HM Cutter Lady Nelson by drjeckl - Amati/Victory Models - Scale 1:64 - First wooden ship build

[drjeckl]

So the journey begins. I'd been planning on getting into building model ships and what better excuse than the quarantine to start?  After some online research, I picked the Amati Lady Nelson.  Then I needed tools.  I basically had nothing since I had downsized into a small cottage from a 4-bedroom house and had to sell/giveaway most every tool I had accumulated over 30 years.  Boy, it wasn't cheap to restock and I included a starter airbrushing kit from Master Airbrush and a spray booth.  Was not willing to brush paint all what needed to be painted.  Also, it was a scramble to get tools; most of the modeling sites had a lot of out-of-stock for items.  Guess a lot of folks are doing the same as me.

 

Then it was looking for help.  This site was fairly easy to find and has a lot of good stuff, especially the Build Logs.  I also looked for build video logs.  Those on Modelers Central were way too expensive.  But I did find that Amati released free video build logs of the their Lady Nelson by Models Shipyard.  There are 20 of them on Facebook, starting here: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Amati Modellismo lady nelson&epa=SEARCH_BOX .  The builder takes some different paths from the Amati instructions, such as beveling the bulkheads AFTER adding them to the false keel.  After comparing his approach to what I found in the build logs and other tutorials here, I decided to follow his process, supplemented with tips from the MSW logs.  The most comprehensive MSW log I found for this ship was by vossiewulf.  Wow, he is one master builder!  Anybody know why he didn't finish it?  Too bad; I would have loved to see the final product.

 

Anyway, as to my build.  Below is where I am.  One issue I ran into was while beveling the bulkheads: the false deck popped up at the edges, not by much, but it did flatten the deck somewhat.  When I first glued the deck, it had a bigger curve to it, port to starboard.  I didn't see a problem with that.  After it popped up, I decided to leave it.  It still had the curve, just not as pronounced.  I looked at the the MS logs and he had the same gaps at the edges that I had, so I don't seem too worried.

Here's the bow:

And the stern:

The MS builder used a marker to highlight the filler blocks and the deadwood before beveling to show what had to be taken off.  I also had to take some of the deck off here since it overhung the last bulkhead.  I guessed that was needed based from what I saw from the MS logs.  The only issue I had at this point was supporting the gluing of the outside stern counter frames into their slots.  With the bulkhead beveling, I had removed most of what those frames would stick to.  So I glued 2 x pieces of the 1mm plywood sheet underneath the deck between the last two bulkheads.  See below.

Those frames are not going to move.  So I'm off to attach the 3 x keel pieces and then move onto the first planking.  Some observations:

 

1. The MS builder avoided using balsa bulkhead filler blocks between the bow and stern bulwarks.  When I saw that technique in the MSW logs, I did think that was a bit overkill for this small ship.  I figured two sets of hull planking would eliminate having to deal with the thick filler blocks.  Surprised vossiewulf went there. Also, he and others had the tools to easily make those blocks; I don't.  Comments anybody?
2. The MS builder's plan for tapering the planks involves calculating how much to take off on either end based on mathematical formulae which I found easy to comprehend.  When I looked at planking guidelines here, it appeared to involve drawing lines on the bulwark edges or lines, bow to stern, on a fully filler-block loaded hulls and then taking measurements.  That seemed a little tedious so I'm planning on following the MS builder's plan.  Also, he planes off what needs to go .  Some of the MSW log techniques appear to draw a line on the planks and then utilize a craft knife to remove the excess.  I'm going with planing the edge off a plank held in a vise.

 

Final painting scheme is still fluid.  My current thinking is (comments welcome):

1. Hull:
   1. White paint from the bottom to the waterline. (Maybe tinged with a little green or maybe grey.) 
   2. Walnut paint from the waterline to the main whale (maybe walnut stain)
   3. Black paint main wale
   4. Walnut paint from top of main wale to the top of the hull, including the upper wale (Again, maybe walnut stain)
   5. Black paint for capping rail. (Any reason I shouldn't paint the rails before attaching them?  Obliviously need to deal with the pin holes, but not a big deal compared to painting the rails in place.)
2. Deck:
   1. Carriage red for the bulwark side planks.  Same for hatches and the frames walnut (flipped from what I see on the MSW logs, but the Italian version of MSW showed that and I thought it had a better look.)
   2. Red for the gun carriage, flat black for the guns. As for the rigging of these, I see vossiewulf tried but then abandoned to rig with them with 2 x side tackles and 2 x train tackles and went with just 1 x centered train tackle because there was no room on the deck for all that rigging.  I will follow his lead on that.
   3.  Natural for the deck, no paint.  The MS builder used, as a deck scraper, a piece of thick glass and that gave it a nice look.  I'm trying to find a piece of glass; may break a window!

 

Off I go; wish me luck...John

[Sailor1234567890]

That looks awesome.

[drjeckl]

Wow, it's been exactly 5 months since my first and only log post.  Since then, I've posted in a couple of specific forums for certain issues that I probably could have posted here; either/or!  Anyway, I think I've made decent progress:

1. After laying 5 x planks with fairly miserable results, I sought advice and was convinced to restart.  From this:
   
   
   To successfully completed first planking:
   
   
   
   
   The secret technique I was missing was Chuck Passaro's plank edge-bending process.  What a difference!  Check out his videos on this.  I haven't yet migrated to his technique of lining up yet, but I may for the 2nd planking; not yet sure.
    
2. Challenged myself to follow Chuck's plan with laying down a margin plank on the border of the deck.  Rather than piecing together several shorter planks with scarph joints (I forget now why I couldn't do that with the material I was able to put my hands on (3mm beechwood kit planks and max width of 5mm planks available online), short-term memory is the first to go!), I tried and was able to edge-bend a single 5mm plank for each side.  Here's the result and adding the king plank:
   
    
3. I laid down deck planks until the end points of the plank got too sharp and started to hook them as per Chuck's process, found on page 10 here: http://modelshipworldforum.com/resources/Confed/Chapter10.pdf .  I cut out 2mm chunk out of the 5mm planks, leaving a 3mm plank in the middle of it and hooked the ends for the blanks at the ends.  The cutting out technique I used was captainbob's, found here (scroll down a little): Due to some careless fit cutting, I had to follow one of Chuck's rules:  If it doesn't fit, toss it aside and make another one.  I used a jumbo graphic stick to coat each edge of every plank with lead to simulate the caulking. Couldn't keep from getting the lead on my fingers and while gluing the planks to the false deck, got sticky lead on the surfaces.  After every two or three planks laid, I used a single edge blade to scrape the surface lead off (NO SANDING!!!).  Here's how the final deck turned out:
   
   
   I marked the center of the deck cutouts with a pin hole so I know where they go.   I'm pretty happy with how this turned out.
    
4. You might be able to see that there is a spirketting plank between the lowest bulwark plank and the margin plank.  The deck edge layout was a topic of discussion I raised here: I had to adjust my final layout of the spirketting plank to rest it on the false desk so it wouldn't cover the oar ports.  But it works as intended, keeping the cannon carriages nicely away from the bulwarks planks.
   
   Did not try laying in a waterway; didn't want to stretch my luck.
    
5. After the deck was completed, I needed to clean up the bulwark planks from the scrape marks.  So I masked the deck and gave the bulwark a couple of second airbrush coverings using Vallero Air Red 71.269.  The planks were previously primed with Vallero Surface Primer Pure Red 70.624.

So now I'm ready to move on and have some questions on the sequence I should take.  I'm planning to etch plank butts according to a 5-butt scheme.  After testing a couple of plans on some off-ship planks, I'm planning to do the following:

1. Cover the deck planks with one coat of  MinWax Wipe-On Poly followed by some smoothing out method (?)
2. Transpose the 5-butt scheme, in pencil, to the deck.  I did a layout in Visio (there is also an Excel spreadsheet by AEW one can use at   http://modelshipworldforum.com/ship-model-framing-and-planking-articles.php).
3. Use an milled down Excel blade #17A exactly to the width of the 3mm plank to etch the butt lines.
4. Use a Staedtler Pigment Liner 0.05mm pen to make the lines. 
5. Cover the deck planks with a 2nd and maybe a 3rd coat of WOP with the same smoothing out method in between coats.
6. Mask over the deck to protect it and start the final hull planking.
7. During my testing of the pen, without a coat of WOP on the plank, as soon I touch it with the pen, the ink absorbs in a circle and I don't get a clean line.  With a coat of WOP on the planks, I do.

So here are some of the obvious questions:

• What type of smoothing method would be best?  Sanding is out to avoid spreading the graphite.  Steel wood (0000 grit) could be an option.  What about stray, stuck steel threads?  Use a magnet to pull them off?  I also have a softback sanding sponge, 2500 grit.  Too fine?  What's best?
• I probably should cutout and mask the edges of the deck hatch and mast cutouts so the deck furniture, et al, glue will adhere good to the deck.  I will likely use PVA for this.  I have read in some posts that PVA will adhere well over WOP.  Should I risk not masking out the cutouts before applying the WOP?  If it doesn't stick, I would likely be left with scraping the edge of the cutouts.  I'll also need to deal with gluing (CA or PVA?) the cannon trucks to the deck.  Mask that area with a rectangle piece of tape under the entire carriage?  What about the water-based WOP?  Anybody use that and glue over it?
  
  Not so obvious questions:
• Any issue with the 5-step plan above?  Recommendations? Alternates to the Staedtler pen?
• Because I don't know: Would a coat of WOP over the bulwark planks be any help?

Any and all recommendations will be appreciated.  I just have to say that this site is fabulous for learning this hobby.  The wealth of experience here is amazing!  I have gained so much knowledge in the last 5 months and well before I started my log.  Oh, and the 2021 calendar is great!

 

Thanks...John

[Matt D]

Hi John.  When you say “sanding is out because of the graphite”, I’m not sure what task you’re working on.  If you’re talking about pencil on the plank edges, I’ve sanded mine and it works out great.  I assume you’re concerned about spreading graphite all over the planks.  That doesn’t happen in my experience.  Feel free to take a look at my build logs.  You can see that I sanded the crap out of Winnie’s starboard side and I sanded plenty on the deck of the Virginia.  I hope that’s helpful.

[VTHokiEE]

On 10/10/2020 at 1:35 PM, drjeckl said:

I'll also need to deal with gluing (CA or PVA?) the cannon trucks to the deck.  Mask that area with a rectangle piece of tape under the entire carriage?  What about the water-based WOP?  Anybody use that and glue over it?

I used CA on my cannon trucks because the trucks were painted black. I wouldn’t worry as much about masking off all these areas though. You could do a test, though to be certain (apply more coats of WOP than you think you’ll use to be certain and try gluing two pieces together).

 

Are you mixing your own WOP? I was under the impression that water based WOP wasn’t sold? Regardless, I’ve had good results with non-water based and plan on sticking with that moving forward. 

On 10/10/2020 at 1:35 PM, drjeckl said:

During my testing of the pen, without a coat of WOP on the plank, as soon I touch it with the pen, the ink absorbs in a circle

This would make me nervous, I unfortunately don’t have a better suggestion though. Did you give any consideration to laying shorter planks on the deck? Your deck looks really nice as is; I’d be tempted to leave it alone for fear of messing up the butt ends. With the guns and other things on the deck you may not really notice the missing butt joints.

[glbarlow]

A few quick comments:

 

The time to create a butt shift pattern in the deck was as you laid it, I don’t think any method will turn out very well after it’s already installed.  On this small ship you won’t notice much anyway after the furniture, guns, and rigging are installed, check mine out as an example.

 

Your first planking looks rough because you didn’t taper the planks, a single plank should run from the bow to stern without interruption. That’s done by tapering the planks to fit based on measurements. I describe this some in my Cheerful and Nelson logs.  I did it by following Chuck’s tutorials which you’re already familiar with. Filler blocks at the bow are always helpful in models like this one that don’t provide enough bulkheads. I shape mine from blocks of balsa. It takes no more than a modeling hand saw and an exact knife.  

 

I place the guns with a dab of medium (gel) CA on each wheel.  It doesn’t take much to keep them there, I haven’t lost a gun yet. I agree on this little model the breaching rope is enough. 
 

I like to paint with a brush, I only spray the guns. I think it gives a more natural look to the wood, but to each his own.

 

Careful with the stem, at least on mine it was soft wood, I broke it and had to repair it, I’d never had that happen on any model before.  
 

Glue will stick to areas with WOP, but it’s best to rough sand it for better adherence. WOP is oil based, there are water based polyurethane products, those aren’t typically referred to as WOP o this site. I use both depending on the circumstance. But one is not the same as the other and it’s generally one or the other.

 

PVA and CA will generally both adhere in almost any circumstance (a little tougher on two already painted surfaces maybe). You’ll find a lot of debate on which is better for what. 
 

For your next model I’d recommend cutting out the hatches and mast openings as you lay the deck, I think it will be challenging to do that after laying the whole deck, not something I’d do.

 

Hope some of this helps. 
 

[drjeckl]

5 hours ago, Matt D said:

 I assume you’re concerned about spreading graphite all over the planks.  That doesn’t happen in my experience.  Feel free to take a look at my build logs.

Matt, yes that was my concern.  I've seen that caution several times here.  I'll take a look at your logs.  Thanks.

 

5 hours ago, VTHokiEE said:

Are you mixing your own WOP? I was under the impression that water based WOP wasn’t sold?

Amazon has it:

Figured that PVA would have better adhesion over this product.

 

All, since this is my first build, I did not want to chance that I would screw up with installing anything but a full size deck plank.  And there are numerous topics on MSW regarding simulating plank butt edges.  But you're probably right, I should abandon that idea.  Maybe next build I'll install accurate size planks.

 

3 hours ago, glbarlow said:

I agree on this little model the breaching rope is enough. 

I'll probably just add one train tackle, but I agree, side tackles would be too much.

 

4 hours ago, glbarlow said:

Careful with the stem, at least on mine it was soft wood, I broke it and had to repair it, I’d never had that happen on any model before.

Yeah, I already broke mine; twice!

 

3 hours ago, glbarlow said:

Glue will stick to areas with WOP, but it’s best to rough sand it for better adherence.

Thanks Glenn, that's what I'll do.

 

Gents, thank you for your advice...John

[Old Collingwood]

Just found your build  -  the hull planking with the first planking (I assume you will be laying a second layer of planks over the top as its normal procedure)  is always a tricky/fiddly/nerve racking  procedure  - even the pro's like to get it out of the way.

With your deck  You have done a fine job  - its neat and tidy  and as  others have said  its easily sanded even with pencil  in between  the planks as the sanding action cleans as you are going.

 

Keep at it  you are doing fine.

 

OC.

[Overworked724]

Looking good!  Nice job on your planking!

[popeye the sailor]

hey there!  I see your well on your way with the lady     since this is a double planked hull,  you don't need to fuss too much with the first planking......shape it to the desired contour.  some will use filler if needed.  your best bet with the second planking would be to use 0.5 thick planking.  it will be easier to work with and can be purchased in a variety of woods....dark walnut...beech,  to name a few.   keep it tight and taper where indicated  

 

I used to use pencil for simulated caulking....I've even tried crayon and 0.5 x 0.5 mahogany thin strip.   I done everything but thread......but I've had the best result using the  Pritt archive Pen.  you did a very nice job with the deck.  I agree with Glbarlow......butt shift patterns should be done as the deck planking is laid.  some have done well penciling them in,  but mistakes are costly at this point.  it looks good......I'd leave it.    

 

I think I have only one model where I double planked it.......to me,  if the first planking looks good,  I go with it and avoid wasting wood.  in cases where the hull is to be painted,  a single planking is enough.   planking is an art.......there are many here far better than me.  keeping the plank line straight,  tapering and using stealers and Jogging planks help in keeping the line straight.  as you've seen there are a few methods.  take your time and keep it up......it only gets better from here!

[Lynn Young]

Hi John,

I will be following your build with interest. I am also a newbie to the site, so I will be starting my build log at some point. I will be doing the Triton Section.

 

Good info from yourself and other member of this very knowledgeable group.

Lynn

[drjeckl]

Lynn,

Well, on that note, I will be following you as you have selected a section build, which I have thought about, but will be at a minimum, my 3rd build.  I have already purchased and received Vanguard Models' Speedy for my 2nd build.  Still learning on my first, the LN, including acquiring the appropriate tools for this hobby.  I'm taking a deep breath on embarking on the 2nd hull planking.  Hope I remember how I did the first; it turned out pretty good after the second try, but it was a couple of months ago.

 

Hey, welcome to this site, start a build log, check the existing logs for your build and don't be afraid or intimidated to engage other members (i.e. follow other related builds, like individual posts; I see that you have done both; keep it up).

 

Good luck dude...John

[VTHokiEE]

1 hour ago, drjeckl said:

I'm taking a deep breath on embarking on the 2nd hull planking.  Hope I remember how I did the first; it turned out pretty good after the second try, but it was a couple of months ago.

Oddly enough I found the second planking (while nerve wracking at first) to be somewhat easier with the solid base of that first layer down. I’m certain yours will look great (and if you’re painting below the waterline white you can cover up some issues if they do rear their head).

[glbarlow]

2nd planking, tapering is important as is plank bending. Follow Chucks video you’ll be fine. Start at the top and work your way down about a third of the way. Then go to the bottom and do the bottom couple coming up 2-3 planks then go back up to the top and finish coming down. 
 

Why? Because if you’re not perfect and have to do some filling in you’ll be doing it in a place that can’t be seen once painted and mounted.

[glbarlow]

Are you still building your Lady Nelson?

[drjeckl]

Yes, about halfway through the 2nd planking.  I had to take a couple of steps backwards and regroup.  Got a new plane to do the tapering of the planks and then the tools to tune it up.  I decided to go that route since I was not getting consistent results from using a knife to cut the taper.  I have rigged up a shooting board, similar to what Vossiewulf, but certainly not as exact his, see below:

 

I decided that I wanted a shooting board for tapering the planks and a little male bending jig like Chuck uses to go along with the female one that comes with the plank bender. Lots of steps in here getting 1" x 1 1/2" rock maple ready. I then cut two pieces about 28" long, and added telescoping brass tube/rod registration pins, one side drilled for a glued-in tube, other for a fitting rod.

 

Once that was done I could true the shooting edge, I have just done that here with my jack plane.

 

 

Then more drilling and screwing and countersinking and things to get it mounted where I wanted it.

 

 

This shows how it works, you can see the registration pins that keep the pieces perfectly even.

 

 

Mark the required tapers on each end, for these planks it's .108" on the bow and .140" on the stern, and then position them in turn on the shooting board and plane the taper, this step literally takes about 30 seconds.

 

 

 

Instead of rock maple, I have aluminum bars that are not exactly aligned.  I also taper 4 x strips at once; 2 for the port side and 2 for the starboard.

 

I used this rig for the 1st planking and it worked OK, but I only did a pair of strips at a time.  It's a little tougher to line up 4 at a time; maybe I should revert to do just a pair.  I was also looking at this:

Mantua Model 8155 Strip Clamp and Hull Holder for Model Ship Building

 

I checked around MSW and there were only a couple of remarks about this; one negative, one neutral.  Other forums have indicated positive comments.  Any input on this?

 

Here's how my LN looks so far:

I'm pretty happy about how it looks.  Splitting a few strips during the edge bending, so I have purchased additional units.

 

What do you think?  Happy New Year!

 

John

[VTHokiEE]

2 hours ago, drjeckl said:

It's a little tougher to line up 4 at a time; maybe I should revert to do just a pair. 

Almost every time (probably every time) I try to speed things up I make a mess of it and revert to the slower more reliable way.

 

The second planking looks good so far from that picture!

[drjeckl]

Just an update, primarily for those new noobies who are beginning the LN just to give them some hope that they can build a good model on the first time but not to expect the quality of a model built by the MSW veterans.  Be prepared that you may break things; I have.  But most importantly, take your time.  As I've seen repeatedly on this site, "treat each piece you add as it's own model".  So far, starting in June, I have completed the following:

1. First planking, after ripping off 10 x planks and moving to Chuck's edge bending technique.  What a difference that made!
2. Prepped and painted the gun carriages (learned how to use an air brush)
3. Planked and painted the inner bulwarks
4. Planked the deck, after ordering some wider deck planks for the margin plank (learned what that is)
5. Halfway through 2nd planking the hull.  Also needed more planks because my edge bending broke enough.

The photos below show port, starboard, bow and stern views of my 2nd planking.  I started at the bulwarks and installed 4 x planks on each side without tapering. Then I added the Garboard plank at the keel and the blank above that (the First plank). 

 

At that point I calculated the tapering needed.  Between those gaps, I determined that I would need 15 x planks to complete the 2nd planking and created two bands, one with 8 x planks and the other with 7.  So I started downward from the bulwarks and started the tapering on both plank ends.  Here's a result:

Full view (left side is the bow end; right side stern end):

 

The amount of tapering is a result of following numerous planking guides found on MSW.  Here's closeups:

Bow:

Stern:

 

I use a plank clamping device, (Mantua Model 8155 Strip Clamp and Hull Holder for Model Ship Building, see a photo above in post #16) to hold the planks and a low-angle block plane to make the taper.  Each of these planks could go on either port or starboard.  Each plank was edge-bent as per Chuck Passaro's plank videos and then bent to fit the curve of the hull:  Here's how I do that: 

After completing about half of the first band downward, I started in the second band moving up from the keel.  Here's what the starboard side looks like:

 

Note the following:

• After completing the 1st planking, I decided to drill the holes in the keel for the pedestals.  While installing one of the lower planks, I leaned on the aft end of the keel and it snapped off.  Just have to glue it back on!
• My plan was to install a pair of planks after tapering; one for the port side, one for the starboard side.  In the photos below, there are different number of planks installed on either side.  This is a result of, during the edge bending, a plank snapped and the pairing was disrupted.
• As can be seen on the stern, I will need to install 3 x stealers to fill the gaps.  May need more as the planking  continues.  Each stealer location will need no more than plank.

Here's views of both sides and both ends:

 

 

After I balance the same number of planks on each side at both top and bottom, I will re-calculate the taper amounts for the remaining planks to be installed.  After all planks and stealers installed,

• sanding,
• filling gaps with plank dust accumulated during the process,
• determine the waterline,
• airbrush paint the hull below the waterline (primer, white, matt varnish; all Vallejo)

Hull Done!!!

 

Wish me luck...John

 

Edited February 12, 2021 by drjeckl

[drjeckl]

2nd Planking Complete!!!  Warts and All.

One of my takeaways from the Amati video LN build log series https://www.facebook.com/amatimodel/videos/1702831086404935 that I started following, before finding MSW, was to keep an eye out for when the last plank you added results in a non-straight, or wavy, edge that your next plank will butt up against.  Repeatedly use a batten to see how straight the edge is.  If it isn’t, it’s time to spile the last plank you added.

Here are photos of the first plank I spiled (Note that I am planning to paint the hull white below the waterline, so I’m not concerned with the shades of the planks that I use below it.):  Also note that most of the wood cut off of this plank is at the stern and little at the bow end.

  

 

 

Here’s how I prepared to mark the spile line:

 

 

I did a pretty lousy cut of the line.  In fact, my skill with the knife needs a lot of practice.  I’m much better with using a wood plane.

Anyway, after I did this the next planks at the stern went down much straighter.

 

 

 

To get the clean effect on the port side of the planked bulkhead #10 above, I did the following:

• With a jeweler’s saw (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PJYDFVV/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) for $13 US, I trimmed off the bulk of the waste, leaving about 1/4-inch left
• With the smaller sanding drum for my rotary tool, grit 120, carefully zipped off the remaining stock

Here’s a photo where the last plank went in.  It had the same taper as the one before it.  I just needed to sand the edge until it fit.  Went very slowly and went: sand little, fit, repeat.

 

 

In general, I’m pretty satisfied with the job.  Did have some nicks and breaks that I have to clean up.  In the shots below, the starboard side has not had any sanding and the port has had some preliminary sanding.  I’ll be interested to see how my sanding mouse cleans this up.  I used it for the 1st planking and it worked pretty well, so we’ll see.

 

  

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

I’m also going to test drive using Elmer’s Carpenter’s Wood Filler for the gaps between planks and some gouges.    I have the Clear, Walnut and Golden Oak.  I saw one of Chuck’s posts that you can mix these to different shades.  I’m going to try that also.  Lastly, I have gathered enough plank dust to try that technique (mix with 50% diluted PVA to get a paste-type substance).  Will report on that when I finish it.

 

.John

Edited April 1, 2021 by drjeckl

[tkay11]

Very neat indeed!

 

The only minor thing I noticed was the needle shaped end of one of the spiled planks. This of course is fine as it will be painted over, but in reality I don't think any plank would have ended at less than half its width. The strake in such cases would be resolved by a stealer or a drop plank. This is covered in the various planking tutorials available on this site.

 

Tony

[glbarlow]

14 hours ago, drjeckl said:

gathered enough plank dust to try that technique

This is better than wood filler on the second planking.  Put the minimum amount of white glue in the gap, doesn’t have to be diluted very much if at all (experiment off the ship), avoid the area surrounding the gap, wipe off any glue not in the gap.  hen trowel the sawdust on top of the glue in the gap in abundance. Flatten it as much as you can with a flat tool, pressing it into the gap and again avoiding the surrounding area. (Of course the dry dust will just blow off).  Then don’t touch it too soon, once it’s dry lightly sand it with 320 and 400 grit.  With a little practice, and it does take some practice, you almost can’t tell where it was - and not at all from a normal viewing distance. 
 

Wood filler works great on areas you’ll paint, the texture and color don’t work that well for natural areas.

 

Have fun, glad Chuck’s plan bending technique is working for you, it was a game changer for me. 

[glbarlow]

I thin I described how I determine the taper in my LN log. You want to have all the planks terminating at the bow near the same width.  Learning to do this comes only with practice, you’re doing great for a first model. The first step is caring about doing it right, your posts demonstrate that you do.  It’s surprising to me how many don’t thinking painting solves everything. 

[glbarlow]

Come on back to your build. Let’s see how it’s going. 😀

[drjeckl]

Been 2 months since I last posted to this log, but I’ve posted in other forums about some issues that I’ve come up with while finishing the hull build.  I’ll post my work-arounds that are below, in the appropriate forum for completeness where you can find my posts.

• Getting a 90 degree Fit: Keel to Display Base Pedestals
  
  
  I was advised to use some brass rods instead of long wood screws in the holes I had made in the keel.  Well, that didn’t work because the rods had nothing to grab onto once they went through the holes.  What worked for me was old-fashion plastic, ribbed anchors used to hang pictures on a sheetrock wall.  I epoxied the two anchors to the false keel (below).
    
  To have them sit flush to the false keel, I had to remove the garboard planks and the three sections of the real keel (broken earlier in the build).  I made sure that each anchor went in at the correct angle.  To get the garboard planks and the keel pieces to sit flush, I trimmed the anchors on the edges, making the circle into a square.  Here’s how she sits now:
   
  I also took the opportunity to replace the sections of the keel and the rudder post that I really abused during the hull build.  I made them out of the spare areas of the 3mm walnut sheet; (don’t throw out any of the sheets until absolutely finished).
   
• Took a 24-lb Shot Below Waterline on Starboard Side
  
  
  I had a bad experience with a little too much pressure on a mouse sander that left this damage.  After getting advice to build up the 1st planking first and then I patched in to the rudder post pieces of the walnut planks.  It went like this:
   
   
  
  This walnut is very soft, so, even with 220 grit sandpaper, I still wound up needing some Elmer’s Carpenter’s Walnut Wood Filler. And I needed the same treatment for a portion of the starboard side.  Fortunately, my painting plan is white below the waterline and it will cover both sections.

So, here’s how she looks now:

 

Note that I planked up the Stern counter:

 

And I’m going to paint the stern fascia black.

 

Looking down the bow.  I was conscious of lining the planks up on each side at the bow, trying to match the plank taper on each side.  I was also trying to keep the shade of the planks alike for the strakes that will not be painted.

 

On the display base, not with the right pedestals yet:

 

 

I had a bear of a time with the outer stern counter frames staying attached to the stern counter.  I wound up adding some MDF ply between the top tips of the frames and the counter.  That whole section is going to be painted red anyway along with another coat for the inner bulwarks.

 

I also started asking question on how to fabricate some of the deck fittings, here:

 

For how to do lap joints for hatch coamings and head ledges:

 

Starting at post #34

 

For adjusting gun angles in the carriages:

Before I put a couple of coats of Wipe-on-Poly on the hull and the deck, I’ve been checking on where the main wale will end up at the stern and how the stern side finishing pieces, now with new brass decorations, should meet together.  The plans show the wale starting at 15mm below the upper part of the bulwarks.  Glen made his own pieces from scratch and I don’t get a real good look how Vossie did it.   What I can show is how Tom Grigat did it in the marvelous 9-minute video of how he built his LN (see it on YouTube).

 

 

 

 

And these are the only good shots I got from the Amati videos of the Modelling Class with the Lady Nelson:

     

 

My questions are:

1. Does the main wale end before hitting the stern counter as shown in Tom’s video?  The finishing piece doesn’t lay against the counter.
2. Or is it the Amati video that’s correct in that it looks like the finishing piece goes on top of the wale but it lays against the counter?  The builder here was Leon Griffiths from Model Shipyard.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks (and I will try to make my build log posts more timely and shorter.)

 

 

 

 

Edited July 11, 2021 by drjeckl

[VTHokiEE]

Looking good, glad to see an update! I don't know if this will be helpful but the instructions for my Alert showed the following:

and then later a picture:

Hope this helps somewhat.

 

[VTHokiEE]

Curious if things are still progressing? Regardless, hope you're doing well.

[drjeckl]

Hi guys.  Had to take a physical health break for a while.  Getting a little better but probably won't begin to resume still for a couple of months.

 

Thanks for the kind words...John