Rattlesnake by sport29652 - Model Shipways - 1:64

[JPett]

Ahoy Eric

 

What was the weight or type/brand of paper you used. It looks great. I think you nailed the spacing. Not sure if I am on board with the "not gluing' thing. I know that planks need to be glued on the bottom and side. Not sure if it applies to decking. I would worry about pulling one out too, but I those are just my completely uneducated thoughts on the matter.

Edited November 24, 2013 by JPett

[sport29652]

It's 65lb /176 g/ m2. Here's a pic of the label

Picked it up at michaels crafts store, 50 assorted color sheets for $4.99. Btw I used the charcoal colored paper

[Martin W]

Hi Eric -- I've found my little package of grating parts.  If you send me a PM, I'll drop them in the mail to you, and I'll be happy that they're being used instead of being sent to the "maybe someday I'll need this" box.

 

Cheers,

 

Martin

[sport29652]

So my work coninues. I have installed the quarterdeck waterways and hatch framing. I will plank the inner quarterdeck bulwarks and then put my attention to finalizing the paint.

Q: have been experimenting with sculpty and am considering using this for the transom "fashion" piece. Once baked does it sand or shape well ?

[scott larkins]

Sport,

 

Nice log.  You are probably one of two main Rattlesnake logs I will be paying a lot of attention to as I do not get my kit until Christmas.  I'll have some railroad cars to build first before I get to the model.  There are a few other logs I will be reviewing for inspiration as well (Matin W).   It looks like you got the most recent kit like I did.  That being the blue boxed version.  Please keep up the good work and make sure to mention the things gone wrong in this log and how you corrected or fixed them.  From reviewing Jprett's (SP?) log, I find the TGW to be very helpful so I can look out for or avoid similar situations. Keep up the good work on your log.

[sport29652]

Scott- thanks for the praise. At this point in the build here are some fo the problems I have seen

 

1. the bulk heads should not be faired until after they have been installed. I followed the instructions and faired them prior to instalation so I ended up with some funky fairing.

 

2. the bulk heads are off, so be prepaired to add material. JPETT did a great job documenting this in his log. I had problems with at least 5 of the bulkheads.

 

3. the bulkhead extensions on the frames are very soft and will break (again JPETT documented this very well). I used some thin superglue to reinforce mine and had only a couple WTF moments.

 

I think some of the problems I have experienced were due to me not paying attention to the plans. Take your time fairing this model. look at it from every possible angle, and dont be afraid to ask any of us for help. Its a great group of people here and everyone is willing to help. I look forward to your log and welcome to the Rattlesnake family !

Edited December 10, 2013 by sport29652

[sport29652]

Thanks Chris for the tip. On this build I'm sticking with the decals (already attached).

While I'm here a quick update

 

Have painted a little. The instructions state the inner bulwarks are grey. So went with that and .... I don't know that it looks all that great, but if it's historically accurate that's what I'll go with reguardless of looks. As you'll notice in the pictures I've planked the quaterdeck a little. I will be using cherry (milled on my new proxxon saw).

 

I wish I had marked the center lines better in the beginning ! It was tough trying to line up those hatches and I still think they are off. My planking only shows off this fact. Oh well it's onward and upwards from here. Will continue to paint and install my decking.

[Kenneth Powell]

Sport -

Everything looks great. I also painted mine the gray the instructions called for, but after further review I went over it with red and liked it better -but it's a personal choice. I really like the decking. How did you get the great-looking, dark simulated caulking?

Thanks - Kenneth

[Martin W]

Hi Eric -- It all looks really good.  I especially like that triangular pattern you put in for the rudder -- very nice indeed.

 

Cheers,

 

Martin

[Kenneth Powell]

 Eric -

Sorry I addressed my question to the wrong person 

 

Kenneth

[scott larkins]

Sport,

 

Looking good.  I like your decking.  Are you going to complete the poop-deck or leave it partial?

Edited December 17, 2013 by scott larkins

[sport29652]

Ken Martin and Scott, thanks guys. I used paper glued to on edge then applied to the model. It takes longer but I like the look. I will plank the whole deck. Haven't installed the gun port hatches yet and with my luck I would loose one in their. Trying to make treenails now haven been able to get the wooden dowels small enough without destroying them. Will try the dremel method tonight.

Edited December 17, 2013 by sport29652

[Martin W]

Eric -- Have you tried using a draw plate?  The one from Jim Byrnes works the best, and runs $25.  It's tedious making all those hundreds of tiny splinters, but the payoff is a good looking deck.  I used walnut for my holly deck, since the contrast between the dark and light woods was the strongest.  Walnut isn't much fun at all, since it splinters a lot, but I managed.

 

Looking forward to more progress!

 

Martin

[jcoby]

Ken Martin and Scott, thanks guys. I used paper glued to on edge then applied to the model. It takes longer but I like the look. I will plank the whole deck. Haven't installed the gun port hatches yet and with my luck I would loose one in their. Trying to make treenails now haven been able to get the wooden dowels small enough without destroying them. Will try the dremel method tonight.

 

For what it's worth I did the construction paper caulking as well. I found it much easier to spread a layer of glue on the paper and apply a dozen or so planks to it and then weight it down with a book. After the glue dried I cut one side as close to the plank as I could and the other I left proud by a 1/32" or so. The side I cut flush I didn't worry about nicking the wood at all since it will be hidden. The proud side I just cut as close as I felt comfortable without nicking the wood.

 

After gluing the planks I took a sharp chisel bevel side down and removed the excess paper. I then took a razor blade and burnished the edge and bent it a bit to make a scraper and scraped the entire deck. I then sanded with 200 and 400 grit paper. It looks pretty messy (the paper gets spread into the pores of the wood) until the final sanding and a wipe but the end result is very clean and even and you don't have to mess with tiny slivers of paper.

[Kenneth Powell]

Thanks Guys for the info 

[sport29652]

Martin- I have a Byrnes draw plate it's great ! But it might be my choice of wood, cherry. Ill experiment with walnut and see what I get. I Leo have maple but I don't think that will have good contrast.

 

 

Jcoby- we'll put !

[JSGerson]

I too have Byrnes draw plate and it is worth the money. Someone once said they don't like models that have the Measles. If you look a actual ships the treenails are subdued almost to the point of disappearing on some decks. For that reason I did nothing to enhance the treenail contrast. I used bamboo skewers I bought at the grocery store, split them down, and then used the draw plate. They were "glued" in place with Poly-wipe, the same treatment I applied to the whole deck and hull planks. Because the grain of the treenails are perpendicular to the surface, it draws in the Poly-wipe and darkens them just enough so you can see them, but not enough to overwhelm the senses. It's a matter of taste of the builder. Just my 2 cents.

[sport29652]

JS I'm still experimenting with different woods (cherry and maple). Will see which one looks the best.

 

Still working on my deck:

As you can see my nibbing is not matching.

 

Not sure what the anchor board thing is called but is it made of multiple planks or was it one solid chunk of wood ?

 

Looking forward to your responses, and have a merry Christmas

[scott larkins]

I've seen it made of multiple planks lined up and sanded to the appropriate angles.  Probably easier making it out of one piece but more realistic making it out of multiple pieces.

[jcoby]

If your nibbing doesn't line up it's either because the planks are not even width across the deck or the planksheer isn't symmetrical or the first planks were not placed exactly in the middle. You will need to use a very fine ruler (1/64" increments) or a set of calipers to see which it is. Because of the sweep of the planksheer even a few thousandths asymmetry can move the location of the nib greatly.

 

Looking at the picture it appears you started off center. The middle plank is not centered on the mast hole and the planks around the forward most coaming are not even. 

 

If you want the nibs to line up I can think of two options

 

1) make a wider plank for the starboard side to bring the nib in line with the port. You can also cheat the port nib aft a bit to help split the difference. Over the next course or two you can bring them back into line. To my eye the nibs are more visible than the widths of the planks, especially once all of the deck furniture and rigging is in place.

 

2) start over and bring everything into symmetry

 

Maybe some other more experienced members can offer better suggestions.

 

On other builds I've seen on this forum the anchor rub... thing has always been built up of planks.

[JPett]

Ahoy Eric

 

Your a brave man

 

I would just shave the fatty side plank , make the other side plank slightly wider, do the same with the nibs and that should balance it out. Don't forget that a lot of this will get covered or hidden and you can always throw a rope coil or miscellaneous deck item over anything that doesn't

 

I was experimenting with card stock for the anchor rub until I sanded my wales to match the gunwales. I could not get anything in wood to look good. Manila folder paper looked the best. For now I have nixed it. I also considering a thin piece of brass. haven't tried that yet. I can always wait and see what you do. I like that idea best

Edited December 23, 2013 by JPett

[JSGerson]

 

 

Not sure what the anchor board thing is called but is it made of multiple planks or was it one solid chunk of wood ? 

The anchor board thing is called a billboard because the flukes on the anchor are called bills. The board provided added strength for wear and tear as the anchor is hauled aboard the ship. You can see how I handled it here:

 

http://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/topic/2293-rattlesnake-by-jsgerson-building-robert-hunt%E2%80%99s-kitbashed-mamoli-american-privateer-a-164-scale-pob-model/page-27

[Martin W]

Hi Eric -- I'll weigh in here by going along with the others.  JPett makes exactly the suggestion I would about that nibbing -- you will have to experiment lots, and trim the inside edge to get a decent fit.   One point to keep in mind is that you'll want something approaching symmetry as you do the other side; you'll be surprised at how easy it is to get out of whack, or maybe how hard it is to stay in whack.  You might even want to catch up on the other half of the decking just so you'll be able to gauge how much of an allowance you need to make.

 

As for the bill boards -- go look at Jon's build.  I did much the same, only without the treenails.  I just drew the lines on the hull in pencil -- not as parallel as your plans show, since from looking at other models I gathered the board weren't necessarily parallel, and they would have been replaced somewhat frequently -- and then I cut short pieces and stacked  'em up.  It was necessary to cut a chunk out of the molding, though -- that part didn't make me happy, since I was kind of proud of the molding, but what the hey.

 

I hope you have a happy holiday (with lots of modelling time).

 

Cheers,

 

Martin

[sport29652]

Jcoby, Martin and Jpett- I'm going with the "fat" plank move. I'm a sucker for fat girls so this only makes sense. ill post it to get some feed back.

Scott and JSG- I've learned so many terms since I've started the Hobby. Its amazing how these terms fit into the modern dialect. I was schooled in naval terms in bootcamp, and thought I had a good grip on them, until I started this hobby and I have quickly learned that I know squat.

Edited December 23, 2013 by sport29652

[sport29652]

Martin- I too have made molding and hope

Mine turns out as well as yours did. I figure some boxwood vernier cut into planks should be the right thickness? The billboard should match the wales right ?

[sport29652]

Ok, the "fat girl" is in place. What do you guys think ?

[JPett]

Ahoy Eric

 

I am not sure you have solved the problem

 

It looks to my untrained eye that this will just resurface on the next strake and you will have to repeat this again and possibly again and again

 

Me thinks you might be better served by pulling off some inner planks and work to even this out right here and now.

 

Sorry if that sounds like bad news  

Edited December 23, 2013 by JPett

[sport29652]

J- sounds like the right thing to do. I wont lie though, I am considering leaving it but haven't made up my mind. I think it will domino as I rip out one it will damage the paper caulking on the next plank. So in the end I would be re-doing the whole deck and I have to build up the courage to do that. I know my problems began with the rudder opening being out of whack. I saw it early on and hoped the power of positivity would fix it. How wrong I was.  

 

Onto some good news: I made a billboard out of boxwood venire and I think its going to work, the wood is thin and moves to match the curves of the hull well. I have also made my own molding. It looks great and will have to post some pictures.

 

Q: is the billboard painted or would it just have been left natural ? if painted what color and would it be. Black or ocher, or  matching the paint stripes. It seems to stand out on its own so I don't think it would have matched the striping.

[JPett]

Ahoy Eric

 

The plans show three kevels and two cleats in that area; most likely for the two sheaves.  I could not find any pin rails on the plans but it looks like you will have some rope coils that could be used to cover up anything that stands to proud 

Edited December 24, 2013 by JPett

[JSGerson]

 

 

Q: is the billboard painted or would it just have been left natural ? if painted what color and would it be. Black or ocher, or  matching the paint stripes. It seems to stand out on its own so I don't think it would have matched the striping.

I took a look at my collection of 34 different model Rattlesnake's build pictures that  I have assembled over the past four years of my build. Of the completed models that were painted and that had bill boards, some were black in color and others natural wood. Just remember that the purpose of the bill board is to take the abuse of the anchor so it doesn't mess up the hull. I would imagine a lot of pieces have to be replaced over time as the wood wore down and keeping it painted would be a pain. So I guess the choice is yours - make it look good or make it more realistic.