Piet

WOW, thank you all for visiting my shipyard and your likes, much appreciated. @ Anthony, yes, Lextin has it correct. The VOC ship "Surabaya" is patiently waiting on the workbench. Actually, the pictures of the sloop in the last post are taken right in front of her. You can't see it because I have covered her up to keep the dust off. There is something new developing though. I have to refer you to my signature and look at future builds. There you'll see the M.S. Musi. That's my wife's father's ship he was captain on till his (forced) retirement. Remco and I, mainly Remco, are doing the research on her for a possible scratch build in scale 1:50. This is all rather tentative right now. Remco did get me the lines and deck layout but I like to have photos or better yet drawings for the deck furniture. The O19 will be called completed when de dingy is done and hanging on the hoist boom. The few crew members and spare parts are things I can do in between. I will go back to the VOC ship and continue work on her. I just need to manage my time better so I can do all my projects together and not get fixated with one. @ Popeye, well, I was seriously considering doing it with a plug but then I got this crazy thought of a plank on frame model. At this scale a plug would perhaps be easier but being a real stubborn old Dutchman I have to try it. Good practice for my planned VOC Jacht in a lamp. @ qwerty Lextin, yep, you are right. See my note above to Anthony (crackers). Actually, there is a connection with the VOC ship, my father and my father in law. My father wanted to go to the merchant marine and work for the KPM in the Netherlands East Indies. It didn't work out as he wanted it and joined the Navy. My father in law did work for the KPM in the Netherlands East Indies from before the war with Japan and after he was liberated from a POW camp he went back to that company. He became captain on the M.S. Musi in 1951. He was also a Navy Reservist and attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Okay, wat is the connection? The KPM (Koninklijke Pakketvaart Maatschappij or Royal Packet Company) was actually and for all practical purposes the continuation of the VOC after it went bankrupt in the late 1800ds. The KPM was a large and very successful shipping company that even had several cargo / passenger liners that sailed to Australia, New Zeeland, Japan, South Africa and Brazil. Some of these ships were called "White Yachts." Nothing on the Musi plans is cast in stone right now. The urge is there and Gwen, my wife, is all for it with the only stipulation not to neglect my other duties. That's why I need to control myself better. I am 99% ready for it. As soon as de O19 is done and off my "South" workbench I can make a build dock for the Musi. Well, that's quite a long story but I'm rather enthused over it and hope we can gather some info on the deck furniture I can start. Cheers,

Wait a minute now, all the front row seats are taken? Hmm, I guess I'll move on back and sit next to Jan, hi Jan, how are you doing? Long time no see. Rather ambitious there Hans but a nice project. Cheers,

Typical comment by a perfectionist - - "I'm not happy - - -" They look great Remco, many of us wish they could make them look like those. On the other hand - - dare I even think it - - you can always tear the sternpost off and make a new one and carving the markings on the bench Nah, they look great! Cheers,

Thanks to all for visiting and your likes. We made some progress today and I earned a Purple Heart ! I cemented all the frames to the keel this morning, then had some lunch while it was busy curing. After lunch the frames were rock-solid on the keel and looked like they all lined up okay. So I removed the paper locator strips and cleaned the frames up. In doing so I managed to cut a nice groove in my thumb, O negative blood gushing all over the place - - - not really, just joshing yuns I found a left over strip of 1 X 1 mm strip from the deck slats for the O19 and cut a small piece to use as the keelson. It's still rough but that's intentional. I have to put the planking on first before I can do some serious cleaning and shaping the inside. I would really like to but-plank the hull but I guess it should be klinker or lapstrake. That makes it more difficult to final shape the planking. I have pre-faired the frames by eye before cementing them to the keel but may have to be faired a little more. I'll check tomorrow and see how it looks. The frames are rather delicate for fairing without support. I guess that's where the plug method works good but hey, I wanted to give this a try and see if I could do it this way. Alright, that's a worry for tomorrow. I'll figure out something. Here are a few pics to show yuns today's work. The first 4 pics are the frames in the process of being cemented to the frame and viewed from different angles. The last 4 show the "naked" frames after they are cemented and roughly cleaned. The stern piece still needs to be cemented on end preparations made for the rudder hinges. That in itself will be a challenge. That light colored slat is the keelson and that red stain to the right on the build board is my precious blood. No, it doesn't hurt, only when I get acetone or MEK on it Cheers.

Yeah sure, in your dreams my friend Sjors. No, this is an official part of the O19, thus no new build log, so . . . Hoi Carl, well, it's a start but I don't now how good it'll be. We'll know as we progress but I'll give it good try. Hi Popeye, thanks and yes, it's tiny alright - - - and delicate I found out. Thanks everyone for your encouragement. Cheers,

Great job Hans, well done and a big BRAVO. Cheers,

Wow Remco, nice work on the markings carving. What a shame that you can't add them to the stern post. Cheers,

Ah, more laundry hanging out. Very impressive Sjors. Better eat some bear grease to build muscles before you attempt to move her outside Cheers,

Thanks everyone for your interest, encouragement and likes. This morning I cut-out the frames for the dingy. So far so good. I may have to remake two but first I have to make sure. My dear bride Gwen took ill so I may have to be a little helper to her, the poor thing. I'll try gluing the frames to the keel tomorrow and see how it's shaping up. They are still oversize on the inside, waiting for the planking. After the planking is on then I can trim the inside of the frames, I figured out how I can do that. As long as the end product looks okay then I'm happy. Cheers,

Hello John, good to see you. magic???? Hardly, just having fun trying something. How are you coming with your whaler ship? Cheers,

Thanks Remco! A very nice dingy for sure. I know, working with a plug may give me a perhaps better looking jol but that'll be for plan B. Right now I'll give it a good try, just having fun testing my abilities. Cheers,

Beautiful work Mark. Cheers,

Hello all y'all and thank you for visiting and all your likes. I have been thinking - - - I know, that can get you into trouble So I thought why make a plug first for the dingy and then build that dingy over it. Seems like double the work Sooooooh - - - I thought - - why not build the dingy plank on frame That's why it took me a few days of contemplation and hair pulling. But so what, let's give this hair-brained idea a try. If it doesn't work out I can always go back to the plug method. Okay, I cut a 1.3 mm plank from a chunk of boxwood, sanded it down to about 1 mm and glued a copy of the keel print to it with some diluted school glue. Next I took a small pice of 1/2 inch particle board and carved a groove in it to accommodate the keel. I then cemented 4 90 degree brass angle pieces to it next to the keel to keep it 90 degrees to the build dock. I also drew the locator lines on it for the frames. Next I cut the paper frames from the drawing and glued them to the 1 mm boxwood plank and cut them out. I sanded and filed everything nicely to the lines. I cut grooves into the keel where the frames are going to be. The plan is to hand cut the insides of these blank bulkheads to make the frames. They are too delicate for the Proxxon jig saw. First I planned in planking the model and then cutting the bulkheads into frames but getting access to them would be problematic. I already cit the number 1 frame by using my trusty jeweler's coping saw that I still have from when I was a young man way back in Holland. Seems to work fine and will continue with the rest of the frames. Right now I plan on cementing everything together with gel super glue and hope it'll last. This method may be good practice for when I start with the VOC Jacht in a lamp, which will only be slightly smaller. Okay then, here are a few pics of my efforts so far. Keel assembly. I made it all out of one piece, I may be crazy but not stupid The keel is purposely slightly higher but will be trimmed after the planking is completed. This is nummer 2. This shows the build-dock with the keel stop and 90 degree angle pieces to keep the keel steady and at 90 degrees to the dock. Yep, not very big isn't it? The keel you see here is nummer uno and reject. Here is the keel placed into the groove and ready for the frames. This then shows all the future frames. You may see the pencil outlines for them. I do plan to cement small pieces of boxwood between the frames yet for added strength. To ensure proper alignment to the keel vertically and horizontally I plan to use a small steel block and a string along the centerline. I'm not too concerned about it being off fractions of mm's. I do plan on installing a few "ceiling" planks to the bottom of the dingy. Cheers,

Hello friends and thanks to all for visiting, your comments and likes. Hoi Carl, yeah, I know what you mean. I'm listening to a Dutch music station on the computer and get the news and weather. I know all about winter weather, cold, rain and snow. Still dislike it with a passion. I'm not complaining about a lot of yard work mind you, it beats shoveling snow It just takes precious time away from the shipyard. Hi Popeye, thank you for your kind remarks, really appreciate it. If you like those pics just wait till I make the "official" photographs of her with my big Cannon camera. I plan to stage them appropriately. And talking about talent, look who's talking - - - Hi John, thank you too my friend and yes she's come a long way since you last saw and touched her. She's almost completed. Still some more work to be done. Yep, I like to think that pappa Piet is well pleased. That's how my mother called him to distinguish him from me, we are namesakes Enjoy your Leffe, I have to wait till tomorrow, had surgery today Hi ho Vivian and thank you as well for your compliments. Did you make the Indo dishes yet?? Hello Daniel, thank you my friend. Ah yes, the antennas. Rather unusual on submarines. But remember that these subs were primarily surface vessels that could submerge for only short periods of time. Underwater speed was then not much of a concern then. The last antenna I put on is the Low Frequency transmit antenna and not used much, only to communicate so once in a while to home port for special messages and position reports. Possible enemy ships or planes could home in on the signals with their Direction Finders and cause a heap of trouble for the sub. That antenna could easily and quickly be unhooked and stowed away. The antenna mast can be retracted hydraulically into the boat the same as the two periscopes. The navigation antenna would most likely stay as is. During the refit in 1943 / 44 in Scotland they removed a lot of drag inducing things, like railings - except the portions next to the conning tower. The front AA gun was also removed and the torpedo loading gantries. Cheers to all,

Nice work Popeye! I like the way your mind works, real Yankee ingenuity Cheers,

Truly amazing work Omega, a jewel in the true sense of the word. Cheers,

Thank you all for visiting my shipyard and your likes, I am humbled by your responses. Hoi Remco, yep, almost done. Yeah man, they needed to be able to communicate from across the world. It's a lot different then HF or VHF. It also needed a lot of power to send. Thank you Wacko Joe, I really appreciate your kudos. Just stay tuned. Hi Omega, thank you too and yes, I am very pleased with how she turned out. Hoi Carl, van harte dank, thank you. She even looks pretty good up close. Hello Ian, thanks for dropping in and thank you for your compliments. Yes, I like to think that Adjudant van Warmerdam would be pleased. Yep, I'll be making pics with me and my wife with the model. Hey, her dad served in the KM (Royal Navy) as a Lieutenant Commander at the outset of hostilities with the Japs, there is a link. Hoi Kees, thank you as well for your kind words and support. Yep, as mentioned above there'll be a few pics with me and the model. We are not done yet. I'll put my check flight uniform on for the occasion - - - NOT!! I did take some time this afternoon to drag my 10 inch bench saw outside and cut a 1.2 mm plank from a block of boxwood. I sanded it smooth and down to a smidgen over 1 mm for the dingy. Was busy with yard work this morning. That's a never ending thing here in Florida. Plants grow fast. Cheers to all,

Dat ziet er fantastisch uit Sjors! That looks fantastic, Sjors! Cheers,

Well folks, one of the last parts have been made and installed on the O19, it's the Low Frequency transmit antenna. That was a lot of fun to do. As I was making the parts I changed a few things in the process. In the end though it looks exactly the same as on the drawings and photos, which makes me very happy. I immagine that this antenna can be removed and stowed when not in use and for submerged sailing. I tried to do the same but the parts on the antenna mast keep falling off when handling the model so I just made it permanent. We'll just have to imagine they can be unhooked. The cradle cables at the bow and stern can be removed though. I made a few hooks that hook into the eyelets for that purpose. I'm very happy with how she looks and for all practical purposes she's finished, except for the dingy, the crew and a few spare parts. I'll keep this log open till the dingy is done and the display board and case are completed and she's on display in my studio. Here are a few pics of today's the work I did on the antenna over the last few days. I could only devote a few hours a day, too many chores to do. This drawing shows the general layout of the O19. The Low Frequency antenna is shown at the top of the profile picture. As I have mentioned before there were a few changes the builder had to make by request of the KM (Royal Navy), which I incorporated in my model. One of the changes I made was by removing the bracket I soldered to the mast top. In its place I soldered a small piece of tubing to the mast top. I attempted to make this thing move up and down via a simulated pulley system and then also with removable hooks that hold the antenna wires. Thinking about it some more I slapped my forehead and called myself domkop. This mast can be lowered and raised by the crew unhooking it would be an easy task. Yeah, I could have made the guides as hooks and drilled holes in that small cross piece but just soldered them in. Who knows, I may redo this at some other time. This shows the bridle cable assembly. I made two, one for the bow and for for the stern (duh ) The cable is made from two 0.08 pieces of copper wire from a telephone wire and then twisted. The "trapeze" looking thingy is just a piece of 0.2 mm brass rod with a 0.1 mm brass wire soldered to it, then a small 0.5 brass tube where I soldered everting in. A few small hooks from 0.2 brass rod. The bridle cable is hooked into the bow antenna and cable cutter frame. The bridle is kinda blending in with the low frequency sensing antenna but it runs above it. The stern picture shows it better. The bow hookup seen from a different angle. This shows the details of the antenna mast. This is a better picture showing the antenna bridle and cable hooked into an eyebolt fastened to the aft deck. The crew escape hatch just misses it. Starboard profile from the stern with the completed antenna installation. We can also clearly see Remco's decals and flags. They kept poor Remco from doing much work on his King Fisher As you can see there is a nice stiff breeze blowing. Starboard profile from the bow with the completed antenna installation. Cheers,

Yep, I know, it's my fault Remco and I am very sorry KIDDING!!! Glad you could spend some time in the shipyard and the planking looks superb, at least from here. I'll just have to determine that when I can see your KF in real life. I'll bring my inspector's magnifying glass with me Cheers,

Airplanes are also a good thing Joe, I spend 60 years in the aircraft industry, fixing, building, designing repairs and flying them. Have fun and we'll keep our eyes peeled for your return. Cheers,

Outstanding! Incredible! Cheers,

Hoi Kees, that's one nice looking ship and a fitting tribute to your grandfather and uncle. I didn't see the body plan in your lines drawings or didn't you show them? I'm looking forward in following this build. Cheers,

Hello Daniel, so good of you to drop in and thanks again my friend for doing this for me. Perhaps easy for you but CAD is way above my head and no desire to learn it, my brain is already fried Yes. there are different options to making the case. Making it all in one piece is the preferred way but if it's not possible then I'll have to go to plan B or C or D. I found a place that may make the main part for me but have not checked for a price, which is in my case VERY important. Yes, I can make frames from AL or brass and make it look like iron, which is actually my plan B. The easy way out. Bending sheet acrylic is not difficult but when it comes to 6 feet in one piece then we need to pay attention of how to - - - in the garage and hopefully with the help of the Admiral. Right now it's still in the thinking stage and gathering info from all of you on MSW. I'll sort through it. Okay, I started today with making the low frequency antenna rig. Sorry no pics. Not much to show for it yet. Cheers to all,

Hey Popeye, what's wrong with the wooden ladder, it's a working implement in the shipyard and should look somewhat used and worn. It has character. Staples - smaples as my Yiddish friend would say Cheers,