St Roch by Lecrenb - RCMP Schooner in 1:48 scale showing schooner rig ca. 1930/35

[wefalck]

Yes, nice progress on this iconic ship. I visited her in Vancouver in 2007.

[Lecrenb]

Thank you very much wefalck!

 

[Lecrenb]

Now I have made the masts, at least the wooden parts, the bands and other hardware are still to come!

I built my masts up from surplus sticks I had laying around in my stash. I prefer this method over using dowel rods, since those can warp over time with changes in humidity. 

I could also have used fewer, large, sticks, but I used up the smaller unused ones I had on hand.

Here is the cross section showing all the sticks. It is important to ensure the glue is spread over the entire gluing surfaces with no gaps... after gluing I wrapped the mast tightly with thread over the entire length. This ensures even pressure on the gluing surfaces while keeping everything aligned. The next photo shows the masts and laying beside the hull, the main has been rounded on the lathe.

I also make the masts a few inches longer that required, for holding while turning and sanding.

The next photo shows turning the tops on both the masts, the main is finished and sanded, the fore is still being finished.

Next I will show you how I set the masts into the hull!

Thanks for looking in, comments and critiques are always welcome!

Edited July 27, 2023 by Lecrenb

[Lecrenb]

To set the masts into the vessel I need to set the rake angle properly. For this I consulted the original St. Roch rigging plan, drawn in 1927. (It is interesting to note some detail differences on the hull portion of the drawing, but this is the rigging plan, and it was dated prior to 1928 when most of the ship's drawings were prepared.)

This drawing also details St. Roch's mainmast which was removed in 1944, and which forms part of my model. 

Thanks again to the Vancouver Maritime Museum archives for locating and copying this drawing for me!

 

The drawing gives a 3 degree rake angle. I measured using my protractor and the drawing baseline, which in this case is the waterline... the next drawing shows my protractor meeting the mainmast 3 degrees aft of perpendicular. Then I transferred this onto a piece of paper.

I made a 3 degree angle template on the paper, then I taped the template to a beam in my model's hold that I knew to be vertical, such that the raked line was set to the front of the mast step, previously installed in the hold. This lets me take a measurement at the deck level that will be the front edge of the hole I have to drill for the mast.

I offset the measurement by half the thickness of the mast... where this meets the center of the deck beams is my hole center.

Edited July 31, 2023 by Lecrenb

[Lecrenb]

[Lecrenb]

Now it is off to the drill press... remember to use a Forstner or brad point bit to avoid tearing the wood! 

The next photo shows the mainmast set onto the mast step, there is enough wiggle room to allow fine adjustments of the angles using wedges made from toothpicks.

The procedure is repeated for the foremast...

Setting the masts completes the work inside the hold... Now I can paint it, then start planking the deck and completing the bulwarks!

Thanks for looking in, and your comments and critiques are appreciated!

Edited July 31, 2023 by Lecrenb

[Lecrenb]

It has been a couple of weeks since my last progress report, we have been enjoying summer and family time, and I have gotten back to work on the model railroad, which will be dividing my hobby time at least for the next few months!

I have applied the first coat of white primer - sealer on the inside of St. Roch's hold, using 'AutoBorne white sealer and Createx Colours thinner. These are not cheap, but they come in 8 ounce squeeze bottles, so they compare favourably by volume with other brands. It is only necessary to thin 10% then it sprays easily through the airbrush and cleans up easily when done.

 

Speaking of airbrushes, I thought this was a good project on which to bring my old Badger 35 out of retirement! This single action sprayer was my first air brush, bought in 1976, and I used it until upgrading to a Badger 150 some years later. It remains a good brush for area spraying, and it did not disappoint as it made short work of fogging the hold interior!

 

I will apply a second coat, then use my long handled, coarse bristle, brush to dry brush medium gray over the white, to give a good approximation of the actual hold's colour. The colours will be visible to anyone who looks down the hatch.

I am unsure whether or not to place cargo in the hold... St. Roch usually carried coal over which were lumber then other supplies as required by the RCMP Arctic detachments, however I do not want to hide the posts and beams...

Once I settle this question I will begin deck planking followed by the bulwarks and completion of the hull planks.

Thanks for looking in, comments and thoughts on cargo are appreciated!

Edited August 15, 2023 by Lecrenb

[mtaylor]

Nice spray work and looks to be a pain to mask.   As for cargo.... just fit the backstory to the empty hold... dropped off the supplies and headed home.

[Lecrenb]

4 hours ago, mtaylor said:

Nice spray work and looks to be a pain to mask.   As for cargo.... just fit the backstory to the empty hold... dropped off the supplies and headed home.

Thanks Mark... no masking at this point as the white is also the primer... and good thought on the empty hold.

Regards,

Bruce