HMS President 1760 by stripehunter - Sergal - 1:60 - on hold

[stripehunter]

Back at it again.  Cracked open the box on one of my shelf kits, the sergal president.  I want to build this kit pretty much as designed documenting it as well as I can.  The internet is rather empty of logs for this kit.  Considering this kit is often found cheaply online, this log could be of good use to people. 

 

As a ship, it has some issues.  It's a fictitious ship, described as a frigate but more appropriately a sloop of war I think.  Armed only with 12 carronades, many of which lie behind the main chains.  I think they took a kit designed as a merchant hull, slapped some carronades on it and called it a frigate.  Still, i think it a nice enough looking little ship.  My main interest in it is that the hull and size look very similar to my first swift build, but there's a significant step up in rigging complexity as well as some gun ports to cut.  Hopefully this ship will give me the confidence to move into the more advanced ships I really really want to build (first of which being the latina constellation I also have on the shelf already)

 

Instructions could probably be considered horrible.  Consists of two pages of translated text mostly referring to the drawing/illustrations.  I think for the most part I'll be winging it just going by the pictures. 

 

The only modification I see making is to shift the chains or gunports or both so the carronades wouldn't dismast or burn the ship just by firing.

 

 

 

I'm determined to log my hours this build.  I got the main plywood sheet cut out.  First evening unboxing and cutting out all the pieces was 1.5 hours.  I will say the laser cuts were much cleaner and clearer than those on my AL Swift.

 

[WBlakeny]

Good luck with your build, i've had lots of fun building mine.

[S.Coleman]

Yes you are correct about the plans. Even worse when it comes to rigging her. Best of luck to you.

[stripehunter]

Spent another 1.5 hours filing and dry fitting bulkheads.  Still have some fitting to do on the longitudinal reinforcements before I start gluing.

 

[stripehunter]

I've finally been able to get a couple of hours into the model.  Another couple of weeks and I'll be back to having lots of free time.

 

I got the skeleton all glued up, and have begun fairing.  I'm going to add balsa blocks in the bow and stern but wanted to rough in first.  The thick plywood is going to take a lot of time in fairing, at least as slowly as I work.  One note, the fairing blocks provided for the bow, they have a small piece that fills the gap between them above the bowsprit.  you need to fit this around the bowsprit before gluing it in.  otherwise it would be much harder to fit the bowsprit once you found it didn't fit later. 

 

 

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

I had a significant injury that kept me off the workbench for quite a while.  I'm back at it again now.

Bow filler blocks:

 

 

 

fairing bulkheads continues

 

Gluing the decks.

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

Gluing decks continued.  I installed some blackened cardboard under where the deck gratings will be to hide the structure and add to the dark hold affect.

 

 

 

 

first planking started.

 

 

As I planked upwards into the bulwarks, this is where I decided I really disliked the design of this kit. They want you to plank the whole way up to the top of the bulkheads sticking up above the deck.  However, you can't glue to the bulkheads.  You have to cut them all off flush to the deck.  The only thing holding the planks in place after you do this is the edge to edge glue.  I really did not like this concept.  Figured they'd be very weak, and difficult to do.  Plus, the tops of some of the bulkheads do not stick up far enough above deck level to accomplish this.

 

I combined this with the other things I dislike about this kit, and seriously thought about setting it aside and starting the one I really want to work on.   However, I thought some more, and decided to take a new tack.  I gently cut out all the planks I had installed above the lowest deck level.  Using a wide strip of veneer walnut, I cut out a one piece bulwark that can be glued solidly to the bulkheads.  I used the clear tape tracing technique as if I were spiling a normal plank, then soak bent the bow curve before gluing down. Doubling this veneer will equal the thickness of the other planks, and laminating two layers together with glue would make a very stiff/strong piece I think.

 

 

 

Adding the second layer of wood, laminated with pva.

Now I am back 'into' this kit again.  Next challenge will be how I plank and handle the beard line, since I plan to laminate the keel piece with walnut which will serve double duty as a rabbet.  Also will need to figure out what to do with the stern and quarter galleries, as I really dislike the brass pieces supplied for this.  Since I worked around the bulwark issue, I'm liking the need to figure out alternate ways to build this kit.  It was to be an intermediate learning experience for me, and it's filling in that niche better now.

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

Life kept me away from modelling for a long time. When determined to get back in, i decided to shelve this build for the time being. I had a very hard time getting into this kit from the get go. Quality and design of the kit, the small scale of it as well as my indifference to the ship itself made it more like work than pleasure. Found a deal i couldnt pass up on another kit ive had my eye on  which led me to set this aside for now. Will pick it up again some day.

[S.Coleman]

It took me alot of get go to carry on and finish my President. You have done a great job on her. Could be a good possible kit bash project later on down the line. 

[Ondras71]

The scale of this kit is the only downside, otherwise it is a beautiful boat.  I wish the construction to continue ..