clifforddward

My vote is for dull blade and perhaps wrong type of blade...if using a rip type blade for a crosscutting operation rough cuts will be the result.

My Knew Concepts fret saw has become a "go to" tool for coping and fine cutting work...I never realized how easy coping cuts could be...I wrestled for years with various fret saws...this one is the real deal and worth every penny for quality work!

Count me in as a firm commitment Chuck...for complete kit as well as sail kit.

Thanks for posting this Kevin...great memory for me as I sailed into Bequia in 1988 as part of a bareback sailboat rental...four of us (two couples) picked up a 38' sailboat in St Vincent and sailed down to Grenada and back, island hopping along the way. I'd say my favorite two places were Bequia and the Tobago Cays. We spent a couple of nights on the boat moored at Bequia, and I managed to pick up two model boats...a double ended whaling boat from boatbuilder Terrance McKree which is a display piece. The photos attached here show Terrance with the whaling boat model. The other boat is a sailing model I bought from one of the boys in the bay...I remember watching the boys racing their boats all afternoon...this one boat kept winning, so when the group of boys came over to our sailboat to try to sell us one of their models, I only considered purchase of the quick sailing boat that had been winning....I don't remember what we settled on for a price, but I do remember it took about an hour of talking to convince the owner to part with his boat...his comment was "I don't know if I'll be able to make another one so fast!" Funny thing is the boat is quite modest in it's finish, but the lines of the hull and location of the mast and sail make it a great sailer....both my boys enjoyed playing with it at the pool growing up, and it still occupies a space in my office as a reminder of a very pleasant sailing trip...

As others have said there may need to be some clarification of the desired small hole size in order to establish a "correct" answer....including what is the definition of "small". For creating holes with #60 or smaller drill bits, particularly as one approaches bits smaller than #70, there is no better drill press than the Cameron Micro Drill Press. Cameron is a California based company and their drill presses seem frightfully expensive when first considered, but the spindles run very true and I can regularly drill #80 sized holes without any worry of breaking a bit. Yes, there are a number of small drill press manufacturers but the Cameron (formerly Treat) Drill Press is the gold standard... I bought mine about 35 years ago and after I got over the "pain" of the initial cost, I've enjoyed worry free drilling ever since. One of those "buy it and forget it" type of purchases to advance one's skill set...

More important perhaps that cutting fluid is the need for tools to be absolutely sharp! Rake angle can also be a factor...less is better but only if the tool is dead sharp. And small cuts....

I'm impressed with the speed of your build Toni...I'm still trying to get time between work and family commitments to get my keel laid...seeing your progress I'm beginning to think I have excuses rather than reasons for not advancing my own build!...must remedy that in the coming weeks

Dave, thank you for the mention about the usefulness of the NMM plans for Echo being helpful during the cross section build. I am just beginning my Echo Cross Section build, and had planned on waiting to order the NMM plans until after my cross section was complete. I'll re-think that decision and go ahead and order the plans now to have them for assistance during the Cross Section build...if nothing else having them ready at hand will help me understand how to read the old plans...seems good practice to me for a full frame build. Best Regards, Cliff

Hi aec: Glad you were able to connect with Alexey via your posting here on the forum. Now that Alexey has connected with you I am confident you'll find him prompt with any needed corrective action. My experience with purchase of equipment from him has always been very positive. Best Regards, Cliff

Hi Dave: I'm located in Cary...count me in for a potential club...with the proviso that as a relative newbie to the shipbuilding hobby I am very much on the learning side of the scale.

I h ave an old Floquil painting guide...it says wait a week for full paint cure, at which time Floquil will even hold up to its own solvent. This has always been the method I've followed when I need to apply a different finish over Floquil.

Greg, Can you tell if your boxwood that has stayed straight was quarter sawn? I'm particularly picky about wood choice, and I've found over the years that no matter what the species quarter sawn was the way to go for pieces requiring stability. The billets of Castello I'm cutting in the photos accompanying this thread are quartersawn straight grain... the Buxus piece I have is through the center of the log...I'm going to cut it in half, then turn 90 degrees so as to cut slabs that are quarter sawn....should work out I think. Interesting side note is that for planking the best bending wood is not quarter sawn but rather "flat sawn" which is cut perpendicular to quarter sawn wood. I've got some Holly for planking I'm planning on flat sawing when the time comes. Note this follows full size prototype modern woodworking practice for cutting wood to be bent without splitting. Of course riving is even better but I'm not about to start riving buxus! Sorry about my weak explanation....I suspect a web search of the terms will yield images that will be more useful than my description.

Hi Michael: I got some 24"-30" long billets of Castello and Swiss Pear from Gilmer Wood Company...they offer finished wood by the piece...I was able to get a few pieces 1.5"-2.25" thick. Looking just now they are out of stock of pieces of both, although I imagine they have rough boards they could cut from. I also picked up a billet of Buxus via the web...want to do some test cutting of that to see how the denser wood works. I avoid buying green lumber...did that in the past when I had a shop I could dry the wood in long term, but doing so without warpage involves more effort and technique than most realize...I allowed two years per inch of wood, and that assumes you can stack and sticker the wood with enough weight on top to control initial warping. Nowadays I'll work with wood that has been kiln dried and/or air cured by others...we don't use that much so the price is not prohibitive. So far I'm impressed with resawing and using the thickness sander...results as nice as wood purchased by the shipbuilding sources...a bit time consuming but results seem fine. And as you say with the choices of dealers limited these days doing it one's self has great advantage. Dave: You are right about all the sizes of wood for the Echo Cross Section fitting out kit...looking at the wood list there are 14 thicknesses of Castello called out...plus a half dozen more in Holly. I think cutting your own is the best way to go for scratchbuilding...provides all the flexibility needed.

Just be careful with the heat, and keep the nozzle moving if you don't want scorched wood (or fingers)...Don't ask how I know about this.... I've got a commercial heat gun I've used for electronics and a wide variety of items...One thing that is very helpful is making a "cradle" to hold the heat gun in so you can have both hands for manipulating the part. I can't find mine in the shop just now so cannot post an image, but definitely helpful. Once you realize what a strong, localized heat source can do you'll find all sorts of uses!

Taking advantage of the week between the holidays by trying out my Byrnes thickness sander...making up a "kit" of Echo Cross Section fitting out wood from the Castello I recently cut over at the college craft center. I had allowed .030" oversize when resawing...did finish thickness sanding of four 12" pieces, two 11" pieces, and then one each of 10" and 8.5" stock (1:48 scale)...turns out I had plenty of rough cut wood to work from, even with the uneven cut from the shop blade. In the future I beleive I can start with .025" oversize and be fine. For today's activities, I started with 8 pieces, thinning them as a group on the rougher grit until I got close to each size...seemed to be a good practical way to work down multiple pieces at the same time. Anytime I've resawn wood warping has always been a concern....here I'll keep this freshly finish sanded stock under weight for a week or so to make certain everything stays in place. Over the next few days I'll make up the progressively thinner stock that makes up the Echo Cross Section fitting out kit. I'll also be making up some pear to have for contrasting wood as I get into the build.