Emma C Berry by ahb26 - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1/32

[turangi]

I am thoroughly enjoying your meticulous build! I took a more rough and tumble approach to the lodging knees. I didn't bother tracing the plans as I was fairly sure the beams would not exactly conform to the plans so I measured the actual distance between the beams and made the knees to fit that distance. I cut the knee to the width required first and after assuring a tight fit then shaped the concave area and the convex to fit the hull curve which eliminated the need to hold it on a difficult angle while cutting it to width. The hull connection is a rather gentle curve and easy to shape by sanding, for the concave inboard area I used a French curve on the plans to obtain the correct shape, transferred that to the knee, cut it out with a fret saw and sanded it smooth.   All my work was done with hand tools and satisfied me. Here is an explanation of my method in post #13. I eagerly look forward to your progress! 

 

Edited March 22, 2021 by turangi

[ahb26]

The last of 14 pairs of lodging knees have been installed and the frame ends sanded flush to the beams and knees, bringing an end to the framing phase of construction.

 

 

 

Most of the knees were straightforward until I got to the pair at the bow.  This was another "If only I knew then what I know now" moment.  I suspected the clamps landed too far up the stem but I didn't realize the effect this would have on the knees in that area. There was no way the 1/8" thick knees would fit under the king plank without lifting it above the top surface of the stem - way above.  I had to thin the knees from 1/8" at the first beam to almost nothing at the forward ends.

 

 

I should have taken more care with the placement of the clamps in this area.

 

Edit: It looks like I messed this up; the king plank should be higher.  See next post.

 

A couple more views with the king plank, bowsprit bitt, and (yet to be worked) mast  and bowsprit in place.

 

 

 

Now it's time to break out the covering boards and see if those stanchions fall in convenient place among the frames.

Edited March 26, 2021 by ahb26
Note error with king plank placement.

[ahb26]

After reviewing other build logs and looking at the covering boards, I realized that the king plank does need to be higher such that its bottom surface is level with the top edge of the stem.  The covering boards wrap around the end of the king plank and extend up the stem a ways. 

 

 

I don't quite understand this; I thought the bowsprit was meant to rest directly on the cutwater.  Since I haven't shaped the bowsprit yet, maybe this will become clear later on, or perhaps one of you who have been here already could provide some insight.

 

Anyway, it appears that I have some rework to do!

[Sea Hoss]

Yes Andy, this was one of the issues that I found confusing. I saw that I needed to add a shallow "wedge" on top of the cutwater to raise the bowsprit and put more upward angle to it. I thought that I screwed up somewhere but with all models, it seems that we must do some fudging to get thing right. Your ECB is looking great!

[mek]

Hello Andrew,

There is a gap of about 1mm between the bowsprit and the cutwater.
The bowsprit does not rest on the cutwater.

The underside of the retaining bracket for the bowsprit is still in between.

Your Emma C. Berry looks good.

Michael

[Sea Hoss]

Can I ask you Michael where you saw this detail for the bowsprit? I searched for this on the plans and other build logs and they all seem to lay flat on the cutwater. Maybe someone has seen the actual ECB at Mistic? I don't know, I haven't yet permenently attached the Bowsprit so I'd like to get it right. Looks good either way I suppose. Your trailboard and bowsprit looks great though!

[mek]

The Mystic Seaport Museum website has a video on ECB. There you can clearly see this gap in some views. 
When searching the web for the term "Emma C. Berry Restoration", a picture of the ECB on the slipway can be seen.
On the drawings of Model Shipyard this detail is unfortunately not very clear.
When I thought about attaching the bowsprit with the Gammon Iron, I realized there must be a gap there.

 

Lobster Boat in Mystic, CT - Emma C. Berry - Mystic Seaport Museum

 

Please excuse my bad English, I have to use a translation program.

Regards

Michael

 

[ahb26]

5 hours ago, mek said:

Hello Andrew,

There is a gap of about 1mm between the bowsprit and the cutwater.
The bowsprit does not rest on the cutwater.

The underside of the retaining bracket for the bowsprit is still in between.

Your Emma C. Berry looks good.

Michael

 

Son of a gun.  Thank you!

[Sea Hoss]

Yes, thank you Andrew, I'm glad I didn't attach it yet!

[ahb26]

It was a pretty simple fix.  With the aid of a chisel blade, the sanded knees popped right out (literally - one hit the ceiling) and I replaced them with new, unsanded parts.  I also added a 1/32" shim strip to the top of the frontmost beam, to make up for recessing it slightly into the clamps earlier.

 

 

Since everything seemed fine, I glued in the king plank and clamped it as best I could.

 

 

 

Kelly inspected my work and seemed satisfied.

 

 

I'm on to the covering boards, and trying to figure out how to conjure up some 3/32" stock to make the knightheads.  Getting some of the stanchions to co-exist with frames is going to be a challenge.

[gjdale]

Looking good Andrew. Seems that the cat scan was all clear too! 😉

[turangi]

Andrew, looks great! I ran into the same problem with a few few of the frames covering the area where the stanchions insert. I dilled a small hole on the top of the frames through the covering board opening that allowed me to insert a very small Dremel bit in there and removed enough of the frame to allow the stanchion to be inserted. I did shorten a few of the stanchions but it worked well .

[niwotwill]

Making great progress Andrew. A great point about the gap between the cutwater and bowsprit. Studying the plans I see now how the gap would be developed. Great catch for us following. Glad your fix worked for you. I love the view of the deck framing. Great Work

 

Stay Well and Stay Safe

Will 

[ahb26]

Thanks for the likes and the positive comments.

 

The covering boards are on.  I spent a good deal of time adjusting the fairing of the frames near the bow to match the line of the boards, and sanding or shimming the frame tops flush with the lodging knees.  I also checked for interference between the frames (and overhanging beam ends) and the stanchion openings.  Most of these were minor and easily corrected, but on both sides, the openings for stanchions 1 and 3 were almost completely blocked by frames 1 and 4, respectively.  I wanted to correct as much of this as I could before I glued on the boards; however, there's still work to do to allow the stanchions the slight forward lean they are supposed to have in this section.

 

 

(I also seem to have mixed up port and starboard...)  Finally I glued on the covering boards.

 

 

On the starboard side, where there is no ceiling, I was able to use modified clothespins to hold the board on while PVA glue set.  I previously purchased a bag of cheap grocery store clothespins.  They are made of soft wood that can easily be cut and sanded to fit the task.  I thinned them and sanded a groove into one side to hook over the bottom edge of the covering board so the clothespin won't slip off at an inopportune time.

 

 

Well worth the effort.  Unfortunately, they don't work where the ceiling is installed; I had to use CA in that section on the port side.

 

 

I also made up the beginnings of the knightheads by laminating some 1/16" and 1/32" sheet left over from previous kits.  I've sanded and shaped and trial-fit and repeated, and will continue to do so until these things make sense.  The instructions just say, make and install them - the details left as an exercise for the builder.

 

 

Thus ends Stage 1 of the instructions.  I opened the kit box Dec. 7 and started building Dec. 9, and have not had a day since when I didn't spend some time on ECB.  A lot of it has been challenging but none of it frustrating enough to put me off coming back for more the next day.  The next stage begins with hull planking and I have already done some of that, so I hope the remainder will go well.

Edited March 31, 2021 by ahb26
Mixed up port and starboard... doh!

[timjina]

Very nice work. Have you seen TallyHo on YOUTUBE? While looking at your fine , thoughts of the TallyHo restoration came to mind.

Well done , I look forward to seeing more pictures.....We have a wonderful hobby.

All the best....Jim Cleland

Edited March 30, 2021 by timjina
just to add name

[niwotwill]

I'm really enjoying following your build and find your ideas and log very informative and will be helpful when I start my ECB.

Its looking very nice and now I have to wait to see the stanchions and planking. 

 

Stay Well and Stay Safe

Will 

[ahb26]

Thanks for the likes and the kind words!

 

After an unbroken string of days with work on ECB starting Dec. 9, life - and the beginnings of a return to normalcy - broke the streak.  We took a long weekend to drive to Virginia to visit family, my volunteer job resumed after more than a year, and my part-time job as admin assistant for our local land trust got busy.  But I got back to the boat yesterday and finished planking the port side today.  Before the break, I finished the middle belt and started on the upper belt, working from the covering board down.

 

 

With about three strakes to go, I realized that things weren't quite going according to plan.  The gap was too large in some places and too small in others.

 

 

I think this may have occurred because I cut a straight taper on each plank, rather than trying to follow a curve established by the measurements from the planking layout diagram.  For the last strakes, I took the measurements off the boat and used a planking fan to get widths at each frame, then cut the planks accordingly.  It was a bit of a scramble, especially the last plank.

 

 

The result, before sanding (the bottom half had already been sanded):

 

 

and after a session with 100 grit paper on a block:

 

 

It will definitely need some filler, but overall I am pleased with the outcome.  (I may not be so pleased when the first coat of paint goes on!)  I learned a lot, and realize that there is a lot more to learn.  At this point, I'll switch to the starboard - which will be left almost entirely open - before finish sanding and painting.

[niwotwill]

Andrew what a great catch and recovery. The planking looks great and seeing the results of your efforts tells me to follow you method of planking. Thanks for your tip about not using a straight taper and following the planking pattern instead of the straight taper. It looks really good before sanding.

 

Stay Well and Stay Safe

Will 

[ahb26]

Some progress to report.  I completed the planking on the open side of the boat:

 

 

After sanding both sides with coarse and medium grit paper and doing some filling, I applied clear shellac diluted with denatured alcohol as a sanding sealer, and sanded with 400 grit paper.  I also trimmed and sanded the planks overhanging the transom

 

 

 

I primed with lacquer primer (came with the Bowdoin;s paint set), did a bit more filling, sanding, and recoating, then drew the waterline and masked it.

 

 

For antifouling paint, I used the same Model Master British Crimson enamel (also from Bowdoin) that I used for the wet well.  When I removed the blue masking tape, I was surprised at how well it had worked to define the edge, with no leakage to speak of.  I ran striping tape sealed with clear lacquer along the waterline in preparation for applying the hull color.

 

 

I had hoped to use Gunmetal enamel (another Bowdoin carryover), black with a hint of blue, for the hull, but a test showed it to be too glossy.  I had two flat blacks - one enamel and one acrylic - available, but they are light-eating flat and I didn't think either would look good next to the British Crimson, which has a slight sheen.  So I opted for a Tamaya semi-gloss acrylic that I had on hand.  Depending on the light angle, it can be pretty glossy but I think it will be OK.  After three coats of this stuff, I removed the striping tape and had a little touch-up to do, mostly where the tape had slightly overlapped the primer.  Here's the result:

 

 

 

I didn't paint the transom because the bulwark planks will need to be glued to it and trimmed later. 

 

I worked on the rudder, which I wanted to sort prior to finishing the hull: 

 

 

I also started shaping the bowsprit.  My carving skills have much room for improvement but it's getting there.

 

 

So now I have to decide whether to install the bulwarks or the deck first, how much of the deck to install, and how to finish it.  Time to look at other logs for inspiration.

 

[gjdale]

That looks excellent Andrew!

[Sea Hoss]

Lookin good, you're leaving a lot of planks off the open side huh? Interesting...

[niwotwill]

Looking good Andrew, Did you apply any finish to the frames? I had not study the bowsprit and now can see the detail craving that is required, yours is looking good. Be sure to add photos after the bowsprit is painted.

 

Stay Well and Stay Safe

Will 

[ahb26]

On 5/1/2021 at 7:42 PM, Sea Hoss said:

Lookin good, you're leaving a lot of planks off the open side huh? Interesting...

Yes. I enjoyed the process of building up the skeleton of the boat the same as the original, and want to see as much of it as possible.  I'm not incorporating this model into  a diorama so I don't need to make it look like a repair in progress.  I plan to leave off most of the deck on that side as well.

23 hours ago, niwotwill said:

Did you apply any finish to the frames?

No.  In retrospect I wish I had used some sort of non-pigmented stain or dye to darken them slightly prior to construction, but it would be tough to do that now.

 

Thanks for looking in and for the comments and likes!

[ahb26]

I have made progress here and there, mostly I think in order to delay the next big job. I think that will be the deck, and I have a question for your collective wisdom.  I have never laid a deck with individual planks on anything, let alone on beams.  I've read some posts on techniques for laying decks, butt shift patterns, simulating caulking, finishing etc.  However, I don't know whether I need to edge-glue the planks or if is enough simply to glue them at the beams.  I've seen that one way of simulating caulking is to edge-glue the planks with darkened glue.  Another is to rub one edge of the plank with a pencil; will this show up if the planks are not edge-glued?  More fundamentally, will the deck sand up well if the planks are not edge-glued?  I didn't edge-glue the hull planks and they sanded up OK but not perfect.

 

I've also gone back and forth on finish, and have come down on leaving the wood natural.  I plan to do any rough sanding needed, then seal the deck with one or two coats of dilute clear shellac prior to final sanding - this creates a very smooth but not glossy surface.

 

Thanks in advance for your advice!

[turangi]

Looking very nice. I did not edge glue my deck planks but fastened then to the beams only and it sanded fine. I darkened the edges with permanent marker which I now do not recommend as some adhesive was pushed up between the planks and caused the marker to liquify and stain some of the tops of the planks, I was able to sand it out. I laid the planks in random fashion with no regularly repeating pattern and they look fine to me. There is a picture in my log. I installed the deck before the bulwarks as it allowed a bit more working room.

Edited May 8, 2021 by turangi

[ahb26]

It's decided then, deck first then bulwarks.

 

But I've been working on some other items first.  I did a bit more work on the bowsprit, but it's not yet ready for prime time.  Before I installed the coamings to the deck framework, I made up two hatch covers -

 

 

then glued on the coamings (including the cabin coaming, not shown).

 

 

I've glued in the two ladders as well.  To further delay the start of decking, I tackled the trail boards.  I cut the boards from 1/32" sheet, steamed and bent them, and cut tapered moldings for the edges.

 

 

After painting them, I made a copy of the printed sheet bearing the trailboard carving (as well as the lettering for the boat's name and port) to trial-fit into the space between the moldings.  It wouldn't go at 100% but would at 90% with a little trimming.

 

 

I was all set to glue them to the hull and cutwater but decided to check the photos and plans one last time - a good thing as I discovered that the gammon iron is installed under the trail boards.  So these will remain off the boat for now.

[Sea Hoss]

Beautiful hatches and tailboards! Great ideas on the fabbing, I wish I was following your build rather than being ahead, you have some nice methods of building Andrew.

[yvesvidal]

Very nice and precise work.

 

Yves

[ahb26]

Been a while since I checked in.  Again, thanks for the kind words!

 

I have completed the deck as far as the center line of the boat.  It's a lot easier than hull planking but still requires all the precision I can muster.  A couple of in-progress photos:

 

 

 

and the current state of affairs:

 

 

The deck has not yet been sanded.  I'll do that and think about how much more - if any - decking I want to install.  This is how the boat looks from the open side:

 

 

I like this look, to the extent that I might even cut away part of the cabin, but I also need to consider putting a few planks out from the center to frame the hatches.

 

I assembled a test strip of decking (off the boat) to test finishes and edge treatments.  There isn't much to choose in appearance between shellac and wipe-on poly, once they have been sanded with fine sandpaper.  I bought a small can of Minwax "PolyShades" Classic Oak Satin, and will experiment with that on some additional test areas.

[egkb]

Looking Wonderful Andrew and your colouring is very restful to the eye.. Love It !!

 

Eamonn