vossy

crawling along with all this planking of decks and cabin structures! finally have second deck glued down, but requires another coat of matt clear I reckon. second deck cabin structure is a slow process to plank. here it is just dry sitting on top of the deck itself. when completed and ready to mount, it will also be white, so any small gaps the camera shows up can be filled if necessary.
 
none of my passengers and crew have been glued into position as yet, and I am still procrastinating over the horse bay area detail. anyway, sorry, not much of an update, but it is a way to bump my log up from page 5 I guess 

Finishing off the main cabin interior.  First picture shows the curtains up, as well as the magazines and maps.  Closeups of those follow -- they are real mag covers and real maps, all reduced to miniature in the kit.
 
A build tip:  the instructions call for the curtain cloth to be sized with diluted PVA glue to give them some body, but that didn't do the trick -- after folding they were too floppy.  So after folding and tying, I used hair spray to stiffen them.
 
The bow picture shows the moldings covering the join points.
 
The final picture shows the molding reversed to act as a flashing where the sides meet the hull deck.  A build point:  looking ahead in the instructions, the hull deck is made up of a 1mm frame and 1mm planks, so when installing that flange, I needed to make sure I had 2mm underneath it all the way around. 
 
Regards,
David 

Chris:
 
The curved couches are made of some sort of "leatherette" material.  The square ones flanking the table are painted wood.  Regarding more interior detail -- stay tuned.  There is another wave of interior detail coming, but I need to do some other steps first.
 
Regards,
David

this is so cool dave! love the interior! what are the curved couches made of? you could maybe even add more scratch interior detail perhaps?
 
chris
 

hey dave, when I was in the oz navy, whenever we were abroad all the pilots were land based and came out to the ships from various boats. I cant remember a pilot (and I had a fair bit to do with them), actually being based on a vessel. I did hundreds of os deployments and cant ever remember a time we put our boat over to collect a pilot. it was always the other way around. they would come to us in a boat that was moored at the local dock until needed.
 
chris
 

loving this build dave! after I build the countless riverboats on my list I may have to give this a shot too!
 
chris
 

really liked the fly screen doors. looks very effective!
 
chris
 

well done oliver! get yourself a good, easy sandable filler and apply a skim coat over the entire planked surface. once it has thoroughly dried, then sand the hull until it is smooth and all the little gaps have been filled with filler. remember, this version of the hull wont be visible once you apply the second planking, so it doesn't matter how much filler you use really. just make sure that it will take the final planking strips. 99.9% of them would though. you will find the second and final planking easier I reckon. the strips in this kit are thinner, and much more pliable.
 
important: from here the look of your final hull for viewing is greatly determined by your filling and sanding at this stage. I cant stress this enough. once again, well done.    chris

well done oliver! get yourself a good, easy sandable filler and apply a skim coat over the entire planked surface. once it has thoroughly dried, then sand the hull until it is smooth and all the little gaps have been filled with filler. remember, this version of the hull wont be visible once you apply the second planking, so it doesn't matter how much filler you use really. just make sure that it will take the final planking strips. 99.9% of them would though. you will find the second and final planking easier I reckon. the strips in this kit are thinner, and much more pliable.
 
important: from here the look of your final hull for viewing is greatly determined by your filling and sanding at this stage. I cant stress this enough. once again, well done.    chris

well done oliver! get yourself a good, easy sandable filler and apply a skim coat over the entire planked surface. once it has thoroughly dried, then sand the hull until it is smooth and all the little gaps have been filled with filler. remember, this version of the hull wont be visible once you apply the second planking, so it doesn't matter how much filler you use really. just make sure that it will take the final planking strips. 99.9% of them would though. you will find the second and final planking easier I reckon. the strips in this kit are thinner, and much more pliable.
 
important: from here the look of your final hull for viewing is greatly determined by your filling and sanding at this stage. I cant stress this enough. once again, well done.    chris

WOW  that is such a step and a landmark stage - what a difference it makes closing in the hull with the first planking, and making a good job of it(trust me thats come up ok)  the hardest part covering the frames is over,  your next job sanding the planks should be more enjoyable.
Try to find something plyable/fexable and bendy to sand with - I used to use those decorating sand sponge blocks, as they will follow the contours,  also I and probably everyone else on here uses those small  flexable nail file strips (not on our nails though)  they are great for smaller areas also some different grades of sand paper or wet and dry is also very helpfull - cutting them to the size you want.
 
Great progress  and keep up the good work  - you are doing fine.
 
OC.

Possibly a bit late to start a log, but what the heck! Being an old steel boat sailor myself I never thought I could fall in love with any other type of craft. I was wrong! When I saw Charles's build log of this vessel I literally fell in love with this type of craft. Since then I have tried to learn as much about them as I possibly can. Kurt and Cathead have provided a wealth of information, and for that I am truly grateful. 
 
Previous to starting this model my main understanding of this type of vessel came from multiple viewings of the Jodie Foster ( best actress ever) film, Maverick. Obviously I had a lot to learn!
 
The thing I learnt very quickly was that this particular model was not a very true, or accurate depiction of the type of craft of the day. Spewing, as Jodie would look fine on mine! Anyway, so given it is a bit of a fantasy boat, I intend to try to glam mine up a bit (as would befit Jodie).
 
There are a few gaps between pic updates, but since Santa deemed I had been extra good this past year I was presented with a cool new digital camera! So once I get to master it a bit better I hope the updates will be more frequent.
 
Anyway here is where I am at the moment.
 
 

a bit of an update. the second deck and the beginning of the main staircase are just preliminary dry fittings. as you can see the second deck is quite warped. this isn't so much a problem as more than an annoyance really. it should glue down just fine. the main reason its not glued down now is that I want to add more detail to the horse bay area and it is a lot easier without the deck covering it.
 
have searched high and low for some horses at the right scale, but cant seem to find any suitable candidates. the kit comes with a red sticker to simulate carpet (I guess) going up the main stairway. I figure my fancy ladies deserve better than that so will source some fine reddish material and cover each rung individually. 
 
to take these pics I am using a Nikon Coolpix a300 20 megapixel camera. as you can see it shows up every blemish/error known to mankind. these are not visible to the naked eye however, so at this point I am pretty happy with where I am at.
 
chris
 

Hey Oliver, I would definitely follow OC's advice. Then you never bend the planks upwards or downwards. You taper them accordingly and they will take on the bent appearance on their own. Bending, or trying to bend, the planks upwards will result in snapping and skewing of the plank so they don't lie flat on the false bulkheads. I would recommend not relying too much on the pictures provided in the instructions. Use them as a rough guide only. Good to see you have read Mastini's excellent book. I regard it as the bible of ship modelling, but I would also advise to read the many tutorials on planking that are available on this forum. Just remember that first planking on this, and any other double planked model, doesn't have to/need to be perfect. You will find with some filler and a lot of sanding it is not too hard to get a really good canvas to apply the second (final) planking layer on this model. Also the second layer of planking is far thinner and more pliable wood to use than the first layer on this model.
 
You are doing well mate.
 
Chris
 

Hello Oliver, I have built this kit and can say it is a really fantastic model (but I am a Columbus freak!). I found it had ample wood and pretty good instructions. The rigging I found to be pretty straight forward. Just take your time and ask questions when you come to any parts of the build you are unsure of. I can certainly answer many questions about this, or any of Columbus' ships and voyages, and I am certain I will not be alone here on that count. I will definitely follow your log with interest, and who knows, it may even inspire me to build this model again as I gave the last one to my mother.  Chris

a bit of an update. the second deck and the beginning of the main staircase are just preliminary dry fittings. as you can see the second deck is quite warped. this isn't so much a problem as more than an annoyance really. it should glue down just fine. the main reason its not glued down now is that I want to add more detail to the horse bay area and it is a lot easier without the deck covering it.
 
have searched high and low for some horses at the right scale, but cant seem to find any suitable candidates. the kit comes with a red sticker to simulate carpet (I guess) going up the main stairway. I figure my fancy ladies deserve better than that so will source some fine reddish material and cover each rung individually. 
 
to take these pics I am using a Nikon Coolpix a300 20 megapixel camera. as you can see it shows up every blemish/error known to mankind. these are not visible to the naked eye however, so at this point I am pretty happy with where I am at.
 
chris
 

yes, the first deck is what I would call a working deck I guess. horses etc in the bay area, along with hay, water barrels and the like. no self respecting fancy lady or dapper gent would be seen dead on this level! lol  the stairs do indeed go straight up as you mentioned. all around there is really nice decorative balustrades too. its a lovely kit straight out of the box, but I reckon enhanced with extra's like people, foliage etc. it makes it even better.
 
chris
 

yes, the first deck is what I would call a working deck I guess. horses etc in the bay area, along with hay, water barrels and the like. no self respecting fancy lady or dapper gent would be seen dead on this level! lol  the stairs do indeed go straight up as you mentioned. all around there is really nice decorative balustrades too. its a lovely kit straight out of the box, but I reckon enhanced with extra's like people, foliage etc. it makes it even better.
 
chris
 

a bit of an update. the second deck and the beginning of the main staircase are just preliminary dry fittings. as you can see the second deck is quite warped. this isn't so much a problem as more than an annoyance really. it should glue down just fine. the main reason its not glued down now is that I want to add more detail to the horse bay area and it is a lot easier without the deck covering it.
 
have searched high and low for some horses at the right scale, but cant seem to find any suitable candidates. the kit comes with a red sticker to simulate carpet (I guess) going up the main stairway. I figure my fancy ladies deserve better than that so will source some fine reddish material and cover each rung individually. 
 
to take these pics I am using a Nikon Coolpix a300 20 megapixel camera. as you can see it shows up every blemish/error known to mankind. these are not visible to the naked eye however, so at this point I am pretty happy with where I am at.
 
chris
 

really liked the fly screen doors. looks very effective!
 
chris
 

So, tentatively started proper work on the kit. After rectifying the various misaligned tabs, non-slanting and over-tight holes (used a round jeweller’s file, worked pretty well but a little ply veneer did split off on the main and 1st deck) and as it’s been 30+ years since I worked on such a small scale, I’ve started with the various cabin doors, just to get my hand and eye in. These were cut out with an 11 blade, a quick sand down against a sheet of 220 grit to remove any lumps, then stained a dark walnut for 2/3 minutes - so not too dark.
 
I don’t like the brass ring door handles - they seem over-scale and frankly a bit silly - so I decided to use some of the brass pins as supplied with the kit suitably cut down to act as proper door knobs. Checking the size of the pin head and shank gave a good approximation to real life. I drilled the doors with a 0.6mm bit - managing to break two of them in the process, good job I’d bought extra! (it’s a learning process after all) - using a little jig constructed on the fly with double-sided sticky tape. Won’t be doing that again though, not enough stability (learning process again).
 
For the door windows I’ve bought an insect screen repair kit; this gives a diamond (or square if you prefer) pattern of about 4 scale inches, which is fine with me and comes on a white background sheet which is removable. I’d intended to keep the sheet in place to act as ‘glass’ but when discussing this with the Admiral she decided she’d rather see through the windows. That means painting and possibly furnishing the inside of a few rooms; that should sort my mild OCD out!
 
No pix today, I’ll add some to this tomorrow (now added)
 
As you can see, I made one door the wrong way round (d’oh!) - I’ll put that on the back of the ship!
 
Hugh
 
 

hi hugh, so glad you are doing this kit as well. I just love the riverboats and will definitely do this one once i'm done with Mississippi and chaperon. btw, I reckon I have searched the outer limits of the known universe for correct scale (1:50) and period figures for my build, and the only ones I can find are some of those you can see on my log. if you are planning to put people on your build, could you please let me know if you come across any that might be of interest to me?
 
thanks, and good luck with your build. I am looking forward to following it.
 
chris
 

Eric:
I just got a new listing of towboat and riverboat plans available from John Fryant of Paddlewheels & Props.  He now has the Alan Bates plans available - I was worried that these plans were lost to us when Alan died.
I thought I would share them with you and the other riverboat fans following your build log.
Kurt
PADDLE WHEEL - PROPS - FRYANTS- PRICE LIST 11-17.pdf

And on the third day ... there was a mild panic when I came down to my shipyard (aka basement, cellar etc) to discover one of our cats had been exploring and had knocked the main ply boards onto the floor, together with a small cup of water I’d been using to clean brushes on another of the Admiral’s honeydo’s. Some slight warping had occurred, but the ply was still damp so I clamped it all down between some 2x6 and let it dry. Sorted!
 

 
I carried on my with my dry fit and got all the way up the wheelhouse, ignoring the Ventilation deck bits for now.
 

 

 
My main discovery was that the 2nd deck structure is actually curved fore and aft - see pic below against a straight edge.
 

 

 
This curve is replicated on the top, so clearly the decks are meant to bow (this also solved a slight puzzle of mine, in that when the main deck is pushed against the frames and becomes bowed, the tabs of the main deck structures all fitted in their slots. That said, all may change when everything gets glued together...)
 
Other discoveries: Once you have the rear of the 2nd & 3rd decks vertically aligned the top tabs of the 2nd deck don’t align with the 3rd deck slots - the tabs are about 3mm too far forward. I’m going to cut those misalignments out.
 

 
Confirmed the holes for the side posts then need redrilling at a 60°ish angle for the posts to fit. All the post holes need a very small amount of widening - the posts barely fit the 3rd deck, won’t go through the holes on the 2nd as they are, never mind with paint on. The wood for the stacks did fit, but won’t once painted.
 
Amused myself for 10 minutes dry assembling the grating pieces. What fun! (Seriously, it’s the sort of task I enjoy - no real thinking involved haha).  
 
I’ll come back back and edit this if I remember anything else. (Almost certain!)
 
Hugh
(Edited to put pix in the right place in the text)
 
 
 
 

Some more views of how the underside of the second deck will look once it is glued into place.