Virginia 1819 build log – Part 12

The bulwark pieces were soaked and allowed to dry with the proper curves. Then they were glued into place. I paid the greatest attention to the size of the opening at the bow, making sure it was sized to allow the bowsprit through. At the center of the ship, the edges of the bulwark did not match the top of the upper strake of hull planks, as you can see below. Wood filler was used to patch areas between the bulwarks and hull, then sanded smooth.

Bulwarks attached
Bulwarks attached


The transom was glued in place. Because the sides of the transom piece are curved, it was necessary to clamp the backs of the bulwarks to the transom in order to leave no gap.

Transom added
Transom added

The bulwark pieces stuck out beyond the transom, so these were sanded down to be flush with the transom. Below, the top piece has been sanded while the lower one has not.

Sanding off the excess
Sanding off the excess

I tested the position of the rudder and realized that the hole for the tiller was too high. I checked against the plans and looked at other build logs and it was clear that the hole should be about halfway between the top and bottom of the bulwarks. To fix it, I removed the transom, cut off the lower 5mm, and glued the piece back into place.

Transom correction before and after
Transom correction before and after

The kit instructions want the second layer of hull planking to be put on before the stem, keel, and stern post pieces are attached. However, it was my impression that if I proceeded in that order, there would be no way to ensure that the final planks would lie nicely against the stem, keel, and stern post. Therefore, I decided to change the order.

At first, I assumed that the stem should be positioned with its top level with the deck, so that the bowsprit would lie on the deck. However, it looks like that is not correct; the bowsprit should lie above the deck and not touching it. Therefore, I glued the stem in place with the top of the stem about halfway between the the top and bottom of the bulwarks.

Next I tested the keel, and noticed that the supplied wood piece is taller than the end of the stem. It will need to be sanded down to match.

Stem and keel height difference
Stem and keel height difference

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