Fortunately I remembered to paint the masts, bowsprit, deck structures and chimney before assembling the sails. I also sanded the hull down, removing all the rough glue edges and filling in some unwanted cracks. It was given a proper undercoat and painted in black. The keel was painted in red. The propeller was cut from tin and fitted in place. The port line was painted with gloss paint, which did not help when I tried to glue in the ports, cut from light cardboard. I finally got them all in place. It all ended with cutting out the base and fitting the brackets.

sails fitted
all sails fitted
ready for finishing touches
above deck installation is completed
almost ready
bow and rear decorations, ports and propeller fitted

The finished SS Great Britain on 22 May 2022 represented a very steap learning curve, the acquisition of a whole range of new tools, utilities and skills and a shift in my view of my own abilities. It was simply very satisfying.

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