Jack Panzeca

Next up is the mast foot, partner and the planking around them.  The planks are 1/16 inch thick. The 2 rows adjacent to the mast are slightly curved so I reduced the thickness to 1 / 32 inch to make them easier to bend.  The planks are about 1 ½ inches long.   I soaked them in water and wrapped  them around a mailing tube end and let them dry and cut to length.
 

 
The kit version of the mast foot and partner were both plywood and were replaced with oak.  The partner is made of oak about ⅛ thick.  It mounts on a curve and ties into the bulkhead.  The kit version has it tying into the hull and adds knees on top to make it look like the bulkhead existed.  Since I added the extra bulkheads I did not need to do this.  Then I added the ledge under the partner to hold the planks.  Since the bent planks are thinner I raised the ledge on the far side to bring them up flush.
 

 
Here are the curved planks with one row of flat laid in loose.  I will bag them and keep them with the others until I am ready to install permanently.  They really fit together well but keeping them in place long enough to take a picture was maddening.   
 

 
I think that I will work on shields for a while to give myself time to think about nailing the hull planking.     One of the reasons I am not gluing the planks yet is in case I decide to nail access may be helpful.  The nails were round headed iron rivets.  in some pictures square washers can be seen in a few places.
 

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

Von_Kossa: Thanks for the generous words.  I only finished one side of the stern.  It is going a little faster on the other ¾ since I figured it out on the first quarter.  The last two planks were challenging for me as well.  I glued them 3 times before I got them right.  I love alcohol.
 
David B: Thanks for dropping in for a look and the kind words.   This is a really enjoyable project.
 
Bindy: Thanks for your usual encouragement.  I am watching your log for the big surprise!

Hull planking stage 1
 
After a bit of a break construction has restarted.
 
The upper part of the first plank layer has been completed. This has been done before the lower part of the frames are faired at the stern mainly to protect the top of the ribs where they are quite thin and easy to break. (A couple have already been damaged.) The upper planking should enable work to be done on the bottom without breaking any more. The single curve sections of the bulwarks are 1.5mm ply and the planking below is 1.5mm lime wood which is fairly soft and easy to bend.
 
I have tried a new way of clamping planks in place while the glue dries. Previously I have used small planking screws that have a plastic knurled part and a small metal screw and a little flap that presses on the plank. I find these quite difficult to screw in and for most of them the metal screw now rotates in the plastic bit making them fairly useless. I have tried the small spherical headed map pins but they don't really clamp the planks. I nailed many of the planks on the Bounty but this is time consuming and you can end up with nails just where you don't want them. Wandering through a local stationery store I came across these cube headed pins and thought I would give them a go. They work really well! The pin anchors well in the ply ribs and the head clamps the planks in position. They take a bit of pushing in and I do this with a piece of scrap ply. When pushing in round headed pins previously I had a pin shaft come through the head and punch a neat hole in the end of my thumb! That REALLY hurt so I don't take any chances now.
 
The cardboard stern elements have been converted into ply and fixed in place. I think that working from the outside of the curved stern to the inside should enable a light stern framing compared with what I have seen in kit constructions and allow the "see through" look that I want for the stern windows.
 
Cheers,
 
David. 
 

 

 

Further work!
 
I got a calm sunny day - so got the chance to take her out and sand the upper hull - that job is 90% complete.  I can still see a couple of places that need smoothing down a little more.
 
I've been working on the interior (most of this is not glued or varnished - just placed for assessment).
  Shot racks mostly done.  I ran out of 6lb shot, so need to get some more
  Jeer bits are well under way - the decorative bar at the top cost blood to make.
 



 
after redoing the gunport height it's nice to see the trial gun sitting nicely in the port.
 

 
Which gives us my latest full hull picture!
 

 
Colin

This certainly sounds like fun.  I will pull up a chair in the corner and watch with interest.  If you get a chance checkout a song from 1976 by Roger McGuinn called "the Jolly Roger".  It really sums up the pirate life for me.

Update. Finished the deck... For now at least.

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

The first thing that I have to say is that Santa showed up at my house (he got his dates confused) and left a new saw.  The Byrne's saw is not a saw.  It is a Work of Art.  I was in the construction business for more than 40 years and around cutting devices for longer than that.  Nothing in my experience prepared me for this saw.  Things that I have struggled with (long rips for starters) are now routine.  My previous saw was an old Micro Mark/Proxxon and there is no comparison.  In case I was not clear I love this saw.
 
I cut the the caps for the bulkheads, bent them and glued them into place.  The curves are difficult to hold and needed some creative clamping.  The wine corks came in handy and the wine was handy too.
 

 
I ripped about half the planks and cut them to length in record time they laid in nicely.  Since it is not a good idea to use power tools when you are tired I will leave the rest of the deck planking for another day.   
 

Hello Hans Christian,  Thanks for the links.  It is nice to see the reconstruction.  You should consider starting a build log so that we can follow your progress.  Thanks again.
 
Hi Dee-Dee, thanks for the encouragement.  Santa did arrive!  The Byrnes saw is truly incredible.  If you have any photography questions please let me know.
 
Hello Vivian, I hope that you are well.  Thanks for looking in.  I am setting up the stain tests on a piece of foam core so that I can keep track of the results.  I love the moth as well.  Mother nature went to all that trouble and they only live a week or so.
 
Hey David B,  thanks, I have had a lot more practice with photography.
 
Hi Pete, thanks for looking in.  I have more stain tests to come but I really like the aged oak at this point.
 

 

Hi David B,  the Driftwood is on the way, thanks for the recommendation.  I am sitting around like a kid waiting for Santa Byrnes to arrive.  I plan to spend the entire weekend making saw dust.
 
Thanks Vivian, I like the Aged Oak very much as well.  David B suggested Minwax Driftwood so I will test that also and put them side by side and you get to judge again.
 
I am happy that you both liked the images.  It was really fun to get outdoors and play before it gets really hot here.
 
Here are a couple of close ups of the Atlas Moth posted above.  It is a facinating insect.  They are about 9 inches wide and the wing tips really do look like snake heads.  Incredible evolutionary adaption.
 

I have been slow to post lately for two reasons.  First, it is spring and I have been out chasing bugs and flowers.
 

 
The second reason is that I have been stalling.  I have a lot of oak to cut and since my Admiral was kind enough to order a Byrnes saw for my fathers day "surprise" I have waited rather than struggle with my old saw.  The Byrnes will arrive tomorrow so the updates should increase.
 
I have finished the added bulkheads and the planking supports attached to the bulkheads.  The next step is a day of steaming and bending of the oak caps for the bulkheads and the deck planks.
 
 
 
This is a quick stain test using Minwax Gel Stain color Aged Oak.  I have been looking for a stain that would not be as dark as the ship after it was buried for 1000 years (walnut) but not as new looking as, say, golden oak.  I ran into a sample of this aged oak at a local store and decided to give it a try.  I hope that this gets the Vivian seal of approval   .
 
The plank set on the left has ebony stain on one side to simulate caulking, the center group has nothing and the right group has black Sharpie on one side.  I am not sure that it makes much difference.  The Sharpie was easier to control than the stain.  Pencil did not show up at all.
 
The piece at the bottom of the picture is the same plywood as used for the hull planks.  It matched better than I expected.
 
 

The hull is now finished and below are some photos.
 
The next phase will be the masts and the rigging.
 
SERVING this is one thing that has unoccupied my thoughts, serving the rope is one thing I want to do on Diana that I did not on Pegasus,so how to serve the parts of the rigging that require it, like the top part of the shrouds and the forward ones where the sails can rub according the Rigging Period Ship models by “Lennarth Petersson”. I have been reading through logs to try and find the technique needed to do said serving,and fairly quickly came to the conclusion that the only successful way would to be to use a machine,and the way forward would to be to buy one of Alex’s ones The Machine 2.0 an unforeseen cost at $100 or £62 delivered, but having upgraded the decks, and mast material, is the only way to go, so one was ordered from his website,it came in only a few days nearly as fast as ordering something from home,( I have yet to put it together) pay pal does have its uses . The other item just arrived is black Guterman polyester thread 6 spools for £6 on e bay,
 
So mast making next and some serving practice.
 
Mort
I agree Cornwall model boats give a first class service I have bought all my upgrade materials and extra thread blocks & paint from them.
 














 

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

When the idea of the bow and stern storage (?) compartments came up I thought that I would cut out a bit of the bulkhead and add an oak strip at the top. It would match the other bulkheads and would act as the top of the compartment.  It soon became obvious that this solution would be less than attractive so I cut the bulkhead away at the level of the deck.
 

 
I made a templet from cardboard and cut several attempts from oak with a scroll saw.  Remember that I am the one that likes oak.  It is hard wood and a pain to work with in these small pieces.  The second photo is a partial pile of the throwaways.
 

 
I finally got two that I like.  
 

 
The planking is cut and laid in loosely, some of it still needs a little work.
 

 
Next is the mast foot and the associated bits and then finish the planking for keeps.  

Hi David B,  the Driftwood is on the way, thanks for the recommendation.  I am sitting around like a kid waiting for Santa Byrnes to arrive.  I plan to spend the entire weekend making saw dust.
 
Thanks Vivian, I like the Aged Oak very much as well.  David B suggested Minwax Driftwood so I will test that also and put them side by side and you get to judge again.
 
I am happy that you both liked the images.  It was really fun to get outdoors and play before it gets really hot here.
 
Here are a couple of close ups of the Atlas Moth posted above.  It is a facinating insect.  They are about 9 inches wide and the wing tips really do look like snake heads.  Incredible evolutionary adaption.
 

I finished cutting the easy planking, the tapered pieces at the sides and each end as well as the bent pieces at the mast foot are next.  The planks are just placed loosely and since they were cut and sanded specific to each space I will take them out and bundle them up until I am ready to glue them in place. I jumbled them up once already and it is like putting together a jig saw puzzle to get them back where they belong.
 

 
But first I thought I should get Von_Kossa's latest challenge out of the way.  The actual Oseberg (photo from Von_Kossa's build log) has an open compartment at each end of the ship that is not accounted for by the kit.  Those spaces get really crowded so I want to do the cutting before I finish framing.
 

 

 
Von_Kossa said that when he started to do the cutout he felt like he was destroying his model.  When I was doing it I actually did pop the top two planks loose.  Oh well, more room for my hands.  No real harm, they will glue back easily.  Better to find the weakness now than later.
 
Here are the latest stain tests.  I took all four photos at the same time with the same light and the same camera.   The color temperature was matched so the comparison will be accurate.  The wood is domestic Red Oak.
 

 
The choice is not easy.  I think I will pin up the board and stare at it a while.  Comments welcome.

Augie: I forgot what you said about the cannons, since I`m still taking in the wonderful sound of ``young lady``!    

I finished cutting the easy planking, the tapered pieces at the sides and each end as well as the bent pieces at the mast foot are next.  The planks are just placed loosely and since they were cut and sanded specific to each space I will take them out and bundle them up until I am ready to glue them in place. I jumbled them up once already and it is like putting together a jig saw puzzle to get them back where they belong.
 

 
But first I thought I should get Von_Kossa's latest challenge out of the way.  The actual Oseberg (photo from Von_Kossa's build log) has an open compartment at each end of the ship that is not accounted for by the kit.  Those spaces get really crowded so I want to do the cutting before I finish framing.
 

 

 
Von_Kossa said that when he started to do the cutout he felt like he was destroying his model.  When I was doing it I actually did pop the top two planks loose.  Oh well, more room for my hands.  No real harm, they will glue back easily.  Better to find the weakness now than later.
 
Here are the latest stain tests.  I took all four photos at the same time with the same light and the same camera.   The color temperature was matched so the comparison will be accurate.  The wood is domestic Red Oak.
 

 
The choice is not easy.  I think I will pin up the board and stare at it a while.  Comments welcome.

I finished cutting the easy planking, the tapered pieces at the sides and each end as well as the bent pieces at the mast foot are next.  The planks are just placed loosely and since they were cut and sanded specific to each space I will take them out and bundle them up until I am ready to glue them in place. I jumbled them up once already and it is like putting together a jig saw puzzle to get them back where they belong.
 

 
But first I thought I should get Von_Kossa's latest challenge out of the way.  The actual Oseberg (photo from Von_Kossa's build log) has an open compartment at each end of the ship that is not accounted for by the kit.  Those spaces get really crowded so I want to do the cutting before I finish framing.
 

 

 
Von_Kossa said that when he started to do the cutout he felt like he was destroying his model.  When I was doing it I actually did pop the top two planks loose.  Oh well, more room for my hands.  No real harm, they will glue back easily.  Better to find the weakness now than later.
 
Here are the latest stain tests.  I took all four photos at the same time with the same light and the same camera.   The color temperature was matched so the comparison will be accurate.  The wood is domestic Red Oak.
 

 
The choice is not easy.  I think I will pin up the board and stare at it a while.  Comments welcome.

I finished cutting the easy planking, the tapered pieces at the sides and each end as well as the bent pieces at the mast foot are next.  The planks are just placed loosely and since they were cut and sanded specific to each space I will take them out and bundle them up until I am ready to glue them in place. I jumbled them up once already and it is like putting together a jig saw puzzle to get them back where they belong.
 

 
But first I thought I should get Von_Kossa's latest challenge out of the way.  The actual Oseberg (photo from Von_Kossa's build log) has an open compartment at each end of the ship that is not accounted for by the kit.  Those spaces get really crowded so I want to do the cutting before I finish framing.
 

 

 
Von_Kossa said that when he started to do the cutout he felt like he was destroying his model.  When I was doing it I actually did pop the top two planks loose.  Oh well, more room for my hands.  No real harm, they will glue back easily.  Better to find the weakness now than later.
 
Here are the latest stain tests.  I took all four photos at the same time with the same light and the same camera.   The color temperature was matched so the comparison will be accurate.  The wood is domestic Red Oak.
 

 
The choice is not easy.  I think I will pin up the board and stare at it a while.  Comments welcome.