[Michael Mash]

This commences my build report for the RF Neptune.
Recreating this old vessel (Scratch Build) will be like an adventure in archeology.
Compared to past projects, I have much less information to rely on. . . . A few drawings and several foggy photos. That forms a large part of my attraction and motivation for this project. It is a nautical modeling voyage into the unknown. The most significant clues have come from our colleague in France, Renaud. They will form the mainstay of the effort. Perhaps I can extract enough DNA to bring her back to life.

I don’t know whether to call this an “IronClad”, or a “Battleship”.
It is a bit late (1892) for the term Ironclad, however it is too early to be properly called a battleship.
I think they were still using the term Ironclad in 1892, and the word battleship came into use later.

This impressionistic painting by Eduard Gigot shows Neptune docked on the river Penfeld, in Northwestern France. As far as I can tell, the painting was created in 1892, meaning this may show her just as she is being completed for service. The main guns can be seen in a shade of orange. Perhaps that was the primer just prior to their final coat of paint.

Here are the first images of the hull frames. All the pieces are 62lb card, doubled/laminated.
The frame images may be difficult to interpret. I used a new method for doubling the thickness of the parts. Image number 6 offers a description to help make sense of it.

Kind Regards,
Mike