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Hi Everyone, I've been lurking around the Plank on Frame builds on here for ages now, dreaming of the day when I have the space, time and money to build a true Plank on Frame model, when I had a bit of a brain wave: Firstly, my woodworking skills wouldn't be up to scratch to build a true Contemporary Style PoF ship, and the lack of space in my one bedroom flat (shared with the Lady Admiral and our Cocker Spaniel Puppy) would not permit the build of such an advanced model. Now you're probably reading this and saying "well, just buy a Lumberyard kit with all the parts laser cut, and find a bigger house, or make more room". This was my first thought process, but then brainwave number two happened (whilst in the shower), and I thought about making a wooden plug, like has been used for a number of builds here on MSW. Having trawled through numerous build logs, I realised these are mostly for models with very thin frames, such as Longboats, and Gunboats. So why can't it be done for a ship that is smaller in size, but bigger than a Gunboat? I then started digging around online, and found very few companies offer models built in this fashion. In theory, this would be a similar way of building a modern wooden boat, build a plug based on bulkheads turned upside-down, with battens screwed to the bulkhead to make the moulded shape (a lot of the early Quarter Tonner racing boats were built this way). So for example, I decided to build a 14 Gun Cutter, like below, I could measure from the plans how thick the frames were (say 5mm @ 1:48 Scale), and using AutoCAD produce a copy of the sheer lines from the plan and offset those by the thickness of the proposed frame. Does anyone think this would work? So below, I have attached a screen dump from a quick 3D model of the proposed plug (although I have not rounded the plug off yet). If I were to use this method, I would have to temporarily fix the Keelson in the slot cut in to the mould and build from there. I assume with the correct level of steaming and soaking, I could bend the wood (assume 5mm x 6mm Basswood strip) around the plug and pin/screw/nail/clamp the half frame in place. Then bend the Futtock on the mould, and glue/pin in place next to the half frames. Again, does anyone think this would work? After all the full frames and cant frames (at the bow) are in place, the keel in glued in to position to fix the frames together. The stern cant frames are glued in place to the deadwood, and temporary stringers are added to the outside of the frames (where planks will be laid). The model will then be lifted off the mould with all frames, keelson, and keel ready for continuation of the build (building the decks and fittings). Once again, does anyone think this will work? Lastly, I am only at the concept phase of this potential build idea. I'm only thinking about this as an easy way to build (relatively cheaply) a PoF model without thousands of hours, and pounds on materials and tools, and without using up too much of the living room or dining room space. Thanks for taking the time to read through my ramblings, and all comments, positive and negative towards the idea are welcome. Cheers, Jonny
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