rvchima

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

Hull Plates
 

The Anteo kit includes a large sheet of photo etched brass plates that surround the top of the hull. I felt that shiny brass was unrealistic around the top of of a tug, so I colored the plates black with a chemical used to patina stained glass.
 

The plates are a b*tch to attach. Most plates have a hole that has to be cut through a triple-planked basswood hull. No matter how carefully I drill, cut, or sand, the paint gets scratched on the outside, the wood tears out on the inside, and a tool slips and gouges my beautiful deck. It will take a bit of cleanup after the plates are all attached. The plates are attached with 3M double sided tape. That works beautifully. Each plate edge has 7 or more holes for tiny brass nails. The only problem is that the nails are too long so I have to cut them off. The blunt nails don't drive well so I have to pre-drill every hole. I'm getting about 3 plates done each night.
 
 

Color Scheme Blues, and Greens
 
The model on the box is painted an interesting blue-green color that has been hard to match. I went so far as to analyze a digital photo of the model, extract the red/green/blue components of the hull color, and compare to color charts from Krylon, Testors, and Rustoleum. The closest match was Krylon's appropriately named "Surf" color, which I was unable to find locally. I ordered a can from a supplier on amazon.com 16 days ago and haven't received it yet. Handy Tip: Don't order from Bic Warehouse.
 

In the meantime I bought a couple other Krylon paints and made some color samples. On the left is "Emerald Green," with "Periwinkle" for the stack. On the right is "John Deere Green," with "Pewter Gray" for the stack. I really like the combination on the left, but hate to start painting until I see what "Surf" looks like. What do you think?

Hull Plates
 

The Anteo kit includes a large sheet of photo etched brass plates that surround the top of the hull. I felt that shiny brass was unrealistic around the top of of a tug, so I colored the plates black with a chemical used to patina stained glass.
 

The plates are a b*tch to attach. Most plates have a hole that has to be cut through a triple-planked basswood hull. No matter how carefully I drill, cut, or sand, the paint gets scratched on the outside, the wood tears out on the inside, and a tool slips and gouges my beautiful deck. It will take a bit of cleanup after the plates are all attached. The plates are attached with 3M double sided tape. That works beautifully. Each plate edge has 7 or more holes for tiny brass nails. The only problem is that the nails are too long so I have to cut them off. The blunt nails don't drive well so I have to pre-drill every hole. I'm getting about 3 plates done each night.
 
 

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

Glad to see you're still afloat........um, you know what I mean.  Love the color scheme.  And the engine house is perfection!

Hull Plates
 

The Anteo kit includes a large sheet of photo etched brass plates that surround the top of the hull. I felt that shiny brass was unrealistic around the top of of a tug, so I colored the plates black with a chemical used to patina stained glass.
 

The plates are a b*tch to attach. Most plates have a hole that has to be cut through a triple-planked basswood hull. No matter how carefully I drill, cut, or sand, the paint gets scratched on the outside, the wood tears out on the inside, and a tool slips and gouges my beautiful deck. It will take a bit of cleanup after the plates are all attached. The plates are attached with 3M double sided tape. That works beautifully. Each plate edge has 7 or more holes for tiny brass nails. The only problem is that the nails are too long so I have to cut them off. The blunt nails don't drive well so I have to pre-drill every hole. I'm getting about 3 plates done each night.
 
 

Hull Plates
 

The Anteo kit includes a large sheet of photo etched brass plates that surround the top of the hull. I felt that shiny brass was unrealistic around the top of of a tug, so I colored the plates black with a chemical used to patina stained glass.
 

The plates are a b*tch to attach. Most plates have a hole that has to be cut through a triple-planked basswood hull. No matter how carefully I drill, cut, or sand, the paint gets scratched on the outside, the wood tears out on the inside, and a tool slips and gouges my beautiful deck. It will take a bit of cleanup after the plates are all attached. The plates are attached with 3M double sided tape. That works beautifully. Each plate edge has 7 or more holes for tiny brass nails. The only problem is that the nails are too long so I have to cut them off. The blunt nails don't drive well so I have to pre-drill every hole. I'm getting about 3 plates done each night.
 
 

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

Hull Plates
 

The Anteo kit includes a large sheet of photo etched brass plates that surround the top of the hull. I felt that shiny brass was unrealistic around the top of of a tug, so I colored the plates black with a chemical used to patina stained glass.
 

The plates are a b*tch to attach. Most plates have a hole that has to be cut through a triple-planked basswood hull. No matter how carefully I drill, cut, or sand, the paint gets scratched on the outside, the wood tears out on the inside, and a tool slips and gouges my beautiful deck. It will take a bit of cleanup after the plates are all attached. The plates are attached with 3M double sided tape. That works beautifully. Each plate edge has 7 or more holes for tiny brass nails. The only problem is that the nails are too long so I have to cut them off. The blunt nails don't drive well so I have to pre-drill every hole. I'm getting about 3 plates done each night.
 
 

The Anteo Was Almost Launched

Two weeks ago my Anteo tugboat almost got launched. We had the "storm of the century" here and my basement rec room and workshop were flooded. The photo shows my rec room with my Syren model and Amati U-47 U-boat kit (future build) safely out of harms way, while my DeWalt tool bag floats by from my workshop. The ensuing chaos has kept me from posting for a while, but things are mostly back to normal and I am building again.
 
Final Paint Scheme
 


Before the flood I decided on a paint scheme: Emerald Green for the hull and Periwinkle for the trim. I love the final look.
 
Engine House
 

The engine house has 10 hinged windows. Each hinge is made with two brass "eyes" drilled into the house, a third drilled into the window, and a pin made of brass wire. Each window has a brass porthole with a clear plastic insert. I love the detail in the Panart kits!
 

I had planned to glue the windows shut so I didn't finish the insides, but the hinges were so cool that I had to leave them operable.
 
Lifeboat Containers
 

The lifeboat containers are vacuum formed plastic. They would probably be fiberglass on the real tug so I left them with their glossy white finish.
 
Stand
 

 
Kurt, thank you for identifying the Alice E model. It looks beautiful. I found the image in a Google image search. Do you have pictures posted on MSW? I ended up making a stand a lot like yours, but I still have to mount it on a wood base.
 
And the stand for the Coral Sea is awesome! There are more little details on the ground than I have on my whole boat.

Overall View
 

Here's where it stands today. The hull and stack are both primed grey and ready to paint. The engine house and aft structure are primed white and will be painted the same color as the stack.
 
There is a notch cut in the rudder support for installing the prop shaft. I will have to glue the cut out piece back in place and repaint after the prop is installed. Too bad the shaft can't be installed from inside the hull.

Cabin
 

While waiting for my paint to arrive I jumped ahead in the plans and completed the cabin. The instrument panels are made of lacquered cherry, and the planking is finished with 3 coats of orange shellac.
 

Panart supplies a lot of beautiful brass pieces for portholes, hinges, and railings that really dress the model up. They also explain the high cost of the model. So far I've run short of some wood strips, but every brass piece has been neatly bagged and in the box.
 

Here's a view of the bow with the cabin in place.
 
Lots of Little Parts. 208 hours, 160 days.
 
Lately I've been building lots of little, difficult parts.
 

The mast was hand planed to shape from a 12 mm dowel. The brass lights were all supplied.
 

These 13 braces support the deck where the cabin overhangs the lower quarters.
 

The funnels are made of a brass casting on top with wooden supports below.
 

Six life preservers are made from plastic rings and red striping tape. They will eventually hang on the cabin.
 

Six turned wooden barrels were supplied. I painted them, then wrapped them with model airplane trim tape. The fill caps are painted nail heads.
 
 

Full Profile View
 

I haven't posted a full profile in a while, so here's what it looks like now. The cabin and engine house are just laying in place.
 

I've built a few fixtures for the deck and cabin, but there is a lot more to be made.

Second Layer of Planking Completed - 120 hours, 122 days
 

I FINALLY finished planking the hull and will soon be moving on to more interesting things. For the first layer I tapered most of the planks, and it took 58 hours. For the second layer I left most the planks straight. It only took 20 hours and it looks much better. In the photo you can see a crescent-shaped area left at the bottom where I had to trim the planks to fit.
 
Helpful Hint - When basswood planks are wet you can cut them with scissors. I wish I had realized that that 4 months ago.
 

A Major Digression

Sorry for the long delay between posts, but I stopped working on the tugboat model long enough to build a sofa table for my son and his wife. The table was based loosely on a design that I found online, but I modified it so that it could be completely disassembled to fit in the back of a Toyota Prius. The table is now safely in North Carolina and I am back to work on the tug.

Overall View
 

Here's where it stands today. The hull and stack are both primed grey and ready to paint. The engine house and aft structure are primed white and will be painted the same color as the stack.
 
There is a notch cut in the rudder support for installing the prop shaft. I will have to glue the cut out piece back in place and repaint after the prop is installed. Too bad the shaft can't be installed from inside the hull.

Cabin
 

While waiting for my paint to arrive I jumped ahead in the plans and completed the cabin. The instrument panels are made of lacquered cherry, and the planking is finished with 3 coats of orange shellac.
 

Panart supplies a lot of beautiful brass pieces for portholes, hinges, and railings that really dress the model up. They also explain the high cost of the model. So far I've run short of some wood strips, but every brass piece has been neatly bagged and in the box.
 

Here's a view of the bow with the cabin in place.
 
Lots of Little Parts. 208 hours, 160 days.
 
Lately I've been building lots of little, difficult parts.
 

The mast was hand planed to shape from a 12 mm dowel. The brass lights were all supplied.
 

These 13 braces support the deck where the cabin overhangs the lower quarters.
 

The funnels are made of a brass casting on top with wooden supports below.
 

Six life preservers are made from plastic rings and red striping tape. They will eventually hang on the cabin.
 

Six turned wooden barrels were supplied. I painted them, then wrapped them with model airplane trim tape. The fill caps are painted nail heads.
 
 

First Coat of Primer
 

The next step in construction is to plank the deck and add a third layer of planking to the inside of the rails. But I plan to paint the outside of the hull first to keep paint off the deck. Here's the first coat of primer. Tomorrow I'll take a good look and fill all the cracks I missed before.
 
Wanted: Ideas for a Stand
 
I won't be able to use my keel stand anymore after I finish painting the hull. I would like to build a stand that looks like a tug up on wood blocks in dry dock.
 

Here's a photo of a different tug model on a stand like I have in mind, but I do want to be realistic. I have searched online for a cool photo of a real tug in dry dock, but I haven't found anything to my liking. If you have have any ideas for an appropriate stand, please post photos or links, or message me directly. Many thanks.
 

Second Layer of Planking Completed - 120 hours, 122 days
 

I FINALLY finished planking the hull and will soon be moving on to more interesting things. For the first layer I tapered most of the planks, and it took 58 hours. For the second layer I left most the planks straight. It only took 20 hours and it looks much better. In the photo you can see a crescent-shaped area left at the bottom where I had to trim the planks to fit.
 
Helpful Hint - When basswood planks are wet you can cut them with scissors. I wish I had realized that that 4 months ago.
 

4 Water Inlets

Any tug boat experts out there? Why would you have 4 huge water inlets on the deck of a tug boat? I sure don't know, but these were fun to make anyway. The bodies are PVC tube and the tops are laser cut ply. The brass hand wheels were rough but I chucked them in my rotary tool and smoothed them with 400 grit wet sandpaper. They screw into little posts made out of a dowel - the same dowel as the mast. Those posts were hard to drill, center, and align, but I got them right after three tries. The kit includes hundreds of little brass hinge posts that are glued into holes that you drill. I was a little apprehensive of them at first, but they work very well. In fact the lids on these water inlets were fully operable until I glued them into place. I figured that I'd never open them and they'd be dangling loose in 10 years.

Overall View
 

Here's where it stands today. The hull and stack are both primed grey and ready to paint. The engine house and aft structure are primed white and will be painted the same color as the stack.
 
There is a notch cut in the rudder support for installing the prop shaft. I will have to glue the cut out piece back in place and repaint after the prop is installed. Too bad the shaft can't be installed from inside the hull.

4 Water Inlets

Any tug boat experts out there? Why would you have 4 huge water inlets on the deck of a tug boat? I sure don't know, but these were fun to make anyway. The bodies are PVC tube and the tops are laser cut ply. The brass hand wheels were rough but I chucked them in my rotary tool and smoothed them with 400 grit wet sandpaper. They screw into little posts made out of a dowel - the same dowel as the mast. Those posts were hard to drill, center, and align, but I got them right after three tries. The kit includes hundreds of little brass hinge posts that are glued into holes that you drill. I was a little apprehensive of them at first, but they work very well. In fact the lids on these water inlets were fully operable until I glued them into place. I figured that I'd never open them and they'd be dangling loose in 10 years.