Jump to content

Recommended Posts

I don't have room for either a full size table saw or large bandsaw, so I took advantage of a program at our local university where alumni can pay a reasonable annual fee to gain access to the woodshop at the craft center on campus.  This is a boon for my woodworking efforts as it is only a 20 minute drive from my home and while the equipment is not perfect it is fully workable for my needs.

 

Last night I took a stab at first resawing efforts with some Castello, Holly, and Pear I had obtained to make lumber for my Echo Cross Section fitting out kit.  

 

All in all I was pretty pleased with the effort...the magnetic fence I picked up worked fine for resawing.  I do think I'll add a couple more magnets to the fence...they are available separately from the manufacturer.

 

In the photo grouping of resawn wood you'll notice a stack of basswood at the very back...I had picked up a piece of cheaper basswood for testing...this proved to be a wise move as I was able to develop my technique before cutting into the more expensive wood.  I saved the holly to last as I wanted to make a number of thin strips for planking...this proved easy once the fence was properly set and technique was mastered.

 

In the final photo I've taped bundles of the cut wood so it can acclimate to my home workshop before further processing....I'll be taking delivery of a thickness sander from Jim Byrnes during next week's NRG convention in Florida...I'll post further photos once I start thickness sanding of these pieces.

 

1-IMG_2404.JPG

2-IMG_2405.JPG

1-IMG_2407.JPG

 

3-IMG_2409.JPG

 

Edited by clifforddward

Cliff Ward

Cary, North Carolina

USA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Joe

There are a couple of Bandsaws in the shop...this one is about a 16” model and has a rip type blade with about 5-6 teeth per inch with width being about 5/8”. The blade has a few flaws I could see that created irregularity in some pieces...I’m looking forward to seeing if the thickness sander cleans things up.  

 

I suspect the workshop would allow me to donate a new blade and I may consider that in the future... although I doubt they would allow a wider resaw blade as this bandsaw sees general use by many students and would not be dedicated to redrawing... such is the nature of shared shop equipment.  So I am hoping the slabs I sawed will clean up OK on the thickness sander...if so this will turn out to be a satisfactory solution.

 

The bandsaw had pretty good guides with fairly well adjusted roller bearings...a heavy commercial looking bandsaw.

Cliff Ward

Cary, North Carolina

USA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cliff,

 

Good start.

 

You have more bravery than I have. Being compulsive, I would have taken the sanding planer with me.

I am never sure how much thicker my stock must be to get a 220 finish on both

sides and have all of the blade scars removed.

I try to keep it as close to final as possible to get max yield.  The additional passes thru

the thickness sander is tedious, time consuming and poor wood economy.

 

In your place, I would find out the blade length for their bandsaw and if I could use my own on

their machine.  If I could I would purchase 3 or 4  1/2" Wood Slicer blades from Highland.

A 5/8" or 3/4" blade is not better at resawing than a 1/2" blade.  The steel is top quality.

the blade is thin and it only has a minimum set,  so the kerf is as low as can be had.

These blades last longer, but they are expensive and you only want to use  them for resawing.

The trick for efficient tracking when resawing, is not having a wider blade.  The trick is in

the blade position.  The cutting edge of the teeth should ride on the crown of the top wheel.

And, a wider blade will not stop it wandering when the cutting edge gets dull

I know for a fact that even a hard steel blade will snap if you push it when dull.

The blade only needs have just enough tension. A tighter blade does not resist wander,

it just more likely to break.

 

 

I would also make friends with a couple of local tree service companies and pay them for any

Pear, Hawthorn, Plum, and especially Apple butts and large limbs.  18-24" is plenty long.

Cherry is great, and Sweet Cherry is similar in hardness and grain to Black Cherry, but the color is tan.  Unless they

work old fence rows,  a tree service is only likely to cut eatable cherry trees.  Fortunately, Black

Cherry is readily available from  commercial sources.  And half the work is done over self harvest,

billeting, and drying.

 

You are a good haul from the mountains and the deals to be had on rough cut 

Hard Maple and Black Cherry, But it may be worth a trip, especially if you do not have a retail 

yard like Yukon Lumber near by who also sell rough stock.. The mill planers take off significant wood, so a  smooth planed 3/4"

board at a retail yard is 1- 1 1/4" thick at a country saw mill.  And yes, it is a PITA to get

smooth face on the top and bottom edges of slabs resawn from rough boards, But frame  timbers

do not need this anyway and you have up to a 1/2" more width - depending on how much checking there is.

Edited by Jaager

NRG member 45 years

 

Current:  

HMS Centurion 1732 - 60-gun 4th rate - Navall Timber framing

HMS Beagle 1831 refiit  10-gun brig with a small mizzen - Navall (ish) Timber framing

The U.S. Ex. Ex. 1838-1842
Flying Fish 1838  pilot schooner -  framed - ready for stern timbers
Porpose II  1836  brigantine/brig - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers
Vincennes  1825  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers assembled, need shaping
Peacock  1828  Sloop-of -War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Sea Gull  1838  pilot schooner -  timbers ready for assembly
Relief  1835  ship - timbers ready for assembly

Other

Portsmouth  1843  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Le Commerce de Marseilles  1788   118 cannons - framed

La Renommee 1744 Frigate - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cliff Your resawn lumber looks great, and a good solution for the sharing of tools. On Thursday last week we had some tree pruners come and do some serious thinning of some overgrown apple trees in the back yard. I took the time to share my affection for wood and let the pruners see my collection of wood. I gave the foreman a small piece of boxwood.

Next thing he asks for my phone number and says that they get to cut stuff like Russian Olive, Cherry and Elm. He will call me when something good comes up.

 

I will be re-sawing the apple and stickering it for future work.

 

Michael

Current builds  Bristol Pilot Cutter 1:8;      Skipjack 19 foot Launch 1:8;       Herreshoff Buzzards Bay 14 1:8

Other projects  Pilot Cutter 1:500 ;   Maria, 1:2  Now just a memory    

Future model Gill Smith Catboat Pauline 1:8

Finished projects  A Bassett Lowke steamship Albertic 1:100  

 

Anything you can imagine is possible, when you put your mind to it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Taking advantage of the week between the holidays by trying out my Byrnes thickness sander...making up a "kit" of Echo Cross Section fitting out wood from the Castello I recently cut over at the college craft center.  I had allowed .030" oversize when resawing...did finish thickness sanding of four 12" pieces, two 11" pieces, and then one each of 10" and 8.5" stock (1:48 scale)...turns out I had plenty of rough cut wood to work from, even with the uneven cut from the shop blade.  In the future I beleive I can start with .025" oversize and be fine. 

 

For today's activities, I started with 8 pieces, thinning them as a group on the rougher grit until I got close to each size...seemed to be a good practical way to work down multiple pieces at the same time. 


2-IMG_2524.thumb.JPG.ff22171f0220eae9d653c65aa43b125e.JPG

 

Anytime I've resawn wood warping has always been a concern....here I'll keep this freshly finish sanded stock under weight for a week or so to make certain everything stays in place.

1-IMG_2523.thumb.JPG.cdded5d64f106784a90af1f1b7c98716.JPG

 

Over the next few days I'll make up the progressively thinner stock that makes up the Echo Cross Section fitting out kit.  I'll also be making up some pear to have for contrasting wood as I get into the build.

Cliff Ward

Cary, North Carolina

USA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On ‎10‎/‎21‎/‎2017 at 9:45 AM, clifforddward said:

I don't have room for either a full size table saw or large bandsaw, so I took advantage of a program at our local university where alumni can pay a reasonable annual fee to gain access to the woodshop at the craft center on campus.  This is a boon for my woodworking efforts as it is only a 20 minute drive from my home and while the equipment is not perfect it is fully workable for my needs.

 

Last night I took a stab at first resawing efforts with some Castello, Holly, and Pear I had obtained to make lumber for my Echo Cross Section fitting out kit.  

 

All in all I was pretty pleased with the effort...the magnetic fence I picked up worked fine for resawing.  I do think I'll add a couple more magnets to the fence...they are available separately from the manufacturer.

 

In the photo grouping of resawn wood you'll notice a stack of basswood at the very back...I had picked up a piece of cheaper basswood for testing...this proved to be a wise move as I was able to develop my technique before cutting into the more expensive wood.  I saved the holly to last as I wanted to make a number of thin strips for planking...this proved easy once the fence was properly set and technique was mastered.

 

In the final photo I've taped bundles of the cut wood so it can acclimate to my home workshop before further processing....I'll be taking delivery of a thickness sander from Jim Byrnes during next week's NRG convention in Florida...I'll post further photos once I start thickness sanding of these pieces.

 

1-IMG_2404.JPG

2-IMG_2405.JPG

1-IMG_2407.JPG

 

3-IMG_2409.JPG

 

With all the small saw mills in N C it is a gold mine for wood, I had great luck asking for cast off's struck a huge load of HOLLY when I lived in Maggie Valley

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cliff, that wood looks great. How nice is that sander eh?  I was looking at the Echo cross section wood list and there are so many different sizes looks like you are off to a great start.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cliff - your wood looks great!  I'm looking forward to your Echo cross section build. It will be great to not be the only one.  I milled my own wood for the cross section, too.  Even though the framing and fitting out kits were available, I figured I had bought the table saw, thickness sander, and band saw, so was obliged to use them.  David and Greg were very helpful and let me buy the plans and a cannon barrel separately from the wood.

 

I haven't had any problems with pear, holly, or boxwood billets warping, although my wood has sat on the shelf for a few years prior to being cut.  The big problem as been when I cut the billets into strips.  Not a big deal for planks,  but some of the strips cut for spars and masts for Hannah looked like modern art.  The beauty of having the tools is not having to mill everything at once.  There are tons of different sizes woods after you finish the framing.

 

Best wishes and happy modelling for the new year.

 

Dave

Current builds:

Wingnut Wings AMC DH9

Model Shipways 1/48 Longboat

Model Shipways 1/24 Grand Banks Dory

 

Soon to start:

Fully framed Echo

 

Completed builds:

East Coast Oyster Sharpie

Echo Cross Section

1/48 Scratchbuilt Hannah from Hahn plans

1/64 Kitbashed Rattlesnake from Bob Hunt practicum

1/64 Brig Supply

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Being able to mill your own wood looks like a great skill to have especially with the apparent lack of suppliers these days.  Was wondering where you get the larger pieces of wood to start with

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Michael,

 

A quick check on the Net for your area includes:

C.R. Muterspaw Lumber   Xenia OH

" sells the finest domestic, quartersawn, figured, and exotic hardwoods   ...  Our specialty is figured wood, including such species as Tiger Maple, Curly Hard Maple, Birdseye Maple, and Curly Cherry "

Now, this is exactly the opposite of what interests me, but perhaps they have some plain straight grain boring stock too, maybe a deal can be had?

Also,  while I prefer 2" length stock, anything from 6" on up is worth having, so end cuttings and short stock may be discounted.

What they offer that would interest me +  Birch,  Cherry, Hard Maple, Poplar

 

There is Western Ohio Hardwoods  in Dayton, but I found no Web presence, so what they are and what they have = ?

 

You can also check for local saw mills - rough and green lumber often, but with a good band saw and proper storage - you can save there.

I get more wood from the rough cut - not finish planed stock.

Edited by Jaager

NRG member 45 years

 

Current:  

HMS Centurion 1732 - 60-gun 4th rate - Navall Timber framing

HMS Beagle 1831 refiit  10-gun brig with a small mizzen - Navall (ish) Timber framing

The U.S. Ex. Ex. 1838-1842
Flying Fish 1838  pilot schooner -  framed - ready for stern timbers
Porpose II  1836  brigantine/brig - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers
Vincennes  1825  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers assembled, need shaping
Peacock  1828  Sloop-of -War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Sea Gull  1838  pilot schooner -  timbers ready for assembly
Relief  1835  ship - timbers ready for assembly

Other

Portsmouth  1843  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Le Commerce de Marseilles  1788   118 cannons - framed

La Renommee 1744 Frigate - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Regarding the wood blanks for masts and spars I have had similar problems (I believe it's referred to as sprung wood). Jeff Hayes, formerly of the HobbyMill, was particularly adept at providing perfectly straight lengths of boxwood for mast and spars. I have some blanks of wood from him over a decade old that are still straight as a pool cue.

 

Greg

website
Admiralty Models

moderator Echo Cross-section build
Admiralty Models Cross-section Build

Finished build
Pegasus, 1776, cross-section

Current build
Speedwell, 1752

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Michael:

I got some 24"-30" long billets of Castello and Swiss Pear from Gilmer Wood Company...they offer finished wood by the piece...I was able to get a few pieces 1.5"-2.25" thick.  Looking just now they are out of stock of pieces of both, although I imagine they have rough boards they could cut from.

 

I also picked up a billet of Buxus via the web...want to do some test cutting of that to see how the denser wood works.

 

I avoid buying green lumber...did that in the past when I had a shop I could dry the wood in long term, but doing so without warpage involves more effort and technique than most realize...I allowed two years per inch of wood, and that assumes you can stack and sticker the wood with enough weight on top to control initial warping.  Nowadays I'll work with wood that has been kiln dried and/or air cured by others...we don't use that much so the price is not prohibitive.

 

So far I'm impressed with resawing and using the thickness sander...results as nice as wood purchased by the shipbuilding sources...a bit time consuming but results seem fine.  And as you say with the choices of dealers limited these days doing it one's self has great advantage.

 

Dave:

You are right about all the sizes of wood for the Echo Cross Section fitting out kit...looking at the wood list there are 14 thicknesses of Castello called out...plus a half dozen more in Holly.  

I think cutting your own is the best way to go for scratchbuilding...provides all the flexibility needed.

Edited by clifforddward

Cliff Ward

Cary, North Carolina

USA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Greg,

Can you tell if your boxwood that has stayed straight was quarter sawn?  I'm particularly picky about wood choice, and I've found over the years that no matter what the species quarter sawn was the way to go for pieces requiring stability.

 

The billets of Castello I'm cutting in the photos accompanying this thread are quartersawn straight grain...

 

the Buxus piece I have is through the center of the log...I'm going to cut it in half, then turn 90 degrees so as to cut slabs that are quarter sawn....should work out I think.

 

Interesting side note is that for planking the best bending wood is not quarter sawn but rather "flat sawn" which is cut perpendicular to quarter sawn wood.  I've got some Holly for planking I'm planning on flat sawing when the time comes.  Note this follows full size prototype modern woodworking practice for cutting wood to be bent without splitting.  Of course riving is even better but I'm not about to start riving buxus!

 

Sorry about my weak explanation....I suspect a web search of the terms will yield images that will be more useful than my description.

Cliff Ward

Cary, North Carolina

USA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, clifforddward said:

Sorry about my weak explanation....I suspect a web search of the terms will yield images that will be more useful than my description.

hehe all this is new to me so that is exactly what I am doing. Although your description is pretty good.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Michael - I got my boxwood from Gilmer Wood, like you did.  Would definitely suggest not relying on the pictures on the website, but calling them and explaining what you need.  In the past, I had just picked my pieces from their pictures on the website.  The last time I needed boxwood, I called and explained what I was looking for, and they told me that if I didn't mind waiting, they would get me better pieces.  About a month later I got a call from them, and got some 2x4" lengths of extremely tight grained, uniform colored Castello boxwood - nicest wood I have ever gotten.  They were tremendously helpful - I was very impressed.

 

Dave

Current builds:

Wingnut Wings AMC DH9

Model Shipways 1/48 Longboat

Model Shipways 1/24 Grand Banks Dory

 

Soon to start:

Fully framed Echo

 

Completed builds:

East Coast Oyster Sharpie

Echo Cross Section

1/48 Scratchbuilt Hannah from Hahn plans

1/64 Kitbashed Rattlesnake from Bob Hunt practicum

1/64 Brig Supply

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...