hamilton

Excellent work to-date, hamilton!  Appreciate your insight on what I expect on my Bluenose.  Enjoy your "time off" and see you upon your return.

One last update before the end of the weekend. I started working on remaking the main cabin. I managed to salvage some elements from the old one, but will need to remake the cabin itself, including the companionway.
 
I first took a tracing of the cabin dimensions from the plan and transferred this to a sheet of 1/16" basswood. After cutting this out and refining it a bit, I added some 1/16 square stock around the edges as a coaming. The outside edges of these were rounded over slightly and finished grey. The sides were built up out of 1/8 x 1/16" strips. The fore and aft sides were shaped according to the deck camber and all four sides were finished white. I added a couple of grommets, blackened, as portholes and then assembled these on top of the base with the coamings. In the photo that shows the cabin you'll see that the grommet is misaligned on the starboard side - it should be forward instead of aft - but these piece are dry fit only in that photo, so please be assured that the sides are installed correctly as of now.
 
The roof was made in a similar fashion as the base but I did not have time to do much more than  cut it out - and that was as far as got today. I'm going to take a short break from Bluenose for the next few weeks as things are stepping up at work and I will have very little time at the bench. So it's a brief farewell for now - hope to be back in April with more progress here.
 
In the meantime, enjoy!
hamilton
 

Hello there
 
I really hope this post pushed the log over to a new page - this scrolling is painful!
 
In any case a small update documenting stern deck details - the main boom sheet horse, the main boom crutch pad, battens beside the wheelhouse to starboard and the "unidentified object" beside the wheel house to port, as well as two bollards. Not much to say about these bits - hopefully the photos will explain. The cabin you see in the last photo is the one I made a while back and that I will re-do as it turned out slightly asymmetrical the first time - hoping to salvage some of the parts for the rebuild, but.....
 
And now....lunch!!
 
Enjoy
hamilton
 

Well, it's been several weeks since I posted an update, and I'm at a bit of a major transition point, so thought I would write out an update...
 
HULL SANDING - I left off in late January where I had finished the hull planking and it was time to sand... so sand I did... and fill... and some more sanding.  Got the hull looking about as good as I think it could, with some more improvements possible after working on the bulwarks and decking, but before priming/painting. 
 
     
 
      
 

 
DECK PLANKING - So, next up was planking the deck!  As was instructed in the plans, I first placed the waterway planks between the bulkhead stanchions.  Then, working from the center keel out, laid the planks, alternating between port and starboard sides.  In staggering the planking butts, I used a 5-3-1-4-2 planking sequence.  As I was planking the fore deck, I forgot to color the edges to simulate the tar caulking! Oops!  Other than that, the fore deck planking was pretty straight-forward without a lot of tapering required.
 
The quarter deck, however, was a different story, as I needed to taper every plank beginning at about Bulkhead K-L out to Bulkhead O and the transom area.  The Acco clips were useful in the deck planking (as they were also with the hull planking) to press the planks against one another to avoid gaps, and I also used some new binders from Excel (the blue clamps in a couple of the pictures) that were helpful where I could not use the Acco clips.
 
All in all, though, I'm pleased with the look of the decking, despite the difference in the caulking appearance.  I have not yet applied anything to the wood, as I will do all that in the painting process.
 
      
 
           
 
        
 
BULWARKS & STANCHIONS (ROUND 1) - Time to work on the bulwark strakes and associated pieces above the deck!  Thought I would first work on the knighthead and hawse timbers.  The plans called for placing two pieces of hawse timbers on either side of Bulkhead A with the knighthead in front of it.  I decided to make this all one piece, and removed the Bulkhead A stanchion.  I then made a small chafe block for the anchor, and will drill the holes at a later stage.  
 
     
 
Next thing to work on were the fake stanchions.  Placed the waist strake in its place and marked where the existing bulkhead stanchions were.  Then measured an equal 1/3 and 1/3 distance between the bulkhead stanchions to determine where the two fake stanchions would be placed.  Used my new The Chopper cutting tool to measure and cut a whole bunch of fake stanchions.  After I had placed all of the new fake stanchions, I noticed (like almost every other build log I had reviewed previously) that the existing bulkhead stanchions looked horrible next to the nice fake ones, so... they had to go!
 
Once I got done, though, with the stanchions and the planks with scuppers (used a file to create those) and the waist, I was not pleased with how it all looked.  I had done a poor job in setting the bulwark planks and waist and decided the best thing to do was.... do it over!
 
      
 
      
 

 
BULWARKS & STANCHIONS (ROUND 2) - So, after removing what I had previously done, I was left this time with no bulkhead stanchions to use as guides for where the planks would rest against, so first thing I decided I needed to do was to "replace" those bulkhead stanchion locations.  Once those were relocated, I followed the same procedure I had done previously in marking where the remaining stanchions would be placed evenly on each side, and... it went much more smoothly.  The scuppers all looked much better, and the bulwark plank and waist set well against each stanchion.  After that was done, I sanded the tops of fake stanchions that peeked over the tops of the waist planks, in order to ensure that the mail rail (when it comes time to placing it) would set firmly on top of the waist and stanchions with no gaps.
 
        
 

 
TRANSOM - I have struggled with the transom work on the Bluenose.  Still not sure if I've done it the best way.  Was having a difficult time with the kit-supplied quarter frames and braces that go above the stern block.  After a couple of different options, I used a 1/8" wide filler piece on each side extending from Bulkhead O to the stern, and formed two 1/16" x 1/2" pieces for the stern transom.  In keeping it at the same extended angle as the stern block, however, I have some concerns on how the main rail will set, and how far back it may be sitting, especially with the main sheet boom buffer and its buffer platform legs under the main rail.
 
        
 
             
 
I will take some additional pictures to better depict my concerns.  I "think" it will all come out ok, but... I'm still a newbie on these matters!
 
WHAT'S NEXT? - Well, after I settle on how the transom will be completed and how the main rail will sit, it's about time to begin some painting!  In my three previous builds, I simply did the old-school brush painting on everything, but have decided to learn how to airbrush for this Bluenose, primarily just for the hull painting and the inner bulwarks and stanchions, although other airbrush painting applications may arise on this build as I become more comfortable in using it.  Plenty of practice sessions before doing anything on the ship, though!!
 
Appreciate all comments and critiques!  
 
 

A quick update on my Bluenose progress... I have completed the hull planking!  There are certainly some gaps and undulations in the planking, but all-in-all I seem fairly pleased with how it came out.  Will now work diligently on sanding, filling, sanding, filling... starting at 80 grit sandpaper and working my way up in grits to where the hull is as smooth as I can get it.
 
     
 
        
 
As you can see from the pictures, I still need to trim and clean up the planking at the stern/transom area.  And then, after I'm done sanding the hull, I'll go "topside" and finish the transom framing, knightheads, hawse timbers, fake stanchions, etc, etc, etc.  
 
Appreciate the follows, likes, comments and critiques!  

Appreciate the call out, Tim, on the waterway extension at the bow.  I knew I had to finish it, but was looking at the combination of the waterway piece and the knighthead and hawse timbers and their relation to one another, and took a picture before I finished.  I do like, though, that you noticed it.  Good looking out!  I also added some scrap wood for the mast slots.
 

 
I still need to complete the knighthead and hawse timber construction at the bow, as well as the transom framing at the stern.  I have another newbie question, though.  Should I complete those items, as well as working on the additional bulwark stanchions, main rail, buffalo rail and monkey rail before the hull planking, or do the planking first?  I know that the instructions call for those to be completed prior to the planking, but was wondering if anyone had concerns with any of those breaking or getting snagged during the planking process.  Is there a particular sequential reason why those should be done first?  

Well, I have made some progress in beginning this Bluenose ship build.  After getting the keel assembled, I checked the fit on all of the bulkheads.  They all, remarkably, seemed to fit pretty well without too much sanding.  Made sure, of course, they were all aligned at 90 degrees to the keel before securing with Titebond. I also took the time now to trim/form the bulwark stanchions to their 1/8" width.  There was a natural seam in each of the bulkhead stanchions, and I used that seam to trim, which "seamed" to work out ok.  I will find out later if I'll have any issues with the widths, but it looks like that will work alright.
 
      
 
After reading all of the other Bluenose build logs regarding reinforcing keels (especially the stern end) and bulkheads due to breaks, I thought it would be good on mine to add some reinforcements between each of the bulkheads.  Using some scrap 1/8" square wood strips, I added the strut pieces between the bulkheads.
 
     
 
At this time, I also added the sternpost.  Can't pass up a chance to use some rubber bands for holding!
 
     
 
I was a little apprehensive about how to trim out the stern block.  But, it gave me the opportunity to... buy a new tool!  Never have used a scroll saw before, but it seemed to make the cut pretty easy.  I then used the Dremel to shape it a bit more.  We'll see if there are any issues when I get to planking the stern area, but it may need some more shaping.  Tried to do as much cutting and shaping before attaching to the ship to avoid unnecessary vibrations and potential breakage. 
 

 
Next on the agenda was to add the waterway planks to the fore deck.  The instructions indicated to first fit the plank that goes between each of the bulwark stanchion extensions, but it seemed to me easier and more precise to place that first inboard plank first.  I also added some scrap wood on the bulkheads to act as a ledge for easier placement of those outside planks. 
 
    
 

 
In another build log, someone else had noted, as I recall, that the placement of the great beam is mentioned late in this first stage of hull construction. Seems like the great beam and deck beam should have been added perhaps prior to the waterway planks.  I have added them now, as well, and hope that it does not affect any of the other plank placements to come.
 
    
 
Still plenty to work on before the hull planking begins, it appears.  I need to work on the transom framing and the knighthead & hawse timbers, as well as the aft deck waterway planks.  Also need to add the needed support pieces for where the two masts will set.
 
It all still feels a bit confusing, but will settle down once I get to the hull planking, I hope.  Appreciate the advice, criticisms and even the "what the **** were you thinking" comments.

Pretty straightforward beginning... Assembled the center keel with Titebond.  Used some scrap wood to reinforce the two joints on both sides.  Then worked on cutting the rabbet into each side of the center keel.  Someone else had mentioned in their build log, as well, after doing three previous ship builds, this is the first build that has instructed me to cut into the keel like this.  This operation may have been what scared me away from this project 16-17 years ago, fearful of messing it up right from the start.  Anyways, it worked out pretty well by using a couple different Xacto blades.
 
 

       
I prefer the curved #10 blade rather than the standard #1 or #11 "pointy" blade to cut the rabbet.  Then, used a #18 flat knife (almost like a chisel) to clean out the area between the bearding line and the rabbet.  Thought I might have an issue when I attached the scrap wood for the joint supports before I cut the rabbet with the keel being wobbly as I was attempting to cut, but I think it worked out pretty well.  I also have not yet installed the sternpost.  Thought I would be able to taper the hull to its proper depth on each side without the sternpost attached.  We'll see if that was a good decision.
 
Now on to the bulkheads.  I have "dry-fitted" each and they all fit pretty well.  One or two are a bit looser than they probably should be, but once they are set and glued, they should be ok.  Have not yet cleaned up any of the char on the bulkheads, as I figured I'd do that as a part of the fairing process.  Reading ahead a bit, I'm still a bit unclear on the bulwark stanchion extensions, stern blocks, horn timbers, etc., but will address those as I get to them.  Much more to learn!

One last update before the end of the weekend. I started working on remaking the main cabin. I managed to salvage some elements from the old one, but will need to remake the cabin itself, including the companionway.
 
I first took a tracing of the cabin dimensions from the plan and transferred this to a sheet of 1/16" basswood. After cutting this out and refining it a bit, I added some 1/16 square stock around the edges as a coaming. The outside edges of these were rounded over slightly and finished grey. The sides were built up out of 1/8 x 1/16" strips. The fore and aft sides were shaped according to the deck camber and all four sides were finished white. I added a couple of grommets, blackened, as portholes and then assembled these on top of the base with the coamings. In the photo that shows the cabin you'll see that the grommet is misaligned on the starboard side - it should be forward instead of aft - but these piece are dry fit only in that photo, so please be assured that the sides are installed correctly as of now.
 
The roof was made in a similar fashion as the base but I did not have time to do much more than  cut it out - and that was as far as got today. I'm going to take a short break from Bluenose for the next few weeks as things are stepping up at work and I will have very little time at the bench. So it's a brief farewell for now - hope to be back in April with more progress here.
 
In the meantime, enjoy!
hamilton
 

One last update before the end of the weekend. I started working on remaking the main cabin. I managed to salvage some elements from the old one, but will need to remake the cabin itself, including the companionway.
 
I first took a tracing of the cabin dimensions from the plan and transferred this to a sheet of 1/16" basswood. After cutting this out and refining it a bit, I added some 1/16 square stock around the edges as a coaming. The outside edges of these were rounded over slightly and finished grey. The sides were built up out of 1/8 x 1/16" strips. The fore and aft sides were shaped according to the deck camber and all four sides were finished white. I added a couple of grommets, blackened, as portholes and then assembled these on top of the base with the coamings. In the photo that shows the cabin you'll see that the grommet is misaligned on the starboard side - it should be forward instead of aft - but these piece are dry fit only in that photo, so please be assured that the sides are installed correctly as of now.
 
The roof was made in a similar fashion as the base but I did not have time to do much more than  cut it out - and that was as far as got today. I'm going to take a short break from Bluenose for the next few weeks as things are stepping up at work and I will have very little time at the bench. So it's a brief farewell for now - hope to be back in April with more progress here.
 
In the meantime, enjoy!
hamilton
 

Hi Hamilton,
 
Looks fantastic! Your attention to detail is amazing. Keep up the good work. 
 
Nearshore

Hi Hamilton!  Looking really sharp, love all your deck details.  Will definitely be referring back to see "how did he do that?!?" when I get to that point.  I need to update my own Bluenose build log, but am at the "finished the fake stanchions and need to finish the transom and paint/stain" stage, so been reading yours with great interest.  Continued success (with minimum struggles)!!

So I've finally more or less finished the detailing of the inboard bulwarks, rails and outboard hull. I realised that when I made the main rails, I forgot to account for an inboard extension through which the catheads run - I'll have to add this at some point soon. The chainplates & deadeyes need to be added for the fore and main shrouds, and I need to add the bobstay chainplates, decorative star, scrollwork around the hawse pipes and the name plates at the bow and on the transom - and of course the rudder! And the mounting! I guess I have quite a bit of work to do still....
 
In any case today I installed a series of ringbolts along the inboard bulwards as well as outboard on the splash rail and then some eyes for the bowsprit footropes. Nothing too exciting. But once this was done, I decided to work on the wheelhouse. I started by making the wheelhouse roof and coaming from a 1/32" basswood sheet and finishing both grey. For the wheelhouse itself, I took some 1/8" x 1/2" basswood stripping and cutting out 4 pieces to the fore-aft dimensions of the wheelhouse. When I sandwiched these together they were slightly wider athwartships then the wheelhouse, so I substituted one of the 1/8" thick pieces for a 1/16" piece and this ended up being perfect. I glued these pieces up and squared the rough edges using the disc sander.
 
The main part of the wheel house was finished white and the roof and coaming glued on - again very straightforward work. I am leaving out some of the details featured on the plans as, on the one hand, I don't feel that I have the skills to work at such a small scale on such fine details (mouldings around the wheelhouse roof, chamfers along the corners) and on the other hand, I was worried that attempting to add them would just make it look clunky....
 
The ship's wheel was "borrowed" from another kit, in which a generous manufacturer had packaged 1 too many - the wheel was almost to scale, but is a tiny fraction larger than the wheel depicted on the plans - I don't think it looks too absurdly large. I inserted a toothpick into it for purposes of painting, but then figured I would just use the toothpick as the wheel shaft - painted black with the wheel, There is a little pad, cut from 3/32" x 1/32" basswood, that I drill a hole in with a needle file and then widened gently using the toothpick - I then cut a short section out of this strip and finished it black for the pad.
 
Though you all probably know this, I feel obliged to say that by design the wheelhouse is shifted approximately 1/8" to port and the ship's wheel lies slightly to port of the wheelhouse centreline, which explains why in the photos it appears off centre on the quarterdeck.
 
Here are some photos of the process and the completed wheelhouse. Enjoy and bye for now
hamilton
 

Hello there
 
I really hope this post pushed the log over to a new page - this scrolling is painful!
 
In any case a small update documenting stern deck details - the main boom sheet horse, the main boom crutch pad, battens beside the wheelhouse to starboard and the "unidentified object" beside the wheel house to port, as well as two bollards. Not much to say about these bits - hopefully the photos will explain. The cabin you see in the last photo is the one I made a while back and that I will re-do as it turned out slightly asymmetrical the first time - hoping to salvage some of the parts for the rebuild, but.....
 
And now....lunch!!
 
Enjoy
hamilton
 

Hello there
 
I really hope this post pushed the log over to a new page - this scrolling is painful!
 
In any case a small update documenting stern deck details - the main boom sheet horse, the main boom crutch pad, battens beside the wheelhouse to starboard and the "unidentified object" beside the wheel house to port, as well as two bollards. Not much to say about these bits - hopefully the photos will explain. The cabin you see in the last photo is the one I made a while back and that I will re-do as it turned out slightly asymmetrical the first time - hoping to salvage some of the parts for the rebuild, but.....
 
And now....lunch!!
 
Enjoy
hamilton
 

So I've finally more or less finished the detailing of the inboard bulwarks, rails and outboard hull. I realised that when I made the main rails, I forgot to account for an inboard extension through which the catheads run - I'll have to add this at some point soon. The chainplates & deadeyes need to be added for the fore and main shrouds, and I need to add the bobstay chainplates, decorative star, scrollwork around the hawse pipes and the name plates at the bow and on the transom - and of course the rudder! And the mounting! I guess I have quite a bit of work to do still....
 
In any case today I installed a series of ringbolts along the inboard bulwards as well as outboard on the splash rail and then some eyes for the bowsprit footropes. Nothing too exciting. But once this was done, I decided to work on the wheelhouse. I started by making the wheelhouse roof and coaming from a 1/32" basswood sheet and finishing both grey. For the wheelhouse itself, I took some 1/8" x 1/2" basswood stripping and cutting out 4 pieces to the fore-aft dimensions of the wheelhouse. When I sandwiched these together they were slightly wider athwartships then the wheelhouse, so I substituted one of the 1/8" thick pieces for a 1/16" piece and this ended up being perfect. I glued these pieces up and squared the rough edges using the disc sander.
 
The main part of the wheel house was finished white and the roof and coaming glued on - again very straightforward work. I am leaving out some of the details featured on the plans as, on the one hand, I don't feel that I have the skills to work at such a small scale on such fine details (mouldings around the wheelhouse roof, chamfers along the corners) and on the other hand, I was worried that attempting to add them would just make it look clunky....
 
The ship's wheel was "borrowed" from another kit, in which a generous manufacturer had packaged 1 too many - the wheel was almost to scale, but is a tiny fraction larger than the wheel depicted on the plans - I don't think it looks too absurdly large. I inserted a toothpick into it for purposes of painting, but then figured I would just use the toothpick as the wheel shaft - painted black with the wheel, There is a little pad, cut from 3/32" x 1/32" basswood, that I drill a hole in with a needle file and then widened gently using the toothpick - I then cut a short section out of this strip and finished it black for the pad.
 
Though you all probably know this, I feel obliged to say that by design the wheelhouse is shifted approximately 1/8" to port and the ship's wheel lies slightly to port of the wheelhouse centreline, which explains why in the photos it appears off centre on the quarterdeck.
 
Here are some photos of the process and the completed wheelhouse. Enjoy and bye for now
hamilton
 

Hello all
 
I've now completed the rail detailing and installed the monkey rails - have still some ringbolts to add to the inboard bulwarks and the fore and main chainplates, which I'm a little intimidated by to be honest.
 
The monkey rail cap was pretty straightforward. I took a tracing of the curve of the monkey rail bulwark onto a 3/64" basswood sheet, trimmed the sheet along the tracing and marked out the width with a compass. I cut the part overlong because I wanted to use a trimming at the end for the part of the cap that runs down the curve at the front of the monkey rail (there must be a term for this that I don't know!). You can see this little off-cut in a photo below. This part was installed first and lightly sanded down so that the upper part of the rail ran over it. After installing the main cap, I then spent some time with sanding block and files refining the transition. 
 
The rest is just eye bolts and belaying pins - I can still not get blackening of brass done in the seemingly neat and tidy way I see in other builds. It always comes out somewhat fuzzy and flakey - I've read through as many of the blackening tutorials I can find and the results seem the same regardless of how I follow the tutorials....using acetone to clean the parts, diluting the blackening agent, etc....it always ends up looking pretty bad - what's your secret anyone who can produce cleaner results?
 
In any case, enjoy the photos and happy modelling
hamilton
 

Hello there
 
I really hope this post pushed the log over to a new page - this scrolling is painful!
 
In any case a small update documenting stern deck details - the main boom sheet horse, the main boom crutch pad, battens beside the wheelhouse to starboard and the "unidentified object" beside the wheel house to port, as well as two bollards. Not much to say about these bits - hopefully the photos will explain. The cabin you see in the last photo is the one I made a while back and that I will re-do as it turned out slightly asymmetrical the first time - hoping to salvage some of the parts for the rebuild, but.....
 
And now....lunch!!
 
Enjoy
hamilton
 

Wow! Amazing work with the chisels, Ron! 
hamilton

Wow! Amazing work with the chisels, Ron! 
hamilton

I would also suggest that, at 1:100 scale the area beneath and immediately aft of the forecastle will get extremely crowded and any extension of the bulkhead will compound that situation - though I'm still a little vague on what you have in mind for the "curve"....in any case, it might pay to make a scale drawing with the deck elements included to see what kind of ramifying effects a structural change will produce. Everything in ship construction relates to something else, so any adjustment is going to affect those relationships - and since the maximization of the efficient and effective use of space is probably one of if not the main construction principle in maritime architecture and design, the smallest change can have a significant effect on the overall arrangements.
 
Regardless - the model is looking good!
hamilton

Hi Srenner:
 
The build is really shaping up! You mention a "curved" bulkhead above - do you mean curved along the top and bottom edges to match the deck camber? Or curved convex or concave on the fore/aft plane? I think that period practice would argue against the latter, though as in all things the aesthetic choices of the modeller are their own! Adherence to historical accuracy - especially in a kit like this one that has soooo many complications in it - is always tricky with a kit and ultimately it's about what is satisfying to you. Anyway, looking forward to seeing more progress.
hamilton

Hi Srenner:
 
The build is really shaping up! You mention a "curved" bulkhead above - do you mean curved along the top and bottom edges to match the deck camber? Or curved convex or concave on the fore/aft plane? I think that period practice would argue against the latter, though as in all things the aesthetic choices of the modeller are their own! Adherence to historical accuracy - especially in a kit like this one that has soooo many complications in it - is always tricky with a kit and ultimately it's about what is satisfying to you. Anyway, looking forward to seeing more progress.
hamilton

Been working on the red ochre or dark red paint colour for the timber on the main deck sides... its a little bit of a issue... I know the traditional colour is red ochre but it's not a great colour and bright red would look better but I also liked just the timber look.
 
I was going for a washed out colour that you could still see some of the wood grain coming through so I diluted the red ochre and dry brushed some red over the top. 
 
Changing tack now and going to try 3d print the walls under the forecastle and the quarterdeck. According to the Goodwin book it should be a straight wall for 1730 style but I like the idea of it being curved and that could be easy to do with the printer. What suits this age of ship more?

First planking is complete, only some random sanding and filling to do. 
 
I ran into a small issue where I ran out of the strip supplied with the kit and had to purchase some from a model shop but of course it was 2mm thick instead of 1.5 so that requires more sanding in that area... and also my measurements were a bit off so I just got a bit frustrated and planked off the final parts as quickly as possible. The issue was the spacing near the bow. 
 
I was pleased with the hard bend of the timber around the foredeck. Soaked for 24 hours then used a can and bent them around and held down with some tape and a g clamp.
 
Put in the stern timber