Royal William by marktiedens - FINISHED - Euromodel - scale 1:72

[marktiedens]

Hi Rob - I put the lower planks on in 2 pieces for ease of assembly. It was too difficult to make the severe bend at the stern with the bow portion already glued in place. The framework is really solid so the strength of the hull is not compromised. The only other pictures I have of the planking are in post #24. I did use more CA than I really wanted to - I did a lot of edge bending at the bow & there was no way I could clamp them well enough for PVA to set up. The glue between the planks was some PVA & some CA.

 

Mark

[RobZorba]

Hi Mark,

 

Thanks!  ... separating the strips into two pieces was a great technique.  On my Vasa (single planked hull) I tried to keep the planking strips in one piece, and there was much difficulty bending and shaping some of the strips where the bow and stern curvature was large.  Although I also used cyano and accelerator to tack the planks to the bulkheads, I do not like the cyano glue because any spills or seepages are difficult to clean up, and any cyano glue residue looks awful when the timbers are stained later on.  I think next time, I will use PVA (which cleans up easily when wet), and will use these planking clamps:

 

http://www.micromark.com/10-piece-planking-clamp-set,6454.html

 

Rob

[amateur]

I have read very mixed reports on those pins.

I used very simple push-pins for the job (the ones with a plastic head). Did quite well....

 

Jan

[NMBROOK]

Excellent work Mark

 

Kind Regards

 

Nigel

[marktiedens]

Thank you Nigel. I am following your Nuestra Senora build & it looks like a really nice kit.

 

Mark

[NMBROOK]

Yes Mark,very impressed by it so far

 

Kind Regards

 

Nigel

[mtdoramike]

What a beautiful planking job you did on this beauty. I can't wait to see this build take shape.

 

 

mike

[pirozzi]

Nice planking job. Neatest one I have seen yet. I have planked several ships and have not done such a nice job yet.

 

Vince P.

[marktiedens]

Thanks Mike & Vince - I can hardly wait until I get to the galleries .

 

 

Mark

Edited December 13, 2015 by marktiedens

[Landlubber Mike]

Gorgeous planking.  What kind of wood are you using?

[Seventynet]

Sweet planking job! Nice and clean.

Best, Ian

[marktiedens]

Thanks Mike & Ian. The wood is the limewood that came in the kit. It`s just the first layer - the second planking is still to come. 

 

Mark

[marktiedens]

A little progress - I figured it was time to cut out the lower 2 rows of gunports. I have some wood squares on sticks made up of various sizes to mark out the ports.

 

 

After marking out the ports I drilled a number of holes around inside the lines,cut out the center with a small keyhole saw,& filed them out to size. The lower row are 14mm & the middle row are 13mm.

 

 

 

After that I thought it would be a good time also to cut the openings for the side entries. I ran into one small problem - apparently the gunports are a couple of mm too far forward. The side entries should be almost directly above the gunport at bulkhead 1 amidships,so what I did was after marking the bottom of the entry to be level with the second gun deck I simply cut part of the bulkhead out where it interfered. So not really a problem - just a little more work. I don`t know where I was off when marking the gunports because I triple checked the positions before cutting them out .Maybe the positions on the plans were slightly off.

 

 

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

[Keith_W]

A little tip for you, Mark. Make sure you mark out the position for the side strakes while you are cutting the gunports. If you have enough space for the side strakes, you are good. 

[marktiedens]

Thanks Keith,I will keep that in mind. By side strakes do you mean the wales?

 

Mark

[fmodajr]

Hello Mark,

 

Just catching up on your build so far.

Very nice work on what looks to be a difficult build!

I look forward to following your progress!

 

Frank

[marktiedens]

Thanks Frank - I would say it`s a little more difficult,only because there are not a lot of pre-cut parts. The detailed plans are pretty good though.

 

Mark

[Keith_W]

Thanks Keith,I will keep that in mind. By side strakes do you mean the wales?

 

Mark

 

No Mark, I mean the vertical strakes (whatever they are called!). The wales tolerate a bit of error. But if you space the gunports incorrectly, like I did, you won't be able to fit them in. If you look at my build log, I had to correct this mistake by moving some of the gunports after I cut them - this involved enlarging the holes sideways and gluing planks in!  Fortunately I realized this mistake before the second planking, so I was able to hide the mistakes under the second planking. 

Edited December 15, 2015 by KeithW

[marktiedens]

I think those are called fenders. I will check them before going any further. Thanks again for the info.

 

Mark

[marktiedens]

A small update - getting ready to install the main deck. I glued some small strips to the bottom of one of the deck halves to better keep the joint even when gluing.

 

 

Apparently the top of bulk head B is supposed to be cut off before installing the main deck,then later on after installing the forecastle deck a beam needs to be made to support the rear edge of the deck. After test fitting the forecastle deck I see that it would not quite cover the top of the bulkhead,thus the need to remove it. I had another thought - I could cut the bulkhead down the center so the end would be a couple of MM behind the deck edge.Then I could put on a thin veneer to hide the plywood. That way I would not have to build a beam. I am installing the main deck before building up the bulwarks & leaving that bulkhead in would give the planking a bit more support. Any thoughts to this idea?

 

 

Mark

 

 

[marktiedens]

Well,I managed to cut the top part of the bulkhead frame down the middle without breaking it . After gluing on some thin walnut strips I now have a breast beam. I am now gluing the main deck down - I made some wedges out of scrap to hold the deck down while the glue dries.

 

 

 

 

Mark

 

 

[marktiedens]

Started working on the cast metal bulkhead which is located under the quarter deck. The detail on the casting is pretty good,but I din`t want to just paint the windows.I got out my little mini drill & micro files & proceeded to open up the window openings. It was a little time consuming but not too difficult. Then I painted it with a medium brown with white window frames & gold trim.I thought it came out pretty good.

 

 

 

 

 

Also I want to thank every one for there looks & likes. Thanks also to the other RW builders - I refer to your build logs frequently. And a big thanks to Pirate Pete for his very helpful interpretive info. Also forgot to mention I used a product called Micro Kristal Klear to make the window panes.

 

Mark

Edited December 22, 2015 by marktiedens

[piratepete007]

Hi Mark,

I am following your build with great interest but I do get 'depressed'. My interpretive files were only ever intended as a guide to others and it is clearly obvious that your build and others such as Keith, Vince, etc, etc will be on a far higher plateau than mine.  For that fact I am actually delighted !!!  I wish I had constructed the window panes as you did. Ah well, next time. The point is often overlooked by many people but the Euromodel philosophy has always been that all builders of their products will be more guided by what is in the excellent drawings than what is in the kit itself. That intentional concept leads every builder into a quasi-scratch build rather than a straight kit build. No two builds will ever look the same ! Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of material in the kit but you just can't stop trying to go that one step further.

 

Hint: that white plastic resin ship's boat has actually proved to be the basis of an excellent product - took some work but the end result I think is great ! So hang on to it. I have almost finished constructing boats for their entire fleet.

 

Seasonal greetings to all that sail on our seas !

 

Pete

[marktiedens]

Pete - thanks for your kind words.I had my reservations when I started this kit because I haven`t done much scratch work before,but I am really enjoying it. The closer I look at the castings in this kit the more I am impressed - the detail is better than any kit castings I have seen in other kits.Everybody has different build methods so each one should look a little different.

 

All the best to all this holiday season.

 

Mark

[marktiedens]

 

 

After gluing the metal bulkhead on I thought it would be a good time to plank the main deck - it will only be planked from the metal bulkhead forward because the deck behind it will be enclosed by the other decks & won`t be visible. The wood supplied for the decks is walnut ,which is a little too dark for the decks. I decided to try the soaking in bleach method to lighten them up. After soaking in bleach for 45 minutes & then rinsing very well with water I set them on some old towels to dry. After drying they had turned to a very light gray - much better. I was very pleased by the way they turned out. The first picture is before & after bleaching.

 

 

 

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

 

 

[marktiedens]

Thanks everyone for looking in & hitting the "like" button. Finished the main deck planking & one coat of poly applied. I just darkened the edges with an HB2 pencil. I simulated the nailing by using  a half twist of a #78 drill bit to make a tiny indentation. I like how the final color came out. 

 

 

 

Meanwhile I thought I would make a staircase for the main deck. I glued the steps onto a balsa former angled at 45 degrees. While thinking of what to use for hand rail posts I found some toothpicks with grooves cut into the end & only 2mm in diameter - seemed perfect for the job. After staining them I cut them off to the correct length & glued them on & added the hand rails from some 1mm by 2mm walnut strip. Not perfect but I thought it came out ok. I will finish the railing around the opening in the deck later.

 

 

 

 

 

Mark

 

 

 

 

[md1400cs]

Mark,

 

Your work on this build is looking especially super well refined. Very excellent work

 

PS: Love the tooth pic idea. I have some of those in a small Zipock for sometime looking for a "fit"--great idea...

 

PS 2: Your bulkhead widows look as if they are angled somewhat aft from the top. Is that just a "camera Angle" look?

 

PS 3: Great idea on lightening your deck planks' I will keep that idea in my notes.

 

Cheers,

 

Michael

Edited December 28, 2015 by md1400cs

[marktiedens]

Hi Michael - thanks for your nice comments. Regarding the windows - they are vertical. It`s just the camera angle. I sometimes have to take a few pictures with my low tech camera to get a decent shot that isn`t blurry & out of focus. Another picture from the side - the bulkheads are vertical. They look slanted because of the sheer of the deck.

 

 

Meanwhile,I thought I would build a little ship`s stove. I made the base out of balsa & the chimney out of some 1mm thick walnut scrap. The "pans" were pieces of dowel & all the handles were made from brass wire with the pan handles hammered flat. It`s a little rough,but the only thing that is easily visible is the chimney. The rest of the stove is hidden under the forecastle deck.

 

 

 

 

 

Mark

 

P.S. - Regarding the deck planks I must give credit to Vince P for the bleaching idea.

Edited December 29, 2015 by marktiedens

[Keith_W]

Just superb, Mark. Everything looks so neat. You must fastidiously clean up your boat every time you take a picture of it. I don't see any dust anywhere! 

[marktiedens]

Thanks Keith - I tend to make a lot of sawdust so I blow the dust off quite often. However,my table is still quite messy .

 

Mark