themadchemist

Chuck -
 
I used the wood strips supplied with the kit.  The broadstrake was edge bent to match, as closely as possible, the curve of the garboard strake at the bow.
 
I then trimmed the front end of the strip so that I could fit it up against the keel, and eventually into the rabbet.  After the garboard strake was mounted on the hull, I had to do some bending, twisting and trimming, so the broadstrake conformed to the frames and rabbet.  This is also where the extra width of the strip came in handy.  I was able to round out the inner edge a little more by sanding it, so I got a nice fit.
 
I'm currently using a plank bending iron and some clamps to edge bend the strips.  I had one crack on me, and another buckled, but I was able to save the strips.  They were long enough so that the damaged sections could be removed.  I have found that it takes as many as three or four sessions of wetting and bending to get the plank where it should be.  I hope I answered your question.  If not, please let me know.

I forgot to mention that a new tick strip has to be created for most of the bulkheads, especially as you approach the bow and stern.  The bulkhead just ahead of where the garboard strake ends will have one less tick mark (12), and the bulkhead forward of that will have 11 tick marks.  At least, that's the way I'm planning it.
 
I have to admit that I looked long and hard at the various longboats being worked on by this group as well as my Tri-Club group, before I laid my first plank.  The concept of edge-bending a plank was new to me.
 
I found that the most dificult aspect of forming the garboard strakes was deciding how much taper to give them at the bow.  I used a plank bending iron to configure the twist at the stern.  Prior to attaching them to the hull, I used them as templates to form the forward end of the first broadstrakes.

 
The instructions are quite explicit about starting the garboard strake just forward of the scarph joint, which is what I did.

 
I was surprised by the amount of curvature that was necessary to bring the next plank around the garboard strake, but it worked out OK.  The planks also required quite a bit of bevel at the bow, almost a sharp edge, in order to fit them properly into the rabbet.  I'm wondering if I didn't bevel the false keel enough.  Hopefully, it won't be visible on the finished model.

The rest of the bulkheads went on without any problem, and were beveled.  I decided to leave the transom off until the garboard strake and first two broadstrakes are attached to the hull.  Like Toni, I decided to use the tick-strip method for planking the model.  In the photo, the distance from the rabbet to the top of a bulkhead is being marked off.

 
I then located the corresponding bulkhead on the plans, and lined the strip up with the top of that bulkhead.  The sheerline was then marked on the strip.

 
The distance between the sheerline and the bottom of the strip was divided into eaqual segments by using what I call a "planking grid." I think it's also referred to as a "diminishing grid."  I opted to plank my hull with thirteen strakes per side.  I just felt that it would allow for a little more wood on each kit-supplied strip during the spiling process.  Hopefully, the reduction of each plank by 1/12th won't be that noticeable.

 
The tick marks were then transfered to the corresponding bulkheads. Planking is next.

Hello all,
 
After completing three bulkheads, I realized that I had forgotten to make provisions for mounting the model.  Before I get into that, I'd like to point out the strips that were laid across each pair of bulkheads as a new bulkhead was installed.  This made the assembly quite strong.
 

I decided to install the pedestals directly under hull frames.  The forward pedestal will be located at the forward end of the keel/stem scarf joint.  As a precaution, I "pegged" the scarf joint with a length of brass wire, which I ran up into the false keel.
 

Just forward of the brass peg, a hole was drilled through the keel into the false keel that will take a 1/32" brass rod.  This is a press fit, and the main support for the model.
 

The same procedure was performed at the stern with one exception.  Two pegs were added, and the 1/32" hole did not extend into the false keel.  I want to wait until the hull is planked, before the mounting hole is drilled any deeper.
 

When the model is mounted, the 1/32" rod will slide into the smaller brass tube shown in these photos.  That particular tube will be press-fitted into the plinth.  After being cut to the proper mounting height and polished, the larger tube will be placed over the smaller tube. Hopefully, it will give the assembly a finished appearance, and provide additional support for the model.
 
 
 
 

Hello all,
 
This is my first try at posting a project to MSW, so please be patient with me.  As part of the Longboat Tri-Club build, I've been lagging hopelessly far behind everyone else.  After studying the various models already posted, I feel that my offerings will be very redundant, and certainly not as good.  Anyway, I'm going to start with square one, and go from there.
 

Removing the burn marks on the back side of the sheets went quite well.
 

Next step was to duplicate the bearding line on the port side of the false keel, and make the necessary bevels for the rabbet.
 


Using a piece of glass and some clamps, I assembled the keel, stem and false keel.
 

I then squared up the stem and keel.  Using the glass plate and a sanding block it went quite well.  The sandpaper was attached to the block with two-sided tape, which is one of my most useful tools.
 

At this point, I constructed a building board.  The angle brackets had to be adjusted to ensure that they were square.  I then epoxied some basswood to one face of each bracket.  Slightly undersized screws were used to affix them to the building board.  This provided some adjustability.
 


Two steel blocks, a small square and a clamp were used to ensure that the bulkheads were plumb when glued to the false keel.  The small angle was adjusted up or down as each new bulkhead was put in place.  Although the blocks were a bit cumbersome, the results were acceptable.  I found that it was necessary to introduce some play into the bulkhead notches before they were glued in place.  The Elmer's glue caused the wood to expand, and on a number of occasions adjustments were almost impossible to make.  One bulkhead had to be re-glued twice before it had the correct orientation.
 
 

Hi Guys,
 
Just a quick update to let you know that I haven't fallen of the planet.
 
Rigging continues, all the main yards are made painted and fitted, the rigging is now completed on the main as far as I want to go at least at this moment in time.
 
I thought I would be clever and just put pegs on the ropes before tying off, so with all the yards rigged and a multitude of pegs hanging came the first headache.
I ended up almost making lace, the pegs got spun around each other and so the lace making had begun, the second headache was once all the lines were untangled where the hell do they go, they are all now tied of and trimmed so lessen learned, tie of as you go and avoid a whole lot of headache pills.  It still isn't getting any easier tying around the belaying pins, even with the approved tools and a few homemade efforts.
 
Next job is to make the fore and sprit yards, this will be done over the next day or so.
 
I have a few pics to show and as usual please give your honest thoughts and opinions, all are welcome.
 
These are the main yards prior to painting
 
 
Lace making
 
 
 
 
As I have said all these lines are now fixed and trimmed but no pics yet.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie

Hi Guys
 
I cant believe my last post was on the 26th June, jeez time flies.
 
I have been working on rigging the Mizzen Gaff and Boom, making, fitting and rigging the Mizzen Mast. I have gone as far as I can at the moment so now am starting on the Main Mast Yards and rigging.
 
My one gripe is the quality of my 0.75mm Natural Rope supplied with the kit, it's not just hairy but it has bits sticking out of it's entire length, applying wax does the trick for a short time then when the rope is passed through a block it's back to normal. The only thing I can do now is replace it, I'll do that whilst making the Main Yards.
 
Before I go any further I will apologize for not posting progress pics earlier but I sort of got carried away, one moment it seems not enough to post and the next it's done.
 
OK enough yak, here are some progress pics.
 
The Mizzen Gaff and Boom.
 
 
 
 

 
The Mizzen Mast Yards and Rigging
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Braces are still to be rigged but that's for later.
 
So there we have it guys, your right up to date, apologies for the quality of the pictures but in my defence I will say that I'm working with old equipment and old eyes.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie
 
 
 

The issues with the way your doing it, from what I can see is that the bow is crowding very quickly. That's not a problem if you are planning to drop planks.
Its really a philosophical thing. Meaning it's your choice.
 
I found the second lower plank the hardest to fit. I ended up taking a file to the garboards edge and sanding the edge so that it came to a point on the center making sure the plank line remained straight. I then forced a pretty hefty lateral bend in the second plank up.
 
Here's the amount of edge bend in #2, it doesn't look like much but its enough.


here it is glued, notice it stops at the first bulkhead


here's the pair glued up.


Notice, here I have the first 3 lower planks and have only advanced up the stem about as far as you are with just the second plank.


That's just to illustrate how I did it, not to say that is the "right" or the only way. Remember, my goal was to plank with no dropped planks, which forced me to really conserve bow spacing. I actually did 1 dropped plank per side on the second planking for the experience of it.

Hi John, 
I have the Swift on the shelf and it might be my next build.  BobF did a great tutorial on planking on his 18th century longboat, very informative and lots of photos on how he did it.  He goes into using the fan, marking the hull, shaping the garboard strake, using the fan, shaping each plank and edge bending.  This helped me a lot. 
http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/1465-18th-century-longboat-by-bobf-ms-148-tri-club/page-2
Dee Dee

Thanks Frank and Blackie!
 
Onward to today's update.  Started off by trimming the rough timbers on the bulwarks and sanding them even with the top of the bulwarks, then started working on the gallant rails.  I've been having problems clamping stuff right at the tip of the bow, so I took a tip from someone else's build log (I think hipexec's Connie?) and decided to try to pin it.
 
I drilled a #71 hole in the bulwark and the gallant rail, cut the tip and head off of one of the brass planking nails, and cut it in half.  Glued the tiny little pin into the gallant rail before placing it on the bulwark.  Worked like a champ.
 



 
Used alligator clips mostly to hold the gallant rails in place while drying, but used some larger clamps back at the stern.
 


 
Before finishing the stern gallant rails, I decided I needed to do something about the poop deck damage.  Also, as you can see from the pictures (sort of), my very early misplacement of the stern blocks (or the bad keel alignment) caused the deck to be out of alignment with the gallant rails.  The port side is where it needs to be, with the gallant rail almost completely above the deck planking, but the starboard side is almost 2mm high, leaving the top of the gallant rail almost even with the deck.
 


 
So, I decided to take my first foray into making a real repair to something I screwed up earlier.  I used an X-acto chisel blade and removed the planking from 2/3 of the poop deck, and the top of the stern.
 

 
And then I carefully removed material from the false deck (and stern block, not sure if I got into it or not) until the port and starboard sides looked even to me.
 

 
Crossing my fingers, I re-planked the poop deck and the stern.
 

 

 
I'm more than happy with how that turned out, and the level, as you can see from the above picture, is almost exactly the same side to side now.
 
Added the stern gallant rail, trimmed the excess and sanded. 
 



 
Pretty happy with my first 'real' rebuild of a messed up area (well, I guess I patched the hull once too), and the gallant rails came out quite well I think.
 
At this point the instructions say to add the rudder, the knightheads, and then varnish everything.  I am going to have to decide now whether to attempt to do anything about the wood putty and go with varnish, or go with paint.
 
I also need to make a stand of some kind to hold the ship, or get one of those ship vices so I don't continue to damage things while I'm working on it with my dumb clumsy hands.
 
Do most people use regular varnish like the instructions say, or do they use something that is less smelly and cures faster? 

So this afternoon and evening have been pretty productive (what happened to the last 6 hours anyway?  I seem to have forgotten dinner).
 
After I repaired the hole in the hull, the next thing on the agenda was planking the bulwarks and stern.  I found a new use for alligator clamps!
 

 

 

 

 
Then on to the guard rails, where I found a new use for battery clamps (and lots of rubber bands).
 

 

 
Then I cut these little boards for the insides of the bulwarks.  The instructions just call them 'rough timber', so I'm not really sure what the actual nautical terminology is for them.  They'll be supporting the inside of the deck railing.
 
I had to remeasure the spacing for these little guys and remark them 4 times before I got the spacing where I was happy with it relative to the plans, and the spacing to the future location of the knightheads.  Seems that 0.15 ~ 0.25 mm makes a fair bit of difference when it's multiplied by 14.  Glad I bought that digital caliper!
 

 

 
During all the work on the hull, I often forgot to place something soft under the ship while I was working on it, and the result of that is some damage to the poop deck planking that I need to pull off and replace now.
 
The gap between the bulwark and the planking is caused by my very early mistake on the stern block placement and shaping, but it should be covered by the trim and railing later.
 

 
Still unsure on what to do with the hull, but I've read a bit today about using sawdust and white glue as filler to match the wood, so I'm considering using an X-acto knife to try to cut out the putty that shows up so well, and use that method to re-fill the hull and see how it looks and whether I can then get away with leaving it natural.
 

 

 
Tomorrow I'll trim the 'rough timber' and start forming the deck railing after work.
 
Oddball question about the forum etiquette.  Is there a 'normal' number of pictures per post, and should I continue to use the forum attachment system, or host them off-site myself?
 
Thanks,
 

Thank you Michael,
 
The repair came out better than I expected, I'm not unhappy with it at all, given my complete lack of experience in woodworking.  I think woodshop in the 8th grade was the last time I did anything beyond nailing unfinished planks together to make ramps type of wood working.
 

 
The repair is visible, but I imagine that once the model is finished and being displayed in an upright position, I'd be the only one to notice it even if I leave it natural instead of painting it.
 

 
Edit: It has actually been more than four days, as I started this on the evening of August 15th, I just didn't start the build log until later, as at the time I started I didn't know this site existed.  Someone on another forum completely unrelated to the hobby gave me the link here. 
 
Also, your Maria is awesome.

So I 'sunk' my boat last night.  There was a spot on the hull where the putty looked bad and had a gap, so I decided I would try to redo that, and when I prodded it a bit, the entire piece of putty fell out, along with a bit of the wood plank.  Turns out that plank was one that was sticking up too far at that point, and I had sanded it to almost nothing without realizing it.  The wood was paper thin at that point.
 
So, I'm going to cut out that entire section of that plank to span bulkhead to bulkhead and replace it with a new piece of planking. 
 
For the bulkheads, I ended up going with my #3 option, and it turned out much easier than expected.  I was considering using a Dremel and sanding down the tops of the plank to the bottom of the deck, but I used a sharp X-acto knife, and working carefully and shaving just a razor thickness at a time, it was surprisingly easy to cut the planking down to the bottom of the deck in a fairly short period of time.
 
I mounted the bulwarks, then cut and mounted the keel, and they all came out quite nicely I think.  Then of course, I punched a hole in the hull.  Oops.
 

 
This is only partially filed back.  I was initially thinking to just bevel the hole and make it fairly square and lay in a matching beveled patch, but now I think I'm going to extend it to the bulkheads on either side to completely replace that very thin plank in that area.
 

So, to bring this up to date.
 
This was about the point where I realized that I should have been narrowing the planks at the stem starting with the second plank, due to how many more plank widths are needed in the middle of the hull vs. the stem and stern.  Woops, not nearly enough space left to fix that.  Another lesson learned.
 

 
I just 'faked' it as best I could, using inserts and stealers until I had it all closed up.  Pretty ugly, but I certainly learned a lot of things not to do when planking.  Hopefully other first time builders can learn from my mess.
 

 
I sanded it down, used some wood putty on the gaps I couldn't otherwise fix, and sanded again.
 

 
Figuring that there is no better time than the present to find out if it will work as natural wood, or will need to be painted, I went ahead and prepped it and varnished.  Paint it is!
 

The wood putty I used shows up glaringly here as you can see.  If it wasn't for that I think I'd go ahead and leave it natural, even with the planking blemishes, but I don't know of any way to make the putty issue go away other than sand it down and paint it.
 
From a hull/planking perspective, I wonder if a larger model wouldn't actually be easier.  While it would be more time consuming, the larger number of planks, and their size relative to the hull size would make the bends less severe, and require less spiling on each plank to make everything work I would think.
 
The other solution of course would be to double plank it, but I think I'll just go with paint on this one, as the entire point of this project for me was to learn about the entire model ship building process, and to determine if it's something I want to take on as a long-term hobby.  So far I'm certainly enjoying the process, and I think I'll just keep moving forward, blemishes and all and see where it takes me.
 
Tackling the poor alignment of the top plank vs. the deck line for the bulkheads is next.

Finished up the port side by setting the last stealer on this side of the hull. Bottom half of the other side still to go.

I screwed up how the planks were laid, so ended up having to do a lot of little filler planks in the middle, when that should have been happening at the ends, so it's a little rough, but I think most of it will fill and sand well and look ok when it's done.
 
It's embarrassingly ugly compared to a lot of the 'first builds' posted here, but I'm not too disappointed with it, as I've never done any woodworking before, and I'm definitely learning a lot of lessons as I go.
 

 
That compound curve in the middle of this hull was quite a challenge for me, some of the bigger ships in the logs actually look like they have a lot simpler curvature, just a lot more of it.

Sunday morning, I removed the clamps, and was amazed by how well the stringers kept their shape.
 

 
When I removed the final clamps, I discovered that the stringers were actually stuck to the deck, and had to pry them off with a small screwdriver.  After they were unstuck, they did spring out a bit and not stay exactly shaped to the deck, but they were very close, and quite easy to hold in place with very little force, so I added glue, and clamped everything to dry.
 

 
After the stringers, the next item in the instructions is hull planking.
 
The forming method I've been using has been a combination of wetting and then holding over a soldering iron to dry while holding a bend, and sometimes clamping to the bulkheads and repeatedly wetting over time.
The first plank on either side went in quite well, but I managed to mess up the alignment against the deck on one-side.  I'll have to make a small insert when I'm done to meet up with the bulwarks where I did this.  The first plank I was able to do just fine using nothing but a bunch of rubber bands to hold them in place against the bulkheads to dry.
 

 

 
For the second plank on each side, I took a bunch of binder clips, and glued a small piece of craft stick cut to size with super glue, and made myself a set of ghetto 'plank clamps'.  They worked pretty well for about 3 planks, until I started to run out of room on the bulkheads for the clips to grab onto.
 

 
I got four planks on each side by Wednesday, but with a meeting on Thursday night, and going out on Friday night, no progress was made on those days.
 
On Friday, my new work bench was delivered (up to this point I'd been occupying the kitchen table), so I stayed up late Friday night assembling it, and then moving everything to the new bench in my library/office (probably not the best choice of rooms, and eventually I'll clean out another room to turn into a work room).
 

 
Yesterday I continued to work on planking, but now that there isn't much room on the bulkheads for my little binder clips, I'm using all sorts of different clamps depending on what I can make work.
 

 

 
Today I've been continuing to work on planking, but now I'm starting to insert extra planks in the middle, and stealers at the stern.
 
And that brings the project up to current as of this morning.
 
 

Once I had the basic shaping of the stem and stern complete, I began to work on the deck planking.  In this area the combination of it being fairly simple, along with some very good pictures, meant that I really had no difficulty with the plans / instructions.
 
I began by laying down a single plank along the measured center-line of the main deck.
 

 
Then added planks until I had the entire port side planked.  I clamped the edges to dry with the every handy binder clips from Staples that are 4 bucks for 80.
 

 
After it was dry I removed the clamps and trimmed.  I then cut away the planking for the holes for the masts.
 

 
Next step was just to repeat the process for the starboard side.
 

 
I then used some scraps to plank the 'step' from the main deck to the poop deck.  The instructions say nothing at all about how this should be done, so I just looked at the pictures, and used up a bunch of the scrap from the main deck planking.
 

 

 
Seemed to work out just fine, but I did manage to get the vertical planks out of alignment with the main deck planks and had to trim some pieces on the port side to try to get them back into alignment.  Again, visually I'll probably be the only one to notice this when it's done.
 
Trimmed the deck and step, and cleared the mast holes.
 

 
Repeated the main deck planking process for the poop deck and trimmed them, then used the method in the instructions to add the deck planking pattern via scribing the plank ends, and using a very small punch to make nail holes.
 
In this step my complete inability to do free-hand work well shows, as the nail holes are pretty random and misaligned compared to most of the pictures I see here.
 

 
Next up was the stringers.  My first experience with needing to bend wood in the kit.  The stringers were quite a challenge fore me, as the wood used is very hard, and has to be bent against the wide section of the plank.  I ended up soaking it for a long time, and then using all the worlds binder clips to hold it to the edge of the deck to shape it.
 

 
I was struggling with how to hold the ends in shape at the stem, when I found that a pair of flat bladed pliers would hold them well, but I really didn't want to spend the night holding pliers.  I cheated and let a bunch of rubber bands take my place on the pliers, and it worked quite well!
 

 
I used an eye-dropper to add water every 10 minutes or so for a few hours, and then went to bed to allow it to dry, and hopefully retain the shape.
 
Next up.  Sunday!
 

In my introduction thread, numerous folks suggested that I do a build log, so this will not only be my first ever wooden ship, but also my first ever build log.  Life is full of new things.
 
I've been getting the itch lately to get back into modeling, which is something I did with gusto when I was much younger.  I did the typical plastic type models, everything from 1/35 scale cars, to 1/48 tanks, 1/72 aircraft, all the way to 1/700 scale ships (small!).  My last modeling project was a super detailed 1/350 scale model of the German battleship Tirpitz, which was packed away into a box at about 20% completion when I was moving, and was never unpacked, although I still have it.  That was about 25 years ago.
 
As I was looking at that model and trying to make a list in my head of all the stuff I would need to start up again, it occurred to me that since I was starting from scratch as far as materials and tools, that I didn't need to go back to plastic.  Wooden models have always interested me, so I started looking around without too much seriousness, about what was available.  I was astounded at the variety and detail of the kits I found on the web, so on Friday the 15th, after work, I set out to a hobby shop that I had found in the internet that had tons of ship models.  The shop was a massive disappointment, with a terrible selection of plastic models and no wood stuff at all.  So, my trek began, as I went from one hobby shop location to another (several found online weren't even there anymore).  Eventually I decided to visit what was one of the best hobby shops in the valley (Phoenix) when I was younger, but was stupidly far away from both my home and my office.  I ended up at Hobby Bench in the far north valley (some 50 miles from my house).  Hobby Bench did not disappoint on selection, with 3 full shelves dedicated just to wooden ship models!  There were probably 40 or so kits to choose from.  Unfortunately nobody in the shop that evening had a clue about wooden ship modeling, so I just randomly picked the Carmen by Constructo as it looked nice, and didn't look super complicated or difficult as compared to the big square riggers, nor was it a simple one-piece hull model.
 
I bought the kit, a bunch of random stuff that I thought would be useful, and headed home, where I opened up the box and saw that there was certainly some assembly required!
 

 
Now that I had the kit, I was excited to begin, and being somewhat of an impatient person by nature anyway, I dug right in on Friday night at about 8:00 and started assembly.  In retrospect, this was probably a bad idea, as I did not do many of the things that I've since read on articles and build logs about squaring up the keel and bulkheads, so my false keel & bulkhead assembly is not true.
 

 
The other very early mistake I made was with the stern blocks.  The plans are fairly muddy for a complete newbie like myself, and I thought the blocks needed to be squared up against the bulkhead as seen here.
 

 
Unfortunately, the truth is that they should be aligned with the top of the false keel, not the bulkhead.  This means that my poop deck will not have the correct angle, but I think that once it's complete, I'll probably be the only one that knows it's wrong, I guess time will tell.
 
This shows that the assembly is not square.
 

 
I stayed up was too late playing with my new project, and in the wee hours of Saturday morning, just before 4:00am, I had something that was at least shaped somewhat like a ship.
 

 
After some much needed sleep, I got up, and did some web time, found this site, got on Amazon and ordered some miscellaneous tools and a copy of Historic Ship Models by Wolfram zu Mondfeld.  After lunch, I went back to work on the Carmen.
 
I started off with the shaping of the stem and stern, as the blocks were obviously not the correct shape.  In this area the Constructo plans are seriously lacking, as there are no plans to layout the correct shaping of these pieces.  I did my best guesses from the photographs and what seemed to make sense to me.
 

 

 

 
At this point my plan was to rough shape everything, then move forward and do more/final shaping when I reached a point in the model where other items would give me better reference points.
 

 

 
Continued next post, as I begin on the deck planking...
 

It can be found here - http://modelshipworldforum.com/ship-model-framing-and-planking-articles.php

Keith, as to the fan, hadn't thought of that. i was going to put a piece of tape on the frames to measure down each frame then divide by 5 (mm)
 
I'll check the forum to find a template for the fan and see better how it works. I have seen it used but didn't pay enough attention to see how it works.

I'm with Druxey, don't use CA and there isn't a problem.
As a chemist, acetone is the universal organic solvent, finger nail polish remover is a very dilute version of that., but it has its issues too.
 
Like Andy, I typically use a bit of sand paper or a rasp or file. This helps prepare your fingers for safe cracking also 
 
They do sell a CA de-bonder also but I don't know how well it would works, as I switched to PVA early on in building.

I'm working on the garboard and 2nd plank. Nothing glued yet, but would like some other input as to what I'm thinking of doing.
 
I tried the rounded end on the garboard like Keith did but was having trouble fitting #2 without a lateral bend. So this morning I used a more spile like cut on garboard and used cut a 6.5 mm wide piece of basswood, then cut it to 5mm except for the end which is notched to fit the garboard. Then no lateral bend.
The only thing I think needs to be changed is to cut a wider plank so the end that is notched will go up a little farther keeping the rest at 5mm.
 
Any ideas ?

 
Stopped #2 in the middle of #5
 

 
After the 2nd plank is fitted, will mark of the frames for the rest.

Thanks for the responses. I'm going to mark the frames and restart. Actually, I haven't really started though, just practicing.
 
I see what your both saying about the taper on the bow end of the planks.
 
I may have to get the grog out for this

I'm with Druxey, don't use CA and there isn't a problem.
As a chemist, acetone is the universal organic solvent, finger nail polish remover is a very dilute version of that., but it has its issues too.
 
Like Andy, I typically use a bit of sand paper or a rasp or file. This helps prepare your fingers for safe cracking also 
 
They do sell a CA de-bonder also but I don't know how well it would works, as I switched to PVA early on in building.

Looking Good John
and this "WILL" turn out to be more fun then you thought.
 
Just a few thoughts
You will find as you work your way down the planking, that the bending will take less time then the shaping involved in the narrowing of the planks and the beveling of the edges so the planks sit flush against each other. It you have access to a syringe, they make great and fast glue applicators and its easy to blunt the tip with a file, by filing a notch and breaking off the tip. I say this as I would suggest running a bead of PVA between plank edges so the planks are attached to each other as well as the frames.
 
If you can't find access to a syringe.... Tammy works in an OR and has access to unused left overs they pitch. The 10ml control syringes with finger loops are nice and when capped the glue keep indefinitely like in a bottle. Just send a PM if needed. 
 
Congrat's on the first plank, now prepare for a nice twist on that garboard
 
Also, are you planning to use a planking fan to mark the plank thicknesses on the bulkhead's. IIRC I did that after getting the top and garboards on. I found this invaluable for shaping and narrowing each plank. Taking the extra time to do the first planking  well, I discovered that 2nd planking really just is more work.
My San Francisco kit, which is one of the ones that comes with double planking... after the second planking I purchased wood to single plank it and save the hassle of planking twice. The newer kit comes single planked and I've seen some beautiful planking jobs (Randy's come to mind - AKA lamarvalley)