donrobinson

Good Day All, Thanks for all your gracious comments, likes and checking things out. Not much has changed other than scraping, sanding, planking and painting  . I did a little cheating when I planked the bulwarks, rather than using the planking strips I cut and shaped veneer strips. I did this as I knew I was painting and to go from five planks at the bow to three at midships seemed like a lot of work that was not necessary. With the painting and stanchions placed every 15 mm the illusion of separate planks would have been hidden at any rate.
 After bulwarks were planked the scuppers then needed to be re-cut. I did this using a 1 mm end mill bit in my rotary tool followed by some filing with a needle file and the other thing I can't remember the name of right now      .
 Next up is the final planking of the deck :)      on top of the .5 mm planking goes a central plank and after that I will be happy to see that all planking on this ship will be finished.
 Not much to see but I hope you enjoy
 



]
Mystery tool is the second from bottom
 
 

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Hello everyone, thanks to all for stopping by and for your comments and likes.
 Since last update I have been working on the floors and ceiling also the bunk rooms. It has been a lot of work but it all came together, I was expecting the floor to be the hard part, however, the bunks turned to be the hardest(for me at least). The six bunks took me about 10 hours to build even though they were laser cut. trying to hold the pieces in place in such a confined space to test fit proved to be a real test of the nerves. It was a good exercise in holding my breath and stretching my tongue
 I am really impressed with the planks, so far all have been milled really good and the color variation is almost non-existent I have yet to pick through to find a lighter or darker one.
 Even though this ship is a single planked hull it feels like I have one layer done already, I'm hoping the outside of the hull is as easy as the inside was to plank.
 The last 5 pictures show it finished with a fresh coat of brushed on wipe on poly.
 

 
These are the parts for the bow and stern bunks
 

 
 Next up is several more coats of poly then the hull begins
 
Have a Good One
 
 
 

Some progress has been made on the Trabakul, after taking off two weeks to work on Mayflower I have brought her to the front of the bench again.
 Since last I have started the ceiling(first four strakes) then installed the bilge keelson. I stopped there then went onto the floor in the fore and aft hatch, very important to do this now as if you were to finish off the ceiling you would have no way of getting fingers inside to put planks on the floor.
 Flooring in the aft hatch is complete and flooring in main hatch is partially complete, I'm working on the forward hatch now and expect to have it complete today.
 The aft hatch was done by installing the floor boards first, trimming them to fit stern( sort of a V shape) then finishing off the ceiling to meet the floor. This was accomplished by edge gluing four boards together then cutting to shape(kind of a four sided triangle) then bevelling the fore, back and top edges so they fit flush to adjoining surfaces. This took many attempts and lots of wood to complete and as always I kept my cool    .
 With all frustrations behind me I'm thinking things are going to be all good now. I will add that I am by no means a seasoned veteran but so far this kit has been my most challenging build to date and has been quite the adventure so far. 
 Next up after flooring is planking the bulkheads, will send more pictures soon
 
 

 
In these last three pictures you can see the bilge keelson(the oak planks) and also some of the centre flooring(lime wood) sanding is still required everywhere.

I took a bit of a play day off from the builds and made up these sanding sticks. The interior of the Trabakul is planked and with the bulkheads and support beams there is not room to get your hands inside to sand. So I'm hoping these will help. The feet are made from 1/2" square stock and the handles from 1/4" stock. A wooden pin is used to attach the foot to handle allowing it to swivel. I made extra feet so that I can have variety of grits. I'll attach the sandpaper with double sided tape, I'm just waiting for the poly to dry.
Have a good night all, and Thanks again for stopping in. I'm off to town tomorrow Wackowolf ordered some cold apple cider that I need to pick up.  
 

I'm a little off with the glue here, hard taking picture and glue at same time the rest are better   
 
 I'm off to the refreshment ridge, anyone need anything?  

Hi everyone. Thanks so much for all your comments and likes, I was caught off guard by all the responses here so I took some time off to get more chairs, re-stock fridge and grab some snacks    . I think we should be good now for awhile so I'll continue with the build.
 Next step up after sanding the keel is fitting the bulkheads and test fitting all the notches on them. Unlike most where a snug fit is wanted between bulkheads and keel to allow for glue the Trabakul requires the bulkheads to be tight as there is no glue applied to the notches. The bulkheads all fit great with only very minor adjustment required on one of them, the last three bulkheads are left off until the four pieces for the keelson are slipped in. When the final three bulkheads are installed the two side pieces of the keelson are glued into place the last two pieces are glued into place in between the side pieces. The top piece needs to be aligned properly as this forms the ledge for the floor.
 After keelson was completed the support beams were all installed, again everything fit with precision, only at the front bulkhead did I need to do some minor filing and that was just put a little bit of an angle on the notches to allow beams to fit properly. After glue dried I removed her from the cradle and glued the bottom of the bulkheads. This was a little overkill as once the keelson and support timbers were installed this boat was absolutely tight and sturdy.
 This ends the first part of the build next up is the interior, wish me luck.
 

 
Have A Good One
 

This the start of my next build the “Trabakul” by Marisstella:
 
First up I would like to thank Marisstella, especially Zoran, not only for this great kit but also for the fantastic service and patience of putting up with my endless questions some of which were not that bright. That being said two of the concerns I had were the instructions and the shipping from Croatia and to that Zoran e-mailed me the plans and instructions. They looked real good with lots of pictures showing pretty much everything one would need, then to top it off the shipping was free ( not sure if this offer is still on you will have to check with Zoran) so I went for it putting my other kits back a little further on the list.
 
Time to Start:
 
Upon opening the box I was first impressed by the amount material it contained. This is a single planked hull, my first, so I guess I was expecting a lot less wood. I’m thinking maybe they know my skills with wood and just sent lots of extra as a way of me not bothering them anymore   . I went through all the packages and billets and everything looks excellent, one thing that did stand out is the fine laser cuts in the billets much finer than I have seen.
 The strip wood all looks real nice and of good quality even the dowels are straight (a real bonus!!).
 Reading the instruction book and going over the plans there is some challenges ahead, one being the interior which is completely finished (another first for me).
My plan is not to bash this kit what so ever and just build as is, now I said this is the plan not a promise  .
 
Here is the box and contents:
 

 
all pieces sanded and dry fitted. a little tough getting pieces out of billet but nothing unmanageable
 

 
a glass kitchen table is indispensable for this hobby, everything so far has gone well. Lots of charring but easily sanded
 

 
More to come, seem to have misplaced some pictures

Good Day All, Thanks for all your gracious comments, likes and checking things out. Not much has changed other than scraping, sanding, planking and painting  . I did a little cheating when I planked the bulwarks, rather than using the planking strips I cut and shaped veneer strips. I did this as I knew I was painting and to go from five planks at the bow to three at midships seemed like a lot of work that was not necessary. With the painting and stanchions placed every 15 mm the illusion of separate planks would have been hidden at any rate.
 After bulwarks were planked the scuppers then needed to be re-cut. I did this using a 1 mm end mill bit in my rotary tool followed by some filing with a needle file and the other thing I can't remember the name of right now      .
 Next up is the final planking of the deck :)      on top of the .5 mm planking goes a central plank and after that I will be happy to see that all planking on this ship will be finished.
 Not much to see but I hope you enjoy
 



]
Mystery tool is the second from bottom
 
 

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Hello All, Thanks to all those who have stopped in, given likes and for all the compliments. 
 With this post you may have the idea I am stalling on cutting open and planking my deck..............you are right!! But it hasn't been a total waste I have accomplished a little. 
 

 
Here I am making the porthole covers for the forward hatch, Simply a walnut dowel drilled out, then shaped with a sanding stick then parted(the wire is held in place to stop the piece from flying away)
 

 
I apologise for the lack of pictures but here it is almost complete with covers attached. The trim is walnut from the kit then finished with cherry. The front step was an addition I added as the height of the ledge would have been almost two feet, much too high when one's belly is full of grog or probably wine in the Adriatic    
 
 
 

 
Here I have laminated some 1.5 x 5 mm cherry then cut to size for the doors. Also I have made the hinges still needing some cleaning up and paint.
 
 

 
Doors attached and working. I first tried brushing on wipe on poly but not paying attention I broke off a door. After repairing door I decided that spraying was a safer option, so it has four coats in this picture

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Hello All, Thanks to all those who have stopped in, given likes and for all the compliments. 
 With this post you may have the idea I am stalling on cutting open and planking my deck..............you are right!! But it hasn't been a total waste I have accomplished a little. 
 

 
Here I am making the porthole covers for the forward hatch, Simply a walnut dowel drilled out, then shaped with a sanding stick then parted(the wire is held in place to stop the piece from flying away)
 

 
I apologise for the lack of pictures but here it is almost complete with covers attached. The trim is walnut from the kit then finished with cherry. The front step was an addition I added as the height of the ledge would have been almost two feet, much too high when one's belly is full of grog or probably wine in the Adriatic    
 
 
 

 
Here I have laminated some 1.5 x 5 mm cherry then cut to size for the doors. Also I have made the hinges still needing some cleaning up and paint.
 
 

 
Doors attached and working. I first tried brushing on wipe on poly but not paying attention I broke off a door. After repairing door I decided that spraying was a safer option, so it has four coats in this picture

Thanks E.J., I'm always happy to hear your comments. I think it is time to do the decking now and get it behind me, one step closer to the masts and rigging then.

Thanks Zoran. I am going over the plans and I see what you are pointing out and I knew it was supposed to be like that, not sure where the heck my mind is some days   . So before I get too mad at myself and start tearing things apart I am getting dressed, going to the store and buying a pack of smokes(trying to quit) coming home and have a drink or two and a few smokes to calm down   maybe then I'll come up with a solution to this.
 Thanks for pointing this out.   

Thanks Zoltan, cherry is a real nice wood to work with and looks good too. It is reasonably priced compared to other woods which also gives it another bonus. Congrats on the house purchase, are you planning on having a full blown workshop in the basement(power tools etc.)?

Thanks Ian, the kit supplied wood for the deck is cherrywood so I am thinking it should it should all come together nicely

Thanks Denis, I appreciate you stopping in

Hahahaha, You have a good point there Robin. I'll maybe re-think my strategy        

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Hello All, Thanks to all those who have stopped in, given likes and for all the compliments. 
 With this post you may have the idea I am stalling on cutting open and planking my deck..............you are right!! But it hasn't been a total waste I have accomplished a little. 
 

 
Here I am making the porthole covers for the forward hatch, Simply a walnut dowel drilled out, then shaped with a sanding stick then parted(the wire is held in place to stop the piece from flying away)
 

 
I apologise for the lack of pictures but here it is almost complete with covers attached. The trim is walnut from the kit then finished with cherry. The front step was an addition I added as the height of the ledge would have been almost two feet, much too high when one's belly is full of grog or probably wine in the Adriatic    
 
 
 

 
Here I have laminated some 1.5 x 5 mm cherry then cut to size for the doors. Also I have made the hinges still needing some cleaning up and paint.
 
 

 
Doors attached and working. I first tried brushing on wipe on poly but not paying attention I broke off a door. After repairing door I decided that spraying was a safer option, so it has four coats in this picture

Thanks Ian, the kit supplied wood for the deck is cherrywood so I am thinking it should it should all come together nicely

Here is the last little bit for today the aft hatch, again there is a lack of pictures. Not sure what I was thinking this past week but it certainly wasn't about photography  
 
 

 
 in this picture it is finished but I wasn't happy with how it looked. Where top meets up with the frame just did not look finished and I never noticed the chip in the front panel until it was too late............so here is my fix
 
 

 

 
 Added a handle and another step.............it's step week   . I think it looks ok, then I sprayed it with four coats of satin varathane.
 

 
 And the ladders for both hatches, both made from all kit material. I have cleaned off that piece of dust on the one rung after seeing this picture . These also have been sprayed four times
 
 So I guess it's now time for the deck, or I could do the masts  
 
Thanks for stopping in
 
Later

Hello All, Thanks to all those who have stopped in, given likes and for all the compliments. 
 With this post you may have the idea I am stalling on cutting open and planking my deck..............you are right!! But it hasn't been a total waste I have accomplished a little. 
 

 
Here I am making the porthole covers for the forward hatch, Simply a walnut dowel drilled out, then shaped with a sanding stick then parted(the wire is held in place to stop the piece from flying away)
 

 
I apologise for the lack of pictures but here it is almost complete with covers attached. The trim is walnut from the kit then finished with cherry. The front step was an addition I added as the height of the ledge would have been almost two feet, much too high when one's belly is full of grog or probably wine in the Adriatic    
 
 
 

 
Here I have laminated some 1.5 x 5 mm cherry then cut to size for the doors. Also I have made the hinges still needing some cleaning up and paint.
 
 

 
Doors attached and working. I first tried brushing on wipe on poly but not paying attention I broke off a door. After repairing door I decided that spraying was a safer option, so it has four coats in this picture