JacquesCousteau

I've now finished the second band and the first strake above the wale. Although there are still challenges, I feel like my planking skills have improved over time and the run of each strake is getting better with each band. Now that the wale has been installed, it's becoming quite difficult to clamp the planks below it, as can be seen below. Thankfully I was able to slightly deepen the rabbet, allowing the bow planks to be much more firmly seated. The stern is also tricky, given that the planking now ends against the counter. The haphazard arrangement shown below doesn't work all that well, as the clamp only is in contact with the scrap blocks at the build board. I'm considering adding at least the first plank of the counter's planking in order to form at least a small rabbet of sorts, which would undoubtedly help at least a little to hold the tip of the planks in place. You can also see how the strake above the wale was left oversized at the end. Although I soon cut off the tip to bring it down to the transom, the plank is supposed to cover the ends of the counter planking. As can be seen, the wale also dips a bit, although I'm hoping the second layer of wale will cover this. In general, I'm not totally pleased with my counter and the end of the wale, which doesn't seem to have turned out quite like it should. This is an area where I feel the instruction manual could be clearer. That said, from the other build logs it looks like there's a lot of variation in this across builds, and they all look great, so perhaps it's not so much of a problem. As others have noted, the planks above the wale are very straightforward to shape. View from below: View from the stern: View from the bow: View from the side: I'm quite liking how the hull is coming together, even if I'm very unsure about how I'll clamp this last band.

Very nicely done! The bevel on the planking is definitely confusing at first.

The build looks great!

Thanks! With the wale in place, I've started planking above the wales while continuing to plank the bands below. First, I had to mark out the molding on the quarterdeck. I was then able to mark out the planking widths above the wale. I also finalized the fairing of the transom's bottom corner, which I hadn't done earlier because I wasn't sure where the wale would end up. By now, I've finished the third strake of the second belt, and started planking above the rail. So far I'm enjoying this build a lot, it's very fun to see the hull take shape. There are a few things I want to mention, though. First, I don't think I'll be doing a drop plank at the bow, as it looks like I have plenty of space to fit the full four planks there. I'm not sure what I did differently from the instructions, but I feel like a drop plank would lead to the planks in the last band becoming weirdly wide at the bow. Secondly, as the bow becomes quite bluff by this point of the hull, I've been having a lot of trouble test fitting planks to properly shape them. I'm not sure if I didn't properly fair it or what, but a few planks have snapped when I tried to test fit them around the bow, as can be seen below. (Thankfully it wasn't disastrous for that plank, as I was actually re-using an earlier plank I had accidentally cut a hair too short, so I was able to just trim off the broken end and continue.) What I've found works best is to get the plank approximately spiled, curve it to shape with hot water and clamps, and then finalize the shaping once it's properly curved and can easily fit around the bow. Third, I've also had some trouble fitting planks into the rabbet at the bow and stern. If I were to redo this build, I would make them a little deeper so there was more to seat the planks.

Very nice job on the planking!

I'm continuing to make progress. The wales are now in place (or at least the first layer) and I'm midway through the second belt. As can be seen, creative clamping is a must. Further details of how I'm clamping at the bow: And at the stern: Unfortunately, with all the clamping material in the way, I didn't see until afterward that the bow plank somehow got weirdly twisted at the tip: I found that it wasn't quite as bad as it seemed, though. There isn't actually much of a gap between the plank and the plank below it, it's more that the plank below it is standing slightly proud of the rabbet. Preliminary sanding helped a lot. I also used an exacto blade to carefully trim the top of the plank to get rid of the odd upward twist. It now looks more acceptable: Meanwhile, I'm nearly up to the counter at the stern: Overall, I'm pleased with how the planking is coming along. I can certainly see areas for improvement in future builds, though.

It's been a little while since my last post. I'd like to finish this before my move in late August, as the model will be much easier to pack if it's fully built and can be removed from the build board (or if the board can be trimmed substantially). It took some thought to figure out how to do the stealer at the stern. After considering different options, I decided to follow the example given in the instructions, rather than the other style of stealer shown in Toni's build log. First I marked it out on the hull. And then cut it to shape. It fit fairly well into the slot. I then began adding the next strake. I also decided that I may as well add the wale now, so I began marking that out. One issue I've been having is that it's been very hard to fit planks into the rabbet. I'm not sure if I didn't cut it deep enough. As can be seen, the bow plank ended up too short. Fortunately, it came off easily enough with rubbing alcohol. While I was redoing that plank, I also began cutting the first layer of the wale to shape. Fitting it was a little tricky due to the pronounced curve of the bow, which made it difficult to test fit. I ended up cutting the strip a bit oversize at first to bend it into shape, as seen below, so as to then do the final shaping afterward. I've continued working and moved on to the next strake. As can be seen, the color variation between sheets of basswood has ended up nicely highlighting the stealer. From this angle, you can also see another issue. Following the instructions, the stealer ends on a bit of backing that was placed between frames. Unfortunately, clamping the hull to that backing has led to a bit of a flat spot in the hull in that area. I'll have to see if sanding the hull helps, but I'm not sure it will. I'm also not sure if this could have been avoided--the only way I can think of would have been to add the backing piece much earlier in the build and fair it in place such that it followed the curve of the hull. In any case, this is a minor issue and I can live with it. In any case, I painted the edges of the wales black, and have begun gluing them in place starting at the bow. As can be seen, I had to be a bit creative with the clamping. Sone of the frames are too thick for me to fit the clothespins around, so I had to use several bits of scrap wood to instead clamp to the spacers between frames.

Yes, it's definitely very interesting to ask why certain topics get researched and others don't. In this case, I suspect it's mostly a general lack of study of workboats in Mexico, with anthropology's focus on indigenous societies leading to some studies of dugouts. The lack of study of colonial workboats is a bit odd, though, as other aspects of colonial-era material culture have been very well-studied and have received a lot of attention. In any case, as part of my upcoming move back to Mexico, the Canoa has been packed and sent off, arriving safely. I'll get back to work on it in September.

I'm looking forward to following your build! On the crooked transom: if you're using white glue, it comes off very easily with a bit of rubbing alcohol and can be re-glued once it dries.

Congratulations on finishing, what an amazing build! The figures really make it come to life, too.

Out of curiosity, are there any updates on this build? I know you've been very busy with the Speedwell, new blocks, and other items, so it makes perfect sense that it's on the backburner. But it's a very interesting build. These small workboats are fascinating and under-represented in kits, especially at the level of detail and accuracy you're going for. And this method of making the frames looks like an excellent way around the challenges of building many thin frames without doing a shell-first construction with frames added in afterward. Is there any chance the kit would be available someday in 1:32 scale?

Really fascinating stuff. I wonder if there are any oral histories of fishermen or boatbuilders during the war that might have an answer?

Very well done!

Thanks, all! I next made the oarlocks. While the instructions/inventory say the kit is supposed to include a piece of wood specifically for these parts, I couldn't find it, and instead used the leftover strip from the rub rail, which was the same size. I should note that, while I've been writing that these parts are walnut, the instructions actually say that they're mahogany! I'm not sure how I got it in my head that they're walnut. They look much grayer than the mahogany that I've seen and used in the past (like on the Juana y José), though, with a very different grain pattern, and also seem less reddish compared with photos of other build logs. So I'm not sure if they're actually mahogany or something else, or if the company changed the material. In any case, the oarlock blocks were not difficult to shape. I then attached them and drilled out the holes for the oarlocks themselves, which are cast in a silvery metal. I'm not sure whether to try painting them or blackening them, or if I should just leave them as-is--I don't think the silvery color looks bad. Next, I made a simple stand. I still have to decide whether to stain it, paint it, or leave it as-is. At this stage, the main things left to build are the accoutrements--oars, lobster trap, and other fishing gear. I have to say that this is quite an enjoyable kit.

Thanks! The walnut rub rail has now been attached. While the instructions say to just use super glue to hold the strip to the necessary curve, as with the rest of this build I soaked the walnut strips in hot water, clamped them to dry to shape, and used white glue to attach them. First, though, I scraped and carefully sanded some of the paint away from the area to be glued. Then, as the walnut strip was a bit splintery, I lightly sanded the exterior side of each strip and slightly rounded the exterior edges. After soaking and allowing the strips to dry to shape, I glued them in place. I found it easiest to glue half a strip at a time, clamping as I went, as shown below. I should note that, as I couldn't clamp right at the tip, I just held the strip in place by hand for 15 minutes or so until it was sturdy enough to stay in place. Beveling the tips to fit against the stems was a bit more complicated than the instructions suggested, as the stem didn't always form such a perfect angle with the hull planking. In a couple joints, I was able to bevel it more or less as given in the instructions: At other joints, though, I had to trial-and-error a fit as there wasn't really a defined angle. I allowed the strip to run a little long to allow final shaping afterward. Once both strips were on, I did the final shaping. I taped off the stems to protect them while sanding. I then trimmed and sanded the rub rails to make them smoothly run into the stems. I then used green paint to touch up where needed (and to touch up a couple spots on the border of the white strip). With that, the hull is complete except for the oarlocks. As can be seen, the rub rails run smoothly into the stems. Next, I think it's time to make a stand.

Very nice start, looking forward to following this build!

Very nicely done!

Thanks! I shaped the edges of the breasthooks to run smoothly into the inwales, and then fully painted the interior. My first attempt wasa shade too light, but I was able to add a bit more brown to the mix and matched the previous coat pretty well. I also decided to paint the knees. Once they dried, I glued all the thwarts etc into place. The interior is now nearly finished, except for oarlocks/oars/lobster trap/etc. Next, to paint the exterior. A bit of the interior color had gotten onto the exterior white stripe, so I gave that a new coat. Then, I used tamiya masking tape to set off the stripe, and painted the rest of the hull a dark green. As can be seen, despite the filling and sanding the hull is still not very smooth. However, that will mostly be out of sight on the bottom, so I'm not too worried. After allowing it to dry and removing the tape, I can see I'll have a little touch-up to do at the stem. But otherwise, the hull is nearly complete. Next I'll add a walnut trim strip as a wale around the edge.

Excellent point! I've made a bit more progress on the interior. First, a second coat of paint really helped to even things out. I think one or two more costs of paint will be enough. However, before I get to that, I realized that I need to add the inwales. They've been cut to size and are drying into shape. I'm actually not clamping them now (although I will when I glue them), because the pressure from the breasthooks is enough to hold them in shape. After they're glued into place, I'll need to sand the ends of the breasthooks flush with them. I also decided to color the seats and thwarts with stain. They aren't glued into place yet. They required a bit of shaping to fit properly--better that they're provided oversized and can be trimmed down than be provided in a size too small. Adding the thwarts really gives a sense of this model's large scale. Earlier, with the numerous frames and the use of thin strips for planking, the hull almost felt like it could be a smaller-scale model of a much larger vessel (by which I mean something around 30 feet in length), but that's not the case with the thwarts in place. I also checked the fit of the knees, which I will also need to color. I'm debating whether to paint or stain them. Once the interior is finished, I'll be able to fully paint the exterior. The end is in sight for this build, but I'm not there yet.

Thank you all for your kind comments! The kit calls for painting the hull exterior with an accent stripe under the walnut rub rail, with a buff interior. From what I can tell, white hulls were quite common on small fishing boats. White paint was cheap and readily available. That said, I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of how it looks on a hull, as it's very bland. (This is one of the reasons I have no plans to make a Chesapeake skipjack or bugeye anytime soon--the traditional white hull with white deck with white hatches etc is very monotonous!) Moreover, white paint seems to highlight everything imperfection in the hull in a way that darker colors don't quite seem to. Finally, it also doesn't cover dark colors very well, and unfortunately, my wood filler is very dark. So, although it may not be the most traditional, I've decided to paint this model with a dark green hull, set off by a white accent stripe under the rub rail. I've begun with the accent stripe, as it's the lightest color, painting an oversized patch of hull--the green should cover up the white pretty easily. I gave it several coats and then sanded to somewhat smooth out the stripe, as can be seen below. I'm applying fairly thin acrylic coats, which thankfully dry pretty quickly. My paints are about a year old by now and seem to be drying a bit in their bottles. This isn't a problem price-wise, as they were very cheap, but the paint is getting a little chunky and has some hard flakes that have marred the surface, needing to be picked off with an exacto knife. And here we see it after several more coats, not quite ready. Many of the darker spots are shadows from slightly uneven planking. After letting it sit overnight, I decided that the white stripe would be a bit too stark alongside the green. For the final coats, I mixed a tiny bit of brown in to get more of a cream color, which I think will work much better. After several coats, the stripe is now ready, and the next step on the exterior will be to tape over the stripe and paint the rest green. I also started on the interior, mixing a bit more brown into the leftover cream paint to get more of a buff color. I needed more paint than I thought, and had to mix a bit more to cover at least under the riser. The color didn't quite match, but that's ok for the base layer. I'm going to need a lot more coats for the interior. I'm still deciding whether to go for a buff interior, or whether I want it gray, which could also look sharp alongside the green.

Risers are in! First I faired the inner side of the frames and smoothed the places where I had applied filler, some of which were very difficult to sand. I added the risers one at a time, as I didn't have enough clamps to get both at once. The next step in the instructions is to start adding the thwarts and other parts, but I think I'll be painting the interior first before it gets too complicated to paint. Time to decide on a paint scheme.

Congratulations, that looks amazing! Really nice job. Is the base just the basswood that came with the kit? What stain did you use with it?

Definitely! In Latin America, I've noticed some serious differences between countries and regions. Chile, for instance, not only is nearly entirely coastal, but its maritime history has been regularly drawn on for nationalist purposes. Practically every city there seems to have something named after Captain Prat, hero of the War of the Pacific, for instance, and more prosaically, the Pinochet dictatorship seems to have promoted reconstructions of the schooner Ancud, as well as a regatta of "traditional" sailing craft from the south (possibly, I need to do further research on this) to help reinforce national claims to disputed territory in Tierra del Fuego. This seems to have fueled the creation of a sizeable body of literature on Chilean maritime history. Meanwhile in Brazil, from what I've seen (which is just scratching the surface) there doesn't seem to be much in the way of national promotion of traditional vessels. However, the saveiros of Bahia have received a great deal of attention, in part as a symbol of local/regional identity strongly connected with Northeastern identity, and something similar could be said about the jangadas further north. In Mexico, in contrast, there is very little written about modern "traditional" vessels like the Chapala Canoa, with most scholarly attention instead focused on pre-Hispanic dugouts. It's very interesting to consider how and why we have the sources that we have through which we can understand the histories of these vessels.

Next up, the floor planks, which I cut to size and rounded the edges. These needed a bit of a curve, especially further toward the bow and stern. The instructions recommend just using super glue, but I prefer to use as little as possible (the fumes irritate my eyes). I soaked the planks to bend them to shape. As there wasn't any space to clamp them into place, I used various clamps to make a simple bending jig. Given that the bending jig wasn't perfect, they still needed a little pressure to fit into place in the hull. I ended up using a drop of super glue in the center, and white glue along the rest of the plank. This worked well, as I could adjust the plank into position and then press down on the center for 30 seconds to pin it in place while the white glue dried. I also was lucky and found that the ends of the planks matched up with the same strake of hull planking along the full length of the hull, making it easy to make sure they were centered. I'm pleased with the results. I then added a bit of wood filler to see if I could use it to correct some creases and gaps in the framing. Next up, I'll be adding the risers, which I had soaked and clamped to shape while the floor planks were drying. But first, I'll need to lightly fare the interior side of the frames.

Thanks for the suggestion! I was thinking grains of rice might work, but I'll have to look into seeds as well. It's interesting that you mention the difficulty of finding photo records. I've only really had much success in finding photos from areas that saw extensive tourism, which makes sense given that most of these photos were intended for postcards. Lakes Yuririra and Cuitzeo were not tourist destinations for much of the 19th and 20th century, and the very few photos I've found from then focus on their churches, not on work on the lakes. So far practically all the photos I've found of vessels from these areas are of recent vintage. In contrast, I've found more photos of work boats on the Veracruz coast--an area that received a lot of foreign investment and some tourist interest, although it was too hot and prone to tropical diseases for many tourists to stay long. But the most extensive photo records of workboats by far are from 1) Mexico City/Xochimilco, 2) Lake Chapala, and 3) Lake Pátzcuaro. Mexico City was of course the capital and received a lot of attention, and Xochimilco was a popular site for recreation in the 1800s and, increasingly in the late 1800s and early 1900s, for tourism. Lake Chapala and Lake Pátzcuaro both became popular sites for tourism and for retreats for the wealthy in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Moreover, the vessels of each respective area--the trajinera, the canoa, and the icháruta--became important subjects for photographers because they seemed to encapsulate an idea of an authentic indigenous tradition. This was appealing both for nineteenth-century tourists and, after the Revolution especially, also for political authorities. The process has been best described by Jennifer Jolly in her book Creating Pátzcuaro, Creating Mexico: Art, Tourism, and Nation Building under Lázaro Cárdenas (University of Texas Press, 2018), who emphasizes how 1930s nationalist artists and officials built on nineteenth-century precedent to find in Pátzcuaro--and its fishermen--a readily available indigenous past that could be used to promote an idea of Mexico as a nation built on ancient traditions. That the lake was picturesque and commercializable undoubtedly helped. Something similar happened in Xochimilco and in Chapala. In the process, though, the more complex local history, including the histories of transfers and adaptations that led to the replacement of dugouts by plank-built vessels in Xochimilco and Chapala, was effaced. Photographs for the tourist market present these vessels as timeless, but they definitely weren't--they developed in a time and place. (Here it's worth noting that the Pátzcuaro icháruta dugout has the best claim to be "timeless," or at least pre-Hispanic, but I do think it would be worth asking whether its design changed at all over time. After all, as Jolly notes, Pátzcuaro was located on a major trade route and was cosmopolitan in the colonial era. Apparently they just recently discovered a preserved tepari cargo dugout on the Pátzcuaro lakebed, and I hope they are able to do a detailed study of its design.) All of which is to say that, I wonder if something similar was at play in Europe. Perhaps ordinary working boats were mostly ignored (at least in areas where they weren't seen as central to regional or national identities--the UK seems to have pretty extensive workboat records), unless they were in highly touristy areas? I ask because I came across this book the other day in the library, which contains a ton of images and drawings of various types of vessels on Lake Como, a major tourist destination.