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lraymo

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Everything posted by lraymo

  1. lraymo
    Wow, almost ready to paint! Added rudder gudgeon pad, rowlock pads, rub rails, and dagger board. Thwarts and stern sheets done. Midship thwart knees completed. Just need to prepare the rudder, shaping & sanding, then I can start the painting process. Whew! Of course, there's still much left to do after painting... sails, rigging and metal work all look daunting, so I will enjoy the painting while gearing up the nerve to move to that next challenge!
  2. lraymo
    Thanks Ryland! I ordered the blade from hobbytown. There's actually a store here, but several miles from my home, and with $1.99 shipping, its easier and cheaper to just have it shipped. Thanks again, and I'll be keeping this place in mind when I need more tools!
  3. lraymo
    I found a solution... not sure its correct, but my tweezers were able to punch thru the inwale, and enabled me to continue using the saw blade to make the little slots. Still not sure I've got the right saw blade, though.
  4. lraymo
    Uh oh, I'm stuck! Am I doing this correctly? To create the chain plate slots, it says to drill a hole into the inwale (using a #72 bit), and then take a #15 narrow saw blade and push the point through the hole. I drilled the hole per the instructions, but I am having trouble "pushing" the saw blade thru the tiny hole. I am afraid of breaking the inwale. Question 1 - is my saw blade the right size? (see my pics of the tool package). It's called a "keyhole saber (push)", but I don't know if that's the same as a "#15". Question 2 - is there a technique to "pushing" a saw blade thru the hole? I've been giving it as much force as I dare, but it hasn't gotten very far thru the inwale, and I'm scared to push too much harder. Your thoughts? trying to "push" the saw blade through - but its not working very well My tool the "keyhole saber" description... is that the same as a "number #15 saw blade"? Instructions...
  5. lraymo
    Keith, thanks for the encouraging words! I looked at the MicroMark tool, but then used pieces of cards as druxey and Cathead mentioned to create a fan-like template to use, so I'll save money for now. I thought my templates were ok, but after installing the thwart frames, trimming down the thwarts, and doing a dry fit, I realized the midship thwart was first (too short now, but still works), and second, too low in the boat. I had two choices... either remove and re-attach the frame at the right height, or put a spacer under the thwart, so that it sat level. I chose the simpler fix... which was easier, (and probably not helping me learn more about undoing mistakes, but I was getting tired!), so I added a couple of scrap pieces as "spacers" under the thwart, and it seemed to work. These frames and thwarts were a challenge. My templates didn't work out exactly as planned, and I removed a bit too much of the midship thwart, and my frames were less than perfect... but for now, its ok, and I'm learning. How do you guys get perfectly clean char removal? Every time I see your ships, the pieces are beautiful! And what's the difference between beveling and softening? The book says to bevel (which I understand), but then says to "soften" the edges. Isn't that just a light sanding of the bevel? Just curious. Thwart frames installed Dry Fit (midship thwart is too low) Add spacers to bottom of thwart Fit is better (although I trimmed a bit too much off the sides!)
  6. lraymo
    Druxey, haha! Maybe i need to invent a "wood stretcher" as a retirement project! I found a "contour shape duplicator" with metal spines that could supposedly be used to capture angles, but the reviews weren't very impressive. So I'll try the card idea before I purchase anything! Thanks!
  7. lraymo
    Too hot to play golf (100 degree heat index today) , so back at it! I started the thwart frames, but realized nothing in the instructions showed me the correct height of the top of the frame! And since the middle one (er, midship thwart) has a knee on top of it, I wanted to make sure I got the measurements right. So I balanced the frame, a scrap piece of wood the same size as the thwart, and the knee... on the side of the ship and marked where I can glue the frame! For an initial dry fit, I couldn't use the actual thwarts... they are all too long. I'll have to trim anywhere from 1/8" to 1/4" from the sides of each. So I used my old business cards (i KNEW they'd come in handy someday!), and I made rough templates for the fit. Then, realizing I still needed to determine the correct placement (height) of the frames, I scotch-taped the frames in, so that I could put the card templates on them, to determine where and how the thwarts will fit. These are all rough estimates and rough drafts of the templates. Now I'll go back and make more precise measurements, more accurate templates, and begin the process to true everything up and glue it all in. Whew, talk about a learning curve! Also, I am having a hard time getting the proper angles for the thwart frames to fit snugly against the planks. Is there any sort of "tool" that can help determine weird angles? I suppose I could use another business card (I have hundreds!) and manually do a trial and error fit, till I get a good template, but thinking there must be a tool to help somewhere, maybe? Thanks for all your help in this endeavor!
  8. lraymo
    Thanks for all the encouragement! I was getting down... but you've helped me put this in perspective. I'm not a perfectionist and I'm trying to learn patience, so this is a hobby that is stretching my limits! (Of course, golf gives me the same "teaching moments" too!) And you've given me some helpful tips as well. I'm off to do knees, frames, and cleats! I'm using yellow wood glue. I may try using the white glue when i really don't want anything to show. You are all Master Craftsmen and looking at your models, I just can't imagine how I could ever get to your level. But I've got to tell myself I've only just begun! Thanks everyone!
  9. lraymo
    What a cool-looking ship! Impressive!
  10. lraymo
    Your build log is a Master Class in craftsmanship! Beautiful!
  11. lraymo
    It's taking me so much longer working on this (the Dory seemed to go faster!). For one thing, I'm discouraged with my lack of expertise... the frames aren't exactly vertical and there's still glue residue on the planks (I've washed away excess glue, but I can't seem to remove the residual yellow glue stains). The only thing going well are the inwales, that seemed to go on fairly easily. And I'm hoping the eventual painting will cover some errors. I also managed to break the bottom piece of the mast step, but fixed it and since both pieces had a hole (and the bottom piece is supposed to be a stopper for the mast)... I used a small piece of scrap, same width as the step, to create a stop. Hope this works! Time seems to be an issue too, but only because my other hobby (golf!) is taking up some serious modeling time!
  12. lraymo
    Planking is done! I tried to be better about cleaning up excess glue. I thought the planks were going on fairly easily this time (as compared to the Dory), but I noticed that the rabbets must've been too big, because you can see them near the bow on the inside of the hull. And the bow is slightly crooked, which I hope will fix itself when I trim the extra wood from it. Meanwhile, my new magnifying lamp has arrived, and my kitchen table "workbench" is now complete!!! If I have a party at the house, though, I'll have to find a place for all this stuff!
  13. lraymo
    Tools arrived, and I've gone to work on the planks! Pictures: 1-Gluing the bottom planks - needed some weight on the ends, and this little candle-holder worked well. 2-Keel & bottom planks done 3-stern transom with issues... not sure what was supposed to happen , but I'll use wood filler to close the gap between the bottom planks and the keel. Also, the planks don't quite meet where they're supposed to on the transom, but so far, it doesn't seem to affect the other planks 4-garboard done 5- bending second strakes, will glue in tomorrow It's beginning to look like the hull of a ship! Looking forward to continuing, but next purchase MUST be a lighted magnifiying lamp! My eyes are tired. Any suggestions on a good magnifying lamp?
  14. lraymo
    Absolutely gorgeous!
  15. lraymo
    Really enjoy watching your work! It's so precise!
  16. lraymo
    Ok, the pin vise and other tools won't arrive for another 3 days, so I'm doing what I can while I wait. Fixed the broken stern transom holder, bent the first few planks, and started practicing "rabbets" on some scrap wood. I'm a little nervous attempting these on actual planks, but its all a learning process! I think my first one turned out better than the 2nd one!
  17. lraymo
    Going slowly. I am waiting on the pin vise to be delivered, to finish the bow transom, and then I managed to break the stern transom holder while assembling the building board. Thinking I need to stop for today! Thanks Paul, for your words of wisdom. And I think the dremmel needs to be my next purchase. Eric, the instructions could sure use an editors help!
  18. lraymo
    Thanks Keith! Geesh, I thought I'd really screwed up just starting out!!! I'll forge ahead (with a close look at SkiBee's log!) Thanks druxey! (what was I thinking??... a spare knee makes much more sense! )
  19. lraymo
    Ok, I think I figured it out. The manual talks about "small differences" in parts... and when I look at @SkiBee build log (#5) it looks like his stern transom and knee look like mine. So maybe its ok?
  20. lraymo
    Ok, I'm confused. Here's the cutouts. There's two "stern transom knees' (I assume for the upper and lower stern transom), and there's one "bow transom knee" on the cutouts. And here's what I've done so far. Very confusing. Not sure what went wrong!
  21. lraymo
    Getting a really slow start. Just started on the bow transom and the lower stern transom. In the instruction manual, the knee for the stern transom covers just over half the transom, whereas the knee on MY transom covers almost all the distance of the transom. Am I using the wrong knee? (I used the "stern transom knee") I put mine next to the picture in the manual to show the difference. Hoping this is ok. Also, I'm trying to do better on cleaning up excess glue!
  22. lraymo
    Thanks Ryland - I added appropriate tags! Thanks Keith - I've ordered drill & bits, miter box, and a set of files. The guys at Model Shipways say these will get me started, and if I need to, I can order more as needed in the future. I'm looking forward to this new challenge, and as always, thanks for your encouragement!
  23. lraymo
    Wow, looking good!
  24. lraymo
    Beautiful work!
  25. lraymo
    Thanks everyone! My new build log for the next project (Norwegian Sailing Pram) is listed below. It looks more complex!

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