Chapter 12. Upper Deck (2nd hull) 

 

 Before starting work, I prepared a slipway so that the second hull could be installed in it.

First, I smoothed out all the corners on the slipway, and in the aft section, I completely cut off the section that would interfere with installing the second hull.

I also adjusted all the holes so that I could install the locking wedges.

Upon completion, I was able to install the second (plastic) hull into the frame from the first hull without any problems.

Now, I can work on the beams for the second hull.
I used the blank left over from cutting the beam blanks for the first hull as a template...

I outlined the internal profile and cut out the pieces I needed.

I sanded the top profile onto which the rough deck sheathing will be glued using an angle grinder.

 And since the lower part of the beams will not be visible (as well as everything below the deck boards), I don’t see the point in cutting out this lower surface.

 Then I placed the required beam under the same one (from the finished deck) and marked its edge.

After which I ground it down using an angle grinder.

After that, I cut off part of the beams using the template so that the height at the end was 3 mm...

... this is necessary so that the beam fits into its bed and fills only this space, which is 3 mm high.

This way, all the beams will be about ~2 mm lower than they should be! This space will be used to glue the subdeck to the beams, which will fill this space.
This is all necessary so that the deck can be removed from the hull and is strong and stable. Afterwards, the deck planks will be glued to this base outside the hull. But more on that later.
For now, it all looks like this:

 So far everything is going according to plan, so what are we waiting for... let's go!

 

 

11.11.2025

 

While I still have access below deck, I decided to make a place for attaching the mast.
The implementation will be almost identical to the Victory.
First, I need to make a template for the mast angle. The hull is raised at the front, and the mast is already slightly raked back, but its angle is even greater. First, let's take the full-size drawings I made for anatomy. I shared them in the review.
 You need to draw several lines: one parallel to the keel, one perpendicular to the keel, and one along the mast axis.

 If you draw a perpendicular to the keel and a line along the mast axis, their intersection will be the angle of inclination of the mast.

 This angle is 5 degrees. (This is approximate; since I'll be creating a template for this angle, I'll have a precise value, but the instrument shows about 5 degrees.)

I traced the angle between the two rulers onto a piece of cardboard, creating a sort of template. We'll need it later.

I then cut out a mast stop from the printed plastic body and filled the bottom of the CA gel.

Then I installed the beams and cut a piece of aluminum tube using their level.

Then I made a connector so that the two pieces of tube could be connected without bending...
... and tried everything on without glue.

After that, I temporarily secured the beams to CA gel (so they would stay in place, but could be removed later). I stretched a string along the hull axis and marked the beam centers.

 Then I used a 12mm jig to simulate the tubes and glued some sort of "carlings" to the edges.

Then the conductor is removed and a tube is placed there, and now it can move back and forth, but the "carlings" do not allow it to move to the sides...

...but the lower part is still movable. And after leveling the mast perfectly vertically, I glued in the lower stoppers.

The tube itself is NOT glued and can only move from above and only forward and backward.

 After that, I fixed a 5 degree angle template on the tube and by tilting the tube (mast) back I achieved that the level showed verticality.

This method maximizes the correct position, but you need to take into account the fact that in the future the mast will still be adjusted by shrouds and stays, so an error of 1 degree is acceptable even if you do something not very precisely.

 As a result, I've removed the top section, and all that's left is to securely attach the bottom tube without connecting it to the beams, since my deck will be removable. I'll show you how to secure it next time.

 

 

13.11.2025


A few words about securing the mast stopper. There's nothing complicated about it—the tube was firmly and securely secured with plenty of safety margin.

The upright fasteners will be secured in the same way, but more on that later.
Next, I glued the beams together in pairs using something like carlings. I tried to lay them so that the boards fit snugly against the beam plane and ensured that the sides were of uniform height..

Then I glued all the pairs together into a single piece. I did this quickly (speed is more important here than "beauty," which will be covered by the boards anyway). The main thing is that everything is precise; accuracy here is detrimental to speed.

Let me remind you, the whole idea is to make sure the deck can be removed until the last moment!

Now it's time for the deck base. The first layer of planks (rough). And again, everything will be covered here, so I work quickly (sometimes messily), but the main thing is precision!
I glued the planks with liquid CA, pouring it under the plank. The key is to press firmly so the glue flows by capillary action between the plank and the beam. A couple of seconds and I move on to the next beam. The excess must be trimmed before each new plank to ensure a perfect fit.

Several central belts and the front and back can be reinforced.

At this point, we can now glue the boards outside the body (since before this we needed to trim the front and back).
To strengthen the structure from twisting, I glued a couple of boards along the inside.

I also filled all the gaps between the boards with liquid СA to prevent them from bending during sanding.
These are the insects I got:


 I also filled all the gaps between the boards with liquid СA to prevent them from bending during sanding.
These are the insects I got:

 In the end it turned out like this:

 After scraping and sanding...

... I sanded down all the excess around the perimeter.

This is the base we got for the deck, which turned out to be very durable.

The dark spots were pits; I filled them with glue and sanded them down to a level surface instead of using putty.
I liked the surface finish; everything was smooth and free of any irregularities or unevenness.
I really wanted to insert the deck into the hull, but there were no holes to pull it out with.
I made the beams and basic deck in four days... but I can imagine how long it will take to finish the real deck...

 

 

19.11.2025

 
So, the final work on the deck base.
To somehow remove the deck from the hull, I made some access holes.

 But the base had to sit firmly in place, without any shifting. So I made a fastening using a screw that connected the deck base to the hull.

Now it was time to glue the deck stop along the entire perimeter of the deck-hull interface. This would serve as a starting point for the subsequent deck design.

This completes the deck base!

 

 

 Deck. Waterway.


I'll start with the theory and drawings.


 In order:
1. First, I plan to attach the deck boards (marked with a red rectangle), fitting them to the waterway at the same time.
2. The waterway will be divided into two parts. The first part (turquoise rectangle) will be attached simultaneously with the deck boards, so that everything can be sanded at the same time.
3. The second half of the waterway (purple) will be attached to the finished deck after this part has been milled to the profile shown in the photo.
4. Then the deck will be glued to the hull to the deck stop (the one I've already glued, marked with a black square in the photo, between the frame, beam, and waterway.)
5. Next, the window sill will be installed from the inside, and the side planking (orange rectangle) will be pressed and secured to it.
6. And finally, this will be covered with another sideboard (Spirketling, the brown rectangle that will connect the waterway and the sideboard).
This diagram will be as close as possible to the visualization of this section of the sheathing.
To do this, you need to mark the contact line between the two waterway pieces. I use a template to scratch this line with a needle.

Surprisingly, the waterway from the kit was quite close to the desired shape.

I made the first fragment based on his image, but only the outer contour! The rest will be made as construction progresses.

First, I cut off the excess with a blade and polished it further on a sanding machine.

To make sure these pieces were removable but still held in place, I used pins as positioning dowels.

The inner profile will be cut simultaneously with the planks when they are joined. Before this, however, all the deck planks will be chamfered (beveled). This is necessary to create a small gap between the planks when they are joined. In the future, I will go over this gap with a blade, calibrating it to a uniform size. After coating with oil and bitumen, pigment will be applied to this gap, coloring it, imitating caulking.
I created the bevel with a scalpel, running the edge of the yoke along the plank at an angle.

Next, I cut an internal profile (within which the stepped transitions would be) into the waterwall and cut notches for the two center boards. I then scratched a border onto the boards along this notch profile and cut the boards along this border (more details later in the text).

To glue the first board evenly, I pressed the ruler along the deck axis line with clamps.

I glued it with PVA TiteBondII, pressing the board firmly against the ruler...

... and then, using a wooden block, pressed the board to the base for 5 minutes (that’s how long it takes for this glue).
I applied the glue not in the center of the board, but slightly closer to the edge of the board opposite the previous one. This is to prevent excess glue from getting between the boards and filling the gap. Otherwise, it will be difficult to slide the blade between the boards and the gap will be uneven, which will affect the visual appearance. With this method, the glue doesn't flow to the adjacent board, and the excess flows out the other side, which I scrape off with a blade.

As a result, there is no glue either between the boards (in the gap) or outside it on the other side, which will provide good contact for the next board.

  Next, all the operations are repeated: first, I cut a notch on the waterway to the size of the board and then scratch this profile on the board itself.

 I cut, adjust and if everything fits, I glue them in pairs.

At the moment I have glued 6 standard boards (4.5mm of one color) and the next ones will be one on each side of the power boards (5mm of a different color), but more on that later.

N.B. This complex joint design offered several advantages. Firstly, it increased rigidity, as each board had its own place, preventing it from shifting toward the center as it slid along the waterway. Secondly, the boards didn't have to end in a sharp edge, which would make them structurally more fragile.

 

 

25.11.2025

 

So, we continue laying the deck. Now it's time for the deck boards (which are slightly thicker and a different color).

 I think I've already shown the diagram. The main part is a 4.5mm board of one color, and four 5mm boards of a different color. I did this because in the anatomy, all the boards were different colors, and my calculations led me to this solution. Plus, the color contrast will make the deck look more interesting. Plus, the power boards run along the load-bearing elements... in short, here's what it looks like:

I liked that the colors aren't that different, but there's a slight difference. The width difference of 0.5 mm isn't significant either, but it still looks better than usual, in my opinion. Just a reminder, the waterwall isn't glued yet.

 Then everything is basically done in the same way: I measure, mark with a blade, cut and glue...

... but in the rear section the waterway also begins:

First, I adjusted it to the parameters (like the front one) and then made a board and marked the edges along its profile with a blade.

After trimming off the excess, I simply glued the board in place. The key is to ensure there are no gaps in the board at both the front and back; this requires taking into account the deck's deflection.

 Then everything just repeats itself...

 The only place I'm not happy with is the end of the waterway and the first board that adjoins it... I made a mistake and made it shorter... It's not critical, but I noticed it too late and didn't bother redoing it, although it's a shame it turned out that way...

 And here in the front section, the connection of the two parts of the waterway begins, and this is how I implemented it:

 I first used a blade to draw the shape of the first waterway and cut it out to the desired shape...

 ...then I placed a second waterway underneath it and, using its profile and the profile of the board, I drew the shape of the second waterway with a blade.

Well, after fitting, I glued the boards, but the waterwalls are not glued in yet!

 This is that rare case when even I (as the biggest critic) like the result...
The next section is even more difficult: joining three parts of the waterway at once...

but I'll tell you about that later...

 

 

26.11.2025

 

 The most difficult place, as I expected, is the connection of the second and 4th parts of the waterway through the 3rd part.

And now a couple of macro photos: the connection of the 1st and 2nd parts of the waterway:

... 2nd and 3rd:

... and 3rd and 4th:

On the other hand, things will most likely go faster, since all the calculations have already been done, you just need to mirror them.
I'll show you when I've sanded the entire surface.

In short... I couldn't resist... and I redid my mistake. It was so glaring and it really bothered me, so I decided to...

I carefully used a knife to pry the board up, then slowly moved forward with a straight screwdriver, twisting it slightly, to remove it without damaging it. I decided to replace it entirely, rather than fragment it, and then use it on the other side when it's the right length. 

I transferred the form to a new blank and after adjusting it, everything became as it was.

It took little time and it put my mind at ease because now I like the way it looks.


 

 

01.12.2025

 

I finally finished the waterway today. Due to the slight asymmetry of the hull, the middle section of the waterway is slightly thinner on one side. But even I, a meticulous person, wasn't too upset by this, as it won't be noticeable at all once it's secured, especially with cannons and cannonball racks on deck.

Now, all you have to do is glue the waterway in place and cover it with a protective strip before sanding, and sand it to a mirror finish... and the deck will be ready... finally.

 

 

04.12.2025

 

Everything is ready for gluing. I glued it with TiteBond II...

Then I glued on the temporary waterway, or rather, the second part of it. I applied it to the CA gel in dots so that I could remove it later.

After that, I sanded the surface first with 120-grit sandpaper, then with 150-grit. The mark was the absence of areas that had been coated with oil.

Then I widened the seams with a blade and after that I sanded with 240 and 320 grit sandpaper.
Recommendation! Do not use a needle to widen (calibrate) joints! Due to the varying density of wood, the needle may deform it differently, and the gap may be uneven (of varying thickness) and not perfectly straight. I also do not recommend using the sharp edge of a blade! If the sharp edge hits the glue or tightly fitted slats, the blade may slip from the gap and scratch the board. I recommend using the thinnest blade (as in the photo) but with the back of the blade. The principle is to use light, gradual movements along the joint, so that the blade follows the seam. As you go deeper, the sharp edges of the back of the blade will scrape out a smooth gap instead of squeezing the wood. The key is to do this carefully and very gradually, trying to scratch everything in one or two passes. The first passes should be made at a 45-degree angle, and the last ones at almost 90 degrees. This will ensure uniform blade penetration and calibrate the gaps to the desired thickness.
This is still an intermediate result. The long gaps between the boards are almost 100% ready, but I will still calibrate the gap along the waterway border in a slightly different way, I will tell you about this a little later.
A few words about why I do it this way:
1 - Seam calibration is a much simpler and faster method than precisely matching all the boards without gaps.
2 - When humidity changes, the wood has room to expand and the deck will not bulge. (This is precisely why this procedure was performed – sealing the seams with resin and horsehair.)
3 - There are no unnecessary steps when using various spacers to simulate caulking (resin seams), which complicates and slows down the process.
4 - Using bitumen in this method best simulates resin seams.
But again, this is just my opinion.

Next...




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