Bluenose II by bnw - Artesania Latina - 1:75

[bnw]

I am new to building wooden ship models and keeping a build log, but after making the first steps, i discovered, it will be helpful to ask some questions now and than to people with more experience! 

And because those will be small questions sometimes and maybe not worth it to create a complete, separate topic for, I decided to start my own build log and hope some people might read it and can help me, when I am stuck or hesitate the next step!

 

Some words about me: I am living in The Netherlands, somewhere in my 50s 😋and whole my live, I liked to build and create things, do all kind of handcrafts, electronic projects, make drawings and so on.

this continued in my work as an Industrial Product Designer.

Things I did: plastic model airplane and car kits, styropor sailboats, RC airplanes and gliders, model railway, and so on.... but I have never built a wooden ship!

I think it will be quite a challenge, but on the other hand, you just have to do new things to learn them!

My goal is not to make a ship that has to be 100% accurate in detail as the original, but a model that looks nice and giv me a lot of fulfilment when building.

 

I have chosen to build the Bluenose II from Artesania Latina. I like the the slender hull and definitally wanted a model ship where I have to do and learn planking of the hull!

I have already delved a bit into the history of this ship and have watched several videos of this still sailing ship.

Reading articles on the internet gave this intro on this ship: The Bluenose II is a famous schooner and a proud symbol of Nova Scotia, Canada. She is a faithful replica of the original Bluenose, a legendary racing schooner and fishing vessel. Currently, the Bluenose II serves as a goodwill ambassador and a training vessel, maintaining the maritime heritage of the region.

 

As said, the kit is from Artesania Latina, scale 1:75

I cannot say if this is a good quality kit, but some people told me, they are okay.

 

 

I do not know how long it will take for me to complete this kit, but I do not set any deadlines. I will take the time and try as much as possible to enjoy building it!

I will also have to learn a lot of new words, because this is a completely new jargon for me!

[bnw]

Part I – keel, bulkheads and decks

 

I have already done some things, so this build log starts a few steps in the process.

I have removed the lasercutted parts from the plywood sheets and sanded away the irregular spot where the parts were attached to the sheet.

After dry fitting I glued the bulkheads to the keel. Because the laser cutting, the bulkheads were almost 90° to the keel without even using tools for it, but I decided to use the Lego brick method to ensure the right angle.

 

Next step was attaching both the decks parts. I have used glue and nails. With a drift punch I made sure the nail heads did not stick out.

 

 

 

I am actually quite happy with my first keel-bulkhead assembly!

I only noticed one inaccuracy, which I was a little bummed that I had missed, but it is solvable when sanding the edges of the bulkheads to match the planks of the hull. There is a jump halfway down the deck.

 

When you look at this point in the topview, the contour is interrupted at one side.

 

 

I also noticed that the higher deck did not have a rounded/smooth contour shape, but it has two sharp edges. This is not a “fault” from me, but it was lasercutted that way. On this edge I have to add a walnut sheet, which will follow the contour. I suppose those have to follow a smooth rounded line, not the sharp edge?

 

 

Following the instructions I have to add those walnut sheets first and sand the bulkheads later, but maybe it is wise to round the contour of the deck before adding the walnut sheet? At the same time I can also correct my small inaccuracy.

[bnw]

Part II Planking the deck.

 

Next thing is the planking of the deck. It consists of basswood and some walnut sheets.

 

I have seen several methods of planking the deck, adding the caulking seams, imitating the nails.

- I was thinking of using a pencil to add some caulking at the sides of the planks.

- I also think not using complete planks in one piece (front to end), but devide them in shorter lengths to get a better scale.

 

Do you have any tips how to get the best planked deck?

Is a pencil a good way for the caulking? Can I get problems with stains from the graphite or how to avoid that?

Do I have to use a soft pencil or a harder one?

Use the same pva glue for wood?

Other ideas and tips before I start with this step?

[Kenchington]

Looks like you are off to a great start!

 

You have said that you aim for a model that looks nice, rather than a miniature replica, but the appearance of the prototype is a good starting point for your decisions. To that end, the schooner's own website has a useful photograph taken from directly overhead, which shows her deck very clearly. I won't infringe on copyright but you can find the image at:

 

https://bluenose.novascotia.ca/node/122

 

That photo was taken during an annual fitting-out and has much of the schooner's gear (and much of her crew!) laid out on the wharf alongside, so a very useful reference as you proceed.

 

Trevor

[bnw]

3 minutes ago, Kenchington said:

Looks like you are off to a great start!

 

You have said that you aim for a model that looks nice, rather than a miniature replica, but the appearance of the prototype is a good starting point for your decisions. To that end, the schooner's own website has a useful photograph taken from directly overhead, which shows her deck very clearly. I won't infringe on copyright but you can find the image at:

 

https://bluenose.novascotia.ca/node/122

 

That photo was taken during an annual fitting-out and has much of the schooner's gear (and much of her crew!) laid out on the wharf alongside, so a very useful reference as you proceed.

 

Trevor

That's a great and useful picture, thanks!

 

And you are from Nova Scotia? 🙂

Edited Monday at 03:30 PM by bnw

[Ronald-V]

Good to see a build log from you

 

Yes a pencil will be good for caulking lines. I use the more softer ones, because that is easier in my experience (below HB)...for the Sphinx and Pickle I used a 1B.

PVA is just fine to glue the deck planks. Not sure what deck layout the Bluenose had, so you could investigate that. And yes I would round off that false deck first before placing the walnut sheets. You want them flat against the hull, so fairing the hull first  

 

 

Edited Monday at 07:02 PM by Ronald-V

[bnw]

The planking of the deck will need some bending of planks and this will be the first new thing to learn for me, so I am still looking into it first and I am investigating how to do this.

 

The most outer plank is walnut:

 

And the second row is basswood:

 

the rest will be filled with straight planks:

 

 

Is this the right way to do the bended planks:

• put the plank in (warm) water for a while. How long? A few minutes, an hour?
• Bend the plank and place it with clamps in the right position onto the deck.
• Let it dry in this bended position.
• After drying, take away the clamps, put some glue on the bended plank and position it back with clamps to let the glue dry.

 

Will this work in this way?

 

[Ronald-V]

Yes to all questions...durations of soaking is usually 15 min. or so in warm water...just experiment yourself

When you clamp the plank to the deck it's sometimes nessecary to use a little piece of scrapwood between the clamp and soaked plank.

Because of the wood is soft with all the water in it, you won't damage it with clamps. That said...walnut is pretty hard, but personally I would better be safe then sorry.

Edited 5 hours ago by Ronald-V