palmerit

Sometimes - in my very limited experience - gaps only pop visually after a first coat of primer (I think some of the Vanguard instructions actually note that too, if not in the Sherbourne, then in the Ranger instructions). I'd try to fill and sand large gaps. I could be wrong, but the goal isn't to make it seem like a smooth fiberglass hull, because it's fine for some of the details of planking to show through the paint, but you also don't want large gaps - as you said. If you look at photos of real painted wooden ships, you can see the planking, but you don't see gaps or holes for obvious reasons. If you use some really watered-down filler, it can get into some of the tiny pinholes you have, which would be the things I'd be most inclined to want to fill. I first tried using a Minwax wood filler and it was way too grainy when watered down. Maybe fine for large-scale, but terrible for small scale. I found the Elmer's (water-based) wood glue to have a finer grain and it waters down a lot better. Would be interested to hear if other have different recommendations. You can apply it, let it get into the tiny holes and gaps, and just gently wipe the surface. (You can also get yourself into a death spiral of adding filler, sanding, adding filler, sanding. Don't ask how I know.)

I’m planning to add a tiny strip of decking over side supports. I couldn’t find an exact match online or in Chapelle’s book, but some others kind of in this class had thin decking along the sides. We’ll see if I can get looking good enough to install.

I used an amber shellac on the interior. Not yet sure how I’ll paint it later. I ended up adding some extra supports in the open slots between the thwarts. The middle one is not aligned sadly. I also added some trim pieces at the ends.

This is probably going to be a plank a day kind of model. That’s fine since I’m doing this one as filler while waiting for parts of other models to dry. I soaked the planks in hot water. I’ll leave them to bend overnight. After I get this first plank glued into place I might soak and bend a few planks on each side. I’m going to have to figure out better ways of clamping the ends in place - a problem I haven’t solved satisfactorily with other models.

@Russ MIlland Figuring out how to do the narrow planking is definitely challenging. Thankfully there are other build logs out there. I got it because I thought it would be a different challenge for me. While a small boat and a small model, this is definitely not a 1st or 2nd or 3rd model to build. I’m going to find it challenging to plank. If this were my first model, I'd be at a complete loss about how to build it. It's like 5 levels harder than the Model Shipways Dory or Midwest Models Dory for example. And still way harder than planking the Vanguard Sherbourne (or Ranger). Again, that's not a surprise. I kind of got it because I thought it would be a different challenge. Just didn't appreciate how challenging it would be. It's a bit of a puzzle.

Great planking job. Not "for a first model". Just great planking job. I'm going to make myself feel better and say that you learned from our (my) mistakes on our first (second, third, ...) attempts.

I shaped the bulwarks to the hull overnight (having soaked them in hot water for maybe 15min). Now they’re glued and clamped in place and I’ll let them dry overnight. Like the instructions say, you don’t add glue to the top tabs where the red clips are secured because those tabs will be removed later.

I’m curious what you bought if you’re willing to share.

Not that I need any more models for my stash, but who sells these? I know Amazon has some - and I would trust buying them from Amazon Japan - but unless I know the reseller on Amazon, I generally avoid, especially for something as expensive as a model kit. Specifically, is there a reseller in the US? The first site that shows up in a google search for me (in Japan) is https://www.zootoyz.jp.

I’m betting the planking will be more fiddly than other models. The planks are pretty narrow and there are lots of them. But we’ll see.

Marking rib locations and gluing the stems to the bottom plank. The bottom plank has the rib locations marked.

Making the building jig on the building board. Need to glue the centered bulkheads to the board. Instructions say to use CA. I’m using wood glue. Though I used a speed set Titebond for this, with Lego blocks to keep things square.

Note to beginners looking for a first (or second) model: This is not a beginner model. It’s small, sure. But the planking with all the thin plank strips is pretty tricky. A fun challenge for a more experienced modeler - especially as a side project - but not a first model. In case you missed the first sentence: Just because this is a small little canoe, this is definitely not a beginner model. I'm adding this sentence a month after I added the first sentence. The planking just gets harder as you get to the end. I bought this knowing that this would be a challenge. I just could see someone think "that's just a little canoe, it has to be a great model to try out this hobby". If I had bought this as my first model it would have also been my last. I'm not saying that to condemn the model - it's a fun challenge - but that there is no way I could have built this as my first model. I'm finding it a challenge and I've built or been building about ten so far. Adding a new small build to work on now and then between other builds. I'm waiting for shaped bulwarks to dry overnight on one model, shellac to dry overnight on another, and wood filler to dry overnight on another. I don't often get a few hours to work on models - and after a busy Saturday writing a challenging report for work - I need to turn my mind off. So I grabbed the Maine Peapod from the shelf that I had bought cheap during a Model Expo name-your-price sale. It's a small model, but after seeing some of the builds, it could be a tricky bit of planking. You might see from other fairly recent build logs that Midwest models were discontinued. They are slowly now being reissued by Model Expo / Model Shipways. From what I can gather, the instructions have barely been updated, except to include an updated map of the sheet parts at the front. The instructions refer to paints and techniques that seem decades old (paint brands that I think no longer exist, using Windex to bend planks which I've never seen in other contexts, using something like electrical tape instead of tamiya tape). The parts are I gather new laser cut patterns from the old model might have had. These models - even small, seemingly simple ones - are more of a challenge to build in many ways than more modern (larger, seemingly more complex) models you see from Vanguard.

One thing I like about this boat is how weird it is - at least to me. The diagonal section is where the rudder attaches. I don’t think I’ve seen a boat with a 45 degree rudder like that. The 90 degree on the other end is the bow.

Note that on step 10 some of the pieces are mislabeled (29 in the instructions is 27 on the sheet, 30 in the instructions is 28 on the sheet).

It’s interesting that the instructions don’t really describe “fairing” the hull - just sanding to ensure that all the bulkheads are bevelled (I know that’s the same thing). This is certainly the easiest hull I’ve faired. Now looking, I have a few spots to fix but it’s close. Thought I’d include photos in case someone new doing this model wondered what it should look like. As recommended, I’d definitely recommend “pre-fairing” the bulkhead pieces - easiest to do using a Dremel with a sanding cylinder. Only a few need to be done. The most extreme are the filling pieces front and back to secure everything tight. These pieces would be a hassle to fair from scratch on the model.

Some 3-2-1 block (metal, heavy) to weigh down the sub deck.

Putting together the bulkheads and other supports. I can see the engineering genesis from this early model (one of the first Vanguard models) to the more recent models in terms of the various kinds of supports and internal architecture. Thus one goes together really well and the bulkheads essentially go into place square, but these ones are glued into place whereas the Sherbourne and Ranger were assembled without glue and then glue was added later to where the pieces come together for some redundancy.

Boy would I love to see some YouTube videos of these someday. If you ever take these on the road and go on tour let us all know 😉

I forgot that I had asked this very same question a year ago. My recommendation is still the same as what I said above. You can see other responses. And how I ended up getting the Duchess, which will be a few models from now.

I'd recommend a Vanguard Model. The Sherbourne is highly recommended. There are also the "fishing boats" - I've done the Ranger, now doing the Zulu 'Lady Isabella', have the Erycina on the shelf. Of course there are more complex Vanguard models, but I'd imagine any of these Novice boats would still be a significant challenge with lots to learn after the Bounty Launch. And the end result looks great. The Sherbourne was my first - though in parallel I worked on the Model Shipways Shipwright boats (Dory, Pram, Smack) and the NRG Half Hull and a Lego model of the Endurance. After the fishing boat, I'm probably going to the Vanguard Grecian. Have the Vanguard Duchess on the shelf. I bought it assuming it would be my second model. But then decided I'd have more fun learning more and trying more things with less complicated models. On the Vanguard models, the materials are great, the design is great, the instructions are great, the end result is great - even if like me you don't really know what you're doing. Easy to recommend.

I've seen that some people use contact cement and swear by it. Others say just as strongly to stay away. I'd also suggest wood glue. I tried using CA glue on entire planks - the Vanguard instructions describe doing that - but I made a mess. CA doesn't give me enough time to make sure a plank is in place. Maybe someday I'll be able to use CA when planking more often. The only time I use CA glue when planking is when securing the plank end to the bow. I just apply CA to the very end. If I mess up, it's easy to get acetone in there to undo the glue. Using CA on the very end - assuming you really get it set in the right way in the right place - can then make it easier to apply wood glue to the rest of the plank. Also, the bow (and stern) ends are often the hardest to secure in place to let wood glue dry. While some say if the plank is shaped right you don't need any clamps or rubber bands, there's also the fact that wood glue sets better under pressure, at least from what I've read. I'm no expert though. Still trying to work it out for myself and exploring different options.

I think the tool is called a proportional scale divider, but I've never used one.

I'm going to follow because I want to know how to use brass black properly. Painting brass parts is also challenging, even when finding a good primer for PE parts. I bought, but have yet to use, and to compare, Birchwood Brass Black and Blue Jacket's Brass Black 52. I saw both recommended here. Again, I haven't tried them or compared them. I've seen some posts here that have all sorts of complex multi-step processes, such as first using acetone, using distilled water, avoiding touching pieces because of body oils, sometimes doing a light sanding, and the like. When I've seen Olha Batchvarov use brass black on her YouTube videos, she's used no prep. I can't remember what brand she uses.

Great choices. You'll find that the Sherbourne is definitely a step up from the Dory, Pram, and Smack. The biggest new part of the Sherbourne will be doing the strip planking, which none of the Master Shipwright models require. And the rigging is definitely more complicated. The Modelkitstuff videos of the Sherbourne are great. Also check out the planking tutorials at the top under Modeling Techniques : https://modelshipworld.com/forum/98-planking-downloads-and-tutorials-and-videos/ After you do the Sherbourne, the Vanguard fishing boats are a nice next option I think. Probably similar in difficulty to the Sherbourne. But planking and rigging take a few simpler models to figure out. You'd probably be able to do a harder model, but these other Novice models still provide a nice challenge and an opportunity to learn more. I imagine the boats you bought before and half shelved are fairly "old school" models (the Vanguard representing a new approach), which require a lot more work to get pieces aligned and square, and a lot more hand-shaping of pieces, and far less detailed instructions. I'm going to do several more Vanguard models before I give one of those models a try myself. I have the Model Shipways Syren in my stash, which is probably one of the best of that style, being designed by Chuck Passaro, but it'll be several more models before I try to tackle that one. When you get to planking, definitely check out how bad some of the first attempts can be - mine being one of the worst. Since the Sherbourne is painted, you can use a lot of filler and sanding to make it better. You can see where I started and where I ended up. Kind of miracle. I found the NRG Half Hull model a good experience to better understand planking. It's a different kind of modeling (it's a half hull, not a full model, and it involves cutting out planks to shape from sheets rather than bending long planks into shape). But at least for me it gave me a good sense of what I'm trying to achieve when planking when bending planks in two directions.