USS Constitution by usedtosail - FINISHED - Model Shipways - scale 1/76

[usedtosail]

Thanks dragzz.

 

Russ, thanks for the tip. I have been looking at both the Hull model and the Corne painting of the period for a while too.

 

 

 

There are some major differences, like the number of windows, and as others have discussed in their build logs there is really no good source. As you suggest the Hull model may be the best reference since is was made by the crew, but I am not crazy about that stern configuration. The Corne painting is better and does have some of the elements I like, but may have some inaccuracies because it was painted at a later time. That is one of the reasons i am calling this an 1812-ish build.

[patrickmil]

Tom, I definitely agree with your sentiment on the Hull model. The Constitution is my next build and I am trying to figure what all I want to go into with her. I think the Hull model stern is not the prettiest I've seen. I like the Corne painting, but it doesn't look anything like what I've seen in other pictures or in the AOTS.

[usedtosail]

Thanks Patrick. This is a tough decision because historical accuracy is important, too. In the end though, aesthetics to me are going to win out.

 

Some progress this weekend on the stern framing. I transferred the support piece outlines to the last bulkhead and the transom filler block.

 

 

I glued some small tabs along one side of these lines and let them dry some

 

 

I then glued in the supports and the tabs on the other side and slid them up to the first tabs. I checked the alignment of the stern ends using a divider to make sure they were all parallel to each other

 

 

 

I started beveling the two outside support pieces but quickly saw that if I hold them flush to the last bulkhead, the deck beam notches are too far forward and don't align with the inner support notches, and the stern uprights are also too far forward. So, I glued some extra wood to the front of these two pieces, which I will bevel to match the angles and put these pieces in the right place. I'll have pictures of that process later.

 

In the mean time, I started to frame the windows. As you can see, I used two small piece of wood that were the same height as the bottom window frames to align them parallel to the transom filler block and with each other to be all the same height. I also made sure that these frames stand a little proud of the support pieces so they will get faired along with the support pieces when I sand the supports before planking.

 

 

A lot more work to do on the stern, but it is nice having a start.

[patrickmil]

I was leaning in the direction of doing five or six windows when I start on mine. The sterns with that window configuration are really nice.

[TheDutchShipBuilder]

Nice and interesting built!

I will follow your progress.

[42rocker]

Your reviewing a lot of interesting thoughts on this build. Thanks for sharing.

 

Later Tim

[usedtosail]

Welcome Nick and Tim, Thanks for following.

 

I attached the two side supports and have started to sand them into shape. While I am doing that, I am also sanding back the transom filler piece, which you can see in the last picture I posted that it is a little long.

[usedtosail]

This week I have been working in the stern framing. I have the outer transom support pieces in and faired, and added the two deck beams. I left the middle one long so that I could hold it down to the curve of the deck using rubber bands (or as they say here in New England - elastics)

 

 

 

I sanded these down to be flush with the support pieces, then started framing the stern windows. I added pieces for the top and bottom frames, then added the side frames. I first used thin (1/16" thick) pieces on the top and bottom frames, but since they were only edge glued to the supports they were not very sturdy (you can see a few of these in the above picture). I replaced them with thicker pieces that I could glue to the transom filler piece on the bottom, but the top pieces are still only edge glued, but the edge is bigger. In these pictures I have just glued in the side frames and they are all clamped and drying. The top frames can be seen above the clamps.

 

 

You can see in this picture that I left the frames a little proud of the support pieces, so that I can sand them flush later. I will use the planking that will go onto the outside of the transom to make a recess around each window and then build the window frames to fit into those recesses. That's the current plan, anyway.

 

 

I still have to add the bottom frames for the chase ports on the spar deck level. The top frame will be the taffrail. The windows are on the gun deck level.

 

[usedtosail]

Oh, one more thing. I saw one of these large cutting mats in Blue Ensign's build log and thought it was great. It is 36" by 24" and makes a nice flat surface., I found this one Thursday on Amazon for only $20 US, and it was here Saturday. I am so happy with it, I just had to share. Thanks BE for the info on it.

 

 

 

[patrickmil]

That is very nice work on the stern framing. Those self-healing mats are very nice to work on.

[Guest Tim I.]

I have found Marquardt's book to be invaluable when researching the USS Constitution. I can't wait to see your build log as it progresses. 

 

Thanks,

 

Tim

 

Besides the kit instructions, I plan to use the Anatomy of the Ship book for the Constitution as an additional guide. I used the AOS Beagle book to build that model and I really liked the extra information and details in these books.

 

DSC_0043.JPG

 

I am going to try to build the Constitution in its 1812 configuration, as others have done on this site. In fact, those other build logs (Cookster, CaptainSteve, Jeff Toma, and others) have been a huge inspiration for me and I know the information in them will be a huge help.

 

I plan to add some sails to the build, and my first thought was to go with a look like in this picture, when see sailed in Boston Harbor in August 2012 for the 1812 anniversary. I believe our own popeye2sea (Henry) was on it when this picture was taken.

 

USS_Constitution_underway,_August_19,_2012_by_Castle_Island_cropped.jpg

 

Now I am thinking of adding some fore and aft sails too, but I am not sure on that yet.

[usedtosail]

Thanks Patrick and Tim.

 

Patrick - your Niagara looks great. I am so going to use that method for the flags on this one. I have never had much luck in the past getting realistic looking flags and that method with the aluminium foil looks good.

 

Tim - Your cross section looks great too. I built the Santisima Trinidad cross section a few years ago, and it was a great introduction to planking and cannon rigging. I get a lot of comments from friends on that model still. I like all the details you have added to each of the decks.

[usedtosail]

I finished up the stern framing by adding the bottoms to the chase ports. Since it will be a while before I will be planking the hull, I decided to add some battens to each side, to stabilize the bulkheads:

 

 

 

I sanded the stern framing flush:

 

 

Here is a view down the batten to check for fairness:

 

 

I then started preparing the waterways. I used my disk sander to sand in the bevel along the bulwark supports:

 

 

Then I put this crazy set up together to sand in the 45 degree bezel on the top and front of the waterway. It is the Dremel with a sanding drum in the Dremel workstation at a 45 degree angle, with the True Sander underneath so I could use it's fence. I put a finger board in there to hold the strip against the fence. All in all, I probably would have been better just to sand these by hand, but once I started putting stuff together it was fun to see if it would work. I didn't sand in the whole bevel, but enough to get it started. I then put the strip in my vice and set the vice to 45 degrees and planed and sanded it to the final bevel with a sanding block. This method worked but the Dremel put some pits in the face that I was able to sand out. That's why I didn't do the whole bevel this way.

 

 

 

 

I made up the side waterways in two sections and I will connect them with a scrap joint, I think. I have enough overlap that if it doesn't work the first time, I can try again. I soaked the two back sections for about 30 minutes, then clamped them in place to dry. I need to add a post on the inside of the transom so I have an edge to connect these to, as well as the inside bulwark planking. There is nothing on the plans to indicate this, so I am not sure how the inside planking is otherwise supposed to end at the transom. You can't see it, but there is a small block of wood between those large clamps and the waterway to push them over, but I don't think it is enough yet. I may have to resoak and do this again.

 

 

 

I'll see tonight how well these held the shape and how much more shaping they may need.

 

 

[usedtosail]

Well, the soaked and bent waterways held their shape just fine. I did add a strip to the corner of the transom for the ends to fit in, so I re-soaked them and stuck them out the transom to get more curve in the stern.

 

 

I also soaked and bent the other side pieces to the bulwark supports.

 

 

While those were drying, I made up two templates from manila folder for the two bow waterways. 

 

 

I used the templates to cut these waterways out from some basswood sheet material, which is actually excess laser cut pieces from the kit. I glued these to some thinner sheets after getting them to shape inside and out, to get them to the same height as the other waterway pieces.

 

I also made the waterways for the gun deck, using the one piece I had left from the kit and another that I had. These will go on when I can get into that area more easily.

 

I cut the miter joints into the transom waterway and the ends of the two side pieces, and scarf joints in the other ends. I cut some of the scarf joints on the drill press with the end mill, but the two in front I had to do by hand. They came out the same in either case, not great, but OK since the pieces will be painted. I will need to practice a lot more before attempting these for wood that is to be left natural.

 

I then started gluing the waterways in. Here are the two starboard side pieces being glued in. Being able to clamp that stern section so it was tight to the transom filler was a huge relief, as otherwise I don't know how I would have gotten that area to stay down.

 

 

 

After I took this picture I could see that the middle sections were not being held down tight enough, so I broke out the bigger clamps. Why I didn't start with these I don't know, as they were perfect in not leaving any marks on the wood.

 

 

And to be fair, here are the port side pieces being glued in.

 

 

And finally, the bow sections being glued in.

 

 

OK, here we go on the kit bashing part. I removed the bulwark supports to show the open waist area, and I have marked the deck beams that I will remove to add the gun deck. The beams will be replaced later with new beams made from basswood strips, as they will be shown in the open main hatch.

 

 

 

Tomorrow, I will remove the marked deck beams. I sure hope this works.

 

 

 

 

 

[patrickmil]

Tom, I'll watching closely. I'm planning on doing some similar things and am trying to wrap my head around some ideas for a gundeck as well. All in all, great work and this is fun to watch.

[Guest Tim I.]

Tom,

 

The build looks great so far!

Earlier in the thread you were talking about a decision about stern ornamentation. I came across this example of early War of 1812 stern detail in the Model Expo example sections.

 

Example on Model Expo:

 

 

 

A direct link to these pictures and others of the build.

http://www.modelexpo-online.com/album.asp?a=Thomsen_USS-Constitution

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

Edited March 11, 2014 by Tim I.

[usedtosail]

Thanks Patrick and Tim, and all the likes.

 

Tim, those pictures are great. That stern looks very much like the Hull model. I will look at those closely as I design the stern on mine.

 

OK, so tonight was the big surgery to remove the spar deck beams in the main hatch area. I am going to leave the hatch open, which means I need to add a gun deck. I removed the beams by first cutting the center supports at the bottom using an X-Acto saw blade.

 

 

I then cut the deck beams using a razor saw to start and the X-Acto saw to finish the cuts. I cut these on an angle so that I can mate the new deck beams to these stumps later. These joints will be hidden under the deck planking so won't be seen (at least won't be seen easily).

 

 

I marked each of the removed sections and put them aside to use as templates later for the new deck beams. Since these new beams will be showing, I will make them from solid wood, not the plywood of these beams.

 

 

I ground the stumps left from the center supports using a sanding disk in the Dremel.

 

 

Here is the area with the deck beams all removed.

 

 

I soaked the starboard side gun deck waterway which I made when I was making the spar deck waterways, and clamped it in place to bend. The clamps on the other side are two bulkheads that I had to re-glue to the spar deck waterway, whcih came loose during the sawing process.

 

 

Once the waterways are both in, I plan to make a false gun deck from some basswood sheet, which I will plank. I made these waterways higher than those on the spar deck to compensate for the additional height of the false deck. I feel better now that the major surgery is finished and I look forward to working on the gun deck.

[g mummey]

tom. i am waiting for my conny kit right now, should be here in about 10 das they said. i will definetly watch your progress. i am new on this site. just finished model expo syren good luck, keep us posted

[patrickmil]

Tom, that's looking good. Removing so much is a real bravery check. Judging from your work so far, I'm sure this will turn out well.

[CaptainSteve]

Tom,

I've been following every update on your build to date. That's some excellent framing you've done. I'm certain I'll be looking back many, many times in the months to follow when I (finally) get around to doing mine.

[usedtosail]

Welcome g. I hope you are going to start a build log when you start your Connie. I'd like to follow along. Following other builds on this site is the only way I would have attempted so much kit bashing.

 

Thanks Patrick and Steve. Your builds are coming along nicely too.

[CaptMorgan]

Hi Tom:

I'm just finishing up my AL Constellation - which also has an open gun deck.  It adds a great deal of detail to the ship and very you will be happy with this addition.

I also have this model next on my to do list.  Currently have it and just waiting for the opportunity to get it started.

You have been doing an excellant job and I will continue to follow it along very closely.  I'm going to learn a lot following your build.  Keep up the great work...

Steve

[usedtosail]

Thanks Steve. I am excited to be able to add this level of detail, especially on a model of this size, even if most of it will not be that visible.

 

I glued in the gun deck waterways after staining them with golden oak:

 

 

And here are the spar deck waterways. They add support for the bulwark extensions, which is why I waited until they were glued in before cutting the bulkheads:

 

 

I then made a template for the gun deck base, which I will be cutting out of 1/16" basswood sheet. I need to make this base in two pieces because I wouldn't be able to get one piece past the beam stubs. I will cover the seam with the center plank. I used a compass to trace the curve of the gun deck waterways onto some manila folder:

 

 

I then marked the locations of the two hatches that lead down into the berth deck. I took these from the AOS, but later I looked at the plans on the Constitution CD, which are a little different. I will be modifying them to match those plans. I did box in a few places where I was going to add ladders, but not all these will be used now. I will paint these boxes black to hide them.

 

 

 

Thanks for the interest and the Likes.

[patrickmil]

Tom, as I am formulating plans of my own for a similar build, I need to know, where did you get a CD with Connie plans on it? I would like to order one of my own if it's drawn from better sources. By the way, as long as you don't mind, I will most likely be following some of your methods here (don't worry, mine won't be an identical copy of yours). Your work is very thorough and clean.

[Guest Tim I.]

Tom, as I am formulating plans of my own for a similar build, I need to know, where did you get a CD with Connie plans on it? I would like to order one of my own if it's drawn from better sources. By the way, as long as you don't mind, I will most likely be following some of your methods here (don't worry, mine won't be an identical copy of yours). Your work is very thorough and clean.

 

Patrick,

 

A good source for working on the Constitution is the book, Anatomy of a Ship: The 44-Gun Frigate USS Constitution "Old Ironsides" by Karl Heinz Marquardt. The drawings in the book are expansive and focus on the work / research done by Naval Historian Howard Chapelle and the official 1925 US Navy restoration plans for the Constitution. 

 

That is not to say that there are some omissions. In the Constitutions long career she has been refit so many times and often not documented, or the refit disposition documented in private papers not open to the public. 

 

Marquart's book is a good authoritative source, but there are others as well. One thing I had to be mindful of when using the book, is most of the illustrations are in 1:96 scale, other drawings are in variable scales. So if you use the book, you will be doing a lot of scaling up and scaling down to size scratch built items for your kit.

 

All in all, I would recommend it. Good luck on your build.

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

[patrickmil]

Tim, I have that book already. My concern here was that Tom pointed out in one of this posts that he had some drawings from a CD that didn't agree with AOTS. I just wanted some information regarding that CD so I could order it and see it for myself.

[Guest Tim I.]

Ah, are the CD's more detailed than the book?

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

[patrickmil]

@ Tim, I don't know if it's more detailed or not. I'm just trying to pool all of the available resources to do the best job I can. I've heard about a mythical CD in the past, but can't remember where I heard about it or where to order it.

[Force9]

Folks -

 

The CD is available thru the USS Constitution museum or the online Navy museum store.

 

Most of the content, however, is available online at the official US Navy tour site:

 

http://www.history.navy.mil/USSCTour/frDrawings.html

 

The drawings are mostly relevant to the 1925 restoration, but there are some good documents that highlight some of the differences across the years - particularly the 1812 configuration vs the modern restoration.  it is widely acknowledged that the modern version of the ship is not accurate for the War of 1812 period and steps are gradually being taken across the more recent refits to move the ship back to her glory years appearance.  The midship waist was corrected in the last go around and the bow (or stern?) is due to be corrected in the next refit beginning in 2015.  Unfortunately, as these changes go into effect, the MS model will get more and more out of whack and folks will really need to accept it as only representing the 1925 restoration.

 

The AOTS book has some terrific drawings - especially regarding some of the ship's details - but keep in mind that much of Marquardt's assumptions are not accurate for her glory years.  He seems not to have been aware of the Hull model, for example, which would've given better insight into some of the wartime configurations.  Commander Martin determined conclusively that the skylights were not present until long after the War of 1812 among other erroneous details included in the AOTS version.

 

Commander Martin's book "A Most Fortunate Ship" is a must have and I'd also recommend the rather expensive "Constitution - All Sails Up and Flying" by Olof Eriksen, which has a terrific and well researched presentation of her 1815 rig.

 

Hope that link helps

Evan

[patrickmil]

Evan, thanks for that link and I just ordered Commander Martin's book. Tom, didn't mean to hijack your log. I'll just start watching now.