So the Molino is safely tucked away in the closet until my return in October.
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Buccaneer 1:100 by Occre - Build log
Thanks. It was a small community college in Sonora CA - Columbia College.
- Joined
- May 7, 2025
- Messages
- 84
- Points
- 78
Great build log. I’m working on the Albatros right now, which is my first ever build. I’m making a lot of mistakes, but learning a lot. The Buccaneer will be my second build. As a matter of fact, I just ordered it today. Your build log should help out a lot when I start. By the way, I grew up in Lakewood and my parents are still there. I’m in Brighton. Well, at least until next June when my wife retires. Then it’s off to Florida.
Glad it’s been helpful. There have been a number of mistakes, but I’ve learned a lot along the way.
I know Brighton is a bit away, but there is a club in town… the Rocky Mountain Shipwrights. We meet twice a month. Our workshop is the 1st Saturday of the month at the Arvada Police station and our monthly meeting is the 3rd Saturday of the month at Rockler Woodworking. Check us out at https://rockymountainshipwrights.org/.
10/11/25 to 11/10/2025
Greetings from Puerto Vallarta, and welcome back to my Molino build after our five month stay in Colorado (and my Bluenose build).
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those (hi mom) who want it.
Some of the pictures were right after I completed a step and before the glue had dried, so it is still visible. I’ve found out that if I wait to take pictures of a step until the glue has dried, I tend to forget about taking pictures.
When we got here, Hurricane Pricilla was offshore and heading out to sea when we got here but the waves it caused crazy… beautiful but crazy. Lots of sand, rocks, and water up on the malecón along with some damage to the businesses right along the coast. Do a search for “Hurricane Pricilla in Puerto Vallarta” to get an idea of what it was like. The weather was great, but the waves were bad for a few days.
Another casualty (unrelated to the hurricane and waves) was the whimsical pirate ship Marigalante.
The Marigalante is the reason why I am building the Molino as I wanted to build something Mexican themed as whatever I chose would become part of the condo’s decorations once it is complete. When I asked my wife what she thought I should build, without missing a beat, she said “a pirate ship.”
Now onto the build…
First up is the rudder cockpit.
Time for some introspection… I had made a skylight for my Bluenose that had bars on the openings. And while I was happy with the way it turned out, I will be looking to see how difficult it would be to re-do the skylight using a similar technique as I did with the nails.
Onto the pin rails of which I was somehow missing one of the eight and had to fashion one out of wood that I have down here.
After all is said and done, it is pretty much undetectable (it is the 2nd from the front - I think).
The cannon port frames and lids are up next. My mother-in-law gave me some money as a present with the sole intention of buying something for my ship. Alice passed away last Halloween, but the frames will be going on now. So, a big shout out to her!
I decided to add lanyards to them as well. I know my routing of them up and over the railing would not actually work, but there wasn’t room to drill a hole and just feed it through.
Next up… the deadeye platforms which I believe are called channels. The channel and deadeyes are, at least to me, the start of the overall rigging process.
Time for this portion: 12.5 hours
Total time to date: 216.5 hours
Greetings from Puerto Vallarta, and welcome back to my Molino build after our five month stay in Colorado (and my Bluenose build).
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those (hi mom) who want it.
Some of the pictures were right after I completed a step and before the glue had dried, so it is still visible. I’ve found out that if I wait to take pictures of a step until the glue has dried, I tend to forget about taking pictures.
When we got here, Hurricane Pricilla was offshore and heading out to sea when we got here but the waves it caused crazy… beautiful but crazy. Lots of sand, rocks, and water up on the malecón along with some damage to the businesses right along the coast. Do a search for “Hurricane Pricilla in Puerto Vallarta” to get an idea of what it was like. The weather was great, but the waves were bad for a few days.
Another casualty (unrelated to the hurricane and waves) was the whimsical pirate ship Marigalante.
The Marigalante is the reason why I am building the Molino as I wanted to build something Mexican themed as whatever I chose would become part of the condo’s decorations once it is complete. When I asked my wife what she thought I should build, without missing a beat, she said “a pirate ship.”
Now onto the build…
First up is the rudder cockpit.
Time for some introspection… I had made a skylight for my Bluenose that had bars on the openings. And while I was happy with the way it turned out, I will be looking to see how difficult it would be to re-do the skylight using a similar technique as I did with the nails.
Onto the pin rails of which I was somehow missing one of the eight and had to fashion one out of wood that I have down here.
After all is said and done, it is pretty much undetectable (it is the 2nd from the front - I think).
The cannon port frames and lids are up next. My mother-in-law gave me some money as a present with the sole intention of buying something for my ship. Alice passed away last Halloween, but the frames will be going on now. So, a big shout out to her!
I decided to add lanyards to them as well. I know my routing of them up and over the railing would not actually work, but there wasn’t room to drill a hole and just feed it through.
Next up… the deadeye platforms which I believe are called channels. The channel and deadeyes are, at least to me, the start of the overall rigging process.
Time for this portion: 12.5 hours
Total time to date: 216.5 hours
Nicely done Hugh! Magic Mike
11/11/25 to 11/23/25
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those who want it.
Next up are the chainplates and their channels. And that got me thinking about rigging, and more accurately, the fact that I have not yet done any rigging.
But why do chainplates make me think about rigging?
I been told that the rule of thumb in standing rigging is shrouds, then ratlines, and then the stays.
But the shrouds must be connected to the lower deadeyes , so is not the order: chainplates, lower deadeyes, shrouds, ratlines, and finally the stays?
I am following my modified rule of thumb and hence, I will now be starting the rigging of my Molino with the installation of the channels, lower deadeyes, and the chainplates.
I am going to follow a few other builders and after cutting out and sanding the six channels, I will be adding a thin board to the outside of them to make them look more finished.
After a light sanding, they get painted with two coats of a homemade Judea Bitumen mix.
The channels are then glued to the hull.
I plan on putting Molino’s rope chainplates at slight angles to give the overall shroud as much strength as possible and to keep the overall shroud as straight as possible from the hound through to the end of the chainplate. One straight line.
Keeping with the straight-line theory, each shroud will get a bit more angled the further away from the mast it is and those closest to the mast will be closest to being 90 degrees. This means the chainplate closest to the mast will be pretty much straight up and down and each one as you move aft becomes a bit more angled.
This is part of why I say the rigging begins with the chainplates and lower deadeyes. The angle of the chainplates on our models is many times a best guest approximation since the masts have not yet been installed.
To estimate the height of the hound, I put a small mark on the mast and tape a string where the hound should be. Holding the mast as straight up and down as possible (the Molino’s masts are not raked), I gently pull the string so it lines up with the hole for the chainplate. I put a mark approximately 3/4” below the channel in line with the string. Using a pin vise, I drill a 0.3mm hole at the mark and then insert a small brass nail into it. I tap it in until it is about 1/2 way in and then move onto the next one.
I create 32 chainplate and lower deadeyes.
I feed each chainplate through one of the holes on the channels.
Each is tied off using a half hitch around its nail and the line is tightened.
Each knot gets a drop of fabric glue at the knot at the nail.
Once the glue is dry, I push and or tap each nail in until it bottoms out at the hull.
I cannot wait until I continue with the rigging.
The anchor davits are created using a 4mm x 4mm board that is attached to a piece of laser cut wood. All straightforward except that one tip of the 4 x 4 needs four 1mm holes drilled in them. Doable, but a drill press of some sort would have been helpful (again).
The tips near the holes are sanded at slight angles, and the two pieces are glued together.
One dried and after a light sanding, they get painted with two coats of my homemade Judea Bitumen mix.
Part F of OcCre’s instructions is complete.
Time for this portion: 11 hours
Total time to date: 227.5 hours
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those who want it.
Next up are the chainplates and their channels. And that got me thinking about rigging, and more accurately, the fact that I have not yet done any rigging.
But why do chainplates make me think about rigging?
I been told that the rule of thumb in standing rigging is shrouds, then ratlines, and then the stays.
But the shrouds must be connected to the lower deadeyes , so is not the order: chainplates, lower deadeyes, shrouds, ratlines, and finally the stays?
I am following my modified rule of thumb and hence, I will now be starting the rigging of my Molino with the installation of the channels, lower deadeyes, and the chainplates.
I am going to follow a few other builders and after cutting out and sanding the six channels, I will be adding a thin board to the outside of them to make them look more finished.
After a light sanding, they get painted with two coats of a homemade Judea Bitumen mix.
The channels are then glued to the hull.
I plan on putting Molino’s rope chainplates at slight angles to give the overall shroud as much strength as possible and to keep the overall shroud as straight as possible from the hound through to the end of the chainplate. One straight line.
Keeping with the straight-line theory, each shroud will get a bit more angled the further away from the mast it is and those closest to the mast will be closest to being 90 degrees. This means the chainplate closest to the mast will be pretty much straight up and down and each one as you move aft becomes a bit more angled.
This is part of why I say the rigging begins with the chainplates and lower deadeyes. The angle of the chainplates on our models is many times a best guest approximation since the masts have not yet been installed.
To estimate the height of the hound, I put a small mark on the mast and tape a string where the hound should be. Holding the mast as straight up and down as possible (the Molino’s masts are not raked), I gently pull the string so it lines up with the hole for the chainplate. I put a mark approximately 3/4” below the channel in line with the string. Using a pin vise, I drill a 0.3mm hole at the mark and then insert a small brass nail into it. I tap it in until it is about 1/2 way in and then move onto the next one.
I create 32 chainplate and lower deadeyes.
I feed each chainplate through one of the holes on the channels.
Each is tied off using a half hitch around its nail and the line is tightened.
Each knot gets a drop of fabric glue at the knot at the nail.
Once the glue is dry, I push and or tap each nail in until it bottoms out at the hull.
I cannot wait until I continue with the rigging.
The anchor davits are created using a 4mm x 4mm board that is attached to a piece of laser cut wood. All straightforward except that one tip of the 4 x 4 needs four 1mm holes drilled in them. Doable, but a drill press of some sort would have been helpful (again).
The tips near the holes are sanded at slight angles, and the two pieces are glued together.
One dried and after a light sanding, they get painted with two coats of my homemade Judea Bitumen mix.
Part F of OcCre’s instructions is complete.
Time for this portion: 11 hours
Total time to date: 227.5 hours
Chainplates are looking good.
11/23/25 to 12/7/25
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those who want it.
Starting with step G, the first task was the stern lantern.
The anchors are next, each made of two pieces of Britannia metal, which required significant sanding. I painted the shanks and associated parts black, while the stocks were painted medium brown with black bands.
After gluing the anchor together, I opted to make a hook to connect it to a double block, as would be used on a galleon, instead tying it to the anchor as detailed in the instructions.
The anchor rope goes through the ring and is seized to itself, marking it as my first attempt at seizing. Instead of tying the anchors to the front channels as instructed, I added two ring bolts to each channel and tied the anchors off to them.
Moving on to the lifeboat, I glued on the four benches, then, I added two oars, a rope coil, and a treasure chest. After all, it is a pirate ship.
The treasure is tiny bits of sea glass I found on the beach (another hobby of mine).
After arranging and gluing the boat's accessories, I drilled four holes for the eyebolts to tie down the lifeboat. On the third hole, my pin vise broke, so I used a Goxawee (Dremel) for drilling.
Lastly, I worked on the bilge pump.
That does it for section G; rigging begins next. Since I only have about a week left in Mexico, I will hold off on starting it. I will look through all my notes to see if there was anything else that I wanted to do that was outside of the instructions.
One of the things I have wanted to add for a while is a “plank.” Ok, I know they did not really exist, at least did not exist in mass, but I wanted one. So, after a little research about what they may have looked like, I had to find a place for it. The best place was on the starboard side of the main deck, between the front two cannons. The plank was the easy part, (three pieces of veneer glued together) but I needed a ladder of some sort that the victim would have to climb to get to the plank. I made three different ladders and did not like any of them. So, I am not sure if I will add it or not. Only time will tell.
The next thing I wanted to add was a pilot ladder on the hull. I decided on it being placed on the main deck on the port side, right by the stairs to the fo’c’sle or foredeck. So, a person would climb up the “ladder,” then step onto the channel, then climb up and onto the ship. They would then step onto the stairs to get to the deck. I have seen ropes that were either attached or thrown over when people were boarding. I will have to decide if I want them or not.
Next up are the eyebolts located at various locations around the ship; 2 on the quarter deck, 4 on the poop deck, and 4 on the bulwarks (2 per side).
The biggest challenge with the eyebolts is that my pin vise is under the weather so drilling the 10 holes will take a little bit longer than they should.
The McGuyvered pin vise worked well enough to drill the 10 holes, and then I glued an eyebolt into each one.
Last up of my list of “extras” is the “extra” grate up on the poop deck between the eyebolts. I saw this on Baltic Submariner’s build log on Model Shop World. I know on a real ship this would not be a suitable location for a hold, but this ship is not real so I can do whatever I feel like. And I like the look of it. Without it, the poop deck would be completely empty space.
I tried several of the leftover pieces of grate and found one that is 15mm x 25mm. I sand the edges and trim them off with some walnut lumber and put a coat of satin varnish on it. Before glueing down the grate, I paint the deck that will be covered by the grate black to give it some depth
After it is glued in place, my work on the Molino is done for this trip, and she will shortly be put away in the closet.
Our next trip is at the end of February, so only about two and a half months, at that point, I will finally get to begin my first work ever on the masts and rigging.
Time for this portion: 15.5 hours
Total time to date: 243.0 hours
I’ll be carrying on with my less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf for those who want it.
Starting with step G, the first task was the stern lantern.
The anchors are next, each made of two pieces of Britannia metal, which required significant sanding. I painted the shanks and associated parts black, while the stocks were painted medium brown with black bands.
After gluing the anchor together, I opted to make a hook to connect it to a double block, as would be used on a galleon, instead tying it to the anchor as detailed in the instructions.
The anchor rope goes through the ring and is seized to itself, marking it as my first attempt at seizing. Instead of tying the anchors to the front channels as instructed, I added two ring bolts to each channel and tied the anchors off to them.
Moving on to the lifeboat, I glued on the four benches, then, I added two oars, a rope coil, and a treasure chest. After all, it is a pirate ship.
The treasure is tiny bits of sea glass I found on the beach (another hobby of mine).
After arranging and gluing the boat's accessories, I drilled four holes for the eyebolts to tie down the lifeboat. On the third hole, my pin vise broke, so I used a Goxawee (Dremel) for drilling.
Lastly, I worked on the bilge pump.
That does it for section G; rigging begins next. Since I only have about a week left in Mexico, I will hold off on starting it. I will look through all my notes to see if there was anything else that I wanted to do that was outside of the instructions.
One of the things I have wanted to add for a while is a “plank.” Ok, I know they did not really exist, at least did not exist in mass, but I wanted one. So, after a little research about what they may have looked like, I had to find a place for it. The best place was on the starboard side of the main deck, between the front two cannons. The plank was the easy part, (three pieces of veneer glued together) but I needed a ladder of some sort that the victim would have to climb to get to the plank. I made three different ladders and did not like any of them. So, I am not sure if I will add it or not. Only time will tell.
The next thing I wanted to add was a pilot ladder on the hull. I decided on it being placed on the main deck on the port side, right by the stairs to the fo’c’sle or foredeck. So, a person would climb up the “ladder,” then step onto the channel, then climb up and onto the ship. They would then step onto the stairs to get to the deck. I have seen ropes that were either attached or thrown over when people were boarding. I will have to decide if I want them or not.
Next up are the eyebolts located at various locations around the ship; 2 on the quarter deck, 4 on the poop deck, and 4 on the bulwarks (2 per side).
The biggest challenge with the eyebolts is that my pin vise is under the weather so drilling the 10 holes will take a little bit longer than they should.
The McGuyvered pin vise worked well enough to drill the 10 holes, and then I glued an eyebolt into each one.
Last up of my list of “extras” is the “extra” grate up on the poop deck between the eyebolts. I saw this on Baltic Submariner’s build log on Model Shop World. I know on a real ship this would not be a suitable location for a hold, but this ship is not real so I can do whatever I feel like. And I like the look of it. Without it, the poop deck would be completely empty space.
I tried several of the leftover pieces of grate and found one that is 15mm x 25mm. I sand the edges and trim them off with some walnut lumber and put a coat of satin varnish on it. Before glueing down the grate, I paint the deck that will be covered by the grate black to give it some depth
After it is glued in place, my work on the Molino is done for this trip, and she will shortly be put away in the closet.
Our next trip is at the end of February, so only about two and a half months, at that point, I will finally get to begin my first work ever on the masts and rigging.
Time for this portion: 15.5 hours
Total time to date: 243.0 hours
Have a good vacation Hugh! Magic Mike
3/16/26 to 3/26/26
I’ll be carrying on with posting a less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf attachment for those who want it.
Before I begin, I need to let everyone know that during our last stay in Vallarta from October through mid-December 2025, we made the decision to move full-time to Vallarta. It has been the plan since we purchased our first condo around 5 years ago, and we feel that “now” is the time.
After three months away from working on the Molino, I started on the bowsprit. This begins my actual first rigging or at least the tapering of the bowsprit and masts begins.
The bowsprit is made from a 5mm dowel that is 220mm in length. The dowel needs to be tapered from 5mm at the base to 3.9mm at the tip. I marked the dowel at 4 spots and measured the diameter on the plans at each mark. I will use these marks to create the desired taper.
The tip is rounded and the bowsprit is complete.
Next up is the spritsail yard. It is made with a 126mm x 4mm dowel. It tapers down to 2.2mm at each end. I do the same with it as I did on the bowsprit, but I only need one other measurement on each side; it is 3.2mm in about the middle.
The bees are created with 2mm x 2mm boards, each 6mm with the aft corner of each sanded at a 45 degree.
Everything is stained walnut, and once they are dry, I glue the bees onto the bowsprit, which is then covered in a satin varnish.
Now comes the blocks.
The blocks supplied with the kit were good, but to improve the look of them, I sanded any rough corners.
Each block was then tied around the bowsprit in the correct location, again using two half hitches.
The tails were trimmed off, and I put a drop of glue on each knot.
To hopefully speed things up I have decided to skip over the yards and knock out all the pieces of the various masts first, then go after the yards, and then stain everything.
I also want to try to follow a tip I wrote about recently in an article for Ships In Scale. The tip was to not fully build a mast before stepping it, but rather, when possible, only build a mast to the first hound. Then attach the shrouds at the hound, then build the next section of the mast. The idea is while it takes more planning, seizing the shrouds will be easier without anything built above it. Now I want to put that tip to the test.
The foremast is made with three different sized dowels; a 6mm, a 4mm, and a 3mm.
This small knob is then inserted into the mast cap.
No one warned me that mast tapering was so difficult/time consuming. It is not hard, but it is more than what the OcCre videos suggest. Following the process I used for the bowsprit, I will take a series of measurements of each section from the plans, then sand the dowel to match them. Again, it is not difficult, but slow.
Next up is the main mast. It is also made with three different sized dowels; a 6mm, a 4mm, and a 3mm. Other than lengths and the taper, it is like the foremast.
Onto the mizzenmast, which only has two sections. They are made with a 6mm dowel and a 4mm dowel.
After about 5 hours of sanding spread over a few days and only have about half of the masts completed, I reached out to a friend from the Rocky Mountain Shipwrights, Ralph, to ask if there is any shortcut to tapering masts. He explained using a drill, but be careful, especially with thinner masts.
45 minutes later the remaining masts were completed. Guess I should have reached out earlier.
Next up, preparing all the yards.
Time for this portion: 6.75 hours
Total time to date: 249.75 hours
I’ll be carrying on with posting a less wordy and condensed build log but will include the full unredacted build log as a pdf attachment for those who want it.
Before I begin, I need to let everyone know that during our last stay in Vallarta from October through mid-December 2025, we made the decision to move full-time to Vallarta. It has been the plan since we purchased our first condo around 5 years ago, and we feel that “now” is the time.
After three months away from working on the Molino, I started on the bowsprit. This begins my actual first rigging or at least the tapering of the bowsprit and masts begins.
The bowsprit is made from a 5mm dowel that is 220mm in length. The dowel needs to be tapered from 5mm at the base to 3.9mm at the tip. I marked the dowel at 4 spots and measured the diameter on the plans at each mark. I will use these marks to create the desired taper.
The tip is rounded and the bowsprit is complete.
Next up is the spritsail yard. It is made with a 126mm x 4mm dowel. It tapers down to 2.2mm at each end. I do the same with it as I did on the bowsprit, but I only need one other measurement on each side; it is 3.2mm in about the middle.
The bees are created with 2mm x 2mm boards, each 6mm with the aft corner of each sanded at a 45 degree.
Everything is stained walnut, and once they are dry, I glue the bees onto the bowsprit, which is then covered in a satin varnish.
Now comes the blocks.
The blocks supplied with the kit were good, but to improve the look of them, I sanded any rough corners.
Each block was then tied around the bowsprit in the correct location, again using two half hitches.
The tails were trimmed off, and I put a drop of glue on each knot.
To hopefully speed things up I have decided to skip over the yards and knock out all the pieces of the various masts first, then go after the yards, and then stain everything.
I also want to try to follow a tip I wrote about recently in an article for Ships In Scale. The tip was to not fully build a mast before stepping it, but rather, when possible, only build a mast to the first hound. Then attach the shrouds at the hound, then build the next section of the mast. The idea is while it takes more planning, seizing the shrouds will be easier without anything built above it. Now I want to put that tip to the test.
The foremast is made with three different sized dowels; a 6mm, a 4mm, and a 3mm.
This small knob is then inserted into the mast cap.
No one warned me that mast tapering was so difficult/time consuming. It is not hard, but it is more than what the OcCre videos suggest. Following the process I used for the bowsprit, I will take a series of measurements of each section from the plans, then sand the dowel to match them. Again, it is not difficult, but slow.
Next up is the main mast. It is also made with three different sized dowels; a 6mm, a 4mm, and a 3mm. Other than lengths and the taper, it is like the foremast.
Onto the mizzenmast, which only has two sections. They are made with a 6mm dowel and a 4mm dowel.
After about 5 hours of sanding spread over a few days and only have about half of the masts completed, I reached out to a friend from the Rocky Mountain Shipwrights, Ralph, to ask if there is any shortcut to tapering masts. He explained using a drill, but be careful, especially with thinner masts.
45 minutes later the remaining masts were completed. Guess I should have reached out earlier.
Next up, preparing all the yards.
Time for this portion: 6.75 hours
Total time to date: 249.75 hours
Last edited:
That's big news Hugh about your move to PV! I am excited for you both. What's your timetable? Magic Mike
We made the move on March 1st.
Congratulations. Is your new home the same place I toured? I know you had a lot of remodeling being done.
No, we purchased a bigger unit in the same building a while back, going up to a 3 bedroom… We’re converting one of the bedrooms into our office/workshop so Lisa can do her crafts and I can do my ships.