Bluenose II by Bulwark - Artesania Latina - Scale 1:75

[Bulwark]

Redid the bulwarks entirely. Some advice... read several sections ahead in the practicum to see how the bulwarks ought to look. I trued ti mimic the shape of the improperly made bukwark that comes with the kit. Had to break down the blasted thing. Lol.

 

 

doing the stancions next. 

[Worldway]

Nice job.  Wow you would think it was part of the kit.

[Bulwark]

Thanks, Derek. I credit John Earl for that, though. lol. Stanchions are going well, thankfully. Time something did. Having to trim them to 3/16" width, though. Stupid hobby store didn't have any that width! The humanity! But it's all looking good now and I am enjoying myself again, instead of fretting and pulling out my hair (which I need!).

[Bulwark]

Stanchions in place. Wow was that tedious. Lol. But i got into a zen place after a while. I keep reciting, "it's not a hobby if you hurry" over and over. Not the most even job, but if i redid one I'd wind up redoing them all. Safer this way.

 

okay, scuppers are a bit rough. Took time to figure out the best way to make them. 

 

 

 

[Worldway]

Hey Bulwark, how did you make the scuppers??

[Bulwark]

1/16th drill bit. Drilled into the space next to each stanchion. Drove the bit into the wood from the stanchion side. Cleared out the material in between with an xacto from the outside. It made a kind of ()=() shape on the inside so had to open up the = part with an xacto. Trying to file it out to make it more rectangular but my needle files are too big. Argh. 

 

The technique was from John's practicum. I at first made the scuppers too wide open vertically and had to patch them up with 1/16" bit of basswood, which worked great.

 

What's annoying when you're a novice is seeing mistakes you can't correct. The stanchions were not spaced perfectly, so some scuppers are too thin. Not a huge margin but noticeable. I am, however, getting better at patching things up! live and learn... I just hate to make mistakes on such a nice boat. I hope that the paint job and other details will obscure the scupper problems if I can't spiff them up with a smaller file. Heading to a specialty hardware store tomorrow. YAY! TOOL STORE!! 

 

 

[CKNavy]

I'm at the bulwarks now. Definitely using John's instructions as well as your pictures to help me along. I will post pictures on my build site as soon as I can.

 

Good Work ! 

[Bulwark]

Ck, cool! Hope the pics help. There is a picture of the finished bulwarks in Johns's practicum a section away or a few pages down. That's how i realized my first bulwarks were wrong. Just know the bukwarks are level relative to the curve ofvtge ship but don't dip down at the front. The taffrail gives that impression of the bulwarks dropping down. That messed me up. Oh, and when placing stanchions... harder than it looks to keep them even, even with marks...lol. Yikes. Plus even stanchions mean even scuppers.......but thus ain't your first boat so I'll shut it.  

 

okay transom in place and sanded to shape.

 

[Bulwark]

Added top rails and made them flush to the outboard side! Miss one sentence when following a practicum and you foul up! No worries, I'm an old hand and repairing such blunders now. Planning on adding a 1/16" bit of wood to the rail on the OB side both port and starboard. Going to have to find some basswood for this, since it looks like later on there will need to be holes drilled to let some 'rope' pass through it. I think. Doug, do you know if the extra mm of rail has a functional use? I can't quite figure it out by scanning the AL instructions or John's practicum. Hmm. lazy me. 

 

got the poop cover (snicker, sorry) and chock rails on. As well as the breast hook (ouch... such language!). Need to trim that down after looking again at some finished versions. I used the AL piece. I swear you'd think they barely looked at pictures of the real deal! I don't mind making stuff out of raw sheet wood, but this is getting silly. Pictures to follow after I correct the cap rails, or bulwark rails, or whatever they're called.

[Heronguy]

I believe the outboard part of the rail will be important when you cut channels for your chainplates.  Unlike earlier ships I think these schooners passed the chainplates through the rail and then attached to the hull.  Without the overlap there might be a weak area?

 

As usual I defer to wiser commenters if this is not right!

[Bulwark]

Thanks, Doug. I'll check to see if my local nameless hobby store has 1/16" sq strips of basswood. Balsa is too weak for the job.

 

I'm having trouble figuring out where the pin rails go. I don't have the Jenson book and all i have to go by is the AL blueprint. I can't find pics that show exactly what stanchions the rails go. I mean i have an idea from the practicum but I'm just not sure and these are really important.

 

 

[Heronguy]

John's notes specify the stanchions for fore and aft pinrails.  I used his suggestions as they put the shrouds in sensible positions for the masts.  Fore deck pinrails between stanchions 10-15 (counting forward from the break),  and aft pinrails between 2 and 8 (there was a typo in the instructions which said 2 and 6) counting back from the break.  Good photo in part 6 of the notes that shows the aft pinrails and chainplates.

[Bulwark]

Thanks for your help, Doug, it is much appreciated.

 

Progress thus far. Widened to rail cap easily with the addition of a thin strip of basswood. Added keel bits. Started pin rails.

 

 

 

[Bulwark]

Pinrails. Kept ruining them trying to pin them in place, got two working okay, but the others i compromised and placed a small wood block underneath out of the way if any holes. This might work. Wood kept splitting or the pin would shove through the top or bottom of the rail. Had fun drilling the holes. Got this tiny little bit, well under 1/16". Luckily my dremel can hold it, but just barely.

 

i widened the holes with another go with the same bit. 

 

 

[Heronguy]

I gave up on the dremel - pinvise for me.  Funny little thing like pinning the pinrails caused me trouble too!  

 

I've been slowly working away on deck furnishings.  You'll be progressing past me very soon so make good notes please!!  You're doing great.

[Bulwark]

Pinvise. I tried hardware stores, can't find them. Online time. Will likely need one soon. I hold my dremel like a large pencil, and get as vertical as possible. Plus i drilled the holes before installing, which helped. The bow pin rack i did not drill before installing, because i needed a hole in the deck below the rack. I had an issue, notice the hole is larger, with the bit. I figured i needed length to get to the deck but that length led to the tipmof the bit wobbling...so larger hole than the bit. Pinvise. Yep. 

 

Working on the monkeyrails. (Taffrails, sure, but how mch more fun to say monkeyrails?)

[Bulwark]

Here are the monkey rails in progress. Along with a simple jig to bend the cap rails for them! Really high tech if i do say so myself!

 

 

 

[Bulwark]

Upgraded the Plank Bender 1000(tm)...

 

(waiting for planks to dry... lol)

 

 

And the monkey (ook) rails progress...

 

[Bulwark]

Completed the taffrail!

 

take a gander... or a goose. This picture is good enough for either.

 

[Worldway]

Looking really good.  Can I asked why you skipped adding some scuppers?

[Bulwark]

Was following John Earls practicum... it is more than possible i misunderstood the scupper instructions. I'll double check, and compare with pics of the BN2.

 

edit: these are consistent with the practicum. Whew. Guess the BN2 shipwrights are scupper stingy.

[Heronguy]

The "missing" scuppers are there (that's a convoluted phrase!) because that's the way the actual ship is.  A question I can't figure out is why they're "missing" on the Bluenose II.

 

 

[Worldway]

I stand corrected, looking at some pics of BN2 they were missing.  No idea why.  Interesting.  Great eye to detail Bulwark.

[Bulwark]

Wow, the AL instructions are horrible. The parts list doesn't quite match the part sheet. Not to mention the part list is almost illegible with its numbering. Can barely tell 8 from 6. Arrgh. Ahem. Pirate arrgh.  working on the "citadel" and having a bit of trouble finding some of the parts. I put blocks inside the structure to hold pins. The pins will go into the deck to hokd it firmly.

 

The citadel. Heh.

 

And take a look at this. Weird.

 

 

[Bulwark]

Derek, thanks for the observation, i did actually miss one scupper! 

[Bulwark]

Won't post too many of these in betweeners. But thought some might like to see the process. 

 

 

 

[Bulwark]

Deckhouse done. Here it is in various stages.

 

used pin heads for door knobs. Though about a latch setup with bent wire but had a burst of inspiration.

 

glue stains, this time from carpenters glue, plague me. I guess this'll be the Bluenose 2 thirty years from now...

 

Here it is at a couple stages.

[Worldway]

Looks good, nice detail

[Bulwark]

And now the main cabin...

 

[Bulwark]

Oooh, placed the cabin wrong and tore up planks getting it off!  Had to replank a patch and restain.

 

here is its correct placement. Fife rail dry fitted, but not ready... just posing. Had fun lathing the posts with a drill for a lathe machine. Works well.