Schooner Altair by KeithAug - Scale 1:32 - 1931 - Finished

[KeithAug]

Michael /Bob

 

Thank you for continuing with your support and comments. I have now coated the hatch with a few coats of poly and its looking quite smart.

Edited November 25, 2016 by KeithAug

[Bedford]

Thank you Michael and John. I think I'll try it once more taking a little more care on the soldering.

 

Hi Keith, when soldering and needing a neat finish use a bristle paint brush, not nylon, as soon as you finish with the solder brush the excess off with the paint brush. It usually works a treat. Obviously it will leave a smear of solder across the job but that's removable. 

 

 

[KeithAug]

Thank you Bedford. I'll try it.

[KeithAug]

The exterior of the crew hatch now has 4 coats of poly. I guess one more coat will do it. I will also need to paint the inside

 

 

I have gone back to the deckhouse and had a go at the deckhouse doors (2 off).

 

I started with the door jambs. These were made over wide with the positions for the hinges accurately cut on the table saw. The hinge cuts were made in a plank before strips were sliced off. Thus ensuring the the position of the hinge cut outs were identical for both doors.

 

 

The strips were glued to the frame and once dry they were reduced to the correct width. Effectively leaving 5 separate pieces of door jamb on each side.

 

 

The hinge cut outs were then removed with a chisel.

In parallel I made the doors. Both doors were made joined - they will be separated later.

 

 

 

 

[Landlocked123]

WOW!!!!! The finish makes all the difference. First rate build. Beautiful boat. Congratulations!

 

Best,

John

[KeithAug]

John

 

Thank you for your comments and thanks to the rest of you who have hit the like button.

[KeithAug]

I spent much of my spare time this weekend finishing the deck house doors. 

 

I made the 3rd set of hinges and was finally happy with them. In particular my soldering was much improved.

 

 

Getting the hinges in the right position proved vital for smooth operation. In the end I took the pins out and mounted the hinge halves separately. Accurate cutting out of the hinge recesses proved to be a key aid to correct positioning.

 

 

Having mounted both doors I spent a few hours making the door handles (matching the originals in so far as scale and skill) would allow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[michael mott]

Beautiful work on the hinges Keith., I just found some 1/32 brass tube so I am going to try your method for some small hinges.

 

Michael

[Jim Lad]

All still looking absolutely first class, Keith.

 

John

[KeithAug]

Michael

 

If you have a go at the hinges here are a few pointers.

 

 

I found it better to have the thickness of brass sheet a bit less half the OD of the tube. Any thicker and the hinges didn't fully close.

 

The chamfer on the sheet gave a better joint - slightly more contact area. In the end I found tinning the sheet and tube to be counterproductive as it was harder to get the sheet and tube in good contact along their length. 

Once soldered I cut the tube on the jig with a fine razor saw (52 tpi)

After soldering I parted of the sheet by hand with a razor saw. The mill slitting saw generated too much heat / vibration and tended to detach the tube.

 

John - thank you for the comments which are much appreciated.

Edited November 28, 2016 by KeithAug

[michael mott]

Thanks for the info Keith, that is useful.

 

michael

[KeithAug]

I'm back on line after a 4 day broadband failure. 20 years ago it would have been a non event but in the modern era it feels like the end of the world. Anyway I did a bit of work on the skylights - in particular the 5 forward of the deck house.

 

I had a few good photographs of the skylights and one bit of detail that was catching my eye was the dovetail joints on the corners of the upstands.

 

 

The plans for the hatches were reasonable and together with the photos they made interpretation relatively straightforward.

 

One advantage of this part of the build was that the 3 centreline hatches are identical in cross section (but of varying length). I therefore cut a solid block of mahogany to the correct shape (together with joints) and then parted off the 6 ends .050 thick. I went for finger joints rather than dovetails. The fingers are only .050 inch wide and my skill isn't up to cutting dovetails at this size.

 

 

The sidewalls were all of different lengths but I made them in a similar way to the ends to get matched pairs.

 

 

The finger joints were checked for accuracy prior to cutting them to the required thickness.

 

 

The slices were then cut.

 

 

Before being checked again. To give an idea of scale the side walls are .4 inches high.

 

Edited December 3, 2016 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

I continued with the skylights - taking care to get them square.

 

 

Ribs and skirts were added.

 

 

I didn't think that any below deck detail would be visible through the small skylight windows, so I didn't do any. I was a bit worried however that the lighter woods on the inside of the hull might look a bit odd so I decided to clad the inner spaces in darker wood.

 

 

The 5 skylights are now in position but not painted or fixed. I'm hoping they will come up really well after a few coats of poly. Fingers crossed that the joints will show up well.

 

 

I think I'll have a go at the windows next. I have a few ideas but it all seems a bit complicated and fiddley. 

 

 

[Landlocked123]

I love your finger joints. Great work.

 

Best,

John

[KeithAug]

Thank you John.

[michael mott]

Very nice way to produce a set of matching finger joints on a set of skylights, I like it and have filed it away for future use.

 

Michael

[Jim Lad]

First class work on the skylights, Keith.

 

John

[mtaylor]

I think "awe" is the right word I'm looking for, Keith.  The finger joints are blowing my mind.

[KeithAug]

Michael, John, Mark.

 

Thank you for your continuing interest and kind remarks. One of the great things about MSW is the support everyone gets from fellow builders of exceptional skill.

[KeithAug]

Skylight Windows.

 

I think I have made hard work of making these and many of you will have improvements to suggest. If you do feel free to advise.

 

One of the key elements I wanted to achieve was to set the protective brass bars within the frame and have them separated from (not sitting directly on) the window acetate. This reflects the design on the original. This had to be done while minimising the thickness of the window frames so that it looks to scale. The window are 1.1 x .980 inch and I wanted them less than .100 inch thick

 

Because I needed to make a number of matching frames I made a simple jig. This was cut from one of my wife's chopping boards. (To clarify I have one wife and she has a number of boards I find one is more than ample)!!!! As yet she has not discovered the theft.

 

I find nylon chopping boards make ideal jigs particularly if they are to be used while gluing components. The glue does not adhere to them and the glued and dried components are easily removed.

 

 

The first layer of the frame is built from .040 inch thick mahogany. Slots of .025 inch wide and deep were accurately cut into the mahogany to take the brass bars which are cut from .024 inch wire. The side strips of the frame was then cut - .100 inch wide.

 

 

The fist (top layer) of the window was then assembled in the jig from 7 separate pieces and glued with PVA. 

 

 

The second layer of the window is constructed from .018 inch thick by .100 inch wide mahogany. The strips for the top and bottom of the window were glued in place (PVA) to reinforce the 1st  layer. The brass bars were positioned and fixed with CA glue. 

 

 

Then the bars were closed in place by edge strips in the .018 inch mahogany.

 

 

The final layer forms the recess for the acetate and is .040 x .040 inch in section.

 

 

Having cut all the components and with a bit of practice assembly time for each window is less than 30 minutes.

 

 

The acetate was cut to fit - at this stage it still has its protective covering.

 

 

Many more lights still to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited December 6, 2016 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

A few more lights completed - but of a different design.

 

Edited December 6, 2016 by KeithAug

[Jim Lad]

Very neatly done, Keith.

 

John

[KeithAug]

Thank you John. I am awaiting with anticipation the announcement of your next build.

[Julie Mo]

When I see the painstaking process necessary to achieve the level of quality you achieve, Keith, I am in awe at not only your skill and experience but also your patience.  I am thinking patience may be the most important trait necessary to create this level of craftsmanship.  Simply amazing! 

[KeithAug]

Thank you Julie. Being patient helps, but a good dose of obsessive compulsive disorder is also an advantage. 

Edited December 9, 2016 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

A little more progress - now most of the windows ready to be mounted within the the outer part of the frames..

 

 

The profiling of the skylight frames is quite noticeable and I wanted to reproduce this. The sanding dust is making it look a bit messy.

 

 

To get a clear view of the detail needs a bit of experimentation with the light.

 

Edited December 10, 2016 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

I find that time flies by and many jobs get in the way of boat building. Never the less I have made a bit more progress. Many of the skylights are now in place (but not yet glued). The mushroom vent for the galley skylight is made and as per the original it opens vertically by means of a screw. Most of the skylights are part finished with the window frames painted with poly, the bodies however are only sanded as yet.

 

I also assembled and glued the side walls of the deckhouse and fitted the roof (not yet glued). I was pleased with the accuracy with which it came together.

 

 

 

[Jim Lad]

Thanks for those overall shots, Keith - she looks very impressive!

 

John

[michael mott]

Keith superb work on the deck houses and the skylights. Great to see it all together.

 

Michael

[KeithAug]

John / Michael

 

Thanks for the comments and thanks to others for viewing and liking. It does fell like she is starting to come together.