Justin P.

First phase of treenails done. Thankfully. Doing 10-20 of these is kind of fun, doing 500 and at the smaller diameters, not so much. (After a light application of wipe-on poly.) At this point its a little unclear where I should start on the next phases, so I just went with what appealed to me and started construction of the lower deck. I still don't really know what the best approach is here. Once the main deck beams are cut, cambered and ready Im not sure if I should attempt construction of the rest of the structure (carlings, etc) in-situ or off the model and hope I can fit the completed deck into place. Its so much easier to get precise cuts and chiseling outcomes if done off the model but Im worried it work end up fitting properly. (Bending the deck beams gently, note the mishap holes in my frames where my drilling for treenails got a little sloppy. Thankfully those will get hidden). I started in on the beam arms as well. Which has gone better than I expected. One complication I have been hassling over is the camber of the beam arms matching the camber of the deck beam. In the end Ive left them flat and decided I would just sand and shape as needed after joining them. The plans show a clearly cambered shape of the this component but I don't know... Im not sure it needs to be as dramatic as it looks in the profile drawing.

I would too, simply because I would image that through handling the tackiness of the line will be prone to picking up (and retaining) all manner of dust and debris thereby making your end result a bit messy?

Ha! Looking great. Did I miss what wood choice you've made for the frames?

Indeed! It seems like this build is moving along at a faster pace each week! Its really looking great.

It really is. I found that optivisors were absolutely essential.

Its looking really good, must be satisfying to see it come together in the form of a real ship! Can I ask what you inevitably did about the McKay drawings? Did you find a source? Are you using them?

Thanks! I don’t know if my experience is anything to learn from. I probably used 10 more tools than I really needed, I tried a lot of different things. Ultimately the most wood was removed with a #11 x-acto blade(s). At one point I was using a dental burr between my fingers. It was a round-a-bout method, which I’m sure will get better with experience...

Started in on the inner treenails ala @ChadB, after flushing up the planking to the frame face. Used a very similar approach to him, and followed his practice of 1mm for the thick stuff and will go down to .5mm for the planking. I very much appreciate his build log for the guidance which has acted (among others) as a sort of manual for my first fully scratch build. It will help tremendously I think for future builds where there might not be so much previous work to rely on. Ill be using Walnut for the treenails. Which provides the nice step down in color from the cherry.

Appreciate the kind words, Im trying. As always there are still little errors here and there that tend to be all I can see but it helps to be reminding that others are seeing some sort of success! Thanks.

Indeed it does. Thanks.

Well the final stain came out quite a lot darker than I hoped, but all in all for a first time carver of what I would call a "micro carving" Im pretty happy. Bummed that the stain sort of took it down so far, but glad to be over the hump. All things considered, I am NOT a fan of carving at this scale, ha! I tried to get more detail out of it, but I just couldn't and once I got to certain point the inner voice started squeaking "Don't let perfect be the enemy of good!" So I left it, stained in Golden Oak and it just sucked it right up! I also really wanted it to have a scale look and not be overly meaty but the thinner I went the farther I moved from confident I would break the damn thing just handling it. I learned a great deal.

Thanks Bob!

I use one of these, and then use a sheet of 4mil mylar over the plans. When I need to put them away it just folds up so I don't have to roll and preroll the plans. Hangs very easily on a wall and provides a very sturdy additional work space. When not in use, folds up flat against the wall, but also has a handle to be carried away and stored somewhere else. https://www.amazon.com/Plan-Station-Portable-Workbench-WS3800/dp/B075V3LX1H/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=site+plan+desk&qid=1619196633&sr=8-2

I love Cornwall Model Boats too. I think the Canadian shipping thing is a product of warehousing. They probably don't stock EVERYTHING in one place and rely on other vendors for stuff they do list. I ordered a tool the other day from a mom&pop shop in Missouri, and the system they sold was shipped from San Diego. My local Hobby Shop is an RC emporium, with a few static model options but nothing like what we need in terms of materials or tools. 5000 options for batteries, and exactly one option for x-acto knife - that sort of thing. The best place to buy hobby lumber is actually my local hardware store, not the hobby shop. Incidentally, they also tend to carry more useful tools too. The closest good shop for me would be 4-500 miles away. So I shop online, and even then I have found that I have increasingly sought out even more niche companies like Syren as opposed to ModelExpo for upgrade parts. Which is to say, even if my local shop had the very basic of "mainstream" model ship stuff like Model Shipways, I still wouldn't be likely to buy from there. Im sorry to hear. Id like to check out your website, is there a link? I tried googling it, but a few options came up and which one might be yours wasn't immediately obvious to me. There is wisdom here. Ive definitely found that the more equipped I have become both in tools and in experience the more I am drawn to scratch building. I enjoy a good kit, but the expense + time in looking for replacements parts + additional expense in buying/making those parts makes kits sometimes a bit more tedious feeling. I dislike shelling out a few hundred dollars knowing full well that almost half of the wood, fittings, rope etc is more or less useless. I agree that it is a natural evolution one makes in time, and can see myself headed in that direction. Though I have kits on the shelf, I don't anticipate pulling one down after my Syren is completed. My capabilities have grown thanks to the kits I have built, and the experience Ive gained and of course my involvement with MSW. I feel compelled to take that next step and scratch is it for me. That said, one of the greatest benefits of having developed an "equipped" shop for scratch building is that now my kids come into my shop and look around and I can literally see their creative inspiration sparking. Maybe not with models, but when they ask if we can make something, my model projects get swept aside and we make something. I never thought my little corner of the house would become a place of fun for them, but ship modeling and my tool obsession has left us with this place where literally anything we can think of (within reason of course) can be made. They may never take up ship modeling as a hobby, but being around the tools and wide variety of techniques and materials is I think giving them something potentially more beneficial. Whats most distressing to me is the state of hobby mills and wood availability. There are a few options, but I do miss having someone who catered specifically to ship modeling. Couldn't have said it better myself.

Do you mean this sort of thing: Seemed pretty straightforward to me, which part are you struggling with?

Shaping up nicely, I’ll follow along if you don’t mind. I love Discovery as a subject and hope to give her a crack someday myself.

You can find smaller pieces (pen blanks) of the Castello and the like more easily than the larger stuff that's for sure. Very interested in those tagua nuts, thanks for sharing!

Just catching up! Everything looks really great, those yards especially.

Slow and Steady wins the Race. Among other things in the past month I have steadily made progress on the Triton. I started adding some inner planking, thick stuff and keel components. I suppose this is the rather boring part of the build as far as build logs go but anticipate much more to discuss when we get to deck framing and other more interested (challenging steps). Though I do rather enjoy the process of shaping and fitting each of these planks. Its slow, rather straightforward and gives a pleasing result.

Wow almost a month since my last update... since then Ive gotten part of vaccine, took the family to Hawaii and returned to 75% onsite work. Cant say I welcome the last, but resetting after a sunny trip to HI sure made a difference in getting my attitude straight. Ive been a little all over the place with Syren. In my last post I was working on ways to come up with a figurehead that I like that hasn't really gone anywhere definitive yet. I have a tried a few things, and will continue to do so until I have something worth showing. I did however start working on the timber heads and have taken a crack at the transom ornamentation. Both of which have gone much more smoothly than my attempts with the figurehead. For the stern ornamentation I had to redraw the plan digitally to get a good copy, then resize it down to fit the final dimension of my transom which ended up a few millimeters shorter than the original plan version. I then printed a few copies onto adhesive backed stencil film and mounted it to hardwood. I have ZERO carving experience so Ive been trying all sorts of techniques (hence the number of printed stencils). Ultimately I used a fine high-speed rotary tool (dental drill type) to cut out the pattern as it is so delicate I kept breaking it, so I remounted it using double stick tape for carving after checking fit. I found that remounting it for carving was essential so that it had the support needed for the tools (even if really sharp). Thats about as far as Ive gotten. So far Im happy with the progress and hope it eventually turns out. The one pictured is my third attempt, perhaps there will be a fourth. I still need to carve in the details, which I still need to work out how to do.

They certainly have that right, but the models won't last just because McCaffery built them. Perhaps he chooses more reliable materials, perhaps he doesn't. I don't really know... My guess is that from a material standpoint, there is likely little difference between his models and your own. In my opinion, its up to clients to ensure a proper display environment, which in the end is the only thing that I believe will have an impact on their longevity. As far as the original premise "that a properly built ship model should last for a hundred years," well I don't know. I don't know how you define "properly built," and feel the target of 100 years is mostly arbitrary. As far as the original text: "...it is reasonable to expect a new ship model to last one hundred years before deterioration is visible." Frankly, I don't know what this curator is talking about - after 100 years I can think of an arbitrary number of ways decay might be visible. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any man-made object, let alone a compound object, that will not show some form of decay after 50 years.

Ive actually tested this in artificial aging chambers and in a light-bleaching lab. Given the right parameters, nothing is "archival." "Archival" paints are favored for their inert chemical make-up and their light-fastness as a stand-alone product. Its all in how you use these products, not the products themselves.

As a professional conservator I probably land on the more conservative side of this discussion. Many of the materials being used today, especially on model ships, make me cringe. The coatings, the glues, the plastics and display scenarios are all either not well vetted or are just what is practical (vs. ideal). The worst are those that use really modern materials to provide an easier building experience. There is no such thing as archival quality anything - given the right scenario all things will deteriorate. This becomes even more complex as we combine many different materials into a compound object of organic and inorganic materials. The best "archival" acrylic paints were never tested in combination with highly acidic woods - etc. That paint may be red forever, but it may also end up as red flakes at the bottom of your display case... Those decals and such will just be brown in 15 years, or worse will be brown on one side and white on the other. Its very hard to predict how an object will age, but it is very easy to make the right decisions early and be knowledgable of inherent vice. All this to say that I cringe only because I know the time and care put into these objects, and its difficult not to get up on a soapbox every time I see something I know with absolute authority will not last. We have to decide for ourselves, few will end up in a museum, and even fewer of us will have grandchildren who want these things laying around so I say enjoy what you are doing now, and forget the rest 🙃

See if you can get yours in Swiss pear or boxwood... 😜

In due time. You'll be happy you went with the Byrnes even if the wife isn't! The sliding table is excellent, and something I use very often.