coxswain

A tale of success.... followed by failure.... followed by success:
The first tale of success to report being the completion of the hull planking.  
I did use the 1-1/2 wide by 1/4" thick vinyl lattice strips purchased at Lowe's.  
Ripping down to 1/4" wide by 1/8th think planks on my mini table saw took about 8 hours because the feeding is extremely slow and tedious.  
The result is well worth the effort with perfect planks that can be bent to extreme shapes and easily smoothed to a great surface with a palm sander.
Some areas were touched up using "Bondo" (auto body filler).

Next - The tale of failure.... Dave's Copper Plate Riveting Tool -
First I must say, the single reason I have put off building the Constitution for years is because, after two Vics, The Syren, and a large Pirate ship for my old coaches, I swore I would NEVER build another ship with copper sheathing.
So here I am, once again, the dreaded copper plates.
First, I created a ponce wheel from a fabric marking tool purchased at WalMart. 

Played around with rivet patterns and decided I wanted to use three rows of rivits on each plate.... seen here in the pile on the left.  

Not happy with the accuracy and consistency of the rows as they lined up end-to-end, I had the bright idea of creating a tool that would give me an exact pattern for every single plate.


After several hours of trial and error, the tool was a disaster! 
Getting perfect alignment of the rivet patterns was much harder than it seemed, plus, the individual rivet dimples were just too fat for the scale.

Three days of effort seen above had to be pulled off and scrapped.... bad day in the ship yard!
Back to the ponce wheel.  
The final tale of success comes with developing a method of getting three perfect patterns of rivets that line up consistently end-to-end from plate to plate.
I needed a visual reference to follow with the ponce wheel.  I first marked and cut the copper tape into lengths of ten plates (3/4" long).
I then created a couple of simple jigs used to mark precise lines on the back of the copper strips.

And here's the result I am going with....
Note that I also decided to give the hull a coat of flat black spray enamel in order to improve the adherence of the plates.

Well on my way....

THE EAGLE HAS LANDED....

Real pleased to see the eagle carving take it's place this morning....
 

QUARTER GALLERIES PROGRESS....
 
Port side installed......
 

Quarter Galleries....
Still focusing on the stern development, I set aside the transom work for now because I realize the blending of the Quarter Galleries is crucial, and I have been struggling with how I will approach the slanted windows.
 
Third (or fourth) attempt, here's where I landed....

Used transparency film for the glass, and very fine cut strips of white vinyl to represent the window framing....... I just finished one window and snapped this quick shot in order to examine this method closely before continuing further.
 
 

Actual Photos of the eagle in 1914, 1927, and present day. I don't see much difference

Only had to try five times ....

EAGLE CARVING FINISHED - 
One more photo of the finished carving temporarily stuck in place on the transom in order to examine details and scale.

If you spot any glitches please tell me now, before I apply the coat of white.

EAGLE CARVING....
Began planking the outboard transom early this morning.  I couldn't resist beginning the eagle carving.
Seems like only yesterday I was spending hours upon untold hours on the SOS carvings.... all a blur to me now.
Been saving this piece of hard rock maple just for this figure.

So I was able to rough out the overall shape and work on some details for one wing, just so I could get a little feel for carving again after weeks of gathering rust.
 

Also.... Taking photo's is the most effective means of examining my work in progress.
The wings appear to be much thicker at the shield than depicted in this plan sheet drawing.  I am using a photo of the transom as my primary source for this carving.
 

Plank Thickness Sanding Jig....
 
Creating scratch planks from raw lumber can be a bit of a challenge in terms of precision width and, even more so, thickness.

While it is easy enough to rip the exact width with clean edges on a table saw, the task of taking lumber through the band saw to rip the thickness is another story since band saws simply do not leave a clean surface as seen here....

Obviously this plank cannot be used until the outer surface has been dressed down perfectly smooth.  The trick in doing that is to wind up with exactly the same thickness from plank to plank.
Since passing such a thin piece of lumber through the table saw is not real safe, and I do not own a thickness planer, I created a little jig that utilizes an old osculating drum sander.

 
The fence allows me to pass each plank through the sanding drum with the thickness gap set to remove exactly the same rough surface from every plank.
 

Feeding the plank through the jig takes about 30 seconds per plank.

Perfect planks every time....

 
 
 
 
 
 

Spar Deck Bulwarks....
Still dealing with issues that arise as a result of my initial launching of this build with plan sheets designed for a completely different configuration.
In this case, it is the height and location of the bulkhead extensions above the Spar deck.
Since my bulwarks have been created off ship as a long continuous module, I found it necessary to cut off all of the original bulkhead extension's and replace them with these custom fit pieces. 

These new pieces have been carefully milled to match the exact thickness of the black gun port framing seen here....  also, the location of each is uniformly mid-way between each gun port.

I can now continue with the planking of the hull all the way up to the rail caps.

COPPER PLATES....
Now that I'm adding a few planks to the hull (around the gun deck gun ports).... I am looking out to the copper plating and the thousands of copper plates eventually required.
Resources indicate there are over 3,000 of these 14" x 48" plates.
I am using 8 cm X 20 cm plates to represent the plates on my 1:60 model.
 
Used a paper cutter to slice the 8 cm strips from the 4" x 10" sheet purchased from a local hobby shop. 

Also purchased this little pattern wheel I found at WalMart, then cut the notches to create a pounce tool.... (the tools I found on the market do not have the right spacing of the serrated tips)

The results appear to be a pretty consistent pattern of dimples to represent the surface rivets....

So I figure I need to create about twenty five per day to accumulate a good starting supply by the time I get around to the need.
  
 

Spar deck bulwarks....
For all you fellow builders of this ship, you are well familiar with the challenge of the bulwarks of the spar deck.  More specifically, the thousands of bolt heads so prominently  visible from bow to stern. 
After several failed attempts to create those tiny dimples consistently.... 3D fabric paint, nails, CA gel - you name it - I finally settled on the use of those beautiful little plastic tooth picks with the flossing brush on one end.  (used previously on the SOS)

 
After shaving the bristles off (50 at a time), the following steps are tedious, but pretty straight forward....
 

 
Marked out the pattern on the white vinyl piece I'm using.... scored the simulated plank lines with a knife.... and began making holes along the pattern lines (two holes per plank).
 

 
Tipping the peg end with the tiniest bit of CA gel, I inserted the batch of 50 into their holes.... 
 

 
Allowing the "pegs" to dry for about an hour, I snipped them off as close to the surface as I could with these nail snippers.
 

 
And here's the result before painting....

 
And here's the result after spray painting with Hunter Green (Satin finish)....


 
Port side completed.... starboard side just started.
I did a rough count and came up with just over 3,000 bolt heads for both sides combined.
 
 
 
 
 
 
  

Port side gun deck bulwarks....
Note, the planks seen laying on the beams are being used for measuring the height of the bulwarks.  
Eventually, after the gun deck is completed, I will remove these planks and install all of the beams that will support the spar decking.

More ripping out....
Before installing the forward bulwarks, I must first remove the original beams from bulkhead A and B.  Also, there is a serious issue with the deck planking I have already installed in that bow area.

Seen here, I have removed the beams and now should be ready to prepare that bow area for planking the gun deck in that area.  First, the top surface of the filler blocks is not the same level as the bulkheads.  So I have to rough out that surface to take it down to the same level.

Now to carefully remove a number of the staggered planks in order to re-plank the area with the correct pattern of butt joints.
 

 
This is a good quitting point for the night.
 
 

Hi all got the rear railings on and made a start on the aft mast ratlines connections.
 

 

Hi all well this is back on the bench (hoping to finish it by October, a bit optimistic butbi will try)

And ANOTHER thing... these outfits (like Shapeways) have set up so that you can sell your own designs in your own shop... they handle the web work, order taking and fulfillment, and send you a check every month. Sweet.
I got started in it just to make my range of cowl vents available... those nasty little vents, about the hardest part to make on any ship model!
 
The examples below are on a 1:32 ocean salvage tug.
 
 

Kurt-
Sorry I couldn't make it to Manitowoc to give that talk!
 
My advice to any fine modeler: Do NOT waste money on "affordable" home 3D printers... they are frustrating to use, and produce poor quality parts. Instead, take your designs to a commercial house like Shapeways or iMaterialise, where they have spent MILLIONS on top quality equipment... parts will come out quickly and much nicer than anything a home machine can produce.
 
Here is my latest 3DP project, an animated Hicks marine engine in 1:8 scale. Mostly 3D printed, with a little PE and traditional machining. Even the brass parts, including the prop, were 3D printed. Well actually, the waxes were printed, and then fed into the traditional investment casting process. 
 
 
 

3D printing, or Additive Manufacturing is really taking off now.
There are now a huge range of metals that can be used, at work we are switching a lot of manufactured parts to AM.
I recently saw an example of a 130 part Aero engine welded sub assembly converted to a single AM part.
Our products often require a complex wire hole to be routed though a difficult shape.
That involves drilling holes at odd angles, machining pockets that then get welded closed etc.
A great candidate for AM, the path is now nicely swept and requires no post machining.
But it get's better.
This will really blow your mind.
We are researching AM for the basic part with through hole (Stainless)
Then a second AM process with an insulating medium to line the through hole.
Then a third AM process with copper to put a conductor into the insulation.
Hey presto no need to run a wire at all, it's all printed.
It looks like AM dual materials is going to be a big one going forward.
 
Nick

Various plastics and metals but have never heard of wood being used.  I don't think using wood is possible due to the additive nature of the process, building up the shape.  But, who had heard of 3D printing just a few years ago?  A shape can be carved out of wood using CNC controlled lasers and/ or mills in a subtractive manner.  Pat has made 1/200 scale anchor chain with the bars that is individual links all together as if it was welded chain.  Some gentle tumbling and then paint - incredibly intricate. 
Kurt
Kurt

Pat Matthews is speaking at the upcoming contest at the WI Maritime Museum about researching and doing up a 1/8 scale Hicks engine in which he used many 3D printed parts.  Pat's something of an expert in 3D modeling using it daily in his job as a Ford engine designer/engineer as well as his very fine models. 

Pat has done presentations at the museum and at NRG Conferences on the subject of 3D printing.  There are many process and no single process is best for all applications.  Pat provided information on the variety of processes and what systems to use for applications in an article in the NRG’s Nautical Research Journal – Summer 2014 – Vol 59-2 (downloadable article [PDF] available from the NRG Office for $2.50).

Pat has won gold awards at Manitowoc for his models that have included many 3D parts while one was almost entirely from 3D parts.  The contest rules allow Photo Etch and 3D in scratch built categories when the modeler does the drawings/masters used for the processes.  Two of his models with 3D parts are below - the big searchlight on the seaplane tender is lathe turned - the rest of the model is almost exclusively 3D printed parts.

The contest info is here on MSW at the following link - https://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/topic/15799-wi-maritime-museums-41st-annual-model-ships-and-boats-contest/

Kurt

Spyglass has hit upon something there, translator seems to work a little better if you take the words apart into syllables and try different combinations - until a native speaker comes along to clear it up, anyway - use that with the pictures of the items, and the placement - back to work Danny!  Nothing better than to watch someone else work, especially when it turns out like yours does!  Steve M 

Spyglass has hit upon something there, translator seems to work a little better if you take the words apart into syllables and try different combinations - until a native speaker comes along to clear it up, anyway - use that with the pictures of the items, and the placement - back to work Danny!  Nothing better than to watch someone else work, especially when it turns out like yours does!  Steve M 

A couple of photos showing the work mentioned in my previous post. Lots of work to do but looking a bit better this morning. I will continue to post my progress later. Need more work completed on main deck aft and to the right.
 
John E

A small amount of filler for the small opening....trim is in and now off to do the planking of stern sides. This will be stained a light Oak as the main and aft decks.
 
John E