JacquesCousteau

Thanks! This is good to keep in mind. I think I can probably live with the blotchiness overall--as you and wefalck point out, a working boat would be a little banged up. And, given that I did weather the floorboards, I can't really go for a perfect showroom look anyway--aiming for a vessel that's maybe had a couple voyages but is still relatively recently-build and isn't totally banged up might be a better look overall. I think the more serious issue is the bright strip alongside the hull on most of the supports, which does look very out of place (I'll try to add a better photo). I'm thinking I might try a little more sanding and scraping there. I'm also going to experiment on scrap with seeing how it would look to add a very light black or gray wash over the stained wood, which might help even things out a bit. Edit: here's a closer photo of the bright strip alongside the hull.

Thanks! The rest of the hull will be painted a flat black, unless my tests with producing a more mottled, tarred wood scheme go better than expected. From photos, the tarred wood look was the most common, but some do show a painted hull. Given that I haven't significantly weathered the interior all that much, I was thinking that a more evenly-painted hull would be more appropriate.

Unfortunately, I've now run into an entirely self-created problem. I decided not to make any more supports, as three seemed to be about the right number for a canoa of this size. As for coloration, it was hard to tell from photos. The supports generally seem to have been the same color as the rest of the hull, but in some they appear slightly lighter. I was curious how it would look if the supports were stained to be consistent with the crossbeams. (Painting the supports brown could work in theory but would be notably inconsistent with the rest of the build). Here's where I made a mistake. Upon staining the first support, it looked extremely blotchy, probably because of all the end grain as well as basswood's general unsuitability for staining. So, I decided to just paint the supports the same color as the hull and glued them on without staining any more of them. (None are stained in the below picture). However, I had been too hasty in judging the stain job. With a bit more time, it evened out considerably, looking much better. (In the photo below, the stained support is closest to the canera). But, now all the supports were glued to the hull. Rather than remove the supports, I decided to see if it was possible to stain them while on the hull. I applied sealer to the hull around them so that excess stain wouldn't soak into the hull. I also sanded the supports near the joint to remove any glue residue (although I had been very careful to remove excess with a damp brush as I went). Then, I carefully stained the pieces, including using a fine brush to apply stain to the nooks and crannies where it was hard to use the stain pen. Unfortunately, this didn't work very well. Unlike on the first support, the stain turned out very blotchy in general. What's worse, it didn't take near the joint. Either there was still glue residue left on the surface despite my efforts, or glue had soaked into the interior of the wood a bit. In any case, the supports look terrible. Above, the support I stained off the hull is on the right, and the two stained on the hull are to its left. Above, the view from a different angle makes it more clear how the stain didn't take near the joint with the hull. The other side is quite blotchy, as well. So, now I'm a bit stuck. As I see it, using alcohol now to remove the supports for restaining off the hull is unlikely to work well. I don't know what effect alcohol will have on the already applied stain, and I'm not sure if it would fully remove the glue residue that's keeping the stain from applying near the joint. I'd also still have to somehow deal with the blotchy staining elsewhere, which seems unrelated to the glue issues--that my first support turned out evenly-stained may have simply been a matter of luck. I could also try re-making the botchy pieces, but I'm not sure if I have enough wood in the right size. The dory kit only came with a very small piece in this thickness, and this thickness is not very available here for purchase. Finally, I could just go with my original plan and, as in the Rolling Stones song, paint it black. Any suggestions are welcome. This is really a lesson in having patience with painting/staining, and above all, in the importance of planning out my next steps ahead of time.

Wow, impressive progress in just over a week!

Next, I installed the crossbeams that run across the fore half of the hull, and carved the supports for the rail. Marking out the crossbeam locations took a bit of time. Photos like the one below suggest that the crossbeams weren't always perfectly spaced or parallel, but I wanted to get them at least close. Source: Martín Sánchez, “January 22, 2020” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHbBKiYs3QU I also wanted to avoid cutting into any of the frames, which would make cutting out the slots harder. I used a mini saw blade to cut out the slots, after taping down some paper so the sawdust wouldn't get trapped in the floor planking. Although I used an exacto blade to mark the slot locations, as I'd seen this was more precise than a pencil, I didn't realize that the saw blade would widen the cut a bit, so the first crossbeams are a bit loose. Cutting the slots was also a bit tricky because, in theory, the sides should not be vertical, but rather perpendicular to the rail as it curves up. As a result, the slots didn't end up quite as neat as I would have liked. I originally left the ends of the crossbeams unstained, due partly to the issues I've had with staining end grain, but mostly because I was planning on painting the protruding ends black with the rest of the hull exterior. However, after gluing the crossbeams in place, I began to have second thoughts--the hull exterior is a big expanse to have all one color, and it might look better to have some different-colored crossbeams to add variety and visual interest. Of course, it would have been better to decide this before gluing them in place.... Also, the ends of the crossbeams ended up a little uneven due to some wood fibers being crushed in the cutting process, so if I go the stain route, I'll probably have to resand and restain. With the crossbeams in place, I turned my attention to the supports that prop up the rail in the aft half. As I mentioned when making these for the Cargo Canoa (post #41 in this thread), and as can be seen in the image below, the supports at times were carved into interesting shapes. Source: https://mediateca.inah.gob.mx/islandora_74/islandora/object/fotografia%3A139636 As far as I can tell, these are the only decorations that these otherwise utilitarian vessels would have, so I wanted to make them look nice. As Ramón Rubín makes clear, owning a nice canoa would have been a point of pride for any fisherman or cargo hauler. I've also been very impressed with the beautiful shaping that people do in other builds for even simple parts like knees, and wanted to do a much better job than I did on the Cargo Canoa. Finally, I wanted to make them thicker than the 1/16‐inch-thick supports I used on the Cargo Canoa, which seemed flimsy, so I went with a bit of scrap 3/32‐thick wood leftover from the dory kit. I made a paper template that I traced onto the wood. After cutting out each piece, I lightly chamfered the edge with my exacto knife. Then I used a round and half round file to better shape the edges, smoothing and rounding them. I also used a drill bit to partially drill out a circular indentation on each side to add a bit of visual interest. Finally I cut the top to the correct angle. I've now made six of the supports. I'm very happy with how they turned out, and think they look much better than the supports on the Cargo Canoa. Before I attach the supports and paint the hull, I will be checking photos to see 1) if I should make one more support per side, and 2) if any vessels seem to have had the supports differently-colored than the hull, which, as with the crossbeams, would add visual interest to what will otherwise be a vast monochrome expanse.

Thanks, that's very kind of you to say! I think I could have been neater at some of the slots around the frames, but I'm learning more and more with each part I make.

Despite running into a minor snag, the floor planking has been completed! When painting the fore planks with a light black wash, I realized that I had a problem. Earlier I had very lightly scored part of my basswood sheet to mark the dimensions for some parts, but the scoring ended up extending beyond what I needed. I had sanded it down to the point where it didn't seem noticeable, then continued using that sheet for the floor planks. Unfortunately, adding the black wash revealed that the scoring was still present, as can be seen on the center plank in the following image. Two planks had this issue. I tried to sand it down some more and repaint, but as can be seen, this just made the problem more noticeable and made the plank extremely blotchy. So, I remade the two planks. Fortunately I was just able to trace the existing planks, which made things easier. I mentioned above that I was considering adding handhold holes at the ends of the planks, and I used the faulty planks to test this out, holding them in place and using a small bit in my pin vise. Unfortunately, this didn't work. Drilling through a plank already in place left a very jagged hole in the bottom, which I wouldn't be able to access on the planks already in place, and inserting a small circular file didn't help much. Moreover, the hole itself stands out because it's the natural wood color, and attempting to add a black wash just made the plank blotchy. In hindsight, I wish I had planned this better, as the handholds would have had to be added early on, before painting. Oh well, that's a lesson for the future. Despite that, I got the floor planks in and I'm happy with how they turned out. Next up, I need to add the remaining crossbeams.

Once again, travel kept me away from the build for a little while, but I'm back at it working on the floor planking. These have been a bit fiddly to get right, especially around the edges. I started with the aft third. Then the middle section, ignoring the sides at first. Then the middle sides, which I think turned out quite well, and the fore planking. The latter was especially tricky as every plank runs up against the sides, so I needed to cut curves as well as cutting around the frames. As can be seen, I still need to paint and attach these planks, which are just roughly fit for now. (In the last picture, I'm holding down the back because I didn't leave enough space below the bow cleats, so the ends of the two planks that bracket the central plank want to come up unless held in place). I got better at getting more consistent spacing as I went, so I'm not totally happy with how the aft flooring turned out. But, I'm going to leave it, particularly as Rubín's La canoa perdida mentions that the floor planks were left loose and not attached. (In the novel, one sign that the protagonist's disappeared canoa is in fact stolen, and hasn't simply drifted out and sunk due to shoddy mooring, is that there are no floor planks adrift or washed ashore--being loose, they would have floated away if the boat sank). I suspect the planks wouldn't have been perfectly spaced in real life. (Or at least it's very convenient for me to hope so!) Finally, I am considering drilling a small hole in the ends of each plank to provide a handhold so they could be easily removed. In this, I am inspired by the Le Rochefort build log by Tobias, which recently added this detail to its own planking (and which is a fantastic build, I have to say).

Nice job!

Looks great!

Cool! It seems like a good way to fill the space without having to cut supports to just the right size (or risk them pushing the bulkheads out of alignment).

Thanks, that's really interesting! I've never seen that before but it makes sense.

Looks good! Out of curiosity, why are there wood shavings in the hull?

Due to some travel, I wasn't able to work on the build, but I've gotten back into it. Using tape to hold the framing templates in place wasn't really working, so I switched to a gluestick. It seems to have little enough moisture that it doesn't distort the paper template, at least not with the small quantities I'm using. Given how small the frame pieces are, I've been able to cut them from oddly-shaped scrap. The second frame on the cross-section, which is the amidships frame, came together pretty easily and without serious problems. Here are both conpleted frames dry-fit on the keel. I'm going to need some sort of jig to make sure the frames are squared up when I actually glue them in place. At this point, the remaining frames will go together identically, so hopefully the next post will be when they're all completed.

Looks like it's coming along well!

The seine boat, dory, and deck furnishings look good, I'm looking forward to seeing the hull of the Benjamin Latham itself! Edit: you posted the hull while I was writing the above. It's coming along well!

Coming along well, I see. Good luck with fixing the frame, they're pretty fragile. Also, if the clamps are denting the planks at the ends, a dab of water will expand the wood and help smooth out the dents.

Looks like you're off to a good start!

Brief update. Although exact colors are hard to judge from black-and-white photos, I did notice the crossbeams never appeared very dark in color, so I decided to go with just lightly staining them. The amidships crossbeam has been added. I noticed that the hull seems to have very slightly collapsed inward since being removed from the molds all that time ago, so I used the crossbeam to slightly spread the hull. I probably should have added the crossbeam earlier. If I had actually glued the floor timbers and uprights to each other, this stretching could be a problem, but when installing I just butted them up against each other, gluing only on the bottom and side planking and leaving a bit of flexibility. Even if it's just a couple millimeters wider, and probably doesn't show up in photos, I think it looks better this way. I also cut the stern third of floor planking to size, minus the planks on the sides, and colored it with a light black wash to test the color scheme. I've decided not to do much weathering on the Canoa de Rancho, but from what I can tell the floor planking would have been added from whatever was available, so I think it makes sense if it's not so brightly-colored. I also like the contrast with the natural, stained, and black-washed wood. The exterior of the hull will be black. Also, it's interesting how the stain changes color depending on angle--from some angles it barely look different from the natural wood, then you move it and it's much darker.

Welcome!

If the transom is a bit crooked, you will probably have to detach it from at least one side of the planking to fix it. With the planks already in place, you could probably reglue it straighter. The transom became crooked on my dory build (model shipways, though, not bluejacket) when I clamped the garboard plank to dry to the form. I was able to fix it, but before I glued on the planks.

Given the issues especially with the joint locations in the first frame, I decided to remake it. I tried to cut a bit more around the lines this time, rather than on them, to leave space for sanding. It also helped that I switched to a fresh blade. I wasn't happy with the larger floor timber, though, as I accidentally cut part of it at an angle, so I redid it. The first is on top and the second on the bottom. The second looks more consistent in width. Happier with how it came out, I assembled the frame and gave it a preliminary fairing. Maybe it's hard to see, but I think the redo (bottom) looks a lot more even compared to the first try (top). The frame joints are also much stronger. And here it is temporarily on the keel with a quarter for scale. One frame down, five to go!

One issue with the frames is that the plans show the entire frame shape as a single piece, but the actual frames are made of floor timbers and a pair of futtocks. I guessed at a location to mark the joint between floor and futtock, choosing the point that seemed to minimize the curve in each piece. Interestingly, the frames of the Juana y José are a bit different from what seems to have been typical further north along the Spanish coast. There, the floor was a single piece, and the futtocks were joined to it along either the fore or aft side (depending on the frame's position in the vessel). The Juana y José is different in that it has two floor timbers in each frame, one longer than the other, and the futtocks are butt jointed to the shorter timber with the joint strengthened by the longer timber, which is always on the fore side of the frame. To better explain, I drew a simple not-to-scale diagram, below, showing a top down view of the frame in 1) a typical llaüt or barca catalana, and 2) the Juana y José. I'm not sure if this is a regional characteristic of Málagan vessels or something. I cut out the pieces for the aftmost frame on paper, leaving some around the edge to keep the paper from twisting too much. As a test, I taped the paper to the 1/16-inch basswood I'm using for the frames to hold the drawing in place while cutting. This was less than ideal, as I suspected. I've read that a non-water-based glue is ideal to keep the paper from warping, and I may have to seek some out. Nonetheless, I was able to cut out the frame pieces. As can be seen, my cutting around curves leaves something to be desired. This first frame may be more of a test than something I use. After cutting out the frame pieces, I assembled them on the plan sheet and added the temporary support beam that will stabilize the frame. I'll have to see if I can fair the pieces so that they're more even. Another issue is that there is less overlap than I thought at the frame joints. I will have to move the joint location closer to the center and redo the frame, although I am concerned about weakening the futtocks by making them too curved. I still wanted to see how it looked in place and faired. Problems aside, the frame (still unfaired here) does fit in its keel notch, and the cross section is starting to take shape. I then did a bit of preliminary fairing on the frame and it looks better, although I'll still redo it so as to have consistent joint placement on the frames. I knew it would be small, but it's still surprising to see it. At least it will be very portable!

Apparently I prefer to have multiple builds going at once, as I'm still working on the Lake Chapala Canoa build. But, this should be a relatively short and quick build, as it's a cross-section of a largely open boat. Obviously, this is an unusual choice for a cross-section--why make a cross-section of a boat that already has mostly visible framing?--and I think it will be the smallest vessel with a cross-section build log on the site. So, it's reasonable to ask why I'm doing it. Apologies for the long-winded explanation! Detail from the plans of the Juana y José. A cross-section of a barca catalana, a similar vessel. The Juana y José is actually a bit simpler than this in some aspects. Source: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barca_levantina#/media/Archivo:Parts_buc-català.jpg Why am I building a cross section of such a small boat? One thing that I'm grappling with is that, for the foreseeable future, I am going to be moving with some regularity and probably won't have much space. This makes modeling difficult. Unless I plan on giving most of my builds away, most everything will have to be readily transportable. So, much as I'd like to jump into even a relatively small model of a rigged sailing ship, like the Chilean Lancha Chilota coasting sloop that I have plans for to make a POB model, or the Model Shipways Muscongus Bay Lobster Smack, I'm struck by how difficult it will be to pack it up and lug it with me. So, I'm considering some more portable options. One option would be an unrigged half hull, and I do think I want to do the NRG half hull. Beyond being a good learning experience, it would be easy to store on a wall and much easier to transport than a rigged model. Another option would be to do some extremely small models or ships in a bottle, the latter of which would definitely take the prize for portability. There are some amazing and creative builds in both categories on the site, but I don't think my building skills are quite there yet. Another option is a cross-section (without a mast). The Triton and Echo cross sections both look fantastic, but both also seem like you really need more tools and skills than I have to build them. Finally, I was looking at a fourth option: a small model around 6 inches long, likely of a rowing vessel in a reasonable scale that wouldn't be too fiddly to make. I got started with modeling after going to the Barcelona Maritime Museum and being blown away by its small craft collection, and one of my goals is to build a POF model of a traditional lateen-rigged Spanish fishing vessel (of which there are a number of types--the barca catalana, the Mallorcan llaüt, the palangrera, the sardinal, the barquets and barches of Valencia that wefalck discusses in detail on his website: https://www.maritima-et-mechanika.org/maritime/albufera/Boats-of-the-Albufera.html, etc). I found that a Spanish modeler, Alfonso del Valle, had drawn up plans--not just line plans, but also diagrams of all frames--and made them freely available for one such boat, the Juana y José. Although there are no builds of it on this site, the Spanish modeling forum Foro Modelismo Naval has a number of builds (such as this one: https://www.foromodelismonaval.es/viewtopic.php?t=15014), and the plans produce a very nice model. Javier Baron, who has a number of albums in the galleries of Model Ship World, even made a beautiful tiny model in 1:74 scale: https://barcosbaron.wordpress.com/2015/01/11/391/). The Juana y José is a small vessel, and the plans are originally in 1:15, but I was curious about what a 1:32 scale build would be like, as that would produce a model about 6 inches long (1:74 scale, in contrast, is well beyond my skills). Printing the plans off in that scale, I noted that the frames would be thin, but perhaps still manageable, and that all parts can be constructed from basswood in thicknesses I have access to. I decided to hold off on a full build for now, as I have no idea how to plank a curved hull form yet. But a small cross-section seemed like a way to test out whether I will want to eventually go ahead with a full build at 1:32, or if I'd prefer a larger scale. It also will give me some experience with POF construction, and will produce a readily portable model. Also, if I eventually do a full build, I can display it alongside the full model. The Juana y José There are a few particularities about the boat and the plans. As del Valle discussed both on his website, now sadly defunct but still viewable through the Internet Archive (https://web.archive.org/web/20160902024136/http://www.modelismonaval.com/magazine/almejera/juanayjose.html), and also on Foro Modelismo Naval, the Juana y José is a real vessel, an old fishing boat that he came across on the beach in Algeciras. The owner allowed him to take its lines and photograph it, and told him about its history. It was built in Málaga sometime in the early 1900s, and was later sold to an Algeciras fisherman. It was broken up in 2003, and was 4.75m/15.6ft long. However, the actual vessel is entirely open and oar-powered (while the owner said it used to have a sail, del Valle saw no mast step or other such evidence, although it conceivably was removed during repairs or renovations). While del Valle accurately depicts the Juana y José in its line plans, in the other sheets, he instead decided to depict it in the rest of the plans as a lateen-rigged, decked vessel, similar in form to a sardinal, and added a prominent windlass, turning it into a traditional clam dragger as he remembered from his youth. So, while the hull is accurate, other details are not. These additions are certainly similar to other vessels, though. So, I could either build the Juana y José accurately as a pure rowboat, follow the plans even if they're not totally accurate--as I've noticed, they make a gorgeous model, and I do really love the look of Spanish lateen-rigged fishing boats--or perhaps take a middle route, inspired by the owner's comment that it used to have a sail, and add a mast while leaving off the deck and windlass. Following the plans would certainly produce the most visually interesting option, even if it's still very simple for a cross-section. The Build, Part 1: The Keel I decided to make the cross-section long enough to include two thwarts, providing the build with some structural rigidity. I chose a six-frame section running from around amidships foreward. If I choose to follow the plans, this section will include the mast step and windlass. The section is just under 2 inches long. I started with the keel. As it turns out, at 1:32 scale, the keel is very close in thickness to 1/16 of an inch, so I was able to use some of my stock of that basswood for the keel. While this seems very thin to me, it's what the plans show and widening it would require reshaping all the frames a bit, so I'm keeping it for now at least. I marked and filed out the frame notches. My filing skills could use a little work, and the notch on the right in the photo below is too wide, but it will do. I then carefully carved out the rabbet, mostly using an exacto knife but also running a file edge along it to widen it a little. I was very concerned about the rabbet cutting through the keel--again, it's 1/16-inch thick--so it's probably not as deep as it should be, but I think it will work. After this photo, I added a coat of sealer-varnish to strengthen the wood a bit--I don't want it breaking along the rabbet or elsewhere, or chipping any more than it already has. Some of the notches may need to be slightly deepened, but I'm going to leave them as-is for now and adjust that once I test-fit the frames. This post is already long, so I'll leave the first frame for the next post.

Looks like you're off to a great start!