Armed Virginia Sloop By captain_hook - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:48

[captain_hook]

Hello everyone,

 

this is my third kit build and my first build-log. I wanted to build the excellent cheerful semi-scratch cutter designed by Chuck Passaro next but decided to build this one first cause it was a gift from my wife last christmas and she keeps asking me when I will begin building it. So construction has begun with little one-year delay. The kit itself seems to be of good quality but I may replace some wood with boxwood and some cast-parts. First thing I did was to build a rack to put the model on during the construction. Then I carefully released the bulkheads to dry-fit on the keel.

Edited March 29, 2020 by captain_hook

[DocBlake]

This is a fun build, and you will enjoy it. I substituted a lot of wood in the kit and chose not to paint the model. That was a big part of the enjoyment for me. Good luck! I'll follow this with interest.

Edited December 30, 2016 by DocBlake

[Tigersteve]

Me too

Steve

[captain_hook]

I started to make some replacement keel parts out of boxwood. The kit supplied walnut parts are not bad, but I find boxwood much better to work with. It is much easier to paint, holds edges very well and doesn't have the tendency to split especially when it comes to planking. And in my opinion dark walnut makes shipmodels often look like old furnitures. And it is good practice for future scratchbuilding too. I decide to add the keel parts later as I did with the sherbourne before and to glue the bulkheads in place first. The AVS kit is designed with a lot of bulkheads to install, that should make planking much easier in comparison to the sherboune. The Caldercraft sherboune and also the ballahoo which I did before are labelled as beginner kits but both have only a few bulkheads so I ended up spending as much time for the first planking, filler and sanding as for the second planking. Maybe a lot of people starting this hobby will soon get frustrated with planking because of this and never build another model. So good kit-design is surely a nessesary thing to avoid frustration and to provide motivation for the long time usually spend to build even a kit.

[Tigersteve]

Nice!

Steve

[captain_hook]

I added the mast mortise and sanded all bulkheads flush with the false keel, so the false deck will fit on properly later. Next: Adding filler blocks and stern wing transom... Due to the curvature of the deck I made myself a tool, consisting of three layers of spruce, watered, bend to curved shape and glued. Then some sanding paper is attached with double adhesive tape, so the tool can be used again after the sanding paper is no longer of use.

[alde]

Looks great so far. I'm in till the end. This ship is on my short list.

[Tigersteve]

I think this one is going to be a good one. Lol What makes this kit so expensive? Is it because of the amount of walnut wood included? Anyone know?

Steve

[captain_hook]

Thank you all for the likes. Only minor progress. I installed the stern frames next and used the window parts for alignment. Then sanded the upper edges flush with the bulkheads.

[GuntherMT]

Good looking start, but on the stern frames it looks like you did the same thing as I did.  Look at the details of the stern on the plans, and you will see that the center parts #1 need to be beveled/angled in order to cant the windows in slightly.  I had to completely re-build my stern when I discovered this a bit later, you might be able to correct it easier if you do it at this point.

 

In my build this is mostly in this post I think - http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/8085-armed-virginia-sloop-by-gunthermt-finished-model-shipways-scale-148/?p=245091

 

Here is the key plan view, note the part #1 where I added a red arrow pointing to the top, and the red-boxed comment to the left which is on the plans (I added the red box around the comment).

 

 

Note that this angle means that the bottom and top of both #2 and #3 need to be beveled so that they 'lean in' to match the angle created with #1.

 

Good to see another AVS in the works, I had a lot of fun building it, and overall feel like it was a very decent model, even if I did end up replacing a lot of the kit wood and parts.

[captain_hook]

Thank you very much, Brian. I missed that on the plan (maybe I should look on the plan more often). I refitted the stern frames, added blocks and transom and the window sills. Then I spend an hour sanding everything to shape. Dry-fitted the windows last. The outer windows leave nearly no space for the upper window sills so I have to add them later after glueing the cabin top sub deck or reduce the lower sills a little. Next: Adding bow filler blocks..

Edited January 5, 2017 by captain_hook

[GuntherMT]

Thank you very much, Brian. I missed that on the plan (maybe I should look on the plan more often). I refitted the stern frames, added blocks and transom and the window sills. Then I spend an hour sanding everything to shape. Dry-fitted the windows last. The outer windows leave nearly no space for the upper window sills so I have to add them later after glueing the cabin top sub deck or reduce the lower sills a little. Next: Adding bow filler blocks..

 

Eh, in the end, as long as you are happy with how it looks, that's all that matters.  It's not as if this is a replica of a specific historical ship anyway.  

[captain_hook]

Added the deck beams and a support for them. Dry-fitted the false deck. To make planking the deck easier and to check proper alignment I draw a centerline from top to bottom to all false decking parts. Added stern filler blocks too but still have to do a lot of sanding there...

[captain_hook]

To install the timberheads and knightheads I first sanded the bow fillers roughly to shape. Then used my scrollsaw to cut the notches for both of them. The model had to stand upright on the platform to ensure vertical notches. For the timberhead pieces I used the scrapwood that held the bulkheads earlier and draw a piece close to the bulkhead outline. Cut that with my scrollsaw, sanded it to shape and installed it into the previous cut notch. I will give it its final shape when it comes to bevelling the bulkheads. Only three more to go...

Edited January 7, 2017 by captain_hook

[captain_hook]

All knight- and timberheads installed and false deck parts glued. Hope to finish all remaining steps tomorrow before starting first planking.

[GuntherMT]

Interesting approach to the timberheads.  Should have more strength than just sitting them in the little notches per the instructions.  I pinned mine for extra strength, but you have enough glue-surface that yours should be solid without anything else.  Nice.

[captain_hook]

Thank you and everyone for the likes. Yes, the connection seems to be solid, but I may add a (toothpick) pin for each head later before bevelling the bulkheads. Still have to add a lot of filler parts for gun- and sweepports. It is curious. When I built the sherbourne and ballahoo, I was able to start first planking very soon. Only adding the bulkheads and some filler blocks to the false keel, bevelling the bulkheads and I was ready to begin first planking. The AVS require al ot more of preparation and attention before beginning the planking. That is surely a nice lesson of patience for me to learn. :-)

[captain_hook]

Snow has fallen and I used most of my spare time to go sledding with the family. So only some minor progress. Started to shape the waterway. One more to go.

[GuntherMT]

Interesting, the laser-cut pieces for the waterways in my kit were walnut.

[captain_hook]

It's the export-version of the MS kit for europe that include laser-cut boxwood parts instead of walnut parts. :-)

[captain_hook]

No, just kidding. I cut the parts from boxwood sheet I have in stock. Used the walnut parts as templates.

[gsprings]

Great looking start, Captain! Will be jealousy watching as your progress zooms ahead of mine. Stupid job.

[captain_hook]

Waterways cut, shaped and installed. Next: Gunport filler blocks and sweepport blocks.

 

Greg: My building speeds varies between nonstop-building for hours and one or two weeks without any progress. Too many other things to do that are worth doing them.

[captain_hook]

Installing the filler blocks: I took the distances from the waterway to the lower edge of the gunport filler blocks and sweepport blocks from the plan, cut a rectangle piece of wood from scap that distance long and used it to draw a reference line on the bulkheads with a pencil. Then glued the filler blocks on top of the line. First side is complete...

[captain_hook]

After glueing the gun- and sweepports I spend a remarkable time sanding the hull and bevelling the bulkheads. This finishes stage 1 in the construction manual. The hull is now ready for first planking.

[DocBlake]

Nice!

 

Good job fairing the hull.

[GuntherMT]

If I may make a suggestion, on the filler blocks between the gunports, just fill those gaps in completely.

 

When you go to cut in your sweep ports, that way you have solid wood all the way through and not a plank/gap/plank sort of a deal.  IMO this helps when you are doing your shaping/sanding of the sweep ports to just have a single 'piece' of wood to work with.

 

I completely filled up the spaces between every bulkhead other than the gunports themselves, and I found no downside to that later on as I progressed in the build.

[captain_hook]

Brian, I followed your suggestion and doubled the filler blocks. My daughter watched Harry Potter first time on TV today. Guess what she asked me to build for her after that....yes, a magic wand. Took me some time to do that, lucky me, had some castello strips left for that. So building will continue tomorrow...

[Tigersteve]

Nicely done on the ship and the wand!

Steve

[captain_hook]

It is better for ship modelling to calm down family members expectations. Next time my daughter expects me to build a Hogwarts miniature ... :-) Then I can put the AVS aside until next year.