US Frigate Constitution by shawn32671 - Guillow's - balsa ship model

[shawn32671]

This is to give an idea of just how small this model is.

[SteveM]

Thanks for sharing this unique kit, I had no idea Guillow's had made such a kit till you posted it on their forum the other day.

 

This kit belongs in a very small grouping of bread & butter style kits made in 1975. There is kit #151 of the Boeing 747 and kit #152 of the F4J Phantom.

[shawn32671]

I had no idea Guillow's made other "sandwiched" kits of this type, Thanks for the heads up...I found a couple examples on Ebay.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Guillows-1-6-McDonnell-F4J-PHANTOM-BalsaWoodCarvingModelKit-SealedMint1975-152-/380694975423?pt=Model_Kit_US&hash=item58a33053bf

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Guillows-1-25-BOEING-747-SUPERJET-BalsaWoodCarvingModelKit-SealedMint1975-151-/261261800077?pt=Model_Kit_US&hash=item3cd46ab28d

[shawn32671]

Update: my new puppy (just now) has destroyed what I've done for work so far with my build on this kit so it is at a stand still until I can purchase some balsa sheets to recreate the hull parts. Not that big of a deal really and since my parts cutting skills will likely result in better quality parts than the original die cut parts, the hull will likely end up looking loads better than it already did.I will update again when I can but for now I'm going back to my Albatros build. Many thanks for the kind words of those who supported my build of this Guillow's kit so far.

Edited August 19, 2013 by shawn

[popeye the sailor]

oh......my!  I guess the chew toy wasn't enough.....huh.   don't be discouraged  {I'm not}      I'm sure you'll spark it up again......I'll just keep my eye out until you do.   I do hope your puppy didn't swallow any of it.......he won't like what nature has in store.

[shawn32671]

Thanks Popeye and as far as I could see she didn't swallow much if any and is napping soundly in her "naughty corner".

[popeye the sailor]

don't be too hard on her.....what breed is she?   both of my dogs were puppies when we got them.  Gibbs is our second American Eskimo.

   our first one.....Happy...was a handful.  one day we left him alone to run a couple errands.  we came home to a house with toilet paper from one end to the other..........he had gotten into the package {about six rolls} and chewed them apart.   he grew to be a wonderful companion and friend.......had to be everywhere I was........we lost him too soon.  I have so many stories about what he and I did,  I wrtote a book {somewhat}....it isn't finished.....I haven't the heart to do so.

 

Gibbs on the other hand,  is very demanding.....and very vocal.  he does a sort of  'lip service'  that I have come to understand.  he's definitely a daddy's boy.   both of these  'boys'  would stay near me when I worked on my models.   the big difference is that Happy would stay with me until I went to bed,  and he would not chew anything.   gibbs will settle down in another room if he gets bored......and he does tend to chew thing that fall to the floor,  if I don't calch it right away.....mostly small parts.   he's four now......grown out of many puppy traits.

[shawn32671]

Mines just a rescued mutt from the local shelter, yelled at her a bit is all. She's fast, that hull no sooner hit the floor and she was on it and gone. I know what you mean about vocal with Husky's and Eskimo's. Up until a few years ago I had a female husky Wolf mix and she'd "talk" up a storm. Some words you actually understood like potty, no, outside and I love you. I miss her a lot. They really do become part of the family. My other dog is a very boring and lazy 12 year old Golden Retriever/Chow mix. I got him from a shelter a couple years ago because they were going to put him down since no one wanted an old dog. Too bad for them though, he's the most loyal, loving dog I've ever had.

Edited August 20, 2013 by shawn

[popeye the sailor]

Happy was a child.....he understood us and we him......with or without the need for words.  having him for the 12 years that we had him,  were the best years.......because he was in them.   it's funny........in the beginning,  I didn't care for the idea of having a dog....too many bad memories  {it's all in my mini book}.   all it took though,  was one stupid episode......the rest is history.  the things we did together.....the admiral thought we were crazy......more-so,  some of the things I was doing.  the mini ice rink.......the snow paths in the backyard......the snow mound.......we had fun.....and he enjoyed it very much.   we had to put him to sleep due to a nurological disease that affected his hind legs.   it got to the point where he could hardly walk.......we knew it was time.

 

Gibbs is quite different.......he's a half pint.......I think he was the runt of the litter.   he sure acts the part.   the lash couple of years was a trial....he seemed to have a dislike towards the admiral.   he would go after her.....sometimes quite meanly......biting at her and tearing at her clothes.  I still have a leash tied to my build table,  where I would put him whenever he displayed this behavior.   I have some pictures of him,  where you can see the devil in his eyes.   we couldn't have mats on the floor,  or give him any toys at all...he would just tear them up.   I did find a couple of balls that were indistructable that he plays with.   when he was on the leash,  I made it a point for her to take him off of it,  and created games that she could play with him.   he has mellowed out a lot now that he's four,  but he still tried to show dominance.......we are able to stop it with touch,  or I just turn him to direct it at me, and then I calm him down.

     I think he was taken away from his brood way too soon......he never learned to cope.....and he developed his own way of doing it.  of course,  it's the wrong way......so we had to show him the correct way.   as I mentioned,  he does comunicate with his  'lip service' and from there we have come to be able to decipher what he wants.   he is a good boy at heart.......his rough edges are rounding out.

[shawn32671]

Thanks for sharing that and Gibbs sure sounds like a handful.

[shawn32671]

I finally got my Guillow's Constitution kit back out. I had recently purchased some 1/4" balsa sheet and 3/16" balsa sheet to recut the "sandwich" pieces of the hull. I have patterns tack glued to the sheets to facilitate in easier and more accurate tracing of parts. I also purchased a few packs of #11 xacto blades and will hopefully have the pieces all cut out this morning and start gluing the hull slabs together. This time, I will be sure not to leave anything within reach of my silly dog to be chewed to bits. ;o) Sorry no pictures to add at this moment but not much exciting in seeing patterns on balsa sheets being readied for tracing and cutting. I'll post more as I progress.

Edited February 20, 2014 by shawn

[popeye the sailor]

glad to hear it Shawn........I'll look forward in seeing how you make out 

[Kenneth Powell]

Shawn -

I purchased this same kit in an old dusty toy store in 1984 after college graduation and before career start. I remember lightly sanding waiting for the phone to ring. I had time to actually work on a model then; not like now. It was a fun kit and I still have all the instructions and other printed material. It's kind of a sideways bread-and-butter construction. The balsa did dent once and I filled it in with marine grade epoxy filler. I can't wait to see your new cut pieces.

 

Kenneth

[alde]

I built this kit as a kid back in the 70's. It turned out pretty decent for what it was. It's long gone now. I had forgotten all about it until seeing this thread. Those were good days.

[ScottRC]

Interesting kit.

[shawn32671]

I got all of the hull slabs cut out and ready to assemble the hull (again). Two pieces of each except the deck (top piece) and main keel (bottom piece). I will post more once I start assembly. Note: the lines drawn on the pieces are alignment marks to aid in assembling the hull pieces and to be sure each is straight as each piece is glued on the corresponding piece. Ignore the mark on the keel, that mark was already on the balsa sheet.

 

Edited February 21, 2014 by shawn

[shawn32671]

Just a small update, I began to reassemble the hull this morning and also made a scanned copy of parts sheet B which has all of the remaining die cut parts on it and use it to make patterns to make my own parts since the die cutting on the sheet is awful and the balsa is pretty low quality. More to come as I progress.

 

[popeye the sailor]

the parts look pretty good........gee bud......they look better than the original ones    your almost back to where you were......looking very good!

[shawn32671]

Another quick update, I've got the hull completed (again) ;o) Next, start carving the hull to shape. This should be fairly easy since it's fairly soft balsa.

More later...Thanks for looking and your interest in this build so far.

 

 

[shawn32671]

Really nothing too exciting to post but I got the patterns I'd made for the remainder of the parts from sheet B transfered to 1/8" balsa sheeting and cut out. Next, sanding the hull to shape and many here know how much I dread lots of sanding. But hey, we all gotta do it.

Sorry for the awful quality of the first picture.

 

 

Edited February 22, 2014 by shawn

[popeye the sailor]

one good thing about it......it's soft wood,  it'll sand quick.  it's all in the shaping 

[dgbot]

Shawn,  This is called the buttock method.  It is used for half hulls and for vessels with very severe lines.  I can understand balsa sheet. All you need is a sharp knife.  I would have preferred bass or aspen.  When you shape the hull make sure you blades are razor sharp. When the blade dulls it willl crush the balsa.  When you are done seal the hull with sanding sealer.  I have also used a wash of whire glue and water.

David B

[shawn32671]

Thanks Popeye and David.  A nice thing about the kit is that it has a series of templates that you check your work against the side of the hull in various spots as you carve, sand and shape the hull to the exact shape of the finished hull. I also keep a wetstone at hand and resharpen my blade often. David your idea of the wash to seal the hull is a great idea and will be sure to try it out.