Purists will hate my Ratlines Airfix St Louis Part 20 adding 3D Printed Rigging

Making better looking and easy to use 3D printed ratlines. Turns out you can 3D Print them and they almost look as good as tied cordage. I show how I put mine on the St Louis and also share a method to add wooden rigged deadeyes with channels. It doesn't all go as expected but I get a result and share what I have learned.
Rigging Tools (3D Printed Ratlines available now)
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[@AntaresScaleworks]

Oh Harry, you are my Oprah. You're literally what I want to be when I get older (I say 'get older' and not 'grow up' because I don't ever wanna grow up!) You're one of the few that I disable my AdBlocker for before I click on your videos.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Good on you Antares… never grow up… I don’t want to either!

[@billbrowning3021]

Thanks for working this out. No pain no gain. Although I'm not sure this old hand has your patience.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

I am working on an even easier method to attach the ratlines to the deadeyes Bill… no patience required, or cordage or knots!

[@ronaldbyrne3320]

No pain, no gain Harry. But to be honest, I really prefer your regular method of making ratlines. They look a smidge more realistic than the plastic ratlines and are more straightforward to do. The plastic ratlines take a lot of the knotting tasks out of the equation but getting those deadeyes to sit straight and tight is a bit of a nightmare. Having said that, I’m pretty sure you’ll find a technique to overcome this. Have at it Harry! 😊

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Yes Ronald the tying of the deadeyes to my plastic ratlines was the Achilles heel of the solution… however I now have a fix which will require no knots or any cordage. Just click and glue to deadeyes and ratline part for a perfect result which is quick and easy to achieve. More about that in the week.

[@georgecoventry8441]

That's great, Harry! Looks like you have solved the problem.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Getting there… more ideas and solutions/options to come

[@doogledog1740]

As you refine the attachment of the deadeyes & channels these 3D printed lines will be a real time saver, Harry. The look is certainly good and worth persevering with. I noticed in views at the end of this vid some of the ratlines appear to have taken on a droop between shrouds as sometimes seen on the real thing. I think that looks quite natural.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

I forgot to show how I accidentally created a droop when bumping the horizontal lines with my tweezers. Then I tried doing it deliberately and found they were malleable enough to bend and shape into whatever droop you fancy.

[@cosmarendy8417]

Thanks Harry

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

My pleasure Cos

[@anthonylichfield3540]

Hello there Harry i have not built a ship since the 1960s and can remember them rubber type lines on the airfix kits and like you say use some of moms cotton i loved the old airfx ships must try one again so as always best wishes to you and bask the cat from here in the uk and happy modelling everyone 👍

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Good on you Anthony

[@ejharrop1416]

Amazing result and I am certain you will continue to improve the technique. I will not be surprised at all when you will invent a way to print to the deadeyes jig with the runner board instead of all the knot tying. Well done kiddo. Cheers mate.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Already thinking of a solution so you don’t need to knot and tie deadeyes to the ratlines. They clip and glue on where you need them.

[@rogerbowen5753]

That's really ingenious. What's to stop you printing correctly tensioned deadeyes already attached to the bottom of the other rigging? Trouble is, once you start down the 3D printing rabbit hole it's difficult to know where to stop. It does make it easier for more ham-fisted shipwrights though! Keep up the good work!

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Thanks Roger… I woke this morning with a possible solution to eliminate the need for knots by using a click on method for the bindings. I’ll test my idea this weekend, and if it works the optional part will be available along with the Generic Ratlines in my store later next week.

[@rogerbowen5753]

@@HarryHoudiniModels Nice, maybe one day mere mortals may attempt building tall ship kits.

[@sammy_dog]

gawd Harry if you keep up these inspiring videos i may have to get myself a tall ship and try building one

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

We can only hope Sammy :)

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Due to popular demand I have now listed my 3D printed Generic Ratline sets in the online Tool Store. 7 pairs, port and starboard, to suit most ships. 3 Generic sizes to suit most popular small scale plastic model sailing ships. Custom orders quoted on. houdinimodels.com/harp/

[@guidor.4161]

Brilliant innovation this!. Can't wait until you commercialize these. Need them for a Great Eastern, Great Western, A Nippon Maru, a 1/1200 Titanic, 2 of those tiny 1:350 old time sailing ships from Revell too...and a generic 1/100 or more likely 1/72 Caravelle. And I'll check my stash for any that i missed...

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Bask is taking orders now Guido plus I hope to have a solution for the adding and tensioning of the deadeyes which does not need cordage or knots! More about that next week.

[@guidor.4161]

@@HarryHoudiniModels Are these going to be generic size?

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Initially there will be 3 sets.. 1/120, 1/150, & 1/180 scales in 12, 8, & 5 runs of shrouds. They will suit about 90% of small scale models and can be cut down to fit almost all sailing ship layouts. Then I will offer bespoke ratlines for specific ships at a slightly higher cost to cover the extra CAD time. These will be an exact fit for each kit respectively.

[@guidor.4161]

@@HarryHoudiniModels Sounds good, I will start "measuring" out my kits.

[@Duececoupe]

Excellent stuff young Padawan..... When is your next.... Builds Demonstrations Scratching Modifying ....video? 😉😆😂

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Very soon! Best Only Now Demonstrate All Good Endeavours

[@davidjennings9128]

Hi Harry I build world war two model kits, sailing ships doesn't float my boat lol however im intrigued with the items that you come up with, improving models parts has to be a good thing ,yeah your gonna get some modellers unhappy with them however as a airfix builder like yourself i hnow the frustration with model parts but hey thats modelling

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Yes it is all modelling… and that is a good thing, keeps us of the streets David

[@Yves95128]

Hi Harry, The 3d printed ratlines are a great idea (the texture looks like ropes)👍🏻. Would it help if you include a loop on the end of the 3d printed ratlines (ropes going up)? As you already assembled the dead-eye runs, you can, perhaps, open the loop to attach to your existing dead-eye runs assembly. Also, from the video, it looks like some of the thick ropes of the ratlines are misaligned with the dead-eye runs' anchor point, (Ratlines' ropes 1,2,3,4 look good and it seems that 5 to 10 need to move to the left in your 3d file), I think that you need to use the holes on the hull's plastic channel as reference (bottom wire of the dead-eyes runs). You can probably see the misalignment if you combine ratlines and dead-eyes jig into one STL file. Good continuation👋🏻

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

I think I need to cutaway another rung from the bottom of my ratline part. That should fix the diagonal angle alignment issue with the deadeye pairs.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

As for loops, I have a better idea: print 3D matching top deadeyes with the bidding attached, which are designed to clip and glue onto the ratlines where ever you need them. Also print bottom deadeyes with the channel plate attached. if I can do the deadeyes in wood filament and the ratlines in black plastic they would be almost ready to go on your model with minor painting required.

[@Yves95128]

@@HarryHoudiniModels I think that the space between the ratlines ropes 4 and 5 should be reduced, rotating the group 5 to 10 from the top, it looks like everything would fall in place...

[@Yves95128]

@@HarryHoudiniModels What about the pretty wood dead-eyes and the nice rope assembly😥. What if you integrate a temporary link between the printed top and bottom (wood - PLA) dead-eyes? You do your rope run, perhaps saturated with white glue to keep them stiff, and if visible cut the temporary link between the top and bottom dead-eyes...

[@chadgun4135]

Paint work is the bollocks

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Thanks Chadgun

[@darronhedges5873]

Good job I am as far from a purist as an umpire soul.Let it rip!

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Let it rip down under means to pass wind… and seeing as my diet consists mostly of curries… I have ample!

[@darronhedges5873]

@@HarryHoudiniModels If you can sit to eat ten curry’s..and stop on the ninth one! Yours is the right to the Khazi alone,And what’s more,”Let it rip my son!”

[@michaelricci7486]

Hi Harry, I built Airfix’s Saint Louis when I was a kid and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Now that I am back in the hobby after 40 years do you know where I can find one? Is Airfix planning a re-release?

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Sadly they are few and far between these days. I had been searching for a few years before I found mine, and even though it was in a sorry state having been badly started, I snapped it up. You never know how long you might have to wait for another one to pop up. Just set a search on eBay to notify you if any get listed, then act fast if the price is reasonable. They won’t last long.

[@Lambonights]

Hmmm, I think it was a great effort Harry using your 3D printed Ratlines. Certainly better than the ones I have here in my Revell kits, for sure, but I think, if you're going to all the trouble of rigging actual Dead Eyes, they demand properly rigged Rat Lines too. I agree, if using 3D printed Ratlines, just go full plastic for the Dead Eyes too, easier that way all round. I must say, your St Louis is looking very spiffy! 👍 Oh, and Harry? I was looking at my old Revell USS Constitution kit again (05600). It says on the box it's 22" long, 55.8 cms. Does that mean it's a 1:146 or a 1:196? I think, if I am reading Scalemates correctly, it's a 1:146? I am just not sure, but I know you will know. Any advice please?

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

The actual USS Constitution is listed as 93m from bowsprit to Spanker. That means your 55.8cm long version is in reality 1/166 scale. So Revell’s 1/146 is a close match and all depends on exactly from where to where they measured on the model.

[@Lambonights]

@@HarryHoudiniModels Ah, thank you, Harry! You were totally right to call out kit makers on this. I think they ought to be made to standardise their measuring of kit scales and change their boxes going forward while putting stickers on their existing ones as goodness knows kits are expensive enough these days! Anyways, keep up the great work! 🙂

[@PiperStart]

Great video. If someone will print me a set for my Airfix 1/87 Bounty and my Heller 1/200 La Couronne, I will make progress. Both models are ready for rigging, and this is the circuit breaker I need to start.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

I will have the Generic Ratlines available for sale this coming week Max. However I can take orders specific to your model, but they may cost a little more for the extra CAD. I’m also working on a solution for tensioning without needing cordage or knots! That should make the whole process even easier…

[@PiperStart]

That's great Harry. I noticed tou suggested using the​ original plastic cordage parts which eliminates the need for creating tension. Im happy to wait a week or two, no pressure. I only do ships in the school holidays, when I can focus.@HarryHoudiniModels

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

I will have the snap on deadeye shroud adapter available next week.

[@finlayfraser9952]

Harry, have you any experience with EZ Line for rigging, there are reports that it deteriorates quite quickly?

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Yes it does… I rigged my tiny Aoshima 1:350 Nippon Maru with it then, only after 18 months of indirect sunlight into the display cabinet, the Ezyline just evaporated to powder. The resin will degrade fast in any warm environment. I rigged again with thin waxed cotton which is still on and firm after many years.

[@scottfw7169]

Okay, purists will hate the ratlines, but what will the rats think of the purists?

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

My ratlines are suitably ambivalent Scott ;)

[@dukejohn2898]

Haters gonna hate so, Fokker the purists.

[@HarryHoudiniModels]

Exactly Duke