Was given the Occre kit of the “Ulises” ocean going tug for Christmas. Started the build this weekend but I reckon it is going to be a bit of a drawn-out build for a while as I have a lot going on with work and other things. I will gradually add photos of my progress…

Re comment about kit suppliedpropshaft - I agree, I didn’t like the look of that one in the kit so I cut down an old one I had from something else, put the bearing back in with the addition of a touch of solder To make sure it stayed there and I added the oiler tube as well by soldering that on.

The picture of the stern of this as yet skeletal tug is not that exciting. However it represents an afternoon of hard labour. I had to take a razor saw to these two rear frames and carefully remove them from the keel as I discovered they were fractionally out of alignment and would have resulted in a twisted deck. It wouldn’t have been a huge deal but it would have annoyed me later. So anyway, everything is true again and I am about ready to start the planking. That is going to be an interesting exercise as I have only ever planked model aircraft fuselages with balsa in the past…

I need to hold the deck on firmly to true up the edge for the gunwales and I discovered that small zip ties make a good job of holding it firm. I will fill the holes I drilled at a later stage.

Started temporarily fitting the bulwarks this morning in readiness to hopefully make a start on planking at the weekend. A youtube build series of this ship reckoned that this was a good way to go about making sure the first row of planks allowed the bulwarks to then be removed and fit back again nicely later on.

As an aside, I bought an occre pin pusher to do the planking. Have to say, so far it is great - way better than trying to hit a tiny pin with a hammer. Pins are gripped by a magnet and push in very easily.

Discovered that ironing the bulwarks over a wine bottle (empty) with the outer-facing side of the bulwark slightly dampened, induces just the right sort of curve to fit the bow contour…

I think it is going to take a while and I am sure there are going to plenty of “learnings”along the way and a good dose of making it up as I go along.

As predicted it is taking a long time. Mainly as I am doing a row each side then waiting for it to dry overnight before proceeding. Also having to fit in around work and life in general. Am finding that the plank crimpers I bought are working well for most bends but where things are more severe and the plank needs a twist and bend, then placing the plank in a pot of boiling water for a few minutes seems to work well.

…and seeing light at the end of the tunnel

The hull seems pretty straight to my eye and I need to do a bit of filling in some low spots. Once I get it smooth and waterproofed I can crack on with the remainder of the build.

So in the kit instructions, the rudder servo is in the hull above the motor and the pushrod runs across the top of the deck. I decided to try and hide it all under the raised rear portion of the deck as I did not want a pushrod visible. I got a small but fairly powerful servo in and the clearances just work. Phew.