BobG
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I used the glue stick method on my Medway Longboat and it worked very well. I found it easy to remove even after I had applied it also. I didn't like how the frieze looked on the stern the first time I glued it on. I didn't have it with equal symmetry around the edges so I pulled it off and cleaned the stern up with a moistened cloth. Then I printed another set off patterns and was more careful in my application of the frieze and trimming it to get it centered nicely. I did forget to spray it with fixative before I applied it and now I'm wondering if there is a way to seal it without masking it all off and spraying fixative on it...brush it somehow with fixative...??...or just leave it be?
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- winchelsea
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Thanks, Chuck, for the encouragement. I've been learning a ton building the Medway Longboat but it hasn't been without some errors on my part even though I've been trying my level best. When I look at the photos of your Winnie build, it simply looks perfect. I can't imagine it could be any better and I have a hard time imagining that I could come close to that level of craftsmanship. It just looks so beautiful that I worry that I just wouldn't do it justice or, at least, wouldn't be able to do it as well as I would like. I think I'm my own worst critic, which can serve me well in striving to get better but it can get in the way of me being satisfied also. I'm working on it though! Bob
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- winchelsea
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Unbelievably beautiful, Chuck! There is no doubt that I will have to have a go at the Winnie someday. You've set the bar so high it's a bit intimidating though! Bob
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- winchelsea
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I'm building the Medway Longboat and it's AYC. I found that I need to wear a dust mask when I'm sanding it especially when I'm sanding with very fine grit. The very fine dust gets me coughing. I think it's probably wise for us to wear a dust mask regardless of the wood we are sanding since even the dust we aren't so sensitive too can't be good deep down in our lungs. Bob
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Hahaha...too true! The bars in Kodiak could get quite rowdy quickly back in the late 60's and fights were not uncommon once some of the fishermen got juiced up. I've watched quite of lot of the Deadliest Catch just because it brings back such vivid memories. Safety onboard the Alaskan fishing vessels has improved so much since then and the safety requirements and enforcement of those requirements are immensely better than back when I was stationed aboard the Storis. Unfortunately, quite a few of our rescue operations ended up being recovery operations because of the lack of safety equipment and enforcement back then. Heck, we didn't even have dry suits or survival suits onboard the Storis then either. I'm sure that has all changed for the better now. Thanks for the welcome, Jack. Bob
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Thanks very much, welfalck and vaddoc. Vaddoc, do you apply a protective finish to everything you paint with acrylics? Bob
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While we are on the subject of acrylics I have some questions about obtaining a high gloss finish with acrylics. I prefer using only water-based paints because I hate the fumes that oil based paints give off and like the satin or flat finish that I get with acrylics but how do you go about getting a high gloss finish using acrylics? Also, since high gloss finishes expose the tiniest defects in the surface, what are the steps you take in preparing the surface to be painted for a high gloss finish? The Pen Duick by Artesania Latina and the Venetian Gondola by Amati are two models I have in my stash that will require a high gloss finish. My wife gave me a complete Grex airbrush set for Christmas but I haven't begun learning to use it. I would assume that airbrushing would be the best application method for obtaining a high gloss finish but I also think that the surface preparation will need to be free of the smallest defects and 100% smooth to be successful. I used a rattle can on my Indian Canoe model to spray gloss green but I hate the spitting globs that you can often get from rattle cans. When that happens I have to prime and sand again and then hope the rattle can doesn't spit any globs again.
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I picked up some Vallejo Retarder recently but haven't tried it yet. I'll have to test it out soon.
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The information on this thread helped me a lot with my painting on my current Medway Longboat build. I tested 4 different shades of Vallejo red and decided I liked the color of the Vallejo Model Air RLM23 paint which is formulated for airbrushes but I brushed it on and still got good results. It comes out of the bottle a lot thinner than the regular Vallejo Model Color paint but, even so, I thinned it a bit more. I must have put 20 coats on the cap rail and cockpit seats. I just kept adding coats until I was pleased with it. The challenge for me was being able to keep a wet edge so I didn't end up with noticeable lap marks since the acrylics dry so fast. The advantage of the fast drying time though was that I could add another coat after about 15-20 minutes.
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Thank you for the welcome, Bossman. I had a bit of a wild streak in me as an 18 year old. The Coast Guard provided a foundation for me to that energy into something meaningful and I grew up a lot during those 4 years. Bob
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Thank you, Patrick. I took a look at your Wasa and Golden Hind. Amazing detail and craftsmanship! I hope to be able to scratch build at some point too. Bob
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Thank you, Mark. I noticed that you are up in Medford. My wife and I go to Ashland for a week or more each year to go to the plays and explore the area. We rent a place in the hills outside of Talent while we're there and really enjoy the area. We'll up there in late April this year. We have even entertained the idea of moving up that way now that we are retired but it's hard to move away from our son and friends in northern California. Bob
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I'm afraid I'll be showing off a few of my more egregious mistakes also! Bob
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She looks beautiful, Rich! I'm just now working on the rudder and have made the mast, boom, bowsprit and gaff. I'm clueless when it comes to the rigging so I'm going to start a build log. Bob
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Would Port Orford cedar be a good choice for model ship building also? Is it readily available? Bob
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Thank you, Joe. Yes, the Vietnam Era was a tumultuous time for the country. I remember vividly hearing an announcement on the radio that the United States had begun bombing raids in North Vietnam. I had been hanging out with several friends at a local gas station and standing by our cars when the announcement was made and one of my friends said, "I guess we'll all be going to war in the jungle pretty soon." All of a sudden, life got very real for a bunch of us 18 and 19 year olds. Bob
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Hi Don, Thanks for the compliments. There's something about the simple lines of a canoe that makes them so beautiful. I nearly ruined mine though. I had carefully sanded and primed the hull several times because I wanted to get the smoothest surface I could before spraying it with the gloss green. After several coats of green it looked fantastic. It was cold in the garage so I brought it into the house to cure and, wouldn't you know it, I managed to drop it and ruin the paint job. I had to sand it down again and start over! Maybe I'll post a couple of photos of some of the didgeridoos I've made that we talked about. I guess it would be ok in this thread. Any more progress on your Medway Longboat? Bob
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Thank you, Allan. The Coast Guard has a lot to offer. It certainly launched me in the world beyond the flatlands of central Indiana. We had frigid weather in Indiana but nothing like it was in Cape May or Alaska in the winter. The Coast Guard has come a long ways since I was in it. The new ships and aircraft are so much more technologically advanced and the even the personal equipment for individuals is so much better. For example, we only had 1/4" wet suits to wear under our orange flight suits in Alaska when we were involved in a rescue from our small boats. I remember just freezing and my hands and feet going numb from the spray we would take. Now they have dry suits for situations like that and advanced training for the rescue swimmers. Best of luck to your Coastie family members! Bob
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Thanks for the welcome, Fitz. I've been reading the forum for a long time and figured it was time to participate more since I was benefiting so much from so many others. Bob
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Thank you, Duane. I love the Indian Girl Canoe as well. It's a simple kit but it wasn't without it's challenges for me. There were so many tiny planks to glue and lots of small frames to bend. I found out that I really like to use medium viscosity CA while building it. I know a lot of modelers hate CA glue and advise against using it but I've found, that if you are careful and precise, it can make things go much faster without a lot of complicated clamping. I've glued my fingers together occasionally, of course, but I have found that, if I work on a piece until it practically lays perfectly where you want it, then a little CA will works very well for me gluing the piece in position. I've been considering building one of the Midwest kayaks too. I think these small, uncomplicated models can be really lovely when they are done well. Bob
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Thank you, CDW. Several of my former Coast Guard buddies ended up stationed in Florida. I have relatives in the Tampa area and have visited there quite a few times. I'd have to own a boat if I lived in Florida! Bob
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Thank you, Scott, and thanks for the heads up about looking for plans early. The idea of building a ship from scratch kind of makes my head spin at my level of experience but it is very appealing to me. Bob
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I've been through Mariposa many times on our way to Yosemite. Lovely community.
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Thank you, Chris. I think that I read somewhere on the forum that you had ties to the Eureka or Crescent City area. My wife and I love it up there. The great redwood parks are some of the most beautiful parks in America and the rugged, northern California coast is wonderful. The Storis was a great ship and Alaska was very rustic and undeveloped back in the 60's. We would make ports-of-call in far flung places like Nome, Dutch Harbor, Adak in the Aleutians and the Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea. These isolated places were remote and ramshackle back then and had some real rough and tumble characters living there. I can tell you that there wasn't much to do in these places for a 20 year old kid back then which is why the Beach Boys songs had me longing for southern California after I left Alaska!
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