Cutter Cheerful 1806 by rafine - FINISHED

[Pheasant]

a bit behind you.  as usual your work is impossible to emulate.

 

Great!

 

Terry

[rafine]

Thanks so much Terry. Did you ever finish Essex? Are you working on Cheerful now? If so, I'd again urge you to post a log.

 

Bob

[cookster]

Looks good Bob!

 

1300 holes drilled by hand?  1300 more to do again?  You're more man than me.  I'd definitely be reaching for a rotary tool of some type...

[rafine]

Thanks so much Wes and the "likes". I would reach for the rotary tool as well, but, truthfully, i can't use one to drill those holes without slipping and skipping

 

unless i drill starter holes by hand first.

 

Bob

[Guest Tim I.]

Bob,

 

One thing I have found to help is using a thumb tack to create in an indent for the drill head to sit in. Also working at a very low RPM so as to not "walk" or skip the bit.

 

I do not know if this helps or not. I know what you mean though. I tend to use a pin vice over a rotary tool more, as it offers much more control. Albeit at the cost of a sore wrist or hand.

 

Thank you,

 

Tim

Edited October 8, 2015 by Tim I.

[hamilton]

Fabulous work on the hull Bob - your attention to detail and your precision are an example to us all!

hamilton

[druxey]

Lovely job, Bob. On my first model I drilled all the thousands of treenail holes using a pin vice, so know how you felt! I now 'dimple' the surface with a sharp point and can then confidently use a rotary handpiece (a Proxxon in this case) to drill those holes where I want them.

[archjofo]

Hi Bob,

 

a very nice work.

[rafine]

Thanks so much Hamilton, Druxey, Johann and the "likes".

 

Druxey, actually I've done it both ways -- drilling starter holes by hand and finishing with a Dremel, and drilling all the way by hand. It seems to take about the same time and effort each way.

 

Bob

[Gahm]

Beautiful work, Bob! Absolute pleasure to watch!

 

Thomas

[rafine]

Thanks so much Thomas.

 

Bob

[rafine]

I have now completed the lower planking on the port side. This involved the same process used on the starboard side -- planking, tree nailing, final sanding and repainting of the wale. Although the two sides didn't come out exactly identical, they are very close. The hull is now fully planked.

 

With the completion of this work, it is time to turn my attention inboard and thin down the bulkheads in preparation for the bulwark planking.

 

Bob

[lionfish]

looks awesome, i cant wait to see the rest of it built

[Chuck]

nicely done 

[gjdale]

[Although the two sides didn't come out exactly identical, they are very close.]

 

Are you kidding me Bob?!!! I think we may have different definitions of "close". Very nicely done. Very nice indeed.

[druxey]

Lovely. I'm sure that in the real world, the two sides would be slightly different, so your model is super-realistic!

[Guest Tim I.]

Beautiful work!

 

- Tim

[GLakie]

Your planking turned out superb Bob. Nice!! 

[rafine]

Thanks so much Dirk, Lionfish, Chuck, Grant, Druxey, Tim and George for the generous comments and also to the "likes" for their continuing interest . Always appreciated.

 

Bob

[GuntherMT]

Beautiful planking work!

[Mirabell61]

beautiful pictures of very beautifil work Bob,

 

it is a treat for the eyes to look at...

 

Nils

[mtaylor]

A big milestone and well done getting there, Bob. 

[rafine]

Thanks so much Brian, Nils, Mark and the "likes". Greatly appreciated.

 

Bob

[augie]

The word 'pristine' doesn't even come close.  Sit back for a minute and enjoy the view.

[rafine]

Thanks so much Augie. When are we going to see more of your Confederacy?

 

Bob

[Rustyj]

Hi Bob. I agree with everyone on the superb, as always, planking job! I can't wait to see the inboard work.

[rafine]

Thanks so much Rusty. I'm looking forward to doing it, as well.

 

Bob

[Gahm]

You can be proud of your Cheerful! Fantastic work!

 

Thomas

[rafine]

Thanks so much Thomas.

 

Bob

[rafine]

Inboard work underway. I have thinned down the bulkheads and made and added the false deck. This involved a fair amount of effort, but nothing that was particularly difficult or interesting to see.

 

For the bulkhead thinning, I followed Chuck's lead and started with a Dremel with a rough sanding drum, followed by sanding sticks and chisels. I also added filler strips at the bow and stern to aid in planking and to facilitate the drilling of various holes. When I was satisfied that all  was thin enough and fair, I moved on to the false deck.

 

The deck was cut from basswood sheet using the template in the plans. I cut it a little oversize and trimmed to fit. Before gluing it in place, I cut the mast hole, the opening for the skylight and the notches for the stern frames. I also marked out the positions of the hatches and companionway and also marked the position of the "deck beams" in preparation for deck planking. I cut the deck into four pieces to make gluing it in place a little easier.

 

Now, it's on to the interior bulwark planking.

 

Bob