Chuck

Completed the rudder today. As you see, I created an alternative for fabricating metal gudgeons and pintels. I dont have the tools to solder brass versions and I hate working in metal. So I made mine from wood. I also made a version using laserboard for the straps. It worked just as well. These are very sturdy rudder hinges. They are three pieces. All laser cut. The center is sanded to the width of the stern post and rudder. Then the straps are added after being cut to length. They are pre-cut with holes. 24 gauge wire was inserted into those holes after drilling them a bit deeper into the rudder. Then the wire was pushed into the holes and snipped off. It was snipped off so the end would stand proud of the straps by just a hair simulating the bolts. These laser cut "cheat hinges" did a great job in my opinion and they are so easy to work with. The straps are a bit thick originally but after gluing them on the rudder and hull they are sanded down to a really thin profile. Then they are painted black after the wire is inserted into all of the holes. For the "hinge pin" a small length of 22 gauge wire was used. It was glued into the hole in the center section of this mini-kit. As a tip for those who will start fabricating theirs out of wood....paint the edges of the straps black ahead of time and you will have a nice neat edge. You can see the ones on my hull which havent been completed yet. I still have to add the simulated bolts with wire. They are unpainted. Once this is done I will create the tiller. AND YES...before anyone asks these are now available as a stock item . Not just for cheerful as they worked out so well I am sure others will want them. The straps and center are 1/16" wide which is a typical size and could be used for many other models. Both laserboard and boxwood straps will be included in each package. Choose whatever you prefer. Why havent these ever been made before??? They are wonderful if I dont mind saying myself. And they are so simple. Click Here to see them.

Just like a windlass there were small pawls on the inside of the uprights that would engage the sprockets. But they are rarely shown on models. Its up to the builder to decide if they want to include them. They are usually on the aft side of the uprights....BUT like everything else there are so many variations. I just picked one from a contemporary model. I believe it was a variation of the one shown on the Surly model in the Thompson Collection. See below for a few including the Surly model. Chuck

Thats the windlass. The winch will be a mini-kit too. Probably in a week or so. Its easy to build from scratch but the small gears are better to have laser cut. They are a pain to make by hand. I will cut about a dozen of them sometime next week. Chuck

Thank You.....I just finished making the winch. This is a pretty straight forward fitting. The pieces were cut taking the measurements from the plans. Nothing was to difficult but care was taken to make the winch handles look more attractive than just using a piece of black wire. So I cut some micro tube to slip over the end of the handle to give it some dimension. This is the last deck fitting before the rigging prep starts. I will finish the rudder and tiller first however. Then there is the bowsprit bitts up front which also contain the pawl for the windlass. But I would like to have the bowsprit made while making that. Once thats finished I will add the two long guns at the bow...... That is everything that is left before the rigging begins so I feel like I am getting into the home-stretch. Chuck

Well.....that would probably be right on the line of of copyright issues.... BUT, if you guys can wait a bit, I plan on coming out with a 1/2" scale version of a longboat kit that is a bit more advanced. The shallop is being done first however. It will be framed similar but with both futtocks and floors like a contemporary model. Plus after learning a bit more and tweaking the design concept somewhat, many other improvements were made. Its basically taking the design concept to the next level.

Indeed that is awful laser cutting. With Basswood the kerf should be very very thin......not much power is needed to cut through that stuff as it is only 1/16" thick. Too bad.

Yes....she will basically be just like the contemporary model pictured. Chuck

Thank you....Hopefully I will be able to show the larger barge in progress very soon....it is very similar but with more decoration. And its much larger. This one will be fully framed...you can see the keel assembly as compared to the Cheerful model.

It's looking fantastic Greg...You have been making a lot of progress. Good to see updates again. How about an overall shot of the hull. I would love to see her lines and sheer? Chuck

Very nicely done.

I just use a drop of glue....on both rear trucks. Nothing fancy. I dont pin them in position. If they ever come loose it woulnt be hard to re-position them.

No I dont bother with that. The split is really tight. You cant really see the seam so I dont bother with that. I never apply so much tension on them that they would open up. Chuck

That is really wonderful work Ryland. Very precise

Beautiful!!!

The lady Nelson kit is very poorly designed. The bulkheads are so far apart that it will be impossible to properly spile using the tape method. Unless of course you fill the gaps between the bulkheads with filler blocks and fair them to shape first. For such a small model there should have been no reason at all why they couldnt place more bulkheads on that model. You couldnt even use a compass. So you dont get discouraged and give up on trying the proper method for planking....... You could just plank the first layer any way you can hoping it will turn out smooth and not faceted.....but my recommendation is to fill up those gaps between bulkheads even if you just use some soft balsawood. Then fair the hull smooth so you have a solid foundation to line off your hull and spile. If you look at even how the dreaded gunport template sits against the frames as designed...you are starting the process with a bad foundation to build upon. I wouldnt even try it.

Thank You very much. The pumps have been completed. You can see that I decided to paint them red. Most people leave them natural but I figured I would go all in with the painted look. The same is true for the pump handles and bracket. These were made of either wood or metal. Because most folks leave these natural I figured I would paint them black and make them look like metal. This is how they were treated on the contemporary model of Surly. All of the pieces were painted before assembly. Then I used some heavy paper to make the reinforcing band. Those who have these plans will also notice that I have only used one band. Yet on the plans there are two. I have once again seen so many variations of elm tree pumps I figured I would show it both ways. Those building Cheerful can decide which they prefer. 1. transfer the 7/10/7 template lines to each side of the 3/16" square pump tube. Carefully file the tube to an Octagon using the lines as a guide. Drill and bore out the top of the tube to a depth of about 3/8". Carefully use a bit that will leave the pump tube walls not too heavy. 2. File and shape the bracket for the handle. The part that sits against the pump tube is tapered thinner so it fits on one facet of the octagon. Use a slotting needle file 1/32" thin or less to file the slot in the top to a forked shape. This will accept the handle. 3. Place a 1/16" x 1/16" strip in a dremel to round it off. Using an emery board this takes only a minute. This will become your pump spout. Drill a hole into the end before parting off a 5/64" long spout. Glue it to the pump tube. All pieces can be painted first. 4. Using some card stock strips wrap it around the tube as shown on the plan to simulate the metal reinforcement band. One ore two is fine. The top band should be carefully placed so the notch in the bracket accepts it at the the right height on the tube. So measure its location from the plan. 5. Glue the bracket into position. 6. Insert a length of 24 gauge black wire into the hole on the end of the handle. Like an eyebolt. Insert the end of this long wire into a pre-drilled hole in the bore of the pump tube. Adjust the length of the wire until the other pivot-hole in the handle site in the bracket nicely. The handle should be in the downward position to be correct. 7. Finally insert a small length of 28 gauge black wire into the bracket hole and through the handle to lock it in position. Snip it off on both sides so it stand proud of the bracket's surface just a little bit. Now its time to start on the winch!!!

Thank you very much!!! I have started on the pumps today. Basically I started with a 3/16" square and used the 7/10/7 ratio to convert it to an octagon. You can see how I carefully marked the blank and then filed the piece to shape. The end was drilled out afterwards. I also laser cut the handle from 1/64" thick boxwood. The handle bracket was made from 3/32" thick stock. The bracket was tapered where it attaches to the pump tube. Then it was notched out with a fine file to make it look like a fork. The handle will fit into this. But first I must paint the pieces and then assemble them. Maybe tomorrow. Chuck

Thanks Greg The lathe is still packed up in a box. Whenever I think I need it, I am too lazy to set it up and read the instructions. Its faster and easier for me to just use the needle file and emery board. One of these days I will get around to unboxing that thing to try it out.

Time machine... Thanks for the kind words guys

Just a small update even though I have been working on her steady. The guns on the starboard side are completed. The deck rings for the inhaul tackles were added as well. Then I made the galley stack. This was pretty straight forward.....four thin pieces glued together. Measurements were taken from the plans. When it was all glued up I sanded the four sides even more to thin it down a great deal. The thickness of the walls were needed to look like metal so the thinner the better. It was painted black and then treated so the finish looked like the cannon. Hopefully it looks different than the wood parts painted black. Finally I made the mast coat. It is a bit of self indulgence. I realize it wouldnt look like this in actuality but many times they are shaped like this on contemporary models. I prefer it over seeing those pie-shaped wedges. I think that looks very clunky. You can see in the photo how it looked before and after. It started out as a plain washer of boxwood. The I shaped it by hand with the two files and emery board. Next up is the pumps and winch....

That is really looking good. Glad to see you back at the bench. See you in a few weeks!!!!

Yes indeed. Those batten strips need to be a "press-fit" into the grating. Not too loose and not too tight. In order to get it just right because the tolerences are so tight. Just run the battens through some sand paper. Just once or twice and try it again. You will know when its right. It will fit really nice. Dont ever force it because of impatience. AND this is what holds the grates together although I would still apply a wash of diluted yellow glue. these parts are made just a hair larger or within a close tolerance to what is needed. It would have been far worse to make them even a hair smaller than needed and loose. Even though this would make assembly easier, it would not achieve the same result. Pulling the battens through some fine sandpaper is a piece of cake. The results are well worth the effort. This would also be true if you were making them from scratch. Chuck

I find it easier to construct the gratings first...then build the coamings around them. This way you get a nice tight fit with them. No open holes along the sides and certainly no spaces. If you are also creating the grating with a camber as it should have, then when you build the coaming around it, you will have an easier time matching it. If after you are done the completed hatch is slightly larger or smaller than your plans it wont be noticeable yet you will have a really tight and beautifully made hatch.

That willmake an excellent workshop. You are doing some great work on Cheerful. I am sure you will be up and running very soon.

Yes indeed......