Landrotten Highlander

True eye candy.  Thanks for sharing - your log gave me both inspiration and knowledge.
 
Slainte
Peter

Thank you, everyone, for your kind comments, compliments and questions. Your interest certainly spurred me on and the model was completed sooner than expected. What's next? When I have the time, another open boat, this time a Royal barge. In the meantime, I'm working on restoration of several yacht models and both writing and illustrating a book on modelling open boats. Part of the book will be an amplified version of this build log. It aims to cover both clinker and carvel construction.
 
Joel: what keeps the oars up? Invisible oarsmen. Seriously, the sweeps are glued in position in the tholes and on the gunwale.

True eye candy.  Thanks for sharing - your log gave me both inspiration and knowledge.
 
Slainte
Peter

True eye candy.  Thanks for sharing - your log gave me both inspiration and knowledge.
 
Slainte
Peter

True eye candy.  Thanks for sharing - your log gave me both inspiration and knowledge.
 
Slainte
Peter

Today I have placed the plank bowsprit and railings.
I have also placed the topgallantmasts

Beautiful work.....just wonderful to look at and would look at home on anyone's desk....the perfect gift!!!!  Hint!!!   Hint!!!

Well, folks, we've come to the conclusion of this log. The Greenwich Hospital barge is about to row off, colors flying. Thanks to all who have looked in, 'liked', commented, complimented and discussed her. It's been quite the experience. I really appreciate the support of this electronic community over the past months. Thanks to each and every one of you, world-wide. 
 
So, what's next, I wonder?

Well, the sweeps are now fixed in position, after a rare weekend off work. Hopefully I made the right call on displaying them in this way.
 
I still have the two ensigns to complete and fly on their staffs before calling it quits. I hope you enjoy the pictures. 

Well, I bit the bullet and threw out three oars which didn't come up to standard. And organized the rest into categories - 1. almost right, 2. needs a fair bit of work, and 3. Perfect as it is.
 
There were more in the first and third categories than I'd thought.
 
And good news - the most recent half dozen were the best. So maybe I'm getting better as I go along.
 
It's quite cleansing throwing out the unsatisfactory ones. Now they're not sitting there sneering at me every time I go to make another oar.
 
I've marked out the lines of the wales on the plug and also where the oarports will be. Id been wondering how to mark them accurately enough to miss the frames, which are 4mm apart.
 
But the tholes sit in the third wale from the keel, with the oarport plank immediately above. Once the wale is in place I can shape the plank to fit and mark the oarports on it. Then when the ship is fully planked I'll cut them out.
 
When I made the Great Harry I cut the arched gunports in the upper works directly into the planks before fixing them to the ship. I got away with it - barely - but it weakens the planks and it's a bad way to go.
 
Figuring out how to accurately mark out the oarports on the dromon has taken a load off my mind.
 
Oh, and I've made 5 shields. The production line is up and running.
 
Steven

more

Some travel got into the way of progressing this project and on reporting on it ….
 
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In order to mount the y-axis to the column, an adapter is needed. This adapter is fashioned from a small aluminium-block that was bored for the 20 mm column. The top-side was milled to a close fit on the lower slide from the WW-lathe, which is clamped down with a bolt. In this way the lower slide can be moved by about 15 mm, giving a greater depth of throat, if needed. It was planned to use a rectangular key to lock the adapter to the column. However, it appears that the two set-screws lock it sufficiently secure to the column. Practical experience will show whether this is true.
 

Drilling the adapter for the y-axis
 
The 20 mm-hole was drilled and bored on a face-plate in the lathe to ensure that it is exactly vertical to the top and bottom of the adapter block. The aluminium-block was srewed down onto the face-plate using a 6 mm hexagonal bolt. Luckily, a suitable hole was needed anyway for the locking bolt of the slide. Other hexagonal bolts prevent the block from moving during the machining operations and act as counter-weights.
 

Boring the adapter for the y-axis
 
After the functional machining was complete, the adapter was 'beautified' by giving the edges a half-round camfer. For occasional jobs on aluminium like this, I use cheap woodworking router bits ... don't tell any real mechanic.
 

Camfering the adapter for the y-axis
 

Finished adapter block
The Lorch, Schmidt & Co. milling attachment will be held between two angle-irons screwed-down onto the slide. The locking will be effected by an excentric bolt acting as a cam. I had hoped to use the threaded holes that a previous owner of the slide had made, but they did not fit the angle-iron I had in my stock, so new holes had to be drilled and tapped. The pair of angle-irons was squared and trued on the mill using a fly-cutter.
 

Squaring and trueing angle-irons in pairs
 

Angle-irons to hold milling-head
 

Angle-irons to hold milling-head
 
The above picture shows also the drive unit made for the toolpost-grinder of the WW-lathe, which in fact looks very similar to what the future motorised milling head will look like.
 

Provisional set-up of motorised milling head
 
 
To be continued ...

Here's the process I go through in making an oar. I drew the oar in AutoCad and copied it multiple times and printed it off, then glued the sheet of paper to a sheet of wood a little thicker than the thickest part of the oar. Then I sanded the sheet back so it tapered from handle end to blade. I've shown a photo of that in an earlier post. Then with a coping saw I cut the individual oars apart.
 

 
Next, I use the Stanley knife to carve it to the outline.
 
     
 
And then carve it from the back so the thickness tapers to match the taper in the width, and the oar blade is getting close to the right thickness.
 
     
 
Once that's done, I cut off the corners, changing from a square to an octagonal section.
 
 
 
And using a fairly coarse file turned the octagon to a circle.
 

 
 
 
Clean-up and tidy up with a finer file, and finishing off the blade to shape - note this is the new shape I decided on from looking at contemporary illustrations. There are a number of previously made oars that will have to have that done to them as well.
 

 
To be honest, I'm not all that happy with my consistency in making the oars - it's more whittling than proper cutting to shape. At least two of them will have to be discarded, and I might get rid of several more that I'm not happy with.
 

 
I think I need to get more professional, and finish them, not by eye, but by measurement with vernier calipers. I think I'm a little too slap-happy in my technique, and I need to correct that so I don't waste all the time I put into making the oars. I timed it this time - it takes something like two hours to make one of these things, and I shouldn't throw that time away on an inferior product that then has to go in the scrap bin. There may well have been variation in oars 'in the day', but that would have been so minimal that at 1:50 scale it would be invisible.
 
On a happier note, I've finally finished the first batch of frames - I'm putting in every fourth frame onto the plug and planking over it, and then I'll put the rest in afterward. It's very difficult to cut the frames thin enough (1mm) with a Stanley knife and I was worried that the frames were too thick and might get stuck in the grooves in the plug when I wanted to take the assembly out.  
 
So I've filed them all thinner so there's more clearance between the frames and the grooves. Rather difficult with frames only 1mm thick, but I managed to work out a technique which worked without imposing too much strain on them. I put a thin sheet of wood over most of the frame and press down, and just file down the bit that's sticking out. The sheet of wood holds the frame still and reduces random forces in the wrong directions that otherwise might deform or worse still, break the frame.
 

 
 
 
 

Glean:
Great work and detail.
 
For great looking rivets the Sensipress + along with the Riveter set up by Northwest Short Line Products can't be beat.  The photos show the Sensipress with the Riveter table and the rivets on the boiler sheathing and smoke stack of my model  of the African Queen (prior to paining the pipes).  The arbor holds a male punch and the base holds a female die.  A drill press or better yet a mill could do the exact same thing with your ability to machine the punch and die.  The table makes even spacing a snap.
 
Kurt

The mainmast. This tapered mast is often undersized in carrack models. Contemporary illustrations show a very substantial mast made even thicker at the base by long wedges inserted vertically into the partners. Although, as discussed previously, the mainmast was usually a built mast with a central spindle and at least eight outer spars, I did not have the carpentry skills to reproduce this in miniature. Therefore I chose to fudge it just a little while maintaining the look and feel of a mediaeval built mast.
Many illustrations show the longitudinal lines along the mast that you would expect if the mast was built and not a single spar.

or

note the wooldings
 
I started with a tapered spar

Made a paper template

Made strips with the template so that I would end up with eight tapered strips

Glued the strips to pine strips

Stuck the pine strips to the mast with double sided tape

 
Vessels with built masts had quite a variable number of rope wooldings to reinforce the mast. However they did not use wooden hoops above and below the wooldings as was seen in later periods. It may be that the ropes were reinforced with nails to prevent the ropes slipping.

 
The completed mast

 
Cheers
Dick

As promised I give it a try to redo that broken decoration. In fact I had to give two tries as number 2 also broke but at finishing not at cutting this time. Luckily number 3 was a success as I didn't plan to go for number 4. Also the removing of the already glued piece proved to be a very easy thing - in fact it came down in a single piece. Maybe because glueing on ebony is not as strong as on other wood essence.
 
I am quite happy with the results. Thank you Heinz! If you wouldn't have insisted I would almost sure let it like that.
 
Here are the pictures.
 
Regards, 
Alexandru

I had a pretty frustrating week trying to assemble the boilers. I'm not satisfied with the appearance of the .01 thick brass. Embossing rivet heads in it created some distortion in it that was difficult to eliminate. I'm just happy to be done with it.
 
 
Brass plates with embossed rivet heads.

 
Testing fit of boiler plates.

 
Blackened boiler plates.

 
The steam drums were constructed similar to the mud drums with the addition of the flanged pipe for the steam supply line.

 

 
Front of firebox and panel inserts blackened.

 
Panels inserted.

 
Kevin's notes point out that Heroine probably had a brick lined ash pan but not an ash trough to the side of the vessel. He points to an example excavated from the wreck of the New Orleans. Several firebricks were found in Heroine's remains measuring 4" X 8 1/2" X2 1/8.

 
Brick lining of the firebox

 
Brick lined ash pan added. I added the wooden plugs where the boiler caps should be. They will provide a fastening point for the boilers breaching and will not be seen.

 
Boilers almost complete. I still have to add the feedwater check valve and safety valves.

 
Next week I will finally get to work on the upper works. After a frustrating week with brass sheet, I'm looking forward to getting back to woodwork. Below is Kevin Crisman's reconstruction of Heroine's profile.

Hello @all
For Feedback thank you very much!

With small steps it goes on:
 

 

 

 

 

 

Just thought I would share these incredible pictures of the figurehead for the Swan Class Sloop "Atalanta" by David Antscherl.  The figure is boxwood with a stem of swiss pear.  The brackets and trailboard carving are also boxwood.   Note the gold leafed apples.  Just stunning carving by hand and almost hard to believe possible at this scale.  Its so tiny.   I love the facial expression.....Mona Lisa smirk...    Enjoy!!!
 
The glass dome is just 4" in diameter.
 
Chuck
 

 

 

 

 

Just completed the tiller after mounting the rudder.  It was cut from a 1/8" thick sheet of boxwood.  Then it was carefully rounded off and shaped using files and sanding sticks.   I could have left it natural but it just looked to bright and "blah" looking.  So I painted it red and highlighted the parts of the handle on tiller.  I like this much better.   I am sure everyone has their preference but I have also seen the tiller painted black on contemporary models.   I dont think I would have liked it like that.
 

 
Next up I will be making the bowsprit.  Here are some overall shots with the deck almost completed except for the bowsprit bits and bow chasers.
 

 

 
Chuck

I too have purchased the series with a view to (one day) build the Fleuron (amongst others).  Having only had a quick look, I believe that it has been worth spending the money on these books.  The combined knowledge will definitely aid me to build an accurate version of the ship(s).
 
Good luck, and Slainte
Peter

Thank you Pat, Anthony, Greg and Greg .
 
 
Natural circulation as hotter air rises I guess Greg.
 
Hi all,
 
It seems like an age since I last updated the log, but I've been busy with the tedious (but fun) work of planking and treenailing the hull :
 

 

 

 
I've clear coated the hull inside and out to the level of the wales. Further work on Drift Rails etc will be done before I go higher :
 

 

 

 
I also fitted the afore-mentioned Port Liners :
 

 

 

 
  Danny

I too have purchased the series with a view to (one day) build the Fleuron (amongst others).  Having only had a quick look, I believe that it has been worth spending the money on these books.  The combined knowledge will definitely aid me to build an accurate version of the ship(s).
 
Good luck, and Slainte
Peter

I too have purchased the series with a view to (one day) build the Fleuron (amongst others).  Having only had a quick look, I believe that it has been worth spending the money on these books.  The combined knowledge will definitely aid me to build an accurate version of the ship(s).
 
Good luck, and Slainte
Peter

Well, decision time for the sweeps! While 'feathered' is an attractive and perhaps obvious choice, I think I'll place the oars with blades vertical. Why? The dolphins draw the eye away from the boat too much and, by placing the blades vertically, one can see the transition from body to blade on the other side clearly. The viewer will only 'discover' the dolphins as his or her point of view changes.
 
I really appreciate the time and trouble those of you took to give me input on this issue. It certainly helped clarifying my own thinking. Pictures later!