schooner

Thanks for all the kind words everyone - it has been "a real trip" to use a term from my youth. 

Double-planking would be a good idea.

16. Lower Deckhouse (cont)

The instructions call for removing the tops of frames 2 and 3 but I left them on to avoid any spring back from affecting the hull seams - I think I can work around them installing the RC gear.

The instructions also call for installing a coaming around the deck opening “3/8” wide out of 1/16” basswood”. I did not understand why they needed to be so large so I made mine about 1/4” high with about 1/8” above the deck:

The pieces of the deck house went together without a problem. In addition to the 1/4” square stock added to the aft corners to brace them I also added them to the forward corners. 1/16” by 1/4” stiffeners have been added to the top edges, they also serve to increase the glueing area for attaching the roof. I marked where the door opening will be have to cut out on the starboard (far) side for the stairwell:

The waterway along the edge of the roof is a piece of laser-cut thin wood. The roof attached to the deckhouse without any need of soaking - despite the sheer of the deckhouse.

The instructions call for making the stairs out of strip wood fitted into slots. That would look great but I don’t have the tools or the skills to pull that off so I used a piece of 3/8” by 5/8” strip wood cut into lengths, each 1/4” longer that the previous one and then glued the them in a stack and used the scribed decking material to make the sides of the stairwell:

When I fitted the completed deckhouse to the deck the coaming provided a snug fit fore and aft but there was little contact on the sides so I tried various thicknesses of strip wood to increase the width of the coamings until I got a good fit all around - good enough that when I turn the hull upside down the deckhouse stays in place.

I was pleasantly surprised at how well the laser cut sides match the sheer of the deck - it is a great fit that does not need any additional strips along the bottom to hide any gaps.

The photo showing the boiler front with the fire doors right under a cabin floor goes a long way to explaining why those boats were such fire traps!

This build is coming along nicely, keep up your typically good work!

Post 15 Lower Deckhouse

The kit provides laser cut sides, rear bulkhead and roof. The semi-circular front is made up of strip wood covered with 2 laminate pieces.

There are 12 windows in the deckhouse and the kit provides 20 window frames. Since the 2 forward windows do not get frames that leaves enough for 2 frames per window, which is good, because if 2 of them are stacked they look better when surrounded by the scribed sheeting.

A minor point that could be easily missed: There is a door on each side of the curved front piece, both at the aft edges. The only way to know that is to notice the door knobs on the plans. I added door knobs to all the doors using the heads of some brass finishing nails.

The frame for the front went together well but I had trouble bending the inner piece - not so much bending it as getting the bend to remain after the soaked wood had dried out - it returned to a basically flat condition. I think the problem was due to the wood provided being plywood so I used it as a template to make another piece out of 1/32” sheet basswood. The basswood bent easily and retained its shape after soaking. The top piece bent without a problem.

The instructions call for assembling the deckhouse sides into a box and then adding the scribed wood sheeting and brass (shielding near the coaling scuttles) but I thought it would be easier to measure and fit those while the pieces were laying flat.

The built-in curvature to the top and bottom of the sides in order to fit the shape of the deck is readily apparent (and welcome). 

The brass does not look good in a photo but in “real life” it looks fine:

Your photo reminds me of something unexpected I recently learned - the MinWax stains you show in the lower right of your photo match what I've encountered coming straight out of the can but if I stirred them (not shaken) the colors change dramatically, e.g the Ipswich Pine goes from the light transparent yellow to a solid dark-medium brown. The can directions make no mention of either stirring or not stirring it prior to use.

I've decided to leave well enough alone- that way I know that I'll get something that looks like the color on the label.

Keep up the good (and fast) work - she is coming along great!

Looks "bigger than the average bear" as Yogi would say. Glad you didn't decide to take the trash out early that morning or this could have ended up being a very short build log.

Thanks Bedford,

Appreciate all the insight into glassing and epoxy. I will take onboard your suggestion to ballast her down in the tub and leave it there for several hours.

Post 14: Rudder and Transom Grating

A lot of outside distractions have kept me away from the build for a while but I finally got back to it.

The rudder is a laser cut piece. I scribed the plank seams with an awl. Then instructions call for making the gudgeons and pintles out of brass strip cut from a supplied sheet. Since I had some Brittania strip material on hand of the right size I just used that.

Gotcha note: The photo of the rudder in the instructions is wrong - although I can never keep straight which are the gudgeons and which are the pintles that doesn’t matter, the ones attached to the rudder go above (on top of) the ones attached to the hull - the photo has them backwards but the plans are correct.

I ended up buying a rudder arm from Dumas, P/N 3504, which will fit over a 1/8” O.D. tube, which in turn fits snugly over the kit supplied 3/32” brass rod used for the rudder post. The arm is secured with a set screw.

Up next was fabricating the grating that covers the transom area.  I traced the shape from the plans which was a fairly close fit for my transom. The strip wood was then assembled on top of the tracing:

Then it was just a matter of a little sanding around the edges, test the fit, and repeat until it fit. This is just dry fit, I’ll probably secure it with double-sided tape so it can be removed for access to the rudder arm.

Next up will be starting the deck house.

13. Rub Rails

The upper and lower rub rails are made from 3/32” square stock.

I thought the lower rails would be a problem since they had to be glued to a painted surface so I ran a test on the underpart of the transom where it would be out of sight. It was a problem - 5 minutes after glueing a small piece with CA it came off easily. I tried again and left it for an hour - still not a firm hold. The 3rd time I left it for about 5 hours - success.

Although the instructions don’t mention it, the plans show that the upper rail rests on a slightly wider (1/8”) piece of thin wood with both bottom edges aligned, it serves a useful purpose in that it covers the seam between the hull and bulwark planks. I used some 1/8 x 1/32 strip for the underlay. Here the first piece has been attached near the stern:

After the upper rail was added everything that has been added since the hull was painted was given a coat of wipe-on poly, it doesn’t make much difference in the appearance of the basswood decking or planking but it does make the mahogany stand out:

Next up will be the rudder and rudder post.

12. Caprails

Before adding the caprails I decided to add the “cleats” which run inboard of the frame extensions and serve as a tie-off point for fenders and dock lines:

The caprails are 1/4” wide. Since the curve around the fantail is fairly tight the kit recommends using 4 1/16” pieces of strip wood, edge-glued after bending. After 4 attempts to bend the 1/16” mahogany strips 3 of them cracked, despite using hot water, ammonia, steam and heat.

I found some 1/16” square strips of basswood in my spares box and and after some experimentation with some exterior stain I had for a fence, I was able to get a good match with the color of the mahogany and was able to bend them:

The cap rails forward of the fantail are made up of 2 1/8” mahogany strips, edge-glued and like the fantail pieces, mounted so that there is a 1/16” outboard overhang. Here the outboard piece has been added on the port side:

The Buffalo Rail sits on top of the caprail around the fantail. It is 1/8 x 1/16 mahogany and unlike the smaller pieces I had no problem bending it after soaking:

Near the bow the Log Rails sit on the caprails. The stem was shortened to be flush with the top of the log rails and the Forepost was made from 1/4” square stock and added aft of the stem.

Next will be the rub rails

I just found this. Very nice build. When I was stationed at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek VA 1988-90 the Navy brought 2 ATFs out of mothballs and recommissioned them into our salvage squadron - I always like the look of them.

11. Bulwarks and Fantail

The bulwarks went on pretty easily. After pre-staining them I edge glued the 1/8 x 1/16 strips, working about 3-4 inches at a time. After they were in place their aft ends were trimmed even with the aft edge of bulkhead #5 and the frame extensions were trimmed flush with the top of the bulwark planks.

The “fake” frame extensions were added every 1/2”. The plans call for 80 of them but I needed 1 extra on each side between the stem and Frame#1 for a total of 82. They are 3/16” square mahogany. They were pre-stained, cut a little long, glued in place and when all were done their tops were sanded flush with the top of the bulwark planking.

The fantail frame was fabricated from 3 laser cut pieces, identical to those provided for the waterways. They are glued together and then glued to 3 3/16” posts cut so that the top of the laser pieces will be flush with the top of the bulwarks.

Once the fantail is in place it is just a matter of placing vertical 1/8 x 1/16 planks around it. If you are meticulous you could trim all the planks so that they fit perfectly. Since the aft-most strips will be covered by a name board I did not do that - I just alternated sides as I attached the planks so that the met at the aft centerline.

Grant,

I've seen some amazing work here on MSW, particularly over on the scratch builds, but this kit and your handling of it takes the cake. Amazing workmanship!

Wonderful work!! Your non-painted wood looks better than painted!

10. Laying the Deck and Waterways

So far I have spent a lot effort during this build trying not to break off the bulkhead extensions that stick above the deck. As can been seen below, the extensions vary in dimensions and, most importantly, in the  spacing between their outboard edges and the inboard edges of the top hull plank - they should be flush.

After trimming and shimming I still did not like the results, I decided to cut them all off, except for the last pair on Bulkhead #5. These 8 extensions will be joined by 80-plus pieces of mahogany 3/32”  square stock that will simulate the other frames after the bulwark planks are installed. In order to get these 8 properly placed, and looking just like their future neighbors, I replaced them with 3/32” Mahogany. They are pinned to the deck with brass rod for extra strength:

Once that was taken care of I pre-stained the scribed decking with Old Masters Gel Stain (Fruitwood color). I’ve used it before for scribed decking and liked it. While not too impressive when it first goes on (looking like a light tan paint) it has the advantage of not blotching, which many stains can do on basswood, and then it darkens nicely over the next 24 hours and the deck seams really pop.

The only recommendation I have for this step is be careful with the wood glue - I had a bad experience on another build where I used too much and the water in the glue caused the the decking to swell and buckle at the seams. This time I put a bead around the edges and then put a “chickenpox” scattering of dots around the interior.

Although with some sanding of the joint between the 2 forward pieces I was able to get the seam to coincide with a plank seam  and to get the seams to line up between the fore and aft pieces I could not get an invisible transverse seam between the main pieces and the 2 smaller ones that sit aft on the transom so I just covered it with strip wood - it will be pretty much out of sight under a grating.

The waterways took a little longer than I thought they would. The instructions call for fitting 3 laser cut pieces around the transom and 1/8 x 1/16 strip wood between the frame extensions (there is a diagram in the instructions but the one on the plans make it much clearer). For the transom pieces I removed wood from the decking as need to get the laser cut pieces to fit flush with the inner edge of the hull planking - I did not alter the laser pieces because they need to match an identical set that will sit above them, forming the frame for the vertical transom planking.

For the waterways forward of the transom I took a different approach and left the edges of the scribed decking alone since any variations to its smooth run would be really obvious. So instead I trimmed the waterways where needed to get them to fit and added to their outboard edges if necessary to avoid a gap between the waterway and the bulwark planking. Each piece of waterway was a little different.

Next up will be fitting the bulwarks.

I fully agree with you Grant.

BTW, I just noticed the link to your shipyard diorama - what a project! I'm going to have to budget several hours to slowly work my way thru the build log.

Tim

Post 9: Waterproofing the Hull

I started this process knowing one thing - I did not want to mess with fiberglass, and not knowing something else - anything about epoxy. I started my education on epoxy by looking at various websites associated with RC models, they were of some help but short on specifics of what to actually buy. The best find was right here on MSW: Bob Cleek’s reply on Riotvan99’s “Fiberglass a boat hull” post which I quote below:

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Fiberglass can be a "strong, hard wearing surface," but it's a real bugger to work with, particularly on small scale pieces and it sure isn't "easy to sand smooth for painting. It will add thickness to your hull and weight, neither are advantageous. It can be tricky to work with and if something goes wrong, it could ruin the model completely. It's about as strong as an eggshell, so until it gets around 3/16ths of an inch thick, it's going to crack like an eggshell if it gets whacked. At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

If your hull is properly put together, it should not need any strengthening and if you operate the model prudently, it should not require a "strong hard wearing surface." 

If it were me, and I realize it ain't, I would sand the hull fair and apply a liberal coat of Smith and Co,.'s Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer. ("CPES")(See:http://www.smithandcompany.org/ for technical information) This will penetrate the wood surface and cure, turning the surface of the wood into rock hard wood impregnated with cured epoxy resin. (CPES is not just "thinned epoxy," it contains special solvents which cause the resin to permeate the wood fibers. Before the CPES cures completely (less than 2 or 3 days... read Smith's instructions... this will create a molecular, rather than just a mechanical bond between the CPES and WEST epoxies,), I would apply a thin coating of WEST System G/flex 650 epoxy resin mixed with WEST System 407 Low-Density or 410 Microlight fairing additive. The additive will make the cured epoxy very easily sand-able to a very finely smooth surface. It will also fill any cracks or divots on the surface. Then sand the surface fair (without sanding the epoxy off down to bare wood. If that happens, apply more CPES to the bare spot(s.)) Then paint with a good quality marine enamel primer and topcoat paint.

WEST G/flex epoxy resin cures to a hard, but slightly flexible epoxy that should not crack with slight wood movement. The CPES will provide a decent water barrier and the West G/flex will add to that. A good marine enamel will complete what should be a matrix that isn't going to leak in your lifetime, nor, probably, the lifetimes of your grandchildren. It won't add noticeable thickness to your hull and won't weigh down your model with unnecessary weight.

You could also add WEST System 422 Barrier Coat Additive, which will increase the moisture resistance of the G/flex epoxy resin, but it's overkill for this application. You've also got the option of using WEST's kevlar additive if you want your bottom to be bulletproof, but that's a story for another night. Amazingly versatile stuff, epoxy.

Fiberglassing small, irregular surfaces is tricky business and the glass cloth or mat is nasty to work with, too. (Tiny bits of glass fibers become airborne and land on your skin, quickly working their way into the skin like fine cactus needles, resulting in painful itching. I don't ever want to begin to think what they do when you inhale them, but I've done my share of fiberglass work on boats in the days before hazmat suits and filtered air-supply masks and I'm still here, so...

Anyway, that's how I'd do it. 

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So, I followed Bob’s advice and did the following

1) Ordered the Smith Co.’s CPES sealer from their website. It is a 2-part product, mixed in equal amounts. They sell warm and cold weather versions, I used the cold since I was working in Mar. It goes on easily with a brush and is cured within 24 hours. It has the added advantage that what you don’t use on the model you can use around the house to stop wood rot.

Here is the product:

And here is the hull after it was applied:

2) After 24 hours I then added the 2-part resin and hardener from West systems, mixed with some of their 407 Fairing Filler powder.  Here is the epoxy bottle and the 401, both ordered from Amazon:

The epoxy is pretty thick, and while it looks relatively smooth while applying it, after spraying it with primer the surface is pitted, much like the skin of an orange. In the quote above Bob mentions the possibility of adding West Systems 422 Barrier Coat Additive to the mix (it’s a powder) but when I tried it on some test pieces of wood it was very difficult to apply and left a very uneven but tough surface that would have been difficult to sand smooth so I did not use the 422.

It took a fair amount of time sanding, adding wood filler, sanding, spraying with primer to check the finish - and repeat, and repeat - more time than it took to get a smooth finish on the hull planking.

I submitted the hull to the dreaded bathtub test. It failed. There were several seams in the amidships area that leaked. So I added more epoxy to the affected areas and tried another test. Although the repaired seams held several others were now leaking. I had to ask my self “What the heck is going on here?” (or words to that effect).  After thinking about it I realized that in order to submerge the hull to its design waterline I had to exert a fair amount of downward pressure and, as good old Archimedes told us, that same pressure was being exerted by the water upwards on the hull. The basic problem is that the few and far between bulkheads in the amidships area do not provide enough support to keep the planks from flexing, thereby cracking the epoxy seal. I added more epoxy to the outside of the hull in the affected areas and then applied a really THICK coat inside the hull to support and stiffen the planks. You can see it here:

So . . . I think I was unwise to rule out using fiberglass without at least giving it a test - it might have prevented some of my problems. The cloth and resin you can get in hobby stores is not too expensive and you can try it out on scrap wood with some square stock nailed to it so simulate the keel and other corners - if it works for you then you have a good option for waterproofing the hull.

Fortunately the 3rd bathtub test was a success and I could move on to painting the hull. I did NOT use marine spray paint, mainly because it is really expensive. I used spray paint from Rustoleum since it is designed for exterior use. Hopefully I won’t regret that decision.

I used semi-gloss for the white paint since the water in my lake is not exactly from  “The land of sky blue waters” (if you are old enough to remember that slogan/jingle) and it should be easier to keep clean.

Adding the deck planking is next.

8. Hull Planking

This is not an easy planking job.  The wide spacing of the frames make it hard to avoid bumps and dips. The large garboard planks make for an odd shape between the garboards and the deck edge - the fore and aft parts of the hull planks have to be tapered to fit. I still had to add some bastardized stealer planks of some odd shapes to get everything covered.

If you have no interest in making this an RC build then you may want to consider adding some balsa wood blocks between the frames and then sanding them fair with the frames - that will give you more glueing area and probably a smoother planking job.

I recommend that you put an un-tapered plank along the deck edge and another up against the garboard and then taper the remaining planks as needed, working from the deck edge towards the keel so that any stealers and odd shapes are at least inside the area that will get the “below the waterline” paint covering and ideally below the curve of the bilge so they will not be visible (or at least obvious).

When I bought this kit I had hopes of leaving the hull planking above the waterline in a natural color like the photo in the catalog and on the box but when I tested the epoxy I’m going to use on the hull I had to change my plans - the epoxy dries into a semi-opaque reddish color. This allowed me to be more expedient than elegant in my planking since it will all be under a tough plastic-like coating and then painted.

I did not have to soak the hull planks since there was almost no edge bending needed, the bow curve is gentle and the “twist” to get the aft end of the planks to lay on bulkhead #5 is nothing that can’t be handled with CA.

After some filler and sanding it’s good to go:

I deviated from the instructions in that I planked the stern area now because I want to get all the work below the main deck finished before I add the bulwarks. The stern planking was pretty easy, I did have to trim the 2 laser cut pieces that attach to the aft face of bulkhead #5 so that the stern plank butts would be flush with the hull plank butts.

7. RC Test Run

While waiting for the wood sealer and epoxy to be delivered I took the opportunity to figure out how all the RC stuff connects together and to give it an op test.

Back in Post #2 I listed all the RC items I had ordered for this build. At that time I called the Electronic Speed Control (ESC) the “receiver”  - that was incorrect. While examining the box that the control box arrived in I discovered a small item with 5 ports for cable connections and a short antenna - that is what is known as “the receiver, and important part of the RC rig.

Here are all the parts hooked up, except for the batteries. Note that the shaft/stuffing tube shown here is the too-large one I originally ordered, the newer, smaller one is already installed in the hull:

Here is everything with the addition of the batteries (1 of 2 shown):

For the sake of anyone who buys the same RC stuff I did I’ll explain how the receiver is hooked up, hopefully saving you a lot of online research and trial and error.

• First of all this particular receiver is designed for RC aircraft so it has more slots than a boat will need

• The male connectors leading from the ESC and the Rudder Servo are not “keyed” i.e. they can fit into the receiver slots the right way, or the wrong way. All connectors like this have a black or brown wire, that is the negative or ground wire, and the connector must be inserted so that the ground wire is AWAY from the printed part of the receiver, i.e. near the edge.
   
• The ESC connector goes into the slot labeled “throttle”

•   The Rudder Servo connector goes into bottom slot labeled “AIL” (for airlion), that will allow the rudder to return to the amidships position when the control toggle on the control box is released (otherwise you would never be sure where the rudder is and would have to make constant corrections).

After connecting everything up, and charging the batteries I turned on the control box and then the on/off switch that will be on the model. After the ESC beeped for about 5 seconds (referred to as "pairing") I had throttle control of the shaft (fore and aft) and control of the rudder. The only issue was that when moving the throttle toggle in the forward direction on the control box the shaft went in the reverse direction (for a left hand prop like I have) but the control box has a reverse switch for each function that easily fixed that.

Glad to have you along Denis.

If you have not been there already it might be an enjoyable trip over to Searsport, ME to see the BlueJacket display lobby of their finished models. Their Lackawanna is another attractive steam tug kit they sell, or if you decide to go the scratch build route you could get the plans (note: The Sequin kit does not have hulll form or lifts on the plans since it is a plank on bulkhead).

Tim

6. Bilge stringers and garboard planks

The bilge stringers are 24” long which is an awkward size for soaking them so they will bend and twist to the shape of the hull. Fortunately one of the previous build logs had a good idea to handle this. You get a piece of 2” diameter PVC pipe and 2 end caps from your hardware store. You need the 2” diameter to handle the wide aft end of the garboard planks. Cut the PVC to 24” long and expoxy one of the end caps on:

I added about 1/4 cup of ammonia to the tube, filled it with boiling water, dropped in both bilge stringers, put the other cap on and let it soak (in the vertical position) for about 10-15 minutes. The stringers were then clamped in place on the hull. The stringers would not fit fully into all the frame slots due to swelling so I clamped them as close as possible. I let everything sit overnight and when I unclamped them they had retained their curves and twists and the swelling had gone down:

Before glueing them in place you have to trim the forward ends so that they sit up against the aft end of the stem but fully behind it so they do not get in the way of the planking which will lay on top of them (the instruction book has a good drawing showing this). Avoid taking off anymore length than necessary- there is only about 1/2” to spare. The instructions also recommend putting some scrap wood in the “V” between the stringers at the bow for better strength:

The aft ends of the stringers were cut flush with the aft face of frame 5 and they and and the frames were then faired using a planking strip as a batten to ensure the planks would lay properly.

RC After glueing them in place they, like almost all the rest of the wood inside the hull, got a coating of polyurethane.

The garboard planks are provided as laser cut wood.

RC I had to trim and file the stern post area that I had built up to accommodate the shaft and stuffing tube. I basically tapered the lower area under the garboard so that it’s bottom edge could fit into the keel rabbet. For those who do not modify their stern post this will not be an issue.

The instructions recommend scoring the backsides to help them bend but 2 of the build logs reported problems from the wood splitting so I did not score mine - one of them split anyway but it’s an easy fix. Soaking for 15 minutes in boiling water and some ammonia and then leaving them clamped in place overnight worked well for these - they retained their complex bends and curves very well.

The planks needed a little trimming at the bow and the lower aft corner to fit better but the design of the rabbets along the keel held them in place so well that little in the way of clamping was needed during the gluing. A little wood filler fixed the crack and the gaps near the bow (I could have trimmed the planks to eliminate the bow gaps but that would have broken the fair run of the top of the planks, making for a difficult area for the follow-on planks).

RC I’m going to have to seal and epoxy the inside of the garboard planks and the interior areas of the keel before I add any of the hull planks or I won’t be able to reach in there.  I’ll post about the sealer and epoxy I’m going to use when they get here from FEDEX.

Thanks Keith, glad to have you aboard.

I remember spending some enjoyable hours looking through your Chris Craft build log and being amazed at the instrument gages!  I live on a lake and someone here has the real life version of your model - its always great to see them out and about, adds a touch of class among all the jet skis and pontoon boats.

5. Assembling Keel, Frames & Deck

I was pretty leery about this next step since the instructions call for dry fitting the keel, frames and deck pieces and then gluing them together. A photo on one of the SEGUIN build logs shows this step as needing a real rat’s nest of clamps, string and rubber bands to hold it all together.

It actually turned out to be fairly easy because the plans are quite accurate - the slots in the deck pieces aligned perfectly with the frame extensions and the 1/8” hole in the after part of the deck pieces was right on top of the rudder post.

First step was to make a build board that could hold the keel. Since the bottom of the keel is only 3/16” high there is not a lot of “meat” to grab onto so I used and idea from one of the build logs and nailed a piece of 3/16” square stock to the board and then clamped another piece on the other side of the keel. It’s pretty secure.

I couldn’t get everything to fit on the first attempt so I worked my way from forward to aft, expanding a couple of the slots on the deck to better accept the frame extensions. My only problem is that my keel ended up being 1/8” longer than it should be so I had to add a scrap wood extension on the “shelf” on the aft end of the stem where the deck should rest.

Here is everything dry fitted together:

I had to further enlarge the hole in Frame 4 for the shaft. Since I had to enlarge it upwards I had to add some wood to the cutout area above it:

I glued up the bow and frame#1 first. When that was dry I did each frame in turn. It went pretty well but when using one of the laser cut deckhouse sides to check the curve of the deck I found there was a problem. The stem was tilted slightly to one side because frame #1 was not level. After soaking the affected joints with water I was able to remove the Titebond III glue and redo the glueing in the bow area. This problem could have been avoided if I had some type of clamps to keep the stem and sternposts aligned - something to think about when designing your keel clamp.

The next step is to add motor mount and the battery tray. As the instructions point out these should be added even for static display models since they help add some strength and rigidity to the frames.

I added the motor mount first using the motor to get the proper alignment:

I added the the tray between frames 2 and 3 per the plans and also added another between frames 1 and 2 ( I may or may not need it later for the batteries but it is easier to get it get it set up now). All of these mounts/trays are just dry fitted, I will not glue them in until after the hull is planked because they would block access to the inside of the planking and the keel which I will need to coat with sealer and epoxy.

Since the trays will not be placed for a while I decided to add stiffeners between frames 1, 2, 3 and 4 that will hopefully strengthen the hull for the planking work:

Now it’s time to remove the hull from the building board and invert it for the addition of the bilge stringers and the planking.

Thanks for all the likes ...

4. Assembling the Keel

The single best thing you can do before assembling the keel is to take your glue bottle and put it out of reach. This is more complicated than it looks and you should assemble the jigsaw puzzle several times with pins until you are sure you have it right - and then do it again.

I departed from the sequence in the instructions because I needed to make the stern post thicker to accommodate the 4mm diameter prop stuffing tube. Those who don’t plan on making an RC version can follow the sequence in the instructions - just be careful assembling the 3 laser cut pieces that make up the stern/rudder  post area - the pieces all align on their aft edges but the center one (K3) extends above and forward of the 2 laminations pieces (K8), which in turn extend below the bottom edge of K3 to form a U-shaped area that will slide onto the upper (3/32”) portion of the keel.

RC The first step is to cut out the slot marked on K3 for the shaft:

I stacked the K3 and 2 K8  pieces that make up the sternpost to check their overall thickness and then laid the shaft on top of them to see how much extra wood there was, if any. There wasn’t enough (less than 1mm on each side) to provide strength for that hull penetration:

I ended up adding 2 layers of 1/16” strip wood (1/8”” total) on each side of K3 and the K8’s for a total thickness increase of 1/4”and then filed the slot deep enough for the shaft to be centered on the centerline of K3:

Before epoxing the shaft in place I followed the manufacturer’s (Deans Marine) suggestion and pushed a plug of Vaseline with a little water about 1/4” down into both ends of the shaft tube. Hopefully that will make it watertight.

This shows the shaft penetrating the modified stern post:

Before gluing everything together I made a fit check to ensure there was enough room to get the prop onto the threaded end of the shaft (there is, it just has to be tilted a little to get it in place) and that there was clearance for the blades to turn:

Putting in the 1/8” tube for the rudder shaft was easy, no need to thicken the pieces in that area, I just added some scrap wood on each side to increase the glueing area for the tube and so that the wood extension aft of it had something else to attach to rather than just being edge glued to the tube:

Here is the modified stern post resting on the main keel. I added a 1/16” strip above the original aft edge of K8 on each side to restore the rabbet edge that the aft end of the large 1/16” thick garboard planks will rest against:

The main keel is made up of a long piece of 3/32” x 3/8” strip wood that has a piece of 1/16”x 3/16” strip wood glued along each side of its lower edge.

The forward part of the keel is made up of 2 laser cut 3/32” pieces (K1 and K2) that attach to the main keel piece and have to 1/16” laser cut pieces (K5 and K6) that attach to its forward edge and that form a rabbet for the planking. I had to adjust K5 to get it all to fit:

Next up will be attaching the keel to a build board and adding the frames and sub-deck.

3. The Frames

The assembly of the frames is pretty straightforward with just 3 “gotchas” that I picked up off of other build logs:

1. As per the warning on the drawings, the laser cut pieces may not exactly match the dimensions shown on the plans (they are close, just not exact). Don’t try to make them match, just use the plans to figure out how all the pieces fit together.
2. One builder reported a problem with the wood splitting when he tried to pin it to the plans. I wanted to avoid that so I drilled holes for the pins.
3. Changing the depths of slots on the frames that fit over the keel will throw off the run of the deck

My wife found a 3 ft long cork bulletin board at Michael’s Crafts that works well for pinning the frame and keel assemblies to the plans:

The frames are easy to glue together.

The plans/instructions call for using 3/32” square stock to fashion the extensions on each side that, along with about 80 similar pieces, will form the supports for the bulwarks. I decided to use mahogany for mine since it will make a nice contrast with the basswood bulwark planking.

One thing to be aware of - the “slots” on the bottom of the frames that fit over the keel may vary in width, they need to be 3/32” wide to fit snuggly on the top of the keel. 2 of mine were too wide and needed filler material added, 1 was too narrow and need to be filed out, and the other 2 fit fine. Here are the extensions and the frame on the right has filler material in the slot:

I recommend leaving the depth (height) of the keel slots alone. The frames will set the slope of the deck  (which is significant both fore and aft) - if you change that the laser cut deck house pieces will not fit on the deck properly.

The frame extensions were faired to the curve of the hull using a french curve and then sanded. Frame #4 has a hole for the shaft to pass thru, I enlarged mine quite a bit to allow the shaft to be aligned without interference (it would be a real pain trying to enlarge that hole once the frames, keel and sub-deck are in place).

The last thing to do is to break out the 1/8” x 1/4” bilge stringers which are used in step 10 of the instructions. Check the fit of the strip into each of the slots on every frame and file as necessary. I found that the width was OK on about half of mine and the depth had to be increased on all of them - the stringers must sit at least flush with the top of the slot or the hull planking will not not lay on the frame properly. It’s much easier to do this now than when they are glued to the keel - some more filing will likely have to be done when fitting the stringers in step 10 but at least some of it will be out of the way.

Next up will be assembling the keel.