HMS Bounty Launch by Meredith - Model Shipways

[Meredith]

Decided to have a little side project going on while I also work on my Syren. Need to have a ship build going during any "wait" time on the Syren.

 

So all I have done so far is sort all the timbers...

These imperial measurements aren't natural for me! - 1/8" and above I am fine with and can visualise - but anything less.. well as far as I am concerned its just "little" - I cant picture it.

Silly thing is - I work with both imperial and metric all day with my work - but the scale is a whole lot larger. We all tend to refer to ID pipe diameter in inches....lineal measurements in meters....grinder sizes in inches.. drill bits and any "holes" in mm etc etc ec

 

 

I do need a longer sorting box though - this one was originally made for the little 18th Century long Boat.  Next time I take a trip out of here - I will get some more timber and MFD to build a much longer one. I find it very useful keeping things sorted.

 

 

I have now cleared the table (lap top is only for MSE reference while I build and a few DVD's or music.. it usually lives on another bench)

So.. I will start with a it of cleaning up laser burns and getting the bulkheads tabs glued and keel glued..

 

 

[gjdale]

Looks like you've got plenty to keep you occupied Meredith

[Meredith]

Well.. I have sanded the burns....notched the rabbit... built a board/jig, put the guides on the "molds" (bulkheads). Spent most of the evening making a thingie to square the "molds". I found some acrylic - I have to make do with what ever I can find and improvise here. Cant just go out and buy something. But it works - cant say it looks too attractive. I have glued the first one on - so off to a start. It should be useful for other builds too - I made it big enough to cover all the kits I have here waiting.

 

I plan to spend more time on preparation from now on in ..... I know it pays off in the end.

[Meredith]

A little bit of progress overnight and this morning...

 

put the keel pieces together and cut the rabbit - got a bit of wood filler in it at the moment - waiting for it to dry - so I can sand.

 

Attaching the "molds" to the building board so I can shape the timbers around it.

 

That's it so far. Will get a few more molds on today - doubt I will get it finished due to the glue drying time.

 

The acrylic frame is working fine (not pretty - but works). Pity I can't find my bigger rare earth magnets - saves clamping. The little ones are working fine - but I think the bigger ones will suit all purposes - they have about a 5kg pulling power - think that should be enough for most future builds.

 

Job for this afternoon: Find magnets!

 

 

 

 

[Cap'n Rat Fink]

Nice start Meredith

[captainbob]

Hey Meredith,

 

Looking good.

 

Bob

[Meredith]

Got all the frames on they have all dried and shaped nicely. Ony broke one while bending - but that was before I did it "my way" not as suggested in instructions.

[Ferit]

Hi Meredith,

I stopped by... It looks very nice project... Regarding your preparations, it's easy to say that you intend to make a beatiful build...

[Meredith]

The frames have all been done as at the end of last weekend - and have been left to dry for the week.

 

Some photos in progress

 

 

 

I only broke one frame whilst bending them around the frames. But that was when I was "following instructions". It says to wet and then bend with fingers before trying to bend around mold. Well.. the first one broke - and I was being quite gentle. So I got out my little iron thingie and just ironed the wet timbers around the molds - too easy. Didn't have another breakage. so I have a heap of the cherry frame wood left over.

 

 

One side completed. The other side is now done - and I am getting read to plank.

 

I have glued the frames into the keel piece - all went well. But I couldn't help my self - I did take it off the mold after the glue dried - to make sure it wasn't going to stick and check the frames were well glued in and meeting in the middle. I forgot to take a picture of the skeleton But other than feeling extremely fragile.. it looked good.

I did make sure to sand and smooth the frames (inside and side faces) - as experience with my little 18th C longboat showed me how fiddly an difficult it can be to get a nice finish on the frames after the planking is done.

 

 

All the planking for this boat is laser cut basswood. the hull is to be painted - so I will go ahead and used the kit supplied stuff. Look pretty easy! (famous last words!). All the thinking and planning work is done for me.

 

So during the week I have about 20 shaped/spilled planks to sand and get ready for shaping at the weekend - and thanks t the Queen - we have a long weekend coming up - I might even get it all planked as I have taken a small break from the Syren build and swapped back to this one.

[Jim Lad]

Just catching up with this one, Meredith - you've made a great start.

 

By the way, how do you currently hang up your washing with all your pegs 'otherwise engaged'?

 

John

[Meredith]

Umm... John... I am lazy - I use the dryer - I don't hang stuff on the line up here. I leave for work too early in the morning and get home too late. If we don't take washing off the line the instant it is dry (you can count that in minutes - not hours) it tends to rot. Sunshine is a bit severe up here. The only thing I tend to hang on the line is new work clothes - I hate them when they are new - so try and wear them out as quickly as possible. So I wash them 50 times.. hang them on the line and leave them there for a few weeks - even hose them down if I am watering the garden :)

 

So little bit of an update.... these shaped planks are pretty easy - and its at such a large scale - I would say a pretty good beginners model.

 

I have fitted and glued the first two planks both sides (top and bottom - working towards the centre)

The next two planks are just shaped and waiting to dry out and then glued.

 

With the garboard plank - I did put some clamps on from side to side to try and hold the plank in the rabbet - which left some dents in the edge of the planks.. pretty nasty ones in fact.

So after I fitted the second plank - I thought I better deal with that now - and was going to try the wet and steam method of bringing the plank back to the original state.

 

I was bending the new planks in the kitchen  by dipping in a big pot of boiling water on the stove.. bends so easily and can push against the side of the pot to get the start of the bend. So after I planked - I dripped some of the boiling water on the dents and was making my way back out to my build area to use the little iron to steam them out. But by the time I got there - I couldn't really find the dents - they had already gone! But I still used the little iron just to dry the planks out a bit - to hurry up when I get the glue on and fit the next planks.

 

So on to a few pics.. pretty boring - no too much to show.

 

 

 

 

 

While this is drying out - I will swap back to working on my Syren...

[Ferit]

Hello Meredith,

Three shifts at your dockyard...

You are doing a clean and a painstaking build...

[Meredith]

I really enjoy this ship building lark - and I am keen to improve with every build. The logs here are SO inspiring - and I most look and in some ways feel a bit overwhelmed at the beauty of many of the things I see done - and I think I will never be that good.... but practice.. practice.. practice. I must keep an open mind and try new things and new (to me) methods - and hopefulyl one day those beautiful, precise clean little items I see other's produce - will be at my place too

 

I know.. baby steps... and keep trying and keep learning.. and one day.. who knows!

 

I have been told plenty of times I have the patience to worry a sheep dog.. so I am pretty sure I can stick at it and not loose heart.. I just have to keep looking here at the wonderful artistic builds and keep aiming to improve.

[Meredith]

Ok.. all planked....

I have just wacked some sanding sealer on her and when that's dry I will fill a couple of holes and sand off. Having second thoughts about painting it - might stain - not sure yet.

 

I was putting the very LAST plank on and saw that the planks weren't lined up at the bow.... hmmm... fix or ignore.... if it was to be painted it possibly wouldn't have mattered too much - but I would always know. 2 were wood glued on - so I steam those off and the other two were CA glued on. I only needed to take them out of the rabbit - so I just couldn't live with it - so off they came .

 

I still have to fix one plank - its just a wee bit short to hold in the rabbit - so I will need to put a little batten inside and fix to the keel. It should be ok - with the cap rail to hold it was well. But I need to work out what room I have - I don't want to put it in yet and find the other stuff wont fit. Or I might even put a brass strip from one side of the keel - over the keel and to the other side - I will have a play and see what works best. The plank might even clamp ok when I take it off the former. It actually still fits - but it was impossible to hole in place while the glue dried. I am confident it will fix ok.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think I will plank the transom - the word "transom has been laser etched on it - I did put it to the inside (was the outer side by design) - if painted it will cover up. But if I decide to stain and leave wood - I wont really be able to get rid of it. This is also the reason I haven't trimmed the planks yet. I will do that after I have planked the outside of the transom.

 

[ZyXuz]

nice start, Meredith!

your planking is neat!

[Meredith]

I have finally got all the 'tween frames done. Had more problems with stain. Did more reading and research. I have decided its the sanding sealer causing the problems. Spend half the day yesterday experimenting and think I have solve the problem. Bit too late for this build.

 

I WAS going to stain the timbers a light honey sort of colour. Did trials and was very happy with the colour. But it just didn't work - very poor stain job .... took it off a dozen times - but couldn't remove it all - so I decided to go darker...and darker.... and darker.. with the thought that I could go back to the original instructions and paint if all else failed. I didn't want it painted - so I have persevered with what I had to work with.

 

I undercoated the inside - because some of the dark stain seeped through and it would have been close to impossible to get it back to raw uncoloured timber.  Then I was tossing up what coulour to paint inside - I was going to go off white (might look right with the honey coloured timbers I have for the inside bits) - but thought that might be too great a contrast with the very dark outside hull. So at this stage I am leaving it light grey. Could change my mind again It has had about 3 coats of the grey. And the grey was used just because it was the only colour I had in a spray can - this boat WONT rust as the grey is actually Cold Gal - nice and mat and very good coverage.

 

So onto some photos...

 

 

The inside with all the frames installed and painted with Cold Gal....(originally as an undercoat)

 

 

Decided to paint the top area black and install a strip of honey coloured timber - this will match all the interior timbers I have already prepared.

 

 

The little green bits are just felt - as I didn't want to "fix" any more dents from clamps...

 

 

I used spacers to get the outside strip even al the way around..

 

 

Darker bits on the staining of the hull - most of these are now removed. This hull has so much sanding it isn't funny - but its silky smooth!

 

I have now touched up all the black paint and given it about 10 more coats.. and I have oiled the hull - much improved appearance and any unevenness has blended nicely. No photos yet of the hull as the oil is still a bit wet and shiny as I have given it some more coats.

 

Ok this might not finish up as the "Bounty Launch".... but it will be a boat of some sort. I think I have learnt a lot during this build - and plenty of things I wouldn't do again. I might even attempt it again sometime as I have the mould/frame all ready to go to do another one sometime. Maybe if I get to make this same boat 10 times - I might actually improve!!!!

Edited June 30, 2013 by Meredith

[Meredith]

Few photos of the hull oiled - under lights and still wet - so pretty shiny.

 

 

 

 

 

[Jeff-E]

Hi Meredith,

 

Just looked through your log, excellent work so far on the hull your planking looks terrific  . Looks like a nice kit to build.

 

What scale is it ?

[Meredith]

It's big 1:16 and almost 440mm long

[Cap'n Rat Fink]

Hello Meredith,

  Your Launch looks great...I had a lot of fun with  this MS kit.

[mtaylor]

Wow.... looks great Meredith.  I like the colors.

[captainbob]

Meredith,

 

What a fine boat you have going.  Now I have to stay for the finish.

 

Bob

[Meredith]

update - been a bit slow as I have re-done a few things along the way.

 

The thwarts were too narrow - so I found a piece of timber and used my Jim Saw for the first time for a real build instead of just playing with it. I don't know what the timber is - as I sanded off the pencilled on name without paying enough attention to it! But the grain is in scale and a really nice timber to work with. Pretty hard and sands well. Turned out much nicer than the supplied basswood anyway. So a bit of serendipity.

 

I will touch up the grey paint inside - as it has been knocked about a little bit.

 

A few things inside are just dry fitted at the minute and the belaying pins need sanding and sealing yet - but they are just sitting there.

 

I still have to cut the other thwarts to size and then its onto the gunwales. I have prepared them - just have to attach.

 

On to the photos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Meredith]

Not much progress - but a lot of work - re did some more things

 

I think its due to the heat and humidity where I am set up - but some of my hull planking was showing some gaps - so I have had to refill them and then repaint the inside and re oil and wax the outside.

 

I had installed one gunwale - but didn't really like how it sat an how I had to bend it. So I have removed it and I am waiting on the delivery of some wood to cut a new pair.

So I went on to make the chest (haven't attached the working hinges yet - so the top is just sitting there), one oar - have a few more to do yet! and one barrel.

 

I sanded the ridges/simulated bands on the barrels flat as they were round... then scribed some planks in them and then filled the scribes with black (ebony) wood filler, added a little bit of walnut stain, painted the bands, then oiled and waxed. Just have 7 more to do

 

Nothing really glued in yet - just dry fitted

 

In the meantime I also planked the entire hull of my Syren - so I haven't exactly been slack

 

On to the photos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Meredith]

A few more photos:

 

 

 

 

[ZyXuz]

Wow! Superb details on the  barrel!! adding the black lines down really make different! 

well done!

[Rail and Tie]

WOW!

[mtaylor]

Great detailings.  I love that chest.  Do I dare ask if the lid opens?

[Jim Lad]

Crikey, Meredith, you've done a heck of a lot while I was away on holidays.  She really looks first class - love the colours.

 

John

[Ferit]

Super nice!...