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This is looking really nice! I like how you are making it look 'artistically' grungy without making it look like a grungy mess... as the real thing probably appeared after being worked for a while. Great job Keith!

Progress has been slow. Lots of custom 'one-offs' on those flooring timbers. I still have 11 flooring timbers needing to be installed... then it'll be time to start playing with splice plates and trunnels. That should be fun!

LadyG, I always approach new things with a simple mind set. "If things go horribly wrong... that means that I am not doing things properly!" I then do research, practice, and once I think I've finally figured it out I give things another go. I know that you want to make good progress, in good time on this build. We all do with all of our individual projects, however. Sometimes we all encounter certain difficulties and also experience unsavory set backs that must first be figured out and then eventually worked through. You are not alone, It happens to all of us, trust me! Take the slow road, learn the ropes and proudly cross the finish line holding a 'wonderful' model ship! "Don't be hasty like the ol' 'Hare'!"

As a young lad, I used to dream about someday visiting Davis-Monthan and coming home with a an F4U, a P40 or a P51... then I found out what those things actually cost to purchase, restore and maintain, and I quickly woke up! 😮

Welcome aboard! Long ago, in a childhood far, far away (1960's), I once had an uncle who lived in Tempe, Az. I always enjoyed the trips to Tempe when we went to visit once per year.

As previously mentioned, the bottom of this build will incorporate 'octagonally' shaped trunnels to secure the flooring timbers to the bottom planking. My octagonal draw plate just arrived via UPS. You can see how much this thing cost. If anyone knows of any 'other' ships, or boats that used octagonal trunnels, please let me know. Maybe I can eventually recoup the cost of this drawplate, in the long run... Not the best photo, but the octagonal shape is indeed still noticeable in the smaller holes, if you look close and hard, in person. You won't see the shape in this photo though. You'll just have to take my word for it.

Okay, now I see why you didn't use sheet metal nor want to buck any real rivets! I was thinking at a larger scale. Prior to seeing it, I guess it looked much bigger in my 'mind'!

The remaining flooring timbers have now been milled to their varied dimensions and cut to their proper lengths, 'all' of them. This took all day to do. I spent more time setting my mill up for all of the different widths, one dimension at a time, than I spent actually milling and cutting those timbers. A few timbers are of the same dimension, which was a relief, but the majority of them were varied. The shop is cleaned up and now it's 'Break-Time!"

It's been 5 days since I laid the first 9 flooring timbers atop the bottom planking. I was worried about warpage, over time, but so far so good. The bottom is perfectly flat from both stem to stern, as well as port to starboard. The stem to stern flatness actually surprises me, but I also wasn't too worried about that. The false keel would flatten that out once laid if any warpage 'did' occur in that direction. I'll get started with filling the bottom out with the rest of the flooring timbers starting tomorrow. I doubt that I'll get them 'all' cut and installed this weekend, but I'll advance as best I can.

Thanks Gary! This will likely be somewhat unusual, all the way through the build... not only in a traditional model building sense, but also in techniques used to accomplish certain curious tasks. My goal is absolute precision, personal satisfaction, and also helping any newbies out by showing them that one does not need expensive equipment to create a fine model ship. If I'm able to pull this build off, in the manner that I desire, the Smithsonian will be able to show up with their drawings, notes and a set of calipers... and hopefully find no discrepancies between their dimensions and details vs my scale model. IE. Two tricky parts are coming up soon. #1 will be my tree-nailing the bottom planks to the flooring timbers using 'octagonal' shaped trunnels, as were actually used on the real boat. Making the trunnels will be one thing, but I also need to ensure that the octagonal shapes of those trunnels will be visible to anyone who wants to actually look that close! #2 involves the framing members located between those flooring timbers. They were hewn out of trees where the limbs were branching. This produced a grain that was able to run both horizontally along the bottom, as well as vertically up the sides, with no joints. One hewed 'branching timber' produced one frame member. I've figured out a way to do this but won't be able to know if the results will be satisfactorily acceptable until I give it a try. That's coming up soon. Let's also not forget the elongated, rectangular shape of the iron nail heads used to secure the side planking to this boat. That will be another curious adventure to embark upon. Luckily, there will not be much side planking on this model. It will be open enough to let the seabirds fly through it, so I won't need to make many of those nails. Things such as this are how I currently expect the entire build of my Philadelphia to go. One adventure after another. Thanks for taking an interest in this build log. I'll be doing my best to keep things interesting and worth everyone's attention. Tom...

I like that idea too. Roughen up the sides of a round dowel with 40 grit paper and then give the top of that dowel a good beating with a hammer, for added effect. 🙂

When the bulkheads are 'fared', prior to planking the model, that faring operation should effectively remove all of that char. You 'can' sand away that char, prior to gluing the bulkheads in place, but take care. You must be very careful and sand with fine paper using a very light touch. If you sand too hard it will leave low spots in the areas of those bulkheads that were sanded harder than in other areas. This will make your planks wavey, in and out, and just plain bad looking in the long run, requiring filler, sanding and laying down a 'second 'decorative layer of planking to hide all of the filler, unless you plan to fill, sand and paint the hull without any planking details showing through to the surface after painting. It's your choice, but no real reason to sand that char prior to faring.

I probably have a thousand of those things and they work great for applying the CA, but when it comes time to 'smear' thick coats of CA around, for good and even coverage... nothing beats 'this'! "Just don't ever pause in the smearing process, not even for a split second until the ol' finger has been lifted off of the wood!" I don't need to tell anyone 'Why' they should not stop moving that finger. That's a bit obvious! Believe it or not, the cured CA actually peels off of my fingers rather easily if allowed to sit long enough for natural body/finger oils to soak in and release the thick CA cap from my fingertip(s). One, maybe two hours. Don't do this if you still have any delicate work to perform right away. Do this last. Until I peel that CA cap off on my fingers, I find it impossible to pick my nose or even accurately scratch my *ss. I wouldn't want to even attempt to handle any small parts immediately afterwards! Notice how smooth and finger-print free my fingertip is! 😏

What Bob asked... "I'm curious too!"

How did you apply the thin CA? I typically smear CA finishes onto certain projects using my bare fingers, never stopping while smearing... then spend the next few hours defoliating my fingers while peeling off the cured CA layer. There 'must' be a better way!

Looking at that photo... "are you 'sure' that is a steam donkey and not 'actually' an illegal still about to start giving up its nectar to a bunch of very thirsty loggers?"

Now "THAT's" what I'm talking about! "Beautiful work, beautiful display! It can't get any better than 'this' unless Model Trailways starts putting real hair on their horses!

I often use oily exotic wood veneers on the face of guitar headstocks. I clean those veneers with mineral spirits prior to gluing them on, for good adhesion, however. When I finish the product, usually with 'Tru Oil', that iridescence typically returns. The deeper the finish, the more iridescent the wood becomes. I really like that on my guitars, but not so much on my ship models. Pfalzer is 'also' correct. I've noticed that the grain orientation 'does' effect how the wood veneer looks. Before cutting my patterns, I like to dampen the wood, just a bit, to get an idea of how it will look once applied. I then look at it from different angles of light to determine if I like it one way, or like it better when flipped 180 degrees. Orientation 'does' matter! Perhaps sealing the iridescent wood with a good finish, for protection... then dulling it down with some 400-800 grit sandpaper followed by a light smear of Danish oil, to bring the wood back to life, would remove that iridescent irritant? Don't know. I've never tried that, but it might be worth an experiment or few...

You really do need to taper your planks, in most situations, to produce a first-rate build. It's not that difficult. Below is part one of Chuck Passaro's four-part series of planking hulls, found on his YouTube channel. Watch all four parts and then enjoy planking your model!

Congratulations! That's a very fine specimen of a quality model ship! So... "what's next?"

Very nice work! Are you going to spring for a team of horses to go with this coach and your Doctor's Buggy? That would look really, really 'sweet'!

Sapele is indeed a rather 'rich' looking color of wood. If you are not happy with that color/tint there is little that you can do about it, unless you want it darker, then you can simply stain it. Your best bet, should you be seeking a 'lighter' shade would be to purchase, or cut your own planking strips using a lighter-colored species of wood... and then experiment with stains, finishes, etc. until you achieve the shade/color that you truly desire. If you are talking about those really, really 'thin' strips that come with some kits, to be placed over 'thicker 'first' planks... you might need to shop eBay for thin veneers and cut the strips yourself using a hobby knife and a metal straight edge. You'll find a lot of nice looking and thin veneers on eBay.

I was born in Big Spring, Texas and raised in a desert (much like your current location). When I left the desert, for the Navy, I swore that I'd never live far from water ever again. I've stuck to that promise! Perhaps being raised in the desert is what first drew me to the Navy... and now to model ship building! Welcome aboard!

Looking good and coming along nicely! This is going to be an interesting build to say the least! I'll be keeping a close eye on this one... 🙂

Very fine craftsmanship, indeed! I'm a late comer to your build log but really enjoy your style of building. A very pleasant combination of aesthetics, artform and skill!