How to Build a Model Boat
A model boat can be referred to when attempting to build a working boat. There are numerous types of boats, and models can be built to set up for looks, for children to play with, or for building a boat. The following directions will assist you in building a small model boat to be used for decorations or as a toy only.
Things You'll Need
- Pack of tongue depressors
- Wood glue
- Wood shears
- Pencil
- Paint
- Paintbrush
Instructions
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1
Cut off the rounded ends of all tongue depressors and then begin to construct the bottom of the model boat. Lay out two tongue depressors parallel to one another and begin to glue more tongue depressors onto the two, placing the additional tongue depressors side by side, so that the ends are glued to the first tongue depressors, creating a sheetlike formation. Allow this to dry for a few hours.
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2
Use a pencil to sketch on the newly created bottom of the boat. Draw out a bullet shape; this creates the nose of the boat. In a working model, or actual-size boat, the nose is used to slice through the water easily, pushing the water and waves around the sides of the boat, instead of allowing the waves to hit the front.
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3
Cut the outlined shape using the wood shears. This step requires carefulness and might also require additional gluing, as it may cause your boat bottom to come apart as you attempt to cut out the shape. Also cut the curved ends off of six tongue depressors, and glue them between two tongue depressors, creating a sheet-like form. This will be used as support for three more sheets like the one used to create the bottom of the boat.
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4
Soak four full-length tongue depressors in water, checking them every couple of hours; the purpose of this is to get the tongue depressors pliable so you can form them into the shape of the curve on the bottom of the boat. Once the tongue depressors are very easily formed, curve them into shape and remove them from the water so they will dry into this shape. Two tongue depressors should follow the curve of each side of the boat bottom.
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5
Glue two dried, curved pieces to two of the small tongue depressor cuts, so that the cuts are one to two inches from the ends of the tongue depressors. Repeat this with the two remaining curved pieces and two more of the small cuts; after this you will have formed the two sides of the boat. Glue the sides to the bottom of the boat.
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6
Construct a back to the boat that fits into the existing open area, glue the two tongue depressors measuring the length of the open area to the two remaining smaller pieces cut out in Step 3. Glue the formed back piece into place and allow the model boat to dry and then paint the model however you wish.
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