Cathead

Parts look great so far. Will be fun to watch a master at work on such a high-end kit.

Thank you, Mark. Grant, I should have credited you, I saw that in your log and decided it gave me cover to do likewise.

Nice work so far! If I may make a respectful suggestion, perhaps you'd consider editing the title of your build log to spell the ship's name correctly (Beagle rather than Beagel) as well as that of the manufacturer (OcCre rather than ocre)? Normally I wouldn't worry about misspellings, but in this case getting them right would help more people find your build if they're searching for such terms.

Today I managed to complete the capstan step (the platform on which the capstan actually sits). In the Intermediate version, this is made by gluing three pieces edge-to-edge to make the platform, and gluing another thinner piece to the bottom to help it sit tightly between the beams. But in the Advanced version, this is made in a more prototypical way using half-lap joints between the upper pieces, and the central upper/lower pieces being a more complex single piece. I didn't think the joinery for the Advanced version would be that hard (no harder than the beam/carling assembly), and thought the proper joinery would look a lot nicer, so went that direction, especially as it didn't require any equipment other than the table saw already needed for Intermediate. Given how complex later pieces will need to be, even in Intermediate, I think anyone able to complete this project could do this part in the Advanced version. If anything, it's more good practice on nice square cuts before things get all angular and difficult. Here are the three components. The left- and right-hand ones have a simple half-lap joint cut along one edge, which I did easily by setting the table saw blade height and fence to the appropriate measurements. The central piece is a bit more complicated, but not much. It also gets lap joints along the edge, but then also gets a broader lap along its width so that it can nestle down in the beams. The photo below shows these upside-down; the "upper" (lower) part of the central piece would just be glued on in the Intermediate version, but it wasn't hard to just cut the piece thicker in the first place. I measured all of these very carefully, and multiple times, before cutting, and was rewarded with the right outcome the first time. Be sure to note that the two side pieces are NOT symmetrical. Here's a test fit: Here's the more complex central piece resting in position, showing how the different joints work: And here's the assembly after gluing and sanding (sitting loosely on the beams and carlings): The instructions now call for drilling a large central hole in this platform, into which the capstan spindle is inserted (the "axle" on which it rotates), but I'm going to hold off on this. The given diameter of this hole (11") doesn't correspond to any standard drill bit size that I have; at 1:24, 11" comes out to 0.458, awkwardly between 1/2" (0.500) and 3/8" (0.375). Based on my understanding of the plans, I think I could shrink the foot spindle to 3/8" with no loss of integrity, also allowing the easy use of a 3/8 dowel rather than trying to make a nice circular piece from scratch, but I want to assemble more of the capstan first before deciding how to proceed. It seems like I can add this feature much later in the build, making life easier. As this will never be seen, it shouldn't matter if it's smaller than "accurate". This means the next step is to make the grating, which seems quite daunting, but I expect I'll muddle through. Thanks for all the advice, comments, and likes so far. I'm trying to be thorough here so this log will be helpful to others, sorry if it's too dry for more experienced readers.

Cool! Looking forward to some final photos.

If cost is an issue, inter library loan is an underutilized resource that can get you all sorts of obscure books long enough to learn what you need or decide whether to invest in a copy. As for kits, it’s still not clear what kit(s) you’re referring to, but while the carronade kit I mentioned above is backordered at Model Expo, it’s in stock at Micromark.

The other half went smoothly, no need to describe the same steps again. Here's the finished base assembly: I'm quite pleased; I didn't expect it to come out this neatly. I also thought of another tip/thought to pass along to others. When laying out the matching mortises between two sets of beams, the instructions say to hold the two beams together (such as with a rubber band) and mark the cuts across the two so that they're in the same place. This makes sense in theory, and it's how I tried to do it at first. But I found it relatively hard to do this accurately since I couldn't scribe a knife line across an entire beam. Instead, as suggested and described above, I ended up finding that it worked better to mark the location of one mortise edge using the caliper, then mark the rest of the mortise relative to the specific carling. I never set the two beams together, just trusted that starting from the same measured location would make the rest accurate, and it did. Either way it's probably worth practicing on scrap first.

Personally I like 5 the best if you're going for a raw wood, and 4 if you're going for weathered paint. The colors in 3 have too strong a contrast to my eyes, they look like new paint applied to old wood rather than old paint degrading off wood. But they're all good depending on what you like and just what effect you're going for.

Depending on what you mean by "building a carronade", Model Expo makes a great carronade diorama in 1:24 that serves as a good introduction to some wood/metal modeling skills. Since you said in your introduction to MSW that you were new to wooden modeling, this could be a good place to start. They make a companion kit for a regular naval cannon, and the two make a nice pair. I built them a few years ago and was quite pleased how they turned out: If you're talking about scratchbuilding the gun itself, Allan's response above will get you started. Just a tip, in general, the more detail you provide when asking questions the easier it is for others to give helpful responses.

Welcome from a former Western New Yorker. What are you planning to start with?

And here's what happens when I follow expert advice; a much better result! This is a test on scrap, using Kurt's square approach rather than the angled approach called for in the instructions. I found this much easier to form properly, though I can see why the other approach has merit, too. So here's how I did it. I first re-cut new beams and carlings, using the digital caliper to get the dimensions as close as possible. I then set the Byrnes table saw blade to the exact height and inset of the notch in the end of each beam, which ensured that it would be even across all the carlings (I tried to cut this by hand the first time, with uneven results): When these were cleaned up, I measured the outside edge of each mortise, then marked the rest with a knife based on the carling itself, with the notch resting over the beam, cheating slightly inward to give me some margin for error: I then marked the depth of the mortise using the caliper: In both cases I used the depth gage on the caliper, which worked better than my first attempt using the dividers. It let me mark a more even and accurate line with the knife. Then I just carefully used a chisel and sharp knife to whittle out a mortise, cleaned it up with a very small file, and very slowly took away more material until the notched carling fit snugly in the mortise. I made sure to mark each end of each carling, and its corresponding mortise, with a unique number so I wouldn't get them mixed up (since each will be slightly different no matter how careful I was): I used a small square to test the fit of each carling and its mortise, since this let me hold the upper surfaces flush while looking at the underside: And when these were assembled in the magnetic jig, they came together wonderfully square, and so tight I could pick up the assembly without any glue or clamps. Cool! Now I just have to repeat this for the other half of the assembly, although I'll be more nervous this time because messing up on the central beam would mean I'd have to redo it all. But at least I have an approach I know I can do, and I hope the details given here are helpful for others. Thanks for the great advice, everyone!

Good advice from both of you. In fairness, I was using a marking knife, the pencil you see was just added afterward (following the scoring line) for visibility. But I was not measuring against the carling, despite earlier advice to do, a mistake I will not repeat.

So I've gotten started and already found that I need practice in doing work at this level of accuracy. First, I debuted several belated Christmas presents to myself. Using my new digital caliper to mark out mortise locations: Using my new magnetic assembly jig to hold beams in place while trying to mark mortises consistently between them: Using a chisel to cut the angled mortise: Using a file to smooth the cut: However, despite what I thought was slow and careful work, I was not able to create even or consistent joints. Here are my first two attempts: In both cases the mortises are clearly larger than the tenons, and neither joint fits neatly. I also managed to chip off a piece of the beam next to a cut (look just left of the further-away mortise), which ruins the visual appearance. Part of the problem was that I found it particularly difficult to shape the end of the carling (cross-piece), which is supposed to look like the right-hand side of this photo: I think I need to re-cut all these pieces anew and start over. This time I'm wondering if I should form the carlings first, then use those to create matching mortises, rather than the other way around as I did the first time. It may be easier to slowly file away a mortise than to form a more complex piece to fit an existing hole.

Black walnut trees are pretty common here in rural Missouri, not just in the wild but in local plantings where a longsighted landowner has set out a grid of trees for valuable timber decades down the line. I can buy local black walnut meats at a health food store in the area. We have many wild ones on our place, some of which we’ve cut during timber stand improvements. I have a lifetime supply of small scale model wood sitting around in my shop! Great photos of you and the grandkids, well done! That’s the kind of memory I have of my grandfather as well.

I'd argue that "most difficult" has a lot to do with the design of the kit and the quality of the instructions, not just the kit's complexity. I'd bet that that Model Shipways kit would be easier to build than, say, a big Corel kit with terrible instructions and poor materials. And the kit she's building doesn't even have rigging! It might be fair to say it's her most difficult build, but I can't see how it's the most difficult build. Also, she appears to have an ongoing build log for this right here on MSW, started in April and just updated an hour ago. She's clearly an experienced and skilled modeler based on other builds, the titling for this just seems a little dramatic.

What a great project, fully realized. Wish I could see it in person. Thanks for teaching me so much while I followed your build.

Looks great, congratulations on a job well done and thanks for sharing it with us.

Your photo didn't post, maybe try again when you give an update?

In every log of this kit I've followed, those stairs have looked a nightmare. You did a nice job with them.

Welcome back!

I wonder if Model Expo would be interested in selling the books. They stock other references and also happen to make the most accurate steamboat model kit out there (Chaperon). It’d be a great cross-promotion to have the books listed with that kit on their website and in their catalog.

@Roger Pellett has elsewhere mentioned a small museum along the Ohio River that sells copies of Bates' books, but for the life of me I can't remember its name or location. Maybe mentioning his name here will get his attention and he can remind us.

Out of curiosity, did you use glue to stiffen these? Many folks will use a drop of CA or wood diluted wood glue on such knots to ensure that they hold, especially as they don't need to be adjusted. You mentioned gluing the ratline knots but not these, so I thought I'd ask. Looks nice and crisp overall.

Lots of good tips, Grant, thanks! I did the same thing on my spreadsheet, having it set up to give me the full dimensions of every piece in a reference list, as well as a "calculation box" for entering specific dimensions that I want to check. I'm about to order a digital caliper as my existing manual one isn't fine-scale enough for this project and I think I'll make good use of it down the road. I don't have a lot of experience with fine woodworking, being more of a large-scale builder (I've built a number of outbuildings on our farm and rough furniture, but not anything with precise small joinery like jewelry boxes). So this will be a good way for me to develop finer-scale skills, including chisel work. My wife is excellent at tool sharpening and handles everything from hatchets and loppers to kitchen knives to the cutting blades for our wood chipper, so I'll be putting her to work on my chisels before I try anything! Also, welcome on board, Robert & Brian. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long for more progress. I'm doing a lot of timbering this time of year and I'm not always in the mood to work with wood in the evening when I've been felling and bucking trees all day!

First step, cutting the deck beams and carlings from maple: And here they are in their loose configuration, before being mortised into one another: I followed @gjdale in making a spreadsheet for converting the plan measurements into scale. Although he made his available to others, I stubbornly made my own so it'd be just the way I wanted it. I set it up to convert full-size measurements into both fractional and decimal inches, since I think more clearly in fractional but decimal will be easier to measure in at small dimensions. Metric would have been sensible, too, and I'm used to it as a scientist, but I still do most of my woodworking and building in fractional inches so I went with what's easier for me, cognitively speaking. Next up I'll find out how good I am at cutting highly accurate mortises at this scale. The great thing about logging my own wood is that I have a lifetime supply of model-scale wood from just a few timber-management leftovers. So making mistakes won't be nearly as much an issue as if I was ordering nice wood from a supplier.