...And it results to be compatible!

[Lluis of Minairons]

...or is it only me who believes so?   

I had told you before about a couple of 1/900 scale napoleonic ships from one Portsmouth miniatures brand, to which I planned to give a try and see if they could be compatible with our 1/450 to 1/600 fleets?



The results of customizing the larger ship were already shared some days ago in this thread, so let me now show you what does the smaller one look like once finished. As told, I wished to use it for representing the War of Spanish Succession Santa Madrona catalan frigate; she was a key piece in the naval force improvised by the Catalans in the last stages of war, once left alone face to the Two Crowns. This particular ship was a 24-gun French frigate they managed to capture and press into their own service; her main duties consisted of escorting the supply convoys from Majorca and Naples, as well as keeping clear Barcelona harbour face to the Two Crowns blockade:



It was beyond my capabilities or imagination to make the ship look older than it was intended to be, so I constrained myself just to apply a couple of visual tricks to the model. First I gave supplementary height to the sharp, low profiled hull by adding a 2mm thick plastic piece to its bottom, and secondly I discarded the original rigging, using instead parts from a PP model with the hope that would boost an intended early 18th century look. Nothing came to my mind to reshape her stern beyond placing a humble lantern, though --here is where I missed some more experience using green stuff!



Here you can see her sailing side by side with her sister Santa Eulàlia, another 24-gun frigate bought from Genoa (this one, a Peter Pig model). Unlike this latter that after purchase was upgunned to 34 guns, I don't know if Santa Madrona was upgraded too. As you can see by these pictures, both ship models do look quite good together, despite the stated scales difference; I guess that the rigging replacement trick has worked, in the end.



It's quite likely that, beyond escort and blockade running duties, these two frigates also got involved in a naval battle happened face to Barcelona shores in Feb. 24, 1714. Such battle wasn't against the French or the Spanish navies blockading the harbour, however; but (demoralizingly enough to the catalans) against a squadron of the British Navy, dispatched from Minorca that same month to force Catalonia's acceptation of the Treaty of Utrecht. The catalan fleet engaged their former allies and defeated them, capturing up to 15 small ships.



This was a fruitless victory, though; for it couldn't prevent the Royal Navy to decisivey join to the blockade. Fatally strangled, Barcelona finally fell on Sep. 11, 1714 after a ferocious assault.

[Colonel Kilgore]

Well, that looks pretty conclusive to me, Lluis - lovely work as ever!

[martin goddard]

Lluis, those are excellent.  The ships that Stewart had done are similarly excellent.  Are they varnished?

[Lluis of Minairons]

Yes Martin, I always varnish the ships --by brush.
A satin varnish for bases, and a matt one for hulls, sails and flags. Only upper decks are sometimes dispensed with varnishing, unless there is a glue glossy stain to mask.

[Stewart 46A]

Look very good Lluis

[Leslie BT]

Lluis what brand / type of varnish do you use?
Is it neat out of the tin or diluted?

[Lluis of Minairons]

Leslie,

After the years I've got accustomed to using Vallejo varnishes. I do not dilute them --although I use to compulsively clean my brush during work, so dipping the wet brush into the varnish could count as diluting perhaps?