Mayflower by Stu the Brew - Artesania Latina - Scale 1:64, 1620

[sbrewer]

Hello All-

 

I will be using this spot for my build log for my AL Mayflower kit.  My daughter asked me to build this for her to take with her when she moves out on her own because my wife has an ancestor who sailed to America on this ship in 1620.  I began working on this kit over a year ago, but then put it away on a shelf for nearly a year while I worked on other projects.  Now I have it back out and am progressing slow and steady.  I will post some pics below.  Unfortunately, I didn't take any pics of the very early stages of construction so I don't have those to show you.  

 

In particular, you will see that I started planking the hull before I knew what I was doing last year.  Since then I have read a lot and looked at a lot of pictures and I am making corrections.  Any advise would be welcome!  

 

Stewart

[SawdustDave]

Hi Stu....Glad to see you decided to finish this model for your daughter. It will become a family treasure one day.

As for the planking errors, don't concern yourself too much with the first layer (assuming you are going to double plank her). That first layer only serves as a shaping base for the outer skin. Use wood filler to get everything nice and smoothe and even. Again, don't concern yourself with how any of first planking looks.

Cheers

[sbrewer]

Thanks for the encouragement Dave.  I'm learning a lot and it is very fun along the way.  

[sbrewer]

Here's a problem that some of you have talked about on the site.  When I was separating the early parts including the false keel, I noticed a very slight bend in the plywood.  I didn't think much of it; I figured it would correct itself as I proceeded.  Not so.  I am now faced with the dilemma of junking this build and starting over, or trying to "fix" the problem as I go forward.  Buyer beware, check your kits before proceeding with assembly to make sure your foundational parts are not warped or bent.  

[testazyk]

Hi Stu-- Nice job on the deck and I agree with Dave's comments about the hull.  As far as your stern problem, I'll be interested in hearing what other people say but I think you have a few options and junking the build is the last resort. 

 

The problem looks very obvious from the angle in the picture but the first question is how often will anyone see the boat from that angle?  Usually people will view it side on and the problem will not be so noticeable.  I'm not advocating doing a build you aren't happy with but it might be OK to just continue. 

 

Personally, rather than leave it like it is, I would try to shim up the piece that is crooked.  You could camouflage it with your second layer of planking and no one will be the wiser.  My guess is that you will plank over the stern walls and that will hide your added pieces. 

 

It's hard to tell from the photo but it looks like a bigger problem may be that the stern post is also warped.  That could cause some serious challenges installing the rudder and might even be a deal breaker.  But once again you could possible shim up the sternpost on the starboard side and it will probably be alright.

 

Good luck!

 

Tom

[sbrewer]

I attempted to remedy the bent plywood seen in the previous photo by using some pieces of planking and some wood filler to smooth it out.  I am hoping that when the mahogany planks go on top, it will not be as noticeable.  

[testazyk]

Looking much better!

[Jolley Roger]

Hi Stu,

 

Your fix is looking good!

 

Would love to see an update on your progress with this kit.

 

I'm building the exact same kit at the moment, so we are 'in the same boat'

[sbrewer]

Proceeding with the clamps.  This was kind-of hard because the clamps didn't have anything to grab.  I made some of my own with cord and sticks.  

[sbrewer]

Adding the exterior mahogany strips.  You can see how I used the blue tape to place each plank in place.  In the end it all looked better than ships I have built in the past where I didn't really know what I was doing with the planking.  

[sbrewer]

Treenails.  I didn't take many photos of this but the ship looked like a porcupine for a while.  

[sbrewer]

Remember that bent area that I posted about earlier?  Well the fixes that I used seem to have worked out well.  I can still see the bend slightly, but someone who is looking at the ship would have to have me point it out to them before they would notice it.  Pleased with the outcome.  

[sbrewer]

Tricky bit of work here.  

[sbrewer]

Deck grates.  Not sure if I liked how these turned out or not.  

[sbrewer]

I have never painted one of my builds before.  I was daunted to say the least.  I put this off for a long time because I wasn't sure exactly what to do or how to do it.  I saw Sawdust Dave's Mayflower builds on here and he did such an amazing job that when I look at these photos I still cringe a little.  

[sbrewer]

I didn't black these like I'm supposed to.  I didn't want to paint them, and I'm not sure where to get the chemicals to do the blacking.  Oh well, my daughter things they look really cool!

[yvesvidal]

Did the Mayflower carry guns on its trip to the new World? As far as I can remember, Mayflower was a merchant vessel.

 

Yves

Edited June 30, 2015 by yvesvidal