Richvee

Thanks all for the generous comments! Werner, I wish I had thought of planking it separately. I think the overall process would have been easier than to plank on the model itself, and I would have avoided this mistake.
 
So... I managed to fix the counter area without too much of a problem. Truth be told, I enjoyed the process! Makes me believe I'd love to do a scratch POF build some day.
 
First, the location of the curve was marked using a compass where the width was set to two plank widths:

Then, the curve was scored lightly using a sharp chisel. After I got the general line, I progressively used a bit more force for a deeper score.

The two bottom most planks were then removed, as well as the hull planking below the scored line:


Here, I noticed the portside wale was not extending all the way to surround the counter planking. So I marked the location of where the wales need to end:
 
I then planked, treenailed, and finished the planks with tung oil:

Here, shims of wood was used to extend the wales:


I sanded it to be the same thickness of the wales and then filled it with glue mixed with sawdust. I also scored the wood to follow the run of the wale planks:



Depending on lighting, I can still see a very faint line where the two woods meet. But I think it will be harder to spot once more details come in.
 
Lastly, I glued in the moulding strips. I had to bend these similar to how I bent the counter. Once bending, the mouldings became flat, so I used a scraper again once the wood was fully dried, and I used the metal bit of a compass to widen the lines. 

Here are some photos after the surgery:




I am still deciding whether to paint this section blue. For now, I am leaning on the current finishing with tung oil. 

A bit of a long update!
 
The sternpost is fitted. Instead of gluing it directly on the counter planks, I opted to cut out a notch so that it fits through. I used a combination of mini chisels, #11 blade, and files to make this notch:


Since the sternpost was still removable at this stage, I decided to cut out the helm port. First I drew an outline of the port, used progressively bigger drills on the plank right beside the sternpost, then used chisels and blades to make it bigger. The final 1-2mm was done using a semi-circular file

Here is a photo with the sternpost dryfitted:

I used the rudder piece to make adjustments to the port making sure it can rotate freely:

The moldings were also added after gluing the sternpost. I first only glued the 1-2 cm of the molding that touches the stern post. Then after the glue was set, I applied glue to the rest of the strip. This was done since there is a slight curvature and I needed one part to be fixed before gluing the other end.




 



I also assembled the stand that came with the kit. I think I will use for further construction to prevent scratches on the keel from the board from previous posts. I just sanded the char off and did not apply any finishing. Ribbons were glued to prevent any scratches on the hull. 


The rest of the moldings were also added to the hull. This now completes the major hull work! 😀 

This week I scratch-built the 2 water closets on the Flying Fish.  Their construction required a lot more hours of work than I had anticipated.  As with the other deck structures I have discussed above, I elected to build the 2 water closets on top of solid wood blocks I shaped on a drum sander.  Carving the lower back end to fit into the bulwarks etc. was the most challenging part.  Thin sheets of solid basswood were then glued onto the front, top and sides of each, then I added wood strips for the various moldings.  The water closets doors were made with some etched basswood I had on hand.   The Capstan bars were made from a bamboo kebob skewer, using sand paper and then a draw plate to bring the diameter down to the desired size.  The same size wood strips used for the deck were used to fabricate the roof's.  After gluing they were sanded and  finished with tung oil.  The various other parts were painted after different steps in the construction.
 
 

Thanks all for the comments! The color choice is really growing on me, especially when seeing the smaller details come together (like the dark blue and white stripes). I'll have another point of confusion with colors when I get to work on the stern gallery. Right now I am keeping an open mind and looking at other models for inspiration.
 
I painted the white pinstripe on the top and bottom edges of the red part. I think this completes the major painting of the hull. To paint these, I measured the location of the masking tape 3+ times to ensure the white will be the same width throughout. The measurement also needed to accommodate the width of the moulding strips. Measuring this was the hard part. Right now, the lower white stripe is thicker than the top. Once the moulding is in place (just above the dark blue stripe), it will cover the lower portion of the thicker white stripe, so both white stripes will end up being the same width (well... let's hope so!). 










 


 
 

Thank you all again for all the likes and the nice comments! 
 
I have glued in the channel wales and black strake, and finished treenailing them. I then chamfered the edges with a sanding stick (220 grit sandpaper stuck on one side of a 1/2in scrap wood). I used a wedge to assist in keeping a constant angle on the sanding stick as I sanded the edges:


I tapered the planks to become thinner from about 2cm from the stem. This is because the wales insert into the stem rabbet in the real ship.

And here are some more photos:




Lastly, I applied wipe-on-poly on the hull. I damped the WOP on a piece of an old t-shirt, applied generously, then used a dry part of the cloth to immediately remove any excess.
 
I only put one coat for now. Here is a sneak peek:


For my next update I will apply tung oil on the planks above the wales, and finish with one or more coats of WOP on the hull below the wales.

Here are some more quick snapshots with the red and dark blue trim (please excuse the messy desk 😅). What do you guys think of this color scheme? 
 
I left some wood unpainted between the colors so that the mouldings have some bare wood area it can glue on.



Next up is the white pinstripes on the border of the red areas. I have no idea if this is correct for American ships, but I just love the look on the contemporary models and I am not going for 100% historical accuracy. 

Thanks so much for the likes my friends.
The main lower yard has now been mounted and I've begun the running rigging lines. The jeers, sling and truss pendant have been completed.

You have done an outstanding job with the planking, I also like the detail on the corners of the cut out to show the framing, a nice touch.
 
Michael

I finally finished planking the hull... and what a ride it was! It was my first time single planking a hull and I am now completely humbled by this task. Other modellers make it look so easy! Cutting each plank got old by the time I was half way 😅. 
 
I've learnt planking is not my favorite part of the build, but closing up the hull with the last 2 strakes were so satisfying!! Also, as @allanyed pointed out, clamps were not needed. I just had to hold the planks at the stern and at the bow for a couple of minutes after microwaving the planks so that they retain the curve.  
 
Once I finished planking, I taped up the keel and exposed frames to protect them from scratches. I then sanded the hull smooth from 100 grit to 600 grit sandpaper.

Here are a bunch of pictures to mark this major milestone of the build:





























Also, please do not hesitate to critique my planking. It will help me improve for my next models. 
 
Now, I am thinking of installing the 2nd layer of wales before I apply the finish to the wood.

I completed the shrouds and ratlines of the topmasts and added main and mizzen topmast stays and backstays.

I have made and mounted the three topgallant/royal masts and started rigging them.

The lower ratlines are now completed.

The uppermost band is now planked. I found this part to be much more trickier and challenging than the lower band. I'm not 100% happy with how the planking turned out at the bow where they meet the stem. It's not as smooth or symmetric as I'd like. It looks ok with the ship upside down, but looks a bit weird with it the right way up. No idea why this it is like that 😅. Maybe I just need to sand a bit more (I just roughly sanded it for now). 
 
Also, similar to the bow, all the planks at the stern had to be cut out from a sheet since the planks needed to be curved in shape. So each strake took a couple of days to do.
 
Here are some photos:






And with the ship the right way up:







Clamping the wood at the stern was also tricky. I had to think of different ways to do this:


I have a feeling the middle band will be more trickier since I will be slowly running out of space for the clamps.

Nice job, Rich. With a little bit of filler and some careful sanding she'll be ready for some paint. It's always exciting to get to this point.

No one's ever going to accuse me of moving too fast. Closing in on finishing the port side planking. One thing I can say, this isn't my favorite part of the hobby. I'm plodding along, sanding with 100grit as I go to level out the planks. I think it's looking OK. 
 

 

One side done. No wood filler yet. just a little glue and sawdust in a few spots. It's been sanded some with 100 grit. On to the starboard side to finish up the lower half. Then I'l need to fix a few low spots, finish sanding and look into how I will seal the hull. 

 

 

One side done. No wood filler yet. just a little glue and sawdust in a few spots. It's been sanded some with 100 grit. On to the starboard side to finish up the lower half. Then I'l need to fix a few low spots, finish sanding and look into how I will seal the hull. 

 

 

Thank you all for the encouraging comments, and also for the likes!
 
The first band is now planked and I lightly sanded it:







I still need to smoothen the edge some more before moving on to the next band:

And with the ship upright:





From this photo I just noticed, I also need to fix up the string on the portside (2nd bulkhead from the stern): 

With chapter eight completed I thought it would be a good time to post some photos. Please excuse the dust.

 

 

 
Mike

Interestingly - this is also how I cook bacon.  Coincidence...?   I think not.  

Thanks, Matt! I find shaping each plank a bit like meditating after doing it a while 😄
 
Also, I forgot to mention, I've been using a technique taught to me by @michael mott for bending planks. Instead of soaking wood to bend planks, I've been wrapping the planks with a damp napkin and microwaving for about 20-30 sec. This saves a lot of time! 

No one's ever going to accuse me of moving too fast. Closing in on finishing the port side planking. One thing I can say, this isn't my favorite part of the hobby. I'm plodding along, sanding with 100grit as I go to level out the planks. I think it's looking OK. 
 

 

I agree Bob. Even more so with sails. The pictures I’m accumulating of her under full sail is absolutely tempting me to try my first set of sails on this build. 

No one's ever going to accuse me of moving too fast. Closing in on finishing the port side planking. One thing I can say, this isn't my favorite part of the hobby. I'm plodding along, sanding with 100grit as I go to level out the planks. I think it's looking OK. 
 

 

Slow going as work gets in the way. It also looks like we'll have a pretty full high school baseball season so I've been spending more free time in the rule book and getting in a little better shape.
I installed the planksheer. I painted the outboard side, again, because I can't see another way to get a crisp line later. 
 
 

 
It was short at the bow, as many have mentioned. Pretty straight forward fix to add some length. 
 

 
I've added the whales, and I've started the first few strakes after lining off the upper belt. I found myself a nice pair of proportional dividers on E-Bay for under $40. I was amazed at the prices of this little instrument from retail vendors. 
 

 

 
 
 The whales are painted, but I'll need to sand them more. The paint was more to get color on the top of the first whale strake, again, the only way to get a clean line for me.