Bob Cleek

I hate buying new paints! Of course, that's probably because I remember Floquil paints and finishes.  
 
I learned how to paint growing up with cousins who ran a large painting and decorating company. That was a long while ago and I've been painting and varnishing full size boats and furniture for much of my life, together with ship models. I have to say I'm an unabashed Luddite. I believe much of the traditional techniques and materials remain the best option. While I strongly support environmental values, I'm dismayed that regulatory agencies so often "pick the low-hanging fruit" and restrict things like VOC's in paints and solvents, which contribute relatively little to envioronmental air pollution, while ignoring other widespread corporate industrial carbon omissions, often for no reason other than that they have a more powerful lobby. Thus we end up with paints and varnishes, or "coatings" as the industry now calls them, which last a third as long and probably have three times the carbon footprint to manufacture than do the old oil-based materials.
 
Living in California, I can't go to the paint store and buy real turpentine or paint thinner because their sale has been banned (except in very small bottles sold in art supply stores.) Luckly, I can still buy acetone, they tell me because it's sold as a "cleaner" and not a "coating," and I can buy Rustoleum oil paint because it's a "rust inhibitor, and not a "paint." (Surprisingly, the hardware stores sell five gallon drums of acetone! Who needs five gallons of acetone from a hardware store? Ask your local meth cook!) Oil paint can also be purchased in marine chandleries because "marine paint" is exempt from the prohibitions. Rattle cans can still be purchased, but like booze, you have to be over 18 to buy them. It's getting pretty crazy and I've had to devise work-arounds, but it's doable. (It's not against the law to possess paint thinner. It's just a crime to sell it.)
 
I use Zinsser white shellac for sealing bare wood (and also for sealing rigging knots.) It's thinned with denatured alcohol.
I use Interlux marine sanding base coat or an equivalent for fairing surfaces, such as topsides.
I use Interlux surfacing putty or an equivalent for heavier fairing of surfaces and such.
I use quality artists' oils in basic colors to paint models, together with the appropriate additives to condtion them to taste for brushing or spraying at the  degree of drying time and the level of gloss or matt I desire.
 
In my opinion, most of today's modeling-specific paints and other finishes are extremely expensive and not particularly easy to use. Their chemistry is complex and there are often incompatibilities between the different brands. The manufacturers take advantage of the fact that their customers don't know how to condition paint or mix colors, hence, we see varieties sold "for brushing" and others "for spraying!" I will concede that where exact color matching is essential, as with modern naval and armor models, pre-mixed paints may offer an advantage in mixing colors (if you trust the paint company's version of "olive drab" and "field gray" as of a certain date during WWII !) That notwithstanding, while I've obtained good results with acrylics, they aren't near the quality of traditional oil-based paints, which also will not raise the grain on bare wood. I've found the pigment size on quality artist's oils is entirely suitable for modeling detail. They are easy to condition for whatever application method one desires. They thin with common solvents and flow control is a function of how much linseed oil one wishes to add. Drying time can be accelerated using Japan drier and the finish controlled to the user's taste with flattening additives or clear matt overcoating. Many pigments can be quite expensive and the quality one is looking for will be reflected in tubed artists' oils, but with oils you aren't paying for packaging in minute amounts, nor is there any need to buy dozens of seven or eight dollar one ounce bottles of different colors. Six or eight tubes of basic primary and secondary colors should enable the ship modeler to pretty much mix any color they'd wish and tubed artists' oils have far less tendency to "dry up" in the tube. How many times have barely used bottled model paints been thrown out because they went bad or dried up in the bottle, no matter how much care was exercised in replacing the screw caps?
 
Interestingly, the "gaming figure" modelers who employ a wide range of colors seem to be the first of the modeling fraternity who have discovered this fact and are going over to artists' oils in increasing numbers if their YouTube posts are any indication. I encourage anybody to try artist's oils (using them correctly) and see if they don't find them a better alternative. It's a matter of taste and opinion, but, as the saying goes, "Try it. You may like it."
 
 

Duh-oh! Now I get it.  An obvious solution I completely overlooked. Thanks!

I hate buying new paints! Of course, that's probably because I remember Floquil paints and finishes.  
 
I learned how to paint growing up with cousins who ran a large painting and decorating company. That was a long while ago and I've been painting and varnishing full size boats and furniture for much of my life, together with ship models. I have to say I'm an unabashed Luddite. I believe much of the traditional techniques and materials remain the best option. While I strongly support environmental values, I'm dismayed that regulatory agencies so often "pick the low-hanging fruit" and restrict things like VOC's in paints and solvents, which contribute relatively little to envioronmental air pollution, while ignoring other widespread corporate industrial carbon omissions, often for no reason other than that they have a more powerful lobby. Thus we end up with paints and varnishes, or "coatings" as the industry now calls them, which last a third as long and probably have three times the carbon footprint to manufacture than do the old oil-based materials.
 
Living in California, I can't go to the paint store and buy real turpentine or paint thinner because their sale has been banned (except in very small bottles sold in art supply stores.) Luckly, I can still buy acetone, they tell me because it's sold as a "cleaner" and not a "coating," and I can buy Rustoleum oil paint because it's a "rust inhibitor, and not a "paint." (Surprisingly, the hardware stores sell five gallon drums of acetone! Who needs five gallons of acetone from a hardware store? Ask your local meth cook!) Oil paint can also be purchased in marine chandleries because "marine paint" is exempt from the prohibitions. Rattle cans can still be purchased, but like booze, you have to be over 18 to buy them. It's getting pretty crazy and I've had to devise work-arounds, but it's doable. (It's not against the law to possess paint thinner. It's just a crime to sell it.)
 
I use Zinsser white shellac for sealing bare wood (and also for sealing rigging knots.) It's thinned with denatured alcohol.
I use Interlux marine sanding base coat or an equivalent for fairing surfaces, such as topsides.
I use Interlux surfacing putty or an equivalent for heavier fairing of surfaces and such.
I use quality artists' oils in basic colors to paint models, together with the appropriate additives to condtion them to taste for brushing or spraying at the  degree of drying time and the level of gloss or matt I desire.
 
In my opinion, most of today's modeling-specific paints and other finishes are extremely expensive and not particularly easy to use. Their chemistry is complex and there are often incompatibilities between the different brands. The manufacturers take advantage of the fact that their customers don't know how to condition paint or mix colors, hence, we see varieties sold "for brushing" and others "for spraying!" I will concede that where exact color matching is essential, as with modern naval and armor models, pre-mixed paints may offer an advantage in mixing colors (if you trust the paint company's version of "olive drab" and "field gray" as of a certain date during WWII !) That notwithstanding, while I've obtained good results with acrylics, they aren't near the quality of traditional oil-based paints, which also will not raise the grain on bare wood. I've found the pigment size on quality artist's oils is entirely suitable for modeling detail. They are easy to condition for whatever application method one desires. They thin with common solvents and flow control is a function of how much linseed oil one wishes to add. Drying time can be accelerated using Japan drier and the finish controlled to the user's taste with flattening additives or clear matt overcoating. Many pigments can be quite expensive and the quality one is looking for will be reflected in tubed artists' oils, but with oils you aren't paying for packaging in minute amounts, nor is there any need to buy dozens of seven or eight dollar one ounce bottles of different colors. Six or eight tubes of basic primary and secondary colors should enable the ship modeler to pretty much mix any color they'd wish and tubed artists' oils have far less tendency to "dry up" in the tube. How many times have barely used bottled model paints been thrown out because they went bad or dried up in the bottle, no matter how much care was exercised in replacing the screw caps?
 
Interestingly, the "gaming figure" modelers who employ a wide range of colors seem to be the first of the modeling fraternity who have discovered this fact and are going over to artists' oils in increasing numbers if their YouTube posts are any indication. I encourage anybody to try artist's oils (using them correctly) and see if they don't find them a better alternative. It's a matter of taste and opinion, but, as the saying goes, "Try it. You may like it."
 
 

Apparently, some kit manufacturers have come to realize that P.T. Barnum was right: "There's a sucker born every minute."  
 
I think that Chuck's "installment sales" model is a good one, from the modeler's point of view. It reflects the fact that he wants his customers to have a good modeling experience and perhaps come back for more. Other manufacturers don't care whether the models they sell ever get finished or not. They realize many kits are purchased by inexperienced folks who judge a kit by the picture on the box and the number of "parts" the box claims to maintain. Packaging is part of their marketing plan. When somebody gives up on one of Chuck's models, they don't buy the remaining phases and Chuck loses out. When some of the European kit manufacturers sell those high-priced "mega-kits" with a million parts and acres of gingerbread, they get their profit up front and the customer eats it when they give up on their build.
 
I'd be interested to see what the established kit manufacturers' profit margins look like. Once they "tool up" for cast parts and amortize their "research and development" (which for some isn't much,) their materials costs are negligible compared to what they sell their models for, many of which have been on the market for years with little or no upgrading. 

You win the internet today for those planking clamps, Rob!  An amazingly elegant solution.  

Duh-oh! Now I get it.  An obvious solution I completely overlooked. Thanks!

Duh-oh! Now I get it.  An obvious solution I completely overlooked. Thanks!

Apparently, some kit manufacturers have come to realize that P.T. Barnum was right: "There's a sucker born every minute."  
 
I think that Chuck's "installment sales" model is a good one, from the modeler's point of view. It reflects the fact that he wants his customers to have a good modeling experience and perhaps come back for more. Other manufacturers don't care whether the models they sell ever get finished or not. They realize many kits are purchased by inexperienced folks who judge a kit by the picture on the box and the number of "parts" the box claims to maintain. Packaging is part of their marketing plan. When somebody gives up on one of Chuck's models, they don't buy the remaining phases and Chuck loses out. When some of the European kit manufacturers sell those high-priced "mega-kits" with a million parts and acres of gingerbread, they get their profit up front and the customer eats it when they give up on their build.
 
I'd be interested to see what the established kit manufacturers' profit margins look like. Once they "tool up" for cast parts and amortize their "research and development" (which for some isn't much,) their materials costs are negligible compared to what they sell their models for, many of which have been on the market for years with little or no upgrading. 

This is perfect. I love buying new paints and an always wondering, “what’s that paint color/brand” when stalking build logs. 

Apart from the reasons mentioned by others, applying any kind of lacquer to the whole sheet might also make more difficult to remove the laser-cut parts, as the lacquer will run into the cut slots and act as glue.

Bob: I don't have an answer to that other than I've never wished to test many hours of work to destruction! I agree that a three-piece plug would solve the issue, but at this size the extra work involved is simply not worth it. The last strake will be added after removal from the plug. This, however, is some time off yet!

You win the internet today for those planking clamps, Rob!  An amazingly elegant solution.  

You win the internet today for those planking clamps, Rob!  An amazingly elegant solution.  

Made the file holder from left over wood and the black one from foamcor. Purchased the first one online ...Moab

Rob, very clever. I'm rapidly becoming a fan of your creativity. My guess is you need tin snips in order to cut these. 

It's hard to say what's "not enough space" in a workshop. The bench top, of course, is another matter entirely. I try to have a place for every tool and every tool in its place. If I'm going to use a number of tools repetitively, and they threaten to clutter my bench top, I use a wheeled tool cart so tools in use are readily at hand, and unused tools aren't piling up on my bench.  There are two models  from Harbor Freight which are relatively cheap and a pain to assemble, but great time-savers and tool storage solutions. They hold a lot and it can be laid out in organized fashion so tools can quickly and easily be located. When I'm not working, the tool cart can be rolled out of the way into a closet or wherever.
 
This is the four drawer model. One will run you $200, but "Horror Fright" has them on sale for 20% off frequently. If you've got one of their stores within driving distance, you can save the shipping cost. They have a five drawer model as well, for forty bucks more. If I had it to do over again, I'd get the five drawer model, but they didn't have them when I got mine. (They come in a bunch of colors, if that matters to you.)
 

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage-organization/tool-storage/tool-carts/30-in-4-drawer-tech-cart-black-64818.html
 
I also have a couple of mechanic's tool chests on roller bases. These cannot be beat for storing small hand tools. Mine are Kennedy brand, one of the better quality brands I bought ages ago at Costco, which occasionally has such things for sale. Here again, Harbor Freight has the cheapest and the US General brand is sufficiently good for hobby use. It's not like you have to buy Snap-On brand chests for five times the price just to keep up with the other mechanics in the shop!  
 
Here's a reasonably priced $300 roller chest. Note that the shallow drawers are  perfect for laying out small tools so that they can be seen instantly when the drawer is opened, instead of digging through a jumble of junk in a deep drawer. They are perfect for things like pliers, files, and knives.

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage-organization/tool-storage/26-in-x-22-in-single-bank-roller-cabinet-yellow-56233.html
 
The top chest is matched to fit on the lip on top of the rolling chest above, or can be used separately.  It expands the amount of shallow drawer space a lot and the combination of rolling base and top chest can store everything you'd probably ever need, at least until you got into table saws, lathes, and milling machines and their tooling. Figure another $200 for the top chest, so you'd be in for $500 for a stacked set that would permit every hand tool you'd ever need to be at hand conveniently and safely stored away when not in use. As with all Harbor Freight merchandise, signing up for their email ads and mail catalogs (which, rumor has it, they are discontinuing) will get you all their coupons and discount sales codes which generally knock off around twenty percent off their retail list prices. (Disclaimer: I don't own stock in Harbor Freight and I don't consider their products "finestkind" by a long shot, but approached conservatively with an eye to quality and value, there are many bargains to be had from them... along with a lot of junk. Stay away from anything that runs on electricity or has to perform precision work!)
 

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage-organization/tool-storage/26-in-single-bank-top-chest-green-56231.html
 

 
If one doesn't think they need as much storage as a rolling base and top chest, an old fashioned machinist's tool check may serve their needs until they realize that their initial needs assessment was erroneous.  Old-time master machinists favored the US made Gerstner International chests, made of oak and lined with felt. They are a bit pricey beginning at around $450, but they are quite beautiful, so you could probably get away with keeping it in the dining room if your a "dining room table"  modeler. 


https://www.amazon.com/Gerstner-International-GI-T24-11-Drawer-Chest/dp/B076H7WGWG/ref=asc_df_B076H7WGWG/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309807921328&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2792838456457911656&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9032113&hvtargid=pla-569775039015&psc=1
 
Harbor Freight again comes to the rescue with an $80 knockoff that's no where near the "fine furniture" quality of a Gerstner chest, but passable in a utilitarian way. If you wear a Rolex, you'll want the Gerstner.  If you're like most folks, the Harbor Freight knock-off is just fine. (Asian made, but not a copyrighted design. Politics aside, I figure it's somebody's "rice bowl," and since there's nothing electronic about it, it ought to last. Like anything bought at Harbor Freight, save your sales receipts! They'll take anything defective back and replace it, but you've got to have the receipt.)
 

 

https://www.harborfreight.com/eight-drawer-wood-tool-chest-94538.html
 
I have also found magnetic tool holders to be very handy all around my shop. Some I have fastened to walls and other's I've placed on metal rolling tool cabinets (the magnets will hold them in place on metal surfaces.) These are another item that's "safe" to buy at Harbor Freight, although they are widely available elsewhere, probably from the same Asian factory with somebody else's label on them, for a higher price. Harbor Freight sells them for $4.79, but they are often discounted. I bought a half dozen at one "parking lot sale" for something like $2.75 apiece. They're great on the side of a tool cart for holding pliers, scissors, and files within reach when working at the bench.
 

 
https://www.harborfreight.com/18-in-magnetic-tool-holder-60433.html
 
I realize this post may seem to some like overkill when it comes to tool storage. I've come to learn from professional tradesmen that organized tool storage is essential to working efficiency. While not at all a professional, I've learned that while my time may not be worth as much as the professional, having tools conveniently at hand makes enjoyable tasks far more enjoyable and onerous tasks far less protracted. I've also found that having the right tool readily accessible greatly reduces my bad tendency to use the wrong tool for a job and mess it up because I was too lazy to fetch the right one.
 

And just to make life a bit more miserable for the anally constrained obsessives, let's not forget that the measurement of a "foot" was not internationally standardized in the times discussed here. Individual nations and even individual cities had their own "foot" measurement standards and even some trades had their own "foot" measurements.  Where some may have updated their measurement standards or political boundaries may have shifted, there were simultaneously "old feet" and "new feet" in some locations. This is often a cause of confusion today when a contemporary draughts and records list the length of a particular vessel in "feet" and the contemporary model doesn't measure out to scale in the present "Imperial foot" which was only internationally standardized in 1959. I once had a terrible time trying to resolve the published discrepancy in the length of a yacht built as recently as 1939 until I realized the naval architect's drawings were done in the UK to British feet and inches, while the vessel was built to the offsets in British measurement units by a yard in Sweden using Swedish feet and inches!  See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_(unit)

WOW! I just checked out their website. Micro-Tools has a lot of really useful tools and at really reasonable prices. I had never heard of them before. They've got in a single place all sorts of tools you'd have to search all over hell and back to try to find elsewhere and, it would appear, when you did find it elsewhere, you'd be paying more.
 
Thanks for the link!

"And I am comfortable  keeping my fingers closer to the blade than I would with the Byrne saw without fearing an injury."
 
Getting comfortable keeping one's fingers closer to the blade... without fearing an injury" is often the cause of "missing some pieces."  
 

Go ahead and work to your own standards. If you enjoy the process and the result pleases you, it will have all served its purpose. There's no "perfect" model. I have models I built decades ago that gave me great pride of accomplishment at the time and which people still admire and complement. However, when I look at them now, I see all my mistakes (including one schooner with all the deadeyes careless upside down!) and I have to resist the urge to pull them apart and correct my less-sophisticated work. Every model tends to be a bit better than its predecessor. That's how skill grows over a long period of time and much work.
 
That said, your desire to have a Vasa "that looks ok for someone who is not a specialist in ship models" is a bit like someone whose piano playing level is somewhere around playing Chopsticks saying that they want to play Chopin "that sounds okay for someone who isn't a concert pianist." That player would certainly be able to learn to play Chopin that sounds okay for somebody who isn't a concert pianist, but the real question is whether, with such a "just good enough" attitude, they'd ever be able to make the commitment to get to the point where whatever they're playing is even recognizable as Chopin. There's a lot of wise advice in this thread. It's difficult to encourage someone to pursue a course when the goal they desire will take far more time and effort than they've made clear they wish to commit to it. This isn't to say "Don't attempt it."  You may well find it very enjoyable and surprise yourself with abilities you never knew you had. Building any ship model is just an exercise in completing a lot of tiny steps in sequence. As the saying goes, "Experience begins when you start."

WOW! I just checked out their website. Micro-Tools has a lot of really useful tools and at really reasonable prices. I had never heard of them before. They've got in a single place all sorts of tools you'd have to search all over hell and back to try to find elsewhere and, it would appear, when you did find it elsewhere, you'd be paying more.
 
Thanks for the link!

My answer to your question, scratch building.  With a kit, you’re locked into the manufacturer’s building method, materials, etc.  When you build from scratch, you can use methods that you find to be easier.  You can also make use of higher quality materials.
 
Roger

Rob, that explains why Glory's name boards appeared to be so well preserved. I remember reading that the "David Crockett" had her figurehead's rifle removed when out to sea and "Thermopylae" had King Leonidas's sword taken out as well. I don't recall entire Figureheads being taken down but I suppose it's possible. There's a tale of the British Clipper "Torrens" losing her lovely lady Figurehead being lost in a dramatic collision with a Steam Ship. Three years later she reappeared thousands of miles away in a rugged island near the Antarctic!

Bob Cleek, Rob & Vladimir
It took the better part of the afternoon, running and pausing the video more times than I can remember. Anyhow, here's my sketch of the name board for McKay's last Clipper "Glory of the Seas."

Bob Cleek, Thank you so much! It's always so thrilling to see actual items from McKay's long lost last Clipper! Seeing the genuine signboard from her, I am struck by the rough hewn simplicity and "woodeness" of her capital letters, although the "R" and "S" seem to be smoother than the "G" which looks the crudest of all. In fact, the "of the" lower case words are far more refined in appearance. Even still, it must have been quite an impression to see this in it's original gold leaf glory. 
Reviewing her 1869 photo, I noticed her "oak leaf" end clusters appear to have been completely gold leafed too. At launch, her Bow signboards were positioned further back, aligning with the graceful termination of the quarterdeck caprail just above.