Nautical Research Journal


Costello, the South American version of boxwood, but I think the grain is too coarse for other use in small scale.


Because of the small scale, I always build the decks off my models, planking over 1/32-inch basswood shaped to fi t. T is allows me more easily to sand to fi nal thickness, add nails or plugs in proper alignment and avoid damaging the delicate exposed frames and planking. Once the deck is installed, the waterway is added, which covers any slight gaps where the deck meets the sides. For both decking and exterior planks, I use a fi ne punch (a needle ground to a fi ner point mounted in a wood dowel) to make the nail/treenail holes and then use a black or dark brown furniture touch-up wax to fi ll the holes, scraping with a single-edge razor blade to tamp the wax down, remove the excess and smooth the surface.


I try to use as much natural wood and as little paint as possible, so my masts are made with ebony bases and tops joined to pear mid- sections


with interior boxwood


pegs while in a rough state. Once the glue sets on these joins, the masts are chucked in the lathe and fi ne sanded to their fi nal shapes. T e yards on Le Requin are solid ebony, turned and then shaped to fi t together.


349


9. T e fi rst planking of the hull.


For decorative elements, I have two basic techniques, which I described in my earlier NRJ articles, and will briefl y summarize here. First, complex images such as those on quarterdeck side panels are basically


constructed of small pieces of boxwood and pear glued to an ebony base. T is takes care and patience but is not terribly diffi cult. T e trick is to use a slow- setting glue, such as slightly diluted Titebond, to allow adjustments as the pieces are placed, followed, once


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