Quote 52..funny but so true. Good work on the launch & balsa filling.

Looking forward to your progress.

Cheers

fred

Hi Again,

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post and high time to update my progress. Very many thanks for your previous comments, much appreciated.

So, planking has commence. Some trials and tribulations were encountered (as with any attempt at learning new skills, seeing what doesn't work and what does).

The planking under the gallery was relatively straight forward. Prior planking this area I must admit that I did not pay too much attention to the overall shape that would result. Upon setting the first series of planks it was quickly apparent that there is a subtle curvature of the under gallery section. I ended up completing the first sequence up to the keel using 6 planks. I had to cut a small notch on the underside of the 6th plank where it meets the keel, otherwise there would have been a bulge in the plank in this area. A minor issue was encountered when completing the planks to the upper gallery where I ended up with a split in the stern bracket (#28) on the stbd inboard side. I made up a U-shaped support bracket (with copious amounts of glue) to keep the stern bracket structurally sound and (hopefully) prevent the split from any bigger in the future.

The first five bow & hull planks have been laid. For me, this is definitely slow and steady progress. Experimenting with different techniques in order to get the planks bent to the required shape. Tried the kettle (only have an electric one) and the steam wasn't available for long enough. So, I thought I would try the bamboo vegie steamer placed in the wok with simmering hot water. Bent the planks a treat, but I found that I had a small window of opportunity (less that 5 minutes) to get the plank bent to the right shape otherwise the plank would quickly dry out. Placing the plank back into the steamer would result in it straightening out again. I have now resorted to soaking the plank in a tall glass of water for about 30 minutes and using an electric plank bender. At the end of the day, I guess it's horses for courses and whatever works.

I have also found that there are certain colour shades of bamboo that bend easier than others. So I am now grouping planks by colour shade and location of knots. Hopefully I'm not the Lone Ranger in this aspect.

Snapped two drill bits from my micro-drill set whilst pre-drilling a bamboo plank, was not happy about that. Then I recalled reading a post in another build log about using a dressmaker pin as a drill bit. This is definitely the way to go when pre-drilling bamboo and I am kicking myself for not remembering this earlier. I filed the end of the pin into a Vee and this works a treat.

So, the trusty "dry dock" has now been placed into semi-retirement and it's on to laying the garboard plank.

Until next time.......

Adam

Hi Adam, some seriously good work going on there and an excellent mod on the stern bracket... it won't be seen and it will help to keep that structure secure so well done on that one.... .. As for plank bending and the use of a kettle, I boil the water in a normal electric kettle but when boiled I transfer the water into an old stove metal kettle with a long spout, more like a teapot really..... when I want steam, turn on the stove and I have all the steam I need to facilitate easy plank bending... works for me and have not had any problems with it..... stove kettles are pretty cheap to buy . We've all experienced the disappointment of breaking lots of very small drill bits and a lot of modellers now resort to pre-drilling with a dressmakers pin, it works very well so accept it as part of the enjoyment of gaining experience..... You're right about the various shades of bamboo and try to use planks where the knots will not sit in between the ribs, knots between the ribs will make the job of cutting out the gun ports a lot harder.... Another tip is, if you take a dry plank and try to bend it slightly you will find it will be easier to bend it in one direction compared to the other, you should always bend the plank in the easiest direction..... .. Anyway's enough waffle from me, great work so far so keep it going and keep those pics coming..... look forward to your next update....

Regards

Alan

Very nice work mate very impressive.

Eugene.

Adam

That is some seriously good building and some top notch pictures.

Your looking at a stunning end result if you carry on at this rate.

Happy modelling

Tony

G'day Folks,

It has been a few months since my last post, however, the build is continuing albeit at a slow pace. I am still progressing with Issue #25 and picked up Issue #37 today from the newsagent. There just isn't enough time in the week to devote sufficient attention to the build. A couple of hours on weekends is all I can manage at this stage. Hopefully over the Christmas break I can do some catch-up.

Anyhow, hull planking has reached a minor milestone whereby the upper and lower planks at the bow now meet. There are still many more rows to complete and nowhere at the bow to squeeze them in. In hindsight I think that the third & fourth row from the keel is the cause of is this dilemma. The planks for those two rows ended in full width and take up a significant amount of space at the bow. The planks after these were mainly half width at the ends. For the pins supporting the planks on the bow frames I have left these installed. I cut the heads off and used a nail punch to drive them flush with the planks. This was mainly to provide additional securing support for the planks. I have also left the pins installed along each row where two plank ends meet and are attached to a frame.

Shaping and fitting the planks to the stern area has been a tedious evolution. The degree of twisting and flexing required to obtain a smooth flow and overall shape within a 3-4 inch length for each row was a challenge indeed. I have been using an electric plank bender iron to aid in achieving the required twists in the planks for this area. This part of the planking has taken most of the time that I have available to date. A monotonous process but it is great to see it coming together and taking shape. I am fairly happy with the outcome.

Thanks for looking in, enjoy the pictures of progress so far.

Regards,

Adam

Hi Adam,

I can relate to your issue of finsing emough time to time to get any modelling done at the moment as I am currently in the same boat.

This time of year is always quite busy for me which greatly eats into the modelling time. When I do manage to get some time what little I get done just doesnt seem like any progress at all, what little time I get at the moment is cherished.


Despite the lack of time your build is looking fantastic, and as MR T has state very neat indeed, keep up the great work.

Hi Adam

Your planking looks immaculate, well done mate...

Don't worry about running out of room for the tapered planks at the bows end - I had exactly the same result and just kept going with tapering from the eleventh and last plank of the upper hull - following excellent advice from Alan Gandale...

Refer to my photos of the topic and you'll see what I mean...

Keep the great pics coming Adam...

Kind regards
JohnP

Well done Adam, very neat work there. Looks promising to be a great build.

Just a quick update, but firstly thank you all for your comments and apologies for the delay in responding.

I have finally completed the first planking layer on the lower hull section. I am very hopeful that the upper section is less painstakingly time consuming.

The final two rows were unable to be laid as per the instructions contained in Issues 27 & 28. For some strange reason I was closing the gap between the final rows sooner than expected. So, it was a combination of the steps contained in the two issues that finished off this part of the build. The end result does not appear to be too abnormal or detrimental to the overall shape of the hull, so I guess there is no harm done.

The hull planking at the stern has a distinctive “L” shape to it at the moment (as seen in the third photo). In this area I was unable to lay the planks to achieve a curve, however, I am intending to rectify this during the sanding process.

I have also constructed a build cradle. After looking at the upturned hull for so long, it is strange to see the old girl the right way up. Now it's starting to look like a ship, instead of a blimp.

Thanks for looking in.

Regards,
Adam