Thanks David. I'll give a try and see how it works on Liteply.
All the best, Edward.

this is all I use fill with boiling water leave for 5 mins then should be plyable to bend. never used liteply I use any sort of pine timber from pallets cut up to size. I have built over 10 boats with this method.

david

I have a few lengths of thin Liteply that I am going to cut up into planks. Presumably this will not start to delaminates with hot water.

I did try making my own steaming cabinet using a copper tube lagged with string but this needed a lot of steam before it stopped condensing so this has joined the scrap heap!

All the best

Edward

hi,

as dave m says, you will defiantly need to steam the planks, I had to on all my builds no other way of getting them to shape. I have a piece of plastic waste pipe and plug one end then pour boiling water in leave for 5 mins then gently bend to shape.

davidjt

Looks like the sides are fairly flat but probably curve out towards the deck. The bow is almost certainly a curve and the lower part is probably concave.
Using diagonal planks in these areas will enable you to fashion the required shapes as you can use the wood grain to allow for curves in slightly different angles. Two thinner planks will be easier to work and I suspect the end result will be well worth the extra effort.
As davidjt said "if you don't have a go you will never know".
I suggest you do a mock up build first and see how the planks form. You may need to use steam to form to the correct shape. You may wish to experiment with the plank widths and some chamfering along the joins may improve the fit.
Good luck. A build Blog would be very welcome and helpful to others on this site
Dave

Yes, a range safety launch.

Just looked on line. is it similar to RSL (Range Safety Launch) 1654? http://rsl1654.weebly.com/
Dave

Is the plan on-line, as you mention text?
Dave

HI Dave
It the Range Safety Launch.
Edward

What model are you building? is it from a plan? it is difficult to give specific advice that holds good for all types of model.
Dave

You are right, up to a point. it seems to me that to do it properly I will have to put extra wood into the hull to support the diagonal planks. On the other hand, if I plank it using 12mm wide planks conventially I will achieve the same end result. On the other hand, if I use planks of half the thickness, but in two layers, I should be able to get a better finish. Do you think this will work?

it may sound the easy way out, but I fined if you don't have a go you will never no. I didn't think that the Liverpool would work but I stuck to it and was glad I did it and the results were great.

davidjt

HI Dave M & davidjt,

Thanks for your responses, both of which are helpful albeit in a negative way! I do not think building a jib will be particularly appropriate for this as it is a 1-off. The Liverpool lifeboat looks great and is a more appropriate method. This is going to involve building a framework between the frames and I do wonder if I am up to the task! I may have to use a first layer of normal planks and then finish with a second layer diagonally. Do you think that this will work?

All best wishes

Edward

hi,
this was how I built the cabin on my Liverpool class lifeboat you will find fixing the second layer very hard to stick them I used all sorts of clamps ect the planks are 6mm x 3mm . the first layer looks rough but the final layer came up great

HI Cenbeth
Planked many models but not actually tried diagonal planking. Often used for rounded hulls and 12mm would seem about right. From plans I have seen the planking consists of two layers laid in opposite directions resulting in a very strong but light hull. To obtain the curved sections I suspect you would need to build on a jig with lots of formers correctly chamfered to shape. Most would be waxed so the planking did not stick, and only a front and rear former would be left in the hull once dry and removed from the jig.
I am about to build a schooner on a similar jig and will be using 3mm x12mm mahogany planks placed horizontally. We have three of this type in the club so the method is well tried and tested.
Dave

It's a RSL and I was thinking of about 12mm planks.

how wide a plank are you thinking of?

3" wide planks on a diagonal are perfectly possible.

if you look at the old vic smeed simple models they were planked with balsa vertically or diagonally with quite wide planks