DocBlake

I'm back at it!  I just finished planking the inboard bulwark ceiling planks, then cut the gun ports and the sweep ports.  There are very subtle treenails in place.  I used birch toothpicks and they blended in well with the bloodwood planking.

Thanks, guys!
 
I started work on framing in the mortar pit by milling the bulkhead blanks out of boxwood.  There are eight bulkheads, each 3/16" thick.  The fore and aft bulkheads have no rabbet along the top edge, while the port and starboard bulkheads and the diagonal bulkheads do.  The rabbet on the diagonals is 5/64" X 5/64".  The rabbet on the port/starboard bulkheads is 5/64" X 1/8".  The diagonals have complex geometry, which I'll do using the disc sander.  I don't think this kind of precision could be reasonably expected except by using Byrnes tools!
 
 
 

he diagonal bulkheads are the most difficult because there are two angles on each end that need to be cut to form a point. Fortunately, the andles are 45 degrees and the "point " is a 90 degree angle! I set my Byrnes disc sander table to 45 degrees and "cut" the angles very carefully. The photos show some finished bulkheads and how they butt up against each other. The rabbets are to accommodate the side covers, which are part of the mortar pit housing. I'm not sure if I'll include this!
 
 
 

Thanks, guys!
 
Pat:  I'm eyeballing the cuts, but I have a plan view rubber cemented to the bottom of each blank to guide me!
 
I prepared the diagonal bulkheads for installation.  The backs of the 4 bulkheads are supported by diagonal carling which are inset into mortises in the deck beams and trimmer beams.  I decided to make life simple and simply butt the diagonal carlings in place.  I carefully cut them to size, then glued them to the back of the diagonal bulkheads.  The bulkheads are built with two boards.  I simulated this by scoring a line and marking it with a pencil.  Once the glue dried, these were epoxied in place.

Thanks, guys!
 
The complicated anatomy of the ends of the angled bulkheads actually makes fitting the outboard and transverse bulkheads easy.  They are cut a little long at a 90 degree angle.  I then "sneak up" on the final width with the Byrnes sander.
 
 
 

I started work on the hatch. The coamings are 7/32" thick bloodwood and jointed by half laps at the four corners. The coamings are also beveled inward by 10 degrees on all four sides. How to do the beveling easily and accurately? I decided on a jig!

Basically the jig is a slice of wood, angled at 10 degrees from the horizontal. When the face of a coaming is sanded such that it is square up against the Byrnes sanders disk, you know the angle is a perfect 10 degrees. The hatch frame is attached to the jig with two sided carpet tape.

Sanding the four sides took about 20 minutes.

 

Thanks guys. for all the "likes"!
 
I needed to figure out a way to make the hatch cover boards. I planned on using boxwood for the color contrast. The boards are about 5/64" thick with a very slight curve to them that matches the curved coamings. But bending the curve and getting the precise length right cutting strip stock was going to fail! Too hard to get consistency in the four boards. Here's what I did:

I cut up a boxwood blank the fit into the recess where the boards sit. It was thick enough so it stood just proud of the highest point on the curved coamings. Then I traced the coaming top lines onto the 4 edges of the blank. I used double sided carpet tape to tape the blank to a block of wood, keeping it perpendicular to the table of my disc sander, and parallel to the disk's face. Using my variable speed disk sander on LOW speed, I sanded the curve into the blank!

Once I was satisfied with the curve, I took the blank and simulated the four boards by scoring them in and darkening the score lines with very thin pencil lead. It worked out well!
 

With lots to do around the house, I've not had much modeling time.  I did finish the deck planking, though!
I wanted as much deck framing as possible to show, but I still needed to accommodate three long gums.  I started the holly planking at the outboard mortar pit bulkhead and worked my way to the waterway.  The margin p[lank was custom fit.  It turned out to be as wide as the others at it's forward end, with a bit of a taper aft.  It turned out pretty well.

I've been busy! I just finished painting the inside of our house, including our family room, kitchen, foyer, 2 bathrooms and two bedrooms. I also removed carpeting and underlayment in two bedrooms to prep for installing hardwood floors...which is my next project! I have sneaked in a little modeling time, though.

Here is some preliminary work on the cannons. I first built an assembly jig so everything goes together nicely and the same. The metal work will come next and then the trucks. You can see some shallow "gouges" in the carriage brackets where the eyebolts fit. This is so the eyebolts can be "buried" in the brackets as they were in real life, to prevent them from turning.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

Thanks, Pat...and everyone for the "likes"!
 
I added a little more to the base/launching ways to display the model. I still need some "curbs" on either side of the center timber to keep the keel centered where it should be.

Once the finish is on, the contrast between the maple, beech, cherry and swiss pear will be more dynamic.
 
 
 

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

Outstanding work!

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

I'm getting ready to plank the outboard bulwarks.  The jig will get in the way of the wales, so it's time to build a display stand.  I have some curly bird's eye maple that I'm using for the base.  The section will be cradled in  scaffolding/bracing much as I did for my Blandford project.  The wood is cherry.
 
 
 

There is always more than one way to skin a cat.
 
I build period furniture as a hobby also.  18th century cabinetry often had "pegged" mortise and tenon joints to strengthen construction.  They were also frequently square instead of round.  How to easily fit a square peg into a round hole?  You could use a mortising machine with a drill and square chisel, but since furniture parts can be very large, many times the part wouldn't fit on the mortiser's work surface.  I came up with an easy solution.
 
I took a 1/4" square piece of steel bar and grinded the bottom into a 1/4" diameter round.  I left the bulk of the bar square.  I drill a 1/4" hole where the peg will be and insert the rounded bottom into the hole.  Than brings the squared "shoulders" of the bar right to the wood's surface.  A couple of raps with a hammer and the round hole is now square.  it has to be deep enough to hold a piece of peg material 1/4" square, so the steel bar is pretty deep into the wood and the fit is very tight.  It takes a pair of pliers and some rapping with  a hammer to free the bar.  A 1/4" peg is glued into the hole and cut with a flush cutting saw when the glue dried.  The result is a nice clean square peg in what was once a round hole.  The pegs aren't really structural, but they look good.  When I needed to make round holes square on the windlass, I used the same principle in miniature.
 
I've actually adapted a few techniques I use building full size furniture to model work.  The principles are the same; only the scale is different!

Great job on the long boat, Ryland!
 
I've scratch built two windlasses, and I used this technique for both.  My most recent, for the AVS , is in 1/32 scale.  The holes in the windlass are drilled with a 1/16" bit.  I then took a 10d finishing nail and filed the four sides of the tip flat and sharp.  Insert the tip into the round holes, being careful to align the square tip properly.  A couple of taps with a miniature hammer and the round hole is square.  It works like a charm and takes just a couple of minutes to do all the holes.