Jared

As I get back into the build after my long shore leave, I am finding it useful reviewing my past activities and posting some of the construction here. After completing the waterways and planksheer, I completed the some of the bow and stern framing as per pg. 14 of the manual. I then deviated somewhat from the plans. I was concerned about the subsequent planking of the decks - As I was intending to lay the deck boards at scale lengths, I wanted more of a surface to attach the boards to than just to the bulkheads. I also wanted to strengthen the model. To achieve these objectives, I made a solid subdeck which filled the open spaces between the bulkheads and hull using balsa wood, as shown in the photos below. When I later laid the deck planks, I was very happy with my decision. The balsa spacers were sanded down to match the shape and height of the top of the bulkheads.

Building the waterway, planksheer and mast slots.

Although I began this build 15 years ago, I took a lot of photos and notes of the work in progress so recreating a log here should be fairly straight forward. I will begin today with the initial assembly of the keel and bulkheads. In my building of the Flying Fish, I have followed the instructions provided by Model Shipways in the manual and drawing sheets as best I could, and referred to various books and other resources for additional information on techniques and design as needed. With respect to the assembly of the keel and bulkheads, the most important important thing was making sure the keel was straight and the bulkheads were squared. For the latter I used mini bar clamps and L Shape 90 degree try square rulers as shown in some of the photos below. I then beveled the bulkheads using a hobby knife and various sanding tools, some which I made. I reinforced a number of the joints with square shaped pieces of wood as shown in the last 2 photos below. Addendum: Having just read tips for mounting model ships to display boards in the tips section of MSW, I wish I had provided more reinforcement inside the hull with wood blocks, where my pedestals will soon be attached. Fortunately I have not mounted anything yet and will follow the advise of using brass rods rather than screws for the mounting, to avoid possible problems of splitting the keel and simplifying the leveling of the boat on the display board.

Your model is coming along very nicely.

Thanks Ryland. I started a log yesterday. Fortunately I took a lot of photos throughout the build so far, and will soon start uploading images.

Thank you. I am sure we can help each other on this challenging kit.

Thanks everyone. I will look through my old photos and see what I can put together on my build.

Hello fellow modelers. I look forward to participating in this group as I get back into the hobby after a 9 year "break". I want to finish up my Model Shipways Flying Fish clipper, which is about half finished. Previous builds include the Artesania Latina Charles Morgan whaler, which I essentially scratched built everything from the deck up to make it more true to the original ship's design, and before that, the Artesania Latina Swift 1805. I am a retired microbiologist and am not an active leisureologist who enjoys woodworking, tall ship model building and photography.

Pictures of my Flying Fish model - Aug. 21, 2021

Hi. I am new to Model Ship World. I began building the Flying Fish in early 2006 and worked on it slowly over the next 6 years. And there it remained gathering dust until this month, when I decided to pick it up again in hope of taking it to completion. As can be seen in the photos I will be adding, the Hull has been completed and the deck structure are at an advanced state of completion. I look forward to meeting others of you who are also working on this model. Jared