russ

I honestly forget how I secured that halyard block. It has been 25 years since I built this model. I would normally say to drill a hole through the back edge of the fighting top, jut aft of the railing and secure it there. It could hang out from underneath the top.

Russ

Nice work on the rudder and the stern planking.

Russ

Robbyn:

I would say that you should have a bare wood surface to glue to. I would not put any stain or any sealer anywhere you will need to glue something to the wood. The less there is betwen the surfaces being glued, the better.

If you have a way to add a fastener, that will help with the bond. For instance, using brass nails to secure the chainplates to the hull.

Russ

The deadeye straps are made without the deadeyes being placed in the straps. You insert the deadeyes in the straps after they are made. That way the heat is not an issue.

Russ

Robbyn:

For a first attempt the hull looks very good. Watch how much you sand, though. That planking is only so thick.

Russ

Silver soldering is muuuuuch better than soft soldering. Silver soldering will create a more reliable joint.

Russ

Your first frame looks good. Nice work.

Russ

Adam:

It will be a good idea to spend as much time as necessary on fairing the hull to get it ready for planking. You are testing the fairness with battens and that is good. I would suggest testing even more just to make sure you can avoid any unsightly bumps or dips. It will make planking a lot easier.

Russ

Those hinges are really nice. I also like the fittings on the deck. This is really coming along. Great work.

Russ

John:

I am sure everyone would like to see at least a few photos of your early framing and planking process on this model. It is really quite something to behold.

Russ

I also prefer the lighter, more natural color, but you are the captain. Your choice is what matters.

Russ

Nice work on the ceiling planking. Looks very good so far.

Russ

Shawn:

The guns look good. As for the tackles, if you are not satisfied, all you really need is the breeching ropes.

Russ

Rusty:

Your bending jig is a great little idea. It seems to work very well. Good work.

Russ

Robbyn:

It may seem that the planking is rather tedious and boring, but some time spent on this step will net you some good results. This is what the casual viewer will see when they look at your model. I think it looks good so far.

Russ

One thing to keep in mind on the garboard is not to let that bow end of the garboard get too far forward. In this case, I would say let it end around that second bulkhead. If it continues too far forward, you risk the rest of the belt creeping up the stem and causing that pinch you are trying to avoid.

Russ

Bob:

Thanks. It was a real blast to build.

Russ

Nice looking framing. It looks ship shape. The wood has a really nice tone to it. Good call there.

Russ

There is a good deal of "instant gratification" on a smaller project. This would be good to do when framing and treenailing get to be too much.

Russ

The line of the batten at the bow looks pretty good. So long as you can get the plank ends evened up there that should work fine.

Russ

The flat bottomed rowing skiff, although it is a distinctly American boat type, has been updated any number of times by different ethnic groups who immgrated to the United States. We have a large group of people who came here from Croatia and Dalamatia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It may be that they added their own distinct flavor to our local boats.

Russ

From what I can see, the planking looks pretty good. Filler is okay to use on the first layer if you need it.

Russ

Sam:

Thanks for those kind words. I made that carving with a lot of magnification.

Russ

The belt position looks okay, but you will need to make sure by eyeballing it really well from a lot of different angles.

Your planking looks good so far. I would not do too much sanding until you have it finished.

Russ

That is an ingenious way to handle that problem. Very clever.

Russ