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Caferacer
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Everything posted by Caferacer
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Thanks, I have a lot of machining experience, basically the only difference is the scale. Drilling holes is the challenging part as the push drills are so slow, but anything is the garage is too much. What I need is a pin vise to mount in my tiny rotary tool. -
So, remember way back when I reworked the boom hook, because it was kind of sloppy? Well now that I have made the boom, it's never going to work. So I remade one out of brass.. I was skeptical of getting the cast piece, to fit into a slot basically cut into the boom, but looking at the actual size of it, it would never fit, or be the right scale.
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Fore mast almost completed, it started as about 6 pieces of basswood glued together. I measured every 2 inches and marked the diameters, whittled them down then trimmed the mast down to transition between the marks. I'll finish the sanding with a long sanding block, checking against a straight edge as I do. Remarkably I have not cut myself using the open utility blade! I really need to make a small block plane, sure I know they sell them, but where is the fun in that?
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@gsdpic Looks like the rail is a little lower in the Blue Jacket kit (amazing job BTW!!) I can't see the scuppers. I'm going to see if I can find some basswood dowels, but in the meantime I'm making the masts from some laminated basswood. Hard to see in the photo, but that's an 8.5 to 3 mm taper
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Fore are below, stern are above, weird, also one the fore have the stand offs.
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I did proceed with replacing the loops, elongated the dead eye holes as well. I have a couple of "masts" in place to hold them in place while I secure the pins and such.
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Thanks @Gregory I was thinking about how I could replace the loops holding the dead eyes, I've made chainstays from scratch, that's not a problem. So, yes, I think I will replace them.
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Adding the chainstays, I also wasn't happy with the waterline, so I'm going to repaint it. The chainstays aren't great, but, fine. I think the loops holding the dead eyes are too long. I have added the standoff for the fore chainstays, undecided at this time, if, like some kits, I'll shorten them, it's really hard to tell if this is interpretation by other kits or fact. Photos are too washed out to see and n something like this; paintings are not really to be trusted.
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Finished the top rail, I do these now, by gluing a large plank to the timbers, then carving/sanding to get the overhang on the hull right, then using a compass, I create the parallel overhang over the deck. I need to make a few "adjustments to the timbers, they sure looked fine before, but I obviously want them to meet the top rail nicely. I'm also carving some cleats, I glued the tail end of 4 pieces of stock together, then I can carve the profile on all four, before cutting them loose and finishing. I'll used the supplied ones for the booms and bowsprit, I just don't believe every cleat would be the same size.
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Hull is about done, some of the planks have come loose from sanding and cutting the scuppers. I also made the trunnions from brass, I did the pin for the trunnions differently, I have usually made pins, and struggled to hook the rudder on, or build it up, nailing the hull trunnions on after assembling the rudder, and that's a struggle too. This time I used a piece of brass wire to catch all the trunnions from the base of the rudder. It did bend a little , so I need to adjust the rudder so it's evenly spaced, but I think this will e the first model where the rudder isn't going to fall off when I move it. .
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I wasn't happy with the rivets provided a hawse pipes, there should also be pipes to drop under the deck. So I flared some aluminum tubing, I think it will represent the hawse better.
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Made the bobstay and heart.
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I realize I didn't get a photo after clean up. Obviously I cleaned up the extra solder with a file, however before painting these parts, I dip them in muriatic acid. This cleans off any solder resin, and provides a light etch. I didn't have the correct stock for the bowsprit, so this was laminated up, sized to fit the windlass, then tapered to shape. If my calculations are correct, once I size and taper the spar, even with what looks like a downward slope, the tip should be angled up in relation to the deck.
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The Bowsprit is interesting on this boat, this is because even mid-race they can change the jib configuration, which is fascinating. Can you imagine climbing out there at speed, and changing the spar out? The configuration shown in these plans have an additional spar extended out along the bowsprit, which I like. However there are some issues. First the cast part supplied wasn't right, it didn't set the spar in the right position, the spar should be at about a 45 degree angle. If I set the cast part that way then the rings are not in the right orientation. Another issue is the strut below the spar, the tensioning rigging, I couldn't think of how I could keep that stable under line tension. So back to scratch, using some heat sinks I was able to build up the new part one piece at a time, including soldering a "bar" to replicate the strut. You can see the configuration in the last picture with the rigging plans.
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Some catch up: First I added the false timbers.
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Slight change in set up.. Like a goof I forgot that the brass would het up and the previously soldered ring would fall off. So I cut some grooves to hold the rings and sunk the collar. They came out fine, I'll need to clean them up, before paint, but far less work than cleaning up the cast parts!
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Yikes, these are problematic. On past builds I have made these from scratch, but from wire, maybe one or two from brass. This kit has several different sizes of bore, all about the same thickness, these 7 are 3mm ID. No way I'm getting these little ones to work, all the larger ones, 4mm and 5mm diameter I was able to clean up, and drill out the holes. So, back to scratch; I made a fixture to hold a brass sleeve and a piece of stainless wire to hold the rigging loop. So that's the next couple of week's work scheduled, soldering these up. The plastic is a high temp plastic, PEEK or something, the post is aluminum, so solder should stick to anything...
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The hoops were good, they just needed some clean up, I did a base coat of "chestnut" then a few washes of thinned black. The navigation lights were fair, but in my opinion too small. Navigation lights were mandated in Britain in the early 1800s, so I'm going to include them. However I completely remade them..
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Started working on some of the cast parts, they are on both ends of the scale, some good, some lame. These two the boom hook, and the anchors are on the lame scale, so I did a little cutting and wire work to make them look better.
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Must.. Stop...
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I might have over done it with the jolly boat.. But hey it happens.
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Thanks @Keith Black It's about done, I'm bending the handle for the rudder and then I need to add the hardware, I'm likely stowing it upright on the deck so I guess oars are in order.. While I hated making them, the oars for the Latham came out OK. Next decision is the windlass. Though it's not really a windlass, just dead pulleys, "power" would be from the capstan, so maybe the cast piece is fine?
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Planking on the Jolly boat is done, I need to add some internal structure before removing the forming frames.
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Again we're at "what America are we building" and I think I have settled on the reported state, after spending time in France. Reports say the copper was removed, and above the waterline was a "dove grey". To that point the yacht would have a jolly boat or some dinghy. It's unlikely (thought period paintings show it this way) it was on deck while racing. I'm using a similar technique as I did for the Benjamin Latham dory, this keel seems large, and it is, but a lot of it will be cut away once it's planked. I used some period paintings for the profile, then guessed at the top view.
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