US Brig Syren by Hipexec - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1:64 - building as USS Argus

[Tigersteve]

Been enjoying your build. You are moving right along! 

Steve

[HIPEXEC]

Port side sweep ports finished.

 

Now I'm working on re-designing the stern of the ship since the Argus is quite different from the Syren. The Syren has a plain stern with two guns rigged for firing aft. The Argus has two structures port and starboard which are probably heads and/or flag lockers. The ports  apparently not for aft firing guns since there is a large step in the way that will prevent rolling guns into the ports. The inventory for the Argus only lists forward chaser guns and not aft chasers. Since the Argus was considered the "hot Rod" of the fleet while the Syren was a "slug", the reduced weight in the stern of the Argus might have played a role.

[HIPEXEC]

Enclosed version of these heads might be The Argus.    HM Cutter Cheerful

[HIPEXEC]

I'm getting ready for the stern construction. I re-designed the stern to make the Argus. Then I glued the two end frame pieces together as per the instructions. I then glued the re-sized center spacer to locate the first two stern pieces. I sanded off a lot of "char" to help make the glue stick. The "char" is very deep with this kit. 

[HIPEXEC]

Well I can see that building the stern on this ship is going to be very, very tricky. First of all, way back weeks ago, I CA glued the stern  frame angles since they appeared very fragile. That seemed to work since the stern frames do not seem as fragile anymore.

 

Gluing the first "A" piece was a struggle. I tried several clamps I have, but none of them worked. I Finally drilled a nail hole in the frame and glued and nailed the frame to the spacer block. Now the first "A" frame seems perpendicular to the bulkhead and straight vertically. Nobody said ship building was easy.

[src]

9 hours ago, Hipexec said:

Well I can see that building the stern on this ship is going to be very, very tricky. Nobody said ship building was easy.

Rich,

Looking good, if it was easy anybody could do it. Like growing old, ship modelling isn't for sissies.

Enjoy the ride,

Sam

[HIPEXEC]

Moving right along, I've added the second stern piece and second spacer. That's it for today since the PVA glue has to do its job.

 

[HIPEXEC]

Slow but sure the stern is getting done. At this stage it's very fragile, but the instructions say that will improve with the addition of sills and lintels.

[HIPEXEC]

I finished the stern's vertical frames faster than I expected. If it weren't for the use of nails, I couldn't have progressed this fast.

[HIPEXEC]

Now I realize I should have sanded off all the char on these stern pieces before installing them. Oh well?

[HIPEXEC]

Quote

 

The instructions call for me to cut out and tape the stern template on for part locations. Easier said than done. Longitudinally was no problem but vertically was. I finally laid a narrow straight edge on the deck so it lined up with the deck level blocks I previously  installed. Next the whole thing is like a fragile tuning fork, so I am experimenting with rubber band clamps to hold parts after glued. I have glued nothing yet.. This will take very careful measuring since the verticals will spread if too big.

[Heronguy]

Rich,  That does look tricky especially as you mentioned how fragile the pieces are just now.  Wishing you the best of luck as you proceed.  Just a thought - can you clamp across the tops of the stern extensions to provide some rigidity?  I'm thinking a wood strip on each side with alligator clamps to hold them.

[HIPEXEC]

Doug,

I've glued a few pieces in and am getting some stability right and left, but there's a big unsupported space fore and aft. I'll have to figure out how to fix that before sanding.

[HIPEXEC]

I finished the stern fillers and port sills and lintels. I rough sanded the outside so I could begin to mark the stern's outline. I am sanding very carefully since I do not like the potential fragile nature of the structure at this point. It feels strong, but it's just the glue holding it on with no structural support.

[HIPEXEC]

Sanding and filing very carefully

[HIPEXEC]

More sanding. This ship has the deepest char I've ever encountered.

[Nirvana]

Rich,

That surely is deep char.

I thought that my boat I currently had deep one, but yours is even worse. I am sorry.

Lots of sanding.

[HIPEXEC]

Well all that sanding finally caused parts of the fragile stern to come unglued. I'm holding together the fix with a rubber band.

[HIPEXEC]

If trying to out how to build this stern is any indication of the rest of this kit, I'm in for a long ride. The kit comes with very good drawings and a cutout sheet of wood for the stern. It just seems like I can't quite figure out how much material to take off to get the correct shape of the stern and still have smooth planking. The gunwales, when I use a plank for gaging,  don't want to line up with the pre drawn plan? I will figure it out...just not right now.

 

In the meantime I'm adding some filler blocks to give the planks some gluing area.

[mtaylor]

One problem I've found, Rich is that the plans are "flat" and the stern is curved... sometimes in two directions.  You're doing what Dirk did on his Confed and it does take some fiddling to get it right.  Same issue with following Hahn's method of gunports.. cut the plan, stick it down and cut.. doesn't account for the curvature of the hull.  You seem to be on the right track though.....

[HIPEXEC]

Mark,

I think you are correct. This kind of challenge keeps my old brain active. If I chew on the problem long enough...the answer will pop into my head eventually. I do think the curvature of the hull is where the answer lies.

Rich

[HIPEXEC]

I glued on more filler blocks to the base of the stern. I still haven't figured out how I'm going to skin this cat.

 

Also more sanding!  I think some of this char goes all the way through!

[usedtosail]

I think some of this char goes all the way through! - Ha ha. I hate char. I hate the way it smells and how it makes my fingers feel after sanding it. I feel your pain, Rich!

[HIPEXEC]

More sanding and shaping. I'm trying to get the shape of the whole stern correct. It's not easy.

[donrobinson]

Looking good. I find with that deep char if I sand it enough to get it smooth and get all of the "shine" off of it glue will adhere just fine. Still a pain in the butt.

[HIPEXEC]

Very slow progress while sanding and fairing in preparation for planking. I've made an array of sanding blocks trying to get into all the cracks and crevices. Char still is there?

 

I'm planning my own planking plan since I do not want to paint my ship and I do not want to copper it. I like looking at all the woodwork.

[donrobinson]

looks good, what type of planking are you thinking of using?

[HIPEXEC]

Don

I don't know yet. Where the black goes some dark wood and where the whitish planks go some nice blond wood. One thing I do know is the dark wood I pick as pretty as it is will not be Sapele. I had a terrible time planking my Connie with that stuff.

[HIPEXEC]

Time out from ship building while I install air conditioning in my Arizona garage. I insulated the garage doors, also. There's no working here without it in the summer.

[HIPEXEC]

AAHHH! Cold air!

 

Now I have to clean up the construction mess then get back to ship building.