Thanks, Bob. Speaking of mistakes, I ended up painting the Pen Duick hull 3 times until I got it right. I was learning to use an airbrush and, although the first paint job was great, I messed up the clear coat. So I ended up sanding and repainting more than I would have liked. I'm now slowed to a snail's pace as I try to make sense of the practically useless instructions and plans for the rigging...and so it goes in model ship building...

Thanks Bob. I know that I am my own worst critic, but still enjoy being in the shop. This is a hobby that I have wanted to get involved in since my first visit to the Maritime Museum in Victoria when I was a boy. If I achieve similar results on my build as you did on yours I will be over the moon happy. Your build of the PenDuick is a fine example of craftsmanship. Love the paint. Bob

First of all, you are doing a great job considering this is your first build. This is not a beginner model; it's actually quite complex and you will undoubtedly learn a ton as you continue to build it. Most of us are our own worst critics and we see our mistakes much more clearly than anyone else. My wife has often told me, "Nobody would ever notice that but you." Keep plugging away on your model, look a few steps ahead so you can clearly see where you are going and how to get there and ask questions when you are confused or uncertain. It's only wood and the the majority of errors can be corrected or, at least, masked enough that only you will notice. In the end, when you have the all the rigging up and the grapnels and the oars are finished, there will be so many interesting things to look at that you won't even notice your errors so much yourself. My boat isn't perfect but, when I look at it now, I nearly have to pinch myself to remind me that I really did make that beautiful model! You're well on your way. Good luck!

Following now getting to ready for my first ship after many Dumas Chris crafts and aircraft wooden kits. Looks great so far. Ray

Thanks Bob and Havelock. When I look at my build I see every flaw and mistake and wish I had more experience in ship modeling. I then remind myself that this is my first build. I believe that any model I could have chosen would have ended up with the same mistakes and flaws. It is a hobby with a learning curve, and I am learning . I do hope to someday be able to build a museum quality ship. As far as my Longboat build I will achieve a mantel piece model short of a disaster, and worse come to worse there is nothing that wood filler and paint can not hide. LOL

The planking looks amazing! Great work!

You can take it off now. The tape is there to help strengthen the frames when you faired them. The little wood tabs strengthen the frames also and will be cut when you open up the interior of the boat after you complete the planking as well. Nice to see you are back in the boatyard.

I Finally got some shop time. Owning an older home can take up a lot of time in the good weather. I am almost half way with my planking, 4 out of 9, and hope to do some more this evening. When is it a good time to remove the reinforcing tape on the frames? Should I do it now or wait until planking is complete. This is a slow build for me but enjoy my shop time, as little as it is. As you all can see I did cut one plank two short, so I did the same on the other side for balance.

The places I used filler went on to be painted.

Thanks Ryland!

Glenn, I used Minwax Natural wood filler on my Longboat. It was a perfect match to the yellow cedar.

Just checked Amazon, there are lots of versions of Elmers, is one in particular a best match for our yellow cedar?

Exceptionally beautiful work Jean-Paul ! Your care and precision in building this model shows in every photo and every angle of the boat. Very fine workmanship. Gary

Chuck....any more progress.

Has anyone who purchased the stand tried filling in the letters with black paint and then sanding the surface to make good any over painting?

Thanks for all your replys guys. food for thought when I do another model.

Hi Justin. The ship in the background that you can see was my first ever build. It was a Sergal kit of HMS Presedent

You've done a great job on this beautiful boat, Simon. I had the same problem in a couple of places and I ended up with a small hole near the bow too. I've read some other logs where this happened also. It seems, that for whatever reason, the most potentially troublesome spot is a couple of frames aft of the bow. I was able to cut out a small patch and glue it in place and it is only noticeable if you were to pick up the boat and examine it closely. I felt awful about it at first but, now that the boat is finished and on display, I don't even notice it and no one else does either. I used CA to glue to do the planking and only placed a small spot of it on each frame as I went along laying down the plank. I didn't use any glue on the plank edges and this generally prevented any glue stains on the interior. I lightly sanded a few glue stains in the interior and, after I coated the interior with Satin Wipe-on-Poly, they aren't noticeable. Once you have have all the lines and rope coils etc in the boat, they will be less noticeable also. There were some places where a plank would be a bit loose and higher between two frames than the plank above it. If I could take my finger and push in on the plank and make it lay more flush, then I would take a tiny amount of CA and place it on the edge of the plank with a scalpel where it was protruding and then push it in flush with the planks around it. This often took care of the problem so that I didn't end up sanding the planking too thin in that area. I had never done any rigging before and was apprehensive about doing it. I was sure that I would make a mess of it. However, it ended up being my favorite part of the build. I loved how it made the boat come alive as more lines and metal work were added to the boat. Good luck. I look forward to following your progress. Cheers!

Simon, your model is beautifully done - thanks for sharing! Don

Simon that looks great. So happy to see pictures of your progress. Chuck

Looks great. What is the ship in the background?

Yes Ryland, just as soon as Chuck begins his overseas postage again.

Excellent build. Are you planning to mast and rig this model?

Hi guys. Been a long time since i posted anything . Had a few issues with my laptop, but got a new one now, so all sorted. The model is all but finished as regards the boat itself but i am waiting for the go ahead to purchace the masting and rigging set and a serving machine from Chuck just as soon as he is able to despatch overseas again. I'll post all the photos that i took and then answer any questions that you guys may have. The only problems that I had while making the kit was during the planking of the hull. Because it was my first time of doing a single planked hull i found it a little difficult bending the planks to shape using Chuck's method of using heat to bend the planks. I found it easier later on to soak the planks for a couple of hours, bend and clamp them in place and then glue them up once dry. I didn't think of doing this until half way down the hull. Because of these dificulties at the begining some of the planks didn't quite line up and when i came to the sanding stage some planks were paper thin after sanding and in a couple of places even went through particularly near the bows. Oh well, never mind, lessons learned. Also, i had trouble cleaning up wet glue on the inside of the hull as i went along as the full frames were in the way and it was very difficult to clean up once dry and the frame filling pieces were removed. Did anyone else have these problems or was it just my inexperience. Apart from that, everything else went well and i had great fun building the kit. choose files... Click to choose files

Superb Job, Ryland ! I really like the jig to drill the holes for the thole pins. The distance between them is thus perfectly regular. Brilliant idea !