ERS Rich

Welcome aboard!

It’s interesting to me that building a wooden ship involves the same operations used in cabinet and furniture making - in miniature. So you have the skill - you just need small tools. Fortunately small tools can be much cheaper. If you’re serious invest in a Burns table saw. Like furniture making, it’s about precision but on a small scale. For me it was difficult and time consuming to cut multiple identical pieces with say a chisel. Get the full setup, with the sliding table. The difference between plastic and wooden ship building (both kit and scratch) is the later requires fabrication of practically every wooden piece. Given the large number of planks, masts, spars, gaffs, etc., etc. the work required is formidable, even on a small project. It will take weeks or months for a small ship and probably years for a ship with multiple masts. Most give up…. Usually after several months it gets tiresome, so I’ll take a break and build a plastic kit - they seem like a breeze. There is a cache here about scratch building. When it comes to fabrication, kit and scratch building, to a certain extent, is the same. A plank is a plank. It’s cut to length, tapered, spiled and fitted. The kit saves time, you get all the materials but the wood strip stock and doweling is in the rough. The new kits have laser cut stock for keel and bulkheads, however these pieces are also rough and require some me shaping. I like kits because I want to build many and all types of ships. Give yourself a break and learn how to do it in steps. Start with an open boat kit, like a dory to learn planking. The first time you try planking, it will not look as the second and third time. So why try to build a man o war the first time? Next is masting and rigging. Start with a single mast project. If you want to learn masting and rigging first, go with a solid hull kit. As for scale? As large as you can, it’s easier on the eyes. Almost forgot, nautical terminology, gotta know it, tough to follow instructions if you don’t. No right or wrong here, it’s your journey, always ready to help if you need a hand.

Aft Boat Skids and Cat Walks This work was a challenge and had to think of some ways to do the work and get the desired results. First cut the parts off the frets and cleaned up the nubs with a diamond file. For the skids taped a square edge to the bench and used the metal clips at the rail ends to hold the rails down against the bench. The horizontal girders have slots to accommodate the rails. Had to scrape the slots slightly with an Xacto spade blade to get an easy fit. The rails were butted against the straight edge for alignment, and dividers help to establish the girder location. The catwalk railings are a challenge. Squareness and positioning are essential. First glued the deck to the rails. Then masked the top side of the deck with Tamiya tape. Used wax paper, a wood block, and a ruler to help with assembly. Swiped the bottom of the railing with liquid CA, laid the rail on wax paper, then used the wooden block to slide the rail deck assembly to the railing already up against the ruler to apply pressure. Followed the same process for the second railing. But added a brass rod to hold the railing flat - it was slightly curled. Ready for paint.

This sounds unusual to me. Is the glue dry before contact? Should be wet on contact. Have you tried Locktite “Gel”? Thicker. Available at Walmart in the Craft department.

Boat Cranes Cut the main parts from the fret and assembled. Had to file down the tabs, as mentioned in the instructions, so they fit in the slots. Clamped the parts together dry. 1/32” wire through the tabs holds the top part in place. Next the bottom piece needs to be glued. Removed one clamp and applied thin CA in the gap along the side pieces, then replaced the clamp. Next assembled the winch and glued to the crane. Used a tool from Small Shop to form the winch handle. A piece of aluminum rod inserted into the crane bottom is a pin for attaching the crane to the base. Made the rod oversized, then cut to exact length with a saw, with the crane in a wooden block. Made the U shaped traveler, then drilled the holes with the piece in a wooden block. Cranes ready for panting.

Thank you Al, much appreciated. The kit is fun to build and the instructions are easy to follow. Have a great day, -Rich

Hello and welcome to MSW always available to answer questions. That bridge sounds like an amazing project. Cheers!

Progress Photos At this point the superstructures are mostly finished and the guns finished, up to page 24 in the instruction manual. Ahead is the interesting cat walk and other photo etch work. Bow view looking aft. Amidships looking aft. Amidships looking forward. Stern View Stern view looking forward. Thanks for your thoughts and comments.

Working with Metal Parts Start by filing the mold parting lines with fine file, they leave a smooth polished surface. A board is used to help build the gun bases, and a holder for painting. Holes were drilled into the bottom of the four 1 pounders to accommodate the mount pin. Mr Primer is used to prime the parts. A wood board is used to hold the vents and davits for priming and painting.

Sorry what I thought was lifting was my eye misinterpreting the overlap. Now I see.

Is the flame/heat eliminating the glue under the plate edge? Interesting, in the photo, the same aft plate edges are lifted. Thanks

? 🤔

Hi Avi, Burnish is a fancy word for pressing down. Place the plate without glue, then press down with your fingers and shape it. Hold it down with one finger then use the side or point of the toothpick to press in the overlap with the previous plate. Try applying glue with toothpicks - the universal applicator. Cut a square of wax paper, and put a little pile of glue on it. Use the toothpick point to apply dots, and the side as a trowel. I use alot of toothpicks. If a plate is curled after drying, use the toothpick point and push in glue under the curl, then push down the curl and hold until the glue dries. If glue squeezes out while holding, with your other hand roll the side of a dry toothpick along the line to clean it up - while still holding down with the first pick. Try to establish an order of steps to install a plate, say dry fit and shape, apply glue to plate, install plate and hold down, clean excess glue while holding down, wait for glue to dry. Then repeat the same steps. After a while you’ll get into a rhythm. Like anything else new, start slow, figure out what works, after a awhile it get’s easier. Defects are less visible on the bottom. You’ll get better as you work towards the waterline. And take breaks, sometimes I’ll jump ahead to something else, then back to the longer job. This is a big job but worth it. Have a good one, -Rich

PS: make sure the Gesso is sandable….

Never done this…..looks tough…. Perhaps dry fit the plate first. Use the side of a tooth pick to burnish the overlap area. Once you like the fit, glue it….. I’d consider filling in the imperfections between the planks with plastic wood applied with an Xacto spade blade. Give a bit more surface area. Next time, for a smooth surface, Gesso is a possibility. Artists use it to prep canvas for painting, it’s acrylic with a binder, water soluble, and easy to work with. Wonder about applying another coat of anything at this point - over paint. Make sure the choice is compatible with the paint. Persevere, you’re on the learning curve…. -Rich

Files are years and years old, work on wood….clean after use with a file card….

Thanks Rick, hope to show simple ways to do the work. And for the next project, have a reference to refer to, when I forget how I did it…. Have a good weekend.

Welcome aboard! Always open to answer a question.

Small files work well for precision and yield a bright smooth finish. Thinned Mr Primer, brushed on to prime.

Progress Photos Not as much time for the shop the past few weeks - spring projects, trouble with the house boiler, amongst other things. Should have more time for the shop in the weeks ahead. Hoping to wrap this up by the end of May. Working on completing the mid and aft superstructures. Same processes used for the fore superstructure. And beginning to build the sub assemblies for the run up to final assembly. Ahead is the PE for the catwalks, cranes, etc. Here is the mid superstructure in the tail vise, with a plastic piece on the left acting as a caul, to apply pressure on the curved forward end plywood skin. Next is the mid superstructure with plywood installation around the perimeter complete. This picture shows applying the 3/16” half round. A spacer block is used to position the middle piece. A few of the sub assemblies - 6 pounder gun tubs note the tiny hand wheels, and the deck winch. Mid and aft superstructures dry fitted. Have a great weekend!

6” Turret Splinter Shield Spent time reviewing the instructions and plan to understand how to make this piece. Seems harder at first than it really is. Starting with the fore/aft width of the opening, cut a piece of material slightly longer on the paper cutter and cut a 45 degree angle at each end. The outboard sill is 3/32” high, the rise of the shield outboard to inboard is 1/16”, so the inboard height is 5/32”, the brass bar is 5/32” (part of a Standard set from Micro Mark). Marked a line underneath the shield along the edge of the bulwark, and trimmed the piece. Next secured the pieces with tape and used the turret cover as a template to mark the opening in the splinter shield. Next drilled a series of relief holes and cutout the waste. Started with larger sweep gouge. Used a the smaller gouge to approach the line, and a fine file to meet the line. The shield installed.

Midships Superstructure - Part 1 First made a photocopy of plan for a template. Reckoned that the position of the gun turrets drives the assembly so fitted the turrets first then built the hammock lockers. Cut stock with a Byrnes table saw. Rough trimmed the plywood pieces for the bulkhead sides with a papercutter. Then glued to block. Trimmed the bulkhead bottom and top flush. Used a 5/32” wide piece of stock as a temporary sill for the horizontal bulkhead cut In front of the 6” turret. Trimmed with Tamiya precision saw in an X-Acto holder. The red handle tool is a flush cutter, typically used to cut veneer or plastic board edge banding, sourced from Fastcap. Turret dry fitted.

Thanks Rick, it did take awhile to get the hang of it….

Middle Superstructure Fitting Have to fit the superstructure to the deck camber. Started by planing the bottom with a plane with a convex sole. Plane sourced from Veritas woodworking. Planed to as close to the edge without going over. Next is to scribe the sides so they fully contact the deck. Here I used a pencil to mark where the the part touches the deck. Then the convex plane was used to carefully remove marked wood, planing along the edge and from outside to inside.

Looking good!