uss frolick

Apple -
For me - I would have it cut into 1"- 1 1/2 " slabs.  Seal any cut ends - including branch knots -  Parafin works, but so does a couple of thick coats of left over latex paint.  Stack it somewhere protected - unheated attic works.  Sticker the slabs  = separate the slabs with 1/4 x 1/4 to 1/2 x 1/2 inch sticks to allow good air circulation around the whole plank.  Should be dry in 12-18 months.  If I was in a hurry, I would put my home made kiln back together and it would probably be dry in 2-3 months.   All it is-  a box made from foil faced 1 inch house foam insulating sheathing - heat source  200-300 W of incandescent light bulbs -  their output is mostly IR- heat -  and a surplus computer cooling fan to suck the water vapor out - Amazon has low cost fans - the tricky part for me - matching up the proper DC power supply.   Nothing industrial - I just wanted the environment to be hotter than Blue Mold would like - since I was drying green Holly.  Apple can be subject to fungus attack.   The difference is that Blue Mold just discolors the wood - it is still just as strong - might even work as a Sun bleached decking material - for a deck that had not been holystoned,   while the fungus that goes after Apple rots the wood.
 
Congrats on finding the wood.  Make sure you get enough.
 
I do not have a jointer or a planer.  Way back when, I tried to make do with a table saw - it worked to a point - would not buy one now -  I discovered that a big band saw is better, more efficient and safer.  I have a thickness sander that I made myself - at the time - the only way to have one.  Now I would get a Byrnes thickness sander.  An edger would be nice, but I made my own drum sanding table and added a fence to use it as an edger - the main problem is that I use a 1/6 HP motor - it is not powerful enough to take off much wood at a pass - it is fine for sanding frames - but 1-1.5 inch thick billet 16 inches long is a lot of work.

It shouldn't be a concern with small pieces. For larger pieces, like small logs a few inches thick, make sure you remove the bark, and then dip the ends in parafin wax, so that the wood dries evenly, and doesn't check or crack.

Apple-wood has a small grain and makes a clean cut. Apple is great for carving too. The heart-wood is darker and good for framing, while the lighter sapwood bends easily and is perfect for planking. It is plentiful and cheap in Rhode Island, and it makes a sweet smell when cut. Google August Crabtree's classic ship models made fifty years ago: They were made solely of apple-wood.

I like the old, solid hull MS kits from the pre-POB laser days (the early 1980's). I have a 3/16" Fair American (exact same size as the new POB 1/4" version!), and the 1/8" Essex. I've always wanted to pick up the Solid Hull 3/16th Rattlesnake, not for investments, just for fun. I've always wanted to try planking over a solid hull.
 
*** Horrible gramatical errors corrected ***

It shouldn't be a concern with small pieces. For larger pieces, like small logs a few inches thick, make sure you remove the bark, and then dip the ends in parafin wax, so that the wood dries evenly, and doesn't check or crack.

Apple-wood has a small grain and makes a clean cut. Apple is great for carving too. The heart-wood is darker and good for framing, while the lighter sapwood bends easily and is perfect for planking. It is plentiful and cheap in Rhode Island, and it makes a sweet smell when cut. Google August Crabtree's classic ship models made fifty years ago: They were made solely of apple-wood.

It shouldn't be a concern with small pieces. For larger pieces, like small logs a few inches thick, make sure you remove the bark, and then dip the ends in parafin wax, so that the wood dries evenly, and doesn't check or crack.

It shouldn't be a concern with small pieces. For larger pieces, like small logs a few inches thick, make sure you remove the bark, and then dip the ends in parafin wax, so that the wood dries evenly, and doesn't check or crack.

Apple-wood has a small grain and makes a clean cut. Apple is great for carving too. The heart-wood is darker and good for framing, while the lighter sapwood bends easily and is perfect for planking. It is plentiful and cheap in Rhode Island, and it makes a sweet smell when cut. Google August Crabtree's classic ship models made fifty years ago: They were made solely of apple-wood.

Ahoy Mate
 
This is what I have been working on a Mary Rose 1545 showing all the structure down to the main gun deck admiralty style. All scratch built using basswood for the deck planking-what is there that is,and boxwood and swiss pear for the planking and deck beams.
 
I use the basswood because I can then add the wood grain to it by engraving the grain with the point of a xacto blade easily. The boxwood is best for the long beams because it's stronger than the swiss pear. I used the swiss pear for the cross beams for  a color difference so that you can see that there are different parts in the structure and where they join.
 
On the hull it's boxwood except for the band that the main gun ports are in,that's swiss pear.
 
The boxwood and swiss pear are hard so that they hold their edges and do not get dented. And you can file slots without having to deal with burrs like on softer basswood.
 
Keith

That might be called a frigate-built brig, or perhaps a brigate?

The configuration of the Sophie was more like that of the Fair American. The real-life inspiration for her was Lord Cochrane's HMS Speedy, whose plan survives. But Speedy had no poop deck. The cruises and battles of Aubrey's Sophie was a shot for shot retelling of the real career of Cochrane's  Speedy. HMS Speedy also took the 34-gun Spanish Xebec frigate Gamo, in the manner exactly described in the climax of the book Master and Commander.

I like the old, solid hull MS kits from the pre-POB laser days (the early 1980's). I have a 3/16" Fair American (exact same size as the new POB 1/4" version!), and the 1/8" Essex. I've always wanted to pick up the Solid Hull 3/16th Rattlesnake, not for investments, just for fun. I've always wanted to try planking over a solid hull.
 
*** Horrible gramatical errors corrected ***

a beautiful day today and im going on holiday for two weeks tomorrow so i took the opportunity to take some photos outside in the sun, i have just finished the gun deck this weekend , just need to remake the capstan and  a few other bits like guns!!! i oiled the starboard side just before the pictures so its a bit shiny in places but nice to be out in the sun from the garage
 

 

 

 

 
i have also added the tiller sweep and the cross pieces with sheaves for the tiller ropes which can be seen in this last photo
 
thanks everybody and see you in a couple of weeks

Chuck,
 
I  agree 100% with Mark's comments above.

Chuck,
 
I'd say play to your strengths.  You design beautiful kits with a history. Instructions that are second to none. There's options on purchasing (that's a big plus) such that if the buyer wants better wood, they can get what they need from you and "good wood" from elsewhere.  This saves the buyer some cash on the kit.  Options on the fittings.   
 
You're already basically allowing your customers to "roll their own prices".  You have range of kits in work or available.  I take it that Winchelsea is next?
 
From what I see, you're doing right by your customers.

I feel compelled to make a comment from the manufacturer's side. Our CSS Alabama kit took about 1,400 hours to develop. That's a BIG chunk of payroll money. Even a "simple" kit like our Revenue Cutter is hundreds of hours of development.
 
As to deciding which ships to model, I made a survey back in April of 2014 that reached 3,000 people, and I got back 60 or 70 responses. That is BlueJacket's general guide for kit development for the next several years to come.
 
Without being too commercial, we already offer some kits that were suggested in this thread. We also have a toll-free help line for our kits. We take our reputation very seriously.

Funny thing about this topic... everyone has their idea of which ship or type of ships.  Yet when one looks at the kit builds there's a big gap.  There's the Vic's and Connie's en masse.  The odd balls, the work ships, the little known... not so much.  Even the scratch area although they are all over the map there's still some in the "majority".   The ideal model also seems to be divided by continent or country even...  
 
One thing I have noticed is that there is a big aftermarket for parts like what Chuck is bringing out.  I'm doing a scratchbuild and yes, I'll be using some aftermarket stuff because I don't have the tooling, inclination, nor the expertise to design and build some parts.  
 
Maybe the ala carte method is a good one.  It's like buying a basic car and the adding options.  The problem is the picking of the basic car or ship in this case.
 
I guess I'm saying, I'd sure hate to be a kit designer and try to figure out the market.  :

A idiot proof HMS Winchelsea (1764) kit by Chuck with same level of instructions as the Cheerful.
 
Full resin stern (?), lots of mini kits. 6-900 dollars depending on the amount scratch built.
 
My only caveat is; if the skill level needed is too high, I would have a hard time paying so much -- fearing failure.
 
Ed

I used to own the 'Delta saw of death' ... it's no good for hobby work, but it's okay for home improvement projects.

The 18-gun, flush-decked American ship-corvettes of 1812 are sadly ignored : the Wasp 1806, Hornet 1807, Wasp 1813, Peacock 1813, and Frolick 1813. 
 
Everything is on one deck, the carvings are at a minimum, and they are extremely well documented.

I used to own the 'Delta saw of death' ... it's no good for hobby work, but it's okay for home improvement projects.

I used to own the 'Delta saw of death' ... it's no good for hobby work, but it's okay for home improvement projects.

I used to own the 'Delta saw of death' ... it's no good for hobby work, but it's okay for home improvement projects.

The configuration of the Sophie was more like that of the Fair American. The real-life inspiration for her was Lord Cochrane's HMS Speedy, whose plan survives. But Speedy had no poop deck. The cruises and battles of Aubrey's Sophie was a shot for shot retelling of the real career of Cochrane's  Speedy. HMS Speedy also took the 34-gun Spanish Xebec frigate Gamo, in the manner exactly described in the climax of the book Master and Commander.