Mark Pearse

that looks great Jon

Many thanks, it's very encouraging. MP

HI everyone, thanks for the interest. The hull profile has been cut down, & I've started to put in the deck beams & cockpit area supports. The cockpit area has a series of different heights: a scuppers area that is the same as the top of the transom; a bit lower is the seat tops, with a slightly higher curved-top thwart at the front of the cockpit, & lowest the cockpit sole height which is just a little above the waterline. The framing & beams are glue-laminated curved & straight beams, all in Spotted Gum. The sizes are not meant to be to scale but they are probably not far off. It will be lined in 2mm plywood & painted, with clear finished details. I've added a photo that helps show the final layout. One nice detail is the removable timber panels either side of the hatch.

I reshaped the profile of the keel line to a smooth curve - it is probably not what would have been built, but it looks nice & does reflect the drawings. The painting has been redone, & is probably not over yet; I'm sure there will be some damage, & the topsides might be too cream but it's hard to tell at the moment. The paints are all mixed, gloss enamel for the topsides & matt acrylic for the underwater parts. The boot top is a mixture of an opaque enamel with some metallic added, the colour will make sense when the gunwales & sponsons (lower gunwales) are added. The antifouling colour in enamel wasn't working out well, it wasn't matt enough & the colour was blue rather than pale grey. When the hull shape on a boat doesn't change shape dramatically near the waterline, I like an underwater colour that isn't a huge contrast to the topsides, so that you can see the shape into the water as an extension of the above-water shape, hence the pale grey. The boot top line masking bled a bit, & the transom part seems to be off a bit, so some touching up required. Also, it might not be obvious in the photos but the line itself is not as good as I'd hoped, but when you realise that it's actually only a very small deviation from a the curve, it might not be practical to amend it by such a small amount as the change might not look so good. As you can see, the right-way-up support frame is made & she was cut off the build frame - it's very nice to see the lines - it is hard to appreciate the lines upside down, we are probably so used to seeing them one way. The next steps, I think, will be to cut the profiles as the hull steps down from the raised deck. Also deck beams & mock up the deck & cockpit area in 2mm plywood. At the bottom is the start of a deck plan, at the moment it just shows the basic shapes that would be in ply - the cockpit seating & edge of the raised deck etc. The cockpit seats are solid, not hollow under. I will shape it all in ply & add timber & veneer sheets as required. I have some Queensland Maple veneer & some timber as well. Thanks for looking, MP

Hi Patrick thank you, I'm glad you like the colour, I'm happy with the direction. The photos are at the Sydney Amateur Sailing Club, where the half-model lives - last Sunday there was a race day for some of the Ranger yachts plus a couple of Couta boats & it was a good day to show the shape to people that are familiar with the smaller 24 footers. I decided today that the bottom profile of the keel line seen from side on looks a bit ugly, but I believe it's what they would have built. I gave the bottom of the keel a long flat horizontal base that would suit going on to an old style tray cradle that rolls up tracks out of the water. However it looks pretty ordinary & in this case I don't think it's worth persisting with a fairly obscure detail that detracts. I'm going to give it a long slow curve instead.

A minor update: some more painting with colours closer to what I had in mind: cream topsides with a white / pale grey antifouling. The boot top line hasn't been done but I have some coppery colours for that. White antifouling isn't true to the period of the boat, but neither will the winches be that I am going to indicate. I just like the effect of the antifouling being a similar colour to the topsides, you can see the continuity of the hull shape more clearly as it goes down into the water, or when a boat is heeled. The issues with paint drying I think were to do with not stirring the paint enough before I decanted it into another jar - which I did to make a mix of colours. Thanks to those in the painting forum that helped out. You can see below that the matt paint that I've used for the antifouling is more uneven in finish than the gloss. If it's still uneven after another I'll investigate spraying the matt paint, blotchiness in finish will make a smooth shape look uneven I will probably do one more coat to each before removing the model from the base. Some very fine splits between planks are showing through the paint, as joints with insufficient glue are moving. It's not so different to a real planked hull, so the sort of 'defect' that is true to a real boat of this sort of construction standard is being accepted. Anyway, here they are: the model with the original designer's half model of Ranger, the half model must be getting close to 100 years old now again, showing the half model off the half model, the 28 footer, plus Ranger herself through the window Thanks all, MP

Hi Mike I coated a new timber floor (2nd hand Australian hardwood) with pure Tung Oil, so no thinners, no resins etc - sounds the same product that you have used. We did one coat, it was spread fairly thickly, really wet, then about an hour later the excess was wiped off. No walking for 24 hours, & the result was good. I have also coated a plywood floor the same way, that time using multiple coats which did build up but at times didn't seem to be setting. They both cured, but it is different to other finishes & didn't feel dry in the way that a polyurethane finish feels dry. It does sound like yours isn't curing - my understanding is that it cures in the same way that boiled linseed oil cures, a chemical reaction, so you must not bundle up rags that are soaked in the stuff, it releases heat in the reaction & can ignite. So I'd be careful about diluting without checking my recollection that it cures rather than dries, & also that it will still cure if is diluted... On the question of a satin finish, with furniture I often do my build up coats & then as a final coat let it half dry & then wipe it off with a rag to give a greasy look, it replicates the finish that wax polish that hasn't been buffed has. Hopefully this helps, best wishes. Mark

thanks, I'll give the model an upgrade to residential class & see how we go....

first coat of paint, I want the topsides to be more cream, & the antifouling a bit greyer rather than blue/grey; otherwise I'm happy as a pig in mud I like the way you can see a few planking joints, appropriately the garboard seam is quite visible, considering how much grief this seam gives the boating world The new & old broken gooseneck pin for our 24' foot boat is visible - it's extraordinary what effect a 1:12 scale change has, this fitting would also suit this boat transom (used to be called the tuck in Sydney) the sponsons - or lower gunwales, shaped from native Rosewood, I' considering shellac as a finish bye for now, thanks

Hi everyone I did a first top coat in a mixture of Humbrol gloss enamel colours (3 tins, 2 of one colour, one of another), didn't add any thinners or anything else; it was done over a thin coat of Zinser oil based undercoat that had been well sanded & was well dry. The Humbrol took ages to dry - almost a week so far, it's still not dry enough to sand but it is close. It was very nice paint to use & the finish is good, despite the gradual accretion of dust over the week.... My 'workshop' is a cool garage, not really damp & not really cold, maybe 17 degrees C & things don't go mouldy there. Anyone comments? My thoughts are that I just need to do the next coats in a warmer location, but I am surprised that it took so long. thanks in advance, MP

more to learn indeed, thanks all

thanks very much everyone, quite a bit to think about & try out there. I like the sound of the self-tinning solution. Michael, I never considered using stainless steel - will it braze?

Hi Patrick, I've been doing something similar: two 100w linear halogen work lights for about an hour yesterday & today, they give off a gentle warmth & the paint is close to dry now. thanks Mark

g'day Patrick, I've done some topcoats - no photos yet though. It's amazing how the painting is making sense of the hull shape. I've used Humbrol enamel & it's taking a long time to dry...it's nice paint to use & the finish is good, & I know my 'workshop' is actually a damp cave that would make Gollum feel cold & lonely, but it's been about 4 days & it's still tacky. Mark

Hi Mike me too, hoping for some more Archer in my day... best wishes

I've undercoated the hull & set up the boot top line, using a laser level to get the waterline & then adjusting the model height & angle to get the boot top lines. I marked the waterline in 6H pencil, added 50mm (scale) height slightly aft of the middle for the lowest point of the boot top line, which is increased to 100mm at the bow & 65mm at the stern. The boot top line width is 30mm scale width at its narrowest, 50 at the bow & 40 at the stern. I like the way lines added on to a hull shape improve its appearance - or maybe its truer to say that they explain or show off the shape. The artist Christo had the same idea: a curve is hard to see, but put a line on it & your eye looks at the curve of the line. I'm hoping to do some colours in the next week. One minor issue has been that the Titebond glue resists sanding more than timber does, so when you have an internal corner with dried glue in it, it's difficult to sand cleanly. On the hull sanding, I am accepting some visible joints in the timbers, especially in the keel. I think it's consistent with the probable construction standard of the yacht - if she had been built in the 1930's or 40's. I will fill some of them a bit, but I'm not planning to make the model look perfect. thanks all, bye for now MP painted & sanded waterline waterline the waterline & boot top lines in pencil

I agree with David, the chine wasn't out enough to be visible so it's worth considering accepting that minor issue. There is the personal question of just how much rebuilding we are each happy to do & not be discouraged. Mark

Very nice, a boat with an almost living spirit. What is the square tin with a timber handle set into it? It looks to have a particular use. Mark

Hi everyone, the yacht model I'm building would have mainly stainless steel fittings. Can anyone recommend a way of replicating the pale grey finish of SS on a brass part? I know that SS is really a silver, but at a distance - & especially on a used boat - it tends to look more grey than shiny silver. Any thoughts? thanks, Mark

Hi Mike I wonder if you cut a v out of the inner side of the corner, most of the way through, then folded it at that point....it would give a sharper corner & also hold itself in position for the soldering/brazing. best, Mark

I've been sanding the hull, there's still some detail sanding to do but it's now almost done. I may paint the hull while it's still on the frame, it will be easier to do the boot top lines this way. It would mean that I can use a builder's self-levelling laser to get a horizontal line, tracing it with a pencil by hand, & then adjusting by eye to suit the right curve. Sanding the inside edge of planking ends at the transom is especially delicate, & needs to be to accurate to give the impression of scale. I have done some of this sanding, but a few more hours of careful work required there. I did have to splice in a strip of planking where the garboard was down too low. In any case I need to place the mast, & the drawing son the design do not include any information on mast setout, spar sizes etc. I've sketched the sail plan below, which is based on the sailplan of the 24 footers, plus just my eye - for better or for worse.... I've noticed that there's a lot of different ideas about the gaff angle - this high peaked angle is typical here, you almost never see a low peaked gaff that seems to be popular in America. I believe that sail twist would be greater with a lower peak angle & especially with cotton sails, so I wonder if they used gaff vang lines from the peak of the gaff spar to the quarters - to control the twist...but that's another conversation. I also had another go at the line of the sponsons - the lower gunwales - & I've put more bounce into it. See the brown lines on the drawing. I probably rushed into a detail drawing before when a broader view was still needed. I'll sit on that one, & will do temporary ones when the time comes, to see how they look.

Hi Michael, I saw your question about a gaff mast size. I believe they need to be thicker; apart from the extra power of a gaff mainsail, the gaff spar has a lot of thrust forwards on the mast, a lot of load at one point. Below is a photo of our spars when we revarnished over winter, the mast, boom & bowsprit. The mast is the one on the left running down the shed & the slender unvarnished mast below it is a Folkboat mast, a bermudian mast from a similar length boat to ours. I think you can see the difference, which is slightly exaggerated by being further away from the camera, but standing next to them both the difference is significant. Also the taper is quite different, the gaff mast is tapered only a little up to the spreaders/gaff throat height & then tapers more above that. Above the spreaders, if the aft mast face carries the same line up, & the forward face & sides do the tapering, that looks nice. You can just make that out in the photo. Mark

Hi Dan, looks like a lot of enjoyment coming up. For your interest, the design is surprisingly similar to a lovely little boat that was very popular here in Australia, an 18 foot ply boat called a Hartley TS18. A friend used to go away camping as a child with parents, kids & dog in one....must have been crazy. They also sail very well. Best wishes for the build. MP

better with the name, so much personality deserves a name

I like the subtlety of the colours for the antifouling, topsides, deck & decking timberwork.