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usedtosail

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Everything posted by usedtosail

  1. usedtosail
    Well said Vane. That has been exactly my experience.
  2. usedtosail
    I have been adding more planks on each side down from the main deck. After adding five planks on each side I bent the planks that run along the chine. I did this to see how these planks would fit and also to remeasure the remaining space for the planks between. They line up nicely at the bow and the stern. After gluing these on I will redo the planking plan for the gap and probably plank both up and down to fill the gap.
  3. usedtosail
    I finished planking the transom and sanded the ends flush with the transom piece. The hull planks will overlap and hide these ends. I decided to add some filler blocks between the stem and the first bulkhead to help with shaping the planks where they bend severely and to give me a larger gluing surface. I used some chunks of basswood for the fillers. They look ugly in the picture but they are faired. I then soaked and bent the first plank along the main deck on the port side. It is clamped onto the bulkheads to dry. I then did the same on the starboard side. I have 12 planks to add on each side down to the chine, then 9 planks from the chine to the keel, so this will take a while.
  4. usedtosail
    I have mostly been adding the planks on the transom and I am almost finished. I faired the upper decks and some of the transom and have prepared the first hull plank.
  5. usedtosail
    I started adding the planks on the upper transom. Before I did though I wanted to do something about the loose plank ends at the curve of the transom. I cut two edges and glued them in behind the plank ends, then used the laser sheet as a template to cut two more supports for the upper transom. I then started adding the rest of the transom planks. It was at this point I realized I had glued one of the deck pieces on backwards. The slots for the bukwark extensions happen to be right in the middle of this piece so it fits either way. I was able to carefully remove it with alcohol and remove the end plank which was now on the wrong side. I had to make a new longer end piece but luckily the saw was still set up for it. I glued it back in the right way and added the end plank so it's all good now. After I finish the transom planking I will start the hull planking.
  6. usedtosail
    Thanks Patrick. I finished the diagonal planking on the lower transom and have it a preliminary sanding and scraping. I also faired the lower sections of the aft bulkheads. I have also been planning the planking along the keel in the bow which has been a bit puzzling. I have a plan now so I am feeling better about it. You can see the garboard plank that I have been experimenting with. It curves up pretty sharply at the bow. I need to fair the fore bulkheads now.
  7. usedtosail
    I finished adding all the support pieces then glued the rest of the deck pieces in. I also pinned a strip of wood to the main deck so I can hold the hull upside down in the Keel Klamper later when I plank the hull. I really don't like the wood supplied for planking the decks as it is less than 1mm thick. I know I would have trouble planking with that so I am going to use 3/32" x 1/16" basswood strips instead. This will add more support to the decks and will be easier to sand without worrying about sanding through the planks. I cut a 1/32" rabbet into a strip of 3/32" x 3/16" basswood on the table saw, then glued pieces of this onto the ends of the two overhanging decks. These will make sure the ends of the decks are flat and also hide the edges of the plywood deck pieces. I put the hull into the Keel Klamper and started adding the transom support pieces, getting ready to plank the transom. The planks provided for this are thick enough that I feel OK using them.
  8. usedtosail
    Thanks Steven and Jeff. Those pieces weren't as bad as that out of the box but in trying to flatten them they got worse, mainly because I soaked them first. I like the new pieces better because they are a little thicker and provide more stability to the frames. I have started adding support pieces on the bulkheads to better support all the deck pieces.
  9. usedtosail
    The NRG has a planking project that you can get. There is a great build log here to go along with it.
  10. usedtosail
    My attempt to straighten the deck pieces just made them worse so I made new ones from some 1/16" basswood sheet and glued them in. They are actually wider than the bulkheads at each end, as were the original pieces, so they will need to be sanded back during the fairing process. I think I can still use the other deck pieces but if not I'll do the same for them.
  11. usedtosail
    I like that solution. A bit more work but much more controllable.
  12. usedtosail
    I forgot to mention why I am building this kit. Even though I have lived in the Boston area most of my adult life, I was born in the New York City area. I built the Constitution because it is such an icon in the area, so I thought to build the Half Moon as it was the ship that Henry Hudson used to explore what is now New York. My next build will most likely be tied to New Hampshire, which is where I live now. The instructions for this kit are horrible. It is lucky that I have build logs like Popeye's to use because otherwise I would be stumped on many steps. I have glued the bulkheads to the keel and added the support pieces to give them some strength. The next step is to add the deck pieces but they are all warped, so I soaked them in water for about 15 minutes then placed them under some flat boards with weights on top. We will see how they come out.
  13. usedtosail
    Thank you maturin. I can only hope. I test fit the bulkheads to the keel and they all fit very well without any sanding of the slots. I marked the bottoms of each bulkhead on each side of the keel to use to mark off a rabbet but I haven't decided if I will carve one yet. I was very confused about how the planking would go along the keel but Popeye's build log has some excellent pictures of how he did it so I am good to go now. Thanks Popeye!
  14. usedtosail
    I started by cleaning up the keel pieces and bulkheads, then I glued the keel pieces together using a magnetic board to hold them together.
  15. usedtosail
    I bought this kit many years ago and it is now at the top of the pile - actually it is the last kit in the pile for now. Here are some pictures of the box and contents. The wood looks OK as do the larger laser sheets. The thin sheets are a bit warped so I may have to remake some pieces. There is just one two-sided plan sheet but it is a real plan and not an isometric view. There are some plastic trim pieces that I am not thrilled about but I'll deal with them when the time comes.
  16. usedtosail
    Thanks Cleat. It is the same copper tape supplied in Model Expo kids for copper plating hulls. You can also get it at stained glass shops as it is used to wrap around glass pieces so they can be soldered together. Amazon has it too as Copper Foil tape.
  17. usedtosail
    Just a quick little update. I really didn't like the edges of the Plexiglas case so I took some copper tape and wrapped it around the edges. I think it looks much better.
  18. usedtosail
    The launch is all back together. It was fun restoring it but I hope I won't need to again.
  19. usedtosail
    I put the masts back in and added the new shrouds. I then replaced all of the lines on the sails with better rope and hoisted them onto the masts. I arranged them differently than they were before but I think it gives a better view into the boat. I was able to wrap all the excess lines onto the belaying pins making rope coils from the actual lines so I did not have to make any separate rope coils. I used micro clips to hold the coils together and weight them down then I brushed diluted white glue onto them. I am really pleased with how this new version is coming out.
  20. usedtosail
    That's a good idea Keith. I will look into that.
  21. usedtosail
    I glued all the cleaned up thwarts back in. I made new shrouds using rope that I made instead of the crappy rope that the old shrouds were made from. I used some crappy looking cotten rope from some old kit and spun it up on the rope walk to make a thicker rope, which looks really good. I also replaced the anchor rope with some rope I had made for the Constitution. Again, it is much better than the crappy rope that came with this kit.
  22. usedtosail
    The filler could been seen from inside the hull so I touched it up with some Cherry strain. I also touched up the black paint on the toolbox straps. I then have the white part of the hull a couple of coats of thin white paint. When that dried I glued the thwart supports back into the hull.
  23. usedtosail
    I started out by just separating the loose parts. For the rigging, I was able to loosen up the lines around the belaying pins so I could remove the sails with the rigging intact, at least for now. I then re-glued the aft corner that had come loose. You can really see how dusty it is inside the hull in that last picture. So the next step was to clean all that dust out. I used Q-Tips with a little water and wiped all the surfaces, which worked nicely. The next step was to fill the cracks in the hull with wood filler. This will be sanded off when it dries and I will then touch up the white paint. In the mean time I am cleaning the dust off the detached pieces and figuring out if I will re-rig the masts and sails.
  24. usedtosail
    Well, the Bounty Launch got launched. It was the only model in the house not in a case and a cushion caught the mast as the Admiral was getting it. Not a huge deal because I could tell it was not aging well and needed some attention anyway. Here is how it looks back on the bench after the accident. Nothing is actually broken. Most of the thwarts have been dislodged due to the pull of the rigging. I will probably take the time to redo all the rigging as I have better rope I can use now. The stern starboard corner is loose but it was like that before the fall. There are also a few cracks in the planking that need some attention. I can also clean out all the dust that has accumulated over the years inside the hull. Luckily this happened just after I finished the Chris Craft and before I have started the Half Moon.
  25. usedtosail
    Hi Dave. I just found your build log and will follow along. You are doing a great job. I really like the look of your copper plating. If I may give you one note of caution is that to make sure the chain plates will take the strain of the rigging just being glued to the hull, unless the lower deadeyes are held securely in the channels so they would take the strain.

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