Chuck Seiler

Indeed

Closely considering my next step, I noted that when I pierced the hull for the beams, I filed perpendicular to the plank. If the side of the hull were perpendicular to the wate3rline this would have worked fine. ...the sides are NOT perpendicular, so if the beam is placed in the hole square to the hole it is not parallel to the water line. In order for it to be so by forcing it or twisting it, the hole ends up being larger than required (the plank and associated support wood are about 3mm thick). Care must be taken to pierce the hull at the correct angle. I practiced using wood the appropriate thickness. The correct angle will be easy on the actual model. Much success. On to the real thing.

You have to be careful to avoid those unicorns. I guess to understand how they steered you have to understand how they navigated. Prior to the compass I guess they remained pretty much within sight of land and the helm orders were "go that way and don't run into anything". In that, the helmsman had to see where they were going. I know the Vikings did some open ocean sailing with the use of different nav tools, but that was an exception. With the advent of the compass (1200 in Europe?) he only needed to know what point of the compass to steer. As long as the officer of the watch could transmit that info, I guess that was okay. I forget how small those ships really were. Looking at replicas of MATTHEW of BRISTOL and VICTORIA, both with open decks under the after castle, somebody with a robust voice could pass that info...as long as there was not much urgency or they were not in a storm. Oh well, they did it somehow and they didn't have whipstaffs...so that's the name of that tune.

Shouldn't this be "Inexpensive and effective tools"? The cheap tool is the one that breaks first time one uses it.

What did they use in the early carracks? Tillers? How did they handle the logistics of the guy driving the ship being remote from the guy steering the ship? The needs for a helmsman to react quickly to a helm order in a slow moving sailing ship in the open ocean is not necessary. How about in restricted waters?

Sometimes I will use a small dot of CA to hold the end of the plank in the rabbet (CA clamp) before using wood glue for the rest. One day while demonstrating ship modeling at the county fair, I used a wee bit too much CA and when I finger clamped the plank, I glued the model to my finger. When I told a group of observers what I had done, they thought I was kidding. I extended my arm and pointed...with a model dangling from my finger. 😁

MATTHEW of BRISTOL (1497) has a whipstaff, but that is a replica so I don't know how accurate.

With Chuck/Syren no longer selling rope, many of us will have to start making our own...or finding a new supplier.

VERY nice rope. Well done!

Hi I have also heard about the use of Acetone and other products which is why I wanted to know what the most experienced ones do. Regards I would have to put myself in the "experienced ones" category; not because I am a good modeler but because I do alot of un-gluing. I use the 70% isopropyl. It is less stinky than the 90% and MUCH safer than acetone.

Moving forward. I will continue to work on both models but I will not document both. Because I am having more success with Woody Dog, I will document that build and pick up there where Cardy left off. It will take a couple weeks to get to that point. Meanwhile, I have some issue to confront. Some I have already decided on, but will share them for comment and input. --It was always my plan to make Cardy Dog the privateer as designed while bashing the kit and making Woody more like the Bremen Cog that CATOPOWER (Clare) built. I still intend on doing that. --Tiller/whipstaff. In the various “Shipyard” cog build logs there were discussions about how the tiller/rudder worked. My thoughts were posted in Chris’ log (post 68 and 71). It didn’t make sense to me. As I was doing research for an upcoming carrack model, I thought about using a whipstaff, however there was no documentation to back that up. I saw no whipstaff on any current replicas that I could see, nor on any museum quality models. I will go with the tiller below deck WITHOUT blocks. --I got lucky with Cardy Dog and managed to make the paint color reasonably close to what was called for. Several people who saw it up close were surprised it was NOT wood. I need to choose my stain wisely. I will be doing test runs. +HONEY MAPLE might closely replicate the color of Cardy Dog, but tests (so far) do not produce the same depth of color. A lot of coat may be required. I may end up using this for the deck. +Also considering NATURAL for the deck. +Like Chris, I am considering GOLDEN OAK and GOLDEN PECAN for the hull. I used GP for my PHILADELPHIA inner planking and was very happy with it.

...or in this case a "+" in a circle.

That is what I have done also. All told I have made over 100 flags for various projects. My paper of choice is cigarette paper because it is thin but strong. Unfortunately it is also small, so it cannot be used for large flags. Onion skin paper is also good, if you can find it...or tracing paper. I am not sure if you mean Kleenex tissue paper. I would NOT recommend that. Very fragile and rips easily. Could rip loose and jam printer...or so I am told <ahem>. The tissue paper used for gift wrapping works. "Flags of the World" is the site I use.

The Michala Street Shipyard and Beer Emporium is once again operational. I won’t be accused of outstripping the Kaiser shipyards of WWII but there is progress. When last we met, I discussed starting the wooden version of the model (Woody Dog). I have done so for reason I will discuss below. I am enjoying the wooden version much more than I did the card version (Cardy Dog). I’m not sure if it is because I have made it once already so I am more familiar or because am better able to work the material. That will impact some decisions moving forward. Above is progress of Woody Dog as of a few weeks ago. One of the issues I had with the model, and this is true of both wood and card, is that the material is thin and often had to be laminated in several layers to use. In most cases this turned out okay, but in the case of the deck beams, which extend out thru the hull, it was not working for me. This shows the location where the stubs would be. I decided to pierce the hull and insert wood stubs. Since I had already planked over the deck, I did not know where the bulkheads were in relation to the holes. I started the Woody Dog build so I could determine this. The forward-most beam would be a problem since most of the beam is above deck and exposed…and already installed. I could remove it, but decided it would cause more problems than it was worth. Extra care would be required when cutting these holes. Lining up Cardy Dog and Woody Dog as best I could, I marked the locations of the holes. In retrospect, it may have just been easier to continue the Woody Dog planking until those strakes were installed. Ah well. Hole cut. “Beam” inserted for test fit Beams trimmed and glued into place. A closer look shows some problems with the procedure. Some dressing up will be required. Still working on the hole for the above-deck beam.

I would be interested to know how detailed the planking instructions are. One thing to remember is that (working up from the keel) the first three strakes are caravel planked (side by side) and all subsequent strakes are clinker or lapstrake.

Somehow I am unable to edit once I leave and I don't remember how to create a link. Hefre is the link to catopower. https://modelshipworld.com/topic/23434-hanse-kogge-by-catopower-shipyard-172-scale-card/?tab=comments#comment-690640

5 years? What's the hurry? 😁 Plenty of popcorn standing by. Looking forward to it. The cog by catopower is pretty close to what you are working on.

Alrighty! Another kogge. Pass the popcorn please.

Which town? A few years back I drove around that area, hitting Lincoln, Roswell, Fort Sumner and (I think) Tularosa.

Lincoln County=Billy the Kid country.

Do it right. Remove the planks. Soak the joint{s) with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol. It will soften the glue (if you used wood glue). I have done this several times before. If you let the mistake go, it will compound down the road.

Alex, Hey there...welcome to MSW. I missed this. Too busy retiring. As a matter of fact, yes. I have set Cardydog aside and am working slowly on Woodydog. I am at about the point as post #10 here. I set Cardy aside for a reason, which I will hope to reveal withing the next 2 or 3 weeks. It will be easier to show than explain. I am finding it much easier and more pleasurable. I don't know if it is wood versus card or if it is because I have done it already...or both. I am working on building and not documenting, but I should probably start taking pictures so I can start the new build log 'already in progress'. Also some newsletter fodder.

Chimp, Outstanding for a first build. Pretty darned good for a not-first build. Keep up the great work! Welcome to MSW. ...and a Happy New Year. Give my regards to the folks over at the MATTHEW Trust.

Ruud, Welcome to MSW. Your post resonates with me on many levels. My first ship model also went into the fireplace. If I knew then what I know now I would have disassembled it (using isopropyl alcohol) and made corrections. It still probably would have gone into the fire, but I would have learned by experimentation. Not biting off more than you can chew and working on something that appeals to you is a good realistic approach. Despite how it looks, simple is not always easy but is a good way to get a feel for the basics. When done well, they can be very attractive models. I have found that working on something that interests me keep me going when I get frustrated...and brings me back when I have taken some time off. There are some really good kits out there and some bad ones...and there are some not so good ones that can be made good with a little effort and research. Spending some time and looking at other build logs can help you decide as well as help you with you build. Best wishes.

I think you mean basswood. Boxwood is not widely available nor would you want to use it as the first layer of planking under walnut...or anything.