Timothy Wood

Personally, I work with dowel or a piece of square stock and work it down with a miniature plane.  I don't believe there is an advantage in either case, both are very easy to do.  Just remember to take very small amounts of wood off with the plane, it takes time but it's the best way to procede.  It's also important that your plane is razor sharp and adjusted properly before you attempt to taper your mast.  Do sample cuts on a "Test" dowel or or square stock before you tackel the real thing.  Always take your time and remove small amounts of wood and check the diameter often.
 
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Happy New Year to everyone!  
 
It's been six months since my last post and I have not been at the bench as much as I would have liked, but thats life.  Here is a  current photo of the 80' ELCO.  I must say she's very close to being completed.
 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Outstanding!

Outstanding work! I don't know if I would be able to work on anything that small.

Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Elia,
 
What great lines on that schooner, it's fantastic!  getting somewhat tired of always seeing Bluenose and Bluenose II.  I'm delighted someone is building a Knockabout Schooner.  I'll be eagerly following your progress.
 
Tim

Hi Bob,
 
Let me start by saying you are doing an awsome job!  And welcome to Model Ship World, you did the right thing by adding your build here, as you can see there is limitless help from the members here at MSW, so never be afraid to ask a question.  The only dumb question is the one you didn't ask!   
 
Cheers,
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

So I've now tested the BlueJacket blackeners, using a variety of metal parts from the Model Shipways naval cannon kit, and am quite pleased with the results. I scrubbed all the pieces in warm soapy water, then soaked them in white vinegar before rinsing and drying. Then I tested the blackening solutions.
 
The bottle instructions suggest diluting the solution 1:10; I wasn't sure which direction this meant (one parts solution to ten parts water, or vice versa), so I wrote BlueJacket. As you might expect, I got a swift and helpful response:
It is ten parts water to 1 part solution. That ratio is really flexible.Some people use it full strength, and others really dilute it a lot. The10:1 blackens the metal in about 5 minutes or so. Make sure to clean theparts first. Here's what the blackened parts looked like after my first attempt (all were soaked for several minutes up to 15):
 

 
The pewter parts didn't fully blacken, but turned a deeper shade of grey-black. The true metal parts blackened beautifully, especially the chains. I really like how the cannon barrel turned out; the blackening kept the rough texture of the metal intact, whereas paint seals it into a glossy smooth finish. It wasn't dark enough for me, so I gave it a thin wash of black paint, which preserved the texture but achieved the right color:
 

 
Compare to the very similar carronade kit, on which I used paint alone, needing several coats to fully color the metal:
 

 
This latter gun has a much shinier appearance that I don't like as much as the blackened and washed long gun. Not sure how well it shows in these photos, but it's very obvious in person. I preferred the effect so much, that I removed my painted chain from the carronade kit and replaced it with extra blackened chain.
 
I did find that the blackening had a tendency to rub off on parts that were handled a lot, so I tried to use tweezers as much as possible. Also, I didn't notice any odor or other such problems, nice since I work in my living room.
 
So for whatever it's worth, I was very happy with these two products as a novice getting started with blackening metal.

Today, I started by sanding the Coamings, starting with 400 grit sandpaper and working my way up to 800 grit sandpaper. I then applied the third coat of varnish. IWith 4 coats of varnish on the Mast and Boom, I turned my attention to finishing the Mast by painting the Masthead and Spreaders white. Next will be to finish the Cockpit coamings and start making the Sails. Here are the results

Thank you Patrick
 
Thank you David B., The cure time is 7 hours, I am guessing your brother in law did not put in the correct amount of hardner . humidity and temp do play a factor, however it would only add or subtract an hour or 2 
 
Best Regards,
Pete

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Thank you everyone for your nice comments!  
 
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Thank you everyone for your nice comments!  
 
Tim

Thank you everyone for your nice comments!  
 
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Greetings,
 
I happy to say the BlueJacket 80' ELCO PT Boat is finally finished after a little over two years!    
 

 

 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Thank you everyone for your nice comments!  
 
Tim

Happy New Year to everyone!  
 
It's been six months since my last post and I have not been at the bench as much as I would have liked, but thats life.  Here is a  current photo of the 80' ELCO.  I must say she's very close to being completed.
 

 
Cheers,
Tim

Greetings, I did get some work completed on the ELCO this weekend.  I've started to install the small deck fittings along with the torpedo tube turntables.  Below is a photo of some of the bow deck mountings, the other to shots of the boat are with the assembled parts setting loose on the deck.
 
Cheers, Tim
 

 

 

Greetings,
 
Once again, I've stent too much time away from the bench so last week I decided to get back to it during a rainy weekend.  I got tired of looking at the hull one color so I decided it was time to add the waterline.
 
 

 
Cheers,
Tim