Some Idea

I really like epoxy resin it's a great all round glue. I use it for gluing metal parts of all sizes to wood as it gives such a good bond. As Dr PR has mentioned it cleans up nicely with IPA. So what I do is mix a little at a time and then immediately clean any excess with a small brush and IPA. It works a treat!

Your method makes the job so much easier! I've book marked the Model cars website as their brass rivets look like exactly what I need. They are currently out of stock but I'll keep checking in. The good news is they also ship worldwide. Hi Toni - thanks for your suggestion and this is something I did try in the past. I never seemed to be able to get a consistent bolt head size and shape using this method. It was quite a while ago though so I think I'll revisit this to see if my technique could be improved. Mark

Hi Marc and thanks so much mate! I didn't plan how the planking would look I just got lucky with the particular piece of Castello I was using. What I do try and do though when planking is cut them all from the same plank. That way the colour and texture is similar but this also wastes a lot of wood particularly when spilling. I hadn't tried spilling before this build but due to the plank thickness which is 3.2mm thick in places I had no option but to learn how to do it. I simply watched and followed the tutorials on MSW and now I wouldn't use any other technique as the plank always sits flat on the frames and the clinkering effect just isn't there. It takes a little more effort but it's well worth it. I also have to admit I had to google "chatoyant" but that really does sum it up in terms of looks. Cheers Mark

Hi Gerard thanks for your very nice comment on the build so far. I completely agree with you regarding the nail heads they are out of scale. I think I need to order quite a selection of differing nail sizes online so that I have a better choice when building. I find buying them a bit hit and miss online as its difficult to gauge their size without physically seeing them. If anyone could recommend a good supplier and a particular brand that would be very helpful to me - maybe drop me a personal message? Mark

I've made a few alterations this weekend as I was unhappy with the triangular ringbolts. I was also unhappy with the way the ship looked with the main hatches in place in the hull. They just looked out of keeping compared to the open format that I've been following.........so I cut the hatches in half. It was one of those no turning back moments. I remade the ringbolts having made mandrel for the shape and I also made separate eyebolts this time too. I'm much happier with the result this time and they do look more realistic. They are now fully fitted into the hull and I now like the way they look as it's more in keeping with the rest of the ship. I was going to make the pumps next but that's on hold until my Xmas present arrives. My fantastic wife has bought me a 17" Sherline lathe which will pretty much finish off my tool collection. I can't wait to set it up and give it a go! So instead I think I'll focus on finishing the bow planking first Mark

I learnt my lesson the hard way - I'll do it this way next time as this makes better sense. Chris don't be put off by my comments it's just the shape of the hull at the stem and stern that seemed to take its toll on my knuckles. The process is enjoyable as you see the interior take its true shape.

Reading your post reminded me of when I had the exact same problem but mine was on the transom. I too had to build up a piece exactly as you have and at the time I felt as though it would stand out a mile. In fact I even thought about rebuilding the transom completely to resolve the issue. Now a couple of years later I was putting shellac on the transom and I had completely forgot about the repair and unless you knew about it - well it's invisible. A very nice repair on your part.

Marc what a great post - for me it's about enjoying the journey in all of its forms. The end of the journey for me just means I cannot work on my favourite subject anymore even though hopefully I have crafted a decent enough ship.

They are some great pictures Chris - I found that when I faired the interior of my build my knuckles and fingers took a right beating 😂

Although I wanted to reply to your original post regarding the beams I didn't due to my lack of expertise. However I did think exactly the same as you for the solution as it makes perfect sense as BradNSW has already mentioned - lovely work!

Thanks druxey that’s genius I’m going to give this a go and see how I get on. I appreciate the help 👍

Thank you Michael I have made a start on the main hatches which are a little more tricky than they look. Firstly I made a mistake cutting the notches on the wrong side of the sides of the hatches. I'm sure we've all done something similar; I know that I have. So they were consigned to the scrap bin and I started again. Below is a hatch base with the notches now on the correct side! I found cutting the rebate on the curved ends challenging but I got there in the end. Next I made and fitted the metal corner braces - It was only after I fitted them I looked at the drawings again and they were supposed to be recessed into the base. I have decided to leave them where they are! I also need to get some lightweight wood filler to fill the holes that I drilled all of the way through. Now the fun started - trying to get the hatch tops to match the same curve as the base and also to get an all round tight fit. Then the strengtheners were made and fitted. I like making parts like this as it makes the effort of cutting notches etc worth it when it all fits so nicely together. Further reinforcement is added towards the side of the cover which I managed to glue in the wrong place as I misread the drawings yet again! It's not the end of the world but removing them would cause too mush damage so I will alter the nailing to suit. The lifting handles were next - This is the first time I've tried triangular handles as I've never successfully made them before. I usually make them round as I find this a lot easier but at least I've had a go. They're not great and I would love to know how other builders make these parts? I used a triangular file to bend the brass around but it was so fiddly and I found it difficult to get tight bends with straight sides. I've looked at other builders efforts and they look like a perfect triangle so any help for the future would be greatly appreciated I still need to get the nailing done which always takes me a while and then get them fitted onto the main deck. Thanks for all of the comments - Mark

builder_nick what a lovely build and it looks so fragile - amazing

What a fantastic build so far Ronald - your planking and attention to details is as good as it gets - congratulations on finishing this chapter Mark

Thanks Chris its coming along now Thats make so much sense I wouldn't have thought of that. I would like to say that I obviously knew this which is why the rudder is a little high - but........well you know the truth of it 😁 - Mark