USCG Harriet Lane by rcmdrvr - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1:96

[rcmdrvr]

I have completed my Moncongus Bay Lobster Smack and my Harriet Lane kit has arrived.  I guess it is time to get started on a new build.  The Harriet Lane has been a model I have eyed for quite awhile.  Model Shipways had a small solid hull model of the Harriet years ago but it somehow disappeared before I could acquire it.  The period when ships were evolving from wood and sail to metal and steam power has always intrigued me; so this should be an interesting build.  I do not plan to provide tons of photos and detailed descriptions of my build.  I will leave that for the more expert modellers and photographers.  I will try to provide photos of my progress and comments regarding the build as it relates to a modeller of my skill level.  This is advertised as an "advanced" kit and I am not an "advanced" builder; so I expect I will make a few (if not a lot) of screw-ups along the way.  Hopefully, I will learn a few things and maybe alert other modellers of pitfalls.

 

The kit came in a the familiar blue box and contained what looks to be a comprehensive instruction booklet and several plan sheets.  All the wood was in good condition and there were no obvious warps, cracks or other defects.  The laser cutting looks excellent.  Of course the model begins with building the hull skeleton by gluing bulkheads to a center spine.  The instructions do an excellent job of guiding the builder through this process.  I dry fitted everything as I progressed.  Only a little sanding was required to get tight fits.  When positioning a bulkhead for gluing; I used lego blocks.  They work great to help you align your parts.  I tacked parts in place with CA and then went back over the structure with wood glue.  All-in-all a couple of very enjoyable evenings with this model.

 

A few more parts and I will begin the process of fairing the bulkheads.....a task I find intimidating.

 

 

[rcmdrvr]

Having completed the hull bulkhead and spine assembly, the bulwark and bulwark fill was the next step.  Again, the instructions were pretty clear and most of the provided wood was adequate.  You first wrap the bow and sides of the hull with 1/32 inch strips that are about 1/2 inch in width.  I soaked the port and starboard bow strips for about 5 minutes in water and then used CA to attach to the hull.  No problems.

 

The port and starboard aft pieces did not require any soaking.  Again, CA glue was used.

 

The bass sheeting that wraps around the stern presented a bit more of a problem.  I soaked the wood pieces provided and then used a curling iron to set a basic bend in the pieces.  It looked pretty good until it dried.  The pieces shrunk and twisted and looked horrible.  I was tempted to remove them and start over until I realized that a second piece was wrapped around the curve on the inside.   Again I soaked the inner pieces in water and then carefully bent them (by hand, no curling iron).  I left the original two outer pieces glued to the hull but split them with a knife so that they could be lengthened as I carefully glued the new inner pieces in place.  I did not use CA during this process.  I relied on good ole white glue.  Well, the stern is not perfect but I deemed it acceptable.

 

The final steps in this process was to glue 1/32 bulwark inner strips around the entire hull and "plane" the bulkheads flush with these inner strips.  Except for breaking a few bulkheads during the planing process, this went pretty well.  Now I am ready to begin plank the rest of the hull.  Wish me luck.

[Cathead]

Nice start!

[_SalD_]

rcmdrvr, just found your build and I will be following along.  I had the same problem with the upper counter warping, nice fix.

[rcmdrvr]

Work continues.  Thought I would post a few photos of the planking process.  The planking in this kit is laser cut on 1/32" sheet.  This really cuts down on the cutting, fitting and shaping.  Each strake (there are 10) consists of 3 pieces (fore, aft and center).  Generally the fore and aft pieces require soaking in water before fitting on the hull.  I used a 1" diameter PVC pipe, plugged at one end, tipped on end (vertical) and filled with water.   Just drop each planking piece into the tube to soak.  Worked well.  I soaked the fore and aft pieces for about 10 minutes before fitting and gluing to the hull.  I used CA for the adhesive.  I did have a bit of trouble with the some of the planking bowing between the frames.  I tried steaming or adding a reinforcing piece behind the bows.  This worked most of the time but there are still areas that are slightly bowed.  Hopefully this will not be too conspicuous.

 

The next step was to cover the planked hull with spackling paste and sand, sand, sand.  I used spackling paste because it is inexpensive and sands easily.  Next step, plank the inner bulwark.  This went very easily until I reached the stern where the curve is quite severe.  The provided pieces (again, 1/32" sheet) were soaked about 20 minutes and then carefully bent around the curve.  I did not use heat, just slow bending by pressing the pieces against the bulwark.  Some triming at each end was required.  I cemented these pieces by brushing alphic resin (wood glue) on the piece.

 

  The following photos are of the hull during the planking process, the first round of spacking and sanding and fitting of the inner bulwark planking:

 

 

[druxey]

Looking very good so far!

[rcmdrvr]

     I have not posted for a few days but work has continued.  I spent quite several nights filling holes and cracks and sanding the hull.  After the first round of filling and sanding; I applied a clear, acrylic sealer and let it dry.  This seemed to "stiffen" the hull planks and make it easier to fill the smaller cracks and holes.  Next I primed the hull, gave it a final sanding with 320 grit and marked the waterline.  While I admire the copper bottom that SalD applied; I decided to go with a hull red paint that was included with the kit combo package from Model Expo.  I carefully masked off the water line using Tamiya flexible masking tape and brushed on the Model Expo paint.  It is quite "creamy" but I decided not to thin.  It went on smoothly and flowed well.  I was happy with the finish.  I also primed and gave a single coat of white to the inner bulwarks and then stopped.   I decided that I would wait until the decking was installed before completing painting the bulwarks.

     Next came construction of the exterior hull pieces that will make up the lower and upper paddlewheels.  For the first time I ran into some difficulty with understanding the instruction booklet.  I came up with a few questions regarding positioning of various parts that the photos just did not do justice.  I looked at the build logs of a couple of Harriet Lanes in this forum and they were quite helpful.  Being able to look at other builds of your current build is a HUGE help.   I also deviated from the recommended paint scheme of the lower paddlewheels.  The booklet and kit photos call for the entire structure to be painted black.  I decided to paint the wheels red and the paddles brown to simulate a natural wood finish.  Not scale; but I like the way the paddlewheels stand out from the hull.

     With the lower paddlewheels installed; I began work on the deck.  This task was both easier and more difficult that I expected.  A lot of very careful fitting and shaving is required.  This was the first time I ran into a kit piece that did not fit well.  I wish Model Shipways had made the decking pieces a bit oversized and let me do the fitting.  Once the decking was installed I ran a strip at the bottom of the bulwarks to "hide" the gaps that had appeared.  Not perfect; but I am satisfied.  The last step was to give the bulwarks a final sanding and then several coats of white paint.  Quite a bit of masking is required.

     I have kind of hit a milestone.  The hull and main decking is complete.  From here forward most everything else I build will be built above the deck.

 

[_SalD_]

Ship goods great.  I like what you did with the paddle wheel colors, I wasn't crazy about the all black either.

[rcmdrvr]

It was now time to complete building of the upper paddlewheel housing and affix these structures to the hull.  Again, I was pleased with the fitting of the pieces.  A bit of sanding of the joints between the housing and the water closets was required.  There are a few photoetch pieces that decorate the upper housing but they fit well.  Just follow the directions, take your time and all should go well.  Once attached there is a "paper" facade that is glued to the inside of the wheelhouse and down to the decking.  It will take a few moments to trim the wood you placed around the base of the bulwarks but this is not a difficult task.  Once everything is mounted; paint is the next step.  I painted white first.  I masked the deck and bulwarks and brush painted.  Next I masked the white area of the wheel housing and brush painted black.  Overall, I am pleased with the effort.

 

[rcmdrvr]

With the paddlewheels and housing complete it was time to move to the cabin and pilot house.  This deck structure was a relatively straight forward build until I got to the pilot house.  This rounded section of the structure consists of a "sandwich" of three separate parts.  There is a photoetch piece that is on the inside which are the frames that would have held the glass in the forward windows.  Next there is a 1/32 sheet piece of basswood that contains the window frames and finally there is a paper piece that is the decorative surface on the exterior.  All of these three pieces must be "bent" around the forward end of the housing which is a pretty sharp bend.  In addition the window portions of these pieces must be properly aligned such that the window supports of the bass and paper line up and the glass photo etch frames are centered in each window.  I struggled for days with this task.  Soaking the basswood sheet and bending around the base of the structure was not too difficult.  I did have to add a roof piece to get the basswood to maintain its shape.  Next came the photo etch on the inside.  I could not get the piece to line up with the windows in the bent basswood so I had to cut the larger piece into individual window pieces and after alot of trial fitting I achieved a result I deemed acceptable.  The last struggle was with the paper piece that was to be glued to the exterior.  Again, I could not achieve proper alignment of the windows.  I end up cutting out the window frames in the basswood, applying the paper piece and then replacing the supports I had removed.  I hope all of this makes some sense.  In summary, the pilot house part of the assembly was not fun.

 

After completing the pilot house, I discovered that I had some how mis-aligned something and the drive shaft holes in the cabin did not line up with the drive shaft hoses in the paddle wheel structure.  A bit of cutting, fitting and drilling cured this issue.  I painted the structure white before epoxing to the deck.  This exposed another issue.  The deck has been "etched" to show where all the structures are positioned.  In the case of the cabin and pilothouse; no matter how I positioned the structure; some of the etching peeked out from under the structure. 

 

The final step to completing this structure was to add some windows, vents and the funnel.  The windows and vents are no problem but the funnel took a bit more time.  The funnel is essentially paper rolled around a dowel.  This actually went pretty smooth.  Before painting you add a steam escape pipe and a whistle.  These parts are made from "britiannia" metal.  They are very poorly cast.  I was able to scrape and file and get the whistle to look like a whistle but the steam escape pipe was a diaster and ended up in the trash.  I constructed another steam escape pipe using brass wire, a small piece of wood dowel and some brass rings.

 

Well it is the structure is complete, I think it is OK....you be the judge.

 

 

[_SalD_]

rcmdrvr you're moving right along, you'll probably be finished before I get my deck down.  Everything looks terrific and thanks for the detailed write up. It will come in handy when I get to that step in my build.  I'm not sure if it's too late but to cover up the deck etchings around the perimeter of the deck house can you install a base board all around to cover them?

[rcmdrvr]

I might go back and do that.  I am now working on other deck structures.  I am having to cut my own (purchased basswood in various sizes from hobby shop) as many of the structures provided do not hide the etchings.

[rcmdrvr]

It has been awhile since I last posted to this build.  During that time I have completed most of the deck structures and assembled the cannons and placed them on the deck.  As mentioned in my last post I had to "scratch build" most of the deck structures to insure that the positioning scribes in the deck were covered.  I think that I was able to accomplish this.   I purchased various thicknesses of basswood sheet at my local hobby store and using a zona saw and hobby knife I cut block to appropiate sizes.   It was actually kind of fun to fashion my own structures.  The only kit supplied parts I used were the vent louvers; which were PA provided in the kit.

 

Next came the cannon carriages.  The sides of the carriage were those provided by the kit but the pieces connecting the sides were again scratched as I found the carriages were too narrow for the metal cannon barrels.  It took quite a bit of fitting and filing to get everything to fit.  Preparing the cannon barrels for painting was also a lengthier task than I thought.  It took quite a bit of filing and polishing with a dremel tool to get them ready for priming.  Once completed I was surprised that they would only fit in their positions if the barrels were pointed down.  Otherwise they would not fit below the railing.  I am convinced that the provided cannons are too big for the scale of the model.  Rigging the carriages was the final step.  I chose to minimize the amount of cannon rigging as was suggested in the instruction booklet.

 

I have provided photos of the build to date.  While I have expressed some difficulties with my build so far; I think the final results are pretty nice.  Next task; figure out how to make round masts from squate basswood sticks cut from the provided sheets.

 

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  Yeah, I see the phenomenon of the cannon scale ... and that as a result they aim slightly down.  On one project I was able to 'raise' the gunport locations on some (with the associated bodging that had to happen) but on other gun positions it was not possible to raise the gun port height (as appears to be the case on the Harriet).  My solution for those cannon was to abrade the wheel bottoms enough to lower the carriage while simultaneously deepening the notches in the carriage that receive the trunions (thus lowering the barrel into the carriage more).  I figured the 'sleight of hand' for those guns would largely go unnoticed .. or if noticed on close inspection would be less noticeable than a 'drooping gun' (I hate it when that happens) would be during less-close inspection.

 

  I've learned through experience that one should never presume that the kit designer(s) have worked everything out perfectly ... or have even done the extensive research one would hope was done.  Yet it isn't possible to mentally 'pre-build' everything, thus will come the revelation at some point in the process that things are not ending up exactly as they should.  That's when you have to set the plans/instructions aside and think 'outside the box'.

 

  Now giving you square stock (which must even be cut out) to make round masts (and yards too?) just isn't first rate, mate ... and basswood, no less.  I think you can get better round stock in various sizes of better woods (oak, maple, walnut, etc.) in many hobby stores and even in 'big box' hardware stores.  There are a number of ways to taper round stock as needed shown in several threads on MSW.

 

  You are doing great job on the build all around !

[rcmdrvr]

Well again, a few weeks have passed since my last post.  During that time I have worked on the masts and rigging.  In my last post I mentioned that the material for the masts are cut from the basswood sheets and then sanded round.  I kind of cheated.  I fashioned the lower portion of each mast from dowelling purchased from the local hardware store and then, using a drill motor and sandpaper, I tapered the dowels so they pretty much matched the dimensions on the plans.  The other sections of the masts were fashioned from the provided material.   Turning tapered square pieces into tapered round pieces actually was easier than I thought.  First, I built a jig to hold the square pieces on edge.  The edge was then flattened by sanding and then the piece was rotated 90 degrees.  Four rotations and you have a tapered octagon stick.  Next I sanded lightly while rolling the octagon stick on my work table.  Soon you have a tapered round stick you can use for a mast section.  You do have to be careful when rolling and sanding because it is easy to end up with an elliptical stick (I know).  Since all the mast pieces were made from light woods; I opted for painting.  A coat of primer; light sanding and then a few color coats completed the masts.  I then epoxied the lower sections of each mast into their appropriate locations on the deck.

 

Next comes rigging.  The first step is constructing the chains and dead eyes.  The chains are photo ech brass.  I purchased some blackening agent and soaked the pieces for about 15 minutes.  I then epoxied the deadeyes into the "slot" on the chains.   I followed the instructions to affix the chains to the hull.  I did, however, have to touchup the chains with black paint as much of the blacken surface rubbed off.  Next came the shrouds.  Again I followed the instructions.  I did build a jig from music wire which I used to maintain the same spacing between each dead eye in the chain and the dead eye in the shroud.  Look at the side view of the model provided in the plans when working on this task.  Most of the shrouds are secured around the top of the lower section of the mast; but a few are secured around higher sections.  I didn't discover this until I had mislocated a few and had to undue my handywork.

 

With the shrouds in place I am now working the the rigging.  The best way to describe my efforts is  I AM LOST.  I find the written directions difficult to follow so I am using the side view on the plans and the photos on the box to get thru this task.  I am sure I have rigging running to places that rigging is not supposed to go and I am sure that I am not using the correct attachments; but, it looks pretty authentic to some who knows little about sailing ships.  I have a lot to learn about how to rig a model.

 

Here are a few more images of the build.

[Cathead]

I found, when rigging, that it added quite a bit of enjoyment to work at understanding how rigging actually worked in general, so that I understood what I was setting up and just not assembling a mess of lines. Doing so also helped me catch what I felt were a few errors in rigging plans, and make changes that made sense to me in terms of how the lines would actually function. 

[bobandlucy]

On 7/2/2023 at 8:31 PM, Snug Harbor Johnny said:

 . . . Now giving you square stock (which must even be cut out) to make round masts (and yards too?) just isn't first rate, mate ... and basswood, no less.  I think you can get better round stock in various sizes of better woods (oak, maple, walnut, etc.) in many hobby stores and even in 'big box' hardware stores.  There are a number of ways to taper round stock as needed shown in several threads on MSW.

 

Shaping masts from rectangular is the way it was done in actual ship construction, according to the designer. I have come to prefer this method over shaping dowels, as it is far easier to control the taper along the length of the mast. It is even possible to shape a curved mast this way. Just a matter of preference, I suppose.

 

Model is looking good!

[rcmdrvr]

Thank you bobandlucy for the comment.  As I fashioned the upper sections of the masts I began to realize that this was a good way of shaping the masts and yards.   I did find, however, that you have to remove material slowly (both when planning and sanding) and inspect the wood often or you can easily end up with an oblong cross section.  I will look for the mast shaping threads you mentioned.

[rcmdrvr]

I have completed my Harriet Lane model.  I have to apologize, however, that my photo taking and postings to this build have been somewhat ignored in the process.  I want to thank Cathead for his rigging suggestions.  I spent some time on this site reading other postings and builds that focused on rigging.  I learned quite abit.  As I read, the plans and rigging views provided with the kit began to make more sense.  Where possible I did some re-rigging and I think I managed to get most of the standing rigging where it belongs.  Looking at the completed model, it is not a museum piece but it will be a nice addition to my shop.  I will continue to follow SalD's build because he is taking a more meticulous approach to the model that I admire and will use in the future.  Finally, I want to thank the designer of this kit.  It is a fairly complex build; but, for the most part, the plans and instructions lead the builder thru the process without too much difficulty.  I very much like the photographic approach in the instructions; I would recommend even more.  If any of the readers have wanted a model of an early steamer; this would be a nice addition.

 

I have to decide on my next project.  I have a few kits of various sailing vessels sitting around; but I think I would like to try a model of a more modern ship.  Looking at some of Bluejacket's offerings of WWII ships.  Any suggestions.

 

Thanks to all that read and commented on this build.  Here are photos of the completed model:

 

[ccoyle]

Very nice result! Congratulations!

[druxey]

Well done on crossing the finishing line! That looks very nicely done indeed.

[GrandpaPhil]

Congratulations!  Well done!

[Knocklouder]

That is very nice!!  Congratulations. 

                           

[_SalD_]

Congratulations on completing the ship, she goods great.  Nicely done.   

[Cathead]

On 8/6/2023 at 4:04 PM, rcmdrvr said:

I want to thank Cathead for his rigging suggestions.  I spent some time on this site reading other postings and builds that focused on rigging.  I learned quite abit.  As I read, the plans and rigging views provided with the kit began to make more sense....

 

I have to decide on my next project.  I have a few kits of various sailing vessels sitting around; but I think I would like to try a model of a more modern ship.  Looking at some of Bluejacket's offerings of WWII ships.  Any suggestions.

That's so great to hear! To me, one of the great joys of model building isn't assembling, but understanding. You've done a great job on this model, it'll be an excellent highlight wherever you choose to display it.

 

As for next model suggestions, while I can't know what would give you joy, if it were me, I'd go with one of their cargo vessels (tanker, Liberty ship, etc.). Lots of people build warships but merchant vessels are far less well represented in the modeling world and are fascinating in their own right. And it'd be a fitting tribute to all the sailors who served on such vessels but get only a fraction of the recognition their more famous naval colleagues receive.

[bobandlucy]

Looks great!