Medway Longboat - 1742 -1/2" scale - by KenW

[KenW]

Just got home from a New Year’s Day party that marks the end of the holiday season.  I even got a little time to spend in the shipyard these last few days. As a result, I’ve completed the planking of the Medway longboat.  I still may do some more sanding and a few more coats of oil based Wipe-on Poly, but all the planks have been installed. One thing I forgot to mention on my last post is that Chuck told me to make very sure as each plank is installed that it is glued to each frame.  So I need to try to move each frame just above a plank after it's put on the boat to insure it's properly glued..

 

 

 

I'm going to spend some time on my Independence build over the next few days.

Edited January 2, 2019 by KenW

[Rustyj]

Very well done Ken. 

[Chuck]

Looks great Ken.  I cant wait to see it at a meeting up close.

 

 

[KenW]

Thanks Rusty and Chuck.  I'll bring the model to the meeting on the 22nd.

 

[Chuck Seiler]

On 12/21/2018 at 7:39 PM, KenW said:

I've always wondered about tree nails.  I'm sure they were used when most of the 18th century and earlier ships were built.  But once the planks were installed, the hull was painted.  So, the tree nails would be hidden under the paint.  Same for nails, probably.  So why go through all that trouble?

I like tree nails on the decks.  The decks were constantly scraped and I think the tree nails would be seen.  Of course, when I was in England and took a day trip down to Portsmouth, I couldn't see any on the deck of the HMS Victory.  I did see the tree nails on the USS Constitution in Boston.

What you saw were plugs, not treenails.  The deck plank is countersunk then nailed into place.  Next, a plug is inserted into the hole to protect the nail.  Looking at treenails you see end grain.  Plugs you see side grain.

[KenW]

Hey Chuck.  Thanks for the info.  Of course, when I saw the Constitution in Boston, I hadn't begun modeling so I had no idea what I was looking at.

I should go back.  So what is your opinion on tree nails on the hull?

[KenW]

I removed the frame centers and what remains actually looks like a boat.  In fact, that all went so well that I glued on the cap rail. No problems there, or so I thought.  Looking at the photos, and later at the model, I see a ‘swerve’ in the middle of the boat. I think I must have had a fairing issue that went undetected until now.  I’m hopeful that when I fail the inside of the hull and cap rail that I can ‘cover up the problem’. But fairing the inside of the hull comes later, for now it is on to the dreaded bolster.

 

 

 

[Rustyj]

Looking nice Ken. Hopefully fairing will be able to "correct" the swerve. 

[KenW]

The dreaded bolsters are giving me lots of trouble.  The kit is supposed to have eight blanks, but I only find six.  I started with the starboard side and messed up 4 before I finally got a satisfactory bolster.  That leaves only one blank left. I reread the instructions and stopped using my x-acto knife. I also tried to draw a line where I think the shape should be, as per the instructions.  And I was very careful when making that curved bevel; checking the fit often. That bolster turned out surprisingly good. But now I’m really worried that I’ll mess up the last blank when making the port side bolster.

 

 

[Jim Rogers]

You’ll get it.

[KenW]

Thanks Jim. 

After my panic a couple of days ago, I was able to carve/sand an acceptable bolster for the port side of the model.  Again, I followed the method in Chuck’s instructions. Both bolsters are glued in place and and sanded. They look OK.  The space for the roller was no problem. The next step is to sand down the cap rail.

 

    

 

Edited January 30, 2019 by KenW

[Jim Rogers]

Your bow area looks great Ken.

[KenW]

Thanks Jim for your comments.

[Ryland Craze]

You did a good job on your bolsters.  I hope mine turn out as nice as yours.

[Rustyj]

Ken, panic is acceptable. It turned out very nice.

[KenW]

I sanded down the cap rail to Chuck’s specifications.  No problems; just a lot of elbow grease and time. I used 220 and 320 grit sandpaper.  I added the inboard sheer strake and sanded it down so the sheer top meets the cap rail.  I also added the knee and sanded to insure that the seam is perfectly smooth. I finished it all off with 400 grit to get it even more smooth.  And then I painted the rail red. A little sand paper removed any red paint that ended up where it wasn’t supposed to be. Overall, it looks pretty good.

 

 

[Ryland Craze]

Ken, very nice job.  I cannot wait to see this in person in April.

[KenW]

I’ve finished the third chapter of the Medway Longboat instructions.  I drilled all the holes for the ‘nails’ and stuffed the holes with the monofilament.  I must say that I should have simulated the nails in each plank as they were installed.  It’s much easier to drill the holes INTO the frames. I can see several pieces of filament sticking through the inside of the boat.  But after I cut them off and put in the floorboards, I’m sure they won’t be seen. I glued the freezes and the molding that I scraped into shape.  I used a scraper that I got from Artesania Latina. The web site I used is:

    https://www.artesanialatina.net/en/162-micro-tools-for-modeling

The model number of the scraper is 27300.

 

 

 

[Rustyj]

Great workmanship Ken. If any of the monofilament should show a very tiny drop of yellow ochre paint hides them well. 

[Ryland Craze]

Your Longboat is looking very nice.  Thanks for the tip on installing the simulated nails as each plank is installed.  I hope to see your model at a future SMSNJ meeting.

[KenW]

I began to work on the inside of the boat.  The first thing was to apply Wipe-On Poly. Then the floor boards and platforms.  No real problems. Just to boring task of doing simulated nails. And after all that you can hardly see them in the photos.

 

  

[Chuck]

Thats because you need to upload bigger pictures....

 

Seriously though, very nice work.  Making some great progress there. 

[Rustyj]

Looking really good Ken.I'll have to stop down and see it in person again! 

[KenW]

Thanks Rusty and come on down.

And I always listen to Chuck.

 

 

[DocBlake]

Nice work, Ken!

[Trussben]

Sweet!

[BobG]

Your longboat looks great, Ken. How is she coming along?