This source also talked about people who work in the museums of Madrid, who also cannot accurately confirm all this information for San Felippe and Real Felipe ... in general, the manufacturer of this model created a ship that is as close as possible to those three models in which there is a certain secret.
What can I say about the set itself:
The set consists of 2 boxes with a total weight of 11.5 kg.
Scale: 1:50 Length: 1200 mm. Height: 930 mm. Width: 475 mm.
(While Mantua: Scale: 1:75 Length: 960mm Height: 860mm
30466 rub)
Included was: catalog 2012, mini manual, CD.
I didn't watch the disc. cd rom not working...
Body plywood thickness 5mm.
The body of the model is type-setting with double skin. Frames, keel and other details are laser cut. The case is decorated with many cast resin ornaments (about 2400 pieces) (unlike Mantua, where the casting is made of brass). All guns are aluminum. Other details of the decks and hull are made of wood and metal. A distinctive feature of the model is the execution of the spars from already narrowed blanks (the masts are narrowed to one edge, the yards to two).
In general, I was impressed with the set, as well as in the performance of the doles in terms of their quality and quantity. I was also pleased that the small parts, as seen in the photo, are vacuum-packed.
The instruction has not yet been deployed. it is very large and consists of several large sheets of drawings.
To take a photo on a plain background, unfortunately, there is no possibility, I did it on the desktop.
On delivery by mail: there was a blow that fell on the boats, but fortunately the parts themselves are intact, only the frame holder was broken.
And at the very end of the review I post a photo with a ship that is now sailing under the same name on its hull.
If someone has interesting historical information on the ship, write I will be very grateful !!!
Thank you for your attention.
Basic coloration
Before painting, only one thing is required: lightly make pencil marks for the location of decorative elements. The very coloring of the background of decorative elements is carried out with Humbrol's acrylic blue paint No. 5025, which gives the most correct and pleasant shade of blue, subsequently highlighting the ornament perfectly.
The part of the hull below the waterline should be done matt white in two or three layers with intermediate drying of each of them. After that, a mask is installed strictly along the broken waterline by any available method and the corresponding part of the hull above the waterline is painted over with matte black. In fact, given the large amount of work that still needs to be done on the hull in the future, at least one more time will have to touch up the color of the bottom of the model.
The case with applied basic coloring is shown in fig. 17.
Rice. 17. Case with a base coat of paint on a stand.
Cannon port covers
At this stage, you should pay attention to several points. First of all, the hinges of the cannon port covers must be painted. Then, before installing the butts on them, the epoxy hinges are glued onto the covers.
After that, according to the instructions, the covers are installed in place. But given the fairly large amount of work that still needs to be done on the body, this is not the best idea. It is recommended that you paint the inside of the port covers red and set them aside for later installation.
One unpleasant comment on the quality of the set: both parts of the cannon port covers are given as pre-cut laser-cut elements, which, along with a fairly high accuracy of their execution, is absolutely unacceptable in terms of the wood chosen for this - it is too light. Therefore, one of two things should be done: either try to pickle the outer side of the covers in order to match the color of the hull skin, or make the outer part of the cover yourself from scraps of the finishing skin.
Bronze decorative elements
At this stage, some decorative elements are already required to be installed in their places. A few key points to pay close attention to will greatly facilitate this part of the work and improve its quality.
Initially, all decorative elements are divided into two parts: bronze castings, the quality of which is simply the highest, requiring only minor work on cleaning the landing surfaces for their gap-free installation on the body, and photo-etched sheets (nowadays wooden "scorched" sheets are used - approx.). The latter can be divided into the required parts, imitating the details of the ship, with the help of small side cutters. In this case, you should be very careful, because. the edges of these elements are very sharp (it is better to be careful not to deform or lose these elements - approx.). After separating the photo-etched part from the sheet, it is necessary to clean the places of its attachment - the remains of the "legs" and, if necessary, align it on a flat surface. Painting the recesses of photo-etched parts in the appropriate color, followed by grinding their raised parts, can be done both before and after separating the part from the whole sheet.
The balustrades of the aft gallery are made in the form of castings from a softer and more pliable material than the details of the ornament and, with appropriate precautions, can be bent to give them the desired shape. It is necessary to take into account the rather complex spatial, double curvature shape of the bend of the balustrades, to cut through their lower gunwale in three or four places to facilitate this bend.
It is not difficult at all to press "your" balustrade on the upper deck of the gallery with several "crocodiles" while the glue is setting. But for the lower deck, it is recommended to drill three or four holes in the vertical skin immediately below the deck level, into which you can insert the "crocodiles". Of course, these holes are sealed before installing the bronze lining in this place.
Decorative overlays and ornamental leaves connecting them around the body under the lower gallery require very careful and accurate marking on the body, as well as some correction of their contours for precise installation in their places.
Several bronze details represent shields with coats of arms. Instead of installing them as recommended in the instructions without any processing - the color of bronze, you can paint them. For example, the background of the quarters is made crosswise in red and white with multi-colored details of the bas-relief of the coat of arms. This will add some small, but very effective and attention-grabbing details to the model both in the bow and in the stern of the hull, significantly increasing its spectacle.
Various types of decorative elements of the model are shown in fig. 18, 19 and 20.
Rice. 18. Bronze ornamental elements of the bow.
Rice. 19. Transom with cast and photo-etched parts installed.
Rice. 20. Fences and decorations of aft galleries.
latrine
This stage is the most real test of skill and skill of the modeler.
It is recommended to work from the bottom up. First of all, you should fit and install in place on both sides of the latrine knitting. Their shape and location is removed with the help of a photo-etched overlay, passing from the bellows area of the hull under the figurehead. The curved seating surfaces of these pairs of knees with varying basic angles make it practically impossible to adjust these surfaces for the installation of subsequent elements and, above all, the specified wedge-shaped decoration.
You can solve this issue by replacing the original parts of the knees with your own, from a thicker material. In this case, having adjusted them to the seating surfaces of the hull and stem, as well as having processed their outer seating surface, ornamental photo-etched overlays of the right and left sides, respectively, are applied to the latter, and their contour is outlined, along which the knees are processed, ensuring their perfect match with overlays. After this adjustment, all parts are installed in place (Fig. 18).
Support brackets for the latrine deck are installed on the stem. Pay special attention to their symmetry and verticality.
Regels are made of decorative bronze strips. They are in a set of three per side and, in practice, they connect both sides. First, armorial shields are installed behind the krumbols on both sides. A decorative casting is also installed in its place behind the nose figure, which is the front end of the regels. Then it is useful to prepare a stencil showing the layout of the regels, which is removed from the corresponding drawings. Some technical adjustment may be required here. In other words, it will be necessary to cheat a little. To do this, on a separate sheet of paper, remove from the model the real dimensions and the relative position of the three holes in the armorial shields and the decorative casting on the stem. After that, the "theoretical" stencil is cut into two parts, and then positioned and fixed on the "real" paper drawing. The protruding part of the stencil is trimmed along the borders of the upper and lower regels and applied to the model for final verification. Any necessary subsequent adjustment can be made by making a new stencil (Fig. 21). It is important to note that the four cast frames of the regels on each side are identical, so you should carefully sort the regels so as not to confuse them.
Rice. 21. Cardboard stencils for regels. The same for the left and right sides (in mirror image!).
Imitation gun barrels
Few words. If, as it should be, the modeler wants to make sure that all imitations of the gun barrels of the lower closed decks protrude from the hull to exactly the same distance, then to adjust the protrusion of these barrels, it is best to put washers between them and the blocks where they are installed. If it is required to "drown" the imitation into the body, then holes with a diameter of 6 mm are drilled in wooden blocks, in which the barrel itself is held. In all cases, initially a small-diameter pilot hole is drilled in the blocks, into which, according to the instructions, the barrel simulator is installed with its leg in the breech.
Another important point is the need to paint the channels of these barrels with matt black before installing them in place. To do this, just drop a drop of acrylic paint inside and blot the excess with a damp cloth.
After installing all the imitation cannon barrels, it is time to replace the cannon port covers of the lower decks. Slightly above each port, two holes of small diameter are drilled for wiring the ends, with which the cover is lifted and held open through the hoists. The ends of the threads of the required size, imitating these ends, are impregnated with cyanoacrylic glue and glued into the body, after which they are tied to the eyelets of the butts installed on the front side of the covers and cut off.
deck railings
In order to completely match the holes for the racks, it is recommended to drill the upper and lower parts of these fences only together. All longitudinal dimensions of the fences at this stage are no longer taken from the drawings, but from the model itself. The height of the railings, of course, depends on the size of the racks supplied in the set.
Spiral ladders
The method of manufacturing these ladders, shown in the drawings, works without question. The only thing you can do is make a small correction in the method of making an external curved bowstring. First of all, it consists of two balls of 0.5 mm thick strips glued together. The inner ball of strips 3x0.5 mm is laid out along the generatrix of the tube with a diameter of 32 mm, which is supplied in the kit, and is pressed against it with a pair of rubber rings. After that, the entire surface of the assembled strips is coated with PVA glue. This method helps to avoid accidental sticking of the adhesive strips to the tube, which, among other things, may require additional cleaning of the inner, front surface. The outer ball of strips 4x0.5 mm, also held and pressed by rubber rings, is installed and fixed on the glue after the first layer has completely dried. At the same time, a lot of time can be saved if the cylindrical blank is made at one time so long that it is enough for all three required bowstrings at once.
Again, even without paying attention to the drawings, the height of each ladder is taken off in the corresponding places of the model. The distance between the respective decks is critical and key, and making a 120° turn, or 42mm on a 36mm diameter, is not an easy task.
First, the steps of the ladders are processed and the central support leg is cut exactly in height between the surfaces of the upper and lower decks. The steps overlap one another halfway and are fixed to the central pillar - only in this case it is possible to achieve the correct degree of turn of the ladder. Separate details of the manufacturing process of the screw ladder are shown in Fig.22.
Rice. 22. The sequence of construction of screw ladders.
After that, a pre-prepared bowstring is glued to the ladder, as well as a variety of support strips, racks, handrails.
Balustrade
The description of the balustrade manufacturing process given in the documentation is very practical, although at first glance it is overcomplicated. The main point, which should certainly be followed, is to fit and drill the top and bottom of each section of the balustrade only together so that they turn out identical. To strengthen them, the corner columns, in addition to gluing, are additionally fixed with dowels, and after they have completely dried, all the other, intermediate columns simply slide in place.
Open deck guns
This is something that needs to be done immediately before proceeding with deck detailing. After all, in fact, ship guns in places under the quarter-deck and after-deck will simply be impossible to put in place after the main and mizzen masts are installed, and especially bitings with coffee-nail strips at their base. For a similar reason, the two forward-facing ship's guns under the fore-deck must be put in place before the fore-deck grating is installed.
The beds of the ship's guns consist of two sidewalls fixed to the axle supports (Fig. 23). All these details are given in a set pre-cut by a laser. The connection of all these details is rather complicated, especially taking into account the need for the complete identity of all the gun beds of the model. The simplest jig made from improvised material can come to the rescue, the use of which ensures both simplicity and correctness of the connection of the gun beds (Fig. 24). Cyanoacrylic glue can be used to complete this job faster. The real beds of real ship's guns could remain unpainted. Unfortunately, the type of wood for the gun beds offered in the set leaves the modeler no choice but to paint them dark brown.
A fully assembled and prepared ship tool for installation on the model is shown in fig. 25.
Rice. 23. Elements of ship guns. Assembly conductor.
Rice. 24. Axle supports in the conductor. Sidewalls are prepared for installation.
Rice. 25. Finished gun bed. Finished ship's gun.
It should be noted that the axle supports have two standard sizes: for the front and for the rear axle of the ship's gun bed, as well, by the way, as the bronze axles themselves. The wheels of the bed of a larger diameter are placed in the front of the bed, and the smaller one - in the back, to compensate for the deflection of the decks. Again, all cannon bores must be painted black.
lattice hatches
The model requires the installation of eleven lattice hatches. One of them is divided into two parts (Fig. 26). The set does not give the modeller the right to make a mistake, because the blanks for the manufacture of these gratings are given exactly to spare. Therefore, only sharp tools should be used so as not to screw up the workpieces. The assembly of the gratings itself is not difficult, only you should not forget to install the frame-edging and flashings.
Rice. 26. Deck grating. The lower one is edged and ready for installation.
Deck equipment
Coffee-nail planks, bitengs, spire, ship's bell. The preparation and installation of these elements does not cause any difficulties if you use the recommendations of the instructions and drawings. A large number of identical parts are placed on the coffee-nail strips, which are prepared in connection with this at the same time. It is recommended to install almost all deck elements, especially those that should take loads from rigging in the future, using dowels.
Ship lights are standard parts from Mantua. To increase their entertainment, it is recommended to lay them out from the inside with pieces of a transparent acetate film. Mounting the lights requires considerable attention and skill in order to set them at the right angle and height, but when properly installed, they look amazing.
Anchors are assembled according to the standard scheme for sets. The rods are laser cut from plywood. As elsewhere in the project, the wood used for the stems must either be painted or replaced with wood made from scratch. Anchor eyes should be boxed for a more professional and historically correct presentation.
Vant putens
Some surprise and reflections on the conformity of the cost of the set to its quality can be caused by this stage: the installation of vant-putens-ufers and vant-putens on the channels. While many of the complex wooden parts of the set are supplied as pre-cut pieces, almost all of the piping elements must be made by the modeller himself from brass wire. In turn, this makes it necessary to come up with some kind of home-made devices and conductors that would help make all these elements, as required, absolutely identical. Of course, most modellers will cope with this problem. With more or less success. But for a set of this level, such ignoring of such important details leaves an unpleasant aftertaste.
And an even bigger problem than the manufacture of the above parts is their installation on the body of the model. The tool has to be held appallingly close to the raised gun port covers, and setting puttence studs into even pre-drilled holes poses a definite and no small danger to the model. This job is not about speed. Yes, even without a strong sense of self-confidence, you should not start such work.
And of course, the brass wire and puttens are the "wrong" color, so they must be painted. It is recommended to paint after connecting the shrouds to the slings and before they are installed on the channel.
Deck elements and details are shown in fig. 27, 28, 29, and 30.
Rice. 27. Aft decks. Rusleni.
Rice. 28. Deck details around the main mast.
Rice. 29. Spire and ship's bell. Whaleboat support on the main deck.
Rice. 30. Bow. Rounded eyelets of anchors.
Stand
Up to this point, you can use a stand assembled dry from the parts supplied in the kit to work on the body of the model. However, towards the end of the project, it turns out that the "branded", unpretentious stand does not at all correspond to the level of the model, which deserves something better than two figured pieces of plywood connected by wooden rounds. Even etched and lacquered, this stand has a rough look. Therefore, it is better to make a stand yourself, for example, as shown in the photograph of the assembled model at the beginning of the article, with turned legs and a name plate.
Armament and rigging
The model of the ship San Felipe in this scale is too large for the modeler to feel comfortable enough next to her in his apartment or even at home, and not like in a communal apartment. Therefore, it seems logical to implement this model only in the form of a case, i.e. practically finish the work on this.
It should be noted that the study of the documentation and the parts, materials and elements attached to the armament and the rigging installation shows that the implementation of this part of the project should be carried out according to the usual schemes and known sequences. Many elements of weapons are pre-cut, which greatly facilitates the work in this part of the project.
The installation of rigging does not bring any surprises to the work. The only question is its significant volume! There are no sails in the kit, so the modeler has much more room for hands and tools.
Only the short masts and bowsprit, as well as the water-woolings of the latter, are installed in their places.
findings
Even at such an initially high price, the modeler gets long-term pleasure, so the cost divided by the many hours spent in the pleasant pastime of the model gives a fairly low value. It is not worth mentioning the actual number of hours spent on the construction of this model, because. anyway, this cannot take into account the capabilities and skills of a particular modeller. But, in all cases, this project is not for a few weekends. And not even for one vacation.
Mantua has earned its good name for the quality of its models, however, as with any kit, San Felipe is made with mistakes. Nothing to do about. Yes, and do not want to stoop to petty nit-picking and whining.
Of course, it would be worthwhile to make some details not from plywood, but from good wood. It was a good idea for the firm to provide the modeler with pre-cut, fairly complex parts, instead of having him "plan" it all himself. On the other hand, the lack of ready-made vant-putences is a big minus for a set.
The drawings are good in every sense, the instructions are quite detailed and consistent. The project corresponds to the real historical appearance of sailing ships at a very good level, although, to be honest, there is not much information left on this particular ship, so this project falls half under the category of "typical fantasy".
But in spite of everything, the finished model has a very imposing appearance and can bring its author a rather deep sense of self-satisfaction.
Price? Given the number of hours of exciting work on the model, it's worth it.
Built by the King of Spain in 1690, the San Felipe was the largest and most majestic warship of that state of that time.
Model Feature:
This model is made of various types of wood, the color combination of which coincides with the color of the ship of that time. The casing of the hull consists of wooden lamellas of various sections. There are also metal elements (stern decoration, details of gun port covers, guns, bow decoration, anchor hawse framing, anchors, some useful things). The model is richly decorated with decor. Blocks and lufers are made of dark walnut. For rigging, threads of various colors and several diameters are used, which makes it possible to distinguish between all types of hoists.
When painting the model, high-quality acrylic waterproof paints of silky-matt and semi-matt tones are used, which is most consistent with natural dyes.
The model has large dimensions and looks good on a mantelpiece, a small chest of drawers, a low stand, and installing the model in a wardrobe trunk will give it the look of a museum piece.
At the request of the customer, the model is made in several versions: lacquered or painted in colors according to the rules of that time.
