Ryland Craze

Time for some work on the exterior hull. The first items that I made and installed were the fenders and chesstrees. These were made from boxwood strip and sanded to shape and to fit the hull contour. Next, I added some black painted molding on a line above the gunports. I prefer to install the molding in pieces between the fenders and chesstrees, rather than notching those pieces to fit over the molding. Then, I made and installed the entry steps. These were done with pear strip cut to size and filed to shape. All of this work was done on both sides of the hull.
 
I was enjoying this, so I decided to do some gunport lids as well. I made up and installed five lids on the starboard side. The exterior of the lids was made up of pieces of boxwood to match the hull planking. The recessed interior was done with thinner wood and painted red to match the gunport linings. The hinges are from the kit photoetch sheet. Lastly, I added eyebolts. The lids were pinned and glued to the hull for strength.
 
I'm tempted to continue on with the channels and more lids, but may also return to more guns and quarter deck framing. I'll decide today.
 
Bob
 
 

Time for another update...
 
I took David's suggestion and cut the holes for the sheaves before turning the mast down to its final dimensions.  Here's a look at the mast with the holes drilled.
 

 
Then I turned the mast down the rest of the way.  Here's the mast laid on the plans.
 

 
Finally, I cut the grooves between the holes to simulate the sheaves.
 

 
The instructions say the leave tenons at the top and bottom of the mast.  I'm going to try to do that, but, at the top, there isn't a great deal of extra room.  I might just cut the mast a little long and fit the extra into the ball truck.  At the bottom, there's plenty of room and the tenon shouldn't be a problem.
 
Once the mast was done, I turned my attention to the wide thwart and the mast hoop.  I've found my new favorite modeling material:  Birchwood Casey Brass Black! 
 
I started by cutting and forming the brass strip.  I know that's a little out-of-order.  I should have annealed it first, but it seemed to work alright.
 
Then I passed the formed strip through a flame to get rid of any coating that might be on there.
 

 
Here's what the formed pieces looked like, pre-blackening.
 

 
I dunked the formed pieces in isopropyl alcohol, then rinsed them with water, then put them in the Birchwood Casey ... and watched the magic!
 
Here's the ironwork installed.
 

 
Looks good, right?
 
Right.
 
So now it's time for something tragic to happen.
 
I drilled the holes for the four belaying pins.  I painted the pins using Polly S acrylic Wood Tan.  (Just happened to have some of that around.)  There is not a lot of room for these four pins.  My thwart must be a little more narrow than Chuck's because his look like they have more room between them than mine.  I hope this doesn't make rigging too difficult.
 
Then it was time to install the completed assembly in the boat.  Measure, cut, fit, glue ... and here's the result.
 

 
Anyone notice anything odd?  How about a closer look?
 

 
That's right!  It's in BACKWARDS!
 
I was really impressed with how good this whole thing looked and then I looked in the instruction book again.  BACKWARDS!  I installed the stupid thing BACKWARDS!  Measure twice!  Cut once!  Arrrrrrgh!
 
Once again, I was glad I was using white glue on this model because removing the thwart was fast and easy.  Ken Quast, another model builder in our club, told me, when he messes up a part, it's usually faster to just make another one rather than try to fix a mistake.  I really considered that, but this assembly took me the better part of a week to do.  I thought I'd give fixing it a try before pitching it and doing it again.
 
I put a couple of little patches on the notches I'd cut, then I cut new ones.  I sanded the whole assembly and, although you can see where the old notch was, it will probably be hidden when the knees are installed.
 

 

 
So there it is.  All the thwarts are installed.  I need to hit them with the Watco's Danish Wood Oil and then on to the inboard details.
 
 
 
 
Dan
 
 
 

Spent the last several days looking over the instructions, plan sheets and parts list, plus went through every Bennett build thread here on MSW. Lots of fine work by some talented folks! Thanks to all of you who have taken time to post your build progress.
 
Got started with the build by setting up the build board and attaching the hull moulds. Built up the keel assembly, cut the rabbet; cut, fit, and attached the remaining keel parts and transom. Fit it all into the hull moulds and secured it to the build board at the stem and stern posts. Cut and attached the chine logs and carved and sanded them to shape.
 
Next thing was to cut the hull side planking pieces and fit and attach them to the chine logs, stem post and transom. Sanded and faired them along with the chine logs. Checked the tick marks for the sheers and looks like the hull side planking is just about wide enough to cover them.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Just a couple of bumps so far; I misinterpreted the plan sheet and cut the aft skeg a tad too short leaving no clearance to attach the transom between the stern post and the aft skeg. Had to remove the stern post and put a short 1/8” strip between the two pieces. Problem solved. Next, had a wrestling match with the chine logs. Finally epoxied those little buddies to the transom and let it set up, then formed them around the molds and clamped and epoxied them to the stem post.
 
So far, so good... Should get along to the bottom planking in the next few days.
 
Thanks to all for your interest and comments!

Egad!!!!!   I need to get a-postin' before I slip to page 3.
 

Here are some shots of last week's work.  We don't need no stinkin' fancy-pants gudgeons!!!!  Just slap on some robust eyebolts....honest.  As indicated in previous posts, they could get away with a lot of things that could not if they planned on the ship being around awhile.
 
 

The rudder (AKA the bard door) is hung.  The tiller has not been added yet.  It will eventually stained the same color as the exterior hull.  The two 1"thickbattens were only on the starboard side.  They were nailed on to the rudder boards and helped hold it together.  The nail were supposed to be less obvious, but the stain enhanced them.
 
You will be hearing more about the hole in the top later.

Got the cap rail sanded and shaped today. Average width is around 0.100 inch except where it flares slightly at the bow.
 

Had no time to model for a month, but now finally back to the bench!
 
Installed the risers, it required a better fairing of the frames, and I was not risking to clamp them while glueing.
Here comes the nasty part - painting. I truly hate it, my painting skill suck and the whole procedure is extremely risky. That is why I always opt to natural wood color, maybe a bit of stain But this model have a rich red color which adds a style, so there is no choice.
I used Galeria Acrylic Crimson paint, same as Chuck. Results are quite ok in places where you can wipe away unnecessary paint with a cloth:

 
But I totally failed in an area with problematic access, like transom. Well, that would be an experience...

 
Maybe I should have mixed it with water, to make paint more liquid?

Completed Model
3 months, 180 hours
 
I put in a lot of hours the last couple of weeks and finished my hydroplane model and stand. It took a total of 180 hours to build the model over three months, but one of those months I was on vacation and didn't work on the model. Here are the photos of the completed model.
 

Framing and planking the hull was a lot of fun. The mahogany finished up beautifully and the headless brass nails shine like jewels.
 

The vacuum formed plastic cowls were a pain to build. They are finished with Krylon products: several coats of white primer, many coats of gloss cherry red, and several coats of gloss clear.
 

The silver trim strips around the cowls and on top of the rear cowl are soft white plastic painted with Testor's silver paint. The silver paint looks OK, but not as nice as the chrome plated parts. The trim strips would not stick to the painted cowls with CA so they are held with more brass nails.
 

The rudder, prop, and exhaust manifolds are diecast and chromed.
 

The aluminum piece on the nose is nailed through the plastic. I pre-drilled the all the nail holes with an undersized bit and an electric drill. When I was done I realized that each time I drilled a hole some plastic would melt and stick to the bit, so that each hole got progressively larger. I had to fill the holes with epoxy and start over.  Then I attached the aluminum piece with heavy duty double sided tape before nailing it down. There are probably 100 other nail holes drilled into the plastic cowl, and I had to scrape the drill bit clean with a razor blade after every one.
 

There is a lot of nice detail in the cockpit. The steering wheel is another diecast piece with a painted rim. The floor and foot pedals are photo-etched aluminum.
 

The dashboard has photo-etched holes surrounded by tiny rings. Behind the dash is a cardboard piece with printed gauges. The nine cowl hold-down clamps are made from three separate photo-etched pieces epoxied into tiny springs and nailed into place.
 

I drew up the stand from some photos of the actual stand that I found on-line. It is built from 1/4 inch basswood and painted with the same Krylon primer and paint as the cowl, but I left off the gloss clear coat. The top is black craft foam attached with double sided tape. The lettering was done with a Brother label maker using white-on-clear tape. I added a couple of leftover decals for fun. The base is African ribbon mahogany that matches the look of the hull.
 
 

Looks like my log was hit pretty hard by the recent data loss. I should be able to replace everything. I just need to find the time. I was getting ready to post some new updates anyway. Hopefully in the next week sometime.
 
Charley

A small update. I've added another batch of guns at the aft end of the gun deck. They were made and rigged exactly like the first batch at the fore end. Since I really hate repetitive tasks, there will be no more guns for a while. Next, I will do the aft end of the quarter deck framing, and then likely will do some work on the hull exterior before returning to more guns.
 
Bob

Decided to fix the shear plank by redoing the planking once more. I realize that I could have left things as they where but I need planking experience anyway. After sanding the hull with 400 sandpaper to a near sheen I applied the stain, 1 part Golden Oak to 3 Parts Natural and a coat of Wipe-On-Poly. After removing the bulkhead centers I thinned the bulkhead tops to 3/64". 3/64" + 1/32" plank + 1/64" overhang will give a 3/32" cap rail. I stained the hull inside as well. I then added the cap rail which is now ready for sanding.
 

Finished thinning down the bulkheads.  I feel that I am working with an egg shell as the hull is very light.
 

Here is how my experimentation with the swivel gun yoke turned out.  Not bad for a prototype, but still needs some work.
 
    "Barn door" with lower pintol in the background. 

First, let me say I have already found this forum to be an invaluable resource for both the neophyte ship modeler and the experienced builder. To that I offer a big...
THANK YOU !
...to the owners and administrators of Model Ship World and everyone else who has taken time to share your knowledge, experience, and wisdom on this forum. Thanks Folks!
 
Now on to some business...
 
Although not my first boat build, this is my first wooden sailing craft build. I've been working on a scale model Dodge Runabout (Legend Model Boats) for several months now (see link in my signature). Its coming along nicely but I still wanted to try my hand at a sailing boat.
 
As for experience, I've been into model building in general since I was a kid and have been fooling around with model railroad stuff for nearly 40 years – mostly HO with a smattering of On30. I prefer working with wood and build mostly kits, but do a little scratch building too.
 
In choosing my first sailing craft build, I thought something rather basic might be in order, so after looking over a lot of stuff I decided on the Willie L. Bennett Chesapeake Bay Skipjack by Model Shipways. Why the Bennett? First, Model Shipways and Model Expo seem to have a topnotch reputation in the model ship business. Second, I like the larger scale, the smaller price tag, and it does seem to be a tad less complicated than, oh say, Nelson's Victory or something on that order...
 
So we'll start with the obligatory “the box and what's in it” shots...

 

 

 

 
After unpacking, ran through the parts list – everything looks good there. I retrieved the plans and instruction booklet and will spend the next week or so studying this stuff and getting a little more familiar with the pieces, parts, and process. Should get started on this thing for real in a week or so. Until then...

Hi All,
 
Not much to report on. I have started sanding/fairing the lower portion of the hull. When I do that
I set the hull upside down on a small homemade down draft table to help contain the dust. I place
some wood blocks on the table that are thick enough to keep the tops of the bulwarks from hitting
the table and hopefully protecting them. Then it's just a matter of sanding, checking with some
planking strips, sand some more, etc etc etc.
 

JVO,
You can do it with a slightly cheaper saw than Byrnes Saw in cost.  I'm making planks down to 1/32" on a Micro-mark saw.  However, it's a big pain and it's not as accurate.  I'm only getting about a 50% yield on cut planks.  When this one finally dies, I'll be getting a Byrnes. 
 
BTW, the price difference on a Byrnes Saw and Micro-mark is about $70 and Jim's saw is much more precise and robust.  No plastic for one thing.

Update – 03/28/14

Well, Murphy’s Law bit me on the *** big-time Wednesday night. Somehow I managed to topple the superstructure & foremast from the model to the floor and the damage to the foremast is almost non-repairable (see photos from earlier post). The superstructure only had a minor injury overall and that’s been repaired. It will require some touchup painting, but that was going to take place anyway a couple nights from now.

Bottom line, I’ve started to build a NEW Foremast. Rather than repair the existing one, I’ve decided to go from scratch once again. Only, this time the platforms will be made from brass bar, rod, and PE, and rather than solid styrene, will incorporate PE grating which is closer to the actual masts than my solid styrene plastic ones were.

So, I’ve already soldered together the framework of the lowest platform and have sized and cut the upper and lower masts from brass tube. These will be drilled for the various support legs rather than depend on cryo to hold everything together.

I do not have PE grating that is large enough for the entire platform, but will have to make the platforms out of various pieces and cut to size. Since there is grating available for the WWII inflatable raft baskets which won’t be used on the model (both kit PE and Pontos Detail Up Set), I have enough to complete the 3 platforms I need. I hope to be able to salvage the various radars on the damaged mast rather than making all of those again. I've got an order in for 1/32" sq. brass bar that should be here next weekend.

Tonight’s photos show the 1st platform frame w/the lower and upper masts in place. It looks nasty now, but when painted I think will be better the 2nd time around. I’ve also taken time to ensure that the support legs are as close as possible to the actual mast – something many photos I have for reference are still hard to decipher since very few photos are close ups from different angles of the mast. One most helpful is actually one I took in 1969 looking up at the mast from the port 03 level. This photo shows the various platfoms on the mast and their grating, as well as positions of the yardarm and it’s components.
 
One other note regarding the hull of the 1:200 Trumpeter kit - another modeler has done a 3D solid model comparison (using Solidworks) of the kit hull superimposed at the same frame locations as recorded in drawings of the IOWA class offered by Floating Drydock (can't recall the draftsman of these plans). The differences in the two patterns are noticeable, but in my opinion not to the extent that I would be willing to chop off the lower stern of the kit hull up to Turret #3 in order to correct these distortions. I plan to go ahead and build the model with the kit hull intact. I have some other ideas about how to display the model so that any "smarty pants" viewing it will realize what's going on and keep their opinions to themselves. I have too much $$ tied up in this project to try and mess something up further rather than just moving ahead with caution.
 
Further - I have determined that the Light Gull Gray (Testors) that I was planning on using for the Haze Gray is not correct. I have tested and will incorporate Testors Light Ghost Gray as the Haze Gray paint for this model. It will also give me an opportunity to learn how to use my 12 year old "new" Badger airbrush outfit for the first time. Ghost Gray is not available in spray can.
 
Hank
 

Hi
I'm a bit surprised by the very positive comments on my painting work on my Fly model. It is a quite easy process from my point of view so I thought I'd share my technique. Forgive me to all of you who know this already or do it better. My painting technique dates back to house painting in my student years, the principles are the same.
 
Brushes:
- Do not scrimp by buying cheap brushes. Get the best quality, sable hair, that you can afford.
- For painting a large area of your model use a square headed brush about 3 mm - 4mm wide with a tapered head and medium stiffness. Same as house painting but at a much smaller scale.
- Look after your brushes. Clean them in lacquer thinners, turpentine or water according to the paint you use. Do not let them soak in any of these solutions. After the first clean wash them in hot water and concentrated dish wishing liquid. The idea is to get rid of any paint residue in the brush and especially in its barrel. Always clean straight after you finished the area painted. Good brushes treated well will last for years.
- For clear finishes I use a larger, soft, round or oval head brush - these give a softer application and allow quicker application than a square head. I find clear finishes work best if they go on quickly. I use Testors Dullcote but that is just my choice.
 
Application
- Several or many thin coats are better than a few thick coats. If the wood behind is showing behind your first coat you are on the right track.
- Do not overload the brush with paint. I take the paint from the pot or bottle and lay it with the brush on to a piece of fresh paper. I then brush out the loaded brush on the paper until it is only lightly loaded with paint.
- Work in one direction from one end to the other of the ship - aft to stern or the other way round. Never start in the middle and then head aft followed by forward.
- Never go back to a perceived mistake behind you in a single application. The paint will have tacked and, especially with enamels, you will get pulling which will turn a minor mistake into a major mess. You can fix that perceived mistake on the next coat.
- Always allow the paint to fully dry. Enamels need at least six hours. Partly dried paint if processed will make a major mess. When you sand the paint should turn to dust. If it rolls into little slivers it isn't dry.
- After each coat lightly sand with 1200 grit paper. If this takes the paint back to wood it doesn't matter there is another coat to come.
 
Finish
- After your last coat of paint, leave it to fully dry and the rub it down with tissue paper. This will even out any brush strokes and colour differences.
- Apply a lacquer (or your favourite clear finish). I use Testors Dullcote. When dry, Testors can again be rubbed back with tissue paper to a dull sheen. I also do a second coat of clear and rub it back again. If you have any shiny spots 1200 grit plus a further tissue rub will get rid of them.
 
The above only applies to easily accessed surfaces. Strakes, fenders and other things in the way will make the rub off impossible. My theory is to get the base painting about right before those bits are added. I could be proved wrong...
 
Here is a picture of the upper works paint plus the wales paint. the upper works are a Humbrol enamel, the wale a Polly Scale acrylic. A little bit of grain shows through which suits me. This is more paint grain than wood grain. A too perfect finish would make the model too plastic looking (I'm not meaning to deride plastic models).
 
If any of you have better ideas I'd be keen to hear them - this works for me.
 
Cheers
Alistair

Thanks so much Hamilton.
 
I've now completed the framing of the forecastle deck. This is a total departure from the kit construction which calls for only the beams to be installed. I went with beams, carlings, ledges and knees. All of the parts were made from boxwood, except the lodging knees which were cut from a sheet of cherry of the appropriate thickness, which I happened to have on hand (I had no boxwood sheet of that size). 
 
Owing to the small size of the parts and the cuts needed to be made, I decided to build up the deck framing in sections off the model and then install the completed sections and connect them in place on the model. This was a method that I had tried successfully on my Triton cross-section and I am pleased with the results here, as well. I'm hoping that similar results can be obtained on the larger sections of deck framing for the quarter deck and midship areas. Wipe-on Poly was used to finish the framing.
 
Prior to installing the deck framing, I mounted the stove on its previously mounted base.
 
I still haven't decided how much deck planking will be used, although i'm sure that it will not totally cover the framing. Right now , I'm thinking of using very little planking, at least in this area. I can defer that choice until the rest of the gun deck fittings are done and the remaining upper deck framing is in place. The remainder of the gun carriages have arrived from the Lumberyard and I'm now working on the next batch of guns to be installed.
 
The last photo is a current full profile shot , since Nigel has pointed out that I haven't posted one in quite a while.
 
Bob

Thanks for the kind words.
 
Maury, I had to make the door a bit longer, but now you're mentioning it, I probably better put the extension above the door. It does look a bit strange now. I fear taking the door out will damage the pantry, let me think about that.
 
Fleas Druxey? I thought I was a step ahead of you by adding the palliasses and now your starting about fleas. Boy where does this end.....
 
Work moved to the outside of the hull. The knee of the head (made 1,5 years back) is now permanently fitted as I had to add the iron plates to the bottom of the hull.
 

 
I glued them temporarily in place to draw the outlines and then used a chisel to remove the wood so it fits flush to the hull. I'll remove them to prevent any damage to the plates.
 

 

 

 
This concludes TFFM Vol 1, a bit of a milestone, this took me 4,5 years to complete and still two volumes to go......... I hope everybody is patient enough to bear with me till the end (and throwing challenges at me will make the journey longer..)
 
Remco
 
 
 
 

Congratulations on finishing your AVS.  You did an excellent job and your AVS will be an inspiration for future AVS builders.

Sam,
I sense your frustration in all this and I feel for you. That being said, I still think this is a great kit of a great ship. As is, and as Bob is handsomely demonstrating, it will build into a spectacular model. And like Bob is doing, I intend to make some modifications to the kit anyway. I'll be happy whether I get the modified parts from ME or not. I'll make it all work regardless. Same with the masting and rigging, I'll rig and mast it if I get a masting or rigging kit or not. I hope you're proud of this kit-- you should be. I still think it is a well thought out and well designed kit, and will build into a splendid model.
Bill M.

Complete! The armed privateer "Emma" is ready the become the scourge of English merchant shipping.
2 1/2 years to complete, who knows how many hours?
Below are a couple quick shots, I plan to setup a better photo shoot when able, right now the next couple weeks are really busy with moving to a new house, so I finished her just in time.
 
Ken

Last Update:  
 
I have made an executive decision and am nixing the rigging this build with option to at a later date.  This month marks the beginning of my fourth year on this build and I just need to start something new.  I have added stubs for the masts and bow (not glued in).
 
Since my previous update, I have added the stunsail booms to the channels, repainted and mounted the figurehead, bumpkins and safety rails, assembled and mounted the three stern lanterns.
The figurehead I have deviated from the plan suggested colors and tried to duplicate the colors of an actual Bellerophon figurehead from a web site that shows the head.
The stern lanterns needed an addition modification.  The cast cap was too small to cover the five sides therefore I added 1/32" piece of wood and trimmed.  The bottom cast piece was ok.  I also cut clear plastic windows on each side. 
There's a few additional details I wanted to add, but not at this time.
It's been a long mostly enjoyable ride and not sure I could ever attempt such a long build again.
Thanks for all those who looked in and will in the future.  Hopefully, something useful was picked up positive or negative on how to.  Will probably post additional pix in the gallery.
 
Mark this project as complete.
 
Take care and happy modeling,
Len

Added a bed and a closet for one of the cabins. The palliasse, a straw filled matras, was made from sculpey. I found a picture on the internet and made one like it.
 

 

 

 

 
The pantry was made using the same technique as the sail room
 

 
Remco

Before I could start gluing the floor boards in place, I removed small amounts of paint where the glue would be applied.  A very handy tool for this purpose is a ground down Exacto chisel blade.  I use this tool for a lot of applications.  Remember to wear eye protection if you decide to make one of these.

Prior to gluing the first board in place, I drew a light line with a compass along each side of the board.  These two lines are where my simulated nail heads will be located.

I used black paint brush bristles to simulate the nails.  Although not perfectly round, they are so small it's hard to tell the difference.

The bristles are easily trimmed and sanded flush with the surface of the floor board, which produces a nice effect.
 
BobF