steamschooner

Bob, I think I will pull up a stool and watch as well. Guys just don't get upset if I get popcorn all over.

Paragon – a Modified Mayflower
Part 22 – Running Rigging
 
I didn’t get any rigging done before I left for my trip to the NRG meeting, so it has been a while since my last post.
 
As an aside, the trip was great.  The conference was very enjoyable, and I spent an extra day in Mystic to see the Seaport in detail.  I also got to see several interesting museums during the trip: The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, MD; the Mariners Museum in New Port News, VA; the Smithsonian ‘On the Water’ collection, and the Naval Academy Museum at Annapolis.  I also visited the ships that had participated in the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race when they were docked in Portsmouth VA, and got to board and wander around on the Skipjack Kathryn at its berth in Deal Island MD (this will be one of my next projects).  Also got to spend some time with family and a couple of good friends, and to top it off my son took me to the NY Giants vs Dallas Cowboys NFL football game, and our favorite team won.  All told a great trip, but a little tiring – drove 2,000 miles in 11 days.
 
OK – back to the Paragon build. 
 
As one of the conference’s roundtable sessions David Antscherl (Druxey) showed a few rigging tips and tricks, and a couple of them really helped.
 
He uses Acrylic Matte Medium to seal the knots on his rigging.  He uses this instead of diluted white glue because when dry there is no residue showing, as can happen with the glue.  I already had some on hand and tried it, and I’m sold.
 
              
 
We also noted that he uses a long and slender handle for his scalpel blades, and this looked interesting.  I’ve tried scalpels before, and while they are very sharp I’ve always found the regular handles to be uncomfortable so I haven’t used them.  I decided to look for the longer handle (a #7) on eBay, and found a very nice alternative – round and very comfortable.  Here’s a photo of the new handle next to a more commonly seen handle.
 
              
 
When I rigged my first model (MS Phantom) I made a workstation with a turntable that would allow me to rotate the model as needed, and to lock it into any position.  It has a pull-out tray for holding tools and for catching tiny bits when they fall.
 
               
 
               
 
The workstation is held in position by pushing a wedge between the table and the body of the workstation – simple, but it works.
 
               
 
I also found that I needed to make some miniature rigging tools.  I used a couple of clay modeling tools and customized them to suit my needs:
 
               
 
The upper tool in the photo was simply bent to the shape I needed, then cut and filed to the proper size.
 
              
 
The lower tool started with a small disk-shaped end.
 
               
 
I shaped this end using a diamond bit in a rotary tool, then finished it off using files.
 
               
 
This tool in particular quickly became a favorite for tying the lines around the tiny belaying pins in the model.
 
Not much more to say about the rigging – just lots of trial and error.  Here are the final results:
 
              
 
              
 
              
 
              
 
             
 
              
 
              
 
              
 
Now that the rigging is completed I’m on the home stretch.  I need to make and hang rope coils, make and install anchors, make some decorative pieces to enhance the model’s appearance, and do a little more work on the figurehead before installing it.

Bob, I think I will pull up a stool and watch as well. Guys just don't get upset if I get popcorn all over.

Bob, I think I will pull up a stool and watch as well. Guys just don't get upset if I get popcorn all over.

Build log part 24
 
Here is a little update....
 
Nils
 
 

 
dry fitting the supporting I-beams for the promenade deck in this area
 
 

 
The 10 stachions per side are small brass tubes where the copper pins go through, the pin-heads are interlocked within the deckstripes above, and are hidden by the (to be glued on) coamings of the deck planking later on
 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
the white primered scupper / throughpass in the bulwark is for the mooring cables when the ship is at the kay. There are three of these on each ships side
 
 
 
 
 

Hi Peter,
 
nice to hear from you, your last post was quite some time back, and thanks very much for dropping in, and for your nice comment I like....
I agree with your advice relating to the paint gloss, it somehow turned out quite bright on the appr. pic. (probably due to flashlight and fresh paint)
 
I am a little anxious to blend the color, as I probably would not be able to get / repeat the blending mixture, if I mix the color a bit lighter.
 
The black ought to be a dull black, no gloss at all, and the red is more a silk finish, when dry. For the black overwater hull section I have now found a suitable dull black oven paint. I am pleased with the black so far.
The little dummy here is the second trial, I have also added 3 dummy portholes, they turn out as I had intended, inserts flush wih the skin, and the "glassing" standing back a wee bit in the insert- tube. The inserts are from copper with galvanizesd tin surface and the ends that connect to the hull skin are tapered to the outside.
 
For taping and painting over the riveted skin areas, I shall be following Dirk`s reccomendation, when the Tamiya masking tape arrives
 
Nils
 

 
Dummy section for trial...
 
the black is nostalgic dull steel hull kook, the portholes (3 mm) are quite small in diameter, but doing them larger would be out of scale

little update..
 
- a look into the hull
- a trial for painting the hull
- the "riveting" of the bowpost
- "glassing" the porthhole inserts (procedure)
 
Nils
 
 
 
 

 
here a dive deep down into the ship`s belly
 

 
aft section with the two drive shafts coming to the inside
 
 

 
this is the tape I intend to use for taping the painting borderline (not pleased with it yet), will have to improve the technique. Also the black color should be more dull, will do next trial with dull black oven-paint. The critical part is to get a good tape contact over the rivet rows, so that the paint does`nt creep under the tape.
The red paint is RAL 3000, silk-surface glaze, when drying
 
 

 
 

 
bowpost "riveting" is done around the bend
 
 

 
Am quite pleased with the result....
 
 

 
here using trimming line for grass-cutter for the "glassing" of the portholes
 
 

 
Cutting off a length
 
 

 
ready for final trimming
 
 

 
cut off directly at the porthole insert. "Glass" surface will be sunk in appr. 0,6 mm afterwards into the tube

Thanks Nils,  I am happy with the cast iron look, now to add all the shiney stuff

Mark, Thanks I will try that the next time I post pictures.
 
David B, Thanks for stopping by

Thanks Nils,  I am happy with the cast iron look, now to add all the shiney stuff

Build log part 23
 
 
little update
 
not much this time, but it keeps the wheel turning...
 
Nils
 
 

 
in this lower deck area there are the bulwark doors for the kay gangways
 
 

mended two misalignment portholes with wooden dowels and drilled new...
 
 

 
upper forecasle side-rail, and aft forecastle-deck bulwark
 
 

 
 
 
 

Mark, Thanks I will try that the next time I post pictures.
 
David B, Thanks for stopping by

Thanks Nils,  I am happy with the cast iron look, now to add all the shiney stuff

After getting a good cast for the steam engine block I cleaned it up a bit. Flattening the top and bottom sides and filing away flash from the mold i had what you see in the middle picture
Third  picture is of the engine block after it was sand blasted to give it a cast iron look.
First picture is of the engine block after treating it with india ink
 They did not show up in the order I loaded them but you can see the different steps I've taken.

After getting a good cast for the steam engine block I cleaned it up a bit. Flattening the top and bottom sides and filing away flash from the mold i had what you see in the middle picture
Third  picture is of the engine block after it was sand blasted to give it a cast iron look.
First picture is of the engine block after treating it with india ink
 They did not show up in the order I loaded them but you can see the different steps I've taken.

Bob, I use a product from Castaldo which is a vulcanizing rubber for the molds.  The metal is a low temp alloy called cerrocast ,no lead, tin and bismuth mix.
Whats nice about it is that parts that do not turn out right can be put back in the melt pot and reused. I am still learning things every time I cast.

Well after several tries and some errors I managed to get a good cast with the steam engine block. Still needs to be cleaned up some more. I than like to sand blast the parts to get that cast iron look . Parts will then be coated with black india ink.

Well I have been getting a few minutes here and there to work on my model. This is what I have gotten done on the boiler at this time.

Here's a couple of shots of my water feed pump. It will get painted and have small wire running to it to act as steam supply piping.   Wire will also be used to show water inlet and water outlets.

I will be adding some detail that will be little seen. I am going to out fit the engineroom/boiler space with a assortment of gear. This is the beginings of my compound steam engine. Wood items are my master molds, the red items are a couple of finished molds with there master patterns removed. I use a vulcanizing rubber for my molds and use Cerro Cast the actual casting. Some molds will be flat cast where the casting material is just poured in. Other molds will be cast in a centrifugal. The wire on the master forms are for cast inplace venting holes which are needed when centrifugal casting.

Some cabin work is done as well as some pilot house work.

After getting a good cast for the steam engine block I cleaned it up a bit. Flattening the top and bottom sides and filing away flash from the mold i had what you see in the middle picture
Third  picture is of the engine block after it was sand blasted to give it a cast iron look.
First picture is of the engine block after treating it with india ink
 They did not show up in the order I loaded them but you can see the different steps I've taken.

After getting a good cast for the steam engine block I cleaned it up a bit. Flattening the top and bottom sides and filing away flash from the mold i had what you see in the middle picture
Third  picture is of the engine block after it was sand blasted to give it a cast iron look.
First picture is of the engine block after treating it with india ink
 They did not show up in the order I loaded them but you can see the different steps I've taken.

Hello Paul,
 
I just drilled the portholes (not all yet) for the KWdG, and think now I know what you meant with ".. the worst nightmare for us modelers...", and why you recommended to make and use a jig tool for doing so.
Although I was utmost careful with the drilling ( no Jig used  ) there were some that fell a little bit out of the alignment. For the first upper two rows I will try to mount "eyebrows", also here your comment of the last chance to get the optic a little better are still well in my mind
As I`m using the porthole inserts without flanges on the outer hull skin, I wo`nt be able to file the holes a little oval in the right direction, in that case there could have been a covering of the "oval hole" by the flange to a certain degree
 
Nils
 

 
it is important to cut a clean hole through the metal plating foil before the wooden planking is carefully drilled through.
it gets tricky if the drill partialy hits a frame or a stringer inside the hull. This must be avoided by check before the hole-positions are marked
 
 

 
for the alignment at bow and stern there is a bit of vertical offset acc to the drawing and the museum model shown and built by others earlier in this log
 
 

 
there are 14 coalports on each side, in the largest coal bunker areas there will be no portholes on the lower porthole level.
The upper side-portholes just below the promenade deck are neighther plated nor drilled yet, because the deck must be put on first.

Nils , Looks like we share the same "B" day   have a great day.. Following your build and love what you are doing keep up the great work.