Chuck

Funny you should mention those. I didnt want to start treenailing the other side today. I wanted to wait until after Tuesday which is when I will get a chance to finish that planking. So I added some of the fancy molding. Those thin 1/16" wide strips were the first layer of what would become the fancy molding. It was important to add them below the ports in a special order before the other planking above the wales could be done. This would ensure a proper run of the planks and what would become the second layer of fancy molding. I actually added that today. They were made as you usually see them, with a scraper. I was very careful to make sure they were very thin. One thing I notice is that folks tend to place molding on their models that is too thick. The molding on the Cheerful is 1/16" wide but less than 1/32" thick. I started with strips that were 1/32" thick and after scraping, I thinned them down even more. It makes for a more delicate look. In hindsight, I could have gone even thinner. At the bow, the lower molding will carry over onto the stem. But it wont be as I show it in the fourth photo. It should be thicker in the corner between the two so the transition is smooth. But I have only lightly tacked it in this area to show you how it may actually look. I will try and finish that up tomorrow and I will take more pictures. My transition onto the stem with the molding was only a test to check the run of the molding and see how it looks. I will do it for real maybe tomorrow. Take a look at the contemporary model (last photo) and you will see a standard at the bow (not a molding strip) that will look similar to how I will eventually do it. That is the kind of transition onto the stem I am looking for.

Just checked...reference lines are OK...its just a little short. I adjusted. So just add a wee bit to the top of each filler. Sorry about that.

It looks good Maury....I would build up the filler tops to the same height. My guess is that the reference lines are wrong. Probably a mistake on my part. I will check out the plans and make an adjustment.......I will report back.

You are welcome... Thanks you all for the kind words and the advice on photographing the model.

Thanks Richard. Photography frustrates me. But I continue to learn. Chuck

I was asked to take a photo from the bow "right-side-up", so folks can see the run of the planks there. I hope this will do the trick. Let me know if there is any other questions. Chuck

I buy packs of 50 #78 bits at a time. I have already used half of them. They are so dam small and fragile.

Yes indeed...But its soft stuff. Just drill it out or use the awl to pulverize it. There are a few #78 drill bits stuck in that hull also. What are you gonna do, it happens. Chuck

Thank you very much. I finally finished treenailing this side. I am glad that is over. I tried my best to take pictures of the treenails really close. I had to mess with the settings of the camera to get the best shot. But at least you can see the shape and detail. They are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. But it does the trick. Remember these are #78 holes. Interesting though...the last two photos are identical shots except I changed the settings. On my camera I changed from Fluorescent to outdoor....on a setting and look at the color difference. Freaky. I could swear that both are representative as well. Its funny the tricks your eyes play on you. Only after seeing them side by side does it get so clearly different. I couldnt even tell you which is better. After looking at both for so long it all just blends together and gets confusing. I think I like the third one down the best and wont change the settings again until my kids steel the camera and screw up how I set it up. Then I have to start all over again. I hope this helps. Chuck

That Liverpool life boat is insane. Spectacular work.

Nautical Research Guild Spring Issue is completed. Become a member and get it delivered to your front door every 3 months. Here are some highlights including the table of contents. Modeling a Third-Century A.D. Roman Merchantman by Charles Cozewith Introducing a Novice to the History of the Ship: Six Books Revisited That Guided My Study by Phillip Roach EZ Line for Rigging Small-Scale Models by Mark N. Lardas The First Western Warship in the Hawaiian Islands Navy of Kamehameha the Great: Yet Another Fair American! by Clayton A. Feldman Liverpool-Class Lifeboat, A RNLI 1945 lifeboat at 1:18 scale: A Call for Updating the Dockyard-Style of Modeling by Hubert Mallet Jon Michel: A Gentleman’s Tugboat by John De Broske An English Bomb Vessel, circa 1690 by Gary Krempien COLUMNS SHOP NOTES Using a Lathe to Make Ship’s Masts and Yards by Andy Blokmanis MODELERS’ REVIEWS Combrig’s 1/700 Scale Battleship HMS Victoria, 1890 by Mark Myers Click here to read one of the articles.... Read this months Editorial by Paul Fontenoy For more info on the Journal and the NRG please visit the website.

Wonderful work on the stern carvings and drop. I especially like your version of the drop. The castings look very good and well painted.

Nope....You guys have to cut some stuff!!! LOL Its just the plywood stuff which is basically to save some time. No kits, at that point I might as well cut everything, that would take the fun and spirit out of the project. Its a very easy scratch project to build. I am sure you guys will fun making those few pieces. But if you guys really want other parts, I would be happy to custom laser cut them for you, but they wont be part of my stock items at all. Chuck

Thanks John I will try to take a close up image of the treenails so folks can see them....but I am sure they will be pretty ugly that close up.

Excellent work ...its looking great With regard to the cannon balls, that detail was taken from two contemporary models (english) of the same time period. They were both cruiser class brigs. On one of them, the shot racks were wrapped completely around all four sides of the coaming. I thought that was a bit too much so I used the example where they were just on the sides. Its hard to see in the photo but this is the version where they are shown on all four sides.

The holes are not too deep at all. But I wouldnt use the bit for lightly reaming. Its too brittle. Best to use a sharp pointed awl. Chuck

Boy that looks really nice. Well done Ben!!

A # 78 hole is really small, but what I did was after drilling the holes for a small area about 2" x 4". - sand the area smooth - use a sharp awl and GENTLY insert into each. Dont push it too hard or you will distort the hole shape. - Take a very , very , very sharp #2 pencil. Insert point into each hole and twist lightly. You must keep a sharp point and sharpen the pencil every ten or so holes. Use one of those cheap kids pencil sharpeners. - Then fill each hole with Elmer's wood filler. Scrape off excess with a piece of wood. - Sand it smooth to get a nice surface. - Then aply some wipe-on-poly.

Spent the day treenailing...woo-hoo!!! Managed to get half of the starboard side done. I am using a #78 drill bit for the size. They are subtle which I like. In fact here is a close up as it may be hard to see in the full profile image. But it ads the nice texture I like without looking to measle like. Clicking on the two bottom pictures might give you just a hint of treenails although it may also be my photography skills. Chuck

Maybe in the next few weeks Crown will be open for business. Look for an announcement but you can follow this topic for updates. http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/9119-introducing-crown-timberyard/ Jason is actually shipping me a wood package for my Cheerful project which will be made available to support the site for a donation. I will be sure to post some pictures for everyone to see when it arrives. I am sure the quality of the wood will be superb. Chuck

I will be offering the bulkheads pretty soon. But thats it. It will never be a complete kit . Only a few items to help the scratch builder.

I have been working on both models and wanted to show the finished square tuck and Cheerful. I am just about done with the planking but will be doing a tech session next Tuesday night at my club meeting. So until then I wont be getting more done. I may however move ahead and start treenailing. I have only five strakes left as you can see and its killing me that I cant just finish it up. But a week will go by really quick. Chuck

I just bevel one edge on the plank yet to be secured. I dont get crazy about matching it perfectly. It usually works out fine. I bevel a little and then test it. If its a tight seem...then great. If not, then I bevel a bit more. Then I use a number 2 pencil to darken that edge to simulate the caulking. Just that one edge. Chuck

I dont use wider stock 90% of the time. I usually bend my strips to the desired curve as shown below. Only with the tightest and most extreme bends do I pre shape from a wider piece. I have almost completed teh planking of the Cheerful hull but have five strakes to go. These were left off because I am actually doing a tech session at this months club meeting. It will be a step by step on how to spile and physically shape a strip so it fits perfectly against the hull. Beveling the plank is must as well so it fits tight against the last one you placed on the hull. It really helps...another must do...would be to line out the hull before you begin planking planking. See the tutorials on this site. There will be some spring back bending like this so its important to go a bit more... Chuck

Thank you for the kind words.....it is best to use a hard wood. Any wood that is too soft will get very fragile for blocks that size. The harder the wood the better. Hard maple for example would work...yellowheart...boxwood of course or most fruitwoods. Although some fruitwood is pretty soft. Chuck