gjdale

Thanks Markus, That makes sense. I was thinking of trying to use an all aluminium version, with the splitter soldered in place. I might still give that a go, just to see how it works. If it doesn't, you've already proved that a wooden version does work.

Thanks for posting th extra info on your splitters Markus - that's next on my "to-do" list. Any reason you couldn't use a "stock" aluminium zero clearance plate to start with?

Thanks everyone for the kind words and also to all of the likes. Progress continues at a glacial pace, but I'm slowly catching up to Mobbsie (albeit that will only be a temporary state of affairs!). Mortar Pit Housing Construction of the Mortar Pit Housing is relatively straight forward, once you get your head around the angles involved. Although the corner diagonal walls have two 45-degree faces, the faces need to be of different widths in order to align properly with the side/end walls. It only took me three attempts to work this out…… The other thing that became immediately obvious once I started to fit the Mortar Pit walls, was that the pre-cut notches in the surrounding beams (for the angled carlings), were very poorly cut and positioned. I decided to glue the Mortar Pit Housing in place and then adjust the notches to allow a proper fit of the carlings. This left some unsightly gaps, which I have filled with a mixture of sawdust and diluted PVA glue. The end result looks okay, but the lesson learned is that it would have been better to NOT pre-cut the notches for the angled carlings. It was not as difficult as might be imagined to cut them in-situ (with a sharp chisel) once the mortar pit housing was in place.

Keith, Good idea for the thread. Like Nobotch, I've made a few of my own mods to the saw. A half length fence would be a good addition, but the thin ripping guide is also a good alternative - both easy to make, but an aftermarket option would be nice. As noted by Nobotch above, the fence only requires two screws to be removed to take the whole thing off - four additional screws to remove/insert the high fence. I do agree that a riving knife or splitter would be a nice addition - still contemplating making my own for these to match the more commonly used blade sizes. I would like to see a video, or pictorial instruction booklet for using the tilting angle table. I'm not smart enough to work this out properly - yet. I'm sure it's really easy, but I'm equally sure I'm not the only one............ I totally agree re changing paper on the disc sander. I overcame this by using some Proxxon stuff. They offer a silicone sheet that goes onto the metal face plate, and then their own sanding sheets stick to the silicon sheet. They work well and are easy to remove/replace. Proxxon also provides a separate silicon backing sheet to temporarily store used sheets when changing grits. The silicone sheet is only sold in the size for their larger sander (250mm), but you can cut two pieces from one sheet for the Byrnes machine. Sanding sheets are offered in th smaller size (125mm) which is a very close match to the Byrnes machine. I've been using this system for a little while now and it works well - a few seconds to change paper now instead of at least 30 minutes. Again, would be nice to have some "made to measure" for the Byrnes machine.

Wonderful job on the windows Nigel.

Great stuff Harvey! I like your Cutters - very neat planking job. No one would know they are card, which is just another form of wood anyway isn't it? I definitely don't consider that "cheating" - more "ingenious", and "creative" I would say.

Very nicely done on the planking Mark. Can't wait to see your laser cutting results.

Sorry to hear you've needed radiotherapy Harvey, but glad the boats have been a welcome distraction for you.

Nice to see you back at it Remco. Lovely work, as always!

Wow! They look great Harvey - well done Sir!

Nice job on the framing.

John, The top of the skylight has 4 rows of 8 panes each. The sides have 1 row of 7 panes each, and the ends have 1 row of 3 panes each.

You could use a drop of glue to simulate the rivets Jay. You could even add colour to the glue before applying. I've seen this technique used to great effect.

Nice to see some pictures there John. I agree with you about the skylight. If you're going to rebuild it, you may wish to have a close look at some source photos to check the number of panes on the roof, sides and ends. I can provide you with some photos if you need/want them. Interestingly, it was re-building the skylight that marked my own entry to MSW 1.0 - so it's definitely not too late to start a build log (hint, hint).

Simply wonderful Doris. Just stunning work all round. Thank you so much for sharing your talent with us.

Very nice work on the deck houses Marc.

Don't know if it's just me John, but I'm not seeing the pics - only the file names. And yes, a flogging followed by a keel hauling is in order for not maintaining a build log!

Jerry, You might want to have a look at the Krylon brand "foil" paints. I emphasise the "foil" in the name of the paint. They are a spray can. Although i have recently acquired some, I have not used them yet myself, but fellow MSW member Ken Foran ("xken") has used them extensively in his exquisite brass model building (check out his book on this subject too). You will find a link to his book in his build log for Niagara. You might also wish to PM him for further advice. Ken is also the kit designer for the Model Expo model of the Allerton Steam Pumper. Hope this helps.

George, Have you tried art-supplies shops? That's where I get mine over here. They are expensive, but I think they are worth the investment.

I like your wood clamping idea Jay and will also "borrow" it. Just this last weekend I ran into that exact problem and could have used this method instead of marking my pieces with the steel clamps.

Per, Sounds to me like your problem is priorities, not $$$ :)

Steve, It's all in the camera angle!

Love it Alan - thanks!

It seems to have been a long time since my last post, so just to show proof of life here is a quick update. Upper Deck Framing These last few weeks have been a very busy time since returning to work, and so visits to the shipyard have been few and far between. As the opportunity has arisen, I have kept plugging away at making the various knees, Carlings and Ledges. Preparation of the Carlings was very similar to that for the Deck Beams, with notches cut on the mill and finished by hand with a chisel. Knees and Beam Arms were all cut on the scroll saw and finished on the Spindle and Disc Sanders. Unfortunately, despite the care that I took in aligning the Deck Beams, Beam No.2 is slightly out, meaning that the Carlings between Beams 1 and 2, and between Beams 2 and 3, are also slightly out of alignment. Here is an overall shot to show progress to date – of course the angle was carefully selected to hide as many imperfections as possible! This shot was taken immediately after sanding, so some clean-up is still required. The side that will not be planked will also receive a coat or two of Wipe-on Poly in due course.

Great to see your new log started Bob. I'll be following your progress with interest.