USS Constitution by Avi - BlueJacket Shipcrafters - 1:96

[Avi]

I’m somewhat unsure about the stern, specifically with regards to the path from the keel to the counter. Some of the diagrams in the book show it as a narrow straight like all the way up, while others seem to show a flaring or widening as it goes up, from about halfway up. The flaring makes sense, but I’m unsure. 
 

If it is a flaring, I’ll have to use some putty. I cut a bit too much away on the starboard side. 
 

On the other hand, there don’t appear to be any templates for that, so I don’t know what “too much” would be. 

[Avi]

I haven’t had much time to work on it, got some time today. 
 

I got my profile sanded down very well, I’m extremely pleased. Then I got the template markings clear on the keel rabbet. 
 

I then marked WL10/WL32 at the bow and stern, and the waterline at the bow and stern. Then it’s time to attach a pencil to a stack of books at the exact height and run it around. My smooth kitchen counter is perfect for this. 
 

then I realized that because my mounted block is mounted to the gundeck, so placing it on the counter means it’s tilted off to the side. Of course, I only realized it after connecting the lines, so I had to erase them and redo. 
 

How to get it exactly level? My son suggested sanding down the block, but it is way too hard a wood. Then I ended up with an incredibly simple idea: stickers! Perfectly balanced now. 😃

 

 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2021 by Avi

[Avi]

I had to go back to the drawing board. But I finally managed to get the templates marked. Hopefully this is useful for someone else. Here’s what I did. 
 

1. the keel rabbet is ready and has all of the stations marked on it from the profile

2. I picked one station, 3, and drew the template marking at the top of the hull and slightly down. 
3. I took a small level, stood it up such that its length goes from keel to top of hull. Use the bubble to ensure it is perfectly level.

4. close one eye and keep moving such that I just lose sight of the black line on the side of the level 

5. if the keel marking and side marking are aligned along the edge of the level, it is good. 

 

For the next station 

1. Using calipers measure the distance between two stations along the profile template. This helps me avoid dealing with the curve

2. Place the calipers along the work table such that it is both perfectly parallel to the ground and the edge of the table (avoid the curve in/out and up/down of the hull)

3. Mark the spot. This gets a little more challenging at the bows, where the curvature is so sharp that the pencil cannot get through the calipers. I used a sharp long knife to score it slightly, then followed up with a pencil

4. repeat the level exercise to validate alignment with markings at keel and perpendicular to the ground. 
 

A few pictures are attached. The pics show from station 3 to station 5, but it’s after the work was done, so I am not bothering to be extra precise.

 

That was challenging and a lot of trial and error, but I’m finally pleased with the markings. 
 

 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2021 by Avi

[Bill Morrison]

Avi,

 

I am fascinated by your approach!  You are very painstaking in your apparent dedication to accuracy. I will follow this build with great interest!

 

Bill

[Avi]

Thanks Bill! I have to keep reminding myself that this is a multi year project, so an extra few hours or day to try something, and dump it if it doesn’t work in favour of something else, is more than worth it. 

[Avi]

I rediscovered why I need a finishing sander and Dremel. Now that I am confident about the template stations, it is time to shape the hull down using those templates.

 

Per the guide, I decided to start right in the middle, station 3. I brought 3 templates - 3,5,7 - out with me, mounted up and got started, figuring it wouldn't take me too long to do those. I should have been more aware.

 

I managed to get station 3 nicely shaped down on both sides, starboard and larboard (I am doing the ship from 1812 🙂 ), in around 30 minutes of tiring my hand. I will need to be careful - gentle on the hand sander, low speed on the Dremel, only for the larger areas - but clearly power is the way to go here.

[Avi]

I haven’t posted in a few weeks, so a quick update. 
 

I managed to use a dremel sanding drum to shape out every station. The hull looked horrible, even if every station fit, so I was quite discouraged. But carry on, they say. 
 

I then used a finishing sander to sand down the rest of the hull, bringing it in line with the template grooves. What a difference! It looks good. 
 

It took about three runs with the finishing sander, until I needed to switch to hand sanding. Unfortunately, I thought I had a good sanding block and set of counter sanders, both of which are AWOL. Fortunately, they are cheap to order on Amazon, which does take a few weeks to get here. Soon enough. 
 

One side note. The quarter gallery outline really does get in the way of the last template aft, 47. I had a few choices:

 

- cut the template to conform to it

- live without it

- sand down the hull, including part of the quarter gallery, so the template fits, then I will fill it in later with wood filler/putty

 

I opted for the last option, with which I’m pleased (thus far).
 

I switched gears in the meantime, starting to build my work cradle. That didn’t go so well. I’ve got a big panel of ¾” plywood (with thin laminate) from a friend’s renovation. What I *don’t* have is a power saw or router. I tried the cutting wheel on the dremel; it didn’t go deep enough and really scorched the wood. I tried the router attachment to my dremel; I cut some of the cuts, but destroyed two bits in the process. I’m looking for new ideas while I await sanding tools delivery.

 

In any case,  that ¾” plywood is *heavy*.
 

Pictures to follow once sanding is done. 

[Avi]

I let too long go by without posting pictures. 
 

Here are several. I’ve no idea why the upload flips the pictures upside down. I’d be happy to fix it if anyone knows how. 

EDIT: I downloaded them to my laptop and rotated them, then reuploaded. I wish I knew why it gets it wrong from my phone, but so be it.
 

The first picture is after using a dremel to carve out each template’s “groove” in a rough sense.

 

 

The next is after using a power finishing sander to smooth down the area around the grooves to get mostly in line with them. 

 

 

After that I worked with a manual hand sander to smooth down further, until almost all of the grooves and unevenness were gone.

 

Then I filled in one spot with wood filler where the groove was too deep.

 

Finally, I went back to the templates and, using the manual hand sander, contour sanders, and sometimes a bit of the power sander, sanding it down so that the templates match up correctly. The last picture is after having gotten templates C through FP (ie all the way to the bows), and 3 through 13 towards the stern, on both starboard and larboard, with 15-47 to go. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2021 by Avi

[Avi]

Redid every post with pictures to reorient them correctly.

[MrBlueJacket]

I have noticed that if the picture file is too large, it flips the photo, usually just 90 degrees. Saving the photo with a lower rating fixes the problem. Generally around 1Mb files are ok.

 

Nic

[Avi]

Thanks @MrBlueJacket

I almost always pick medium resolution on my phone, so 100-300KB, and yet it still flips. 
 

This time I just downloaded all to laptop, rotated, and uploaded. 

[Avi]

Finally decided to remove the pre carved quarter galleries entirely. I want to build them separately and have the light flow through, which includes the gun ports. I spent quite some time looking at the Anatomy book and pictures from the current constitution (the in process rebuild photos are great) to get a better feel, and decided to go down this path. 
 

finished sanding to fit all of the templates, faired them together to single feel. Then I basically ran my hands back and forth along both sides of the hull, stopping everywhere it felt like it bumped or dipped too suddenly. Sure enough, every one of those was in between templates or one that I hadn’t felt was quite right before. Used my hand sander to smooth those out. 
 

finally switched to 220grit wet to do a nice finishing run on the hull everywhere. Damp paper towel to remove most of the dust, dry to dry it off, then sit outdoors for ten minutes. She’s smooth like glass. See attached. 

 

There are three areas in the sterns that require some combination of a little more sanding and some filler. They are visible on the pictures.

 

1. The inner sternpost is not 100% even all the way through. I need to grab a pair of calipers and measure its width vs the width of the sternpost, so I can determine if it needs to be sanded down narrower, filled in with filler to make thicker, or a combination of both.
2. At the top of the sterns, where it flares out to port and starboard just below the knuckle, it is somewhat bumpy and uneven. I haven't yet determined if it needs to be sanded down, filled in, or a combination of both.

 

And then... on to the keel!

Edited May 25, 2021 by Avi

[Avi]

The plans have the width of the keel at 18", which, at 1:96 scale, comes out to 3/16", which is exactly what the keel and sternpost are in the provided wood. So that is good.

 

My inner sternpost was way more than that everywhere. So I sanded it down, no need to fill in, and it looks much better now.

 

As far as the uneven areas in the stern at the flaring just below the knuckle, I spent a long time looking at the blueprints in the Marquardt book, as well as those great pictures of the ship in dry dock, and I have come to the conclusion that the flaring, ending in a sharp curve at the stern, doesn't really exist. It more is a gentler curving as the ship runs bow to stern. This picture was particularly helpful.

 

Now that that is done, going to redo the 220 grit wet sanding, and do a 400 grit wet sanding as well.

[Avi]

An interesting challenge, I am hoping @MrBlueJacket can pipe in. I am planning on planking. The instructions say:

 

Quote

If you plan on planking and coppering the hull, do not apply wood sealer. However, you can apply two or three coats of well-thinned semi-gloss clear finish. Sand lightly with wet/dry between each coat.

 

Yet planks and copper are applied via glue. The section on planking even has this great idea:

Quote

One page 13, we stated that if you are going to plank the hull, do not apply woodsealer. An excellent technique was brought to my attention by Greg McKay: Coat the entire hull with thin superglue, sanding in between the application of three coats to provide a perfectly smooth surface which is almost like plastic.

 

It seems like, even without wood sealer, the clear finish will sink into the wood pores, weakening the ability to the CA glue to sink in, and affecting the CA technique mentioned? Am I misunderstanding? Should both be done?

[Avi]

Finally got the sterns the way I like them, very much like the blueprints and the drydock pictures. Also narrowed the inner sternpost to 3/16” all the way, and much of the keel rabbet to just about the same. I left a little more thickness on the keel towards the midships and bows, as I liked it better that way. 
 

finally redid it all with 220 grit sandpaper and a run with wet 400 grit. 
 

 

 

 

Edited May 27, 2021 by Avi

[MrBlueJacket]

Many people don't seal the wood at all, and just use the CA to adhere the plates. Myself, I use a primer undercoat, then paint the hull color and apply the plates over that. Other people paint copper color to lessen the chance of seeing in between the plates. As with most model techniques, there are multiple ways that work. Some people use contact cement for the plates as well. Here's a couple of build threads:

 

Start with post#41 here:

https://modelshipworld.com/topic/18408-mary-taylor-by-mrbluejacket-finished-bluejacket-shipcrafters-scale-316-1-164-ny-pilot-boat-1850/page/2/

 

And with post#34  here:

https://modelshipworld.com/topic/22171-uss-perry-by-sjanicki-bluejacket-scale-196/page/2/

[Avi]

That was super helpful @MrBlueJacket

 

I really like the idea of painting the hull an appropriate colour underneath, then applying the planking or copper plates. Below the waterline I would do copper, so no chance of anything wrong showing through. Above the waterline, I’d do flat black, so anything that does come through just looks like caulking. Perfect!

[Avi]

I do think, though, that I’ll delay that part by a bit. I’m going to finish the keel, stem, sternpost, etc; remove the block; shape the top (bulwarks, gunports, etc); and only then return to painting. 

[Avi]

@MrBlueJacket I have been thinking about what you wrote. If I do attach raw planks to unsealed and unprimed/unpainted hull, then wood glue or others can bind nicely.

 

If I prime and paint the hull (like your link above), then my planks' glue are adhering to the paint. I am not sure if wood glue would adhere to the paint, and if the strength is good enough; might the seal between the two deteriorate over time?

 

Similarly for the idea in the instructions about using CA to create a "perfectly smooth surface which is almost like plastic"; what glue do you use to bond between the raw wood planking and the plastic-like CA surface?

[MrBlueJacket]

CA glue adheres very well to paint, better than wood glue. Second question: again, CA.

[Avi]

Got it. So prime the hull (possibly a few times lightly with sanding in between), then paint, then CA to attach shaped planks. 
 

Your links say that you don’t bother sealing the wood separately, just prime a few times?

[MrBlueJacket]

Yup

[Avi]

To quote @jfinan here, it is indeed a momentous occasion when the keel is laid!

 

I found that I had cut the sternpost a tad too short. Rather than trying to rebuild it, since everything will be coppered, I just filled in the gap with wood filler. 

Putting the pins in was a bit of a challenge. The torque of the pin vise put enough strain on the CA that it pulled the sternpost off. I didn’t want to struggle with it, so I drilled the pilot holes - and the countersink holes - into the sternpost, stem, and keel before mounting them on the hull. Once they were glued in place, I only had to extend the pilot holes a bit into the hull itself, putting no rotational pressure on the attached parts. Then I sunk the pins. Worked like a charm. 

 

Here is the keel:

 

 

And the stem:

 

 

 

 

Edited June 6, 2021 by Avi
fix file orientation

[Avi]

Unfortunately, and I don’t know why, the “shoulder” of the knee snapped off. I must have hit it, but I don’t recall doing so. 
 

the solution was straightforward. I held it in place, pre drilled the pin hole into both parts, plus the countersink hole into the upper part, then some CA and a pin. Voila. 

 

Edited June 6, 2021 by Avi

[Avi]

I will say, I was not overly pleased with how tightly the CA held the wood of the various parts (stem, keel, sternpost) to the hull. Both were sanded down very smoothly (I used ~400 grit for final passes on everything). It also was a newly opened bottle of fine CA, so not likely to be that it "expired". Without the pins, I am fairly convinced it would not have come close to holding.

 

I am open to advice on the matter, including links to more I can learn about using CA properly, or properly selecting brands (if it matters).

[MrBlueJacket]

Hmmm......

 

CA glue continues to harden more and more for hours after it first "kicks off" Perhaps this is what you're experiencing?

[Avi]

Perhaps @MrBlueJacket I’ll give the next set a few hours next time I use it. 
 

I’m heading stateside on business soon. Any good CA brands I should pick up?

[MrBlueJacket]

I have never heard of a "bad" brand of CA

[Avi]

On to building a work cradle. I’ve looked at the smaller one in @KHauptfuehrer’s log and the larger one in @jfinan’s log. I tried to build something like the larger one without much success. 
 

First, the instructions recommend 3.5” high. Given that the waterline is about 2.5” above the keel, that would make it impossible to plank and very difficult to do a lot of the other carving (gun ports, etc). So my first cut will have to be cut down. 
 

Second, finding the right materials was an issue. I’m not planning on buying a professional router, so was hoping to use the router attachment on my dremel. I first tried some discarded cabinet from a renovation, all ¾“ plywood. I’m not sure what wood they used, but cutting through that broke 2 bits. Then I got the idea to use some old MDF from unused baseboards of an ikea cabinet. It didn’t break the bits, but still was quite difficult to get precise enough to shape. I did sand it down after cutting, so it’s better, but far from what it needs to be. 
 

Do the above builders have suggestions?

[Avi]

Took a lot of work, but she’s in the working cradle and the wood block is removed. Big day!

(I’ll fix the picture orientation next time I’m on my laptop)

 

 

Edited June 14, 2021 by Avi