Willie L Bennett by Richard Bradfield - Model Shipways - 1/32 Scale - first build - Skipjack

[Richard Bradfield]

Russ, Wayne, Bob and Buck, thanks for checking in on my build log and thanks for the comments.

[Timothy Wood]

Richard,

 

It's been a while since I've checked in on you and your build!  What a a beautiful jou you have done, she is truly a joy to look at.  You should be proud!

 

Tim  

[Richard Bradfield]

Tim, thanks for checking in.

 

The last few days I've been working on the iron works for the rigging. First pic is the bobstay plates, a pretty simple job.   

Next was working on the bowsprit iron. I must admit that for me these little pieces are quite a challenge at this scale (large by the standards on this forum). I give unlimited kudos to all the model builders that do a far superior job on a much smaller scale.  I guess practice does make perfect. 

I next moved on to the boom. That is a very busy stick of wood, with the boom iron, cheek blocks, cleats, fairleads, boom jaws and eyelets for the sail lacing.

Next ,I moved onto the mast with the mast head band, cleats and boom rest and fake mast wedges at deck level. I also readied the mast hoops by washing them in CA glue to strengthen them, then sanding the excess glue to ready for paint. 

Finally I worked on the rudder. I made the steering horns, but have not yet attached them.  These things are pretty small and I can't see how the heck I could put three nails in each and also solder a fillet onto them, so I cheated a bit.  Only one nail hole and no fillet! 

All this iron work will be painted white as will the boom the bowsprit and  a bit of the mast. Made some good progress but still have a long way to go.  I want to get this build finished so I can start my Victory Tug!

 

 

[gerty]

Terrific work Richard !   Lookin' good !

[Richard Bradfield]

Hey Gerty, thanks for checking in on my log. I have since painted everything and am ready to move on. I think my next task will be to paint the bottom some shade of red. I'm not sure if I want to paint it with a brush or use a spray can. I also need to prepare a base to mount it on as once the bottom is painted I can use the work vise. I think I'll go with a cradle mount in lieu of pedestals. When are we going to get to see more of your build? Its been a little lonely being the only Bennett builder posting here lately. I need to see how bad I've screwed mine up, so come on and post some progress pictures!

[captainbob]

Size doesn't mater, the metal work is great.

 

Bob

[Cap'n Rat Fink]

Very Nice Richard, very Nice....!  I really like this kit from Model Shipways. It has a lot of detail in it and provides a lot of fun with it. I prefer the more difficult kits like this one to build. It involves a great detail of framing and pushes the modeler. I also like the link to the Library of Congress. Most don't know about going there for boats. I didn't for a long time...

 

I AM ENJOYING YOUR BUILDING PROGRESS!!!

[Timothy Wood]

Splendid work! 

 

Tim

[russ]

Richard:

For painting the red bottom, I would use a good paint brush. I use artist's acrylics. Very inexpensive. I put on several very thin coats over several days.

 

For the color, I recently saw a local catboat down here that had a great shade of red.

 

Russ

[Richard Bradfield]

Bob, Mario, Tim and Russ, thanks for checking in on my build and thanks for the comments. Russ, that is exactly the red I intend to use. Looks just like the antifouling paint I've seen used on the real thing.

[Richard Bradfield]

Here is a pic of the mast boom and bow sprit painted and positioned on the boat. Nothing is permanently attached.  

 

 

[russ]

So far that looks very good.

 

Russ

[joshukr]

Richard,

 

Wow, you are just moving right along. It is looking great. The metal work you have done in my humble opinion is very impressive.

 

-josh

[SkerryAmp]

Richard, wonderful job on your Bennett!!    I really like how your dredges came out, time consuming but well worth the results!!!

 

-Adam

[mischief]

Well I finished the second bilge pump and it turned out as good as the first. I started building the oyster dredges yesterday and quit in order to come up with a better more organised method. So I went and bought a nice piece of poplar to serve as a build board for the dredges, made a copy of the dredge plans and taped it to the board. Then I spent the next two and a half hours cutting and shaping the pieces for the frame for one of the two dredges.  Oh yeah, I also went to the local craft store and bought a pair of 4mm X 2mm Bale Making pliers and a pair of Round Nose Pliers from the jewelry department which helped a bunch.  Went to the local supermarket and bought a bag of White Pearl Onions just for the bag, as it will work very well for the netting on the dredges ( I need to find a recipe to use the onions!)  Now I need to come up with a plan or jig to hold these parts so I can assemble them. I intend to bolt the pieces I made eyelets for together and solder the rest of the joints. I think I will make it in sections, the two sides and the bottom then assemble and finish soldering the connecting braces and joints.  I may staple the individual pieces in place to the build board then use FloTemp paste solder to join them.  Hopefully I will be successful. I will post my results. Here are a couple pics of the 23 pieces needed to to construct the dredge frame. I still need to cut and shape the pieces for the second dredge and make a rake for each one. 

Picture 030.jpgPicture 031.jpg

 

Hopefully it will look like this when finished.  Picture 032.jpg

 

Richard,for a net pick up a white hair net from the bakery at Wall Mart

[Richard Bradfield]

Russ, Josh, Adam, and "mischief", thanks for checking in and for the comments. Josh, I've been waiting to see an update on your build! Come on man, post it! Mischief, I will check out the hair net, thanks for the tip. It just dawned on me the other day while in the shower that I have a great source of net material right under my nose. I have one of those fluffy body scrubbing thingies that may be perfect. Its white, small openings and wrinkly.

[Richard Bradfield]

So over the last several days, I've been working on more metal work.  This time its the A-Frame for the dredges.  This was quite a challenge since I suck at soldering, but after several disasters I got er done! The cable pulleys were almost fun to make.  I made the actual pulley by forcing some wood dowel into a 3/32 copper tube, then I scribed a line on the tube with my scroll saw for the groove, then hand filed it further. I still need to paint them. After I finished them, it dawned on me that I could have just filled the piece of tubing with solder and had a stronger piece. Maybe next time.  I also worked a bit on my bilge pumps by cutting them down to a lower profile, then painted them, you guessed it, White!  Pics follow.

 

 

Here it is positioned on the boat for a look.

 

I had thought about leaving the pumps in brass, but I like the white just as well.  Its more correct anyway since they were actually made from galvanized tin. I need to work on them a bit to get a flusher fit on the deck

 

 

Next, I will work on the dredge rollers.

 

Thanks for looking! 

[russ]

The A frame looks very good. I like the pumps as well. I agree that the paint looks better than leaving them plain. Nice job.

 

Russ

[hamilton]

Hi Richard

 

Wonderful work - I love the detail you've added - it really brings the model to life! 

hamilton

[Richard Bradfield]

Russ and Hamilton, thanks for your comments.

[captainbob]

Nice work on that frame.  I love the metal strapped blocks.

 

Bob

[Richard Bradfield]

Bob. Thanks for the comment.  I really appreciate the positive comments you and the other seasoned model shipwrights provide.  Being new to the hobby its nice to know I seem to be on the right track.  At least I haven't gotten a "Whoa there, what are you doing" comment.

 

I ran out of brass strips and couldn't work on some of the ironwork I had intended. I ordered a "boat load" of brass strips and tubing, C and I beams so I should not run out again, ever!  So I decided to piddle a little bit and wanted to check out the waterline I marked on my boat.  I put it in the bathtub and it floated true for a few seconds, then started taking on water.  Took me a minute to figure out that the centerboard case was not water proof! Oh well, I have a nice clean bilge now, and I need to redo my waterline markings.  I then decided to move on to putting the safety guards on the dredge winder.  After some thought I decided to try using card stock in lieu of metal.  It actually was much easier and should work just fine. The following pictures show my process.  It took me about 6 hours to do two of them.  They look better than the the pictures show them to be.  I'm happy with the result.

 

[Timothy Wood]

Richard,

 

You are doing a super job, it's always a joy to drop in you your build log.  I hope I can do 1/2 as good of a job on my Skipjack as you are doing on your kit!

 

Tim

[russ]

The card stock looks good. I have used poster board in a few of my builds and had some good results. Very nice work on yours.

 

Russ

[captainbob]

I use old file folders myself.  Lot easier than brass.

 

Bob

[Dandyfunk]

Richard:

I really like your A-frame, you did a very good job on it. Obviously your soldering skills have improved significantly. The card stock for the dredge guards looks good, if it works use it!

[dgbot]

Great work on your A frame.  And I like the look  of your dredge guards.  A great way of thinking outside the box.

David B

[Richard Bradfield]

Tim, Russ, bob and Davidb, thanks for checking in on my build and for the gracious comments. They are appreciated!  

Danb, I think perseverance is the word to describe my improved soldering skills. I'm not really sure what is going on with my ability there, it is just so hit or miss. Anyway thanks for the comment as it did turn out pretty well.  I painted the bottom of my boat over the last few days and really like the results.  That Tamiya masking tape is great.  Really got a clean waterline and I only need to touch up the white color where I screwed up the taping.  I was expecting to have to paint a green pinstripe between the white and red, but I have such a crisp line I'm not sure I want to anymore. I also made the cradle for the boat and have only to paint and position them on the display board, but I need to let the paint dry for a day or so.  Pics to follow.

 

This is the first coat. 

Second coat. 

Third coat.

Fourth coat. 

Removing the tape and exposing the waterline. 

Wow, I'm so happy with the result, here is another picture! 

And another. 

Here are a couple pics of the cradles I made for displaying the boat.  Still need to fine tune them to the hull, mount,  and finish.  I'll do that tomorrow when the bottom is good and dry.  

 

 

[russ]

That red color is right on the mark. Very nice look. It looks great without the pinstripe. I would go with it as is. It looks really good.

 

Russ

[dgbot]

Great paint job.  Did you use a brush or did you spray it on?

David B