Bounty Launch by CaptainSteve - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1:16 Scale - SMALL

[Keith_W]

Hi Steve, you definitely don't have enough cherry frames. Don't forget that the quarter deck is also planked on cherry frames. Note that on my kit, the planks supplied for the quarter deck were the wrong size. I can't remember the measurements exactly, but I said so on my build log. You might want to check if yours are correct.

[CaptainSteve]

Good point, Keith. Now I really am leaning towards using the strips of Sapelli I have left over from a previous kit. There are at least three lengths of these - each approx 30inches in length.

If I use them for the cant and 'tween frames, then I would stain the cherrywood frames in Walnut to match.

 

The frames would all be brown. I had already decided to stain my planks using Old Baltic, which will give them a golden/yellowish hue much like yours.

(As the football season is upon us again, this is a tempting idea for a Hawthorn supporter such as myself.)

 

I'll have a re-read through your log to try to determine just how much I will need.

Edited March 17, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[Keith_W]

Funny, you are a Hawthorn supporter eh. I live in Camberwell, so everyone here supports Hawthorn. But I grew up in Perth, so I support the Eagles

 

If I were you I would test the stain on the sapelli and the cherry to make sure they come out in a close enough shade.

[CaptainSteve]

Just to muddy the waters regarding what material to use for the cant and 'tween frames, I have checked my boneyard ...

 

 

...and have discovered that I should have enough pieces of sufficient length to make these - but only just barely.

Of course, some will need to be re-soaked to straighten them before re-bending to fit where they need to go on my Launch. 

 

Am I dumb enough to try this ... ???

Do you REALLY need to ask that question ??

Edited March 17, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[Bindy]

Hawthorn supporter such as myself

 

And you seemed so nice ..

[CaptainSteve]

Ahh ... 'tis the fair maiden, Bindy.

And which of the teams wouldst you support ??

[alde]

CaptainSteve, your launch is progressing well. You do have quite the pile of broken sticks though. I see no reason not to substitute the wood as long as you are able to get the color fairley close. The Cherry they supplied was way too brittle for the sharp bends of the frames.

 

Is the football you speak of what we Americans would call soccer or rugby? I had a niegbor who was a professional rugby player from Scotland. He moved to New Zeland to join a team. He was a good guy but I could only understand about half of what he was saying. He was married to a lady from Austrailia so the move to New Zeland put her closer to her family. She was much easier to understand. That was 20 years ago. Where do the years go?

[Keith_W]

No Al, the football we speak off is Aussie Rules Football. It's played with an oval ball like rugby. Unlike rugby (or American football) with their frequent pauses, Aussie Rules is much faster and more free flowing. Even in Australia, hardly anybody plays it outside Melbourne. Frankly, I don't care much about it but in my city, if you are not an AFL fan it's almost a social handicap.

[alde]

Is this Aussie Rules Football the game where they leave the injured players on the field and keep playing with no substutions? If it's the game I'm thinking of there is blood involved. The only sport I really follow is Ice Hockey.

[CaptainSteve]

Back in the old days, Alde, that would've been more true than it is now. In the '60's (I think) there was even a player nicknamed Capt Blood. But nowadays, the first sign of blood flowing sees a player subbed off the ground - medical rules and HIV and all that.

Like Keith, I'm not really a fanatic (am I forgiven, Bindy ??), though I do like to watch the games. And, yeah, it's much faster paced than American Gridiron or Soccer or Rugby. The closest approximation would be Gaelic Football.

 

Anyways, enough of that before I get slapped down for allowing this log to go off-topic.

[CaptainSteve]

Before work begins on the planking, there are a few things that need to be done.

For starters, as I intend to leave the upper part of my hull natural, the planks will need to be stained.

The bottom part - to the waterline - will be painted white.

The laser-cut template sheets have already been sanded, coated with a sanding sealer and lightly sanded again.

 

I really like the colouring which Keith used - a 50/50 mix of Golden Teak and Old Baltic (I think - will recheck, Keith). If I don't go with this, then perhaps a mix of the Golden Teak with a stain called White Japan (75/25 ??), to give a paler yellowish hue to the planks.

 

Over the coming days, I will bend and test-fit the planks before staining this coming weekend.

 

As for the tree-nails, I'm trying to source some darker coloured toothpicks - don't rightly know if these are available. Failing this, then a number of contributors to the Kit-Basher's forum have suggested a few options which could work nicely.

Edited March 18, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[Keith_W]

Yes that is right, Capt. Old Baltic and Golden Teak in a 50:50 ratio. I used a syringe to accurately measure the ratios and mixed it up in a spare container with a cap that fits tight. Those little bottles that dried herbs come in are fantastic for this.

 

Don't worry about your toothpicks. When you restain them after sanding, they present an end grain and absorb much more stain than the wood around it. It will darken up nicely, I assure you.

[Bindy]

Ahh ... 'tis the fair maiden, Bindy.

And which of the teams wouldst you support ??

Well I WAS a proud Carlton supporter until Sunday ... Oh well, I guess I get September off again this year haha

[alde]

We have a stain available here by Minwax called Weathered Oak. I tested it on some scrap and it's quite grey. Would the real boat have been built from oak? Wouldn't it have been well maintained while still on the ship and not look too weathered? That tropical sun and salt air probably would have been harsh on any wood. I may have to experiment with the Weathered Oak and some other colors on my launch. I didn't want to go too dark.

[dgbot]

Weathered Oak by Minwax I have also experimented with wood bleach with mixed results

[CaptainSteve]

Would the real boat have been built from oak? Wouldn't it have been well maintained while still on the ship and not look too weathered? That tropical sun and salt air probably would have been harsh on any wood. 

 

A few quick searches did establish that boats of this period were indeed made from Oak wood - though I didn't find anything which specifically related to construction materials and techniques for the boats aboard the HMS Bounty.

Going out on a limb here, I'm guessing that Bligh - as the stoic naval officer and strict disciplinarian that he was - would have insisted upon regular maintenance of everything onboard the Bounty. I can't imagine that a mere six weeks at sea would've affected their little boat to a great degree.

As for weathering my Launch, well, I've never been in favour of this with earlier builds - but if someone wants to come up with something that looks really good, then I just may change my thinking.

Edited March 19, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[alde]

Steve,

 

When I was bending the tween frames into the hull I found a technique that helped with the breakage problem. The ribs were soaked in water with a bit of amonia for 5 or 6 hours. When bending I would put the bottem end against the keel then slowely start bending very close to the keel and work my way up very slowley stopping for a few seconds every few mm or so. Once I felt the wood relax a bit I would move up the rib. If you try to force them down close to the center of the rib they will snap like the brittle little sticks they are.

 

Al D.

Edited March 19, 2014 by alde

[CaptainSteve]

I've been procrastinating severely over the last few days as I ponder the problem of precisely what wood stain I would like to apply to my Launch's planks. I intend to have the staining done BEFORE actually beginning the planking stage of this build.

 

A trip to my local Bunnings store this evening saw me stock up on a few different tints to play with. Unfortunately, they did not have the White Japan stain with which I had hoped to tone down the tan-hued Old Baltic. Nor could I locate the Minimax Weathered Oak.

 

Essentially, these are the ones I came home with:

 

 

From left-to-right, these are: Old Baltic, Golden Teak and Oak.

 

I played around with a few variations, none of which I was completely satisfied with.

 

Now, I'm aware that I had previously discarded the idea of weathering/graining my planks. This was primarily because I wasn't sure I could achieve this with any degree of satisfaction.

Then I came up with an idea. I broke off another piece from the plank template to use as a test. This I "scratched up" with some random lengthwise cuts using my razor knife. Using a HB lead pencil, the test plank was coloured in. Then a pencil eraser was used to remove most of the pencil, leaving just the cuts filled with lead.

A concoction of 4 parts Old Baltic and 1 part Golden Teak (4:1) was then mixed up and applied to my test plank.

Here's the result:

 

 

What do you think ?? A little extra of the Golden Teak, perhaps (5:2, 8:3) ?? 

I do still want to add tree-nailing to this build, so they must be able to show up against my planks.

Edited March 20, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[Meredith]

Steve,

 

When I was bending the tween frames into the hull I found a technique that helped with the breakage problem. The ribs were soaked in water with a bit of amonia for 5 or 6 hours. When bending I would put the bottem end against the keel then slowely start bending very close to the keel and work my way up very slowley stopping for a few seconds every few mm or so. Once I felt the wood relax a bit I would move up the rib. If you try to force them down close to the center of the rib they will snap like the brittle little sticks they are.

 

Al D.

I only broke one piece of cherry frame - and that was when I followed the instructions. Then I did all the rest "my way". I soaked the cherry - can't remember if I used boiling water that time - but I often do. I only soak for a few minutes. Then I just ironed the cherry around the formers. I have I tiny travel iron ( steam iron ) - so it bends and dries the wood at the same time - no breakages whatsoever. And quick and easy and even if you get a bit heavy handed or rough - they still don't break. You get a really tight fit over the mold/ formers. An ordinary iron will do the same job - it can just be too big at times. My little iron is very versatile and fits in pretty small spaces/tight spots.

 

 

Great progress Steve. I found this boat a most enjoyable build - AND I learnt a lot ( mostly what NOT to do again)

Edited March 20, 2014 by Meredith

[CaptainSteve]

Thanks for dropping in Meredith.

Yours was another of the Bounty Launch builds which I read through avidly. A most beautiful work, indeed.

Sorry for not crediting you properly !! 

Edited March 20, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[dgbot]

Steve, most of the severe bends I have done usually was by wetting the pank and putting some heat to it. A curling iron, a modified soldering iron or a planking iron. I have also made male/female fixture as well. I never found the need to use ammonia. It also depends on the type of wood you are using as well.

David B

[CaptainSteve]

I'm not a fan of ammonia either, Dave (got enough chemicals in my life as it is without needing any more). In the end, my frames were bent by paying careful consideration to Keith's advice regarding the grain of the wood.

 

After soaking for some 2-3 days, they really do bend easier one way than the other. I would've ended up with a much smaller bone-yard had I done this earlier on. I'm hoping to get lucky later on, as I think I will be able to use the left-over pieces to not only do the cant and 'tween frames, but also have enough to do the support pieces for the quarter deck.

Edited March 20, 2014 by CaptainSteve

[dgbot]

Some of the best wood for bending I found was apple.  Beech does a nice job to if you can find it.

David B

[alde]

I like the color in you last photo. Maybe a touch more of the Golden Teak to lighten it up just a bit though. Of course that's only an opinion.

 

A question though. Is there any problem glueing stained parts? I know the stain penetrates the wood and is oil based. Can you just use regular wood glue?

[Bindy]

A trip to my local Bunnings store this evening saw me stock up on a few different tints to play with.

 

I bet you spent more than you intended!  Around $50?   Although it is cheating going at night so you don't have to buy a sausage haha.

 

I am sure you will make the right decision on your colouring.  If I had to choose though, (from reading every Bounty Launch log I could find) I do agree with you and just a smidge lighter might be what you are after and I am guessing the 8:3 ratio might do the trick.  But please remember that computer screens display things differently so you are the best judge of all!

Edited March 20, 2014 by Bindy

[Keith_W]

Al, if you use oil based stain then you will have trouble gluing it. You should ALWAYS, ALWAYS use either water based or alcohol based wood stain. I made this mistake with my first ship model, a small part which I stained refused to stick. Fortunately I could junk it and make myself a new part ... used a water based stain this time.

 

Steve that last picture of yours looks convincing for a plank. But really it's about the look that you're going for. As you know from my build log, I used Golden Teak / Old Baltic 1:1.

Edited March 20, 2014 by KeithW

[CaptainSteve]

I like the color in you last photo. Maybe a touch more of the Golden Teak to lighten it up just a bit though. Of course that's only an opinion.

 

A question though. Is there any problem glueing stained parts? I know the stain penetrates the wood and is oil based. Can you just use regular wood glue?

 

I saw your post this morning before work, Alde. And so I took the test-plank from above, broke it in three and have glued (i) the stained sides together, and (ii) the unstained sides. Will give it until tomorrow morning and get back to you regarding the results.

[patrickmil]

CaptainSteve, I figured I'd drop in to see what you're putting together. Your launch framing looks great so far. The stains you have picked out look great too. Very nice work.

[alde]

I saw your post this morning before work, Alde. And so I took the test-plank from above, broke it in three and have glued (i) the stained sides together, and (ii) the unstained sides. Will give it until tomorrow morning and get back to you regarding the results.

Steve, I picked up some water based stain yesterday and stained a couple of pieces of wood. After they dried for about 4 hours I glued them together using Elmers Wood Glue and clamped them for 3 hours. I gave the pieces a good pull and the wood splintered leaving slivers of one piece still glued to the other. It looks like they glue up just fine. I hope you find the same thing as you are pre-staining your planks.

 

Al D.

[CaptainSteve]

Alde,

I found the same thing with my test-plank. The stained sides remain glued together every bit as fast as the unstained sides !!!

So the test was a complete success !!

Edited March 21, 2014 by CaptainSteve