David Lester

Hello All,
I brief update tonight - I have finished the copper plating, both sides as well as the rudder and all the annoying little edge pieces. It feels like a real milestone and I'm pleased enough with the results. When I removed the masking tape from the waterline on the port side, I noticed for the first time a pretty big dip in the waterline at the stern end. It was easy enough to fix by stripping back a few rows in the immediate area, replacing the masking tape to a better position and replacing the plates.
 
Later today I applied masking tape to mark the red stripe. I experimented with it first and it lifts very nicely off the plates without causing any damage, so my concerns in that area were unwarranted. I took Ken up on his suggestion of applying a clear coat to the plates first which should have the effect of sealing the line between the plates and the masking tape. I did that, but simply used some polyurethane. I have now added the red paint, but it will need a couple of more coats before I remove the tape and find out how successful I was.
 
The pictures below are of the finished copper, and I'll add some of the red stripe as soon as it's ready.
 
David

Hello All,
I brief update tonight - I have finished the copper plating, both sides as well as the rudder and all the annoying little edge pieces. It feels like a real milestone and I'm pleased enough with the results. When I removed the masking tape from the waterline on the port side, I noticed for the first time a pretty big dip in the waterline at the stern end. It was easy enough to fix by stripping back a few rows in the immediate area, replacing the masking tape to a better position and replacing the plates.
 
Later today I applied masking tape to mark the red stripe. I experimented with it first and it lifts very nicely off the plates without causing any damage, so my concerns in that area were unwarranted. I took Ken up on his suggestion of applying a clear coat to the plates first which should have the effect of sealing the line between the plates and the masking tape. I did that, but simply used some polyurethane. I have now added the red paint, but it will need a couple of more coats before I remove the tape and find out how successful I was.
 
The pictures below are of the finished copper, and I'll add some of the red stripe as soon as it's ready.
 
David

Good Morning Everyone,
This is my first posting for my build log of the USS Constitution. I'm using the Bob Hunt practicum and started the model in September of last year and until recently was posting regularly on the LSS forum.  At the time I left that forum, I was just about ready to begin the stern and bow details. So, this first posting will serve as a sort of recap of my progress to that point. My next posting will show what I've been working on over the past couple of weeks.
 
I'm really enjoying how much material there is to be found on this forum (especially Constitution builds) and look forward to following them all.
 
David
 
Here are the "recap" photos:
 
  
 
 

Hello All,
I brief update tonight - I have finished the copper plating, both sides as well as the rudder and all the annoying little edge pieces. It feels like a real milestone and I'm pleased enough with the results. When I removed the masking tape from the waterline on the port side, I noticed for the first time a pretty big dip in the waterline at the stern end. It was easy enough to fix by stripping back a few rows in the immediate area, replacing the masking tape to a better position and replacing the plates.
 
Later today I applied masking tape to mark the red stripe. I experimented with it first and it lifts very nicely off the plates without causing any damage, so my concerns in that area were unwarranted. I took Ken up on his suggestion of applying a clear coat to the plates first which should have the effect of sealing the line between the plates and the masking tape. I did that, but simply used some polyurethane. I have now added the red paint, but it will need a couple of more coats before I remove the tape and find out how successful I was.
 
The pictures below are of the finished copper, and I'll add some of the red stripe as soon as it's ready.
 
David

Hello All,
I brief update tonight - I have finished the copper plating, both sides as well as the rudder and all the annoying little edge pieces. It feels like a real milestone and I'm pleased enough with the results. When I removed the masking tape from the waterline on the port side, I noticed for the first time a pretty big dip in the waterline at the stern end. It was easy enough to fix by stripping back a few rows in the immediate area, replacing the masking tape to a better position and replacing the plates.
 
Later today I applied masking tape to mark the red stripe. I experimented with it first and it lifts very nicely off the plates without causing any damage, so my concerns in that area were unwarranted. I took Ken up on his suggestion of applying a clear coat to the plates first which should have the effect of sealing the line between the plates and the masking tape. I did that, but simply used some polyurethane. I have now added the red paint, but it will need a couple of more coats before I remove the tape and find out how successful I was.
 
The pictures below are of the finished copper, and I'll add some of the red stripe as soon as it's ready.
 
David

Hello All,
I brief update tonight - I have finished the copper plating, both sides as well as the rudder and all the annoying little edge pieces. It feels like a real milestone and I'm pleased enough with the results. When I removed the masking tape from the waterline on the port side, I noticed for the first time a pretty big dip in the waterline at the stern end. It was easy enough to fix by stripping back a few rows in the immediate area, replacing the masking tape to a better position and replacing the plates.
 
Later today I applied masking tape to mark the red stripe. I experimented with it first and it lifts very nicely off the plates without causing any damage, so my concerns in that area were unwarranted. I took Ken up on his suggestion of applying a clear coat to the plates first which should have the effect of sealing the line between the plates and the masking tape. I did that, but simply used some polyurethane. I have now added the red paint, but it will need a couple of more coats before I remove the tape and find out how successful I was.
 
The pictures below are of the finished copper, and I'll add some of the red stripe as soon as it's ready.
 
David

Thank you kind friends for looking in and posting "Thumbs Up" or whatever the accolade is .  .  .  .  .
 
Doc, I know I am on your post card list - maybe it'll arrive tomorrow .  .  .  . I love PHX.
 
Today is the second day the Cougar Mountain Shipyard crew has been back at it  - but with interruptions associated with startup after a shut down, so the days productivity was not something to really talk about .  .  .  .
 
Having said that, the main gun deck planking continued - but with a twist. Prudence has dictated the deck needs to be glued in place, then planked. That is understandable because it has to go in as two pieces to fit between the frames. You'll recall the quip that says to send the laziest man to do the most difficult job .  .  .  . well, after testing the fit I determined the two deck halves fit tightly against one another when put in place on the ship. Having seen that, I used double sided tape to attach them that way to my large sheet of three quarter inch sheet glass and ran a deck plank -centered - down the length of the tight  "crack" between the halves - however, I only glued the plank to one side. As of tonight I have planked a fair amount of the deck, both sides of center, having perhaps one or two days of additional work to complete it.
 
Will it work when I disassemble it and move the two halves to the ship? I hope so! Take a careful magnified look. The seams are tight. If it doesn't go back together well,  then shame on me .  .  .  . but isn't being creative the American way?
 
Respectfully,
John
 

 
 
 

The cannon build continues with all parts now drilled and painted. I built out a pilot all the way to have a guide and bench mark to check against. The challenge I am finding is that there seems to be two different laser cut patterns in the gundeck kits with the carriage of one being slightly larger than the other that impacts the height position in the gunport. 
 
I used the brass strip in the kit for the trunnion straps and 26 wire for the rope rings. Keep in mind these will be on the gundeck and only the best ones will be positioned in the cargo grate area for viewing; the balance will only be seen if peeping through the gunports.
 
I tacked together the gunport covers to be used as a location fixture when gluing the cannons in place.

 
I realized before I got ahead of myself that I should paint the gun strip white and the gunport sidewalls black before installing the cannons.

 
Here I have added the .035 rope from Chuck and tied the ends trapping the twisted wire loop that will attach to the bulwark by drilling .032" holes.

 
Here I am using the soft brass strip to form the trunnion straps. The trick is to add the straps without gluing the barrel in place so that it can be adjusted to the gunport later on.

 
Here is the pilot cannon completed with only 29 more to build.

 
Now back to cannon building.
 

Al - I used some tack cloth on the deck and it got a lot of the dust off. I then used a Q-Tip with some paint thinner which got a little more.
 
Popeye - Furniture polish and a stiff brush sound like a good solution too. I don't think we have any in the house anymore but I will pick some up next time I am out. I have also placed an old T-shirt that I opened up over the model now to try to keep more dust out. Thanks for that suggestion.
 
Greg - I think another coat of Wipe On Poly would do the deck some good as it seems to be drying out a bit. Thanks for that suggestion.
 
Here are some final shots of the cannonades. All side tackles are installed and all of the rope coils on the port side. I have about 20 more to add to the starboard side.
 

 

 

 

 

 
I am going to attempt to make new wheels, but still reserve the option to fall back on using the supplied metal wheels. They are not too bad but I want to try making my own.

Installing the Gaff Boom
 
Installing the gaff was very similar to the mizzen boom however there were a few surprises. The gaff halliard goes from the tip of the gaff through a double block strapped under the mizzen cap, back to a block half way down the gaff, up through the double block again, down to a deck block and ties off to a deck cleat. That double block should have been installed during the assembly of the mizzen mast as it was a real pain to strap it on at this point.
 
Then I discovered that I needed to add cleats to the deck on each side of the mizzen mast for the gaff halliard tie off and the gaff throat halliard tie off (the line that lifts the gaff jaws). It turns out that I had added the cleats when constructing the deck but I placed them forward of the mast instead of aft. Because the deck was constructed to show the deck below, the area where the cleats needed to be was open so partial planks had to cut to fit. I also had to use the Syren cleats because I didn’t have any more kit cleats. I left the misplaced cleats in place.
 
Another item that had to be installed, were the jeers to hold up the mizzen cross jack yard. These should also have been installed when it was easier when the mizzen mast was being assembled; but because I was/am a newbie to rigging, I didn’t know that. I know I will have the same and similar problems on the main and fore masts.
 
At the tip of the gaff is a small eyebolt where the flag halliard block is attached. The Mamoli plans call for a 4mm block, the equivalent of a 10” full scale block. The MS instructions state “The halliards are single lines reeved through very small blocks on the gaff.” It does not indicate a particular block size. The MS instructions seem more reasonable; you don’t need a large block for a flag. I used a Warner Woods 2mm (5”) block stropped with sewing thread. From my research, since the instructions were not very precise, the flag halliard is a continuous loop and is tied off to the most convenient point so I chose the obvious point, the boom. If the flag halliard went to a cleat on the deck there would have to be enough slack rope to accommodate the swing of the boom and gaff. If the halliard were tied off to the boom the two would move in unison and no excess slack would be needed. I suspect the flag halliards are tied off to a small cleat on the boom but near set of plans address such a cleat. I could be totally wrong. For that reason I do not plan to add the flag to the halliard at this point for two reasons. First, somehow adding the flags seems like the final act of a model build and second, I’m not sure how it supposed to be done. For now, I’ll just tie if off to the boom with no flag. 
 
Any thoughts out there?

Hi Tom
I find that photographing models is pretty like photographing anything else. For example, I believe myself to be incredibly good looing in real life, but always look like hell in pictures.  Nothing but flaws and imperfections. By what can I do? I guess I can take comfort in small mercies and be glad that despite my frequent and protracted periods of inactivity, I never appear as though I actually need to be dusted in my pictures!
 
But seriously, I don't know what the answer to the dust issue is but your model is looking good nevertheless.
 
David

Hi Tom
I find that photographing models is pretty like photographing anything else. For example, I believe myself to be incredibly good looing in real life, but always look like hell in pictures.  Nothing but flaws and imperfections. By what can I do? I guess I can take comfort in small mercies and be glad that despite my frequent and protracted periods of inactivity, I never appear as though I actually need to be dusted in my pictures!
 
But seriously, I don't know what the answer to the dust issue is but your model is looking good nevertheless.
 
David

Looking good Tom -  only 22 of them - should take no time at all!
 
Dust and other flaws don't seem to show up in real life, but they sure do in pictures. I think the secret to dust control is to never photograph your model.
 
David

Hi Tom
I find that photographing models is pretty like photographing anything else. For example, I believe myself to be incredibly good looing in real life, but always look like hell in pictures.  Nothing but flaws and imperfections. By what can I do? I guess I can take comfort in small mercies and be glad that despite my frequent and protracted periods of inactivity, I never appear as though I actually need to be dusted in my pictures!
 
But seriously, I don't know what the answer to the dust issue is but your model is looking good nevertheless.
 
David

Hi Ken,
Thanks for your thoughts. Your approach seems like a very good one. My thought about painting just the first two rows freehand is ok, but only just ok because even though the rows are quite straight, they aren't perfectly straight. It would be nice to get a crisper line, but I was just trying to avoid the problem of the paint bleeding. I hadn't thought of your clear coat idea. I'll make up a test area with some copper plates on a piece of wood and have a practice run first. I think this might be the answer.
David

Hi Greg, Boy, you're really motorin' along. I can barely read your posts as quickly as you're progressing. Here's a picture of my model at the stage you're at now. For those top window pieces, I rough cut each one to length more or less and then just continually sanded the tops and ends until I had a half decent fit. I put a small brad in each piece to use as a handle to hold it in place as I test fitted it. Once I decided it was ok, I glued it in and when the glue was set, I pulled the pin out. You can see the pin holes in a couple of places. If I remember right, I left each one a wee bit too thick from top to bottom, then when the glue was set, sanded the bottom of each piece until the windows just nicely slid into place and fit snugly.
 
I was interested in your finding that you needed to bevel the inner two transom frames. I didn't feel I needed to do that and I was quite happy with the flow of the windows across the back. They are an odd shape and it would seem they can be placed effectively with or without the beveling.
 
I'm really enjoying watching your progress.
 
David

Hi Ken,
Thanks for your thoughts. Your approach seems like a very good one. My thought about painting just the first two rows freehand is ok, but only just ok because even though the rows are quite straight, they aren't perfectly straight. It would be nice to get a crisper line, but I was just trying to avoid the problem of the paint bleeding. I hadn't thought of your clear coat idea. I'll make up a test area with some copper plates on a piece of wood and have a practice run first. I think this might be the answer.
David

Hi Ken,
Thanks for your thoughts. Your approach seems like a very good one. My thought about painting just the first two rows freehand is ok, but only just ok because even though the rows are quite straight, they aren't perfectly straight. It would be nice to get a crisper line, but I was just trying to avoid the problem of the paint bleeding. I hadn't thought of your clear coat idea. I'll make up a test area with some copper plates on a piece of wood and have a practice run first. I think this might be the answer.
David

Hi Ken,
Thanks for your thoughts. Your approach seems like a very good one. My thought about painting just the first two rows freehand is ok, but only just ok because even though the rows are quite straight, they aren't perfectly straight. It would be nice to get a crisper line, but I was just trying to avoid the problem of the paint bleeding. I hadn't thought of your clear coat idea. I'll make up a test area with some copper plates on a piece of wood and have a practice run first. I think this might be the answer.
David

Happy Tuesday Everyone,
A bit of progress to report. I've finished plating the starboard side of the model.  I followed the LSS practicum and found it to be quite helpful. The concept of dividing the hull into gores was easy to grasp and it worked out well. The results are acceptable, if not stellar. It looks fine from a "normal" viewing distance of 50' or so , but up close it's full of flaws. It isn't too hard a process in theory, and in most aspects it isn't too hard in practice either, but it is challenging to get the plates in consistent even rows. If you look closely at mine, you'll see a few sine waves!.
 
The foil is very fragile and I'm a bit worried about protecting this side as I work on the other one. I think I'll thumb tack some padding along the bottom of the keel, run it up the side of the hull and tape it to the hull above the copper line. I have a soft pad to set the model on while I'm working, but even it will abrade the foil as the model moves. I think I need to have the padding stationary, tight against the foil and moving with the model.
 
Also, does anyone have any thoughts on masking in order to paint the red section along the top of the copper. In his practicum Bob suggests that masking tape will tend to pull the plates off when removed and instead he uses frisket film. I have never used such a product and judging by the pictures in the practicum, it doesn't look all that user-friendly to me. I'm just curious how others have handled this.
 
David

Happy Tuesday Everyone,
A bit of progress to report. I've finished plating the starboard side of the model.  I followed the LSS practicum and found it to be quite helpful. The concept of dividing the hull into gores was easy to grasp and it worked out well. The results are acceptable, if not stellar. It looks fine from a "normal" viewing distance of 50' or so , but up close it's full of flaws. It isn't too hard a process in theory, and in most aspects it isn't too hard in practice either, but it is challenging to get the plates in consistent even rows. If you look closely at mine, you'll see a few sine waves!.
 
The foil is very fragile and I'm a bit worried about protecting this side as I work on the other one. I think I'll thumb tack some padding along the bottom of the keel, run it up the side of the hull and tape it to the hull above the copper line. I have a soft pad to set the model on while I'm working, but even it will abrade the foil as the model moves. I think I need to have the padding stationary, tight against the foil and moving with the model.
 
Also, does anyone have any thoughts on masking in order to paint the red section along the top of the copper. In his practicum Bob suggests that masking tape will tend to pull the plates off when removed and instead he uses frisket film. I have never used such a product and judging by the pictures in the practicum, it doesn't look all that user-friendly to me. I'm just curious how others have handled this.
 
David

Happy Tuesday Everyone,
A bit of progress to report. I've finished plating the starboard side of the model.  I followed the LSS practicum and found it to be quite helpful. The concept of dividing the hull into gores was easy to grasp and it worked out well. The results are acceptable, if not stellar. It looks fine from a "normal" viewing distance of 50' or so , but up close it's full of flaws. It isn't too hard a process in theory, and in most aspects it isn't too hard in practice either, but it is challenging to get the plates in consistent even rows. If you look closely at mine, you'll see a few sine waves!.
 
The foil is very fragile and I'm a bit worried about protecting this side as I work on the other one. I think I'll thumb tack some padding along the bottom of the keel, run it up the side of the hull and tape it to the hull above the copper line. I have a soft pad to set the model on while I'm working, but even it will abrade the foil as the model moves. I think I need to have the padding stationary, tight against the foil and moving with the model.
 
Also, does anyone have any thoughts on masking in order to paint the red section along the top of the copper. In his practicum Bob suggests that masking tape will tend to pull the plates off when removed and instead he uses frisket film. I have never used such a product and judging by the pictures in the practicum, it doesn't look all that user-friendly to me. I'm just curious how others have handled this.
 
David

Thanks for the comments, likes and suggestions guys. I've looked at several other build logs and thought about the red stripe and I think I've decided what to do. On the build log at knightdreamers.com he found that he was able to lift the masking tape off the copper without it damaging the plates ok which is good, but I noticed that he had quite a bit of paint find its way under the masking tape and the line isn't very crisp. So I think I won't mask it at all and just paint it freehand down to the bottom of the top two rows. There is a band of two rows of full plates going around the top. The stripe is supposed to be 1/2" and the total width of the top two rows on my model is about  7/16". That's close enough for me. I should be able to get a good crisp line using the edge of the plates as a stopping point.
 
David

Happy Tuesday Everyone,
A bit of progress to report. I've finished plating the starboard side of the model.  I followed the LSS practicum and found it to be quite helpful. The concept of dividing the hull into gores was easy to grasp and it worked out well. The results are acceptable, if not stellar. It looks fine from a "normal" viewing distance of 50' or so , but up close it's full of flaws. It isn't too hard a process in theory, and in most aspects it isn't too hard in practice either, but it is challenging to get the plates in consistent even rows. If you look closely at mine, you'll see a few sine waves!.
 
The foil is very fragile and I'm a bit worried about protecting this side as I work on the other one. I think I'll thumb tack some padding along the bottom of the keel, run it up the side of the hull and tape it to the hull above the copper line. I have a soft pad to set the model on while I'm working, but even it will abrade the foil as the model moves. I think I need to have the padding stationary, tight against the foil and moving with the model.
 
Also, does anyone have any thoughts on masking in order to paint the red section along the top of the copper. In his practicum Bob suggests that masking tape will tend to pull the plates off when removed and instead he uses frisket film. I have never used such a product and judging by the pictures in the practicum, it doesn't look all that user-friendly to me. I'm just curious how others have handled this.
 
David

Thanks for the comments, likes and suggestions guys. I've looked at several other build logs and thought about the red stripe and I think I've decided what to do. On the build log at knightdreamers.com he found that he was able to lift the masking tape off the copper without it damaging the plates ok which is good, but I noticed that he had quite a bit of paint find its way under the masking tape and the line isn't very crisp. So I think I won't mask it at all and just paint it freehand down to the bottom of the top two rows. There is a band of two rows of full plates going around the top. The stripe is supposed to be 1/2" and the total width of the top two rows on my model is about  7/16". That's close enough for me. I should be able to get a good crisp line using the edge of the plates as a stopping point.
 
David