Jaager

Mike,
 
About the Boxwood.  24 inches is nice, but longer than you need if you are 1:48 or smaller scale.
If it were twisted,  there usually is a place along the length where a cross cut gives you two reasonably flat pieces.
 
To square it up - a bandsaw  -  fix the Boxwood to a flat board with a straight edge to ride against the fence. I use drywall screws and right angle framing braces - small round head screws will hold the brace to the carrier board. Aline the Boxwood so that the overhang at the outer edge of the carrier board will get you a straight face losing the least amount of wood. One true face.  Turn the Boxwood so that the face you cut is down.   The wood will be easier to fix to the carrier since it will not want to rock now. Get a right angle true face with the new overhang.  With two straight flat faces at a right angle, you are set to cut it with just the table and fence. 
 
The poser will be figuring out how thick to make the stock slices.  As I said, 2 feet is a bit long and awkward but certainly doable.  The Byrnes saw will take 15/16" thick stock, but Boxwood is fiercely hard. Jim has a big motor on the saw, but Boxwood is tough work that thick.  I would figure out the max thickness lumber I need and use the bandsaw to give me slices near that thickness - with enough extra to sacrifice to the planer to get 220 smooth on both sides.  Getting at least one edge 90 degree true and straight is pretty much vital also.
 
My condolences about how much of this rare wood you will lose to waste and kerf to get usable stock.

I just had a thought -  if you are limited in funds,  you might could get a table saw to double as a disc sander.  You could try using as saw blade blank or a worn out diamond blade - as thick as can be gotten and use contact cement to attach sand paper to one face.  By using a near zero clearance insert you can have a closer tolerance between the table and the disc than most disc sanders.  You want some gap for the wood flour.  The paper is easy to remove using a heat gun and both Lowes and Home Depot have 10X paper that stands up pretty well. I grant that it is not as convenient as a stand alone sander, but it could get you the function at minimal extra cost.

I just had a thought -  if you are limited in funds,  you might could get a table saw to double as a disc sander.  You could try using as saw blade blank or a worn out diamond blade - as thick as can be gotten and use contact cement to attach sand paper to one face.  By using a near zero clearance insert you can have a closer tolerance between the table and the disc than most disc sanders.  You want some gap for the wood flour.  The paper is easy to remove using a heat gun and both Lowes and Home Depot have 10X paper that stands up pretty well. I grant that it is not as convenient as a stand alone sander, but it could get you the function at minimal extra cost.

Mostly theory on my part. 
Beginning with old school/traditional :
I have more Pau marfim than I realized - and it is good that I got it while it was available, but most any reasonably hard straight grained species should do. 
When I first started, Yellow Pine was a suggested species, the thing is, Yellow Pine could be one of several species of pine.  I asked my grandfather for some ( he was home builder )  and what he gave me was a plank of what might be an all but extinct species of pine with distinct grain that is fairly wide and the summer wood is really hard. There was a species of pine that was widely used before WWII - very hard - too popular and all but lumbered to extinction.  What I have may be that - turned up, it looks like a made mast.
 
Now,  Birch is great, but the machines that punch out the dowels, do not place a high priority on being dead on with the grain, so starting with a plank is better. 
In working with it, I think Hard Maple is a good choice. 
It takes more work, but I am partial to species that are hard. 
In Texas, you may be able to find a Yellow Pine that is straight and hard.  I think that what is used for framing lumber is not going to be useful.  The flooring stock may be useful.

Mostly theory on my part. 
Beginning with old school/traditional :
I have more Pau marfim than I realized - and it is good that I got it while it was available, but most any reasonably hard straight grained species should do. 
When I first started, Yellow Pine was a suggested species, the thing is, Yellow Pine could be one of several species of pine.  I asked my grandfather for some ( he was home builder )  and what he gave me was a plank of what might be an all but extinct species of pine with distinct grain that is fairly wide and the summer wood is really hard. There was a species of pine that was widely used before WWII - very hard - too popular and all but lumbered to extinction.  What I have may be that - turned up, it looks like a made mast.
 
Now,  Birch is great, but the machines that punch out the dowels, do not place a high priority on being dead on with the grain, so starting with a plank is better. 
In working with it, I think Hard Maple is a good choice. 
It takes more work, but I am partial to species that are hard. 
In Texas, you may be able to find a Yellow Pine that is straight and hard.  I think that what is used for framing lumber is not going to be useful.  The flooring stock may be useful.

There is a problem with using a dowel as starting stock:  it is hit or miss with the grain being straight,  luck mostly.  Over time, the wood will seek equilibrium. If the grain is not dead straight, the dowel will bend.
 
The way to avoid this - split out mast and yard stock from a board of a species of wood with straight grain and plane it down to shape the mast.  A lot of basic books on ship model construction have instructions for doing this. 
 
If you are not intending to immerse yourself in this ship modelling endeavor, you can cut a square tenon for the mast heel - close enough is good enough to start - you can always file away, or glue a scab when doing the final mast mount.
 
As for cutting the tenon,  micro saws, small back saws,  needle files , Xacto blade chisels, or if you want to invest: palm chisels will do the job.  When I started, I knew nothing about wood working or the tools involved.  This is a way to learn.
 
One factor to consider at this point:  The farther down in the hull is the heel of the mast,  the less profound will be the effect of mast wedge adjustments at the deck level when doing the final positioning of the mast. You will have more room for play.

Pure theory here:   Make sure there is no play with the ways and the cross slide.  If it was a quality machine when new and has been well maintained, it is likely better than most units now being made.  Make sure it has standard specs for attachments like 3-jaw and 4-jaw chucks and collet chucks and Jacobs chucks and live centers. 
 
If it was a popular unit, there may be 3rd party sources for replacement motors - I am fortunate that Unimat does.
 
The max length you can mount is something to consider.  
 
A straight up lathe is great for making other tools.  For this purpose, it is pretty much irreplaceable.
If it is not convertible to a milling machine, the functions it can perform in wooden ship construction are not as many as a lot of other machines - masts, yards, cannon barrels,  barrel barrels,  windlass drums,  wheels, capstans, mostly.  It is not even vital for these, as there are other ways to get there. 

Pure theory here:   Make sure there is no play with the ways and the cross slide.  If it was a quality machine when new and has been well maintained, it is likely better than most units now being made.  Make sure it has standard specs for attachments like 3-jaw and 4-jaw chucks and collet chucks and Jacobs chucks and live centers. 
 
If it was a popular unit, there may be 3rd party sources for replacement motors - I am fortunate that Unimat does.
 
The max length you can mount is something to consider.  
 
A straight up lathe is great for making other tools.  For this purpose, it is pretty much irreplaceable.
If it is not convertible to a milling machine, the functions it can perform in wooden ship construction are not as many as a lot of other machines - masts, yards, cannon barrels,  barrel barrels,  windlass drums,  wheels, capstans, mostly.  It is not even vital for these, as there are other ways to get there. 

There is a problem with using a dowel as starting stock:  it is hit or miss with the grain being straight,  luck mostly.  Over time, the wood will seek equilibrium. If the grain is not dead straight, the dowel will bend.
 
The way to avoid this - split out mast and yard stock from a board of a species of wood with straight grain and plane it down to shape the mast.  A lot of basic books on ship model construction have instructions for doing this. 
 
If you are not intending to immerse yourself in this ship modelling endeavor, you can cut a square tenon for the mast heel - close enough is good enough to start - you can always file away, or glue a scab when doing the final mast mount.
 
As for cutting the tenon,  micro saws, small back saws,  needle files , Xacto blade chisels, or if you want to invest: palm chisels will do the job.  When I started, I knew nothing about wood working or the tools involved.  This is a way to learn.
 
One factor to consider at this point:  The farther down in the hull is the heel of the mast,  the less profound will be the effect of mast wedge adjustments at the deck level when doing the final positioning of the mast. You will have more room for play.

You may be giving this more attention than it warrants.  I take it that this is a fully planked hull with the keelson essentially not really visible?
Saying keel notch - this is POB with no keelson at all? 
 
In POF there would be a mast step on top of the keelson - or assembly of sister keelsons - depending on ship size and how serious they were in resisting hogging.   Most mast heel tenons were square it seems.  The mortise in the mast step would be square. I can see where an octagonal tenon and mortise would be easier to allow side rake adjustments.  Your kit is not designed for this level of detail.
 
You imply that you are going to use the dowel that comes with the kit to make the mast.  If you were shaping the mast from split out straight grain stock, I could see maybe paying attention to what a hidden mast heel tenon might be.  In your situation, centering a hole in the heel and mounting a cut off 6 P or 8 P nail with the point out should be sufficient.
 
Just making a hole in the plywood center spine to receive the nail point may not be a stable support.  You can use a solid piece of wood on top of the keel spine to receive the nail.  Getting it square to the edge of the plywood is difficult , is too narrow and is not stable.  Make the mast step at least 3xs wider than the keel spine.  Either cut a mortise in a thicker step to slip over the spine or glue lateral supports on either side of the spine.
 
You will need to adjust the mast length to compensate for this assembly.  Either cut off a bit of the dowel, or notch the mast step assembly down into the keel spine.

You may be giving this more attention than it warrants.  I take it that this is a fully planked hull with the keelson essentially not really visible?
Saying keel notch - this is POB with no keelson at all? 
 
In POF there would be a mast step on top of the keelson - or assembly of sister keelsons - depending on ship size and how serious they were in resisting hogging.   Most mast heel tenons were square it seems.  The mortise in the mast step would be square. I can see where an octagonal tenon and mortise would be easier to allow side rake adjustments.  Your kit is not designed for this level of detail.
 
You imply that you are going to use the dowel that comes with the kit to make the mast.  If you were shaping the mast from split out straight grain stock, I could see maybe paying attention to what a hidden mast heel tenon might be.  In your situation, centering a hole in the heel and mounting a cut off 6 P or 8 P nail with the point out should be sufficient.
 
Just making a hole in the plywood center spine to receive the nail point may not be a stable support.  You can use a solid piece of wood on top of the keel spine to receive the nail.  Getting it square to the edge of the plywood is difficult , is too narrow and is not stable.  Make the mast step at least 3xs wider than the keel spine.  Either cut a mortise in a thicker step to slip over the spine or glue lateral supports on either side of the spine.
 
You will need to adjust the mast length to compensate for this assembly.  Either cut off a bit of the dowel, or notch the mast step assembly down into the keel spine.

You may be giving this more attention than it warrants.  I take it that this is a fully planked hull with the keelson essentially not really visible?
Saying keel notch - this is POB with no keelson at all? 
 
In POF there would be a mast step on top of the keelson - or assembly of sister keelsons - depending on ship size and how serious they were in resisting hogging.   Most mast heel tenons were square it seems.  The mortise in the mast step would be square. I can see where an octagonal tenon and mortise would be easier to allow side rake adjustments.  Your kit is not designed for this level of detail.
 
You imply that you are going to use the dowel that comes with the kit to make the mast.  If you were shaping the mast from split out straight grain stock, I could see maybe paying attention to what a hidden mast heel tenon might be.  In your situation, centering a hole in the heel and mounting a cut off 6 P or 8 P nail with the point out should be sufficient.
 
Just making a hole in the plywood center spine to receive the nail point may not be a stable support.  You can use a solid piece of wood on top of the keel spine to receive the nail.  Getting it square to the edge of the plywood is difficult , is too narrow and is not stable.  Make the mast step at least 3xs wider than the keel spine.  Either cut a mortise in a thicker step to slip over the spine or glue lateral supports on either side of the spine.
 
You will need to adjust the mast length to compensate for this assembly.  Either cut off a bit of the dowel, or notch the mast step assembly down into the keel spine.

My guess is:  filler top .
 
In any case,  what you show is a nightmare.  Tapered timbers - shifted timbers.  re-enforces my preference for planking everything from the main wale on up. In which case, it is easier and makes for a more stable hull to fill the spaces above the main wale with timbers.

My guess is:  filler top .
 
In any case,  what you show is a nightmare.  Tapered timbers - shifted timbers.  re-enforces my preference for planking everything from the main wale on up. In which case, it is easier and makes for a more stable hull to fill the spaces above the main wale with timbers.

Rather than settling for Denken Experimenten ( thought experiment ) do the real thing.  Basswood is available for low cost.  Joann, Michaels, even Walmart seems to have sheets in several thicknesses, so if the experiment fails, you will only be out of some time, time that will have increased your skills at worst.  Use the 3rd party stock.  I know one and done is appealing, but if you get into scratch building, you will wind up having to redo a lot.  The redo time will be less than the time taken by the nagging memory that continues to occur if you do something wrong and let it go.
 
Another suggestion:  place your simulated deck beams on either side of the moulds/bulkheads.  No play when you assemble it on the hull and you do not need to be precise in how much of the center spine you cut away. It just needs to be enough to clear your beams.

Rather than settling for Denken Experimenten ( thought experiment ) do the real thing.  Basswood is available for low cost.  Joann, Michaels, even Walmart seems to have sheets in several thicknesses, so if the experiment fails, you will only be out of some time, time that will have increased your skills at worst.  Use the 3rd party stock.  I know one and done is appealing, but if you get into scratch building, you will wind up having to redo a lot.  The redo time will be less than the time taken by the nagging memory that continues to occur if you do something wrong and let it go.
 
Another suggestion:  place your simulated deck beams on either side of the moulds/bulkheads.  No play when you assemble it on the hull and you do not need to be precise in how much of the center spine you cut away. It just needs to be enough to clear your beams.

Maybe you should start low tech =
 

 
The middle one works best for me.
 
The wood is usually thin enough that hand drilling goes quickly.
 
 
You need bits:
 

 
This one is convenient.   When you break a bit, replacements come per gauge - usually in packs of 6-10.
 
If you know the gauge for the brass nail, having backups is good.
 
This is a handy tool =
 

 
This one along with this:
 

 
I use as my draw plates to make trunnels from bamboo skewers - end caps in most grocery stores.
 
 
 

Maybe you should start low tech =
 

 
The middle one works best for me.
 
The wood is usually thin enough that hand drilling goes quickly.
 
 
You need bits:
 

 
This one is convenient.   When you break a bit, replacements come per gauge - usually in packs of 6-10.
 
If you know the gauge for the brass nail, having backups is good.
 
This is a handy tool =
 

 
This one along with this:
 

 
I use as my draw plates to make trunnels from bamboo skewers - end caps in most grocery stores.
 
 
 

Chuck,
I suspect a lot of your problem is the species of wood.  Walnut - even Black Walnut - Juglans nigra - which I serious doubt is the species you have is open pore - and the species used in Europe ( European/African sourced) look even more open grain and brittle.
 
You may consider using another species of wood.  There are vendors here who can supply veneer that will play nice.  You can dye a light colored wood if Walnut is the shade you want. You an get wider pieces and do a proper job of spilling ( der. "spoilling" - it means cutting away a lot of perfectly good wood to get a plank it fit the hull curves properly.
 
If nothing else - and you are local - Woodcraft - has veneer - you want the sort that is not expensive anyway - the high cost burl/figured material are the characteristics that you do not want - they do not translate well in the 1:50- 1:100 scale range. Checking their catalog - the following are examples of what you may consider:
Cherry Veneer 3 sq ft pack 9.99, 12 sq ft pack 21.50

Beech Veneer 3 sq ft pack 10.99

Maple Veneer 3 sq ft pack 10.19 , 12 sq ft pack 20.99
 
Maple and Beech will dye darker - so will Cherry, but why guild a lilly?
 

Maybe you should start low tech =
 

 
The middle one works best for me.
 
The wood is usually thin enough that hand drilling goes quickly.
 
 
You need bits:
 

 
This one is convenient.   When you break a bit, replacements come per gauge - usually in packs of 6-10.
 
If you know the gauge for the brass nail, having backups is good.
 
This is a handy tool =
 

 
This one along with this:
 

 
I use as my draw plates to make trunnels from bamboo skewers - end caps in most grocery stores.
 
 
 

Maybe you should start low tech =
 

 
The middle one works best for me.
 
The wood is usually thin enough that hand drilling goes quickly.
 
 
You need bits:
 

 
This one is convenient.   When you break a bit, replacements come per gauge - usually in packs of 6-10.
 
If you know the gauge for the brass nail, having backups is good.
 
This is a handy tool =
 

 
This one along with this:
 

 
I use as my draw plates to make trunnels from bamboo skewers - end caps in most grocery stores.
 
 
 

Chuck,
I suspect a lot of your problem is the species of wood.  Walnut - even Black Walnut - Juglans nigra - which I serious doubt is the species you have is open pore - and the species used in Europe ( European/African sourced) look even more open grain and brittle.
 
You may consider using another species of wood.  There are vendors here who can supply veneer that will play nice.  You can dye a light colored wood if Walnut is the shade you want. You an get wider pieces and do a proper job of spilling ( der. "spoilling" - it means cutting away a lot of perfectly good wood to get a plank it fit the hull curves properly.
 
If nothing else - and you are local - Woodcraft - has veneer - you want the sort that is not expensive anyway - the high cost burl/figured material are the characteristics that you do not want - they do not translate well in the 1:50- 1:100 scale range. Checking their catalog - the following are examples of what you may consider:
Cherry Veneer 3 sq ft pack 9.99, 12 sq ft pack 21.50

Beech Veneer 3 sq ft pack 10.99

Maple Veneer 3 sq ft pack 10.19 , 12 sq ft pack 20.99
 
Maple and Beech will dye darker - so will Cherry, but why guild a lilly?
 

Maybe you should start low tech =
 

 
The middle one works best for me.
 
The wood is usually thin enough that hand drilling goes quickly.
 
 
You need bits:
 

 
This one is convenient.   When you break a bit, replacements come per gauge - usually in packs of 6-10.
 
If you know the gauge for the brass nail, having backups is good.
 
This is a handy tool =
 

 
This one along with this:
 

 
I use as my draw plates to make trunnels from bamboo skewers - end caps in most grocery stores.
 
 
 

I have a suggestion:
 
First, why:
 
Rigging is totally exposed to the atmosphere.  This planet is enveloped in a layer of a highly reactive ( and looked at objectively - a very poisonous ) gas = Oxygen.  You can readily see it effects on iron - almost as you watch.  An acidic pH only enhances its reactivity.
 
CA probably oxidizes - it likely continues the chemical reaction that produces its function ( it needs water - which is certainly present in the atmosphere ).  The polymerization can continue until near complete - producing a material that is brittle.
 
Titebond  II - yellow PVA  - has is pH 3.   This is 10,000 x's more acidic than freshly distilled water.
Weldbond  - white PVA - has is pH 5.5.    This is about the same as normal water - which is actually a dilute solution of carbonic acid ( atmospheric CO2 disolved in water).
 
I suggest using something like Lineco White Neutral pH Adhesive.  It is a PVA used by bookbinders and preservationists.  Dries clear and can be diluted in water to soak into natural cellulose fiber rigging.   It does not do do well with plastic,  so if you rig with nylon or other synthetic products, use another material.
 
One property of plastic rigging material:  they are formed thru a chemical reaction = polymerization.  long chain molecules are bonded to short ones - producing a web or mesh.  If there is enough linking,  a strong flexible material is produced.  If there is too much cross linking, a rigid, brittle and weak material.  In the presence of UV light, oxygen and heat - plastics continue to cross link on their own.  The material will ultimately shatter.
 
Linen, on the other hand - I believe they are finding 3-5 thousand year old mummies still wrapped in functional linen fabric.

If it is intended to adhere to glass,then poly will provide a plastic surface that is about as close to glass as can be had.  You probably want to give the surface a good rubdown wit 0000 steel wool, before, between and after each coat.  Vacuum and tack rag the dust and steel fragments throughly after each treatment.  Any steel left can rust and stain.  600 grit Silicon carbide paper may be a good alternative to steel wool.