Le Glorieux - couple of questions.

HEHEHE....

/forums/748243/ShowPost.aspx 

Same here!

Jeff 

Hope I'm not hijacking this thread, but I've recently bought Heller's "Le Superbe" kit (basically the same as "Glorieux" with different decoration). I am extremely impressed by the level of detail and the fineness of moulding in this kit, it's the best (from the point of view of detail at least) plastic kit of a sailing ship-of-the-line I have seen other than the 1/100 Victory.

However, what about accuracy - hull lines, design of fittings, decoration, etc.? It certainly looks convincing to me, but I'm no expert on ships of this period. Since the same kit is used for both "Superbe" and "Glorieux" with a different transom moulding, figurehead and a few other parts (these two ships did actually exist - unlike the subjects of many Heller kits - and were both Sané designed 74-gun third-rates, but surely they wouldn't have been carbon copies) presumably one of the two kits is more accurate than the other.

(I also have a few questions about the paint scheme of the ship, but it will be some months at the very least before I build the kit, so this can wait!)

I've actually had thoughts about building it as a captured Royal Navy ship, as I know captured French ships were common in the RN at this time, and I have an article in an issue of Model Shipwright on a captured French "74" in the RN (can't remember the name). I'm not sure, though, what modifications, if any, would have been made to the fittings, armament or rig. (For a start it wouldn't have a figurehead with the French fleur-de-lis coat of arms on it, but I have - as the result of a spares-box purchase - the figurehead from Glorieux, which is a crowned lion's head - very similar figureheads were used on RN ships I think) 

Thanks to all for the answers, now I know what to look for.  

And thanks for the address of the forum, I don't know the Czech, and can understand one word out of 3, but at least I have an idea of what they talk about there, and the links and the pictures in the forum are most interesting, most interesting indeed!

Boy....Trying to figure this ship stuff out is harder than aircraft!

I took a shot with the "Sprite Sail thing? 

The site that talked about them...Looked like it was very descriptive?

http://modelforum.upce.cz/forum/viewtopic.php?p=98625&sid=3199b7752cfa5f18756fcc27c6c13eb6 

Maybe someone can figure it out?

Jeff 

The pictures you show Jeff are of the Bumpkins, with the Fore tacks attached, they do not have an association with the spritsail.

The wooden bar running above the Main rail is I think the 'horse' from which the netting is suspended. As can be seen it is far plainer on this model than the interpretation on the Le Glorieux kit.

These may help...I found a site that talked about them in depth,but I was unable to translate it.

My guess is something to do with running rigging for the 'Sprite Sail'? 

Jeff 

The two broken items above the head rails look like 'horses' from which netting was suspended.They could be made of rope or more usually wood.

The two black items are the bumpkins (boomkins) used to attach and spread the Foretack.

The items in your second picture look to me like scuttlebutts (for water perhaps)

Jean Boudriot in his epic work the SeventyFour Gun ship shows such items on the Quarterdeck just aft of the breast rail, although they are not elliptical in shape. The iron hoops and what looks like a lid would support this. They do look a little over scale to my eye though.