Thanks Martin. I have already picked this one up and found it to be of great assistance.
I am making steady progress but have already learned two valuable lessons.
1. Despite the fact that the parts appear to have been accurately cut, I need to take more time in preparation and dry fitting before applying the glue. This became apparent when I decided to glue the false deck onto the bulkheads. I should have sanded the knees on the bulkheads and the slots in the false deck more accurately.
2. The equivalent of 'measure twice, cut once'. I am embarrassed to admit, but I attempted to fit the first gunport bulwark the wrong way round, i.e. the front bit at the back and the back bit at the front !
This involved bevelling and cutting the wrong end to the 'correct' angle to fit at the bow. Luckily I noticed my mistake before glueing and only had to fit a small wedge into the back end where the bulwark joins the transom..
I put this bo**ock down to my age (again)!
The next job on the build was to bevel the bulkheads to allow the planks to fit flat on them. Quite a time consuming task. I found that moving a plank down the bulkheads and sanding or filing each one and moving down about an inch at a time was the best way.
I then needed to bend and fit the gunport bulwarks.
Having researched various methods of bending the wood, I decided to follow the instructions which suggested soaking in warm water for an hour or so. Having done this I dry fitted and clamped them to the bulkheads, leaving overnight. (picture 3)
This worked very satisfactorily (picture 1) and they are now glued in place, including the wedge mentioned above! (picture 2).
I have dry fitted the pre-formed bulwark capping strips and I seem to have got the shape and curve of the bulwarks pretty well.
Next job is the first planking of the hull, so if I haven't bored you too much with my ramblings, please stay tuned.