HMS Unicorn Build Log 10 - Ladder Stanchion Making

Ladder Stanchion Making

I've finally put my ladder's stanchions on, and it's the first rigging done for this build. :D I first drilled holes at the 4 corners, and put the stanchions on which I already blacken.

My plan was to add two platforms for the stanchions at the end of the ladder, so that when the rigging is done I'll just need to put the whole completed piece to the deck. But when I done the platform, it didn't look good. The platforms seem like an extra piece of wood below the stanchions. So, I changed my mind to directly stick them on to the orlop. 

The challenge of this is I'll need to drill through the little ladder hole, and glue the stanchion on, and make sure it's in the correct direction. After sometimes of squeezing and twisting, I finally managed to fit the first one on. And of course, the knot is already done before I put it in. :)

Here comes the challenging part... I'll need to put the last stanchion to the orlop with the stopper knot tied. What I did is, I put the stanchion with thread to the orlop first, got a desired tension, and made a mark at the end of the stanchion. There will be the point where the stopper knot located.

Marking the end point with the ladder on is even tougher.. got it after few minutes. So, I took the stanchion out again and made that stopper knot, cut the end and glue it on the orlop.

The last stanchion as seen from top.

Group photo with the gratings. :) In this photo, I've already adjusted the tension of the thread to tighter above the deck, and those going into the orlop, looser. 

Thanks for viewing! :)

HMS Unicorn Build Log 9 - Bulwark Planking & Gratings

Bulwark Planking & Gratings

If referring to the HMS Unicorn (1824), the bulwark is painted to ocher green. But, since I don't have any green paint currently, I decided to paint them to red.

I did some sanding and tapering on the lowest plank to meet the deck's level, and pre-cut those wood strips between gun ports.

After the planking is done, I repainted them for a better finish. From the picture below, you can see that the beams are actually done too. Corel suggests to use the kit provided birch wood strip (4mm x 4mm), but instead, I used balsa. Birch strips are too nice for beam. :D

Then I started to drill holes for the eye bolts. I used an unused piece of plywood for more precise distance marking from the gun port. 

Done! And you can also see that the remaining deck planking is done too. :)

I continued to the gratings making on the same day. Gratings that provided by Corel is real bad in quality, so I purchased OcCre ones to replace them from CMB.

For the surrounds, I used 2mm x 3mm wood strips.

This is how my deck looks like now with gratings and ladder on. :) Also, treenails detail are added. I'm using the same technique as my Race Horse, which is chalked by using a mechanical pencil. :)

Thanks for viewing. :)