Julie Mo

Gift Shop Models, like the one of the schooner pictured above, are ALWAYS coated with heavy gloss varnish. But this should NOT be taken as a good example of any sort of standard of craftsmanship.These models are churned out in third world countries to supply the demand for affordable "hand made" models in gift shops all over the world. The models are built and finished in a way that maximizes their visibility and appeal in a crowded gift shop. Actual ships certainly have their brightwork varnished but I can't think of any actual historic ship that glistens with such a heavy coat of varnish on every surface, including the hull.

Richard, I apologize in advance for the financial hardship this addiction may cause.   

David, what they were making was rasps, not files.  I just wanted to make that distinction in the event you went shopping.     Rasps work much differently than files on wood.  I never found much usefulness for wood files, but once I discovered rasps, I felt like Geppetto.

Rasps are a bit of a hit and miss.  The machine made rasps frustrated me.  I have a couple of Nicholson rasps that were a waste of money, for me anyway.  Some people are OK about working with them but I'm not in that group.  When I got into building solid body guitars, I bit the bullet and bought a couple of Auriou rasps.  It hurts once, then you enjoy them for life.  They are hand stitched and simply a joy to work with.  They are locked up so I bought an Iwasaki rasp for this build.  It was better than the Nicholson but I missed my Auriou rasps. 
 
After the longing for those rasps got the better of me, I bought a couple more.  I closed my eyes at the price once again and hit the order button.    Liogier is said to make equally good rasps but I have never used one.  They are a little harder to get in the US.
 
If you want to see how the Auriou are made...

I found another newbie boo-boo.  I was sighting down the rails and noticed on the starboard side a dip about midships.  I was using a small rasp when trying to fair the deck and must have faired a bit too much.  So I am gluing on some cedar wedges to fill in the depression.  Note to self: When you don't have the right tools, leave it alone.

I managed to get the nose back into alignment.  Then I applied CA glue in the joints and hit it with an accelerator. 
 
I come back this morning and check it against a straight edge and this is what I see:

The tip of the bow bent a bit too far the other way.  Maybe I missed it or maybe the wood swelled after gluing.
 

If you look at the mid-section beam on top of the straight edge, you can see a slight dip down as it runs toward the bow.  When I was assembling the skeleton I noticed the plywood wasn't perfectly straight but I hoped once it was all together they would straighten.  Before I began installing the backing, it looked pretty straight, but not perfect.  I couldn't do anything to make it perfect.
 

This is to show how I made the nose adjustments.

I began the bow straightening process by making cuts on both sides of the bow.  That way when I insert the wedges on one side, there will be room to move on the other side.  But I didn't make the cuts all the way to the plywood beam.  The cuts I made on the compressed side weren't butting up when the wedges were inserted on the other side.  I probably need to cut all the way to the beam and eliminate any resistance to bending. 
 
The lack of anything that could hold the hull firmly in place made cutting difficult.  I dented the balsa at the deck rail while holding down the hull for cutting.  I need something with give so I don't do any more damage.  It's a different game w/o the clamps.

I began putting her nose back where it belonged...

Being parallel to the straight edge is the goal.  The two wedges on the left are cedar, the other four are balsa.  The tip moved a bit closer but it's still off.  I am surprised how much resistance there is to making it straight.
 
Another realization came about when I tried to work on the deck.  Now that the backing is in, there is no place for those Bessey clamps to hold the hull without denting the backing.  I'll probably wait until I get my shop set up before building a proper cradle. 

Richard, I used to live not so far from you, Willowbrook.  This is my first winter living out of Chicagoland in 64 years.  I promised myself last winter was the last winter I would endure.  I've found as you age and time goes by faster, you need longer summers.

I'm retired, John.  We old folks are always looking for something to keep us busy.

Thanks for the reply, Keith, but now I'm curious how your planks got the clinker effect.  I see how you pinned them down and it looks like that method would have completely glued the planks down, eliminating the clinker effect.  Am I missing something?

Keith, again, thanks for your input.   The pictures are very timely and helping a lot. 
 
With the backing you did, I was surprised to see sanding the first planking revealed the places where the frames are were high.  Did you apply glue to the entire length of all the 1st planks?  I'm wondering if you did, did the glue shrink the balsa. 
 
I've been thinking of glue sizing to seal the wood before doing the final sanding.  If my memory serves me correctly, when gluing very porous woods or end grain, you apply some glue sizing, let it dry then do the glue up.  Some of the balsa lifts instead of sanding smooth.  Adding sizing would cure this.
 
I am a believer in throw the most time in prop work and everything is easier after that.
 
Per, thanks for the compliment!  It's interesting to see another modeler is having issues with following the Amati directions exactly.  I see other models that have frames much closer than this model.  At first, it looked like overkill.  But now I really understand why additional frames are necessary.  I'm learning!
 
 
Now, I have another question...
 
When I took the model out of the Bessey clamps and flipped it over, I noticed the tip of the bow went askew.  I had been eyeing a straight edge as I did the backing but I obviously missed the dog in the bow.  I am guessing I need to fix that, right?   

Thank you, Bill!  I never would have thought of that.

Thank you for the support guys.  Maybe I give too much credit to the tools, but they are better than the ones they replaced.
 
Moving day is only ten days away but there isn't much we have to move from this rental so I'm choosing to procrastinate on the packing and see if I can get the model done to at least plank-ready.
 
I did finish the balsa backing (finally!) and took to the fairing.  Maybe it was my impatience but it sees getting down to that last few fractions takes forever.  My goal is to leave a thin bead of laser burn on the frame edges.  That way I know the hull is properly faired.
 

When I got to the keel, I found the mahogany sides of the centerboard assembly protruded beyond the adjoining frames.  So I took a small rasp and worked the balsa down to meet the frames.
 

The fairing didn't go as I had hoped.  Certain areas sanded down to the frames quickly while other areas proved stubborn.  You can see which is which by looking at the laser burn that remains.  I'll work those until I get that thin burn line I'm going for.  I am using my hands a lot to check for waves and high and low spots.  Before I start the planking, I'll shoot a light across the surface and finish up that way.
 

When I went to fit the rudder, I found I needed to do some filing on the frame before it would fit.  I'm still toying with the idea of making it pivot.  To accomplish that. there will have to be some careful profiling of the plywood rudder and I will have to beef up the bottom pivot point a bit.
 
I really don't see how I could have relied solely on the frames to begin planking.  There's too much room for buckling and bowing.  And then you'd have to fair that.  I can see why some modelers have talked about the fear of sanding through the first planking.  I'm glad I did the backing.  And next time I'll know how to make the work flow better.

Bill, while I am happy to end this crazy chapter, I feel overwhelmed by what is awaiting us.  30 or 40 years ago, I would have relished the opportunity, but I have found a very nice peace in model building.  I'm not sure I want to tackle another house.  But I will...
 
My therapist, the Endeavour, called me into session again.  The farther I get into the build, the more I enjoy it.  My therapist, Endeavour,  told me I had to take a picture of the real heroes, the ones that make this so much fun.
 

The tools in the photo are the heroes.  They are the tools I used most often to get where I am with this build,  It's coming together nicely.
 
What this venture has reminded me of is when I first started woodworking.  I bought crappy tools and had a crappy experience.  In time, I walked away.  For years.  Working with the wrong tools was frustrating and time consuming.  But I knew there was something I was missing.  Others did it.  Why can't I?  In the end I realized the problem was crappy tools.
 
I'm still working with only hand tools now, but at least they aren't made by Hasbro.

We just got the call.  We're closing, finally!  We'll probably be moving in 10-12 days.  Lots to do to make that happen.
 
The house only has a one car garage.  So I will be taking one of the bedrooms and making that the hand tool workshop.  Then in the garage, I'll have to figure out how I'm going to set things up there.  Pretty much all my stationary tools are on wheels.  That's a good start.  But it will take time to set everything up.  Power distribution and dust collection first.  No worries about idle time for quite some time. 

We just got the word, closing on the new house is back on.  Time to shift focus to all that has to be done, again...  The model will be the last thing I pack.  I'll need it to counter the insanity.

The last of the balsa I need arrived yesterday.  Thank you, Rick, for your kind offer.  I should be good now.
 
Things here have been crazy lately.  I feel like Dorothy in the tornado.  But I did get a chance to spend a little time on the build.  It's such a peaceful escape from what life throws your way.
 
Instead of fill and file, I've been trying to hone my skills and get the balsa boards to fit as if building a boat I will actually sail in.  So I am making the joints like they would be if watertight was important.
 

The red outline is a piece I just fitted and glued.  It took me about 15 minutes to get it fitted so that it seats fully on all four sides.  There are no 900 angles in that piece.  The piece sitting on the hull is what I started out with to fit into a similar void, like what the arrow is pointing to.  I'm fooling myself into believing I'm building a real boat.    It's therapeutic.   

The biggest obstacle thus far has been a balsa shortage.  I have been spending more time thinking than doing.  The piece that arrived Saturday was quickly used up.  It doesn't look like any progress at all.

Keith,
 
The deck flex issue was a concern, in part, when thinking about banding around the deck during the glue-up.  I would have to make sure the bands were on the frames and not half way between two of them.  To a lesser degree, I wanted a solid feel when the boat was handled.  Since it won't have raised sails, I can see the model being handled more often.

Maybe I am taking this whole fairing thing too far but I'm having fun. 
 

I had a cheap ruler that had some good flex to it so I decided to see if I could make a fairing tool.  I cut a dowel for handles, drilled and countersunk holes in the ruler and screwed in the handles.  Then I sprayed some adhesive on the back of a strip of 80 grit sandpaper and gave it a try.  The smaller piece just behind the fairing tool will be an attempt at a smaller version.
 

I ran the fairing tool back and forth several times, paying attention to when the sandpaper started to contact the plywood frames.  I found it a much better tool for fairing than anything I have used so far.  And I'm finding this phase of model building the most enjoyable to date.

Keith, when you say, "perfectly solid", do you mean there are no weak points, such as when pressure is applied and there is no give? 
 
My thoughts on backing the deck were along the line of the deck passing, not only pressure tests, but tap tests, so it sounds solid, too.
 
Another question, I was considering running the sub-planking at around 450 to the finished planking.  I know this will create more work but the finished planks won't be running parallel to the sub-planks.  I believe this should make laying the finished planks easier.
 
Your thoughts?
 
BTW, I got the idea from this build:

 

I guess you could call this an "off" day.  I ended up ordering the balsa wood and it is supposed to be here tomorrow, but I was getting itchy so I worked on some fine tuning.
 

After I flipped the boat, I worked on fairing the deck.
 

I began wondering if the build would be better if I also backed up the decking
 

Looking down, you can see the variation in backing thickness.  I'm still learning...  The deck structure looks sufficient but the plywood sub-deck that comes with the kit is cardboard-thin.  I am enjoying the fairing process.  I feel like I'm actually working on a real boat.  So the prospect of adding backing for the deck doesn't bother me.

Starting backing fill on the starboard side
 

This is as far as I got before running out of balsa wood.  Two (2) 2x4x12 inch blocks of balsa are pretty much used up.
 

You can see the frames just being touched by the fairing..
 
The last fairing was done with that 3M sander.  This is the first sanding I have done.  I'm going to need a respirator!

The hull will be left natural.  No paint for this girl!  I was drawn to woodworking because I love the natural beauty of wood.  When I made new cabinet doors for our kitchen, I chose Honduras mahogany (HM) for the rails & stiles and African sapele for the panels.  I got the HM for a song!

Sapele has a beautiful chatoyance.  Most mahogany family woods, less so.  I've worked a lot with African mahogany (AM) and I am reasonably certain the mahogany that comes with the Amati kit is AM. 
 
AM is very porous and it can be hit or miss, depending on the tree and what part of the tree the wood comes from.  Some AM can be really pretty and some can be downright ugly.  I redid the cabinets in the bathrooms of our old house.  Like the kitchen, the panels were sapele but I used AM for the rails & stiles.  I started with a very nice slab of AM yet it was just not as pretty as the HM.  But on another shopping trip, I picked up an AM board, took it home, shaped it, finished it and ended up throwing it away.  It was flat out ugly!
 
The quality of the Amati AM seems to be fairly good.  But I can see the dark flecks inherent in the species.  You usually can't tell how attractive the particular AM is until you apply a finish.  If what you see doesn't dazzle you like you hoped, it's probably AM.  It can be pretty but you know there's something lacking.  You usually don't get this with HM but HM is becoming endangered and rapidly more expensive.