BobG

Thanks so much for your replies and the helpful information. I'm off to a bit of a slow start since summer is here now and there's lots of yard work and I'm out on my bike a lot. Your build of the Pen Duick is one of the reasons I selected to attempt this model.

Thanks very much, Justin. Your models are always exceptionally well done and I'm currently enjoying your Armed Longboat build.

Yes, I know I want to but I keep thinking about the look on my wife's face when yet another model shows up at the door!! 😳

I just watched the videos again and that's looks like so much fun. My tick list just keeps getting longer. I've got to add one of the Chris Craft RC models to the list...not only is she gorgeous but she cuts through the water like a hot knife through butter. Awesome!

Nice work, Justin. How are you simulating the nails? The moulding looks good. I made a scraper out of a razor blade like you did but couldn't get it to work well scraping the boxwood moulding my Medway Longboat. I ended up using a scraper made by Artesania Latina. It was a loose fit on the moulding strip since it was metric and the strip was imperial in size but it scraped better once I got the hang of it.

I'll be watching this beauty, Mike. Are you building it fully ready for RC?

Perfection!!

I'm looking forward to seeing the Flirt come together. Are you experiencing any problems with getting materials due to the pandemic? Is the approximate ETA still around July?

Super clean, Dave!

Thanks so much, Glenn. I decided to pass on the Cheerful for while since Chuck is currently closed and he's having problems with USPS shipping. I also want to get a Byrnes table saw but they are out of stock until more 120V motors become available. So for now I chose among one of the models I have on the shelf: the Pen Duick by Artesania Latina. The materials and instructions pale compared to Syren and Vanguard but it's a beautiful, legendary boat with stunning lines. Hopefully, Syren and Byrnes will be back up to full speed fairly soon and the Pen Duick should keep me busy until then. Pen Duick by BobG - Artesania Latina - 1:28

Thank you, Rusty, that means a lot to me coming from a modeler as skilled as you are. I probably consulted you log a hundred times studying the photos especially when I got to the rigging. It was so helpful to me. I'm watching your Winnie build too. That's yet another model I'd love to do at some point.

Thanks so much for your support during my build, Don. Like I said before, your log was pulling me along through some rough spots for me. Please do post some photos of your Calypso build. It's on my tick list also...along with too many others...I should be so lucky to live long enough to build half of them! Seriously though, maybe even do a retro build log where you just post photos that you took as you went along. I've see logs like that and, as they say, pictures are worth a thousand words. Good luck!

Thank you Moab. Your kind words are very much appreciated.

Many thanks, Ryland, and thank you for your advice and kind words of encouragement. You helped me stay motivated to finish this model. I'll be following your progress too.

Thanks so much, Jean-Paul! I'll be following your beautiful build. It's really special.

Awesome job, Robert!

Thank you, Meddo. I'm following your QAB build and she's a thing of beauty for sure!

Thanks Dave! I've been following your builds and I want to see you cross the finish line with them. You've done a really nice job on all of them.

Thanks for the kind words, Grant. I look forward to following your longboat build when you get it going again. I've been watching your Pocher build. What a beauty! Then I thought, wow...it might be a lot of fun to try something like a Pocher model...then I saw the price! Yikes...I need to be sure I've got the skills to build a model like that before I write the check!

Thank you, Joe! I've been following your Benjamin Latham build and it's wonderful. Now I might have to put that model on my tick list...as if I need another model on the shelf!

Thanks very much, Bob! You've got one heck of a nice build going yourself and I look forward to following your progress.

Thanks Jeff! I look forward to seeing your progress on your build.

I've been on a little hiatus since I completed my Medway Longboat a few weeks ago and I have been mulling over too many choices of what to build next. I have 10 models on the shelf which is way too many and, in addition to those, I was considering the Cheerful by Syren and the Lady Isabella by Vanguard. The Cheerful will have to wait since Chuck is temporarily closed and having problems with the USPS and the Byrnes table saw I was going to get is temporarily out of stock due to a shortage of 120V motors. I decided to wait on the Lady Isabella too since I would like to try my hand at weathering a working vessel like the Lady Isabella and I want to learn to use my airbrush before I dive into that kind of a build So that left me deciding on a model that I already have and two of them kept drawing my attention: the Pride of Baltimore II by Model Shipways and the Pen Duick by Artesania Latina. I had picked up the AL model of the Pen Duick last year on eBay. It was out of production and, of course, AL is no more. After looking over the 3 Pen Duick build logs here on MSW and reading more about its owner, Eric Tabarly, and his phenomenal history racing the Pen Duick, my interest in her grew and she got the nod. It will also give me a chance to learn to use my airbrush that was a Christmas gift from my wife this year. There have been a series of 6 Pen Duick ocean racing yachts. The original Pen Duick, a gaff rigged cutter, was built in Ireland in 1898. Eric Tabarly's father acquired her in 1938 when Eric was 7 years old and taught him how to sail on her. Eric went on to become one of the most legendary, long distance racing sailors in the history of the sport winning and setting records in transatlantic and transpacific races among many others. The Pen Duick eventually fell into disrepair and the hull rotted after World War II. Eric began restoring her in 1956 and completed the restoration in 1958 with a new polyester resin hull. Tragically, Eric Tabarly drowned in the Irish Sea on the night of June 12-13, 1998, when he was knocked overboard by a spar. His body was recovered by the trawler An Yvidig on July 20. Eric Tabarly in 1990: The Pen Duick: The AL model of the Pen Duick is based on the boat after she was restored in 1958. I found the materials nicely packaged and everything appears to be there although I haven't inventoried it yet. The false keel and bulkheads are nice plywood and the laser cutting is clean. There are also some mahogany laser cut parts. Planking strips of ramin and mahogany along with some African walnut dowels for the mast etc. The brass fittings are very nice and there are some white metal fittings and brass strips. The belaying pins are the typical, ugly, bulbous ones that are in so many kits. I'm sure I'll end up making new ones and I will probably replace the blocks and rope with some from Syren. The sails leave a lot to be desired and they don't match up in size with the plans. I might have to learn how to sew.... There are two, large, double sided sets of plans and they appear to be 1:1 but that is not indicated on the plans. The sails certainly do not match up with the plans either; they're too small. The instructions are in several languages including English but they are very brief. The instructional photos are a bit more help but I'll still be flying by the seat of my pants trying to figure things out. I want to try and do the deck planking with joggles as shown below. The kit simply has a straight piece of mahogany laid down the middle of the boat from the stem to the stern. The build by hof00 here on MSW was done this way and he explains how he did it. I think it will be tough to get all those joggles laid out and cut correctly and to be able to plank the deck so it's symmetrical on both sides. This will be a long shot for me but I'll give it a go and see how big of a mess I can make.... I picked up this used book on eBay hoping that it would have some nice photos in it but it's more about the various versions of the Pen Duick and their racing history. It is a very good read though. I have the feeling, for whatever reason, that this build may turn into a rather directionless adventure for me. I hope some of you will take an interest in following along and, perhaps, steer me in the right direction when you see me veering off into the abyss. So here we go...

Really good, Dave!

My Medway Longboat is finished and I finally got around to taking some final photos. I started my build back in November and it took me 6 months to complete...what can I say, I'm pretty slow. It certainly wasn't always smooth sailing for me but I managed to navigate my way through some of the rough spots and, in the end, I ended up with a model I quite proud of. It was essentially my third model and it was by far the the most complex of the three. I had never done any rigging before and was really apprehensive about that part. Curiously, it ended up being one of the most satisfying steps of the whole build for me. It was as if the model really came to life with the rigging since it gave the boat so much more interesting detail. We've found a nice place for her to be displayed on top of a small bookcase next to my modeling desk. I find myself looking at it quite often and can barely believe that I actually made it. A great sense of satisfaction comes with the realization of all the hours and care that went into building it. It certainly was a labor of love and that love will be passed on to my son when he inherits it some day in future. He has followed along as I built her and I think it will mean a lot to him when it's his to keep. I'm not sure I would have made it to the end without the support of those of you who took the time to follow my progress and give me advice and and offer kind words of encouragement along the way. Believe me, it helped me get to the finish line and I'm very much appreciative. So a big thank you to each and every one of you and I very much look forward to seeing each of you get to the finish line as well. Cheers!