Cathead

0.8 mm square copper wire indeed seems to be the smallest square wire commercially available.
 
A short while ago I was able to buy a miniature jewellery rolling mill. It is actually meant for enlarging wedding rings and such, but I will convert it for rolling (soft) round wire into tiny square, rectangular or half-round wire.
 
CuNi-wire is available in a wide variety of dimensions as flat wire - it is being used in heating elements. A while ago I got a good selection of old stock from ebay.

I like it when solution develop - it's so much more educational. Nicely made smoke stacks Eric.

Thanks guys, for the kind comments, it's so appreciated.  Also for the likes.
 
 
It does - and it seems a practical matter of finding a spot for the engine room and 3,000 gals of diesel.  The fish hold takes up about 16'5" (500cm) of prime real estate right out the center of the hull.  But, I still think she's a handsome girl.
 
   
 
Gary

All right, you lot got your way! I went to the hardware store and got some brass tubing to play with. Here's the resulting second draft of the chimneys. I scored them using a razor saw to simulate the joints. I shaved/sanded a wooden plug to fit tightly in the bottom of each so they'd sit and attach properly. Don't judge their exact angle, they're just sitting there as a test-fit.
 



I also moved forward on the pilot house; here's its current status. I used some clear plastic and CA formulated not to craze plastic. Not entirely happy with the outcome but it's too late now. Guess it looks like old glass. It'll certainly blend into the background of the finished model.
 



Sharp eyes will notice that I simulated the gap into which the lower half of the wheel vanishes by just putting down a thin dark piece of wood. It'll be barely visible in the finished pilot house and I didn't think building in the full gap and wheel was worth it. I still need to weather the steps to match the pilot house floor.
 
Next up I need to decide whether to try blackening the brass, or painting it with primer and then black paint. Also whether to try roughing it up with fine sandpaper or leaving it smooth. Will do some test pieces since there's tubing left over.
 
Thanks for pushing me to improve my work!

Just catching up, Eric. Those funnels look really good.
 
John
 

It's clear by now that this project is morphing far away from my original goal of building it mostly with on-farm wood. I keep realizing (a) how much more time-intensive that is, (b) that I don't quite have the setup or skill to mill all the tiny 1:87 scale lumber I'd need, and (c) that I have enough material in my scrap box to build this without any additional cost. I've yet to buy anything for this model and I think I'll make it to the end like that. I've also come to realize that the on-farm wood approach just doesn't fit my goal for this model to be something that looks right in a model railroad setting. If I want to do an all on-farm wood model, it should be a more artistic model that really shows off that wood rather than hiding it under paint and other details. Sorry to anyone who's disappointed after the initial promise.
 
Anyway, I've been moving forward on the pilot house and chimneys. The idea here is to get all the upper superstructure built so I can lay out the covering of the boiler deck to match. I have a big scrap box of model railroad scratch-building supplies (doors, windows, ladders, piping, etc.) so I just drew from those materials to make a reasonable match with the original Peerless photos. So here are some shots of the pilot house underway, using those pieces plus some scrap scribed wood sheets and other scrap wood. So far so good. 
 




An interesting question here is what to do about glass in these windows. In most model settings you could just glue a piece of clear plastic behind the window, but that would look awful here where you can clearly see into the interior from multiple angles. My leaning right now is just to leave the windows un-glassed; whether or not it's right, I think the eye will see it as more natural than a clearly wrong attempt at glass. In other words, the viewer's eye is less likely to notice the absence of an accurate detail than the presence of a distractingly wrong detail. Thoughts?
 
I've also been playing with the chimneys. I have both dowels and styrene tubes on hand, but I'd rather use dowels for the main stack as they're more solid and easier to anchor to the model. But I need to simulate the subtle bands around the chimney, and some form of empty opening at the top. So here's the approach I came up with, using thin rings cut from a slightly wider styrene tube:
 

For the top, I cut a longer section of tubing, then sanded the lower edge to blend back into the stack. It's not exactly like the real Peerless but I think it looks nice and is a practical and easy way to do cap the chimneys, and many steamers did have flared chimneys like this.

And here's a loose test-fit on the model. You can see I also carved and sanded some maple blocks to roughly represent the base of the chimneys where they come through the heat shields on the boiler deck. As above, I couldn't get these to match the original photos perfectly, but they evoke the essence of the right idea, which I'm fine with.
 

When I'm satisfied with these, I'll prime and paint them just like the boilers, and I think they'll bend nicely into a coherent whole that looks right.

Seems to me the builder is free to use whatever methods he feels most comfortable with, unless he's aiming for a specific contest standard. And I don't see any functional problem with his choices that would require warning or criticism (as opposed to, say, using wood glue to bond metal parts or something, which actually might require a gentle nudge of advice).
 
And plastic is already becoming quite common through the use of 3D printed parts. There are fair perspectives for and against this, but it seems a touch rude to  imply that the builder here is somehow diminishing wooden ship modeling by using a few plastic parts for clearly explained reasons, especially in a thread where the builder and others have already shared stories of overly critical commenters demeaning their work.

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

So here's what the new stacks look like. Still not attached permanently so don't worry about their exact orientation.
 

I still have to figure out how to make the little rain shields (I assume that's what they are) that sit between the chimneys and the broader heat shields; you can see them clearly in this image:

I've tried a few things and none have looked good.
 
On to the pilot house. Here's a bit more progress, showing the ubiquitous wood stove in the corner, and the back wall added.
 


This had an unusual window pattern that you can see here:

 
And some rafters added:
 

Better late than never, I added some hardware to the bottom of the hull so the model could be bolted down to a base if desired. I should have done this much sooner, and now was the last chance while I could reasonably work on it upside down (before more delicate structures were added).

That's all for now, but it's progress. Thanks so much for sticking with me!

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

Wefalck, thanks, I'd figured that out in theory but was struggling with putting it into practice. I'll definitely try Brian's method with card stock. I'd tried thin styrene but it didn't cut or fold cleanly enough. And thanks for the pictures, I'm also very visual.
 
 

So here's what the new stacks look like. Still not attached permanently so don't worry about their exact orientation.
 

I still have to figure out how to make the little rain shields (I assume that's what they are) that sit between the chimneys and the broader heat shields; you can see them clearly in this image:

I've tried a few things and none have looked good.
 
On to the pilot house. Here's a bit more progress, showing the ubiquitous wood stove in the corner, and the back wall added.
 


This had an unusual window pattern that you can see here:

 
And some rafters added:
 

Better late than never, I added some hardware to the bottom of the hull so the model could be bolted down to a base if desired. I should have done this much sooner, and now was the last chance while I could reasonably work on it upside down (before more delicate structures were added).

That's all for now, but it's progress. Thanks so much for sticking with me!

Agreed. 

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

Glad that was helpful. They came out looking great!  
 
-Brian

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

Another option is to look for a kit that has pre-spiled planks (usually laser cut). I believe Dusek does this for some models, and I saw a lot of praise for Master Korabel kits well but I'm not sure it's easy to get their kits these days as the maker is Russian.

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

I added pins to the channels and glued them to the hull. I added the deadeyes to the chain plates and slipped them into the holes in the channels, then used a piece of dowel with a string on it to get the angles of the chain plates. I drilled holes in the wales and glued in cut off nails to hold them. You can see that I was only able to get the top holes on the wales for the large deadeyes. The height of the channels is set by the lower edge of the gunport and the position of the wales was marked on the outer bulwarks so I am not sure why they didn't match up unless the chain plates are a little too long. I went ahead and added a nail through the lower holes under the wales which looks OK to me. These holes are come out under the deck so I could use a whole nail for them, unlike the chain plates for the small deadeyes that go through the bulwark. These holes have to be pretty shallow so they don't show on the inside, so it is tough getting the small cut off nails into these holes.
 

 

 
I will be adding all the deck items next. My kit came with wooden gratings along with the PE ones. I am using the wooden ones, which I gave a coat of wipe on poly. They fit the coamings perfectly and look great. I am also adding the cannon balls to the rakes on the coamings before adding the coamings to the deck.

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

Wefalck, thanks, I'd figured that out in theory but was struggling with putting it into practice. I'll definitely try Brian's method with card stock. I'd tried thin styrene but it didn't cut or fold cleanly enough. And thanks for the pictures, I'm also very visual.
 
 

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

So here's what the new stacks look like. Still not attached permanently so don't worry about their exact orientation.
 

I still have to figure out how to make the little rain shields (I assume that's what they are) that sit between the chimneys and the broader heat shields; you can see them clearly in this image:

I've tried a few things and none have looked good.
 
On to the pilot house. Here's a bit more progress, showing the ubiquitous wood stove in the corner, and the back wall added.
 


This had an unusual window pattern that you can see here:

 
And some rafters added:
 

Better late than never, I added some hardware to the bottom of the hull so the model could be bolted down to a base if desired. I should have done this much sooner, and now was the last chance while I could reasonably work on it upside down (before more delicate structures were added).

That's all for now, but it's progress. Thanks so much for sticking with me!

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this. 
 
 

Wefalck, I don't have any kind of lathe. In theory I know what you mean, but I wasn't up for trying the old electric drill lathe trick, at least not until all other options had been exhausted.
 
As it turned out, Brian's method of using cardstock worked like a charm. Much better than the styrene I was trying to use, which didn't want to bend properly and was too thick (the joint stood out like a sore thumb). First I figured out what outside radius I wanted and looked for something to use as a pattern. Turns out a spool of cheap rigging thread from a former kit was perfect. So I traced that outline onto some paper, then traced the inner outline around the right size of brass tubing. This is a basic index card.

Notice that I was sneaky here and folded the stock over to get two comparable discs. Some previous experimentation had convinced me that one layer wasn't stiff enough. So I used the kindergarten trick and cut two out together, making their boundaries more consistent than trying to cut them out separately.

I could have glued the two halves together before cutting, but intentionally didn't. I thought that would make the overlapping joint too thick (more noticeable) and also make the stock stiffer and harder to bend (why the styrene wasn't working). So I spread some glue on one end of the ring, then formed it around the brass tube until I had the angle I wanted:

When both were independently glued up, I smeared glue on one whole surface and sandwiched them together. This worked great, giving me a stiffer final result with the appearance of a single layer (finer joint). I then painted them with thick black paint, which when dry stiffened them even further.
 

And here they are test-fit on the model. Much better than anything I'd tried before. Lots of internet points for Brian! Any card modelers reading this are shaking their heads and thinking "we could have told you that!".
 



Thanks for the advice! Even when I don't take it or go a different way, it makes me think and helps me learn. Next I need to start laying out the rest of the main cabin, and/or laying out the support posts for the hog chains. We'll see what I feel like doing when I next have time to work on this.