King of the Mississippi by CaptCraig - Artesania Latina - 1:80 Scale

[CaptCraig]

Hello everyone! Welcome to my first build log on MSW! I know, it has been a long time coming. I have been on this site since before the crash. I was finally able to get a decent kit and start a build of my own. I must warn that the first month or two may be slow, as the shipyard is still being built and I am changing jobs so I can be closer to home, where my wife and children are. I will start out the log now, though as I found some time to check the inventory of the kit. I decided I would take some pictures of the contents of the kit to test my picture posting skills.

 

Here is what I saw when I first opened the box. The paints were not part of this kit. I purchased them separately:

 

 

The kit came with one big blueprint that has a few different views on it. There is also an instruction book. The instruction book stops giving instruction 3/4 of the way through the build and tells you the rest is laborious and you should look at the picture on the box to figure it out.

 

 

I found most everything was wrapped well. I did not notice any warping of the wood, but that remains to be truly inspected. Again, I put the paints in there for safe keeping until I am ready to fully tackle the build:

 

 

I do really like the fact that the smaller parts are packed in plastic organizers. I can use these for later builds...:-):

 

 

Here are some of the laser cut parts including the knight heads, the center stair rails, and a few of the smaller walls:

 

 

Here are some more walls and two of the large decks:

 

 

This is the lower deck, the bulkheads, and a few more walls:

 

 

Finally, I have the masts, stacks, planking, decking, and deck support timbers. I am really shocked at how small the deck supports are. They look so much bigger in everyone's photos!

 

 

I think this initial post went well and it gave me a little practice with posting pictures. Please excuse the one or two photos that are not spectacular. I am just getting used to the new camera as well! Thank you all for looking, and feel free to provide input and criticisms as the build progresses. I look forward to your responses! 

Edited January 18, 2014 by CaptCraig

[Script]

Hi Craig,

 

I hope you enjoy your build! Nice to see another riverboat........glad I got a front row seat.

 

Cheers,

 

Jim

[gjdale]

Hi Craig,

 

Congrats on starting your first build log. I'm sure you'll get plenty of help and advice with this one as there are a few of these being built here.

 

I'm always interested in watching a paddle steamer come together - one of these is on my "one day" list - so I'll follow along for the ride.

 

Jim, would you pass the popcorn please?

[CaptCraig]

I have a question. When you are taking inventory of all the parts, do you measure all of your timber to make sure you have the correct amount? Or do you just make sure you have the right dimensions of timber? For example, some of the timber needs to be cut to length. Would you add up all the lengths required for the 1.5x5mm planks and then compare against what is supplied? I have 4 pages of parts and so far I have taken inventory for one of the pages...lol

[Script]

Hi Craig,

 

Not sure what anyone else would do but I just sort by dimension, assuming there will be enough.  Have yet to experience a shortage even with some of my sloppy practices.  I do take extra care with the odd 1 or so pieces that only are used for a single item or two; normally the bigger dimension stuff.

My practice is to sort and separate by eye after establishing the dimension and then using a little tag to identify each group.

Hope that helps!

 

Cheers,

 

Jim

[CaptCraig]

Thanks for the response Jim! Your method is kind of what I figured I would do. I have measured dimensions of the timber supplied and it is all there up to this point. I just think it would take a dog's age to measure all the lengths and do the math...

[gjdale]

I agree with Jim, Craig. The kit contents list should tell you how many stock strips of each dimesion, which is what you need to check for inventory. When it comes to cutting smaller pieces, always use the shortest available stock of that dimension and wood type that will do the job. That should ensure that you don't run out.

[CaptCraig]

I am away from home right now at work. This is the last week I have to travel...Yay! I will look at the inventory list for the KoM again when I get home, but I do not recall seeing a list of stock strips for each dimension. Just the cut pieces in the parts list...I will look again when I get home Friday. Thanks to both of you for your input!

[gjdale]

Craig,

 

Perhaps I should have prefaced my comments with a disclaimer as I have never built an AL kit. My comments were based on experience with other kits from a variety of manufacturers. I just assumed they would all do it this way (which seemed logical to me). It may be that AL have their own way of listing kit inventory.

[jimmyh155]

Hi Craig, we share the same birthday, but mine goes bac k many many years more! I have been looking at the paddle steamers and may get one. I have just finished a Greek bireme. I am afraid I didnt check on the contents of the box - just got on with making it! I ended up with heaps of walnut planks - cant find where I should have put them....It seems an awful fiddle to make an exact inventory of all the parts - do most people really do this?? Looking forward to your next posts

Jimmy from Brissie in Ozzie

[CaptCraig]

@Grant...It does seem logical. AL makes some decent ship models, but through my readings, it has been people's experience that they do leave a lot of detail in their instructions to the imagination...

 

@JImmy...I am being very particular since this is my first big model ship build. As far as your leftover walnut planks, they will come in handy eventually! IF you don't miss them on the build, then all is well!

[CaptCraig]

Well I am now home from work. I will no longer be traveling all week long, so I can get some things done. Tonight I took some more inventory. I am a little over half of the way through checking the items list. I have 2 1/3 pages out of 4 inventoried. It takes a while to go through the parts. I can't resist looking at the picture manual to see what I am taking inventory of. Some of it is a bit hard to picture by the description. I think I may need The Chopper for this build. there are many cuts to make and many of the same length. The Chopper would help to speed up this process.

[CaptCraig]

Finally done with the inventory. Aside from what I have to cut from the lumber, all of the pieces are there, and there are some extras too, which makes me happy. Tomorrow, I will start cleaning the laser char off of the frames.

[gjdale]

Good to know you're starting with a full set Craig. Looking forward to seeing some building........

[dragzz]

good to see some more king builders lol just make sue that u read the book  just take your time at it there no need to build fast  slow build is a better build id say if u need any help just ask good luck on the build 

[CaptCraig]

Thanks Dragzz. I should be able to start some this weekend. I have to work on putting the lights up in the shipyard and I have a few papers to write for school as well. I have to figure out what I am going to use to square the frames in the hull while the glue dries. I do not want a whacked out hull when it is dry.

[dragzz]

just take all the time that u will need i will help in anyway i can just ask .  when it comes to put on the frist deck u will see some holes in the deck befor u plank it some of the holes are wrong place for the boiler room just make sure that u look at some of the logs on msw thay have real pic to show what u need it do ok let me know how it goes

 

[Script]

Take your time Craig....

 

Even though I am looking forward to your next set of pictures.

 

Cheers,

 

Jim

[CaptCraig]

I now have electricity in the shipyard! Thanks for your patience. I have been working on the shipyard most of the weekend and have not touched the ship. But I can turn on the lights in there now, so it is worth it. Off to the Super Bowl party! 

[CaptCraig]

Good day friends... I have started some work on the KoM build even though the shipyard is not quite complete. Today I cleaned the frame pieces and keel. I used a Dremel drum sanding attachment to just run quickly over the edges to remove the laser char:

 

 

I was careful not to take too much material off of the edges. I then dry fitted the pieces into the keel and they all seemed to fit nice. Not too loose and not too tight. I used some 90 degree angle brackets to hold the frames into the keel so I can be fairly square when it dries:

 

 

I was able to get all but two frames glued onto the keel. I started from the center and worked my way out. The two that I did not glue in will need to be done one at a time due to the lack of room in between them. This is what I have done so far:

 

 

This is where I am at for now. I will finish putting the other two frame pieces in this week and I will start working the hull. I will update with more photos as I progress. Thanks for looking! Any remarks are welcome!

[gjdale]

And we're off! Nice to see you started Craig.

[CaptCraig]

Thanks Grant! I am going to get another frame piece on tonight and the last tomorrow. I will start the hull this weekend as well. There should be a fairly steady flow of pictures from this point on, though some may just be small updates.

[dragzz]

so far so good  keep up the great work keep the pic going

[S.Coleman]

It's coming along great. The planking gets a bit tricky for the bow section but a bit of patience will help.

[CaptCraig]

Thank you for the encouragement! I got the last frame put in today. The frame will be dry and complete tomorrow and I will start to put the hull together. I'll take some more pics then.

[CaptCraig]

I got the last two frame pieces in and I have glued the bottom on. The bottom was very tight going in, but I managed. It looks good and straight.

 

 

 

Next, I will do the sides and the knight heads. This may be tomorrow night if I can get some school work done tonight!

Edited February 13, 2014 by CaptCraig

[Rick]

Good work, Craig. Your build is off to a great start.

 

Rick

[gjdale]

Nice work so far Craig. Steady as she goes!

[CaptCraig]

This part of the hull construction is a little challenging for the first time ship builder. But I think I am doing OK. I have used push pins and clamps to get the sides to twist properly. I cannot think of any other way to do this except one side at a time.

 

Here is a side view of the hull:

 

 

Here is the bow-end of the inner hull:

 

 

Here is the stern end of the inner hull. I found it very annoying that they cut the stern so long. I had to remove a good 3/4 of an inch of material to get it to match the frame level as required by the instructions. I found this angle hard to match, but it looks pretty good for an amateur:

 

 

Here is the bow. I may have to fill this a little after it dries, before I move forward with the other side.

 

 

I think it is going fine. Everything seems to be lining up pretty well.

 

Thanks to those of you who have taken the time to comment on my build. I really like the input!

[gjdale]

That all looks fine to me Craig. Don't worry if you need to use a little filler - that has helped many a modeller in the past!

 

Just take your time, as you are, and ensure you keep enjoying yourself.