Marie Jeanne by zeno67 - Artesania Latina - 1:50

[zeno67]

Marie Jeanne Tuna Fishing Boat

Artesania Latina Kit Scale 1:50

 

 

This is my very first wooden ship model build. I have built plastic models in the past but never a wooden model or a ship. Most of my experience is with plastic aircraft and armor. I know there are easier and probably better starter builds, however, after purchasing this kit and the Artesania Latina Providence Whaling Boat kit, and looking through the instructions, I felt I could tackle this level of complexity. And this boat definitely interest me more and catches my eye. So then, this will be my first build and hence, my first build log 

 

I have started the build and have photos of my progress and will be adding them shortly. Thanks for taking the time to take a look and please, if you see anything that you would like to comment on or give feedback/constructive criticism on or tips and tricks, go right ahead. I will gladly accept it.

[zeno67]

Kit Contents

 

 

Verified everything is in the box. Quality appears to be quite good, at least to my eye. Not sure how it stacks up against other kit makers since this is my first but at this point in time I do not have any complaints regarding quality. I will update this log with any quality issues I come across during the build.

 

The instructions are quite rudimentary, its basically one page, back and front with steps numbered 1 to 10 then the last step is listed as steps 11 through 32 which is all of the details including the rigging etc etc. Mostly the written instructions tell you to follow the photo instructions. The photo instructions are in full color and large enough to see well and they do help, but this is definitely more in the intermediate kit category with no hand holding.

The kit also comes with two full size plans printed front and back.

 

Now worries as I can look at other build logs of this boat and there are a couple of YouTube build videos. And if I'm not sure on a step or don't understand, I will ask here and/or wing it! There is one thing for sure, I am not afraid to modify or do it "my" way if I have to, just ask my wife hehe.

Edited April 4, 2022 by zeno67
Added more information about kit contents

[Nirvana]

Zeno, this was my first kit as well, now sitting on a shelf in my old room in Sweden. i built mine in early 80's.

Good luck I am intrigued of how you like this model, btw are the pieces laser cut?

Welcome to ModelShipWorld!

[zeno67]

Hi Nirvana, that is awesome to hear that this was also your first kit! Yes, the parts are laser cut in this kit. I noticed, after I bought this one, that they actually have a new kit of the same boat, just out in 2022. Model #22175 (mine is model #22170) which is supposed to be friendlier and easier to assemble with better digital instructions now, a base for the boat and a name plate. Would have liked to have gotten the newer version as its actually even cheaper than the older version. Artesania Latina has it listed at $99 US dollars and I paid $110 for the older kit. But still seems like a fine enough kit for me so no worries.

[zeno67]

Work Area

 

 

So this is where the magic happens. Not that anyone really cares but I think it's fun to see peoples work space. This is a spare room that I use for my work office, off to the right side, past the tool box, I have my Apple work area setup as I work from home. But I am probably going to finally move on from Apple after 10 years and if I do, that space is claimed! So I can grow my ship modeling space.

Over on the left I am going to put my airbrush station that is currently in another room. I can exhaust it out that window you see there so that's pretty handy. I have a station I built from the same countertop you see in the picture that I am using for my workbench. It's a 3 foot wide section on top of an actual kitchen cabinet so the air compressor can be stored underneath. Then I have a painting booth on the counter top. I can place that to the other side of that window you see in the picture and still have plenty of room at my work bench.

 

Only thing I really need to do is get a hanging fluorescent light up over my work bench to provide more even lighting than the two lights have currently have on the right and left. There is an overhead room light but it just does not give great coverage.

[zeno67]

Step One

So first step is to remove the keel, bulkhead frames and stiffeners. Then went ahead and just done some light sanding/filing to the rough spots left from cutting the parts out.

 

 

Then it was time for the first real step, gluing up the frames, stiffeners and lower decks to the keel and trying to get it all square. I think I might need to file a little more in the future when fitting frames as these were so tight that I could not really adjust to make sure they were 90 degrees to the keel. For most of them it took quite a bit of force to get them fully seated into the slots and once I had them fully seated, there was no movement in them. Any thoughts on this? Are modern kits with laser cut parts good enough to be pretty much aligned properly with out much fuss? Or is it common to file those frames so that they fit just a bit loser so you can actually move them just a little bit in order to make sure you are perfectly 90 degrees from keel? Any tips or insight is appreciated.

Frames being glued to keel along with bow stiffeners

 

Lower decks being added

 

All frames and decks glued up

 

Transom View

 

Bow Stiffeners

 

[yvesvidal]

That is a lovely boat. I will be watching your progress.

 

Yves

[ccoyle]

16 hours ago, zeno67 said:

Not sure how it stacks up against other kit makers

 

It probably stacks up decently. Kit manufacturing has advanced tremendously in the past two decades, and innovation forces all manufacturers to raise their game.

[Nirvana]

Zeno, 

One method used by many of us when it comes to bulkheads ( and yes, the less "play", the better) is using lego bricks to get perfect 90 angle between bulkhead and false keel. This can also help to straighten up a lightly warped keel.

You will find out that clamps are a very good friend to get items secured while waiting for glue to dry.

 

[zeno67]

Thanks for that information Nirvana. I been wondering how exactly I can check for square since the space between bulkheads can be to small for even the smaller machinist squares. I even have a 2 inch square and could not fit that in between so the Lego idea is awesome. And it gives me an excuse to buy Lego's haha.

[zeno67]

Step Two

So step two is to line the deck with planking then fit and glue the deck in place. I have read that you can fit the deck first then plank it or you can plank it first then fit and glue it to frame. Any recommendations on that? Pro's and con's? I went ahead and done some experimenting with deck planking on the lower decks that will barely been seen. I have also watched some videos on planking decks but looking for any advice on this process.

 

I seen one guy who outlines the deck first (runs planking end to end along the edge of the deck to frame it) and outlines the holes in the deck where hatches and other items will go then he lays down the straight planks. Is this a good idea? His results did look nice but is this an actual method that was used in wooden ship construction?

 

Any recommendations on simulating caulking between planks? I have seen that people use marker or pencil on the sides of the planks. Have also seen some use black thread in between planks. I tried the pencil lead trick with the lower decks (pics below). Wondering if I should use thread for the main deck for better realism. Again, any tips and advice is very appreciated.

~Jim

 

Lower Deck Planking

 

[Nirvana]

1 hour ago, zeno67 said:

And it gives me an excuse to buy Lego's haha.

 

That's why I bought some lego squares, rectangulars. It has helped me.

[Nirvana]

Jim, I planked the lower deck and used 2b pencil for caulking. However, 2b pencil do smudge badly if not careful.

Looking good and it brings back memories of my build.

[Riku]

I am doing the same boat and I didn't realize AL has a newer model come out until I saw your post. I downloaded the new instruction. It's so clearly and lot of my questions has been answered in that instruction.  I wish I knew this early. 

[zeno67]

I am glad to hear that the new instructions are more helpful. It's always nice when a company improves on things.

[zeno67]

UPDATE: Have not stopped. Just been dealing with a lot of other things in real life at the moment so have not had a chance to update with any photos. Will be updating progress shortly.