Old Chinese Junk

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

this is what you are after , sails that is but nice deck cluter….…….Larry

This your junk..?…

Ron,

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Now, the bright red sails look good.

We have a taste difference here which, of course IS a matter of personal taste, and so there is no right.

I would never argue with someone who wanted a certain look, albeit not to MY taste.. but would certainly grumble about bad execution of the bad taste!

Larry, that is the sort of deck clutter I like…. no arguments there!

Ashley

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Larry

Not sure if you mean the model or the third photo is my junk. I think this one is closer to what I have..

I've been away most of the day and so there's been no more progress on the junk. I dyed a set of sails green before going out last night. They were dry this morning but I didn't like the look of them when I stuck them in place with masking tape. Didn't have time to post photos before I left.

If you and Ashley agreed on either the red, more upright, sails or the orange ones in the next pic, I would be happy to go with what you say.

I was going to e-mail the maritime people at Eyemouth again to see if they would take it off my hands when it's finished, free of charge of course.

Ronnie.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Ashley

I can't say that I've a particular 'taste' in how the model should look. I'm hoping for it to look in proportion, reasonably close to how it was when it was built and be able to say that it 'turned out well'. To be honest, the three different sail sizes I cut out all looked pretty good to me, although not when I looked at the photos of them.

Agree with you on Larry's deck clutter, though!

Ronnie.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

http://www.ukauctioneers.com/lots/2300890/lot_enquiries/new

Maybe I only need to make two sails!!

I have a small lantern like the one in the link above. It looks like it came from the same manufacturer.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

I do believe I have a model Foo Chow Pole Junk….

http://www.aagaines.com/man/catfish.html

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Bit of a bummer…should be picking up a set of red sails, like the ones on Larry's model photo, tomorrow.(make that today!) Still, it's only costing the price of a cheap bottle of plonk!.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

See here

Edited By Colin Bishop, Website Editor on 29/06/2013 16:56:25

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Very little progress on the Junk this week. Got some female mates to mock up different coloured sails (I nearly damaged the sewing machine I got a loan of!!), but I will now try to copy the ones I found online, late the other evening.

My silk-lady friend very kindly dropped off some nice tomato red silk but I think that the finished sails will be in white cotton.

The guy that gave me the Junk said that my flower design on the boards wasn't 'very Chinese' so I have taken them off and will attempt to put the original design back on. I got some stencil paper and a craft knife today.

I e-mailed the maritime museum to ask if they would like the model when it's finished but haven't heard back yet.

Not much chance of getting anything done to the Junk this weekend as I've got to : spray some units for a new shop, take photographs at a tractor run and repair three computers. No rest for the wicked, as they say.

(Ashley, if you're there. Saw a woman with a long dress on this morning that would have made excellent flamboyant sails, but she wouldn't take it off!!).

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

Ron ,

Stop beating your self up over sails,

go with trad look . plain and simple , see posted photos , of model build using drafting film,

treated with water paints , i am building the model junk in photo , sails are easy see drawing ,…

its a no brainer,……..KISS is the word , its a working model not a girls blouse

cheers Larry……

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Larry

Sound advice, as usual but……..I don't have the KISS mentality when it comes to certain things. For nearly 40 years I've been repairing all types of vehicles to how they should be and won't put a job out until I'm 100% happy with it. I know that you, and JC think that Junks are working boats and meant to be low-tech. JC says that mine is too neat and tidy but that's how I like things to be and how it would have been when it was built. 'Models such as this were built on order for Western ship captains, traders, and diplomatic personnel from the 19th century up to 1941.'

I didn't mind trying different sail shapes and colours to see what I thought might look good. However, now that I've seen a photo of a model very similar to mine, I feel it's worth spending a bit more time to get an authentic look.

You and Ashley make fantastic, realistic models. I am not a model maker, I'm more of a one-off model restorer.

If I had thought about building a Chinese Junk model from scratch and wanted it to be realistic I would probably have gone for something like this:

I have it as my desktop wallpaper and think it has a strange beauty!.

Ronnie.

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

Ron ,

Whats stoping you ,?…. Larry…

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Time, Larry, time is all that's stopping me. I have too many other interests and model boats are not very high up the list.

I signed up here to see if anyone could point me in the right direction with it but now I can see exactly how it should look, I'm going to go with that.

I appreciate all the tips that you've posted and I know you're a bit exasperated with me for not getting the job done sooner. (or should that be simpler?).

Been working since 8:30 this morning, seen and heard the tractor run go by on the way to the start point but I'm working again at 2:00 on a VW Beetle so no photography and it'll be a toss-up after tea: make sails or go to the pub!

Ronnie.

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

Hello ,

just knocked up a couple sails using drafting film, paint treated with acrylic colour paint,

dead easy………Larry…

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Larry,

I've got all the gear and an o-level in art but that's not the look I think the model deserves.

I haven't spent much time on it this week again. I liked your idea of distressed sails but I was a little conservative with the bleach last night and maybe I shouild have put some dirt in as well??

The 'joker' in the unit next to me, who restores old furniture, thought it was funny to give me a present yesterday…

Anyone want it?

Ronnie

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

Hi Ron you are geting there , thats a good book to have on the shelf……

try a bit of burnt umber poster paint used dry that is just dust here than there

then crumple the sail …. i also was mosley art school pupil..

cheers Larry..

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Ronnie. Wash the sails, do not iron. wash again possibly , get the faded look ? Spray with watered down pva to stiffen if required, or something similar? Acrylic varnish dries nice and clear and matt..stiffens material up ok. Leave to dry with a slight bend or wave to get a bit of shape (eventually after ribbing up etc) Ashley

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Ashley.

I think I've got that!!. Faded is what I was looking for. I quite liked the orange as is, and I 've enough left to make another set of sails but I experimented with the bleach/burnt umber on some off-cuts. I like the effect but I think Larry meant to add the burnt umber after the sails were dry!. Also, quite like the way the green sail came out.

It's a very long time since I did anything like this. It even seems a long time since I printed designs on special paper and ironed them on to t-shirts, using a computer. I'm so pleased to have remembered that because I had been inquiring about screen printing a dragon on the largest sail but the £18.50 setup charge and £2.50 per wipe, all plus vat, put me off.

I have some lovely, shimmering, red silk, that's not real silk!!, that I got from my silk-lady friend. I thought it might look good with a large golden dragon and maybe a couple of symbols on as well….or maybe not!. I have a feeling that I will try it anyway, just because I can.

Ronnie.

[Amy jane SeptemberParticipant @amyjaneseptember49770]

I say ' go for it ' Ronnie! play around, have fun, and come up with something that you're happy with, thats what it's all about! ( I like the effect you've got above)

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Hi Amy Jane

I was playing around and having fun last night…..and then I came home!!

I rushed the transfer paper process before I went out and it didn't turn out too good. I forgot about the sails in the bleach and the orange ones have definitely got the faded look. Maybe five hours was too long!. The green ones weren't fully submerged and I think they're not too bad looking. I can trim them down a bit and get the hems a bit better, hopefully.

I'm hoping that I'm pretty close to getting the look I think suits the 'boat'. (model, ship, thing!)

I had thought that this was the best looking…..on paper….

…but it didn't look good in the red material. I might try again with plain old white.

Ronnie.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Bit bored this morning……Paperwork all done by 8:10, cut another stencil for boards, a bit better than the last one, looked at sail photos for ages, printed some dragons and phoenixs on coloured paper and took a pc to bits.

I've decided that the sails will be a white and orange combination so no need to waste the good 'not real silk' silk and the iron on transfers don't look right. So, just need to decide on sizes and get them made.

Thinking ahead (ever the optomist!)….I might hide this under one of the cargo hold covers…

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Anyone know / think that all three sails on a Junk should look the same?

I've copied the original sails as best I could and transferred the sizes onto paper. They don't look too bad but the centre sail looks a bit skinny at the top.

[Ronnie FowlisParticipant @ronniefowlis79370]

Pretty confident that the Junk will be finished this week. I've chosen to go for sails that are as close to the original instead of something that I might like because I'm not keeping it. It was fun trying the different patterns, colours and sizes and also the distressing but I'd like it to be ready to take to the maritime museum, either this weekend, or next. If they don't want it, I think I'll set if free in the North Sea.

I asked at the Post Office today how much it would be to send the Ships in Miniature book to anywhere in the UK. It's never been read, as the pages are all in pristine condition, and it will remain that way as long as I have it. It is £1.90 2nd Class and £2.30 for 1st Class. I will pay the postage. If anyone is interested in it, just ask.

Ronnie.

[LARRY WHETTONParticipant @larrywhetton68737]

Hi Ron ,

YES please, it will give something to read in the cardical clinic,

glad you on the final lap with junk glad to be of help cheers Larry…

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