Start here · Essential guide
Making a Model Boat Hull: Methods and Materials
An overview of the main ways to make a model boat hull, from solid and bread-and-butter to planked, clinker, fibreglass and vacuum-formed, and how to choose.
Plans and Hulls
Hull Building
Plank-on-bulkhead, plank-on-frame, clinker and bread-and-butter hulls, plus fairing, planking, waterproofing and coppering.
Building a Bread-and-Butter Model Boat Hull from Laminated Layers
How to build a bread-and-butter model boat hull: choosing wood, cutting waterline or buttock lifts, hollowing, gluing up the stack and carving it to shape.
Building Clinker Model Boats
How to build a clinker (lapstrake) model boat: moulds and backbone, lining off the laps, spiling and bevelling planks, gains at the ends, and finishing.
How to Copper-Plate a Model Ship Hull
How to copper-plate a model ship hull: choosing plates, foil or paint, working out scale plate size, marking the waterline, laying rows and finishing the copper.
How to Fair Bulkheads Before Planking a Model Ship
Step-by-step guide to fairing model ship bulkheads before planking: checking alignment, marking bevels, sanding with a batten check, shimming and filler blocks.
How to Waterproof a Wooden Model Boat Hull with Epoxy and Glass Cloth
How to waterproof a wooden model boat hull with epoxy and light glass cloth: materials, cloth weights, wetting out, fill coats, sealing inside and safety.
Model Boat Moulds for Fibreglass and Plastic Hulls
How model boat moulds work: making a plug, taking a fibreglass female mould, laying up hulls, vacuum forming plastic, plus resins, release agents and safety.
Model Boat Timber and Planking Supplies
Which timbers suit model boat keels, bulkheads, planking and decks, what strip sizes to buy, and what to check before you order planking supplies.
Plank-on-Bulkhead vs Plank-on-Frame: Choosing How to Build a Model Ship Hull
Plank-on-bulkhead vs plank-on-frame model ship hulls compared: how each is built, skill, time, cost and accuracy, and which suits your next model.
Planking a Wooden Model Ship or Yacht Hull
How to plank a wooden model ship or yacht hull: lining off, tapering and bending planks, stealers, double planking and strip-planking an RC yacht.
Using Wooden Decks on Model Ships
How to plank a wooden deck on a model ship: subdeck prep, choosing wood, simulating caulking, butt shifts, margin planks, treenails and a realistic finish.
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