zoly99sask

I started work at the stern to prepare the boardroom and beams of the formwork.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Greetings fellow Shipmates,
 
This is my third kit; I have only finished one so far so it is fair to say I am a novice. I struggled as to whether I would start a build log for this nice little ship because the log that jack.aubrey has set up for this kit is exquisite - I also thought that all of my questions would be answered. However, I have learned some things that others might find useful after my stumblings.
 
I won't do the kit contents review because jack has already covered that. I will bring you up to date with where I am at this point and leave a few learnings for others that may follow.
 
The first thing I will say is that I feel Jack was right to take the approach he did with creating a build board and frame squaring device and carefully fitting and gluing all of the frames ahead of fitting the deck. The instructions suggest fitting the keel, frames and deck and then gluing. I do not understand how you could get the precise fitting that is required for this kit by taking this approach. I copied jack's approach with some modifications. After I squared and glued all frames I fitted and glued in the deck. If I were to do it again I don't think I would have installed the deck at this stage but I was after a rigid framework. Probably not a big deal.
 
I spent quite a bit of time measuring up the ship dimensions from the plans. From that you will notice that the bow is 5 mm higher than the stern and that is why it is critically important to mark all of the planks before they are removed with the correct orientation (marked with an arrow on the boards). also be careful to note which is the bow and which is the stern - it is not so obvious as you may think.
 
It is also very important to add tick marks to the stem and stern post to guide the planks.
 
You need to decide how to end the planks at the bow and stern. I cut a rabet and ended the planks so that they were flush and not clinker for the last centimeter or so. I paid for that approach by not realizing that this would cause the bow and stern planks to creep up higher than planned and screw-up the fit of the otherwise perfectly pre-spiled planks. I figured this out after I half completed the planking and compensated by tapering the ends beyond what one would otherwise have to do. If I had taken my own advice I would have figured this out right away by watching the tick marks. In any case more guidance for this aspect would be very welcome. 
 
I did not do a proper job of each of the things I mentioned above and I paid for it. I have no reason to think that this kit is not produced with a very high level of precision and that if you pay close attention to squaring and getting the dimensions right, everything will fit like a glove.
 
I have not shown these screw-ups as prominently as I could so if anyone wants the dirty detailed pictures just let me know.
 
Now that much of the hull is planked I am really seeing the beauty of this ship.
 
Thank you for looking in - I would appreciate any and all comments.
 
Thanks, Ian
 
Modified frame squarer (after jack):


 
Frames assembled and glued:

 
Rabets and limited plank ticks (should have used these everywhere):



 
The rest:








 

Zoltan, I have Planes simple and semi-circular .
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
The beginning of the relation is available at this address:
 
 
http://5500.forumact...ndre-1-24#66516
 
 
 
Regards, Pawel

Thanks for the looks and likes everyone, it's much appreciated, sincerely. 
 
 I've got another trip this weekend. So, knowing I wouldn't really get any 'days off' over the weekend, I decided to procrastinate some of my work during the week and head down to the shipyard and get some things done.
 
 Next up, the cheeks, hawse holes and trailboards.  Before I got started I did some fitting and measure, and prepping the figurehead etc.  
The first problem I ran into was paint color.  The rear decorations and etchings of the ship were done is straight "wood" color from Testor's Model Master line.  Although it looked good, it is considerably darker than the natural stained color of the hull, etc.  I liked this very much, as it made the details on the transom really pop.  However, when we get to the bow of the ship and painting those etchings and even the figure head that dark - it just didn't look right.
 

 
  After some experimenting, I was able to come up with a pretty good color with about a 60/40 mixture of "House Cream" and "English Oak".   Of course that meant repainting all the etching and window frames and details on the transom.
 
I was NOT looking forward to this... but necessary is necessary and I spend three days with a size 0 brush while my eyes crossed and my fingers cramped.  ;p
 

 
As a side note - I had to add a good coat of primer to the figurehead to get it to take the paint.  Remember, we swapped out the metal figurehead with the plastic molded one. 
 

 
Next up, the cheeks.  Very light sanding to get rid of the char, then a bit of reshaping to get them to fit to the bow snuggly.
 

 
No alternatives for the photo etched carved strips, so they required some careful painting.  I fitted them first to get an idea of what part of the bow needed to painted black, then did more painting.
 

 
The instructions call for some etching along the cheeks my gauging out lines on the sides, then smoothing them out.  But I found this little tool in my stash and thought it'd look pretty cool.  Overall, I like the way it came out with the etching attached.
 

 
Same process for the upper cheeks.  Some delicate sanding to get everything to look pretty seemless.  And I dry fitted the figure head to make it all work out.  You'll notice here that the gap between the figurehead's foot and the lower cheek extension is a bit too wide, so I redid the lower piece to get it closer.  That took some fiddling with the metal etch carving pieces, etc.
 

 
My next problem occurred when I dry fitted the hawseholes and trailboards.  The directions call for four pieces shaped to fit the bow of the ship.  But, after only three, I was running out of room quickly.  And bear in mind, I BARELY sanded the backsides of the cheeks. Just enough to get rid of the char and adjust the "roundness" to fit the bow ok.  Oy.
This wasn't going to do.  So i stuck with three, and fitted the bolster.  NO CHANCE any of this was going to fit.  
 

 
My first solution was to create and inset in which the bolster would fit.  After a number of different attempts, this failed miserably.
 

 
So, my final solution was to just have ONE layer of the trailboards and fit the bolster and drill out the hawseholes.  Overall, I think it's definitely passable.  All of the basswood is treated the same as the rest of the trip with a layer of wood conditioner, stain in Miniwax "Natural" then I'll add a layer of lacquer.  Ultimately, this as made the etching and wood pretty close to the same color.
 

By all means send us ballots, Bug.   I'm sure they've heard of absentee voting...            I think we can also get the Chicago Graveyard Vote in for you.

you'll have to let us all know how she does in the competition     you got my vote {send me a ballot!}   

Time for a semi-annual update.  First post since January other than my pleas not to archive the group build log.  Work continues slowly as a bunch of other commitments continue take priority over shop time. I have the inner hull done to the level of the upper deck clamps, and have begun work on the well.  Mast step is also done, as well as the limber boards and lower deck beams.  I haven’t put any finish on – I used some mineral spirits to clean off the sawdust. I’m continuing to work on the well.  I began gluing the sides on right before leaving on vacation, but didn’t take a picture.
 
Dave

Good evening everyone,
took me ages to find my own thread, after nearly two ,months away again
Anyway, i have completed the netting around the boomkins, and happy with them but i have now resolved where I think the lines go wrt the 6 lines that come from above the round house and pass through the thimbles on the spirit sail yard
 
My big question now is WHEN DO I START TO TIE EVERYTHING OFF AND SECURE THEM?
 
Sorry about picture quality, and my mancave is a tip

Gary, I thought I would be able to get this to work, but believe the wire I am using is far to thick, lol the simple things seam to take me ages to resolve thankyou for the picture

Hello Kevin,
I chose not to use Gil's method of attaching netting at the bow, it seemed too complicated, instead I simply attached a rail front to back and glued the netting to the rail and to the timber work at the bottom. The attached photo shows what I mean. Just some food for thought.
 
Gary

Good evening everyone, back to the front end again today trying to do the safety nets, using the template provided by Gil i made a couple of attempts, but have a lot of difficulty in securing them into position, try again next weekend
 

Every little you do Kevin is a little less you have to do, it's not a race to get these done.
 
Apart from planking this has to be one of the most tedious jobs on a build and as such it's easy to rush it and mess it up. Its also one of those jobs that can really make a good build special.
 
Nice and easy mate.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie

Thanks Gary!  Sorry I deleted the post you're responding to    Here it is again
------------------------------
Something’s been nagging me for a while:  when to drill the holes for the masts?  
 
The manual and logs I've seen defer the drilling for after the deck planking and fittings are in place (chapter 17).  I am tempted to drill them right now, before the lintels.
 
Why?
 
Because the jig I have in mind for the alignment of the masts sits smack on top of the deck, and with the lintels in place that would not be possible.
 
And because  drilling holes after the deck planking and the delicate deck fittings are in place doesn’t seem to be the right time to be playing around with a big drill.
 
The mast holes do not need to have a very precise diameter at this stage.   Slightly larger would be better, leaving the final mast alignment for later.
 
I think I may just have talked myself into doing this.  Unless someone shares an opinion to the contrary …
----------------------------------   Then I saw Gham's very clever jig for making the holes (p 12) and like him decided to defer the hole making till after the deck planking is done.  Hence the deletion of the post.   (But I could not resist the temptation of marking the position of the mast holes on the 'deck'.  Just in case  ...   ) 

I need very small eye bolts to take the ends of the lines running through the hammock cranes. These attach to the hammock boards which are very thin. So, I tried my hand at making some. I first tried some steel wire but could not get them small enough, then I found some 30 gauge artistic wire that I had bought for another project. I put a U shaped piece of wire into a pin vise then SLOWLY wrapped it around a #78 drill bit. You have to go slowly to avoid breaking the wire. That's the drill bit in the picture.
 

 
These are by far the smallest eye bolts I have ever made. I drilled a hole into a hammock crane to test them, and placed one in without any glue. I was able to thread some line through it and tie it on and it all seemed pretty solid, so as long as I can manipulate them, which is pretty hard since they are so small, I should be good. I had to make about double the number I kept because of breakage or lossage or it just didn't look right, but it did not take too long. I have half of what I need but I am going to make a bunch more just in case.

Zoltan,
This small plane, a plane Lute. I bought it on ebay.de
 
Pawel

Thanks Zoltan and B.E. - I appreciate it.  
 
 As it turns out - my three darling daughters have convinced me to enter the Santa Maria into this year's County Fair.  hehe, so we'll see - maybe she'll be "An Award Winning Ship".    
 
- Bug

Great looking model Bug, love the finish you have achieved on her.
 
Well done.
 
B.E.

I finished staining the hull. I really like the way it turned out. It looks like it is aged, and at the same time, shows off the planking. Next up is coppering! Anyway, here are the pictures! There are a lot!








Now that has me thinking about getting a patina on my copper plates ! Until next time!

I have built the rudder, and the next step is staining the hull. I got a dark stain which I will test on some spare wood, and I got a min wax stain pencil to help blend the lighter wood with the planking. The pencil can do a little darker than the stain, so that should help even out the lighter wood to match the planking. I have a small sponge brush for more control. The thing I am most worried about is the planks falling off if I get them soaked with stain accidentally . I will probably just need to do light coats so that they don't fall off when a ton of stain gets on them. Anyway, wish me luck!

I finished planking yesterday! I'm sure I must have taken 2 months! I'm not able to do anything else at the moment, but I can give you pictures. It's not perfect, but I'll play the newbie card this time !




That's it for now! Until next time!

I totally understand because it's been 35 years that i am on my own and several times i thought to start another model but i can not leave it like that because i have not done all that framing as your (to my regret). So still have for 10 years.
Good continuation.
Friendship
 
Isalbert

Congratulations!!  What a beautiful piece of art!!

Excellent job Alexandru! She looks fantastic!

I'm headed on my way toward the running rigging, which means I really need to finish off most (if not all) of the deck fittings and other little details.  With that in mind, I took some time over the last week to finish off the launches as well and create some little pieces to add along the deck - particularly barrels and buckets.
 

 
Step one to finishing off the launches was to carve out and sand some oars.  I wanted at least a handful for each launch, so i created a bit of an assembly line with my handy faux mini belt sander and dremel.  These are pretty raw cuts of the oars, then I did a lot of little detail sanding.
 

 
Similar to the oars, I made a little bucket / barrel assembly line. The buckets are 5mm diameter downs trimmed to size then sanded down.  I used an X-acto knife to carve out lines to create simulated planks, etc, then very carefully hollowed out the buckets.
 

 
I left the extra trim on the sides then drilled out holes to thread in the rope handles.  The barrels were pretty straightforward as far as trimming and sanding.  They are wrapped with black electrical tape. A method I tried with my San Juan, the electricians tape is a great thickness and pretty easy to work with.  The "cork" is a hole drilled then filled with a toothpick and clipped off.   
 

 
The larger launch includes a mast and sail wrapped for storage.
 

Been working on finishing the rigging with deck accouterments, etc.  As I mentioned in the past, I'm such a huge fan of the kinda of 'underway' look of working rigging and "messy coils" that I decided that was going to be my style for this build.  Sure - doesn't say much toward the tidiness and efficiency of the crew.  But - I'm going to go with the idea that since Captain Christopher had such disdain for the big slow Santa Maria, that all the slackers ended up on that deck.  :-)  
 
Anyway, here's a sneak peak at my look: