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If the guns are made of wood, gild them with antique gold to represent brass. Then dry-brush dark green over the gilt to imitate verdigris discoloration. If the guns are turned from brass, leave in natural-metal finish, which will, in course of time, corrode to some extent. Two guns are glued into the stern; four into the outer and inner spar-deck bulkhead (middle holes on each side not fitted); and four into the beakhead-bulkhead holes. Elevate the spar-deck guns to fire clear of the rails. The lower-deck guns are also glued into the gunport holes and main-deck carriages on each side.
Four conventional anchors, of blackened wood or metal, are then made and attached. Those forward are secured by tackles to the catheads, and the after pair are lashed to the forward channels, clear of the gunports. Hawsers of the same thickness as the mainstay are suitable, their free ends being glued into the proper hawse holes as shown.
The figurehead is made by gluing thin layers of plastic wood, molded to shape with the aid of Craftmat No. 2, which contains the impression to make the figurehead, to pieces of maple 1/8 in. thick. Allow the cast to dry for a few hours and glue it onto the base before the plastic wood gets too brittle. Then trim to shape, and glue both to another piece the same thickness as the figurehead support. The latter piece is not flush with the bottom of the figurehead casts. It is assembled so that the mounted casts project about 1/16 in. below its bottom edge to form a channel for the figurehead support. The whole is glued and pinned in place. If desired, the carving of the figurehead m,ay be accentuated by tooling the recesses deeper than they are when they come from the mat. This should be done only after the plastic wood is dry. and care must be taken not to spoil the contour.
Copyright, © 1933, by Popular Mechanics Company
