DonInAZ
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Everything posted by DonInAZ
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Finished installing the side frames. After getting both the inner and outer frame pieces glued in place, the excess was trimmed off and then sanded down to be even with the top of the hull.
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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Got the mast step glued in. Now I'm working on the side frames. I've kind of gone rouge as far as the order of the construction steps. I just feel certain things are easier for my fat fingers to reach before other pieces are glued in place. In the attached picture showing the mast step installed, you can also see the heavy CA glue fillets I chose to add for strength. They will be concealed by the forward deck piece soon but they look hideous at this stage.
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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Hello Elijah! My first attempt at building a wood ship model was also the Phantom many many years ago. I got pretty far along on the hull and even finished coppering it. There was no internet back then and so I didn't have access to the awesome group of modelers this forum offers and didn't even know what a practicum was. As a result, I kind of went off script with it and eventually the model went back in the box and I went back to building plastic models and model rockets (both of which I still currently enjoy). Wood ship modeling went back to being that intimidating modeling genre reserved for professionals and true artists. Recently I discovered this site and it rekindled my desire to learn to build wood ship models. I purchased another Phantom (I still have the old one as a reminder of that 1st attempt) as well as some small Midwest kits. I will be re-attempting the Phantom as soon as I finish a couple of those smaller simpler kits. Basically, the reason I'm sharing all this with you is to compliment you on your enthusiasm to learn, your attention to detail (far beyond what I possesed at your age) and your willingness to work slow and methodically as others have suggested. You are off to a great start and you have an excellent attitude and approach to the hobby. I look forward to following your progress on your Phantom and wish you all the best with your building efforts. I'm quite sure you will be successful. Don Phoenix, AZ
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Another slight deviation on the forward thwarts. I decided to fabricate a little "shelf" piece in the notch where the king plank sits. This will provide a glueing surface and make the king plank installation easier.
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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Centerboard case installed. In order to ensure proper positioning of the centerboard case, it was necessary to dry fit the forward thwarts as well as the king plank since these pieces all have to align perfectly with each other.
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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Assembling and installing the centerboard case. Nothing really of note as far as the assembly except that the instructions call for CA glue and I opted for wood glue. The clamps are soft grip clothes pins I found online. They work really well for this kind of clamping. Plenty of holding power but wont leave any marks.
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I took a closer look at the instructions for the HMS Surprise and found them to be nowhere near as nice or as detailed as those for HMS Victory. That's unfortunate because the Model-Space instructions for HMS Victory are probably the finest intructions ever produced for a wood ship model.
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Attaching the chining boards. I opted to do this out of sequence with the instructions. The clamps are simple wood clothespins that are flipped around to be more effective.
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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Another question: Okay not so much a question as much as a deviation. I'm thinking of putting the chine battens in ahead of where the instructions call for. It just seems like it would be easier to do before gluing in the centerboard trunk.
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Okay, so my skiff has been on hold since last April while I got moved and dealt with some family stuff. I've finally convinced my wife to let me set up a building area in a corner of the living room so construction should resume sometime in the next week. My computer went south however so I'm going to have to figure out how to take, crop, resize and upload progress pictures with my tablet. Anyway, I've missed being at the workbench and am looking forward to getting glue on my fingers again.
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
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If anyone is interested in seeing how the whole Model-Space (D'Agostini) thing works, Bobby Waldron from Genesis Models is doing a video series on their YouTube channel where he is "vlogging" in great detail, his HMS Victory build by subscription. He's UK based and his videos are very well done. He actually builds on camera so you can watch him actually going through each step. I wish there was something similar for the Surprise. Anyway he also discusses how the subscrptions work and shows you what the booklets look like and what you get with each shipment.
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Are they original kits or do they simply repackage existing kits along with their detailed instruction materials? For example, the HMS Surprise looks to be the AL kit.
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Okay, so I have my first question: In the above illustration from the instructions, it looks as if the scoring on the side pieces that marks the location of the bulwark stanchions, is in alignment with the scoring on the bottom plank. same here in this image... However, the illustrations are not consistent on this: This illustration shows them staggered. This is more representative of how my model turned out, so I hope this is really how it's supposed to be. Another illustration that shows them staggered... Perhaps it's a moot point since I can't really do anything to change it, but I was curious which alignment was correct.
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Both sides attached (not pretty though) and off the jig. After some clean up, it's not horrible but I did use quite a lot of CA to get everything anchored down. Probably too much in hind sight but I did try to keep it to areas that won't be visible on the completed model. For example, as I mentioned in a previous post, I added thick CA fillets on the inside of the fore and aft bulkheads for strength. These will be covered by the deck pieces.
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- crabbing skiff
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Starting to attach the sides: Alas, I chose to use CA glue here again. I don't possess enough clamps of the correct size and type to make using wood glue for this step practical. Since I plan to paint the hull anyway, I'm not going to stress over CA glue marks. If I was planning on staining the hull, I would be purchasing more clamps and using the wood glue as this would be unacceptable. I probably could have (and should have) used a fine tip applicator, but this kind of "soaking" in of the thin CA is almost impossible to avoid and since I knew I would be painting the hull, I took the easy way out.
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
- Chesapeake Bay crabbing skiff
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I can't speak from a lot of experience, but I'm just starting out and I'm going with the Chesapeake Bay Crabbing Skiff by Midwest Products for my first build and am enjoying it immensely. The instructions are excellent and the materials adequate. My only comment there would be Midwest's choice to use plastic fittings but those are easily replaced. I liked them enough to purchase several more of their kits and I will build at least 3 or 4 of these smaller boat kits and a solid hull kit or 2 before taking on a full size plank on bulkhead tall ship model.
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Thank you Joshua. I'll give that a try.
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Okay, I got the framing jig built and the bottom plank secured fore and aft. As others have mentioned, there is a slight curvature to the bottom plank that makes this step more challenging. I did have to resort to CA glue here as there just wasn't enough surface area for the wood glue to get a good hold. I tried it on the stem post and forward frame member but as soon as I pushed the stern end down to make contact with the stern post, it popped loose. CA fillets on the hidden side of the frame members did the trick and shouldn't be visible on the completed model.
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Thank you Frank! If I have it off the jig by then I'll bring it with me.
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Yep! That's me. Looking forward to meeting everyone.
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Step 1 was to remove the bottom plank from the die-cut sheet. I had a small issue here right off the bat when the sheet the plank is cut from, and that will later become the framing jig, split in two. I used a little CA glue to repair it and it will be tacked to the building board anyway, so I'm hoping that won't be an issue later. After sanding and marking the bottom plank, it was on to building up the keel batten. No issues here. I've opted to use wood glue wherever possible and this step was no exception. Next was gluing the keel batten to the bottom plank and trimming the ends. I had a very slight positioning error as you can see in the above picture, but since this will be concealed under the deck, I'm not too concerned. I will however endeavor to be more careful in future steps. This brings us up through step 11 and we are ready to start framing the hull. So far, I'm really enjoying this kit and other than that slight alignment error on the keel batten, it's going fairly smoothly. Of course I'm only just getting started and I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to foobar something before this model makes it to the display shelf, but hey, that's all part of the fun!
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
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Wow John! She's looking fantastic! If this is only a practice model, I can't wait to see your next effort. Beautiful work. I have this same model though I haven't opened mine yet. I'm strating with smaller (and much simpler) boats and working up to the larger ones like the Bluenose. Don
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I was able to set up a small work area and assemble the recommended tools. Now it's time for unboxing... All parts are present and are in good condition. The components seem to be of good quality although I'm not really experienced enough to know good from bad. The only exception being (as someone else stated in another build log) is that the deck fittings are plastic, which is unfortunate but easily remedied. In fact as I type this, replacement cleats are already on order from Model Shipways. My LHS has a small selection of fittings and I can pick up a package of wood blocks there once I determine the correct size. I may also upgrade the rigging line but haven't decided for certain yet. The line that comes with the kit is white, which I'm not certain is right or will need to be colored. I went ahead and ordered some beige line (also from Model Shipways) just in case along with some beeswax which I know I will need. The only only other thing to mention here is that I ordered a copy of Howard Chapelle's book "American Small Sailing Craft" as an additional reference. I'm still waiting to receive that... Time to get busy building! Next update will show actual progress.
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- crabbing skiff
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Hi Hekk! It sounds like you, Page and myself are all starting out with this kit. I just started my build log and am in the process of setting up a work area and assembling the necessary tools. Reading about your experiences is going to be extremely helpful when I get to those points in my own build so thank you for not being afraid to share what went wrong as well as what went right. I think you've already convinced me to try to use wood glue over CA glue wherever possible. She looks great so far. Looking forward to your next update... Don
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So here we go... My first build log! First off I have to say after reading through some of the other build logs on this site, my hat's off to many of you self described "newbies" out there who are ambitious (and skilled) enough to tackle a large multi-masted plank on bulkhead/frame model for your first wooden ship build. As I stated in my intro thread, I even found beginners kits such as the Model Shipways "Phantom" to be pretty challenging and so I have decided to take a very gradual approach to learing this art. For one thing, I don't have a lot of time to devote to my hobbies at this stage in my life (job, kids, etc...), and I need something I can finish in a reasonable amount of time. Secondly, I want something that I, with my very entry level skillset, can do a reasonably presentable job on. Lastly I want a project that will teach me basic skills I can use on my next (slightly more advanced) model. With all that in mind, I have decided to start my wooden ship modeling education with several of the Midwest Products line of smaller boat kits. In my introduction, I stated that I would begin with the "Chesapeake Bay Flattie" but after further review, I think I will actuall start with the "Chesapeake Bay Crabbing Skiff" The reason for the change is that I believe this to be the simpler of the two kits. Both are skill level 1, but the crabbing skiff has much simpler rigging. So, the first step for me is to set up a work area. I've already been aquiring a few basic tools and I will make those the subject of my next post. Until then... smooth sailing!!!
- 120 replies
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- crabbing skiff
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