In researching this article "Planking Your Model Ship" something made itself quite clear from the onset. As there are many model builders there are just as many different opinions on how one should plank their model ship.
The one thing that seems to be in common agreement among all ship modelers is that there are no easy ways if you want a quality result from your efforts. You will have to take the time to learn to measure, cut and shape your planks and the different methods that work for you.
The intent of this article is not to tell you how you should plank your model but rather to give you some things to consider as you determine how you are going to plank your model ship. It's meant to be more of a mind tingler than mind bender.
For further research we recommend the books “Plank-on-Frame Models and Scale Masting & Rigging (volumes I & II)” by Harold A. Underhill. These two books are considered the bible of ship model construction and used by serious modellers everywhere. They can be found online or at a well-stocked book or hobby store.
If you were building a wall-sided barge, the job of planking would be simplicity in it’s self. However, a ship is not formed of right angles but of compound curves and before you begin the planking, you should understand the principles of measuring, marking and fitting a ship’s planking. There are no simple shortcuts if you want to do it correctly, but if you understand and know what is to be done, it will make the job much easier.
A properly planked model looks right simply because it is right. Nothing destroys the effect of an otherwise good model than the glaring evidence that the builder didn’t understand the basics of planking.
The method of planking a ship’s hull has not changed in thousands of years. Some prime examples of wooden ship construction can be found in many European and Middle East Museums whereby these examples are thousands of years old.
To understand the procedure one should visualize a wooden barrel lying on it’s side with the staves horizontal. Where the girth of the barrel is the greatest, the staves are the widest. At the ends, where the girth is less, the planks bend inwards and are tapered to conform to the reduced dimension. Thus, at any point along the length of the barrel there is the same number of equally spaced wooden staves. That’s the basic idea of planking the hull of a ship; think of it as a barrel sawn in half lengthwise. Actually, some modern pram-type dinghies often resemble half barrels.
Measuring the Planking:
You can start the process of planking by finding your vessel’s longest frame, usually this is located at the point of the greatest beam (width). Then you determine how wide the planks should be.
As a matter of interest, historically, shipbuilders took into account such factors as the size and purpose of the vessel, the availability of wide boards and the sharpness of the frame curves.
In determining the width of a plank, you can calculate the number of planks that will fit between the deck and the rabbet line on the longest frame. Suppose, for example, the distance was ten feet and you wanted to use planking that was six inches wide. This works out to twenty planks. Now suppose further that the measurement at the bow was six feet and at the stern it was eight feet. You would still want twenty planks at each place, like the staves on a barrel. A little arithmetic shows that each plank at the bow should measure 3 5/8” inches and at the stern should be 4 13/16” inches wide.
Spilling Strips
An alternative to arithmetic and a method used by many model builders is to make a spiling strip. On a piece of paper or Bristol board, lay out a vertical rectangle exactly the height of your measured frame length. Then divide it by the number of planks desired. Using this strip, you can determine the exact width of planking required at each frame by matching the baseline (rabbet line) and the sheer line (top of planking) of the spiling strip to a similar rectangle drawn to the exact length of each frame (This is a case where one picture is definitely worth a thousand words.) Once you have marked the plank widths needed at each frame, the paper or card strips can be bent along the bulkheads and marks transferred to the frame with a pencil mark.
Planking Methods
The normal procedure is to plank from the sheer (deck line) down towards the waterline and from the keel rabbet upwards, then meeting somewhere near the turn of the bilge, which is called the “shutter plank”. This final plank is normally either wider or narrower than the balance of the planking and may have an unusual taper or shape to fill the space leftover between the bottom and topside planking. To make this plank you will have to make a paper pattern, this is accomplished by cutting a piece of writing paper about an inch wider than the widest area where the plank is to fit. You then will secure the paper over the opening then with a pencil, lay the lead of the pencil on it’s side and slowly follow the edge of the planks. This will leave a clean line on the paper and then remove the paper and cut out the pattern and place on a piece of wood of the same thickness as the planking and trace the out line. This shutter plank will most likely have a strange shape but it will fit with very little removing of wood, however you may have to do a little bit of sanding to get it to fit properly and snugly in place. Finally, the hull is fully planked.
Another interesting planking rule is the 5-4-3 rule of proportion; this refers to the aesthetics of planking above the waterline. Planking by this rule gives the appearance of lightness and grace to the ends of the vessel. Very simply, it holds that the width of the planks forward should be 4/5ths of the plank width amidships, and the planks aft should measure 3/5ths of the midships planks – or five amidships, four forward and three aft. In reality, achieving this ideal is virtually impossible, but it remains a goal to shoot for.
On a full sized vessel, below the waterline structural strength becomes the dominating factor. On a model, you start by trying to taper the planks as above so that they will come out right at the stern and sternpost. But it is always necessary to do some shifting about to get everything to fit and the 5-4-3 rule will not work. Usually it is impossible to get your amounts of taper to work out right and you will have too much or too little space at the ends of the hull.
A final point about planking, a plank on the hull or on the deck should never end in so sharp a point that there is not enough wood to hold a fastening. These are called “Dagger Planks” and when employed they result in leaks in real life, and on models they show up as poor workmanship.
So much for the general principles of measuring a scale model ship’s planking. Other considerations affect planking such as an historical period, the shape of the hull and numerous other aspects that are beyone this article.
I hope that the information above is helpful in your research on planking your model ship. Happy Building!
External Sources:
Bluenose "Queen of the North Atlantic" - Philip Eisnor
Building the Lynx - Privateer Lynx Website
