Mayflower by SkerryAmp - Model Shipways - 5/32" = 1'

[SkerryAmp]

 

This build is moving in parallel with my Willie Bennett, had
to wait to get some supplies for the Willie so moved this forward a bit and
will be moving between the two as steps allow/dictate.

I happened to see some build logs of other members who worked
on this particular kit from Model Shipways and was reading great things about
the quality of the kit and the experience of putting her together.  The Phantom kit I had finished was a “build
for free” offer which afforded the opportunity of applying the cost of the
Phantom towards another Model Shipways kit – so the Mayflower it is!

We start this adventure the same as so many others – the kit
itself

The documentation is pretty straightforward really,
instruction booklet, parts manifest and 4 large double sided plan sheets.

We then have multiple sheets of laser cut parts

We then finish our tour of the box contents with the usual
suspects of assorted fittings and metal bits. 
I do appreciate that it comes with pin striping for the windows.  I also was happy to see a display board with
mounts! (It’s the little things)

 

 

 

 

Edited July 19, 2013 by SkerryAmp

[SkerryAmp]

 

I went through the contents making sure everything is there
and read through the instructions to see what I was getting into and then
decided to dive right in.    

 

This is officially my 3^rd build and oddly enough my 3^rd type of
build.  The Phantom was a solid hull, The Willie (in progress) SAYS it is a POB, but is more of a POF, and this gorgeous vessel is a POB.

 

So – off we go!

 

I popped out the false keel and attached the rabbet
strip.   I still have to clean up the char a bit more but am very afraid of sanding off too much – but will work at it.  May use some steel wool or something that will remove material but not rip it away.  

 

 

Next was to taper the bearding line.  Took a piece of clear plastic and traced the reference line n the printed side of the former and then transferred that to the bare side to get a nice even reference line to work from on both sides.

 

 

I then went through and test fit all of the bulkheads to make sure there weren’t going to be any surprises or issues.    WOW; they fit great!!   A couple of them were a hair snug but overall they slid in nicely, set correctly and looked great – right out of the box.  

 

 

[SkerryAmp]

 

With the dry fit passed! I pulled them out and began gluing them in.   I had seen from the old boards that a few members use high technology to ensure their bulkheads were aligned correctly so
I figured, good enough for them good enough for me.

 

My first bulkhead glued in place and aligned with a high tech alignment unit.

 

It was great being out with the wife and telling her I had to stop to pick up some legos =)

 

Moved down the row, gluing each at a time and letting the glue setup before moving on to the next to ensure each one was nice and tight.  I used PVA glue and it really didn’t take long to dry in place. Once they were all in and secure the entire unit is set aside to dry over night!

 

Now I would like to say that this early in the game I did not encounter any issues.  Sadly, I
cannot say that.  The kit was great!  The Materials superb! The instructions so far outstanding!  This is 100% operator error and quite embarrassed.   I apparently glued the aft bulkheads in backwards; the reference lines are facing forward =(. 

 

I looked it over and do not believe this will sink me just embarrassed that I made such a silly error so early in the process.

 

 

However, learn from it I will and move on I must.

 

Thanks for stopping in folks!

Until later, and as always – whatever  you do, and however you do it… enjoy it!

 

-Adam

 

Edited February 16, 2013 by SkerryAmp

[augie]

Great start Adam.  She looks old already

[popeye the sailor]

looks to be a very nice build Adam......I'll enjoy following this one

[trippwj]

Hang in there, Adam - there are many worse things that could happen!  Will be following - this is one on my "wanna build" list as well!

[patrickmil]

If you do half as nice a job on this as you did on your Phantom, this will be a great looking Mayflower.

[SkerryAmp]

Thanks all, apprecaite the good words and the following.  I will do my best to do justice to this fine vessel!!

[Sjors]

I believe you do...

Sjors

[SkerryAmp]

Thank you Sjors =)

[SkerryAmp]

Again, thanks to all who are popping in and taking interest.  As a newbie the comments mean a lot and are greatly appreciated!!

 

So tonights exciting episdode of Adam builds a Mayflower continues with the frame work.  Mianly the fillers!

 

I have installed the fore, main and mizzen mast fillers as well as the bow filler and beakhead false decks. 

 

Fore Mast Filler

 

Bow filler & Beakhead False Decks

 

Main Mast Filler

 

Mizzen Mast Filler

 

The only thing of note on this is that I have also installed the stern frame bulkheads.  This was a bit of a trick because, as i mentioned earlier I was pretty silly in installing the aft bulkheads backwards.  This means the nice little guidelines for the stern bulkheads are on the wrong side. 

 

 

To get around this, I took a series of clamps and clamped them along the edge of the guideline.  I think lined up the stern bulkheads and placed a narrow strip of legos on the inside of the piece to make sure it was nice and square.  Some quick measuring and eyeballing to make sure I hit the lines and whalla!  They are installed and they look mah-ve-lous!

 

Stern Frame Bulkheads

 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by all!

 

Until next time;  Enjoy!!!

 

-Adam

 

 

[popeye the sailor]

the hull frame is coming along Adam.....ready to fare before you know it.

[SkerryAmp]

Indeed I am Popeye, getting closer and closer and looking forward to it!

 

Did a quick update tonight while waiting for planshears to dry on the Willie.

 

I painted the inside of the foremast filler as well as installed the backing to the gunports.   I decided to paint them black just in case I decide to have some or all open.  Still havn't commited myself yet, open / closed / open / closed - funny how such a minor thing can be a big ole flip flop

 

 

I then decided to go ahead and install the stern pieces.   Turns out I didn't do to bad compensating for having BH 5 installed backwards,  was just a tad off but once put together I don't believe it is going to hurt me much. Everything still seems to line up pretty good, just the outside frame piece is a tad wide off center.

 

Everything seems lined up and ready to go.   Tomorrow should be able to finish up the gun ports, install the false decks and fair the bulkheads.

 

 

 

 

As always,comments, tips and hints are welcome and thanks for popping in!!

 

 

Enjoy!

 

-Adam

Edited February 19, 2013 by SkerryAmp

[russ]

Adam:

This is a really nice kit. It is very well designed by our friend Chuck. You are making good progress with it. I look forward to seeing what is next.

 

Russ

[popeye the sailor]

little progress........there's no time limit........it's all good!  looking good!

[riverboat]

Again I agree with Russ, this is a very fine developed kit by Chuck. Just looking at the plans,as much as  I could see of them , look very well laid out. I have a Baltimore Clipper sitting in my closet out of frustration with it's plans. I found they had too much going on them , to the point that they became confusing. ( to me at least!!). Anyhow, you'er off to a good start, this should be a very pleasureable build for you.

Frank

[SkerryAmp]

Thanks Russ, Popeye, Frank - it is indeed a VERY well done kit;  I am very impressed so far with the instructions, the fit and just how enjoyable it is to put together.   I would highly recommend this kit to anyone wanting to give one a go.  It, so far, has been a very enjoyable time!

 

I have done a little more;  really just trying to get myself setup for the (/queue sinister music/) Planking!

 

I went through and finished up the gunports;  not really a lot to say there.   Used a tick strip as suggested to transfer the spacing from the plans to the ship and framed up the gunports.  I think I may do a mix ,a couple open a couple closed - but still will see.

 

 

 

 

Once that was all set I went through and did my best to fair up the buikheads.   I hope I got them done right, I have to say I was expecting a lot more to be needed but the battens are laying pretty darn well across them all - so it seems to be pretty good.   I figure when I lay them exactly in place I may come across some oddities but will fine tune it then.

 

 

 

 

 

In addition to fairing the bulkheads went through and sanded the gun ports to follow the curvature and lay flat with the heads so the planks will set nicely over them and then faired up the deck areas.   Once all that sanding was done I just layed out the false decks and have her set aside to dry overnight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow - I guess..... :gulp:  time to plank.   Don't mind saying - a bit nervous.. but,  anxious as well =)

 

So until then!!

 

Thank you all for taking interest, it is greatly appreciated!!!

 

Enjoy!!!

 

-Adam.

[russ]

Adam:

It will be a good idea to spend as much time as necessary on fairing the hull to get it ready for planking. You are testing the fairness with battens and that is good. I would suggest testing even more just to make sure you can avoid any unsightly bumps or dips. It will make planking a lot easier.

 

Russ

[SkerryAmp]

Thanks Russ,  I am going to be doing just that tonight before i lay any planking (heck, it helps me stall a little bit as well ).  Going to run the battens along the edges a couple more times an then (shudder) lay that first plank..

 

 

-Adam

[SkerryAmp]

Well,  I have managed to stall the port and starboard planking by working on the stern =)  

 

I did the first planking on the counter and was actually pleased with the result.   Up until now the only real "planking" experience I have was with the Whitehall tender (which was a nightmare and am sure left mental scars) so entering into this stage is a bit nerve-wracking.

 

The counter was filled and sanded and ready to take the next layer!!

 

 

I used an archival ink pen to do the caulking on the 2cnd planks.   I had seen this as a suggestion some time ago and gave it a shot and it works great!!  No bleeding into the fibers of the wood and a nice solid black.  Worked great!!  The type of pen that I got also has a brush style in addition to the pen and marker style tips.

 

With the caulking done the planks went up!!

 

 

 

Starting to feel kind of good about this whole process.   I do realize it is not perfect by any means, but a heck of a lot better than I expected!!

 

I then went at the port lids.  3 planks would not fit in full and if I started even with the top of one lid I would have a sliver at the bottom.  So I overlapped the first plank such that half the board would be on the port lid, which then left a partial plank, full plank, partial plank pattern which worked out pretty well.  I then trimmed them up square and let them dry and cleaned up the counter a little bit.

 

 

 

To finish off this process I went through and finished planking the transom.  To cut the patterns in the diagonal plank around the port lids I used I used a piece of scotch tape and traced the outline of what the plank would do then transferred it to the plank itself and cut it out.  Worked pretty well!!    Doing this I laid down the final planks, gave a little sanding and that step of the planking was complete!!

 

You may notice I did not do the caulking in this section.  This was a conscious choice since I knew i was going to be painting this area I opted to skip that part.

 

 

I sat back and thought - heh cool, this is coming along but something just isn't right....

 

Oh yeah... Forgot the tiller...

 

 

NOW we are cooking with gas!!!

 

 

Well, so far this has been pretty fun.  It is nice to learn new techniques and new things in general, however am still nervous about the rest of the planking but will be giving that a shot today.    I also need to clean up this current work a little, especially around the port lids as well as add in treenails before I stain it.

 

All in all I think it came out okay.

 

 

Thank you for stopping in, as always comments critiques and suggestions are welcome - until later!!

 

Enjoy what you do and do what you Enjoy!!!

 

-Adam

[augie]

You're making some real progress there, Adam.   Looks good!

 

(We don't want any more mental scars!!!!).

[trippwj]

Lookin' good, Adam - good catch there, but then again, who really needs a tiller anyway???? 

[Chuck]

Looks great so far.     I am so glad you are enjoying the kit.   Please dont hesitate to ask me any questions.  I have all of my prototype pictures and they are larger and in color.  If you need to see any I would gladly post here.

 

Chuck

[keelhauled]

Your doing a great job.  The pen did a nice job on the seams.

[gerty]

Nice job Adam !  

[russ]

The stern planking looks pretty good. That is a good first step.

 

Russ

[Sjors]

You can do it Adam,

 

Just have faith!

 

Sjors

[SkerryAmp]

Thanks all!   It is a great deal of fun.  Kind of a mix of fun and fear hehe.  

 

No mental scars yet

 

Chuck - this really is a great kit, one of the reasons I picked it up was all the build logs here for this very one, including yours which I read many many times and was a driving influence behind picking it up!!  (My wife by the way may want a word with you since I told her this one was so good that I have already eyed my next one....your Syren    )   Anyway, I have been checking hoping you had put that one back up, but I know that is a lot of work.  If you have any shots of the bow  1st planking, vs 2cnd planking, vs with beak  I would love it.  I am having a hard time seeing where what I am doing is going to end up looking like what it is supposed to but moving forward with blind faith in what I am doing.

 

Sjors - Thank you sir,  I am using a lot of faith on this one - trust me!!

 

Keel, Russ - Thanks for the kind words,  I am pleased with how it turned out and kind of gave me that - hey, this won't be so bad after all.  The pen was good,  I wish I could say it was my idea, but I read it here in the multitudes of log before the shut down,  I believe it was Dan Vadas who was talking about it.

 

Gerty, thank you sir  -  i see you are posting on the willie again,  I may have to switch back over to keep up with you

 

And Wayne,  hate to say it - but up until a year ago when I started this hobby I didn't even know what a Tiller was

 

 

 

I may be a couple of days before another update; the Admiral has informed me that she couldn't help notice I have two boats moving right along but the office which was supposed to be redone by end of winter was only barely started  .   So, I must attend to that some I think!!

 

 

Till later!

Enjoy!!!

 

 

-Adam

Edited February 26, 2013 by SkerryAmp

[popeye the sailor]

nice work so far Adam.......just be sure to keep the glue to a minimum......light stain is good,  but dark stain will make the glue blotches show up like crazy.   I use an archive pen as well......great for calking without the mess.  keep going,  your doing some wonderful work!

[patrickmil]

Adam, the stern area is looking great. I need to keep reminding myself to pick up one of these pens with the archival ink. I had originally used a permanent marker on my deck's caulking and it bled a little into the wood. Another one of those hindsight things I guess. At any rate, keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to your updates.