Schooner Germania (Nova) by KeithAug - FINISHED - Scale 1:36 - 1908 / 2011

[druxey]

Loved your poem on the Planker's Lament! Here is a response, Keith:

 

It takes a while to figure out

That you will need to spile.

A plank can only bend so far

But not the second mile.

It will bend and twist all right

But edge bends just a bit,

Then it's time to spile that plank

So that the thing will fit.

 

[wefalck]

... or it will split

 

[KeithAug]

1 hour ago, druxey said:

Here is a response

There speaks the voice of experience. 

[druxey]

Um, that was a cleaned up version, Keith!

 

[KeithAug]

Planker's Progress 5 - Day 10.

 

I got to the point on the  underside of the bow where the planks were very flat where they intersected.

I needed to change strategy so I introduced a "keel" plank with the intention that further planks would be butted against it.

I also inserted a small block at the top of the rudder which will be sanded to give the hull in this area it'd final shape.

The problem I was having with planking (as recorded in Planker's lament) was to the right of the inserted block. Here the curvature is acute and the planks were being distorted more than was good for them.

 

 I pressed on rather than rethinking and ended up cutting out a section 3 planks wide by 6 inches long and redoing it. I must remember that rework is slow - much better to do it right first time.

 

In the next photo you can see that the extent to which taper planking has filled out midships relative to the bow and stern. As I proceed I will have to start sorting out the aft end of the keel where stealers will obviously be necessary.

I finished day 10 with a planking count.

So I make that 9.6 planks a day - good job I am not on piece work- obviously some way still to go.

[wefalck]

Very pleasing run of the planks 👍

[Jim Lad]

Been away up the coast for a few days and I come back to find this lovely planking job well under weigh!  Great work, Keith.

 

John

[KeithAug]

17 minutes ago, Jim Lad said:

Been away up the coast for a few days

Hi John - I do understand "up the coast".

 

A number of years ago my son was on a parent funded "elective" (university work experience vacation). He and a group of friends hired a car in Sydney having booked a sailing week in the Whitsunday Islands. Being the inhabitants of a small island they had no idea of how far they had to drive!!!!!

[BANYAN]

 catches a lot of 'visitors' out those distances involved.

 

Nice job on the planking Keith, the run is very 'pleasing' as Eberhard says, it is obvious your fairing efforts are paying dividends now as planking is very symmetrical.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[vossiewulf]

Keith, any way you can be talked into leaving that hull natural? Besides the beauty, I'm thinking of your safety - I know a few bars where wood workers hang out where if someone says they intend to paint 100 year old real mahogany, they're going to be lucky to make it out with only tarring and feathering 

 

[KeithAug]

17 hours ago, vossiewulf said:

I know a few bars where wood workers hang out

Vossie,

 

My mother told me not to frequent bars like that.

 

Eberhard, John, Pat thank you for your appreciation - I hope the more difficult remaining part continues to please.

[Bedford]

Well I've just found this beautiful build and I'll definitely be tagging along.

 

As for "up the coast" as a fellow New South Welshman I'd say still in NSW but north of Sydney.

 

As Banyan said, the distances involved here catch a lot of people out. I was hiring a car in the airport at Cairns one day and the German couple in front of me were hiring a car to drive to Sydney to catch their flight home in two days. The hire car guy looked at me with a look that said "Do you they know it's 2431K's"

Edited March 21, 2019 by Bedford

[KeithAug]

15 hours ago, Bedford said:

I'll definitely be tagging along.

Hello Bedford - nice to be in contact again. Hope I don't disappoint.

[FriedClams]

Keith, your planking is looking terrific - so tight edge to edge.  And a good call on the keel plank.  The beautiful form of the hull belies the complexities in planking it.

 

Gary

[KeithAug]

On 3/19/2019 at 7:32 PM, KeithAug said:

As I proceed I will have to start sorting out the aft end of the keel

Further to the above comment I needed to accurately cut some planks to a taper of specific width and length (the measurements are taken from the hull). I do have a rip mitre gauge for the saw but I thought I would share the following method which I find easier and quicker.

 

I set up the saw to cut the plank to the maximum width of taper needed. I then cut the plank to width. Having done this I then cut the plank to the length of taper needed. As I usually need 2 tapers (one for each side) I stick 2 planks together using double sided tape.

Without changing the width of cut on the saw I then slot out the end of a piece of scrap.

Having done this I create a notch using a hand saw.

I then place the plank against the notch and use a push stick to apply side pressure to hold it in place while pushing the plank into the blade using the notched stick.

I end up with 4 tapers - 2 correctly sized and 2 slightly smaller (because of the blade width).

I know stealers are not supposed to come to a sharp point but I find they work fine on this type of hull.

 

And so I proceed to plank.

 

 

 

Edited March 21, 2019 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

50 minutes ago, FriedClams said:

your planking is looking terrific

Thank you Gary, I hope it continues.

[paulsutcliffe]

Nicely done, mole grips as a clamp ! The hull must be bigger than I thought😁

[KeithAug]

1 hour ago, paulsutcliffe said:

mole grips as a clamp

Paul

 

Actually the clothes peg (which has rubber pads) was the first clamp. Unfortunately the spring was weak and the mole grips just happened to be handy. They are the middle size of a set of 3.

[Bedford]

15 hours ago, KeithAug said:

Hello Bedford - nice to be in contact again. Hope I don't disappoint.

Knowing your work I don't see how you could

[vossiewulf]

14 hours ago, paulsutcliffe said:

mole grips

 

13 hours ago, KeithAug said:

mole grips

That's a new one on me, I've never known them as anything but vise grips here. Very handy whatever they're called.

[druxey]

Vossie: we say 'Mole grips', you say '"Vise grips'. Two countries separated by a common language!

[KeithAug]

On 3/19/2019 at 7:32 PM, KeithAug said:

Planker's Progress 5 - Day 14.

So its 14 days since I started.

 

No dramas in the last couple of days but I didn't get a lot of time in the workshop.

 

As I start to progress up the keel I need to sort out the cut away for the screw. In the corner it has a tight curve. I took a strip of mahogany .2" thick and used the side of a 5mm end mill to thin it down - thus creating the required corner radius - see next photo.

I cut the thinned section off just behind the radius before gluing it on to the horizontal surface. A piece plank was then used to clad the vertical section before sanding back to match the keel profile. I will round off the sharp edges when I do the final hull sanding.

I continued up the keel filling the back of the keel with stealers as I went. At the present time I have virtually filled the excess and the planks are now running true and virtually parallel with the deck. 116 planks have been laid.

You can see the wedge planks in the next photo if you look hard.

I took stock and measured the remaining area to be planked at the front and back of the keel. I will now complete the next section of planking using taper planks with a 2:1 taper. Fortunately the hull is now short enough to take single plank lengths.

 

I also need to start thinking about how to plank the "bulb" of the keel where once again the changes in radius are pronounced.

 

Bedford - thanks for the vote of confidence - I ,may need to draw on it when I get to planking the bulb.

 

Vossie / Druxey - I would actually call it a Mole "WRENCH" but what's in a name.

Edited March 22, 2019 by KeithAug

[mtaylor]

7 hours ago, druxey said:

Vossie: we say 'Mole grips', you say '"Vise grips'. Two countries separated by a common language!

I've also heard them called "channel locks".  A bit imprecise as true "channel locks" are totally different tool.  

[Bedford]

Me being me and the keel bulb being at the bottom of the boat, out of direct view, I'd laminate some planks and carve the bulb.

[KeithAug]

8 hours ago, Bedford said:

I'd laminate some planks and carve the bulb.

Bedford - That is how I did it last time so it is an option. It would just be sort of neat to be able to plank it. I may chicken out though.

[wefalck]

I kind of thought that a solid, shaped piece of mahagony would look nice too.

[GrandpaPhil]

Nice job on the planking!  It’s looking good!

[KeithAug]

8 hours ago, wefalck said:

I kind of thought that a solid, shaped piece of mahogany would look nice too.

Eberhard - yes I agree, when the planking gets too difficult i'll lop off the remaining un-planked area and revert to carving - I just like the challenge of seeing how far I can get with the planking.

7 hours ago, GrandpaPhil said:

Nice job on the planking!

Thank you Phil.

[KeithAug]

Planker's Progress 6 - Day 17.

 

It is 3 days since my last update and progress continues at a modest rate. Those of you who are getting board will be pleased to hear that I am nearer the finish than the start.

 

As I approach the keel bulb I have to start thinking ahead. Some time back I said I would have to sort out the unrealistically sharp keel.

I started by lopping of the tip and cutting a piece of mahogany which was a bit thicker and had the extension to hold the bottom bearing of the rudder.

I progressed up the keel towards the bulb - gradually finding the planking more difficult at the rounded front end. I started to find the planks were too stiff to wrap around the bulb and had to resort to heat bending.

Eventually even this wasn't working and the next step was to use narrower planks - .055" thick by .090" wide while also continuing with the heat bending. Using the narrower planks slowed progress somewhat as two and half  planks were now required where previously one had been used. The narrower planks were not tapered as by now I had eliminated the excess planking area at the rear of the keel. I should have explained earlier that I was chamfering all the plank edges to eliminate any plank to plank gaps.

Having got this far my last job for today was to see how the remaining planks would fit. I put a few off cuts in place and satisfied myself that I was up to the task before retiring to the comfort of my armchair to enjoy the smell of the fish pie wafting in from the kitchen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 25, 2019 by KeithAug

[BANYAN]

That's looking very ship-shape Keith; I think the yard's master-shipwright would have considerable difficulty finding fault with that effort.   The run of the planks looks spot-on so your planning and adjusting have served you well.

 

cheers

 

Pat

Edited March 26, 2019 by BANYAN