Jaager

Do you have access to the Philadelphia Maritime Museum?
It does or did host the John Lenthall collection,  which seems to have a large number of
plans for USN ships covering the first half of the 19th C.
It would be helpful to know what if any data they will provide over the Net.

Mark,
Rather than cut into the spine to form a rabbet,  scab a thin veneer that makes the keel wider.   As thin as can be managed so that the planks look as though they dip into the keel.
No way to tell now deep it really is.
 
Was it a Jerry Lewis movie - Don't raise the bridge, lower the river?
 
Dean

Mark,
 
I measured the frame scantlings as 2/3 wood and 1/3 space - 9.5" x 9.5" x 9.5" .   If you add trunnels to your outside planking, following that interval would match what ANCRE has.
I compared Belle Poule center cross section to Renommee to see how close they are - Belle is a bit wider and deeper and Renommee is a bit more extreme in the degree of curving.
 
Again with your filling between molds,  = a low cost option
Mill boards from a clear Pine 2x4 stud (~$4?)  having a thickness  that your laser likes,  and that the appropriate sum of lamination is just a push fit between molds.
In your Corel Draw, draft an inside moulded dimension for each mold  ***- The line of the fore most or aft most mold of each pair can define the inside for a particular unit, so no additional shaping there is needed.
Now that I think on it, the center mold does not even need this line drawn for it.
When you draw the inside line add 2-4  alignment dots - inside the pair  lines - and use a drill press to drill  a hole the diameter of whatever bamboo dowels you have.  Given that it is inside and hidden,
off the shelf bamboo skewers can be used as is, no pesky draw plate work needed .   This will perfectly align the stack of layers.  PVA glue up each stack of Pine layers  Add an additional 1/4" layer on the outside of the stack - on the side nearest to the mid line.  Bond it with double sided tape.  Have the two mold shapes on patterns rubber cemented to either face of the stack of layers.  Sand the bevel for each stack - off the hull,     pop off the 1/4" layer  (It was needed because it takes into account the mold thickness for a precise bevel).  When you place the filler stack between the molds, ~ 95% of the shaping has already been done.  If you wait until now to cut the bevel on the plywood mold, it should be easy to remove exactly what should be removed and with the Pine there, near impossible to overdo it.
 
*** ( I would say thick enough, but not too thick.)  The Navy demands that solid carved hulls be hollowed out, in their museum acquisitions.  An adaptation for heat and humidity, I recommend taking the hint.
 
I did some reading and discovered that Painter and Gimp and PaintShopPro are "raster" based  and Corel Draw is "vector" based.  I don't know what the practical difference is,  but raster works for my needs.

Mark,
I misunderstood your narrative and thought your stock of plywood was other than flat.  If you have fixed a warping and then cut,  I must have mentally jumped to thinking that if the ply wants to bend, then any fix will be temporary.  It will still try to bend again - unless you add in a counter force to prevent it.   Mother Nature is kinda relentless.
 
As for a solid hull, if you mean the Marseille hull, it is yes,  while I shape the hull and until I add the keelson, and bilge riders, it will be solid.  I followed Delacroix as per frame timber scantlings.  My scale is 1:60 - essentially the same as your preferred scale.  ( I am still overwhelmed by the size of that ship's hull.)  As delineated on the plans, the space is small - all the frames are bends - the members of the pair of frames are each sided 0.24" and the space between each is 0.07".  Above the LWL I made them all,  solid Maple, below the LWL the 0.07" space has a temporary Pine filler, held in place by an adhesive that I can easily debond and pop the Pine out.  The filler allows for the hull to be shaped and sanded and still have sharp and crisp edges on the bends.   With a space this small,  with future hulls,  (doing Marseille over in my head) I would make the frame thickness 0.275" each, and omit every other bend.  The temporary filler Pine below the LWL would then  be a total thickness of 0.55" also.   Doing POF and leaving frames on display,  I think a bit wider space is more visually interesting. 
 
If I remember it correctly, Davis presented a 50% wood and 50% space as the the way actual hulls were framed - maybe 1900 and later hulls were,  but not even close before 1860 for warships.   Hahn used the 50/50 assembly too.  He focused on the time of the American Revolution and I found that frigates at that particular time were all but solid timber - just ~1" air spaces.  Framed that way, any visible display as unplanked would be fairly boring to see,  so omitting every other bend is a logical technique.   Starting around 1800 it seems to have become (on average) 67% wood and 33% space.  for me, increasing the frame thickness by 50% to be able to omit every other bend looks unnatural,  The frames are just too thick.  For those, I frame the hull using scantlings that are the same as the original.
 
Dean

Mark,
Since I enjoy "denken experimenten" - armchair experiments:
The problem that I am looking to help you solve is the warping of an individual mold.  I was not suggesting using something other than your 1/4" ply.  Just that you use more of it.  Use your laser tool to do most of the work.   I am thinking that it is imperative that each mold be dead flat before attachment to the spine.  Using a filler that is added after the molds are glued, will not help in making sure the mold is dead flat before assembly.  The area at the spine - that is notched for the main molds, would be removed for the additional layers.  If the bend is at the notch, just this being a thicker ply is not a fix, because it is not thick there in the middle.  But the edge of the additional layers can be close enough to the spine (tight tolerances)  to force it to be perpendicular.   Would not 1/2" or 3/4" of ply would be less prone the warping than 1/4"?  The scrap ply between your molds on the sheet can be glued on the center face sides as lots of pieces and placed away from the edge as a way to further thicken it, putting what is otherwise waste to use. Each mold  would be built up and mostly sanded before being fixed to the spine.  If you over do it, scab some veneer along the edge and re sand that.
 
I mean this with all respect, but being required to use thin ply because of the laser imitations ....  is this sort of fitting the work to the tool, instead of fitting the tool to the work?
 
I find that sanding the end grain of plywood - especially softwood ply - to be a less than rewarding chore.  The rough quality  and voids in construction grade ply.........ugly.
But with solid wood, a sanding nightmare was the last aft section of the ship Commerce de Marseille.  The "ply" was 8 layers of 1/4" Hard Maple - a 2 inch solid lamination.  A good property of Hard Maple is that it is difficult to remove too much too quickly.  The downside is that it is difficult to remove much at all.  The bevel is very acute.  A ton of work, trying several methods, it was ultimately done using the rounded end of a 4x36 bench belt sander using 60 and 80 grit media.  Since my sections can be manipulated as a separate unit, I can take the work to the sander.  A problem is that it is difficult to position a vac nozzle where it can pull in the ton of saw dust produced.  I bet I still have drifts of Maple flour in the corners of my garage.  I looked like a end of shift coal miner if the coal was blonde instead of black.
 
Dean

Mark,
You are using this particular plywood because it plays nice with your laser ?
Why not produce duplicates or triplicates of each mold and glue laminate them on the outboard side of each master?
It will increase the strength and give a better land for the planking.  The down side is more work rasping the bevel.
 
Dean

Hank,
Yup, Norfolk.  I am at the edge of Little Creek NAB (or joint something or other).  the bark Eagle visits from time to time,  Susan Constant was here once.   Lots of good restaurants here.  You seem to have missed the star over at Newport News: The Mariner's'Museum.   A seminar over in the framing forum might be interesting.   You are not too far from Hickory -  once upon a time a center for quality furniture mfg.   I would guess there are nearby hardwood mills.  Not Boxwood, Pear or Holly - but a good price on Maple and Black Cherry and maybe Honey Locust?
 

After some thought,  rather than going Hahn style with every other bend omitted,  the spaces are a bit wide, something new may be worth a try.  I am thinking that Naval timber framing style look attractive for this ship.   From a distance, it would look like Navy Board framing.   I think actual Navy Board framing is not appropriate for ships built after the 1719 Establishments were issued.  Never mind that it is very wasteful of timber stock.  The three main timbers are just too long and too curved not to be inefficient in the utilization of wood.  The old boys apparently cut their frames from solid sheets.  Nice that they could get Boxwood and Pear in those dimensions.
 

 
The first on the right is solid, 2nd is 19th C.  2/3 room  1/3 space,  3rd  is Naval timber framing .  4th is Navy Board.
 

The SI was impressed with Boston to use the lines on the cover of their warship plans catalog.   Elegant lines.  I bought the plans and worked the up for framing.
R&S is 24.25"   Using the scantling in Steele - the sided thickness of the frames leaves very little actual space - mostly enough for air circulation.  As built, leaving off any planking to show the frames would display a solid wall of timber - with narrow gaps.  This ship would work for frame display if every other bend was omitted  and the frames were 12.125".   Doing this saves on wood, too!
 
I would use Steele as primary, and  AOTS Conny and AOTS Essex  to supplement.    If there is no ship specific data and you make an informed guess,  who has the bones to denigrate your choices?   I would not let the lack of contract data stop me from building Boston.  That there are many more ahead her in my queue, has her a low priority in my shipyard.

Mark,
I did not notice until your replacement molds made it obvious,  Belle was a bit of an out layer. The degree of hollow at the bow is more than Sea Witch even and Griffiths was heavily criticized for designing that.  I wonder why Belle did not set a trend?
Dean
 

Mark,
Rather than cut into the spine to form a rabbet,  scab a thin veneer that makes the keel wider.   As thin as can be managed so that the planks look as though they dip into the keel.
No way to tell now deep it really is.
 
Was it a Jerry Lewis movie - Don't raise the bridge, lower the river?
 
Dean

Mark,
 
I measured the frame scantlings as 2/3 wood and 1/3 space - 9.5" x 9.5" x 9.5" .   If you add trunnels to your outside planking, following that interval would match what ANCRE has.
I compared Belle Poule center cross section to Renommee to see how close they are - Belle is a bit wider and deeper and Renommee is a bit more extreme in the degree of curving.
 
Again with your filling between molds,  = a low cost option
Mill boards from a clear Pine 2x4 stud (~$4?)  having a thickness  that your laser likes,  and that the appropriate sum of lamination is just a push fit between molds.
In your Corel Draw, draft an inside moulded dimension for each mold  ***- The line of the fore most or aft most mold of each pair can define the inside for a particular unit, so no additional shaping there is needed.
Now that I think on it, the center mold does not even need this line drawn for it.
When you draw the inside line add 2-4  alignment dots - inside the pair  lines - and use a drill press to drill  a hole the diameter of whatever bamboo dowels you have.  Given that it is inside and hidden,
off the shelf bamboo skewers can be used as is, no pesky draw plate work needed .   This will perfectly align the stack of layers.  PVA glue up each stack of Pine layers  Add an additional 1/4" layer on the outside of the stack - on the side nearest to the mid line.  Bond it with double sided tape.  Have the two mold shapes on patterns rubber cemented to either face of the stack of layers.  Sand the bevel for each stack - off the hull,     pop off the 1/4" layer  (It was needed because it takes into account the mold thickness for a precise bevel).  When you place the filler stack between the molds, ~ 95% of the shaping has already been done.  If you wait until now to cut the bevel on the plywood mold, it should be easy to remove exactly what should be removed and with the Pine there, near impossible to overdo it.
 
*** ( I would say thick enough, but not too thick.)  The Navy demands that solid carved hulls be hollowed out, in their museum acquisitions.  An adaptation for heat and humidity, I recommend taking the hint.
 
I did some reading and discovered that Painter and Gimp and PaintShopPro are "raster" based  and Corel Draw is "vector" based.  I don't know what the practical difference is,  but raster works for my needs.

Mark,
You are using this particular plywood because it plays nice with your laser ?
Why not produce duplicates or triplicates of each mold and glue laminate them on the outboard side of each master?
It will increase the strength and give a better land for the planking.  The down side is more work rasping the bevel.
 
Dean

Hello,
 
I am pleased to inform you that the first part of the English translation of L'Egyptienne is available. (Translation by Tony Klouda)
This translation concerns the first 180 pages. The rest that describes the rigging will be available in a few weeks.
 
Gérard Delacroix
 
 

You might give some consideration to giving the "bolt heads" a pass.
They were more like nails and are not seen from a distance that is not that far away.  They are not proud, rather flush or a slight dent.
Most of the hulls with bumps remind me of an old picture of a severe case of smallpox in someone with an incompetent immune system.
Individual plates from a copper sheet?   On a piece of safety glass - score with a very sharp #11 blade moving along a steel straight edge.
Snap along the score.
Attaching the copper can be a problem. 
Old Model Shipways technique called for using a candle to darken the copper and then using Weldwood contact cement.  They did not say to scrub the glue side after flaming it.  What happened is a layer of oxide on the surface that cases the cement bond to fail.  
Treating the copper sheet to a color change before scoring may either leave the other side unaffected or allow for easier process of cleaning it.
I am a long way from actually doing this experiment, but I have it in mind to use archival paper with a smooth surface.  Paint one side with Modern Masters ME205-06 Metallic Antique Copper, before I cut plates, wondering about a  Guillotine Trimmer for the cutting,  attach with bookbinders PVA,  and use  Modern Masters PA901-04 Aging Solution Green Patina in various places.

You might give some consideration to giving the "bolt heads" a pass.
They were more like nails and are not seen from a distance that is not that far away.  They are not proud, rather flush or a slight dent.
Most of the hulls with bumps remind me of an old picture of a severe case of smallpox in someone with an incompetent immune system.
Individual plates from a copper sheet?   On a piece of safety glass - score with a very sharp #11 blade moving along a steel straight edge.
Snap along the score.
Attaching the copper can be a problem. 
Old Model Shipways technique called for using a candle to darken the copper and then using Weldwood contact cement.  They did not say to scrub the glue side after flaming it.  What happened is a layer of oxide on the surface that cases the cement bond to fail.  
Treating the copper sheet to a color change before scoring may either leave the other side unaffected or allow for easier process of cleaning it.
I am a long way from actually doing this experiment, but I have it in mind to use archival paper with a smooth surface.  Paint one side with Modern Masters ME205-06 Metallic Antique Copper, before I cut plates, wondering about a  Guillotine Trimmer for the cutting,  attach with bookbinders PVA,  and use  Modern Masters PA901-04 Aging Solution Green Patina in various places.

You might give some consideration to giving the "bolt heads" a pass.
They were more like nails and are not seen from a distance that is not that far away.  They are not proud, rather flush or a slight dent.
Most of the hulls with bumps remind me of an old picture of a severe case of smallpox in someone with an incompetent immune system.
Individual plates from a copper sheet?   On a piece of safety glass - score with a very sharp #11 blade moving along a steel straight edge.
Snap along the score.
Attaching the copper can be a problem. 
Old Model Shipways technique called for using a candle to darken the copper and then using Weldwood contact cement.  They did not say to scrub the glue side after flaming it.  What happened is a layer of oxide on the surface that cases the cement bond to fail.  
Treating the copper sheet to a color change before scoring may either leave the other side unaffected or allow for easier process of cleaning it.
I am a long way from actually doing this experiment, but I have it in mind to use archival paper with a smooth surface.  Paint one side with Modern Masters ME205-06 Metallic Antique Copper, before I cut plates, wondering about a  Guillotine Trimmer for the cutting,  attach with bookbinders PVA,  and use  Modern Masters PA901-04 Aging Solution Green Patina in various places.

The distance from the top of the deck to the top of the port sill was a defined distance.  There was a formula - the caliber of the gun was the determining factor.  The slope of the sill followed the slope of the deck under it.  It was not horizontal at the ends of the ship.  Rather than a rectangle a gunport  was often a parallelogram with vertical sides.

The distance from the top of the deck to the top of the port sill was a defined distance.  There was a formula - the caliber of the gun was the determining factor.  The slope of the sill followed the slope of the deck under it.  It was not horizontal at the ends of the ship.  Rather than a rectangle a gunport  was often a parallelogram with vertical sides.

The distance from the top of the deck to the top of the port sill was a defined distance.  There was a formula - the caliber of the gun was the determining factor.  The slope of the sill followed the slope of the deck under it.  It was not horizontal at the ends of the ship.  Rather than a rectangle a gunport  was often a parallelogram with vertical sides.

The distance from the top of the deck to the top of the port sill was a defined distance.  There was a formula - the caliber of the gun was the determining factor.  The slope of the sill followed the slope of the deck under it.  It was not horizontal at the ends of the ship.  Rather than a rectangle a gunport  was often a parallelogram with vertical sides.

Your sheets look wider than 2.5" .  So you set the 10x4 face on the table?   You know what your grain pattern will be doing that.  I use 8x4 and the 2" face is against the fence.  I do get an interesting variety of grain patterns with Hard Maple this way.
 
I have a 3HP Rikon and my Resaw King broke.  The tension is serious, so the bang was LOUD.  I paid a tech from Wood Craft to set my saw up and he set the tension.   It reads dead on for 1/2" on the gauge.

Bent the blade so no rewelding.  It was under warranty so Laguna replaced it.  They required this picture.  It was way back in the queue, but it got here. 
The finish and thin kerf with Wood Slicer is really nice.  It just does not stand up to Maple for enough linear feet of cutting to pay its way with me..
 
I went thru the whole wider blade - less wander thing.  I used an Emco BS3  3 wheel benchtop band saw for years.  As the blade dulled, the wander became a problem.  I have had no wander with the Rikon with a 1/2" blade.  The internet video that advocated setting the teeth at the crown of the top wheel pretty much avoids wander for me.
 
The Lenox Diemaster 2 bimetal blade seems to be an effective alternative to a carbide blade.  It is about twice the cost of a Wood Slicer but may last 80-90% of the life of a carbide and about 10 times longer than a Wood Slicer.  I do not work for Lenox, so I have no investment here.  I am just offering what I think is an economical alternative.  Given the propensity for any steel blade to break on me,  I am thinking that the carbide resharpen option is more of a mirage.   It softens the resistance to the $175 outlay.
 

Chuck,
At $150 per blade, you seem to be buying a carbide tipped blade.  I am guessing ReSawKing. The main alternative that I have found at Highland is about $25 more.  I have a local shop that will weld a blade while I wait.  The owner repaired a 10" carbide Freud tablesaw with a broken tooth -back to like new.  Anyway, he put me onto Lenox Diemaster 2 bimetal blades.  I use the 1/2", 3tpi, 0.035"  and my saw is 142" so each is $  57 .  I checked Bandsaw Direct and they are $55.     For my size a Wood Slicer is $44 and it dulls and a bimetal lasts maybe 10 times longer.  The carbide will last longer than bimetal but nothing like 3 times longer.  It is to cry when a carbide blade snaps.  When I cost it out, I think the bimetal is a lot more cost effective.  It will only cost you about $50 to do the test on your saw and see if the economy is there for you.

Your sheets look wider than 2.5" .  So you set the 10x4 face on the table?   You know what your grain pattern will be doing that.  I use 8x4 and the 2" face is against the fence.  I do get an interesting variety of grain patterns with Hard Maple this way.
 
I have a 3HP Rikon and my Resaw King broke.  The tension is serious, so the bang was LOUD.  I paid a tech from Wood Craft to set my saw up and he set the tension.   It reads dead on for 1/2" on the gauge.

Bent the blade so no rewelding.  It was under warranty so Laguna replaced it.  They required this picture.  It was way back in the queue, but it got here. 
The finish and thin kerf with Wood Slicer is really nice.  It just does not stand up to Maple for enough linear feet of cutting to pay its way with me..
 
I went thru the whole wider blade - less wander thing.  I used an Emco BS3  3 wheel benchtop band saw for years.  As the blade dulled, the wander became a problem.  I have had no wander with the Rikon with a 1/2" blade.  The internet video that advocated setting the teeth at the crown of the top wheel pretty much avoids wander for me.
 
The Lenox Diemaster 2 bimetal blade seems to be an effective alternative to a carbide blade.  It is about twice the cost of a Wood Slicer but may last 80-90% of the life of a carbide and about 10 times longer than a Wood Slicer.  I do not work for Lenox, so I have no investment here.  I am just offering what I think is an economical alternative.  Given the propensity for any steel blade to break on me,  I am thinking that the carbide resharpen option is more of a mirage.   It softens the resistance to the $175 outlay.
 

Wow, Bruce !!  Boxwood!   logs though - likely not too large-  Unless it is possible to access a band saw 14" or large - processing it will involve frustration and agony - would not consider it for framing but grabbing a serious supply for use as blocks, catheads, davits,  bitts ,  belfreys,  is worth considering.
The Pear though -  if it is quality and is 4x4 or 8x4  and the price is reasonable - back up a truck and fill it.
 
Matrim,
I would score everything on your list as an excellent choice but the Red Cedar.  I have no experience with it.  Beech seems similar to Hard Maple  but a tad darker.  Hard Maple and Black Cherry are my choices for framing.  They are domestic species for me and easy to get.  
Basswood is way too soft and iffy about holding a sharp edge to me.  Lime is the same genus but a bit harder - enough harder, I seriously question.   Yellow Poplar  is similar in hardness, but it works as though it were a lot harder.  It will hold a sharp edge.  The stock that I have gotten is excellent for framing - if you totally plank over it.  The color range in a single board can go from tan to green to a color that looks like creosote treated Pine - ugly brown.  Good looks ain't its thing.
POF uses a lot of wood.  A frigate @ 1:48 - you are looking at maybe 10-20 BF.  More if you cut your frames from stock that is glued into a "U" and cement the frame pattern to it, a lot more.
The volume of wood used for everything but framing is reasonable enough to make using imported species worth considering.
For framing, it makes for a more reasonable budget outlay the use species that are domestic where you live.
 
While good Apple is king,  it is a bear to obtain.   Your Pear - Pyrus communis - steamed (Swiss) or not comes in a close second.  I love Black Cherry, but Pear is better.  The hard species of Maple domestic for you is Sycamore maple, European sycamore   Acer pseudoplatanus.   It is probably close enough in hardness to make not worth paying a premium  for imported Acer saccharum.  
 
Because Underhill praised Sycamore Naple,  but called it Sycamore,  I bought a supply of our Sycamore -  American Plane  Platanus occidentalis .  A more awful species would take work to find. well maybe Siberian Elm or Lombardy Poplar.