Kingfisher 1770 1:48 POF

This is beautiful work, Paul! For me who has been away at times your last picture posts were a true revelation of just how far you have come in this build - and I am not only talking about your actual building. This is simply stunning work - every penny's worth of a true perfectionist at work!
 
When we last spoke, I was frozen by my own inexperience (incompetence? ignorance?). How to get the bollard and hawse timbers in the right place?

Nigel and Maarten (and others) to the rescue! I basically did exactly what they suggested (not building OFF the ship - but creating templates taken from the plans I purchased from SeaWatch). I won't say it all came together easily (indeed, I needed to remake hawse timber #3) but I ended up with something that looks like the bow of a swan class ship.

With the forward cant frame in place, I fit the bollard timber to the bearding line - and then using these fixed reference points set my templates. Here you can see the bollard timbers and the first of the hawse timbers in place (templates were removed for the photo):

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Next, I added the remaining hawse timbers and some filler pieces. Here is where I was this morning after using a rotary tool to roughly fair the inside of the bow:

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And about four hours later I have roughly shaped and roughly sanded (120 grit) the inside of the bow:

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There is still a lot to do here (refine airspaces, refine joinery, more shaping and sanding) but I'm in the right neighborhood. Nothing was faired on the outside (there is no issue with access there and I want to wait until the rest of the forward cant frames are installed before tackling that).

As you might have noticed I also roughed in the chock for the bowsprit:

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I'll finish shaping the chock - and then start adding the forward cant frames.

What a blessing it is to share this journey with all of you friends on our forum. This is the second time I was completely befuddled on a build and was saved by members of the community. My humble thanks!
What nice and patient work.
 
On his brilliant Bluenose build report, Daniel mentioned "your next post" in response to a comment I had made. And when I read that I realized it's been a while since I've reported any progress.

Well, that's because I have abandoned normal life and entered: the sanding zone. I have not left my workshop in three weeks, have not eaten in three days, my children tell me that my wife has left me in favor of a man who does not become consumed by his hobbies, and my office manager assures me that the new orthodontist is skilled and kind to the staff...

Here are the forward cant frames in place:

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And now after preliminary shaping with a sanding wheel in a rotary tool:

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And now partially sanded:

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Here is my new avatar photo:

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Sanding boxwood is like sanding slate. The sandpaper slides over the top of it with a rattling sound without digging in. And every time I think I might have accomplished something I put it down only to pick it up the next day and discover there is still more work to do.

One more overall shot:

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And a closer look at the boxing (pending hawse holes):

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Thanks for the visit!
 
On his brilliant Bluenose build report, Daniel mentioned "your next post" in response to a comment I had made. And when I read that I realized it's been a while since I've reported any progress.

Well, that's because I have abandoned normal life and entered: the sanding zone. I have not left my workshop in three weeks, have not eaten in three days, my children tell me that my wife has left me in favor of a man who does not become consumed by his hobbies, and my office manager assures me that the new orthodontist is skilled and kind to the staff...

Here are the forward cant frames in place:

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And now after preliminary shaping with a sanding wheel in a rotary tool:

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And now partially sanded:

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Here is my new avatar photo:

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Sanding boxwood is like sanding slate. The sandpaper slides over the top of it with a rattling sound without digging in. And every time I think I might have accomplished something I put it down only to pick it up the next day and discover there is still more work to do.

One more overall shot:

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And a closer look at the boxing (pending hawse holes):

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Thanks for the visit!
The hobby in general and the task at hand can overtake you make you oblivious to time spent.

The bow section alone would make a great sectional model by itself, with full interior you could spend another year without any time on the other parts of the ship.
 
Always nice to see an update of you. Great looks.
About your avatar photo I can tell a story.
A time ago I got a business, a fastfood restaurant. We sell French fries, homemade. And I got an employee in service who started very young in my business, cutting these fries on a cutter mouth to the wall. Put the potato in and turn the handle down. After 3 years working in my shop he looks like your avatar. ROTF he got a lot of comments at school about it. His brother followed him up and was a little smarter. One bucket with the left and one withe right arm.
 
Paul,
do you have a picture from the finished starbord side? I like to compare the final result with your second and third picture. The difference between the first three picture and the last three is enorm. Very well done!
 
On his brilliant Bluenose build report, Daniel mentioned "your next post" in response to a comment I had made. And when I read that I realized it's been a while since I've reported any progress.

Well, that's because I have abandoned normal life and entered: the sanding zone. I have not left my workshop in three weeks, have not eaten in three days, my children tell me that my wife has left me in favor of a man who does not become consumed by his hobbies, and my office manager assures me that the new orthodontist is skilled and kind to the staff...

Here are the forward cant frames in place:

View attachment 376119

View attachment 376120

And now after preliminary shaping with a sanding wheel in a rotary tool:

View attachment 376121

View attachment 376122

And now partially sanded:

View attachment 376123

View attachment 376124

View attachment 376125

View attachment 376126

View attachment 376129

Here is my new avatar photo:

View attachment 376130

Sanding boxwood is like sanding slate. The sandpaper slides over the top of it with a rattling sound without digging in. And every time I think I might have accomplished something I put it down only to pick it up the next day and discover there is still more work to do.

One more overall shot:

View attachment 376128

And a closer look at the boxing (pending hawse holes):

View attachment 376127

Thanks for the visit!
Now this is a good update showing great progress Paul. The boxwood sands out so very nice and what really impresses me is the symmetry you are maintaining between the left and right members. That cannot be easy. Hey BTW I understand the potential new avatar ROTF , sanding with my left hand in control has about the same outcome as trying to throw a ball left-handed, really ugly and funny looking to boot. Thanks for the update, Paul.
 
Beautiful work Paul! Hardwood can kill blades and sandpaper with a single swipe! ROTF
I am sure your perseverance will prevail. We know you by now! ;)

Ps - Daniel is correct, it will sand and cut very sharp and clean. You probably know this already, but that is why it is preferred for carving and turning.
 
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