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Keith, dear brother, It's my view that in our lives on this planet we are given hurdles to get over, and how we deal with these hurdles defines who we are. You've been handling this hurdle exceptionally well....grace and style. I'm proud of you! Tom

Thanks for the comments and the likes. At the risk of raising expectations that I likely won't meet, I'll make my second post in three days. Since the last one, I have sanded more, added more filler, and sanded again, then sprayed on some primer to get a better look at what still needs to be done. Frankly, the hull looks a bit better in primer than I expected. There are still plenty of spots that need more filler and more sanding, but perhaps fewer than I expected to see. So, I have another couple rounds of filling and sanding, then another coat of primer in my future.

I am trying, in this build log, to provide a practical dinghy-sailor's perspective, to help those future builders of the pram who do not have direct experience of such boats. As my last post included all of the belaying of the pram's (very limited) running rigging, maybe this is a good time for me to add something about belaying lines to either (horned) cleats or pins. As with anything else, there are right and wrong ways to do it, hence right and wrong ways to show a belay in a model. There are other things that lines can be belayed to, such as timber heads or bitts, so the overall topic is large, but keeping things (relatively) simple, there are three "rules" for a belay to a pin or cleat. The first is absolute and should never be broken. It is that the line, on being brought to a pin, should pass cleanly to and around its top or bottom and never across the middle: That's not some fetish. Done right, quite a light grip on the line (the short end in that diagram) will hold a considerable load (at least with high-friction hemp or manilla, maybe not with slippery, modern Dyneema or Spectra), yet a gentle easing will veer some line if you have pulled too far, while you can readily catch and then hold some slack, if your shipmate is sweating up the line. Rule 2, to be followed any time that it won't force a violation of the Rule 1, is that the first pass of the line behind the top of the pin should be from left to right: OK, that is partly just a fetish but the idea is that, on a dark night, someone releasing the line gets a bit of a tactile warning that it is close to coming free, hence to be ready to take whatever load is on the line. Rule 3, to be followed when possible without violating Rules 1 & 2, is that the first turn around the pin should be a round turn, with no crosses (as shown above). If the rigger who set up the boat (or ship) did their job properly, all three rules should be followed, and should fall into place easily, in most cases. However, that cannot always be done, whatever the skill and care of the rigger. The clew outhaul on my pram, as I have it rigged, cannot be belayed according to Rule 3 if Rules 1 & 2 are obeyed. It could have been if the sailor was left-handed and the cleat on the port side of the boom. A right-handed sailor, pulling the clew towards the end of the boom, will naturally want the cleat on the starboard side. It has to be on the boom, of course, hence necessarily below the level of the clew -- and that orientation prevents all three rules being followed simultaneously. There is no such compulsion with the halliard or tack downhaul, which can be belayed following all three rules. Next, after getting to the point shown above, the line should be taken diagonally across the pin: then behind the pin and diagonally the other way: and repeat so that there are two diagonal passes in each direction. And that's it. No need to build on layer after layer of turns around the pin -- unless you're working with Dyneema (or, in a model, the lousy, slippery cordage that Model Shipways provide!). Though, if the tail of line is long enough to trail on the deck but not long enough to coil, you could take an extra couple of turns to use up the length neatly. The end result looks something like: Note that bringing lines down from the masthead to pins both port and starboard means that Rule 3 has to be ignored on the starboard side. Ditto for the tack downhaul, with its cleat displaced to the starboard side of the mast (and note also that that is placed at a slight angle, to make fulfilling Rules 1 & 2 more natural for the sailor's fingers). If you are working with the sizes of rope usually found on a sailing ship, even those on my 22 footer, there is literally nothing more to be done (aside from coiling -- which is a whole other topic). In a small boat like our pram, however, you can't rely on gravity to hold the loose end of the line in place. Besides, you may get a lot of water on board and that can wash a line off its cleat. So it can be a good idea to create a locking turn by passing the end of the line under the last diagonal turn -- as with the gantline on the pin next to the mast on its port side in that photo. (That has both ends of the gantline on the same pin, hence the double appearance.) At full-size, there's no need to tuck the long end of a halliard, say, under the diagonal. Rather, the last pass around the top of the pin is given a twist and dropped over the pin, leaving the locking turn. And that's all there is to it ... aside from working with forceps to pass miniature lines around model belaying pins, then repeating the process a hundred times for those who aspire to build full-rigged clippers 😀 Trevor

Planking is now complete. I used a "magic plank" method I once read about (but I can't find the reference) in which I tried to position a starter plank right at the point at the turn of the bilge which would allow me to maximize the number of mostly straight planks. I then fit planks down from the sheer, up from the keel, and up and down from the magic plank. I had some luck with this method in that most of the plank fitting I had to do turned into fitting one flat side of a new plank to a flat side of a prior plank above or below and only having to fit the other side of the new plank to one curved edge. Below is the transom I am trying to duplicate. I have tried and failed at this before, but maybe this time I have the process thought through

Rough templates for the boom saddles. I probably changed the values a bit after I took this picture, but this gives the basic idea. t I remade a transom because I want to try to duplicate the transom from a picture I have. Also, whether my error or a plans error, I could not get the transom in the kit to fit properly. I'll assume it was my error. I intend to trim this transom to shape once I finish planking and figure out where the after bullworks will land.

As Druxey said: It's looking good !

Removable jigs determine the angle of the top flange of the tender. Regards, David

It will depend, amongst other things, on what effect you are aiming for. If I was going to build full-size Norwegian prams for sale and wanted a model that I could display at boat shows and the like, I think the Model Shipways approach would go well. The sail comes out as a flat, rigid board but that would still show off the advertised product. On the other hand, if I wanted a diorama of the Muscongus Bay sloop, with her owner/skipper hauling his lobster traps, I would want the sails either curved and full of wind or else shivering and shaking, as the sloop rounded up into the wind and shot alongside the buoy marking the next trap. Soaking cloth in diluted PVA wouldn't work for that. One day, I hope to build a Vanguard Erycina, with her trawl on the rail and her other fishing gear on deck. If that became a diorama, maybe I would have her at anchor, waiting on a wind, with sails furled. They would certainly need to be dyed, to simulate dressing of the canvas, but maybe that would be the only treatment required. As for Ranger (and with all respect for Chris Watton and his magnificent kits), I would question whether her sails should be dyed at all. Robert Hewitt (head of the company by the end of Ranger's career) wasn't just a fishing boat owner. He was a noted racing yachtsman, a one-time Commodore of the Prince of Wales' Yacht Club and later Rear-Commodore of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, while the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) was Commodore. When (in 1864) Hewitt re-structured his company (what would now be almost a reverse-takeover), to raise enough capital to build steam cutters, he had sufficient connections in the right places to persuade Lord Alfred Paget to be Chairman of the new company. Besides being another member of the Royal Thames, Paget was a Member of Parliament, an officer in the Horse Guards and Queen Victoria’s Chief Equerry – as well as a son of the late Marquess of Anglesey, commander of the Allied cavalry at the Battle of Waterloo. Another of the Directors was Rear Admiral George Wellesley, soon to be appointed Admiral Superintendant of Portsmouth Dockyard and later First Naval Lord. Wellesley was a nephew of the late Duke of Wellington, the victor at Waterloo and briefly Prime Minister. When Hewitt's cutters proudly sailed up the River to Billingsgate Market, with fresh fish from his fleet out in the North Sea, all packed in ice (an innovation his father had brought in around 1850 -- then a first for European fisheries), those vessels were mobile advertisements for the family company and the men who led it -- led it to familiarity with the highest in the land. So I suspect, though I cannot prove, that the cutters sported "classy" white sails, distinguishing them from the spritsail barges and other such lesser craft that crowded the River, there being an unspoken but potent social hierarchy in such things. Indeed, as America had introduced English yachtsmen to the advantages of cotton canvas in back 1851, I'd not be surprised if, by the end of her time as a cutter working with the Short Blue fleet, Ranger's sails were bright white, rather than the creamy tone of conventional flax & hemp sailcloth. Trevor

I had bought my pin vises (2) and number drill bits from McMaster-Carr. I bought two pin vices because they came with a reversible chuck (larger shaft/small shaft) so I could have one set for each. That ended up being a waste of money as they are easily reversed. I bought a few bits that came in multiple quantities in envelops. The smallest of which are quite delicate and snap with the slightest side pressure (flex) if you do not choke up on them with the pin vise chuck.

From various posts and articles, my take is it helps to stiffen and shape the sales, particularly if you want them unfurled and show the sail full of wind. I also recall reading that you can mix color in with the PVA to put a tint onto the cloth since some material is too white.

Been a fairly productive weekend. Have nearly completed the Quarter Gallery framing and mostly faired. Completed installing the upper and lower sills. Did some rough fairing of the sills and sanded the stern frames down to the dashed line. Then fabricated the Quarter Gallery framing per the instructions, checking that each piece lined up with the template I created. I used the laser cut planks for the Lower Counter provided in kit2 as a template to get the shape correct when fairing the frames and ensuring I did not over-fair the stern. Picture showing the curve of the transom. Placed the transom piece on the framing to check alignment. Question - how much space should there be between the outer edge of the stern frame and the window opening in the transom piece? I have 1/8 inch on each side. I think this is correct from looking at the drawings but would like to double check if I need to add another 1/32 inch or so? That's it for this weekend. Steve

Me too. I haven't worked much on my little project. Got to buckle down and get working on it.

Thanks Gbmodeler…I am hopefully getting closer to identifying the small boat on Dunnottar Castle clipper before she was stranded in 1886 on Kure Atoll in the Pacific. One of these boats was referred to as a “hooker” by the lad of 18 who survived 52 days at sea in this boat and sent a letter home to his parents describing the incident. DC was constructed in Glasgow so I expect the small boats used as lifeboats and auxiliary boats would have been sourced locally. Could this image throw light on the boat used here on DC? I attach the best image I have showing much detail and also the davit structure which is very important. It looks rather flimsy but maybe it was steel construction. Apparently the masts of DC were steel rather than wooden material. Looking forward to hearing from someone. Thanks. John

Progressing nicely!

Been a few days but I've got some progress done! (In the middle of selling and looking for a new home). Got steps 23-32 done. (29 and 30 are non-existent). And part of 34 done; the first 34 of the two 🤣 23: Chain Plate Slots Drilled a hole with a bit about 1" and used a xacto blade saw to make it square (ish). Had to modify the saw blade a bit to get it to fit in the hole but afterwords it came out ok. I'm thinking it'll look fine with the chain plates installed. 24: Rudder Gudgeon Pad Not much to say here. Very straightforwards and simply. The laser marked slot on the transom was not the center of my boat so I had to just slide it over. 25: Rowlock Pads I cut a few 3/4" strips and marked every 1/4" and used a regular xacto blade to shape these. Ended up making 5 because one (my first one) did not come out how I liked. The instructions only mention that they should be 1' 6" aft of the forward thwart frames but later pictures show 4 total so I just measured the 1.5" behind the bottom frames 2 and 3.... now that I'm writing this I see that they say 1.5" behind the thwart frames and not bottom rails... whoopsies. My boat is just custom 😁 26: Rub Rails Since I used the strips intended for this for the floor board cleats and removed them, I got some new pieces from Hobby Lobby. They didn't have 3/64"x1/8" but they did have 1/16"x1/8" so I used that and sanded it a little extra to get closer to 3/64". Pre-bending them helped a lot and I welcome the opportunity for more bending practice as I have lots more to do in my future! I got them pretty flat with the inwale and sheer plank so I was happy about that. 27: Dagger Board Pretty straight forward. I started sanding this thinking I would only bevel one side of the dagger board but mid sanding i saw that it did say to bevel both sides so I did. Thankfully I wasn't too far in and it came out mostly symmetrical. The instructions do not say to do this but I rounded the front edge as it didn't seem very aerodynamic with a flat edge. I made the stop at the top as the instructions say with 2 long strips along the top with a small piece in between at the ends. Sanded it all level and rounded everything and it looks good! 28: Rudder Nothing too tricky here either. I left the char on the curved side of the rudder to help me keep track of my bevel job to make sure I didn't over-do it at any point. Rounded the front at the bottom and cut out the small notches for the pintles. 31: Thwarts and Stern Sheets I'm not sure if it matters but for the stern sheets, I glued a strip of scrab to the bottom to hold them together so I kept my spacing. It also allowed me to sand the edges and make sure they will line up in the end. The forethwart was very simple. I had to trim the thwart knees a little to make sure they were level and flush with thwart. I had to do quite a bit of trimming to the thwart so that it would fit especially in the slot for the thwart frame. The slots were not deep enough to fit. The midship thwart was a very different situation... the knees required significant trimming so that the thwart was at the same level as the dagger board case. So much, that the thwart knees could not reach the inwale... I trimmed them so there is no notch for the inwale and attached them to the sheer plank. Once I go these made, I put a tiny bit of glue on the bottom and glued them to the thwart and let it dry. Afterwards, I slid the thwart into position and glued the knees to the plank. Once that glue dried I was able to easily break the bond and slide out the thwart. 33: Painting the Hull I just got done with priming everything and letting it dry. Will sand it and paint it tomorrow! 34-1: Floor Boards I really liked how the stern sheets come out when using the extra strip of wood glued to the bottom so I decided to do that with the floor boards. Once all boards were glued together, I roughed out the shape of the bottom of the boat and started making sawdust. I did this for both sets of floor boards but on the ones that go around the dagger board case, I only glued the long strips together. Once I get them glued in, I will do my best getting the smaller boards in and symmetrical. Had a random issue where the tip of the bow transom knee broke off - above the hole for the stay plate. I "fixed" it with wood filler... I spent way too much time sanding it to make it look half decent and then put some thin CA glue into the wood to make sure it doesn't break again. It's "high performance" wood filler but I don't trust it haha. What's everyone's opinion on where pictures are in these posts? Right after the section talking about the relevant parts? Or all dumped at the end of the post like I usually do.

I join the others in wishing both of you the best results and a return to easy health. Your model creations and teaching tips are a great boost to all of us who follow along. Press on! Craig (and Vicky) Johnsen

Hull is out of the paint booth and looks pretty good. The green color is a little darker than I had thought but since you can only judge color by the cap on the can (at Walmart) I guess it will "do". Not the "Kelarney green" from the instructions but I am not sure what shade of green that is anyway. There are a few areas of touch up but since it is green on white I have the correct color of white to patch things up. If I had to add more green I would have to deal with spraying into a cup or similar container than then dipping a brush in the container. not very elegant and can be really messy. I got a nice sharp waterline using Tamiya masking tape and then painting over the junction between the tape and the white with flat clear acrylic. I was told it helps seal the joint to reduce the chance of paint seeping by. It appears to have worked this time. Working on the deck furniture and making a spreadsheet of all the blocks/deadeyes that need to be made up. Sometime to keep me occupied for more than a few days to come.

I suppose under “any clear finish such as a lacquer” that could include shellac. Not sure the relative advantages of diluted PVA, clear enamel, clear lacquer, clear shellac, or leaving them bare. I’ve seen recommendation of using clear shellac on knots in rigging and to shape rope coils. I suppose it would do the same with sail material. I don’t know if it would be better to use diluted shellac. I suppose I’d dilute with alcohol.

Really nice model, think l shall have to add this to my stash, yip very nice 🤛

As yet to install sails on one of my wooden kits i am waiting for an answer with interest

Thank you for the "wow", King Derelict! Not sure that is deserved but it's welcome all the same! Today: Setting the sail: There was one point in the kit instructions' suggestions for the mast that I had skipped over: There is to be some "copper" applied where the boom jaws bear against the mast. I hadn't forgotten that but other build logs have reported trouble when the "copper" was applied while building the mast and the boom later rested higher or lower. So I wanted the boom in place first. The instructions suggest representing the "copper" with painted paper. I know that some model builders have used real copper, beaten thin then glued on. I opted for the simpler alternative of using a tiny piece of adhesive-backed copper tape. In the end, it hardly matters as the piece can barely be seen around the mast jaws. With that done, I could set the sail properly. The instructions talk about belaying the tack downhaul first, then the halliard. That's a bit of a reversal, as the halliard has much more scope for adjustment, so you need to fix that first, thus setting the height of the sail up the mast, then do the tack downhaul. (At full size, hauling on the halliard is a fight against gravity and friction, so best not done when also fighting tension in the rig. In contrast, it is easy to throw your body weight onto the boom, get as much tension as you wish in the luff, then belay the downhaul.) There was really no difficulty with either in the model, except that even my larger mast cleats were too small for the material I had chosen for the halliard. I had to glue turns onto the cleat before adding more turns. Full-size, the downhaul needs no more length than needed to belay on the cleat, so that one can get clipped off short. The halliard has to be long enough to the drop sail and yard into the boat, of course, so there's a whole lot of extra length around. I will have the "fun" of coiling the excess later. In the meanwhile, all looks quite nice: I fastened one end of the sheet to the "becket" on its lower block by the same CA-glue and sail-twine whipping approach (masquerading as a served splice) that I had used on the standing rigging. This time, I worked with the sheet loose in my hand and put on a common whipping (rather than a westcountry) to see whether that would be less lumpy. Then I passed the rope horse through the traveller block and put the ends through the holes in the stern quarter knees (which had to be re-drilled first), tying figure-of-eight stopper knots in the hidden ends. I made the horse much longer than I had expected to as I wanted to be sure that it would always clear the tiller. Maybe I will shorten it later. That will be easy to do, if necessary. The sheet has to be long, as it must span twice from the horse to the boom end, when the boom is freed off against a shroud, with yet more length to bring its end to the hand of someone sitting amidships. All of that length had to be rove through the boom-end block, then through the one "shackled" to the horse and everything pulled gently taut: There's tidying up still to be done (with the end of the clew outhaul, in particular) but I'm happy with how it's going. And that crazy forward rake of the mast doesn't look so crazy now, with the limited space between boom and hull. Trevor

I have been tempting over the possibility of starting own hobby store business in greater Denver area with a strong emphasis on ship building and hobby woodworking in general. Would also include woodburning for making kits and potentially a 3D printer. I admit that I don't know anything about CNC which some people have been making incredible items using. With permission would like to partner with certain individuals selling merchandise. Just trying to get a potential feel for clientele and overall feedback about starting up such a business. Brian D

Brilliant work, simply as that 🤛

Good afternoon, some minor progress on the Lady Eleanor today. I completed steps 28-31. This includes gluing the deck down, supports for the bulwarks, and fairing the hull. Finally I started to make some clamps for planking.

Does it make sense to use the Byrnes saw for the very thin second planking of most models? Are there special precautions required? I am just wondering, my Chopper is no longer usable so should I try to use the Byrnes. it is a powerful little saw and not sure that crosscuts using a sliding table would be a good idea? If not, what, at a reasonable price, would best replace the Shortline Chopper? thank you, richard