USS Constitution by BruceWayne426 - Mamoli - 1/93

[BruceWayne426]

If you read the new members section, you will read a little about how I came about this kit and into ship building. This will be my second ship, the first being an A-L Victory. I was given both kits by a neighbor who found them among the belongings of his sister's home after she was admitted to a memory care facility.  Neither kit had been opened. 

 

I have been reading posts on this site and learned a little about Mamoli kits. I recall one post saying Mamoli kits were no longer produced because of a factory fire. I know nothing about this brand, but it is what I have been given, so that is what I will work with. I have noticed there are very few full Mamoli Constitution builds on the site, mostly were cross-section builds, so that must have been a more popular kit. I only found one Mamoli Constitution full build that was completed and have studied it thoroughly. I have also viewed many other Constellation builds for tips and ideas have have started following some builds. 

 

I am hoping to show what the Mamoli kit has it in and how the ship goes together. The kit contains one 4' X 4' sheet with full size drawings on both sides. There are eighteen 2' X 2' panels (9 sheets, printed on both sides) of instructions in four languages. I am hoping this build will be of interest to those who are building the Constitution from another maker, if nothing else but to show the difference in kits.  I am new enough to the hobby that I probably will not be going off-course too much, rather focusing my efforts on understanding the enclosed plans and following the assembly instructions. I will seek advise where plans are lacking and will always appreciate comments.

 

Today's photos are assembling the keel. The keel came in four sections. It was suggested to lay out a board and tack the full-size instructions to the board, which I did. I then laid down some clear wrap over the instructions so I could not get glue on the paper. The board was to nail the keel to while the glue dried so it would dry perfectly flat. I used yellow glue at this point because I knew it would not show after other parts were added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gregory]

The Mamoli kit had little competition when it was released.  Mamoli had a lot of the best kits available at the time .  Check some of the drawings for a date.  I would like to remember, because I had that kit back in the early 90's, but sold it because life got in the way.

I believe the drawings are very good, but the kit itself may have it's detractors these days because  kit quality in some areas has come  a long way with laser cut parts and such.

My recollection is that the Mamoli kits really have everything you need in the box to build it to match the drawings.  That has been my experience with a few other Mamoli kits I have built.

If I were going to go outside the box, I would consider a different coppering scheme than the little green wood chips they provide, other than that, I would  be happy to build it as is.

 

I look forward to following your progress.

[SUBaron]

Welcome aboard - and especially to another USS Constitution build! I’ve heard good things about the Mamoli kits. 
There are several active Consitution builds going on - in quite different phases. They could still be of help. Regardless of the maker - the builders here can share great technical skill and help you kill your budget with tool ideas 🙂

 

Have a great journey - and have fun!!

-Andre

Edited April 23 by SUBaron

[BruceWayne426]

Greg: Replacing the 1700 (the number given in the instructions) little green chips is one of the things I will change. I have been following mufasa's build. Wow! What a craftsman. When I get to that stage, I plan on asking him about the source for his copper strips. I really like how they look.

[BruceWayne426]

Andre: I have been watching several Constitution builds and enjoy seeing the differences in kit composition and parts offered. As near as I can tell, the kit I have was copyrighted in 1982, anyway that is the date on the printing which may or may not have anything to do with the actual production. The price tag on the box was $129.95 which is a little clue as to how old the kit is. Thanks for your reply.

[Gregory]

7 hours ago, BruceWayne426 said:

The price tag on the box was $129.95 which is a little clue as to how old the kit is. Thanks for your reply.

I will have to look at my ModelExpo catalog from the 90s..   I’m pretty sure the price was at least twice that.

[Gregory]

Went through my stuff and found I had saved the page from the catalog, because it was high on my wish list.

$339 would be about $700 today..    It was high on my wish list back then, but not in my budget.

[BruceWayne426]

Thanks! That is fun to know. The picture is different than on my box but it clearly shows the wood chip copper plating. 

[BruceWayne426]

Next step is attaching the frames, or as my wife calls them, the "ribs". Since I do not have a small hobby square, I purchased a plastic miter square at the local HD and cut it down to 2" wide by 3" tall. I used this to square the frames to the keel, both vertically and horizontally. Since this kit was produced prior to laser cutting, all the frames came in a single package and did not need to be cut from a larger piece of stock. The fit to the keel was good and snug. I also measured the distance between each frame on both port and starboard sides to make sure it was the same. I installed three or four frames per day and let them set up and dry before going on. In the background, you can see the plans, which at this point have been pretty good, but then this part of the build is pretty simple and straight forward. 

 

 

 

[JSGerson]

I saw your comment to mtbediz today and thought I would give a welcome aboard from a bunch of us USS Constitution active builders. We've been sharing our knowledge and comments with each other and we range from beginner to the more experienced. Although, as near as I can determine, there aren't  many Mamoli builders for the Conny at present. There is one active (last post in January) builder, Oscardeuce and an excellent builder, Bill Edgin (Robnbill) who completed his Mamoli kit in 2021 that you might want to check out as you work on yours.

 

Good luck and have fun

 

Jon

[mtbediz]

On 4/23/2024 at 6:53 AM, BruceWayne426 said:

Greg: Replacing the 1700 (the number given in the instructions) little green chips is one of the things I will change. I have been following mufasa's build. Wow! What a craftsman. When I get to that stage, I plan on asking him about the source for his copper strips. I really like how they look.

I used self adhesive copper foil tape. I remember I shared a few photos in my build log about how I implemented it. (Something like in the link below)

 

https://tr.aliexpress.com/item/32876412753.html?src=google

Edited April 25 by mtbediz

[BruceWayne426]

Jon:

 

Thanks for the welcome. It is much appreciated. I have been reading through all the Constitution logs. Even though they are different kits than what I have, I still glean a lot from their pictures. Even their comments about frustrations and mistakes are encouragement to me. I am still studying Bill Edgin's log since it is a Mamoli kit. He did several modifications. His experience and skill really comes through in his builds.

 

I am not far enough along in ship building to undertake changes, I am working hard at just making out what the plans are trying to get me to accomplish.

 

Thanks again for your welcome. It means a lot to a newbie like me.

[BruceWayne426]

Mufasa:

 

I read the section of your build when you were working with the copper foil tape with great interest.  The Mamoli solution of wood chips that are stained a greenish copper color just doesn't look right to me. That part of my build is a ways down the road so I have time to think about the options. 

 

Thanks for your response.  I am really enjoying your craftsmanship.

 

Bruce

[Gregory]

Interestingly, Bill Edgin’s build, mentioned above, has the green wood chips, and it doesn’t look bad.  However, there doesn’t appear to be much detail about his method.

 

[BruceWayne426]

I have enjoyed reading many of the Constitution build logs and studying the pictures. The next few steps for me and my Mamoli kit are quite different than the Model Shipways kits.  

 

There are two 10mm (1/2" square) walnut beams that run almost the entire length of the ship. The frames are notched for these. At the bow, there are two sets of beams that are placed side by side with the inner set protruding just outside the front frame. My kit does not have complete gun deck detail, but there are three openings down into the gun deck where steps and some minor detail will be visible. This was my only issue with the kit so far, There were precut pieces for the two forward gun deck hollows (as the instructions called them), but none for the poop deck. I finally decided to use some planking from my other build to create this deck. The gun deck is visible in the second picture.

 

 

After the beams set and dried, the next step is to dry fit the precut pieces for the deck. The deck was in three pieces. As you can see, some adjustment to the pieces was required to get them to fit. A ways down the road, the deck will get another layer of planking.

 

There were a few places where I needed to add a few shims to the point where the deck met the frames in order to keep the deck even.  After I was ok with the fit, everything was glued into place.

 

 

 

 

I am not convinced that the points where the masts will be placed into the frames is all that great. It seems there should be more of a receiver socket (for lack of a better term) for each.  I am going to study the other builds to see how that issue was addressed. 

 

Thanks for all the comments and encouragement.  

[Dave B]

Nice to see this build log starting! I bought this same kit in 1985. I found the receipt in the box, which shows I paid $239.95 from Model Expo. You may prompt me to work on it again. I also purchased enough little copper plates at the time to replace all the wood ones. They have a nice natural non-shiny copper look to them after 40+ years.

Will look forward to following your build!

Dave

[BruceWayne426]

Dave:

Thanks for your note. I am sure you have noticed there are no other ongoing Mamoli Constitution builds and only a few in the past. It would be fun and encouraging to have someone more experienced to bounce around kit ideas and questions. I am currently working on some alterations to my work bench so the ship is in dry dock for a few weeks. I will post again when I have made the changes.

 

Bruce

[BruceWayne426]

The next step in the Mamoli plans is the construction of the False Fore Deck (their terminology) and the Stern Galley. The fore deck only involved placing a precut piece over the main deck along with four false futtocks, two on each side. 

 

 

The stern galley pieces were precut, (remember this kit was made before lasers) and needed a little adjustment for fitting. 

 

 

 

 

I have studied many builds to determine the shape under the stern galley. This kit supplied a piece of inverted quarter round that was placed below the galley, so that is the route I will go.  

 

 

 

After the glue was set, I shaped to match the last frame.

 

 

 

Next up - working with then ports.

 

 

[BruceWayne426]

As mentioned earlier, the Mamoli kit does not have a detailed gun deck, just a few openings for some ladders and stairs to the lower level. The gun portals are made out of cast. 

 

 

 

There is a tab on each portal that fits into a notch on each frame.

 

 

 

 

I don't like the plan here as it seems very difficult for the portals to be square and even with only the planking to hold them in place. The size of the tabs varied with slag and all had to be sanded. The Mamoli kit does not suggest filling in any of the spaces between the frames. I have noticed that with the Model shipways build the final bow and stern frame spaces are filled in. After watching several videos of other builds, I have decided to fill in all the frames. I know this will be a lot of work, but I feel it will give me a more solid model, a better base for the planking (even though I know there are two layers of planking) especially in the bow and sterns parts of the ship, and a better support for the gun portals.  

 

I am sure most of you are shaking you head thinking I am nuts, but I am committed to do this. 

 

So I have made my templates and started cutting the pine. I am cutting each a little oversize to leave room for sanding.  

 

 

 

One down and only 37 to go!

 

 

 

Edited May 30 by BruceWayne426

[BruceWayne426]

 

Filling in between the frames was a slow process. It didn't help that I somehow managed to have a run-in with the table saw and lost a little piece of my thumb. I still can't figure out how that happened. Anyway, it has healed well and other than it is slightly shorter and I have no feeling on the end of my thumb, things are back to normal.

 

I used mostly scrap pine for filling in the spaces. I painted the outside edge of the frames so I would know when to stop sanding. I used a little wood filler here and there to fill some voids. As you all know, the crazy part about this step is that virtually everything you see will be covered with two layers of planking. Oh well, I am happy how this turned out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JohnOz]

Hi from Oz.  I am also building USS Constitution using the Mamoli 1:93 kit.  Almost finished the hull.  The kit is about 40 years old, and had been opened, but so far no major missing parts.  My first wooden ship build, and it is a big learning exercise.  My biggest mistake was assuming that the bulkheads were accurately shaped, and discovered later that they were out by up to 1-2mm.  By then I had glued the keel to the bulkheads, and trying to overcome the errors has been a big headache.  I was tempted to throw the lot in the fire, but decided to persist.  It has turned out reasonably.  Substituted copper adhesive tape for the little wooden blocks, and it looks good.  Time will tell if it lasts OK.  Photos of the build are at johnsmachines.com  and the latest ones are attached.

 

[BruceWayne426]

Oz:

 

Thanks for your comments and pictures. It is so good to see someone working on the same kit as I am attempting. You are several steps ahead of me and I plan on studying what you have done to this point on your website.  I, too, have discovered that things don't quite line up but it looks like you have compensated very well and no one will ever know the difference. 

 

I was in Boston last month. We had planned on spending a few hours at the ship before our flight home but got caught in a huge traffic jam and sat on the interstate in one spot for over 1 1/2 hours. When we finally arrived at Boston Harbor, the ship was closed for the day so the only photos I have are from outside the fence. We spent some time getting the best shots possible and a few from inside the museum and gift shop. I will be glad to share if you are interested.

 

Bruce

[BruceWayne426]

After filling in the spaces between the frames, I needed to cut the spaces for the cannon ports.

 

The cannon ports with this kit are pot metal with "ears" on both sides that are to be inserted into notches on the frames. In the original plans, the ports are held in place by the ear attached to the nearest frame. The thickness of the ears varied as did the notches in the frames. I also discovered (after the fact) that the notches were not lined up well - a problem I will need to deal with later. The ports were square with the exception of the last two on either end which were angled to match the curvature of the bow and stern.

 

 

I then marked the spot of each port, drilled holes around the perimeter and drilled the center out with a spade bit. This was followed by using a wood chisel to make the opening a square.  Since there will be two layers of planking surrounding each port, the opening did not need to be an exact fit. In the original plans, the only thing holding the the ports in place was this ear in the notch. I used a dab of wood fill on the inside of the port to hold it in place. 

 

 

 

 

 

We were in Boston last month. We had an evening flight home so allotted a few hours at Boston Harbor. Unfortunately, we got caught in a massive traffic jam and sat on the interstate in one place for 1 1/2 hours. When we finally arrived at the Constitution site, it was closed for day so the only pictures I was able to take were from outside the fence. Here are a few of the cannon ports. I took many pictures of the ship and some from the museum models, as the museum closes later than the ship.

 

 

 

 

[JSGerson]

As you know, there are a lot of pictures of the USS Constitution on the web (just not well organized), but it is nice to have your own personal pictures. Sorry you missed out touring the ship. I grew up and lived in the Boston area till the late 70s, so I visited it a number of times. My last visit was in November 2014 just before it started its last restoration. By that time, I had already purchased the MS kit and was a couple of years into collecting and organizing images of various detail of the ship to help with the construction of the kit. Presently, I have over 4,000 photos of the ship from 1857 to the present. Should you or anyone else need image(s) of particular detail(s), there is a good chance I have it. Just let me know.

 

Jon

[Kelp]

It’s great to see a Mamoli Constitution being built here!  I also have this kit, but it is stashed away until I finish some current work.  I look forward to seeing your progress as you continue with this great ship.
 

One thing I will probably change is the bow area, to make it look more like the Model Shipways version, which I think looks closer to how the ship looks now.  I will have to do a little studying to figure out how to do this conversion.

 

Your model is looking great!

 

Don

[BruceWayne426]

The first layer of planking is progressing. I decided to use small nails to attach the rows around the cannon portals first. After the glue dried, I removed the nails. 

 I then made about 40 tabs from popsicle sticks and pieces of planking. I varied the size from about 1/2" to 3/4". The longer tabs were used on the flat surfaces and allowed more "hold down" area. The smaller tabs were used on the curved surfaces. I drilled holes in each tab.  I used a thicker 1/2" nail with a bigger head that made it easier to remove when the glue dried. The piece of planking meant that the popsicle stick side of the tab would snug the plank close to the frame. Apologies for the blurry picture of the tab.

 

 

Planking goes slow, but I enjoyed it.  You can see the pencil marks on the frames that helped keep the planks straight. I measured the total distance from the widest section in the center and transferred those measurements to the bow and stern. 

 

 

 

I used the heat bending tool to bend the planks. My first bends/planks were not as good as the last ones I put the bend into, but they will sand out ok.

 

 

 

I worked on both sides at the same time. As the glue dried on the starboard side, I was getting the port side ready. A couple of planks per side per night is about all I could handle.

 

The last piece.

 

 

Now the sanding begins.The thickness of the planks in this kit varied quite a bit, but they sand easily. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 17 by BruceWayne426

[BruceWayne426]

The second planking has begun. This includes two different types of layers.

The first picture shows the pencil water line. The copper plating was used below the water line.

 

Above the water line, the planking will be painted black. The planking between the gun ports is slightly narrower and will be painted white. The gun ports are cast and not very consistent in size and shape. I will probably do some more filing before painting. All the planking will get another sanding before painting as well.

 

 

In the Mamoli kit, the copper plates are pieces of wood 5/8" x 3/8" and are painted shades of green to simulate weathered copper. A light coat of copper paint will bring out the copper color a little more after all the plates are on the ship.

Next post will highlight that process - one plate at a time. Anyone care to take a guess of how many copper plates there are?

 

[BruceWayne426]

Putting the "copper" plates on was a process. There are 24 rows with a max of 39 full plates in each row.

 

With all the triangular plates that had to be made to accommodate the curvature of the hull, there were probably over 1000 pieces on each side. 

 

Then, of course, the soaking of the pieces to be bent for the bow and stern,

 

 

Overall, the plating came out good. There will be some touch up later to bring out the copper color a bit more.

 

 

[Gregory]

Looks as good as any coppering job I have ever seen!