Enterprise 1799 by stripehunter - Constructo - 1:51

[stripehunter]

I've really wanted this kit for some time.  Got a deal I couldn't pass up on it, so I decided to shelf the other build life and motivation had caused to stall. 

 

 

laser cuts on main plywood sheet are very good.  Popped out with out any additional cutting required.  fit together was top notch too, didn't require much if any filing for snug square fit.

 

glue up went well.

 

 

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

Somewhere along the way my frame picked up a slight warp in it.  Modified one of my clamps to allow the bulkheads to pass through, steamed the keelson and clamped up with a shim to straighten.

 

 

This got most of the warp out, but still had a hair.  So I decided to put back in the clamp, and cut/fit strengthening blocks between each bulkhead.  This locked everything dead on straight, and the frame is rock solid strong as well.  Will definitely do this again.  Took a lot of sanding to get the perfect fit on each block but well worth the effort.

 

 

I'm planning on simulating trenails on the deck using a sort of a stamping technique with a pencil tip touched to a marker and rotated to make a small circle.  I made a jig that should help me do this consistently. We'll see how it goes.  I like the look, not sure how the logistics will work out though.  test plank is wider than the deck planks will be so proportions look a bit off.

 

 

 

[BenD]

That is a brilliant Idea for treenailing, It's looks realistic I think.  Though it might be hard to not smudge it afterwards.

 

Blocks between the bulkheads is a sure way to get a straight keel and a strong hull to work with.  Good stuff keep it up!

[AntonyUK]

Hi ?

Nice start to your build. I like the idea of  the blocks and they will make the model more robust as well as keeping everything straight  answer square.

The jig for the tree nailing is a good idea. 

 

Regards Antony.

[stripehunter]

encountered my first oddity with the kit when starting to work on my bow and stern fillers. The upper deck extends way beyond the back of the keelson, as do the filler blocks provided.  I compared all to the scale drawing, and it looks like the stern filler blocks are the desired dimension to use.  The plywood keelson is cut out way too short in the stern.  Once I made that decision, I started shaping and gluing bow and stern filler blocks.  Still have much work to go on that.

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

continued working and shaping bow and stern blocks.  Working one side of the bow to start.  first two bulkheads seem a bit 'off'.  The first one seems too small in places, and the 2nd is mostly too big.  Will take some more work to find a happy medium between them.

 

 

 

 

 

[Derek C]

Nice work , I will follow along . Keep up the progress 

[stripehunter]

Life has kept me from doing much work for some time. Ive been working on my deck planking. I have some more log photos to post as time permits. In the meantime though im looking for opinions on my simulated trenails. Im thinking i dont like the results so much. Not as subtle as id hoped. Im seriously contemplating sanding them out and trying something else. Thoughts please?

 

[russ]

Your deck planking looks very good. Subtle treenails at this scale are very difficult, but yours actually come off pretty good. However, you are the one who has to be pleased.

 

I would suggest one thought, though. If you are on board the ship, standing aloft on a spar and looking down, what would you see? The grain of the wood plugs would oriented to follow the grain of the deck planking so I do not think you would see very much except the deck planking. Maybe sand them out and move on? In the end, you are the builder so build the model that pleases you best.

 

Russ

[src]

Nice Start, the planking looks good to my eye. Something I have tried to do is ask myself what I would see on the real ship from various distances. your scale of 1:51, if you were 51 feet away or 102 feet away what would you see? look at you build from 1 or 2 feet away, what I consider average viewing distance of an interested viewer. That is 51 or 102 feet in a real world setting. I did the same thing after I did the treenails on my Enterprise, not sure I would do them again at this scale. In the end as Russ mentioned its your build, you have to make yourself happy and no one else.

BTW, ya got a name besides stripehunter? Hhmmmm StripeHunter = Striped Bass??

Sam

[stripehunter]

Thanks all.  I've already sanded them out and started drilling holes.  I didn't like the pattern either.  I had some sloppiness in the template I made for making them.  I did a poor job of getting my holes dead center on my layout lines.  What I did this time, I drilled a hole in one sheet of brass, then centered that hole over the bottom sheet of brass with the marks on it.  centered the hole on the cross mark, clamped in position, and used the top sheet as basically a drill bit holder to keep the bit from walking and removing an inaccurate punch process.  Looking back at some pics I took last year of the Constellation down in Baltimore, I'm going to try to mimic it as much as possible.  I already started some tests with drilling and toothpicks, and didn't mind the process as much as I thought I would.  The white wood toothpicks I have seem a hair dark for my tastes once the poly soaks in.  I have some bamboo ones coming that I will compare on a mockup to make my final decision.  In the mean time i'll keep drilling holes.

 

This is my goal.

 

and as for stripehunter, you guessed it.

Andy

 

Edited March 10, 2018 by stripehunter

[stripehunter]

catching up on my deck progress. 

The Jig I made for cutting consistent planks using scrap wood and an old vinyl floor sample.

 

I used black acrylic paint on one side and one end for caulking.

My simulated trenails before I decided to sand them out and start over.

 

 

 

Edited March 11, 2018 by stripehunter

[stripehunter]

Sanded off the ink stamped nails.  Began drilling out to use toothpicks.  I made a new template, and am making my holes and rows much more consistently than I had before. 

[stripehunter]

Been getting some work in. Not much progress, but up to about 1000 holes. Admiral was giving me some fresh orders while i was drilling, and i accidentally made a 4 pattern where there should have been a two pattern (after this pic was taken). Oops. Going to leave it as is and hope i can cover it with a cannon or something. As subtle as the nails will be i doubt it will be noticed by anyone but me. Tried lining off and freehanding the holes, but i find my brass strip templates to be quicker and more accurate. I drill two four patterns at butt joints on far ends of the deck then line through the holes. Then just center the lines under the holes of my template. Problem is the holes wear larger as i drill and i need to keep making new templates. Got some thicker brass to use hoping it will be more durable. If i can drill through it that is.

 

Edited March 24, 2018 by stripehunter

[stripehunter]

A sports injury wrecked my shoulder so ive not been able to work for some time. I finally got all the holes on the main deck done. Will start plugging them soon. The templates i was using for drilling my holes were of very thin brass. As I used them for drill guides, the bit would ovee time enlarge the holes in the template. I replaced it a couple times before finally using some much thicker brass. Getting the holes lined up and drilled in the thicker brass was a challenge in its own right but finally got it done. Then i immediately made a duplicate to use as a master if i need to redrill another. Another thing i did with the new template was to include holes for referencing it. All i need to do now is line up the plank edge seems under the holes on both ends and i know its centered properly.

[stripehunter]

A pic of the final version of my drilling template. I would draw a line across the deck at the butt joints, then center the 4 hole pattern on that over a butt joint at opposite ends of the deck and drill. Then i'd draw two lines through all the holes. To drill the remaining holes i'd center the holes in the pattern over these lines, then center the plank edge under the reference holes, hold down and drill. I tried tracing out lines and drilling free hand, but even after starting with a sharp point i found the template to be quicker and more consistent. 

I started toothpicking with bamboo. First area confirms i got exactly the effect i was going for. Very subtle but noticeable at the same time.

 

Edited April 17, 2018 by stripehunter
Spelling

[AntonyUK]

Hi.

Yes I gotta agree with. The treenails look very nice.

A lot of work but the results mean you will not be hiding the deck under coils of rope and other bits scattered around the deck.

 

Regards Antony.

[stripehunter]

After some long interruptions by life, trenailing continues.

 

[stripehunter]

Main deck completed.

 

upper deck started.  Took extra care to synch the planking pattern with that of the main deck.

 

 

Gluing down decks:

 

 

 

 

[stripehunter]

 

I realized after clamping down the deck that I had a bulkhead misshaped, and had a bit of a dip right in the center on both sides.  Once the glue set I razored the glue on that bulkhead and got it shimmed up to level out.

My log has me up to about 65 hours invested.  Lost a lot of time on the deck.

 

Edited July 28, 2018 by stripehunter

[Zarkon]

Looks excellent!! Keep up the wonderful work!!

 

Jeff