MrPross

Great job so far Don, I'm just a few steps behind you on the Dory and I will be following your build with interest. The use of pins for simple jigs is brilliant, reading through your log I've lost count of the times I've said to myself "why didn't I think of that! "

That is a flint I found in the garden, it appears remarkably like a primitive axe head so I kept it. Our local museum wasn't interested so perhaps it's nothing, a fluke. Perhaps I will find an expert to have a look at it one of these days, in the meantime it made a convenient weight.

Thanks Alan, Admirals are a little thin on the ground at the moment, perhaps a model Dory will persuade one to volunteer? Still perhaps a heat gun is in order, less likely to send my plans sailing to one of the far corners of the office, I'd assume. I've noticed the centre frame is considerably shorter than the rest, slightly concerning. Not quite sure what to do about it yet, perhaps I can use a couple of shims to raise it a little.

Today I finally got the bottom to bend, 3 times I followed the instructions to wet the bottom and weight the middle, each time I took the weight off the boards sprung back to their original shape. I know heat is often used to bend planks so I damped them down weighted the centre and then used a hairdryer to apply some heat. Hey presto the boat bottom maintains it's shape after removing the weight! I also built the frame, as others have said in their build logs for the Dory, some of these where a little larger than the diagrams but rather than risk an uneven shape I decided to stick with what I've been given, time will tell whether this will work out. When adding the transom holder it was a little tight, and being a damn brute, I forced and broke it. PVA to the rescue again I think it will be fine, going to give it overnight to go off before I attempt the next steps bevelling the frame and fixing the boat.

Impressive build, any tips for someone about to tackle this same project?

Love the extra details they really bring the Dory to life, something to aspire to. Thanks for sharing!

Excellent job Mark, thanks for sharing your build log a great resource for a first time builder. One I'll be referring back to periodically throughout my own build I'm sure.

Great idea, I held mine together with pegs but this seems a little more precise!

Great idea; I have a pin vise on order as for "squares" maybe a good excuse to "invest" in some LEGO

Thanks Allan, do you know of any good examples you could point me too? This is all fairly new to me still and while I'm enjoying researching and finding solutions to problems as they come up, a bit of direction from an expert is much appreciated.

Good evening, I'm Mr Pross, a green behind the ears model builder on the East coast of England. I have always had a fascination with the sea, sailing, pirates and marine folklore. I recently rediscovered plastic model building after picking up a beginners airfix kit while shopping for Christmas presents. I really enjoyed it and have aquired a few more Tamiya aircraft model kits, but fancied having a go at something built from wood and a boat seemed like the logical project. After reading "ccoyle's A Cautionary Tale" here I decided on the Lowell Grand Banks Dory kit by Model Shipways, it wasn't easy to find here in the UK but I think it's been worth the wait. The instructions are fairly clear and there is plenty of instruction on technique, which is very helpful for a beginner. I have recently been reading a fantastic book about the local Wherry boats "Black Sailed Traders by Roy Clark". One day I'd like to try building one of these iconic vessels from scratch, but in the meantime I am enjoying the Dory! However, it hasn't all been smooth sailing, the stem caught in my cuff this afternoon and I heard a crack, luckily I caught it before I snapped the bottom planks in half and a little pva and a couple of clamps fixed the damage. I'm a little concerned I don't have the stem and stern straight, any tips on how to get them true? I only have a few basic tools at the moment; a scalpel, some tweezers and some crocodile clamps. Would love some recommendations for tools that would help me complete this build to a decent standard.