ancre Le Rochefort by No Idea - 1/24th Scale - First POF Build

[No Idea]

9 minutes ago, bdgiantman2 said:

This ship model has been a delight to follow. I have come to like seeing those frames being visible, it would be a shame to cover them in my opinion. Those frames are so realistic and most public has no clue this is how real ships were made back then.

 

Brian D

Hi Brian and thanks for your really nice comments.  You're spot on about how people have no clue about how ships were made and they probably have no interest either nowadays.  I too really like the frames of this ship but this little vessel has always been a learning curve for me.  I need to know that I can plank the hull as it should have been and I would like one side finished so that my family can see the ship without having to imagine it.  The port side however will stay bare from the whale down so that the frames will always be visible.   Cheers Mark  

[No Idea]

I've spent the last few days marking out the strakes which is pretty time consuming.  I wanted to stay as close to the plans as possible and try and achieve a nice even look too.

 

I like to use automotive lining tape as it's nice and flexible - the only issue with this sort of tape is that it doesn't stick very well to the wood.  So after using tick tape and a planking fan to mark out the master frame I started the job.  My planks work out to be 9.9mm wide on this frame so I'll cut them to 10mm as my measurements are probably out a bit.

 

Lining the stern

Then the Bow

I have one stealer in the stern straight off of the garboard plank and one drop plank towards the bow.  So it's just as the plans suggest.

 

I had better start cutting some planks now and get on with the job

 

Mark

[Tobias]

Hello Mark fantastic job, I see you have made very good preparations for the planking. This work still exists for me and I have the greatest respect, it won't be too long until then so I'll take a close look at everything.
Greetings Tobias

Edited March 8, 2024 by Tobias

[No Idea]

2 hours ago, Tobias said:

Hello Mark fantastic job, I see you have made very good preparations for the planking. This work still exists for me and I have the greatest respect, it won't be too long until then so I'll take a close look at everything.
Greetings Tobias

Hi Tobias and thanks mate - I like to draw every strake as I firmly believe that if I can draw them I can make them.  Nothing worse than trying to make major changes half way through the planking.  My marks are very much a guide but they do let me see if I'm roughly on track.

[DaveBaxt]

Great marking off in preparation for planking Mark and it must have taken a lot of time to get that just right. I look forward to seeing  how you progress with the planking even though its a shame to cover up such fantastic framing. 

Edited April 7, 2024 by DaveBaxt

[Beef Wellington]

That is just beautiful planking!

[Tonphil1960]

Hey Mark. Haven't checked in a quite a while. Very impressive. You work certainly hasn't suffered any quality drops as time went on. Fantastic uber clean work as always.  

[No Idea]

Hi All

 

I've not checked in for a while as I cannot get any work done on my ship at the moment.  My workshop has been turned into a storage room due to a contractor letting us down to fit a complete bathroom - The bathroom is in my workshop - such is life.  It looks like it's going to be this way until October so I will have to be patient.

 

I did start the planking and it was going on very nicely following my marking out.  I did find it quite hard though as the planks are 3.2mm thick so require a lot of clamps.  Here's a good indicator - the coin is a pound coin.

The bow and stern required spiling as otherwise the planks just don't fit and will not sit flat on the frames.

Now here is where I hit a really big problem.  If you look at the above photo's you can see that I used a black toolmakers clamp.  It was brand new and did the job great.  Unfortunately what with the moisture and heat in the planks the black oil coating ran straight onto the ends of 4 planks.  It didn't do this for the first 3 planks and then Boom!

 

I tried every kind of solvent to try and remove the blackness - it was so bad at the tips that I tried to cut away part of the tips and replace them with small scraps.  I even tried diluted bleach but the results were very bad - see below (I had already removed one plank). Basically at this point I was bodging it up!

So I realised that I was trying to cut corners and I could not leave it looking like that.  I removed the stained planks and that's where I'm at now.  It's going to need a really good clean up but thats OK.  I also have to damaged planks to use a templates too.  I'll recut the rabbit and clean up the stem at the same time.

 

As soon as I get my workshop back I'll be at it again and hopefully never make the same mistake again.  If you've followed my build this sort of thing is pretty much on par for me  

 

Thanks Mark

[dvm27]

I'm so glad you removed those hooding planks. The rabbet/stem joint is one of the hardest to plank but a clean line makes the model.

[No Idea]

You're right Greg - I could never leave it in the mess that it became but I'll sort it.  On the positive side though the planks into the rabbit on the transom are spot on!  Well so far!

[Alan Cabrera]

I could just sit and stare at these timbers all day… Such great work!

[Tobias]

Good morning Mark,

a really nice result despite all the circumstances. You did the only right thing by removing the floorboards and putting up new ones in that spot, even if it's difficult.

[Tonphil1960]

Looking absolutely great. 

[No Idea]

Well after a very long wait for me I eventually got my workshop back in November.  I did however revamp it with a bigger work area and decorate it too.

 

So back to building Le Rochefort at very long last!  In my last post I had to remove a few planks and have a good clean up.  Since then I've been happily getting the planking done.  I think the comments above sum up the issues I had so I think pictures tell a better story than words.

 

More tree nails

Final sanding a a very light coat of shellac sanding sealing

 

Some of my joints leave quite a bit to be desired but on the whole I think it looks OK.  I could have made life so much easier by using much thinner planks but I wanted to stay true to the drawings and scantlings.  Next time I will not use black archival ink for the joints either as I think it just looks far too stark.  I would probably use brown ink or just a HB pencil as my dodgy joints would not stand out so much!

 

I've learnt how to spile planks now too and I have found that once you get your head around it the process is very easy to do.

 

The ship has sustained a bit of damage in the process and as such I need to repair the counter timbers a little and remake the taff rail stantions.  Its no big deal - I think it was druxey who a long time ago said that they probably wouldn't last the distance during the build - he was right 🤣  I wanted to remake them anyway as I had missed out the detail on them which would have been difficult to do in place.

 

The new and improved taff rail stantions which I knock out earlier on the mill

So thats me back at it and although I've been participating on the forum there's nothing like actually building 

 

My next jobs are to cut the limber channel and shape all of the frame spacers on the port side.  I'm then going to concentrate on the stern just to beef it up a bit as it's too exposed at the moment.

 

Another job is going to I'm going to make a heavy duty keel clamp.  I didn't enjoy chasing the hull around the work bench and I've seen that others have made one too. 

 

Thanks for your patience  - Mark

 

 

[Kevin]

that looks fantastic

[ChrisLBren]

Looks great !  I love the shellac finish - did you mix it yourself with flakes ?  If so what ratio did  you use - I may be applying the finish on my build.  

Chris

[JacquesCousteau]

Excellent work, the planking looks great!

[No Idea]

2 hours ago, Kevin said:

that looks fantastic

Thanks Kevin - This is the first time that I have single planked a hull as my others have been double planked.  Its Ok but I've learnt a lot doing this - my next build will be better 

1 hour ago, ChrisLBren said:

Looks great !  I love the shellac finish - did you mix it yourself with flakes ?  If so what ratio did  you use - I may be applying the finish on my build.  

Chris

Thanks Chris - I think it was Chuck or Dan Vadas that put me in the direction of shellac.  I found that I prefer the finish of the sanding sealer rather than the shellac gloss itself.  It's easily removed if you get it wrong and it's, its own solvent too.  I apply it with a French polishers cloth bulb and immediately rub it over with a cloth. This removes any excess and matts it down too.  I buy it ready mixed from these people https://finneyswoodfinishes.co.uk/Finney's_Shellac_Sanding_Sealer.  I have brush too that I use and I don't bother cleaning it after use - Just drop it into the shellac and 10 minutes later the bristles are soft again.

 

49 minutes ago, JacquesCousteau said:

Excellent work, the planking looks great!

Cheers mate  

[giampieroricci]

GREAT JOB!!!!

[CiscoH]

beautiful planking job

[davec]

Your planking looks great!!

[SaltyScot]

I am a universe and a half away from attaining this kind of quality and precision on a build. This is pristine work at a whole other level. Very nicely done sir, very inspiring indeed.

[No Idea]

Just now, SaltyScot said:

I am a universe and a half away from attaining this kind of quality and precision on a build. This is pristine work at a whole other level. Very nicely done sir, very inspiring indeed.

Thanks SaltyScot 

2 hours ago, giampieroricci said:

GREAT JOB!!!!

Thank you giampieroricci

Just now, CiscoH said:

beautiful planking job

Cheers CiscoH

Just now, davec said:

Your planking looks great!!

Cheers davec 👍

 

A little bit more of an update - Today I tackled the limber channel which I've been putting off since I completed the frame work.  To me its one of those jobs that you only get one go at and its nerve racking!!!!

I also gave it a real good clean up inside and out and finished the port side with the same shellac

I also repaired the damage to the counter timbers so they are now fine again

My next job is going to be planking the stern vault - The timbers have a shiplap joint and I have already cut them and are good to go.

Thanks for re-following my build and honestly thanks for the kind comments - Mark