Santa Maria boat 1492 by JpR62 - Korabel - 1:24 scale

[JpR62]

During this year, as I had little time for my hobby, I decided to build a small boat in parallel with my work on the Cheerful cutter. I chose the Santa Maria boat. I ordered this model (as well as 'Captain John Smith's shallop') directly from its designer in Ukraine.

 

Here's a brief presentation of the model we received.

The model is delivered in a cardboard box with a photo of the finished model.

The plans consist of 4 large sheets (A3 format)

The instruction manual contains very little text (only on the first 2 pages), but features drawings detailing the various steps involved.

The model consists of 8 laser-cut boards. One in MDF for the base on which the boat will be mounted, three in pearwood for the hull, three in beech for the planking and one for the oars (maple?). The laser cut seems to me to be precise and without too many burn marks.

And finally a PE board for the metal parts, fabric for the sail, mast and yard ('antenne'), good quality blocks and the rope.
Only the rope, although of good quality, will surely be replaced by Syren rope, which is clearly of better quality.

 

To be continued

[JpR62]

Thank You to all the 'Likes'.

To help me in my build, I watched, as the model progressed, the various videos on a YouTube playlist made available by a Ukrainian modeler. I don't speak Russian, but all you need to do is activate the subtitles and their automatic translation into your mother tongue. Automatic translators have made enormous progress, and it's easy to understand the various steps.
Here's a link to the YouTube playlist

Play list 'Santa Maria' - 13 videos
 

Construction has begun on the base for the boat's frame.

Here's a quick photo summary of the build.

To be continued

[JpR62]

Thank You to all the 'Likes'.

 

Boat building begins with the keel. As you can see from the photo below, the laser burn marks are not very pronounced. The cut is fine and precise.

First, however, I remove the burn marks by sanding down with a sheet of sandpaper before taking out the various parts of the keel. It's easier to get even, precise sanding this way, and above all it avoids rounding off the corners of the parts.

The three keel components are easily removed from the board.

The three keel elements are assembled and glued. I use special Titebond 'Dark Wood Glue'. This will slightly accentuate the joint between the different elements.

The keel is inserted into the work cradle

To be continued.

 

 

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

The frames :

Each frame consists of a floor and two futtlocks. All the components needed to build the hull frame are located on two pearwood boards. Each element is numbered, and a letter identifies whether the futtlock should be installed on the port or starboard side. The planking will be clinker-build style.

A light laser line indicates the limit of the area to be sanded to allow the hull to be faired.

I start by sanding the various sections that will receive the planking. This way, the hull will already be faired.

And I finish by gluing the three parts together.

To be continued

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

On some parts, in addition to the line indicating the sanding limit, there is a second dotted line. This simply means that the sanding must be done in reverse: this dotted line must be transferred to the back of the part.

In the photo below, parts 16R and 16L require the dotted line to be transferred. To do this, I photocopy the wooden board directly!

 

I then cut out the copy of the part concerned.

So I can transfer the line precisely to the back of the piece.

The last photo shows all the tools used  for the fairing.  Just a few simple tools and a lot of patience and time...

To be continued.

 

 

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

All the frames are now faired.

But before gluing them to the keel, I still have to remove the laser burn marks on the 3 sections of each frame that will be visible inside the hull.

I'll be able to proceed with a blank assembly and then the final installation of the frames.

To be continued

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

The work continued with the gluing of the frames to the keel.

Some of the slots in the work cradle required a little sanding so that the frame could be positioned.

Each frame is first blank tested.

Then they're all glued to the keel.

To be continued.

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

The work continued with the installation of the two interior planks.

For the first, no problem. I shape it beforehand by moistening the board with a wet finger and using the heat of a hairdryer.

Gluing goes smoothly

 

 

[JpR62]

For the second, I encountered the only problem present on this kit. The plank is slightly too short... This seems to be a common problem, as in the Ukrainian modeller's third video (which I linked to in my second post) the problem is pointed out and he shows how to correct this issue. I used the same method to lengthen the plank.

After sanding off the laser burn marks on both sides, and before extracting the two planks from the laser board, I prepare a small piece of wood the width of the plank.

I then glue it to the plank on the side facing outwards. This small piece of wood will then be invisible, as it will be hidden by the outer planking of the hull. This small piece of wood connects the plank to the laser board, reinforcing the bond.

I then extract the two planks by cutting the extension with an x-acto. For the moment, I don't care about the final length of the plank and cut the whole extension.

I use the two planks to make two templates on cardboard. These will then be placed in the ship's hull, and the final length of the planks can be determined. All that's left is to transfer the cutting line to the planks.

This gives me two planks of the right length. All that remains is to glue them to the inside of the hull.

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

Before gluing the second inner plank, I fitted the last two frames at the bow.

I then glued the second inner plank, starting with the bow, and once this was dry, I glued the stern segment (photo below).

The hull frame is now rigid and the planks forming the boat's interior floor can be laid.

To be continued.

[JpR62]

Before laying the planks making up the bottom of the boat, a few half floor reinforce the frames.

Beforehand, I annotate the drawing in the instruction manual, referencing the positioning of the different half floors.

According to the plan supplied, a small angle must be sanded at the junction with the keel.

The bottom of the boat can now be covered.

To be continued.

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

Assembly continues with the fitting of the boat's inner bottom. The planks are supplied pre-cut. All you need to do is glue them in place, but they do require a certain amount of precision.

Installation begins with the two planks in the center. They overlap the keel slightly, with the spacing between them exactly in the center of the keel. So I use a small jig consisting of a small board the width of the overlap of one plank plus the space between the two planks. Three sticks of wood are glued perpendicularly to this board, enabling me to clip it onto the keel. All I have to do is glue the first plank in place using this jig. The first photo below shows gluing in progress with my jig in place.

The second photo below shows the gluing of the first inner plank completed with the jig removed.

To glue the second plank, I also use another small jig. It's simply a small board whose thickness corresponds to the spacing between the two inner planks. Again, two photos to illustrate the gluing (gluing in progress and gluing completed).

I continue with the installation of the two planks on either side. All that's left is to glue the last 4 planks, spacing them evenly.

This step completes the reinforcement of the boat's framework. I can now move on to laying the outer planks.

To be continued.

 

 

 

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

Although the planking on the transom is already simulated, I preferred to add real planking. To do this, I used some pearwood planks left over from my workshop. I lightly draw a pencil line on their edges to mark the edging, then glue them in place using the pre-marked lines as a reference. For now, I don't worry about their length. The edges will be sanded when the whole transom is finished.

After the planking has dried, I sand the sides. I was then able to move on to the outer planking.

To be continued.

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

Hull planking

The kit includes pre-spilled planks. But it's important to get them into shape. I laid my planking in three stages. First, I sand each plank, as the thickness of the planks needs to be slightly reduced in the last few centimeters at the stern and bow. I also sand the front corner of the planking to simulate the best way to lay it on the stem. I'm not worrying at all about the length of the planking at the moment. It will be sanded later to be flush with the ship's aft transom.

Then, after soaking the plank in hot water for one or two minutes, I place it on the hull and hold it in place with rubber bands and clamps. I leave the plank to dry for a few hours (often overnight).

When dry, the plank retains its shape. I glue it in place and hold it in place with clamps. Above all, I make sure that the top edge rests firmly on the previous plank.

I'm working with wood glue (Titebond Original Wood Glue), so I have to wait a few hours before I can lay the next plank.

The length of the first 3 planks has been adjusted. A little sawing and a final sanding to make them as flush as possible with the transom.

Only three more strakes to go...

[Ronald-V]

That does look really nice!

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  Was this sort of boat made with tree nails ... or metal fasteners?

[JpR62]

1 hour ago, Snug Harbor Johnny said:

Was this sort of boat made with tree nails ... or metal fasteners?

Unfortunately, I couldn't find any information on this subject. The instruction manual provides no information on how the planks were fastened.

And all the photos found on the net of the finished model show it without tree nails. So, for the time being, this is how I'm going to present it.

In the book 'The Ships of Christopher Columbus' (Anatomy of the Ship), there's only one plate on the boats (plate H on page 80), which includes only drawings on the hull frames, with no text.

And finally, I also have a PDF version of the book (in Spanish) 'Los Galeones Españoles', Volume II of which covers rigging, artillery and equipment. Unfortunately, the short section on boats describes only the dimensions and equipment of the boats, and the drawings again show only the frames...

But if anyone has more information on the subject, I'd be interested too...

Thanks again for your interest in this model.

 

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  I'll definitely follow along, since this is a well thought-out kit - and a good 'in between' major build projects to consider.  The build seems a little easier than what I've seen on the Captain Smith shallop.  When I started the old 1:100 Billings Vasa 50 years ago (and left her alone for 40 years after planking), I put somewhat oversized tree nails through the planks where they were over bulkheads ... limited by my drill size and insufficient knowledge.  Indeed, there was MUCH to be discovered about the original now on display in the coming years, and the planks on the original were just nailed in with headed spikes.  So I left what tree nails I'd put in the model alone, and added tiny nails (originally in the kit to plank with, interestingly enough) in between the rows of tree nails.  Major surgery was done on the stern, but what I have is definitely recognizable as a representation of the Vasa ... even with some divergences, it seems attractive enough (and I've yet to finish it).

 

  My guess (with 1628 being the Vasa date) is that more than a century earlier they likely just used nails when planking a ship's boat.  A guess, but perhaps as good as any other.

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  'Sorry, mate - but I just couldn't let this inquiry go without further search.  And it seems the 'Newport Ship' is a very near contemporary to Columbus' ships (just 3 decades earlier), so most likely represents the state of the art of ship building at the time.  I noted that (based on the wood source) that construction was done in Spain, and the vessel was later being repaired in England when misfortune caused her to be abandoned (after much salvage above the water line) near the river bank - where she was found preserved by exclusion of oxygen ... an exciting find !

 

  Having planks of radially split oak made perfect sense, in that oak for 'wet cooperage' is done the same way ... to prevent water passing through the wood.  The construction was lapstrake planks from a keel, with iron headed nails driven through slightly undersized holes (to prevent splitting) - and the protruding end within the developing hull was clenched over (like door nails were) for a tight fit and permanence (the expected life of the hull) without rovings in this case - see the Oxford test and images below.  (Note: the Wiki entry 'assumes' rovings were used before clenching, but the Oxford anaysis did not find evidence of rovings or imprints of rovings.) Then after so much planking,  ribs were fit into place and made fast to the clinker planks with one tree nail per plank, and no tree nails into the keel.  Fascinating !

 

  This seems a valid interpretation of how to do most any size boat of that era.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JpR62]

14 hours ago, Snug Harbor Johnny said:

The build seems a little easier than what I've seen on the Captain Smith shallop.

Yes, I can confirm that. The Santa Maria's boat is much simpler than Captain Smith's shallop. The Santa Maria's boat is a very interesting project to be carried out either between two larger projects or in parallel. After completing the structural work on this boat, I went on to build the Captain Smith's shallop. The design is very similar, but the boat is much more complex and contains additional elements. The scale is also different (1:32). But it's still a very, very interesting little project. I'll soon be starting a log on its construction.

 If, like me, you are interested in both models, I can only advise you to start with the Santa Maria boat.

Edited September 30 by JpR62

[JpR62]

12 hours ago, Snug Harbor Johnny said:

'Sorry, mate - but I just couldn't let this inquiry go without further search.  And it seems the 'Newport Ship' is a very near contemporary to Columbus' ships (just 3 decades earlier), so most likely represents the state of the art of ship building at the time. 

Many thanks for your research!

So I'll probably add those clench nails as well as those treenails. It was definitely something I'd been wondering about, but I didn't dare extrapolate and invent a way in which the boards were fixed. And so far, no constructed version found on the net had been able to answer my question...

Thanks again.

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

The latest planks have been installed using the method described above. The planks at the stern were cut to final length (first rough cut with a small saw, then sanded). And a first general sanding was carried out on the hull. Quite happy with the final result and no problems with the shape of the planks supplied with the kit. It makes the job much easier...

 

The gunwale is being installed and I'll have to remember to add the nails and treenails.

To be continued

 

[JpR62]

Thank you to all the 'Likes'.

 

The gunwale has been installed. I started by fitting the aft section so I can adjust the length of the gunwale to port and starboard. There's just one small adjustment to make so that the parts fit perfectly on the stem.

For the small deck at the bow, I decided to replace the part proposed in the kit with one made from the remains of the laser-cut planking board. It respects the plan better than the original part, and it's not at all complicated to make.

Next step: installation of the thwarts