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I finished painting the cockpit seats.  I also added the knees atop the last thwart and the knees and bracket along the inside of the transom.  The knees on the transom were tricky but not too bad.  They need to be beveled along the sides and back to fit the angles of the bulwarks and transom.  Also note that the center bracket or panel on the transom was added to the top of the stern post and sanded flush.  But before doing so, the stern post was reduced in height about 1/16" first.  This allowed the top of the panel to sit flush with the top of the transom.  Once this was glued into position and the knees added on either side,  they were all sanded flush with each other so you couldnt see any seams.  I used some wood filler for this too.  Once painted it looks nice and clean.  The notch on the center of that panel is used as a guide to file that same notch through the transom as well.  You can see that in the photos. I hope that makes sense.
 
Next up working my way forward will be the windlass.
 


 
 

Moving right along.....I will be working my way forward on the interior.  None of the thwarts are glued into position just yet.  There will be some things that need to be done to many of them as I work my way forward.  For example,  the seats in the cockpit need to be notched into the aft thwart.  The seats are what I did next.
 
The seats are laser cut in two layers just like the thwarts.  The laser char was removed from their edges and then they were glued up so there was a decorative edge on one side like shown in the photos and on the plans.  The two side seats were "tweaked" for the best fit first.  They are laser cut a bit long on purpose to give everyone some wiggle room with this.  You will be shaping and sanding and test fitting many times over until these fit properly.  Everyone's model will very slightly so the notches for the frames will need to be filed in.  BUT .....
 
-first, I beveled the aft edge of the seats so they sit flush against the transom which is angled.
 
-then I held the seat in position against the frames so I could mark their locations on the seat.
 
-I filed the notches for the frames a little at a time constantly testing the fit and adjusting.  The edge of the seat against the frames also must be beveled to sit properly against the inside planking. 
 
-When the slots for the frame were acceptable, I laid the seat in position to cut its forward edge to length knowing that it will be notched into the last thwart. You can see the notch I filed into the thwarts below.  Basically you must file away the lower layer of the thwart.
 

In the next photo you can see how it looks after test fitting.
 

Once they were glued into place,  the center seat was treated the same way and adjusted to fit.
 

 
This is how the whole model looks at this point.  Its getting close now with only a few more details to add.  The seats in the cockpit area will be painted red like one of the contemporary models.  The two contemporary models are painted differently but I think I will follow the scheme shown below in the unrigged contemporary version.  I also posted a photo of the rigged contemp. model to show you guys the difference.
 


 

Installing the risers was up next.  They are designed in two pieces for each side.  They are laser cut with notches in them for the thwarts.  This means that the placement of these is crucial.  The very first thing I did was measure off the plan the distance from the top of the caprail down to the top edge of the riser.  I did this at every frame on both sides of the model so I was sure these would be placed at the same level port to starboard.  The aft piece is the first to be glued into position.  But I did add the nails ahead of time because I think it would be easier.  So I clamped it in position temporarily to mark the frame along the riser and then after unclamping, I drilled and inserted the fishing line for the nails.   This first piece is left a bit long just like I did with the planking.  So you need to mark the forward end in the middle of the frame and cut off the excess.  This is very important because the next section will butt against it and the thwart notches need to line up.  Its easy enough to do but you must be careful.  Then it was glued into position making sure that the top of aft end was level with the top of the bulkhead frame it sits against.  The cockpit seats will sit on top of this so they need to be level with each other. 
 
You could see the forward section waiting to be glued into position.  No trimming needed.  This just needs to be butt against the aft section tightly.
 

 
Here you can see both sections of the risers in position.

Then I made up the thwarts.  Like the floorboards these have a fancy edge.  Since scraping Cedar is problematic, I made each thwart in two layers glued together.  I just cleaned the char of the edges and glued the layers together creating an even fancy edge on both sides.
 
These are laser cut extra long as well.  You will need to cut them to length so they fit in the notches nicely.  You may have some that require some notching around the frames.  But its pretty straight forward stuff.  These are not glued in yet.  I will wait until I make the cockpit seats next and after some detailing on those which I will describe,  they will be glued unto position.  The center thwart with the cut away for the mast also needs detailing before it can be glued into position.  Its finally moving along and actually looks like a boat!!!  It wont be long now!!!
 
Feel free to ask me any questions.  This model really shows the beauty of the yellow cedar which I am really liking the more I use it.
 


 
 
 
 

I did finally finish the nailing of the external planks.  That took a long time.  My advice would be to really consider how long it takes to drill all of those holes and insert the 10 pound black fishing line.  I think its quite worthwhile but once you commit to it you have to follow through and do it to the entire model.  So think it over first.
 

 
Once that was done, I could work on the inside...finally.  The photos below show the floorboards and platforms in position.  The floorboards are a bit different than you might be used to.  This is the way they are made on the contemporary model and I actually found some original drafts of longboats that show them this way as well.  Its very interesting and I think its a nice detail to add to make this longboat model a bit unique and different from other kits of the same subject matter.
 


It may be hard to tell from my photos but the center plank and two outside planks of the floorboards have a rabbet along their edges.  Normally I would scrape these details into the planks but Yellow Cedar doesnt scrape well.  So instead I made these three floorboards in two layers.  They are all pre-spiled and laser cut.  The finished thickness for the floorboards is 1/16".  So two 1/32" layers were used.  They were glued together to leave the rabbet on both sides although the outside planks of the floorboards only have a rabbet on one side.  You guys will see this on the plans.  Once completed I marked the locations where the frames would be so I could add the simulated nails before I glued the floorboards on the model.  See below.
 

The thinner floorboards were easy enough to glue into position.  Its the wider boards that were a bit tricky.  These are 1/16" thick as mentioned and because they are quite wide it was more difficult to pre-bend and glue into position.  Should anyone have trouble with this there are other solutions.  You could make these out of two layers of 1/32" stock like the other floorboards and glue each layer into position separately.  They would bend more easily that way.  You could also convert the wider floorboards into two thinner strips too.
 
The platforms were pretty straight forward.  Each of the pieces are laser cut and after gluing them together edgewise they are ready for test fitting.  I also ran some 1/16 x 3/16" strips across the bottom of the platforms to give it strength.  Probably just like they do in real life.  I also added one of these across the flat edge of each platform which will show so take your time with this.  The platforms were nailed off the model as well.  
 

 
A look at the bottom of the aft platform...it aint pretty, but it doesnt have to be.   One feature not laser cut into the platforms are the notches for each frame.  Everyone's model will be slightly different as they may shift.  So you must mark there locations and file the notches before final placement can be finished.  Its not hard to do.  You may want to trace each platform on some card stock first and locate the notches that way as an alternative.  Then transfer them to your cedar versions.  The bow platform is a bit trickier because of its location.  So I recommend that you do make a card templete first and transfer it to your glued up version.  I made the pieces for the bow platform over-sized to compensate for the wide variety of bow shapes everyone will have.   But you can see how mine look ad are shaped.  Note how the notches are also beveled so they sit nicely against the frames.  This is something you will need to do as well.  The bow platform is done exactly the same way.
 


A look at the contemporary model.
 

 
 
 
 

Beautiful work Albert. Are you using a milling machine or chisel for the joinery work?

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

So, you cut those boat parts with the Death Star? Very nice.

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

Mark, ANCRE has a book called “French Frigates” The frigates in the French Navy 1650-1850 (available in English).
 
l have not seen the book so don’t know if it would be of any help to you. Maybe ANCRE could help point you in the right direction for you carving details anyway.

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

I had already planned to purchase the Whinnie when it's ready for sale but as a group build I don't know. For many of us a build like that would be at a minimum of a couple of years to build. With a project that large and involved and builders pace there would be people all over the place as far as progress goes. Would this work for a group build? On the other hand it would sure help a beginner like me to do it with a group.

Looks great from here Mark. I know what you mean about having to set the fun stuff aside now and then. It's not always a smooth road.

Thanks for the patience on this build, the advice, and the likes.
 
It's been slow going what with personal issues, re-cutting some pieces, etc.   Here's where I am on the this first ship's boat.  The build jig has been built and the keel and the two risers on each side are installed.  The risers still need a bit of tweaking as to some bits and pieces where the planking will run and then glue them into position.  I'm pretty pleased with how it's going just need more time and focus.   After the tweaks, the next step is to cut out the ribs and install them.  I see from the photos, I need to do some more clean up of the char on the keel and the risers.
 

She looks absolutely amazing Peter.

Well, its been a while so I better post another update on the build. I finished the Bowsprit assembly up until the rigging.
It hasn't been without its challenges. I made the bowsprit twice because I wasn't happy with the 1/4" dowel size, I thought it a bit too small compared to the size on the plan. The saddle looked to be the simplest part (and probably is ) but took me 4 attempts. And the Dolphin Striker broke off as I was working on the Gammoning. Luckily it broke on a glued connection so after cleaning I could glue it straight back on and didn't have to re-do it.
The bowsprit collars were seriously fiddly and I am starting to struggle to understand how and/or where some of the rigging lines start and end, resulting in some results that don't match the instructions. So far I have managed to hide them but I need to do some research in this area.
Anyway, enough dribble, here are some photo's.

I have a question.
In the manual, one of the instructions explains to 'lash the corresponding hearts with 0.008" tan rigging line'. These lashings are everywhere in the model. I have studied these photo's but I can't figure out where to start and end these lines and how they are tied together. I can't see any half knots or glued ends.
I feel a bit stupid, but can anyone explain how these are done so neatly.
Cheers, Peter

This is going to be a great group build. I think a bunch of us will learn quite a lot from it.

It's looking pretty good Lou. I know just what you mean about the edge bending. There must be some trick that we haven't figured out yet. 

This is going to be a great group build. I think a bunch of us will learn quite a lot from it.

You guys sure have some good solutions. I opted for a painters easel on wheels with a white board on it. My only mistake was not getting a magnetic white board. I may end up replacing it with one.

That looks like a great space Tom. The natural light is a big bonus.

Your deck looks really nice. The caulking is perfect. 

That looks like a great space Tom. The natural light is a big bonus.