Caroline N by mbp521 - Scale 1:64 - Mississippi River Towboat

[Keith Black]

 Wowie kazowie, Brain, the realism is just fantastic! i love the gas tank, what a treat, the whole ship is a treat. 

[Canute]

Very nice. I really like your tarp over a load. 👍

[Cathead]

Great to see more progress! That tarp is going to look perfect.

 

I saw a fun river vessel (for me) along the Missouri this weekend that I thought might interest you and others. Let me know if this feels like a distraction instead and I'll remove the post.

 

This is the USGS vessel Gasconade, pushing a buoy tender barge used for maintaining navigational markers along the commercial nav channel. It's carrying both red and green marker buoys and a crane up front for setting them in place. It was heading upriver from its home port in St. Louis, presumably toward a work site. According to the Coast Guard, she covers the lower river from St Louis all the way to Sioux City, Iowa, so who knows how far she was headed toward her work site.

[mbp521]

On 10/13/2025 at 7:58 PM, Keith Black said:

 Wowie kazowie, Brain, the realism is just fantastic! i love the gas tank, what a treat, the whole ship is a treat. 

Thank you Keith!  It’s always fun to throw these little details into a build, even if some go unnoticed. The gas tank was one that didn’t go unnoticed this time but there are still several little nuggets that have been thrown in that are still hidden. I know they are there though. 😁

 

14 hours ago, Canute said:

Very nice. I really like your tarp over a load. 👍

Thank you Ken. I had a lot of fun adding those to my Cairo build so I wanted to include them here as well. That, and there was just too much empty space on the back and wanted to fill it with something. 
 

13 hours ago, Cathead said:

Great to see more progress! That tarp is going to look perfect.

 

I saw a fun river vessel (for me) along the Missouri this weekend that I thought might interest you and others. Let me know if this feels like a distraction instead and I'll remove the post.

 

This is the USGS vessel Gasconade, pushing a buoy tender barge used for maintaining navigational markers along the commercial nav channel. It's carrying both red and green marker buoys and a crane up front for setting them in place. It was heading upriver from its home port in St. Louis, presumably toward a work site. According to the Coast Guard, she covers the lower river from St Louis all the way to Sioux City, Iowa, so who knows how far she was headed toward her work site.

Thank you Eric, no distraction at all. I love these pictures that you post, they show just how diverse these modern riverboats are. During my research for this project I have run across so many varieties of towboats that it’s hard to keep up with.
 

From the biggest, the MV Mississippi

 

To this little fellow. 

 

All have their purpose, and fun to discover. 
 

Not my pictures, but used by permission from their respective sites terms of use they were posted on.

 

-Brian

[Dr PR]

Very nice work!

 

My oldest nephew was Captain on one of these boats on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee Rivers. He sent some nice photos of the river, and a few harrowing tales of floods and loose barges.

[Cathead]

8 hours ago, Dr PR said:

e sent some nice photos of the river, and a few harrowing tales of floods and loose barges

My wife used to be a researcher on the Missouri River, and one time her research boat got buzzed by a helicopter warning them to get off the river because a loose barge was coming their way. Somehow the normal channels of communication hadn't worked and they hadn't gotten the news through radio from their own agency, and the helicopter was searching the river for other traffic to warn (think fishermen or paddlers).

[kurtvd19]

I had the opportunity to tour the M/V Mississippi when it was brand new - a magnificent boat!  I modeled a little truckable tow like the one shown.  It was 1/12 scale and we used it as a retrieval boat for our radio control meets.  Some didn't believe these little things could move barges around.

Kurt

 

[mbp521]

22 hours ago, Dr PR said:

Very nice work!

 

My oldest nephew was Captain on one of these boats on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee Rivers. He sent some nice photos of the river, and a few harrowing tales of floods and loose barges.

Thank you Phil. Growing up on the Mississippi River, there were always reports of barges breaking loose. I remember on several occasions they would break loose and hit the bridges. Not too often would they do much damage, most of the time it was empty ones they had tied along the shorelines waiting to be loaded that someone failed to secure properly. Always made for an interesting story. 
 

13 hours ago, Cathead said:

My wife used to be a researcher on the Missouri River, and one time her research boat got buzzed by a helicopter warning them to get off the river because a loose barge was coming their way. Somehow the normal channels of communication hadn't worked and they hadn't gotten the news through radio from their own agency, and the helicopter was searching the river for other traffic to warn (think fishermen or paddlers).

Being buzzed by a helicopter would be a serious eye opener. I can see the paddlers and fishermen needing the warnings, not too many of them are equipped with radios, but that is strange that the comms equipment on the research vessel was not able to warn them. 
 

9 hours ago, kurtvd19 said:

I had the opportunity to tour the M/V Mississippi when it was brand new - a magnificent boat!  I modeled a little truckable tow like the one shown.  It was 1/12 scale and we used it as a retrieval boat for our radio control meets.  Some didn't believe these little things could move barges around.

I would love to tour the current MV Mississippi, she’s a monster. I have toured the MV Mississippi IV on display at Vicksburg. Very nice setup they have there. I love that you are able to walk around the hull and explore the interior freely. The crew was certainly living it up on this boat. I can only imagine what the new Mississippi is like. 
 

-Brian

[Cathead]

On 10/15/2025 at 10:23 PM, mbp521 said:

Being buzzed by a helicopter would be a serious eye opener.

I can actually top my own story, as long as we're swapping river tales. A-10s based out of Missouri's Whiteman Air Force Base have a habit of using the Missouri River corridor for training runs at times, and they like to line up on river traffic. My wife's colleagues in research vessels have been buzzed on clear target runs before (though not her personally), and we also personally had it happen a few years ago during a paddle race on the river. It's absolutely hair-raising to have one of those things appear out of nowhere and go screaming overhead, especially in a non-airshow setting where it feels more real.

[Canute]

We did that to the Cape May, NJ to Lewes, Del ferry with our F-4s. The ferries were visual reconnaissance targets and not to be overflown.   Well, most of the time.  That's why lieutenants fly with adult supervision.

[mbp521]

9 hours ago, Cathead said:

It's absolutely hair-raising to have one of those things appear out of nowhere and go screaming overhead, especially in a non-airshow setting where it feels more real.

Anytime you are in the path of an A-10 it can be a bit intimidating. Training run or not. That 30mm Gatling gun can lay waste to anything in its path. When I was in the Air Force I worked the flight line and loved seeing those bad boys come in. 

 

6 hours ago, Canute said:

That's why lieutenants fly with adult supervision.

I was in a C-130 training squadron so I can totally relate. It was always fun the see the instructor pilots faces when they were disembarking after a day of flying around with new pilots. 
 

-Brian

[wefalck]

Such low-flying exercises are very restricted in densly populated Europe (which is one reason, why e.g. German pilots train in the USA). I have seen and heard a couple of times F104s screaming along the river Rhine almost at the altitude of the tops of the poplars that fringe the river.

 

And during the time of the Balkan Wars in the 1990s I lived in the flight-path close to Berlin's Tegel Airport. Commercial planes were usually still a couple of hundred meters up at that point when approaching and pilots presumably were used to it. But once or twice one of the huge USAF transport planes landed and it's quite frightening to see it almost filling the frame of your apartment window and one hopes that the pilots get it right ... 😲

[mbp521]

Back again with another update, I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

I finished up with the tarp, I let everything dry then weathered it with pastels and glued into place.

 

Next it was on to adding the windshield wipers. I had to get these installed before securing the pilot house roof in place since they were tucked up under the overhang. I made these from card stock and cut them out on the laser cutter. They were made in two pieces to give them some depth.

 

The wipers going on.

And all three in place.

 

As hesitant as I was, I started work on the safety ropes. Since the stanchions were so fragile, this was nerve wracking to do. I had to be extra cautious when pulling the ropes through the eyelets so I didn't break them off. Even being as careful as I could I still managed to knock of about 6 or 7 of them. Nothing a little CA couldn't fix, but still having to do rework was a pain.

 

I wrestled with this part for several days trying to figure out how I wanted to secure the stanchions. If you look at the actual boats, they are somewhat all over the place. They all aren't placed perfectly perpendicular to the deck. This internal struggle to mount them this way and that was tough. My OCD finally won out and I had to mount them all perfectly upright. To me, having them all over the place just didn't sit right with me. So realistic looking or not, I did what gave me peace.

So I started with the top rope to make sure the alignment of the stanchions was good, then glued them all in place. Once they were all secured, I went back and painted all the eyelets, like I should have before mounting them. One of the drawback of scratch building, there are no instructions on which step comes first.

 

Once the eyelet were all painted up, the bottom rope was installed. This was another decision that took me a bit to come to terms with. I liked the ease of having the ropes straight but it didn't look right, so I finally decided to add a little sag to them to give it a more natural look. In the end I think I made the right choice. The only trouble I had with this was getting the ropes to hand straight down. The twist of the string that I used caused some of the sections to hand inboard or outboard, but all in all I am happy with the results.

Working my way around the back stanchions.

On to the top run of the ropes. This picture shows what I was talking about with the ropes not hanging straight down.

 

Next step was to finish up on some of the upper deck features. I mounted the workboat into place and added the ropes.

Then I finished up on the boom guys and mounted them in place. I cut small triangles to use as the deck mounts, drilled holes through them and installed a polystyrene rod to simulated the pins.

.

 

With the wipers installed and the pilot house roof securely in place it was time to mount the antenna mast/flagpole.

 

Last up was the guide poles that mount to the tow knees. I'm not sure of the correct term for these and their function, but I'm sure they are used to align the tows when setting up the barges as well as river navigation. These were made up of simple styrene rod and a card stock flag.

 

Finally this is the way she currently sits. Only a few more things to do and some touch up work and I can wrap this baby up.

 

Well that is all for now. I have some vacation time coming up next week for Thanksgiving, so my goal is neatly wrap this thing up and put a bow on it. 

 

Thank you all for stopping by and taking a look.

 

- Brian

 

 

 

Edited Sunday at 09:16 PM by mbp521

[Keith Black]

 The Caroline looks so impressive, Brian. Just an amazing build with fantastic attention to detail, the realism of the tarp is absolutely stunning. 

[mbp521]

58 minutes ago, Keith Black said:

The Caroline looks so impressive, Brian. Just an amazing build with fantastic attention to detail, the realism of the tarp is absolutely stunning. 

Thank you Keith. This build has definitely been a challenge and tested my resolve, but it has also taught me a lot. One of the lesson learned is that this is not my genre of boats. I can look back and say that I was able to take on a new challenge outside of my wheelhouse (pun intended) and get through it, but I am so ready to get back to something a lot less modern. These steel boats are just not for me. I miss the planking, the roughness of the wood, the old machinery and most of all, no steel railings. I will not be disappointed if I never have to build another steel railing. I still don't know what boat is next for the bench, but I do know that it will be something pre-twentieth century, wood and fun.

 

- Brian

[Keith Black]

14 hours ago, mbp521 said:

I still don't know what boat is next for the bench, but I do know that it will be something pre-twentieth century, wood and fun.

 Sternwheeler, Brian? 

[Canute]

I did double takes on your tarp. It looks real. Overall excellent build, Brian. 👍

[mbp521]

54 minutes ago, Keith Black said:

 Sternwheeler, Brian? 

Not sure. I’d like to do a sort of hybrid sail and steam. Maybe CSS Alabama or USCG Harriet Lane. However, I’m still not ruling out the USS Choctaw ironclad. Time will tell, but I’m holding off on any new builds until after the holidays. I have a few projects around the house I want to wrap up before it gets too cold. 
 

- Brian

[mbp521]

22 minutes ago, Canute said:

I did double takes on your tarp. It looks real. Overall excellent build, Brian. 👍

Thank you Ken. It's amazing what you can learn on You Tube. I used the methods to make the tarps on my Cairo build, but learned the techniques from watching videos of people building lifelike dioramas. It's actually pretty easy to do.

 

- Brian

[Cathead]

18 hours ago, mbp521 said:

Last up was the guide poles that mount to the tow knees. I'm not sure of the correct term for these and their function, but I'm sure they are used to align the tows when setting up the barges as well as river navigation

In old-time steamboats this purpose was served by a single jackstaff mounted right at the bow, on the center line, primarily used for navigation. Not sure if that term is applied to these with their similar purpose but different mounting.

 

Gorgeous work. I know exactly what you mean about the prototype, I'm a wood-and-iron person myself too, but you've done a lovely job of bringing this to life. I'm always tempted in the background to try my hand at one of these but it never quite makes it to the top of the list, so it's especially rewarding to follow someone else taking it on!

 

[Keith Black]

1 hour ago, mbp521 said:

I’d like to do a sort of hybrid sail and steam. Maybe CSS Alabama or USCG Harriet Lane. However, I’m still not ruling out the USS Choctaw ironclad.

 Brian, the Choctaw would make an impressive model but I must say, I'm partial to the transitional period of 1850 to 1900 and either the Alabama or Harriet Lane would be neat builds. Whichever you choose I look forward to following along as your builds are a treat.  

[KeithAug]

Great progress Brian - she is looking very precise. Our MSW absences seem to have coincided so I don't feel I have missed too much, although I am getting more jealous of your laser by the day.

[MAGIC's Craig]

Brian:

 

I join the others who have already posted compliments on your excellent build.  Well done!

 

And I smiled when I got to your line, "One of the drawbacks of scratch building, there are no instructions on which step comes first."

 

yessir!!

 

Craig

[mbp521]

4 hours ago, Cathead said:

In old-time steamboats this purpose was served by a single jackstaff mounted right at the bow, on the center line, primarily used for navigation. Not sure if that term is applied to these with their similar purpose but different mounting.

 

Gorgeous work. I know exactly what you mean about the prototype, I'm a wood-and-iron person myself too, but you've done a lovely job of bringing this to life. I'm always tempted in the background to try my hand at one of these but it never quite makes it to the top of the list, so it's especially rewarding to follow someone else taking it on!

Thank you Eric! This may well be what it is called, I was just struggling to find the correct term for it. And not knowing what to call it makes it that much more difficult to research. 

 

On a side note, I saw somewhere that the Arabia Museum will be closing the first of the year. I always take things I see on the internet with a grain of salt, but do you know if there is any truth to the rumor? I hope this is not true, I would love to visit one of these days.

 

 

3 hours ago, KeithAug said:

Great progress Brian - she is looking very precise. Our MSW absences seem to have coincided so I don't feel I have missed too much, although I am getting more jealous of your laser by the day.

Thank you Keith! You haven't missed a whole lot, this year has take up more of my build time than I like, but appreciate you sticking with me. The laser tool is a wonderful thing, it has stepped up my game tremendously. The good thing about them is they are getting cheaper every day. Well worth the investment.

 

1 hour ago, MAGIC's Craig said:

join the others who have already posted compliments on your excellent build.  Well done!

 

And I smiled when I got to your line, "One of the drawbacks of scratch building, there are no instructions on which step comes first."

Thank you Craig! I am a very process driven person, so to step out of my comfort zone takes some ambition and a lot of self coaxing. With the Cairo I felt that I had enough research to kick things off but I still ran into issues with what steps to take first and had to backtrack or tear things out because of not getting them right the first time around. With the Caroline it was much the same way, and I tried to learn from my mistakes on the Cairo, but this build posed its own set of challenges and rework had to be done as well. I'm sure that poor planning on my part was the contributing factor, but that is what makes this hobby so much fun. Each mistake is a learning opportunity.

 

- Brian

[Cathead]

The Arabia museum has been in limbo for some time. Their lease with Kansas City is ending, and the city wants the building/location for other purposes. To be fair, the museum isn't the best use of that space or location and I can understand why the city wants to change. It's also not the best location for the museum, especially as it has no room to grow. But the museum hasn't been able to reach any kind of future deal for another location in KC. They've made lots of noises about other locations like Jefferson City, St. Charles, or even out of state, but nothing substantive has ever come out of those rumors. Honestly, from the outside, it's all seemed kind of ham-handed, like there's no one really in charge making clear decisions. And this has been going on for years, so it's not like they've been thrown a curveball. My impression as an outsider is that things aren't being run that well and they're kind of floundering. It honestly reminds of some stadium-hunts that certain pro teams do.

 

This is a good recent article that sums things up: https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/manager-explains-why-arabia-steamboat-museum-will-close-its-location-in-the-city-market

[mbp521]

24 minutes ago, Cathead said:

The Arabia museum has been in limbo for some time. Their lease with Kansas City is ending, and the city wants the building/location for other purposes. To be fair, the museum isn't the best use of that space or location and I can understand why the city wants to change. It's also not the best location for the museum, especially as it has no room to grow. But the museum hasn't been able to reach any kind of future deal for another location in KC. They've made lots of noises about other locations like Jefferson City, St. Charles, or even out of state, but nothing substantive has ever come out of those rumors. Honestly, from the outside, it's all seemed kind of ham-handed, like there's no one really in charge making clear decisions. And this has been going on for years, so it's not like they've been thrown a curveball. My impression as an outsider is that things aren't being run that well and they're kind of floundering. It honestly reminds of some stadium-hunts that certain pro teams do.

 

Thank you Eric for confirming that. At least from this article I still have some time to get up there for a visit. Hopefully they are able to pin down a location that better suits their needs soon.

 

- Brian

[Cathead]

6 minutes ago, mbp521 said:

Hopefully they are able to pin down a location that better suits their needs soon.

I agree, it's easy to envision how the right location would work, giving them room to expand and add more collections, while drawing in more visitors and school groups. Just hope they can make something work. That article I linked was the first I'd heard of the Kansas options, and there's some promising ideas in there. Leavenworth could potentially be a great site, keeping it near the original discovery location but giving them more flexibility.