USS Constipation 1/120 scale Imai long suffering build

[Jim R]

Good progress on this Richard. That's a lot of guns to fit :rolling:
Jim

[rtfoe]

Coming on very nicely Richard!!

ATB

Andrew

Thank you Andrew, glad you're following.

The rebuild of the spar deck used Douglas Fir instead of White Oak so may appear darker now. The construction was much different than other fighting ships of the day. It was faster & more maneuverable, longer, narrower, straighter, heavier & more rigid than British & French ships of its' class. Internal bracing were cut from single trees & transferred weight evenly along the keel. It was all pegged construction. The "iron sides" used horizontal White Oak planks for the inside & outside layers with Live Oak (75lbs/cu. ft.) planks in between.

Wow Paul, that is fantastic reference and much appreciated. I was wondering why the spar deck wood color was dark in those photos and perhaps had followed that reference in the decks previous color when other builds show a remarkably lighter shade to the deck. Just like in the movie Master And Command where they discussed the French ship being built with a straighter keel for speed.

Good progress on this Richard. That's a lot of guns to fit :rolling:
Jim

Thanks Jim, she had a different number of guns for a frigate but heavier and bigger guns for her class if I'm not mistaken.

As mentioned I have re-done the white panel that runs along the hull to correct it. Here are the progress images, I first dry brushed a new coat of white with a vertical stroke before masking. This gave a slightly weathered look...I didn't whiten the line of planking just above the gun ports as that will be painted over with black.



Masking done as well as the open gun ports above just in case there is a spill-over.



Yes I re-used the previous masking I did on the deck as they were still good and thought of recycling.



Much better now and it gives the hull side a much broader height.



Will need retouching of the recessed panel lines where the white has creeped in.

Cheers,
Richard

[Jim R]

Hi Richard
That has worked well. The white does look better. Reusing the masking - now that is frugal modelling :smiling:
Jim

[rtfoe]

Hi Richard
That has worked well. The white does look better. Reusing the masking - now that is frugal modelling :smiling:
Jim

Thanks Jim, had to as paints don't turn yellow that fast even it was from that period. As long as the tape hasn't any cuts and in one piece I'll reuse it. Also good for any filler areas that are exposed which doesn't need new tape. Tamiya tape is still tacky and crisp after a few runs...I don't know how they do it.

Cheers,
Richard

[Jim R]

In some situations tape that has been used is better as the stickiness is reduced so there is less chance of pulling paint off :thumb2:

[rtfoe]

Today at the LHS I enhanced the waterline by masking and airbrushing a new coat of copper...



As usual I re-used the masking tape. The Revell enamel copper has an oldish tint than the Tamiya copper which suites the weathered bottom area.



Had only 3 hours to do the above and made a quick run on the way home to pack some dinner. Today's dinner was Chee Cheong Fun (steamed rice vermicelli rolled until they look like intestines hence the name, Chee is pig, Cheong is intestines, Fun is noodle) accompanied with fried tofu and pork filling, vege, meat and fishballs served with sweet savory thick soya bean sauce or coconut creamed curry.

Cheers,
Richard

[Tim Marlow]

Making me feel hungry Richard……as to the build…looking excellent. Love the aged copper finish…..not going for a weed encrusted finish then?

[JR]

Thanks for that info Paul, I checked with images of the restored Constitution and the decks seem flush all the way with no nail protrusions.
Don't know which is more accurate, the restoration or what Imai claims they are depicting the ship during her early active period? Both ships have different lines. The restored version is pretty straight from bow to stern where as the Imai offering has a curve like most sailing ships of the period. The Revell version is also curved from bow to stern.

Cheers,
Richard

Richard any Oak would completely destroy any steel/ iron fixing due to the high tannin content.

[minitnkr]

Due to her sturdy construction she was way straighter than her contemporaries. At one refit they found twelve British 32 pound cannon balls embedded in her side. The initial plans called for 32 long guns (24 pounder) including two bow chasers and 20 carronade (32 pounder). Though at times she had as few as 40 guns total. Can't tell how many came w/your model.

[rtfoe]

Making me feel hungry Richard……as to the build…looking excellent. Love the aged copper finish…..not going for a weed encrusted finish then?

No chance of any weed Tim, as she hasn't touched water since the flood. :smiling2: Thanks...do you like Chinese?

Richard any Oak would completely destroy any steel/ iron fixing due to the high tannin content.

John, yes it was mentioned that she was constructed with wood pegs. What were those rivet like knobs along the hull made of I wonder?

Due to her sturdy construction she was way straighter than her contemporaries. At one refit they found twelve British 32 pound cannon balls embedded in her side. The initial plans called for 32 long guns (24 pounder) including two bow chasers and 20 carronade (32 pounder). Though at times she had as few as 40 guns total. Can't tell how many came w/your model.

Thanks Paul, I counted and it's the same number you quoted.

Cheers,
Richard

[Jim R]

Hi Richard
Model is looking great. Copper plates would quickly oxidize.
Food sounds very tasty. In the UK there are many Chinese restaurants and take aways and although their food is often nice I doubt if it is authentic.
Jim

[Tim Marlow]

No chance of any weed Tim, as she hasn't touched water since the flood. :smiling2: Thanks...do you like Chinese?


John, yes it was mentioned that she was constructed with wood pegs. What were those rivet like knobs along the hull made of I wonder?


Thanks Paul, I counted and it's the same number you quoted.

Cheers,
Richard

Good food always makes me feel hungry
I do like Chinese food Richard, along with most other cuisines, especially those from the Indian sub continent. As Jim says, we have a lot of Chinese restaurants in the UK, but they obviously cater to UK tastes, so are probably not that authentic. However, I’ve also been lucky enough to eat in Singapore, Japan, and Bali so have tried more authentic oriental dishes.

Constipation is coming along splendidly, by the way. The gun count is surprising. That is a lot of carronades so she must have liked to get in close and mix it up….British frigates had more long guns as they were used to chase down enemy commerce and dispatches as well as to search out the enemy for the main line of battle fleets.

[rtfoe]

Apologies for constipating again and while doing so SWMBO accidentally tipped it and Constipation fell on the hard floor cracking the tail end. Good thing she is Old Ironsides so was able to put her back together again. Just need to hide the crack lines with paint.

Since the beginning I had always wanted to add this above the gun deck. I don't know what it's called but is a form of netting seen in this attached image that either served as a walkway or whatever I don't know...what is it actually?



I had looked for PE mesh before internet times and luckily some one brought them in at an LHS but were diamond shaped. Now it's easy to just order. I will still use the diamond shaped one as I've seen some ships having those.
I decided to make the supports with thin wire so to consistently make 60 of these I made a jig with pins nailed onto plywood backing...



I then drilled out an acetate sheet to serve as a back lifter after I've wound the wire around.



I'll try the first run tomorrow.

Cheers,
Richard

[wotan]

Richard

Nice modelling as usual. That netting on top of the gunwales was used as storage for the crew's hammocks and served as an small additional shelter from musket fire. if you do add it you could add the hammaocks too.

John

[rtfoe]

Richard

Nice modelling as usual. That netting on top of the gunwales was used as storage for the crew's hammocks and served as an small additional shelter from musket fire. if you do add it you could add the hammaocks too.

John

Thanks John, hammocks... that would be interesting. The Japanese used the same principle with their bedrolls attached to gun tubs and the bridge during ww2.

Cheers,
Richard