jml1083

Toni, so sorry to hear about Sadie. I know how hard it is to make that decision. You have my most sincere sympathy.

Today I started to raise frames. I made a jig out of 1/8" plexiglass to help make this process as accurate as possible.
The profile of the keel structure is cut into the bottom of the face piece. The grid you see on the face was made in MS-Excel to no particular scale. I printed the grid out on self-stick Mylar.
 
This first photo is from the front and shows the Deadflat0 frame in place.
 

 
The second photo is the back of the jig from an 45° angle to show how everything lines up. The blue tape is just to make the pieces stand out a bit. After applying the Mylar grid to the front and cutting the base so the keel is exactly dead center I built the back supports. These are nothing more than 2 bases with an upright glued to the center. For these it is important to make sure everything meets at exactly 90°. The front of the uprights is perfectly flush with the front of the bases. Once the glue has had time to really set I went about attaching the back supports to the back of the face piece. To do this I slide both supports into the keel which I used to set the proper gap. With both support pieces in place I ran a line of glue along the base where the supports meet the face piece. After a couple of seconds I made sure the face piece was in contact with the front edge of each support and ran a line of glue down these joints.
 

 
When I'm raising a frame I use a small bar clamp to gently squeeze the keel assembly with the bases of the support pieces. This keeps the whole thing from moving as I raise the frame.
 
The third photo is another view of the back of the jig, this time looking straight on.
 

 
Because everything is square to everything else this makes a handy way to raise frames and check their alignment. The scale of the grid doesn't matter, the lines are just used to check symmetry. The jig is used on a piece of glass to make sure the base I'm working on is dead flat.
 
Once the glue has dried on one frame the jig can be slid back to make room for the next frame.
 
Up next is raising the other 11 frames then I'll install the gun port sills, sweep sills and scuppers.
 

Today I started to raise frames. I made a jig out of 1/8" plexiglass to help make this process as accurate as possible.
The profile of the keel structure is cut into the bottom of the face piece. The grid you see on the face was made in MS-Excel to no particular scale. I printed the grid out on self-stick Mylar.
 
This first photo is from the front and shows the Deadflat0 frame in place.
 

 
The second photo is the back of the jig from an 45° angle to show how everything lines up. The blue tape is just to make the pieces stand out a bit. After applying the Mylar grid to the front and cutting the base so the keel is exactly dead center I built the back supports. These are nothing more than 2 bases with an upright glued to the center. For these it is important to make sure everything meets at exactly 90°. The front of the uprights is perfectly flush with the front of the bases. Once the glue has had time to really set I went about attaching the back supports to the back of the face piece. To do this I slide both supports into the keel which I used to set the proper gap. With both support pieces in place I ran a line of glue along the base where the supports meet the face piece. After a couple of seconds I made sure the face piece was in contact with the front edge of each support and ran a line of glue down these joints.
 

 
When I'm raising a frame I use a small bar clamp to gently squeeze the keel assembly with the bases of the support pieces. This keeps the whole thing from moving as I raise the frame.
 
The third photo is another view of the back of the jig, this time looking straight on.
 

 
Because everything is square to everything else this makes a handy way to raise frames and check their alignment. The scale of the grid doesn't matter, the lines are just used to check symmetry. The jig is used on a piece of glass to make sure the base I'm working on is dead flat.
 
Once the glue has dried on one frame the jig can be slid back to make room for the next frame.
 
Up next is raising the other 11 frames then I'll install the gun port sills, sweep sills and scuppers.
 

Today I started to raise frames. I made a jig out of 1/8" plexiglass to help make this process as accurate as possible.
The profile of the keel structure is cut into the bottom of the face piece. The grid you see on the face was made in MS-Excel to no particular scale. I printed the grid out on self-stick Mylar.
 
This first photo is from the front and shows the Deadflat0 frame in place.
 

 
The second photo is the back of the jig from an 45° angle to show how everything lines up. The blue tape is just to make the pieces stand out a bit. After applying the Mylar grid to the front and cutting the base so the keel is exactly dead center I built the back supports. These are nothing more than 2 bases with an upright glued to the center. For these it is important to make sure everything meets at exactly 90°. The front of the uprights is perfectly flush with the front of the bases. Once the glue has had time to really set I went about attaching the back supports to the back of the face piece. To do this I slide both supports into the keel which I used to set the proper gap. With both support pieces in place I ran a line of glue along the base where the supports meet the face piece. After a couple of seconds I made sure the face piece was in contact with the front edge of each support and ran a line of glue down these joints.
 

 
When I'm raising a frame I use a small bar clamp to gently squeeze the keel assembly with the bases of the support pieces. This keeps the whole thing from moving as I raise the frame.
 
The third photo is another view of the back of the jig, this time looking straight on.
 

 
Because everything is square to everything else this makes a handy way to raise frames and check their alignment. The scale of the grid doesn't matter, the lines are just used to check symmetry. The jig is used on a piece of glass to make sure the base I'm working on is dead flat.
 
Once the glue has dried on one frame the jig can be slid back to make room for the next frame.
 
Up next is raising the other 11 frames then I'll install the gun port sills, sweep sills and scuppers.
 

Today I started to raise frames. I made a jig out of 1/8" plexiglass to help make this process as accurate as possible.
The profile of the keel structure is cut into the bottom of the face piece. The grid you see on the face was made in MS-Excel to no particular scale. I printed the grid out on self-stick Mylar.
 
This first photo is from the front and shows the Deadflat0 frame in place.
 

 
The second photo is the back of the jig from an 45° angle to show how everything lines up. The blue tape is just to make the pieces stand out a bit. After applying the Mylar grid to the front and cutting the base so the keel is exactly dead center I built the back supports. These are nothing more than 2 bases with an upright glued to the center. For these it is important to make sure everything meets at exactly 90°. The front of the uprights is perfectly flush with the front of the bases. Once the glue has had time to really set I went about attaching the back supports to the back of the face piece. To do this I slide both supports into the keel which I used to set the proper gap. With both support pieces in place I ran a line of glue along the base where the supports meet the face piece. After a couple of seconds I made sure the face piece was in contact with the front edge of each support and ran a line of glue down these joints.
 

 
When I'm raising a frame I use a small bar clamp to gently squeeze the keel assembly with the bases of the support pieces. This keeps the whole thing from moving as I raise the frame.
 
The third photo is another view of the back of the jig, this time looking straight on.
 

 
Because everything is square to everything else this makes a handy way to raise frames and check their alignment. The scale of the grid doesn't matter, the lines are just used to check symmetry. The jig is used on a piece of glass to make sure the base I'm working on is dead flat.
 
Once the glue has dried on one frame the jig can be slid back to make room for the next frame.
 
Up next is raising the other 11 frames then I'll install the gun port sills, sweep sills and scuppers.
 

Today I started to raise frames. I made a jig out of 1/8" plexiglass to help make this process as accurate as possible.
The profile of the keel structure is cut into the bottom of the face piece. The grid you see on the face was made in MS-Excel to no particular scale. I printed the grid out on self-stick Mylar.
 
This first photo is from the front and shows the Deadflat0 frame in place.
 

 
The second photo is the back of the jig from an 45° angle to show how everything lines up. The blue tape is just to make the pieces stand out a bit. After applying the Mylar grid to the front and cutting the base so the keel is exactly dead center I built the back supports. These are nothing more than 2 bases with an upright glued to the center. For these it is important to make sure everything meets at exactly 90°. The front of the uprights is perfectly flush with the front of the bases. Once the glue has had time to really set I went about attaching the back supports to the back of the face piece. To do this I slide both supports into the keel which I used to set the proper gap. With both support pieces in place I ran a line of glue along the base where the supports meet the face piece. After a couple of seconds I made sure the face piece was in contact with the front edge of each support and ran a line of glue down these joints.
 

 
When I'm raising a frame I use a small bar clamp to gently squeeze the keel assembly with the bases of the support pieces. This keeps the whole thing from moving as I raise the frame.
 
The third photo is another view of the back of the jig, this time looking straight on.
 

 
Because everything is square to everything else this makes a handy way to raise frames and check their alignment. The scale of the grid doesn't matter, the lines are just used to check symmetry. The jig is used on a piece of glass to make sure the base I'm working on is dead flat.
 
Once the glue has dried on one frame the jig can be slid back to make room for the next frame.
 
Up next is raising the other 11 frames then I'll install the gun port sills, sweep sills and scuppers.
 

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Boxwood is much harder to draw than bamboo. I can split bamboo and draw it down to Jim's smallest diameter hole fairly rapidly. I estimate that I could do enough material for a whole hull in a hour! The length of 'draw' is only limited by the distance between the nodes of the bamboo, less a little that frays by being held in pliers.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Quick update on treenails.
 
I debated using actual treenails or doing what Maury did, which looks just as good. In the end I went with actual treenails for a couple reasons. The primary reason was for strength. The second reason was I wanted to see how painful this was with just 144 before I commit to doing the hull this way.
 
Treenails were made using a Byrnes draw plate which puts a smile on my face every time I use it. Such a simple tool but poorly made it can be a horror. Jim's draw plate is a precision tool which is a joy to use. I started with 1/32" x 1/32" (.79mm x .79mm) boxwood and drew it down to .021" (.53mm) which equates to a treenail that is 1". I believe this is a little over sized but I had trouble pulling the boxwood any finer than that.
 
One of the guys in my club (Roy) gave me a great tip for using the draw plate which I will pass on here. He suggested that after I pull the piece through the draw plate and I reverse the wood and pull it through again. When you get to the smaller diameters this really makes life a lot easier. I found once I got under about .28" I would pull the wood through each hole 4 or more times. The more times you do it the faster it goes and it makes it a lot easier to get the next smaller diameter going.
 
I drilled the holes using a #74 carbide drill bit in a drill press. I found that using yellow wood glue on the treenails gave me a snug fit.
 
 
 
The jury is still out on doing the hull with actual treenails. I actually enjoy drilling the holes and inserting them, it's just that pulling them takes so much time. I spent over an hour pulling enough boxwood to make the 144 treenails needed for the chocks.
 
Up next I will double check the locations of the remaining gun port sills, scuppers, etc and then cut the grooves. Once that is done I'll raise the frames and get to work with fairing the hull.

Andy,
 
I do agree... but what Ken said carries a lot of weight around here:
We don't judge here, we support and offer constructive criticism. Big reason why I'm here. For our purposes and  usage, super-detailing and kit bashing are equally valid terms and the MRRs here will occasionally slip and call these kit-bashes superdetailing. Let's not fall on our swords over a little semantic issue. C'est la vie!
 
It's like the definition of scratch build.  There's the contest view and the MSW view.  MSW's view has been if you make the keel and frames/bulkheads, it's scratch.  The world view is based on contests and their super strict rules.
 
I'd suggest that we're all modelers....  the terms are somewhat meaningless unless you're entering a competition.   Sort of like drag racing.. we don't have classes here.  Everyone just runs what they brung.

Jim - the palette I used for the hull planking is boxwood, ebonized holly (Feibings leather dye) for the wales and black strake and holly below the wales. Boxwood for all framing components and holly for the deck. Bamboo treenails. Watcos Danish oil is used for the boxwood and dilute sanding sealer for the holly (does not impart a yellowish hue like Watcos). I should add that I first saw these finishes on David Antscherl's models.
 

 
 

Tomorrow the Ship Model Society of NJ will have their monthly Echo Cross Section group build meeting. With the holidays and repeated snow storms, which means more time outdoors and less time in the shop, progress has been slow on all fronts.
 
One of the things people seem to be struggling with is what dimension wood is used for each frame component. To simplify matters for everyone I've created this matrix. Greg or David can chime in if anything is incorrect.
 
 

 
Notice that the column for 3rd futtocks is hidden. This is because although there is a dimension given (8.25") on all the frame drawings none of the components are listed as being a 3rd Futtock. Several members have told me they will run short on 8.25" wood but I don't see how that is possible since none is used, correct?
 
I'll check back in the morning before the meeting and update the matrix if need be and then print out copies for everyone to take back to their shops. Thanks for any insights.

Hi Greg, yep if you have to refer to those directions for each frame you would be in a world of hurt. My hope is that when people read them they will understand the simplicity of the process (despite the number of words needed to describe it) and then they will only have to refer to it if they run into a snag. As you know I write software test plans for a living and so I spend many happy hours documenting processes with hundreds if not thousands of steps. The process contained in the PDF was written while drinking a cup of coffee 
 
As promised here are some photos of my progress so far. The first photo is of the surface gauge I use to take points off the Disposition of Frames which I mounted on a plexiglass backing. This plexi backing keeps everything in proper relation height wise. After a while I realized that it would be easier if I replaced the hardened steel pin with a sharp pencil which I have now done.
 

 
This next photo is of all the frames sitting on top of a scrap of wood the same width as the keel. The frames are all bunched up against one another so they don't fall over. Some of them are a very tight but others have a bit of wiggle room in them consequentially some of the tops of the frames look a bit out of kilter.
 
  
 
These next 2 shots show a side view of the frames. An observant reader will notice that the frames are not stood up in the proper order. You can see where I have started to create the notches for the scupper opening as well as the gun port sills. You can be sure I'll have them all in the correct order when I glue them into place.
 
 
 
The last photo is a different angle and shows how well everything fits together. You'll notice marks on each frame directly above the keel. These are little arrows pointing towards the bow. They are there to keep me from gluing a frame into place backwards. I learn from my mistakes.
 

 
Next up is drilling holes for the treenails. That will keep me busy for a little while.
 

Jig for drilling treenail holes
 
At the last SMS-NJ Echo Cross Section workshop the topic of treenails came up. Specifically, how to drill the holes without breaking the drill bits. I use solid carbide drill bits from Drill Bits Unlimited. Carbide bits are very sharp but they are also extremely brittle and the slightest sideways pressure will snap them. I always use a drill press with these bits.
 
A number of people asked how I manage to drill out frames in a drill press without something getting in the way. My answer is that I built a little jig that my drill press sits on that has an arm sticking out beyond the edge of the workbench and that's what holds my frames when I am drilling. This first photo is of the jig itself. The back section is the exact same size as the footprint of my MicroMark drill press.
 

 
The next photo shows my drill press sitting on the jig. With the MircoMark drill press I can rotate the head 360 degrees and in this case it is rotated 180 degrees. For safety sake I use two heavy steel alignment squares as counterweights on the drill press platform. The things circled in red are bits of wood that are shaped in such a way that they make alignment easier. In my shop I always paint little things like this red so at the end of the day they don't get swept into the trash. In this photo I have a piece clamped to the arm. This piece is a half round piece of dowel. It's used so that curved pieces can sit on it and touch nothing else.
 

 
In the next photo I have a piece of wood that is the exact width of the keel. I clamp this to the arm when I am drilling the holes through cross chocks and 1st futtocks.
 

 
Here is a floor sitting on the keel sized piece ready for drilling.
 

 
The next photo shows how I drill through the futtocks and chocks. I brace the back with a block of wood, position the piece to be drilled, and then slide another small piece of wood up against the piece to be drilled. With everything clamped in place the assembly is rock steady and I don't need to worry that it will rock while being drilled and snap the drill bit.
 

 
I find one of the easiest things to do that adds to accuracy is having good lighting. This next photo shows my light setup. I use small but very bright LED lights that attach to my tools using strong rare earth magnets. They have a goose neck so I can reposition the light as needed. Here is the link to the light on Lee Valley's website.
 

 
The last photo shows another view of a frame ready to be drilled. You can see how the arm extends beyond the base of the drill press and how the frame is positioned on the arm and is held in alignment by 2 pieces of wood clamped to the arm. You can also see how well lit the field is and you can also see my heavy counterweights. It is important to make sure you have adequate weight on the back of the drill press to make sure when you pull the handle down you don't pull the entire drill press into your lap.
 

 
I have two frames complete (Deadflat 0 and 1) and I hope to get two more done this weekend. Time will tell. In the meantime I hope this explanation of how I drill holes for treenails will be helpful.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

That's great news Greg!
 
At our last SMS-NJ group build meeting this was one of the topics of discussion. We had Jason from Crown Timberyard on Skype and he was asking us what types of wood we want to use. I brought up the cross section that you use as your avitar as a really nice example of using a variety of woods to finish the Echo. Towards the end of the PowerPoint presentation from the Echo Cross Section workshop you and David did there are some really nice color photos. I'm pretty sure we are going to go with the same woods you used. We want to get back to Jason in the not too distant future so he can put together a quote on what this will cost. If you can send me your recommendations on what woods to use I'll bring it up to the group.

That's great news Greg!
 
At our last SMS-NJ group build meeting this was one of the topics of discussion. We had Jason from Crown Timberyard on Skype and he was asking us what types of wood we want to use. I brought up the cross section that you use as your avitar as a really nice example of using a variety of woods to finish the Echo. Towards the end of the PowerPoint presentation from the Echo Cross Section workshop you and David did there are some really nice color photos. I'm pretty sure we are going to go with the same woods you used. We want to get back to Jason in the not too distant future so he can put together a quote on what this will cost. If you can send me your recommendations on what woods to use I'll bring it up to the group.

The wales have been installed on the starboard side.  The pieces were cut to size, tapered at the bow and cut to fit the shape of the fashion piece at the stern.  These went on much easier than the original planks.  A little sanding, then I'll put a coat of sanding sealer and start painting them.
Maury

Here's an update for those of you building the Echo cross-section. We are developing a second, fitting out package with a full instruction booklet. It should be available in the next few months.Stay tuned

Hi Greg, yep if you have to refer to those directions for each frame you would be in a world of hurt. My hope is that when people read them they will understand the simplicity of the process (despite the number of words needed to describe it) and then they will only have to refer to it if they run into a snag. As you know I write software test plans for a living and so I spend many happy hours documenting processes with hundreds if not thousands of steps. The process contained in the PDF was written while drinking a cup of coffee 
 
As promised here are some photos of my progress so far. The first photo is of the surface gauge I use to take points off the Disposition of Frames which I mounted on a plexiglass backing. This plexi backing keeps everything in proper relation height wise. After a while I realized that it would be easier if I replaced the hardened steel pin with a sharp pencil which I have now done.
 

 
This next photo is of all the frames sitting on top of a scrap of wood the same width as the keel. The frames are all bunched up against one another so they don't fall over. Some of them are a very tight but others have a bit of wiggle room in them consequentially some of the tops of the frames look a bit out of kilter.
 
  
 
These next 2 shots show a side view of the frames. An observant reader will notice that the frames are not stood up in the proper order. You can see where I have started to create the notches for the scupper opening as well as the gun port sills. You can be sure I'll have them all in the correct order when I glue them into place.
 
 
 
The last photo is a different angle and shows how well everything fits together. You'll notice marks on each frame directly above the keel. These are little arrows pointing towards the bow. They are there to keep me from gluing a frame into place backwards. I learn from my mistakes.
 

 
Next up is drilling holes for the treenails. That will keep me busy for a little while.
 

It has been a long while since I posted so it's time for an update. I have finished all 12 frames and this time I'm happy with the way they came out. I'll post some photos of them later when I get back down in the shop and take them.
 
I spent a lot of time trying to come up with a process that would allow me to make accurate frames in the shortest time possible while keeping mistakes to a minimum. At some point after I retire I'd like to tackle a fully framed model but to do that I need a better way to make frames than my first attempt at the ECHO. Attached to this post is a PDF file that explains in, what some might call excruciating, detail my method.
 
What I found is that when I tried to make one frame at a time I wasted a lot of time doing set ups on the mill that I had done for the previous frame. The way around this is to do all like operations at the same time. I marked up every template page before cutting and gluing any of them to stock. When all the templates were glued to stock I headed to the scroll saw where I cut all the pieces at once. I used small plastic bags with a label to identify what the bag held.
 
With all the pieces cut I went to the Byrnes disk sander where I sanded the mating surfaces of each piece (this is explained in the PDF). With this critical step done I went back to the scroll saw and got rid of a lot of the stock that would otherwise have to be milled. This is done AFTER the sanding step so that when I sanded the mating surfaces I'd have as much of a line to sand to as possible.
 
Next up is the mill. Here I organized the pieces to optimize each milling step. This is how I went about that.
Arrange all pieces along the left side of the mill according to the thickness of the wood. Except for Frame 3 which has some complex geometery this means floors would be milled first, then pieces that get progressively thinner as you get higher up on the hull.
  When you hold a floor in your hand and look at it you realize 3 milling operations are needed on it. One to mill the left area where a chock will go, the center recess where the floor will sit on the keel and the right side of the floor where the other chock will go. To save having to do repeated set ups I milled cut out for the left chock first. I then moved the piece in the mill vise and milled the center recess for the keel. I then removed the floor from the mill vise and set it on the right side of the mill.
  Next I milled the next floor but this time I milled the recess for the keel first since the cutter is already in position to do this. Then I moved the XY table to cut the area for the left chock. Then the piece is removed from the mill and put on next to the first floor that is on the bench to the right of the mill.
  The next floor had the left chock recess milled, then the center then removed and put to the right of the mill. This continues until all the floors have the keel recess and left chock area milled.
  Next comes futtocks that have both a left and right chock area that needs to be milled. I did all the left areas and when that was done I took the piece out of the mill vise and put it with the floors.
  After the futtocks with a left and right chock are milled you will have 2 sets of top timbers, one set for the starboard side and one set for the port side. Mill all the futtocks with a left chock area.
  You'll notice as you work though the pieces to be milled you are optimizing each setup. When you have milled the last of the top timbers with a left chock the mill vise is set for thin pieces. Move to the items you have been lining up on the right side of the mill. Starting with the top timbers work your way through the items ending up with the floors that have had the left chock area and keel recess milled.
  With all the milling out of the way I used tape to attach specific pieces of framing to a paper template. In my head I think of them as foundation pieces because they are the starting point for the frame.
  Once all the foundation pieces have been taped to the template I join the pieces that attach to them. These are butt joins and very weak. By doing all the edge gluing first you give the first joint time to cure while you are doing the others. I usually allow a couple of hours to really let the glue cure.
  With all the frames assembled I mark out each chock that is needed by sliding the chock stock under the window in the template and using a very sharp 4H pencil use the outline formed by the futtocks to trace the outline of the chock. Each chock is labeled as to the frame and location.
  With all the chocks drawn on stock I use the scroll saw to cut them all out.
  After cutting them all out I use the 5" disk sander to gradually sand to the lines and test fitting them until they are perfect. One I have the right fit I glue the chock into place and move on to the next chock on that frame. It's just that easy 
 
If you have read this far you are a trooper. As promised, here is the  Process for making frames with chocks.PDF.
 
I found that once I figured out the process I could move very quickly. I had iTunes queued to my favorite playlist and got into a groove. 
 
Good luck and have fun.