America by hamilton - FINISHED - Mamoli - 1:66 scale

[rafine]

You seem to have made very good use of your extra free time.

 

Bob

[hamilton]

Yes, Bob - I'm pretending I'm retired!! 

 

And yes, Augie - I'm already appreciating it, though I've learned it needs a bit of finessing to stay true....been putting in some work on America today and made quite a bit of progress - almost finished the framework and starting to puzzle out the planking - always a weak spot of mine, but.....

hamilton

[hamilton]

Well thew first major milestone has been reached - I've finished the framework - well, finished but for the fairing - and will proceed soon with the first planking. The last parts of the framework were

 

1. addition of some fillers at the bow

2. addition of a strip on the forward sub-deck to support the aft deck

3. adjustment of inside edges of bulkhead 14 to fit cockpit sub-deck

4. installation of aft deck

5. shaping and installation of stern filler blocks

6. installation of transom pieces atop aft deck

 

1. Bow fillers

 

I think I mentioned earlier that the foredeck is a little short of the stem at the bow. Just for my own piece of mind and to provide a secure foundation for the margin/nibbing strake, I cut a small piece from the billet on which the sub-decks came, glued it and sanded it to shape - here it is

 

 

 

 

A couple of bow fillers were also placed port and starboard on the false keel - these were shaped prior to installation, though they likely need a tiny bit more work which I'll take care of during the fairing....

 

 

 

2. Quarter-deck step filler

 

This is a walnut strip 1mm x 4mm, cut to fit between the bulkhead extensions atop the sub-deck at bulkhead 8. Very straightforward.

 

 

3. Adjustment of bulkhead 14

 

In the last post I noted that I forgot to notice that the inside depression on bulkhead 14 was cut too narrowly to accept the circular sub-deck for the cockpit. I only noticed this after the bulkheads were installed....I had marked the points on the bulkhead top where they would need to be cut to be flush with the cockpit opening on the aft sub-deck. Today, I used a combination of an x-acto saw and a scalpel blade to carve out notches and correct the bulkhead

 

 

 

 

4. Installation of aft deck

 

Again - pretty straightforward - learning from my experience with the foredeck, I decided to drill the pilot holes through the bulkhead and keel tops - this made inserting the small brass nails much easier than it was with the fore deck, though I still had to use a small hammer, since I cannot find my tac hammer anywhere.....No photos of this, but see later ones of the completed framework.

 

5. Stern filler blocks

 

This was a very involved process. The filler blocks come as 3 4mm thick blocks that must be glued together to form the basis of the stern filler. Two of these blocks have notches cut into them for the rudder/sternpost, while the largest and closest to the underside of the sub-deck has none. I drew a centre line on the topmost one (without the slot) and used that to line them all up - here they are glued and clamped.

 

 

Once the glue was set, I held up the assembly in place and roughly marked the position of the flat transom area to distinguish it from the curved sides - this was just a rough estimate to get the shaping of the piece started

 

 

I first used a sanding block to soften the edges and define the flat transom area more clearly. I then threw a sanding drum into my dremel and rough shaped the filler

 

 

 

 

I noticed as I held the piece in place that it did not sufficiently cover bulkhead 15, so I added some small basswood blocks to it and reshaped it to fit - it is still not perfect, but bulkhead 15 will be faired into the fillers, so I'm not too worried. I used the dremel again to work it into a more refined shape, and then a sanding block to ensure the flatness of the transom area - it's really difficult to get a shot of the thing that clearly shows its shape, but.....

 

 

 

 

I then glued and clamped the fillers onto the sub-deck and bulkhead 15 - there was, at this point, still some final shaping to do, but it needed to be on the hull for this to happen so I could ensure a good fit

 

 

Finally I drew on the edge of the flat transom area on with a pencil - this pencil mark defines the rough location of the aft end of the hull planking and the area of the transom planking. It looks uneven in the photo, but it's not in reality, I swear

 

 

6. Installation of transom pieces on deck

 

The kit includes 2 4mm thick pieces that are designed to serve as the transom above decks. I was worried that they wouldn't fit, but they fit perfectly - leaving the required 2mm lip on the outside which will become a prominent feature of the aft end of the hull once the planking is done.

 

 

 

That's it, then - the first phase is done, and now it's on to the planking....we'll see how this goes. In the meantime, here's a photo of the finished framework......

 

 

Thanks for dropping by

 

hamilton

Edited September 30, 2015 by hamilton

[bmudry]

Excellent idea on the building board, and one I shamelessly copied.  :-)

 

I now have a 2' copy of yours for any future projects that I don't feel comfortable with in the amanti keel clamp I have.  I took it a bit wider though so that there is plenty space to put a square on either side for when I am putting the ribs in to keep them aligned.

[hamilton]

I'm flattered!! I myself borrowed the idea from another builder on MSW - but because I find myself constantly trolling these pages, I don't remember who! (sorry!!!). 

 

I thought the bolts on my keel clamp would end up disrupting the planking at mid-ships, but it turns out that it will be ok. Just to be safe, though I will likely file down the ends of the bolts (or simply invest in shorter bolts!) prior to planking. I'm happy not to have to make a building board/keel clamp every time I start a new model!!

 

In other news, I've started fairing the frames and I can already tell it's going to give me headaches. A couple of the bulkheads really need filing down (4 on the starboard side and 14 on the port, e.g.), while others need a bit more shimming. These are the kinds of issues that seem to show up most obviously once everything is in place - a lot of elbow grease to be expended over the next couple of evenings......

 

I'm also starting to wrap my head around the planking. It's going to be a bit tricky if I follow the order of things as Mamoli has laid it out....I may deviate from their suggested system of planking and follow what feels more natural (and easier!) to me - or I may try out the system they recommend and see where it starts to break down.....anyways....I don't think I'll be starting the planking for another week or so. Work remains nutty and I can really only dedicate Saturday evenings to modelling......a shame, but the mortgage is not going to pay itself!

 

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canucks! 

hamilton

[augie]

Time and care spent in fairing will pay off in the end.

[hamilton]

Thanks Augie! I think I read the same thing in this week's horoscope! Happy modelling!

hamilton

[hamilton]

Hello all:

 

The starboard side is now faired. I used one of the thicker strips of planking (2 x 3mm) to test the run of the planks - I thought a stiffer plank might show up areas in need better. I had to do quite a bit of shimming in the aft part of the hull and white a bit of trimming forward. One confusing element is that in the relatively short span between bulkhead 4 and bulkhead 3 the hull sharpens quite a bit. I'm used to bluffer bows so my instinct was to fill in the gap, but I had to stop myself, remembering that this is a racing yacht! Anyway, on to the port side at some point - tomorrow's the big turkey dinner, so it won't likely be until next weekend....

 

As I was fairing the hull, though, I did pretty much make up my mind to alter the order of the planking as laid out by Mamoli. The instructions advise the builder to first "install" the two bulwark strips (1mm x 3mm), and then plank downward from there, beginning with 2 thicker (2 x 3mm) strips that end up getting thinned down and blending into the thinner hull planking at about mid-ships. This approach was really confusing me, since the bulkhead extensions, onto which you would think to glue the bulwark planks, are to be removed. So effectively, the bulwark planks would be attached to nothing. Hard to conceive.

 

So here's what I've decided to do. I'll start with one of the thicker planks at the stern, with the top edge flush with the sub-deck, so I can actually fix it to the hull. I'll run this plank up to bulkhead 8, which is where the step between aft and fore decks is located. I'll then install a thinner (1.5mm x 4mm) plank below this first one, running it to the bow. I tested this a bit using clamps to fix the first plank in place and discovered that the top of the second plank will be flush with the fore deck - exactly where I want it to be. Once these are set, I'll plank up the bulwarks edge gluing the planks to the ones already installed....

 

Even writing this down I can foresee a couple of possible issues with my alternative, but why not give it a shot? I can always remove the planks and start again if need be...I'm in no great hurry, after all....

 

Bye for now - I'll post more photos once I start putting the planks on

hamilton

[hamilton]

Hello all - a brief update. I've been spending a few minutes here and there fairing and shimming the outside edges of the bulkhead frames in preparation for planking. It's so hard to document this work that I'm not bothering. I'll only say that I tried very hard to be extra careful this time - often I find the fairing process so dreary that I'll rush through it only to pay the price later.....Anyway, hopefully the extra attention pays off!

 

The first bit of planking is also complete - two planks covering the outside of the transom piece. At some point I'll explain how and why I'm going to deviate from the planking scheme suggested in the Mamoli instructions. But for now, suffice to say that I'm replacing the wood for the first planking (and possibly the second, too). Mammal supplies Walnut for the first planking for the wales and bulwarks and thicker lime (1.5mm) for the lower hull. I'm replacing all of this with basswood of various dimensions. Again, I'll save my explanation and itemization for a later update once I've gone into the planking and seen how my approach works (or doesn't!).

 

I used 1mm x 3mm basswood for the two transom planks. I soaked both of them in hot water for roughly 30 minutes and then very gently turned them around the transom piece, using micro fold-back clips to hold the pieces in place. This first photo shows the piece clamped on and being shaped (no glue yet). 

 

 

I left this piece there to dry for about 20 minutes or so and then unclipped it. It sprang back a little and I noticed that the laser burn from the transom piece had stained the basswood slightly - though since this is on the inside, it's not really an issue. Here is it.

 

 

And here it is installed - sorry for the poor focus!

 

 

I then repeated this procedure for the second plank. When I clamped the plank to shape it however, I had to angle one of the clips a little bit, which ended up pinching the wood....a minor distortion which I'll correct with some wood filler and sanding. 

 

Also - the planks do not cover the entire height of the laser-cut transom piece. There is a space of about 1mm or a bit less that will need to be shaved off. The transom piece will also need to be thinned down to about half its width through the whole piece. I only noticed this aspect of the plans after the transom was installed, so I will have to thin it at a taper from bottom to top. I don't own a good set of micro chisels, otherwise, I'd try to use those to thin it consistently from the deck to the rail......Anyway, here's a shot of the planked transom piece prior to final adjustments (trimming down transom piece flush with planking; filling and lightly sanding the planking for evenness).

 

 

Finally, it seems, I'll have to make some adjustments to the point where the transom piece meets the extensions on bulkhead 15. First, the extension itself needs to be raised flush to the level of the bulwark planking. This is because the plans show the waterway terminating at bulkhead 15, which unlike the other extensions (which will be removed), will be thinned down flush with the inner edge of the transom piece (I've done this roughly here) to form a bulwark stanchion. I personally think it will look weird to have the waterway end at this point. I think it should run the whole circumference of the deck, including across the stern at the base of the transom. Perhaps I'm wrong, though - I'll need to give it some thought as I approach the deck planking part of the build.....Anyway, here's a photo that illustrates the work to be done...

 

 

That's all for now - I might get to squeeze another night's modelling out tonight if I can get some work done this afternoon, but I can never bank on having more than 1 night a week these days.....makes progress slow...

hamilton

[hamilton]

So I did end up making some time for the America this evening. The first part of the night was spent fiddling with the aft bulwark extensions to make sure that the planking will run true. I also marked out the area on the transom piece that needs to be trimmed away. Here it is.

 

 

I then continued to think a bit more about the planking. As I've mentioned, I'm deviating from Mamoli's approach. The photo on the box clearly shows a defined step marking out the top of the wales and running along the hull at the level of the aft deck. This step disappears forward and the wales blend into the hull planking. I couldn't see how Mamoli's planking scheme would produce this result. Here's what they suggest

 

1. Lay two 1 x 3mm strakes from the transom forward with the lower edge flush with the top of the aft deck - these are the bulwark strakes. The problem is that there really is nothing to attach these to, since the bulwark extensions will be removed.

 

2. Lay two 2 x 3mm strakes below the bulwarks - these are the wales. But if these were to run the whole length of the hull, then to create the blending on the image in the box, I'd have to sand down the planks even with the bulwark strakes all the way from mid-ships to the bows. This hardly seemed right

 

3. plank the remainder of the hull with 1.5mm x 4mm strakes - this seemed fine.

 

I decided to go a different route with steps 1 and 2. For step 1, I first laid one of the wale planks (2 x 3mm) from mid-ships (b/h 8) back to the transom - it had to bend quite a bit there so I thinned it slightly and soaked it to bend around the counter - there ended up being a bit of a kink here which I'll sand out. I used fold-back clips to provide an upper limit to the planks so they would lay flush with the deck. Here are a couple of images

 

 

 

 

 

I then added a second 2mm x 3mm strake immediately below it with the same run - bulkhead 8 to the transom. 

 

 

The next step was to take a thinner strip - 1mm x 3mm - and ran this forward from the lower of the two thicker strakes forward - this strake is flush with the top of the forward deck. It was then a matter of blending the thicker aft strake into the thinner forward one. It's not perfect at the moment, but with a bit more work i think it'll work ok....

 

 

 

 

 

The second planking will have to be done a bit differently, but this is for later....for now, it's bedtime

hamilton

[Leo-zd]

------

There is also a particular oddity about this kit. The instructions state that the second planking should only go as far down the hull as the waterline, after which the second planking is replaced by small wooden pieces simulating copper plates. To my way of thinking this seems like a very difficult way to approach the planking of the hull, and if anyone who has built this kit can give me guidance here I'd appreciate it! I'm tempted to just apply the second planking to the entire hull. There's not enough material supplied in the kit to accomplish this, but given that the hull is "coppered" and painted it won't make much matter what material I use for the lower part....

 

---

hamilton

 

 

 

Hi

Sorry for late responding, I've seen just now your topic.

I did this model and also I wasn't so convinced with the method for underwater part of hull indicated in instructions. But.. it works and well.

Obviously if you wont to use copper plates it's another story but if you work as indicated it's OK .

In this case you mustn't made the second planking because of it's thick but only use the green pieces from kit.

Be sure  that with complete operation of painting and "oldering" it will be realistic (if you don't use take a look on "plastic" modelers tricks "washing" and "dry brush"

Edited October 19, 2015 by Leo-zd

[hamilton]

Hi Leo:

 

Thanks for this. I am going to copper the hull, but I'll use copper tape cut into plates - it's much thinner than the plates provided in the kit and it will allow me simply to plank the entire hull rather than trying to cut the second planking off at the waterline. I'm going to experiment with some techniques for weathering the copper when the time comes. Thanks again for the comment!

hamilton

[hamilton]

So I've been giving it some thought and I think I'm going to strip the planks I laid down last night off the model and start again - thankfully I've not gone too far. My reason is that I think I've been using the wrong sizes of wood stock.....I need to resupply at a local hobby shop and begin again.

 

The main issue is the incremental but cumulatively significant differences in metric versus imperial measures - the material I'm using to substitute for the kit supplied walnut is in Imperial....the width is less of an issue than the thickness....I'm going to invest in some wood strips for each section (bulwarks, wales, lower hull) that are very slightly thicker and then sand to blend where necessary....hopefully this is not too foolish

hamilton

[UpstateNY]

Hi Hamilton,

 

Very much enjoyed catching up on your build to date....great work!  Thanks for highlighting how you've checked and then shimmed all the parts to match the plans. I am sure this will pay big dividends as you complete the hull.

 

Pulling up a chair for the rest of the voyage if you don't mind.

 

Cheers,

 

Nigel.

Edited October 20, 2015 by UpstateNY

[hamilton]

Thanks Nigel - much appreciated. She's not much to look at now, of course....looking forward to finishing the first planking to get a sense of her real shape. As I prepare for this, I'm noticing all kinds of little flaws, which will need some careful attention....I don't think I've fretted this much over planking a model for a while....It's always possible I'm overthinking it. Last night I ripped the two planks I installed on the forward side of the hull off and replaced them with 1mm thick kit-supplied walnut - a real waste of nice material, but given the fact that I cannot acquire correct substitution strips locally I will have to use it if I want to hull to turn out right.....I'm heading into an extremely busy time at work these next few weeks so I doubt I will have much time at the bench, which is a shame.....but Christmas is coming and I might get a bit of a reprieve sometime in November.......stay tuned!

hamilton

[dgbot]

Hamilton,  I just came on to your log.  Brings back memories of my America.  You are doing a swell job on a bearcat kit.  Laser cutting just does not work if the program or operator is not paying attention.  I like the way you are double checking your work with the plans.  Using basswood or limewood for the underplanking is a smart move.  One of the things you can do is divide up the hull with battens.  And one these are installed you can get a better look at the run of planking.  Donald Dressel has an excellent book on planking that will spell it out better than I.  Keep up the good work.

David B

[hamilton]

Thanks David - I think my anxiety about the planking is less about the method and more about the material! Initially I wanted to replace Mamoli's planking stock for first planking, but it's impossible to find scale strip wood locally milled to metric sizes and the imperial equivalents are just a little too odd to find in real world hobby shops these days (at least where I live) - 5/32 x 3/16, for example is just not a possibility. I also don't want to incur the expense of ordering relatively small quantities online.....so I'm stuck with Mamoli's planking material. I have to make one small adjustment at the transom, where removing the already-installed 1/32 planks is no longer a possibility (using thicker strips for the second planking) but other than that I'll go with Mamoli's material.

 

What this means is that I'll have to add to the supply of .5mm x 4mm strips used for the second planking of the lower hull, since Mamoli supplies only enough of these to plank to the waterline.....I think I have a number left over from other builds, but I need to check.....I want to use copper tape for the coppering instead of the wood tiles included with the kit....

 

Anyway, back to work!

hamilton

[dgbot]

Hamilton look at Crown Lumber.  The can mill what you need and they are spot on.  The last time went to a NRG conference I won a grab bag of his wood.  When I got back home I measured it and the dimensions were spot on.  He does great work.

http://www.crowntimberyard.com/

David B

[hamilton]

Thanks Dave!

 

I certainly do plan on putting in some orders at Crown in the future - I've got a Syren build coming up that I'm thinking of using at least one of his wood replacement packages for just to give it a whirl. To be honest, I'm not sure this build is the one to drop the money on.....not that I "class" the models in this way, but my capacity to obsess is very high already so I'm trying to tone it down....

hamilton

[Beef Wellington]

I don't think I've fretted this much over planking a model for a while....It's always possible I'm overthinking it

 

Great progress and pictures.  I had to chuckle when I read your comment above, the Farside cartoon below pretty much sums up my permanent state of mind    You my friend have no reason to worry!

Edited October 23, 2015 by Beef Wellington

[hamilton]

Wow, so much about my own life has now been made clear!! Thanks for this Jason - much cheaper than a therapist!

hamilton

[hamilton]

Well this is just a brief place-holding note to say that I've begun the first planking on America - or rather begun again, since I ripped off my first minor attempt a little while ago. So far it's going well. I'm using the kit-supplied planking material after all and planking the forward section first and then I will plank aft - an approach I've taken before with the first planking on my last several builds, and which helps a lot with getting a nice base for the second planking (in my opinion).

 

I'm still a bit befuddled by the bulwark planking....I will have to edge glue the planks and try to avoid gluing them to the bulwark extensions, since these have to come off, while at the same time using the bulwark extensions to ensure that the planks run fair (particularly at the bow where the bulwarks flare outboard - not sure if there's a correct term for this.....). Edge gluing them will be difficult since the planks are thin (1mm) and because the inner face is the exposed inboard bulwark planking and should look neat and tidy......I'm sure I'll find a way to muddle through it, just hard to wrap my head around it at the moment....

 

More on the weekend when hopefully I'll have a chance to sit down at the bench once again

hamilton

[Ferit]

Hi Hamilton,

 

Another fine work after

 

MS Sultana; Corel Brittany Sloop; MS Kate Cory; MS Armed Virginia Sloop; Corel Flattie; Mamoli Gretel; Amati Bluenose; AL San Francisco; Corel Toulonnaise; MS Glad Tidings; HMS Blandford from Corel HMS Greyhound; Fair Rosamund (1832) from OcCre Dos Amigos; Amati Hannah (ship in a bottle)...

 

You are a factory... :-)

 

[hamilton]

Ferit!! It's great to hear from you! You know, I invested in the Corel Berlin a little while ago, so at some point the "factory" will start processing that Brandenburg beauty....though I can't imagine matching your work! hope to "see" you again soon

hamilton

[Ferit]

Your kindness Hamilton,

I have one work Berlin, left on the shelf and a hope Hamburg, living in fantasy :-(

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush but your hands... Beautiful birds on every finger...

I will wait impatiently for your Berlin for great inspiration...

[hamilton]

So I've not been idle, which means very little work has been done on America....I've managed to proceed somewhat on the planking, but it is very slow going....I can only work one evening a week which is just enough time to fit 3 planks on each side - and I'm planking forward from mid-ships first and then the stern section after.....At this rate, it'll be 2 weeks till the forward half of the hull is done (1st planking) and likely another 5-6 weeks for the stern.....things will pick up after Christmas, since my Spring semester is a bit lighter than the Fall, but who knows!

 

Anyway, the planking has gone alright so far. I've had to do some little tricks to get everything to run nicely and the wood is pretty splintery and soft which does not make it easy. After the first two strakes I noticed that the strakes really bent upwards, given the very sharp twist that each strake makes as it moves from the round mid-ship to the more dagger-like bow. The same will be the case in the aft section, where up to the turn of the bilge the strakes run from vertical to horizontal where they tuck in at the counter. 

 

The issues I keep turning over in my mind as the planking proceeds are:

 

1. Should the keel, stem & sternpost be planked with thin strips to form a rabbet for the first planking, or should the planks thin out and taper into them? The plans show the keel planked with the same material used on the hull, which makes no sense, since if I followed through on this the keel would end up being 8mm thick!!! I have thought of ending the first planking at the bottoms of the bulkheads and then using the .5mm second planking to line the hull including the keel, stem & sternpost. This would produce, I think, a more even and much more realistic result.

 

2. How to do the bulwarks. The first layer of planking is 1mm walnut. But I have to edge glue this to the hull planking to fit the strakes since I will have to remove the bulkhead extensions and can only dry clamp the strakes to the extensions to achieve the proper run. The inboard face of these planks will be exposed and if possible, I would like to leave them natural, which means I can't get any PVA on them....I'm at a loss as to how to apply the glue in such a way as to prevent it squeezing out and drying on the inboard face of the planks...any suggestions here would be most welcome.

 

Anyways, here are a few shots of the progress to date - please keep in mind that the planking has not been worked on at all, so it looks pretty rough. Once the whole thing is planked I'll work it over with some filler and sandpaper and hopefully it will shape up nicely.....

hamilton

 

 

 

[hamilton]

Well, after not working on America at all for pretty much the entire month of November I've now been able to return to her for 2 nights in the last week! Though my reasons for keeping away last month were to do with the sheer volume of work I needed to get through at the university, in the last couple of weeks it's more been about a lack of desire....I'm assuming we all feel this from time to time. Anyway, once the first planking was underway, I began seeing a couple of hurdles on the horizon which I think made me slow down. 

 

First is the bulwark planking, which needs to be edge glued in place since the bulkhead extensions will be removed and there is no other inner layer of planking to cover up any imperfections inboard...but second, I've noticed that the transom piece and the bulkhead extensions do not define a fair run of planking along the bulwarks, but knuckle in at the forward end of the transom piece (I'll post a photo of this at some future point...The long and the short is that I'll have to make adjustments to the laser cut transom piece and the bulkhead extensions to get the bulwarks to run fair....A lot of tedious and exacting work! Which of course made finishing the first planking less attractive than spending my nights re-watching that great HBO show Deadwood.

 

But no more....I've now finished the first planking. It's not much to look at, but one thing to note is that it was necessary to feather out the planking strakes along the rabbet line. Not to do so would result in a keel that was 4mm (laser cut part) + 3mm (1.5 + 1.5 first planking) + 1mm (.5 + .5 second planking) - 8mm!! Crazy! So I established a bearding line more or less by rack of eye, since nothing is indicated on the plans, and then feathered out the planking from there, so now the first planking blends into the keel. Here are a couple of photos - again, not pretty.....

 

Here's the first of a few steelers at stern....

 

 

And here it is notched and thinned down provisionally - you can see the pencil line marking the fake rabbet joint along the sternpost....

 

 

Here's the same shot with a glass of local IPA for scale comparison

 

 

And here's the first planking complete - you can sort of see the ends of the planking still to be feathered out at stern.

 

 

It took a lot of work with a #10 x-acto blade to feather out the planking - here is a shot of the planking at stern roughly feathered and prior to good heavy sanding....

 

 

Here's another shot of the same - you can see what a motley job I've done on the planking at stern, bow and midships....I'll try to be neater for the second time around....

 

 

 

 

Anyways, once this rough work was done I laid into it with 100-grit sandpaper. A lot of elbow grease later I got it pretty evenly feathered into the keel. I then went over it with 220 and 400 to smooth it out ready for filling.

 

I use Liquitex acrylic modelling paste for filler, rather than a regular wood filler. The reason is because though it is quite messy to work with, it dries very hard and sands down to an absolute eggshell finish. On a painted hull, having this kind of base for the paint is really important for a nice finish on the hull. It takes quite a bit of work sanding, so I've learned from experience to apply it thinly. Here's the product, followed by a couple of shots of it applied to the hull

 

 

 

 

Well, that's all for now. My next step will be to sand the hell out of the first planking to get it nice and smooth, and then to add .5mm planking to the keel, stem and sternpost. This will create a rabbet joint into which to fit the second layer of hull planking strakes. Then I'll turn my attention to correcting the transom piece and bulkhead extensions and planking the bulwarks....once this gets done, I think I will have successfully turned a tight corner on this build! Bye for now

hamilton

[Falco-_-De]

Interesting build

I think i'll tag along

Michael

[hamilton]

Thanks Michael! 

 

Brief update - now that my work schedule has eased up a bit, I'll finally have a bit of time to dedicate to America. I actually put in some work on it last night - the first time in almost a month....I'm now in the process of planking the keel, stem and sternpost to create a rabbet for the second planking and contemplating how to do the bulwarks....it's a bit of a puzzle....I have this weird idea that once I get the first planking on the bulwarks the build will become easier and more fun!! We'll see if that theory is accurate!

hamilton

[flyer]

Hi Hamilton

 

That's a very interesting build you have there and it's coming along nicely. A bit of modification seems necessary but I think that investing some extra wood and some brain power should pay off well for that graceful vessel.

 

I built Mamoli's La Gloire and found it to be the best kit before I started with CC and Victory kits.

 

Presently I'm working on CC's Pickle but for my next build I'm considering Mamoli's America because I'm starting to like schooners, America is almost in scale 1/64 where a lot of extra fittings are available and I like those elegant, elegant lines.

 

Perhaps you would care for some suggestions:

 

To build up the inner bulwark planking you could treat the inner surface of the planks with varnish before gluing them with white glue onto the bulkhead extensions. You should then be able to brake off the extensions after finishing the bulwarks nevertheless and thanks to the varnish the glue shouldn't have penetrated into the wood. Some little sanding should then clean the inner bulwarks again. If this doesn't work it would perhaps be possible to add an extra inner layer of 0,5 or 1 mm bulwark planking to bring its overall thickness to 2 to 3 mm depending on the other layers. This could work if you have a capping rail with a width of about 5mm which covers all that and still would have an sufficient overhang in- and outboard.

 

For the coppering of the lower hull I would recommend Amati's copper hull plates which are available in 1/64 scale, look excellent and are a pleasure to work with.

 

Cheers

Peter