Many thanks for the previous comments. Sincerely appreciated.

Some further progress over the past few weeks. The dibbies have returned and painted black the bow bulkhead, the beak and frames as well as the underside of the beak platform prior to it being installed. With the beak platform glued in place, the whole area is structurally quite strong. Some minor fairing of the beak frames to ensure the bottom panel has a flush fit.

The degree of curvature required for the bottom panel is quite deceptive from photos within the instructions and other build diaries, especially considering that the lower part is angled inwards. Doing dry fitting, the only apparent place that can be clamped is the most fwd part. Seriously considering holding and securing the panel in place with pins. Any helpful tips for holding the bottom panel in place is appreciated.

During the dry fitting, I have found that the bottom panel is a wee bit short in length. The aft edge just covers the right angle at the bow deck and bulkhead, however, the fwd edge is about 3mm short of covering the fwd bow frame. I am assuming that when the top panel is installed, the side edge of top panel just overhangs the edge of the hull planking (by about 1mm). I could not locate any specifics on how the side of the top panel is secured, hence the assumption. I don’t think that this will be a drama, just need to cover the gap with off-cuts from the panel die.

Well, it’s been a few further steps forward and a couple of things to ponder on over a cuppa.

Until next time.
Cheers,
Adam

Alan, thanks for providing advice on fitting the bottom panel of the beak. For bending the panel, I cut a 3” x 5” oval from a pine offcut that I had sculling about in the shed. After a great deal of soaking and bending, it was almost at the right curvature ready for fitting.

I decided to use leftover planking pins to secure the panel to the beak. Thought that this would provide additional strength to the joins along with the glue. I have it in mind to plank the panels in order to cover the pins from view. Used an offcut from the beak panel fret to cover the gap in the fwd bow frame. A light sand and it is sitting flush with the beak panel.

Just have to repeat the process on the opposite side. Thanks again for your help.

Cheers,
Adam.

Well, it has been a joint effort from the shipwrights and painters over the past few weeks. Net result is that the beak panels are complete. Additional care and attention to bending the top panel was required to ensure a snug fit with the bottom.

To aid with the securing of the top panel, I placed an additional offcut strip adjacent to the bow bulkhead (you can possibly see this in the second photo next to the yellow tape. This was installed to increase the surface when gluing the top panel to the hull. Painted black and you would never know it was there.

I planked the beak panels to hide the nails used to secure the bottom panel. These planks also cover any gaps between the two panels and also serves to provide surface texture.

So, the beak section is all done for the time being. Now it’s time to move onto the main deck.

Ciao.

Superb work Adam very nicely done

Rgd Martyn

G’day.

The chippies have been busy over the past few weekends toiling away on the deck. A dry fit of the deck foundation beams and the deck was conducted just to check for any modifications prior to final assembly. Thankfully, this immediately identified that I had done a bit of a boo boo way back with the initial assembly of the bulkhead frames #7 and #13. (1). The gun port at frame #13 was flush with the deck. (2) The deck sections were meeting in a Vee, instead of a slight curve, and (3) The gun ports were at different heights with respect to the deck.

Much head scratching ensued (resulting in even less hair on my head) as well as researching other build logs. It would appear that my problem was not unique and was more common than not. Solution was to lower the height of the deck beams at the offending bulkhead frames (PS. Thanks Alan for the solution in your build diary – definitely was a life saver). This provided better clearance of the gun port above the deck. There is still a miss-match in height above the deck for the adjacent gun ports, but not a bad as original. Something I can live with anyhow, which is the main thing.

To aid in fitting the gun port panels, balsa wood bricks were shaped so that they sit flush with the angled sides of the panels previously fitted. The newly fitted panels slotted into place without any drama. Also included dowels to all of the deck beams to provide extra support and bracing. Twin columns were installed along the centreline of the opening for the grating. I noticed that the deck sections had a bit of flex around the openings and I just wanted to ensure that all was structurally sound.

The deck was marked out for the locations of the dowels prior to installing. This was done so I could nail the deck using the dowels as securing points, in-lieu of using various weights. Also marked out parallel lines that will be used as a guide for deck plank spacing. The deck sections were then glued and nailed. Additional bracing was also required at the deck seams around the openings for the grates. I guess that this was required due to my use of the twin columns instead of the single column placed on the centreline (as per instructions). Didn’t think of this at the time.

Deck installation is complete. Now it’s on to laying the deck planks. Hopefully, this will be a fairly straight forward evolution (rash statement) as there are no curves and twists as there was for the hull.

Cheers, Adam

Very nice work, she's looking great.

Graeme

Hi Folks,

Thanks for looking in. Well, another milestone has been reached with the completion of deck planking on the main deck. Fairly straight forward, but very repetitive.

I decided to go for a 5-shift pattern as I liked the detail it provided over the large area to be covered. Each plank is 60mm in length. Having the deck previously marked out at 12mm intervals provided a guide to placement.

Handy Hint – make sure that you have sketched and a printed copy of the intended plank pattern on hand whilst laying the planks. When starting a new row this will provide guidance on the length of the plank required. Also useful to keep track on how the laying of the planks is progressing compared to the sketch.

I used a low tech solution to ensure that the planks were the same length (Two rulers taped together and a window scraper and blade as the cutting tool).
Before cutting to length, the basswood strips were finished in a Baltic Stain wash (1 part stain to 3 parts thinner – isopropyl alcohol in this case). Probably not quite the right thinner, however, using mineral turpentine gives me a massive headache afterwards. The Baltic Stain wash brought out the grain in the basswood that was not overly evident at the start. The stained planks each have an uneven tint and the end result looks like aged timber.

To give the appearance of caulking, a 6B pencil was run along one edge and this provides a subtle finish. I thought about using permanent marker, but this was showing up too dark. I’ve decided not to apply any treenails as this would result in too busy looking appearance to the deck. Especially with only 60mm plank lengths.

Went the extra distance and planked the areas that will be covered by the fo'c'sle and quarterdeck. There are hatch grating on these decks and I am hoping the planking can be seen. I had a bunch of basswood strips left over from the hull planking, so couldn’t let them go to waste.

I’ve also removed the 4 exposed frames on the port and stbd sides of the main deck adjacent to the hatch gratings. This should be done in issue 47, but doing them now enabled easier laying of the deck planks.

So, onwards and upwards. Now to proceed with the installation of the fo'c'sle and quarterdeck.

Cheers, Adam

The decking looks terrific Adam!! Like it!!

Impressive Adam, fab looking work....

Regards

Alan