BLUENOSE By Jerry - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64

[popeye the sailor]

I would....but the admiral would skin me alive,  if I started to plank another hull          besides,  I still have to get my butt in gear with the Half moon.......ya left me in the dust good buddy!      too many projects......so little time.   your doing a great job so far..........I figure you'll have made quite a bit of progress,  before I'm ready to go.   I'll look forward in seeing more of your fine work  

[Jerry]

Hello Popeye..

Having been through the sate of matrimony more than once I feel strongly for you and strongly suggest that you hold onto your skin.  I forgot about your Half Moon so I guess that is ahead in line of the Bluenose.  I think you will really enjoy building the Half Moon and then the Bluenose since they are definitely two very different types of construction.  In fact, and although others claim the Bluenose an easier build, I wholeheartedly disagree.  So far I have found the Bluenose much more "delicate."  If you review the attached pictures of the progress of the planking of the aft deck, you will surely see the difficulty I have had (especially with my first crack at nibbing).  I purposely used the word "crack" since I caused a few in the nibbing strake as I progressed.  These damages were repairable but have definitely subtracted from the cleanliness of the build.  To replace the nibbing strake at this stage would be a disaster so I shall live with my mistakes.  The lesson here is beware of the delicateness of the nibbing strake and the deck planks in general.   I hope to do better with the final planking of the port side of the deck.

Hope you are doing well and have a terrific day,

Regards,

Jerry

Edited July 21, 2016 by Jerry

[DBorgens]

Jerry,

Great looking planking. I thought the difficulties I had breaking planks was beginners inexperience. I learned that at these reduced scales, wood is delicate while at the same time flexible. Each build is a learning experience (hopefully not a re-learning one). Keep up the good work!

 

Dave B

[Jerry]

Hello Dave,

 

You are so right; many thanks for the visit to my log.  This was a great learning experience and I know I could do a much better job in the future.  I'm winding down on the deck planking and I only have 3 more planks to go.  However, according to Bob Hart's practicum there's supposed to be 7 planks on each side of the aft deck (the final ones to the outboard) that get nibbing.  For some reason I ended up with 6 on each side.  I probably went too far along the deck before doing a nib.  Well, it's still looks okay to me but it could have been a better job.  I'm going to fill in some of the plank seams when I give the outer hull another coat of wood filler and then sand the heck out of it.  Whenever I get mad at the admiral I like to sand my boat (it lets me let off some steam).  But I must admit Charlene has been pretty good lately so I have no ulterior motive this time. Have a nice weekend Dave and take care.

Best,

Jerry

[popeye the sailor]

I can see why you'd be having such fits!   the decking construction is different than the Billing kit.   mine has the platform,  which will be planked with thin strip.   the margins are what.........3 mm.......pretty thin to start with...and I see you've scarfed them together.   really nice work there!  

 

I recently received some old planking wood from Mark......it was from an old Billing kit he built  {wasa...Vasa}.   in the bundle was quite a bit of unfinished basswood thin strip..........I have been looking all over for it!  normally,   I buy the Annegre strips....I got some 3 mm wide strips.   the bag Mark sent might be mixed.....they are 5 mm.  anyway......if I should use it,  it will be nice to be able to give my decks a different hue.   when I gt around to them.....it will be interesting how they will come out.   I had to dismantle the original hull,  due to some problems.....so the kit build will become a semi scratch project.

 

are you going to scrape the decks,  or simply sand?

[Jerry]

Hi Popeye..

I have a house guest for the next few days so my time on the log will be limited.  But for your information I plan to sand the deck only since, by using a black marking pen for caulking effect, will darken the surface a bit and make the deck look older. I used the same technique on Victory.

 

Take care and be good.

 

Jerry 

[Jerry]

Hello Everybody..

My house guest likes Naples because he decided to stay a little longer and that's OK with me.  But he agreed that I could spend a couple of hours completing the aft deck.  So, I did and the deck is ready for a coat of varnish before proceeding further.  I didn't run out of deck planking as several others did because I was very conservative with my trimming etc.  In fact I have a lot of half size strips which will be available if called for later for some other part of the build.  So here's a couple of photos showing the deck completed before preliminary finishing with a coat of varnish.

Have a nice week everyone.

Best,

Jerry

Edited July 25, 2016 by Jerry

[Elijah]

Nice job! I look forward to seeing a finish on it!

[popeye the sailor]

I used to use crayon to simulate the calking.   the big drawback to this method,  is that it does leave some residual crayon behind.   this needs to be lightly scraped off the top surface before the plank is cemented in place.   sanding it later blends the crayon into the deck and gives it a nice hue.......so it can be a plus.  I was also thinking towards trying gray and brown hues for the calking,  but since I changed over to using archive pens,  I haven't looked into it to see how it would look.   the deck looks great........well done Jerry!  

[Jerry]

Hi Elijah..

Many thanks for the visit and compliment.  I'll be finishing the deck after completing the waterways fill-ins.  This has proven to be a time consuming process as every opening is slightly different than each other.  I'm using some stripping left over from the HMS Victory kit which is more than wide enough, and as mentioned,  each piece needs to be custom fit.    here's what it looks like so far.

Best,

Jerry

Edited July 27, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Popeye,

The Practicum recommends artist lead #2 to do the caulking as there will be no bleed as there is with a marker pen.  I tried it and I didn't like it.  As I said in a couple of my previous logs, I like the very slight bleed I get with the black marker as it helps create a deck "in service" after sanding the surface properly.  There definitely some "dark" spots around he deck but I'm sure the decks were not lily white when they were at sea.  These dark spots occur especially where CA cement comes in contact with the marker ink.  My solution:  I don't glue the planking strips to one another, just to the bulkheads and the deck still seems solid. Oh well, I'm s certain someone will find fault with my reasoning but that's what makes individualism.  Never tried the crayon routine and I guess I never will after reading your opinion.

 

Have a wonderful evening..

Best,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good evening everyone..

 

I'm very happy to say that I have completed all of the deck planking and waterway fills.  The next step will be a good medium and fine sanding followed by  a few coats of varnish.  I did have some unexpected situations but I chalk it up to every day ship model building.  The most serious problem occurred when on the starboard side of the aft deck, while placing a waterway fill, I actually poked my finger right through the thin deck planking.  I decided to cut out a square section of the decking and replace the stripping somehow.  I decided to build a "bridge" from one side of the opening to the other using some planking.  This became the bed for the new deck planking which I tapered to fit the pattern and glued in place.  It actually doesn't look too bad, if I say so myself, but close observation will easily spot it.  Hopefully some deck furniture will cover all or part of it. Here are the latest pictures before the varnishing.

Hope everyone is enjoying a great weekend.

Best,

Jerry

Edited July 30, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Everyone..

Well, we're now into August and modelling  Bluenose is moving along.  The deck is completed and varnished and the extension planks are in place. The stern will be worked on next but in the meantime here are some additional photos of this Bluenose as it sits today.

Best to all,

Jerry

 

Edited August 3, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Lawrence,,,

 

Thanks for dropping by.  I need to hook up with you on skype one of these days and see how you  guys are doing.  I appreciate your kind words and have been making slow progress with Bluenose.  I'll catch up with you soon and in the meanwhile please give my best regards to Bernadette,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good afternoon everyone..

 I'm sure the next phase of construction, being so repetitive, will not be aas enjoyable as the past work.  Making and gluing in place 110 false timber frames doesn't seem like a lot of fun but it does get the hull ready for the deck furniture, and I always enjoy that part of the build.  Although I have filled and sanded quite a bit, I'm positive there will be more to do along those lines before the hull is given any coats of finish.  The model seems very smooth at this point but there are still some uneven places, some tiny crevices and other ugly bumps to repair and smooth out.  I haven't decided if I'm going to brush paint or spray the finish........although, I'm leaning toward the latter.   On any event, here are some more photos of the new transom which is the latest place to be almost completed,

Best,

Jerry

Edited August 5, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Lawrence.

 

Thank you for being such a great cheer leader; I appreciate your comments.  I will start adding the false timbers tomorrow and that should take me to the painting of the hull sometime by the end of the week.  It's getting really exciting as the model is really taking shape.  hp[e you have had a  very nice weekend and my best to Bernadette.

Jerryy

[Jerry]

Good afternoon everyone..

 

I have removed all the frame toppings , refinished the deck with another coat of varnish and am ready to install the false timber tops.  It may appear that the old frame tops are still present but they are not.  There's a color difference that gives that impression.  When the waterways and false timbers are painted gray and white, there no longer will be any trace of the old plywood bulkhead tops.  The false timbers have been cut and I am now looking forward to gluing them in place.  Hope evryone has a great day.

Best,

Jerry

Edited August 8, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Everyone.

Another day in the dry dock and some more work completed.  Today we have finished installing and finishing all of the false timbers.  It looks like this Bluenose is coming along and will be sent to the paint shop as the hull is ready for painting.  Here are the final pictures of the false timbers installed and trimmed to proper size ready for capping when the time comes.  Hope everyone is having a great day.

Best,

Jerry

Edited August 9, 2016 by Jerry

[Nirvana]

Looking Good Jerry!

[Jerry]

Hello Dr. Per..

Long time no see.  Hope all is well...

Thanks for the compliment and I hope you have a great evening.

Best,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good morning Lawrence..

 

Nice to hear from you again and to receive a welcome word or two.  Thanks for your remarks regarding the timbers.  I do agree that the addition of these parts makes the hull look more realistic but another good thing is the additional support the bulwarks get.  The bulwarks were very flimsy until the addition of the false timbers.  Now it's painting time.  The waterways will be painted gray and the timbers and bulwarks white.  So, it's off to the paint booth (fictional of course) and we'll see what happens.  Charlene says hello back to you guys and sends her best.

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good afternoon everyone and a happy Monday.

 

More progress to report:  The bow and transom cap rails have been fitted and glued into place.  The bow has been "carved" to provide the opening for the bowsprit, the hawser holes have been roughed in and the waterways and bulwarks have been painted.  The next step is to add the gunwale caps and finally paint the hull.

 

As you may remember I have been building this model with the aid of Bob Hart's practicum which so far I have found to be excellent.  Most of the time (about 95%) I have stuck to Bob's directions as they have been well written and are very explanatory.  However, occasionally I have found it necessary to wander into my own brain and do some things of my own.  For example I have chosen not to remove some of the planking on the port and starboard sides of the bow to make way for a "scrap" block of wood from which one is supposed to carve out a 1/4" hole for the bowsprit.  I have decided to cut the 1/4" hole out of the existing planking which I have found (so far) to be rigid enough to support the bowsprit.  I have used plenty of Elmer's wood filler and will use some more before the first coat of paint is applied.  I also constructed the transom differently than the practicum suggests; I did not strip away and replace any planking but merely carved out the transom from a piece of balsa wood.  I don't see any unusual abuse happening in the future in the area of the transom and so I feel safe in the way with the material I have chosen

 

With the exception of a couple of quick look at the kit's plans for reference only, I have not used the plans or the direction manual at all.  Now that doesn't mean I won't in the future as there is much detail starting with the deck furniture which happens after the hull is painted..

 

I have added some more pictures as to where I am and hope to have more progress during the week.

 

I wish you all a great evening.

Best,

Jerry 

Edited August 15, 2016 by Jerry

[Jerry]

Good morning, Lawrence...

I sincerely appreciate your remarks regarding my Bluenose.  Yes, I certainly agree with you that this rig has beautiful lines.  If I can only do it justice as I move forward I'll be a happy guy.  I'm now contending with the gunwale cap rails and trying to figure out how to match the scarf joints that originate at the bow and stern cap rails.  Like everything else a little patience will go a long way as I contemplate this step.  My best to you and to the admiral.

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good evening everyone...

 

Well, I finally installed the gunwale cap rails on the Bluenose and with a little more filler and sanding I believe will be ready to paint the hull.  I do have a confession to make:  I did not use scarf joints as  Bob Hart's Practicum and the kit's manual calls for.  The Model Shipways kit was void of the right size strip wood for the cap rails but I was very lucky to find some strip wood left over from the HMS Victory build which was exactly the right size.  So, I must admit, I took the easy way out and used regular butt joints instead of the scarfs. Everything looks okay.  No one will know the difference since the cap rails will be painted black and the joints will be hidden..

 

So after the additional preparations for the finish it looks like I'm going to spray paint and not use a brush.  I like the looks of the hull shown in the practicum and it was painted with spray cans.

 

Here are some pictures of the cap rails and the hull which is almost ready to be painted.

 

Best,

 

Jerry 

Edited August 18, 2016 by Jerry

[Nirvana]

Jerry,

Great job!

I am just waiting to get started with my Bluenose.

[popeye the sailor]

hull's look'in great Jerry.........super job on the cap rails!   great that your following a practicum.......but what good is it if you can't cheat a little?   just kidding......they are a wealth of information.   but there are time when you have something that may work better...or even a technique that would make the task easier.   your doing a fantastic job...........in good 'ole Jerry fashion!  

[Jerry]

Good morning, Lawrence...

Thanks for helping to start my day off in good fashion.  Your good words are always welcome.  After a morning eye doctor appointment it's back to the Bluenose hull for final filler and more sanding.  Painting should begin during the weekend.

Charlene thanks you for her shout out.

Have a great day,Best,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Hi Dr. Per..

Your good words are always welcome.  Thank you for that.

Now...get going on your Bluenose

Best,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Hello Popeye..

You are much too generous with your compliments...But thank you for I certainly do appreciate them.I have strayed from the practicum a few times already:  the way I constructed the transom.  I used some strip wood to make a block  *this is called for in the practicum but I also used some balsa wood to carve the most aft portion of the transom. Of course, you  already know about the cap rail joints...I also constructed the opening in the bow for the bowsprit differently then the practicum suggest.  I did not insert a basswood block in the nose of BlueNOSE and drill out the 1/4" hole. This would have required removing the top two gunwale pieces and making new ones later on. I was able to make the hole in the bow as it stood.  So far I see no problems having done this.  I'm sure I will do more things differently in the future.  So have a great day and take care my friend.  It was good to hear from you again.

Best,

Jerry

[Jerry]

Good evening everybody..

 

I finally was able to find the paints I wanted for Bluenose today.  My plan was to spray two coats of white enamel primer on the hull, sanding with #400 paper between coats.  Fortunately I ran into a great sales person at the local Home Depot who was kind enough to spend a lot of time with me and helped me pick my colors.  I settled in on Rust- Oleum's Flat White Primer which seems to have come out perfectly and hopefully will provide a good looking white stripe between the two hull colors.  The practicum recommends a Kilz spray paint which was purchased at WalMart.  I tried the WalMart Super Store which is actually very close to me but they didn't carry that  brand.  I looked at Rust-Oleum's choice of colors but just couldn't find the shade of Red I wanted for the bottom of the hull.  

 

The Home Depot sales Lady was terrific. They carry the Behr Brand and together we picked a color I liked.  This in itself is a joke because not only am I almost completely blind in my left eye but  I'm color blind as well.  I can see colors but I really can't say what some of them are. You know, red-green, blue-purple But there is a tremendous advantage I have that the normal color seeing eye doesn't have.  I can see through camouflage and I can see more shades of any color than the normal eye can. But I have trouble telling the difference between blue and purple, brown and maroon, red and green, some oranges and reds..  

 

Anyway, at Home Depot they will make any color you want.  When ready to use just pour the paint into a little jar of the tiny spraying device. (see picture)  One can replace the air cartridge when necessary and since the materials are water based, clean up is a snap and the sprayer can be used for different colors.They cost me $4.97 each.

 

So now I'm ready to mask the waterline which I will do tomorrow, using the eyeball method of course.

 

I wish you all a very happy evening.

Best,
Jerry

 

P.S.  The two little dots on the bottom of the keel are small holes that will hold the mounting wire...

Edited August 24, 2016 by Jerry