AnobiumPunctatum

And here a quick update. Having fun with my latest and favorite toy, the milling machine.

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 157 –Deadeye Chain Backing Plates
 
Each of the larger channel chains is bolted to the hull through a backing plate (or preventer plate) for additional support.  These larger chains anchor the chain deadeyes for the lower shrouds and topmast backstays.  Chains supporting lighter rigging have a single bolt and no backing.  These plates are about 3’ long and about 1” thick with bolt holes at each end.  They are bent in an offset to fit over the chains.  The chain fabrication will be covered later.
 
The first step in making the numerous required plates was to solder brass tubes to the edges of a brass plate.  This fabricated piece is shown in the first picture after pickling and buffing to remove oxide.
 

 
I used wire silver solder and black paste flux for this.  The tubes were held for soldering with pins.  I used a small oxy-propane torch on the first side, then running out of O2 used a larger propane torch on the other side.  I normally use a small propane torch but in this case the large joints benefited from the extra heat.
 
The individual backing plates were then sliced off this strip in the circular saw using a screw slotting blade.  They were sliced off slightly over thickness.  In the next step the plates were filed smooth on one side, then flipped and filed to final thickness on the other.  The next picture shows this being done with the aid of a holding fixture.
 

 
The fixture has two milled slots, one slightly deeper for the first filing, the second milled to the final thickness for final sizing.  Both sides were polished with abrasive sticks.  The next picture shows plates before and after filing.
 

 
Each plate was then bent as shown in the next picture to form the offset.
 

 
Finally, the plates were pickled in acetic acid (white vinegar), given a degreasing bath (TIVA®) and submerged in a very dilute solution of Birchwood Casey® blacking.  They are shown after drying below.
 

 
Around 50 of these are required, but quite a few extras were made to account for expected attrition at each step and shape issues.. 
 
Chain fabrication and the 16” deadeye itting will be covered in the next part.
 
Ed
 

Thank you all for the comments and Likes .
 
I've moved to the External Planking of the Port side, as one of the next steps on the inside is fitting the Port Liners which need to be done after the external planking goes on.
 
First up is the Wales, which are 4 1/2" thick (real size). The upper strake is parallel while the two lower strakes are in "Top and Butt" configuration. I've made them from Ebony.
 
The smudges on the wales are from water, as I'd just fitted them and cleaned off the excess glue. I've sanded a very slight bevel on the edges to make them stand out a bit better. The top and bottom strakes have a significant bevel where they meet up with the thinner strakes above and below :
 

 

 
  Danny

There are only two port covers.  The aft one is for the last cannon.  The covers are made of two layers of wood;  the interior is vertical and the exterior matches the run of planking.  The frieze was painted before the hinge straps were added.
 

 
The hinges were made of the pieces seen in the photograph and then silver soldered.  
 

 

 

 
There are eyebolts on the inner and outer faces of the gun port and three additional bolts.   The rigging will be added after the exterior hull is a little more complete to prevent damage.
 

 
The fore port cover is smaller and allows airflow to the fore part of the ship.  It is hinged on its fore side to prevent it from being blown open.  There is an eyebolt on the inside face.  It appears to be hanging lopsided.  This is an optical illusion caused by the curved shape of the hull.
 

 

 

Thanks Pat.
 
The Mainmast Partners on Vulture are rather unusual, being a wedge shape. There are four pieces to them :
 

 

 
The Pump tubes fitted :
 

 
  Danny

Congrats for this beautyful model and thanks for your build log.
It was a great pleasure for me to follow your progress.

Congrats for this beautyful model and thanks for your build log.
It was a great pleasure for me to follow your progress.

Congrats for this beautyful model and thanks for your build log.
It was a great pleasure for me to follow your progress.

My Cheerful is now complete. I have mounted the anchors, which was the last remaining work to be done. As I indicated earlier, I was having trouble coming up with a mounting plan with which I was happy. My solution, after reviewing photos of contemporary models, and trying out various configurations, was to mount the two anchors differently. On the congested port side, I chose to go with lashing the anchor to two timberheads, without a cable or cat block. On the more open starboard side, I went with the anchor hanging from the cat block, with a cable leading back to the windlass and being tied off to it, as shown on the Rogers collection model. 
 
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you on MSW who have followed this build and provided the kind of support, encouragement and friendship that we have come to expect from the members of this site. I also want to thank Chuck for coming up with this project and the products to support it. It has been one of the most enjoyable builds that I have done.
 
Attached are photos of the anchor installation and the  model's completion portraits.
 
For those interested, my next build will be the Caldercraft Granado. A full description of the reasons for the choice and my plans for the build will be set out in the log that I will be starting today in the kit build section ( how's that for a cheap ploy to get all of you to look at the new log      ).
 
Bob

Mark, Christian and Albert thank you for you comments.  Kurt, I agree.  I wish it was a little more portable.  Mine is wall-mounted.  When I was in training, these are the exact type of drill that we used to learn how to perform ear surgery.
 
A little more work got accomplished today.  The fore channel has been cut out and thinned towards the outer edge.  A rebate is cut into it for a strip of molding.  On the razor blade the profile is the second one from the right.  I wet the molding to navigate the bend in the channel and clamped it until dry.  
 

 
The chain plates are drawn in on the masking tape.  This allowed correct placement and angle of the notches in the channel.  Three knees prevent upward pull of the channel.  In the picture it looks like the channel is angled upwards.  It actually is parallel to the waterline.
 

Really wonderful work, Toni

Thanks once more for the likes and comments, everyone.
 
I had to re-do the side of the coach. I found that I had cut the lights to the wrong depth. In addition, the lights were uneven in width. So, a second round.
 
When dealing with tiny pieces, I've found it easiest to leave them over-length to glue them on (top photo). I then use a chisel to cut the pieces to exact length. The top and bottom pieces of the panel frame were cut a little overlength, then sanded using a sanding stick to trim them to exact dimension (second photo). 
 
The inner side of the piece has had card strips glued on to leave channels for the glazing (third photo). In this case I shall be using mica. This is a naturally occurring mineral that is fairly transparent. It can be peeled into very thin layers and cuts easily. The pieces will be slid into place from above before the roof is installed. The cutaway at the bottom of the side is because the hull curves inward here and this allows for the changing interior contour.
 
The last photo shows the work to this point. Next will be the inside panelling and the other side piece.

I've also made all the Gratings. Unlike the "store bought" gratings these are to the right scale. The athwartships pieces are a mere 3/4" thick (real size) which translates down to 0.38mm in 1:48 scale. All the pieces were cut and mortised using the Byrnes Table Saw and Micrometer Gauge :
 

 

 

 
I made a Jig to aid in assembly :
 

 

 

 
  Danny

Thanks again for all the input and the "likes".  One more attempt for review.  I've shortened the floors and first futtocks a bit and lengthened the other pieces and it seems to make more sense.  Once satisfied with the general proportions, I can then lay out new futtock lines on the body plan and proceed to the remaining square frames.  One step at a time.  On subsequent frames (every other one) the top extends about 20" higher to support bulwarks and the top rails.
Maury

Hello again,
 
a friend send me this picture of the now new restored Victory. Maybe they have seen my blog? 
 

 
This is my lobby 
 

 
Regards,
Siggi

Really wonderful work, Toni

Thanks again for all of you who are dropping in on this log.
 
Further progress sees the completion of the gunwale and its extension aft as a moulding. The aft section of gunwale is 1½" thick, rather than ¾". You can see the step up forward of the cabin area. The moulding section was wet-formed on the plug (lowest photo), then painted and applied to the model. It has a C-curve in one plane and an S-curve in the other.
 
It was necessary to complete the gunwale before proceeding with the coach sides. I'm now cutting and fitting card pattern pieces for the coach sides.

Small update in the overall scheme of things.
 
The new rudder is ready for the metal work and some additional holes.  For example the two tiller holes are drilled but need squaring up with some file work and a couple of small holes for the eyebolts/ringbolts need drilling   All things considered and compared to the elder brother rudder, I'm happy with this.  There is one minor defect that will be hidden by the rudder coat.  And no, i"m not going to forget this bit.....
 
The opening for the pintles is shaped now like the French ones and not like the English properly. I also used boxwood from three different sheets/scraps in order to have some variation between the three slabs of wood.
 
Edit:  Actually... I'm wrong.  Both the English and the French did that same way.  The square openings are the way many kits do them.   I have much to unlearn... as well as learn.
 
For the metal work, I'm going with smaller diameter pintles and cudgoens than on the first version. the irons (straps), I'll make from the same material as before.   Also, I'm considering right now eliminating the bolts holding the irons to the rudder and hull because even though the I'm using are the tiniest I can find, as this scale they are still too large.  i believe if my measurements and eyes are to be believed they work out to having the heads 3" in diameter and standing proud at out 1.5".
 
I'll be using epoxy for securing the metal to the wood, although I need to test first and make sure that it will hold.
 
 
 
 

Hello,
 
Thank you all for your likes!
 
Before the upper strakes can be put in place I have to place all timber heads to assure a strong hold for the timbers.
 
Cheers, Daniel

A little progress on the stern frames and the side windows ...
 
Daniel

Saturday 02 April 2016
 
Drilled the main keel scarph joint bolt holes and the false keel nail holes.
I used 30 lb test black monofilament fishing line (0.0235 inch [0.06 cm] diameter = 1.5 inch diameter - to scale) for both as explained below.
 
The contract calls for 8 bolts at 1-1/4 inch diameter for each keel scarph joint so my holes are paired up, 2 deep by 4 across, reasonably spaced.
It also mentions nails and staples for the false keel but does not give a size.
 
Searching on the interweb I found "An Introductory Outline of the Practise of Ship Building" by John Fincham dated 1821, page 254: the false keel is fastened to the main keel with short bolts or nails about four feet apart, on alternate edges, and staples driven into the side, and let flush, called keel staples, about 2 feet 4 inches apart.
 
So I spaced the nails 4 feet apart and staggered... assuming for scale they are about the same size.
 
I roughed up the line with sand paper so the glue would grip it, applied glue to the line and inserted it through the holes in the main keel.  Cut off the length with scissors then pushed it flush on one side.  After it was allowed some time to dry I trimmed it flush on the other side with a scalpel.... cutting away from myself I might add.
 
I repeated this for the false keel.
 
I am now going to layout the staple pattern.  I have some 0.5mm (0.02 inch) diameter copper wire to be used for this as these are staples and should have 90° bent barbed ends to be driven into the main and false keel.  I cannot bend the fishing line so it cannot be used for this purpose.  The copper staples will need to be blackened and I pre-purchased a bottle of LOS (Liver of Sulphur) rocks for the blackening process.
 
I have never done this before and have read up to prepare.  I was hoping to do this this weekend, outside due to the expected sulphur smell, but the temperature is dropping, snow was falling and we may be getting one last blow through with 15 cm (6 inches) and freezing rain predicted.  I will likely just get everything in readiness until I can do it outdoors and get the full experience before I subject my darling wife to a scent only my brother makes claim to.
 
A few photos of the bolting and nailing process...

It is time to make some of the decorative rails.  Suggested patterns for the rail profiles are given in TFFM.  I use thin dental cutting discs which are 0.009" in thickness.  They are inexpensive and readily available on EBay.  Of course, they are brittle so eye protection is a must.  I am lucky to have an old Emesco dental engine which gives me slow variable speed without any play in the handpiece.  I cut the profiles into the sharp end of a regular single edge razor blade.  On this razor blade I have four different profiles and one oops.  I have also used Exacto blades for this.  Stock which is slightly oversized is used for the moldings.  This prevents the cutter from moving too much side-to-side during the scraping process.  
 

 

 
The tuck molding is located at the junction of the hull planking and the lower counter.  This molding has an undercut on its back surface to compensate for the curve of the hull.  The profile was carried over to the outer edge of the molding.  The discoloration in the wood of the counter is bleed through from applying finish internally and (hopefully) will not be seen when the exterior finish is applied.
 

 

 
The waist rail is located just below the frieze.  I will add the extreme fore and aft pieces after the rails and quarter badge have been installed.
 

 

 

And here are the seat cushions. They were carved from some pear stock 3" thick. The piping along the edges was some fine line left over from another model. It was applied using acrylic matt medium. Had I used white glue, it would have dissolved when I painted the cushions with acrylic paint. I may deepen their color.
 
Experiments with 'gold' are beginning to yield promising results. More soon.

Another photos 
 

 

 

 

Well, no photos this time. I've been struggling with gilded finish for the coach. I first tried Humbrol gold paint. The look was too coppery red, 'grainy' and glossy. I stripped this off and sprayed using a yellower gold lacquer. Still far too shiny and grainy - it does not look right at this scale. I've just stripped this off using acetone (ugh!) in a well ventilated garage. I will experiment further. Gold leaf was one possibility, but it will reflect and magnify any tiny surface defect or dust mote. So... back to the workbench.