Snug Harbor Johnny

You're going at warp speed on this build ... at least compared to my ship, which has two speeds - dead slow and stop.

I could use a few more arms and hands ... like one of those Hindu Gods/Goddesses ... to hold and manipulate items. Hmmmm, 'wonder what the Admiral might think. 😉

I'd likely just leave it as is, and call it 'character' - after all, at a distance the thin gaps are not very noticeable ... close up pics always magnify any defect or every bit of 'fuzz' on rigging lines. Sanding and refinishing is a pain and would amount to a 'delay of game' - but there is an approach that might be less trouble, given the mahogany-like appearance of the lower part of the hull. That would be amber shellac. Cans of Zinsser 'Bull's Eye' amber shellac do just fine. Apply the shellac (and I tend to use the clearer portion floating on top of the contents of the can) with a thin artists detail brush to get into the cracks, then wipe away any excess on the adjacent planks lightly and quickly with a lint-free cloth bunched up. The shellac in the cracks will dry in a few hours and shrink as the alcohol (methanol) solvent vaporizes. The solids left behind will have partially filled the crack, and each successive application will fill the cracks more until totally filled - and the color should be pretty close to what you have now. A very light pass with a bunched cloth having a little plain denatured alcohol on it will remove any traces of shellac on the adjacent planks, but will not affect either the poly coat or the crack filling. In cabinetry work with mahogany, larger cracks are filled with 'stick shellac' melted by candle flame to liquify it before forcing the goo into the large fissure (made either by repair or perhaps a less than satisfactory joint) with a small spatula or large dental tool. It solidifies as it cools and can otherwise be blended over with regular shellac (color modified as needed). Stick shellac comes in several shades to accommodate other woods, but this technique does not apply to you model's situation.

'Great buy, mate.

Your decorated castles are absolutely fabulous ... The fighting tops being on a 'curved trajectory are attractive, but when I get around to ever finishing a GH, I may favor a lower position for the fighting tops (topmasts look fine) as marked below. But the fore top could be just about on the level as the main top ... hard to decide - but when the time comes I could start with higher first mast segments and them trim from the bottom as desired. Given the crammed troop loading and extra armaments in the castles and tops, its no wonder that the Mary Rose capsized like the Vasa ... much to our present knowledge.

Be careful with the bowsprit from here out, mate. Many have had little accidents with clippers in general (and other types) where breakage occurs with the spar and other bits like dolphin striker and whiskers.

I've noticed that on the Anthony Roll, the first section of masting (as well as the bowsprit) seem 'impossibly' tall - topped by modest mast sections. This depiction is also seen in other contemporary art. Talk about instability in all but the lightest breezes. The old Sergal 1:65 Great Henry used proportions like that in the kit design, and examples of more recent art also take after 'Anthony Roll proportions'. Yet there are examples of what seem to be more likely (sea worthy) mast length proportions both in art and models as shown below:

G'day, mate! We're glad to welcome another member from 'down under'.

Bare wood model decks not in a case can get dirty over time, and fine dust can get in the grain of the wood. A thin coat of clear shellac or varnish can prevent this, and make future dusting/cleaning easier. Note that 'stain' has a tendency so soak into some of the grain more than other parts of exposed wood that can lead to uneven coloration. A way to limit this effect it to lightly apply a 'stain prep' or wood conditioner (Minwax makes a pre-stain conditioner) before applying colored stain. The prep soaks into the grain ahead of the stain - the exposed fiber end 'drinking' the prep like through a soda straw. With a few minutes rest, a light application of stain with a gathered lint-free cloth will lay some color over the prepared wood in a way that the color will be more even, with fewer, lighter dark areas.

Maybe an experienced European paper modeler can recommend the makers of the 'best' designed and assemble-able paper kits. This one (once a better Fokker kit is identified and obtained) can be the 'warm up' ... A crewman on a B-17 warned of a Fokker at 10 o-clock,, and a gunner replied, "You mean the Messerschmidt?" Said the crewman, "Yeah, THAT Fokker !"

If anything, when in doubt, start with a higher number (finer grit) paper first (like 320) and just see what it does. You can always go coarser if you need to, rather than start too coarse - that can put scratches in the wood that have to be further sanded down with finer grits to remove, and that can make the planking get too thin.

'Can't say enough good things about your whirlpool project, mate !

You can use a small sanding block with a fine grit sandpaper wrapped around the block - say, 220 grit. Lightly go over the area, and the block will insure only the 'high spots' are lessened. Looking at your picture, it shouldn't take much - a few passes may do.

Rob Riedderich used the 1:96 C.S. hull as a 'base' to make other clippers, with impressive results. Most know that Revell's 1:96 Thermopylae has the C.S. hull - and even though they nixed the second deck house, made a modified Thermie rear cabin and fudged the deadeye/shroud arrangement to be more like the Big T, that kit leaves a LOT to be desired. I've studied my stashed Thermie kit and pondered how to re-engineer the plastic Revell hull and deck to be 'closer' yet to the original, and the problems are manifold - too much to do to be practical. Often overlooked and yet essential, the subtle 'racing yacht' lines of the original T's hull are different than those of C.S. (the differences are thought to have given Thermopylae an advantage in light to moderate winds), and no wood kit ever got the T's lines right either. The correct lines are available on the internet, and can be scaled as desired. So I've studied and made drawings of those, with an eye to doing an 'old school' solid hull. We'll see if anythoing can come of that.

Greetings, Mate ! Check out builds over ships you're interested in ... lots of tips to find there. Snug