Chaperon by Doug McKenzie - Model Shipways - 1:48

[Doug McKenzie]

Having almost finished Leon in a bottle, I decided to get started on Chaperon (1884 Steamer aka Riverboat).  A 1:48 model by Model Shipways.  I knew I wanted to try a riverboat so I 'researched' and found this kit.  Someone said it was the best kit in terms of being an accurate reproduction of an actual riverboat.  I couldn't remember who said that, so I asked google.  This was the response.  "While there is no single individual credited with this definitive claim, the Model Shipways Chaperon is widely cited by experienced modelers on major ship modeling forums as the best and most accurate riverboat kit available."  Easiest research I've ever done!  Here's a picture, Pic 1, of the completed model that Model Shipways supplies.

This will be my first "non-sail powered ship" model (except for when I was under 10).  It will also be my first non-operating ship model that will be fully painted. 

 

Pic 2 shows the keel, bulkheads and 2 stringers.  The keel and stringers are 3/16" and the slots are cut very accurately so the bulkheads lie firmly perpendicular to the keel quite well.  The 5 forward bulkheads have bevel lines marked so that the frames can be easily beveled before mounting on the keel. Similarly, at the stern the bottom surface of the counter is marked for pre-mounting beveling.  Both of these things makes fairing the bulkheads and the counter before planking a lot easier than with many models.

Pic 3 and 4 shows the side planking complete - Pic 3 is the bow and Pic 4 is the stern..  The planks are 1/16" x 1//8" and are easy to work with.  The kit recommends pre-bending the planks which I did only at the stern.  I consider the side planks to consist of the sheer plank and the next 5 down.  The first two needed no pre-twisting at the stern but the 3rd plank needed to be twisted 90 degrees over about 2".  Each additional plank was twisted over a length longer by the spacing of the bulkheads.  So the first was the tightest and they get progressively less tight as you proceed down although all need a full 90 degree twist. .  I didn't pre-bend at the bow at all, I just glued a few bulkheads at a time.  btw I use extra thick CA glue for planking.  I didn't follow normal practice of setting each plank on both port and starboard.  The bullhead/keel construction is so strong that I completed 3 strakes on one side and then did the corresponding 3 strakes on the opposite side.  I left 3 bulkhead spaces between butt joints in adjacent planks. I left 4 planks between 2 butt joints on the same bulkhead.  None of this matters much on such a strong structure but it felt good to follow a sort of normal procedure.

The 7 bilge strakes will come next.

Edited December 28, 2025 by Doug McKenzie

[yvesvidal]

I am planning to follow your build log, since I purchased that kit a year or two ago.  You have made some great progress, so far.

 

Yves

[Cathead]

Great start! And I absolutely agree that this is, by far, the most accurate riverboat model kit out there. Most of the rest are toys in comparison. I'm looking forward to following along and seeing how you make this your own. If you want some extra guidance and insights, @kurtvd19 offers a really nice extended guide to this model. I haven't built Chaperon but purchased this guide anyway as it's extremely useful even for other riverboat builds.

[Doug McKenzie]

Before I describe the work, I want to thank Cathead for telling me about Kurt's instructions for Chaperon.  I haven't received them yet but I'm told that they have been shipped.

Pic 1 shows the 7 bilge planks at the bow.  I don't bother showing them at the stern because there is so little bending, twisting or edge setting.  At the bow, however, the edge setting is significant which is pretty clearly seen.  The clamps I'm using are from Micro Mark and the only comment I'll make is that drilling a tiny pilot hole before trying to screw in the screw makes things a LOT easier.  In the blue circle is the two part clamp (not in use) can be seen.

Pic 2 is of the first half of the bottom planks.  I only include this because it looks pretty cool.  The planks are 1/2" wide (24" full scale!)  I use the same 3 bulkhead spacings for butt joints in adjacent planks but now only require 2 planks between butt joints on the same bulkhead.

Pic 3 is of all the bottom planks. I sanded most of the irregularities with a Micro Mark Micro Lux miniature belt sander.  I filled the remaining irregularities with Minwax stainable wood filler.  Sanded again and did the final filling with joint compound.  The wood filler had a very tiny sand-like texture which is why I switched to the completely smooth spackle.  I didn't use the spackle at first because somewhere along the line I heard that bare wood could suck the water out of the spackle making it weaker and it's already not all that strong.

I have to apologize for Pic 4 because I have broken a cardinal rule of traditional ship modelling which is that we don't use gloss paint.  I couldn't resist for 3 reasons: 1-- I like gloss finishes, 2--  The vast majority of the hull surface would never be seen anyway (70%) and 3-- I wanted the planking to be evident which it is at the bow.  I won't bother to apologize for the poor filling and sanding job because the worst is on the bottom and the sides are a bit better.  I'm not a perfectionist at all.  BTW you may notice the deck has already been installed.  I forgot to take a picture of the painted hull and so had to remove it from its stand to make this record complete.

Pic 5 is the stand.  I used the template for the stand uprights in the kit.  The base is from an old door sill.

 

Pic 6 shows the deck stained Minwax Driftwood (specified by the instructions) and installed.  I did the best I could to minimize the unevenness of the joints between the panels.  If I had it over again I would have joined the bow and stern panels together before gluing them onto the hull because it would have been much easier to align them properly.  I also would have waited to stain the sheets until after they were joined so I could have done a little sanding.  I figure I'll wait to see how much of it stays visible after more stuff is added and maybe a little improvement will be possible.   

 

At this point I want to mention that the instructions provide little in the way of riverboat terminology.  Therefore I decided to try to learn some of the names of the parts of the boat.  So for example, you can see that the 'fantail' is in process (i.e. "the overhanging extension or platform at the rear of the boat upon which the sternwheel is actually mounted").  I got this from google AI.  Please note that there were very few diagrams found so I will be applying these terms without the assurance of knowing that I am doing so correctly.  I believe that the beam extending aft and supporting the deck extension is called  'cylinder timber.' "These are the large horizontal beams that extend past the stern of the hull to support the weight and axle of the paddlewheel.  They earned this name because the steam engines (cylinders) were traditionally mounted directly onto them."  This is a good example of the value of the pursuit of terminology because we also learn that the weight of the engines is used to counterbalance the weight of the paddlewheel.

[Cathead]

So far your terminology is loosely correct. The cylinder timbers certainly support the weight of the wheel, but the name doesn't quite come from the engines balancing out that weight. It's more that the engines needed to be mounted on very solid beams to absorb their motion and vibration without shaking the lightly built hull apart. In a sternwheeler, these could naturally be projected out to also support the wheel. In a sidewheeler, the cylinder timbers also supported the wheel but in a different way, while still serving their primary function as "shock absorbers" for the engines. See these photos from my Arabia build:

Happy to help with terminology as needed! Learning how things worked is one of the great joys of modeling, as far as I'm concerned. Riverboat jargon is a world unto its own. Wait until you learn that the boiler deck is the one ABOVE the boiler...

 

If you're really into learning this stuff, you might consider looking for a used copy of Alan Bates' Western River Steamboat Cyclopoedium. It's an excellent but accessible guide to the general construction and workings of these vessels, with an eye to model buildings and a fair amount of illustrations. He has a companion book that focuses specifically on the engines, but the one I list here is a broader reference for the general modeler. 

 

Personally I wouldn't trust much that any AI says. In my experience, far too often when I see a result about something I have knowledge of, it's misleading or outright incorrect.  At best it's useful for finding primary resources but it routinely misunderstands, misrepresents, or conflates information.

[Doug McKenzie]

Thanks Cathead / Eric (I don't know the etiquette for using which name) I've ordered a copy of Bate's book and that should be very useful!

 

Doug

[Cathead]

Personally I think username is better, as that's what's displayed at the top of every post, so that way readers easily know who you're talking to/about. But some MSW users have objected to not knowing a person's real name, so some of us put that in our signatures for those who care. It's less of an issue for those whose usernames overlap with their real name.

 

Another benefit of usernames is that you can put an @ symbol in front of them, and the system will recognize that's who you referring to and notify the user that you mentioned them. Like this, @Doug McKenzie.

 

I think you'll enjoy the Bates book! I promise I don't get a commission for these recommendations.

Edited Wednesday at 03:24 AM by Cathead