Cathead

Matt, you can add a hunneybucket, just leave it empty. No Pooh in your hunney.

Work was interrupted by a visit to the in-laws last weekend, but I am moving forward. I have a deadline; I would very much like to complete this model by the end of February, as we will be travelling for most of the month of March and I would hate to leave this log, and project, hanging unfinished.
 
Unfortunately, following the work CaptainSteve and Matt has influenced me to do more than I initially intended, so we will see. I have gone from not even intending to include masts, to now wanting sails and wrapped oars. This is not good for my agenda.
 
Here is where the launch stands today.
 

 
Oars are carved with first staining. I think I will do one more coat, then wrap them. These took less time than I expected, perhaps two hours for all of them. Masts are carved and stained, with brackets attached. They are not glued in, though.
 
The metal work I was so agitated over is done, to my acceptance if not my satisfaction.

I found that the small drill bits I purchased for this project from ModelExpo do not drill through brass, even chucked into my cordless drill. This threw me for a loop as I could not pin/nail anything in place. So for the mast partners, I shaped the brass strip, then nipped off the heads of four nails (viva la France!) and glued them in place to simulate the effect. I then painted the partners with black model paint and weathered them with brown pastels. I glued them in place, and they look well enough to me.
 
As for the pintles/gudgeons, I went to a hardware store and bought compatible lengths of brass tubing and rod, then used these to make the basic structure by wrapping brass sheet carefully around the tubing using pliers. It is not perfect, but it represents the form well enough for me. They ended up slightly oversized from the plans, but I can live with that. I painted them as I did the mast partners.
 
Again because of the drill problem, I glued these onto the model. This meant I needed a good flat surface to clamp onto, so I did not add the nail heads as I did the mast partners. Now that they are solidly attached, I will scrape some paint off to provide a good gluing surface for nail heads, then carefully repaint the final result and weather with pastels. Again, good enough for me if not for a real craftsman. I do not like metal and am glad to be past this part.
 
Okay, not quite. The tiller is shaped and stained, and I will soon be attaching it with brass strip handled as for the mast partners.
 
Next up: 
- Staining and wrapping oars
- Shaping & staining spars
- Cutting & finishing sails. I am leaning toward displaying spars lowered, with furled sails, as I do not find the shape of the raised sails very attractive. This lets me show detail and full rigging without full sails.
 
I have no idea if I can complete all this in the next two weeks, but deadlines can be marvelous things for focusing one's attention.

Matt, you can add a hunneybucket, just leave it empty. No Pooh in your hunney.

Matt has it as well, but just to beat the subject to death, I found the quotes I was thinking of from Caroline Alexander:
 
I share in the interest of scientific knowledge, and so that neither Steve nor Matt are tempted to add more detail than necessary to their models!

Matt has it as well, but just to beat the subject to death, I found the quotes I was thinking of from Caroline Alexander:
 
I share in the interest of scientific knowledge, and so that neither Steve nor Matt are tempted to add more detail than necessary to their models!

Matt has it as well, but just to beat the subject to death, I found the quotes I was thinking of from Caroline Alexander:
 
I share in the interest of scientific knowledge, and so that neither Steve nor Matt are tempted to add more detail than necessary to their models!

That query i posted was intended as a joke. The colon is the last stop where the body holds waist until the body knows if it has enough fluids. If not it remains in place as the body will squeeze out any and all fluids which is the only useable item at this point. Once properly hydrated, the body will say get out.
 
Onto the build. I'm at the point of making several metal parts for tools out of brass. Which means blackening. I know that there are many products that do this, but I'd like to know what chemical best suits the very small scale that is used here. So CaptainSteve, what have you found that works best for the modeler? I'm looking for one that is quick, permanent and won't kill my squirrels.
 
By the way here's a hammer that goes well with my adze:)

A thought on the...digestive question. Given how short their rations were, there may not have been much scatological activity. From my reading of other survival account, the digestive system pretty quickly starts saving almost everything from very short rations. After the first week, perhaps, I suspect this wasn't much of a problem. I seem to remember Caroline Alexander's book on the Bounty touching on this as well, but am not certain. And I suspect that between dehydration and low rations, what was coming out also didn't need much cleaning off.
 
Also, as someone who has built a barn with trees felled & milled on-site, I agree that quick material removal is important. Granted, I used a chainsaw and bandsaw mill, but the principle is the same. It takes a heckuva lot of waste material to create even basic structural shapes out of a tree, and that's not something you do with a chisel. On the other hand, getting those rough shapes to fit together into any kind of watertight structure requires some serious and delicate shaping work. So, you know, you need some of everything. There are specialized tools even for fence-building; such as an axe with a narrow blade for chopping out pre-augered rail holes in posts.

A thought on the...digestive question. Given how short their rations were, there may not have been much scatological activity. From my reading of other survival account, the digestive system pretty quickly starts saving almost everything from very short rations. After the first week, perhaps, I suspect this wasn't much of a problem. I seem to remember Caroline Alexander's book on the Bounty touching on this as well, but am not certain. And I suspect that between dehydration and low rations, what was coming out also didn't need much cleaning off.
 
Also, as someone who has built a barn with trees felled & milled on-site, I agree that quick material removal is important. Granted, I used a chainsaw and bandsaw mill, but the principle is the same. It takes a heckuva lot of waste material to create even basic structural shapes out of a tree, and that's not something you do with a chisel. On the other hand, getting those rough shapes to fit together into any kind of watertight structure requires some serious and delicate shaping work. So, you know, you need some of everything. There are specialized tools even for fence-building; such as an axe with a narrow blade for chopping out pre-augered rail holes in posts.

A thought on the...digestive question. Given how short their rations were, there may not have been much scatological activity. From my reading of other survival account, the digestive system pretty quickly starts saving almost everything from very short rations. After the first week, perhaps, I suspect this wasn't much of a problem. I seem to remember Caroline Alexander's book on the Bounty touching on this as well, but am not certain. And I suspect that between dehydration and low rations, what was coming out also didn't need much cleaning off.
 
Also, as someone who has built a barn with trees felled & milled on-site, I agree that quick material removal is important. Granted, I used a chainsaw and bandsaw mill, but the principle is the same. It takes a heckuva lot of waste material to create even basic structural shapes out of a tree, and that's not something you do with a chisel. On the other hand, getting those rough shapes to fit together into any kind of watertight structure requires some serious and delicate shaping work. So, you know, you need some of everything. There are specialized tools even for fence-building; such as an axe with a narrow blade for chopping out pre-augered rail holes in posts.

Canute, have you considered boarding over TRANSOM? Based on my recent planking job, there is enough length in the strakes to extend the few 1/16ths of an inch needed to cover an additional layer. I rebuilt mine entirely because I was unsure about this, but I would have been fine either way. 
"

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.

Progress!
 

 
Facing the dreaded spreading-hull syndrome, I decided to tackle the issue head-on. With carpentry clamps. Using the thwarts as a guide, I set up two clamps and gradually tightened them until the thwarts fit snugly. Some minor hull popping and creaking made me nervous, but she's a strong little boat. With the clamps stable, I glued in all but the aft two thwarts (to leave room for building the quarterdeck).
 
Part of this process, though not shown, was aligning two thwarts properly with the mast steps. I inserted the dowels, held them straight with a square set onto the floor, and adjusted the thwarts as needed. The slow set time of carpenter's glue allowed this to work properly. 
 

 
My gamble was correct; when the clamps were removed, the thwarts held the hull in shape. Test-fitting the gunwales proved that the original kit design is accurate; when the thwarts fit snugly, the gunwales will as well. So I glued them on, using the thick-rod-and-rubber-band method I stole from someone else (I have read so many Bounty Launch logs that I cannot keep them straight anymore).
 

 
On to the quarterdeck. I spent an afternoon reading about 8 build logs to develop my plan of attack for this, and decided to build the deck on the plans before installation. Here I stole an idea from my model railroading  background, and laid a wide strip of masking tape face up, securing it with two other strips at each end. Then I laid the rough-cut cherry frames across the tape, which holds them in place for further assembly. The tape is translucent enough to allow for tracing appropriates lines to ensure accuracy.
 
At right you see the assembled deck, with hatch cut out. I left the frames long intentionally, and slowly cut them down as needed, with a lot of test-fitting, until the deck seated properly into the hull. I used a neat little tool for notching the hatch-planks (the plan shows it done this way, though some logs have used three full planks), also from my model-railroading background:
 

 
There it is on the left; the Nibbler. It takes perfectly square chunks out of strip wood, and is invaluable for cutting precise window/door holes in buildings and other projects. This is how I did all the windows on my steamboat. On the right is another excellent tool, the Chopper. It makes perfect 90 degree cuts of stock, with frames that let you set repeatable lengths. I use this for all manner of projects, and it is perfect for decking like this.
 

 
And here is the current status. The hull is effectively done, save one last sanding and perhaps one more coat of stain. Two insets show changes I made. On top, I made new quarterknees because the kit's did not fit properly with the angles my hull ended up with. They were too short, and the aft angle was wrong. So I traced and carved new ones. The stained piece is from the kit, the unstained my own replacement, cut from the same stock as the original.
 
The other inset shows my hatch-rope, an idea shamelessly stolen from CaptainSteve. His used a tighter loop; Bligh would probably trip over mine. But I went with a design that I thought would be more visible, if not quite as realistic.
 
Apologies for the color balance on these. Outdoors we are getting a mix of rain, snow, and other in-between mess that makes the indoor light rather dim and harsh. One of these days I will take this outside for some better photos.
 
I had intended to build this without  masts, thinking it would fit better on a shelf somewhere. Fortunately, I happened to mention this to Mrs Cathead just before gluing in the thwarts, and she made it known that masts would be a good thing. So I took the extra time to align the thwarts and mast steps, which I would otherwise have not bothered to do. So very soon I will begin shaping masts and oars, and starting to feel sad that this wonderful project is now closer to its end than its beginning.

Steve, there is no rod in my kit, nor is it mentioned in the contents list. This is partly what has me flummoxed. All I have is two brass strips. Shaping them into the flat but angular hinge plates seems doable; I have done my mast partners without much bother. Shaping them into the super-tight tube needed to properly contain a full hinge, without any proper pin other than the tiny brass nails, is defeating me. 
 
I will likely go to a hardware store when I visit town on Wednesday and buy some small brass tubing/rods and play with those. But I cannot figure out how the kits intends one to do this with the materials supplied.
 
Thank you to you & Pops for the suggestions.

Yer. I ended up faking the hinges on my tool chest by just folding pieces (4mm x 2mm) of the brass strip in half and then fitting to small, chiseled-out grooves. Now that you mention it, I cannot be certain if that brass rod I mentioned above actually came with this kit, or was something I salvaged from my tool-box.
 
Nonetheless, you should be able to pick-up a small piece from any hardware store.
 
I actually have a tried 'n' true method ...
I start by approaching a staff member who is not too busy. Then I'll usually open with the line "I'm one of those sick people that makes model ships for fun !!"
From there, if you have picked the right staff member, you should be able to get the low-down on every item of stock they sell, and how it could be used in your build.
 
Take your plans with you (even if you end up leaving them in the car) ... 

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.

Progress!
 

 
Facing the dreaded spreading-hull syndrome, I decided to tackle the issue head-on. With carpentry clamps. Using the thwarts as a guide, I set up two clamps and gradually tightened them until the thwarts fit snugly. Some minor hull popping and creaking made me nervous, but she's a strong little boat. With the clamps stable, I glued in all but the aft two thwarts (to leave room for building the quarterdeck).
 
Part of this process, though not shown, was aligning two thwarts properly with the mast steps. I inserted the dowels, held them straight with a square set onto the floor, and adjusted the thwarts as needed. The slow set time of carpenter's glue allowed this to work properly. 
 

 
My gamble was correct; when the clamps were removed, the thwarts held the hull in shape. Test-fitting the gunwales proved that the original kit design is accurate; when the thwarts fit snugly, the gunwales will as well. So I glued them on, using the thick-rod-and-rubber-band method I stole from someone else (I have read so many Bounty Launch logs that I cannot keep them straight anymore).
 

 
On to the quarterdeck. I spent an afternoon reading about 8 build logs to develop my plan of attack for this, and decided to build the deck on the plans before installation. Here I stole an idea from my model railroading  background, and laid a wide strip of masking tape face up, securing it with two other strips at each end. Then I laid the rough-cut cherry frames across the tape, which holds them in place for further assembly. The tape is translucent enough to allow for tracing appropriates lines to ensure accuracy.
 
At right you see the assembled deck, with hatch cut out. I left the frames long intentionally, and slowly cut them down as needed, with a lot of test-fitting, until the deck seated properly into the hull. I used a neat little tool for notching the hatch-planks (the plan shows it done this way, though some logs have used three full planks), also from my model-railroading background:
 

 
There it is on the left; the Nibbler. It takes perfectly square chunks out of strip wood, and is invaluable for cutting precise window/door holes in buildings and other projects. This is how I did all the windows on my steamboat. On the right is another excellent tool, the Chopper. It makes perfect 90 degree cuts of stock, with frames that let you set repeatable lengths. I use this for all manner of projects, and it is perfect for decking like this.
 

 
And here is the current status. The hull is effectively done, save one last sanding and perhaps one more coat of stain. Two insets show changes I made. On top, I made new quarterknees because the kit's did not fit properly with the angles my hull ended up with. They were too short, and the aft angle was wrong. So I traced and carved new ones. The stained piece is from the kit, the unstained my own replacement, cut from the same stock as the original.
 
The other inset shows my hatch-rope, an idea shamelessly stolen from CaptainSteve. His used a tighter loop; Bligh would probably trip over mine. But I went with a design that I thought would be more visible, if not quite as realistic.
 
Apologies for the color balance on these. Outdoors we are getting a mix of rain, snow, and other in-between mess that makes the indoor light rather dim and harsh. One of these days I will take this outside for some better photos.
 
I had intended to build this without  masts, thinking it would fit better on a shelf somewhere. Fortunately, I happened to mention this to Mrs Cathead just before gluing in the thwarts, and she made it known that masts would be a good thing. So I took the extra time to align the thwarts and mast steps, which I would otherwise have not bothered to do. So very soon I will begin shaping masts and oars, and starting to feel sad that this wonderful project is now closer to its end than its beginning.

Ah, knowledge, the font and curse of happiness...

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.

Progress!
 

 
Facing the dreaded spreading-hull syndrome, I decided to tackle the issue head-on. With carpentry clamps. Using the thwarts as a guide, I set up two clamps and gradually tightened them until the thwarts fit snugly. Some minor hull popping and creaking made me nervous, but she's a strong little boat. With the clamps stable, I glued in all but the aft two thwarts (to leave room for building the quarterdeck).
 
Part of this process, though not shown, was aligning two thwarts properly with the mast steps. I inserted the dowels, held them straight with a square set onto the floor, and adjusted the thwarts as needed. The slow set time of carpenter's glue allowed this to work properly. 
 

 
My gamble was correct; when the clamps were removed, the thwarts held the hull in shape. Test-fitting the gunwales proved that the original kit design is accurate; when the thwarts fit snugly, the gunwales will as well. So I glued them on, using the thick-rod-and-rubber-band method I stole from someone else (I have read so many Bounty Launch logs that I cannot keep them straight anymore).
 

 
On to the quarterdeck. I spent an afternoon reading about 8 build logs to develop my plan of attack for this, and decided to build the deck on the plans before installation. Here I stole an idea from my model railroading  background, and laid a wide strip of masking tape face up, securing it with two other strips at each end. Then I laid the rough-cut cherry frames across the tape, which holds them in place for further assembly. The tape is translucent enough to allow for tracing appropriates lines to ensure accuracy.
 
At right you see the assembled deck, with hatch cut out. I left the frames long intentionally, and slowly cut them down as needed, with a lot of test-fitting, until the deck seated properly into the hull. I used a neat little tool for notching the hatch-planks (the plan shows it done this way, though some logs have used three full planks), also from my model-railroading background:
 

 
There it is on the left; the Nibbler. It takes perfectly square chunks out of strip wood, and is invaluable for cutting precise window/door holes in buildings and other projects. This is how I did all the windows on my steamboat. On the right is another excellent tool, the Chopper. It makes perfect 90 degree cuts of stock, with frames that let you set repeatable lengths. I use this for all manner of projects, and it is perfect for decking like this.
 

 
And here is the current status. The hull is effectively done, save one last sanding and perhaps one more coat of stain. Two insets show changes I made. On top, I made new quarterknees because the kit's did not fit properly with the angles my hull ended up with. They were too short, and the aft angle was wrong. So I traced and carved new ones. The stained piece is from the kit, the unstained my own replacement, cut from the same stock as the original.
 
The other inset shows my hatch-rope, an idea shamelessly stolen from CaptainSteve. His used a tighter loop; Bligh would probably trip over mine. But I went with a design that I thought would be more visible, if not quite as realistic.
 
Apologies for the color balance on these. Outdoors we are getting a mix of rain, snow, and other in-between mess that makes the indoor light rather dim and harsh. One of these days I will take this outside for some better photos.
 
I had intended to build this without  masts, thinking it would fit better on a shelf somewhere. Fortunately, I happened to mention this to Mrs Cathead just before gluing in the thwarts, and she made it known that masts would be a good thing. So I took the extra time to align the thwarts and mast steps, which I would otherwise have not bothered to do. So very soon I will begin shaping masts and oars, and starting to feel sad that this wonderful project is now closer to its end than its beginning.

Your boat is looking really amazing
 
While I can't really point you to anything specific, I used small brass tube (with a smaller brass rod for the pin) and the strips contained in the kit.  You will probably want to use/learn silver soldering (I had to learn, it's really easy to get too much solder on these tiny things) for the strongest joints.
 
 I just finished blackening those items, using Birchwood Casey Brass Black.  It's really easy to use.

I have now come face to face with a dreaded part of the build: metal work. I have zero, zilch, nada experience in working metal. I am staring at these brass strips and trying to figure out how to turn them into the complex and detailed pintle/gudgeon assemblies so blithely shown on the plans. What is used for the pins? The brass nails look too thin. Am I supposed to shape the strip into a full tube to hold whatever pin I come up with?  I have read through a number of logs and haven't found (or missed) a discussion of how this is supposed to work. The instructions are no help at all.
If someone knows a good discussion of exactly how to do this, feel free to direct me there instead of needing to repeat everything here. 

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.

Okay, I just had to take photos in better light. Here she's set on the kitchen floor just inside our glass doors, with snow-softened light streaming in.
 

 

 
I like the lighter walnut stain on the gunwales, backrest, & knees setting off the darker cherry stain on the rest of the hull.
 
I have successfully resisted the urge to try treenailing anything, as tempting as it is seeing the gorgeous results of others. My goal going in was to built the kit "out of box" with nothing added, and I have largely stuck to that. Perhaps the next project I will go down that particular rabbit hole.