Stern, quarter galleries and mouldings

The stern is a frigate’s calling card and the part where the kit falls shortest. The windows here were made opaque after five trials, the mouldings were bent round the bow in one piece rather than glued on in sections, and the red line in the profile of the mouldings was in the end painted with a size 0 brush, because the acrylic marker could not reach into the deep profile. The gold on the carvings only covers over a yellow base coat (a tip from Pingu57) and was then stripped of its bling with a wash and some drybrushing.

Gold, by the way, is a choice for the eye and not for history: around 1794 a frigate’s carvings were ochre or Naples yellow on a dark ground, and gold leaf had been out of fashion for a century, as Gerko511 and ward worked out on the Dutch forum in 2014. The kit says ochre too. Piet (pietsan) chose gold just as I did, so I am in good company.

How-tos (8)

6 steps Five trials for the transom windows
Try five ways side by side to make the transom windows opaque but still shiny, and fit the winner (a grey haze on clear plastic) in the transom. 6 steps Fitting the quarter gallery windows with a small frame as a jig
Fit the small windows of the quarter galleries without glue stains by first cutting a tiny frame into which the piece of plastic fits exactly, so the position is right straight away and you do not have to shift anything once the CA glue is on. 6 steps Repairing a white metal figure with solder
Build up the short arm of a white metal transom figure by piling on solder and shaping it with a small file, then repaint and age the figure. 8 steps Painting gold-coloured carvings
Paint white metal carvings in antique gold over a yellow base coat, so the gold covers and looks fuller, then age them with a wash and drybrushing. 5 steps Applying the red line in the profile of the mouldings
Test three ways of getting a red line into the profile of the mouldings (brush, waterproof marker, acrylic paint marker) and paint the real mouldings with whichever works most neatly on the deep profiles. 6 steps Mouldings at the right height first, channels after
Do not place the channels to the dimensions of the drawing: dry-fit the mouldings at height first, mark the channels on them and only then fix everything, so mouldings and channels are right relative to each other. The manual almost does it this way (12.2: mark one channel loosely, 12.5: leave the moulding open at the channel, 21.3: pin and glue), except that it measures from the drawing, which on our hull no longer matches. 5 steps Bending a one-piece moulding round the bow
Fit the mouldings at the bow in one piece round the curve, with the bend put in beforehand and an extra row of clamps, so the mouldings stay parallel. 6 steps Making the stern port lids with a template
Position the two aft port lids, which are on the drawing but not in the manual, with a template, glue the hinges onto the lid and finish with small pieces of brass against the hull.

Problems you run into here (11)

Problem	Fix
Transom The windows cannot stay transparent because the stern frames behind them would be visible.	Tested five methods; chose a grey haze on clear plastic. in the register
Painting Knocked over the pot of black paint while painting.	Use a hole saw to cut a hole the size of the pot in a board as a sturdy base. in the register
Quarter galleries Every drop of CA glue leaves marks on the small gallery windows; everything had to come off again.	Frame method (cut out the outline, plastic in, white frame on top); ordered UHU Hart and bought Pattex Extreme Repair. in the register
Stern carvings One of the two white-metal female figures has an arm that is too short (a straight stump).	Built the arm up with solder and shaped it with a small file. in the register
Stern mouldings The upper moulding ran through to the shoulder of the figure.	Adjusted the line to match pietsan's photo (and the box art): the moulding rests on the hands. in the register
Stern carvings In the photo the antique gold on the large carving turns out not to cover.	A yellow ochre base coat under the gold makes it fuller. in the register
Stern mouldings The yellow ochre of the moulding looks distinctly orange.	Thin coats (two to three), metal primed thinly first; later all mouldings were made gold. in the register
Stern mouldings The red line in the profiles of the mouldings is hard to apply.	In the end the brush (size 0) after all, rather than fineliner or acrylic marker. in the register
Stern mouldings Yellow mouldings and gold carvings do not form a whole.	Checked in Masefield (Sea Life in Nelson's Time); masked the mouldings and painted them gold. in the register
Aft port lids The aft port lids are missing from the written manual; they only appear on the plan.	Made a template for the openings, made the lids, cut the opening out all round. For the eight port lids on the sides (66), still to do: pietsan was two guns short and therefore kept the aftermost port closed on both sides, with a lid in it (modelbouwforum, 9 February 2015, https://www.modelbouwforum.nl/threads/hms-diana-engels-fregat-uit-1794.211803/page-11#js-post-3526195, and the distribution of the lids on 24 August 2015, https://www.modelbouwforum.nl/threads/hms-diana-engels-fregat-uit-1794.211803/page-33#js-post-3615910); so count your guns before deciding which ports stay open. And his trick for the port lid lanyard without a thick knot: a 12 cm thread through wax, through the eye of the lid, the two ends twisted together, lightly coated with PVA, cut to length after drying and pushed into the hole with a little PVA (modelbouwforum, 'Vaardigheden, tips en weetjes', 3 January 2020, https://www.modelbouwforum.nl/threads/vaardigheden-tips-en-weetjes.269159/page-1#js-post-4006650). in the register
Aft port lids Unclear whether the hinges belong on the hull or on the lid.	Chose option 3 (hinge entirely on the lid) with small brass pieces against the hull; in hindsight would rather have had them half on the hull. in the register

In the build log

13 December 2018Five trials for the windows
Five window variants tested side by side; the winner is clear plastic with a grey haze of black and white paint, and the windows are in the transom. 16 December 2018Windows in the galleries: second attempt
The first attempt to glue the windows into the gallery fails because of staining CA glue; with a tiny frame as a jig it works the next day. 17 December 2018Surgery on a white metal lady
I repair the arm that is too short with solder and a small file; then the figures are aged with a wash and drybrushed in antique gold. 22 December 2018Red in the profiles of the mouldings
Three ways tested to get the red line into the profile of the mouldings: paint with a brush, a waterproof marker and an acrylic paint marker; the brush wins. 28 September 2019Mouldings first, channels after
The first mouldings on the port side are on, with a piece of advice that goes against the manual: only fit the channels once the mouldings are at the right height. 29 September 2019A strip that stands out too much
Piet finds the pale walnut strip above the copper an eyecatcher; Hans gives a recipe with vinegar and steel wool to darken wood, and the top moulding goes around the bow. 8 December 2019The port lids at the stern
The port lids at the stern, which are on the drawing but not in the manual, made with a small template; the hinges according to option 3, with small brass pieces against the hull.