40' Cruising Sailboat by BenF89 - 1:12 Scale

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Ok, let me get this right....you're building an engine as well!! I gotta say, the more I think about, the more I'm looking forward to seeing it all come together. She's going to look great, no doubt.

 

I'm also glad that you were able to finally start building, because I'm like you...sometimes, you just need to build something!

 

Cheers and all the best

 

Patrick

[BenF89]

Mark,

 

Thanks for the advice - I will try that!

 

Patrick,

 

Yes - an engine too! Go big or go home, right? If you can squeeze an engine into the Mystic at that small a scale, I can surely pull off SOMETHING like an engine at a 1:12 scale.  My plan is to make the doll boat as lifelike as possible, including a lift-up companion way, and pull off side panels, to the engine compartment. And what would be an engine compartment with no engine?!

 

CYLINDERS AND CYLINDER HEADS

 

I got my wish last night- I was able to make the cylinder, cylinder heads, and rocker arm cover, and add it to the block. This one was easiest to make with three separate pieces.

 

Cylinder Block and Cylinder Heads (In Red)

 

The first was an easy warm up -  a rectangle! I mostly just had to pull one of the sizes of the odds-and-ends balsa out of my grab bag, and cut it to length. 

 

Cylinder Block

 

Then I had to make what appear to be the cylinder heads/valve covers. These were trickier, since they have a bit of shape to them. I ended up making two - I rushed/didn't use the right tooling the first time, and ended up taking chunks out of the wood. The second time fared better, so I added it to the cylinder block.

 

Cylinder Block with Cylinder Heads

 

The last piece was what looks like the rocker arm cover. This was another easy one - a small rectangle with beveled edges. I cut it, filed the edges, and added it to the assembly.

 

Complete Cylinder Block/Head/Cover Assembly

 

Then I added the whole assembly to the engine block. Pretty happy with how it looks thus far.

 

Engine Assembly - to date.

 

Whenever I get my next opportunity for progress, I think I will add the lube oil sump at the bottom of the engine, and potentially the flywheel cover.

 

 

 

 

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

I'm liking what I see!

 

I'll be looking forward to seeing your next update.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[BenF89]

Thanks Patrick! Here it is

 

LUBE OIL SUMP AND FLYWHEEL HOUSING

 

I got another chance to do some work last night, so I made the lube oil sump and flywheel housing. My current overall strategy is to fabricate anything large/blockish out of the balsa wood (block, sump, flywheel, free end 'stuff', heat exchanger, exhaust manifold, etc) and get it all glued together. Then, I'll do the white glue/water wash Mark suggested, and then probably paint it. Then, I will add all the plastic and rubber pieces (hoses, injection lines, filters, etc)

 

So, with that said...

 

LUBE OIL SUMP

 

I again printed the part details out at model scale, to use directly.

 

Lube Oil Sump Part Detail

 

I decided the best way to approach this piece would be to break it into 3 sub-parts:

 

Parts For Sump Fabricated

 

Then, I glued them up!

 

Assembled Lube Oil Sump

 

And here it is attached to the prior block/cylinder head assembly.

 

Engine Assembly With Lube Oil Sump Added

 

As a side note, the other part of my general strategy has been to move from simple to complex (roughly) and from inside to outside with the build of the engine. So, I started with the main block, which is logical from both a complexity and a sequencing perspective. Each subsequent piece has added another 'skill' - shaping, rounding edges, notching and fitting, etc. So, the sump was the next step after the cylinder heads because it was multiple pieces, which had a lot of edge rounding. 

 

The next step from that was a slightly more complex piece - the flywheel housing.

 

Flywheel Housing

 

Again, I started with a scale print out of the part. 

 

Flywheel Housing Part Detail

 

This was a more complex part because (1) it is round, and (2) it has some small intricate detail that the previous parts had less of (with the exception of the engine mounts).

 

I was able to capture the essence of the part, while not matching it exactly. I'm thinking primarily of the maze of angular brackets on the left side - there are four in a pattern on the actual piece, but I managed to get only two on there. But the 'feel' is the same, which is what I'm shooting for here.

 

I failed to take any in process pictures, but here is a picture of the part assembled.

 

Flywheel Housing Completed

 

And, here is the engine assembly to-date.

Current State of Engine Assembly 

 

I think the heat exchanger and manifolds might be next. Either them, or the free end of the engine - there is a lot of complexity there, and I need to determine if making it from balsa or scavenging from my old plastic sprues and leftover parts will be the best approach.

Edited May 6, 2015 by BenF89

[captainbob]

Looking good Ben.

 

Bob

[mtaylor]

Looking good, Ben.   You might give some thought to doing some of the sanding and painting early as more fiddly bits are going to make those actions pretty difficult. 

[Omega1234]

Nice work, Ben. The use of balsa is an intersting choice. On the one hand, it's easy to work with, but on the other hand, it's a real pain to get any degree of sharpness of detail because it's so porous and soft. But, as you've said, some diluted glue should help.

 

Nonetheless, it's still really clever what you're doing and I can't wait to see the finished product!

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[BenF89]

THE HULL LINES STRIKE BACK

 

Er, rather, I strike back at the hull lines.

 

I spent quite a while not doing much of anything with this project as we had (have) a laundry list of outdoor work items we've been trying to accomplish before the next baby shows up, which will be any day now at this point. So I've been busy outdoors. That, and we've spent several weekends going into Seattle and enjoying being able to get out of the house before we are holed up again for a few months adjusting to a newborn again.

 

That said, on our latest excursion to Seattle, I stopped by an art supply shop looking for duck weights and splines, with a grand idea of eventually getting back to doing lines by hand. However, they didn't have any. But I did walk out with a very basic set of french curves, and two large pieces of foam board with a vague idea that they may help me in my issues with trying to get the hull shape right (since at that point I didn't trust the lines I had been developing, because of the scaling issues I was running into).

 

After a little staring at the pieces, and thinking, I started by placing the hull upside down on one of the pieces, and tracing around the sheer line. At first I figured this would be a starting point for just templating the deck at the level I wanted, but I couldn't figure out how to move from a piece of foam board the shape of the sheer line to a deck level within the hull, without some other point of reference. So, I laid the hull on it's side and sort of traced the profile. I say sort of, because it was much less straightforward than the sheer line. But I had enough marks to take a go at cutting out a piece of board, and then starting to hack away at it until it fit snugly in the centerplane of the model. The first two pieces are shown in the below image.

 

Initial Template Pieces

 

I ended up trimming too much off the aft end, so I jury rigged a filler piece onto it using toothpick 'dowels' and scotch tape, and then trimming that down to shape.

 

Jury-Rigged Profile Template

 

By this point I realized I would need a midship section, as well. So I trimmed a half-station to shape, then traced it onto another piece. However, I had cut the half to just less than half-beam, meaning there was a gap in the middle. So I got some more tooth pick dowels to hold the two parts together.

 

Jury-Rigged Midship Template

 

Not satisfied with the jury-rigged midship template, I just traced the whole thing onto another piece and test fit it in the boat. It fits pretty tightly, with not too much error from the actual surface.

 

New Midship Template in Hull

 

(I ended up doing the same with the jury-rigged profile template a little later in the process)

 

At this point the vague idea sprung into clarity - I could use these three templates as scale-checkers for the hull lines! So, I started to lay out a grid, holding things as lined up and square as possible to enable using them as background images to trace over, then scale the tracing to match the actual spacings of the grid.

 

Laying Out the Grid on the Profile and Plan Templates

 

I settled on a nominal 4" station spacing, with 1/4 stations forward, and a variable spacing around the max section and the after perpendicular. I also used 1" spacings for buttock lines and waterlines.

 

Grid Laid Out on Templates

 

Once that was complete, I added the grid to the midship section.

 

Midship Section Template

 

And, for good measure, the rest of the images I used to trace over, holding the camera as square to the pieces as I could:

 

Plan Template

 

Profile Template

 

Once I traced the templates, including the grid, I did the necessary rotating (to ensure the lines were truly horizontal and vertical) and scaling so everything lined up. There was a little distortion towards the end of the pictures, but I made due as best I could - the template was at least two dimensions, so I didn't have spacial distortion like with side-shots of the model itself. Below is the tracings of the templates, aligned and ready to import into the actual hull lines drawing.

 

Traced Template Lines

 

And, finally, the current state of the hull lines. The red lines are the tracings of the templates.

 

Adjusted Lines Drawing

 

The issue was longitudinal scale - the vertical scale matched up nicely with both the profile and midship templates, and the width of the plan and section views was correct. The problem was with the longitudinal scaling of the profile and plan views, which was fairly easy to correct. The additional advantage is that I now have a pretty good centerline profile, and I have the sheer line in plan view - two things I would have had to guess at if I had stuck with just the points I measured.

 

Finally, to satisfy my curiosity, I copied the tracing of the plan view template into the 3D design model, to see how close my eyeball-based guesstimation of the hull shape was, at least at the deck. I was pretty pleased. Black is the outline of the 3D model, red is the template taken off the actual boat.

 

Shape Check of 3D Model

 

Next step will be to finish fairing, now that I have the scale right, and fairly decent templates of the governing shapes in all three views.

Edited June 1, 2015 by BenF89

[popeye the sailor]

musing the site........and what does my wandering eyes see?   ....but an absolutely delicious idea!   the execution has you pulling your hair a bit,  but your on the right track.  I wish I knew some of what your mess'in with......I'm still at the point of using parts panels to replicate my hulls     ah well,  I just wanted to let you know that I think you've got a great idea.......and now that I've commented.......this will add your build to my watch list.   I won't miss out on all the action!

 

cool looking engine......I like the imagination     I still harbor thoughts of an M&M racing boat {I've thought about making an engine as well}.   your way ahead of me   I'll have to read through all this again......perhaps I'll understand more     looking forward in seeing what ideas you have in store 

 

P.S.   your daughter's a cutie!

[BenF89]

Hi Denis! Great to have you looking in I'm looking forward to seeing what ideas I have in store, too! But first I've got to finish fairing. Just keep fairing, just keep fairing, just keep fairing fairing fairing

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Lots of nice progress, that's for sure! I especially like the engine. I do, however, know what you mean with the fairing....it just seems to never end; but once it's all smooth and even, then you can sit back and say "Okay, what's next?"

 

I look forward to seeing what the next installment will bring.

 

Cheers and all the best!

 

Patrick

[popeye the sailor]

have you given any thoughts of copying a hull from what you've come up with already?  I'm kinda hedging with the fellow who mentioned earlier,  that you may not get her back.  

[BenF89]

Hi Patrick! Thanks for the comments - I think I'm actually close to getting the curves fair, now that I've got the scale right. I just need to squeeze in the time.

 

Dennis - I have come to accept that thought as well - that I probably won't get her back! If I have the lines, sure - I could in theory make a copy. I don't know if I will, though. I think once I've done this extensive a project once - interior/exterior miniature model, I don't know that I would take it on again. I've mentioned earlier in this thread that my eventual goal is designing and scratch building RC small working ships - like Research Vessels, Offshore Support Vessels, large tugs, and the like. And before I get there, I still have a 1:350 scale kit of the Edmund Fitzgerald to start and finish. 

 

That said, I do really love sailboats - especially working out an interior arrangement. In fact, I don't care what the ship is, enjoy laying out an arrangement. The trouble with RC ships is that there's little ability to lay out and build an interior, other than what can be seen through the big windows of the bridge or other observation stations. So there may still be a time in the future that I want to bring another fictional sailboat into miniature reality.

[captainbob]

Wow a whole semester in drawing the lines in one entry.  Looking good.

 

Bob

[BenF89]

Sorry for the long gap between posts, been a lot going on. The bad news is that the gaps may not get any shorter in the near future.

 

The good news is that the reason the gaps probably won't get shorter is that my wife and I just had our second child back on Thursday, the 25th of June. A baby boy     

 

Mom and baby are doing well, and I am off work for a while to help with the adjustment from single-child to multiple children (on top of the adjustment to have a new person in the family!)

 

I'm pretty stoked. It's gonna be fun.   

Edited June 29, 2015 by BenF89

[Omega1234]

Hey Ben and Mrs Ben

 

Congratulations!!! That's wonderful news and I hope that both mum and Bub are doing really well.

 

I think you have a good excuse for the long delays between posts, because hobbies definitely take a back seat when the bubs come along.

 

All the very best to you all.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

Edited June 29, 2015 by Omega1234

[captainbob]

 

I'm pretty stoked. It's gonna be fun.   

 

Hi Ben you should be stoked.  Congratulations.

 

Bob

[Mirabell61]

Congratulations to the young Family,

 

having a Baby in summertime is great. All the best for mom and dad and the Little one....

 

Nils

[BenF89]

Thanks everyone! 

[mtaylor]

Congratulations Ben (and to your Admiral)!!!!   I guess you'll be starting a second ship for your son at some point!?   

[popeye the sailor]

congratz on the new arrival Ben! 

[BenF89]

Well, I don't have a boat update yet :/

 

But, I figured I would make up for it with a cute picture of Big Sis and Little Brother. She was just patting his tummy, and he smiled at her. They are getting along really great, which is nice. 

 

 

That said, I did just read back through the last few posts to remember exactly what it was I was doing (in both a broad, philosophical sense as well as a specific, practical sense).

 

I think the most motivating thing will be to dive back into the engine - apply the 50/50 glue/water wash, clean up the part, and paint it, then move onto the next part - again, probably the heat exchanger manifold. 

[Omega1234]

Hey Ben!

 

Great kids and bubby looks nice and happy. Who's a proud Dad, then?

 

I know that your Admiral and kids are your first priority at the moment, (as they should be), but I'm looking forward to when the time's right and you're able to get back into the boat and post your next update.

 

All the best

 

Patrick

Edited August 20, 2015 by Omega1234

[BenF89]

Aaaaaaannnnnnndddd I'm back!

 

It's felt like a long, long time since I've been able to do anything other than think about getting back to work. But now, with garden projects out of the way, and the new baby getting into a routine, and the rains of Seattle descending upon us, I'm finding moments to get back to work on this project, and finally I think it may be a regular occurrence - at least until spring comes and it's time to prepare the ground and sow seeds for the summer season. Woohoo!

 

So, without further delay:

 

ENGINE CONSTRUCTION CONTINUED - COOLANT HEAT EXCHANGER

So, a long, long time ago (but in this galaxy), I was building a small balsa wood representation of the auxiliary engine for the sailboat. I left off having made the main block, the cylinder heads, lube oil sump, and flywheel housing. The next step was going to be to coat the assembly in a 50/50 water/wood glue mixture (per advice from Mark from like eons ago) to help seal it, and then construct the coolant heat exchanger. Well, I FINALLY did that.

 

Coating Engine Assembly with 50/50 Mixture

 

While I waited for the coating to dry, I started work on the coolant heat exchanger. I started the way I have done all the pieces so far - with a printout of the part in model scale to work from. Then, I start picking from my grab-bag of balsa strips and planks and chunks to find a piece that will work for the size of the part I'm making. So far, I've been really lucky that most of the pieces somehow match thickness and width of my planks, so I just need to cut to the length I need. 

 

First Part of the Heat Exchanger

 

From the base part, I just kept eyeballing and trimming pieces, building up the part. I made this assembly in three main parts - the narrow bottom, the wider top, and the kind of extension thing that has a bit of shape to it. I glued the pieces together, and then coated the assembly with the 50/50 mix right away, since it was already mixed up. As I looked at it, I realized it didn't quite 'pop' enough. So, I looked at my original picture again, and realized I hadn't made a fill cap. So, I found a dowel that seemed exactly the right diameter (again, stroke of luck), and then made the cap from the thinnest sheet of balsa I had, cut to a diamond shape to give the illusion of a round cap with ears on two ends.

 

Assembled Heat Exchanger

 

Heat Exchanger Next to Engine Assembly

 

AIR INTAKE MANIFOLD

The next thing I worked on was the air intake manifold. This was an interesting assembly, because it (1) required carving an interesting, kind of complex shape, (2) required, for the first time in the build, a length of dowel which (3) had pieces that were VERY small and needed to be faired into the dowel. Needless to say, I had to think about this one a little bit.

 

(As an aside, I think that listening to the audiobook version of Andy Weir's The Martian while putting this part together may have had a subliminal effect at making me a better problem solver.... Excellent book made into an excellent movie.)

 

Anyway, I started with the 'blocky part' (air cooler?) by finding a balsa chunk with a thickness that matched at least one dimension of the part (either width, length, or depth) so I would only have to cut it to the size of the other two dimensions. Again, I was able to find a piece that was basically spot on. I can't remember which dimension it matched, but it matched it pretty perfectly. I trimmed a chunk out, so I had a block of the same overall length, width, and height of the part I needed to make. Then, I started shaving it down to the best of my ability to match the complex shape of this part.

 

Next, I (again) found a dowel that was nearly spot-on to the diameter of the pipe part of the assembly. So, I just cut it to length.

 

First Air Intake Manifold Pieces.

 

I used a round file and the tip of an Exacto knife to make a circular depression in the back of the blocky piece, inserted the pipe, and glued.

 

Pieces Glued Together

 

The following picture is me 'test fitting' the new parts to verify everything was going together right. 

 

Test Fit of New Assemblies

 

While carving the blocky part, I noticed that I had taken a small chunk out of the bottom of the piece. Voice #1 said 'It's at the bottom of a part on the back of the engine, in a 1:12 scale boat, in a compartment that almost no one will see. Just let it go.' Voice #2 said 'Yeah, but it would be WRONG.' (Voice #3 said 'You should probably see someone about these voices in your head). Voice #2 prevailed. I applied some Milliput to the part, and smoothed it out to fill the part, and provide a moldable, file-able coating that I could use to refine the shape once it dried.

 

Since at this point (I believe this was the next work session) the water/glue coating on the other assemblies had dried, I filed, sanded, and painted them. I based the color on some pictures I found of the engine. The color is probably a bit dark, but it was the only shade of gray I had. I'm not too concerned. 

 

Air Intake with Milliput Applied, and Painted Engine Assembly and Heat Exchanger

 

The last thing I did was coat the dowel with the 50/50 mix, since the dowel was a different type of wood  and I had some trouble getting the balsa to stick to it. (It came from an HMS Bounty POF kit I bought in high school that was WAY above my skill level, that I decided would forever remain incomplete as a reminder to appropriately assess my abilities, and that I have since cannibalized for wood.)

 

The next work session, I focused on the intricate details, cutting the three small intake ducts out of a strip of balsa. I then used a round file to try to open the tops up to fit on the dowel. I left a bit of thickness on the outside of the dowel to allow shaving down once everything was set and dry. I very (very) carefully glued the pieces on, then let it dry. 

 

Air Intake Manifold Assembly

 

I sanded/shaped the dried milliput on the blocky part, sanded down the air intake ducts so they were curved on the bottom and faired flush to the dowel, and then painted the part. In pictures of the real engine, it appeared the blocky part was a lighter gray, so I mixed some white into the gray for painting that piece. The final result is more distinguished on the model than in the pictures of it; it's hard to see the tone change in the pictures. 

 

Air Intake Painted; Heat Exchanger Glued to Engine Assembly

 

And finally, I added all the pieces to the engine assembly.

 

Engine Assembly to Date, Looking Forward Starboard.

 

Engine Assembly to Date, Looking Forward Port

 

At this point, I'm very pleased with how it looks. Sure, it looks like painted wood and not metal, but in this case Voice #1 is winning - it's not often going to be seen, and when it does get seen, it will have the essence of an auxiliary engine, which is what I'm shooting for. It already gives off the essence of an engine, and I still have loads of detail to add. I think by the time I have fuel lines and water hoses and the like added, it won't matter so much that you can see some of the wood grain.

 

Hope to have another update in the near future. I haven't decided yet what I'm going to tackle next - probably some of the complex components on the free end - the stuff driven by the belts (SW pump, Alternator, Coolant Pump, Etc).

[mtaylor]

That looks like an engine from here, Ben. 

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Your engine looks mighty convincing to me and a job really well done. The way that you've tackled each complex component methodically and systematically is a good lesson in how to handle difficult objects.  Nicely done!

 

Thanks for showing us how you did it and I'm looking forward to your next update.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[BenF89]

ENGINE FORWARD END

 

This past weekend, I got most of the forward end of the engine made. I started with my 1:1 (model scale) print, but because of how complex the first part I wanted to make was, I added several more isometric views.

 

Forward End Lower Part Drawing

 

This component contains the seawater pump, main drive belt pulley, and some kind of reservoir with a fill cap. If I had started the whole build with this part, I probably would’ve quit – in fact, this is one of the parts I’ve been perplexed from the beginning on how in the world was I going to make that. Well, with a big chunk of the rest of the engine now made, I’ve gotten the hang of looking at the part and mentally breaking it down into sub parts made that I could then problem solve how to build. I’ve also gotten the hang of mentally deleting out the unnecessary details (such as small fittings, or the precise shape of a part that could be simulated with just a chunk of dowel).

 

So, with that in mind, I took a look at the part and divided it up into chunks. The first was the mounting plate for the main pulley. This was one of the easier parts – just a small piece of balsa plank cut and filed to shape.

 

Pulley Mounting Plate

 

I should note that I actually intended to start with the main mounting plate (the piece that has what I’ll call Mickey Mouse ears). But, alas, for one of the few times in this build, I did NOT have a plank of balsa that matched the thickness of the part. So, I had to lay-up some pieces. I started by cutting a rectangle large enough to capture the whole piece, then cut my pieces of material, and glued them together.

 

Up to this point in my life, I have not done much wood working, or really anything requiring an extensive set of tools. When I have had spare funds, they typically go to books – lots and lots of books – ranging from Star Wars novels to a many, many page tome called Philisophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview. And, a LOT of books about boats. In fact, most of the books I buy are about boats. I really like boats. Not sure if that was expressed Anyway, the point of that tangent was to explain why there is not a single wood clamp in my possession. Which presented a challenge with gluing two thin pieces of balsa wood together. I started by just using what I had – a book! (This one was a large volume covering the minute details of the design and construction of the Titanic.) I came up with a better solution a bit later, however...

 

With my laid up part sitting under a book, and the mounting plate for the pulley cut, I moved on to the pulley itself next. Again, I didn’t have a piece of balsa the correct thickness. So, I cut two circles (ish), and glued them together. The part seemed too small to put under a book, but then I came up with my better idea. I didn’t have a wood clamp, but I did have an adjustable wrench! So, I took the pulley and compressed it in the wrench.

 

Engineer's Wood Clamp

 

With the pulley drying, I moved on to the seawater pump. This I simplified down to two pieces of dowel – one large, and one small. Luckily, I did have dowels that were close enough in diameter to the pump pieces, so I just had to cut them to length and glue them together.

 

Seawater Pump

 

Finally, I had the little fill pipe and cap for the reservoir-thing to make. A reasonable person would probably just cut a piece of dowel and call it good. I think at this point we’ve established that I am only partially reasonable, and that I have just enough crazy to be building a 1:12 scale model of an engine that will probably rarely be seen once put in the doll boat I’m making for my 2-1/2 year old daughter. So, I found a thin plank of wood (again, cannibalized from the Bounty model kit) and made the tab for the fill cap.

 

Fill Cap/Evidence of Mental Instability

 

At this point, the pulley part was dried enough to not come apart, so I took the laid up pieces for that big part out from under the book and clamped it in the wrench. Ended up working beautifully.

 

With all the pieces for that first complex part made and/or drying, I moved on to the next big part – the belt cover. This was a fairly easy one, as I just needed to cut out the perimeter of the part from some balsa sheet that was the right thickness (no layup required here).

 

Belt Cover-1

 

Then, I added some detail to the front. The strips were from the thin planking I stole from the Bounty, and the cone-ish shaped part on top was hand made by cutting a square and then filing. And filing. And filing.

 

Belt Cover - 2

 

Now that part was done and drying, and I STILL had some time in the day, so I moved on to another complex part (at least at first look). This was the main coolant circulation pump, located at the top of the forward end of the engine. But again I broke it down into basic components – some flat parts for the mounting plate and pulley, and some dowel parts for the pump body, a filter of some type, and the discharge hose barb.

 

Coolant Pump-1

 

Coolant Pump-2

 

Coolant Pump-3

 

When I came back to finish up the next day (having given everything overnight to dry fully), I started by cutting out the front view of the drawing and gluing it to the laid up rectangle. Then, I just cut around the edge, and filed into shape.

 

Lower Mounting Block

 

So, that done, I took a picture of everything I had made – the belt cover, coolant pump, and all the sub-parts to the lower assembly.

 

Forward End Parts and Sub-Parts

 

Then the fun part – gluing the lower assembly together. Once finished, I was REALLY happy – I think it captured the essence of the part spot-on.

 

Lower Forward End Assembly - 1

 

Lower Forward End Assembly - 2

 

And, a picture of all the parts from this weekend together.

 

Forward End Parts (2)

 

Finally, I wanted to test my craftsmanship and see if the part would actually fit in the space left for it on the main assembly (as well as pre-visualize what it will look like). With some filing, everything is going to fit flush, and the size of the part is perfect for the little lip that was left for it. Again, really pleased with how this first scratch building adventure is progressing.

 

Test Fit - 1

 

Test Fit - 2

 

Here is a rendering of the current state of the engine – everything in green is what I have made so far. The gray is what remains. Really getting into the final details now. Well, and the whole saildrive unit.

 

 

Next time, I’ll probably make the alternator and starter motor. I may need to get some larger dowels, though. There are some parts remaining that dowel would be perfect for, but they are too large in diameter for what I have on hand. Probably won't get to that for a couple weeks, though - this Saturday we are all flying to the East Coast to visit family for two weeks. My wife and I both grew up in Northeast Pennsylvania, so both our families are there, which makes visiting everyone easy - they all live within a ten mile radius of each other!

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Once again, it's marvellous how you're able to break a really complex object into its barest sub-parts and tackle each part systematically. It makes for a very convincing and authentic completed unit, when all the parts are out together. A really nice job!

 

Also, have a great two week trip visiting your families.

 

I look forward to your next update.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

Edited October 26, 2015 by Omega1234

[popeye the sailor]

your doing a pretty good job here.........I've had thoughts about something like this,  but no place to apply it    this in itself,  is a really complex model!

 

looks super!   how are you with a big block? 

[BenF89]

Thanks for the comments and likes!

 

Dennis,

 

If by 'big block' you mean a real engine (like a car or boat engine), I am woefully inexperienced. I do not have much of a mechanical aptitude. I kind of know about engines, but I leave any tinkering to people who do that professionally - I'd botch something up if I tried to do anything, even change the oil! Any knowledge I have is all head knowledge from hours in marine engineering class learning about marine diesel engines.

 

I admire people like you who can take engines apart and put them together again - I've only done it twice, each time in a team with other students, with detailed instructions, and they were both single-cylinder engines. One was a Lister-Petter single-cylinder lifeboat engine, and one was a single-cylinder demonstration version of a Low Speed Diesel (the type where the height of the engine required multiple platforms and stair sets to get from bottom to top). Our class split into two teams; one team disassembled the cylinder head, and the other disassembled the piston (which was a two-part deal - the piston and the crank, coupled by a cross-tie). Then the team that disassembled the cylinder head  re-installed the piston, and the team that took the piston apart re-installed the cylinder head. It was a neat exercise, but did not leave a lasting mechanical skill set, at least for me.

 

Anyway, Small Update:

 

Tonight, just to get back in the swing of things, I painted the parts I had made last time. I found an excellent link with a lot of hi-res pictures of this model of engine (with a normal gear vs. a saildrive) that is going to help immensely with getting the colors right. (http://svbreakaway.info/boat-projects.php#repower)

 

So, one assembly had some new colors, other than gray and slightly different gray! On the big subassembly, there is an orange fill cap, and the seawater pump is bronze. Which I used brass metallic paint for, since that's what I had, but I think it will work out alright.

 

Here's a picture!

 

I need to get some more dowel to complete the next sets of parts, but once I do, I'll have another update.