USS Canonicus build report

**Knife** · #1 09-10-2010, 05:55 PM

Having completed Avery's USS Onondega, Papershipwright's Monitor, and Morck's USS Lehigh, it's time for another monitor. The Canonicus series is one of the longest serving monitor ships. They were used up through the Spanish/American war, and several where sold to Peru. The model, available here: 1/250 USS Canonicus - ECardmodels.com Shop , comes with three files, one for instructions, one for parts, and one with the Canonicus history. The instructions are on five pages, the parts is on a single page.

Starting the build, instead of building up laminations of cardstock like I did for the Onondega, I used a single piece of corrugated cardboard from a shipping box. This made the deck slightly higher than the sides would cover, so I painted on a line of red using a magic marker to extend the width of the side pieces. The side consists of three pieces, I think two pieces would have worked better and made one less seam. Next it's just a process of gluing all the small bits onto the main deck. I used a cut down Q-tip to make the bollards and small vents.

Once the major assembly is complete, I thought it looked a little too light in color. To darken it up, I decided to weather it using a weathering kit designed for model railroads. I started by overlaying a but of light rust on the deck join lines, followed by slightly thinner applications of medium and dark rust. All was looking good, then I went to apply a "little" soot color. If anybody has read "Cat in the Hat" by Dr. Seuss you will know what happened. A little spot quickly turned into a larger spot that when attempting to clean up turned into an even larger spot. In the end, I ended up with a very sooty ironclad.

**treadhead1952** · #2 09-10-2010, 08:50 PM

Oops, well you know what they say, "Soot Happens"! :D

Sorry, couldn't resist.

:o

In spite of the Dr Seuss syndrome, it still looks pretty happening. Looking forward to see what it looks like with the turret in place and the rest of it on there.

**APA-168** · #3 09-10-2010, 09:03 PM

The turret kind of...is...the rest of it :P :D

Looks fantastic Knife, like the weathering even if a bit on the heavy side

And in the end, it's not too heavy, for an ironclad. Have you seen some of the photos of Onondaga??

**APA-168** · #4 09-10-2010, 11:10 PM

On a related note, I have a question for you. How do you do your rails and ladders? They look like they are made using the David Hathaway method, with thread and superglue. I just tried making vertical ladders using this method and ended up with a mess. The thread was frayed right off the spool, and so there were little strands of thread gunking everything up. The one time I tried this with rails, the problem wasn't so noticeable but with the tiny ladders it's a big problem. Do you have a solution to the fraying problem? Or do you use another method.

**Knife** · #5 09-10-2010, 11:58 PM

I see you're staying up late. By the way, the turret in now built as are the boat davits on the Canonicus, just need to build the boats. I'll have photos tomorrow.

For the ladders and railings, I do use the Hathaway technique. After I apply superglue to the threads, I slide my finger up and down the thread to press them together to keep the lines in contact with the stanchions. This twists the thread slightly and seems to keep the thread from fraying. Just make sure you slide your finger up and down the side the lines are on, like sliding your fingers up and down a guitar's strings. You might also try different kinds of threads. Originally I use some thread from the dollar store, cheap stuff that was made in China. I was horrible, so I went to a sewing shop and found some better stuff. The brand name for the thread I have is "Coats and Clark", and it's polyesther covered polyesther general purpose thread.

Finally, here's some shots of the sooty mess. Note that the soot does not cover glue spots, but makes them really stick out.

**D-H** · #6 09-11-2010, 12:41 AM

Thread rails and ladders. I have been using several dilute applications of PVA rather than super glue. THe result is not as "hard" as super glue but it is a lot safer and family home friendly to create. I am trying some very narrow ladders today so we shall see...

David

**Knife** · #7 09-11-2010, 11:07 PM

Here's the final product. I didn't detail the long boats, simply placed a canvas tarp over them. Sorry for the overdone weathering. Like the fortune teller told me, "The sole purpose of your life is to serve as a warning to others."

**Paperwarrior** · #8 09-12-2010, 08:21 AM

Hey, I like that little gem!
Great job, Knife!
What's next?

Jeff

**Knife** · #9 09-12-2010, 09:02 AM

Next is the Kellett YO-60 gyrocopter, after I get back from Yosemite!

**Knife** · #10 09-30-2010, 09:58 AM

I had another sleepless night last night facing my personal demons, so I spent the time recoloring the Canonicus. I always thought it is too light compared to photos of the ship. I also added rust to age it a little bit since it has been proven I'm not to be trusted with chalk type weathering system. Here's a sample of how my repaint turned out. Build up to follow.