mrshanks

Hi Jerry,
 
Thought you'd like this photo of a photo of Bluenose. It was hanging on a wall
in the Waterfront Warehouse Restaurant in Halifax, NS. 
 
Got to board Bluenose II in Lunenburg as she was in port for several days. I
was surprised at how big she was. She is acknowledged to have the largest
working mainsail in the world, measuring 4,150 square feet. Total sail area
measures over 11,000 square feet. Sheesh. You probably already know that.
 
Have silently followed your build from the beginning. What beautiful work. Wish
I had the experience to build the kit.
 
John

Your deck is very shiny! I can see the reflection of the hatch on the deck! The crew must work hard to keep her looking great.

Hello Popeye,
Olive Oil has had an open kit sitting on her desk since early spring; it's not the Santa Maria but it is the La Nina by Artesania Latina.  I learned a long time ago to say nothing that will make her feel pressured so I've been waiting to see if and when sh'd begin the build.  About a week ago she slipped into the office (where we both work) and started messing around with her kit.  As agreed upon, I said nothing until she asked me to check to see if she was missing some parts.  I found the parts and said nothing else waiting to see what would progress.  I was busy working on Bluenose so about 30 minutes later I realized she left the office and I didn't see her for about another hour or so when I went into another room to watch TV. Honestly, to this day not another word has been said about her build.  I have a feeling though, that she's getting closer to working on her kit but I'm not saying a thing.  Things have been peaceful around here for a long time and I'd like to keep it that way, if you know what I mean.  LOL
 
Now to the Bluenose...
 
I've made some more progress.  The deck furniture is beginning to grow.  It's tedious work due to its minute size but we all now that we wouldn't be following this hobby  (participating in it) if we didn't have patience.  That's always the first statement I hear when someone is looking at my finished models..."I would never have the patience to do what you do."
 
So it's one deck piece at a time and that's where I'm at.  Here are some additional photos to bring my progress up to date.
 
Take care,
Best,
Jerry

Good morning, Popeye..
I hope you are well.
 
Things are still progressing despite the medical interruptions, but at this point it's more laziness than doctor visits that has slowed me down.  I have begun to fabricate the "deck furniture" but I'm waiting for the admiral to help me paint the cap rails as she has expressed interest to do that. She needs the practice anyway. When playing around with the "hatch," I took a couple of photos.  This piece is not attached to the deck yet but I wanted to see what it looked like.  All of the deck pieces not painted black will be colored white and "hull umbre" as this one is. Olive Oil sends her regards and wants to know what you have been up to lately.
 
Best,
 
Jerry

Good morning everyone...
 
Today will be a day of touching up.  I am pleased with the results of the red and black hull painting, although I didn't do it with the tools I originally thought I would.   The Preval Spray System didn't work as I hoped it would.  The paint was apparently too thick and needed thinning  but that would have affected the tone of the color.  When purchasing the product I was told no thinning was necessary,  so I returned everything with no trouble and bought a can of Rust-Oleum satin Black and satin Colonial Red which worked.  But as usual there are places that were under sprayed or completely missed due to inaccessibility.  I plan to spray the color I want to use on a piece of paper to create a puddle from which I will brush on the touch-ups.
 
Incidentally, the masking of the hull was a real time eater.  The whole idea was to mask the hull in a way that when the black painting was finished the white stripe at the waterline would be created.  This required laying the first tape right on the edge of the red color and then laying a second tape 1/16th" beyond the edge of the first tape.  The second tape was scotch tape so I could see the 1/16th" overlay.
 
So here are some pictures as to where I stand and after the touch-ups, I'll show the final results.
 
Have a great day.
Best,
Jerry

Good evening everybody..
 
I finally was able to find the paints I wanted for Bluenose today.  My plan was to spray two coats of white enamel primer on the hull, sanding with #400 paper between coats.  Fortunately I ran into a great sales person at the local Home Depot who was kind enough to spend a lot of time with me and helped me pick my colors.  I settled in on Rust- Oleum's Flat White Primer which seems to have come out perfectly and hopefully will provide a good looking white stripe between the two hull colors.  The practicum recommends a Kilz spray paint which was purchased at WalMart.  I tried the WalMart Super Store which is actually very close to me but they didn't carry that  brand.  I looked at Rust-Oleum's choice of colors but just couldn't find the shade of Red I wanted for the bottom of the hull.  
 
The Home Depot sales Lady was terrific. They carry the Behr Brand and together we picked a color I liked.  This in itself is a joke because not only am I almost completely blind in my left eye but  I'm color blind as well.  I can see colors but I really can't say what some of them are. You know, red-green, blue-purple But there is a tremendous advantage I have that the normal color seeing eye doesn't have.  I can see through camouflage and I can see more shades of any color than the normal eye can. But I have trouble telling the difference between blue and purple, brown and maroon, red and green, some oranges and reds..  
 
Anyway, at Home Depot they will make any color you want.  When ready to use just pour the paint into a little jar of the tiny spraying device. (see picture)  One can replace the air cartridge when necessary and since the materials are water based, clean up is a snap and the sprayer can be used for different colors.They cost me $4.97 each.
 
So now I'm ready to mask the waterline which I will do tomorrow, using the eyeball method of course.
 
I wish you all a very happy evening.
Best,
Jerry
 
P.S.  The two little dots on the bottom of the keel are small holes that will hold the mounting wire...

Good evening everyone...
 
Well, I finally installed the gunwale cap rails on the Bluenose and with a little more filler and sanding I believe will be ready to paint the hull.  I do have a confession to make:  I did not use scarf joints as  Bob Hart's Practicum and the kit's manual calls for.  The Model Shipways kit was void of the right size strip wood for the cap rails but I was very lucky to find some strip wood left over from the HMS Victory build which was exactly the right size.  So, I must admit, I took the easy way out and used regular butt joints instead of the scarfs. Everything looks okay.  No one will know the difference since the cap rails will be painted black and the joints will be hidden..
 
So after the additional preparations for the finish it looks like I'm going to spray paint and not use a brush.  I like the looks of the hull shown in the practicum and it was painted with spray cans.
 
Here are some pictures of the cap rails and the hull which is almost ready to be painted.
 
Best,
 
Jerry 

Good afternoon everyone and a happy Monday.
 
More progress to report:  The bow and transom cap rails have been fitted and glued into place.  The bow has been "carved" to provide the opening for the bowsprit, the hawser holes have been roughed in and the waterways and bulwarks have been painted.  The next step is to add the gunwale caps and finally paint the hull.
 
As you may remember I have been building this model with the aid of Bob Hart's practicum which so far I have found to be excellent.  Most of the time (about 95%) I have stuck to Bob's directions as they have been well written and are very explanatory.  However, occasionally I have found it necessary to wander into my own brain and do some things of my own.  For example I have chosen not to remove some of the planking on the port and starboard sides of the bow to make way for a "scrap" block of wood from which one is supposed to carve out a 1/4" hole for the bowsprit.  I have decided to cut the 1/4" hole out of the existing planking which I have found (so far) to be rigid enough to support the bowsprit.  I have used plenty of Elmer's wood filler and will use some more before the first coat of paint is applied.  I also constructed the transom differently than the practicum suggests; I did not strip away and replace any planking but merely carved out the transom from a piece of balsa wood.  I don't see any unusual abuse happening in the future in the area of the transom and so I feel safe in the way with the material I have chosen
 
With the exception of a couple of quick look at the kit's plans for reference only, I have not used the plans or the direction manual at all.  Now that doesn't mean I won't in the future as there is much detail starting with the deck furniture which happens after the hull is painted..
 
I have added some more pictures as to where I am and hope to have more progress during the week.
 
I wish you all a great evening.
Best,
Jerry 

Hello Everyone.
Another day in the dry dock and some more work completed.  Today we have finished installing and finishing all of the false timbers.  It looks like this Bluenose is coming along and will be sent to the paint shop as the hull is ready for painting.  Here are the final pictures of the false timbers installed and trimmed to proper size ready for capping when the time comes.  Hope everyone is having a great day.
Best,
Jerry

Good afternoon everyone..
 I'm sure the next phase of construction, being so repetitive, will not be aas enjoyable as the past work.  Making and gluing in place 110 false timber frames doesn't seem like a lot of fun but it does get the hull ready for the deck furniture, and I always enjoy that part of the build.  Although I have filled and sanded quite a bit, I'm positive there will be more to do along those lines before the hull is given any coats of finish.  The model seems very smooth at this point but there are still some uneven places, some tiny crevices and other ugly bumps to repair and smooth out.  I haven't decided if I'm going to brush paint or spray the finish........although, I'm leaning toward the latter.   On any event, here are some more photos of the new transom which is the latest place to be almost completed,
Best,
Jerry

Hello Everyone..
Well, we're now into August and modelling  Bluenose is moving along.  The deck is completed and varnished and the extension planks are in place. The stern will be worked on next but in the meantime here are some additional photos of this Bluenose as it sits today.
Best to all,
Jerry
 

Hi Elijah..
Many thanks for the visit and compliment.  I'll be finishing the deck after completing the waterways fill-ins.  This has proven to be a time consuming process as every opening is slightly different than each other.  I'm using some stripping left over from the HMS Victory kit which is more than wide enough, and as mentioned,  each piece needs to be custom fit.    here's what it looks like so far.
Best,
Jerry

Nice job! I look forward to seeing a finish on it!

Hello Everybody..
My house guest likes Naples because he decided to stay a little longer and that's OK with me.  But he agreed that I could spend a couple of hours completing the aft deck.  So, I did and the deck is ready for a coat of varnish before proceeding further.  I didn't run out of deck planking as several others did because I was very conservative with my trimming etc.  In fact I have a lot of half size strips which will be available if called for later for some other part of the build.  So here's a couple of photos showing the deck completed before preliminary finishing with a coat of varnish.
Have a nice week everyone.
Best,
Jerry

Hello Popeye..
Having been through the sate of matrimony more than once I feel strongly for you and strongly suggest that you hold onto your skin.  I forgot about your Half Moon so I guess that is ahead in line of the Bluenose.  I think you will really enjoy building the Half Moon and then the Bluenose since they are definitely two very different types of construction.  In fact, and although others claim the Bluenose an easier build, I wholeheartedly disagree.  So far I have found the Bluenose much more "delicate."  If you review the attached pictures of the progress of the planking of the aft deck, you will surely see the difficulty I have had (especially with my first crack at nibbing).  I purposely used the word "crack" since I caused a few in the nibbing strake as I progressed.  These damages were repairable but have definitely subtracted from the cleanliness of the build.  To replace the nibbing strake at this stage would be a disaster so I shall live with my mistakes.  The lesson here is beware of the delicateness of the nibbing strake and the deck planks in general.   I hope to do better with the final planking of the port side of the deck.
Hope you are doing well and have a terrific day,
Regards,
Jerry

Hello Everyone..
One more post today as we are leaving for a short, one week holiday tomorrow.  So, since I won't be building or posting for awhile i thought it would be okay to attach some pictures that will bring my progress on Bluenose up to date.  My next notes will hopefully appear the week after next.  I have placed the center planks on the aft deck and when I return I'll be tapering and adding the planks that will approach the nibbing strake.  So far, so good; I haven't had any finger cuts or worse.  My doctor gave me an okay to go away for one week so the admiral and I are definitely taking advantage of that.  We'll be on a cruise ship tomorrow afternoon in Puerto Rico and spend the week sweating in the Caribbean.  Hopefully, I'll make it throught he week and see everyone in a week or so,
Best, 
Jerry

Good afternoon everyone...
I'm happy to say that I have completed the planking of the fore deck.  I will admit that this phase of the build has not turned out to be a thing of beauty but I did learn a lot and if and when I need to do nibbing again I'm sure I'll do a better job; starting,  hopefully, with the aft deck.  The deck planking of the Bluenose is very different from any other model I have built and Bob Hart mentions this in his practicum  Most decks are planked without the necessity of tapering the strips until one reached the outer dimensions of the deck.  With this build, when doing the aft deck, the tapering begins with the laying of the very first pair of planks.  So with this type of process and with more nibbing to come I really appreciate the detail of this build.
 
So here are some pictures that bring my construction to completion of the fore deck planking, construction and placing of the "great beam" and the first pair of planks for the aft deck which have been cut to allow for the main mast tenon.  I felt it would be easier to work with these two planks if I glued them together first.  This made it easier to center them over the keel.
 
Hope everyone has a great evening.
Best,
Jerry

Hello Dave..
Many thanks for your visit and your good advice.  I did read elsewhere that one should not be wasteful with the deck planking as the supply was not overly generous.  However, I have begun the nibbing and have not done a very good job so far.  I have attached a picture to show what I mean.  I followed the practicum carefully but I find it difficult in any event.  I will probably rip out what I have done so far and start over again or I may just continue on from where I left off and chalk it up to a learning experience.  My patience is beginning to run out.  In any event, I will guard the deck strips with my life.  Thanks again for taking the time to write to me.
Best,
Jerry

Good morning, Lawrence...
The sweet lines you have referred to are growing.  It's now time to begin the nibbing.  Since I have never done this procedure before I am a little nervous about it but I'm sure I'll figure it out.  So here's the latest pics as to where this Bluenose stands.  I hope you have a great weekend as we celebrate our Fourth of July Holiday.  Charlene joins me in sending our best regards to Bernadette.
Jerry

Thank you Popeye and Lawrence...
Today I decided to veer from Bob Hart's practicum and go out on my own a bit.  I started to plank the fore deck the way I like to do it even though I am conflicting with the practicum's directions.  In particular I am speaking about the method to create the look of caulking.  Bob Hart says don't use ink on the edge of your planks because it'll bleed through due to the nature of basswood.  He uses a black soft pencil lead which to me is too time consuming and offers very little to a caulking look.  I have always used a black, soft, felt edge marking pen which I realize is a permanent ink and could cause some bleeding. However, it is quicker more authentic looking and with care causes very little bleeding.  In the past I have taken advantage of the bleeding to create an older looking deck by blending the "bleed" into the surface with some very fine sandpaper. All of the other Bluenose sites I have seen have followed Hart's advice and the decks are beautiful but with all respect, look like they were just bleached or that the ship has never been to sea.  I like a deck that looks used and that has been in service for a while so I prefer my method.  I haven't progessed very far yet but I have attached a picture which should give one an idea of what I'm talking about. What do you think?
Best,
Jerry

Hello everyone...
As I mentioned above, I planned to have had the hull wood filled and sanded by today.  I used most of the 4 oz bottle of Elmer's wood filler to do the job and believe me the hull didn't look pretty.  My admiral let out a slight shriek when she saw the hull coated with wood filler and I assured her that after the final sanding it would look like a model ship again;  and it does.  I wish she would pay less attention to my project and get going with hers' which, as mentioned earlier,  is La NIna by Artesania Latina.  Anyway, I'm ready to move on which I think means planking the deck. Onward!!
Best,
Jerry 

Hello Popeye...
 
Thanks for the good word...I did get  a little more done on the planking and will pictures later because my server isn't handling mail right now.  Have a great evening..
Jerry
 
P.S. Here are the pictures I promised...

Hello Brian...
I sincerely appreciate the time you have taken to write to my log and to express your thoughts regarding Bob Hunt's practicum and method of construction.  I shouldn't have said what I said about not looking at the kit's plans and directions because I really did when I first opened the box.  As you may know, Brian. I have built several model ships before and I have always scrutinized the plans and directions.  What I should have said is that while I haven't looked at the plans and directions since starting the build, I certainly plan to use them as I get in to the details.  Constructing the hull is really old hat and as you said everyone has their own way of doing things.  I am enjoying Bob's practicum, especially the pictures (there are over 500 of them) since they have answered some of the questions I have had so far.  Thanks again for pointing out your feelings.
 
I too, very rarely will entirely use CA to entirely plank a hull.  It has depended on the type of model I'm building as to what cements I use.  In building the Victory, Half Moon and Bounty,  I found it useful to use white glue on the first layer of planking which was held in place with pins. These aforementioned projects were all double planked so the pin holes in the first layer were covered by a second layer of planking or copper plating.  I always use CA for the second layer or when adhering the copper plates.   I am using CA on the current model (only one layer of planking)  and in spite of messy fingers, it has worked out fine so far.  I have followed Bob's suggestion to wipe off any excess CA with a paper towel as I proceed and any mess left is easily sanded off the surface of the wood. I will admit that I am a heavy CA user usually and maybe that's why my admiral thinks I may be drinking too much.  She's about to start building the Nina so maybe we'll both get high together from all the CA use in the room.  
 
Again, thank you so much for writing to me and voicing your opinion s.  I hope you will continue to follow my build.
Best,
Jerry

Hi Jerry,
 
I used Bob's practicum for the AVS, so I'd like to offer a word of caution.  His practicum was a very good guide that did a good job of keeping me on track and not only letting me know what to do next, but also had some great tips on different techniques he uses, but I would strongly advise that you ignore his suggestion to avoid the plans.
 
Learning the plans is key to this hobby, and there are many details on the plans that were just glossed over or not even mentioned in the practicum.  This isn't a criticism of the practicums, there is simply too much involved in a model ship to give detailed call-outs to every single thing you need to do, and being familiar with the plans is an excellent way to make sure you don't miss some small part/step that Bob didn't call out in his guide.
 
Bob also does things in a very specific way that he follows with all of his builds, that may or may not be the perfect way for you personally.  An example is his heavy use of CA glue while planking, while I prefer to use CA as little as possible in my build and not at all on the planking.  For this type of stuff it's good to be heavily into reading other build logs, and sometimes simply experiment on your own if you think you might have a better idea.  You might!
 
Take care, and keep on building!

Hello Popeye..
Charlene is a stubborn woman; that's why she made Admiral.  LOL.. I have no idea if she plans to do a log.  I believe she's skeptical but who knows?  I did fair the bulkheads a little bit where it was needed.  Most of the center section didn't really require it.  I have now completed the planking from the gunnels down and will soon start planking from the keel up.  This planking will require some tapering at times but after all the models I have done I think it'll be a piece of cake.  I'm following Bob Hunt's practicum for this build.  I haven;t even opened the kit's instruction manual as the practicum suggests to avoid the plans and kit directions unless specifically called out.  Here's another picture as to where I'm at right now.  Have a great day.
Jerry