Lady Isabella by wool132 - Vanguard Models - 1:64 - Zulu

[wool132]

It looks like I'm hooked on the fishers from Vanguard Models. This one is the Lady Isabella. It's rated as a kit good for Novices like the Fifie (just completed) and the Ranger (waiting in the wings). I am certainly a Novice so this kit should be right up my alley. After those two we'll move up to the Amateur kits and tackle the Erycina and the HMS Alert (also waiting in the wings).

 

Here are the parts for the kit, arrayed on my workbench, awaiting two lbs of wood glue and three bottles of aspirin 🙂.

Jonathan

[wool132]

A word about preparation. In order to better keep track of where I am during a model build, I create a spreadsheet with all the build steps from the manual. I imagine that for a lot of you this is all ho-hum, nothing new but I include it here in case you're new to the hobby or you haven't thought much about some of the advantages of using a spreadsheet in a build.

To do this, I select everything from the first step to the last in the PDF instruction file (pictures and all) and paste the clipboard contents into a blank spreadsheet. I use iOS Numbers and just the text gets put into the sheet. (Windows and Excel may do the same thing.)

I then add two columns in front of the one for the steps. One is a checkbox that toggles between not done and done. The other is a sequence number for the rows with actual content and not headings (in this case Hull Construction). Columns are added after the steps to record the time spend on each step for the days when I work on the model.

I inserted a formula in the top left cell to count the number of unchecked checkboxes in the first column. In this case, there are 240 steps left to complete the model. With any luck, that number will go down as I slave away at the workbench. 🙂

The rows with headings are inserted at various points in the file to give a general idea of what's being worked on. These are usually provided in the Vanguard instructions, though sometimes I add them if I feel they're missing.

 

Once the sheet has been created, I can reorder the steps if I wish, highlight key steps, insert links to other builder's blog entries or  insert pictures of their work or techniques, add comments (like what NOT to do or things to avoid), add rows to create sub-tasks for a complex step, etc, etc. A sample is shown below:

Jonathan

[DB789]

Jonathan,

 

That is impressively organised. I wish I had the patience to be so thorough… 

 

I’m hooked on the Vanguard fishers too, my fifth, Erycina, is mostly built now and nearly ready to be masted and rigged. Fifie, Nisha and Zulu were also my first three fishers (and builds).
 

I thought Zulu was a really enjoyable build and fairly straightforward, biggest challenges I had as a near beginner were planking to that raked sternpost and getting a suitable waterline on her. Enjoy! 
 

Dan

[jpalmer1970]

That is an interesting way of storing references to different parts of other build logs  - something to ponder 👍

[wool132]

1 hour ago, jpalmer1970 said:

That is an interesting way of storing references

I used to store blog references using browser bookmarks. I wound up with a long list of bookmarks and had no idea what they were for without clicking on them to find out. Quite tedious.

 

Putting a link in the spreadsheet next to the build step(s) provides a context for the bookmark and I can add clarifying text in the link's verbiage if I want. If you wish to link to a specific reply rather than the whole page of entries, right click on the "Posted  at ..." in the black bar at the top of the targeted entry and choose Copy Link and paste that into the sheet.

 

As for most of the pictures, I use the iOS Screenshot utility to capture an image from the screen to the clipboard. I paste that into a blank spreadsheet cell, adjust the row height so the image is visible, and add a link if desired.

 

Jonathan

[jpalmer1970]

Yes I am having the same sort of problem with browser bookmarks so I may give an adaptation of your system a try. Thank you very much.

[wool132]

After a brief hiatus Zulu's back in town¹. 🙂

 

I removed all of the pieces that compose the hull from the 3mm MDF sheets using an Xacto X-4 square blade and gentle taps with a small hammer. I find this is easier than trying to use an X-11 or X-13 blade.

I used a Dremel grinder to sand away the bulk of the material on the fore and aft bulkheads and formers, per James H. A dry fit of these parts showed that the fore and aft bulkheads need a little hand sanding (as expected).

The journey continues...

 

Jonathan

1: Apologies to Dubin and Warren (cf. Wikipedia).

[AJohnson]

Welcome back Jonathan, hope you are well!  

[wool132]

The bulkheads having been installed, I turned my attention to the bulwark patterns. I soaked them in very hot water for the recommended 30 minutes before bending them in place.

In the meantime I installed the brass straps on the rudder. I used two pins to align the strap and to hold it above the wood so I could get in a dab of super glue gel. I lowered the strap and held it in place for a few seconds to let the glue set.

I installed the wet bulwark patterns on the hull and used rubber bands to keep everything in place. The next morning I discovered that they had deformed where the rubber bands where affixed. I ironed out the waves as best I could and forged ahead.

I measured, cut, and bent the sheer strake using an iron and a bending jig, per Chuck. For the bending form, I marked a piece of waste pear wood from the kit using a french curve and cut it with a knife. This wood is the same width as the planks. This makes heating and bending the planks easier than a thicker piece of scrap that would get in the way of the edge of the iron.

This is the bent plank ready to be put into position. I put dabs of wood glue (not super glue - it doesn't smell bad) on the bulkheads and along the edge of the bulwarks using a syringe. Because the plank is pre-bent I only needed to apply finger pressure for about 20 seconds. This was enough time for the glue to set and form a bond strong enough to hold the piece in place after I let go.

The photo below shows six bent, twisted, bowed and installed full width planks. Next week I'll start by marking out the plank widths on the bulkheads (again, per Chuck) for the remaining strakes so that everything fits.

Included in the photo are the tools I use:

1 - A syringe (Amazon) partly filled with Titebond Original wood glue. The modeling clay on the tip keeps the glue from drying out and clogging the narrow tube.

2 - A miniature plane (Lee Valley) for reducing the plank width to size according to the tick marks on the bulkheads (when I get to that point).

3 - The bag of Chris pins (and pusher) for getting the cranky planks in place (there's a Modelcraft pin pusher with an adjustable depth stop on Amazon that might be handier).

4 - A Tamiya modeler's knife with a padded handle for comfort (as opposed to the bare metal grip of a standard X-acto knife).

 

Jonathan

Edited December 15 by wool132
Inserted links to Chuck's work.