G.L.

After the supports for the rafts, we need to install the cabinets and lockers for the ammunition. Again, this is done from historical pictures and the readers should keep in mind that this arrangement has evolved multiple times throughout the life of the ship. We also add the rear gun turret, after improving it a little bit.
 

 

 
The anti-flak cabin is just a big block of PLA, in the kit. It would take way too much work to hollow it (the material is so hard) and I wish the designer would have done it in parts to assemble. So, in order to give it more dimension, I added a front wall and frame around the opening. The "stuff" above the cabin is made of brass wires, welded together and provide 5 hooks for the lines between the main mast and the rear gun tub.
 
One painted and installed, it looks pretty decent and gives the illusion that it is indeed hollow:
 

 

 

 

 
That pretty much concludes the Module #5. The machine gun is being 3D printed in resin and I do not have it yet.
 
A few overall pictures to satiate your impatience and curiosity:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Next will be Module #6, the rear deck.
 
Yves
 
 
 
 
 

The plain vanilla kit does not present two of the main features of HMCS Snowberry: the raft supports. The kit offers "Raft support" but they do not match the way Snowberry was rigged. I have had to "hand made" these, which comes as a welcome contrast after printing pretty much all the parts needed.
 
In the picture below, you can see the first Raft support located right behind the end of the forecastle and the support protected by some shielding:
 

 
The shield is the part from the kit (protecting the front gun), reduced in length, with 40% reduction. Everything else is built with styrene strips and a lot of adjustments: 
 

 
Once in place, it provides the ship with a nice look: 
 

 

 

 
The rafts are not yet ready and will be added later. Below is where we stand at that moment:
 

 

 

 

 
Yves
 
 
 

MODULE #5 - THE ENGINE ROOM 
 
This is a complex module, not so much as it is described in the kit, but because of all the necessary work to make it look like the HMCS Snowberry.
 
We start with a bare roof and its extension, which has been described in a previous post: 
 

 
The railing is added. I like to do the railing first, as it is delicate and as the stanchions need to be inserted in a particular order. All the straight lines are glued first, the rails are then inserted, bent and the remaining stanchions are added. It is not perfect but looks quite convincing from a couple of feet away.
 
Next, we add the skylights after gluing a piece of clear plastic underneath: 
 

 
The cowl pipes are added as well as cowls and access way: 
 

 
So far, it is all 3D printed and straight from the kit, with the exception of the cowl supports, reduced in height by 10%.
 

 
Yves
 
 

Time to begin planking in earnest. To this point I have added the sheer strake and the garboard planks. The plan from here is to fully plank the sheer and to add one more strake of planking next to the garboard. This will then leave twenty plank widths between them, which can be easily subdivided into four belts. I am using Castello for the planking, from some nice billets I purchased from Gilmer Woods in the Pacific Northwest. I cut this bigger billet into smaller billets from which I can slice off individual pieces and either directly cut a plank, or spile a plank if needed.
 

 
These are my first attempts at shaping the planks along the deadwood.
 

 
They have been temporarily fitted with double sided tape.
 

 
Problem is, in trying to create a nice curve to the edge of these two planks, I have created a hump at the joint between these two drop planks and the next segment of garboard planking. So did I learn the benefits of having spiled one long sheer strake in the previous post. I did not glue these two planks in place, but went back to work creating two new planks with relatively straight contours.
 

 
The replacement planks have been installed. I don’t have a good “after” picture to show it, but the hump evident previously is no longer present.
 

 
In this photo, which I showed in my previous post, the garboard planking has been fully applied. The only trick to this was the question of where the garboard plank should end. I had no good guidance on this matter from the planking diagram, so I had to simply use artistic license. A guiding principle was that I did want the garboard to end adjacent to one of the frames, as I am sure it does on the real ship. The forward end was nibbed at frame number 4, and I am satisfied with how that looks.
 

 
From here, this post is more pictorial essay than anything else, showing the progression of the wale planking. The strings that remain applied to the hull were laid down according to the widths of the planking at each station as determined by my planking diagram, but I was coming to realize that they wouldn’t be that accurate or useful for subsequent planking. Besides, they didn’t look all that fair or pleasant.
 

 

 

 
It was especially tricky to fit the planks at the bow, making sure that the joint at the rabbet was correct while also making sure that the plank was the correct overall length to lie down next to its neighbor further aft. So the solution going forward is to not leave the bow (or stern) plank in a row to last, but put them in place first and lay down the more centrally located planks after that. It is much easier to adjust those planks for length than the ones that meet the rabbet or the sternpost.
 

 
This was a big moment! After laying down three rows of wale planking as well as the garboard strake, I for the first time pulled the whole assembly off of the building board! It was very solid. I paraded it around the house, showing it to anyone who might be impressed. I think the dogs were the most impressed of all. (Wife: “That’s nice, dear.”)
 

 
From here it was a matter of adding one more row of garboard planking, so that the remaining planking would be a band of 20 planks. Here I am crafting the hood plank that covers the forward most tip of the garboard planking. Once again I had to learn the lesson of putting this plank in place first before continuing planking toward the stern.
 

 
This plank, and the others near the bow, did have to be spiled, or they would not sit fairly next to the adjacent plank.
 

 
Three rows of sheer planking and two rows of garboard planking are fully applied here. I have pulled one of the 3 strings off of the remainder of the hull. This also meant I had to sand off the remnants of glue that attached the thread to the hull.
 

 
All of the strings have been removed.
 

 
So now the build log is pretty much current. One last parting picture to show that I am beginning to line off the hull to accept the subsequent planking. I am finding that the widths of planks indicated on the planking diagram have to go out the window, because they don’t appear to correspond to the widths needed on the model. But I will continue to use the planking diagram to lay down the butt joints to match the ship. And I will use the layout for the starboard side on the real ship as the layout for both the port and starboard sides on the model, as the planking layout on the real ship is different for each side.
Hopefully things will accelerate from here!
 

I reinforced the frames that tended to detach in the upper part:

 
The stemson:

 
the keelson:

 
The limber strakes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello Again,
 
Thanks mbp521, Keith Black and ccoyle for the comments and thanks again everyone for the likes.
 
At last, this grain elevator is essentially finished.
 
Way back in this thread I mentioned I might post a re-cap at the end, well here it is.
 
As I mentioned somewhere before I come from a model railroad background (N scale 1:160) and have built many scratch-built items, mostly in styrene.  I cannot remember using plans at the beginning of a build but work from photographs found in various books, magazines or an occasional field trip.  I enjoy the task of reconstructing a model from sometimes scant information and I am prepared to have to spend time to correct mistakes or live with them (see below).
 
I expected that it would be finished this past spring, however quite a few revisions and repairs had to be made.  The first problem was that the commercial windows that I wished to use in the engine house appeared to be slightly larger than what appeared in my photos.  This caused me to build a new engine house and the hull as well in order to keep the proportion reasonable.
 
Next the marine legs (the movable conveyors that are lowered into the grain barge to remove the grain from the barge) did not fit well in the side of the opening in the elevator.  This was an opportunity to improve the fit and the dimensions as well as to incorporate what was learned from some additional photos that I found.
 
Finally, I had to sand the bottom of the hull to get it to sit flat, I suppose that attaching the superstructure introduced a bow.  This is something I should have corrected immediately when noticed, it would have avoided damage and delay.
 
I have made a lot of assumptions building this model, inserting things that must have been there such as coal /ash hatches, cleats, water plugs, and omitting things that I cannot make sense of, at least at the time I am working on the particular item.
 
I used some commercially available parts such as metal blocks, chocks, capstans, cowl ventilators and eyebolts from Blue Jacket.  Model Shipways eyebolts and cleats.  Sylvan lifeboat. Tichy N scale windows.  Micro scale alphabet decals.  Gold Medal n scale lift rings (really small eyebolts). The engine house cyclone ventilators, chains and wooden barrel - unknown from my detail parts drawer.  Rope and hoist lines are from EZ line, Model Shipways, Walmart and the mooring lines (which I have recently received) are from Ropes of Scale.  I wish I used RoS for the rest of the lines, it is very nice looking. FloQuil (RIP) and tru color paint.
 
The rest was predominantly styrene (mostly Evergreen).  The bell on the pilot house, pilot house stairs and railing, the 2 whistles, the stack and relief valve vent are fabricated from brass. All the doors and half doors as well as the pilot house windows and skylights are built up from styrene as well as bitts, bollards, top ventilator etc. etc..  I should feel guilty for using commercial n scale windows but I don’t, I have made (and discarded) plenty of them in model railroad projects and I won’t miss it.
 
In case anyone might be interested the inspiration for this model came mainly through browsing ‘ New York Harbor Railroads in Color’ vols. 1&2 Thomas R. Flagg, Morning sun Books.  There are many nice color pics of interesting harbor equipment mostly railroad related as well as text explaining operations in the harbor.  Also useful was an article, also by Thomas Flagg, in the back issue of  ‘Transfer’ no. 40, Jan-May 2004 the newsletter/magazine of The Rail Marine Information Group. There is also one photo and some info on railroad marine operations in  ‘The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad in the 20th Century’  Thomas Tabor and Thomas Tabor III.  For the most part however I used the 3 photos which were shown throughout this thread.
 
This model was intended for inclusion on a set of N scale modules which I hope will start building in the upcoming year.  I will have to devise a way to transport it since it is fragile, as expected.  The module with this model will have a few grain barges and a freighter next to the grain pier as shown in the pictures in the opening posts of this thread.  I am just about certain that the pier is the DLW’s grain pier in Jersey City.  The freighter happens to be there in this case, though usually the grain elevator and barges would meet the freighter at any pier in the harbor.
 
Following are a few pics of the grain elevator in action with a couple of previously built grain barges and a not quite finished small freighter model from Sylvan Models.  Note the crooked front ‘bumper’ under the name on ‘Amy Mack’, I have been not seeing that for months, I see it now when I post it on this forum!
 
 
Finally, thanks again for all the comments and all the likes from everyone during this build.  It is certainly a great place to be a part of and the place to go for info on model building and anything nautical.
 
MCB

Beyond cool looking and yes, it looks rather fragile. I can't speak for others, but I learned a few things watching your build. We do have an area for "non-ship" model builds and we do get trains there. 
 
If I may ask, how far do you need to transport it?  Could you take it apart such that Isis, the barges and the ship could be removed? 
 

Hello again,
Thanks for the comments mtaylor, wefalck, Keith Aug, and Roger Pellett and thanks to everyone for the likes.
 
I have finished up the rigging of the discharge booms.  I decided to obtain some nicer line for mooring lines so I ordered a few packs from Ropes of Scale, now I wish I had used it for the lines installed earlier, it it's so nice looking.
 
While I was waiting for my order I made some brooms and a shovel which must have been in constant use on this boat.  I also made a (very) crude representation of a 'power shovel or scoop' which were used in the hold of the grain barge by the crews which were hired on for the purpose.  These scoops were guided by hand and apparently pulled along by a continuous loop arrangement of pulleys. I assume that some of the lines on the marine leg were for this.  There are a couple of photos of this in "Transfer" mentioned above but it is difficult to make out exactly how it is rigged as everything is covered in grain including the workers, up to their knees.  Therefore I omitted the blocks and lines on the foot of the marine legs (wouldn't be visible anyway).
 
So the model is finished and in the next few days I will try to put up some pics of it, in its working environment, if I can finally get the dust off.
Thanks,
MCB
 
 
 

Very well done, Tom. you are absolutely ready to build an entire ship from scratch.

Very well done, Tom. you are absolutely ready to build an entire ship from scratch.

And now for something completely different.  I made the Winchelsea stove from Chuck Passaro’s kit.  The stove will be a great knick-knack for my oldest son’s desk or shelf.  Like all Syren kits,the parts are precision cut and fairly easy to assemble.  Some parts are very small and will break so care is needed.  Fortunately, extra pieces for those tricky parts are supplied.  Now, of course, I’m going to have to make another one for my youngest son.
 

I made the main mast trestle trees and hounds/bibbs.  Before I glued them to the mast, I made the spreader yard (similar to the mizzen cross jack) because I want to make the truss, which ties the yard to the mast, while the yard is off the model.  A sling block and two quarter blocks are also stropped to the center of the yard which will be used later.  Then the yard is lowered over the mast head and the trestle trees and hounds are glued in place.  The mast itself and the yard are still not glued - in fact, I don’t plan on gluing either, but rather let the rigging keep everything properly lined up.  I also rigged the gaff throat and peak hallards.
 
     

I gave all the assemblies a coat of wipe on poly then finished adding the pins to hold the bars in place.
 

 
I glued the capstan base to the beams using the corner bolts to locate it to the holes I had already drilled. I used some weights to hold it down while the glue dried.
 

 
This morning I started the assembly of the capstan model. I first trimmed the bolts for the capstan base and added them to the base. I then drilled the holes for the brakes and added the pins for them. I put the hatch into the coaming and glued the coaming to the base, again using weights to hold it down.
 

This week, I varnished the hull. It took a week to do so because I had to give five or six layers before I was happy with the result. Between every layer the  hull was sanded with fine sand paper.

Sanded between two varnishes.

A new layer laid.

 

 

 

 

It is always a bit dark in the workshop, therefore some pictures in the living room where the light is better.

 

 
Thank you very much for reading this log and for your likes.
 
Till next week!

Chapter II. The hull
 
1. The building board
 
The drawings in the monograph give frame drawings every three frames. The frames will have to be laminated, so I will need a frame template for every frame, therefore I draw the missing frames by taking over the measurement from the line plan.

 

I use the frame drawings to saw out 29 frame templates in 3mm plywood. I make also a base and a backbone for the building board.

Base plate and backbone screwed together.

Starting to place the frame templates. The forward four are cant frames and have to be placed in pairs at an angle to the backbone.

All the others are perpendicular to the backbone.

The frame templates are placed in such a way between guide slats that they can easily be lifted out again. I check the horizontal and vertical angle while gluing the guide slats.

 

After a while all the templates are placed.

All frames have a different bevel, depending on the position at the front or rear. To smoothly sand the beveled edge of the templates, I start by coloring the edge of them with a red pencil.
  
The third after template is visibly wrong and has to be remade.

 

Sanding the templates. I use a kind of bow to do it, a flexible batten with a strip of sandpaper stapled on it. I sand until the pencil color has just disappeared

Portside is done:

when both sides are sanded, it becomes clear that the fifth frame from the front is also a bit too narrow. This one must also be remade.

Frame remade and sanded.

 

Now I can start to make the frames.
 
Thank you for reading this log, for your comments and likes.
Till next week!

I'm a little surprised to find myself "finished" with the half hull (I still have to take it off the building board). I did notice one final "error" that I made in my build to watch out for. If you notice in the following picture I planked the transom short of the planks on the hull. I went back and forth and tried to look at every picture I could find to determine which was the right way and of course I missed a great picture further along in the instructions that showed I did it wrong. Not a big deal, but boy did I make my life a little harder placing the "decorative" pieces later. 



Please ignore any waves that you see - fairing is the such a critical step in a single planked hull and I'm glad that I saw the consequences here instead of a future build.
 

I did paint the wales before gluing them on, but after fitting them


(What paint job doesn't need a little touch up?)

Due to the fact that I planked my transom "differently" I had to cover the ends of the planks differently and this gave me fits. The directions details one piece that is bent, I needed a lateral bend and it simply wasn't working so I split the piece in two.

I think I made the following piece 3 or 4 times after trying to bend a single piece 5/6 times 😁. In the end I got there though.


Here is the final reveal:
 



Big thanks to @tlevine and the NRG for putting this kit together (and thank everyone who followed along!). I found it highly instructional and I'm very glad to have worked through it. There are a few areas in the instructions that I wish had a little more detail (placing the counter, planking the transom) but it was a learning experience and I learned a lot. Be very careful about wet basswood and clamps though (oh the dents! - thankfully most came out after applying some water but I typically places some scrap basswood in between the clamps and the wet basswood).
 

Do you mean something like this    and then 🤕.....  😉
 
A new saying
Once I knew very little and i thought that i did great work.
Now I know very much and i discovered that i did wrong work.
 
haha
 
 
 

Q:  Why do I keep beating my head against the wall?   A:  It feels so good when I stop.  🙂    Johnny

So I'm going to do this again, the right way  ☹️ 
 

Thank you Druxey / Michael. Also thanks to everyone for the likes.
 
I have been bitting around recently, Doing some of the mini jobs I missed out on the journey so far.
 
On the bulwarks 12 belaying pins are mounted, I toyed with the ideal of ignoring them but in the end I couldn't.
 

 

 

 
They are not terribly obvious and I guess most casual observers will miss them.
 
I had also missed a number of eyebolts on the jib mountings (annoying to make when setting up to do just a few).
 

 

 
I then moved on to stepping the masts - always a bit tricky to get the verticality and rake spot on.
 
Before installing the deck I had glued an extension to the keel to create a "tenon" to accept the mast foot. I had intended slotting the bottom of the mast but in the end went for a more sophisticated solution.
 
I turned a piece of dowel to fit the hole in the deck and into the end of this machined an oversized slot to fit over the tenon. I drilled an axial hole through the dowel and into this fixed a .312" brass rod of some 15 inch long. I then levelled the hull and set up the laser level to get the vertical. I then shimmed the slot with offcuts until I got the athwartship verticality correct. This achieved I marked the rake on the workshop wall and sighted against this line to set the rake angle. Adjusting the rake was simple as the slot was able to slide on the tenon. I applied wood glue to the slot and this gave me plenty of time to tune the rake angle.
 

 
 
 
 
 
 

 
The whole exercise was then repeated for the second mast.

Thank you for your comments and for the images, Rick.  Having read the books, you will know that deciding on that pin rail was one of the more difficult choices in designing the model.  Although there were others, most are well hidden within the ship and not as visible as this one.  My only excuse would be that all of those lines had to belay somewhere.  For those who don't remember, here's a reminder.  Note also the very full rail forward of the poop break.
 

 
Cheers,
 
Ed

first roughing:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Very nice planking job, Cyclops. You are building just the kind of model that I like. I sign in to follow.

yes my testing also was in a shallow lake, and while submerged - a large “smoke-trail” was following the model as it scraped through the mud. Not good for the nerves! Here’s the boat in that same lake at dusk - good to see the effect of the LED strips I spent so much time waterproofing and building an arduino controller for!
 
thanks for all the likes!

Just finished fitting the true stempost. Time for filling cracks and joints.
     Some additional parts also arrived. Among them were over a dozen 1/48 scale brass belaying pins, these are ideal substitudes for the thole pins(rowlocks) and will be fitted to the gunwale capping.
     It has been quite an excruciating job to build the hull,so I've been thinking of making some boat's provisions for a change, starting tomorrow. I shall start on the biscuit tank .