13 march 2021
The 15 pieces of 12 Pound Guns were temporarily placed loose on the Upper Deck so I could tune them. I immediately took a few pictures of the outside of Vic and I have to honestly admit that it is an impressive sight. After tuning, the Guns were numbered so I could put them back in the right place later and fix them with the tackless.
I made an extra model of each type of 12 Pound Gun. The carriages were oiled and then these extra models were placed in two display cases. These are now in the living room next to the display cases with the 24 and 32 Pound Guns.
The production of the 12 Pound Guns has come to an end and so has this blog. In the meantime the first frames of the Quarter Deck are ready and I have also started the production of the first tackless. The next post I will place again in the blog "Upper Deck".
____________________
Regards,
Henk
7 march 2021
On The Upper Deck, The Quarter Deck and The Fore Castle there are 12 Pound Guns set up. However on all 3 different spots there are 3 different types. On The Upper Deck there are 30 pieces 12 Pound Long version, on The Quarter Deck 12 pieces 12 Pound Short version and on The Fore Castle there are 2 pieces 12 Pound Middle version. However, the carriages of these 3 types are all the same.
I decided to produce all 12 Pound Guns at once. Since I only have to produce half the number, the extra work is not so bad, especially if I put this in a small production line.I will make 1 Gun of each model with carriage and 1 Gun extra to put in a small display case.
So I started the production of the carriages. First, I again stocked up on a good amount of wood in various sizes. After making the sides, the axles, wheels and all other parts were produced and all the carriages were assembled.
I bought a second hand Proxxon lathe machine at the time, the PD 230. After the last production of the 24 Pound Guns, I took the machine apart completely to adjust it again, etc. I was able to use it properly a few times after that, but after drilling the barrels, the machine broke down and in such a way that it was beyond repair. So since a few weeks I have a new PD 250 and I am very satisfied with the quality.
The pictures below show the different stages of the turning process. I don't work with CNC, etc., so everything is counting, counting and counting. The 10th photo shows the differences in the three types of 12 Pound Guns. It only differs by a few millimeters at this scale, but the difference can be seen up close.
Once the first Gun is finished, it is always exciting to check if it fits on the carriage. As far as I'm concerned, the result is worth it.
After the lathe process, the Guns were fitted with holes on the milling machine to taps into them. In the meantime I have taken everything to my workroom to put the Guns on the carriages. The 15 for the Upper deck are then first put on the deck to tune the height of the Guns. After that, the carriages are fitted with a breeching rope and I can finally start fitting out the Upper Deck again.
To be continued.
___________________
Regards,
Henk
