Auvergne

What an amazing job you did on her Michael!! A vessel very worthy to be proud of. John E

Ollie, Thanks so much for commenting! Means so much to hear. Aussie, Thank you as well! Great hearing from you all!

dgbot, Thanks friend....something I learned from someone on MSW....grateful for your comment. John E

Mij...thank you! I'll keep you posted. Kindly, John E

A couple of photos showing the work mentioned in my previous post. Lots of work to do but looking a bit better this morning. I will continue to post my progress later. Need more work completed on main deck aft and to the right. John E

Thanks Mij, I seriously think this Xebec will be a modified version of the original kit. I cannot go back and undo what has already been done so pressing onward. Your Xebec is beautiful Mij, and I salute you, sir. Presently I have built the outer walls of the aft section. Here again, I raised the walls by two planks in order to allow for the height extension of what I covered to align with the deck on the stern instead of the grating. It will work I am sure as I also wish for the metal scrollwork, cap-rails and top-plates to align at a downward angle from the transom. At this point this Chebec may be experimental but I am continuously improving my carpentry skills, trim skills, paint, and staining my deck. The main deck is almost complete and then on to the sides of the main deck. I'll try and post a couple of pics later this morning.

Hi Michael, All I can say is she appears flawless and beautiful!! John E.

Hi Bob, Well sir, you just helped me in a very big way. I love the old vessels in some of my lines drawings books and would like to research these vessels and make scratch builds as you did so well. I have been pondering for quite some time now. I am a draftsman and have been fascinated by Marine Engineering and Drafting. I just need to learn how to model. Keep going Bob because with you there is so much potential. Thanks for sharing your story of Joshua Slocum and Spray. John E

I saw how you did your grating. Superior craftsmanship and I like the way you used exotics. Did you use the kit parts as a template to cut out in exotic woods? That is what it looks like to me. You taught me so much on this vessel. Since my grating is set to high at the stern and already glued I am not sure what to do. I will have to correct somehow....any advice?? You did very well and I am pleased you have taken your valued time to assist in my build. John E

Beautiful work and the paint job was immaculate. BTW what kind of spackling did you use on the hull prior to airbrushing?

A small amount of filler for the small opening....trim is in and now off to do the planking of stern sides. This will be stained a light Oak as the main and aft decks. John E

Thank you Ollie! Great advice! I know coming from you this is a good thing though rest assured I have much work to do on the aft section. The knife I use is a Flexcut chip carving roughing out knife. I will and have been needing to invest in very sharp blades. I used to carve wood and know the blade must be very sharp otherwise we do not really cut the wood. You are a good man Ollie, always a smile on your face now, and always helpful hints. Thanks very much.

Been working since 4:30 am on aft section where the grating should go. I have before pictures and after pictures. I am thinking the after will be a final conclusion with the exception of planking the stern sides in. I am not going to cut or drill hills into this piece because thus far it has looked sloppy. Any suggestions and or comment would be greatly appreciated. Thanks !! John E

Following are 2 photos of what I was attempting to do with the grating aft...I am not pleased and feel my craftsmanship is little to be desired. I wanted some critique to see a better approach. But first, let me say before I even started on this aft section I remembered I have a good size stack of 1/16" Birch wood that is just sitting on a shelf. So I began to think of replacing the 1x4x.5 planks with a cutout of the area with the Birch. I was successful at cutting a piece that slipped right into the exterior framing quite nicely. All I have to do is drill holes at 5/64" to show where the water would drain to keep vessel from pitch-poling upon being hit by a rogue wave. My problem with this approach seems to be just how much of a realistic look I need to achieve. I am looking for a clean look which will look better than the kit part. I figure this is a good approach but was wondering if anyone had any ideas. I am looking online to research the grating for the Xebec and potentially discover a better way. (Actually, I am ashamed of the 2 photos I will show but some of you folks with more experience may be able to help.) These instructions in the Amati kit (to me anyway), are difficult to understand. I also feel this is an opportunity to advance a scratch built section of the vessel but really need to see real time photos of the actual build from someone else. Thanks for allowing me to ramble on. It is 4:30 AM where I am and I am half asleep.