Blue Pilot

You have made tremendous progress. Looking good. Safe travels and Merry Christmas.

I have never use the Aero gloss so I cant comment on that. I have painted a couple hulls. I either used a grey primer or in other cases I just used wipe on poly before painting. I assume the aero gloss would be similar to the wipe on poly. I would suggest if you use a primer just make sure it is compatible. If you use acrylic paint use a acrylic primer. I had very good success with the wipe on poly. I did not use another primer in addition to the wipe on poly just apply, let dry and lightly sand then repeat. I have not personally used Tamia paint but I have heard they are good. I would be care full of a final top coat over the paint it may give your hull a glossy shine that would not look realistic in my opinion. Your hull looks great. Hope this helps. You could also try some test samples on scrap wood better safe then sorry after so much time went into that hull.

Your Hull looks great. You are leading the way for me. Even though the Smuggler is a different ship the process is the same and you are thinking of the same things I have to think about down the road. I hope my Smuggler Hull comes out as nice as yours. This guide is really helpful, Thank you so much for the detailed post.

Haha I am following those too!. 1980'S is when I started in aviation. I know what you mean about being different I guess I am the same. When I wanted to learn to fly I went our and bought an old 1956 Cessna 172 (with the O-300 Contenental). At the time I had no idea where it would take me either. I fixed her up and flew her through my Commercial pilot license that old fastback Cessna. I took a girl out on a date with the old Cessna once. Flew over to an airport with a nice restaurant then took her up to watch the sun set. We then climb up a few thousand feet and watched the sun set again:). I guess that old Cessna worked it's magic, I married that girl.

I got a little bit done today. my templates are a bit flimsyer then I hoped but they will do the job. The stern is coming in nicely. The bow still has a way to go. I used a carving knife to take off most of the excess wood. Then I switched to a Dremal tool on low speed to get things closer. The basic shape is there I think.

Those engines are huge!

Wow, the detail is amazing. While I am no Diesel engine Mechanic I was once upon a time an aircraft mechanic. I have worked on helicopters, turbo props, jets, and light airplanes and more then a few cars in my day and the mechanic in me really is drawn to the details. Looking at the ship plans and system schematics you post and then your build I think that looks real! I keep thinking this looks like something that would really run and I can imagine a mechanic wrenching on. Really cool what you guys are doing with this kit!

Looking good.

Thanks Nic. I will be putting an order in eventually with BJ. I need to order some sheets of mahogany for my POB II build as well as sheets or strips for the Smuggler. My wife bought me a Barnes saw some time back for Christmas but I have not used it much so this is a good time to start. Does BJ sell precut planking packages for the Smuggler? I have been reading Bob Steinbrunn's article with interest. What he did was glue full length strips of planks onto the solid hull then he scribed the but joint lines. This is an interesting approach. It always fascinates me to see how many different ways to do things there are. In my case my plan is to cut the planks to length with staggered butt joints as the real ship would have been done. At least that's the plan. Executing it will be another matter entirely. Thankfully, with you and so many others here for expert advice I think it will turn out nice in the end.

Stunning! Incredible craftsmanship/

That came out really nice. Great work!

Yankee Hero is a great choice. Looks like it is coming along fine. Welcome aboard!

More exciting news: I have been giving a lot of thought to what I want to do with the Smuggler. I think it's good to have a basic plan before you start and set some goals for the finished ship. I have wanted to build this model for so long; I have decided I am going to really challenge myself and make this a bit of a kit bash. The biggest change for starters is I am going to be fully planking the hull. This will be quite a challenge for me as I have never done this on a solid hull kit and their is no guide for me to refer too. I have planked two hulls in the past. I know I will have to decrease the hull overall thickness to accommodate for the additional planking. I haven't wrapped my head around how best to do that yet. Any guidance from the experts would be appreciated. The finished model will be painted. I have not decided on the color scheme yet, but I will want it to be historically accurate. I plan to add some additional detail to the deck, such as salt barrels, tools, netting. I am taking many of the ideas from Ships In Scale magazine running from the Jan/Feb 2012 issue to the Sept/Oct issue by Robert N. Steinbrunn. I will replace the cast rigging blocks with wooden ones for sure and I may try scratch build some of the other cast fittings from wood on deck. I haven't decided if I want to scratch build the Dory and Seine Boat or use those available from Blue Jacket. I do know I will have one of each. The kit came with a dory kit which looks very nice and they have a full hull Seine Boat kit as well I believe. I could use those and just add additional details or go full hard core and go the scratch route. Thats a decision for a much later date. There are two cast decorative pieces that are attached at the steam head. I have been looking at the carving group build logs on MSW and wondering if I could carve them myself. That is so far over my head and skill It gives me the shakes just considering it! I think I may give it a try anyway. I can always revert to the cast pieces if I can't pull off the job. Please forgive my rambling. One of the nice things about a build log is it serves as a journal for yourself and I am getting to the age where that's a good thing.............................what was I saying?

I managed to get some preliminary items out of the way today. I sat down and went through the entire kit and inventoried everything. All the wood looks nice and the bowls all looked straight and true. The fittings and decals included look nice too. I went to a printer yesterday and had him make copies of the hull plans. I cut our the plans and used spray adhesive to glue them unto a couple sheets of cardboard. I will be on the road a lot so cutting out the templates will give me a nice way to fill my down time at the hotel. I bought that little roller and the spray adhesive at the hobby store. The roller isn't a must have, but it sure worked nice and made the process faster and cleaner and I am sure it will last my lifetime. I also cut a piece of scrap wood which eventually be used to hold the hull in a vise for sanding. This is mentioned in the instructions.

Yes, I spoke with Toni if we get enough people with build logs going then they may make this into a group project, which I think would be great. I will start as soon as I get the kit. I work slow and do have other projects going but I think I will make this my primary project. On a bit of a side note I have decided to fully plank my Smuggler kit. I am hoping this will give me the know how and the confidence to attempt this. I will be on my own planking the smuggler as its a solid hull kit so I don't have any written instructions to go by or detailed guide to plank her. Yours is looking good,

That would be cool!

Wow that looks fabulous! Congratulations.

She looks very good, thanks for posting this log.

I think I will follow along with you. My kit is in the mail. Looks good so far.

Welcome aboard. I think we all share your pain on the time issue. I let it hold me back for a while then I released that was foolish. A little her and there as a way to relax goes a long way. Good luck.

LOL, Your in inspiration Chris!

Sweet! Thanks for the update.

Yeah the lines of the bulkheads and that stern look like it will really be a challenge.

Sorry friends for my long absence. Has it really been nearly 3 years. A variety of pressures with work, family, and an aging mother were then and now continue to put pressure on my time. So my loving wife recently told me "You need to get a hobby". "Why don't you clean out the garage and set up a place to work on your ship models again. Something to you help you relax and ease some of the stress your under". For any young newly weds out there when your wife so delicately starts saying such sweet words in your ear, what she really means is your are really becoming a pain in my backside and you need to do something about it, now! I have a nagging suspicion this may have all been a ruse and her real master plan was just to get me to clean the garage. Well be careful what you wish for sweetheart! I am a dead mad if she ever reads this. So never one to go against the sensible wishes of my loving bride, I am coming back and diving in head first! I spent today in part setting up a new hobby shipyard in the garage. I still have a ways to go before I am up and running. My poor POB II has been in dry dock these last few years and she is now safely birthed in her new home. She is a tad worse for ware I fear. Her stem post is broken as well as damage to the keel and transom and several bulkheads for the side rails have been broken off. Happily there is nothing that can't be mended. I will be painting her eventually so these and other scars should be well hidden. I hope that eventually you all will have something interesting to see here. Cheers!

I imagine that I am not unique on MSW in my love of history. It's hard to imagine anyone here on this forum that doesn't share that love. One aspect I love about modeling is reading books on the subject. I especially love books that focus more on the people and the time they lived in and their personal stories. As I started to read the forward in the Gloucester Clipper Fishing Schooners the manual that comes with the kit by Erik A.R Ronnberg Jr. I was delighted to see a list of suggested readings. I was even more excited that I had a few of these already sitting on my shelf. There is also a nice bit of history and actual photographs of some of these ships included in the building guide. I have been particularly enjoying a second reading of Down to the Sea by Joseph E. Garland. I admire the strength, courage, and determination of the people how sailed these ships. Their story is as fascinating as the ships they sailed. Years ago I read a quote at the Experimental Aircraft Associations gathering in Oshkosh, WI. It said something like "So that no story should go untold"? I thought that was a great line. I love all history but especially the history that is more obscure or perhaps a better way to say it is the stories that don't get told or talked about very often. In addition to some general modeling books not shown here are a few I will be referring to on this build. I also picked up the data disc Dave suggested and the article on the Smuggler really has me thinking, and no good ever comes from that! It has me thinking of taking my original modest plans for this build and pushing myself to take this ship to a much higher level. This article is probably going to result in several more years being added the length of this build so thanks Dave for that! 😀