I've always admired Colin Archer's sailing rescue ships that he designed and built for the Norwegian Society for Shipwreck and Salvage so when I found a local hobby shop had the Billings Kit version of the Colin Archer, I couldn't resist.
Reviews of the kit were critical of the poor quality of the instructions and I'd have to agree. The instruction booklet consists of a list of materials and and a series of drawings with numbers that refer back to the list of materials. For a kit described as a beginners kit the lack of information would I think, be pretty off putting especially when tackling the planking.
The photos show progress to date:
Initial setting up of the frames.
The two halves of the hull clamped together with the location of the cockpit cut out. This step wasn't indicated on the plans but it needed to be done as it would be impossible once the hull was assembled.
Planking underway, it's hard to see but fillers have been added to the bow and stern to give the ends of the planks a firm land.
Despite the lack of detailed instructions I'm really enjoying the project and getting back to a hobby I last touched as a teenager a long time ago.
Jim