BANYAN

HMS Howe and KG V escort Italian Battleships Vittorio Venito and Littorio, four Crusers and Destroyers to Alexandria 1943
W/C 14 X 7 inches

Gas Tanker James Cook, and Endevour (replica) watercolour A4 size.
Jim
 

Coming on nicely Ben, seems like you have the 'paws' of approval
 
cheers
 
Pat

Nice detail John; that rudder is very solid looking.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Nicely done Russ.  With time at a premium, you do what you can when you can -  you have not compromised your quality.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Thanks Eberhardt, I will need to look for some of that as it sounds very useful.  Do you have a brand name I can look for please?
 
cheers
 
Pat

Finally a little time for some progress. The front of the pilot house is starting to come together.
 
Russ

Hello friends,
new photos from the construction progress of my CHEBECE.
Partition walls of the storage rooms and remaining deck beams are installed.
Photo   9.01 - 9.04
Storage rooms are not shown in the plans of J. Boudriot.
Karl
 

Sorry we haven't posted anything for the last few months (due to computer problems) but we continue to make good progress on our "USS St. Louis" Civil War Ironclad project as evidenced by the attached recent photos. The paddlewheel is nearly complete and we are finishing up the "Hurricane" deck elements and starboard side deck planking; much of the port side will remain un-planked to expose the model sub-structure and internal components. We are now concentrating on the fore, aft, & side casements, after-which the Hurricane deck and its temporary aluminum support frame will be removed for completion of the gun deck.
 I hope to be able to provide more details soon.
 
johnhoward 

The start of Charon's arms
Shoulder bearings staked in place

Upper arms temporarily in place

Nemean introducing herself to Charon

Thank you Chris, Pav and Carl .
 
I've redone one of the 37mm gun Pedestals, as I wasn't happy with the way it turned out. This time I used a piece of card with a 4mm hole punched into it to hold the pieces more stably :

 
The central columns consist of 4 pieces - a main piece which is narrower at the top, two plates for top and bottom, and a U shaped piece that sits proud of the front end (not shown in the lower pic yet). The main column is etched on the back side to make bending easier, a good idea :


 
There are two "bulges" on either side of the column, consisting of 4 pieces each. First thing is a narrow strip for the base, this is also etched on the back. It's wider at the bottom than the top :


 
I glued the base strips to the column first. To ensure that I get small parts positioned properly I use one or more tiny spots of PVA, sit the piece roughly into position using tweezers or a moist toothpick for very small parts, position it properly with the toothpick or a scalpel, and after the PVA has set enough I wick some CA glue around it.
 
The other 3 pieces needed rolling into shape. The top piece is narrower than the bottom, which also has a different shape top and bottom. The two pieces below are only 2mm wide at the widest point. These pieces were fitted next :

 
I fitted the central piece next :

 
And the bottom piece last. The tiny gaps virtually disappear as they get filled with glue. I later gave the unit a good filing with a diamond-coated needle file :

 
Next I glued the column to the base. The rest of the build gets a bit fiddly, starting with a support for the central seat. I stood the MDF block on it's end for these steps so the piece didn't have to defy gravity until the PVA set. In the 3rd pic below the seat and backrest have also been fitted :



 
This is the backrest, it's rather small :

 

 
Final things for now are the Hand-wheels and the first pieces of the outer seat supports :

 
  Danny

Nicely detailed work Jason; everything fits well and looks great.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Hi Ed, with my limited experience and talent I am a little reluctant to suggest something but here goes
 
For my Endeavour, I had some success in using diluted PVA (coloured would be better) and weights on a brass rod I had threaded through the lower eyes.  the micro clips held the stirrup lashings around the yard in place (undisturbed as you suggest) until completely dry.  I then threaded the footrope through having completed the outer eye and seizing beforehand.  I then used the same micro clips hanging in the middle of each section to create the catenary by simple gravity.   
 
It worked for me but, I found I had to readjust the footropes again at the end as other work does upset them.

Food for thought at least?
 
cheers
 
Pat
 

 

Some well-deserved self-congratulations are in order Rusty; that is a very fine build.  You have done justice to Chuck's products.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Hi Ed, with my limited experience and talent I am a little reluctant to suggest something but here goes
 
For my Endeavour, I had some success in using diluted PVA (coloured would be better) and weights on a brass rod I had threaded through the lower eyes.  the micro clips held the stirrup lashings around the yard in place (undisturbed as you suggest) until completely dry.  I then threaded the footrope through having completed the outer eye and seizing beforehand.  I then used the same micro clips hanging in the middle of each section to create the catenary by simple gravity.   
 
It worked for me but, I found I had to readjust the footropes again at the end as other work does upset them.

Food for thought at least?
 
cheers
 
Pat
 

 

Hi Carl, thanks for the suggestion.  I had thought of that option also, but that means the brass stock would need to be extra thick as the part that slips between the upper part sides is the same thickness as the straps themselves.  I think it may be easier (and cheaper) to simply slip a piece in and solder both sides?  I am still open to this idea though as it is the simplest, but I think I would need stock 2 x thickness just for these small bits to be part of the etch on one side of the total strip?
 
The fold itself should be straightforward as I can bend it around a drill bit or the like (as a mandrel) but I like the idea of the fold creases being etched in to ensure consistent bending points and size.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Hi Carl, Eberhard and Denis; thanks for all the great feedback and discussion. 
 
Denis, I have found the correct size brass plate/strip at 1.5mm wide.  The total length is 9mm per item (upper and lower) so it would be very difficult (for me at least) to set these up in a mill and consistently replicate the small holes and slots exactly.  A special jig/holding tool would be required and I do not have those manufacturing skills unfortunately
 
Carl and Eberhard; I agree fully.  The plan is to have the bottom part done as a single etched piece as it is just three holes and a slot.  I have to toyed with options for the upper strap which is a little more complicated as it is a series of holes and an eye formed by folding the strap over on itself using a former to bulge it a little.  This is the preferred way, as you have also observed, by etching on thinner stock then folding it.  My biggest problem here is that I would need to create and fit a very small bolt in the middle to join the two parts together and I am not sure how to achieve that yet.  The other option of etching it as a complete piece (both joined) will be much more difficult as you have pointed out, but we are exploring whether or not it is possible.  I have to find someone that can do the photoetch first as all known sources here in Australia have shut their shop  
 
Eberhard, that is an interesting technique of soldering and I would like to explore that further.  What is tinning solution please?  I have tinned by soldering onto the surface of one side, then use heat transfer on the outer side of the other piece to join the other part to it - is that what you mean?  With the folded strap option, I need to fit a very small spacer at the base of the eye (bottom of the throat) to maintain equal spacing of the straps with the gap formed by joining to the lower part (hope that makes sense) which would be the only soldering required?
 
Light bulb moment - If the etch of the upper strap, when folded, gave the impression of the bolt head one side, and washer and nut on the other, then I could solder the two parts together even if I lose the flexibility of the joint (I still have the flex-joint where it joins with the chainplate) - glad you resolved that for me
 
cheers
 
Pat 

Hi Denis, great to hear from you again and your thoughts on the lanyard tensioning device.  I have thought about that quite a bit and raised it with club members. 
 
A group discussion came to the consensus, that as the ship was minimum manned (as per a merchantman rather than a warship), it is unlikely they would have the manpower to adjust more than one or two shrouds at a time (in pairs).  As such it was decided that she probably only had a couple of them, with one or two as spares.  The thought was these were probably kept in the bosun's locker and not exposed to the elements - accordingly we don't plan on making or showing any at all.  We also need to consider that the shrouds were 'wire rope' which is not prone to stretching, and as the lanyards were metal also, once set up, there probably was not a great need to adjust them like rope lanyards?
 
The lanyards will be made in two parts, and attach at the channels to the plates as a swivel.  I have tried making these on the mill but the brass bar/strip is so small it is difficult to achieve consistent results (with my limited skills anyway) - so we are looking for somewhere to have them done as Photo Etch.  We haven't been able to find anyone in Australia so I will be searching for a source overseas very soon.  The required detail to etch from both sides will need a specialist I think as it is not a simple etch process I could do at home.
 
cheers
 
Pat

Nice work Ben; you're the skipper!

Another small conundrum to resolve before I finalise the rigmaiden lanyards (see last image - From The Mechanics Magazine - out of copyright).
 
Whereas in most earlier sailing ships using deadeyes and rope lanyards, the chainplates conform/align with the angle of the shroud the associated plate attaches to at the channel.  From what I can see in the following photo (one marked up, the other as is for verification of detail) and the two lithograph details (curtesy of the State Library of Victoria), it appears that the chainplates on Victoria were simply at right angles to the channel and hull when looking straight a them (still bent to get the right angles to approach the hull when looking fore-and-aft).
 
      

 
cheers
 
Pat

Hi Ed, with my limited experience and talent I am a little reluctant to suggest something but here goes
 
For my Endeavour, I had some success in using diluted PVA (coloured would be better) and weights on a brass rod I had threaded through the lower eyes.  the micro clips held the stirrup lashings around the yard in place (undisturbed as you suggest) until completely dry.  I then threaded the footrope through having completed the outer eye and seizing beforehand.  I then used the same micro clips hanging in the middle of each section to create the catenary by simple gravity.   
 
It worked for me but, I found I had to readjust the footropes again at the end as other work does upset them.

Food for thought at least?
 
cheers
 
Pat
 

 

"forgive me father its been 700 days since I've looked at the instructions or used a kit part"  
Yes indeed nice update. 

Hi Ed at risk of overworking the foot-rope issue of shape it occurred to me reading the comments about weights that a different approach might just prove to be useful. it involves shaping the rope by pushing gently on it with some clear vacuum packaging plastic. see the accompanying sketch
 

 
I think it would be worth a trial on your jig.
 
Michael
 

Nicely detailed work Jason; everything fits well and looks great.
 
cheers
 
Pat

The balloon idea came to me when people spoke of putting weights on the fortunes. In my mind, that would create straight lines between the weights. A single weight between stirrups would cause a V shaped fortune between, two weights would give a V with a flat ish bottom to it. I picture the balloon making it as close to catenary shaped as possible. there may be issues with it though. If anyone tries it, let the rest of us know.