Next, it was The Bel’s turn. I turned this out of brass on the lathe and only then fitted it into the beam from which The Bel hangs. The stem of The Bel fits into the beam and is secured with a pin.

I was then able to fit the necessary brass plates to the beam of The Bel, to which the lever is also attached so that the bell can be moved. Finally, as the last step, I created the recess in the rail beam, so that it could then be positioned between the body of The Bel and the railing beam.

In the end, it took me two days to assemble The Belfry and the railing. The legs of the housing are of different lengths, as they are all positioned in different places, such as the deck, the cover beam and the section without deck planking.

After that, it was just a matter of putting everything together and securing it in the right place. I’ve got a few scale-model crew members in a drawer, and sometimes I place them somewhere to give an idea of the proportions. So I also placed two of them next to The Belfry, purely to give an idea of the dimensions. Finally, I gave everything a quick check and took a few overview photos for the final shot.

A lot of work, but great fun to do. On to the next sub-project.

Regards,

________

Henk

8 July 2026

One of the final sub-projects of the QuarterDeck is The Belfry. This includes a fence at the front of The Waist. The Belfry, the fence and The Bel all require a great deal of milling and turning, a lot of filing and even more sanding.

After drawing everything out, the first job was to finish the edge beneath The Belfry on The Waist with a decorative strip and a cover strip. The supports, the railing and The Belfry itself will be fitted on top of these.

The next small sub-project was the roof of The Belfry. You start with a block of ebony and mill away 90 per cent of the block so that only the roof remains. As the curves are quite complex, I had to use my entire set of milling cutters. After a good day’s milling, the rough version of the roof was ready. I then continued with filing and sanding, eventually achieving the desired result.

Now, some model-makers fit the roof with copper sheets to make it watertight. I’m leaving this out, purely so that the work on the roof remains visible.

Finally, I milled the beam from which The Bel hangs, and so on, and then it was the turn of the four uprights beneath the roof. To mill these properly, I glued the four beams together with two drops of glue so that the notches are exactly the same.

I did the same with the four uprights for the railing.

The next tasks will be to cut the slots in the uprights so that the rigging pulleys can be fitted, and then it will be time to turn The Bel itself on the lathe.

To be continued

Regards,

_____________

Henk