JacquesCousteau

Thanks! Thanks for the suggestion! After coming back to the model this morning I had the same thought about something being a little off in that area. From photos it seems like there were usually multiple planks ending against the sternpost, so I didn't want to widen the plank at the aftmost end, but I thought I might be able to narrow the plank in some parts and get rid of the odd flatness to the run of the garboard aft. I considered trying to remove the plank with alcohol but was concerned that it would be difficult as this plank is the most solidly glued of all the hull planks (substantial surface area glued to the deadwood, sturdily set into the rabbet). Before taking it off, I decided to try reshaping the plank on the model--worst case scenario, I'd just have to redo it anyway. It was tricky as I don't have all my tools while traveling, and the files would have been really useful, but with a sanding stick and a craft knife I was able to give the plank a bit of a better run. Before: After:

The hull looks great!

The garboard is now complete! After the fore plank, I turned to the aft plank, following the same procedure to make it. Interestingly, this time it did turn out to need a bit of a downward curve to it. After soaking it, clamping it in place, and allowing it to dry, I decided that it was a little wide between the 7th and 10th bulkheads, so I sanded it down slightly there so it would better form a nice curve. Finally I was able to glue it into place. It looks good from above (well, below relative to the boat itself), but perhaps a little odd from the side. This is because, based on photos, the garboard needs to end halfway up the sternpost. I could have more aggressively narrowed the plank around the 9th bulkhead, but I think this would have resulted in an odd shape when viewed from other angles. In any case, the hull will be painted. Next up: working out the planking bands.

Definitely! I found that I quite enjoyed planking during the Half-Hull kit, so I'll have to see how I feel as this build goes on. Somehow the tape must have gotten a little twisted, and the bottom of my fore garboard plank had a bit of a curve to it. Testing it showed that the curve shouldn't have been there, but thankfully I had cut the plank a bit oversized so I was able to reshape it properly. I had forgotten how much dust plank forming creates! Rather than try to set up the chart tape the same on the other side of the hull, I decided to just copy the garboard plank from this side onto the other. Measuring along a few bulkheads showed pretty much the same dimensions, and any issues will be taken care of when laying out the planking belts. Given that the tape form had turned out inaccurate, I instead just traced the existing plank and then carefully shaped and sanded it to size. I then soaked the planks in hot water for a few minutes and set them to dry in place on the hull. I clamped them both at the bow first, then aft, then pressed with scrap wood and fingernails to make sure they were sitting evenly in the keel rabbet before clamping there too. Despite the extreme twist, the planks seem to be in good contact with each bulkhead. When the time comes, we'll see if the same holds true for the stern--I suspect the deadwood will complicate things a bit.

Thanks, Paul! I was able to fair the shims on bulkhead 10 and to add the sternpost. I also realized, based on photo evidence, that the bottom of the stem should be rounded rather than sharp (as shown in the plans). This was easily done by sanding. I also started on the garboard strake, using chart tape to lay out its shape after determining that I would go with a maximum width of 1/4 inch. Determining its shape is quite challenging due to the 90-degree twist, especially aft where the deadwood complicates matters more. I ended up adjusting the aft end further from the photo above. The fore end also was a bit tricky--I didn't want to make it rise too high, but the low fore end shown below turned out to be less than half the width of the widest point, so I had to slightly raise it. The overall line seems all right now. I've begun work on the fore starboard plank following the method used for the Half-Hull build. The aft half will undoubtedly be trickier. Happy New Year's Eve!

Thank you both for having followed along!

Welcome! Looking forward to following your build log!

The sheer strake turned out pretty well. There are a few points where it’s not totally flush with the subdeck, but where it’s off, it’s off by a very small amount, protruding above the subdeck by at most about 1/64th of an inch. Once I am back in Mexico City and have access to my tube of wood filler, I think a light application of filling at these points and some sanding should leave a nice, smooth edge for the covering boards and decking. On the hull planking: looking at photos, there’s a very wide range of wale (or rubbing strake) positions. Some lanchas, including the Quenita (which my plan sheet is based on), have no visible wales—that is, all the planking appears to be of the same thickness. Others have a wale directly below the scuppers. In at least some of these cases, it may not actually be a wale, but a protruding covering board. Some others seem to have had a thin wale just below the scuppers (which may just be an extended covering board) and/or a thin wale somewhat lower on the hull. It’s also worth noting that some of these thinner pieces may have simply been rubbing strakes rather than real wales. The photo below shows several possibilities. The lancha at right foreground has a thin wale or rubbing strake just below the scuppers. It seems to wrap around the chainplate for the shroud, so this was likely a separate part from the covering board. The lancha at left, in contrast, seems to have no wales, although the covering board is apparently visible and seems to be a different color (at least near the stern). Interestingly, the covering board seems to protrude slightly near the stern, but by the midpoint of the hull is level with hull planking (which is why I interpret it as an oversized covering board and not a rubbing strake, which would be visible around the midpoint of the hull). The two lanchas at center-right background, in contrast (one at anchor and one under sail) seem to have a thin wale/rubbing strake or extended covering board below the scuppers and a thin wale/rubbing strake lower on the hull. Source: https://www.bibliotecanacionaldigital.gob.cl/bnd/629/w3-article-613545.html Still others had what looks to be a sort of rubbing strake just below the scuppers, but a rather thicker piece (either a wale or a thick rubbing strake) lower down, as on this vessel (in the foreground): Source: https://www.bibliotecanacionaldigital.gob.cl/bnd/629/w3-article-320752.html Some vessels like the one below had a rather thick wale or covering board just below the scuppers, and a thinner sort of rubbing strake lower down. (This lancha is particularly interesting in that it also has some sort of ratlines or a ladder in the shrouds despite being, as seen by the person in the background, a pretty small vessel—ratlines were usually only seen on the larger coasting schooners or some of the large, round-sterned sloops). Source: https://www.memoriasdelsigloxx.cl/601/w3-article-86081.html Finally, others had flush covering boards, and a thin wale or rubbing strake lower down, as on the foremost vessel in the photo below: Source: https://www.carlosvairo.com/galeria-puerto-montt-lanchas-chilotas All of which is to say, I have several options for placing the wale. I personally don’t much like the look of the totally smooth hull, so I decided to follow the example of the last photo above—that is, there will be a rubbing strake or thin wale a bit below the scuppers. I decided to add it in two parts like on my NRG Half Hull build, doubling 1/32x1/8-inch strips that I have left over from my Maine Peapod build. This way I’ll be able to sand the hull smooth first and paint the rubbing strake/wale off the model to get a clean paint job. The first layer of the wale is now on. All planks below this will be spiled/cut to shape. Finally, having faired the hull, I was having a consistent problem with a bit of a hollow at the 10th bulkhead near the center. After checking various images, I decided that the hollow was inaccurate, and so I’ve now added shims in that spot, as seen below. Once I re-fair that spot of the 10th bulkhead, I’ll be able to add the sternpost and then the garboard. I’ll then be able to mark off the hull for planking.

Looks like an interesting kit!

No worries, thanks for letting me know!

There's some useful information and leads to follow in the conversation here: It touches on some useful source books for modeling British warships of the era. You may also want to check if the original plans for the Triton or other vessels of its class are available online (wikimedia has a ton of British warship plans), they would probably give you a good idea of the mast locations and angles. Nice job on the windows!

Beautiful job on a very interesting and unique model!

Thanks, John! Next, I added the extra strip across the top of the transom, holding it in place with a rubber band (a relatively light one, as the strip was pretty fragile). I then trimmed and sanded it smooth. The joint with the transom will still need a bit of filler and sanding. Next, I added the stem, so as to start creating the bow rabbet and to be ready for planking. Again, I used rubber bands to hold it in place. Once that had dried for a couple hours or so, I added the keel. Adding it made me realize that the stem was slightly angled off-center, but I was able to sand it into the proper shape afterward. I then sanded the keel and especially the joint between the keel and the stem. For now I'm leaving off the sternpost, and I'll trim the aft end of the keel once I add it, but I'm liking how it's coming out so far. Finally, I cut out two 1/4x1/32-inch strips to use as sheer strakes. I decided that these would be made of a single piece. I suspect that the strakes lower down will be easier to make from multiple planks due to the serious curves and twists. For now, the sheer strakes have been soaked and are drying in place. Fitting them made me realize that, despite my best efforts, the bow rabbet is a little small to really fit them, so I'll need to somewhat thin the planks where they reach the rabbet.

Thanks! Adding the subdecks was slightly more complex than expected, but they're on now. First, I marked and trimmed the exterior edges. I had cut them a good bit oversized and realized that I was setting myself up for a lot of sanding, so I trimmed them to just oversized. Then I glued on the first subdeck on the port side. As can be seen, it took a lot of clamps and rubber bands. I started gluing around the center and added clamps to hold it in place and get the right curve fore-and-aft, and then added glue extending out to the edges followed by rubber bands to set the camber. Gluing the second half was trickier because, with the first half in place, I couldn't really clamp it to the bulkheads. Instead, it was glued all at once and mostly held in place with rubber bands. It was trickier to hold this one in place, and there ended up being a few points where the subdeck wasn't quite in firm contact with the bulkheads, despite adding shims beneath the rubber bands. Thankfully the gap ended up being very small, enough that I was able to sand it out of the subdeck despite it being just 1/32-inch thick. Another challenge was that it was very easy to bend the subdeck with the rubber band, unless it was placed at the junction with the bulkheads. After letting it dry overnight, I was able to remove the bands and sand the edge and top. The subdeck provides a better sense of how the camber turned out, I don't think it looks excessive. As can be seen, I cut the subdeck slightly short so I could add a strip at the top of the transom. I think having the grain running side-to-side there, instead of having open grain, will make it easier to use sanding and filler to disguise that I placed the top transom plank slightly too low. Next steps will be to add the transom top strip, add the keel/stem/sternpost, and to plank down to the wale. I can then line out the hull planking, add the covering boards, and begin planking the hull and the deck.

Very nicely done, especially for a first model!

Once again I'm traveling for the holidays, and once again I was able to bring along some supplies and tools to try and make a bit of progress. First, I added the mast step. The mast will have a square cross section extending a bit above the deck, so I just built a sort of box with 1/16x1/8-inch strip wood. I also checked the template for the subdeck. And then cut out the subdeck. It's wider than any of the 1/32‐inch thick sheets that I have, so I had to make it in two halves. It's roughly placed in the photo below, with the keel being used to roughly mark the mast position. I cut the subdeck wide, so I'll have a bit of trimming and sanding to do. I still need to glue it in place. Unfortunately, my attempt at dampening it and using rubber bands didn't work very well, as the thin wood just started almost rolling up. Once the subdeck halves fully dry (which is taking a while in the Veracruz humidity) I'll work out how best to glue them. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and Happy Holidays!

Congratulations, very nicely done!

Fairing the stern can be tricky. The only way to know if it's right is to check with a batten.

Congratulations on an excellent build!

Thank you for following! For now, I'll be working on the Lancha Chilota. I also have a few other projects in the pipeline and, as I enjoy having multiple projects going at once, I'm weighing which to start next.

Excellent work, this is really looking phenomenal. You may have mentioned it earlier, but did you paint the shackles, or chemically blacken them?

I can't compare it with other dory kits, but I personally found the Model Shipways kit to be a great introduction to model building. The instructions are very detailed (and, as mentioned above, are available online so you can seewhat they're like). There are a few aspects to the build that were a little bit tricky, but it was straightforward enough to check other build logs for clarification. Off the top of my head: it's very easy to put a dent in the planking at the bow and stern, but this can be avoided by placing clamps carefully and using light clamps (I found that bobby pins worked well in many cases). Adding the gains to the planks is a little confusing, so it was useful to see how other people handled it on their buid logs--you really have to think about how the planks will fit together. The wood for the false stem isn't specified in the instructions, but you can just use an appropriate sized strip of scrap wood, which lots of build logs note. Some people have also noted an issue with frame templates, although I didn't experience that, so you can check their logs for how they handled things. I would also consider size, cost, and whether you want it with a sail or not. The model shipways kit is pretty small, which I liked because I didn't have a ton of display space, but maybe you want a much larger model to display. The model shipways kit is also cheaper than the midwest or bluejacket dories, which might matter. Finally, the model shipways kit doesn't include a mast/sail, which the other kits do. It's not hard to kitbash it to add a sail if you want, which is what I did, but it will take a bit of research and some extra materials (which can be had for pretty cheap). Best of luck!

Thanks! I've enjoyed following your pile driver and Lula builds.

Thanks for following, looking forward to watching your Perseus build come together! Thanks! More to come soon, hopefully.

Thanks, Glen! It was a lot of fun, and it was definitely inspiring to see how you find creative uses for materials in your SIB builds!