John Cheevers

Tops:
 

got it
 

got it
 

Log #96: Concluding Thoughts
After 2 years, 11 months and 20 days, Alert is finally finished.
 
Overall, looking back at the experience I can say that as a beginner I would wholeheartedly recommend the Vanguard Alert kit. It is easy to follow along with and you can build a great model out of the box while also having scope to make small improvements if you desire.
 
The first picture I took of alert back on August 3, 2021

 
As a general rule, I stuck pretty close to the kit with this build making small improvements here and there where I felt comfortable. Most of the changes were made with the repurposing of kit parts or random household items I had on hand and I would say any beginner with a bit of patience should be able to do a similar level of kitbashing. The largest deviations were the replacement of the rope (courtesy of @BenD) and my decision to throw caution to the wind and attempt to replicate the Marshall painting decorations.
 
The Marshall painting of Alert

 
I would say I both overestimated and underestimated how hard building a model ship would be. Some parts turned out better than I had hoped while others fell short. However, as a learning experience I have no complaints. In the end I think it is fair to say that I achieved a unique look that I am proud of and I look forward to doing better on the next model.
 
I want to take a moment to thank some people without whom I would never have been able to reach the finish line.
 
@chris watton - I have long desired to make a ship model, but had no idea how I would even go about learning how to do such a thing. Chris’ excellent model made it possible for me to enter into what is a fairly overwhelming hobby in a way that I was able to slowly build the skills necessary to actually complete it. @Blue Ensign - BE’s Alert log was my second manual. I don’t know how many times I read it through, but it is safe to say that almost all of the changes and additions I made to the build had their inspiration in BE’s log. This model would be significantly worse had his log not been there for me to follow along with. All other Alert Build logs - I have read every word of each of them at least once and have taken lessons and inspiration from all of them. MSW - I couldn’t possibly name all of the people who made critical contributions at one time or another. Your many suggestions made the model better and It is highly likely that without all your encouragement I wouldn’t have made it to the finish line.  
So without further ado, here are some pictures of the finished model:

got it
 

HI everyone,
A long time since my last post. I realized that I was getting to far ahead of myself, building up the stern with everything just pinned. I needed first to paint the lower and upper counters before I could actually start assembling things.
 
And learning how to paint the friezes was a major learning curve!
 
I greatly followed David Antscherl's advice on painting in the Fully Frame Model, vol. II section 7.26. It was exceptionally helpful for everything from paint and brushes to technique.
 
Alas, I discovered after a great deal of experimentation that hand painting alone did not work well for me. Particularly for the background Prussian blue and the letters "Bellona" on the stern, I needed a way to get things sharper and more even in tone. So, I turned to my airbrush. I masked everything but the counter and sprayed away.
 
 

I glued artist's frisk onto a print of the upper counter letters and frieze elements (a woman riding a sea monster, a man riding a galloping horse). I could then turn the frisk/print every which way on my light table, and very carefully cut the frisk with a scalpel. I then attached the frisk and sprayed everything that would be the yellow ochre base for all of the frieze work:
 

I then used white graphite transfer paper to trace the rest of the pattern onto the surfaces:
 

Then following David's advice of painting highlights and shadows on the basic forms, I eventually got to an imperfect copy of the original Bellona model:
 

I learned to admire those original model builders for their painting skill. Try as I might, I just could not get to the same level of skill. But as good as I can do! So, moving on to actually gluing together the stern!
 
I did learn a few good things that I will pass on for anyone else attempting these kinds of friezes.
 
First, after trying a number of airbrush and hand paint brands, I settled on Golden. They have the same colors in different densities, for airbrushing and hand painting; the colors match the historic colors I was looking for; they come in plastic bottles with ball bearing inside, for mixing. They spray without problems through my airbrush. And they are highly regarded in the artist community.
 
Second, I struggled with the acrylic paint drying too quickly on the palette when I was trying to mix colors. My son introduced me to the model gamers' favorite tool, the Army Painter Wet Palette. This tray holds a water saturated pad, upon which is placed a parchment sheet. Paint mixed on top of the parchment can stay wet and mixable for as long as 48 hours. A huge help!
 
A glass of wine tonight in celebration, and on to assembling the stern!
 
Mark
 
 

 
 
 

Please don't paint the base. Use a clear, mat finish.  

Captain’s quarters are complete. Am not that happy with the results as I’m having age related issues with my hands.

Great model, great display. 
 

The Sharpie has its new home.  The display case was my second adventure with acrylic after making some additional shelves for one of my display cases, and the first time I tried gluing it.   I'm very happy with how the display case came out.   It is 1/4" acrylic with a peruvian walnut base.  I still have some fogging to rub out from where I sanded and polished the joints, but they are on the side and not that visible.  I got to use the acrylic table saw blade and router table I got for Christmas - it was a fun project.

Mark,
 
I love your last comment on making the scraper. I've been telling the boys this very thing about new skills for years.
It's gratifying to see the smile and look of satisfaction on the faces of other modelers when they finally try a technique and discover exactly what you said.
 
John 

Progressing albeit still very slowly!
 
The lower shrouds are now fitted on all three masts together with futtock staves and catharpins. 
 
I’ve just made a start on the ratlines for the foremast - surprised to find that I’m quite looking forward to doing these! 

Removing the JIGS
 
Before removing the jig, I decided like others to reinforce the frames by inserting fillers at the sheer. This is probably not needed, but should add some rigidity when fairing inside the hull.  Removing the jigs was straightforward. No issues here. As instructed, I used a long sanding sticks to create a smooth even sheer line. The hull template is useful here to tweak the sheer. 
 
The fairing Cap and Inboard Fairing
 
I added the fairing cap making sure I do not mix the two middle sections. Then came fairing inboard... This is a long process.  It took me several tens of hours to complete this. I used only sandpapers and sanding bars of various grits. Fairing at the bow is especially tedious because that section is quite concave and hard to reach. 
 


I also added the keelson as you can see. 
 
Planking Above the Wales
 
I completed the planking up to the 1/4" strake.  Here the planking template is very useful to shape the planks at the bow. I tried to follow the plan as much as possible trying to match the strake height with respect to the gun/seep ports. I found it important to check the exact width of my 7/32 planks and make adjustments where necessary. Errors are cumulative and it does not take much to deviate from the plan. A few photos follow:
 


 
The next step is treenailing. I will report on this in hopefully a not too distant future...
 
 

Hal,
welcome aboard. I think you'll enjoy building the sardine carrier--it has the right amount of everything to teach skills without being overwhelming. I'm building one right now from scratch using plans drawn by Dynamite Payson.... John

Love the symmetry!
 

Dave,
You're making great progress, and you're learning a lot about working from other folk's plans. I don't think you should be an absolute slave to the plan before you. Use it as a guide or roadmap, but don't fret the occasional road block or detour--the real builders didn't. I brought my model to a meeting to show off the jig and discuss how I glued up the pieces. The only thing missing that I wanted to add were slots for the transverse bulkheads--maybe on the next one. I was going to present the boat to show progress at our last meeting, but then I changed my mind. I'll PM you a recent shot as I kinda want to keep the model underwraps for now.
 
John

Dave,
Sorry, I had no idea that the photo with the jig was so blurry. Here is a better photo. All I did to keep from gluing the hull panels to the jig was to bevel the edges of the jig, as you can see in this clearer image. 

Dave,
 
I took a quick look at the monograph and it seems to me that the hull can be built on jig 1. The builder in the monograph does not seem to use jig 1 to help control the frame angle of the side planks. But it can be done using jig 1. Here is a look at the jig I used for my very "similar to a sharpie hull".  Your thinking is correct. You can call me to discuss technique if you want. 
 
John

Dave,
Great start! Gonna be fun following your progress.
John

The hull planking is about half done. The top down view gives a pretty good idea of how the hull is shaped. The planks are tapered at the bow, but I have left them straight at the stern. The 1 in 3 pattern creates a butt seam at every fifth bulkhead from the bow. The latest planks are long running from bulkhead 5 to the stern. The short planks from bulkhead 5 to the bow will be added next.
 

 
The planks are running pretty true to the planking plan. Because the planks I ordered vary quite a bit in width I divided them into two batches, those wider than 0.180 inch (4.5 mm) and those that are narrower. I started with the widest planks in order to keep the  planking run about the same on both port and starboard sides. This did cause the planking to creep ahead a bit in some places from the nominal spacing I have marked on the bulkheads. I have used all of the widest planks and now I expect the narrower batch to cause the planking to creep back to the marks. Any differences will be corrected with the last planks outboard of the garboard planks.
 
Here are some more views.
 

 
 

 
 
 
The planks are lying nicely with the curve of the bulkheads at the stern. They should come together just about at the top of the aft edge of the skeg where the stern frame fits. I plan to place a center plank along the keel piece that the other planks will join. The bow has been more of a problem. The outward concave flair of the hull requires careful planning and cutting of the planks to maintain even spacing. They must also be fitted into the rabbet behind the keel extension piece. This hasn't gone as smoothly as the planking at the stern.
 
The biggest problem at the bow and elsewhere is that the planks i bought do not have a uniform thickness. Some are significantly thicker than others, and if these are placed side by side the thicker one rise above the neighbors. Adding to this, the ends of many of the planks are only half the nominal thickness. Apparently they were pulled from the thickness sander while still being sanded, causing extra wood to be ground off the ends. I didn't notice this until I had quite a few planks glued in place, and the butt joints where the ends come together have significant discrepancies in thickness. In a couple of cases I have glued a second plank piece on the thinnest parts and then planed, filed and sanded it away until I had a smooth joint. I have had this problem with the wood in some kits, but I expected better quality control from model wood suppliers!
 
After all the planking is finished the stem will be cut down to come to a moderately sharp cutwater. The angle at the bow varies from garboard strake to the sheer strake. It should follow the angle of the planks to create a smooth surface at the rabbet. That is to be seen! However, it doesn't matter if the surface doesn't come out perfectly smooth because the entire leading edge of the bow will be covered by a very thin (0.003 or 0.005 inch, 0.076 or 0.127 mm) brass stem band and chafing plate that extends back some distance beyond the rabbet.
 
I have been using my quilting iron/plank bending/sail making tool to pre-shape the planks where they wrap around the curvature of the hull.
 

 
In my opinion this is a must do thing when you have planks that have to conform to significant curvature in the hull. I have sometimes gotten by with just gluing the planks and holding them with every clamp and rubber band I can find. The planks will glue down and then eventually conform to the curvature. But some edges will try to rise above the neighboring planks if you don't have enough clamps.
 
If I clamp just the ends of the plank in place and then heat the plank over its length, after a few passes with the plank bender the plank retains the proper twist without the clamps. Then it glues into place easily and requires very little clamping to get it to fit tight to the bulkheads. The little modified paper clips shown here are almost useless. They will not hold down the edge of a plank that is trying to twist back flat. But if you use enough of them after the plank has been bent into shape to conform to the hull curvature they will hold it in place until the glue dries. The larger clamps are holding the edges of the neighboring planks together so neither rises above the other and they form a smooth surface.
 

 
I wet the planks with water before heating. The water turns to steam, carrying the heat into the plank. Usually the plank takes the shape after a single pass, but I wet and heat the planks three times to be sure they conform tightly  to the shape of the bulkheads.
 
I also discovered something else. When I heat a plank any remaining glue (SIG-Bond aliphatic resin) on the bulkheads or neighboring planks melts, and when it cools it sticks to the new plank. Another post on the Forum describes using heat to melt Titebond Original Wood Glue and glue planks in place. Apparently you can do this with SIG-Bond. However, I am careful to wipe away any excess glue before clamping the planks in place. Any excess glue remaining on the bulkheads will cause a new neighboring plank to ride high, and glue on the edges of a plank will cause the seam to be wide between it and a new neighboring plank.
 
CAUTION: I have the plank bender set to the highest heat level and it works nicely at this temperature. But if you look closely at the photo above you will see some scorch marks where the tool has browned the planks. It happens when I hold the iron in one place too long. This is especially noticeable on a couple of the planks at the stern. I don't know how deep you would have to sand the wood to remove this "stain." For this build it is not a problem - the hull will be painted. But if you are building a model where the wood will be visible you probably should use the medium or low heat setting to avoid discoloring the wood.

Thanks for the comments and likes guys.
I'm already finishing Six Pounders for the Qdeck...

 
 

I continue with the decorations:

some other small jobs
 




 

Few lessons learned:
1) Flattening the surface with a plane is quite tricky, since you bump into some cross piece with a risk of a chipping. Next time -  make carlings the right height from the start (with just a tiny bit of margin for sanding)

2) Used mill to make notches for ledges - it is not worth it. The positioning is overly complicated, and the notches are quite shallow, so even a 1mm mill does not go deep enough, resulting in a semi-circular notch that is too narrow.
In the end a manual markup and chiseling worked much better.

 
The final step is my favourite - a little bit of sanding magic.
This time I tried fine grits of mesh sanding pads - they are amazing! 

Before/after sanding. Isn't it awesome? There is a method to hide all imperfections like they were never there. Like a make-up for parts  

 
The whole asymmetrical layout idea is a bit questionable in the narrow area, but I still think it's the best option for asymmetrically planked model, and the offset would be much smaller once you leave the "bottom of the hold" part with a very steep planking angle.

Looks like a render, isn't it?   
I tried to use a different kind of pear for carlings and ledges, but the contrast is too subtle, will try a more contrasting wood next time!

I have finished the initial shaping of the bulkheads and fitted them to the center frame/keel piece.
 

 

 

 
None of the pieces are glued in place yet. There is still some adjustments to make - a couple of the bulkheads are sitting a bit too high so I will have to use a file to trim everything to fit.
 
There is quite a gap between the bottom of the bulkheads and the bottom of the keel piece. This is because the garboard strake will be fitted in this area, and it is a very complex shape (to be described in another post) instead of just a simple plank.
 
The 1:48 scale keel piece is 1/8 inch (3.175 mm) wide, which is 6 inches (152 mm) at 1:1 scale. But the actual keel was 9 inches (229 mm) wide, or 3/16 inch (4.76 mm) at 1:48. I will cut two additional pieces (port and starboard) from 1/32 inch (0.79 mm) three ply plywood (SIG Manufacturing) to fit on each side of the keel and bring it to the correct width. The top edges of these pieces will be the rabbet the garboard strake rests against. The final keel piece will be a keel foot 3/16 x 1/16 inch (4.76 x 1.59 mm) basswood strip to be glued to the bottom of the plywood center frame/keel.
 
After all of this is done the keel assembly at the bow will have to be shaped to a "V" cross section. This will actually be a bit complex because the ship had metal plating around the bow and a cast bow chock at the main deck level. But that is some distance ahead.
 
At the stern will be an aluminum or Plexiglass extension of the keel that forms the frame for the propeller shaft and rudder, quite similar to what Keith Aug made for his Cangarda model. But it won't be as fancy as his work because I don't have the machine shop tools. So I will carve it by hand with drills and files. I won't be using brass because the 1/4 inch (6.35 mm) thick piece I would need costs about US$100.00 from McMaster-Carr! Aluminum is cheaper (and easier to carve) and I probably have a suitable scrap of aluminum or a piece of Plexiglass that will work in my scrap box.
 
Note: I removed the glued on paper templates from the center piece with a wide flat end blade. Most of it peeled off fairly cleanly. But some resisted scraping so I sanded that off. Most of the remaining Elmer's Glue Stick glue scraped off cleanly and the rest came off with sanding.