game….to clear my head and to think where i was going with the Cutty.  I ended off with the aft life boats; that’s where i should pick up the build, where i left off.  the oars were not in the life boats yet and they were not lashed down……I started in.  once that was done, the davits were next, after which, they were rigged as well.


     the next area on my list was the various deadeyes that are to be for the headgear rigging.  at this stage, I could only do half of the rigging.  I also installed the bumkins, the arms that jut out from the wales on both sides of the ship that support the steering rigging.  the instructions said to use 1 inch pieces of string, but I used chain to make them…visible in the picture above.  the majority of the headgear rigging in this stage is comprised of chain; the bow spirit stays being light black thread.  the rest of the fore stays will be installed once the masts are in place permanently.


     the deadeyes that will support the ratlines {shrouds} and the back stays can be seen in these pictures as well.  I wonder why folks who do wooden kits as well as plastic {in some that I have seen}, choose to paint or do these with tan thread.  these supports are never altered and for the most part, they are coated with tar to protect them.  I do find that a bit out of context, but it is a nice bit of detail, none the less. I was going to try this type of scheme for them, but since I did the top mast and the top gallant deadeyes in black, I couldn’t do it….you have to stick with the scheme you have chosen for your kit, or your subject will look unbalanced.  this should be decided on before you start on your build.
     other aspect, like the life boat gaffs were installed next.  the sails that I am using are a combination of 1 sheet of the original sails that I got with the kit and the two sheets that i got from Revell, when I issued a missing parts request.  the original sails are a pale white, while the replacement sails are a sort of beige colored plastic.  I don’t like to do this, but I am forced to paint the sails in order to make them all the same color.  the paint, I feel, is added weight for the yards in which they will be attached to.  this alters the specs that the kit was based on and over time, the threat of a yard breaking could be a factor in it’s longevity.  I don’t know…..call me a picky worry-wart of sorts. I chose a light gray, thinned down a bit….I had already done a test subject, so i know it will work out fine.  here is a shot of the sails and the different colors of the plastic is quite visible.

     these had to be painted front and back.  I used almost an ounce of paint in doing these.  there are 35 sails that are going on this ship.  once they were done, I had made up a make-shift clothes line in my computer room to hang them so they would dry completely.  my wife saw that and now she wants a clothes line!
     the next thing that I am to do before the masts are cemented in permanently, is to tie as many blocks on the masts as I can while they are free.  I can lay them on my desk and do this hopefully without fear of breaking a yard off.  I will have more room as well.  I have never done it in this way before, so it will serve as a test.  if it works well, I may incorporate this into any future builds.  once that is done, then they will be cemented in and the start of the final leg of it’s journey will commence……the rigging of the Cutty Sark.

The Cutty Sark - a build log {part 3}

    I was faced with a perplexing dilemma…..what to do about the white depth markers.  I went on line to try to find a solution.  I happened onto a site of another person that does decals.  I wrote to him, including a scan of the depth markers, explaining my problem.  he promptly wrote back saying that he could do them and told me it would cost around ten dollars.  I shot back an e-mail giving the go-ahead, not wasting any time.  I wanted these decals to be perfect.  given my current state of graphic knowledge, this would be a crap shoot, at best.  in order to produce these particular decals, a scan of these decals would have to be manipulated with a paint shop program.  The depth markers are made up in a group of roman numerals, stacked one on top of another….the bow is staggered in gradual steps, while the stern markers are listed in a straight formation.  the lettering would have to be changed to a color with pigment, like a light gray.  the alternative is to use the white decal paper, bordering all the letters with a black outline and then altering the background so that it becomes transparent.  this process is called layering.  the letters would be considered one layer, while the background would be another.  while i waited to hear from this gentleman, I tried my hand at it.  after a few tries and deleting each one, I tabled it, the frustration level too high to continue.  I turned my attention to what I knew best….I went back to working on the Cutty.       the frustration carried along with me, almost messing up the aft stanchions that are to hold the pair of life boats above the second structure.  I saw my mistake and quickly corrected it before permanent damage was done.  after a short pause, clearing my thoughts, I set back to work again.  before long, both life boats were saddled in the stanchion, the Cutty name embossing their bows.  all the while this process was coming to fruition, I was touching up minor defects as i found them.  I installed the trail boards and completed the anchor assembly, suspending them from the catheads and the bow cleats.  the figure head was next on the list, in which i had to make a slight change also.  in a photo of the bow of the original Cutty Sark, Nannie Dee, the depiction of the figurehead, is completely white with a gold sash around her dress.  where I had painted the horn of the bow a light gray as well as the bow spirit, I decided to change her up a little.  there is just too much artistry to pass up. I painted her in a light blue bodice with a gold sash.  her bare skin was painted flesh tone and her hair a dark brown.  when she was dry, she was then cemented onto the horn.
     The Cutty Sark was named after a poem called “Tam O’Shanter, written by Robert Burns.  it is a classic poem, written in old English with a Scottish flare.  the name Cutty Sark, translated, means “short shirt”.  in the poem, a farmer by the name of Tam O’Shanter, was in the town of Ayer, on the other side of the river Doon. he was drinking at the local tavern and he stayed much too late.  the setting of the poem is around the 1800’s, back in the days of folklore and stories.  due to these beliefs, folks didn’t venture out much at night, fearing that they might meet up with the devil, or something worse.  night time was know to them as sort of a witching hour, the plot of the poem is as such.  Tam left the tavern and on his horse, he went on his way home, on the other side of the river.  on the way, he paused to witness a ghastly sight.  a group of witches were dancing around a warlock, disrobing as they danced and Tam, as drunk as he was, watched with great interest.  he then spied a young witch that was clothed in a bodice that looked too small for her.  in his excitement, he exclaimed “weel done, cutty sark!”.  this enraged the witches and they gave chase after him!  his only chance to out run them was to cross the river, since witches can’t cross open water.  Nannie Dee was the name of the witch who led the chase and just as he crossed the river, she made an attempt to grab him.  she fell short, only to get a hold of the horse’s tail and tear it from the beast, by the root!  Tam made it home, safe and sound, the same not to be said of the horse though.
     by this time, a couple of weeks went by and still no word from the fellow about the decals.  I e-mailed him asking if there was any progress on them.  he replied, saying that it was very busy there and he hadn’t had a chance as of yet, but he would.  I really hated to bother him, but i was hoping that he might have at least something to tell me.  maybe soon, I thought to myself, tabling the Cutty for the time being.  in the event that I got the decals, I could still have the option of being able to lay her on her side to put them on.  I did some more research on decal making and winning a bid on e-bay to own another kit that I had built in the past.  this kit is the U.S.S. United States, a kit that since the late 80’s, I had not been able to find again due to it’s rarity.  in my travels, I heard many ideas about how to reproduce these decals…..one of which was to draw them on the ship.  I dismissed it though because the chance of making a grave mistake was too great.  I did start to wonder about this idea though….how about if I tried to trace the depth markers on the decal sheet with a paint marker?  I had around six copies of these decals and i could make more if i needed to.
     I went looking for a light gray paint marker.  my wife and youngest son was already looking and they brought home a couple that they thought would work.  they were of the metallic type however, an aspect of color that I couldn’t use.  I did manage to find a white, fine tipped paint marker, as luck would have it, but I still held hope that this fellow was going to come through with the decals.  a couple more weeks had gone by in this time frame, I decided to contact him again.  he wrote back saying that he had forgotten about them……..Which to me, translated into…..”errr, I really don’t feel like doing it.”  that settled it!  I was going to do these decals on my own…..using my idea!
     It took all six of those copies, but I ended up with a satisfactory set of depth markers.  they were not perfect….there are a couple of small defects, but I decided to use them anyway.  the tip wasn’t sharp enough, so I took it out of the marker {it is removable} and made it a bit sharper with my x-actor knife.  from there I had to figure out how much to bear down and how fast to move the marker.  once i got that down to a science, the next few started to look better.  after I had the set that I was going to use, I sprayed them with the bonder…remembering to go a little heavier with it.  I then let them dry for a couple of days……in this time I sent an e-mail to the fellow, telling him to cancel the order and that I did it myself.  when they were dry, I put them on the ship:






     now the decaling is complete…they are all on the ship.  she has a name, prominently displayed on the bow.  what makes me feel even better, is the fact that I did all this on my own.  i thank my friends for the pictures of the decals, because without them, I would be totally lost.  this has given me a whole different perspective about decals.  if I even have an idea that they are old, I will spray them with the bonder and perhaps save myself from all this grief.  I also am going to scan every decal I come in contact with, just in case something like this comes up again….or if I have a kit that doesn’t have any.  this will also widen my decal library, so that I may have more choices down the road.  my wife has told me that she has books on the subject of paint shop in the cellar.  I am going to bring them up and do some studying on the subject….maybe if my wife sees it, it may come back to her and she can help me if I need it.  as I said in an earlier blog….modeling is an accumulation of knowledge and skill.  I find that my craft has just broadened before my eyes.  this whole episode took about two and a half months to come to a close.  hopefully, next time, I will be better prepared.  this brings my build log up to date.  I will add more as the build progresses………we’ll leave the light on for ya!

The Cutty Sark - a build log {part 2}

   I left off the first part, with a shot of the Cutty with some of the decals on it already.  I saw a point in the build where I could apply them without hindrance from parts that would be in the way later in the build.  I couldn’t wait to use the decals that I had gotten from Revell.  the decal sheet was perfect in every way….no yellowing and free of bends or creases.  as I cut out the decals I was to apply first, I daydreamed of how this ship was to look, sporting her new decals.  I wanted this ship to be perfect…I still do.
     I was going to put the scroll work on the bow, dipping the decal in the water, I waited sufficient time for it to release from the paper backing.  I was immediately horrified by what I saw next.  when I slid the decal, it broke up in hundreds of tiny shards……the victim of age and micro cracking!  I tried another with the same results.  needless to say, I was beside myself….what was I to do?  I tried to send in another missing parts request…..but they were unable to complete the order, stock was depleted.  I put a post on the Model’s Buzz….an A.P.B. for these decals, but even that was a bust.  in my search for these decals, I had heard of products out there on the market, where I would be able to create my own decals.  I dismissed it however, I wanted these decals to be perfect….and not the product of an experiment.
     I had read about a person that did it here on the Buzz, so I sent him a letter, along with a scan of the decals that Jean had sent me {after I had written to him about the problem I was having}.  I got a letter back within a few days, a refusal, simply saying that he couldn’t print gold.  “That takes care of that,” I thought to myself and i turned back to the idea of making them myself.  Testor’s had a kit, sold at the new hobby store.  My wife, in one of her errands the next day, picked it up for me.  she came home with the kit and a package of paper {1/2 sheets}, each item costing $10.00.  I installed the “sure thing decal maker” into my computer, via the CD supplied and I was well on my way.  the decal maker program is it’s own paint shop.  once the decal is created in the program and sized according to the desired scale, any inkjet printer can print these decals onto the decal paper.  there are two types of paper you can use, either clear or white, depending on the type of decals you are making.  I, being of limited graphic knowledge….a deer in the headlights, in a vernacular of speaking….was totally clueless in the trip I was about to embark on.  I never even knew that this existed until this was brought to light.  I paused in my ponderings, when I came to an important conclusion….I needed ink cartridges for my printer!
    my wife’s printer was on it’s last leg, so on to the department store we went. I figured that I would just get a color cartridge for the moment.  the cost of a cartridge for my printer was $33.98….wow!  my wife found a printer she liked….I was shocked to find that it cost $10.00 more that the cartridge!  we walked out of the store with two new printers, each one had a scanner built in.  we checked out the cost of the cartridges and found that they were half the cost of our existing printers….we are going to save big….all the way around!  we hurried back to the house to set them up.
     Once we were set up and ready to rock ‘n roll, I started by importing the scan of the decal sheet into the decal maker program.  I had sized it to 1:96 scale ahead of time and was ready for the next step.  I soon found that the decal maker kit didn’t have the ability to import outside projects into it.  I soon found myself looking at the Testor’s website for answers.

     what I found out was true….the kit did not have the capability of performing such tasks.  but, the “decal maker standard edition” did….so, I ordered that, at the cost of $18.00 with postage. it took about a week to get to me.  I promptly installed it into my computer, after uninstalling the other one……and NOW I was ready!  soon, I had a 1/2 sheet with the decal sheet {shown above} on it.  it seemed like such a waste of decal paper, that I did a second page in the project that had the sheet in triplicate……taking up the majority of the 1/2 sheet.  I also did one in white, just in case.  after the decals were printed, they had to be sprayed with a product called “decal bonder”, that I had gotten from the kit {the only waste in buying the kit, was the program itself}.  I started to spray them with it….one spray told the story….the stuff stinks really bad!  My wife came up with the idea to use the range hood as an exhaust fan…she is so smart {that’s why I married her, you know}.  it worked great….I spread newspaper on top of the stove and sprayed them there, letting them dry overnight.  the range top fan sucked up the odor and vented it to the outside.  I have a paint booth now!
    the next day, after having all night to dry, I set about the task of applying the new decals, my first attempt at making them.  first i did the bow…both sides.  they were a little yellowed, but they looked real good and I was satisfied with my accomplishment.  then, the decal for the stern was next.  I should have sprayed the bonder a little thicker, because the stern decal started to curl up as soon as it left the paper.



     It took a couple of tries {and decals} to apply the stern decal.  it curled up as soon as it left the paper.  it was also very elastic and started to stretch, if I pulled it in any way.  the wheel house was next….they were not bad at all….they were tiny decals….what’s not to love about putting them on.  I did the trail boards next, but they were not installed on the ship until i got to the stage where I could install and suspend the anchors.
     the last decals to go on, were the depth markers…..and this is where decal making took a turn for the worst.  when I slid them off the paper, they were transparent!  they were white on the paper…..what the heck happened!??  the hard rule for any printer, except the alps printer {which are now extinct and hard to find}, is that printers do not print white.  this is supposed to be where the white decal paper comes into play.  again, my graphic skills reared it’s ugly head…..the decal was white, but the decal background was there also……a greenish yellow!  some of you folks out there are quite astute….you must be thinking to yourselves…..”he didn’t mention anything about the depth markers from the original decal sheet….the one he got from Revell.  he could have sprayed them with the bonder and saved himself a lot of trouble.”  truth be told folks….I threw them away!  I ditched them at the beginning of my little problem. I have thought about this, believe me……the idea of the bonder and how it could have revitalized those decals…..i kicked myself many times already {I asked my wife to do it…but she refused}.  it just goes to show you folks, an experienced modeler like myself can make mistakes too.  modeling is far from being a textbook craft.  all of the ideas that you see in other builds, come from years of accumulated imagination and study.
  in my next chapter of “how to get out of a sticky situation”, I will tell of just how I got myself out of this one.  printers that don’t print white….but, they do print an acceptable gold.  it may not have the luster, but it was good enough for me.  I should be able to bring you up to where i am now with the progress of the Cutty build.  until then, keep your x-actors sharp…and your wits too!

The Cutty Sark - a build log

I joined Model’s Buzz a while ago.  before that, I had visited this site a couple of times before with problems concerning  my current build, the Cutty Sark.  the first time was during my search for sails.  I had bought this kit from e-bay, a kit so old, that the sails had degraded and become unusable.      The decals were also in bad shape.  I sent a missing parts request to Revell, in hopes of acquiring replacement parts for this kit.  it has a total of 35 sails, molded on three sheets of very thin plastic.  I was dismayed when I got the package from Revell….only two of the sheets and the decals.  this was a setback that forced me to search the internet, if I was to have any success of finding them.  it took a few months, but one day I was contacted by a fellow named Jean, who lives in Belgium.  He was looking for the instruction sheets for the same kit and proposed a trade to me….his sails for a copy of the instructions.  I gladly did that and the trade was made.  I had not started the build of the ship, not without having sails to put on it.  I had built this ship before….even though I didn’t do a lot of painting on it, the sails gave it a very majestic look and added to it’s beauty.
     when I heard that the sails were in the mail, I started the build.  as I painted and assembled the hull, I thought and planned how she was to look….this was to be my “Picasso”….my ultimate build.  through years of acquired knowledge, I was going to throw everything i know at it.  I looked up subject matter on the ship and learned much about her history.




     I started the build in December of 2009.  I had purchased the kit back in 2007.  this gap of time was spent on research and locating the sails and decal sheet.  My build table was very small….it was my desk!  the kitchen table was used to sort out parts and a place to put parts that were drying.
     January was very busy for me and great progress was made.  February, however was a turbulent time….we were moving!  we had enough with the dealings with our landlord and we had found another place that was larger and more affordable.  the first thing was to get all my musical equipment and other models over to the new apartment unscathed.  the Cutty was to be moved by me personally.  I left instructions that it was to be packed in our car, I had wrapped the hull in a large towel and packed all the other parts in the box it came in.  I was too busy to notice that my wishes were not being followed.  when we got to the new place to unload, I was shocked that my oldest son had packed the Cutty in the trunk of his car!
     I was relieved to find that he had packed it in such a way, that it was safe and sound.  I got it out of the cold as fast as I could and set it in a place where it would be out of harms way.  once we got settled in, I set up my area again and the build continued.


     the build continued, piece by piece.  as parts were fitted and painted, they were assembled onto the deck.  the next few steps really made the ship show signs of progress.  the galley was fitted and installed, the foremast was completed and the pin rails were installed.  the galley had a skylight on it’s roof.  for some reason, Revell never made provision for this as far as window material was concerned.  I found a rectangular piece of clear cello, as thick as a piece of paper, enough to do all the portholes and the galley skylight.  this was the first major change I made to the Cutty plans.  the second change was to be how the anchor chain and the windlass assembly was to look.  in the plans, it looked fake, with the chain going under the roller. the windlass/anchor assembly was to utilize three pieces of chain.  I figured I could do it using two pieces of chain.  this change can be seen in a past blog that I had done on the subject. even when I wrote that blog, it had not dawned on me to do a blog on this ship’s creation.  I hope that I can be forgiven.  one other aspect of the ship that I did, was to give it a waterline, something I did maybe once on another kit a while back.  I almost botched it up then and I was in a quandary as to whether I should risk it now.  my wife helped me to decide.




     this last picture is a big step forward in time.  it was taken in may, after a lot of the deck assemblies, like the various pumps and reels, the windlass and forecastle deck, front structure life boat and the stern rails have been installed.  you may also notice that there are decals on the bow and stern.  they have their own story………