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GrantGoodale

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  1. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to herbgold in HMS Pegasus by herbgold - Victory Models - Scale 1:64   
    Thank you both too, Mike and Martin. As I see it, there are two problems with what I have done:
     
    1. Because I used the stern part of the jigsaw joint as a datum line as per the instructions, everything is too too far forward (and I think the strips are too long). Exhibit A shows that very clearly
    2. What I hadn't noticed was that the strips should have a vertical curve (or S-curve, or "recurve") as well, My strips are completely missing that. Exhibit B.
     
    Perhaps these photos will be useful in a "how not to do it" practicum!
     
    Off shortly to buy some solvent, and will remove the strips and follow your advice.


  2. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to usedtosail in USS Constitution by usedtosail - FINISHED - Model Shipways - scale 1/76   
    Al - you are doing a great job on your Glad Tidings. The Constitution build is a lot of the same processes, just more and bigger. If you are comfortable planking, for instance, it is just more planks to do. The instructions are probably very familiar to you as Model Expo seems to reuse a lot of the same information. For this detailed a ship, however, I think they are minimal. Another option is to purchase the Launk Street shipyard tutorial for the Constitution, which uses this model. The first chapter is available for free, so you can take a look and see what you think. I used the first chapter but did not use the rest. I think you could do a decent model of this ship if you take your time. It all depends on what you want in the end. In my case, I know I will be pleased with the outcome even with the many flaws because 1. I am learning a lot and have attempted things I would never have tried before, and 2. It is taking me a long time, which to me is a good return on investment.   Oh, and it is a big sucker so think about where you will put it when finished.
     
    Geoff - I was going to grind the grooves off one of the hemostats I have, but they seem really hard, so I went for the easier solution.
     
    Here are some pictures of the small wooden cleats from Syren in place. I am very happy with the result.
     

     

     
    And here is what I was referring to in an earlier post. While looking for information on the binnacles, I re-found Force9's build log (on another site) and there was this great looking belfry that he added to his Constitution. His research found that she may have had a belfry in the 1812 era, so he put one in. I liked it so much I had to try making one. The curved piece at the top was the challenge to me, so I first tried making a form from some plywood and bending a piece of basswood strip in it. This came out OK, but the strip thickness was not consistent across the whole curve. My second try used a piece of basswood sheet. I cut the upper profile in the scroll saw, then made a cut straight across at the thickness of the ends. It was then just a matter for filing out the underside of the curve until it was the same thickness all the way along its length. I was quite afraid that the piece would split somewhere near the end of that process, but luckily for me it did not. The brass bell I had left over from a previous build and I just added a large eyebolt that I opened up to hold the bell, then glued it to the underside of the cross piece.
     

     
    I have been going through the two rigging plan sheets to start figuring out the sizes of line I need to make. In the process, I saw that the main stay and preventer stay connect to bullseyes that are attached to the bulwarks under the bow pin rail. I think it will be a good idea to add these bullseyes now while I still have good access to this area.
     
     
  3. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to usedtosail in USS Constitution by usedtosail - FINISHED - Model Shipways - scale 1/76   
    Thank you Nenad, Popeye, and Geoff, and for the likes. Geoff, good luck with your new ladders. I am sure you will do a great job on them.
     
    I have been working on more spar deck and inside bulwark details. I made steps for the transom and bow areas, and the few large cleats that are needed. I also made two horse blocks (those grating pieces) that were used as platforms to stand on.
     

     
    I attempted to make the small wooden cleats, but I was not happy with them so I have an order into Syren for some cleats of the appropriate size. While I was on the web site I also ordered a serving machine to replace my homemade one, since I have a lot of serving coming up. It looks so much better and I know it will work better too.
     
    Here are the pieces installed, except for the small cleats and the two iron cleats in the bow. I have metal cleats from a previous model I am using for them, but they are still being painted.
     

     
    I installed the horse blocks in the folded down position, since without the higher bulwarks of the current ship configuration, I could not use the current mechanism of rope to hold them up. I am not sure how they were held up on the original ship.
     

     
    And here is the bow details.
     

     

     
    I am working on something that I may or may not include, depending on how it turns out. Then it is off to fabricate the capstan.
  4. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from markjay in one way to determine the shape of 2nd planking hull.   
    Neat approach - I like it.
     
    Thanks
  5. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to igorcap in Swedish Privater by igorcap - Chapman's frigate   
    Then I begin to create base hull. Pine strips are glued to frames using a stapler. Total of two layers. First layer must be dried at least one day. After drying, staples are removed and surface is processing with plane .








  6. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to GuntherMT in Cheerful 1806 by GuntherMT - Syren Ship Model Company - 1:48 scale - Revenue Cutter   
    I went back to working on the bulkheads and got started gluing them into position.  Because I have to wait quite a while in between each bulkhead for the glue to dry before moving to the next one, I decided I would start on one of the little mini-kits for deck furniture, and grabbed the one for the windlass.
     
    The AVS didn't have a windlass or a capstan, which is probably not very realistic, but the Cheerful has a windlass and also has a separate winch too.  
     
    No better time than the present, so lets do this.  I started with the inner drum, which is made out of 10 parts, two octagonal end pieces and 8 'slats' for lack of a better word.  Each one of these 8 tiny slats has to be beveled on both edges where they meet the next slat, or there will be ugly gaps between the slats (and they won't fit).  Construction starts by putting the end pieces on a 1/16" square stick, and then beveling a couple of the slats, which are then glued onto opposite sides.  More slats are then added until all 8 are on and the drum is complete.  The entire assembly is then removed from the square stick, and finish-sanded being careful to retain the nice octagon shape.
     

     
    End result, 3 hours after I started, is that this much of the windlass is done!

     
    This is the rest of the pieces...  4 more sections, plus other bits, but to make it more interesting, the rest of the drum sections are tapered too!

     
    I also got the first 3 bulkheads done.

     
    Now I need to fold laundry and get some sleep for work tomorrow I suppose.
  7. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to GuntherMT in Cheerful 1806 by GuntherMT - Syren Ship Model Company - 1:48 scale - Revenue Cutter   
    Two updates in the same weekend.  Something is terribly wrong!
     
    To get the treenail placement correct in the keel, I pasted the pattern from the plans onto the parts using a kids type gluestick.  For actually drilling them, I did a number of test holes in scrap wood and decided to use a larger bit than Chuck did on his proto-type, and not do the pencil, instead I chose to use a #68 bit and a darker wood filler.
     
    Instead of drilling holes partially through, I used the mill and drilled all the way through instead of trying to make a mirrored pattern for the other side.  There was a slight bit of cleanup to do on the holes where the drill exited doing it this way, but I probably should have been running a much higher RPM on the mill.
     

     
    Attachment of the stem was next, followed by the forward portion of the keel, and finishing with the aft portion of the keel (not pictured).

     
    I then used a 'golden oak' wood filler to fill the treenail holes and then sanded everything and cleaned it up prior to applying a coat of Min-wax satin wipe on poly.  The result...

     
    The sternpost is later, after the bulkheads and stern framing.  Next up, this pile of bulkheads...

  8. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to EdT in Young America 1853 by EdT - FINISHED - extreme clipper   
    Young America - extreme clipper 1853
    Part 161 – Bower Anchors 1
     
    Work on the channel deadeyes and chains has been progressing, but a change of pace was necessary, so I began work on the ship’s anchors. 
     
    Like most ships Young America carried several – probably two bower anchors, a smaller stream anchor and an even smaller kedge anchor.  This last was probably small enough to be stowed in one of the forward lockers or below the forecastle so I will not model it.  Over her very long career she carried different types of bower anchors, and very likely more than one type at a time.  The photo taken at San Francisco, probably in the 1860’s shows her swinging a wood stock type from her starboard cathead.  The New York photo, which I believe was taken later, shows a Trotmans anti-fouling type on the port cathead.  These two types span the range of development during the period.  I decided to make one Woodstock and one bar stock – bypassing the Trotmans type for now..
     
    The first picture shows the arms of one of these being sawed out of some 1/8” thick brass plate.  This took a while and used a few jeweler saw blades, but it worked well to rough out the pieces using a drawing fragment as a pattern.
     

     
    The next picture shows both bower anchors during fitting of the two main pieces.
     

     
    The shaft was silver soldered to the arms using copper-phosphorus solder.
     

     
    The anchor to the right has been soldered and given a first filling.  This joint took some heat.  I used a full sized propane torch.  I would have used the small oxy-propane torch but was out of O2.
     
    In the next picture the side plates that thicken the shaft around the hole for the bar have been soldered on.  The second fluke is set up to be soldered.
     

     
    In the next picture the flukes have been soldered on and the holes drilled for the bar and the shackle.
     

     
    In this picture the filing and smoothing is well along.  The final anchor, less the bar stock is shown in the next picture.
     

     
    This is almost ready for blackening.  I expect to mount this anchor on the port side of the forecastle in roughly the position shown in the last picture and may secure the stream anchor to its shaft.
     

     
    These anchors obviously took up a lot of deck space and also added considerable weight to the bow, but this seems to have been where they were stowed.  They were not easy to move around.
     
    Ed
  9. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Moonbug in USF Confederacy by Augie & Moonbug - FINISHED - Model Shipways - 1:64   
    Thanks everyone for your input - much to think about, I'll contemplate it a bit more, and consider how to go about tackling the cannons if I decide to go that route in some capacity.  I believe there is some benefit here of this being an Admiralty model, as it's purpose would be to display elements of the ship without necessarily incorporating every detail that a fully rigged replica would entail.  
     
    Mark - The port lids are coming!  ;-)   That'll be one of those assembly line moments.  
     
    In the meantime, yesterday I got a good bit of work done on the Transom.  It took a couple bumps and bruises along the way, and some of the paint had shipped off the figures, and created some blemishes on the black. Also - I wanted to touch up the window frames a bit.  Augie did such an awesome job with the window "glass" that I wanted to even out the finish and color of the frames to match the rest of the smooth look and feel of what he had going.  
     
    The BAD new is - I jacked up the cove in the process (Sorry Augie!) so I had to rebuilt / reshape it.  WHAT A BEAST.  This gained me an entirely new appreciation for Chuck's laser cut parts!  *laff*  After much soaking, shaping, breaking, re-soaking and re-shaping, I finally got the cove repaired and replaced and stained to match.
     

     
    The GOOD news is - this marked a small milestone in which I will now press on with new progress and moving forward with the build. Yay!  
     
    Another business trip this week, but after that I should be able to put a few more hours in.
  10. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to schooner in SS Stephen Hopkins by schooner - FINISHED - BlueJacket Shipcrafters - Liberty Ship   
    Liberty Ship SS Stephen Hopkins - BlueJacket Shipcrafters - 1/192 scale
     

     
    While mulling over what kit to select for my next build I was giving some thought to taking a break from warships and BlueJacket’s Liberty ship kit caught my attention because of the amount of rigging on it:
     

     
    Although I never served on any type of cargo or replenishment ship I figured “How complicated can it be?” Doing some photo research I came across the next photo of BIG CHAINS hanging from the masts of the SS John Brown and realized there is a lot I don’t know about cargo rigging and that this might be a good way to learn about it so I will be building BlueJacket’s kit of the Liberty ship SS Jeremiah O’Brian, which is still operating in San Francisco (BTW, I eventually found out that the chains are called Bull Chains).
     

     
    The next decision was what Liberty ship to model. With over 2700 Liberty ships built between 1941 and 1945 there is an embarrassment of ships to choose from but after a little research the choice was obvious.  Although the Stephen Hopkins had a very brief life, being sunk on her maiden voyage, she would be a contender in any contest to name the greatest fighting ship in American history, despite being an “SS” vice a “USS.”  It’s an amazing story, one that I’m surprised Hollywood hasn’t pick up on. So I won’t be taking a break from building warships after all . . .

     
    You can read her full story at http://www.armed-guard.com/hoppy.html, but in brief, after fitting out in San Francisco as one of the earliest Libertys, the Hopkins crossed the Pacific and the Indian Oceans, steaming alone and entered the South Atlantic  where on 27 Sep 1942, in low visibility, she encountered at the range of about a mile two ships laying to. The ships turned out to be the  heavily armed German raider Stier and the blockade runner Tannenfels. With a crew of 340, six 6-inch guns, torpedoes and numerous smaller caliber weapons the Stier had the armament of a light cruiser, in fact ten months earlier the similarly armed raider Komoran sank the cruiser HMAS Sydney off the West coast of Australia, although the Komoran was sunk also.
    The Stier opened fire immediately and the Hopkins’ Master decided to fight it out rather than surrender as most ships in her position would have done. The Hopkins’ single, obsolete 4-inch gun was moved by hand cranks and manually loaded but her Naval Armed Guard had been practicing at every opportunity and it began to show. The Hopkins quickly knocked out the Stier’s steering and repetitive hits along the waterline soon caused fires to break out in the Stier’s engineering spaces and she went dead in the water, as the Hopkins did too, with her boilers disabled. Both ships continued to drift and fight at about a thousand yards distance, like something out of the War of 1812.
     
    The heavy firepower of the Stier began to tell and after about 20 minutes the Hopkins was afire and sinking with two-thirds of her crew of 55 dead. Engineering Cadet Edwin O’Hara, from the US Merchant Marine Academy, made his way to the 4-inch gun after the engineering spaces were abandoned. He found the gun crew dead and the magazine destroyed but was able to locate 5 loose shells and single-handedly fired them at the Stier just before before he was killed.

     
    Nineteen survivors from the Hopkins managed to launch the one undamaged lifeboat. Meanwhile the Stier’s crew was unable to control the fires spreading out of the engine room and she had to be scuttled. Her survivors were recovered by the Tannenfels, who made no effort to aid the Hopkins survivors. Under the command of the 3rd Engineer and without any charts or navigation instruments except a compass the Hopkins’ boat set out to cross the Atlantic to Brazil. Amazingly enough they made it 30 days later with 15 men still alive.
     
    The ships were built in 18 purpose-built yards, which themselves were constructed in remarkably short time, turning mudflats into complex shipyards in just a few months. Locations of the yards were based on available manpower, however untrained, and political considerations to “spread the wealth” of government contracts across the coastlines.

     

     
    The Libertys were based on the then yet-to be built British “Ocean” design that was, in turn, based on successful coasters. The goal was to design a ship that was both inexpensive and quick to build, simple enough in design that inexperienced shipyards and workers could build them, that could make 11 knots and carry a significant amount of cargo. They departed from the British design in that they were largely welded, most of the accommodations were in a large deckhouse, rather than divided among the foc’sle, midships and aft.. Their boilers were water tube vice Scotch, and were oil-fired rather than coal. Without having to accommodate coal bunkers they could be fitted with heavier masts rather than king posts.
    Although by 1941 the advantages of turbines over reciprocating steam engines were well known, the technical skill required to build turbines was much greater and the small number of plants capable of producing them were all dedicated to warship construction so the decision was made to go with reciprocating engines.
     
    The Ocean design was further simplified to minimize the amount of curved plates in the hull and wherever possible bulkhead penetrations for piping were avoided by running them outside the skin of the ship. Cost saving measures included waiving a large number of US regulations related to Merchant ship safety, comfort and, ominously for the Hopkins, fireproofing. The ships had little in the way of forced ventilation and had the reputation of being hot and uncomfortable in most climates.  
     
    Although the building time varied between shipyards , the common trend was that as they gained experience the time required to complete the ships steadily dropped. The first few could take up to 5 months to launch, although most only required a few weeks. The record was set by the SS Robert E. Peary, while admittedly a publicity stunt involving a lot of pre-fabrication and unlimited manpower, required only 4 days, 15 hours from keel laying to launch. By the end of the war an average of 3 Liberty ships a day were being launched.
     

     
    If you are interested in learning more about the Liberty ships this URL will take you to a decent study produced by the American Bureau of Shipping:
     
    https://www.eagle.org/eagleExternalPortalWEB/ShowProperty/BEA%20Repository/News%20&%20Events/Publications/WorkhorseOfTheFleet
     
     and this one will take you to a one-hour, color, wartime documentary film about the ships and the shipyard in Richmond, CA where the Hopkins was built:
     
    https://archive.org/details/cubanc_00004#
     
    I'll be using the following references: 
    SS John W. Brown, a working Liberty ship berthed in Baltimore. Although she has some modifications from her conversion to carry troops and as a school ship in NYC she is still in remarkably good condition and largely unchanged from her WWII days. I was able to spend a few hours onboard, take a lot of photos, and watch the cargo booms at work. She takes day trips from ports along the East Coast. A Call to Arms by Maury Klein. Although the book covers the entire US WWII industrial mobilization, the chapter on shipbuilding is well done. Ships for Victory by Frederic C. Lane. Thank God I was able to get this from the library rather than spend any money on it. If 900+ pages of meeting by meeting and memo by memo descriptions of bureaucracy at work excites you then this is your book. Even while skimming it I was worried that I would pass out and then drown in the puddle of my own drool. The book provided some insight into the welding problems encountered in the early program but that was about it. Websites devoted to the SS John W. Brown, SS Jeremiah O’Brian, and SS Hellenic Victory all have extensive onboard photos to help with details 5)  http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/fm/55-17/ch3.htm   is a webpage that has extensive info on cargo rigging, it will be my primary reference for rigging.
     
     
    In the next post I’ll give an overview of what comes in the kit
  11. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Kees Meijer in HMB Endeavour by Kees Meijer - OcCre - 1:54   
    almost up to date...










  12. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Kees Meijer in HMB Endeavour by Kees Meijer - OcCre - 1:54   
    yep more pictures.......










  13. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Kees Meijer in HMB Endeavour by Kees Meijer - OcCre - 1:54   
    and more...








  14. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Kees Meijer in HMB Endeavour by Kees Meijer - OcCre - 1:54   
    some pictures..









  15. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to ofencer29350 in Caroline's bottom   
    the white color you call is in reality the "espalme"
     
    the composition is:
    8 brai - 3 soufre - 1 suif
     
     
    Obliged of warmed to melt the pitch and the tallow, and also to obtain a smooth mixture with the sulfur which does not incorporate so easily.
     
    picture of brai:

     
     
    picture of the mixture:
     
     

  16. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to reklein in Caroline's bottom   
    I understand that the white coating was white lead paint mixed with horsehair in some fashion and applied very thick.  Bill
  17. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from Mark P in Caroline's bottom   
    Many thanks for all this information. Great stuff!
  18. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from robin b in Caroline's bottom   
    Many thanks for all this information. Great stuff!
  19. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from mtaylor in Caroline's bottom   
    Many thanks for all this information. Great stuff!
  20. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from mtaylor in Caroline's bottom   
    Robin -
     
    Thanks for the response. Just out of curiosity - what was that "white stuff"?
  21. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from Canute in one way to determine the shape of 2nd planking hull.   
    Neat approach - I like it.
     
    Thanks
  22. Like
    GrantGoodale got a reaction from mtaylor in one way to determine the shape of 2nd planking hull.   
    Neat approach - I like it.
     
    Thanks
  23. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Jerry's Admiral in H.M.S. BOUNTY by Jerry's Admiral - FINISHED - Amati - Scale 1:60   
    Hi Popeye..
    Good to hear from you again.  Jerry seems to agree with you and will probably run some of the sail-sheet rigging and leave them tied up some way.  He's still not up to building as his eyes are still giving him problems.  He's really going through a lot of discomfort which hopefully one of his doctors will help fix one of these days.  He sees another specialist this Friday.  
    My friend was over today to take some pictures of Bounty but they didn't come out too good so I'm just posting a couple of ones I took..
    Charlene


  24. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Jerry's Admiral in H.M.S. BOUNTY by Jerry's Admiral - FINISHED - Amati - Scale 1:60   
    Hi again,
    Today we placed the calverin guns on their swivel mounts which leaves us with coils and flags to finish this Bounty.  As mentioned above Jerry is still thinking about hanging something on the sail lift lines but hasn't come up with anything yet.  So, I will now start planning my next build and Jerry, hopefully, will think about something he wants to build.  Here are some photos of the calverins and please stay tuned for some more pictures next week.
    Happy Mother's Day everyone,
    Charlene



  25. Like
    GrantGoodale reacted to Jerry's Admiral in H.M.S. BOUNTY by Jerry's Admiral - FINISHED - Amati - Scale 1:60   
    Well, it looks like we're getting down to the "nitty gritty's."  Jerry has been feeling a lot better although he still has a lttle eye problem in his left eye.  He was able to show me how to mount the rudder chains and transom lanterns and so we have accomplished that today.  The rigging is just about finished also since there is no sail rigging to do.  There are several blocks hanging from most of the yards which are for sail reefing, etc.  I thought we should just let them hang since no sail have been hoisted but Jerry thinks we should do something with them, perhaps hanging the lines anyway.  I think with his physical condition we should probably tweak the painting, tighten some stays, and of course there are many coils (hanks) to hang.  But all in all we're getting close to the finish line.  I hope to have some better pictures in the middle of next week as a friend of mine who is a professional photographer will be coming here for a visit and I'm going to try and sweet talk him into taking some decent pictures. Attached are some photos I took as to where we are today. 
    Charlene
     
    Good evening,










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