grsjax

Try this website, bookfinder.com .  I have found a lot of obscure reference books on this website.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Mesoglue, http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/01/researchers-metallic-glue-may-stick-it-to-soldering-and-welding/
 
When this hits the market it is going to be a great addition to model building.

Background:
Well, not all K40's are created equal. So I'll put this up with caveats and the "gotchas" that I found.  I hope that this will be of value to someone.   At this point in the market, the prices are dropping and quality is getting better.   Do some shopping, read the reviews.  Ebay has great prices but... and it's a big "but".. there's hidden costs such as duty, import broker fees, and getting it shipped from the port entry to your door.  There's also "service" which seems from reviews to be non-existent.  I'd suggest looking for a dealer in the country you are located.
 
The MM Laserknife, is basically an upgraded K40 with a better power supply, a safety switch to kill the beam if the lid is opened, and better quality control than the run of the mill Chinese K40.  As is, it worked pretty good for what I've been doing with it but I wasn't exactly pleased trying to cut thicker woods.  For example, 3/16" boxwood was very problematical, but 3/16" cherry was pretty good.
 
Hindsight being what it is, I would have bought a totally different unit for around the same price and gained cutting size and power out.  But... <shrugs shoulders>... see the first paragraph for caveats.
 
So.. off I went into "UpgradeLand"...
 
Previously, I upgraded the lens from the small 12mm lens to a better grade 18mm lens with the same focal length.   This produced a finer beam at the wood but I did loose the ability to re-focus by moving the lens.  I worked around that by setting p the z-table so I could move it up and down to compensate.  
 
So far, so good... but still, I wasn't happy with cutting the thicker bits and harder species of wood.  I realized it was either buy another machine or upgrade this one... upgrade is/was the lower cost alternative.
 
Doing the homework:
I researched tubes and couldn't find a 50W that was up to snuff with a good price.  I did, however locate a 45W that had a good price and the company does provide good service.
 
The tube in the machine is called a 40W.  Reality... it's about a 35W at steady-state.  The 45W I selected pumps out 45W steady-state.  It is however longer (730mm vs. 1000mm) and bigger diameter (50mm vs 55mm).  
 
There is a 60W available that longer than the 40W (naturally) but also has a higher power requirement so it's out.  I saw some 50W tubes but I'm questioning if this isn't more marketing hype like labeling the K40 as a 40W machine.  The power requirements and tube size were smaller than those for the 45W I bought.   Puzzling to say the least.
 
First thing to check was power supply... the old tube needed 15kV at about 12mV.  The new one needs 15kV at ~18mA max.  MM uses a 220 VAC input (using a transformer) which outputs 20kV at 20mA.  This was good as PSU's are pretty pricey.
 
The next was water pump...  The new tube needs 10L/minute flow.  The MM pump is rated at 50L/minute.
 
Then there's the mounting... a hole will need to be cut in the case and an extender installed.  The mounts themselves would require modification to accept the bigger size. 
 
I ordered the new tube, extender, and about 12 feet of 6mm silicone tubing.  I bought 100% silicone caulking/sealer from Lowe's.
 
The tube I received was tested the day it shipped at 45W output using 15mA of power and metered at 18" from the tube end.  Yippee.... stated wattage is actual wattage.  In the K40 world, this is pretty iffy. 
 
The Upgrade
 
I took several photos of the unit before removing anything.  I also marked the place where the output of the tube was located for reference.
 

 
I removed the wiring, cooling hoses, and then the tube.  I also removed the rubber mount pad from the tube mounts.  Note that different K40's can have different mounts depending on manufacturer.  Mine were metal and looked like an old style hose clamp in some ways.  But they did/do give me the wiggle room for upgrading.
 

 
The actual upgrade then started. First steps were to cut the hole and mount the extension. I cut the hole, put the new tube in place and checked everything.  I then removed the tube and mounted the extension.  There was a problem with the mounting holes for the screws.  The hardware didn't match the drawings but I was aware of this from reading on the support forum where I bought the parts.  I had to make my own template.
 
One note... do make sure to completely remove any metal chips from cutting and drilling.  If one gets into the wrong place, you can have sparks, fire, etc. and end up needing a new power supply at a minimum.
 

 
I shimmed the mounts using foam carpet tape and several pieces of thin cardboard to get the tube close to where it needed to be.  I went back during alignment and re-seated and adjusted these mounts.
 
The tube was installed and the wiring connected by wrapping the bare copper around the post.  These can't be soldered as the seal for the post to glass tube will melt.  I stuck on a piece of 6mm silicone tubing and filled the tube with silicone compound.  This made for a good connection and also insulation as one doesn't want 20kV sparking about.
 
I replaced the old cooling hoses with new at this point.
 

 
The unit was then "tested" by first firing up the water pump, rotating the tube to remove any air bubbles (due to the way they're made, they really only work well in position for this).
 
I also began the alignment procedure as this is critical. 
 
The cutter now looks like this from the front

 
The first step was shimming the tube to be level from end to end and then using thermo paper (cash register receipt) and very low power, getting the beam dead center on the first mirror.  I locked down the tube and re-checked.  Then I did mirrors 2 and 3.  A bit fussy with checking at the near points and far points of travel but it must be done.   I then locked everything down and re-did the alignment tests. 
 
Post upgrade evaluation:
 
I've not cut anything worthwhile yet, but I have done a bunch of testing.  The first after alignment was to check the focus.  I'm still spot on without having to change my table shims except when I change wood thickness.
 
The kerf is thinner and on 3/16" boxwood the "V"ing of the kerf is much, much less.  This is with a bit less power (amperage) and faster speed.   Misson accomplished.
 
Next will be when I get some time is to thickness a 1/4" boxwood plank and see what happens. 
 
My total cost at this point is around $2500 including original machine, new lens and lens mount, new tube and the extension.   This doesn't include a GFI protector, the cooling water and bucket, or the hole saw for the drill.
 
I'm not an expert but I've learned a lot with this. 
 

I took a chance and bought some lumber off of eBay.  Lucked out and was very satisfied with the result.  The seller was "Curlyloggerfrancis".  He cuts wood from salvage trees and his inventory depends on what he can get this way.  I purchased maple, walnut and cherry from him and was very pleased with what I got.  Nice people to deal with and they sell a quality product.

The frigate CONFEDERACY has nothing to do with the Confederate States of America.  It is named after the country formed under the Articles of Confederation, i.e. the United States.  Build the model!

Wooden dowels called treenails or trunnels for holding the planks in place.  Paint the edges black before laying them and it looks like caulking between the planks.  Decks were usually made from oak and were scrubbed everyday and they had a very light color so just finishing the basswood in satin or flat clear finish should look good.  If you want to try staining use a very light application of golden oak or other light colored stain followed by a clear finish.  Experiment on some scrape wood before you try it on the model.

Wooden dowels called treenails or trunnels for holding the planks in place.  Paint the edges black before laying them and it looks like caulking between the planks.  Decks were usually made from oak and were scrubbed everyday and they had a very light color so just finishing the basswood in satin or flat clear finish should look good.  If you want to try staining use a very light application of golden oak or other light colored stain followed by a clear finish.  Experiment on some scrape wood before you try it on the model.

Go to Home Depot or Lowes and check out the saws available there.  Most of the scroll saws sold under the major trade names are all made in China and are more or less the same machine.  Another low cost alternative is the older Dremel scroll saws.  They show up on eBay all the time.  I picked one up for $15 and am pretty happy with it.  Ebay is a good place to look for used saws in general.  There are usually several available ranging from really poor quaility ones to high end machines.

Go to Home Depot or Lowes and check out the saws available there.  Most of the scroll saws sold under the major trade names are all made in China and are more or less the same machine.  Another low cost alternative is the older Dremel scroll saws.  They show up on eBay all the time.  I picked one up for $15 and am pretty happy with it.  Ebay is a good place to look for used saws in general.  There are usually several available ranging from really poor quaility ones to high end machines.

I prefer to bend it first and then taper it. Sometimes tapering first messes up the fit. If the bend is made first, then the taper can be filed true to the bend. I simply use a sanding disk in a rotary tool to make the taper. This method has always worked for me, but other builders might have different ways to do it. Once you get some experience experimenting, you develop ways to do things that work for you. I learned from others and experimented myself.
 
Vince P.

Hi Chuck A. I first soak the wood to get it soft and then use the hull itself as a frame. I make the bends gradually while placing it on the hull to measure. It never comes out exactly, but close enough. The wood will still have some pliability and will allow you to form it up when pinning it to the hull finally.
 
Vince P.

Go to Home Depot or Lowes and check out the saws available there.  Most of the scroll saws sold under the major trade names are all made in China and are more or less the same machine.  Another low cost alternative is the older Dremel scroll saws.  They show up on eBay all the time.  I picked one up for $15 and am pretty happy with it.  Ebay is a good place to look for used saws in general.  There are usually several available ranging from really poor quaility ones to high end machines.

Welcome.
     In my opinion there are 2 kits that stand out, both made by Billings boats. The first and the most suitable for your needs is the "Roar Ege" this is a beautiful kit and gives a wonderful insight into how these masterpieces were constructed.
The second and more ornate is the "Oseberg" this is a wonderful model in itself and although both ships are based on actual viking age finds the latter was probably never a useful vessel more a statement of wealth and power.
 
Good luck and hope to see some of your sons posts on here soon.
 
Lee

I wrap them in oil impregnated paper and store them in a drawer in my work table.  The paper is the kind that is used to wrap metal parts like bearings.

The nice thing about Model Shipways kits is that you can go to http://www.modelexpo-online.com/ and you can actually download and review the instructions before you buy most kits. After you click on a kit under the picture there is usually a tab called "Documents". There you will usually find the Parts List and Instruction Manual.

Hi Don
 
Read through the thread below. It will give you some guidance as to the best kit brands for beginners as suggested by members of the forum. Remember that clear PLANS are probably more important than written instructions. Any confusion you may have can usually be cleared up by asking for help from this great forum
 
http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/12105-poor-instructions/?hl=%20best%20%20instructions

The absolute best that I have found have been the Model Shipways plans for their models. A good starter model would be the Bluenose. It has a fairly easy hull to plank.
 
 
mike

A good reference for planking boats is Howard Chapelle's "Boat Building".  It doesn't cover historical ships boats but the techniques for carvel and lap planking didn't change much between the war of 1812 and the time Chapelle wrote his book.  There are other books out there that cover the subject as well.

A good reference for planking boats is Howard Chapelle's "Boat Building".  It doesn't cover historical ships boats but the techniques for carvel and lap planking didn't change much between the war of 1812 and the time Chapelle wrote his book.  There are other books out there that cover the subject as well.