DCooper

Good progress. This is the 'good fit' test body. All that scaffolding on the back is the printing support work, which I've kept in place to help keep the piece as rigid as possible when test fitting; as I'm using an ABS-like resin there's a fair bit of flex (which is good), so this allowed me to slip feeler gauges between the quarter galleries and hull to get each segment snug without the edges flexing outwards and giving false readings. The photo shows it in a 'relaxed' position, not glued, just held in place by an elastic band through one of the rear windows. At glue time, the body will squeeze in easily for a tight fit.
 
From here, it's a case of now going back through the CAD modelling bit by bit, finalising the windows, balustrades, scrolls and rails. I've managed to turn a 3 piece section into a kit with around 50 or 60 parts 😂. No wonder it's taking so long!
 

I don't remember if you have or planned for one, but a porch roof over the doors. This would make unlocking, and opening them in the rain more pleasant. My shop has just enough  roof overhang to drip water down my neck while I'm doing this.

I can't wait to see what's coming next.  
 
Great craftsmanship, thanks for sharing.
 
Dan

Radman...you are back...
 
That is a lot of tape.
 
My project has been on indefinite hold as well. You will probably inspire me to move forward again.

Next on to the decks.  I plan to use the same method as others here.  Deck is sprayed with black paint, then I sprayed a light coat of tan, next the individual deck boards will painted randomly with one of three shades of tan (tan; tan with a drop of black paint; tan with a drop of white or brown paint).  Once that is done, I will scored the deck to bring out the black underneath.  I know others have done this painting by hand, but I am just a bit to shaky, so I will tape it off.  Brings back nightmares for taping the hull but there isn't much curvature so seems much easier.  Perhaps won't take me seven years.

I got started Saturday by back tracking So that I could correct something I left out Friday night. One detail I wanted to add from the start which is not in the kit is the gun port raising tackle. In order to do this I new darn well that I had to add the anchoring hardware prior to closing up the second deck. After going to bed I realized I forgot to pre-drill the longitudinal beams for the rings. Doing it after they were installed was a lot harder than it would have been .
 

But they are in. After that it was two coats of Wipe on poly for everything in preparation for installing the main deck.
 

Then while making breakfast Sunday morning for me and the Admiral I got into it with a can of corned beef hash.
 

And Lost. On the right thumb which as you well know you need for everything. So I took Sunday off and went to the casino and played poker all day.
 
Tonight the pump got glued in and the capstan installed Then the main deck went on without any trouble.

I am going to have to stick an eraser or something on that alignment pin til I am ready to install the upper capstan.
 

I think I will leave it all clamped up over night and start on the deck filler for the hatch opening tomorrow.
 
That is it for tonight. The Panthers are playing the Leafs.
 
 
 

The more build logs of the same type the more ideas are out there for others to grab and use. If you start your own build log you will get a lot more exposure to a lot more people with A LOT MORE experience and knowledge then I could ever hope to have. All of the changes I have made in this build started as ideas that were gleaned from other builds or articles on this forum. Sorry if that got a little preachy but this forum is a great tool so put it to its best use is all I am saying.

Good Evening All,
 
The bilge pump is in place. The instructions call for it to be mounted on the lower most deck in the hold. In doing some research and reading Prof. Oertlings thesis on the subject I have moved it up one deck and extended the riser tube down to the bilge as it would have been. Slightly off center line and forward of the mast.
 
First I had to drill a hole through both decks trying to keep it as straight as possible.
 

 
Mission accomplished step one anyway.
 

The mast was inserted just as a guide. I know it looks crooked above deck but I think it is a bend in the dowel.
 

Because below deck it looks straight and that is where it matters.
 
I cut the dowel to length and pressed in into place. leaving a slight dimple in which the pump will be mounted.
 

 
The pump is simply pressed into the hole for now.
 

 
One or two drops of 5 min. epoxy will hold it in place. But not until just before the top deck goes on. I know if I were to put it in now I would knock it loose a dozen times.
 
That's it for tonight.
 
Best Regards
 
 

Any progress on your build? 
 
I am really enjoying your build and hope all is well.   I miss your updates.

Dan

Progress;
 

 

 

 
 
That's pretty much the standing rigging done.  Now for the running rigging and the odds and sods.
 
Still have no affinity for the rigging but at least some headway made.  Back to work tomorrow so I will have to finish this one on the weekends.
 
Steve --  I have about six pairs of those cheater glasses scattered though out my work area.  I can't work without them now and I find the cheap 2$ shop ones just as good as my expensive reading glasses.  Well not really the prescription one are perfect for reading
 
Evan-- I am honoured Sir, Glad you like her.
 
alde -- Give it a go!  Nothing like actually making a start.  Plenty for redoes on mine I can tell you.  And much I would do differently but I didn't know until I tried.
 
Thanks for all the comments.
 
Dan

Progress;
 

 

 

 

 
The rigging was a lot harder than I thought.  Very rough and I had to go and get new material because I couldn't get the hang of the line provided with the kit.  I have bought some 0.2 , 0.5 , 0.7 mm line which worked better but I ran up against my skill limits.  everything is just so rough and I am even more in awe of those that can rig well.  I am going to try and do the backstays next and se if I can't stuff them up too.  Still having fun but need a lot more practice before I could say I like rigging.
 
Jay-- I'm in Australia so I'm used to everything being more expensive, either through shipping or exchange rates.  I'm definitely staying with the smaller builds.  Way too much to learn before I try something bigger.  Besides even though the shrouds kicked my behind I knew there wasn't that much to do so I kept going until I finished.  Anything much bigger and I might have pulled the pin.  I think I'll get this one finished pretty soon and once it's in the case I'll have a whole different outlook on the project.
 
Thanks to all for looking in.
 
Dan 

Well, after an extended layoff (over 2 months) I am back at it. Not much to report being the first night back but I did manage to layout and cut two gun ports. I have been agonizing over this for quite a while. Firstly, I did not want to cut into the planking I had worked so hard on. Secondly where to put them. Whether to follow the sheer line of the deck or just make them level fore and aft I went with following the sheer.
Here you can see the framing and planking I am adding to the inside to give the ports some depth. The kit supplies white metal frames and lids which I will blacken and use. I will wrap the inside of the ports with darker wood rather than painting them.
 
Hopefully the other side tomorrow night.
 
It sure is great to be back to work.
 
Best Regards

I am Epoxing some bamboo skewers to the inside of the masts to make them a little more stiffer . I am having to remount one of the yards on my first mass since I accidentally snapped it off when I was moving  I am having to remount one of the yards on my first mast since I accidentally snapped it off when I was moving out it, CRAP!

Now I have to stash this mast somewhere where it won’t get damaged while I continue the rest of the build.

i'm following this build with interest, as i was bought this very kit for christmas.
 
Its my first wooden boat build, and i'm thoroughly enjoying it. However, i wish i had seen this build first as i think i would have approached the model differently. I suppose i foolishy believed that the instructions would be in the most logical step by step method. I now realise the decking would have been better left loose until the innards had all been completed, as you have.
 
I'll definitely be making the ladders as you have!
 
regards
Adam

Thanks Warnerade for the kind comments. Like I said before I really don't think this kit has any basis in reality. As I have been going along I have been trying to research Spanish Galleon construction methods and drawings. I have not had much luck yet. I will keep trying as I have an idea for my first scratch build that I would like to try. From what little I have found it seems that this kit took some liberties with the layout of the deck equipment.
 
I got started today with the lower ladder. I know I seem to be jumping all over the place but that is the way my mind works and this kind of build allows for that to a degree. I guess that is why I like them.
 
As you can see from the pics below after getting the measurements I needed I spent my lunch hour on Friday modeling the ladders in Autodesk Inventor. Once I established the pitch angle I cut the parts for the jig.

And glued them to what has become my jig platform. I then cut out the parts for the lower ladder. I did not document the actual assembly process as I was kind of involved in getting it right since this is my first one. It was pretty straight forward though put the rungs in the slots and glue on the rails. I did have a few minor hiccups but nothing worth noting here. The top rung you see in the drawing should have been deleted and is not on the final product

All in all it went pretty smooth and did not turn out too bad. I did a dry fit and it looks pretty good. A couple coats of poly and then glue it in.
 
Best regards

Working on masts at the moment. I put wood inside the mast halves to make the mast less flexible. 

Well it took a while and I wanted to make sure it turned out ok before I started posting. The lower capstan is done.
This is the instructions for the capstan which would basically leave it looking like this.
Taking some inspiration from Wolfram zu Mondfeld's "Historic Ship Models" and the NRG Database articles on capstans I think we can do better.
 

I started by cutting some left over planking into little wedges.

Then glued them in place between the upper part of the whelps.

Once they were dry I used my nippers to cut off the excess.

And sanded them smooth.

After sanding the upper chocks smooth, lather rinse repeat for the lower chocks.
After sanding the lower chocks I had to trim the very top portion of the whelps down to allow me to seat the head properly. Speaking of the head that is next.

I found these little spools at hobby lobby they are just the right size. I have a mini lathe but it does not have a clamp type chuck so I do not have any way to drill a hole in the center of a work piece with any kind of accuracy so these are essentially dowels with pre-drilled holes. The holes were so close to what I needed I only had to ream them out by hand.
 
Attempt # 1

After getting one of the spools chucked up in my dremel lathe.

I used a square needle file to cut a groove in the center of the spool. Then I used my razor saw to cut the parts.
I wound up with the two parts I needed and it did not take as long as I though it would either. Now to drill the bar holes.

Just as the drill broke through the last hole it literally crumbled in my hand. RATS!
 
Attempt # 2..............
 
The same as attempt # 1. Yes it even ended virtually the same way. DOUBLE RATS!!
 
Then the light bulb went on.
 
Attempt #3...............

I chucked the spool up and using my razor saw scored a slight kerf cut in the center of the spool. Then removed it from the lathe and drilled the holes while it was still its original thickness. Duh!

Then put it back in the lathe and filed the recess.
 
After separating the head from the spool I gave it a squirt of thin CA to harden it up a bit. Because I still had to concave the bottom to get it to seat on top of the whelps.
The finished head and base plate. you can just see that I gave the top of the head a domed shape using a sanding stick and 400 grit sand paper. Now on to the bars. The kit supplies brass wire but that will not do at all.

I have had a couple hundred of these tooth picks laying around for ever. I knew they would come in handy eventually.

Again using one of the cannon wheels as a draw plate and a little sanding I got them to a usable diameter.

Then cut to length. I would say that the capstan is looking more like a light house at this point.

The Bars are installed a little final sanding and some clean up and we can install this one.

Not to shabby for my first attempt. A definite improvement and at 7/8" it is just under 4' at full scale.
 
This really was a challenge for my fat stiff fingers. I will need to wait a couple days before I make the upper one.
 

I finished the planking up to the point I wanted last night.
Then I tried my hand at bending some 3/32" bass wood strips.

I found that a Maxwell House plastic jug lid is exactly the diameter I needed to match the curve of the hull. I placed the strips in a pot of water and brought it to a boil for about 5 minutes, then turned off the stove and let them soak for about another 5 minutes. I let them sit over night.  I still wound up with 1 or 2 kinks but overall I am happy with the result. I would still love to know how some guys get the tight bends they do.
 
This morning after trimming the and sanding the ends of the planks.
I made some tic marks where the top of the planking will meet the upper deck. Note the sheer making them all slightly different.

I started with the aft most frames as there will not be a gun here on this deck. Cut and installed 2 "sub-frames" and started planking. I figured if I did not like it when I was done with this small section it would be easy enough to rip out without too much damage.

Finished and trimmed to mate up to the deck above. Overall I don't think it looks too bad and I think it will produce the desired effect in the gun ports. I liked it so I did the opposite side as well.
 
Then I took my Grand Daughter to Hobby Lobby for some new coloring books and while I was there for $1.99 each I picked up a package of the small wooden spools you can see in the above pic (more on them in a later post) and a package of 7/8" wooden barrels.
The barrel on the right is the kit supplied one and the one on the left the Hobby Lobby product. I prefer the one on the left. Nine of them for $1.99 not bad.
 
That's it for tonight Its back to work tomorrow so it is almost beddy bye time.
 
Thanks for all the likes.
 
To all you veterans out there like me I hope you had a great Veterans Day.

Did not get as much done today as I would have liked. The crates got a couple coats of poly and I managed to complete the coaming.
Regards

At last some progress. But I am going to give you one more stanchion update. They are in!

I think they came out OK.

And here is where I take another deviation from the instructions. They would have you stain and varnish the deck and stanchions at this point then install the middle deck more stain and varnish then the upper deck and stain and varnish again.  Then after all that turn to planking the hull.
 
It seems to me that the purpose of a cross section is to allow the inside to be viewed and admired. If I were to do things in the order the instructions suggest it would be impossible to get at the inside surface of the hull to sand or finish them at all. So my plan is to begin planking the hull now and continue to just below or even with the middle deck beams. Then sand the entire inside surface of the hull and apply poly to deck stanchions and bulkheads. Then install the middle deck and repeat the process until the planking is complete. This will also allow me to install some of the interior hardware and fittings on each interior deck much easier with open access from the top.
 
So let the planking begin.


That is as far as 10 strips of planking got me. Is it just me or does it always seem like you are not going to have enough?
 
This is my first planking job so I was wondering. When double planking a hull as in this case, gluing and clamping the inner planking is fairly straight forward. But without access to the frames to clamp to how does one secure the finish planking while the glue dries?

Another slight change in plans. Because of the hanging knees being part of the frames the middle deck can not be installed or removed once it is fully planked. Again the instructions would have you install the sub deck then do all of the planking, scraping and sanding in place. My sausage fingers are not made for that so I planked the deck as far as the first plank that interfered with the slots. This plank I laid in place with no glue then continued with the small filler planks. Once the unglued plank was removed and the slots were trimmed I put the deck in place and shaped the two unglued planks to fit. I then removed the deck and pressed the two planks into place. This allowed me to scrape and sand the deck out on the work bench rather than trying to work between the frames.

When I am ready to install it all I have to do is place it in and glue in the last two planks.
 
Hopefully thing will progress at a more steady pace from here on out.
 
Thanks for stopping by.

I can't wait to see what's coming next.  
 
Great craftsmanship, thanks for sharing.
 
Dan

Thanks, Bob, and everyone for the "likes".
 
Almost done!  I'm in the home stretch now.  I finished the poly, installed the main mast bitts and glued the mast in place,
 installed the brass stanchions for the guard rails on the ladder hatch and rigged the safety lines, and glued the carronades in place.
All that's left:
-mount the hammock netting stanchions.
-mount the gun port lids.
-Mount the deadeyes and chain plates and finish the channels

Progress has been slow like molasses in Alaska in mid-winter, I'll post a few pics soon.