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cdrusn89

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Everything posted by cdrusn89

  1. cdrusn89
    Bruce, I used the Syren brass cannon. I used a drill press to drill a hole in the cannon (before painting them flat black) and glued in an eyebolt (from Model Expo) for the breech rope.
  2. cdrusn89
    Bruce, I assembled all the cannons before I started the hull. I have all the breech tackles ready to install too and some (but not nearly all) of the gun tackles. I plan on periodically taking a break from the deck planking to get the rest of them ready.
  3. cdrusn89
    I got the planking between the four forward-most hatch coamings extended outward enough to start the planking scheme on both sides. I am going to stop in the forward section and get the after section in a similar state before proceeding with extending the planking to the waterways. Here is where things stand at the moment.
  4. cdrusn89
    Continuing with the deck planking. I had to resort to some wider planks to try and get them to come out "even once clear of the coamings. Looking at the plans (sheet 1) shows that all but one of the coamings should be exactly 10 planks wide. If I had looked earlier I would have tried harder to get them a consistent width. I also got tired on the blue tape on the ladder wells so I cut some 1/32" sheet to fit them and replaced the tape. I have the starboard side forward extended to the first row outside the coamings. Will get the port side in a similar condition before moving aft of amidships. Here is an overall view and a closeup of the main hatch way where I have glued down the small hatch cover and the wider planks I used.
  5. cdrusn89
    Working the area between the coamings. I decided not to worry too much about having the planking exactly match the curve of the mast holes as this will be covered by the mast coats. It appears that I am going to have to make some notched planks to fit around some of the coamings. It was probably too much to hope for that I had made the coamings an even multiple of the plank widths wide. I also decided to cover the hatch openings to keep any debris from ending up down there. With the ladders installed getting it out might be a challenge. So here is where the planking stands.
  6. cdrusn89
    Thanks Tim. I finally got the Alaskan Yellow Cedar planking sheets from Syren Ship Model and am in the process of ripping them into 1/8 X 1/16 strips for planking the deck. I also made some 1/4 X 1/16 planks for (hopefully) the hook scarfs that are in the future. Here is my "stash" of cedar planks ready to "meet the deck".
  7. cdrusn89
    I finally got all the items completed prior to adding the deck planks on the gun deck. I am waiting for more Alaskan Yellow Cedar from Syren Ship Model Company from which to mill the 1/8" X 1/16" deck planks plus some wider (probably 1/4" X 1/16" to accommodate the "hook scarfs" used at the edges. I have not done this before - all my previous experience with with the nibbling technique but on hulls that did not have a false deck. Cutting the nibs into the margin plank is significantly easier if there is no false deck to interfere with getting access to the edge of the margin plank. So here is the model with the gun deck items glued down, except the two small gratings. I noticed that my main hatch coaming is not quite as wide as the outline on the false deck (although it does fit the provided grating so...) so I will wait until I have some decking installed in the area to glue them down. I don't want to have to create a very narrow plank to go between these small gratings and the main hatchway.
  8. cdrusn89
    I finished the coamings and associated gratings and ladders. I put a coat of clear flat on everything but the capstan platform (need to add the treenails before adding finish). Here are all the centerline "fixtures" sitting in place along with the checkerboard flooring glued down and the stern lights replaced. I decided to only paint the bricks where they will show although I have painted a few more since I took this picture and added the eyebolts to the forward hatch. I
  9. cdrusn89
    After a good bit of sawing and even more sanding I got the checkerboard floor to fit and meet the dividing line that I drew in (about 1mm forward of the one etched in the false deck). I even managed to get the points of the checkers to all start at the front. It is not really "perfect". There are small bits of the next row of diamonds near the center but considering all that it took to get this done I am going to call this a "success". Sadly much of the forward most part will be hidden by the bulkhead that marks the start of the great cabin - but I'll know it is there.
  10. cdrusn89
    I got the "checkerboard flooring completed (second time) using an 8" X 8" square this time. So I took my template and trimmed it to fit in preparation for cutting/shaping the flooring. I decided to sand and apply a few coats of WoP before trying to cut/sand the flooring. The cedar I used for the light color has a tendency to splinter when cut on the table saw, even with a 100 tooth slitting blade. Hopefully the poly will help to prevent that. I do not intend to cut very close (no closer than 1/2") to the template line and use the disk sander to take off the rest. Here is the template in its "final" form. I will put the stern lights back in when I get the flooring installed. While cutting the steps for the ladders the run athwartship I made an addition to the template I showed in the previous post. I glued a piece on 1/32" planking into the brass channel to keep the plank being sanded from moving up (although the disk rotation should make this unlikely) when pressed against the disk. Here is a shot with that addition.
  11. cdrusn89
    Allan, My girlfriend bought that digital level for me last Christmas (from MircoMark I believe). I have a level "app" on my iPhone but it is usually too big to get where I need it so the small one comes in handy. You can never have too many tools. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So while waiting to rebuild my checkerboard flooring I decided to start on the ladders. It seems that some of them run fore/aft while the two aft ones run from stbd to port which means there are going to be at least two different lengths for the planks that will form the steps. And given that there are eight steps per ladder it is going to be important that the steps are the same length - as exactly as can be managed. I started with the longer steps for the fore/aft ladders. I cut some 1/32" X 3/16" boxwood to a bit longer than required and then cut a piece of brass channel to the desired length. I used Scotch tape to attach the brass channel to the mitre gauge on the disc sander as shown below: I use the brass channel as a guide and a small T-square behind the the plank to push the plank against the sanding disc until the t-square is against the end on the brass channel. It is hard to get a picture of the exact placement of pieces since it takes two hands - one holding the t-square and the other holding the plank against the channel. So no hand for the camera. Anyway here is the result: Not perfect but as good as I know how to make them. Now back to the checkerboard flooring.
  12. cdrusn89
    For whatever reason my first attempt at creating the checkerboard great cabin floor did not turn out so great. The distinct curvature that the strips assumed after being cut out from the sheet with the alternating rows of walnut and boxwood made it difficult to make a good joint between successive rows. And it appeared that the 6" X 6" square was not going to produce enough material to support using the 45 degree slanted "architecture" shown in the plans. So I decided to give it another try. This time I cut an 8" X 8" piece of 1/32" plywood and decided to glue the strips to the "other" side.i.e. the side I did not glue the strips to the first time. I also used the machinist blocks to hold the material flat while the glue cured. This seemed to reduce the amount of curvature to a considerable degree and made cutting the strips for the decking much easier. I also decided to cut a strip, glue it to the "stack" immediately, then wait 10 -15 minutes before cutting another strip. In my previous attempt I cut all the strips at one sitting and then started to glue them into the decking piece at a leisurely pace. I think the strips took on even more curvature after they were cut from the main piece. So here is the new set of strips on the 8" X 8" piece of plywood. And this time I used Alaskan Cedar instead of boxwood with the kit provided walnut. I think the cedar will provide more contrast with the walnut and I intend to plank the gun deck in Alaskan cedar. While waiting for the pieces to set in the deck planking piece I worked on the hatches. I decided to use boxwood for these as it cuts much better than basswood and making the end joints can be done with a Xacto chisel blade and a small file for fine adjustments. So far I have the first companionway hatch and two thirds of the next hatch assembly moving forward. Here are the rough hatches, before the corner rounding and WoP finish.
  13. cdrusn89
    While waiting for the bulwark paint to dry I started on assembly of the great cabin checkerboard flooring. I gave some thought to looking at the doll house shop that is half a mile away to see if they had something that might be easier to use - like simulated kitchen flooring or something of a similar size but keep forgetting so I will follow the instructions, for now. Gluing up the 1/32" walnut and boxwood (my choice) was not a problem. However, the instructions said to glue them to a 6" X 6" sheet of 1/32" plywood which I was unable to locate. Luckily I had some in the "wood pile" so cut a 6" X 6" piece and used it. Maybe my plywood is not of the same quality as what supposedly comes in the kit or it is really humid in the workshop because when I took the weights off the entire square bowed up almost .5" at one side. When I cut the 3/16" strips they warped even more. In the photo below the group of strips closest have had the angle block on top of them all night. The three further back are some that did not get that treatment. So I had to create a way to hold the strips flat while squeezing them together while the glue (carpenters yellow glue) sets up. I used some of the machinist's angle blocks and an anvil after putting down strips of Scotch tape down on the cutting mat so the glue would not stick (too much). I use four of the blocks to press the newly added strips (I add two at a time) to the already dried pieces, a block on each end to hold all the pieces flat and the anvil (on top of a sanding stick) to hold the two new strips down. I wait at least an hour before adding another two strips. Here is the "assembly" waiting for the glue to set-up.
  14. cdrusn89
    I decided to actually measure where the division between the great cabin and the rest of the gun deck would be now that I have glued the deck clamps in place. As it turns out I am about 2mm forward of the mark on the false deck - so I redrew the line and carried it up the bulwark so I would know where to stop the red paint. I finished up the bulwarks by adding the spirketting on both sides and cleaning up some of the obvious gaps in the planking. Here are shots of the interior before the first coat of paint. Speaking of paint - here she is with the first coat of red. I will need to CAREFULLY touch up the gun ports, both from the inside and outside but not until I get two coats on the interior and see how that looks. As you may notice some of the stern lights are missing. For those who may build this in the future I would recommend to wait until this phase (aka chapter 9 in the instructions) are complete before installing the windows. There are many opportunities to stick something through one of the stern lights while adding the bulwark planking that it would save effort to wait and put the windows in just before starting on planking the gun deck.
  15. cdrusn89
    I got tired of bending over the hull so decided to move it into two of the Micro-Mart foam holders. I am now glad I did not put the sweep port hinges on both sides yet. I have not lost one yet but that is not out of the realm of possibility. For those that are going to build thisa (or any kit for that matter) it is a good idea to check the dimensions of each piece before you use it. I found that the thickness of the nominal 1/16" X 1/8" pieces from .0600 to .0725. Each piece was typically the same thickness end to end (plus or minus .005) but if you have to sand off that extra .0125 with 220 grit sandpaper it will take awhile. I of course did ot take my own advise until I was nearly done but... Here is the hull in its new "home".
  16. cdrusn89
    While waiting for glue to dry (and looking ahead a bit) I decided I was not interested in trying to replicate the basswood deck beams in the kit in boxwood as I assume it a good idea for them all to have the same curvature. Something I would have some difficulty in meeting since I would have to use my not very good scroll saw abilities. So I decided to use the fruitwood gel stain to try and get the kit provided ones to look like boxwood. It took much more effort than I expected to get the laser char off of 40+ deck beams. I think I generated two cups of sawdust! Anyway here they are after staining. I need to build a jig so I can cut an equal amount off each end as they are all going to have to be trimmed to fit when installation times come.
  17. cdrusn89
    So now for the quarter deck clamps. According to the instructions the important dimension is with the forward part of the quarter deck clamp and I used the same technique as on the forecastle clamp. Here is the deck reading and on the forward most and after most sets of deck beam locations. I had to mill a sixth bulwark plank that was .020" wider to get the deck clamp to line up with the hance piece on the port side. Without the Byrnes table saw with the micrometer adjustment I fear this might have consumed many a piece of stock to get one the right thickness. The after deck clamp presents more of a problem as this is the one that is going to determine how the forward lines up with the hance piece laterally. The aft piece needs to be trimmed at the aft end to get the "step" in it to align with the opening for the quarter galleries. This is turn establishes where the junction with the forward piece will be. Since the deck beam spacing (according to the drawing) is not consistent from beam to beam (it varies from 22 - 26mm) it is possible to adjust (by a mm or three) the junction between the two pieces to get the end to line up with the hance piece. For the moment I am concentrating on seeing if the beams are level and perpendicular to the center line. I decided to check to see if, while being level the deck beams were the same height above the false deck. At least the one I measured was 33mm on each side. I put the four aft most beams (1/8 " X 1/8" straight pieces not the real beams) to see how things looked there and they look okay, at least in real life. I am not sure the picture is really accurate. It looks a bit straighter on the stbd side but I can't see that in "real life". Finally I add the beam at the great cabin junc tion to see if it matched the line on the false deck. It looks okay at first blush but I think it may be best to wait until everything is glued in place for a final determination.
  18. cdrusn89
    I got the forecastle deck clamps glued in. In the final analysis the stbd side needed a 5/32" addition to align with the hance piece and the port side needed 1/8". So here are both sides before the clean-up sanding. Hopefully the two "additions" will not be too noticeable after the red paint is applied.
  19. cdrusn89
    Allan, Thanks and for the record this version of Confederacy is when she was a United States vessel. She was captured by the British in 1781 and was taken into service with the Royal Navy (although the name was changed to Confederate). The kit provides the name letters on a .020" photo-eched brass sheet (along with many other pieces of the ornamentation) so I just followed the instructions. A "decal" might have been a better solution but I have not had great experience making them "work".
  20. cdrusn89
    To try and evaluate the deck beam positioning I first wanted to establish that the hull is level as it sits on the build board. To do this I used a digital level from Micro-Mark. I used some small shims where the hull meets the build board components to get a 0 degree reading with the level spanning the seam in the false deck. Then, per the instructions I clamped an additional 1/8" X 1/16" plank on each side and then the forecastle deck clamps. As it turned out both sides lined up (vertically) with the forward hance pieces. However, they both came up a few 1/32s" short of the end of the hance piece. I am not sure why this might be, perhaps my interior bulwark planking has more curve than it should thus making it a bit further around than it should be. The instructions say the deck clamp was made with a bit of extra length but you coulkd not prove that this model. With the deck clamps in place I cut some pieces of 3/16" square stock to fit in the slots and used the digital level to check if they were level. I did a set of beams at each end in case there was some difficulty longitudinally. Assuming the hull is still level the deck beams are out of level by, at most. 0.6 degrees. I think that is close enough. I doubt the kit beams are accurate to even 1 degree so with them in place I think everything will be "fine". As for the disconnect with the hance pieces I am going to try and graft a piece into the deck clamp to move the ends to where the hance pieces are.
  21. cdrusn89
    I tried to do a more workman like job on the stbd side bulwarks although if the stbd exterior is shown then it will be the port side on the interior - oh well. For those who come later it should be noted that the fairing of the interior, especially at the lower parts of the ribs is relly important. You should strive to have the interior pieces flush with the gun ports. I did not and ended up adding small pieces of scrap wood to fill in where the bulwark did not meet the gun port frames, usually at bottom of the port. Here is a better look at the stbd side interior with five rows of planking. Next step is figuring out if another row of 1/8" ,planks will put the fo'c'sle deck clamps at the right height, parallel to each other and perpendicular to the centerline.
  22. cdrusn89
    Working on the port side interior bulwark planking. Got the first five rows (1 3/4" and four 1/8" wide) of planks. In some places the transition from the 1/4" to the 1/8" is at an angle that makes a smooth seam difficult at best. It probably will not be as obvious when the wood is painted but I will attempt to smooth is out some with sanding, although it is not in an easy place to sand effectively. I am going to do five rows on both sides and then see where we are with respect to the deck clamps per the instructions. Digital level may come in hand although establishing that the hull itself is horizontal is not all that easy since everything is curved and there is no guarantee that the bulwarks are exactly the same height on both sides. A problem to be encountered shortly. I made the basswood to boxwood transition a bit bragged but hopefully the paint will cover that adequately. Here is the five rows of planking on the port side before any at cleaning things up at the gun ports. The blue tape is to keep small items from finding their way into the companionways. It can be really hard to get them out once they get in - don't ask me how I know.
  23. cdrusn89
    With the stern done it is on the the interior bulwarks with the stern first on the list. So here is what it looks like after I added the planking above, below and between the stern lights. Not the greatest job. Working in the confined space I split the lower two [planks under the stern light) into pieces, and still had to pre-bend them to get them to fit. With the windows in place there is really no way to clamp the one just below the windows - at least I don't have any clamps that will do that. I am still working on trying to get the seams leveled out before I put the WoP on (probably with a brush to get everything covered). I also added the sweep port and ballast port hinges on the stbd side and the eyebolt and lanyard on the ballast port. Looking ahead since I plan on using boxwood for the interior of the great cabin I took the quarterdeck deck clamps off the carrier sheet and briefly thought about trying to replicate them in boxwood. However, given the critical nature of these pieces to getting the quarterdeck beams where they need to be I decided against it and decided to use the fruitwood gel stain that has been identified by others as the "stain of choice" for getting basswood to look like boxwood. So I stained the portion of the quarterdeck deck clamps that will be in the great cabin using that. I intend to use a wood sealer on the non-boxwood plan king to (hopefully) have an easier time getting a smooth finish when I paint them red. Here are the deck clamps drying and the stain I used.
  24. cdrusn89
    I am declaring the stern "done". I installed the gudgeons and following the Syren instructions drilled holes in the laserboard gudgeons and put a short piece of 28ga wire in the hole with a very small dot of medium CA. When that dried I cut the wire off as close to the gudgeons as possible. Here is what the stbd side looked like at that point. Then a spot of flat black enamel (water based paints don't seem to work as well here) on each "bolt head and... I added the eyebolts for the rudder preventer and attached lengths of chain (brass in this case - but it will turn dark in short order). I put the hull back in the other build board and then attached the chains to the spectacle plate and stern is DONE! At least on the outside. (I may try and do something about the burn marks on the back of the rudder. I wonder why I did not notice them until now??? Now for the internal bulwarks
  25. cdrusn89
    While I had the hull inverted and was messing around with the rudder I decided to add the lanyards for the stern ports. I have no idea what they might have used these ports for (garbage disposal?) but the drawings show the holes for the lanyards so I decided to rig them. Clearly I could have done a better job on the rudder post opening but it will be really hard to see that on the finished model so I am inclined to not try and do anything about it at this point.

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