xken

In the past I have had good cleaning results with the rubber like gum eraser used by artists. It really grabs stuff in the teeth be it wood; brass or resin. The coarser one at the bottom worked best, but that also depends on the size of the teeth.
I”

In the past I have had good cleaning results with the rubber like gum eraser used by artists. It really grabs stuff in the teeth be it wood; brass or resin. The coarser one at the bottom worked best, but that also depends on the size of the teeth.
I”

They say the necessity is the mother of invention. To that end I setup my panavise to hold a mechanical pencil to mark the top edge of the accent stripe and it worked perfectly. One thing to make sure is to mark a reference mark down from the gunports on each side and hold the hull steady while marking. Also have a slight upward angle to clear the aft section of the hull.

 
The top section of the hull was masked off at the bottom of the gun ports to protect what was already painted yellow and red. Sorry no picture.
Only one pencil line is needed since I am using 1/4" masking tape to define the finished stripe. The tape was applied very carefully to the top side of the reference pencil line. Once the tape was in place a couple of light coats of satin clear was applied to seal the masking tape edges and if any bleeding occurs it will be clear. The bottom half of the hull was masked off and the section from the line to the gunports was painted black and allowed to completely dry. Sorry no picture again.
 
Once the satin black was set the masking was removed from the bottom; then the black edge was masked off with the upper black area being protected. This exposed the bottom half of the hull and the tape edge was sprayed clear to seal the edge and then sprayed light green. Let dry completely.
 
The 1/8" tape was then applied very carefully to match the black edge. Once the 1/8" was completed a 1/4" was applied to seal the bottom edge of the 1/8" tape. Then clear was then added to seal the edge.
 
Here is a closeup to show the tapes applied.
Once the clear was completely dry (if clear is not completely set some crazing may occur) the dark green was sprayed.

 
Once the dark green was dry enough to handle the masking tapes were removed except for the masking at the bottom of the gun ports; this will be needed for the overall clear spray. The reason for the clear being applied is to have as little or no color bleeding under the tape. 
Here is a close up of the end result. Nice clean crisp edges.

 
Once all paints are completely set an overall satin clear coat will be applied. If any touch ups are needed do carefully with a brush before applying the clear coat. 
 

 
Now to work on the tiller while the paint sets.
 
Ken

The glazed hull was sanded down, keep in mind that 95% of the glaze will be sanded off. Once sanded and any joints that needed glazing were filled and sanded. Here are pictures of the sanded hull. The planking joint lines have "ghosted" on the finished surface. I will leave them so that when painted they will still show and kind of replicate the finished real hull. The ghosted lines are hard to photograph, but is looking close some can be seen.
 



 
If I sanded the hull again at this point I could end up with a very smooth surface finish. On sanding the hull curves always sand diagonally in both directions across the curved surfaces rather than fore and aft. This diagonal sanding reduces the chance of having flat areas on the finished surface. 
 
Next I rebuilt the transom area now having the planking butts to work with. First I added a thin strip the finish the ends of the butts. I then made a pattern to match the opposite side and added the needed filler section to match. I then sanded the hull to match and define the joint line of the hull and transom.
 

 
Next the new transom will be primed. Then the hole for the tiller will be drilled. 
 
Ken

The hull planking was completely sanded using various grits of sandpaper to the point of looking and feeling great. Next I primed the hull using Krylon Gray primer to reveal all the gaps needing to be filled with glazing putty. I use the automotive glazing putty because of its softness in sanding to that of the wood density and it is fine enough to even fill sanding scratches.
Here are bow and stern pictures of final sanding before priming.


 
Here are the joint lines that show up once primed.

 
Then I glazed the entire hull working one side first and then the second. Next I went back over the first just touching up any joints that the glaze shrank into. The glazing putty does shrink a little when drying. I use as little as possible just to fill the joints. 

 
Next will be the sanding off of the glaze once set. Some joint lines may still be visible and that will be fine since plank joint are visible on the real ship.
 
Ken
 
 

Finished up the rest of the planking between honey-do's. I am glad I had a little experience in planking airplanes when it got to the stern and bow areas and had to do some creative stealer work. I am glad that this will be a painted hull based on the butt joint patterns which I am sure are not to shipwright standards. It would have been very helpful if the plans had included a few butt lines to show the pattern.
Please keep in mind this is my first ship build.
 
Here are three views and some areas have had a little rough sanding done to them. 
 

 
Here is the bow area.
 

 
And a stern view, the transition to the transom still needs a little fine tuning.
 

 
Now to finish up the sanding and prep work for painting.
 
Ken
 
 

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

After years of dust and battle damage she was put up in dry dock; cleaned layers of dust and battle damage repaired due to young growing girls. Then a brass plague added, new base to index a custom built glass case she now resides for years to come completely protected. The granddaughters now truly appreciate the work involved in building models having grown up watching me build various model subjects. In fact the younger one now builds Star Wars spaceships with LEGO blocks that are quite intricate.
Fair winds and following seas in her new home!

Kmart, I hope you enjoy the book when you get it. Also just FYI I noticed the way you have positioned your grates. I laser cutting the true dimension is on the bottom side of the carrier sheet which also results in minor draft which increases with the thickness of the wood sheet. If you turn your grates upside down you will have the "good" side up. This also applies when setting bulkhead frames with the angles (usually 1/4" thick wood) setting forward and rearward to get the cut angle to work with you and less sanding required. Keep up the great work you are doing, more fun lies ahead. Keep in mind on the deck plan view the stern starboard side is greater from the centerline than the port side on the spar deck. Just check the plan layout to justify the planking when you get to that point. You can see this called out in my build.

Doris, I can only concur with all the previous accolades of your wonderful talent. I also appreciate the fact of individually sculpting each detail. Your time and effort puts the "ART" in the art of ship building.
Have a great day and keep up the great work you are doing!
 

I pondered how to do the trailboard scroll work and decided to go beyond just painting the laser cut pattern which is a fair interruption and slightly distorted to fit the stem. I reverted to my experience with working in brass and scanned the laser cut patterns, cut them out and sprayed glued them to .010" sheet, then subsequently to 1/32" plywood to be sawed out using a jeweler's saw with a 0000 size blade. The plywood provides support and resistance when sawing the small thin pointed details. Use candle wax very often to lubricate the blade and keep clean. Sawing on a bench pin is a must and make a wood finger to keep pressure on the part against the pin when sawing. Unless you have super vision magnification of some kind is a must. Keep the laser pattern close and handy when sawing for reference.
 
Once the sections were cut out the edges were filed and trimmed as needed after soaking in lacquer thinner to remove the paper and plywood. Once ready they were soldered using a 40 watt iron and 50/50 solder starting at one end and working down the part to flood evenly based on the part section. Solder will flow based upon capillary action to bridge evenly as the part thickens and thins. Solder was cleaned with acetone and then again starting at one end and using the back edge of an Xacto blade tip the solder was scrapped/carved to resemble a wood cut. This step must be done with care to avoid having to re-solder if a mistake is made. Using a light close and at an angle to the part really helps since the surfaces will shine once scrapped with blade. Work slowly and carefully.
 
Here is a sequence of pictures:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
These parts are great candidates for photo etching and would be a great addition for an upgrade kit.
 
The star center was drilled and the blade inserted and the points of the star sawed, then a sharp blade cut the final star points cleanly. This needs a steady hand.
 
One suggestion also is to take a fine half round file and grind the round side flat/tapered to the point to file into the tight intersections. The wood finger is a must as well; sometimes you just have to make your own tools to get the job done.
 
I will now cut the opposite side then work both sides to completion.   

Spent the afternoon on a two hour cruise on the Lady Washington. I now have a much better understanding of the dynamics of the rigging having seen the crew set sails, work them and then stow them. I took 147 photos of details of everything; enough to scratch build if I choose to. The cruise was fantastic once we cleared the harbor and got into the open sea with 8-12 swells. Loved watching the bow rise and fall and the ship roll; at one point almost at a 45 degree angle. I was on the rear quarter deck near the tiller and had a great chat with the captain and listen to him call out maneuvers for the crew.
This ship is rigged very much like the Niagara and as I looked around recognized most everything. This ship was the fast British ship in the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean". This was just a great personal learning experience.
Here she is heading out of the harbor at Morro Bay. 

Final update the ship is in the case and the boys enjoy looking at it. Fingerprints on the glass are indications of wanting to touch. It has just taken awhile for the pictures to come given very busy work schedules. Enjoy!

 

I have been busy on three kit design projects; two of which are in production and the third still in design. But now waiting for parts to come so I got back on the Detroit and carved the Rescue and two life boats. I used poplar rather than Basswood to get the detail needed. Here are pictures of the boats. Next will be the davits which Evan has detailed photos of to share when back.
Here is the first life boat.

 

 
Then the trick was to carve the second as close as possible to the first. They are both the same size despite the camera lens distortion.
 

 
Here they are painted red as close as I could match. Various sources show color variations that are weathered paint.
 

 
Here they are in there locations on the ship needing their davits.
 

 
I will wait for the photos of the davits that hopefully will have next week. Thursday I leave to deliver the Constitution to my son in Southold, N.Y. a cross country drive across this wonderful land. 

Between breaks from CAD drawing I finished up all the chocks for the forecastle and stern mooring deck. I also made a display base for her to sit upon. Next I will work on the small boats, their cranes and davits. Still waiting to get images of the container deck structures and catwalks as well as the new propeller.

 

 

 
I have sent laser cut part files off for two projects so I will be waiting for parts to arrive. Now back to work.
 

Taking a break from CAD drawing on two new projects; after awhile the old eyeballs start doing barrel rolls so to break away from the screen I bounce back to working on the ship. Here are a few images of making the bow chocks which have both horizontal and vertical rollers. The challenge was fitting each to there respective hull locations with different angles.
First was starting with square brass tube and inserting it into the opening in the hull and scribed a line on the external side of the hull. Then drilling two holes and inserting rods and cutting and filing smooth. Then two additional holes drilled and then filed to fit.

 

 
This shows the size of these chocks.
 

 
Here they are for final fitting.
 

 
Now back to more CAD drawing.