mikiek

Standing rigging is finished I've put together the yard - 2 dowels that had to be pinned together at the ends. I'm concerned over this. When I pick it up it sags at the joint. I'm trying to think of some way to beef it up. I'm also trying to make a plan for the sail. It is supposed to have wire at the edges, the edge is folded over the wire and you are supposed to sew it shut. Probably easy enough if I sewed, but I don't. To make it a little worse, the sail has some hems around the edges already. This was beautifully done by Marisstella. So any rookie attempt at another hem is going to really stick out. I've used fabric adhesives before but as Don reminded me, they have a tendency to spot & stain. Which leads me to another topic. The last project I did with the adhesive I didn't care about spots or stains. I was using brand new material and I WANTED spots & stains for the weathered look. The sail with Trajta is so well done I feel guilty trying to dirty it up. Not sure I want to. So using adhesive and risking spots could be problematic. Hhmmmm.

Looking good Tom. The only suggestion I would make is to start tapering the ends. If you don't get on that soon, you will get a serious lesson on stealers & spiling towards the finish. One version of your saying - Treat every plank as it's own project.

Man I feel dumb now. I see it perfectly after you described it. I guess it is time to make the GIANT yard.

That's probably the best idea Simon. I use boxwood extensively - often times replacing the entire materials list with it. As I am sure you are seeing it is a fabulous material for modeling. The one thing I have found is that it takes stains differently than other woods. For instance, my "go to" stains for basswood (Minwax Golden Oak) look terrible on boxwood. My message is, whatever you do, try it on scrap first and give it at least 24 hours to sink in and dry. I am working on the Marisstella Trajta kit. One suggestion there is to use a mixture of 60/40 linseed oil and thinner. Apply and wipe off soon after. This build is the first time I have tried that and I really like the results. IMO on many woods it looks better than staining. It darkens boxwood just a little. You can still use varnish or some type of finish over it. Just a thought. Oh, I was wondering after the initial programming how log did it take the CNC to produce your stern emblem?

Well there's no going back now. Blue is on both sides of the boat - I'm committed. I'm still not overwhelmed but I can't complain either. Final hull shots: I've started slinging string also. Rigging isn't overly complex although there is a sail to mess with on this build. I'm stumped on one item though. There's a block (the only block in the kit) that hangs down from the masthead, almost like pendant. Looking at both the plans and photos in the manual - I cannot follow the string from the block down and see where they go. So @donrobinson or @MarisStella.hr when you see this let me know please.

Simon - will you be painting that piece? Or painting it with more than one color?

OK Master Zoran - this one is for you, my old friend. I think the color in the photos is a reasonable rendition of the real thing. Maybe a little washed out but not much. Since I mixed this color I have to give it a name. I think it will be Almost Baby Blue. That goes along nicely with my Dijon Yellow, Evil Black and Chili Red. I did give myself a back door on this. If you notice, only the port side is painted. I imagine I'll do the other side when the green paint arrives. You can see one spot where I when past the masking tape and tried to cover up with what is left of the J.A. Green. It doesn't match anymore. More paint should be here tomorrow. So there you have it.

In a couple of pictures in the manual it looks like the shrouds are served up near the mast head.

Perfect Zoran! - That half blue boat looks a lot better than I thought. Light blue it will be. On another note. I began the mast today. I was looking at the rigging and could not tell if the shroud was one rope that went up to the mast, looped around and came back down. Or is it 2 ropes that go up and tie off on the mast? It's also difficult to follow the rope that runs up the mast into the block.

It is one of the most real looking wood finishes I've seen on a boat build.

I'm glad you're back buddy. I get worried when I don't hear from folks for a while. As Ken mentioned auto parts shops should have Bondo products. I love your miniatures! Maybe a few tin cups? Every time I scroll past one of your deck photos I stop and gawk at your stain/finish. I still think it's one of the highlights of your build.

All I can say is WOW!

Hello Zoran - I am still open to coloring the upper hull. I would like to know what we are trying to simulate by doing so. From the build pix that I see (including yours) and from photos of the real boat, it looks like all have a color on the the bottom half, then just the wood on the top half. Did the old manuscript have any references to color? Maybe the coloring thing was something specific to Korcula?

Hey Zoran - I forgot to ask. The bow is an odd place for a handrail. What purpose did it serve?

Things are winding down on the hull. Other than the oars I believe all the pieces are in. Tomorrow I dust off the lathe and see how many of those nice square walnut sticks I can mess up. On the odd chance that I get on a roll I'll have to remember to taper the mast also. I'm still on the fence regarding painting the upper hull. If there was some way to try before you buy I'd be all over it. But if it turns into something I really don't like, I'm hosed. Here she is:

Most stuff wasn't shiny. If it was it was probably oiled and mainly things like deck furniture, rails, etc. I would paint with a flat. If you want no shine then varnish with matte. For a touch of shine try satin. IMO semi gloss is too much.

I don't know. It depends on how the laptop screen is angled. I think the first pic may be closer than I thought. After all it's 10-white to 1-green. And it was a light green.

Thank you Zoran - I would not have thought of a step. I lightened up the blue, or at least I tried, 10 parts white - 1 part blue. It didn't seem to change much. Running with Zoran's idea I tried a stick with very pale green. The color is washed out in the photos but it is interesting in real life. I don't have enough dark green to do a larger test surface so sticks are as good as it will get for now.

I'm not sure Don. It's on the same laser sheet as the rudder but I'm not having any ideas as to where it might go. In my experience pieces like that have gone on the stern post, but it doesn't seem to add anything there. The part is shown on the plans but it is all by itself in an inset.

I now have some more J.A. Green ordered. Zoran, that blue was 5 parts white, 1 part sky blue. I will try 6 parts white and maybe 7, but as Russ commented I should make a simulated hull side and try another sample. What kind of strip goes on the bottom of the rudder? Wood? There is also a piece #49 on one of the laser sheets. It is small and triangular. What is it for?

Hi Russ and thank you. I think that is my usual m.o. , make a big (or too big) surface of scraps. My immediate problem is that just to be able to paint that stick I had to add thinner to the pretty much empty paint bottle and scrape down the sides just to get a couple of brushfulls. I'll need to order some more. What do you think of the blue?

Made a sample stick with the current J.A. Green that is already on the hull and a light blue. I'm not over-wowed by it, but at the same time I can't say I don't like it. Zoran, is this the blue you had in mind? If the boat were painted like that it would kinda remind me of the European fishing boats you see in the tourist photos. The ones where the boats are dragged up on the beach and they're a rainbow of colors. Keep in mind for some reason the green on the stick looks darker than the same green on the boat. You guys let me know what you think. Also wrapped up the rudder (except for paint) yesterday. I'm going to leave it off for know. It is supposed to hang down slightly below the keel which makes keeping it on the work stand difficult.

Tom - I mixed something I call Dijon Yellow. And it truly matches the color of Grey Poupon. I went the opposite direction - started with Buff and yellowed it up some. With a little white & brown for seasoning. When mixing any paint do one of 2 things - make more than you could possibly need or make dang sure you mix drop by drop and write down the recipe so you can reproduce it. After you finish A I would suggest the garboard next. These are kind of tricky and are typically a wider plank then the rest. Some people will also use the same width for the plank right above it, hence the possible need for different widths for regular planking. There are a few guidelines you can follow for the garboard that I can pass on when you are ready. If the garboard is not laid correctly it will have a negative impact on the rest of your job - especially at the bow. Don't know how much tapering at the bow & stern you have done yet, but don't wait more than a couple of strakes the start. That will keep you from having to make planks with toothpick ends or doing a lot of spiling later on. I understand your thoughts on the dividers. You should really spend the money on a good one when you are ready, so do that when you can afford to drop a few bucks. The one I use are now priced around $125 on Amazon. That said, they really can eliminate some of the questions you are asking. You can recalculate bands in the middle of planking, and they will tell you how wide planks should be. After putting in the garboard and a few planks above it, I was partially done with band C and decided to make 1 band out of the remaining space. Dividers made that a simple matter. You are about to hit the nastiest part of the job. Getting those sticks running down the side of the hull and then turned 90 degrees to cover the transom is challenging. We all soak planks and then bend them. What worked well for me at the transom was soaking them and then putting a twist in them. I used two vises, clamped the wet stick in one, twisted the other end (1/2 twist for most, full twist for 1) and put that in the other vise. Then heat it or let it dry naturally. If you decide to do that be aware that one side of the hull needs a clockwise twist the other side needs counter clockwise. I don't remember which was which but You should see what I'm talking about. Have fun.........

Zoran - an interesting idea. I'll consider any idea. Here's my thoughts: I am trying to imagine how light? Sky Blue? Sky Blue with white mixed in? White with a few drops of blue mixed in? Maybe you have a photo of what you had in mind? Are typical leudo hulls completely painted? I remember you said the bottom used to be tarred, is that still done? Would the tar be applied like caulk (in between planks) or spread over the entire bottom? The only tar I see around here is the stinky black stuff they use on roads. Is there some sort of marine tar that is different? I like having some of the hull showing natural wood. Right now that's above the waterline but it doesn't have to be. Although stripping the paint off the bottom half of the hull might get a little messy. If I left the green on the hull with blue above it, I'm not sure how those two colors would look together. I can try it on some scrap. To match the colors better, I could darken the green but probably not lighten it easily. So if you were about to paint a clean Trajta hull and you wanted to use light blue for the upper portion how would you color the bottom part?

A bit of confusion for me. Tholes & pins for the oars? Old manual says 6x6mm and 3x3mm, make thole pins , tholes.... I don't see any reference in the new version. For the oar holders I used 6x6 for the base. Could probably do the same for tholes but 3x3 will sit on the rail better.