HMS Bounty by lionfish - Constructo - scale 1:110 - solid hull

[lionfish]

This is my first wooden ship build, as well as my first build log. the kit was given to me by my girlfriend for Christmas, even after she knows how i am with models in general. i finally decided to go for it and build the kit mostly stock, there are some mods i am doing, but nothing over whelming. you all know the story of the bounty so ill skip that part.

 

the kit comes in a nice package with a fold up lid and window, very colorful and full of pictures. half of the step by step instructions are on the box in the form of pictures that show various steps. this is good for those who are just starting out, but a pain to have to keep the box just for a reference. the kit also comes with a few tools, some paint, rigging materials, a few bags of small parts both wood and metal. the metal parts are for the ships wheel, cannons, hand pumps, cabin windows. there is also a few bundles of wire. the wood isnt the best being a little thick for the scale, but it decent if it isnt a big deal to you. all the main parts are pre-die cut. the pre-carved hull is fairly rough, the whole thing needed sanding, and some areas needed reshaping. its not a kit i would say is entry level, due to the roughness of the hull and such unless you have experience in carving. id say the kit is better for someone with experience who is looking for a very simple and quick build.

 

 

in doing my research i decided to copperplate the hull. many ships had this at the time so it seams only right to do so. in fitting and sanding the stem doesnt fit as it should, and in my opinion isnt usable. i sandwhiched two pieces of basswood sheets together and sketched a corrected stem on it. now i just have to take some time with my coping saw to cut it out. i might replace most of the pre-cut parts with my own, but we will see. the instructions say to carve planks into the solid hull, but instead im going to build a false deck and install it on top of the hull. it will allow me to really control the decking, and add that much more material to the lip for the sides. i will try and get some pictures when i can, my phone, which is my primary camera, tried its hand at swimming earlier this week, so snapping pics spur of the moment is out.

 

 

anyway i hope you all enjoy this new journey with me

[lionfish]

today i was able to get the false deck mostly finished, i scribbed the planking and treenails, all i need to do is get the mast holes drilled and fit the deck, i will get some pictures later.

[Philthy]

Hello Matthew, 

 

First off congrats on your first wooden ship model and starting a build log. I am pretty new to this and the forum has been fantastic in figuring out problems that pop up. I am working on a fishing boat myself and another member noticed something was amiss with one of my photos and was great in offering some accurate diagrams to assist in fixing my rigging mistake. I look forward to seeing your build progress along. There are a bunch of Bounty build logs to look at for inspiration if you haven't had a chance to look yet. 

 

Cheers!

-Phil 

[lionfish]

Hello Matthew, 

 

First off congrats on your first wooden ship model and starting a build log. I am pretty new to this and the forum has been fantastic in figuring out problems that pop up. I am working on a fishing boat myself and another member noticed something was amiss with one of my photos and was great in offering some accurate diagrams to assist in fixing my rigging mistake. I look forward to seeing your build progress along. There are a bunch of Bounty build logs to look at for inspiration if you haven't had a chance to look yet. 

 

Cheers!

-Phil 

thanks, i followed your fishing boat log, and its looking great. what airbrush/compressor do you run? ive been doing a lot of reading on this forum and the articles which are great. we will see how this build goes, but im already planning a few future builds haha. 

[Philthy]

I use a badger air compressor and brush but have NOT used them yet on my wooden ship models. I used this set a few years back when I was working on 1/48th scale tanks. I can honestly say I really do not miss using the airbrush all that much. You can get good results with a standard brush and I find it was easier doing touch up and fixing my many screw ups lol. Thanks for checking out my log for the Bon Retour by the way. Im thinking only a few more hours on the rigging and she will be ready for the shelf. No worries though since I have a few kits on deck waiting to be unboxed  

[lionfish]

i used an airbrush a lot on my plastic kits, but for wooden kits i like stained natural wood better, whats on deck for you?

[Philthy]

The girlfriend got me the US Independence from Artisan Latina for my birthday. Just looking at the 1:1 plans she is literally twice the size of the Bon Retour! Ugh sudden dread of all that sanding lol I also have 2 kits from Model Shipways on back order (Armed Virginia Sloop and the Fair American). They were / are having a killer sale and I couldn't pass them up since I have been drooling over them for the last year or so. Needless to say I will be busy for the next 2 years easily on these boogers. I think the US Independence will be a good next step for my third build. My first build was the Bounty's Jolly Boat that I fumbled through. The was a huge learning curve when I first started the Jolly Boat and Im still leaning into it

[lionfish]

nice, well should be interesting at least, i want to do English cutter Cheerful 1806, chinese junk, greek bireme, and a skipjack, but im sure there will be more ships i will want to build

[lionfish]

here is the false deck i made for my boutny,

 

 

 

close up treenailing, and planks

 

 

 

 

what do you all think?

[Philthy]

Hi there Fish. Looks like some decent progress on the decking. If you don't mind, can you explain how you constructed your treenails? I have been doing some premature research on treenail methods that I may use on my Independence build. Looks like other builders use drilled holes with wood filler or holes plugged with the tips of tooth picks. I am planning on building a test deck before I start slapping down planks to deck. I still have a few weeks before I get to this step so plenty of time for research.

[lionfish]

Hi there Fish. Looks like some decent progress on the decking. If you don't mind, can you explain how you constructed your treenails? I have been doing some premature research on treenail methods that I may use on my Independence build. Looks like other builders use drilled holes with wood filler or holes plugged with the tips of tooth picks. I am planning on building a test deck before I start slapping down planks to deck. I still have a few weeks before I get to this step so plenty of time for research.

i modified a technique i found on here, basically i used a blunted thumb tack to push into the wood not through. then i took a mechanical pencil, sharpend the point and gently rotated the pencil. i had to resharpen the tip after 5-8 nails. there is a section on here with some really good techniques.

[lionfish]

up until now i thought that most of the cast metal parts had flash, but upon closer inspection, its not flash, the molds used to cast the parts where off center. on some parts by quite a bit. so know the question is, what is usable and what i need to replace.

[lionfish]

had to take a pause in building, but im always looking for improvements for my model. so soon i will be ordering a few things for her, such as belay pins, new anchors, cannons and the like. i also went to home cheapo the other day and picked my first set of clamps; 10 spring and 2 small trigger clamps. plus some gorilla wood glue. my issue right now is how to attach the false deck to the hull. i came up with two ideas. the first me use some sewing needles pushed through the deck into the hull at the mast points, then glue and clamp. or i can drill out the holes for the masts in the hull and the deck, then use dowel pics to align the two parts, glue and then clamp. ive also been doing a lot of reading on rigging and such to get ahead of myself. so im probably going to build it as is in the rigging to get my feet wet, any suggestions or tips for rigging are always welcome. all i need now is a few hours to sit down, play a movie, and build my model. after my model is done im going to have a fun time building a display case for it. i really gotta remember to take some more pics along the way.

[lionfish]

so ive been doing a lot of research on ropewalks and such. i even brain stormed my own design but then i watched some videos on domanoff rope walks and holy crap do i really like those machines. guess one might be in my budget in the near future. just wish it was in a kit form so i could have the pleasure of building it.

Edited October 30, 2015 by lionfish

[lionfish]

im still waiting for some dowel pins to come in so i can glue the deck down, so my building has stopped for the most part. im also wondering if i should wax the threads for my rigging or not.

[dgbot]

I would advise you not to use Gorilla Glue and go with a PVA glue.  Titebond or Elmers.  The stuff may be useful for furniture but not for models.

David B

[lionfish]

I would advise you not to use Gorilla Glue and go with a PVA glue.  Titebond or Elmers.  The stuff may be useful for furniture but not for models.

David B

is there a specific reason for this?

[PriceMachine&Design]

Hi Lionfish liking your start on the ship and wanted to add that I remember having read somewhere years ago that they found the remnants of copper bottom plates when diving on the Bounty's wreck so I think that would be a correct choice. I've just finished a carved stern assembly for the ship for a scratch build im starting  but its in 1-64 scale, I plan on making them in 1-48 also but I don't think it would translate down to 1-110 to well , the window frames at 1-64 are only about 0.015" thick. I have some pics of it in the scratch build forum if your curious.I've accumulated a lot of photos etc. of the current Bounty's if you cant find something let me know,Kev

[lionfish]

Hi Lionfish liking your start on the ship and wanted to add that I remember having read somewhere years ago that they found the remnants of copper bottom plates when diving on the Bounty's wreck so I think that would be a correct choice. I've just finished a carved stern assembly for the ship for a scratch build im starting  but its in 1-64 scale, I plan on making them in 1-48 also but I don't think it would translate down to 1-110 to well , the window frames at 1-64 are only about 0.015" thick. I have some pics of it in the scratch build forum if your curious.I've accumulated a lot of photos etc. of the current Bounty's if you cant find something let me know,Kev

thanks for stopping by, yea 1-110 scale can be hard, a lot of this ship is out of scale or looks odd, but ive decided to do it out of the box for the most part just to practice on. im vary interested in your build as well. 

[dgbot]

Gorilla Glue foams up and expands to much.  It is messy to work with on the parts we are gluing up.  Titebond and Elmers are better suited as they are easy to clean and I think a better joint.

David B

[lionfish]

Gorilla Glue foams up and expands to much.  It is messy to work with on the parts we are gluing up.  Titebond and Elmers are better suited as they are easy to clean and I think a better joint.

David B

even the wood they make foams up? i know the normal stuff does, but if their wood glue isnt good ill just go grab something else

[lionfish]

my dowel pins and drill bits have arrived, so the next step is to secure the deck to the hull, luckily my step father has a drill press,  

[lionfish]

Finally got some work done, I glued the deck to hull but there is going to be sections I will need sand down. I used pins to help align the center line and mast pilot holes. I will upload pictures when I get onto my computer because I can't get the image imbedment from photobuckets mobile app

[lionfish]

Pins in place, no glue

 

Close up of the pin

 

Glue slapped on

 

All clamped

[lionfish]

it seams some of the edges lifted up a little bit, not a huge deal, because i plan on gluing some wood in the grove all the way around

[lionfish]

new gunwales 

 

 

soaking in hot water

 

 

clamped to the sides to dry

 

 

 

new bow stem rough cut with coping saw

 

 

bow stem little cleaner

[lionfish]

quick update, i was able to get the gunwales glued on, also was able to mark the water line. a task made harder by the fact the solid hull and plans differ. ill get some pictures up when i can and see what you all think. im thinking of maybe planing the upper hull and wales. we will see.

[lionfish]

rear wale pinned for gluing 

 

 

gunwales glued in place

 

 

 

 

one issue i will have to deal with is the rear wale is a bit too wide, im going to have to slim it down to have the rails fit properly

[Burroak]

Lionfish your ship looks great. I will be following your build.

 

Greg H.

[lionfish]

its been a busy holiday season for sure, and now im hoping to hope back into the build, im stilling wondering how is the best way to drill the mast holes.