Chuck

Insert some wire the same size as the I.D. of the tube. Then roll an xacto blade over it. See this video even though they didnt stick a wire into it.....thats the best way though.

Thank you for the kind words guys. The lower backstays are completed so next up was to make the sling and then add the mainstay. The sling for the lower yard is served its entire length. I used .035 dark brown rope. It has a thimble seized to it with a hook made of 22 gauge wire and eyes formed on each loose end. After determining the length for the loose ends I formed the eyes and you can see how the eyes close up the sling by being inter-twined. I originally thought it would be easier to make the sling off the model. Which it was. BUT there were trade-offs. This meant that I had to unhook all of the blocks on the mast to get it in position. That wasnt too bad BUT afterwards I discovered that the sling wasnt long enough to get around the forward spreader. This was bad. I either had to cut the sling off and make another one...rigging it in place.....OR, try to carefully remove the forward spreader. I ended up removing the spreader without any damage. BUT I wouldnt recommend this to all the Cheerful builders out there. Best to rig it in place. The main stay was rigged from .054 dark brown rope. It was served around the masthead only down to about 1/2" below the splice. Thats right....a splice rather than a mouse. This was very common on cutters of the period and appears much more often on contemporary examples than the one or two found with a mouse. The other end of the stay had the 5-hole deadeye turned into it. The lanyard was rove through it as usual but the loose end was taken up around the stay once and then finally seized to the stay as shown. I used very fine fly-tie thread for this. It finished it off nicely. Now that the main stay is completed I can go back to all these loose ends at the belaying points and re-tension the lines. After that I will cut off the excess and add rope coils.... Next up....ratlines!!!!!

Very nice....it looks wonderful.

Erik That is correct. I use a simple knot appropriate for the job. It is very rare that I will need to use glue. At the very most I will use some diluted white glue on the knot or hitch afterwards. They key is not using rope that is too slippery and difficult to secure without slippage. For example, the nylon stuff that comes in many kits is too slippery and this would work. Many synthetic materials will be too slippery to simply use a clove hitch or granny knot to secure. They come undone on their own without much help. But its not a problem with the cotton/linen rope I am using. No slippage or undoing of knots at all. For the deadeye lanyards above the deadeye....this is one instance where I would apply a dot of watered down white glue. Not enough to be permanent but enough to lock the granny knot in position just in case. Its not under any tension if you can believe it because the deadeyes hold the rope pretty good once you have them all rigged in every hole. Again...a slippery rope material wouldnt behave like this however.

Looking good Rusty...It is great to have you making sawdust again. Chuck

try this steele tables Chuck

That is something I would not recommend. Eventually they will get brittle and break. Its just not something you see on ship models and it would adversley effect the look and texture of the rope.

As a rule....I dont glue any of my lines to their final belaying point. They are made fast to their pins and cleats but because it is inevitable that you will need to re-tension the lines, this makes it very easy to do. There is no really good reason to glue the line permanently. It will stay in place just fine and makes fixing the lines or even replacing them much easier later on. I have restored models that are over 100 years old and they rarely glued the ropes to the belaying points back then. This meant it was as simple as pulling a belaying pin and re-doing it with proper tension. No need to cut anything. It was a pleasure compared to models which had the ropes glued and hard to work. I am currently rigging my model and have routinely adjusted the tension on many lines as it progresses. Once completed I will add rope coils over the pins with the smallest dot of white glue. They will be easy to remove if needed later. And the line can be adjusted as described.

Shrouds are completed. I also added the lower backstay on the port side. The fiddle block is a min-kit from Syren (13/32"). You can see another one on top of the companionway which will be used for the other side. It is built up from three laser cut layers. Here is a shot of the growing shroud gang. The aft pair as well as the lower backstay are served only along the top that goes around the mast head. They are served down to a bit below the cheeks. Once that is finished it will be time for the sling for the lower yard and then the main stay.

No I like to pop in and look at as many builds as possible when time permits. I might not say much but I enjoy watching everyones progress. You are doing a fine job.

If you click on each size of my Syren blocks it will tell you which size rope is best for those sizes of blocks.

Lovely work!!!

Looking good. Well done.

Thanks. Yes Druxey I have tried it that way but old habits die hard. I am just most comfortable doing it this way. Its not too bad but just a bit finicky. Luckily there are only eight to do. But I am happy with how they turned out. Chuck

Thanks...I will say this this, its a joy working in 1/4" scale. You dont have to fight with such tiny parts and you get more detail. But you have to have the room to work and display it. Luckily this model is not that large since its just a cutter. I will have to find a good home for it once its done though...not much room to display the finished cased model.

Thank You very much, and happy Thanksgiving. I rigged the Burton Pendants and started the shrouds. The Burton Pendants (.035 dark brown) are served the entire length with a 1/4" single block seized on it end. It hangs down from the trees a bit more than we are used to with a typical frigate. Then a tackle was set up to the pendant. The tackle is only shown on a few contemporary models and I thought it was interesting so I decided to show it. This particular version is based on the cutter model in the London Science museum and Peterson's book. The Shrouds are pretty standard, I used .045 dark brown rope. The forward shroud is served its entire length. The serving was all done on the "Serv-o-matic". The remainder of the shrouds will only have the portion around the mast head served down to just below the cheeks. Below you can see my shroud gang taking shape with this first pair of shrouds done. The deadeyes were turned in and set-up with the usual methods. I dont particularly care for this aspect of rigging. Especially getting that first seizing done just above the deadeye. Its an awkward one as its oriented differently but it is important because it creates that shape of the shroud doubling you strive for. The lanyard was rigged with .018 light brown rope and not glued permanently. This was done once again so I can easily re-tension the shrouds after all the standing rigging is completed. Now to finish up the three remaining pairs.

Cherry and Maple sheets and milled strips are now available. I know this because I am building his site for him.....I bartered for wood. He isnt the kind of guy to build his own so I am taking care of it for him and you probably notice the similarity to my own. Anyway....as he gives me new updated wood info and availability I will add them to the WPS website and let you guys know. I hope you give them a try. Chuck

Thank You guys. The thimbles are made from thin wall brass tube. In this case 1.5 mm brass tube. I tap them with a blunt point as shown in this image. Not to hard. The brass is soft and the thimbles will tear. They will also stretch larger in dia. and become thinner than you cut the original length. Here are some close ups of my thimbles thus far in use on the model. Also note the thimble not yet punched to flare its ends in that first photo. See how much longer and smaller it is. Hooks are shaped from 26 gauge black wire. Chuck

Finished rigging the gaff today. Nothing unusual or interesting about doing this. It was fun and I basically created the gaff just like the boom. One interesting feature to point out might be how the blocks are hooked to thimbles/bullseyes on the gaff. The blocks were not just seized to the gaff. This follows a method I saw on another cutter from the time period. Just seemed more interesting than doing it the other way. It has gotten harder to photograph now. Its a much bigger subject to get in frame. Next up will be the pendant tackles and shrouds....none of the falls or loose ends have been glued to their belaying points yet. You can see them left a bit long on deck. They are just made fast to each belying point and can be undone easily. I did this just in case they have to be retensioned after the shrouds and stays are completed. Some lines have a tendency to go slack as rigging progresses. Chuck

Check out the gallery which has many photos of that contemporary model. http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/gallery/album/448-fair-american-rogers-collection-annapolis/

They are in central New Jersey. They dont have a physical store. He is a member of the a tree commission or conservany or something and gets a lot of his wood from those operations. For example, after Hurricane Sandy he collected a ton of Dogwood, Cherry, and Pear and apple...from fallen trees. Also has dealings with the local tree farmers and orchards. Chuck

Pat That looks fantastic. It must be bitter sweet after working on her for so long. That is a fine looking model.

Please welcome and thank Wood Project Source for becoming a sponsor of Model Ship World. WPS supplies milled wood sheets and strips along with carving blocks for many hobbies. Their specialty is Alaskan Yellow Cedar Sheets and Carving Blocks. Other species like Yellow Heart, Purple heart, Butternut, Applewood, Dogwood and Mahogany are soon to follow. They also carry the staples for our hobby like Boxwood, Swiss Pear and others. They are just finishing up their new website so please have some patience with them as they continue adding more wood species and products to their online store. They have many more than I listed. I have personally bought from them many times as they are close by and I gotten to know the owner. I have bought some Yellow Cedar and Boxwood from them and will say that I am very happy with the quality of the wood. They have fantastic prices and they are the lowest I have seen for some wood sheets. Please join me in welcoming them as a sponsor of MSW. Visit their site and check them out. I am grateful they decided to become a sponsor and didnt hesitate after I asked them about it. www.woodprojectsource.com

That looks great Ryland. well done!!

Thank you so much guys....