The Tumblin' Dice by popeye the sailor - Artesania Latina - 1:80 - Mississippi riverboat

[popeye the sailor]

I spent the afternoon on her today..........I'm so glad to see my vision paid off    as I mentioned earlier,  I made up another wood organizer.....not as elaborate as the one by the main table,  but it will serve the purpose.   

all household stuff......except the 1/4 plywood.   all the wood strips are separated.......as soon as I clear a space,  I can move it out of the way  

the underside of the main deck has been painted with Billing's flat pale gray.  I noticed that I forgot to paint across the paddle opening......I'll do that later.

the counter was marked out and the holes were drilled for the rudders.   I'm gonna hold off on installing them,  until I get the main deck and the bottom assembled,  so I can better assess the depth of the shafts.  I also did some more sanding.....it is ready  

into the paint booth it went.......and got the first coat of gloss lacquer.  it was like 'pop city'!

it was still wet at this point.......needs to dry now.  I went to work on the Norden and browse MSW.....    a while later,  I took it out of the booth.....I was amazed with how it came out.

the grain came out nicely.........and then I heard the admiral.   she was asking me about the mahogany for the Nordkap........I haven't even told her that I'm using it on this project and that I want to order blonde planking {basswood or obechi} for 'ole Nordie.   well boys......I think I been found out.....time to fess up.   it must have sounded like jargon,  that is......until she saw the bottom.  I flat refuse to paint over wood like this.....this is what it's meant for.  the bottom is a little rough,  and there are some shadows,  from where the lacquer literally sucked into the wood.  but,  the shine is there......and I am so pleased.

I gave it more time to dry.   usually I will wipe my hulls down with a clean soft cloth...this is more than enough to knock down the roughness and raised wood fibers.  if I wanted to wait a day,  then I would have used either steel wool,  or some fine sandpaper and do a light sanding.  I actually rubbed it down with my bare hands......trust me,  my hands were never intended to give back rubs.   it's in there now........it got a second coat......it won't need another.   the shadows are gone.......and there are no runs,  considering I used a rattle can.  I am thoroughly impressed with how it came out.   I have a picture of it tomorrow.....I want to see what happens to the sheen when it's fully cured.   the rudders will match the keel,  which sets off the mahogany nicely.   see you folks tomorrow   

[vossy]

looks really beautiful. I ummed and arred about painting my riverboat hull I must say. I really like the natural timber color, but decided to paint as most of them were painted I believe, plus I have heaps of natural wood on the decks and as mine is a massive size I think the white hull breaks it up nicely. anyway back to yours, as I said, it looks fantastic. are her deck structures going to be painted, or left natural like the hull? also, for what its worth, with your trial naming decals, I actually like the bottom one the best; yes, even the dice.

 

chris

 

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Chris......actually,  I'm still on the fence.   I like the white walls...most of the ones I've seen have been painted.  when I saw the mahogany planking in the Nordkap,  I decided then that I would save that wood.....too decorative to paint over.   I would wait and use it on a hull that would look better as natural wood,  but I wasn't holding my breath.  in this kit,  they supply .5 x 5 mm dark walnut planking,  which I thought was too dark,  so I decided to use the mahogany planking.. ..which is actually 1.5 x 7 mm {not what I stated earlier}.   the other mahogany planks I found mixed in are actually 1.5 x 10 mm.   I have an abundance of the .5 x 5 mm blonde thin strip.  I may use a walnut stain {which I have on hand}......or I'll go and get some mahogany stain,  and do all the structures in stained wood.  my inventory of wood is fairly large.....I could go a few different ways.   decking is the same story......again,  I haven't really decided yet {the reason I haven't planked anything else}....it won't be a blonde color,  the river and age would have discolored it.......I'm thinking oak with a grayish quality.

    the decals are just a preliminary thing......showing what I'm looking at.   I like the bottom one too,  but looking at the dice...they look like a picture of actual dice, and not drawn or painted in appearance.   the admiral had fun juggling around my combinations.   the flaming dice are out...would have been nice to have multi layered flames.   I do like the ones that spell out the word 'dice'...I can arch the word 'Tumbl'in' more.  I'm also going to look into past builds.....one fellow had a nice bit of detail for the pilot house.   it's going to more of a show piece than an actual boat.  thanks for the good word Chris.......all the cards are still on the table   

[Kevin]

She looks great, is the admiral still talking to you?

 

[popeye the sailor]

hi Kevin........of course she is......but she made the hand gestures  I.C.U.  what's that other stones song........"under my thumb"......   she sees where I'm going with it though.   after seeing how the bottom looks,  she's on board with it.  of course,  the revelation I discovered with the mahogany planking was a good thing....to think that if I didn't actually measure the width of the planking,  I might have ordered the wrong replacement size.  she isn't mad at me.   when I can get around to it,  I'll order the replacement wood......and slip in a few items I need to finish the trawler {I wasn't going to place an order for a couple of items}  it's the main reason why I stopped working on that project......but I need to get that one back on the table too.

 

thanks for the good word........the bottom looks so much better with the second coat     

[Canute]

Nicely done, Denis. Makes the wood "pop". Not a fan of glossy, but with this wood, it works.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Ken........I agree.......weathered wood is not glossy.  in fact,  to stay with a sense of realism with ships,  there is a very small window where gloss is actually OK to use.   if I wasn't treating this one as a showpiece model.  I'd have anti-foiled the bottom.   I have a nice bundle of this wood,  very pleasing to see it shine like this     thanks for the good word.   

 

the deck is cemented on the bottom at the moment.   both main deck structures are indeed off.   after I found which holes I needed to use,  I marked the deficit of the other tabs,  and cut the holes to fit them.  it was equally troubling to see that the second level  doesn't fit quite right either.  I got the planking to do now,  so that will keep me busy for a little while.   I do have some pictures to show.......I post 'em tomorrow   thanks for look'in in and the likes    

[mtaylor]

Is that the "red" mahogany?  I like what you have chosen to do for the hull even if much of it won't be seen when it's turned over.  I'm looking forward to seeing what's next. 

[Piet]

Nice hull Denis, glad you used the mahogany. Sure looks great.

 

Cheers,

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Mark and Piet.....yep!  this is the mahogany I got out of the Nordkap kit.   I'll order some different planking later.    too beautiful a wood to be painted over!

    thanks for the good word gents and thanks to you folks who hit the like button   

 

as promised,  I have the pictures from the fitting job.   in order to fit the structures,  I chose to cement the deck on to the bottom.   there is a curvature in the deck that may help with the fitting.

both of the structures were set up on the deck.   the second level deck was dry fitted,  to insure it would fit afterwards.  the mis alignments ended up like this......

the fore slot for the front structure needs to be trimmed aftward.  it was marked.

the fore slot for the aft structure needs to be trimmed forward.   it too was marked.

after the cutting was done.....I discovered another small problem.   the aft structure,  which is a bit more complex,  doesn't sit well with the curvature of the deck.       the way the side walls are shaped {with the doors and the vent slots},  has some flex when pushed in place.   it alters the door openings.  the tab on the stern wall complicates things,  so sanding the curve along the base of the structure might be tough.   I'm thinking that when fully assembled,  the flex might not be so prominent,  and it can be cemented in place easier.

it's really not that much......

[Mike Dowling]

Rather than enlarging the holes, couldn't you just cut the tabs off ? Just a thought.

[Omega1234]

DENIS!!!!!! You’ve started another one?

 

Ok (deep breath😏).  I’m in!

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[popeye the sailor]

I could have Mike,  but I think it would be harder to center the structures.  alignment is very important.   the good thing is that both of the enlarged slots have the deficit showing inside the structures........no windows or visibility,  they will never be seen.

 

hello Patrick.......yes I have.     I was just going to experiment with some of the problems with this kit,  but we all know that once something is started,  it will never stop.  glad to have you following along   

[Jim Lad]

She's really coming along already, Popeye!

 

John

[popeye the sailor]

hello John....and thanks for the good word     there's a lot of planking that will slow me down a little.   I've also decided to lean more towards stain than paint.  I think it will make it a bit more interesting.    as always,  thanks to all for the likes.

 

I would have had this posted earlier,  but I got bumped off the site.  I kept getting that error message.  so I'm gonna hurry and get this up before anything else happens     deck planking has begun.......I didn't have any oak stain,  but I have a new can of Special Walnut    I also have a can of Mahogany.......so the plan I have in my head is a go.   I'm not sure I'll do it,  but I also wanted to streak in some gray into the walnut,  which I was thinking to do,  even if I had oak.  I'll see how the two look together.  I guess the first thing to do is set up a place to stain.   easy enough to do.......

as I mentioned earlier,  I happen to have an ample supply of the blonde .5 x 5 mm thin strip.   they are about 880 mm in length.

the supplied thin strip bundle is only 550 mm long.   I'll use what I have,  mainly because I've had it for quite some time...and not sure how long the gent who sent it to me had it for {thanks again Mark}.  

earlier I stated that both enlarged slots are inside the structure....no so.   the forward slot is outside,  and to deter any trouble from it,  it was filled in.  it will be sanded flush later on when dry.

I marked off the structures with the intent to plank around them,  but I ended up having second thoughts.   last time I did it,  I lost track of the staggers and blew it big time.   the outside of the structures are to be planked as well,  so what I did here is wrong to begin with.

I set the butt stagger meter to six and marked off these lines as well.  then it later dawned on me that this would result in very long planks,  so I bisected all of the lines by half,  marking these lines  as well.   now the deck looks like a lined mess     the center plank was continuous,  interrupted by the slots.   from then outward,  the staggering began.

I am using an archive pen to do the calking.   I stopped doing it though,  since it dawned on me too that it won't be seen.   I didn't do the butt staggering as well for the same reason,  but I did enough so I could use it as a reference.   from where you see the progress here,  I continued on the starboard side,  filling in aftward,  as I needed to base the planking..

 

[Cathead]

At the rate you people are starting build logs for this kit, I'm about ready to figure out how to design and offer another riverboat kit to give more options given the apparent interest.

[popeye the sailor]

this morning I got back to the planking.   getting to the paddle wheel opening,  I lined the center edge with a strip.   when I plank those two extensions,  it will box in the opening.   I did the same thing with the aft structure,  making sure that any part of the planking that will lie outside the structure,  is done with the archive pen.

around the bow of the deck,  planking hung over the edge.   I use the convex nail clippers to trim it,  and sandpaper to make the edge smooth.

along the side of the deck,  a very small sliver of bare plywood can be seen.   odd that it's not consistent.

the sliver stops further back and starts again at the stern.   to fill this in,  I have some 3 mm blonde thin strip.   a strip was stained to fill them in.

these two areas were filled in and they will be trimmed when dry.

back at the stern,  the starboard extension was planked.  these are kind of a nuisance.......I hit this one earlier and cracked the glue.   this should fix it.

I'm thinking that the difference in planking width accounts for this.....we all know that there is a tolerance,  as much as 1 mm in some cases.   most of the time,  I compare the width of the planking I use........you never know.   I recall one bundle of planking I got one time was so badly cut and varied so much,  that I actually opted to use other planking I had on hand.   I should be able to get more done today.....I'm shooting to get the entire deck finished.  more soon   

[popeye the sailor]

hello Eric      OK.......how about the Baton Rouge     I haven't seen a kit for it      welcome........glad to have you following along.

[md1400cs]

Denis,

 

Just catching up - Looking great. Hull wood is perfect. and your deck work is splendid indeed.

[Mike Dowling]

Good work Popeye. Eric, you simply have to make another paddle steamer available -  I am getting withdrawal symptoms!!

[popeye the sailor]

thank you Michael and Mike........I'm just getting started with the planking,  and the planking,  and planking   

[Canute]

Hey, don't forget Bluejacket has a 1/192 scale USS Cairo, an American Civil War Brown Water Navy gunboat. Much more warlike, but a center paddlewheel boat. It's solid wood hull with brass and Britannia metal detail parts.

[Piet]

Nice going on the decking Denis.

 

Cheers,

[mtaylor]

Looiking good, Denis.  I happy the wood is working for you.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Piet and Mark........OH yea!     some of the strips are curved......if I was planking a sailing ship,  they would be perfect      good to find a way to use them up......I think they've aged long enough    time for other wood to take their place.

 

I've heard of that kit Ken........I've never done a solid hull model,  although I do have that PT boat by Marine Models tucked away in the closet. {boy,  when I start on that one,  it's gonna need all new wood!}

 

I finished planking the main deck last night.......after a few interruptions.  at one point,  I needed to go over to my son Kevin's house to help set up his new air compressor.   I still need to refine the stern and sand around the edges,  so the decorative strip can be glued on.   I had worked on the port side for a short time,  before I thought to snap the continuation picture.

 note that I have been drawing the butt staggers in where the structures lie,  so I won't lose my place with them.

before long,  the bow section was planked,  and proceeding aftward.  when laying the sections inside the structure lines,  I didn't bother cutting or calking,  but only did what would go beyond the confines.  when the bow had dried for a short time,  the port side was trimmed and sanded.  I really need to find the good pair of nail clippers....I have a habit of using them to cut brass rod,  and it does tend to dull them.

reaching the stern,  I had to get a little creative on this side.   the planking didn't align as well,  as they did on the starboard side.  the slots will need to be trimmed a lot more on the port side.   a small piece of the 3 mm was fitted within the extension,  and an even narrower piece needed to be fitted along the inside edge.  I didn't have any blonde strip,  so I used some Annegre strip I have on hand.  the color being a bit off,  it was sanded and then stained over,  which made it blend in.   the paddle wheel brackets will cover it though,  so it may not be seen.

the 3 mm that was patched along the fore section of the starboard side was trimmed and sanded,  and some of the port side edge too.  not much has been done with the port stern....I'll leave that for tomorrow.   sanding and clear coating will be done then as well.   the waste you see is what there is in total.......out of all the strips I stained,  I'm left with the equivalent of 2 strips.   I'll see what I can get done today   

   

Edited February 27, 2018 by popeye the sailor
one more picture

[rafine]

Looking good Denis. A nice neat job on the deck.

 

Bob

[Jim Lad]

Crikey!  Main deck planked already.  Well done, mate!

 

John

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Bob....I'm hoping I can achieve what I'm going for    thanks for the good word!   

 

this morning was fairly productive.   around the deck,  the edges were trimmed and cleaned up.   the structures were put on the deck to see how they will look.   not that there will be much of an impact....they're as barren as a desert.

the deck was finished out the rest of the way,  and then a light sanding over the whole thing.   to richen it up again,  I went over it again with stain.

it needs to be banded before the seal coat is put down......I want to get started with the structures,  so I'll do it when I get to a point that requires some major dry time.  the structures are to be planked with thin strip,  that has been stained with Mahogany.  

this is red Mahogany stain,  kinds skeptical,  since it doesn't seem to have the red characteristic.  perhaps it will when the seal coat is applied.   I did find the parts list...in about three different languages.  at least now,  I can get a better idea of what wood to use.   I made the same choice as Hugh did,  putting the corner molding on the structures first.

I planked one wall already.......this made me wish I had gone the other way.   the increment was off,  leaving not enough space for the final plank.   again,  I fell back to the 3 mm planking,  staining up one {which came out very dark},  to fill the gap.    to make matters worse,  one side is a tad off,  so I had to taper the plank as well.

in this case,  instead of having all of them ending in the same place,  I will alter how each side is planked,  so it ends up in different places.  trimming this was the pits as well.......I need to go on an errand anyway.

    when I got back,  I was all smiles.......I bought a new pair of clippers.  not just any pair either......I found a two in one pair of clippers!

it has the convex on one end and the concave on the other end!  the convex side seems like it has less of an angle too.

they can also be use for trimming rigging....they are great for getting close enough to the knot,  so you won't leave the tell tail bit of thread.  so now I can trim the excess planking cleanly.    should have more for you soon   

[popeye the sailor]

thanks John......oh...there a lot more planking to come.  by the time I'm done,  I should be frazzled   

[Piet]

Nice going Denis. Yeah, those nail clippers are good for many things, including snipping off some brass wire.

 

Cheers,