USS Constitution by Model Shipways 1:76 scale

Tony H

Tony H

Joined
Dec 28, 2020
Messages
902
Points
353

Location
Googong close to Canberra Australia
I should have started this project a year ago but moving house prevented this from happening.

IMG_20220202_150936~2.jpg
I posted a kit review February last year if you would like to know what's inside the box.
This will be the forth ship I've built and by far the most challenging. This build will be out of the box I'm not planning any bashing at this stage.
Started by removing the keel pieces and bulkheads, when I checked the way they fitted together there was a problem.

IMG_20230527_122734.jpg
The material for the bulkheads was around 0.5mm oversized and the slots in the keel varied a lot, only two bulkheads fitted with a little bit of sanding. I can't work out why there was so much variation in the slots as the keel is made up from two 1/8 pieces glued together and both sides are exactly the same, could it have been programmed like this?

IMG_20230527_122520.jpg The smallest slot compared to the widest one (the sizes in pen are for the keel and bulkheads in pencil.)

IMG_20230604_164904.jpg
While marking the bevels on the bulkheads I found bulkhead B did not match the drawing

After some checks I glued the corresponding parts of the keel together.
IMG_20230606_123513.jpg
IMG_20230606_123722.jpg
IMG_20230606_123833.jpg
If you look at the top end of the centre keel section there is a broken piece (BH L), I was surprised by how easy it was to break.
 
Hello Bill, I am like you with the kit on the shelf, and I do have the Bob Hunt Practicum for this kit, I have reviewed it somewhat but not in depth till I am ready to build.

He does say to either use the kit instructions, or his Practicum, but don't mix them unless he references the book instructions for specific tasks.
 
Bill Hime said:
Tony, I'm following along! I have the same kit waiting for bench time. Are by chance using the Hunt Practicum to assist your build?
Click to expand...
Bill Hime said:
Perhaps we should move our kits to the bench so Tony has some company! ;)
Click to expand...
Hi Bill thanks for the comments I have heard a lot of good reports of the practicum, at the moment I will stick with the instructions from model Shipways and some other build logs on the web. If i get into trouble I will reconsider this.
I would love to see more MS Constitution's being built.
 
Kurt Konrath said:
Hello Bill, I am like you with the kit on the shelf, and I do have the Bob Hunt Practicum for this kit, I have reviewed it somewhat but not in depth till I am ready to build.

He does say to either use the kit instructions, or his Practicum, but don't mix them unless he references the book instructions for specific tasks.
Click to expand...
Kurt Konrath said:
I wonder how many others have this kit waiting for a build session. Maybe a group build all together to help each other.
Click to expand...
Hi Kurt thanks for the reply. When I did my kit review last year I could not believe there was no build logs for this kit. I thought it would be very popular.
 
I am five years into building the Model Shipways USS Constitution and am just now getting ready to complete the hull. This model is not for first time builders. The kit instructions are not step 1, step2…but general guides. Mr. Hunt’s practicum is an excellent roadmap to building the model, but it does lack some details and sometimes accuracy in various areas. It will, however, result in a good-looking model to the uncritical eye.

This is only my second wooden square-rigged ship, having previously built Mr. Hunt’s kit bash of the Mamoli Rattlesnake, so I’m no wooden ship model expert. The MS kit is based on the 1927 renovation of the ship so that, when completed, it will not closely resemble what the ship looks like today after her 2017 renovation. Many builders like myself, added a gun deck (not part of the kit), or are trying to modify the model to look like her 1812 version. The BlueJacket kit will render an 1812 model. Mine is modified to follow the 2017 renovation. Because the USS Constitution is still a commissioned warship, and the oldest warship still afloat in the world, there are plethora of images online as well as actual US Navy plans available to the public to guide the builder. Because I discovered ShipsofScale.com after I started posting first on ModelShipBuilder.com and then on ModelShipWorld, there was just too much to repost on ShipsofScale.com.

Jon
 
Tony, I am at the point where I am starting the standing rigging of my Model Shipways USS Constitution. It is a big ship, as you know by now, and has 8 sheets of very crammed instructions. Sorry to mention this when you are just starting your build but if I had known the problems I would encounter I would have never started. There are just too many problems to make this build enjoyable. Instruction booklet is next to useless as far a clearness goes, the minute details in the plans are so small you would need a microscope to build. I have spent as much time trying to figure out the details on the plans as I have with the build! There are not enough small parts to do what is asked of you, there is loads of lumber but many of the sizes referred to in the instructions cannot be found. Rigging sizes referred to are not to be found, in many cases. Not enough brass/copper strips to do what they ask of you, etc., etc., etc. It is obvious nobody who made the plans sat down and made this model ship or they would have made changes to the kit. I am 10 months into the build and expect month or two to complete the rigging. Am I going to put sails on her? FORGET THAT! My builds include 3 Bluenoses, 1 Pegasus, and a Bounty, so I have had some experience. Again, my apologies for making your day worse but it had to be said.

Bill
 
I'll be watching this closely. Currently building CW Morgan (my first) and have Syren and Connie on the shelf. Instructions for CWM are also NOT for beginner. Have been reading and using Syren booklet to see how things are to be done. Will build Syren next as many of the skills apply for all three. Also watching this and MSW logs for details and process. Thanks to ALL for ideas and pics to help along the way along with model group at Mariners Museum in Newport News for help. learning curve is logarithmic NOT linear. Tired USN (20), Re-tired Special Ed teacher (25). Now - just tired! Really loving this! JJ
 
Tony H said:
I should have started this project a year ago but moving house prevented this from happening.

View attachment 378479
I posted a kit review February last year if you would like to know what's inside the box.
This will be the forth ship I've built and by far the most challenging. This build will be out of the box I'm not planning any bashing at this stage.
Started by removing the keel pieces and bulkheads, when I checked the way they fitted together there was a problem.

View attachment 378480
The material for the bulkheads was around 0.5mm oversized and the slots in the keel varied a lot, only two bulkheads fitted with a little bit of sanding. I can't work out why there was so much variation in the slots as the keel is made up from two 1/8 pieces glued together and both sides are exactly the same, could it have been programmed like this?

View attachment 378481 The smallest slot compared to the widest one (the sizes in pen are for the keel and bulkheads in pencil.)

View attachment 378482
While marking the bevels on the bulkheads I found bulkhead B did not match the drawing

After some checks I glued the corresponding parts of the keel together.
View attachment 378489
View attachment 378490
View attachment 378491
If you look at the top end of the centre keel section there is a broken piece (BH L), I was surprised by how easy it was to break.
Click to expand...
Good luck on your build, Tony. I will be following along closely.
 
I also have this kit ready to get on the bench as well. I bought it about 3 months ago. Right now, I am trying my best to finish my Belle Poule which i have about 2 months or less - I want to finish it by the end of June. So, I might join with you on this project. I hate to hear about the problems. ME Shipways is an American based design. I do know that no kit (even the best) will all have problems. The Belle Poule instructions even have some strange aspects about it and some strange build sequences to it. But overall, it is still a great kit and I would recommend it to anyone.
Back to the Constitution --- If I can be of any help, let me know. I don't suppose you remember the date that you bought it? I am wondering if ME shipways made any revisions in these problems. I guess I need to break open my box to look at the false Keel and Bulkheads.
 
Bill Gray said:
Tony, I am at the point where I am starting the standing rigging of my Model Shipways USS Constitution. It is a big ship, as you know by now, and has 8 sheets of very crammed instructions. Sorry to mention this when you are just starting your build but if I had known the problems I would encounter I would have never started. There are just too many problems to make this build enjoyable. Instruction booklet is next to useless as far a clearness goes, the minute details in the plans are so small you would need a microscope to build. I have spent as much time trying to figure out the details on the plans as I have with the build! There are not enough small parts to do what is asked of you, there is loads of lumber but many of the sizes referred to in the instructions cannot be found. Rigging sizes referred to are not to be found, in many cases. Not enough brass/copper strips to do what they ask of you, etc., etc., etc. It is obvious nobody who made the plans sat down and made this model ship or they would have made changes to the kit. I am 10 months into the build and expect month or two to complete the rigging. Am I going to put sails on her? FORGET THAT! My builds include 3 Bluenoses, 1 Pegasus, and a Bounty, so I have had some experience. Again, my apologies for making your day worse but it had to be said.

Bill
Click to expand...
I feel the pain in your words. I have an opinion on the plans supplied with MS kits (of which I have built 2). The plans seem to offer greater detail than the scale really allows one of moderate skills to build. For instance, the MS Whaleboat gives you instructions and materials to use flat copper nails to assemble the boat. I didn't go that route as I was certain it was above my skill level at the time (and probably still is). I was still able to build a nice-looking model. On the Bluenose there is way more detail on the plans than I could possibly incorporate into the build. I am doing my best to simulate the plans where I can and leave some things off where I lack the skill to do them well (as long as it doesn't affect how the ship looks from say 5-6 feet away). I assume the Constitution is similar. That being said, the instruction booklet for the cross section of the Constitution is very much step by step with lots of pictures. That level of detail on the full model would probably be a 300+ page book.
 
Welcome to model ship building from wood model kits. I feel your pain. And consider, Model Shipways is better than most! Chuck Passaro's Syren Models kits are pretty good and fairly user friendly. But having built the Queen Anne Royal Barge from Syren, there were still a LOT of areas I found to be overcomplicated and easier to execute relying on my own experience. I was emailing back and forth with Mr. Passaro throughout. He is very pleasant and kind and generous with his time. None the less, I most often chose to trust in my own conclusions. Not withstanding, he seemed to be favorably impressed with the finished results in the end.
Wood ship model building from kits is still largely innovation and scratch building at best ,having been supplied with some ( I stress SOME) useful materials , a manual and some plans ( of widely varying usefulness and accuracy) and a collection of often not very usable parts. A ratio of research to build time is often 2 or 3 to one.
To Paraphrase David Letterman: Like buying lottery ticket, investing in a wood model kit only marginally increases your chance of success.:rolleyes:
and Occam's Razor: " The simplest solution is most often the right one".
Patience with your kit and mostly with your self is what gets you there.;)

Pete
 
Tony H said:
I should have started this project a year ago but moving house prevented this from happening.

View attachment 378479
I posted a kit review February last year if you would like to know what's inside the box.
This will be the forth ship I've built and by far the most challenging. This build will be out of the box I'm not planning any bashing at this stage.
Started by removing the keel pieces and bulkheads, when I checked the way they fitted together there was a problem.

View attachment 378480
The material for the bulkheads was around 0.5mm oversized and the slots in the keel varied a lot, only two bulkheads fitted with a little bit of sanding. I can't work out why there was so much variation in the slots as the keel is made up from two 1/8 pieces glued together and both sides are exactly the same, could it have been programmed like this?

View attachment 378481 The smallest slot compared to the widest one (the sizes in pen are for the keel and bulkheads in pencil.)

View attachment 378482
While marking the bevels on the bulkheads I found bulkhead B did not match the drawing

After some checks I glued the corresponding parts of the keel together.
View attachment 378489
View attachment 378490
View attachment 378491
If you look at the top end of the centre keel section there is a broken piece (BH L), I was surprised by how easy it was to break.
Click to expand...
Tony, I would not discourage you from making this model. I worked on her for 2 1/2 years and have what I feel is a respectable show peace. It is not museum quality it has defects and yes, the instruction book that comes with the kit is practically useless as far as I was concerned, but I really did feel the practicum helped me get through the hard parts. it all depends on how detailed you want to be. I feel like a 1:76 model limits me on how detailed I can be as I prefer to model in 1:48. you have to side what you will be content with. Isn’t that the case with all our model building, in the end it is what makes you happy. Once I stopped worrying about what other people might think I had a lot more fun building my ships.
I am now happy with the 2 to 5 foot rule which means if you’re standing that far away from the ship and it looks good I’m happy :)
 
Donnie said:
I also have this kit ready to get on the bench as well. I bought it about 3 months ago. Right now, I am trying my best to finish my Belle Poule which i have about 2 months or less - I want to finish it by the end of June. So, I might join with you on this project. I hate to hear about the problems. ME Shipways is an American based design. I do know that no kit (even the best) will all have problems. The Belle Poule instructions even have some strange aspects about it and some strange build sequences to it. But overall, it is still a great kit and I would recommend it to anyone.
Back to the Constitution --- If I can be of any help, let me know. I don't suppose you remember the date that you bought it? I am wondering if ME shipways made any revisions in these problems. I guess I need to break open my box to look at the false Keel and Bulkheads.
Click to expand...

Donnie

I have a Connie on my bench right now. I have't touched her for about five months (the Belle Poule either). I have lacked the motivation to keep working on them. Hearing you are about to start the Connie has me thinking about getting back at it. I anxiously await your build log.

:)
 
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