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Cathead

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  1. Like
    Cathead reacted to Keith Black in USS Tennessee 1869 by Keith Black - scale 1:120 - Wood Hull Screw Frigate - ex Madawaska 1865   
    Thank you to all for the likes and for following along.
     
     Maggie update.....her progress has slowed these past two weeks due to an infection but hopefully once that clears she'll continue making strides in her recovery. Thank you again to each of you for your prayers and thoughts for her,
     
     I've been able to make some limited progress on the Tennessee's main shrouds. I look back with envy at those days when when I was able to devote eight hours plus at the worktable. I should have worked longer hours back then as now my eyesight for close work is diminishing. I've always been a bit of a perfectionist and so naturally my mindset when I first started working on the Tennessee was get it done as perfect as possible. Because the grains of sand drain ever faster my mindset now is, better quit messing about and get it done. It was never going to be perfect, I no longer have the luxury of tilting at windmills.     
     
     Notice the loupe among the tools used for running the shrouds. I had to start using the loupe to check my work on the deadeye lashings as on one pair I ran the line through the same hole twice. I didn't catch this till after the deadeyes were glued in place and the shroud line attached. Once upon a time I would have redone it, now, I let er fly. I don't think anyone will ever notice and I really can't tell and I know which pair it is. But it nags at me, so be it. 
     
    I went back through the log and I couldn't find where I explained the how and why I lash the deadeye pairs off ship. The reason being the deadeyes are too small and there just isn't the room. 
     
     The main's channel shrouds requires the measurement from one deadeye top the the other deadeye top to be 0.70 inches, same size as a US penny. To keep the size constant I've superglued the rotating adjust balls of the third hand to keep the distance fixed. That way I don't have to use a ruler to check each pair though I do spot check to make sure the adjustment is still set correctly. 

     
    Starboard side. Try as hard as I might, I can't seem to get em perfect aligned. Oh well, more shadows in the wind.  

     
     Port side. The second pair in from the left is the pair where I ran the line through the same hole twice, top deadeye, top hole. I've always intended for the model to be viewed from the starboard side so it was pretty easy 'let it fly' rationalization.
     
     Nine more pair of deadeyes and shroud lines and I can set about with ratline weaving.
     
     Again, thank you to all.  
  2. Like
    Cathead reacted to Keith Black in Roar Ege by Scottish Guy - Billing Boats - 1:25   
    Micha, tear it back. Remove the planking if possible and see how that goes. If you can't remove the planking maybe we can come up with something that will help you save the build. 
     
     Off the top of my head, if the planks can't  be removed, you might try building up the inside keel height. you could also remove rib notches and or make new notches. Isn't the keel covered? If so building up the keel hight wouldn't show.
     
     Glad to see you bought another Roar kit. Even if you manage to save Roar 1.0 it's always going to bug you. Building Roar 2.0 will go much better because this time you're aware of what you need to do and where the pitfalls lie.  
     
     Proceed forth with great vigor......and have fun with it. That's what all this is about, finding enjoyment working with your hands. 
  3. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from tommay1953 in USF Confederacy 1778 by WalrusGuy - Model Shipways - 1:64   
    You're a proper ship surgeon, you are. That's incredible.
  4. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from yvesvidal in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  5. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from FriedClams in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  6. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from FriedClams in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  7. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from mbp521 in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  8. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from LJP in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  9. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Canute in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  10. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from KeithAug in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  11. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from mtaylor in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  12. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Canute in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  13. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from GrandpaPhil in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  14. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from mtaylor in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  15. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Roger Pellett in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  16. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from GrandpaPhil in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  17. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Roger Pellett in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  18. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from mbp521 in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  19. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Keith Black in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Keith, fair question. We'll see what it looks like when I pop them off but my instinct is that there'll be two long thin glue scars where the base timbers were glued down that won't look quite natural. 
  20. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from John Ruy in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  21. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Ras Ambrioso in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Just a small amount of progress to report. May is not cooperating in terms of free time to work on models. 
     
    I added the longitudinal hog chains based on some blurry historical image details and logical assumptions about their natural location. I used thin wire, which I couldn't get perfectly straight, but it's another quirk that the camera captures but the eye doesn't really see.



    Then I got to work on the...not quite sure what to call them, but the timber frames on the bow used to push tows. You can see them pretty clearly here:
     

    This is where I found I hadn't thought ahead enough. Those are pretty widely spaced across the bow, which means the bow has very little curvature. When I went to install mine after making them, I found that my bow curves away more sharply than I thought when I first laid it out, so now if I placed them that far apart their fronts fell well behind the bow and wouldn't be able to push anything. 
     
    So I had the choice of either placing them accurately far apart, but too far back from the point of the bow, or too close together, but accurately forward enough to extend just beyond the bow. For better or worse, I chose the latter, though now I'm wondering if it was the wrong decision because they're more noticeably "wrong" compared to the original photos than if they were properly spaced but a bit too far back. Anyway, see what you think (compare to same photo angle in background):

    Another view, with comparable angle in background and separate photo below:
     


    Changing them would mean popping them off the deck and hopefully not leaving too much glue stain; I could always cover those with a few random timbers or something. Thoughts?
     
    In the above photos, you'll also notice I built a version of the capstan that sits just behind those whatever-they're-called braces.
     
    Finally, I added the two thick diagonal braces that lead aft from the chimneys to the pilot house:

     
    I think I'm getting close to done with the basic details. There are some more thin guy wires supporting the chimneys, though they're very hard to see in the historical photos. I need to figure out where I'm going to get that big locomotive headlight that's so prominent on the front edge of the boiler deck.
     
    The biggest single project remaining is the paddlewheel, which I'm going to need some quiet focused time to concentrate on designing. Not going to happen in the next week, that's for sure. But I started this log on June 17, 2023, and there's an outside chance I'll have her done one year later. Thanks for sticking with me!
  22. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from JacquesCousteau in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  23. Like
    Cathead reacted to KeithAug in Caroline N by mbp521 - Scale 1:64 - Mississippi River Towboat   
    Brian, I concur with the majority view, yes display the drives and hide the mirror edges.
  24. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from Ras Ambrioso in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    @mbp521 Tow knees, thank you! Driving me crazy to not have a proper name. Yes, they're definitely there to provide maximum stable contact with a tow.
     
    @steamschooner The first time, I decided to ignore the roller chocks since I thought they'd be barely visible between the narrowly spaced tow knees; they're not always visible even in photos (for example, look at the second vertical one I showed above where they're covered by the tow knee bracing).
     
    @LJP I tried something like that and got the wire as straight as I could before installing. I also mounted it on the model in such a way that I could put a fair amount of tension on each section as I glued it in. Doing this actually demonstrated the engineering integrity of the hog chain system because those angled posts took all the strain without flinching! The result is the best I could do with that I had on hand and I'm fine with it.
     
    And to everyone else, I'm convinced of the need to pop the tow knees off and start over, but it'll be a few weeks due to schedule overload. I can easily hide any slight scarring from the removal with ropes or something. I'd say this will teach me a lesson not to get ahead of myself, but if this build shows anything, it's that I don't learn that lesson easily. This time I'll demonstrate the new assembly before gluing it to the model.
     
    Also, to hold your interest during the next interlude, here are a couple recent views of the Missouri River just downstream of Rocheport, the upriver home port for Peerless. You're looking upriver in both shots, with Rocheport tucked into the bend at right. First one is from a bluff a couple hundred feet above the river, second one is nearby but riverside. Peerless would have traveled this stretch regularly. When these were taken the river was as high it's been in several years and you can see that the surface looks turbulent with woody debris in the water.
     


  25. Like
    Cathead got a reaction from KeithAug in Peerless 1893 by Cathead - 1:87 - sternwheel Missouri River steamboat   
    Just a small amount of progress to report. May is not cooperating in terms of free time to work on models. 
     
    I added the longitudinal hog chains based on some blurry historical image details and logical assumptions about their natural location. I used thin wire, which I couldn't get perfectly straight, but it's another quirk that the camera captures but the eye doesn't really see.



    Then I got to work on the...not quite sure what to call them, but the timber frames on the bow used to push tows. You can see them pretty clearly here:
     

    This is where I found I hadn't thought ahead enough. Those are pretty widely spaced across the bow, which means the bow has very little curvature. When I went to install mine after making them, I found that my bow curves away more sharply than I thought when I first laid it out, so now if I placed them that far apart their fronts fell well behind the bow and wouldn't be able to push anything. 
     
    So I had the choice of either placing them accurately far apart, but too far back from the point of the bow, or too close together, but accurately forward enough to extend just beyond the bow. For better or worse, I chose the latter, though now I'm wondering if it was the wrong decision because they're more noticeably "wrong" compared to the original photos than if they were properly spaced but a bit too far back. Anyway, see what you think (compare to same photo angle in background):

    Another view, with comparable angle in background and separate photo below:
     


    Changing them would mean popping them off the deck and hopefully not leaving too much glue stain; I could always cover those with a few random timbers or something. Thoughts?
     
    In the above photos, you'll also notice I built a version of the capstan that sits just behind those whatever-they're-called braces.
     
    Finally, I added the two thick diagonal braces that lead aft from the chimneys to the pilot house:

     
    I think I'm getting close to done with the basic details. There are some more thin guy wires supporting the chimneys, though they're very hard to see in the historical photos. I need to figure out where I'm going to get that big locomotive headlight that's so prominent on the front edge of the boiler deck.
     
    The biggest single project remaining is the paddlewheel, which I'm going to need some quiet focused time to concentrate on designing. Not going to happen in the next week, that's for sure. But I started this log on June 17, 2023, and there's an outside chance I'll have her done one year later. Thanks for sticking with me!
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