Mike Dowling
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No new pictures to show yet but, the planking continues. Now, call me stupid but, owing to a fairly serious battle I had trying to do what you experts out there call a 'garboard strake' I decided in my beginners innocence to continue planking in a downward direction. So far (!!!!!!!!!) it seems to be going quite well. Do you think I am going to hate myself when I near the keel? I think it was CF who said don't leave the garboard until last.
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There, you see, I told you you needed some dope!!!
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Hi there, nice to see how you are getting along. Your first planking doesn't look too bad to me. She is an awkward little boat, the first one I tried and I didn't have a clue about planking. Still don't to be honest. She is a bulbous beasty as is the Bounty I am trying to do now but will make up into a smashing little model. I have to confess I didn't try to do the sails but did do all the rigging. Anyway enough of my blether. Good luck to you and having had peritonitis a couple of years ago you have my sympathies so I hope you get back to good health quickly.
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- baltic ketch
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Oh my, you are getting more than your fair share of problems. I only had a little bit of 'jiggling' to do to get mine to fit between beams etc. Mind you your cabins are far more detailed than mine, I just hope that all your hard work and efforts will show in the end. I am still fighting strakes, something I am getting used to as their is still so much to do. Dom doesn't like my straight planking but it is the first layer and I am only following my equally pathetic instructions! I agree with one of our colleagues out there - sometimes I wonder if we are scratch building!! Might as well for all the use the plans are. However my friend, neither you nor I as complete novices are going to be beaten are we!!! We will win some kind of victory in the end and, before you say it I know we are building the Bounty, not the Victory!!!
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Well thanks guys, I am blushing but I know you can't see!! Windows 8 is the worst thing since Windows 95 - that worked just fine! So, do you think it's time I started at the keel and work up? So far, apart from the stern a little bit I haven't got involved in much lateral stress to the strakes. Is this good or bad? I know I have to wait until I have finished the first go but, inevitably there is some unevenness evident. Should I just sand everything smooth, fill it first or a bit of both? PS. Sorry about your cold Dom, just keep knitting!
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I have done another row of strakes today and am now just below the level of the second deck. I am thinking maybe now I should be working from the keel up. Any thoughts?
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Thanks very much Al. I haven't really got to cover much of the filler yet but yes, I do think it was a good idea. One of the hardest things I am finding is that with this very springy wood it is difficult to hold down whilst gluing so, the greater surface area with the filler has to help. So far I have only used CA once and have managed with white glue but I can see that changing when I get to filling in gaps. I'm not sure if you have too much visible on your hull but if you can I would certainly fill the stern area. You have loads more formers than I in the bow so you probably won't have to fill there.
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I am experiencing an interesting problem with my lime wood planking. The wood is 2mm x 5mm. When dry it snaps pretty easily and when wet it splits equally easily. If I soak it for between I guess 1 hour to 4 hours it does become quite flexible and fairly easy to bend but tries very successfully to straighten whilst or after drying. If I soak the wood overnight it actually becomes harder again and very difficult to bend. I just wondered out of curiosity if anyone else has found this. It was suggested to me somewhere along the line that Beech wood is more user friendly and maybe I should have ordered some to replace what came with my kit.
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Hello everybody, thought you might like to see how my feeble attempts at planking this monster are going! And here's one I made earlier!!!
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Al I'm really sorry as I did't reply to this very well if at all. Now I have got a bit further on I would go for the 80 to 90 percent open!! I envy you your 1mm strakes although I think I would be far too tempted to do a bit of lateral bending with those1 Still, did anyone actually say that the Bounty wasn't clinker built? I am using at Dominics brilliant suggestions for holding the wood in place. I am bending where necessary as much as I can when wet by hand or with a plank bender. Then using the hull as a jig effectively while they dry and managing mostly to hold them in the right place with pins at the sides. The strakes do split very easily if I try to pin through them so that goodness I am not using the instructions using the supplied brass pins. Anyway, once the strakes are practically dry I glue them in place, use the pins again and if I am really lucky use the same holes. Lots of PVA glue and a prayer with every piece!! I will try and get a couple of pics on later.
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Hi Al, I can only agree with the last two posts, you are doing an amazing job. I think you said you were obsessive and I think you were right! I use what I think are called side cutters for cutting the eyebolts. I can't say they cut absolutely flush but pretty darn close. I had the same problems with the rings OcCre supplied, they were all too big and I had to make my own, you see I too can be obsessive! Keep up the good work.
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Thanks for the posts Alistair. I am not finding the big bends too challenging, the lime wood is quite obliging for those. It is the little more acute bends that are the problem. I have resorted to soaking them for hours and then found either thumb nails or gentle work the bender works ok. Interestingly with the lime wood really wet the plank bender won't cut through even if I try! The lengthy soaking does mean progress is very slow, about two planks per day but, I am in no rush. I hope to get to about 1/3rd of the way today.
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The more I look at the AL kit the more differences I see. Unfortunately (because I am building the OcCRe version) the AL kit is far more detailed, below decks anyway. I know the single planking is a hazard for some (particularly me) because you have to get it right first time. If I had realised there was a choice I would have gone for the AL. Too late now I have to do the best I can with what I have.
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I have just been looking at another build of your boat on a different web site and yours really is a good deal more detailed than mine. I did notice however that you will get off rather lightly with the planking as very little of your starboard side gets done because there is so much open. I seem to be picking up tips from you too late! I know it is a very long way ahead yet but, are you going to paint the upper part of your ship or leave it plain? Mine is supposed to be painted but I am veering towards not doing so.
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My word you have been a busy chap and I must say what a brilliant job you are doing. It looks quite superb and far more detailed than the OcCre. I wish in advance as I am sure you do that more of the interior labours would show in the end but I rather fear that it only us who will know the amount of time and effort involved. You'll be catching me up in a minute - this planking is going to take forever and I get two goes at it!!!
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Al, what a brilliant solution for the windows! They look excellent. I am quite envious as I told you the OcCre version doesn't have any.
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What's happening Al. I'm getting lonely!
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Hi all, just though I would let you know that I have tried some of your solutions. I appreciate the jig bit but big bends are easy just with some round objects and a bit of weight. For the horrible small bends I am finding that, with the lime wood I give them a really long soak and then bending carefully with hands and thumb nails is working better than a manual plank bender. The problem really with the small bits is that you can't put them in a jig so it seems some of them either need overbending so that when they relax they are about right or having a couple of goes at them until the bend is right. Just though you might be interested.
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Haven't had time to do my homework today - sorry teachers! I will try harder tomorrow. Funny really, I l always used to say that!
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Many thanks again everybody. I have read loads and tried lots but I will try a kettle or steamer and let you know how I get on. It has been suggested to me that it may just be the particular wood I have got which could be right. I haven't had this problem before but I haven't had anything quite so thick to bend round such acute angles.
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Thanks very much all, I'll do some more homework tomorrow.
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Thank you very much, a great suggestion! Trouble is I am in Highland Scotland and we are very short of suppliers up here. It's a bit like Alaska!! My problem is in the transom area where you have to bend and twist! Sounds like a dance eh? Anyway thanks so much for the reply, if you think or more please let me know.
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So, I am having real problems bending 2mm lime wood for planks. If I try to bend them dry they snap. If I bend them wet they desperately try to return to their unbent shape. I realise I am doing a large scale kit model so the wood is quite thick but I have tried a manual plank bender both wet and dry, I have tried a steam iron but so far limited success. Any bright ideas out there?
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I have tried several times to bend these beasties while dry and it just won't work!! I'll have to bend them wet and hope they don't 'unbend' too much while drying so that I can stick em on!
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Thanks Dom, I will have a bit of a practice on dry wood and let you know how I get on. It might be the wood, I have not had such a problem before. I guess because it's a large scale kit the wood has to be thicker and whilst 2mm doesn't sound much it is quite a lot to bend. I did try using a steam iron earlier but didn't have any joy with that.
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