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ccoyle

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Everything posted by ccoyle

  1. Great job, Chris! I'm happy to see this one completed. Cheers!
  2. Hello, Luc. I am sure that many of our members would enjoy watching your project come together, but posts with only text and links to photos are not likely to attract much attention. If you are copying & pasting your text from another source, look for the "paste as plain text" option, and use the "choose files" link at the bottom of the edit window to insert photos into your posts. These two things will make your posts more reader-friendly. Wishing you well on your project!
  3. Bateaux LeClerc is a defunct brand of model kits once manufactured in Canada. As far as I know, there is nothing notable about their kits to set them apart from others that date back to the same period. The state of kit manufacturing has come a long, long way since then.
  4. Just found out that according to CLC's website, regarding MAS LV epoxy: no "amine blush" "Amine blush" will defeat all attempts to adhere subsequent coats of epoxy or varnish. Appied in anything less than about 98% humidity, MAS will not blush."
  5. I think we make an exception for boats -- no car/truck restorations or homebuilt aircraft. 😉 (In truth, though, such things are why we have our Shore Leave area.)
  6. Been thinking a lot this week about how to proceed with the epoxy. In light of what has been said about the need to remove any amine blush, it seems like the best way to move forward would be to round off the rails, glue the decks on, and then get the entire exterior + rails coated, so that no bare wood is left to get wet during the washing process. Seems sensible to me.
  7. Wait -- you built a Victory in nine months?? 😲
  8. I can pretty much guarantee that a kit of Griffin doesn't exist, but that's not unexpected when one considers that thousands of wooden sailing ships plied American waters over the centuries; only the tiniest fraction have ever been modeled. Do you have any information at all on what kind of ship Griffin was?
  9. Not a problem. I neither duck hunt nor own any expensive shotguns. 😉
  10. Welcome! Chester Nimitz was another Texan from nowhere near the coast, and he did all right, so you're in good company.
  11. Try Billing Boats.
  12. I should also add that the epoxy is probably intended to add some structural strength, considering how thin the plywood is. But hey -- I'm not a boat designer. I'm just following the instructions based on the assumption that these guys know what they're doing! 😁
  13. Okay, I think I need to clear up some things. The epoxy in this case is not the finish; at this point in the construction it is essentially a sealer. The unthickened epoxy is still pretty darn thick -- it's like trying to paint with honey. Perhaps the cold temps these days have something to do with that. In spite of how thick it is, I was still disappointed to find later that there were quite a few runs, even though I had endeavored to spread it as thin as possible. As for finishes, the instructions recommend marine varnish for anything left bright, and marine primer & paint for anything else. I may end up painting the interior if I'm not entirely happy with the epoxy results -- I'll wait to make that decision. Thanks, all!
  14. Another CA characteristic that some are unfamiliar with is that the bonds it forms have a low shear strength, which means that they don't resist impact well. When CA is used to bond materials that aren't particularly porous, such as styrene or metal, a jolt to the joined pieces will often knock them loose.
  15. "Painting" with unthickened epoxy is time-consuming and not particularly fun, but it has to be done. Here, the entire inside has received its first coat, and that includes the two end compartments. Don't ask me how many batches this task required -- I lost count! In fact, I strongly suspect I will run out of epoxy and will need to resupply. In the back you can see one of the two decks; these also got epoxied on their interior sides. Now, I have a question for you experienced builders out there, like @Bedford. The instructions don't say anything about sanding in-between epoxy coats. Is it a good idea? Optional? Or wait until the second coat is done and sand before varnishing?
  16. In Mariposa we referred to this as "cosmetic snow." Not a lot, to be sure, but I like winter, and I don't feel like we've had a proper one unless I get at least one decent snowfall. Like some fruit trees, I need a certain amount of cold set to feel well-adjusted and productive for the coming spring and summer.
  17. After 7+ hours of curing, the resin was dry enough to trim without being rock-hard. The tape at the ends naturally got a little more slop on it and bits of it will need to be sanded away when everything is completely cured. And we got a little treat tonight.
  18. Almost -- I moved it for you. 😉 With regards to America, you have several options: BlueJacket makes two kits, one in 1/4" scale and the other in 1/8". Dusek now own the Mamoli line of kits and still offer the 1/66 scale America. Daniel Dusek has been updating the kits as he re-releases them, so the Dusek version might be worth a second look. Billing Boats offer one in 1/72 scale. Model Shipways made one at some point, but I believe it is out of production. Examples might turn up on auction sites. No matter which you choose, this project should be well within your abilities.
  19. Welcome back! What style you choose for your reconstructed log is up to you. Have fun!
  20. Well, the weekend came back around, which means it was time for the final bit of fiberglass work. I think I finally got the handle on how to work with the stuff, so this step only took me about 90 minutes to complete. As our friends from across the pond say, I'm quite chuffed about how this turned out. Last night I trimmed the fiberglass cloth and cleaned up my work area. The instructions said nothing about slitting the cloth at the ends, but of course the draped cloth naturally wants to create folds there. I made just enough of a cut to allow the cloth to hug the sides neatly, then tacked the ends with tape. Applying the resin went lickety-split this time around. I worked with small batches, and it took six batches to do the entire job. The flatter portions I worked with a spreader, and the ends were finished off with a disposable chip brush. An extra piece of 4" wide cloth covers each end. I cut darts into each strip about half-way into the curved portion to eliminate some of the pucker. Once this is cured and trimmed, it will be time to seal the entire canoe with two coats of unthickened epoxy.
  21. Long answer: Models are kind of a gray area in copyright law, but the governing principle in IP protection is the question of whether there is potential, intentional or not, to defraud the original IP owner. Since you are building a one-off model from scratch, as opposed to designing a kit with the intent to market it, you are neither defrauding the author's estate nor any of the production companies involved in making the film (and there were so many of the latter that I'd wager it'd be difficult to find out who actually owns the IP rights to the film version). In any case, all of the representations of the fictional Unicorn, book and film, look like late-17th century two-decked men-of-war, so you could hardly be faulted for building a generic ship of that type and calling it "Unicorn." This is quite different from the examples of Black Pearl and Flying Dutchman from the POTC universe; in their cases, the unusual appearance of each ship is a highly creative work protected by IP law. Even then, though, you'd likely be safe if you were building only a one-off model for yourself. Short answer: Yes, you can post pictures.
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