KLarsen

I'm basically done with the planking (except for one strake on the port side) and have started with the treenailing. I looked into buying a draw plate, but apparently in Europe it's impossible to get one for wood and buying the one from Byrne is prohibitively expensive because of shipping and taxes. So in the end I made my own from a scrap piece of metal, it's very far from perfect but does the job admirably well. I "only" need to make some 1600 treenails and made almost 100 today, so that should take me the best part of the month 😂 But I kind of enjoy it, I put on some music and just meditate while working on them. I initially wanted to make them from tooth picks but I didn't like how they looked, the wood tooth picks are made from is too light. So in the end I'm just making them from pear, they are hardly visible on the model but I think that's how it should be; you don't see them until you look for them. I should name the boat Saint Porcupine instead of Saint Caterina!

I completely forgot to email them, sorry. I'll probably compile a list of issues and contact them when I finish the build instead.

I'm slowly progressing with the planking. It's more difficult than I thought it would be, either because I'm out of practice (last boat I planked was around 10 years ago), or because of the steep curves at the bow and stern. Anyway, I think the result is fine, if not perfect.

Thanks @BobG! The errors in the plans are not huge, but if you don't think ahead and trust the plans completely they could possibly ruin your build. I think if one were to create the model in 3D first it would help, but although I work in IT this is sadly not a skill I have. Anyway I'm doing my best to point out the errors in this build log for future builders.

I've now glued all the frames in and sanded the hull almost to the final shape. Again there were inconsistencies in the plans regarding the stem frames, on one plan they were installed at an angle, on the other they were perpendicular to the keel. I ended up installing them at an angle by basically eyeballing the position. It turned out perfect though, but maybe I was just lucky. The tape is there to protect the keel and posts from scratch marks when sanding. I'll spend a few more days sanding down the last 0,1mm to get a perfect fit for the frames, and then it's on to planking the hull.

For anyone else building this boat and reading my build log, I've noticed a rather important error on plan no. 1: The lines I have highlighted in red (the parallel lines from the centerline) are NOT equidistant from the keel line, one of them is 20 mm from the centerline, the other one 22 mm at scale 1/12. How this hasn't been caught by Ancre I have no idea, I'll write them an email tomorrow so they can hopefully fix future prints. I almost got a heart attack today when I thought I'd completely screwed up while creating the frames, as I noticed they didn't appear symmetrical according to that line. 😅

I've had to modify the dock a few times; for some reason I expected the plan showing the boat from above to show it at its maximum width, but instead it's the width at some lower point. Also it's not a horizontal line, resulting in the upper deck of the dock to be curved. This seems very weird to me, but I can work with it. The frames are correct according to the line drawings, so I'm not too concerned. However, I suspect frame 8Ar is wrong on the plans. I've made it exactly as per the frames plan, but it seems a bit too narrow compared to the frames next to it. You can just notice it on the photo above, it's frame 8 in the foreground. I'll probably remake it just to be safe. Nonewithstanding these issues, I think I'm progressing nicely and I'm enjoying building this boat a lot! So much so that I've already decided that my next project will also be a monograph from Ancre, which I've just ordered. 😄

Thanks for the kind words @Chuck! I'm continuing work on the frames and dry-fitting them and sanding them to a rough shape. What's the best way to sand the inside of the frames once they're all attached? I can sand a bit before I install them but I'll still have to leave 0,5 - 1mm inside to remove later, especially at the bow and stern. I've been searching for attachments for my Proxxon drill but nothing really seems to be able to do the job. The monograph briefly mentions that the frames would have been nailed together but the plans don't show where the nails should be. I've bought some 0,8mm copper wire that I'll use for that, I think it'll give some extra needed strength and also look more authentic, and should be pretty easy to do.

I'm a long-time member but has hardly been active here during the past few years. I recently completed my first scratch build, the USS Syren (plans provided by Chuck Passaro back when it was a group build) and was looking for my next scratch build. I wanted to try a fully framed build so was looking for something easy and decided on the Santa Caterina from Ancre, mainly because I like Mediterranean lateen-rigged vessels. The monograph is in 1:12 scale but I felt that was too large, so I scaled all the plans to 1:18 which results in a boat that is around 30 cm long. I'm using from swiss pear with black hornbeam for all the black parts (mainly antennas and blocks); I do not intend to paint any part of the model. I don't have many power tools, just a mini lathe and a power drill, both from Proxxon. I may get more power tools in the future, but at this point I don't think I need them. I started building around 3 weeks ago and have just completed the keel assembly and started on the frames. There are some inconsistencies in the plans but so far nothing that can't be solved by checking ahead (I hope!). Keel, stem and stern posts: Starting on the frames. At this point I'm just checking that they all fit well; I have created the drydock to make sure everything is squared when I install them. I post a lot of pictures on my Instagram too, but wanted to write a build log especially in case I need to ask for advice at any point, and also to document any issues I may find. Any criticism is more than welcome, don't be afraid to point out my mistakes! That's the only was I can learn and become a better builder.

I am still in the process of scratch building the USS Syren, a group build on this forum from several years ago (I am not the fastest builder...). I am working on the carronades but have been unable to find any suitable brass or other metal carronades to use. I bought two 24lbs carronades from Jotika, but since they are rather expensive, I don't think I will use these though they are of excellent quality. Does anyone know where to buy good quality carronade barrels online? The ones in my local shops leave a lot to be desired. Ideally the barrels should be in metal and about 25mm long, 1/64 scale 24lbs carronades. I live in Europe but don't mind buying from outside the EU if posting is not too expensive. Another option I am considering is to cast the barrels myself, but as I have never done this before and don't have the tools required, that is not such a good option for me.