CPDDET

Right you are, Allen. Although the rabbet does stay at 45 degrees for the length of the keel, once the curve of the stem starts things change. My little sanding block was only used for part of the entire rabbet. While I did use a small chisle for the 90 degree rabbet near the top of the stem, my skill with that tool still isn't as good as it could be. Perhaps someday.....

After gluing the keel, keelson, stem and stemson to the build board I deepened the notches for the frames, per the instructions, to the top edge of the rabbet. If I was to do this over I wouldn’t place any glue between the red lines of the build plan which mark the location of the frames. It would have made deepening the frame notches a bit easier as I wouldn’t have had to deal with the dried glue which was holding the keelson to the build board. Then I glued in the frames, using a square and clamp as suggested in the instructions. I’m using Titebond Quick and Thick and allowed an hour between gluing each of the 10 frames. In order not to disturb the frame I previously glued in, I rotated from the left side of the first frame to the right side of the first frame and so on. After all the frames were glued in, and allowing 24 hour dry time for the glue, I glued in the spacers between the frames. Now it’s on to the next step, which I believe is the deadwood.

Onward, Tim, onward! Never good to rush things anyway. Your progress looks good!

Welcome aboard and welcome back to a wonderful hobby. Lots of help from great people here.

My mistake, I didn't know the rope was limited to sailing ships.

Welcome aboard! I understand there is an organization called The Rope in Japan. Do you belong to it?

That about sums it up, Toni. Thanks for the comment.

Been a bit since my last update, took a week or so to do some camping. Back in the shipyard now, so here’s the latest. I decided to remove all the pieces from the billets and get them all cleaned up from the char. This way I could get all the sanding and cleanup done at one sitting rather than doing each piece as needed. I think removing the char from all the pieces took 2-3 hours total. I ended up using a variety of tools for this; sanding sticks, files, disk sander and Dremel drum sander. After trimming the curved piece of keelson to the proper length I drew the rabbet line on the keel, keelson, stem and stemson. For the 45 degree angle needed for most of the rabbet I cut some scrap pieces of wood at a 45 degree angle and glued sandpaper to them. The picture below shows this, but since I couldn’t get the sanding block to stand on its own I glued it to a scrap piece to show how it worked. By holding the 45 degree cut side of the block firmly against the table top I could slide it back and forth along the keel and keelson to get a pretty consistent angle. Being the obsessive compulsive person I am, I made the blocks with 3 different grades of sandpaper to get a nice smooth edge. It was a bit tricky transitioning the rabbet from a 45 to 90 degree angle on the stem. Did the best I could and only time will tell if I did it correctly. Time to double check the fit of these pieces and then glue them to the build board.

Welcome aboard!

I purchassed the 4 piece Starrett set some time ago and never looked back.

Welcome aboard! You will find this is a great group.

Welcome to the community! Sorry I can't help with your research.

Well, this may not help. I use the zero clearance plate all the time and use the micro meter stop often enough. It took a bit of getting used to but is nice. I also have the extended fence. 90 tooth / .03 slitting blade is about all I use.

Welcome aboard, sailor!

Welcome aboard!

Got a bit of a start today. Used Elmer's spray adhesive to attach the plan to a piece of foam board and then trimmed the board to the edges of the plan with a utility knife and metal straight edge. The proceeded to remove all the laser cut pieces from the billets. Using a razor blade saw made a quick job of this. Please excuse the poor exposure on these pics, they were taken will my cell phone. I usually use my SLR and will do so in the future. Tomorrow I will get a start on squaring up the pieces (lasers don't cut a perfect 90) and removing the char as well. Not sure how far I will get but no hurry, of course. Dave

Thanks Ed, just have to clean up the shipyard and wait for the boxwood I ordered before my next project.

Thanks, Knocklouder! Your kind words are much appreciated.

Thanks! Will be following Toni Levines build log, among others, for the NRG Half Hull model. I've seen Toni's finished piece as she attends our model shipwrights club meetings and was very impressed. Hope mine comes out as well.

Thanks Eric, I'll put your build log on my list.

After taking my Bluenose as far as I wanted I decided it was time to learn proper hull planking. I ordered the kit ( https://thenrgstore.org/products/half-hull-planking-project) from NRG some time ago and will spend the next week or so gathering what I need for this build. I will also be reviewing the various build logs of other other shipwrights to gain further insights. Since I now have some experience I've decided to upgrade my material to Boxwood rather than using the Basswood that comes with the kit. Hopefully I would ruin too much of it. 😆 Any advice or suggestions from those who have built this kit is always appreciated! Dave

So this will be my final post on this build as this is as far as I'm taking this model. If I had to start this hobby again I wouldn't have chosen this particular kit. This build was far more complex than I anticipated. Because of its complexity, it was truly a baptism by fire. I always viewed this one as a "learning build" so many of the finishes aren't uniform. Some bright brass and some blackened, some painted parts and some stained with different finishes, and some left natural. But I did learn a lot about many different facets of this hobby; woodworking, metal working, painting, staining and so on. It also forced me to invest in the various "tools of the trade". All and all I'm fairly satisfied considering this is my first build. I expect to improve on my skills and believe that what I learned during this adventure will only make future builds that much more enjoyable. My next endeavor will be to complete the NRG Half Hull Planking kit. Ill leave this current build with some picture............

Building the main boom. Started off by using the cordless drill and sandpaper method to taper the main boom. First step in making the yoke was to cut out the printed plan and glue it to a piece of 1/8th inch stock. I used white glue for this. Then drilled out the slot that will fit around the mast. After cutting the piece in half with a fine cut pull saw, I used the disk sander to remove the excess material. Then used files and sand paper to finish off the pieces, gave them 2 coats of amber shellac and, using white glue again, stuck the bolt pattern onto the 2 pieces Used the mill to drill the bolt holes on each piece. These didn’t come out as well as I wanted as they aren’t in an exact line, but they are acceptable. I shouldn’t have trusted the pattern on the plans. Cut some small brass nails down to the proper length and inserted them into the drilled holes. Had to use the pin vice and a slightly larger bit to make the holes larger to accept the rope. But the smaller holes acted as a guide to keep things straight. Used CA on the tip of the rope and white glue on the rest to stiffen it and threaded it into holes. Tied off one side. Made the clapper and glued it to the end of the boom. Then glued the 2 yoke halves onto the boom. I used Titebond Quick and Thick for this so it was necessary to sand a flat onto each side of the boom and to prep the side of the yoke halves that would come into contact with the boom. Since the clapper was already in place it was easy to flatten the sides of the boom 180 degrees apart, using the clapper as a guide. Will do some clean up and touch up the amber shellac when the glue completely dries. While I have cut the masts short and won’t be doing the rigging, I will add 5 metal bands to the main boom per the plans. But these will be for decorative purpose only. Now to move on to the bowsprit rigging, which is a far as I will be taking this model.

Welcome!

Welcome! Yes, this group has been an immeasurable asset to me as well.