MrBlueJacket

Very nice, Dave. Your customer file now shows 10% discount on the next kit you buy from us.

Nic

11 hours ago, navarcus said:

If I remember correctly, part of the genius of Art Montgomery's POF America

was that the company got two kits from one loaf of bread. Every other slice

of the carved hull was in one kit and vice versa. Lovely kit to build.

Absolutely. An America kit would have either a frame set labeled A-B-C... or 1-2-3... as we still do today. The keel is labeled A 1 B 2 C 3 etc.

One of the most relevant reasons for the loss of solid hulls is that they are labor intensive and expensive to produce, compared with POB laser cutting. The cost of the basswood boards is also more than the cost of the sheets required to produce bulkheads.

Our POF models of the America and Jefferson Davis start out as solid hulls which we then slice like a loaf of bread. that technique was invented and patented by Art Montgomery. who owned BlueJacket in the 1980's.  It is very expensive, since you have the cost of a solid hull and the cost of slicing it.

46 minutes ago, grsjax said:

A really good start would be if manufactures published a list of out of production kits.

That would be nice, but it would take hours of work that doesn't generate any revenue. With the state of the economy, it's just not practical.

42 minutes ago, ccoyle said:

 

As one of my college professors used to say, "Sounds like there's a thesis in there."

And a long one at that. BlueJacket alone has over 80 current kits, and 100's more from the past.

On 7/4/2023 at 9:29 AM, ahb26 said:

The lobster smack is on top of my tall dresser - the cat never goes up there...

 

I think you've said that before.......

Nic

Painted the inside of the cabins flat red, per the instructions. Next step is to paint the outside dark brown.

Topgallant yard prepped, will do its sail this w/e.

Upper topsail furled, mounted, and all rigging belayed.

14 hours ago, ERS Rich said:

Hi Nic, could you share a few thoughts on how to get the foot ropes to lay so easy?  They look just right….

 

Thanks

Yes, I make them out of .010 annealed wire.

Nic

And the sail glued on. picture a bit blurry.

Upper topsail yard prepped and ready for its sail.

17 hours ago, schooner said:

I can never keep straight which are the gudgeons and which are the pintles

The pintle has a pin, the gudgeon has a hole.

Over the weekend, painted and installed the grating. I like the way it looks, I painted under it with black.

Sail is furled and hung on the mast. Next step is to belay the 6 sheet, clew and bunt lines.

And hung on the lower topmast. Next will be to furl the sail, then hang it on the mast.

Sail drawn. Added the sheet, bunt and clew lines. Ready to hang on the yard.

Second attempt, using a Unimation disc sander. Much better.

Here's my first attempt. Our gratings are rectangular, so I cut off the edging, squared it, and added new edges. Not happy with my joinery work, so I will re-do tonight. Like the noted modeler Steve Wheeler said, "The wastebasket is your best tool."

4 minutes ago, GrandpaPhil said:

The laser cut gratings would look better and if you have them at hand, I would use them.

Yes, I think so. I'll play with it tonight.

Shaped the wooden deck and traced the attachment points. Not sure if I will cut the grating off the plastic deck or use the laser cut gratings we sell. Opinions?

Painted the inside bulwarks dark tan

Next step is to insert wooden blocks because I will be using pedestals, not the plastic cradle tht came with the kit.

First step is to rough up where the blocks will be with some 60 grit sandpaper.

Then some 5-minute epoxy to hold the blocks, which were tapered to fit the curve of the bottom.

Over the weekend, prepped the lower topmast yard. Will draw the sails during the week.

Nice job! Your customer file now shows you will get a 10% discount on the next kit you buy from us.

I can suggest the Smuggler, Charles P. Notman, Atlantic, Fannie Gorham, Bowdoin, or Alfred to name a few.....