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Blue Ensign

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  1. Blue Ensign
    Thanks Steve, I too prefer to approach a build from both ends; once the top few planks are fitted, I like to fit the Garboard and then work up and down towards the centre. With the Pinnace particularly, the top two planks provide stability to the bulkheads. Thanks for your input Chuck, my rough spiling template indeed shows the 'S' shape. It is the short curve at the bow that has defeated me using just water and heat; aft of the first three bulkheads the treatment works fine to achieve the more gentle 'S' curve. On your original Pinnace build, where I think you just used water and heat to achieve the shape, did you have to start the short bow curve well back in a longer length of strip to give you the leverage to form the bend? Regards, B.E.
  2. Blue Ensign
    Thanks Nils and Steve. I did edge glue the planks Nils, the caulking still showed thro. There seems to be a limit to the edge bending with the Boxwood strip I am using Steve, and the downward bend over the first three bulkheads is just too severe without some buckling and within the limits of the 4mm wide strip the bottom edges just will not lie flat against the bulkhead at the lower edge. Shims would constantly have to be added with each successive strake on that basis, which is just not right. So, it's back to the drawing board. 7590 7592 After several days and much frustration I have decided to remove the first two strakes and start again. This will also allow me to re-instate the planking to take the decorative second transom which I snapped off earlier. Fortunately the planks came away without damaging the bulkheads. The topmost sheer plank will again be fitted full size, and this does not really present any problems. The second and subsequent planks however will be spiled to shape to hopefully allow the plank to sit flat on bulkheads I. J. and K. Round two.... B.E.
  3. Blue Ensign
    The first Boxwood strake went on well and I think it is firm enough to continue. 7140 Although a little thinner than the provided Limewood, it has a much better finish, and I think it will need much less sanding, so it will probably work out much the same in the end. The crushing and dinking element prevalent in Limewood is also not an issue. I fiddled about some time working out a strategy for the second planks and had a couple of practice runs. 7139 I tapered the plank to 4mm at the bow, starting the taper quite a way back from just forward of Bulkhead A. At the stern the plank was also similarly tapered from Bulkhead 12. The planks will bend to follow the strake line plank, but to reduce tension, once the tapers had been made the strip was given the wet/heat treatment to impart the required curves. The plank was then lightly bevelled on the back top edge, to hopefully get a tight join. A Pilot marker was used to impart a caulking line between the strakes. 7138 I found it a fiddly and frustrating business to get the second planks in place, particularly at the bow area where getting clamps in place to hold the planks during glueing, and if I thought the second plank was frustrating to fit, the third plank has even more shaping involved. Tapers are firstly applied towards the bow and stern, having marked the strips against the hull. I do this with the strip wet and cut the taper with a scalpel. A shallow concave edge curve along the centre section of the plank, with shortish convex edge curves at the bow (b/hG) and stern (b/h11)where the plank meets the stem and transom. The curve around the bow is then formed, all using the wet and hairdryer system. So far so good, but then the plank across the first three bulkheads at the bow refuses to lie flat at the bottom edge, leaving gaps between it and the bulkhead. Seem to be having trouble getting my brain around this build, and to cap a couple of tiresome days I managed to snap off the sheer plank extensions for the decorative transom. Joys of small boat building. B.E.
  4. Blue Ensign
    Cheers Steve, Michael, and Martin I think William thought I had retired so he's not too impressed that I'm apparently fiddling with a Pinnace. The Pinnace is 11½" long with a 3" beam, Martin, and these first strakes are giving me some trouble, far more rusty than I thought I would be. I don't think in imperial currency now but that doesn't mean I have forgotten how many pennies in a pound,(240 if you're wondering) or our lovely old coins, silver sixpences, Half Crowns, and Florins, the Farthing with its Wren motif, the Ha'penny with its sailing ship. or the Thrupenny bit with its Portcullis. Still reminiscing about our Imperial past won't get this Garboard Strake fitted........... B.E.
  5. Blue Ensign
    Kind of you to say so John, and enjoy your new build, the Swan's make great models😊 B.E.
  6. Blue Ensign
    Thank you Christos. B.E.
  7. Blue Ensign
    With the fairing completed the stern transom is added. 7026 This has very little to hold it securely at least until the first strakes are added, so I also drilled and pinned it to the false keel. Even so very soft hands are required to fair the transom piece. As a trial I am using 0.6mm thick Boxwood strip, slightly thinner than the provided Limewood. 7033 The sheer strake is applied full width. PVA is used to bond the strip to the b/heads, secured with an assortment of clamps. 7032 7051 Water and heat are used to bend the strip both laterally to follow the rise of the sheer, and to curve around the bow. 7053 7058 7055 The foremost Bulkhead K rises above the sheer line. 7060 The Sheerline strake extends beyond the transom. When I made the mini version for Pegasus I omitted the second decorative transom piece, still not sure what practical purpose, if any, this addition served, but as they were a feature of the 18th Century Pinnace, I will include it on this build. Once the glue has hardened overnight I will add the next strake, and then make a decision whether to continue with the Boxwood, or remove and revert to the Limewood. 7038 C'mon ain't you spent enough time on that today. B.E.
  8. Blue Ensign
    Contrasting hull colours look great Michael, the black wale sets them off a treat. B.E.
  9. Blue Ensign
    Nice work Bob, I like the idea of leaving her in frame below the waterline. B.E.
  10. Blue Ensign
    That fairing business. The temporary bracing I have employed is keeping the frames rock solid for fairing. Early check reveals that several b/hds needed shims to give a fair run along the hull. A little surprised by this but some 0.6mm boxwood strip sorts the job out. In total I have shimmed two on the portside and four on larboard, but now along the sheer at least there is a fair run. Not one of my favourite pastimes fairing, seems to take forever, even on a small project such as this, just when you think you have it right another hollow reveals itself. 6941 Not first planking but a boxwood strip to check out the fairing at sheer line level. 6938 one of the benefits of the notched bracing strips is that it provides an anchor for the clamps. 6942 Speaking of boxwood I do have a good supply of Boxwood strip 4.50mm x 0.6mm plus several other wider sizes. The kit provides Limewood strip for the outer planking 3/16" x 1/32" (4.76mm x 0.79mm) In practice the thickness is closer to 0.70mm =0.66" My 0.6mm boxwood strips at 1:24 scale = 0.57" a tad finer than the kit provided stuff. Limewood is a very soft wood normally used for first planking on double planked hull and I'm a little concerned about dinks and getting a smooth finish. So the question is should I go with the limewood or would the slightly thinner Boxwood be ok. Hmmn something to ponder. According to Steel, the timbers for a 21' Pinnace are 1½" thick equiv to 1.59mm at 1:24 scale. Back to fairing for the moment. B.E.
  11. Blue Ensign
    Great to have a reminder of this superb model Nils. B.E.
  12. Blue Ensign
    An interesting project Danny of a not very well represented era in ship modelling terms. Look forward to seeing her develop. Cheers, B.E.
  13. Blue Ensign
    Thanks Michael, I just marked them off along the top of the bulkheads, cut them with a razor saw and finished with files. Easy to do as the strip wood is soft limewood. B.E.
  14. Blue Ensign
    Before I start fairing the bulkheads I need to consider their relative fragility and to this end two broad strips of beech are glued along the tops of the frames to stiffen the bulkheads against the sanding process. 6831 6829 and two notched strips either side, I'm a Belt and braces sort of guy. 6887 I have also at this stage added the filler pieces at the bow. (although four pieces are provided in the kit Chuck has confirmed to me that only one each side is required.) 6894 Atop the Beech strips is a Walnut block which will be used to hold the boat when inverted in a vice. This is secured with double sided tape to allow for easier removal. 6893 So now ready to start the fairing process. B.E.
  15. Blue Ensign
    Thanks Tom, but it's only for my personal interest, and I know who I am Hi Dirk, I paid £72.00 for the maximum number of pages (120), the basic album is (24 pages) It would have cost me not far short of that in printer ink to do it myself on my inkjet, and without the professional binding. Cheers, B.E.
  16. Blue Ensign
    As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have used some of my post build time to create a Photo Album of my build utilising some of the many photo's taken over the course of the build. The album is large format (28 x 21cm) and runs to 120 pages. The book has now arrived and I thought you may like to see how it worked out. The book was designed and created from software downloaded from Vistaprint. who then produced the Album. Here's are a few pages to give you a glimpse of how it looks. In reality the photo's are far better than may appear on this post, and it's nice to have a record outside of a computer to look back on a build. Regards, B.E.
  17. Blue Ensign
    Gluing the Bulkheads My approach to gluing the bulkheads is to start with the centre one (0) and then work sequentially aft and forrad. 6804 To get the important first bulkhead set square I use a mini level and Engineer squares. 6805 In addition to vertical planes the square is also used to check that the Bulkheads are square to the keel. This will be the benchmark against which all the other bulkheads will be lined up. 6810 Each bulkhead in turn is checked with square and level until all are in place. 6812 I also set up a separate keel support base so I can turn and eye-sight along the frame tops. Well that's the easy bit, progress will inevitably slow as I get into the build proper. B.E.
  18. Blue Ensign
    Thanks Guys The beginning Being an American kit all the measurements are in imperial measure whereas we in the old country are now used to the metric system particularly in relation to ship modelling, although perversely I still think in terms of feet and inches, pounds and ounces, Pints and Gallons etc; in relation to other stuff. The first job is to thin down the false keel from the bearding line and form the rabbet along the keel and up the stem to take the planking. The thickness of the false keel is 3mm and it needs to be reduced to around half to form the rabbet. 6767 I have used a strip of 1.50mm wide styrene strip temporarily pva'd along the keel to provide a guide to form the rabbet. 6777 Once the false keel has been fettled I firstly glue the stem piece using pva. 6789 I think it is easier to centre this short piece onto the false keel first, and then line the keel up to it. The scarf also helps hold the long keel piece in place. 6800 With the keel in place it is time to make a temporary working stand. Not very pretty but it will do the job. The Bulkheads are easily removed, and are a good fit, maybe just a tad tight once the glue is applied, so a very fine sanding of the notches to ease their passage will be done. 6797 6798 Dry fitting the Bulkheads, no issues with the bulkhead centres, so I will proceed to fettle the notches and start assembly. B.E.
  19. Blue Ensign
    Nice work on the headworks Doug 😊 It's always puzzled me why Amati left that strange void between the Main head rails, looks so much better with a little framing as your photo's show. B.E.
  20. Blue Ensign
    Impressive rigging Bob, and great photo's. B.E.
  21. Blue Ensign
    You're doing a great job on that vintage kit Andrew, and I think you will achieve your ambition to produce a model that is pleasing to your eye (and mine) Regards, B.E.
  22. Blue Ensign
    Me too😀 B.E.
  23. Blue Ensign
    Reminds me that I have a set of Floquil Marine Colors many years old. Such interesting names :- Orange Ochre. Tallow Coat. Pine Tar Oil. Weathered Manilla Stain. Verdigris. All in excellent condition apart from the Verdigris which has developed a thick skin over the paint. No wonder it was discontinued, given the dire warnings on the jars. B.E.
  24. Blue Ensign
    You've made some great progress since I last looked in Anton, impressive stuff B.E.
  25. Blue Ensign
    My Pegasus build was my last foray into the world of 1:64 scale Square Rigged ships. My future projects will consist of larger scale models of smaller vessels. Chuck's beautifully designed kits of the Pinnace and the Longboat fall perfectly into this category, and the Pinnace will be my new project. I used the Pinnace plans to produce the reduced scale scratch versions for my Pegasus build. It has been some six years since I last planked a hull and I'm feeling quite ring rusty, so I will have to do some serious revision of the art. Not quite decided as yet whether to go with the provided Limewood, or upgrade to Boxwood There are some excellent Pinnace builds on MSW as well as Chuck's own exemplary build, and I am grateful to the work of Mike Y and MikeB4 whose logs I will browse to assist my own effort. May be a while before I have anything to usefully show, but here's the 'mini' version as a place holder. Cheers, B.E.

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