MS2027-Phantom-Practicum-Complete.pdf

Modelling The

New York Pilot Boat

Phantom

1868

A guide to building the Model Shipways kit

Chuck Passaro

Introduction

Building a model ship can be both educational

and enjoyable. Sadly, many enthusiasts quickly

get discouraged and give up their pursuit of the

hobby. They often choose the wrong subject for

their first project. The ambitious beginner will

choose a very expensive and elaborate kit as

their first modelling endevour.

The Model Shipways kit of the mid 19th century

pilot schooner Phantom will be built using the

bread-and-butter technique or “solid hull”

method of construction. This method of model-

ling the hull of a ship is well suited for the first-

time modeler just entering the hobby. And it

can produce a spectacular model.

Most kits at this advanced skill level, are

European manufactured and their instructions,

once translated into English, are rarely

adequate. This being said, I understand first

hand, that the desire to build a large scale model

of the frigate Constitution can be hard to sup-

press. But as you can see by the photographs

above and on the cover, an entry-level kit can be

just as impressive and satisfying to build. With

some basic understanding of modelling tech-

niques along with clarified instruction, the goal

of creating a museum quality model can be

easily achieved.

In addition to the plans and instruction manual

provided by the kit manufacturer, I have docu-

mented my own construction of the Phantom. I

took many photograghs, and made some modi-

fications to the kit along the way. You will use

these shop notes as a companion while building

the model during this 14 week ship modelling

class. It is my hope, that with this additional

information, I might inspire you to pursue the

hobby once you have completed building your

own Phantom.

Chuck Passaro

GETTING STARTED...

length of the hull is correct. You will quickly see that a gap

of about 1/8” will remain between the two templates. If we

are to make the hull its proper length it would seem like a

lot of carving and sanding is ahead of us.

Before we begin, I must bring to your attention one

of the most important skills you will need to acquire. This

would be learning the logical order in which to proceed

building. The step-by-step progression is crucial. For this

reason, it will be necessary to deviate from the progression

as presented in the kit-supplied instructions. Years of

model building experience have made me aware of the pit-

falls that can be encountered, the “corners one can paint

themselves in” if each step isn’t methodically planned out in

advance. The lack of any ‘detail’ as described in the kit-

supplied instructions makes this planning all but impossible.

I am not suggesting that my methodology is “all-knowing”

and can not be deviated from. I am just pointing out that I

have a routine that works for me. You would think that

since this model is designated as a ‘beginner’ project, it

would have come supplied with more detailed instructions.

Even more detailed than those supplied with advanced

kits. But if you haven’t already noticed, the instructions that

came supplied with this kit dedicate only eight pages to the

actual building process. Hardly detailed enough for a

beginner to learn and establish an effective process.

But fortunately for us that is not the case. During the

manufacturing process extra wood is left in the areas

vulnerable to damage during shipping. Hold those same

templates against the drawing of the hull as shown on the

plans. Against the blueprints you will see that the

templates have been drawn to the profile of the hull

without the stern post, keel or stem in place. It fits perfect-

ly. But the hull provided with the kit is to long because

extra wood was left at the stern to prevent it from getting

damaged, lengthening the hull by 1/8” . Simply remove

this extra 1/8” of wood from the stern and you will have the

proper hull length. After doing this, some sanding is all

that is needed to complete this procedure. Be sure to use

a sanding block when leveling out the bottom of the hull.

The next step requires a smooth and level surface to draw

some reference lines for the width of the keel.

You will notice that on page 8 of the manual, figure 8

shows the addition of the keel, sternpost and stem which

need to be added later. They will be 1/8” wide. Because

we know this to be true, it will be neccesary to reduce the

thickness of the hull to 1/8” along these areas of the hull.

To avoid carving “blind”, a series of reference lines need to

be drawn along the face of the hull where the sternpost,

stem and keel will be mounted. Draw a line down the cen-

ter of the keel as shown in the photograph above in red.

Continue this line all the way up the stem and also on the

face of the sternpost. Then indicate with smaller lines the

intervals numbered one through nine which will be used to

We will begin with cutting out the templates provided in the

kit for the profiles of the hull. Begin with the two shown in

the photo above. As mentioned in the booklet, use a hobby

knife to carefully cut out the templates because a scissors

will distort them along the more severe curves. Rather

than cut out all of the templates and have them floating

around your workspace, I might suggest only cutting out

those templates needed for the procedure you are currently

working on.

Hold the two templates along the keel to check that the

the wood. You will begin to alternate the use of the flat

tipped blade with the addition of a standard #11 pointed

blade. Start carving midship and work your way towards

the bow, then reverse towards the stern. When completed

the keel should be 1/8” thick and look similar to the photo-

graph to the left.

1/8” wide

Only after completing this initial carving, should you begin

to use the remaining templates to define the proper hull

shape. You will notice that the “step” present along the hull

is not shown on the templates. This is not important for the

initial hull shaping because we will come back later and

add this distinctive feature as our final task toward defining

the shape of the hull.

The “step” is created by drawing a line 1/8” below the

caprail all along the length of the hull including all the way

around the stern. In order for this reference line to be a

smooth graceful curve from bow to stern, you must first

sand the top of the bulwarks smooth. Hold the hull at vari-

ous angles and use your eyes to check its smooth run and

symmetry from both sides of the hull.

position the remaining hull templates (used to establish the

profiles for the shape of the hull). These are also shown in

red. Finally measure a distance of 1/16” from each side of

this center line to establish the overall width of the keel

which will be 1/8” and draw those lines as shown in blue in

the same photo. It is now time to begin carving the hull to

remove all of the excess wood up to these blue lines.

Using the 9 remaining templates is not important at this

time because they cant be used effectively until the true

keel width is established.

When you are satisfied, you can proceed to measure 1/8”

down from the top edge of the bulwarks and draw some

“tick marks”. Draw a series of “tick marks” about 3/4” apart

along the hull and after you have finished, draw your line

along them. Use a piece of flexible stripwood (a batten) as

your guide, holding it firmly against your tick marks while

you draw the line.

Carving this “step” into the hull is a slow process, but it is

not difficult. It should look like the completed hull as shown

in the photograph below. To carve this step, use a stan-

dard pointed #11 blade to score along the reference line

you just created. Score it to a depth of about 1/32”. Then

begin to remove the wood up to this scored line by shaving

small amounts of wood at a time.

Shaping the Hull...

We can now begin to reduce the thickness of the hull at

the keel. Unfortunately, the best way to carve the hull is

difficult to describe in writing. Using a flat blade on your

hobby knife, start slowly removing small amounts of wood

along the keel. Stop just short of the reference line that you

created as this remaining wood will be removed using

sand paper. Remember to always carve with the grain of

Sand this “step” smooth when completed including around

the stern. Afterwards, I think you will agree, that it sounds

more difficult than it actually is.

needed. You can see how I positioned them in the photo

to the left. The angles do not need to be precise. It only

needs to be as such that the template used to create the

shape of the bow can fit on it. The cardboard template will

be traced onto the surface of this wood to produce the

inside curve of the stem. Draw another line on the outside

of this one to create a stem that is 1/8” wide. This shape

is shown in red in the photograph. The wood we are

using is very soft and can be cut with your hobby knife.

Make a series of gentle passes along the outlines rather

than try to cut it straight through on the first pass. Cut the

stem a little wider on both sides of your lines so we can

adjust the fit if necessary. You will notice on the blueprint

that the stem does not extend above the “step” created

along the sides of the hull and should be trimmed to that

level before gluing it into place permanently. Use the

blueprint to find the exact measurement.

Last; we will cut the keel to length from another strip of

1/8" square wood. Test fit this strip on the hull before

gluing it on permanently. On the blue print you will notice

a small lip at the base of the keel, directly under the rud-

der. This detail is highlighted in the photo below. This lit-

tle detail can be notched out of the wood strip before

measuring its overall length and mounting it.

Completing the exterior of the hull....

The overall shape of the hull exterior is now completed.

This is where we will begin to deviate from the kit supplied

manual. The manual instructs us to begin thinning down

the bulwarks to a thickness of 1/32". If we were to do this

now, the possibility of crushing the delicate structure during

a later stage is great. Too much work remains to be

completed on the hull before we can even consider thinning

the bulwarks.

After all of the pieces have been added to the hull, sand it

smooth. Some wood filler can be used to fill any large

gaps where the stem may not have fit snug against the

hull.

Now would be a good time to drill the hole into the stern of

the model to accept the rudder which we will be building

shortly. I used a 3/16" diameter bit and very carefully cre-

ated a hole that was only an 1/8” deep. Be careful not to

drill entirely through the hull. Remember that this wood is

extremely soft.

First, we will mount the sternpost, stem and keel. If you

examine the plans, you will notice that the stern post has a

slight curve (tapered angle) just below where the rudder

would enter the hull. Using a 1/8" square strip of wood, cut

the sternpost to length. You can sand this taper into the

stern post before gluing it onto the hull.

There are two more steps to complete before we begin

thinning the bulwarks. You can create the rudder now

even though we will not be mounting it until later. Use the

same process we used for the stem. You will need to glue

Next, shape the stem. You will need to glue three 1/8” strips

together. This will give you a working surface wide enough

to draw the pattern for the stem onto it. Two pieces will be

sternpost

stem

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