captainbob

Finally figured out the major changes I'll be making in this build
 
Single Planked - This is a no brainer  I'll use the kit supplied lime wood, which is a bit heavier / harder than basswood.  My goal:  NO FILLER ALLOWED!  So I will need to take my time with each plank to get it right.  And if it's not right, well, I will just have to do it over!  (Fingers crossed!)
 
Bowsprit - Definitely will add a bowsprit using the black iron ring mounted on the bow stem and anchored on the bow thwart.  The back end of the bow sprit is square, and fits between two pieced of wood mounted on the bow thwart.  A rope runs through the bowsprit to anchor it to the thwart.  In post #2 (above), in the 6th photo, you can see the squared end of the bowsprit and the two pieces of wood on the bow thwart.
 
Transom Height - In the kit, the top of the transom is at the same height as the cap rail.  In post #2, the 5th photo, you can see the top of the transom is 5-6" higher than the cap rails.  This looks much nicer.  I'll build this up in layers.   
 
Access door under rear deck
This photo gives a great view of the hinged doors to access storage under the rear deck. 
This photo is copyright protected, so please copy and paste this link.  Really nice photo! http://www.pbase.com/image/65376766
However, to do these, I will most likely need to extend the length of the rear deck.  Currently, it measures 40", but thinking I might lengthen it a bit, or raise it.  ..... or neither and just install the doors.  
 
Access hatch on fore deck
This is another copyright protected photo of the same boat and another really nice photo:  http://www.pbase.com/debetencourt/image/65376767
This one shows some nice details of the rigging.  At the bottom of the mast and to the right, there appears to be some type of hardware that might be the access to the storage under the fore deck.  So, humm, an opportunity to add detail.   
 
Fish wells
In this same photo, you can there is a definite split on the cockpit decking.  The instructions for these boards are sort of goofy, but the prints show that after the decking is done, add 3 planks at 90*, but do not glue them down.  I'll scan the drawing when I get there and hopefully someone else will know or have a better idea. 
 
Cleats - The kit came with 12" long, metal cleats and all of the lines were tied off on a cleat.  These cleats are so big, they remind me of clown shoes, you know, about 7" too long!   But no metal cleats allowed on this build.  Instead, I will use belaying pins or wooden cleats as shown in the photos above.  (Yeah!  I finally have a reason to order something from Model Expo and I can finally get the 5mm cleats I need to finish my MBLS!)

 
So, those are the changes I've decided on so far, there may be more.  Since none of these changes are impacted by the planking, I can finish off adding the transom, fore and aft false decking and start planking! 
Yeah! 
 
Thanks for stopping by, questions and comments are welcome!
 
Dee Dee
 
 
 
 

I've been building ships in bottles for more than 35 years and every one of them has been a waterline model, most under full sail, with the wind direction and strength appropriate for the sails and correctly depicted (more or less, as my experience and knowledge grew) in the sea state and swell direction. However, there was always something that bothered me about my models, increasing as time went by, because I had no confidence that I could succeed in modeling something that everyone is extremely familiar with. I have finally gotten to the point where I can no longer leave out these details. In case you haven't guessed, I'm talking about putting people on my models. There's nothing like human figures to give a strong sense of the scale of a model and bring it to life - or ruin the project if they are poorly done.
 
I'm no artist, just a modeler, and I was always lousy at drawing people. Just the thought of sculpting human figures had me extremely intimidated so a couple months ago I started research and study of the human body from an artist's point of view and on ways to make very small figures. Ogallala seemed to me a perfect project to introduce people into my work since it is a rather large scale and has become an experimental test bed. It's basically a 2X scale Conestaga wagon mated to a 1/2 scale topsail schooner rig, then reduced to a scale appropriate to the bottle I initially selected. The result is roughly 1/96 scale, about 10% smaller than HO. I rejected using HO figures (which would be large anyway) because I couldn't learn anything by buying figures and adapting them.
 
Most methods I researched begin with wire armatures, so that's were I started.
 

My first armature with the arms not yet bent at the shoulder joint and arms and legs not trimmed to length.
 
I dropped - and thought had lost - that first armature, made a couple more, threw them away and finally got one that might work as a first try. I rejected using any kind of clay and settled on building up the armature with an acrylic gesso, mostly because Lloyd McCaffery uses gesso. [bTW, I found that first armature today while doing a bit of work area clean-up and photographed it. I'm convinced that a smooth, bare concrete floor is the best thing under a modeler's work bench/table, I hardly ever lose dropped objects on that floor except for the semi-microscopic bits I don't even bother to look for.]
 
So, here's my first try after three coats, applied at about 30-45 minute intervals, between drilling holes in groups of dead-eyes.
 

Front view. He's posed for steering, weight on left foot, left hip against the wheel stanchion, both hands on the wheel.
 

Left quarter view. I think I have the head and shoulders pretty close but he's still a bit thin elsewhere. The long left leg will be cut below the foot to glue into a hole in the deck.
 

Right quarter view. He's 5'-9"/1.75m tall to scale - 11/16 in./17.5mm. One or two more coats of gesso should have him ready for detailing.
 
I'm very surprised at how easy this method is, at least this far into it. If I was doing a larger crew, say 20 figures, at this scale (I'm only going to do three or four for Ogallala), I would be able to apply a coat of gesso to all, go back through them with successive coats and have them all ready for final detailing in one day, perhaps four hours or much less with practice or for a smaller scale. Making the 20 armatures and posing them in a wide variety of activities would take longer. The gesso, being a little thicker than Model Expo paint, builds up easily with a paint brush and sets quickly. Used as a base for painting, it's a brilliant white, so it's a bit difficult to see the shape of the growing figure - and very hard to photograph; my first photos were just white silhouettes with no shadows to give a discernible 3rd dimension. I'll add a bit of black paint to the gesso for the final coat to make it easier to see as I finalize the fleshing out and the drape of the clothing. I'll continue working on this figure to learn about the rest of the process before starting the two or three more needed. Don't be surprised if he winds up being a less cartoonish version of Windwagon Smith.
 
Looking back on my agonizing over doing people, I feel really stupid (a frequent feeling) and timid (very rare) for not trying this 20 years ago - it's not at all like drawing, it's really just modeling after all. I guess it took Lloyd McCaffery's work to make me see that I might be able to do it combined with the realization that I had no choice but to at least attempt it. As you can probably tell, I'm very pleased with what I have so far. He's off to a much better beginning than I expected and my confidence now is high, which is probably the most important result of this experiment.
 
I will greatly appreciate any comments, positive and negative. I need to learn quickly how to do these figures, and other eyes - and the intellects that go with them - may notice what I have missed.
 

Dave
 
 

I'm pulling up my easy chair for this build.  Should be fun.
 
Bob

I finished the Sophie. Here are the final pictures.




 
 
 
 
Lextin.

David thanks for the information.
 
Lawrence I think I’d be after them too at least to find out what the hold-up is.  I also want to see that schooner come together.
 
Bob

I decided to drill holes in the dead eyes and to rig lanyards rather than to fake them by gluing segments of thread to both faces of the dead eyes. I don't fully trust ca (used to make the dead eyes) and paint, in particular, to withstand rigging stresses. By rigging them, even if the ca fails, the dead eyes are less likely to come apart with the lanyards to assist in holding them together. By faking the lanyards I would be trusting the paint-to-deadeye bond to not fail. In either case repairing failure(s) would be next to impossible inside the sphere. I realized I had no choice but to rig them for real.
 
I started by fabricating a fixture using a standard spring clothespin as a clamp to hold the dead eye for drilling through guides in the clamp. I used 1mm hobby plywood to make the parts added to the clothespin. The guide holes are .010 in./0.25mm.
 

The pieces on both sides of the clothespin keep the two wooden parts of the pin from shifting sideways.
 

Three bits of ply glued to one of the ply yaws to locate the dead eye and the three guide holes for drilling.
 
I also made a fixture to hold an upper and lower dead eye for reeving with a lanyard. I modified two mini clothespins to hold the dead eyes by the previously installed tails with a piece of the ply positioned between to sort of wedge the dead eyes against the clamps.
 

Dead eye reeving fixture, lower dead eye to the right.
 

Closer view of the fixture. The out-of-focus light thread is the tail from the knotted end of the lanyard.
 
I used some thinned white pva glue to secure the lanyard in the holes and on the knot. I will secure the other end of the lanyard after rigging the shrouds and attaching a stretcher just above the dead eyes. I know this all seems backwards to the method used on larger models but tying and seizing and reeving the lanyards on the model at this size seems to me next to impossible. It was hard enough with the parts held steady in clamps and fixtures. This way the only tying while on the model will be of the shrouds at the tops to form short splices or bight splices with a needle similar to the way I seized the dead eyes.
 
After letting the glue set I removed the shroud from the fixture and posed it in position in a channel on the model with an X-acto blade for size reference.
 

The lanyard is not tensioned at all. It has acquired a bit of a twist which comes out with a little tension. I have to
be careful when I reeve the lanyard so that the lay doesn't tighten as I pass it through each hole of the dead eye.
 
Now to get back to the other eleven pairs of dead eyes to drill holes and reeve lanyards, then go through the whole process again, starting with cutting discs, for the smaller topmast dead eyes and shrouds.
 
 

Dave
 
 
 

Today, I finished the Cockpit floor , first I cut out Birch ply for the bench supports and stained them cherry . Next was to cut out the Deck hatches on the fish well deck . then I cut out more birch strips for the deck . I installed the bench supports and installed the birch strips on the fish well deck .I sanded the Cabin top to get it ready for a second coat . I like how this has turned out Here are the results

Hi all
 
Things have been a bit slow around here.  I had serious storage problems in my garage, so i decided it was time to do something about it.
 
I wanted to be able to store all my tools for shipmodeling, and still have a nice workbench to operate them on.
 
So i've decided to create my own "mobile" workshop. It's very flexible now and i can move it outside for the "dirty" sawing work.  That keeps the admiral very happy!
 

 
The inside looks like this :
 

 
I still have to make trays for the spaces in the upper corners, to store the small stuff in, like the one i made in the middle.
 
On the side, there'll be a larger tray over the whole length of the workbench in which i'll be able to store some wood in. 
 

I like the cockpit.  They keep getting better.
 
Bob

As you may have noticed I have not made any posts for a while. Pressure of work and now a new job have all made work on my chaloupe nigh on impossible, sadly. I do have some progress which I have not yet reported on and in which you might be interested.
 
Since my last post I have faired the frames as far as possible. Here are a couple of photos:
 
 
 
However at this stage I began to think something was wrong.... It took me a while, but after much fiddling trying to get the keel, stem and stern posts aligned to each other and square to the mould, I realised that the mould itself was not true. This photo shows the problem:
 

 
I think that the stack of MDF laminates was able to slide sideways at the point while the glue was still wet and I was tightening the clamps. I considered sanding the sides square, but concluded that this would only lead to a misshapen mould. So I made a new one, taking more care this time to ensure everything was aligned properly.
 
Here are the two moulds side-by-side. The differences are not obvious, but the second one is unquestionably more accurate.
 

 
Because I had not glued anything to anything else at this stage (with the exception of the floors and futtocks making up each individual frame) I was able to unpin everything from the old mould and re-fix it to the new one. Although the frames had been made over the old mould they fit the new one well enough, so in the end there was not much other than the mould to redo.
 
  
 
So now I was able to make proper forward progress with the transom. You can see the top piece in the picture with all the frames above. This pinned nicely to the back of the sternpost and square to the mould. The next step was to fix two pieces of thin (1.5 mm) ply, roughly profiled to the shape of half the transom, to each side of the stern post, tucked under the top piece. These were pinned in place until the glue was dry. The outer profile was sanded using a round sanding stick running across the last few frames. The outer surface of each side of the transom was boarded with 5 x 1 mm cherry and again the ends were sanded to the correct profile.
 
 
 
The final pieces of progress are the two wales. These needed spiling to the correct longitudinal shape and then profiling in section using a scraper filed into a piece of scrap brass. Once they were soaked and curved to the right plan form they could be glued in place. At this point the framework is strong enough to remove from the mould as you can see.
 
       
 
And that is nearly as far as I have got to date. I have made the two garboard strakes, but they are not finished yet or fitted. Hopefully I will get some more time soon!
 
Thanks for reading.
 
Rob
 
 

On Keel # 4 Today, I started by shaping the Mast and fitting it. I decided to add a square piece of Birch Ply as a Mast step. I then stained the Birch on the Cockpit face , Cabin entry and the companion way rails a Cherry . On the Cockpit floor I made a new Hatch cover ( I didnt like the first one ) Laid out the Deck for the cut outs ( I will do the Fish well deck the same as the Cockpit floor ) Then Painted the Cabin top a gloss white. Here are the results

When the Lettie was discovered after being abandoned the masts, bowsprit, and the windlass had been taken off the boat and mostly disassembled so I am not completely sure this is the correct windlass.  I got this design from Chapelle’s “The American Fishing Schooner”.  I think it will do.  It is mounted on a temporary base and I will be taking it all apart and painting some of the parts before mounting it on the boat.  I have to admit I had a lot of fun with the linkage.  I wish I had kept time on this I figure somewhere between 12 and 20 hours.
 
Bob
 

 

 

 

 

Another option on the hoops is two lines from the gaff jaws tied to each hoop to lift the front of the hoop and keep them level when raised.  I don’t remember the reference but I added it to the Spray.    SEE HERE
 
Bob

Very nice.  That's why they refer to these lovely boats as "she".
 
Bob

Very nice.  That's why they refer to these lovely boats as "she".
 
Bob

Michael you asked, way back in #170 <, if I was going to be adding any support at the edges where the planks but up to the cover board.  The answer turned out to be yes and no.  In most cases the deck beams were sufficient support but at the master beam the planks were so short I had to put in little pieces for support. 
 
Anyway now the deck is finished and I can move on to deck furniture, masting and rigging. 
 
Bob
 
 

 

 

 

 
 

When the Lettie was discovered after being abandoned the masts, bowsprit, and the windlass had been taken off the boat and mostly disassembled so I am not completely sure this is the correct windlass.  I got this design from Chapelle’s “The American Fishing Schooner”.  I think it will do.  It is mounted on a temporary base and I will be taking it all apart and painting some of the parts before mounting it on the boat.  I have to admit I had a lot of fun with the linkage.  I wish I had kept time on this I figure somewhere between 12 and 20 hours.
 
Bob
 

 

 

 

 

Hi all,
 
The hull is finished.  When they rebuilt Lettie, which is what the drawings were taken from, the fore deck was raised to match the poop deck.  That’s why the deck measurement is longer.  They also extended the monkey rail all the way to the bow.  In trying to restore Lettie to original condition I installed the monkey rail around the stern, only up to the step in the deck.
 
I’m going to do something different this time.  I’m going to paint the hull and then install the deck.  On the one hand I won’t have to mask the deck; on the other it will be harder to sand the deck.  Well that’s how we learn.
 
Bob
 

 

 

Very nice.  That's why they refer to these lovely boats as "she".
 
Bob

Thanks Lawrence.  That’s the great challenge of this hobby, to make the present build better than the last build. 
 
Bob

Mandan,
 
If I were building one I think I'd simply build in the same manner as any other ship - backbone of keel/stem/sternpost; frames; planking.
 
As a matter of interest, are those scow schooners as flat as this one from New Zealand?
 
John
 

 
 

Today, I thought I would finish Planking the Herreshoff, However I realized that I did not cut in the 1/8" for the Transom. I decided that I would add a 1/8" X 1/8" strip  to the stern of the Keel, and move my Rabbet line 1/8" aft. That is somthing that I will remember for the next one ( and there will be a next one ) there are already a few things that I would do differently. ( That will be for the next build log ) Anyway I then started soaking my planking material while I finished shaping the sheer line ( I am pleased with the result ) It matches the Print . the Planking went smooth and all the seams are nice and tight. I did a good amount of Fairing . Next will be to finish the Planking and build a Cradle . I have had alot of fun building this boat ( my favorite so far ) and aside from the transom sticking out an extra 1/8" ( or the boat being 1/8" too long ) the rest of it is right on the money. Here are the results

Oh the lines on that quartering shot from the port stern (first pic)! That's one sexy hull.
 
Steve

When the Lettie was discovered after being abandoned the masts, bowsprit, and the windlass had been taken off the boat and mostly disassembled so I am not completely sure this is the correct windlass.  I got this design from Chapelle’s “The American Fishing Schooner”.  I think it will do.  It is mounted on a temporary base and I will be taking it all apart and painting some of the parts before mounting it on the boat.  I have to admit I had a lot of fun with the linkage.  I wish I had kept time on this I figure somewhere between 12 and 20 hours.
 
Bob
 

 

 

 

 

I've been working on some very fiddly bits the last few days so it doesn't seem to me that I have much done when I look back on the time I spent at the bench.
 
I made a test assembly of my dead eyes. 
 

 
The dead eyes were fabricated from two discs .060 in./1.5mm in diameter of ca stiffened card stock with another disc .040 in./1.0mm sandwiched between and centered. In this test I seized the thread around the dead eye by passing the thread through itself twice with a needle. If you think threading a needle is challenging try piercing a thread with a needle. Satisfied with the general results I punched out the discs needed to make 24 dead eyes with plenty of extras to cover mistakes.
 
I also made my ship's wheel from the ca stiffened card stock. Made 3 rings, glued two together then cut notches for the 36 gauge wire to fit into. Did similar with the hub of the wheel, then assembled the wheel and glued another ring and hub in place. I also used the card stock to build up the wheel stanchions. I turned the spindle from basswood.
 

 
Here's the wheel after going into the paint shop, attaching the tiller rope and installing the completed unit to Ogallala's deck with the tiller ropes passing through holes in the deck.
 
 
While working on the wheel I also assembled the dead eyes and painted them.
 

 
Here's one of the dead eyes with a shroud seized as in the test.
 

 
This dead eye has blackened 36 gauge wire wrapped around it and twisted just enough turns to conceal the twist when attached to the channels. I may need to blacken the wire some more, it looks black in normal light but with the lights for photography the copper shows through. If I blacken the wire too much it just flakes off.
 
I haven't decided if I'm going to drill holes for the lanyards or just fake them by gluing short pieces of thread to both sides of the dead eye pairs. Now to make smaller dead eyes for the topmasts. 
 

Dave