thibaultron

John, my thoughts and prayers for you and Diane. Good to hear of some improvements; a positive sign.

Thanks to all who have offered prayers and well wishes for my Admiral Diane.  There is improvement today and I hope and pray that it continues.  You guys are great and if I missed acknowledging anyone, please forgive me.  Getting old sucks as many of us know, however, it is better than the alternative, not to make light of it.  I'll try to post updates when I can.
Thanks my friends,
John 

I think the curve on the footboards fools you into thinking the sprit is curved.

I think the curve on the footboards fools you into thinking the sprit is curved.

Thanks for the replies. Sanding the surface concerns me because of the fine detail on the PE pieces, like the hinges that I'm going to be using for the Roundhouse doors...coming up very soon. I did apply a grey metal primer to the brass before I started painting, and it worked fine on the black hinges, but the gold "columns" that are part of the roundhouse didn't. The paint did not adhere very well, so I took it off and that is why I was looking at alternative methods before I try again. The primer I used is designed...at least it is supposed to be...specifically for brass PE material. I am using Calder Admiralty paints that I purchased from England, so it it my be just the gold that is troublesome.
 
Cog:
 I will check out the link you gave.
 
Appreciate your help.

It's in another forum topic, so not really strange you missed it

I posed a similar question in the metalworking Forum here maybe the answers given will be of help

I am painting photo etched parts (Vanguard) for the first time. Previous builds did not use PE parts. I have read first using a primer, washing with soap and water, soak in vinegar, and  "dabbing" with lacquer thinner before painting. One person even suggested using sandpaper so the paint would stick to the brass PE. That one I don't think I will try.
 
Advise and suggestions as to what works best for you?
 
Mich

I think the curve on the footboards fools you into thinking the sprit is curved.

Thanks Carl.  We're looking forward to the 30+ degree difference! 
 
 
 
Thanks Druxey. and Ed  I'm very comfortable with the rotary tool, having used it for years in bird carving.  Of course, I wouldn't try this with a Dremel - my rotary tool is a higher quality (used by jewelers) and is controlled by a foot pedal and is very smooth running.
 
Hi Ron.  I'm glad you mentioned this.  I was under the impression that there should be a slight downward bend to the bowsprit, and I actually made one but it just didn't look right.  I spent a lot of time with the plans and photos and finally realized it should be straight.  I have some photos of Kathryn taken during the HAER survey and they show the straight bowsprit.  If the bowsprit had been changed it would have been during the 1950's rebuild. 
 
Thanks Ed.  All of the metalwork on Kathryn will be quite a challenge and I'm looking forward to it.  I'm trying to get all of the wood construction completed before I start on it.  I'm hoping to see the Kathryn on a trip east in October so I can get a lot more photos.  I'll need to be careful on replicating what I see since some of the components, especially related to the shrouds, have changed since the HAER survey.  Luckily I have a friend who knows the former setup really well and can help me decide what each component should be.
 
 
 

I'm with Druxey on the rotary tool.  Too risky for me.  Have you tried a cabinet scraper?  Very fast and accurate for the rough work - at the very least.  Does require some prep though, to create the cutting edge.
 
Ed

I no doubt saw the tool on the Dunbrody log, but  I have also seen larger scale versions for sale for general woodworking.  
 
Very nice work on the bowsprit.
 
I also like the photo of the actual bowsprit showing the shackled guy chains and the bostay chain with the turnbuckle.  I look forward to your modeling of these.
 
Ed

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Well, here is another way the Kathryn differs from other Skipjacks, Her bowsprit is straight! In every other Skipjack I've ever seen, the bowsprit curves down at the forward end. I wonder if that is a feature of her rebuild. Yes, straight is what the HERR plans show.

Have a nice (cool down) break Frank, I'm enjoying your build tremendously. Lovely work on the bowsprit!

Part 31 – The Bowsprit
 
Kathryn’s bowsprit is 20 feet long, and has straight sides (and top and bottom) for most of its length.  Forward of the stem it is shaped as an octagonal, even though not all sides are equal.  The final 5 forward-most feet of the bowsprit are rounded and tapered from 10 inches to 7 inches.  The final 6 inches are reduced to 4.5” diameter and rounded at the end.  This is where the bowsprit band will sit.
 
The construction of the bowsprit started with shaping the square stock to the overall dimensions.  Then a compass was used to mark the boundaries of the cuts for the octagonal shapes.
 
                        
 
A rotary tool was used to make the diagonal cuts to roughly form the octagonal shapes.
 
                        
 
Files were used to clean up these shapes.
 
                        
 
                        
 
A rounded scraper, followed by sandpaper, was used to form the rounded front of the bowsprit.
 
                        
 
Chart tape was then wrapped around the end of the bowsprit to indicate the beginning of the reduced end of the bowsprit, and a stop cut was made with a hobby knife along the boundary of the tape.
 
                        
 
The end of the bowsprit was then reduced to achieve the diameter that would fit within the bowsprit band, using the knife and files.  A brass tube that would be used for the band was used to check the diameter during shaping.
 
                        
 
                        
 
The bowsprit has ‘walking boards’ along the top edge, on each side of the bowsprit.  These were fitted sometime after initial construction, and were present during the HAER survey (and are present today).  These are fairly small, and I used 3/64 stock to make them. 
 
I started by spot-gluing two pieces of stock together, using school glue.  This allowed me to shape both walking boards at the same time.  Unfortunately, I didn’t take photos during the shaping process, but the following photo shows the tools used.
 
                        
 
After constructing and attaching the walking boards, I realized that two holes needed to be drilled through the bowsprit to accommodate the forestay (which passes through the bowsprit) and an eyebolt for the jib halyard, as shown in the following photo of Kathryn.
 
                        
 
This would have been much easier if the drilling was done before any shaping of the bowsprit, but since the bowsprit still had flat vertical sides it didn’t present a major problem.  The bowsprit was placed in the milling vise, and was checked for proper alignment.  The end of the bowsprit that was to be drilled was supported so that the pressure of drilling did not cause the bowsprit to bend.
 
                        
 
Since the area to be drilled was round, a centering drill was used to start the hole.
 
                        
 
And the hole was then drilled through the bowsprit.
 
                        
 
The bowsprit will be painted before any hardware is installed on it, and will not be permanently installed until a later stage.  The following photo shows the bowsprit temporarily installed.
 
                        
 
We’ll be leaving on a short road trip to California tomorrow to escape the heat for a few days.  When we return it will be time to address the permanent mounting of Kathryn, and then to begin the process of painting the hull.
 
Hope everyone is well and enjoying the summer - thanks for the comments and the 'LIKE's!

Hi Druxey - I think you may have aimed this my way instead of Ed's.  And yes, I meant to say 'tick strips' - I may have had an involuntary muscle twitch on the keyboard.

Hi Ed - could it be that you saw my centerline marker in the Dunbrody log?  
 

 

I got the idea for this from a similar tool for marking centerlines that I saw somewhere.  That would be another useful device.
 
Ed

Lovely, Ed: although I think you mean a tick strip. Ticks are marks (or a nasty little insect!) and tics are involuntary muscle twitches. Hopefully you don't suffer from the latter!