popeye the sailor

that's what started me to do the build logs........and the origin of Wenzels Wharf.   this is on word press.....but others are sub-divided into their own  'dry docks'.   take the name of the ship and put the words dry dock after them...you should find them online.
 
in our chatting back and fourth,  he asked if I would do a build log for him on the Nordkap.   I did........he also wanted to have a ship or two done for him.   I told him I didn't think I had enough experience,  but he should ask around on the site here......perhaps he could get a volenteer.   he asked me again later on.......convinced me to do the Cux.   after the Cux and the Nordkap was finished,  he sent me the Regina to do.........it ended up becoming the Susan A.    the build logs I sent him,  he condensed them and posted them on their website.
    I have a copy of them   I have the plans for the Wasa,  the Danmark,  the Half Moon,  And the Gothenborg on CD.  of course,  I've saved all the instruction sheets.   I'm trying to get the plans for the HMS. Warrior.  I hope to do more for him in the future.......we still chat back and fourth.   yepper......they're really good folk........so glad to have met him 

Good morning all,  
 
Hello Ben and Johann, thanks for looking in and for the kind words.
 
I literally spent Saturday afternoon and evening + Sunday - full day to finish off the foretop observation platform wind breaker shields. I can say that it was a nerve cracking job, and the worst part of it, is that there is still more detailing works to be carried out for the same area.
 
Here goes:
 
The full set of wind breakers are now fitted in place and trimmed to size. Starting the fitting of the shield liners.

 
A view from the front, showing the complexity of the wind breaker shields.

 
A general view of the internal liners.

 
A view from the front.

 
A generic view of the external liners and hinge arm supports.

 
Another view of the same.

 
A view from the bottom rear.

 
A generic view.

 
 
Shall be able to post more pictures by next Thursday.
 

just a paragraph of how detailed and cool the build looked and that they would be passing the pictures around to their different depts.  it's good that I wasn't expecting anything from it.  kind of how I got to know Tom@ Billing USA........I had gotten the Nordkap and I was asking about the fittings kit for it.  I got this huge e-mail of how he was concerned about me building a kit that was so old {over 20 years},  as my first kit.  I even got to meet him in person last summer.........I built the Susan A for him,  and he and his wife came by to pick it up.   they are such wonderful folk....hope to see them again.
 
still,  it's nice to get a positive responce from the folks who make these kits 

that's some sweet looking rigging Augie........fantastic work indeed!   have fun with the  'in laws'......

It's been a little while, but I have a small update. I have the main deck partially planked, and will complete after the removal of the bulkhead tops. I've also started the first hull planking. I'm just following the plan instructions for this planking, but will do the final planking as per Chuck's method.
 

 

Ok, Augie, you do that then  
 
And now for the promised photos...
 
Assembled the topmast crosstrees and trestle trees. Just dry fit to the topmasts for now. Got all the wooldings done on the mainmast, and the additional woolding at the top of the mizzen mast. (Not shown on the plans, but form TFFM IV) And then I felt a little energetic so I turned a dowel (also known as the mizzen topmast) into a tooth pick without breaking it.... whew...
 
Andy
 
 

just a paragraph of how detailed and cool the build looked and that they would be passing the pictures around to their different depts.  it's good that I wasn't expecting anything from it.  kind of how I got to know Tom@ Billing USA........I had gotten the Nordkap and I was asking about the fittings kit for it.  I got this huge e-mail of how he was concerned about me building a kit that was so old {over 20 years},  as my first kit.  I even got to meet him in person last summer.........I built the Susan A for him,  and he and his wife came by to pick it up.   they are such wonderful folk....hope to see them again.
 
still,  it's nice to get a positive responce from the folks who make these kits 

thanks Adeline.   it did for this ship,  because of all the mast hoops.   nothing was tied,  except for the standing rigging.  it just made it easier all the way around.  thanks for the good word
 
I know Keith.....the skis are on the table.   I've been putting most of the focus on the AmericA......but I will get to them.  I sent some pictures to Midwest.......I got almost a carbon copy of what M&M / Mars said about the fun ship.  I'm holding off on the gallery pictures until I get the skis in place.   thanks for the good word as well.
 
thanks Bob.....made me especially happy to get the shrouds in place.....one more sail to go.   I can tie everything in place in the meantime..      thanks for the good word

Another of your great builds, wonderful to see, Daniel

Ahoy Popeye
 
This is truely an amazing build.
 
Your rigging method is very interesting.  I am sure these pics will be a big help to me later on in my build. I like the rigging minions. I will of course have to add a hanger to mine.  
 
Thanks for posting them

I posted pictures of the skis a while ago........yea.....it's been that long John
 

 
I found them on page 11.    the Denny-Zen is finished.........the skis are all thats left to the Phylly C.   I thank you for the good word. 

thanks Frank.......got one toe over the finish line a we speak!  thanks for the good word
 
yea.......Andy reminded me of how the dome should look........they look the same on our tractors  {truck}.    they look good enough for me.....I'm just going to leave them as they are.  they won't look like that in the future,  I assure you
 
the skis are a tough nut to crack......I thought of going out....buying some  "barbie shoes".....and cut them up to make the bindings.  I have been looking at images of skis,  so I have a good idea of what I have to do.  I was going to make them out of brass {sheet} and paint them, but it sounds like a pain,  so I'm creating some material.
 

 
this is sail cloth soaked in diluted white glue.   when it is dry,  I'll make a jig so I can fit the material into what I need.  perhaps Froyd wouldn't mind coming over so I can check for fit.......hee.....hee. 
 
I made up the wipers for the both of them.   the way I did it was pretty neat......I was going to cement a thin strip of brass on the arm and paint it flat black....but in seeing how they looked,  I didn't bother. 
 

 
the blade is soddered on the end of the arm at an angle
 

 
the dry fit showed that I needed to alter the angle a bit.  but once they were adjusted,  the blade was painted flat black.
 

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.

I been coating my threads with diluted white glue.......and then pulling it taught to dry.   that works reasonably well.   I've also stained white thread {the Billing's stuff I have} with india ink.....than also works well with the fuzz control.   I'm not a real big fan of bees wax....not fond of how it collects on the deck while rigging.

Hello all y'all shipwrights,
 
Drum roll please - - -     and open a bottle of the bubbly  
the bow section is now closed with the base planking!!!!  
I have also started to put some wood filler on the planks to see how she is shaping up. So far it looks pretty good, very minor areas to fill but necessary for the next stage with the Dacron and epoxy resin covering.  I may have to do a final treatment with bondo or a polymer paste before I can put the paper "steel" plates on.  
 
Below are a few pics.
 

Close up of the closed bow section port side. That rounded thingy on the bottom is the location of the "mushroom anchor" (paddestoel anker in Dutch).  The anchor mechanism to lower it and raise it was mounted on top of the forward pressure hull and under the deck structure.  See next picture.
As stated above I added some wood filler to smooth out the planking and cover some of the divots and unevenness. 
 

This is the anchor mechanism (ankerlier in Dutch) shown mounted to the O 19 when it was being build.  That big round tubular thingy is the escape hatch in the forward torpedo room.
 

Another picture of the port bow.
 

looking forward over the top of the hull with the raw planking in place.  You can see the rounded portion of the pressure hull in the center with the extended sides for the mine tubes.  Just the stern to be done now!
 

Looking aft from the bow.  Yes, still some dressing up to do.  The bow will get the cable and net cutter as the original boat had it.  I hope you can see the torpedo bow doors, them the things that angle in forward.
 
Cheers, 

Alright.. some more fodder for the photo hounds....
 
And to keep a certain You-Know-Who.. and a certain slave-driver of a moderator happy  , or if not happy.. satisfied enough to lay off the whip for an hour or so...
 
First bit of standing rigging... the gammoning. And this morning's progress on the bands on the top of the main mast.
 
Andy

Ahoy MSW
 
Thank you all for the comments: They are very kind and much appreciated :)
 
In reality, it is you guys that deserve praise more then I. 
 
If my planking proves anything, it would be the benefit of sites like MSW. I merely applied elbow grease and persistence (my only real talent). It was following the example and advice of others that took the time to post in their logs or respond in mine that allowed me to reach this point in my build. Thank you all.
 
Back to the Build:
 
Other then contemplating some changes to the paint scheme as a result of an image I received in a PM, I have been on a small break from building. I decided to clean the shipyard and reset it. Over the last four months, working on this project produced a lot of little mementos which are now very neatly organized in the trash bin and vacuum cleaner. 
I will be doing treenails, additional coats of poly, my transom and redoing for the third time my gunports. I understand that with Decks, three times is the charm. I hope that this will be true for Gunports too. This decision will all make sense in that post which might not be for a week or three. Again “thank you all” for your help on my journey. Till then.
 
 
Let this Pic document that my little closet work area was actually clean.

ya gotta laugh.....the best part is.......it was 100% correctable      it started like this.....it began with drilling the holes for the blocks and rigging........after I cut it to length,  of course.
 

 
when the blocks and the peak halyard line was rigged,  I laid it on the sheet.   I would have taken the picture on my desk,  but you wouldn't see it too good.
 

 

 
At the bottom of the outer corner,  I attached blocks that I took from the deck.  this is the corner that is furthest from the mast.  note the way the pleats run.........I lashed it on........
 

 
good thing I used white glue for the end ties.   I quickly undid it and fixed it
 

 

 
when this dried enough,  it was time to rig it up....throat halyard first
 

 
then the peak halyard
 

 
here is a shot of both gaffs
 

 
see......no harm,  no foul.  I have no problem posting my mistakes.......if one person sees it and learns from it........then I did good by doing it.    glad I made your day Daniel 

thanks John........there are a couple more lines that need to go on yet......I've tied the blocks in place for them.   the hoops are finished on the main sheet
 

 

 

 
once the fore sheet is in place,  then I can do the shrouds.   then i can tie all these lines off and make the rope coils for them.   that triple block rigging,  I guess you could call that the halyard rigging...I think.
 
tomorrow is my  'Friday'.........I can get to the fore sheet then.   thanks for the good word John 

Some futtocks had to be convinced to follow the plan…but all went well.
 

 

 

 
After composing all the frames, I placed them on numbered cardboards and let them waiting, since I had to prepare the construction jig.
 

 
Thank you

Popeye,
 
She's looking grand with her finery hanging the breeze.  I'm enjoying watching this build and the fun you're having with it.

ya gotta laugh.....the best part is.......it was 100% correctable      it started like this.....it began with drilling the holes for the blocks and rigging........after I cut it to length,  of course.
 

 
when the blocks and the peak halyard line was rigged,  I laid it on the sheet.   I would have taken the picture on my desk,  but you wouldn't see it too good.
 

 

 
At the bottom of the outer corner,  I attached blocks that I took from the deck.  this is the corner that is furthest from the mast.  note the way the pleats run.........I lashed it on........
 

 
good thing I used white glue for the end ties.   I quickly undid it and fixed it
 

 

 
when this dried enough,  it was time to rig it up....throat halyard first
 

 
then the peak halyard
 

 
here is a shot of both gaffs
 

 
see......no harm,  no foul.  I have no problem posting my mistakes.......if one person sees it and learns from it........then I did good by doing it.    glad I made your day Daniel 

Never built a model plane before, but I did sew a dress with both arms reaching for the sky...you know...'stick 'em up' style. Hope I don't do something similar on my ship!!
 
Congratulations Captain Popeye! Sails and rigging are looking wonderful!
!!! I would be the one with the 'dead eyes'...not the ship!  

OK, ok!... Don't get all bent out of shape...  
 
I've got the battens done on the main top, next step will be to do the bands and cleats, then the main mast will get painted up.
 
Foremast all painted and the wooldings put on, I had to joggle the spacing a little bit, but it's not really noticeable unless you attack the thing with a ruler.
 
Also got the bowsprit all cleated and painted up, and yes according to the plans, those cleats are supposed to look like that.
 
And just for good measure, a couple of overall shots.... nevermind the mess on the workbench... the paint revolution has not yet come...
 
 
Now... is that better?
 
Andy