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Really nice. I remember struggling with these on my AVS. And photos are in focus, lighting was good.

Resolved the quarter stanchions issue with a slight amount of re-positioning and some coarse sandpaper. All fits now. I had not realized that the stern rail was not the full width, but actually sits inside the side rails which extend to the stern. Still wondering if anyone is dealing with the wood strips that are thinner than the plans call for. Are you just ignoring? Anyway, back to the waterways and plank sheers. This part is going quickly. Should be able to air brush in a couple of days.

Here is some help on focusing your IPhone: first turn on the grid option for the camera (found in Camera under Settings), then when you line up your photo, wait for the yellow box to appear. The area inside the yellow box will show what the camera has focused on...hope this helps. I enjoy reading your build log. I have just started my Niagra (and build log). You have done some nice work. Remember: only you will be aware of the blemishes. The rest of the world will just be amazed at what you did.

Good, you will need to enlarge in one axis.. Because of the rake of the bowsprite, the hole will be a bit elliptical. I think Bob picked 1/2 inch to allow for that.

Hi Curtis, how is the kit coming along? I built the AVS a couple of years ago, using Bob's practicum. As someone else noted, you should ignore the kit's instructions, and follow Bob's. I kept mine in a binder, and inserted the correction sheets on the proper pages. One error Bob never corrected, which caused me a bit of a problem - the dimension of the hole in the bow for the bowsprit specified by Bob is too large. It needs to be about an 1/8 in. smaller, as I recall, as this piece is a 3/8in. dowel. This will save you having to putty up the hole later. I will monitor your build, so post questions if you have them. Looks very good so far.

Just checking in. I have been working on the waterway and plank sheer. Fit is close, but as instructions mention, a small amount of sanding is required to fit around bulkheads. While fitting the aft waterways I discovered an unrelated problem as the quarter stanchions seemed to interfere with the proper placement of the waterway. - I decided I had better check the width of the stern at the top of the quarter stanchions (where the railing will eventually be placed. Found it was a quarter inch too wide. Width at deck level was correct, so I guess I will need to remove these posts and angle them inward more severely - I will probably just make new ones. It does seem though that the gap between the quarter stanchion and the outer stanchion will be nill if I do this. Any thoughts? Also, as the intro in the instructions mentions, not all the plank widths called for in the plans are shipped with the kit. For example, the arch board plans call for a dimension of 5/64 X 5/32 and I found other spots with unique dimensions. Have you folks who are farther along bothered with shaving down the wood, or did you use the next size up? Lastly (not a proper English word), see enclosed photo: This sheet came with my kit, but does not seem to be part of the Niagra. I could not find them on plan sheet one, nor a place these pieces would be used. And, I was not missing any laser cut sheets based on the parts list. I think ME threw in something from another kit. Am I correct?

OK, joining the 'Niagra' build club. Bought the kit about 7 years ago after building a couple of simple ones (Constitution cross section, etc.), but after reading the instructions, I knew I was in over my head. So, I built a couple of kits based on Bob Hunt's practicums, learned a lot, bought some needed tools, etc. And now, I believe I can do a fairly decent job on my own (thank you, Bob). Started with an inventory of the ME kit components, and I found several items were shorted, including over 50 blocks. But, even though I bought the kit in the last decade, ME was very responsive, and I had my missing parts within two weeks. I have progressed to attaching bulkheads to keel (level and square, this time - see, I'm learning from my earlier mistakes), drilled holes in keel for base attachment, shaped bow and stern filler blocks, and generally completed the stern. I did have one problem with the kit - the horn stanchions did not exactly match the inner and outer stanchions, so I will need to do a bit of surgery after the fact, to make for a smooth transom after planking. I am hoping the planks themselves will correct the problem, and time will tell. By the way, I do plan to replace some of the bass wood with Holly deck planks and the bulwarks/ceiling probably with either pear or boxwood - for a smoother finish. Haven't decided yet about the rigging lines or blocks. Comments, suggestions - please send me all you have. I will likely only post once a month, and my build rate is pretty slow as I probably don't spend more than 10 hours a week on the ship.

My golden usually sticks a play toy at my feet or in my lap while I am doing something difficult on my kit. By the way, guess I should start my own Niagra build log as well. So far no big problems - have completed adding bulkheads to keel and carved bow/stern blocks, completed most of stern detail. Quarter stanchions were a bit annoying to position correctly... Yous looks really nice. Hope I can equal...

Everything looks perfect. I only hope I can nearly match your work when I start (probably January at this point - still churning on Fair American). By the way, when your model is completed, will the build log be accessible in an archive somewhere for me to review the excellent photographs - picture is worth a 1000 words, and would be a great addition to the kit instructions?

Awesome job, Dave. Hope I can do nearly as well when I start mine. I just finished deck work on Fair American, so I should be done in 3 months. Then I will re-read your blog in detail. I love the paint job you have put on the ship.

Looks like a great start, and progress. I have the kit, but I am currently about half way through the Lauck Street Fair American. I figure I will be on to the Niagra by July, so I would love to hear about any 'gotcha' errors you found in the kit or instructions. I have never done single plank on hull yet, and that is the part I am the most nervous about. Did you have any problems with wood quality? Sometimes I find the MS quality is a bit lacking, especially in planking wood. I'm debating replacing all the kit's mahogeny for planking with wood from Hobby Mill.