FriedClams

Very nice, Marc.  Decals look great. Finish on the boat is clean, crisp. Excellent job. Your sister will enjoy it.

Great job Marc! Those rope coils hang nicely!

The Catboat is completed and waiting to be shipped to Prince Edward Island.  Enjoyed building this kit. 
 
Next I will decide to either continue the Utrecht or build me a garden windmill.
 
Thank for all the constructive suggestions everyone gave me in building this kit and thanks for watching.
(Upon leaving the workshop, please put the chairs back and clean up after yourself)
 
Marc

I feel for you Mark, having just removed a large area of planks already glued in place on my current build.
I'm blown away with learning that they actually used planks as long as fifty feet.  Never realized that such lengths could have been achieved in that time.
Beautiful work as always.
 
Dave

Greg, looking at the drawing Gerard attached... yes, they did use variable lengths and next to each other.  It appears they used the longest "suitable" planks.   I taking that to mean that if they a 50 foot long plank and needed a 22 foot, they find a 22 foot rather than cut the 50 foot one.  For strength, yes, longest available.  I'm still sorting it out and re-examining the drawings I have for inspiration.

It's a brain strain, Greg.  But it's also learning which is good.  I think I got the random part figured out on the planking butts but we'll see.  I'm also sorting out dropblanks and those hook scarfs at the bow (I think it's "hook scarfs") figured out   
 
 
 
No hands... maybe a battle axe might work.    I think this is the right thing to do as I'm learning something new and new ways of doing things.

As Greg wrote Death Star, that Mark IV will certainly make it easier! Such a pitty, all those planks ruined, whole forests ripped asunder for naught. You need a hand demolishing? Enough pulling at legs ... you did make the right decision, I know you don't make these lightly. It will certainly work out to your advantage, a real French deck.
Cheers

Thanks for the commets, the likes, and the ideas. 
After some thought, it's now deconstruction and construction time.  I figure if I'm not going to do it right, then don't do it at all.  In the first picture, you can see where I'm ripping up the deck back aways.  There's also the most inboard strake laying on the beams forward.   I'll redraw, re-cut, and install one strake at a time on each side and follow Gerard's drawing and attempt the "random" bits as to plank length.  I think this will be the best way and definitely interesting from my point of view. 
 

Just for kicks and grins, here's the laser cutting those first planks. 

 
Feel free, as always, to jump in and point out errors or misconceptions.  This is a journey...
 

Ah... nope.  The planks are glued into place and as each section is finished, I've been lightly sanding them to check the joints.  
 
 
That's true of the English ships for a given time period.   American went a bit longer as I recall.  The lengths on the French deck planking were a surprise to me as is the random placement.
 
 
Back to thinking and pondering... and occasionally turning the air blue..... 

Mark, what about taking a bit off the ends of a few of the after runs (the amount equal to a beam separation distance).  If done at random, would this not generate the staggered butt pattern?  I am assuming the planks are only dry fitted though?
 
cheers
 
Pat

I'm thinking that might work, Steve.  I'll run some tests.   If the existing butt joints can be minimized, that would be a solution.

Mark.
Would it help to hide some of the existing butt joints by filling the gaps with a little glue and sanding them over ?? Then you could create additional joints in other locations by artificially scoring the joints with an Exacto.

"Well... this is a fine mess I've gotten myself into, Ollie.....  " -Stan Laurel
 
I finally got the pictures off the camera, sized.  These are as she sits right now and for the last 2 days.   The information from Gerard gives me pause and some deep thought.   Right now, I'm wondering if I can "fix" this such that the planking butts are random without causing undo harm to the beams, my sanity, etc.
 
 
The catch is the quarterdeck ends just after the main mast.   I could random butt joint from here forward as the butt joints where the cannon and mastershipwright are would not be seen from above but the ones at the main mast area will be visible.  Forward, the butt joints show up well before the forecastle so they'd be out in the open also.   There are ladders, ship's boats, and cannon in the open area between quarter and foredeck but not enough "things" to hide the joints.
 
I'm going to think this through and fiddle with the drawings and if I think I can pull this off (maybe strip back some of the planks) and make it "random" I will.   i'll try to salvage as much of the planks as I can since I already have the rest of the gundeck planks cut and hate the idea of tossing them all out.  If I can't.... I'll just have to go with what I have.
 
Any thoughts, advice, etc. will be considered and appreciated.
 
Anyway... pictures.    The dummy cannon is being used to see if there's any problem with gunports and decking.  So far, so good, or so I thought.  
 



 
 
 
 
 

The length of the planking parts, whether for the hull or the decks, must be between 22 and 50 French feet or 7.15 to 16.25 m. depending on the location on the framework and the availability in the wooden parks of the arsenals
 
GD

Gerard, thanks. Could you estimate the average length of deck planks?

Hello,
 
In French construction in the eighteenth century, the fitting of orderly end of plank was not practiced. And for two reasons: - it would be wasteful to cut a beautiful plank for a simple aesthetic reason - the longer the plank is, the better the deck strength is.   As a result, the end of plank are positioned randomly, placed on the nearest beam but avoiding placing a joint with less than three or four plank on the same beam.     GD

Nils - your work is so far over my head that I need binoculars to see it.  Beautiful.
 
Gary

Hi Robbyn,   It's great to see you again.  I hope all is well.
 
 
Rats...   I had to flip the coin and chose wrongly.   The picture below is behind the times from earlier this week as I'm installing the second segment of planking at this point and have already cut out all the wood for the rest of the deck.   I'll pause and think this.
 

No problem.  Moving this to better forum like the Framing area would probably get more eyes and ideas.
 
I'm still fussing in the shop so nothing to report.

GemmaJF, i would be concerned with foam as after a while it starts to break down.  I used balsa, which I sealed with a diluted PVA - would this cut with the CNC hot wire cutter noting its composition?  Then again, I do not know the longevity of balsa either
 
It might also be better to move this as a separate line of discussion rather than clog-up Mark's build log if there is much discussion on it?
 
cheers
 
Pat

Hello Frank,
 
What a great subject.  I really enjoy working boats - and what a bonus that she is also beautiful in line.  I wish you enjoyment on this build.  I'll be following along and learning.
 
Gary

Thanks Mark!  
 
''Have a great weekend.
 
Cheers
 
Patrick

Haha!  Great idea, Greg.  Gotta protect the crew; if not, the Unions will be on my back!
 
Have a great weekend.
 
Cheers
 
Patrick

Hi Nenad
 
Thanks. I wish I had both!  They'd make my job far easier
 
How's your Cutty Sark going?
 
Cheers
 
Patrick

As always... amazing work, Patrick.   Nice touch on the control cabinets and all the other items.