U.S.S Constitution - Revell - 1:96 - decking

[lambsbk]

Well, I am almost to the point of installing the gun deck on the my Connie build and had to ask: Is there a reason Revell does not glue the deck to the bulwarks? Those deck sections would be more easily joined if the decking were stabilized on the hull. Do they need to "float" for proper fitting of the masts or to allow the spar deck to be an easier fit?

[AndyMech]

My understanding is the gun deck floats to allow some leeway for the masts to be installed.  I followed that instruction on my build and had zero issues getting the masts straight.  

 

The gun deck float is pretty small - it's a naturally snug fit which got even tighter once the main deck was in place and I squeezed the hull together when gluing that in.  I vaguely remember some issue with the gun deck moving in relation to the hull - two guns span the seam between the middle piece and the stern piece, causing one side of gun carriage to possibly move in relation to the other, but no canons came loose so I think the movement is really rather small.

 

When I installed the top deck, I made sure the bow piece was flush and as far forward as it could.  The rest of the pieces were then placed flush, resulting in an unfortunate gap near the stern.  I saw no easy way to remedy this, but a more skilled builder than I probably could have extended the stern main deck piece to eliminate this gap.

 

Andy.

[lambsbk]

Thanks Andy. I am not a more skilled builder but I would love to eliminate any gap. I will keep a little styrene handy just in case. Thanks.

[lambsbk]

I have decided, at least for the gun deck, to reestablish the camber with under deck supports and then support the deck part seams with styrene mounted on these supports which transition to the keel.  I am not certain yet as to the result as this is a work in progress. Follow my build lo to see the results as they are available.