popeye the sailor

good there was a solution to be had Jan........looks nice 'n neat too

other thoughts I've had...one is for the portholes. I intend to use the window maker to fill them in. I tried the punch out method before........way too much trimming. the ID of the porthole is {from what I can see} around 5/16. with most openings that I've used the window maker on, I've positioned the part, so the opening is facing downward to prevent the window maker from drying with a sunken in look. an idea that I'm toying with, is to lay them face up on a sheet of clear saran wrap, and 'well' them in..........I thought of using wax paper, but I'm unsure if the wax would hinder the see-thru look after they are dry. then......there's the removal factor.......would they stick and become damaged peeling them off. for the other types of windows, I will use clear cello.......squares are easier to do. another problem lies with the fittings........I hope Billing Boats gets enough complaints about this. they made the gallows out of plywood stock, laser cut into the parts needed to make them. I was toying with them, with the intent on assembling them......but they are a lost cause. the laser cutting melted the glue between the plys and they were splitting apart.....the uprights are terrible! rather than contact them......and possibly get more of the same, I'm going to look around, or even make the parts for them myself. the ones that came in the first Nordkap kit were made of brass and they were pre assembled..........glue or solder on the footings, add the pulley blocks, and they were good to go. I'll need to advise the budget director......I know it will be like asking the king for a ship to discover America.........but it must be done. I'm glad I found this out now, and not later. I will also be checking the winch too........1/2 of that has been changed to wood.........the frame parts

I didn't get too much table time yesterday.........the tree has left the building. all but a few remnants of Christmas remain. I made a jig to help in raising the entrance doors to the helm room, to the proper height, so I could trace the cut outs for the windows in the doors. there is a left and right door, so I made sure there was enough space for the hinges, for the doors to swing open properly. I had included the roof on the lower cabin.......figured I would add the roof on the aft cabin. the helm room will get the same treatment as the other structures, as far as framing is concerned, so adding the aft cabin roof isn't going to be in the way. I'll just have to try and hide the seam along the two parts. there was also an overhang that I was going to leave on the lower cabin.........but it was uneven. I tried to straighten it out.......but I cut too deep, and had to remove it totally, leaving it flush all the way around the cabin. oh well........that's what molding is for counting the bow bulkhead, I found that I have five extra portholes left over. I'll find a place for them, so I can use them all. then came the task that I think we all hate to do.........cut into freshly laid planking. the thought of making a mistake can be quite paralyzing for the faint of heart. I bought this x-actor a short time ago..........it boasts that it's supposed to be sharper than the average x-actor. ahhhhhh-hemmm.......we'll see about that Obechi cuts like garbage anyway.........like cutting into thick wet cardboard. but, it went OK though........sanding the edges as I went along........and making sure that I didn't cut into the box itself. in that regard...they weren't kidding...........I did make a couple tell-tale marks...........but they were easy to sand away. I did have my doubts about assembling the boxes with the bottom sill........I was thinking of making them triangular, with no sill, so they would blend into the hull at the bottom, after sanding. I did the Nordkap this way as well..........I didn't like it then, but at that time, what did I know..........my bashing skills didn't wake up til after the hull was fully planked. that was progressive anyway........changing one thing.......and then another..........and by the time I was full time on the deck, I was do'in the Sinatra. all 'n all......they came out alright. I suppose in lieu of molding around the openings, I can just round off the edges and blend in the entire box. I didn't look at the diagram until after I had done it.......the anchor hawse holes are different.......but I wasn't sure of the anchors supplied in the Progress kit. the ones in the Nordkap kit would have been partially pulled into the holes and the anchor part would have been hanging in the breeze........not the way an anchor should hang. "hell's spit........I'm jest spinn'in me winch fer nuth'in!" they pass muster wit me more soon............:)

planking looks great!........the port side is really good your gaining on 'er

well done Jack! awesome job on the railings..........overall great job good to hear that there another on your horizon........I'll keep an eye out for it

if it were that easy.........she's just now coming to grips that there's another large hull in the house if I do though, I have just the ship to mod it after......... I will pass it along that you said it was OK though

such beautiful work Doris.........always enjoy catching up with your log I hope you had a very good Christmas and happy modeling in 2019!

good to hear things are looking up Frank! hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas and hope better health in 2019

pumps look great Pat........hope you and your had a super Christmas as well

always neat to see her all laid out like that quite a bit stuffed in there already! awesome project to be sure.........oh, and I always thought those vents should have been slanted.......they look much better that way

very glad to hear the good news! hope to see more on this fine project of yours!

your making some great progress on her J..............your gett'in her the way you want her. look'in great!

main mast looks super Rob.........very nice

I'm not sure on it since I use the diluted glue too. I would think that varnish or anything similar might erode the fabric over time, making it brittle. not only that, if you were to use anything to weigh them down for shaping, there would be a kink that might be hard to remove. as with most things, if you have a good method for doing something, it's best to stick with it. do some testing if your unsure nice looking yards by the way..........

hello J........hope Santa was good to you I don't seem to be the weathering type........tried it before. one day I do it.......the next day it looks terrible, and I end up fixing it. I did it on the Maine Lobster boat.....I left it, but I still wasn't happy with it. we have folks here that make it look like child's play.........but it's not........it is truly an art form. then again.........when I paint it, something might strike me........I do have those three life color kits lay'in around gathering dust I see a lot in the photos I have........things I want to improve on. I'm certain that it was from the actual kit thanks for the good word........and thanks to all who hit the like button

having started out with one of these non laser cut kits......I actually thought it was rather interesting. the funny thing of it was though, that the bulkheads in the first Nordkap kit.......as well as this second one I have now {which is even older}, were cut out already. the instructions mention and list the sheet numbers that they were printed on, but no sign of the cast off wood in the kit boxes. my friend Harold, who owned the first kit, had most of the hull frame assembled, so I thought that he cut them out. the second kit proved that theory wrong. I think that's what I enjoyed most....having to cut out and shape the parts. of course, at that point in time, I didn't even own a scroll saw.......had to do it all by hand tool. I still would like to try a laser cut kit of this model though.........mainly, just to see how much easier it would be, and to save the parts panels, so I can clone other hulls

the snowman has left the front yard............just about all of the outside decorations have been taken down. tomorrow........"operation tree stuff".........we de-ornament the tree and stuff it through one of the living room bay windows! of course, it's a lot more fun, once ya get a snoot-full.......but for this year, I'll be doing it without a net..........I'll be sober naturally, there will be massive needle loss.........but, depending on which bay window I use, it can cut down on the collateral damage {there are three sizes of bay window in our living room}. it doesn't damage the window........it goes out stump first.......rather comical if ya think about it. ........... but I ramble.............there was some progress today, worthy of an update being away from the table for a couple days, I kinda snuck up on it....did some easy stuff..........like adding reinforcements to the aft cabin, behind the helm room. basically, just some 1/16 squared pine strip along the edges to straighten any warped wall panels, squaring them up and making them stronger. ......ran some up the corners too. as can be seen, I mapped out where the lower cabin is to be. but lo...........the more I looked at all the excess room on the deck pad, the more I became unsatisfied. it could be a bit bigger, I thought to myself........... roughly, 15 mm was added to the length of the cabin........couldn't do the width though........don't want to block any potential stairways. the sides and back walls were cut from 1/16 basswood sheet, and they were given some portholes and a door {the only one I had left}. there are none on the back wall, although, I still have a few portholes left over.........I could add some. but for the time being, it will be left blank.........I can do other things, still locked away in the back of my mind {scary}. as the back wall was being held in place by a rubber band, 1/16 square strip was being added, just as I did with the aft cabin. as I mentioned I was going to do with the entrance way casements, I gave them a curved sculpt and added the adjoining casement, leaving an opening for a stair way. the pit for the companionway was adjusted.......trimmed for the proper swing of the doors. then there was the task of sanding some of the depth away from it........should have used narrower plank strip to make the box {live and learn}.......{remember whose think'in this up }. I found this out when I marked how deep into the pit, the doors went. when it was shallow enough, the floor was cemented into place. the floor will be planked next........I'm think'in .05 mm, so not to add too much depth to the pit. I'm not too sure if anything more needs to be added before paint. as I recall, I added two control panel in the Nordkap helm room......one on each side wall. we'll see so now........here's another dry fit on deck..........keep in mind that it is still missing some key detail.......hand rails, railings, conduits and piping........other small fixtures. I may round off the adjoining casements.......some sanding........but this is the gist of the cabin structure assembly. difference #2 to the original Progress is the entrance casements Ok.....OK.......the amount of portholes is difference #3............I can see how many I have left, and add them accordingly {note also that those are the old portholes....they are plastic, like I had in the first Nordkap kit}. but, I need to keep in mind that this is an updated Nordkap fittings kit, and the use of brass, wood, and plastic, was tossed into total upheaval! but then again.......I can't build a kit without bashing and adding stuff, so why would a semi scratch be any different.......whoa....is that possible? bashing a scratch build? what a concept!!! wrestling with the snowman this afternoon kinda wore me out..........I was going to open up the anchor boxes......and start to fit the margins. should I continue, I will try and post the update.......if not, it will be the goal for tomorrow. the last thing I did was to add the last bow beam....sanding and fitting the outer skin, will be next to do in this part of the ship. thanks to all who hit the like button.........hoping that I'm not boring the bejebbers out of ya more to come soon that glue bottle was almost 3/4 full when I started!

glad to see your still building..........been following the S.R. hope your doing well and they had good news for you. hugs for Anja!

spacers are good..........I've sen a lot of folks use them........especially at the bow and stern where the planking flex is pretty aggressive. I've never used them though........if you intend on pre bending your planking, you likely can forego doing it. but I would anyway if it's what you usually do. it will give more surface to cement to. the hull looks super hope you and your family had a great Christmas!

wow.........the railings look super! very nice work

so you built this one when {back in the day}, it wasn't laser cut..........the two Nordkap kits I have {had}, were {are} like that. old kits are fun though nice job on the frame........you seem to be moving right along. no ABS hull................I thought it did I must be thinking of the Nederland........the Zwarte Zee does too. in any case..........she's look'in good so far

the boats came out super.....glad to see the aggravation paid off

looks great David

now that the hull is upright again.........I can do a little on the deck I was on the right track when I made the second bow bulkhead fascia.......too bad I didn't stick with it. well.......anyway, first thing I did was cement the anchor boxes in place. I still need to cut them out. I was amazed that the bow beam I cemented on earlier didn't break off in the planking process..........at one point, I was using it as a grab handle! it just shows how well it's cemented in place had I referred to the diagram, I would have seen that I memory was correct.........two ladders and the opening at the bulkhead was in the middle. I have plans of making sliding doors for it........much like the ones seen in the intro to the old Popeye cartoons. I was amazed at one of my Christmas gifts....... a DVD collection of Popeye cartoons! in it, is the cartoon where Popeye rescues Olive Oyl from Ali-baba and the forty thieves.......I believe that is the one that shows Popeye's ship {either that, or it the one about Sinbad the Sailor}...... at any rate, that is the boat that I still plan on basing the S.S. Olive Oyl on. I have just the hull........I just have to clone it first anyway,........I stuck with the Nordkap bulkhead fascia, but with a twist. I moved the door more to port and reversed the porthole opening. next was to assemble the compartment for the opening.......in hindsight, I shoulda made it larger. the bulkhead beam and the next one was added. I still need to clean it up a bit more. I then turned towards making the pit for the companionway. after cutting out the opening, it was boxed in. some sanding will need to be done to cut down on the depth of the box. I think I need to remove the end piece and make the opening wider....the doors might not be able to make a full swing the portholes were cleaned out..........open the pit just a little bit more and it will look better....then I can cement the floor in. I'll then need to mark where the entrance windows are, so I can cut them out. I thought I had made a mistake with the structure, but in looking at the diagrams and pictures, I'm good so far. the lower cabin will be added for the next update......I really want to stay with the general looks of the vessel. the bow bulkhead fascia will hopefully be the only pho-par........I'm not going to bother changing it.

thanks OC........it was a very nice Christmas for us {I think I made out like a bandit } my movie collection grew immensely, and I got three more models.......plastic {much to the admiral's lament}....she'd rather see me working with wood. thanks for the good word thanks for the Christmas wishes Lawrence........we all have that curse.......with all the projects I look at, if I was to be up to date on all the progress, I'd never have build time no need to apologize.......I'm just as guilty we had a great holiday, here at the wharf.....I'm certain that you and your gang at the shipyard had as equally a good time! oh.......I've been looking Vossie........that disc sander is something I'm looking at next since I seem to have the habit of buying these older kits, that tool is gonna make life a lot easier. I intend on sprucing up the wharf next year icky-mae I also bought an accessory kit for my Dremel......i'm planning on using it more than I have been {which is next to zero} I've always been a hands on guy. this past week was horrible.........no time to devote to the projects. I'd no sooner start play'in around, when I'd have to go do something else. now that the major part of the holiday has past, I hope things go back to normal..........but I'm still faced with packing decorations up for another year {but it goes a lot quicker }. I know it's a bit late, but I hope that everyone had a great and merry Christmas! there was an update for the prior week...........not too big, but fun to do