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Caferacer

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Everything posted by Caferacer

  1. Caferacer
    Even though the kit comes with what looks like a "subfloor" for the deck, I'm still filling the gaps. I like how the transom is built up, it will take a lot of shaping, but there will be a lot of structure to it.
  2. Caferacer
    Well despite the difficulty removing these laser cut parts; they fit really well. I have only had to verify they are square, I have not had to clamp a square to the part while gluing them up. I did goof one piece (#13), not sure how but I was able to remove it and set it correctly.
  3. Caferacer
    Normally you're right, but the plywood was too tough for a hobby knife to easily go through, and the gap cut by the laser was thinner than an 11 blade.
  4. Caferacer
    A really cheap eBay solid hull kit was my first model, since then I have looked for a nicely scaled model. Lo and behold just as I was a couple moths out from finishing the Benjamin Latham, Model Expo has a great sale and after a little research I went for the 1:66 Mamoli kit. Good news bad news, good news? Good news, the documentation is nice, details are good and the sheets are decently sized. As @frenchguy points out the text is... challenging? Bad news, the laser cut parts are in plywood, not solid wood, this made separating them a pain, I had to break out the jeweler's saw. Not the end of the world, but I suspect shaping the frames for the planking will be interesting. The frame sections are also a little on the thin side. Good news, some exotic wood supplied that's nice, and the cord supplied for rigging isn't on tight spools. Whenever using those small flat "bobbins" of cord, I have to soak it in hot water to get the kinks out. Anyway, here we go!
  5. Caferacer
    Well, we are complete. On to the next project!
  6. Caferacer
    I didn't know what to do with the seine boat until, I saw another model with had it hung on the side, I like this look, as I'm striving for a more static than active model. The barrels are not attached, I'm still thinking about that part, I'm probably going to mount them more in a storage location maybe against the rail, than an active location as it they were being filed.
  7. Caferacer
    Some catch up.. Lots of rigging.. However not as much a I was expecting, all of the booms and yards were pre-made a while go, so it's all assembly.A
  8. Caferacer
    Catching up on some updates; Masts are up, and the ladders are on. I used some temporary lines to get the foremast into position and then used the ladders to actually draw the mast tight. There isn't an glue in the sockets of the masts, I decided this for a few reasons, I wanted to be sure to get them in the right position based on the rigging plan, I also didn't think of a great way to glue them and make sure I could take the time to get them in the right position before it set up. Anyway, the deadeyes are tight and seized, I'll go back and paint the ladders flat black to knock the shine off of them. The rat lines are also on the bowsprit. My granddaughter is visiting (she does every summer) and has kicked me off my hobby bench, so I'm at the kitchen table
  9. Caferacer
    Details keep coming, just when you think you're done. It took me a while to figure these catheads out, but here we are. The drawings were confusing me until I realized the swing out. I'll be leaving them in the "parked" position as the anchors will be stowed. I didn't have wire small enough to create rings for the chains, so I seized them with some thread. I mocked it up with the line, arranged about how it would be on the model and painted it. The windlass drove me a little crazy to be honest. I couldn't seem to resolve all the dimensions between the bowsprit, windlass position and the other parts. The windlass would have fouled on the top rail if it were farther forward, or the Samson post needed to be farther back. I'm only guessing but I think it's tolerance stack up between all these parts and the contour of the top rail/hull.
  10. Caferacer
    I stained the deck with Danish oil and a little stain as pigment. I think next build I will try to darken the plank edges with a pencil, I didn't get as much staining in the joints as I would have liked, but overall I'm pleased.
  11. Caferacer
    Would the scuppers be the deck color or the hull color? I glued the seine roller mounts in place, you can make out one pin in the mount now, the other mount has a through hole. Once the deck and rails are painted fully I can fit the roller (painted black) into the mounts. Still contemplating the deck finish, I won't finish it until the furniture is in place, as I want to be sure I have good adherence (maybe over abundance of caution). I'm thinking of something simple like thinned down poly, or danish oil, something that will seep into the joints and darken them, but leave the top fairly blonde.
  12. Caferacer
    I'm trying to foresee what rings or other rigging features are needed on the deck or rails before adding the furniture. I just know once a place a piece of furniture I'll need to drill a hole somewhere nearby, and it'll be blocked. So to that end I started the gammon strap, This is a good time to do it as well because I haven't finished the bow where it meets the bowsprit so fitting the gammon, especially before painting the bowsprit will save rework or damage. Once I got the first one where I liked it, I made a mirror version, wiring them together to even them up with a file and ensure the holes were drilled properly.
  13. Caferacer
    On this build, I have discovered just how much bend you can put into wood, with proper prep and some patience. I honestly figured "I'll give it a shot" and dang it worked great. I added the boom buffer early, because I wanted to be sure it fit under the plate, and I painted most of it in advance. While some seams might show, I think adding these strips later, was easier than over sizing the top plate/monkey board, and getting the profile uniform and even.
  14. Caferacer
    Working on several aspects at once in a way. Finishing the top rail details, and adding the chainplates. I'm also picking away at the hull painting.
  15. Caferacer
    As an aside, here is how I have used Sculpey in the past; for the cheeks on the bow of the Sultana and the decorative windows. The cast pieces didn't look great nor did they fit against the hull properly, so I used Sculpey to fit them and bring some detail.
  16. Caferacer
    Thanks for the kind words!
  17. Caferacer
    Garage season is over, and 100+ plus degrees here in Arizona, so back to inside activities! Since last update I have added the top rail and the monkey board. I used Sculpey to to make the curved section where the monkey board meets the top rail. I've used this material before and it's a great solution to hard to form parts, or where tiny details are needed. I used it a lot on the Sultana.
  18. Caferacer
    Same here, they just seem so elegant, I'd love to dig into all the complex rigging of a British Man of War, but then there are all those tiny gun doors! lol Thanks for the comment
  19. Caferacer
    Thanks Joe! Your log really helped, there is no way the deck would have come out so well without the tip of adding the sub-deck, and removing the timbers from the frames. Now only if I had remembered there were two false timbers between each frame section.. Your rigging on the Latham is amazing, and the build has been inspiring.. The final chainplate "bolts" are a little out of scale, of course now that the are painted I see this, but I have plenty of material I can remove to improve it. I mean there's no hurry, time enough to get it right.
  20. Caferacer
  21. Caferacer
    The fixture worked out well; the plates are all coming out even and identical. Time for some paint.
  22. Caferacer
    Working on chainplates, I wanted to use thinner brass, but couldn't find any. So I thinned out the ends with a file, and got a good tight loop. I also machined a fixture to drill the mounting holes. As I mentioned when I was drilling the holes for the rudder pintles the drill walked so they are not as even as I wanted. This fixture should make the hole spacing and they should be well centered., then I will trim them to size. Hard to tell teh scale, but those are M4 screws and 0.028" (#69 drill) holes
  23. Caferacer
    At this point I've got the deck and bulwarks painted, but not quite ready to start the top rail. I want to consider the right way to approach it, bent 1/4, or 1/2 inch that I trim and shape. I think the latter, but I want to think a bit. Scuppers are cut and cleaned up after this photo, prow is mostly shaped, and cut for the bowsprit. The hull above the water line is just primed. When cutting the scuppers I realized I somehow miscounted the timberheads! There should have been 2 between each frame section, and I only added 1. My next step will be creating the chainplates, that's going to require some work, based on the "lessons learned" from creating the pintles, I want to create a fixture to ensure the chainplates are drilled evenly, the drill walked a bit while making the pintles and given the prominence of the chain plates I want them as uniform and identical as possible.
  24. Caferacer
    Using a similar technique I made a couple of buckets. Also shown the completed gutting trays and the net. The cheesecloth was very easy to work with, so I'm looking forward to creating the sine net as well.
  25. Caferacer
    Thought I wold share some previous accessories; I tried a few ways to make barrels, the one that worked best was turning some soft wood in the lathe. I then created an "index" mark on the lathe chuck, then draw a tool across the round to create even grooves representing the staves of the barrel. I then marked and tapered the the individual barrels while in the lathe, and drilled the hole through the round. Finally at the workbench I carved the details to the staves, and wrapped the "sapling" around the barrels before cutting off each barrel. I didn't drill all the way though so some barrels could be "closed". Using a small chisel I cut back the the face of the "closed" barrels to create the recessed lids. All this was made easier by having a decent piece of wood to hold on to while working. Hope all this makes sense. I made a lot, and using different finishes, so I can pick and choose.

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