Joshua Slocum's Spray by HIPEXEC

[HIPEXEC]

This will be my first journey into the DARK SIDE! I am collecting drawings, profiles, pictures so I can start drawing my plans. I shall use Cap N Bob's build as my guide. I took the first big plunge by buying a Dremel Scroll Saw. Now that I've set the saw up, I have to practice cutting precision curved cuts with it. At least I have tons of left over material from past builds to practice. 

Hipexec

[KeithAug]

Good luck Rich. Scroll saws take a bit of mastering so don't get put off by your initial attempts. 

[HIPEXEC]

Now I have some basic info for drawing up scale plans for my Spray build. The pics below give me the shape and position of the basic ship.  

[HIPEXEC]

Thanks to the internet I've found more help in preparing this build. Detailed photos and even somebody's plans!

[Josh Williamson]

Looking forward to following your Spray build.  Impressive computer modeling skills there too!   Just started the Bluejacket Shipcrafters kit myself, and am interested in other's builds of this icon boat. 

[HIPEXEC]

As luck would have it....I obtained an old Laughing Whale Spray kit from an estate sale. It was date stamped 1999. The kit has been opened and whatever parts that are in there have been tampered with, but the most important part is I now have detailed scaled plans to make any missing parts as I create my own version of Slocum's Spray

[HIPEXEC]

I'm stopping work on Spray while I pack and ship my Argus to be on permanent display at the USMC base at Quantico!  UURAHH !!

[HIPEXEC]

I did some work (actually a lot) on my semi scratch version of the Spray. I used the keel from the Laughing Whale kit with slight mods and than made scratch built ribs using the shape from the plans. Since this will be a version of Slocum's Spray whereby you will be able to see inside the whole ship, from Slocum's sleeping-reading quarters to below deck storage, to his galley, to the sail locker.  Theses pics are just dry fitted in place and need some adjustments. BTW the wood n this kit is pretty old, so I shall be buying much of what I need on line. Any suggestions?

 

Edited November 5, 2020 by HIPEXEC

[HIPEXEC]

Here's a pic of the scratch built ribs I made. They will be planked on both sides, inside and hull side so looks don't matter, only shape and strength.

[HIPEXEC]

I'm still dry fitting and adjusting the frames before cinching anything permanently. So far all the internal space I need seems perfect. Sleeping quarters, galley, storage areas are all the correct size. It's the old adage, measure twice...cut once!

[HIPEXEC]

I've finally glued the ribs (frames) to the keel. Now I've started the internal decking.

[HIPEXEC]

I must say that building a ship without plans is very interesting. First of all I'm building this ship from the inside out first. Never did that before. I find it interesting when I build a part and don't like it to just rip it out and start over. Scratch building can be fun as well as challenging.

[HIPEXEC]

I'm close to finishing the internal decking. Then I have to design and install deck framing to keep the inside open for viewing.

[Josh Williamson]

Nice work Rich!  Really enjoying seeing this come together. 

 

-Josh

[HIPEXEC]

53 minutes ago, Josh Williamson said:

Nice work Rich!  Really enjoying seeing this come together. 

 

-Josh

Thanks. It's a challenge but fun. A lot of hit or miss.

 

[HIPEXEC]

On 11/15/2020 at 10:30 AM, Josh Williamson said:

Nice work Rich!  Really enjoying seeing this come together. 

 

-Josh

Thanks. It's a challenge but fun. A lot of hit or miss.

 

[HIPEXEC]

I've dry fitted Slocum's bed in the aft cabin

[Mahuna]

Hi Rich - I've been off the site for quite a while and just saw your build.  Great work so far.  I'll be following along.

 

 

[HIPEXEC]

I've finished rough decking the inside of the hull. Aft cabin dry fitted only

[HIPEXEC]

Slocum's cozy aft cabin taking shape

[HIPEXEC]

Scratch building is great! I didn't like what the gunwals looked like from the deck up, so I sawed, cut and ground all of it off! I'll redesign it after I finished planking the hull which I have started. 

[HIPEXEC]

I'm still planking but I didn't want to bore you with the glacial progress of the planking process. I'll take a photo when I'm finished.

[GuntherMT]

Hi Rich.  Had no idea you were doing this, looks good so far.  

 

You asked a while back about where to get wood, did you ever get an answer?  If not, what size and type of wood are you looking for?  If you want basswood I have a bunch of different sizes.  If you are looking for more hardwoods, tell me what you are looking for and I can see if I have or can cut what you might need.

[HIPEXEC]

Thanks Brian

I found what I needed. How're you doing?

[HIPEXEC]

Happy Holidays to all!

Still slowly planking away.

[GuntherMT]

Merry Christmas to you and your family Rich, and a Happy New Year as well!

[HIPEXEC]

Rough planking finally finished! 

[HIPEXEC]

I found that planking over frames instead of bulkheads is very different. The hollow frames tend to break or crush if too much pressure is applied when bending planks. I had to repair broken frames several times. I had to do a lot more pre-soaking and pre-bending to get this model planked. 🤪

Edited December 31, 2020 by HIPEXEC

[GuntherMT]

Rich,

 

If you are breaking the frames, you could consider gluing temporary beams between the sides of the frames to brace them, or even place a temporary riband (or just a plank) along the inside of the frames.   Use PVA so you can just use alcohol to release them later, or use something soft like basswood and just cut them off and sand when no longer needed!

[HIPEXEC]

Great tip! However I finished planking the hard way. 🤪