SkerryAmp

Frank... WOW!!!!
 
What a beautiful and fantastic job!   The weathering really gives it some life of it's own and it is a testament to your craftsmanship.
 
Just love it!!

Frank... WOW!!!!
 
What a beautiful and fantastic job!   The weathering really gives it some life of it's own and it is a testament to your craftsmanship.
 
Just love it!!

Augie, this is looking awesome!!   The windows really came out nice and the overall look of the ship is really coming together!  I picked up some window maker myself - but I have been away from the bench so long I can't remember why I picked it up!!!  hahahaha... oh my.
 
 
Wonderful work!!

Love watching you scratchbuilders do your thing!   I live vicariously through you you realize, since I can barely scratch build a square box at this point!!
 
Just terrific to watch... enjoying it very much!!!
 
NICE!!

Thanks all! Augie, is really good to be back at it again!  Hopefully I can make it stick for a while!
 
I agree Chuck and Russ - a little time on this and it felt great!!!  Have been so wrapped up in stuff kind of forgot how much fun it was - and it actually "chilled me out" for a little bit.  I really really need to find a way to squeeze it in at the end of the night again!!

Really good idea, and it is something I thought about while formulating this plan.   Unfortunately I think that would be a fair bit daunting a task for me to take on at the moment.   That would certainly be valuable I agree, but the list I think would be quite larger than I could manage =(    Not off the table, just definately on a back back burner =)
 
 
 
 
Hehe, thanks Floyd - greatly apprecaite it!   Am very glad my crazy helps out some folks - that makes it all worth it!! 
 
 
 
Thank you Danny! Means a lot!    Regarding sorting names,  right now you should be able to click the headers on the columns and it will sort by that column. So if you wanted to sort by names just click the kit column and it will sort the current returned set.   I will be adding a free form search box where you can type in a kit name or part of a kit name and it will only show those kits so folks who only want to see Constitutions can get a succinct list of them as well as those folks who can remember only a part of a name (like me hehe) can hopefull find kits easier.
 
And big thanks for the ship types - some of them are easy to find and figure out, others are a bit confusing. Even doing a  search on the ship sometimes comes back with several different ones.  Will update those this week!!

I have broken free!!! 
 
At least for tonight, so will be trying to make the most of it
 
First order of business......  give some love to the Mayflower.  She has been patient over there on the workbench, although I could feel the judging, condemning glares from time to time.
 
So - gave 'er a littel bit of attention.
 
I went ahead and just added the white trim pieces along the railings and sides.  Not a great deal of progress, but considering the last update was from March -   it is something!!
 
The trim was painted using artists acrylics, which I am starting to get an affinity for.  It covers nicely and with a little bit of leveling agent added seems to go on nice and smooth!   They were glued into place, trimmed, sanded just a little to give them a bit of a worn look and then sit waiting for the next step. Which is the other pieces of molding as well as the green stripes and detail work. 
 

 

 

 
 
Ahhhh.  SO GOOD to work with the wood and paint and get something done!!!
 
Am now going to head on in and watch a little TV with the Admiral as she goes to bed much earlier than I do and then I will be back and catch up on the nearly 400 updates (according to that little notifier up there in the corner)
 
Thank you all for being patient!   I will be making the most of my new found time until it gets snatched away again!!!
 
 
Enjoy and happy modeling!!!

Thanks again for dropping by Janos, Pat and Adam. Your comments are appreciated .
 
Moving right along, I've fitted the Upper Cheek to the port side in the following pic :
 

 
The Manger Scupper caused me a few worrying moments, as it was halfway into the cheek. I came up with the following solution :
 

 
Before fitting the lower cheek I made the Trail Board, which fits between the two cheeks on the stem. This gave me a perfect alignment, as I only have to butt the lower cheek to it's bottom edge.
 

 
Next I glued in the Trail Board, closely followed by the lower cheek :
 

 

 
 
  Danny

I did some sanding to the spar deck.........today,  I came home.......got settled back in with home life,  and grabbed the deck.  I went out to the garage with it.   it was rainy in the morning,  but it cleared and it was quite warm.   the clouds were making another run at me when I sprayed it.   I let it set for a bit,  then brought it back into the house.   it had some time to dry,  before rain moved in again.......but it still managed to turn yet again.......not as bad as before though.   it may be because the lacquer is too concentrated.......perhaps I will decant a can,  thin it and try again later.   the semi gloss lacquer doesn't do this.........it's not in a rattle can and I do thin it to some degree........I will have to experiment a bit 
 

 

 

 

 
I have a block of wood under the poop deck......you can see the difference.
 
 
back to the drawing board Sherman   OK Mr.  Peabody!

thanks Mark and Patrick for your comments.......a bright ray of light on a dismal looking day.   it's cloudy here.......further confirming my suspicions of what happened last night.   I'll get into this later.
 
Mark:   the thin planking that I use is called Annegre,  sold by Billing Boats.   it is a lighter variation of mahogany {so I'm told},  the darker reddish wood found in most kits.   some folks plank their hulls with mahogany......it is a wonder,  due to it's brittle nature.   I've used Annegre in many ways....I use it as a decorative wood,  but it is better suited for hull and deck planking.  it's a bit more flexible and not as brittle as mahogany.  when done up with the simulated calking...it looks great,  and when sanded,  the blackened grit gets into the grain and emphasizes the texture when seal coated.   it is only 0.7 mm thick, and can be purchased in a variety of widths.   best results are instances where there is a deck platform laid first........I remember the first deck I ever planked....I used the 1.8 mm strips....very tough to get it to lay down properly.   this thin stock conforms to the slightest variation in the deck line...from the camber,  to the man made goof   it's very easy to work with.   thanks for the good word.
 
Patrick:   I will appease you......then I'm going to make you jump up and say.......WT.......?  I do thank you for your comment......not to worry friend.......I'm still smiling!  
 
Anyway.............on with the update!  if anyone has the song  'San Tropez' by Pink Floyd.....put 'er on the fang tooth cobra....and give'er a spin......love that song!     it's on the  'Meddle' album,  for those fumbling to find it.......then.....follow it up with  'one of these days'.....with the volume turned up past eleven!   it make me think of the old Dr. Who....when I was a lot younger  
 
all that was left of the planking,  was the port side.
 

 

 
it took a bit of time,  but I got it done
 

 

 

 
you can see that I try to weight the decks down,  to limit the amount of curl they tend to get from sitting around.  I do this while I'm planking as well.......the drying glue tend to put the pull on it too.  while the gun deck is in wait for it's planking,  I see I need to do this....even still with all the crap I've done to it before.
 

 
what you see is all that I have left......that's around 25 strips......well below what I will need to complete the entire deck.   the spar deck was trimmed and sanded
 

 

 
after it was wiped down and the paint work was touched up,  from the nicks it received from the sanding, it was time for it's first coat of flat lacquer.  now it's a waiting game...allow to dry,  so the second coat can be applied. 
 
 

I tried my best to keep the separations in the big hole in the mid deck section......but when I went to cut them out......one of them cracked and broke,  so I did them all.   there will be beams there.   one of the structural supports I still need to add...are these beams.  with the grain the direction it's going,  I will add them in,  is spacings under the deck......I also will give them a little camber.   the bow section sits in the cavity pretty good.   I will plank this deck after it is cemented in place,  so I can do the planking all the way to the edge of the bulwarks.
 

 
I may thicken the bulwarks as well.
 

 

 

 

 
I also tried a feeble attempt to get a couple pictures of the gun deck,  through the gun ports.   it may give you some idea of what you can see,  although there will be cannons there,  blocking the view.
 

 

 

 
I can skimp a little.......I'll use some of the other thin stock that I have.

the deck was cleaned up.......smoothing the cut edges.   the holes in the deck were then cut out.   they will be edged with 3/32 and 1/16 square stock.
 

 

 

 

 
all of the inside edges were sanded with sanding sticks I had made,  using different width deck planking strips.   putting the gun deck back in wasn't too bad...I can't wait to see how it will come back out.  the bow tucks nicely in the cavity.
 

 

 

 
 

while I was working on the gun deck,  I began to assemble the spar deck.   one of the major players in the gun deck curling up like that,  was the way the grain runs....side to side.   dryness is another factor,  and when I get to doing the deck planking,  I will use steam or hot towels on it.......not long though....I don't want to undo all that I have done.   I had set aside the two 4 inch wide panels for it,  but I found that I could use the 3 inch ones just as well.   I cemented two of them together lengthwise.......I will have the grain run fore to aft.   to trace out the sections,  all extruding pins and tabs must be removed,  and then sanded.
 

 
the sections were then laid on the joined panel.
 

 

 
then......trace them out......starting with the bow section.
 

 
.....and then the mid section.
 

 
...and then the stern section.
 

 

 
the deck was cut out of the panel.
 

 

Hey Popeye, I guess maybe I mis-named the part I was talking about.  See your earlier pic below.  At the bottom of this piece is a small "V" and some slight curvature which doesn't seem to exactly match the hull curvature where its suppose to fit.  Then, when I fit it up (dry), there is a gap between the bottom of this piece and the hull.   Does yours fit perfectly? or did you need to do a lot of trimming?
 
I am thinking that before I trim this piece I should dry-fit the upper and lower decks as these may "stretch" the hull a little bit.  If I can't get rid of the gap, I'll use your advice regarding the styrene.
 

as you can see,  some of them need a little help.  I can fix them though.....I began the task of sanding them......lots of sanding.
 


 
keep an eye on that sawdust pile
 

 
I got six of them sanded down.....I could go a little more,  but I'll do that later,  when I go to install them.  I worked on getting the others done first.  I couldn't get a decent picture of them,  so I set them on a piece of flat stock,  to see if that would help.
 



 
I got a couple more of them.
 

 
.....until I got them all.....I didn't lose a single one!
 


 
the sawdust pile grew to be quite large......I'm saving some,  so I can make some home made filler.
 

 
I wouldn't suggest to anyone that they should do this......it took me a couple days to do this.   it was just an experiment to see if this would be a viable alternative.   the only thing I can see,  is that it might have been better to use smaller stock........1/32......or even 1/64.  these would be suited for the larger grates, the kit provides the smaller ones......it might be best if I used them......but you never know,  I might try it.

I do have one more bit of progress to pass on to you.   I would have posted this,  but this was when the site went down.....believe it on not.....so this is fairly recent.   I had ordered a grate kit from the place where I had ordered the 3.5mm deadeyes for the Gothenborg.  it was taking so long to get them,  I canceled the order.   while I was waiting though,  I thought about how many of those kits I would have to order...and the cost involved.  I decided to try and make them.  I bought two packages of 1/16 square stock and cut them into short lenghts.  with just a tiny bit of cement on the ends,  I cemented ten of them down onto a small piece of wood,  spacing them equally {1/16 wide}.   placing another layer on top of them, spacing them the same way,  they form a cross - thatch pattern.





 
third row
 

 
fourth row
 


 
fifth row
 

 
I was running out of the strips......and only half way as high as I want to go.   the only recourse at this time,  would be to cut this in half,  fit it together the best position possible,  and glue it together.   so, I finished with what I had and did just that.
 




 
when this was dry,  it was sliced into wafers.   they will be sanded flush,  making them thinner in the process.   there were some of the tiny pieces that broke free.   they were repaired and set aside to dry,  I would just pick up another one and work on thay one in the meantime.
 


 
for some reason,  I got eleven of them........I thought I'd only get ten.   a bonus.

Love watching you scratchbuilders do your thing!   I live vicariously through you you realize, since I can barely scratch build a square box at this point!!
 
Just terrific to watch... enjoying it very much!!!
 
NICE!!

I did a bit more......but not as much,  since I was running out of wood.  before I can make the spar deck,  I need to get more. 
 

 
I figured that I would paint the copper....I've never sprayed  a metallic paint through an airbrush before,  this should be interesting.  I did make a couple of parts for the spar deck, before I bundled them.
 


 
I bundled the gun deck up as well.....I  don't want them to get warped either.   I gave the hull a light prime.
 








 
the copper paint went very well......only two tiny imperfectiond to repair.  I was very happy to see that.

I drew the center lines on the sections......there was a mention on the old site that they appeared to be a bit off.  the hull is a bit disproportionate at the moment,  so the sections are not sitting in there the way they should be.  when the hull is pulled into shape,  it does tend to straighten out.........please bear with me. 
 
the aft section will take someadjustments to be correct.   it starts out like this
 


 
just for fun,  I took the bow cannon and placed it in one of the ports.
 


 



 
I need to raise the galley section,  so it will align with the hull. 
 

 
the line of the deck curves upward...to correct this,  the tail has to be cut off and shimmed with a 1/16 spacer.
 





 
the level is now corrected......from here,  it needs to be shaped.
 


 
as with the other  sections,  pieces of planking is cemented underneath to keep the section from doing anything wierd.   when it was ready,  it was dry fitted.
 




 
the deck line is much better.  when the time comes,  the major assembly can begin.
 

the process continues with the cutting........
 




 
the grasting frames were cemented in place.   I cemented a couple of pieces of planking underneath the section to keep it from warping or curling.   tabs on the connection ends will aide in them in being cemented together flush.
 



 
the mid section was next.
 





 
the first two sections are done......the hardest one is yet to come.

At this point,  the gun deck sections are prepped and traced out.   I needed to cut out the grates in order to trace them,  so I'll have to make.....or even order grates for them.   I have one on order asa matter of fact.....haven't seen it as of yet.......I wondered if they mailed it.
 


 


 


 
I didn't bother to show the middle photos.......they just show the grates cut out anyway.   the stern section is going to be the interesting one for sure.  that tail piece isgoing to need to have some fine tuning done on it,  if it is to work out.   I did make all the marksas to where the aft quarters are to be located.   now to cut them out and assemble the frames for the grates and other bits of detail.

I'm basically just assembling parts,  with no particular rhyme or reason
 







 
once the cannons were painted,  I packaged them to keep them from getting lost or damaged.  taking a look at the decking....there quite a task ahead
 





this was the gun deck........here is the spar deck
 





 
these parts were in a bag unrelated to the color in which they were molded.  it's my guess that these parts were added in.....found as an oversight on their part.
 

 
just a couple of other parts that will need either paint or assembly.
 


 

so,  the build kicked of in November of 2012.   right now,  I'm just doing small things,  until I can get some of the other builds out of the way.   the deck sections are the most important thing first off.  they need to be made so that when they are put together,  they will lock together without any lines or unevenness..the planking will cover all this over anyway.  for the moment,  I decided to put the hull together.
 

 
 I'm going to use the stand parts.....they do work quite well.  I also assembled the bow chaser cannon...I wish I had two of them.....I like them better than the other cannons.
 


 
I put the Gothenborg up next to it......I think the size difference in scale is cool.
 

I have some pictures of my first build......this had to be in the mid 90's
 





 
here is the kit as I got it
 




 

this is the Revell 1:96 scale kit.   I had built this kit some time ago.  the model was short lived though and met it's demise at my hand.   I had been looking for another one for quite a while.  I got a tip that there was one on E-bay........didn't think I would suceed......but I managed to get it.   it spent a long time in the closet, until one day,  when my curiosity got the best of me.  I had seen Daniel's build of the Victory here on the site,  and wondered if I could pull something like that off.   so here it is.....in it's infancy.
 
Now,  when Revell came out with this series of large scale models {there we several in the series},  quite a bit of evidence pointed towards the reasoning of the grouping in the series.  The Cutty Sark mimicked the thermoplyae.....the C.S.S. Alabama mimicked the U.S.S. Kersarge.....the U.S.S. Constitution mimicked the U.S.S. United States....the only one that didn't seem to have a clone,  was the Spanish Galleon.  these kis may have.....or probably were,  molded from the same molds.  whoever came up with this idea was a genius,  in my view.   outside of a few minor discrepancies....they came out with some of the best kits that revell had ever done.  sadly,  the Constitution was the only one to survive the discontinual chopping block.
 
my rebuild of this fine vessel is going to be a bit different.....I plan to replace all that I can do with wood.  I don't think I'll be able to go as far as Daniel did on his build {which is exsquisite, by the way},  but I'll do what I can.   the one thing I want to defeat.....are those nasty separation lines that cursed these decks.
     the decks on these particular kits are done in sections.  when put together in the build,  you can't help but see these section lines.  I have seen other folks try many ways to hide them.....some are pretty good, but I think doing the decks in wood will totally erraticate them once and for all!   what started this build sounds kinda silly......just playful banter on the site.   I decided to bring out the cannons to put on the Gothenborg......as a show of force,  and to defend the wharf.  It opened a can of worms.......it got me thinking of the deck idea again.....and so I went for it.
 






I spent quite a bit of time making the barrels for the cannons


I did manage to do a little painting on them.  the parts are in pretty good shape....not a lot of flash,  or deformaties.  there are some things that were not put into this kit,  that are in the Connie kit.  the aft quarters,  for one thing.   I'm going to try to add the parts for it in here.....I think it would make for a nice addition