schooner

Sanding to shape Although it has been a while since my last post I have NOT been spending all this time sanding! I have been doing a little most days, in 5 or 10 minute increments since it bores me but all told I have probably spent about 2 hours bringing the hull into the proper shape. The kit provides 3 laser cut templates to shape the bow area, mostly to impart a flare to the bow. The template stations are only about an inch apart so don’t try to do just one at a time - you need to sand the whole area and keep checking your progress using all 3 templates. The kit recommends using a sanding block and/or a hobby knife. I’m a very poor hand at carving (I’m more of a gouger than a carver) so I stuck with sandpaper wrapped around a paint bottle for the big curves and wrapped around the handle of a hobby knife for the smaller radius areas. The stem has not been brought to a fine edge yet because the keel must be added first and then it and the hull are sanded fair together so it blends in. There is also a template to shape the transom (don’t toss it when you are finished with it - you will need it later to mark the waterline location). As can be seen here some wood needs to be removed from the upper and lower outboard areas. Now that the hull is in shape I have to do more sanding (and priming) to get a smooth finish that will replicate the look of fiberglass which is what the real boat is made of.

Thanks for the kind words - I was a little surprised to see this build log stagger out of deep storage like a zombie.

Hey Brian, boy am I glad I found this build! I usually spend all my time over on the kit page. You are doing a heck of a job. This really brings back a lot of memories for me - I served on ADROIT (MSO-509) up in Little Creek 88-90. Most fun I ever had. If you have time you might spend it googling around on MSO crew reunion websites, they can have a lot of good, close-up onboard photos that can help with detailing. NAVSOURCE.ORG and the Naval History and Heritage Command website both have a ton of photos with the NHHC site more likely to have onboard shots. Keep up the good work.

Shaping the stem and marking the centerline The first steps on this build are to prime and sand some of the delicate laser cut pieces for the cabin interior while they are still on the fret, the instructions point out that they would be hard to reach after assembly so now is the time to do them. The next step is fairly simple, shaping the stem. The kit provides a laser cut template for the stem. Since BlueJacket advertises this kit as appropriate for beginners as their first solid hull kit I thought I would explain in more detail than usual my thought process for the steps involving shaping the hull. There are different ways to do it, this is just my way. The first thing I did was to check the template against the plans and see how and if it fits. The fit was fine; the top of the template, the waterline mark, and the curve all matched the plans just fine - if they did not then I would have had to decide which one to go with. It is not as simple to check the hull against the plans but when the template is laid on the hull there was plenty of wood. The only cautionary note is that when you lay the template on the plans you can see how important it is to keep the template plumb when checking your sanding progress, if it is cocked just a little then that will affect the line of the stem and the height of the bow. It’s worth a little time to study how the plans relate to the un-sanded hull and to visualize what it should look like when finished. I used the template to mark it’s outline on the hull - it will not necessarily be the final sanding line but it serves as a warning line not to sand beyond it without malice aforethought (i.e. make sure you really need to go that far, chances are you will not.) As the instructions say, go slow with the sanding and check your progress with the template frequently. It doesn’t take much time or effort since this basswood sands easily with a sanding block. When done my template fit snug to the stem (I tacked glued it in place here just to simplify trying to take a photo without have to hold 2 pieces of wood at the same time.) The next step is to mark the centerline on the main deck, stem, keel area and transom. While it sounds simple you really need to take your time on this one - screw it up and you will have a world of problems getting the hull to look right. As I found out if your results don’t look right chances are they are not right. I measured from side to side a multiple points along the deck and drew a line connecting them. At the bow the line was almost 1/8” to one side of where the center of the stem was by eye. After several more tries the results were the same which meant I would have to sand quite a bit more wood off of one side than the other and based on my experience with solid hulls from BlueJacket, that didn’t sound right. BJ’s hull shaping equipment has always provided me with symmetrical hulls. That’s not to say that all areas of the hull need the same amount of sanding or that all kits are the same but all of them in my experience require the same amount of wood removal port and starboard of the centerline at any given point on the hull. At that point I decided to check the laser cut deck piece against the hull. By measuring from side to side and marking the centerline of the deck piece I confirmed that it was symmetrical and that the centerline intersected the sharp bow point dead center so I new that the deck piece (in effect a template at this point) could tell me if the hull was symmetrical. When played on the hull the deck fit perfectly, it matched the side of the hull along its whole length and its centerline was about 1/8” of an inch off of my marked one, and more importantly it lay on top of the centerline of the stem. Obviously my centerline of the hull was off. I tried measuring a new centerline by holding the hull between angle blocks and figured out that the source of my problem was that the deck edges on the hull were not as distinct as on the deck template. Making new measurements using the blocks resulted in a centerline that matched that of the deck template and all is right in the world again. Here is the hull with the old, wrong centerline to the left and the deck “template laying on the new, correct centerline to the right (OK, almost laying on it, it moved while I took the photo, it does lay right on it, trust me). Here is how I remeasured the correct centerline using the blocks. Well that’s enough typing, time to get back to sanding.

Wonderful build, hard to believe it is only your second one!

I decided on this kit for my next build because it will, if finished in time, become a Christmas gift for my daughter and son-in-law, both of whom enjoy eating lobster and vacationing in Maine. I'll probably put granddaughter's name on the finished model. I decided to do a build log because as far as I can find out this kit has never had one. Bluejacket sells 3 different lobster boat kits; this one which is 12’’ long, a 23” POB/POF kit, and a 3 ft honker with a fiberglass hull intended for RC. I went with this size because it will fit neatly on a bookshelf. The Red Baron is famous in lobstering circles, she won a lobster boat race a few years back, clocking in at a record 57 knots! I’ll show what’s in the box but if you are interested you can go to BlueJacket’s homepage and click on the “What’s in the box” tab where a video of this kit is shown, along with some shots of the completed model. Plans - one sheet of plans showing side and overhead views and the layout of the laser-cut wood pieces Instruction book - Bluejacket rates this kit as appropriate for beginners so the instructions are more detailed than what I am used to from their more advanced kits. The instructions tell you what to do, how to do it and provide warnings where needed to help prevent mistakes. There are also a lot of photos and drawings. Pre-carved hull: The hull already has its basic shape and the cockpit area is carved out so this should only take a little sanding to bring it into its final shape and then to smooth it up for painting Laser cut wood: Most of the wood provided in the kit is laser cut, including several templates that will be used to check the final shape of the hull near the bow and the curve of the stem. Metal fittings: A bag of brass and britannia metal fittings is provided, giving this kit more detail than I expected. Tools and supplies: The kit comes with basic tools like a hobby knife, sand paper, a pin vise with 2 drill bits, tweezers, a wooden ruler, and paintbrushes. Medium CA glue, debonder and all required paints are included. There is also a bag of white powder which I could not figure out until I read the directions - it’s wood filler that can be mixed with water. Lobster traps: Material and instructions to build 3 lobster traps are included.

Thanks for the kind words Ian and Cog, I had a lot of fun with this one, hated to see it come to an end.

Thanks Mike, It IS a fantastic kit, so good that I was able to spend my time doing what I like, which is detailing, instead of having to "fix the kit"!

Well, she's done. Thank you to all who have followed along, made suggestions and contributed ideas. Hopefully I'll be back soon with a lobster boat build that I don't think has appeared here before.

Thanks Steve,but this can't hold a light to your Vance build. It amazes me that while they share the same hull the addition of all that superstructure makes the Vance look at least twice as big as a standard Liberty

Radio Antennas and Flags I found a 48-star flag and the house flag for the Luckenbach Steamship Co online and copied them to my graphics program, adjusted their size, copied them and flipped one copy, backed each half together and printed them out. In order to get the paper to hold furls I used a trick I found on some modeling site. I cut a piece of aluminum foil slightly smaller than one half of the flag. I glued it in place using rubber cement because white glue has too much water in it and it will make the printer ink run. I then placed a length of halyard rope along the fold point, folded the flags and glued them together, once again using rubber cement. The furls were made by folding the paper around a pin, alternating directions. The antennas are made from some metallic thread provided in the kit, it simulates bare wire nicely. Both antennas run between the main and mizzen masts and are connected to the coupler tower on the flying bridge. The insulators near the ends of the antennas are just small blobs of white glue built up over several repetitions. The last thing left to add is the guns and then the big job comes - cleaning and dusting the model prior to casing it.

Lifelines and PE Railings The kit supplied PE railings were too thick for me so I used some 1/192 railings from Tom’s Modelworks which I find very easy to work with. The lifeline around the fantail gun platform is brass and thread. Next up will be the radio antennas and flags.

Final Cargo Rigging The booms on Hatch nr5 are configured in what was known as a “Wing and Wing’ rig, another variation on the Yard and Stay rig used on hatches 3 & 4. The Wing & Wing had the ends of both booms over the side of the ship, allowing cargo to be worked on both sides simultaneously. One feature of it is that the are no inboard guys - the ends of the booms are just lashed together for support. I still have to trim some tag end and add some rope coils. Next up will be the lifelines and PE railings.

Thanks for the link Nic. Just out of curiosity, is BlueJacket looking at using 3-D printing for any parts? I know the upfront costs can be eye-watering.

Rigging Hatch Nr 4 I lost a few weeks of work when I did not pay attention to my supply bin and ran out of rigging thread. It has finally come in so I can press on. This hatch, like Nr2, also has a jumbo boom (30 ton vice 50 ton) which I decided to rig in the vertical stowed position: Since Nr4 hatch will be the only completely “open” hatch on this build I wanted to show a suspended load above it. I thought it would be quick and easy to find a truck or bulldozer online but it ends up that 1/192 (1/16 inch) scale is not used for model railroading and there is really nothing out there near this scale that I could use so I decided to whip up a large crate. After numerous attempts and a lot of bad language I was about to give up because I could not get all the corners square, then I had a DUH! moment and realized I did not need to build a 6-sided box - I could just get a piece of rectangular stock of the right width and height, cut it to length and “plank” it which ended up being very simple to do: This boom arrangement is a variation Yard and Stay rig used on hatch Nr3, this one being called the West Coast Rig. It is supposed to work faster but I’m not sure why. Since this hatch is completely open I arranged the removed hatch covers and hatch beams along the unengaged side: Just one more hatch to go and this build is almost done:

wonderful scratch building - love the engine room!

Greg, just got thru with the first page of this build only to find you already have 10 pages posted! Its amazing how much ground you cover in just 3 months. Interesting choice for a build. I've read a ton of naval history but never gave this ship much attention since she was never completed. I had no idea she was so big, I just assumed as Germany's first carrier that they would have started off with something small to learn the tricks of naval aviation. Guess they must have thought "Ach, how hard can it be?" Given Germany's huge problems with inter service squabbling its interesting to think what problems they would have run into if she had become operational. I'm sure they would have made the RN's problems with RAF control of carrier plane design and acquisition seem minor by comparison. Your scratch building and weathering are, as always, the top of the game. Now, back to page 2 of your build!

Thanks for the kind words

Hatch Nr3 Rigging This hatch, like the last 2 to still to come, is rigged as a “Burton” or “Yard and Stay,” rig which had several variations. This hatch is rigged as the “standard” type. What made these rigs interesting for me is that the booms do not move during the cargo operation; the cargo can be moved anywhere along a line connecting the 2 points directly under the end of each boom by coordinating the 2 cargo winches. In this case one boom is positioned directly over the center of the hatch and the other over the side of the ship for loading to/from a pier or lighter. When I was onboard the SS John Brown in Baltimore they ran a demonstration of a yard and stay rig at work, pretty simple when you see it in operation but it took a lot of concentration by the winch operators and foreman, one missed signal and the winches could end up pulling against each other which would quickly collapse the whole rig, with all the expected death and destruction. Here the 2 cargo whips are rigged together and secured to an eye pad near the hatch: I had to install the life raft racks before rigging the guys to make sure there would be no interference. The racks are made up of 4 pieces of VERY thin laser cut wood. It was a little intimidating cutting them loose from their fret/billet but once they were glued up they are pretty sturdy: Here is the final rigging, minus rope coils that will come later - it is starting to look pretty busy:

Rigging Hatch Nr2 and the 50-ton Jumbo Boom The first step was to rig the 2 5-ton booms in the vertical stowed position: Then the fun started. I usually enjoy rigging blocks because they look good on a model. Up to now a triple block has been the most ambitious for me but this called for 4 quintuple blocks and having to adjust the tension between 20 running lines on the blocks tried my patience. I came to realize that I had to be able to tension the rig after the blocks were set so I decided to use the 1 hatch beam and show it suspended as if it had just been hoisted off the hatch and about to be stowed on deck near the hatch covers that had already been removed. Doing so allowed me to use the 2 tag lines from the bottom of the beam to tension the whole rig. Once the boom vangs were rigged I was able to attach the shrouds on the foremast so everything is good to go. The 2 jumbo booms were the only ones that pivoted on their base like a normal crane - the 5-ton booms were fixed in place. In order to swing such a large boom the vangs had to be taken to power using the capstans on the 2 winches on the adjacent hatch so using a jumbo boom required 4 winches and prevented the adjacent hatch from being worked at the same time. Doing this part of the build showed me what a huge job it was on these ships to shift between the 5-ton booms and the jumbo booms or vice versa. As shown now, to go back to using the 5-ton booms their cargo whips would have to be unwound from the storage reels on top of the mast house and laid out on deck. Then the Jumbo boom cargo whip and topping lift wires would have to be removed from the winches on Nr2 hatch, wound onto the storage reels, and then the 5-ton cargo whips wound onto the winches. It is hard to imagine a more dirty, difficult and dangerous job than wrestling with so much thick wire rope, all of it covered in thick slushing grease and full of needle sharp broken wire strands and fish hooks. Tough, tough guys.

Thanks Nic, Although they turned out alright they involved some very Easter-inappropriate language! Glad I had some spares to fix individual letters.

Nice template work

Wonderful work, very crisp and clean. The Willie B is my all time favorite kit, one of the few available that allows you to build a model that is 100% authentic, and is built in the same sequence as the original. Making the winding frames and railings was a grad course in soldering and metal work for me - learned a lot. Keep the pix coming

Rigging Cargo Booms - Hatch Nr 1 Well it’s finally time to start rigging this pig. I’m going to start with Hatch Nr1, which since it will be shown secured for sea it will be the easiest. The forestay for the foremast goes on first. I thought it would be some simple work with tweezers to attach the upper end but I ended up using needle nose pliers and tweezers from a lot of angles so I decided to attach the upper ends of all the shrouds and stays now while the area is free of other rigging so there is some spaghetti hanging from all the masts: The 2 5-ton booms where rigged up next. Since the booms will be in the stowed position the blocks normally used on the vangs have been left off and the wire rope pendants are just lashed to the booms. On my first post for this log I mentioned that one of the things that caught my attention about Liberty Ships was the use of large chains on the masts: I came to learn that they are call “bull chains” and they are a clever solution to a problem. The topping lift on a boom is used to raise and lower the outer end of the boom and it also supports the boom and whatever load is is lifting so they are made of wire rope for strength. The topping lift is taken to power on one of the capstan heads on the boom’s winch. The problem comes in that you can’t wrap wire rope around a capstan because it won’t “grip” it and you can’t have manila rope as part of the lift because it is too weak to support lifting a cargo load. They solved the problem by having the end of the wire topping lift attach to the top of a triangular plate, the bottom of the plate was connected to both a length of manila rope and a length of chain. The rope was wrapped around a capstan head and taken to power. When the topping lift was in the desired position, the chain next to it was shackled to the deck using whatever chain link was closest to the deck eye, the rope was then slacked off and the weight of the boom and load was now carried by the wire rope connected to the chain. By having a long length of chain they could position the boom anywhere from horizontal to vertical and still have a strong topping lift. Pretty neat. They could get away with this because these booms were fixed in position and were not swung or raised or lowered while in use (I’ll explain how that worked when I rig one of the “working” hatches). Here’s the topping lift/bull chain in place: And here is the completed hatch after some touch-up painting. The booms are shown stowed in the horizontal position. If there was over size cargo stowed on to of the hatch, like a tank, crated aircraft, PT Boat, etc then the booms would be stowed in the vertical position when at sea. The 2 additional fore stays where only rigged when the Jumbo Boom on the aft side of this mast was in use, it will be on this build hence the stays are rigged. Although they partially block the hatch opening it wasn't an issue because all the winches for both Nr1 and Nr2 hatches all had to be used to work the Jumbo Boom which I will show when I get to Nr2 hatch: 1 hatch down, 4 to go.

Just caught on to your build, fantastic as always. I thought the Orange Hobby PE sets were tough but this one takes the cake, it is one thing to lose PE parts into the carpet but to lose them into the folds of your fingerprints!