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grsjax

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Everything posted by grsjax

  1. grsjax
    I can't answer the question but it may be possible to recut the threads in the nuts with the jewelers tap depending on what material the nuts are made of and how close you can get to matching the original thread. I have done this with regular sized bolts and nuts when I could not get an exact match. Can't guarantee it will work for you but it might be worth a try if all else fails.
  2. grsjax
    Bought some and tried it out. Worked pretty well for me. Good for getting small items to stay in place when they can't be clamped.
  3. grsjax
    Hi I was taught that the hole for the tap should be the minor diameter of the thread plus the difference between the major and minor thread diameter. Hope that helps.
  4. grsjax
    I have used cuprinol but I would not suggest it for model building. It left a greenish color in the wood. Good stuff for protecting wood from bugs but I don't know how it would impact painting or other finishing processes. Don't know what pentacyrI is. I have used clear shellac to stablize wood for carving. However it is sensitive to water and turns white if it gets wet. Works great. Can be painted over with water or oil based paints and I have clear coated over it with oil based finishes including tung oil and BLO. Haven't tried using acrylic clear over it. Plain white wood glue works well with soft woods like basswood. Super glue can also be used. Clear acyrlic paint is something I have used as well to keep down fuzz when sanding. Hope that helps.
  5. grsjax
    Have you tried a thin coat of clear spray paint over the tape to seal it first?
  6. grsjax
    The book "Fast Sailing ships: Their Design and Construction, 1775 - 1875" by David R. MacGregor has an entire section devoted to the Scotish Maid with drawings and commentary. Might be worth while to use this as a source of information on rigging and deck layout.
  7. grsjax
    Bandsaws come from the factory needing a tune up. There are several good websites and books available that go through a step by step procedure. Not difficult to do unless something is really out of kilter. Biggest single improvement is alining the wheels. That alone will eliminate a lot of vibration. Other things like truing up the tires and getting all the bolts tight will further improve things. Take an hour to go through your new bandsaw and you will be much happier with its performance.
  8. grsjax
    The tackle used was more than just a rope. It usually consisted of two double blocks. This gives a 4 to 1 mechanical advantage if the end of the line is belayed to the first block. If the line is continuous, i.e. both ends free, the mechanical advantage is 5 to 1. This would be more than enough purchase for two men to lift a 400 pound anchor.
  9. grsjax
    On smaller schooners it was a common practice to not have a windlass and instead use a tackle attached to a strong point near the main mast to haul the anchor. There would be one on either side of the deck used alternately to haul the cable inboard. Made for a simple, light weight system that could be cleared away when not needed so it took up no deck space.
  10. grsjax
    There is a distinction to be made here. If this were a contest or professional venue detailed specifications of catagores would be appropriate. However I, and suspect many others here, build ship models as a hobby because we enjoy it. I do not see what utility there is in making ridgid lines between classes. Just my .02 for what it is worth.
  11. grsjax
    I received my copy over a week ago. Some great articles this time.
  12. grsjax
    If formaldehyde is an issue for you get the waterproof MDF, it does not contain formaldehyde. However that said it is probable that irritation of the lungs and mucus membranes by wood dust from machineing MDF is probably a greater health hazard than formaldehyde released from the boards. Use a dust mask and eye protection when cutting/sanding any wood product.
  13. grsjax
    If you can put all your tools into organizers you don't have enough tools.
  14. grsjax
    Don't know for sure but the pullys and belt are probably standard parts. Do a google search for toothed belts/pully and see what you find. BTW there is a guy on eBay that sells a similar kit for Dremel table saws.
  15. grsjax
    Modelexpo sells sets of plans for all their kits. Several websites have plans available. Lots of books with plans in them, anything by Howard I. Chappel or William A. Baker would be good place to start. The Smithsonian Institute sells plans from their collection at very reasonable prices. The National Maritime Museum also sells plans but I have heard that they can be expensive. Google ship or boat plans (3,090,000 hits when I googled it) and you will come up with a lot of websites. All depends on what you are looking for in terms of size, price and subject. A good first build from the days of sail is the Armed Virginia Sloop (P-O-B, plans available from Modelexpo). A British revenue cutter would also be a good one.
  16. grsjax
    Have to agree with the above comments about the difficulties of doing a two decker as a first build. However that is your choice so enough said. As for wood I like poplar as a general building wood. Widely available, not expensive, hard enough for most purposes but easy to work. Cherry and walnut are also good choices if you can get straight grained pieces. Maple is very good but some species can be hard to work. Just a suggestion but build the ship's boats first as a lead in to the main event.
  17. grsjax
    Very interesting comments. I look forward to the day when laser cutters and 3D printers are both cheap and reliable tools for the hobbiest. Considering the huge advances made in other areas of high tech over the last decade I don't think that is an unreasonable hope.
  18. grsjax
    Received an email ad this morning for a MicroMark Laser Knife. A desk top laser cutter for the hobbiest. Great looking machine and something I would definately want to add to my workshop but the price is a little steep at $2000. Hope these go the way of laser printers and come down in price to where it becomes affordable to the average model builder.
  19. grsjax
    If you want to try something a little different you might want to consider plating the white metal parts with copper. Here is a simple DIY copper plating method I found on the web. http://www.instructables.com/id/simple-Copper-plating/ For thicker plating let it sit in the solution longer. The part can be polished or left natural and painted with a satin clear coat to prevent oxidation. If you want to get go further and put a second coat of bronze over the copper it can be done but is a bit more complicated.
  20. grsjax
    If you are not going to harvest your own wood you might want to consider just buying the wood precut from one of the vendors that supports this forum. It may actually be cheaper that buying a bandsaw that you will not use very often.
  21. grsjax
    Hi Never used the Proxxon bandsaw but for less than half the price you can get a Skil 9" bandsaw which looks like it would be a more capable saw. For the same price as a Proxxon you can get a larger 10" bandsaw that will be a lot more saw for the money. If you have the floor space look around for a good used Delta or Delta clone 12" bandsaw, it will do any cutting you will ever need for model work or home woodworking. Just my experiance, your mileage my vary. Here is one on Amazon that gets better reviews than the Proxxon, costs about $125 less and uses standard blades rather than the special blades sold by Proxxon. This isn't an endorcement, just an example I found doing a quick google search. http://www.amazon.com/Rikon-10-305-Bandsaw-Fence-10-Inch/dp/B0032YZB2S/ref=sr_1_7?s=power-hand-tools&rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1426102101&sr=1-7&keywords=bandsaw Just found this review of several bench top bandsaws including the Proxxon. http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/benchtop-band-saw-reviews/
  22. grsjax
    Check eBay under computer tools or look in your local Radio Shack or similar store for a hand held mini-vac used to clean keyboards and printed circuit boards. Works well in small spaces, doesn't blow to hard so as to do more than you want and the one I have is reversible to blow air as well as vacumn. Here is one on eBay, don't know how good it is but it is cheap. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-USB-Computers-PC-Cleaner-Laptop-Keyboard-Vacuum-Cleaner/281152459311?_trksid=p2045573.c100034.m2102&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D28797%26meid%3D6ffb9b0918244d3394d0a1dcb43c81b0%26pid%3D100034%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D8%26sd%3D251834099668
  23. grsjax
    My first computer was a TRS-80 with 4Kb of memory and a cassette drive for exteral storage. Graduated to an IBM with a 10Mb harddrive. We called it our super computer.
  24. grsjax
    Was reading the latest installment of the kit bashers guide and started wondering what the strangest things people have used in building their models. I haven't used anything really exotic but a few things I have ended up using were wrapping paper, paper clips and buttons. Would like to hear what others have ended up using.
  25. grsjax
    One way to treat small pieces of wood subject to fungus problems is to microwave them. No water is needed, just put the wood into the microwave and let it run long enough to heat the wood evenly. Don't try this with wood that is soaking wet because you might get an explosion from the interior water expanding. Generally I find that cutting the wood into ~1" thick slabs and waiting until the wood is not obviously wet works best. Keep an eye on the wood as it is heating and don't let it get over heated as it will mostly likely start cracking. BTW just because a piece of wood gets a fungus stain doesn't mean it is worthless. Depending on what you are going to use it for the stain can be covered with paint or in some cases actually contribute to the effect you are looking for.

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