canoe21

Thanks Lawrence and J,   Patience has been forced upon me for the time being Lawrence (awaiting a timber shipment, with any luck early in the week) I ordered some of that Aliphatic Wood glue so that should be arriving at my door soon too!
 
J they are cracking looking little boats (you may remember I have a 'thing' for these small boat types    ) I must pick up some Epoxy Glue too J, as strength will be required later !
 
I have a few photo updates, nothing too substantial over the last photo post.. except  Mild Sanding Phase 1 is complete and I won't require a Phase 2 as the Hull is now smoother than something that would be considered particularly smooth..  that's how smooth it is!!
 
Putting the Rabbet, Keel & Bow in place is next up.
 
Thanks again for looking in and the support.
 
Eamonn
 
BTW has anyone heard of this Glue type (made by Gorilla Glue) that foams, but the expanded foam outside the stuck joint is easy to remove, a friend mentioned to me that it is used for sticking wood, you wet one surface and apply the glue to the other, I was wondering if  anyone has tried it on model boats?
 
Anyhoo Photo Time.. (plenty of Profile Shots to keep Ollie happy  )

Coming on well Eamonn   you missed the line"smoke me a kipper I'll be back for breakfast,Johnny"remember that one?Yes I concur some Chinese takeaways do have a forte for overcooking squid,so Kester's theory may indeed be true  
 
Kind Regards Nigel

Hi Lawrence, yup she will be 2nd planked, this won't happen until my new batch of timber arrives (next day or so hopefully) as I want to plank the Bulwark area (top-sides) in a lighter wood than the Walnut supplied as this area won't be painted.  So some filling and sanding are in my immediate future.. not as tough I feel as the 200 or so hammocks you are in the process of creating
 
Thanks for stopping by.
 
Eamonn

Looking very good Eamonn,great work.I have to agree with Kester,snapping those ears off is butchery careful cutting and removal is the way to go Theoretically the rabbet at the bow will secure the planks,but pinning shouldn't be necessary anyway.Got to google'the plank' now  
Kind Regards Nigel

Photo Update as Promised:
 
3 more planks each side went on this morning for a grand total of 6 a side, remember I'm not overly concerned over their appearance as this is only 1st planking and my aim is to get them on relatively neatly so as to give a good base for 2nd planking.
They are cut over length, and will be trimmed/sanded down later. I most likely will nail them in place also, particularly at the bow/stern areas as the last think I want is for them to 'spring' later.
 
Thanks For Checking In..
 
Eamonn
 
Oh and Dee Dee, if you are reading this I ordered those books from Abebooks this morning, Thanks again for the tip as I reckon I got them all for the price of 2 with Amazon! Thanks also to Kester & Nigel for putting me onto them to begin with!   E
 
 

Wow! I just caught up and things are looking fantastic! She is such an interesting subject, and you really do her justice with all those added details. The firewood and axe by the stove are a really nice touch. Have you decided if you are going to add sails? I think they would look very good on her! Great work!

Lawrence: Thanks, I was a little apprehensive about installing them as, unlike you, I don't have a wonderful Admiral who could sew them. The ones in the kit are almost completely done so I think I can get away with using some of that iron on sewing tape. At least that's the plan
 
Darrell: Thanks, great of you to stop by

Proof of life...  At least I hope it is....
 
After testing my memory and eye-hand coordination (along with many and sundry "honey-do's"... I'm finally back.   Bear with me if my terminology isn't correct and feel free to correct it.  I'm still have some memory issues with words, names, and phrases.  
 
First up... I've started planking the bulwarks. One strake done so far but it's a start.  And ran a production run on the Death Star and cut out probably 30 cannon carriages.  A lot more than I'll need of this size (gundeck only) but I want to have spares in case I tank a few.  Hmm... photo work needs more practice but damn if it doesn't feel great to make some sawdust.
 

Beautiful work on the deck Mark. 
 
Cheers,

Thanks for the support with comments and likes.
 
I've become a believer that ripping things out and re-working them works best for me.  I can think of too many places on this ship that it was make, finesse, offer up and scrap box.  Some areas were pretty radical or seemed at the time, but worth it.... like those pesky stern transom timbers, etc. 
 
I ended up taking up more of the planking than I originally thought.   Things just didn't look right on the drawing so....  ripped and redrew much of the planking.  I received a much needed re-supply of boxwood from Jason at Crown and was pleasantly surprised at how fast and how nice the wood is.
 
So... I did more research and staring at other people's models on the web for inspiration along with Frolich's book.  Seems to a bit of a pattern in that plank butts on one beam must have 2 strakes between them.  If possible 2 adjoining planks must have 2 beams between them.  But... there's the random factor.  So, had to think like shipwright in the yard and look at the pile of what was available. I took 5 planks varying from 25 feet to 50 feet in length and then randomly picked one up.  Drew it on the drawing and the repeated the process until the whole strake was cut and installed. Duplicated that strake for the other side.  Lather, rinse, and repeat as they, until done.  
 
There's some gaps that need attending to, but I'm sanding and scraping away.  Getting there....   The char on plank sides seems to be working out.  Just lightly sanded off the loose stuff.  In the pictures, the lighter "caulking" is where everything came together perfectly.   The black caulking still needs more sanding to get the fit flush.  There's a few areas that need some filling.  Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the deck.
 
Here's the pics....  as always, I'm open to discussion and learning.
 


 
 

Hi Folks
 
Many thanks for all of your Likes and comments.  Greatly appreciated.  
 
Tonight, I did a bit more work on Shadow's tender which is berthed in the foc'sle.  Principally, I've added the crane that is used to lift the tender out of her berth in the bows into the water.  
 
Also, I kinda got a bit nostalgic and was wondering what Shadow would look like with two of her siblings in the fleet, namely Majellan and Mystic, (both of which have Build Logs in this Forum).  So, I took them out for a brief photo-shoot. Mmmmmm, not bad, I reckon.
 
I hope you enjoy these photos.
 
Cheers
 
Patrick
 

great job on those little boats Patrick!  can't wait to see how you finish off the engine room  

Nice work on those two tenders Patrick.
 
Cheers,

Hi everyone
 
Many thanks for all of your comments and Likes.  Greatly appreciated as always!
 
Shadow has a third Tender, which is located right up in the forecastle.  As I didn't have any detailed plans as to what the tender looked like, I decided to base it on an actual jet powered tender (a Castoldi JT21) which I found on the Internet (http://www.castoldijet.it/en/jettenders_en/jt21_en.html).
 
The following photos show my attempt at building my version.  She's still pretty rough at this stage.  A lot more sanding and painting are required, but at least it's a start.

Also featured in the photos below are the rear garage doors (where Shadow's two larger tenders are located).  I chose to temporarily glue the doors in the opened position at this stage, in order to show the overall effect.
 
Still lots of fun to go, folks!
 
Cheers
 
Patrick

Thanks Lawrence! 
 
I gotta love building these tiny models.  They certainly take up less space in the house!
 
All the best.
 
Patrick 

well I think I have the faring just about done.   I was sharing it with another project.
 

 

 
might need a little more fine tuning here and there........especially around the stern  {part #21}.   I then realized that the poop deck wasn't cemented in place.   after cementing it in place,  I saw where the mizzen hole is.   this looks a bit odd to me.......
 

 
I'll have to check this out.       there is no direction to cap off the pop deck/main deck either.   I'm beginning to think some deviation is in order >the inner bashman is starting to emerge<

I did manage to separate most of the fittings........too bad there isn't a parts list to compare it to.   I figured that I might want to scan the English instruction part,  so I wouldn't have to play with the big sheet every time I need to look up something {for what there is of it}.  with sheet #1 pinned to the wall,  I can't even look at sheet #2,  unless I take it down.   I did read though that all of the :  "blocks are all of the same dimension and one-hole."  quote.........unquote.  I don't care.....like I said,  I can fix that.   
     I did do a couple of things for right now........first,  I filled in the gap left by cutting out the broken bow bulkhead.   the gap is not needed,  since the center spine piece is supposed to slide in the slot.   I thought though that leaving it like it was would make the bow weak,  and apt to break off if I got too rough with it.   if I would have thought of it,  when I cut out the bulkhead,  I would have traced the part with the gap filled in.......all I would have had to do is shim it to the center spine and cemented it.    roughly 3.5 mm filled it in  
 

 
as I began to fare the frame.........oh,  here's a funny......in the instructions,  it says to fare only bulkheads #1,  #2,  #12,  #13, and  #14.   ehhhhh,  shouldn't you do them all?!?!?!   if for no other reason,  to get the char off'em.   told ya this would be a fun kit  
     anyway.......as I started,  I kept thinking that the deck platform should be in place.   I would have liked to plank the deck before this is done,  but they're instructing me,  that between the fore castle and the poop deck,  the bulwark posts need to be removed.   this will be the first kit that I've ever had to do that to.   the deck platform is the likes that I've never dealt with, it's made from some really rough thin plywood.   I've already cracked one of the appendages between the posts,  in the aft section.   it wouldn't have mattered if I broke it off.....it would not be seen after the poop deck is put on.   I heard another cracking sound,  as I cemented it in place.......I'll have to check it out after it dries.
 

 
this deck is hard to conform to the curvature,  tried my best to keep rubber bands and clamps from pushing down too hard on these appendages.   I wanted to take the sheet off the wall,  so I could see how some of the sub assemblies go together.....haven't taken it down yet.   pictured is part #21.........it needs to be beveled around the outer edge.   I did it,  but you might not be able to see it.   the poop deck must also be cemented in place,  in order to plank the stern transom and shape the counter.   the fore castle deck doesn't though.......the windlass is involved with it,  so best to do it later when the main deck is planked.
 
I mentioned somewhere on one of my logs that I had gone to Hobby Lobby,  to spend some of gift card money,  I had gotten for Christmas  {where I get my wood from as well}.   I got some more of those gears that I used on the Syborn and Andrea Gail builds.   I saw these other ones too.......a few of them would make great ship's wheels.
 

 
I saw those rings too.......thought about using the larger ones on the Flattie........but I'm thinking differently now.   the admiral showed me these.....my eyes lit up like a Christmas tree!   they look so cool!
 

 
these are made of wood.....as the name implies.   it'll be interesting to see what I'll be able to use them on.   then,  I got a spool of smaller size chain.   I can see if it can be used on the Syborn,  but as I recall.......I don't remember seeing the martingale......or the typical rigging that these clipper ships possess.  ya gotta have chain man.......not just rope {thread} rigging     I might have to go for an even smaller size....I can get it...not a problem.   

So in the end you couldn't wait ... it was to hard to leave it on it's shelve, waiting for the at least one of the other builds to finish ... right... build number 10 on it's way ... you don't make life any easier y'know ... let's 'ave some fun then

the solution is simple.......fill in that cut away.   
 

 
the bulkhead was cemented in place,  using the deck platform and the poop deck platform as the alignment tool.
 

 
now with the rudder dry fitted in place,  the gap is gone.   it was about 1/8th of an inch.
 

 
it does sit slightly off........but it's following the keel line.  I did nothing about that.......
 

 
note that the platform want to curve upward........it's uneven back there.   once dry,  these contact areas were sanded flush.  
     when I initially cemented the bulkhead in place,  I did shim it with 0.5 thin strips,  because I knew it was uneven back there.   at first I was going to add the shimming,  but that would have kept t he curvature......sanding it flush leveled it out.
 

 

 
the poop deck contacts were sanded flush and the deck was dry fitted in place.
 

 

 
...and now for something that I caused.   dry fitting the knighthead,  I noticed that the deck platform was a little off.
 

 

 
putting the fore castle in place,  it was even more evident
 

 
looks like I'll have to loosen the glue and reposition the #1 bow bulkhead.   this isn't a big issue......just stinks that I have to make the adjustment.  this is where I am at the moment........I'll make the fix here,  and then I can move on.
 
 

as mentioned,  cutting out the bulkheads was painful.  I don't know if it was me,  but I thought the keel and bulkhead part were a bit too thick for this scale of kit.   they are 3/16" thick......dry fitting the frame together,  you'd think they were 1/4" 
 

 
the fit isn't too bad.....the instructions don't specify any specific slip details.  I used the stand parts to prop it up.
 

 

 

 
the frame was then taken apart and all the contact points were cleaned and the char was sanded off.
 

 
removing them from the parts panels was a pain,  as mentioned.   chunks of the back layer chipped off in places.   it's not a big deal.....none of it will be seen once the hull is planked.
 

 
I used my Billing's build slip to assemble the hull frame.   the bulkheads were cemented in place.   the deck platform was used to help keep the bulkheads in alignment as they dried.
 

 
when the frame was dry,  the platform was removed,  and the center spine contact points were sanded.   the center spine was cemented in place.
 

 
at this point,  I've run into the first dilemma.   the last bulkhead for the stern is supposed to sit flush at the end of the keel.       with the deck platform and this bulkhead dry fitted in place,  it doesn't.   it wants to jut out past it and hang out over what is to be the cut away for the rudder.
 

 

 
adding part #21,  which is to be beveled,  to aide with the counter,  is to sit flush with the deck platform.  it does it's job,  if the stern bulkhead is left where it is.   to try and alter the position of the bulkhead,  with throw that off.....not that it would matter if there was a gap behind it.   I have the solution......the next log will show you what I did.

........and then there the instructions.   it's mostly done in Italian....there is only a limited amount of text done in English.
     comparing the wood sheets to the diagrams on the instruction sheets.....they are not 1:1.   even on the initial sheet itself,  it says that all diagrams may be distorted or shrunk.
 

 

 

 

 
these are nice to have.......they are not to scale though.   I took great pains to try and preserve that parts panels,  so that in the event that a part becomes damaged.  I can trace the part out and make it.  I view these as something to be blown up,  in order to build a larger model of the ship.   I am not used to dealing with large sheets either....most of the builds I've done were in book form....broken up and put in a school binder.   it makes it easier to look ahead and plan the build.
 

 

 
one thing that I see,  is that it appears that the rigging shares belaying pins.   nice that the pins are of wood,  but they are too large in my opinion.   multiple numbers are listed on each pin of the rigging sheet.   the sail sheet is somewhat of a let down.......for those who work with these types of instruction sheets......this might be typical.  they are blended into the rigging diagrams.
 

 

 

 
are there shortcomings with this kit........sure.   can they be dealt with..........you bet they can.   I think it best though,  to hold off on the cloning stuff.  besides.......I'm going to need to do some cleaning to the parts panels.  good thing all I care about is the hull parts  
 
let the insanity begin!
 
 

I've mentioned this kit a few times........gotten last Christmas from my admiral.   I wanted to bide my time and complete a few of the projects I have going,  before starting it.   the admiral would ask me about it every once in a while......I'd tell her my reason....and for a while,  it was good.  I think my logic has worn thin.   the time left in the closet was good though.....I was able to find that there is a second version of this kit,  which contains some photo etch.   looking around for it,  following tips from other folks,  I was able to locate it.   the photo etch mimics a wood sheet contained in the kit.  I found it at Cornwall model boats....I ordered two of the photo etch and one of the wood sheet.   sadly,  I only got one of each......I got the last of the photo etch.  I will reorder it at a later date.......I won't try and scare you with what I have planned for this kit....icky mae
 

 
1:124 is a small scale for this ship.....to me it is anyway.......it will be quite compact,  and not as much detail,  as would be seen in a larger kit.  of course I don't believe that....quite a few folks here have proven that theory is only limited to those who don't want to.  there is one build of this model listed here on the site,  but it took a hit with the last crash,  losing all of it's pictures......unless the gent comes and fixes it,  I'm on my own.
    the fittings for this model are very small.......lots of tiny parts.  as I saw with the other build,  there are some thing I will be changing.......railings,  for instance will be a focal point.
 

 

 
wood strips.......got'em.......looks like a lot of smaller sizes
 

 
here'e where the kit starts to get dicey.......their laser cutting methods lead lots to be desired.   normally,  you have the small etch points,  which have to be cut,  in order to pop the part out.  with this one,  the laser cuts are not complete,  with large tabs that need to be cut {or finished}.
 

 

 

 
the bulkhead sheet is even worse........the laser cutting doesn't go all the way through.
 

 
I didn't take a photo of the back side......{you'll see later}.  it's a really nice kit.....too bad there is a lack of quality.   the thinner sheets though are better......they still have the unfinished cuts,  but the cuts are much better.  the smaller sheet is what the photo etch is copied from.
 

 

 

 
lastly......the order I got from Cornwall Boats
 

 
this photo etch seems to be thicker than what I have seen with other builds {not my own}......this will be the first time I attempt etch of any kind.   we'll see how this plays out.....I like the looks of it.  I was hoping that there would be more parts for the windlass and winches,  but some of the parts were done on another sheet and not included here.  again......we'll have to see how this plays out   

Here are some pics of the early work on the pilot house. This is my first pass at the pilot house structure, but I may have another go at it. Not sure at this point.
 
In the pics, everything is dry fitted. The framing is extra heavy because I am looking for some rigidity. It will be hidden in the finished product.
 
Russ

very nice Russ.........hull frame is looking very nice too.

Whilst waiting for some supplies to arrive, I got to work on the pilot house. The house sits on a raised base and that was the first order of business.
 
Here is how I made the base. I made it this way to be able to more easily and in the round up of the bulkhead frame tops into the bottom of the base.
 
Russ