Glenn-UK

I did a quick test this morning and added some balsawood fillers to the bow bulkhead 1 assembly on my test hull. I did not not spend a great deal of time but did enough to get a nice flow of a plank across the bow bulkheads. I have also noted the gun deck support pattern (part 1d) were sanded during the fairing process on the test hull which is not necessary. I have covered later on in this post. I have now decided I have spent enough time messing around with my test hull and now is the time to put my big boy pants on and make a start with the V2 production build. The first task I undertook was to sort through the various wood sheets and group them in the same order as the first 6 plan sheets, inserting each wood group in the fold of their associated plans sheet. I also made a list cross referencing the wooden sheets with the plan sheets, which will help me locate parts more easily. Starting with plan sheet 1 I placed the 2 x 4mm MDF and 2 x 3mm MDF sheets on to my workbench. Starting with 3mm MDF sheet 1 all the parts were removed. The cradle and bow jig were assembled using Super Phatic glue. The other parts on the 3mm MDF sheet 1 were placed in to storage so they will be ready for action later on in the build process. I then removed all the parts from the other 3 MDF sheets and dry fitted the various bulkheads to the keel. All other parts, such as the filler patterns, deck supports and stern counter frames were placed in storage draws. As per my previous post I was not happy with how the planks were laying across the bulkhead 1 assembly. I think the bow curve pattern (part 18) gives a good indication of required fairing angle required for the bow frame patterns. I have also taken onboard comments and advice to keep a small amount of laser char on the back edge of bulkheads and to not overthink the fairing process. When looking at the bow filler patterns 1b and 1c in relation to the bow curve pattern it is clear the back edge is not in line, as can be seen below. When looking the prototype photo in Jim's build log the laser char is left on the back edges of bow filler 1b and 1c which are not level with the bow curve pattern, as shown below. I am pleased I have noticed now and means leaving an edge of laser char is the right way to go. When looking at the prototype after the fairing process it would appear the bow curve pattern has been sanded so the back edge of the bow fillers 1b and 1c are now flush. I have also noted that there is no need to fair the edge of gun deck support patterns (1d) which I did fair on the test hull.

@glbarlow when fairing the bow section I used the curve of the top piece as a guide When I fit plank lower down there is a big gap as can be seen below, so maybe the 2nd bulkhead needs a sharper angle.

@chris watton and @James H. I did not order the inner bulwarks sheets as spares hence the reason why they are not fitted on the test hull. Yes the stern does require more fairing as I indicated in my post. I was not sure if I need to follow the flow of the lower deck so asked the question before progressing with fairing the stern area further. I am much more concerned about the clicking effect with the bow area as it stands. Tomorrow I may fit some balsa fillers to see if I can workout how to avoid the clicking of the bow planks.

I need help and advice please with regards to fairing. I am about 90% through fairing the right-hand side of my test hull and I have a couple of questions and would really appreciate some help and advice. As can be seen in the first photo the laser char has been removed. There is still a bit to remove at the stern end, which is not visible in the photo The first question is regards to fairing the stern area. Should I just remove the laser char and follow the same curve of gun port strips or should I be more aggressive lower down the bulkheads and follow the shape of the lower deck, i.e. in the photo below should I sand the bulkheads flat to follow the deck edge? The second question is regarding the fairing around the bow area. When I try a test plank, as shown below it looks like a reasonable fit across the bow bulkheads However when I move the plank toward the keel the plank does not lay flat across all the bulkheads, it is raised above the third from left bulkhead. This will result in clinker planks The question is therefore do I sand the two leading bulkheads as indicated by the pencil marks in the first photo below, or do I add a thin strip on the pencil mark shown on the second photo below? Sand the pencil marks? Add a filler strip to pencil mark? Please help if at all possible, thanks in advance

Time for a quick update. I am still working on my test hull and I plan to start work on the production build in the next few days. Although not strictly necessary I think buying the spare sheets and building this test hull has been well worth the time and expense so far. After dry fitting many of the hull items I reached a point where I feel I understand the design much better and how all the parts should fit together. It has also made me appreciate even more what a brilliant job @chris watton is doing with all his designs. During this process I have realised where my V1 started to go wrong as I had not taken the time or care to check if some of the parts were correctly seated during this early part of the build process.. Another reason for building a test hull is to overcome the biggest problem I have had with all my previous builds which is is getting the hull properly faired. I lay test planks which appear to make good contact with the faired bulkhead edges but I always end up with "clinker planks" around the bow, even when I have used Chuck's lateral bending methods which proves I have not faired the hull correctly. I plan to fair my test hull and to check some planking runs to see if I can understand why I have this problem and to hopefully produce a hull that is clinker free. The picture below shows my test hull after the gun port patterns have been fitted and glued in place. I opted to add undiluted pva (titebond) glue to the both the longitudinal and vertical gun port patterns slots rather than using a diluted pva solution after the parts were fitted. I used super phatic glue for the bulkheads and deck assembly which was easy to brush in and flowed nicely into all the joint areas. One of the concerns I had with the V1 build was the lack of support under the deck in certain places. I have therefore added a few short strips in these areas, as shown in the next couple of photos. After the 2nd part of the deck was fitted I was pleased with the additional support the strips provided so this is something I will add to the V2 production build. As part of the testing phase I felt it prudent to check the fitting of the mast dowels. I removed the laser char from the mask holes and hatches on the deck parts before they were fitted. On the production hull I will also double check all the openings for the other parts (bitts, main pump parts, etc)

I am just experimenting with painting techniques using a redundant cradle. I will build the açrylic one when nearing the finish line.

This is a spare cradle, I ordered some spare sheets, which gives me the scope to build a practice hull to work on improving my building skills. The finished painted cradle will have a WOP finish which should lock in the paint.

I am just using the cradle to experiment with the WOP / Paint method. I am hoping to see a much better painted end product. I will post some pictures of the painted cradle on Sunday or Monday.

Good planning and preparation is the solid foundation for any successful project and is something I'm are striving for with regards to my V2 build. I have now test fitted the stern counter frames, and as you will note from the photo below I have removed most of the laser char from the edges. This is not really necessary as the counter and fascia patterns will cover this area up, but I felt it was nice to do as a practise exercise if nothing else. Before the gun deck can be fitted the stern counter frame top edges require sanding so they are flush with the curve of the bulkheads 12 and 13, as indicated in the build manual, but this is done after the stern counter frames have been glued in place and access to sand the top edges is a little bit restrictive. This photo give an indication of the sanding required, therefore I will sand the stern counter frames before they are glued in place so they are flush and flow with bulkheads 12 and 13. Before moving on to the glue stage I just need to test fit the quarterdeck beam spacing patterns. I am also in the process of painting the wooden cradle black. I have already applied the Wipe On Poly (WOP) process to the parts in the photo below, as detailed in @DelF build log with credit also to @glbarlow who provide the information for this process I have also applied the first coat of black paint to the cradle parts which will be sanded once dry before a 2nd coat of paint is applied.

With a little bit more of dry fit experimentation the penny finally dropped why the horizontal gun port patterns sit flush with the bulkhead at the bottom and are not sit flush at the top of the bulkhead. The bulkhead area where these patterns are located is curved which explains why this is the case. I may experiment with filing some angles on the horizontal gun port patterns slots, using one of the spare parts I have, to get the part to sit flush which should then simplify the sanding process to remove laser char prior to fitting the outer bulwark patterns. I also need to check how this assembly looks with regards to the fitting of the inner bulwarks as the inner surfaces also need to be flush again with the removal of laser char. The smaller vertical gun port patterns are curved to match the bulkheads and tend to be flush fitting with the horizontal gun part pattern, with the exception of the bottom edges in some places. This photo, taken at gun port 7 / bulkhead 8 provides a nice illustration of how the parts look when fitted I certainly did not take enough care with the V1 build to check how these parts will look when properly fitted which resulted in me not fitting them properly. This error on my V1 build was then probably the starting point of the subsequent alignment issues I had. I am really pleased I have already taken on aboard some lessons learnt from the V1 build such as: a) Trying to understanding the design processes better and how the parts should look when correctly fitted, such as detailed in this post b) To take much more time and care with each build stage, I am in no rush this time around to glue parts together c) To look ahead at the different build build stages, drying fitting as much as I can I also plan to check the fitting of the following items before I actual start the assembly process in earnest, noting I will have to remove the bulkhead 13 infill piece to do so: a) Quarterdeck beam spacing patterns b) Stern counter frames (inner, middle and outer) as I seem to recall these were a very tight fit with my V1 build c) Stern frame spacer beam This photo is an example of dry fitting multiple parts to get an idea of how things should look. Since taking this photo I did dry fitted many more vertical gun port patterns.

When I bought the V2 kit I also order some spare sheets so I could try some experimentation and not to worry too much if I damaged the parts. I am also also trying to take much more time and care this time around. I started with the assembly of the stern bulkheads (13 and 13-1). I am still unsure how much I need to fair this assembly, with respect to the edge between bulkheads 13 and 13-1, so any advice greatly appreciated, I have the spares available so I can redo this assembly if required. I will leave as is for the time being and will fair further prior to the planking phase if necessary once I have tried laying some planks to check how they flow across the bulkheads. I have also built and faired the bulkhead 1 assembly. Again it may require additional fairing before the planking phase, and I do have spares available if I need to revisit this. One of the concerns I had with the V1 kit was how proud the vertical and horizontal patterns were from the outer edge of the bulkheads which then required a great deal of sanding. With that in mind I have been test fitting the various parts and in general my initial tests would indicate the bottom edge of the horizontal gun port patterns is flush with the outer edge of the bulkhead but sits 1 to 2mm proud at the top edge, see photos below. I still need to do a few checks, one being with the bulkheads dry fitted to the keel and to then dry fit the pattern. I have already realised I did not fit these patterns correctly on my V1 build. The excess material can be seen at the top Moving on to the vertical gun port patterns, when fitted correctly there seem to be a really good fit. The first thing to note is there is a right and wrong way to fit each gun port. When fitted correctly they are flush with the vertical gun port patterns. A messy work station, as I currently releasing the various parts from the MDF sheets and shows the vertical and horizontal gun port patterns test fit.

That is true, I'm hoping to have learnt from some of my mistakes and not to repeat them on the V2 build

Many thanks

Many thanks Bob

I have reached the stage with the V1 HMS Sphinx build where I am happy to stop work, a picture of the V1 build is shown below The shipyard has now been tidied to make sure everything is ready for the V2 build With @Chuck words regarding laser char still ringing in my ears I feel duty bound to ensure I removed the laser char from all the parts with this build. Starting with the cradle, which will be become redundant later on in the build process I used a technique suggested by @James H to remove the laser char from the angles. The method is to wrap sandpaper around a small steel ruler and to use the thin edge to remove the char. It worked very well. I used a combination of sandpaper and standing sticks to remove the laser char from all the other edges. This photo shows all the cradle parts with the laser char removed and ready for assembly The cradle has now been assembled but I have not added any glue as I am planning to try some painting techniques. The completed cradle will be painted black. Therefore I need to disassemble the cradle so each part can be painted individually when the material I have ordered arrives in the next day or two. I am aware there is some remnants of laser char on the top edge of the right hand end piece which will be removed before I start the painting phase.

That is the plan, slow and steady.

I have finally reached the stage where I will stop work on the V1 build and move on to starting work on the V2 build. I have really enjoyed the V1 build. I am currently undecided if I will progress the build further at a later date. My current thinking is probably not and keep it as a hull only build. The first picture is the current state of play with the V1 HMS Sphinx. The right-hand gangway hammock cranes are a bit wonky as the gunwale has a slight inboard lean . The plan sheets show hammock cranes for the stern area, but I noted there where not fitted in the prototype build so I opted to omit them from this build. I also decided not to fit the gun port lids. Given the mistakes I have made during this build process the end result (so far) does not look anywhere near as bad as I first feared it would. This proves, without doubt, what a great design this kit is when a ham-fisted error prone builder like me can produce a reasonably nice looking model. A big thanks to @chris watton and to @James H for the all the work they have done. vanguard Models continue to design and release amazing kits and to my mind are the best kits on the market. This is a picture of the figurehead. The resin part was primed and then painted gold before the installation. The bow main rail assembly has also been fitted. I did like the description of the heads in the build manual as "seats of comfort", the tops of which are just visible. This shows the forecastle with everything fitted. I think I overdid the weathering of the stove chimney. The gangway walkways caused me more problems than I was expecting. Initially with the curling issue and then I totally misunderstood where the gangways were to be fitted in relation to the gunwales, but once the penny dropped it all made perfect sense. I have also added the step and rail up to the quarterdeck A close up of the step and rail To finish off this post I have added a couple of pictures of the quarterdeck

I am planning to start work on the v2 kit in the next day or two so exciting times ahead

The parts started to curl as soon as the wood glue was applied. I think they need to be clamped flat before the glue cures. Fingers crossed they will be be flat in the morning

I have come across some very informative videos on YouTube which have been posted by Olha Batchvarov who is a professional model boat builder. The first video covers the first planking - First Planking Video There is a nice section where a drop planks are added. There is also a video which shows the sanding process afterward - Sanding The Hull This video also covers fitted the stem and stern posts There are several more videos on her YouTube channel

When I glued the gangway deck patterns to the waist gangway patterns I have the same problem as with the gallery cabin bulkheads. The photo below shows the problem, in that the glued parts have curled. The parts were well clamped after the glue was applied so I need to think about the best method to do this on the V2 build to avoid the curling issue. The parts have been soaked in water and clamped flat. I will leave the parts clamped like this overnight and hopefully this will resolved the curling issue as the parts cannot be fitted with a curl as they do not sit on the supporting knees. In the meantime I have done a bit more work on the forecastle. The gunwales and catheads have now been fitted. I have also fitted the Forecastle Rail assemblies and ships bell. Looking at the photo below there is a gap between the deck and righthand side inner bulwark by the bowsprit. I did not notice this when the part was fitted, must do better on the V2 build. The fitting of the catheads took quite a bit of work and I need to think how I will do this better on the V2 kit. I just need to fit the deck hammock cranes, eyebolts, belaying pins and timber heads.

Work is progressing nicely on the V1 HMS Sphinx build, as can be seen in the photo below I believe I have now completed all the work on the quarterdeck. This is a close up of the quarter gallery and rail. This shows the hammock cranes. I have also added the rope round the ladder hatch This shows the capstan, binnacle and ships wheel I have added the gangway knees, the gangway deck is only dry fitted at the moment. I have done quite a bit of work on the forecastle. I just need to fit the catheads, gunwales, timberheads and hammock cranes.

Caldercraft Fittings Ship Boat hulls (cornwallmodelboats.co.uk)

Many thanks, it is only the stern fascia and quarter galleries I am unhappy with which was all down to an alignment mistake on my part

Yours look great and I think will be much better than my first attempt.