Medway Longboat 1742 by Freebird - FINISHED - Syren Ship Model Company - 1/2” Scale

[Ryland Craze]

Keep working with the plank where it fits in the rabbet at the stem.  It looks like the bottom edge of the plank is not all the way forward in the rabbet.

 

For cracks that opened up, I used Minwax natural wood filler in the tube.  On my model, it was an exact match.  I experienced the same thing with cracks opening up on my model.

[Freebird]

Gregory, I thought of that, not sure yet.

 

Ryland, thank you for the filler info, I have the same stuff. Gotta play with it. Now that I look closer at the planks at the stem, I see what you’re talking about. Did a better job on the last 2 planks.

 

Now for another issue. Looking at other build logs, I see on my starboard side, my sheer line is too low. It starts at 1/4” below rabbet at the top, 1/8” at the first frame and gets progressively less and then widens up again and ends up at 1/8” at the stern. Should it be 1/16” at both the stem and stern, the thickness of the cap rail. Should I add a strip to get to 1/16” gap? Or is it OK to leave as is? Chuck, what’s your thoughts?

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited February 10, 2022 by Freebird

[Ryland Craze]

Rick, You did a nice job on your planking.  All of the joints and fitting of the planks into the rabbet look great.  You will have to address the gaps in the bow and stern.  You still have the wales to install.  I would add a small strip of wood on top of the top plank from the bow back to the joint at the fifth frame leaving a 1/16" gap for the caprail at the bow. At the stern, you will only need a small strip of wood along four or five frames to leave the 1/16" gap.  The next step would be to install the wales (second set of planks) leaving a 1/16" gap for the caprail at the bow and stern.  The top edge of the wales may not match the run of the filler pieces, but you would sand the top edges of the planks to make a smooth sheer.  The wales would cover up your patchwork.  Your wales may not match the first layer of planks, but this is the only fix I could come up with without a lot of rework.

[Freebird]

Ryland, thank you for the compliment, much appreciated!

 

I was thinking the same thing, only I couldn’t figure out how far to run the strips. Your thoughts give me a starting point. I figured the bottom of the wale wouldn’t be even with the seam on the second strake. Maybe make the bottom wale a little wider? 
 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Ryland Craze]

I would put the top wale on first to give you the correct run of the sheer and also see how far you are off with the bottom layer of planks.  You could make a new wider bottom wale plank to see what it would look like.  If you are happy with the look, then go with it.  Just remember that you will have a printed frieze and moulding strip to be mounted on your wale.

[Chuck]

I would do exactly what Ryland suggests.  Just add another strip along the sheer.  Just cut a thin strip and run it along the entire edge of the top strake.  Then sand it down to match the correct sheer as best you can. 
 

Its looking lovely by the way.  Nicely planked.  

[Freebird]

Thanks guys for the kind thoughts. Having a blast building it!
 

Thanks guys for the ideas. Will tackle the fix after I finish the port side.

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

Quick question: how far below the top of the frames should the sheer plank be? 

Best Regards…. Rick

Edited February 2, 2022 by Freebird

[Ryland Craze]

On my model, the wales pretty much followed the top of the frames.  I do recall that I had to trim down a couple of the frame tips at the bow and the stern to get them to be even with the top of the cap rail.  The most important thing is that you want a smooth sweeping sheer while leaving a 1/16" gap at the bow and stern for the cap rail.  No two models will be the same.  You also want the tops of the frames to be even with the top of the wale as this is what the cap rail is glued to.  The frame tips will be sanded down later in the build when the frame centers are removed.  You also want a consistent height of the wales on the port and starboard sides to prevent problems with alignment further into the build.

[Freebird]

Ok, here’s where I’m at fixing my error. At the stem I’m 1/4” too narrow. Guess I took of too much material to make the planks fit tightly and didn’t follow the tic marks and make adjustments along the way. Lesson learned. 
 

I added a filler piece from the stem back to frame “E”, I left a 1/16” gap at the stem for the cap rail. I followed Chuck’s planking instructions on how to spile a plank.
 

Best Regards ….. Rick
 

 

[Freebird]

Next I clamped the wales in place to see where I’m at. Of course the bottom of the wale doesn’t follow the seam of the plank. If I drop the wales to follow the seams, I’ll need to add another filler piece at the sheer. But more importantly, if I did this, the bolster would now be out of whack (navel industry term) with the wales and other alignments would also be off.  So I’ve decided to live with the seam below to wales. At least some of it will be covered by the bolster. At least I made the same mistake on both sides so it’ll look even.

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited February 15, 2022 by Freebird

[Gregory]

This kit is on my soon to do list, and seeing where others go astray and how they overcame it, is a great learning experience.

  Not everyone is willing to share their 'mistakes'  in a meaningful way.

You have a great build going.

Edited February 2, 2022 by Gregory

[Freebird]

Gregory,

Thank you for the compliment.

 

Making mistakes is all part of the learning process and I’ve learned a lot from reading other build logs and how issues were overcome. This is my first wood ship (boat) project and I’m learning a lot. Quite honestly, I’m surprised at the results I’m getting so far, it’s a great testament to Chuck’s design. I’m really enjoying this build.

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

Guys, thanks for the likes and the help, much appreciated!

 

Port side fixed and wales added. Final sanding of the port side accomplished and a coat of WOP applied. Totally amazed at the results. However one issue reared it’s ugly head. Just under the wale, I sanded through the wood (UGH!) . Looking for ideas on how to minimize/hide this. Really need some ideas. Thanks for the help!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited February 10, 2022 by Freebird

[Chuck]

That looks very good.  You might try adding a small 1/4” wide 1/32” strip on the inboard side. Between the two frames where that small hole is.  Just to support it.  Then add some elmers fuller to the outboard side.  Hopefully the color will match ok but with careful painting it could be hidden almost entirely.  
 

thats a shame you sanded through it.  Otherwise 

[Freebird]

Chuck, thanks for the idea. Whatever I end up doing, it’s going to start from the inside like you suggest. I first have to get the hull off the building board. I’m almost there, working on the last wale on the starboard side. Has been an awesome project so far!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

Chapter 2 completed…..

 

Have some boo-boos to fix once the hull is off the building board.

 

Thanks Chuck for designing such an awesome model!

 

Best Regards ….. Rick

[Freebird]

Thanks to All for the likes! Much appreciated!

 

Quick update. Overall, very, very pleased so far. First ship (boat) project I’ve ever tackled and while I’ve made some mistakes, I’m really impressed. Even the admiral is impressed.
 

Cap rail has been glued into place and shaped along with fairing of the frames. Bolsters have been carved and sanded to shape, took 5 tries for the starboard and only 1 for the port side 😏 and thanks Chuck for the extra bolsters! Exterior has been given 3 coats of WOP and the interior 1 coat. I’m ready to add the sheer strip and to start adding some color. 
 

Best Regards ….. Rick
 

 

Edited February 16, 2022 by Freebird

[Chuck]

That looks really terrific. You would never know that this is your first ship model.  This is NOT a beginner model and you are doing a fantastic job.   You should be very happy with the results thus far.

 

Chuck

[JeffT]

I agree with Chuck. You are doing a really nice job on what is a pretty challenging model.

[Diver]

1 hour ago, Freebird said:

Thanks to All for the likes! Much appreciated!

 

Quick update. Overall, very, very pleased so far. First ship (boat) project I’ve ever tackled and while I’ve made some mistakes, I’m really impressed. Even the admiral is impressed.
 

Cap rail has been glued into place and shaped along with fairing of the frames. Bolsters have be carved a and sanded to shape, took 5 tries for the starboard and only 1 for the port side 😏 and thanks Chuck for the extra bolsters! Exterior has been given 3 coats of WOP and the interior 1 coat. I’m ready to add the sheer strip and to start adding some color. 
 

Best Regards ….. Rick
 

 

Beautiful work.  I am doing the same project and will follow along on yours.

[Freebird]

That looks really terrific. You would never know that this is your first ship model.  This is NOT a beginner model and you are doing a fantastic job.   You should be very happy with the results thus far.
 

Chuck, thank you for the compliment. Many mistakes have been made, but this is expected. I retired a year ago, and have wanted to build a ship/boat model for many years. Now that I have the time it was time to fulfill this desire. Your kit is truly outstanding and I’m enjoying this build immensely. Next up will be your cutter Cheerful, another beautiful model. Your Winchelsea is my goal build though. Thank you for all that you do for us modelers and allowing us to fulfill dreams.

 

Jeff - Thank you. I’ve been following your builds and have been inspired.

 

Diver - I’ve studied your build and have learned a lot. Thank you for kind comments.

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

Quick question - what adhesive is used to attach the frieze to the model? Also, before the frieze is cut from the sheet, is any type of clear coat applied to protect the graphics? Thanks for the help!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Chuck]

I used a common glue stick....An elmers glue stick for crafts and paper.  Works absolutely fine.  I applied a light coat  of fixative to the the friezes but you can do the same.  Stand and spray from a good distance.  Just a light coat if you want to add more.  I used Krylon Matte fixative.

[Freebird]

Awesome! Thank you for the intel, Chuck!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

Quick update

 

floorboards, forward and aft platforms are in. The 1/16” floorboard was a real challenge to shape and install as was the forward platform. Very pleased though with the results. Going to install the risers next and then add some color. A very satisfying build!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited February 17, 2022 by Freebird

[Diver]

14 minutes ago, Freebird said:

Quick update

 

floorboards, forward and aft platforms are in. The 1/16” floorboard was a real challenge to shape and install as was the forward platform. Very pleased though with the results. Going to install the risers next and the add some color. A very satisfying build!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

Great work.  I finished installing my floor boards last night.  I must admit that for some reason this has been the most challenging part of the build.  I will be doing the platforms tonight.  I will post some pics later on today.  For some reason I had a very difficult time getting the glue to take on the floor boards, I wonder if it had something to do with the coat of WOP.  Off to town today for new glue and eye glasses.  Really enjoying you build.  Bob

[Freebird]

8 hours ago, Diver said:

Great work.  I finished installing my floor boards last night.  I must admit that for some reason this has been the most challenging part of the build.  I will be doing the platforms tonight.  I will post some pics later on today.  For some reason I had a very difficult time getting the glue to take on the floor boards, I wonder if it had something to do with the coat of WOP.  Off to town today for new glue and eye glasses.  Really enjoying you build.  Bob

Bob, thank you for the compliment and thanks for all the likes.

 

The 1/16” thick floorboards were a real bear to work into shape, that was a full day’s effort for just one piece. Not complaining, just my experience. I also had to touch up the fairing near the bow to allow the floorboards to flow better. A couple of the frames were a too little high. If I’m gluing where WOP has been applied, I lightly sand the area so the glue can get a better grip.

 

I'm working on risers and again, being the wood is 1/16” thick, it takes more effort to bend the wood. What worked for me was to wet the wood and clamp it in place and then gently heat it with my heat gun and let it cool for about 15 minutes. Worked pretty well. Starboard riser is glued in place and looks good. Now to get the port side on an even/level with the starboard side. That’s tomorrow’s project.

 

Keep going on your longboat, you’re doing a fine job!

 

Best Regards …. Rick

[Freebird]

More progress, nails applied and drying on starboard side and risers clamped to start shaping. 
 

Best Regards …. Rick

Edited February 18, 2022 by Freebird

[Ryland Craze]

Looks good.  You did an excellent job on cutting the notches in the floorboards for the frames. Nice and tight.