Charles W Morgan 1841 by toms10 - FINISHED - 1:96 - POB

[toms10]

Hi everyone out there.

I have finally begun my new project, the whaler Charles W. Morgan based right here in Mystic CT about a hour away from me which is a big reason I chose this ship. I am a member of Mystic Seaport and have been on her many times. The last few taking many pictures of things most tourists don’t even look at. 😁. I was able to see her dry docked as well this summer while some restoration was being done to the hull. These ships are MUCH bigger out of the water. Sometimes you just don’t realize how much is going on below the surface.  

 

I bought a set of plans from Model Shipways (1:64 scale) that has 6 pages of very details drawings of everything I should need to get through the basic build. Of course there will be hours of supplemental reading and research to finish it off I am sure. This being my second scratch build I am quite sure I have plenty to learn about. 

 

In between painting rooms other house projects I have snuck in an hour here and there to review the plans and get started on the center keel and bulkheads.

 

 

 

Time to sit back and enjoy the ride. 

Tom

[toms10]

Made a little more progress today. I have all the bulkheads shaped, fit and pretty much fared. They are just dry fit now. I will true them up and glue them in place after I shape the rabbet grooves. 
 

 

 

Also managed to get in a evening last night at the Mystic Seaport during their “Lantern Light Village” exhibit. The village center was set up as it would have been in 1876 around Christmas. It was basically lit only by kerosene lanterns with small barrel fires here and there. They even had horse drawn carriage rides. People were dressed in period costumes and playing various roles. Amazingly they never broke character when talking with you about current events…. of 1876. 😁 The Morgan although only partially rigged due to the on going restoration,  was a bit “spooky”  looking in the to walk around in by lantern light.   Here is part of the the village as it was lit up. The Morgan is on the left if you look closely in the dark. 


 

Tom

[toms10]

Finished the rabbet along the center keel and attached the keel, stem and stern post. 
 

Made a little build slip to hold the keel square while I glued up the bulkheads. I ran a very thin planking strip at various heights along the outside edges of the bulkheads to see if the edges were rough fared correctly. They seemed to be okay. I can fine tune them during the planking process. 
 

Probably not necessary but I also glued in 3/8” square “keys” along the center keel and bulkhead faces to help keep things square and give more surface area for the glue to hold. The pieces are only 1/8 thick which is a bit smaller than I am used to working with in terms of bulkheads.  The masts will be drilled into the heavier filler pieces later on. 

 

 

 

Next I will start on the fore and aft filler blocks. 
 

Tom

 

[toms10]

Hi all

i now have the plank rails and stanchions and knight heads installed as I work on the bulwarks. The main rails are made but I still need to fabricate the log and top gallant rails. Once those are made I think I will assemble those off the model and install them onto the stanchions as a subassembly.

 

Tom

[David Lester]

You're off to a really great start, Tom. I built this model from the MS kit and it is one of my favourite builds. if your experience is anything like mine, you should find the plans to be very accurate. I found plenty of pictures on line that helped me confirm many details. With your easy access to the ship and the ability to photograph exactly what you need, you'll be in great shape!

David

[toms10]

Hi everyone

i managed to get the main rail installed. Next I will work on the top gallant rail and then start planking the bulwarks.

 

 

it is starting to resemble a boat hull! 😁

Tom

[John Ruy]

On 12/7/2021 at 9:48 PM, toms10 said:

Time to sit back and enjoy the ride. 

Glad to see you back at it. sit back and enjoy the ride is exactly what I plan to do… Should be a good ride at that. 😎

 

Really looks good so far. Excellent! 👍

[toms10]

Finished planking the bulwarks. I pleased with how they came out. here is a couple of pics of the inboard and outboard sides. At 1:96, these are some pretty small planks. Good thing this isn’t a race 😜😂. 

 

 

Tom

[toms10]

Managed to get the planking from the planksheer down to the wale done on both the port and starboard sides. Also got the upper part of the transom planked. Still have some finish sanding to do but I will wait until everything is planked. 

 

 

Tom

[toms10]

Chugging away at the planking. I have reached the copper line with the planking. Everything below to the garboard can be planked with double width planks to help speed up the process a bit. They will be covered with plates so the actual planking pattern is not all that critical as long as it is smooth and follows the right contours.   Good thing sandpaper was invented. I left my planking a bit heavy in the thickness to allow for heavy sanding if needed without sanding my way through. 😜
 

 

Tom

[toms10]

After life getting in the way a bit this past week and spending the weekend in Philly with my wife and daughter, I finally got the hull closed up.  Still have to sand it all smooth. 

 

When I was in Philly we went to Penn’s Landing on the Delaware River. Toured the Olympia and saw quite a few models in the Seaport Museum. Also ran into Joe J. From the Philly club demonstrating model building techniques. Thanks to Joe for showing me the boat yard in the museum where they actually build real boats such as the whale boats that are on the C W Morgan. Very cool. 
 

it was a bit cold by the river so we will need to go back in warmer weather. 😁
 

Tom

[dogface]

Hey Tom,

 

Your build looks terrific!  I'm building the CWM as well, and I'm still struggling to get the plankshear and rails in place, as well as the inner planking at the bow.  I'll be following your log with great interest!

 

At what point do you plan to paint the inner planking and waterway?

[toms10]

Thanks dogface. 

Still a few more steps before painting anything. I need to finish the decking and install the ceiling planks. Looking back I should have put the deck planks down before the waterways. Now I have to fit the deck planks to the edge of the waterways which is harder than just putting the ways on top of the planks.  Oh well, next time. 
 

 Also have to figure out how I am going to approach the removable section of the bulwark. If I leave it “in place” I don’t really have to cut it out. I can just put the frame around it and make it look like it is removable. Problem with that is then it doesn’t really make sense to have the cutting stage shown in the down position. I am not sure if I want it down or up🤨🤔. 
 

almost there with the deck planks.
 

 

Tom

[dogface]

hey Tom,

 

thanks for the quick response.  yours is a good log for me to follow.  Im sure I will have additional questions (if you don't mind)!

 

Jon

[toms10]

Jon,

I am far from an expert but ask all the questions you like. If I can’t answer them I am sure someone else will jump in with a suggestion.  That is what MSW is all about.  🙂
 

Tom

[toms10]

Got the main deck planked. Now I just have to find  someone to swab it. 😜. I think the ceiling planks on the bow are next. 

I think I decided to have the cutting stage in a raised position. This will allow me the option of a billows sail or two as if she is scouting the seas. If I was going to make a diorama of a successful whale hunt then definitely it would need to be down. 

 

Tom

[John Ruy]

Nice deck work Tom, she is going to be beautiful. Cutting stage up sounds like a good plan. Under full sail will be very grand indeed. 👍

[Benjamin]

Nice job look's very clean. 

[toms10]

Haven’t post in a while or been able to put much time towards modeling but I have been picking away at some of the deck items for a change of pace. 

 

Worked on the anchor deck. Still need to clear out some slots for the catheads.  I made some rope for the mainstays that go through the holes. Everything is just dry fit right now. Still need to do a lot here before anything gets glued. 
 

 

Finished the removable bulwark to access the cutting stage. 
 

 

I also made the bow sprit and jib boom so I could properly fit before putting in the anchor deck. 
 

 

here is the steerage companion way. Still need to add some urethane finish to the walnut pieces. I used walnut to add some contrast in hopes of getting the detail work to stand out a bit instead of painting everything a light yellow ochre.  
 

 

And finally the crew’s head. 
 

I need to figure out how I want to mount the hull to the base then I will get back to the hull and paint and copper. 
 

Tom

 

 

Edited March 28, 2022 by toms10

[rookie]

Great job on the deck.  My Artesania LAtina CWM had strips too wide for deck planks.

I am thinking of making the deck gray-ish - not sure yet

 

i had the same where I decided to finally do the tryworks after stalling for a long time - currently have not started skylight yet - stalling...

 

Keep up the good work! 

[dogface]

great work Tom.  very helpful as you are a bit ahead of me.

Jon

[toms10]

9 hours ago, rookie said:

Great job on the deck.  My Artesania LAtina CWM had strips too wide for deck planks.

I am thinking of making the deck gray-ish - not sure yet

Hi Rookie. 
I have been on the Morgan many times and the deck is a grayish color from the weathering. I am not sure if I will turn my maple deck gray or just leave it as fresh wood. Since the model is not as originally built, grayish makes sense. I am thinking some watered down paint to sort of stain it gray. I still have a bit of time to decide. I still need to paint and copper the hull. 
Tom

[rookie]

I clear-coated the deck so I can put gray wash on it without it soaking in

Have been experimenting on practice deck sections I made to try it 

will see how it goes 

 

[KJackson]

Great looking build so far, Tom.

 

If you don't mind me asking, what reference sources are you using for the model in addition to the Model Shipways plans?

 

[toms10]

Hi KJackson

I live about a hour away from where she is moored in Mystic. I visit often and bring my camera as well as video so I have lots of pics to reference. I also check out the many logs here on MSW. Other than that, just the plans.   Oh yeah, of course Google for whatever I can find. 
 

Tom

 

[KJackson]

Thanks, Tom - the logs here on MSW are invaluable! Will watch your build with interest.

[allanyed]

K,

If you have not already seen these, check out https://store.mysticseaport.org/ships-plans/morgan.html for a set of 8 pages of plans.  Not cheap, but they look to be highly detailed.

Allan

[KJackson]

Thanks, Allan -

 

You're absolutely right, these look very detailed and would no doubt be worth the investment. Many thanks for the link!

[allanyed]

Happy to be of at least a little help KJ.

Allan

[toms10]

Still plugging along on the deck components whenever I get a chance which is not often lately 😕. 

The jumbled pile of stuff in the stern area are all the walls of the hurricane house. The have all been fitted but before I glue the sections together I will do all the painting. I think it might be easier while they are still in a flattened state. 

As seen above the skylight is also finished. I am now going to tackle the windlass and then the tryworks. 
 

I still have all kinds of holes to put in the hull at deck level for various lines. Plan is to paint and copper the hull after the holes. I also still need to make the pedestals to mount the hull to a base which will just be a scrap block of wood for now. 
 

Looking forward to the Northeast Joint Conference this weekend and seeing all my fellow modeling friends. 
 

Tom