Ryland Craze

Either canopy glue or medium CA, depending on how much stress will be applied to the finished part.
 
I haven't been picky about the brand, as long as it's matte clear acrylic.
 
Cheers!

More rigging has been done now. I wanted to make all the inner rigging done first before doing the shrouds as I thought that it will be easier that way. Its starting too look like something which Im happy about even though the small imperfections. 
 
Next up I believe is the shrouds which will be challenging I think but hopefully it goes well. 
 
 
 

I'm building a Midwest Model and it has something in the section about paints and what kinds to get that quaintly said something like "talk with your local hobby shop for options". Oh, how I'd love to be able to do that.
 
Nashville is a pretty large metropolitan area and outside of Hobby Lobby, Michaels, and (the closing) Jo-Annes, I don't know what hobby shops we even have. I've never found one. I think there is one large local toy store that has a middling collection of plastic models and some model trains. Maybe a few small wooden models. I bet there were more hobby shops around town years ago. There were probably stamp collecting shops too. I remember as a kid in the 1970s and there were probably 3-4 stamp shops I'd go to with my dad in Buffalo. I imagine those have been closed for decades. 
 
My wife is a quilter and when we moved here there were several quilt shops around town. Now there are one or two. We actually make trips to Paducah, KY and (in a few weeks) to Hamilton, MO because those are famous "quilt towns" with several shops. When in NYC, I think my wife found the only quilt store in Manhattan, and it was on the 10th floor of an old office building in midtown.
 
Years ago, my in-laws opened a hobby shop in my home town. They owned the building and my mother-in-law was the only employee. We tried talking them out of it, unsuccessfully. They owned a small business doing roofing and siding, so they thought they could just open up a store when my father-in-law could not do the physical work anymore. We tried to get them to add an online store and pointed them to resources that would make that easy but they were convinced that they could make it work. After a significant outlay of funds to buy merchandise, much of which they never sold, they closed the store after a couple of years, had to sell their house to pay off the loans, and had to live in the back rooms of the store. Their store had a good bit of traffic when the store first opened. It quickly trickled down to a handful each day. It was small, not in a place that attracted walk-in customers, and they made the mistake of having merchandise that could easily be purchased online and at big box retailers. 
 
I really try to buy local when I can. But when I'm buying hobby stuff, I know what model I want, I know what tools I need, I know what paints I need. I'm not going to just buy a model that the local store has in stock to support a local business if it's not the one I want. I'm going to order the paint I want, not just take what's in stock locally. I'm going to order online and get what I want when I want it. And I'll get it in a few days usually. There's usually no rush. When I was a kid, I'd go to hobby shops that had a huge variety of models but that was my only option. 
 
I love the thought of having a local hobby shop. If you have some unique items and you're in the right place it could work. Just sharing my thoughts. I would not be surprised if model companies agree to only have one or two distributors in a fairly wide geographical region. agesofsail.com sells Vanguard kits. I don't know of another company in the US that sells Vanguard kits. Maker spaces are kind of popular, but that's a different space from a hobby shop.
 
On the hobby wood working side, I visited a Lee Valley store in Niagara Falls, Ontario a while back while visiting family. It was nice to be able to browse and see things in person, though I probably would still have just bought stuff online. I think because they do so much online business, the brick-and-mortar (at least this one) seemed more of a maker space with classes you could take and machines you could use - they had a big glassed off area in the back for those spaces. I think the idea was to get people interested and skilled in the hobby and then you have a captive audience for selling them (expensive) tools. 

The Crosstrees & Trestletrees
 
The Crosstrees (CT’s) and Trestletrees (TT’s) hold the Tops to the masts.  These pieces must fit the rectangular opening of the top and also are centered and fit the square top section of the lower masts!  The trestletrees are heavier and run fore and aft, sitting on top of the mast cheeks.  The crosstrees are a bit smaller and run side to side.  Making the notches and getting it all square is the hard part!
 
1.       The practicum says to cut all the pieces from 3/32” x 1/16” stripwood.  Jon Gerson, whose build log I’ve been following, says this is not correct.  The trestletrees should be made from 3/32” x 1/8” stock.  And the crosstrees are 3/32” x 1/16”. 
2.       The practicum says to make the TT’s 1-1/8” long and the CT’s 1-1/2” long.  But in reality, the TT’s are as long as your tops and the CT’s are as wide.  Since they are essentially custom made, I did them one at a time.  I started with the fore mast and cut out the 4 pieces according to my measurements.
3.       I started with the TT’s.  Notches are to be made so that the inside edges of the notch match the inside edges of the opening fore & aft in the mast top.  The notches are 1/16” wide and 1/32” deep.  Make an angle on the end that is 1/16” in from each end.
4.       The Crosstrees also need to be notched so they match up with the notches in the TT”s.  They are closer together.  They need to encase the mast and hold everything together.  They have a different cut on the bottom.  Measure 3/8” in from the end and make a mark.  Shave an angle from that mark outwards so that the crosstree is 1/32” thick at the end.
 
Foremast Trestletrees & Crosstrees dry-fitted and 4 pieces of stripwood cut out for the main mast

Test fit the assembly on the foremast

 
At this point I’m supposed to make the Chocks.  Two per each assembly.  They sit in a notch between the trestletrees just like the crosstrees are fitted.  One goes between the square section of the mast and the aft part of the rectangular opening.  The other one goes in front of the lower mast but behind the hole for the topmast.  I realized that I needed to make the Topmast now so I could use the heel to measure where to place the first chock.  So, I’m going to show making the Topmasts next.  I will continue with steps for the Chocks & Bolsters afterward.
 
The Fore & Main Topmasts
1.       The practicum says to use 3/16” dowels for the Topmasts.  The MS parts list says to use a 5/32” dowel for the Fore & Main Topmasts.  Since the 9” piece of 3/16” supplied in the kit was already used for the Mizzen mast, I went with the 5/32” dowel.  The Fore Topmast is 5-3/4” long. The Main Topmast is 6-1/4” long.  The Mizzen Topmast is 1/8” x 4-9/16” long.  I cut them an extra 1 inch for a new technique (at least for me) that I wanted to try.
2.       The top is square, like the lower masts.  Mark the top of the dowel with a square to create a 3/32” square.  Measure down 11/16” and make a mark.  I locked the dowel in the vise and used the mini block plane and a sanding block to make the square top. 
 
Dowel secured in the vise and the indispensable mini plane 

3/32” squared off section at the top of the Topmast

 
3.       From the bottom of the square to the 9/32” long X 3/32” square mast heel the topmast needs to be tapered to 1/8” round.  I had a difficult time hand sanding the tapers on the lower masts.  This time I decided to try using a method I’ve read about in other build logs.  I taped off the top and bottom of the dowel that needs to be square.  Inserted end with the extra 1” into my power drill.  I squeezed sandpaper around the dowel and ran the paper up and down with the drill spinning the wood.  This worked very well for me.  I kept checking the diameter until I had an even 1/8” topmast!
 
Here is the dowel in the drill

A little hard to see, but here is the mast after tapering

 
4.       I used another new technique to hold the square top end of the mast in the vise with some flat blocks of wood on the squared off sides.  I sanded the heel end down to a 3/32” square.  This is the best way I could think of to make sure the squares on both ends of the mast were lined up.  This worked well for me too!
 
View of the set-up in the vise.  A 3/32” square laid on the bottom keeps the sides parallel when the mast is held above.  Pic #2 with the mast locked in place

Pic with first two sides flattened with the sanding block in the background

 
5.       The bottom heel of the mast needs to fit into the mast top, between the TT’s, forward of the lower mast.  The sides have to be built up to fit this space.  I glued pieces of 1/32” stripwood to the bottom square.  It was sanded down to smooth off the edges.

 
6.       At the top end, the square needed to be sanded into an octagon shape.  I used the MS plans for this area.
 
The space between the topmast and lower mast up to the mast cap needs to be parallel.  Now that I have the topmast, I was able to take a measurement for the chock behind the heel.  The heels of the topmasts are fit tightly into the trestletrees. 

 
Chocks – are taken from 1/32” x 3/32” stripwood and cut in the shape of a “T” with a fat stem using an Exacto knife.  There are two per top.  Cut a notch for this chock in the trestletrees using the topmast heel as a guide.  Keep a snug fit for the bottom of the topmast.

 
Another Chock is glued into notches for the lower mast.  All four sides of the mast are locked against the trestle trees and these cross pieces.

The TT assemblies can now be glued to their tops

Dry fit for the fore & main masts and tops

 
Bolsters – are made from 1/16” square stripwood.  The outside top edge of the bolster is sanded with a quarter circle to allow lines to drape over them without damaging them.  They sit on top of the trestletrees and tight against the lower mast. 

 
I still have some work to do.  Like, pre-drill holes for eyebolts, deadeyes and the stanchions for the netting on the tops.  Also, the mast caps, which seem like they will be a little tricky to install.  Then I plan to paint from the Cheeks to the Mast Caps black.  I will complete this same area on the Mizzen mast with the Topgallant masts.  The topgallant is the only upper mast for the mizzen.
 
Happy Easter!
Ed

On-line is the only way to make a go at it because the market is so specific and margins small.  Ask any of the number of folk here on MSW who are running hobby specific businesses.  The overhead and supply chain costs to maintain a storefront is no longer affordable, hence why the decline of the traditional hobby shop.  Starting small, like with ETSY as was suggested, or with Facebook Market is a start.  

You could consider starting an ETSY shop online.  The overhead costs are minimal if it is home-based, and ETSY collects applicable sales taxes and handles the money side of the transactions ... although there are fees for that.  It took my Admiral a couple years to gain a reputation for her historic costume products, but she's done OK as a 'cottage industry'.

When looking for tools keep in mind that model shops often have the bad habit of selling cheap stuff at elevated prices to unsuspecting fellow modellers. Most fine tools are not made for us, but are adopted from various trades, such as watchmaking, surgery, dental care, luthiers etc. In the age of Internet, global trade (my sympathy to our US American colleagues) and supply chains, there is no reason not to look for the real source of such tools. Just do a search when you discover a tool and the search engines or auction platforms usually propose a wide selection.
 
It is also a good idea to browse the (on-line) catalogues of the above mentioned trades to get an idea for what tools are available and what their price range may be (attention: medical stuff may be expensive, but often you can find 'seconds' on the Internet at lower prices that are good enough for our uses). 
 
 
I not normally use a pin-vise for drilling, there are tiny single- or double-action Archimedean drills for watchmakers that do a better job and clamp down to 0.1 mm, if you get a good one.
 
I gather there are four types of pin-vises on the market: the all-steel toolmaker ones with knurled bodies, the slender watchmaker ones with steel jaws, but often a fluted brass body, the watchmaker ones with exchangeable collets (not sure what the point is, it is better to have a set of pin-vises handy), and the biological ones that are steel, but have a fluted ebenony handle. In addition, you get the cheap modeller ones with brass jaws and/or eloxated aluminium bodies.
 
The larger toolmaker ones (e.g. Starret or Eclipse) are bored 2.5 mm, so can hold the common burrs and other tools with the same 2.4 mm shaft diameter, such as triangular scrapers etc., which could be useful for deburring and other tasks. Not sure whether there are pin-vises bored for 1/8" for the Dremel bits.
 
I posted the picture below before, but it can give you an idea of what is on the new and second-hand market:

 1 - Archimedes drill for watchmakers.
 2 - Slender modern pin-vice with hollow fluted brass body.
 3 - Slender antique pin-vice with hollow fluted brass body.
 4 - Shop-made pin-vice with walnut body and head made from an insert drill-chuck; these drill-chucks are unfit for their intended purpose as they usually do not run true.
 5 - Eclipse toolmaker's pin-vice with knurled steel body; these come in different sizes.
 6 - French-style pin-vice; these are closed with the sliding ring and have usually brass inserts in the two jaws that can be adapted to special needs;
 7 - Dito, here the jaws are replaced in hardwood for delicate parts.
 8 - Antique laboratory pin-vice with fluted wooden handle.
 9 - Modern pin-vice with fluted wooden handle; these come in different sizes and capacities.
10 - Antique toolmaker's pin-vice for very delicate work in confined spaces.
 

Just my experience but I have tried different types of pin vices and found some to be lacking for my needs.  The clamping action in many is just so poor that it makes the whole job so much harder.  I settled on the Starrett and they have now given me years of trouble free work so I would recommend these.
 
As for the bits I only buy cobalt bits now - they are strong and stay sharp for ages.  They will also plow through brass and stainless steel without any problems.

Well, about 30min after finishing my Pram, I've decided my next build: The Vanguard Models Ranger - Barking Fish Carrier - one of several fishing boats Vanguard offers.
 
Months back, I thought my next model would be the Vanguard Duchess of Kingston that I bought, which I originally intended to be my second model after the Sherbourne. But then I realized that I wanted to get more experience with some smaller boats before tackling a larger and more expensive model ship like the Duchess. My first step was getting the Model Shipways Shipwright Series, having completed the Dory and Pram, with the Smack nearly complete. I also snuck in the NRG Half Hull after realizing I also needed some more planking practice.
 
Then I discovered some builds of the Vanguard fishing boats. Seeing a nice Black Friday sale at agesofsail.com back in November I decided to buy the Ranger, Zulu, and Erycina. The Ranger and Zulu are Level I Novice builds, the Erycina is a Level II Amateur build. Someone who built all six models noted that the Ranger, Zulu, and Erycina are larger models, with the Saucy Jack, Nisha, and Fifie their somewhat smaller cousins.
 
There are only a handful of build logs for the Ranger.

Engraved deck is in place. 

Richard, I am a little confused - do you have a Byrnes Table saw or not?
That is my first question as the machines aren't available anymore for the moment.
The Byrnes table saw is powerful enough for crosscut using a sliding table. But for thin cuts you have other options.
In your situation there is Shortline Chopper II
I have the original one based on the paper-wood board. I would recommend the new chopper or other electric cutters that are available,

Hello - further progress. All bits and pieces that are for the deck installed along with the Bulwark Capping Rails.
The winch / cleats / hatches / tiller / stove pipe etc
 


A close up of the Winch

Overall view

 
Thank you for looking
 
Regards
 
Doug

Are you thinking about starting a brick-and-mortar business or internet/mail order? Hobby shops in general have had a tough go of things in recent years, and ship building is a pretty niche hobby (I can't speak to the popularity of 'hobby woodworking in general').

The final product is outstanding! 

I am working on a 1/96 scale plastic kit which will transition to wood ship model techniques from the deck up, excluding the masts and bowsprit parts which will remain plastic. These will be painted in a technique that does a decent job of simulating wood grain. A lot of replacing parts with with poor detail or just not there at all. The rudder was cut off and completely replaced. I have used many Bluejacket fittings in this process. I will be purchasing the blocks, deadeyes based on this kit with some modifications.
 
I do have a question on the standing rigging. I see that some forestays are tied off and seized on the fife rail, instead tying to hearts with lanyards. The instruction sheet for build shows more of this fiferail alternative . From anngineering stand point the forces from the loads on thr mast should directed by the shortest route possible and tyed directly into the structural framing of the hull. This would ideally include a means of adjustment to deal with rope stretch. Is this idea in correct?
 
I am slow/y creating build logs for my current projects. These include the Schooner Yacht America, the schooner Atlantic and the Sea Witch at this
 
KimW
 
 
 

A beautiful build of Cheerful, well done Erik.👏
 
B.E.

A quick update.  Yesterday I received the brass name plates I had custom made for me.  They're not permanently fixed to the base yet.  The small one gives a shout out to my dad who got me into modeling as a kid, and always has been my biggest cheerleader when I showed him what I was building.  The name plates are a little hard to see in the photos with the Cheerful mounted.  The photos are taken in front of a window, so are backlit.  The ship will be displayed on the opposite wall, so the base won't be shaded, and the plates will be easy to read.  My next steps now are to get the shelf and mounting hardware, and get that built.
 
Erik
 

Well, I worked all day today, continuing Surprise stuff.
 
This morning, I decided to make the templates for the fore and quarterdeck bulwarks, which are to be pre-cut. So first, the upper deck and beams were to be removed. My initial idea was to do the same I did for Indy, with most of the outer sides planked. 
 
However, I could not get the thought out of my mind just how nice the sides would look if they were pre-cut and engraved, with treenail detail - that would look great when painted ochre (or just varnished). So, with this in mind, I made a template for the whole of the hull side down to the top of the main wale line (or in Surprise's case, where the planks get thicker).
 
The pics show the end result of a day’s work, with many templates laser cut in white PolyBak, with each successive template (and there were many) tweaked a little more until, eventually, the final template is cut in the material that will be used in the kit, pear, shown in the pics. There was no warping to the undersides near the bow, and curved around very nicely on my disposable 'mule hull'
 
The downside to this, and the reason I initially dismissed doing this, is cost (0.8mm pear sheet needing to be 800mm long and 4 required just for the outer hull) and time. It will increase the overall cost to the kit. But it does mean planking, like on the smaller kits in the range, is relegated to the bottom half of the hull only, with all upper sides being completely pre-cut and laser engraved. It also means I can work slots into the bulwark sides for the fore, main and mizzen channels, these worked very well for the new Speedy and Harpy.
 
I hope I have made the right choice..
 
Oh, for the rudder fixing, I am doing the same as I did for Indy, with 3-d printed gudgeon and pintles that simply slot into the rudder and rudder post, I do very much like this method as it is both simple and looks accurate.
 

Check out,  "Law of asumption Neville Goddard" on youtube. You can over come this... no matter what the doctors say.

Thank you all for your encouragement!!
I have been wooden ship modeling for over 40 years. I had many plans for retirement.  We live in a dynamic world. We have to make the most of the hand we are dealt. Thank you, fellow modelers, for enriching my life through the sharing of your work and your knowledge. 
You all are a special type of human possessing great skills and applying them artistically.
Take care and I will continue to be lurking on this forum. 
Sincerely,
Bryan Sieber (Sonofagun)

With my failing eyesight, I have seriously wondered recently if this hobby was getting beyond me. I had recently given up on my Erycina build due to the very small parts. While deciding whether to quit or buy a larger scale kit, one day I just went back to it. Purchased some magnifiers, and just slowed the hell down. Things I used to do in 5 minutes would take 30. But, when finished with whatever it was, I feel pretty damn good. 
 
Not sure if this applies to your situation, but give it some thought.
 
Sorry to hear what's going on with you.....hang in there.

I am trying, in this build log, to provide a practical dinghy-sailor's perspective, to help those future builders of the pram who do not have direct experience of such boats. As my last post included all of the belaying of the pram's (very limited) running rigging, maybe this is a good time for me to add something about belaying lines to either (horned) cleats or pins. As with anything else, there are right and wrong ways to do it, hence right and wrong ways to show a belay in a model.
 
There are other things that lines can be belayed to, such as timber heads or bitts, so the overall topic is large, but keeping things (relatively) simple, there are three "rules" for a belay to a pin or cleat. The first is absolute and should never be broken. It is that the line, on being brought to a pin, should pass cleanly to and around its top or bottom and never across the middle:

That's not some fetish. Done right, quite a light grip on the line (the short end in that diagram) will hold a considerable load (at least with high-friction hemp or manilla, maybe not with slippery, modern Dyneema or Spectra), yet a gentle easing will veer some line if you have pulled too far, while you can readily catch and then hold some slack, if your shipmate is sweating up the line.
 
Rule 2, to be followed any time that it won't force a violation of the Rule 1, is that the first pass of the line behind the top of the pin should be from left to right:

OK, that is partly just a fetish but the idea is that, on a dark night, someone releasing the line gets a bit of a tactile warning that it is close to coming free, hence to be ready to take whatever load is on the line.
 
Rule 3, to be followed when possible without violating Rules 1 & 2, is that the first turn around the pin should be a round turn, with no crosses (as shown above). If the rigger who set up the boat (or ship) did their job properly, all three rules should be followed, and should fall into place easily, in most cases. However, that cannot always be done, whatever the skill and care of the rigger. The clew outhaul on my pram, as I have it rigged, cannot be belayed according to Rule 3 if Rules 1 & 2 are obeyed. It could have been if the sailor was left-handed and the cleat on the port side of the boom. A right-handed sailor, pulling the clew towards the end of the boom, will naturally want the cleat on the starboard side. It has to be on the boom, of course, hence necessarily below the level of the clew -- and that orientation prevents all three rules being followed simultaneously. There is no such compulsion with the halliard or tack downhaul, which can be belayed following all three rules.
 
Next, after getting to the point shown above, the line should be taken diagonally across the pin:

then behind the pin and diagonally the other way:

and repeat so that there are two diagonal passes in each direction. And that's it. No need to build on layer after layer of turns around the pin -- unless you're working with Dyneema (or, in a model, the lousy, slippery cordage that Model Shipways provide!). Though, if the tail of line is long enough to trail on the deck but not long enough to coil, you could take an extra couple of turns to use up the length neatly. 
 
The end result looks something like:

Note that bringing lines down from the masthead to pins both port and starboard means that Rule 3 has to be ignored on the starboard side. Ditto for the tack downhaul, with its cleat displaced to the starboard side of the mast (and note also that that is placed at a slight angle, to make fulfilling Rules 1 & 2 more natural for the sailor's fingers).
 
If you are working with the sizes of rope usually found on a sailing ship, even those on my 22 footer, there is literally nothing more to be done (aside from coiling -- which is a whole other topic). In a small boat like our pram, however, you can't rely on gravity to hold the loose end of the line in place. Besides, you may get a lot of water on board and that can wash a line off its cleat. So it can be a good idea to create a locking turn by passing the end of the line under the last diagonal turn -- as with the gantline on the pin next to the mast on its port side in that photo. (That has both ends of the gantline on the same pin, hence the double appearance.) At full-size, there's no need to tuck the long end of a halliard, say, under the diagonal. Rather, the last pass around the top of the pin is given a twist and dropped over the pin, leaving the locking turn.
 
And that's all there is to it ... aside from working with forceps to pass miniature lines around model belaying pins, then repeating the process a hundred times for those who aspire to build full-rigged clippers 😀
 
 
Trevor

Thank you for the "wow", King Derelict! Not sure that is deserved but it's welcome all the same!
 
 
Today: Setting the sail:
 
There was one point in the kit instructions' suggestions for the mast that I had skipped over: There is to be some "copper" applied where the boom jaws bear against the mast. I hadn't forgotten that but other build logs have reported trouble when the "copper" was applied while building the mast and the boom later rested higher or lower. So I wanted the boom in place first.
 
The instructions suggest representing the "copper" with painted paper. I know that some model builders have used real copper, beaten thin then glued on. I opted for the simpler alternative of using a tiny piece of adhesive-backed copper tape. In the end, it hardly matters as the piece can barely be seen around the mast jaws.
 
With that done, I could set the sail properly. The instructions talk about belaying the tack downhaul first, then the halliard. That's a bit of a reversal, as the halliard has much more scope for adjustment,  so you need to fix that first, thus setting the height of the sail up the mast, then do the tack downhaul. (At full size, hauling on the halliard is a fight against gravity and friction, so best not done when also fighting tension in the rig. In contrast, it is easy to throw your body weight onto the boom, get as much tension as you wish in the luff, then belay the downhaul.) There was really no difficulty with either in the model, except that even my larger mast cleats were too small for the material I had chosen for the halliard. I had to glue turns onto the cleat before adding more turns. 
 
Full-size, the downhaul needs no more length than needed to belay on the cleat, so that one can get clipped off short. The halliard has to be long enough to the drop sail and yard into the boat, of course, so there's a whole lot of extra length around. I will have the "fun" of coiling the excess later. In the meanwhile, all looks quite nice:

I fastened one end of the sheet to the "becket" on its lower block by the same CA-glue and sail-twine whipping approach (masquerading as a served splice) that I had used on the standing rigging. This time, I worked with the sheet loose in my hand and put on a common whipping (rather than a westcountry) to see whether that would be less lumpy. Then I passed the rope horse through the traveller block and put the ends through the holes in the stern quarter knees (which had to be re-drilled first), tying figure-of-eight stopper knots in the hidden ends. I made the horse much longer than I had expected to as I wanted to be sure that it would always clear the tiller. Maybe I will shorten it later. That will be easy to do, if necessary.
 
The sheet has to be long, as it must span twice from the horse to the boom end, when the boom is freed off against a shroud, with yet more length to bring its end to the hand of someone sitting amidships. All of that length had to be rove through the boom-end block, then through the one "shackled" to the horse and everything pulled gently taut:
 
 
There's tidying up still to be done (with the end of the clew outhaul, in particular) but I'm happy with how it's going. And that crazy forward rake of the mast doesn't look so crazy now, with the limited space between boom and hull.
 
 
Trevor
 
 

Boom, phase 3: Clew outhaul
 
Last night, I was troubled over that split cleat. If I made another one the same size, it would suffer the same fate. If I made a bigger one, it would be ugly and clunky. Then, first thing this morning while still three-quarters asleep, it came to me. I needed a very different kind of cleat. I needed one of these:

They are ugly too and really only fit for clotheslines and the like, though that image came from the website of a yacht chandlery, where the thing is presented as suitable for a flag halliard. Yet it is described as 5 inches long. (Mighty big flag to require a halliard that size!) So it would be well suited to the task at hand and easy to represent in miniature.
 
Drilled two holes through the boom, placed two of the kit-supplied copper nails in the holes, with a touch of low-viscosity CA. Once that had set, bent each nail over the tip of needle-nose pliers and then snipped off its point. Voila! Cleat for clew outhaul:

I had previously rigged a length of 0.5 mm hemp cord, with a figure-of-eight stopper knot, and passed it through the "eyelet" in the sail (as in the image), and I had passed a lashing to hold the tack of the sail to the forward end of the boom. (A very annoying task, with the hyper-slippery line supplied with the kit.) So all that was needed was to pull the outhaul taut and belay on the cleat. Even at 1:12, that was easy and gave me:

I'm not yet ready to belay the halliard, nor the tack downhaul, but the pram looks about ready to sail away anyway:

Maybe next time I'll carry her down to the shore and get a more maritime background 😀
 
Tiller still to be worked on, of course.
 
 
Trevor

On to the wings. The kit provides two sets of spars, one for the complete wheel wells option and the other for w/o wheel wells.
 
For parts that will only be partially visible on the finished model, like #108, I use only the visible portion of the printed part.

 
The English directions are a bit cryptic. The upper part of the wheel well doesn't fit the interior framing exactly, so I tinted the surrounding areas of the wing skin that might show around the edges of the well. Note that I have added joiner strips to the trailing edge -- these aren't included in the kit.

 
The interior framing is a little wobbly. I suggest putting as much of it together as you can before gluing. (EDIT: There's actually a rod, part #59, that fits inside the framing and will help align things as well.) The leading edge piece is the key to getting everything aligned properly. Notice that no spacers are provided around the wheel well.

 
Test fit the framing inside the folded wing until you get the wheel well positioned properly, then mark the inboard edge of the framing -- it doesn't sit flush with the wing sheathing.

 
Once you're satisfied with the location of the interior framing, you can tack it to the topside skin. Once the glue has set, you can glue down the bottom skin, but don't try to do it all at once. Do the inboard stringer and wheel well surround in one go, then zip up the trailing edge separately. After that you can add the wingtip piece and close up the wingtip.

 
That's one wing down and one to go!

Work has continued on the sanding of the insides of the aft cant frames. I did my best to smooth out the rough sanding already undertaking on the starboard frames to try to make them as fair as I can at this stage. There will be more sanding needed in the future but I didn't want to go too far with that side just now as I though it best to try to get the port side frames to the same place so that things were symmetrical. Any further sanding that is required can then be undertaken on both sides at the same time.
 
Here is where I got to with smoothing out the inner starboard aft cant frames.

The port side frames were then sanded and smoothed to match as best I can.

I am aware of the small undulations along the lengths of the frames and I will try to even these out in the near future before any final shaping to size.
 
I've also spent some time with the bollard timbers which I had roughly cut out on the scroll saw some weeks ago. These need to have a quite significant bevel sanding into the outside curve as well as a bevel on the heel. I was able to sand these to shape using the disc sander - I have left them just a tad oversized on those faces at this time for final sanding in situ later.

However, there is also a bevel required on the inside face - the line of which is taken off from the stemson. I have marked the line showing the extent of the bevel but haven't yet had chance to sand this face. The wood to the left of the line in the image below needs to be removed. To be honest, I am not sure of the best way to approach this. I have some sanding drums on the drill press but no tilt table. The bevel changes along the length of the piece and so perhaps I may need to make various angled wedges to try to orientate the bollard timber against the drum and sand it in stages starting from the smallest bevel to the largest?