6ohiocav

Mike and Joel,
 
Again, thanks for the research. I am going to find a great bottle of Lake Erie wine and read that wonderful link that you sent this weekend.  I need a break from working on buildings the size of a nickel.

Guys,
 
This discussion begs a question - Are there any period documents, diagrams, plans, wood cuts, paintings etc of either the Niagara or her sister ship the Lawrence?

Boat Davit
 
Worked on the boat davits.  Traced the laser cut template onto some cherry and cut them out with the band saw. I Carefully sanded them into shape and then marked the sheaves.  I drilled then carved out the slots with the x-acto knife. Then drilled a small hole through the side and inserted a pin with some medium CA.
 
I did all of that - took most of the evening - and then realized I put the sheaves on the wrong end.... Soooo, I did it all over again.
 
Very soon, I will have all of the deck component parts done.  I already finished the masts, yards, bowspirits and spankers.
The guns are all done. Therefore, it may be time to glue down the deck and begin the process of attaching all of these parts to the ship. A daunting task.

Boat Davit
 
Worked on the boat davits.  Traced the laser cut template onto some cherry and cut them out with the band saw. I Carefully sanded them into shape and then marked the sheaves.  I drilled then carved out the slots with the x-acto knife. Then drilled a small hole through the side and inserted a pin with some medium CA.
 
I did all of that - took most of the evening - and then realized I put the sheaves on the wrong end.... Soooo, I did it all over again.
 
Very soon, I will have all of the deck component parts done.  I already finished the masts, yards, bowspirits and spankers.
The guns are all done. Therefore, it may be time to glue down the deck and begin the process of attaching all of these parts to the ship. A daunting task.

Brian,
 
I have been copying portions of my plans and cutting out templates to use to make parts to replace the kit supplied plywood for my Niagara, and NEVER thought of checking to make sure that the scale was altered. Thanks for the heads up. I have also cut out sections of the actual plans and have found that I have to make sure that the images are in true 1/64 scale, as some are NOT.
 
Superb work on the cockpit deck!

Boat Davit
 
Worked on the boat davits.  Traced the laser cut template onto some cherry and cut them out with the band saw. I Carefully sanded them into shape and then marked the sheaves.  I drilled then carved out the slots with the x-acto knife. Then drilled a small hole through the side and inserted a pin with some medium CA.
 
I did all of that - took most of the evening - and then realized I put the sheaves on the wrong end.... Soooo, I did it all over again.
 
Very soon, I will have all of the deck component parts done.  I already finished the masts, yards, bowspirits and spankers.
The guns are all done. Therefore, it may be time to glue down the deck and begin the process of attaching all of these parts to the ship. A daunting task.

Ken,
 
I came across your log and must say your post regarding the sljo's in your life hit home today. Today is my anniversary, and I am going all in to earn some important build time.
 
Great work on your longboat.  I will be visiting often.

If you are talking about the vertical chamfers (half moon shaped), I used a micro half round file and did it by hand.  The size of the file fit perfectly to the design. As long as you start it in the right place, and monitor the depth, you have a chance to get them even.  The top chamfers were done by hand with a flat file. Neither was easy, and I have a pile of scrap pieces to prove it. Trying to keep the sizes consistent at such a small scale is a chore.  Hope this helps.
 
Have you painted your pins yet?  Has the paint held to the brass well? Good point on the rope covering them up.

Brian,
 
I have been copying portions of my plans and cutting out templates to use to make parts to replace the kit supplied plywood for my Niagara, and NEVER thought of checking to make sure that the scale was altered. Thanks for the heads up. I have also cut out sections of the actual plans and have found that I have to make sure that the images are in true 1/64 scale, as some are NOT.
 
Superb work on the cockpit deck!

If you are talking about the vertical chamfers (half moon shaped), I used a micro half round file and did it by hand.  The size of the file fit perfectly to the design. As long as you start it in the right place, and monitor the depth, you have a chance to get them even.  The top chamfers were done by hand with a flat file. Neither was easy, and I have a pile of scrap pieces to prove it. Trying to keep the sizes consistent at such a small scale is a chore.  Hope this helps.
 
Have you painted your pins yet?  Has the paint held to the brass well? Good point on the rope covering them up.

Fife and Pin Rails
 
​I worked on the fife rails yesterday.  I made them from my cherry stock. My wood joinery skills were put to a real test in the micro size of these things. I also made the pin rails.  I used bass wood strips and spray painted them with my airbrush.
 
I have also given consideration to the kit supplied belaying pins.  They are made of brass, and of course must be painted or blackened (or browned, but I don't have that product). So last month, while on business in Sandusky, I had the opportunity to stop in the local hobby store, and to my surprise, they actually had a rack of model shipway parts and such. I picked up 4 bags (all they had) of wooden belaying pins. They are already stained dark, but I don't have enough of them.  I suppose I could order some to complete the set, but decided to consider another alternative.  I found some decorative toothpicks, with a head, when cut and shaped, works pretty well as a belaying pin. I have attached pictures of all three. At some point, I will decide which ones to use.  The size is an issue, since the wooden ones, especially the model shipway pins, look a bit out of scale (large).
 
Any suggestions?
 
PS. Please forgive me for my sloppy use of sailing terminology. I am learning.
 

Umm.  Not the "masts" dummy.  These are spars.

And here are some photos of the completed masts.

Jackstays
 
I worked on the masts today, trying to get everything ready to paint. I had an idea to make a jig for drilling all of the holes for the jackstays. Iplaced a round tip bit into the router table and cut a half circle bead on a piece of scrap.  I would use that to seat the masts. I then marked and drilled a series of guide holes a centimeter apart as per the plans.  Once the masts were secured to the jig, I used the guide holes and with my diamond tipped bit on the dremel, plunge drilled the jackstays holes in the masts. It worked on all of the masts.  Once done, I used the small eyebolts from the kit, cut them to size, and glued them in place with medium CA.  The jackstays came out straight and evenly spaced.  I also saved a good amount of time.
 
Here are some shots of the process.
 
 

Mike,
 
Good points all.  The plans call for baseboard trim pieces around all of the structures, so I may be able to hide any gaps created by the crown.

Companionway II
 
Well I finally finished the companionway and the captains quarter skylight. I trimmed out the windows in cherry stripwood, I built the hatch rails and hatch frame out of holly. I finished the hatch roof and door out of cherry strips.
 
This was a chore, and for those of you that have the Niagara plans, you will note a big mistake in the structures, Not a real big one, but since I made the same mistake twice, I had to reveal it.  I created the companionway with three windows per side, BUT, the plans only call for two windows per side. The salon skylight callsefor three windows, and I only put in two.
 
If you have followed this log, you will remember that I REBUILT these structures.  The first time, I made the same mistake, and when I decided to rebuild them, I figured I would fix this.  Well........ In my haste to get these things done (like trying to hurry doing a chore that took three days), I made the very same mistake again. Arghhhh. I have to keep reminding myself to look at the plans once and a while.
 
Here are some photos.  I had to see what they looked like on deck, so I simply put them in place.  
 
Up next, pin and fife rails.
 
 

Mike and Joel,
 
Again, thanks for the research. I am going to find a great bottle of Lake Erie wine and read that wonderful link that you sent this weekend.  I need a break from working on buildings the size of a nickel.

Guys,
 
This discussion begs a question - Are there any period documents, diagrams, plans, wood cuts, paintings etc of either the Niagara or her sister ship the Lawrence?

Companionway
 
Finished the second skylight and began working on the companionway. Even though I have already built one of these, I worked most of the night just to get to this point. I still have to build the slide brackets and top, and then get it all to fit, then the door and the trim.
 
I truly believe I could build a full sized companionway in a shorter time. At least I could see what I am doing. This darn thing is small.
 
Interesting observation on the capstan Joel. You are spot on. With all of these deck structures, and the capstan wedged inbetween the salon skylight and the companionway, you can't. While the capstan bars appear to be mounted above the tops of the two structures, unless the men are prepared to step onto the roofs, it would be impossible. As I look at my build, I am not sure that my companion way will be low enough to clear the bars, making this even more of a problem.
 
I am sold. CASE CLOSED. The skylights and companionway are clearly a modern anomoly. Great point Joel.

Brian and Mike,
 
Thanks for stopping in. While it might be obvious, I failed to mention that I remove the block after the walls are constructed.  The block not only keeps the structure square, it also allows you to keep the vertical walls plumb. I glue the butt joints and the horizontal surfaces which allows you to build these things without a frame.
 
Laying the structures along the cherry deck looks pretty good.
 
I have to work on the companionway tonight.  That is a much more complicated structure with the sliding roof and door way.

​Skylights
 
​​Still working on deck structures.  Months ago, I built the three skylights.  I built them out of bass wood strips per the plans. This was a tedious project that took me days to accomplish. The plans call for the structures to be painted, and all one color, walls, frames and roof.  To be fair, the current ship's skylights are indeed painted a light brown - and all one color.
 
I have viewed posts on this site, and agree with the commenters that these skylights are probably a modern addition, and would not have been present on the 1813 version, at least in this form.  I would imagine however that there would have been some form of structure that would allow light in the hold and protection from rain.
 
Deciding to go with the structures as planned, I decide to forego the all one color.  I elected to line the roofs with cherry strip wood, that I would not paint. I masked off the roofs and sanded and primed the walls, and they sat in my make-shift paint booth waiting for me to find an acceptable beige paint. 
 
I looked at those skylights for weeks, and every time I did, I just did not think I could paint them to look good enough. So, I decided to scrap the existing structures and start over. I have learned that anytime I can avoid painting something, that is a preferable way to go. This time, I would build the walls out of of holly, and would mill some small cherry strip wood for the roofs, window sills and window covers.
 
As I learned the first time around, I cut out balsa blocks to the size of the skylights and used that as a support to build around.  It assured that the structures were square, and made the work with the small strips easier.  I cut 45 degree but joints on my mini miter box.  Getting the right size is a challenge, but once achieved, a block clamped to the fence allowed me to cut multiple even sized strips.
 
I have provided pictures of the process.  The built skylight at the top was the first version out of bass wood with a coat of white primer. The end product of the new design out of holly and cherry was much more acceptable.

Royal and Topgallant Yards,
 
I worked on the final set of yards. These were the toughest, due to their small diameter.  Again, done in cherry, done slowly on the lathe with a sharp mini gouge, files and a lot of sanding.
 
Next up are a series of eye bolts for jackstays on the Course, Topsail, and Topgallant yards.  I have an idea for a jig to use with my plunge bit for the dremel.  I will be working on that tomorrow.
 
After that, off to the paint booth with all of the masts, bowsprit and yards.
 
 

Spanker Gaff
 
I did some further work on the spanker gaff.  As I did with the spanker gaff,  I carefully sanded the ends on the bench sander and glued on the jaws.  I also inserted and glued the eye bolt.

Spanker Gaff and Spritsail Yard
 
More turnings.  I wanted to knock out some of the more delicate pieces on the lathe.
 
The spanker gaff was a real challenge.  I broke the first one trying to turn the small shoulder, and then on the second, I discovered a defect in the cherry stock right about the time that I got to the desired radius.  On my third try, I simply turned the stock to the1/8 diameter, and then decided to carve the shoulder by hand.  The plans call for an eye bolt at the end of the spanker, so I drilled the hole BEFORE I tried to carve the end down to 1/16. After some careful work with the x-acto knife and sanding pads, I obtained a desirable result.
 
The spritsail yard was a little more routine.  Careful work with the gouge and some sanding.
 
These two parts took all night.  Tomorrow, I hope to sucessfully attach the bee to the spanker gaff.

Mike
 
All of the parts and masts are from the same board. Everything is the same color.  I am taking pictures with two different cameras and it is the light.
 
I don't have a steady rest, but sure could use one.  Sounds like a good father's day present to myself.