Cabbie

I made a machine using NRG plans - in the '70's  ?  
The platten was Hard Maple -  The square stock was glued to a 1/2 cold rolled steel rod and the turned by a professional woodworker.  I did not and do not have a full size lathe.   At the time, the only media that I knew of was the 11x9 hardware store sheets, so I had the platten sized to take that = 11 inches long and 9 inches circumference.  I used Weldwood contact cement.  It was/ still is a bear to change.  Mineral spirits and naptha denature it,  but the paper backed media -- awful to remove.
 
I have since discovered cloth backed sanding media - it is much better.
Do over =  I would keep the diameter the same -  I would make the platten 12"   I would allow for 2 inch thick stock.
My  imagination sees a thick platten as producing a better surface.
 
Why 12" ?
Klingspor makes long rolls of open coat Al oxide in 3" and 4" widths.
With 12 inches, I could have 4 inches of 80 grit,  4 inches of 120 grit, and 4 inches of 220 grit.
A rubber platten is almost certain to be out of round.  Commercial sleeves - vampires on your wallet.
A soft platten  - Velcro = heartache.
I am pretty sure that if you use cloth backed and coat both the media and the platten with rubber cement  - it should hold.  It has a thinner/solvent and it is a magnitude easier than contact cement to use -  easier application -  a no contest for removal..
You will need to buy it in quarts.
 
A dust hood is vital.
I made one.    It is an open box with a 2.5"  shop vac connection on the top.
I made it by Titebond III  gluing 3 layers of Amazon box cardboard together and using that for the 4 sides and top.
It is good quality cardboard and with two layers of PVC - it is strong and light weight.
The inside corners have 1/4" x 1/4" Pine sticks  and also at the top to take the screws for the shop vac hose socket.
Covered the outside with duct tape.
Keeping it in place and having no weight/ force from the vac hose is the most difficult chore. 
 
Jim Byrnes unit is 6"  - friction clamp - easy to change --  Klingspor 3"  two pieces
 
 
 

Chris, not a bad idea. I might copy. It's not patented is it? Sawdust must be a problem.
Tom

Please consider dust collection and control. Fine dust in the air is injurious to your health. Also, under certain conditions, a flash fire or explosion may occur. Sawmills have been destroyed and folk killed this way.

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Welcome to MSW Tim?jina
It sounds like you are already well along the model ship building path.
Even though you have started your current ship you can still do a build log.
This is a very friendly place to be a member of, join in
and have a good time.
Hooroo Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

That's about it in a nutshell Bruce, I don't know if hard roller would work. A bit of squish is good to have.
The problem with the velcro is that it only just hangs on to the paper. I think a spray glue is available to hold the paper directly on
to the wood that would let go when you wanted to change the paper, but that means a hard roller.
Will fiddle with it, I am good at that.
Hooroo Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Home made thicknessing sander if you have a lathe.
I wanted to cut some new deck planks for my Mermaid which i can do well enough,
but they would have a sawn face. So I started thinking about making a thickness sander, what did I have that spins horizontally?
The little Proxxon lathe, a little bit of thinking and came up with this item.
Its is a bit crude, just made up with bits in the shed.
The height adjustment is probably lacking in enough horizontal stability
The butt hinge is a bit loose in the pin.
And the cloth backed sandpaper is just hanging on to the velcro.
But that said, it did a pretty good job for a first up, bang it together fitting.
The lathe handled the load fine, the planks were put through against the spin.
I was only sanding a small amount each pass so holding the wood was no problem.
Certainly need refining, a dust extractor hood.
I trued up the dowel by running a file under it sitting flat on the bed.
Cheers Chris

Happy to read you, and to "globally" share this mutual passion,
 
 
black wolf

The deck plan and profile drawings held by the NMM refer to both Alert and Rattlesnake of 1777.
These were sister ships designed by John Williams to the same specification and both launched within a week of each other. 
 
There are other layout differences in the Cole model; he has switched the positions of the Main ladder-way and the glazed Companion-way over the Captain's cabin, this he seems to have taken from the layout of the Hawke model in the NMM. Incidentally the Hawke model has the fore hatch on the centre line.
 
I think I will stick with the layout as per the kit and the Goodwin book.
 
Regards,
 
B.E.

"A bit rough around the edges"
Listen to the man will you. Get me a strong magnifying glass I might see something a bit rough, maybe!
Yes, and thanks Chris now I need a new keyboard, totally covered in drool.
If only time and money didn't matter, better buy another lotto ticket.
Cheers Chris
 

OK, just sorted out a few more pics, mostly from the manual (There are 917 construction pics and well over the same amount for line drawings)
 
The first is the orlop, when I started the build, I was still waiting for the many sheets of PE to be delivered, so couldn't add the gratings (all PE so I could design to exact size). Some pics show the model a little rough around the edges, this is because it is before any final model touch ups..

Thanks for the input...helpful to know I'm on the right track. I've got some .51 brass bars that I'm going to attempt to mount lengthwise, I just have to figure out exactly how to mount them. 

Middle one for me as well, too many panes in the bottom one
Looks good in the 2 tone color.

Hi James
I'm with you on the middle one!
Cheers......Fernando 🍻

Middle one - it wouldn't hurt to put a couple of "iron" bars lengthways across the frame as well. Have them fine and if possible raised slightly then you don't get the appearance of multiple small panes like your third option.
 
Rick

Hi Everyone,
 
Thank you so very much for the really generous support of the closing sale. I was really surprised when I got home from work and saw how quickly everything went. Julia was adding blocks throughout the day, but as some of you said they went fast!
 
I have a few updates as follows:
 
1: The Boxwood Billets: I did not intend to put these directly on the site. I have had several people reach out to me including one who would like to buy the lot. I will be contacting everyone who has expressed interest and work out the fairest deal, with a good mind toward shipping. It isn't easy to ship these things. 
 
2: Boxwood Supplier: I have always used the same people who supplied Jeff at Hobby Mill USA before me, Gilmer Wood in Oregon. https://www.gilmerwood.com/
 
 
3: Is there more coming: Yes, but not like what was offered today. I have a few sets of special sheets including some beautiful quarter sawn cherry, and some extra wide boxwood. I also have a couple of really nice California Big Leaf Maple sheets that when finished look like rippling water. They make a great display base for models. See my pinnace in the competed builds section to see what it looks like finished. I also have a lot more blocks in my shop, but I wasn't sure how they were going to sell. My intent is to put up the sheets tonight or tomorrow, and get the blocks next weekend. This week at work is absolutely crazy, and the volume of orders that we had today is going to take up every bit of free time between work and kid for the next couple of days.
 
Again, thank you so much! I hope to get back to modeling someday soon and interact with you all more than I have on here in the last few years. And maybe I'll even share some stories about what it is like to be a supplier to the hobby. Some interesting tales those are!
 
Below is a picture of the big leaf maple sheets, they are the ones in the front that look like rippling water.
 
Best,
 
Jason
 
 

You know it makes sense  

Hi James it looks like we are thinking the same again.
Does this mean that this frame with cross bars is not correct for our cutter?
I was thinking of using mine.
Cheers Chris

Hi, I made up one of the cannons sat on some decking strip to double check the heights and to make sure the cannon would be placed central to the port.
 
If you think yours is too low remember that you can plank it higher at that end but you may also have to do so for the gun port.
 

The hull taking shape...