Keith_W

Amfibius - the wood supplied in the kit is mostly all very light basswood sheet and strips. I don't think you would like it if you left it unstained. I have used a Pre-Stain for most of the stained pieces I have done on this build, which I think helps a great deal with consistency of the finish. There were a couple of pieces that just would not take stain well, like the dowels for the masts and spars, so for these I used a very diluted acrylic paint, which matches the other stained pieces pretty well.

Lovely new machine, that's on my wish list too!
 
Frank it's a Proxxon MF70. Specs list is here: http://www.proxxon.com/en/micromot/27110.php

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

Oh well. Looks like this build is getting no love. For those who care (all 3 of you) ... the ship has been completed.
 

 
Rigging of main spar including seizing.
 

 
Progress to date.
 

 
Oars completed. They are all of different sizes, so I painted stripes representing I - VII on them.
 

 
Attaching the rope to the sail.
 

 
... and then the sail to the yard.
 

 
The sail complete, it was soaked in a 40% solution of white glue then left to dry on a jig to give a windblown appearance.
 



 
Rigging of mainmast complete.
 


 
Almost near the finish line!
 

 
Rigging complete, last step is to glue the shields on.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

All finished. Some shots in my home studio.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
In front of a Viking cross-stitch given to me by my friend's wife more than 10 years ago.
 

 
With my other ship - the HMS Bounty. The scale of both ships is roughly comparable. The Bounty is 1:48, the Viking ship is 1:50.

Oh well. Looks like this build is getting no love. For those who care (all 3 of you) ... the ship has been completed.
 

 
Rigging of main spar including seizing.
 

 
Progress to date.
 

 
Oars completed. They are all of different sizes, so I painted stripes representing I - VII on them.
 

 
Attaching the rope to the sail.
 

 
... and then the sail to the yard.
 

 
The sail complete, it was soaked in a 40% solution of white glue then left to dry on a jig to give a windblown appearance.
 



 
Rigging of mainmast complete.
 


 
Almost near the finish line!
 

 
Rigging complete, last step is to glue the shields on.

Hull completed, started on the sails. First, cut the sails to size then cut ribbons from spare sailcloth.
 

 
Glue the ribbons to the sailcloth in a criss-cross pattern. I could have simply ignored the weaving (since it is not apparent when the sail is painted), but I wanted to ensure that the ribbons would not come off when I soak the sail again later.
 

 
Red stripes painted on the sail.
 

 
Painting completed. In retrospect I should have chosen an odd number of stripes rather than an even number. It would have made the sail look more balanced. Nothing I can do about that now. Still, it looks great (in my humble opinion!).

After mountain the sails to the yard, soak the sail in a solution of white glue (30% glue, 70% water). Then hang the sail on a jig to dry. When dried, the sail will be stiff and take on the shape that you want. If you do not like the shape, simply soak and hang it again.
 

I have become somewhat of an expert on this topic as my early efforts had real splotching issues. There are many great suggestions form the experts on our blog that I have tried. Here are the techniques I employ for preventing/correcting the issue:
 
Pre-staining/sealing definitely works. I have found that if you get a little white glue on the prestained/ sealed  plank it will peel off. Not so for CA but you can readilly remove using techniques described below
 
If you get white glue (PVA) on an unsealed plank apply IPOH (isopropol alcohol) on the splash as soon as possible with a Q tip (rub vigoorously). Use copious amount and follow up with a brisk rub with soft cloth before the spot dries. After the spot dries, sand. 
 
CA can be removed with nail polish remover (acetone). Use the q-tip method.
 
If a spot persists with either glue then scrape with a 22 blade (carefully!), retreat with appropriate solvent and resand.
 
 I also inspect the hull thoroughly before applying stain/ sealer to raw installed planking for spots that need treament. They generally show up as glossy spots on the unsealed wood. In fact, with a litte practice you can recognize CA spots versus PVA
 
 By using these techniques as well as immediately wiping any excess glue immediately it occurs, I have been able to greatly reduce glue splotches that have to be "post treated)
 
To summarize:
Use prestaining pre sealing as much as possible
Be neat when you glue.
If you do have a spot of excess glue, wipe away as soon as possible and apply appropriate solvent to the affected area using a q-tip to rub down spot, let dry and sand
Examine installed unstained/sealed wood (hull, deck, etc) before you apply finish and treat any glue spots. Lightly sand after treament
 
For persistent splotches use a 22 blade and scrape, reapply solvent let dry and sand
Best
Jaxboat

A boring shot of the frames going on the keel. Note that this is the actual keel - there is no false keel in this model. I quickly realized that the ugly laminated wood is going to be on full display! 
 

 
I made a simple scribing tool by shaping a blade and attaching it to a jig. As you can see, scratching the wood removes the top layer and exposes the laminate underneath. I only realized that this was a mistake after I scribed one plank. I gritted my teeth and decided to do all of them. I can think of a way to hide it later. 
 

 

 
Planking continues. The planks fit the frame like magic with no struggle at all. I was worried about my first clinker boat, but if you do what the manual suggests you will have no problem.
 
Once again, note the laminated appearance of the keel. 
 

 
Shaping the planks at the stern to follow a smooth curve. Note that sanding the planks also reveals the darker coloured laminate underneath.
 

 
Thanks to the pre-cut planks, getting to this stage took me no time at all. Within the space of a weekend, I was able to complete the planking up to this point. 

Hi my name is Keith, and I thought I should make a post to prove that I actually build ship models rather than just lurk! This is my fourth ship model. The first two were abandoned due to catastrophic failures, the third (Artesania HMS Bounty) was completed, and this is my fourth. Four models over the space of 20 years and my amateurish skills hardly qualify me as being even worthy to browse this site, let alone post. I am in fact about 75% through the build - I now know that this model is not going to be a failure, so I can avoid the shame of starting a build log and not finishing it. This is why I am posting! 
 
I made this thread for two reasons - first, to help others who may be contemplating building a Viking ship. Second, to solicit feedback on the mistakes I have made along with suggestions for improvement. 
 
This boat is intended to be a gift for my friend. He is half Swedish, looks like a giant Viking, and makes jokes about his heritage. I did some research as to which kit to buy. I am aware of three. Artesania Latina was quickly ruled out because it is too basic and does not look authentic. That narrowed it down to either Billings or Amati. The Billings model is of the Oseberg ship, which is sitting in a museum. From what I can see, it looks like a pretty accurate model with some very nice details. However, I do not like Billings' excessive use of plastic. The kit that I inspected had plastic parts which were not moulded properly, so it did not leave a good impression. I therefore took a punt and ordered the Amati kit from the local hobby shop (Float A Boat). 
 
To my knowledge, this kit is based on a fictional ship with no original in existence. This doesn't bother me, but it may bother you. 
 
Anyway, on with the boat. First, some unboxing photos. 
 

 
The box in my pristine (for now) modelling area. 
 

 
Box contents (L-R): planks, planks, frame, deck furniture, deck, instructions. All laser cut. Only after I started working on the model did I realize that the quality of wood supplied was rather poor. I am not sure what wood was supplied, it is some kind of laminate. Box wood, perhaps? I have more detailed photos later. 
 
The manual was surprisingly good. I am used to the poor efforts of Artesania Latina. By comparison, this manual (in Italian, with a separate sheet in English) was clear, well labelled, and well translated. 
 

 
Accessories. Everything present and accounted for - let's get started! 

Arguing that you should leave off the sails because it might hide your rigging is the same as arguing that you should leave off the top deck because of all the effort you put into detailing the second deck. If you like the look of sails, then go for it. I personally like sails ... IMO the ship looks incomplete without it. No car modeller would make a model of a car without tyres. I don't know why ship modellers keep making models of ships without sails. 

Your fine work really blurs the line between "model" and "the real thing". Please keep up the updates. I read each one and dream that one day I might be as fine a craftsman as you.

Arguing that you should leave off the sails because it might hide your rigging is the same as arguing that you should leave off the top deck because of all the effort you put into detailing the second deck. If you like the look of sails, then go for it. I personally like sails ... IMO the ship looks incomplete without it. No car modeller would make a model of a car without tyres. I don't know why ship modellers keep making models of ships without sails. 

The cross-hatch pattern is easy to do:
 

 

 

 
The finish is done with varnish for cars. Before I have done a undercoating with Acrüpox in 3 steps, painting and sanding (3 times). The last time sanding was wet with a corn of 1000.
 
Nico
 
 

Put a tiny amount of white glue in the mix (I used 1:10), then hang your sails off the spars. Turn the spars with a little jig so that the sail sags. When the glue dries, the sails will stiffen and look as if they are billowing in the wind.
 
This was the first method I tried - using a fan to make the sails billow:
 
.
 
It wasn't as effective as using gravity. Here is my HMS Bounty with the rigging partially completed. Note the sails look as if they are billowing:
 

Hello Jinyang
Great work.
When you have finished modeling, it would be great to make a movie like I did almost 10 years ago.

Congratulations.
Bernard

Not offended at all, most people here try to improve on the kit in some way. Enjoying your build so far, please keep posting!