bhermann

Well, after last week's start with the pre-rigging on stuff coming off the main mast, I continued around the ship and tried to catch every bit of rigging that I could do now, off the ship, for each of the five (5) booms and gaffs.  I've doubled my seven pre-riggings to fourteen (14) and have labeled them (hopefully accurately enough to know where they go!).  The ones on the top row are what I completed since last week.
 

 
Unless I am forgetting another important step in the pre-rigging process, it appears my next task is to get the masts placed so that I can begin on the lower shrouds.  But... before that, I think it is also time to get the Bluenose on its display base/pedestals, and also get the dories and kids firmly placed, as I've been holding off on their placement for fear of snagging them.
 
Might also get the silkspan out that I recently ordered for the sails to see how easily it will be to work with.
 
Appreciate all the advice, likes and comments.

Jib Downhauls…

Just in, Amati Rope for the downhaul rigging. 


Threading down haul through hanks. 

Tying down haul off to Jumbo Jib. 

Jumbo Jib down haul belayed to starboard bitt. 

Jib Downhaul belayed to pin #2

Balloon Jib belayed to pin #1. 

Jib Downhauls complete with rope coils. 
 
Cheers 🍻 

Well, I have done a little bit more, so thought I would toss in an update.  Been struggling a little with how to approach all of the rigging work.  But, starting to do some rigging on a few of the spars that, no matter which way I decide to go with the sails, etc., I will need to rig anyways, so... here we go.  Not much of a play-by-play on these spars coming off of the main mast.  But definitely props to several of the Bluenose modelers who have come before me and shown a lot of their processes and techniques well enough for me to follow much of their guidance.  Props especially to @genericDave, @Ed Ku20 and @John Ruy, whom I have either relied heavily on researching their completed build logs, or John's responses to queries on his ongoing (and almost completed) Bluenose build.
 
With that all said, a few pictures (with little comment) I took during some of the pre-rigging for the main mast spars...
 

Trying to remember to do some of the stropping with brass wire vs. thread.
And yes, need to use the Syren internally-stropped blocks on some of the 1/4" singles and doubles.  So may re-do some of these after-the-fact.
 

As I am completing different portions of the pre-rigging, I am wrapping them as best I can and setting aside.
This rigging will be for the main boom's crutch tackle.
 

A closeup of the end of the main boom and topping lift rigging.
 

The completed rigging on the main boom (with all of the rigging banded and secured until it's placed on ship).
 

Top part of the lower main mast, with the blocks for the main peak halliard and the pendant rope for the topping lift.
 
     
 

Rigging the main gaff bridle assembly.
 

All of the rigging lines associated with the main mast.
 
Well, as far as I can tell (so far), this may be it for the main mast pre-rigging process.  Now it's pretty much a "rinse-and-repeat" routine for the fore mast rigging with a couple of exceptions.  Then, it appears the shrouds are after that, which means getting those masts firmly secured on deck.
 
Let's see how this progresses! 

Well, it’s been an interesting and frustrating week working on setting the steam plant to work. Additional issues I have encountered to date (but have successfully resolved with the assistance of my “guru”) are:
 
The upper flange on the boiler sight glass tube had not been soldered correctly, leaving a small hole in the joint through which a large quantity of steam escaped. This was resolved by carefully re-fluxing the joint and allowing the existing solder to close the gap. Successful after test run with no further leakage through this joint.
 
The flange joint between the engine side of the displacement lubricator had not been soldered correctly and again, a large quantity of steam escaped through this fault. This was resolved in a similar way to the boiler sight glass tube flange described above. Successful after test run with no further leakage through this joint.
 
The mating surfaces between the flat rotating valve (forward/reverse) on top of the engine and the engine body were not machined particularly well (they were quite rough) and a significant steam leakage resulted. This was addressed by carefully polishing both faces to facilitate a smoother action. When running, the engine now appears to be quite smooth in its operation, with very little steam escaping though this interface.
 
I am somewhat surprised that the boiler was able to pass testing given the fault described at the first point above, and indeed that the other faults were not picked up through a quality control process. Nevertheless, I have managed to resolve all of the manufacturing faults thus far. 
 
There is one further issue that has me flummoxed at the moment and that is to do with the gas burner. The issue is this. Although all set-up routines have been followed, including calibration of the burner flame, once the boiler gets to operating pressure and the engine starts running, very shortly thereafter the boiler flame goes out although there is still plenty of gas in the tank. The flame can be relit, but initially burns at the top of the stack and only goes back to the burner when the gas is turned down a little. It then burns correctly for a few seconds and goes out again. Rinse and repeat ad infinitum.
 
My initial thought after re-reading all of the material on manufacturer’s website, was that perhaps the gas being used was of insufficient quality and was then clogging up the jets in the burner. Yesterday, I purchased some so-called premium quality Butane. The blurb on the can alleges that it has been purified 11 times and claims to burn hotter and longer than cheaper products. Its gas mix content is stated to be 60% butane, 36% isobutane, and 2% propane. Alas, on testing the same problem returned.
 
What I don’t understand is why the burner seems to work correctly initially, but after a few minutes develops this fault.
 
I have written to the supplier/manufacturer but am yet to hear back from them (and may not – they have been problematic with communications in the past).
 
In the meantime, after lengthy discussion of alternatives with the guru, I decided to make a modification to how the engine sits in the hull. Basically, this involves removing some of the frames from under where the engine sits and inserting a hardwood plate, epoxied into the bottom of the hull to hold the engine assembly. This will get the engine a lot lower in the hull and greatly reduce the height difference/angle to the prop shaft. Here is a picture after the preliminary surgery on the frames.
 

 
My guru also found among his odds and ends a very nice universal joint that comes out of the model car world. It is a lot less bulky than the standard universals and should work a treat in the AQ. He has also made for me a flywheel to go on the end of the engine shaft - he says this is essential to smooth the operation of the engine. I know nothing of these matters, so defer to his expertise here.
 
I am also going to change the rudder support (skeg) and will instead use a piece of brass bar for this purpose. I will epoxy a small wooden block in the base of the hull on the inside, and will then be able to screw the brass skeg into that. This will make the skeg level with the base of the keel and in doing so, will overcome my propellor clearance issue so that I can still use the 40mm prop.
 
The other issue I’m now working on is to address the poor fit of the upper deck. As I’m going to plank over this, the provided deck will be the substrate for my planking. I made up a cardboard template for the required shape by tracing around the inverted hull to help with the process. The pencil line inside the outer  edge of the template shows where the existing deck lies – it’s only out a small amount, but enough to cause headaches.
 

 
I then cut the deck substrate down the centreline and placed the two halves so that they just covered the outer edge of the template and marked their positiong relative to the centreline of the template. This showed an overall gap of 10mm (or 5mm per side).
 

 
It was then a fairly simple matter to add some filler pieces to achieve the correct shape. The picture below shows that I needed to make a T-shaped piece to fit at the bow to close the gap previously cut for the stem post. I will now need to re-shape the bow and re-cut that slot. The picture below shows the filler pieces in place but not yet glued. They have since been glued in place awaiting final trimming. 
 

 
More to follow once I have news on the steam plant and/or further surgery modifications have been completed.
 

It's  been a while since my last update but work has progressed, albeit very slowly. 
 

I changed my mind (again) about removing the excess ABS, mainly because it would have been impossible to hold the internal stringer/gunwhale(?) in place with it sill there. So I went ahead and removed the excess ABS, and then positioned the stringer/gunwhale and the internal (fake) ribs. I also drilled out the hole for the propellor shaft and cut the access hole for the rudder support strip that extends from the keel. I decided to replace the kit-provided stuffing tube and propellor shaft with some after-market parts from Float-a-Boat in Melbourne (following the lead of Wayne (@a49kid)). At the same time, I ordered some universal joints and a brass propellor to replace the kit-provided plastic one. Unfortunately, with the additional thickness added by planking the entire hull, a propellor of the same size (40mm) will not fit. I’m still deciding as to the exact size that I will use, but it will be either 35mm or, more likely, 30mm.
 
The picture below shows the internal ribs in place along with the stuffing tube and propellor shaft temporarily positioned. I may well need to adjust the length of the stuffing tube/propellor shaft once I’ve got the steam plant sorted.
 

 
Before proceeding further with the hull, I needed to sort out the steam plant and its positioning/securing in the hull. That meant doing a trial run of the plant. I bought this plant from Miniature Steam Models (MSM) over 18 months ago and had not done any final assembly and testing to date. It comes almost fully assembled, requiring only the attachment of the steam line (from boiler to engine) and the gas line from gas tank to boiler. Unfortunately, for some reason the steam line was a few mm too short to be connected. This was very surprising as MSM have a very good reputation for quality. 
 
Anyway, I enlisted the assistance of a fellow Canberra modeler who is something of a guru on all things steam engines. He advised cutting the existing pipe and inserting a short joining section to make up the length required. He also very kindly machined up the required part and silver soldered it in place for me. The result can be seen in the picture below, highlighted by the red circle. We did a short test that proved the join was secure and together we are now conducting some “set-to-work” trials.
 

 
There are still a few other issues to deal with before proceeding with the hull, but I hope to resolve those in the next few days.

Jib, Balloon Jib and Jumbo Jib…
 
Balloon Jib


Balloon Jib Sheet belayed through snatch block to pin #41 Starboard side. 

Balloon Jib Halyard belayed pin #14 starboard side. 

Balloon Jib Sheet belayed (slack) through snatch block to pin #41 port. 
 
Jumbo Jib

Preparing Jumbo Jib Halyard Pendant Block. 

Jumbo Jib Halyard Tackle tied off to itself. 

Jumbo Jib Halyard Tackle installed starboard side. 

Jumbo Jib Halyard Blocks aloft…

Jumbo Jib Halyard belayed to Pin #13 port. 
 

Jumbo Jib Sheet Tackle belayed to Pin #5 on the Fore Mast Pin Rail. 

Prepared Topping Lift Tackle for Jumbo Jib Boom. 

Topping Lift installed…


Toping Lift belayed to pin #6 Fore Mast Pin Rail. 

With the exception of downhauls, The Jib Rigging is complete. 
 
Cheers 🍻 
 

Rigging the Jib…


 

Jib Sheet belayed through fair lead to Pin #12 (starboard)

Jib Sheet (port) belaying and fare lead located behind engine box. 🤨

Jib Sheet belayed to Pin #11 Port side. 

Jib Sheet (port) completed 


Jib Halyard Tackle tied off to itself. (port)

Jib Halyard fair leads. 

Jib Halyard belayed to Pin #16 (starboard) 

Jib rigging completed, with exception of the down haul. 
 
Onwards 🍻
 
 
 

Boarding steps--


 
I would have made the steps the full width of the hammock opening, but the carronade position wouldn't allow it.   The hammock position corresponds to Chappelle's sail plan drawing and also the location of the outboard boarding steps shown on the hull plan, but a little foresight may have warranted shifting the steps and opening just a bit.
 
Ron
 

The capstan bars are roughed in--

 
I need to soften some of the transitions between the square end and the rounded part, but they are dry fit into the capstan head, and on deck--




 
They'll also need a coat of Tung oil finish when done.   
 
The list is getting smaller of what is still needed before stepping the masts and starting the rigging.  At this point I still need some inboard boarding steps, and I think I'll make some mast collars.  I am also contemplating redoing the gratings, with a tighter grid.
 
All for now,
Ron
 

Finished the second planking, then removed pins then re-drilled re added pins for adding third planks.
 

 

This again worked well, now have all with three planks each side and pins removed to start last set of planks.
 

 

Thanks guys for looking in and the likes.
 
Regards
Richard 

Tim, 
 
Thanks for your comment. I usually use split rings but found them to be too out of scale. 


Here is a comparison, split ring at the top. 

Jib Sails…

Sewing on the Bolt Rope…

Attaching the Jib Tack…

Halyard Jib Head…

Sheet Lines Jib Clew…

Hanks made from .5mm Copper…


Blackened Copper Hanks…

Jib and Balloon Jib mounted…


Installing Hanks…

Curling Jibs with Fabric Stiffener…

Jumbo Jib with Bolt Rope…

50 more Hanks…

Jumbo Jib Mounted and lashed to the Boom. 

Jumbo Jib Halyard…

Jibs mounted, I will finish the jib running rigging before moving on to the Fore Sails. 
 
Cheers 🍻

Well, that's pretty much what I've been doing for the past week.  Really nothing done on the ship itself, just trying to soak in what many previous Bluenose build log builders have done regarding their rigging, masting and moving forward.  Wow!  A lot to take in, much more than I remember on my prior builds, but... they have not been as detailed and complicated.  Guess that's what we get when we reach for higher ground, right?  A few more challenges than before.  Ok... 
 
While I am researching others and coming up with my own game plan, I thought I would prep all of the blocks that may be needed for the Bluenose and began staining them.  Strung them on some thin line and dipped them in stain.  First, a bath in some pre-stain, then in some Minwax Golden Oak stain, which is what I also used for the masts.  Seemed right.  Also, I am replacing as much as I can of the kit-provided blocks with those that I got from Syren Ship Model Company, which I had used in my Ballahoo build and liked their quality.
 
      
 
Also, in the "What Did You Receive Today" category, after reading the pros and cons of sail construction, I ordered some Silkspan tissue for this Bluenose.  Found what seemed like a reputable vendor in Sig Manufacturing (out of Des Plaines, IL) and ordered two types of silkspan tissue, what they call a LIGHT version and a MEDIUM version, so I can determine which will be best for the sails when I get to them shortly.
 

 
And kudos to Sig's customer service!  I ordered these on Wednesday and received them today.  Two thumbs up!  I've still been a bit on the fence about whether I was going to do full sails or furled, but think I have convinced myself to do the full sails.  Could still convince myself to change, but... <shrug>  Either way, these silkspan sheets should look better than the kit-supplied cotton sail cloth... I HOPE! 

Thanks Joe, and all looking in.
 
The hammock cranes and cloth are done.   It was more work than I anticipated, but I think it was worth it.  I got some practice making jigs and drilling small holes on the mill, and I learned about Silkspan.
 
Here one side is done, and the other has been "strung".  I was tempted to leave it this way, but elected to complete both sides--

 
Done.   Work on the capstan bars continues--

 
Knotted boarding ropes hang over the boarding steps.  I don't know why Lieutenant Woolsey is falling all over the deck in the previous photos, but he's found his feet here.  I'll secure the ropes with a dot of glue on one of the lower steps, but for now the clips make them hang straight and give the idea--

 
I am reminded of something I read about Oneida being reported by an early crew member (I think) as being a "warm cozy" ship.  They were probably talking about below deck, but the more enclosed and protected feeling with the hammocks in place on the rails does give me that impression--
   

 
All for now,
Ron

Continuing on with the sail rigging...Fore sail and fore top sail next, starting from the bottom with the fore sail.  There are a lot of blocks and a fair amount of rigging required for the peak and throat halliards.  Need to pay close attention to the rigging plan on sheet 6 to make sure all the lines run to the correct pins.  
 
I attached the fore boom and loosely rigged the sheet and topping lift so that they could be tightened up as needed once the sail was rigged and attached.  

Once the boom was in place I added all of the ties for the mast hoops to the fore sail and lashed the top of the sail to the fore gaff.

I thought I had taken pictures of the completed peak halliard before I added the fore top sail but, did not have any when I went to edit the pics for posting.  

Once I had the gaff rigged, I lashed the bottom of the sail to the boom and then snugged all of the lines up.

The fore top sail was next.  I learned from the main top sail to attach all of the clew line fairleads and blocks, the rigging line and block and the mast hoop ties BEFORE attaching the sail to the mast.  So much easier to work with the sail off of the ship, duh!  Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of this interim step and only have a photo of the sail fully rigged.  

Once again, very important to study the rigging plan, check and double check all the lines to make sure they are all routed appropriately and tied off to the correct pin prior to any permanant attachment.  I finished off all of the tie offs with rope coils.  While I was looking things over, I noticed that my main top sail and fore top sail were rigged on opposite sides of their associated peak halliards.  What I discovered is that I had placed the main top sail on the wrong side.  Both sails are set to the port side, but the bottom corner of the main top sail and tack line goes over the main gaff to the starboard side.  This is noted on the plans.


On to the stay sail...4 more to go!
 
Tim
 
 
 

Sails…

Carefully trace all sails from drawings. 

 Cut out sail leaving 1/4” to fold over the edge. I use a muslin material purchased at a fabric store. The Kit supplied sail cloth is usually too heavy. 

Fold the 1/4” edge seam and iron it flat for sewing. 

Trim corner to lay flat before sewing. 

Edge seams sewn 1/8” from the edge. 

Trim the under side, fray check the fabric edges and iron out flat. 

Mark up seams with water soluble ink pen. (fine point) 

Sew seams including those for reef points. 

Main Sail sewn and ready for additional details.  Bolt rope, reef point ropes and corner rings. 

Remaining sails cut out ready for sewing. 

Fore Sail 

Stay Sail
Main Top Sail

Fore Top Sail

Jumbo Jib

Jib Sail

Balloon Jib

All Sails sewn and ready for details to be added. 
 
Cheers 🍻 

Just an additional note on the hammock cloth, and historical accuracy, since you don't see this black cloth depicted often.  Usually you see some diagonal netting, and some folded over hammocks contained within.   The netting is problematic for me.  Whatever you can get "ready-made" is plastic and seems out of scale, and would be difficult to fasten realistically.  So I liked Glenn Greico's black cloth--much simpler (I reference his model for the Institute of Nautical Archeology in Austin, Texas of the USS Brig Jefferson often, and in that context he HAS to be as historically accurate as possible.).  But I am now realizing that I have seen it other places.  A recent photo in archjofo's La Creole log led me back to post #783 where he shows his version of the black cloth.  Very interesting that he used balsa (or similar soft wood) for the underlying form!!  And then I remembered a black cloth in photos of Frolich's models of Swan and Cygne.  
 
I (we) look at so many sources for these details that I lose track of where I saw them, or even forget I even saw them.
 
So I am feeling good about the approach.  The bigger question of whether this ship would have even HAD hammock cranes is unanswerable.  We don't know much about Oneida beyond the basic lines.  I wish I was building an Oneida that I know is accurate, but I will continue on building an Oneida that I hope is plausible, and in the end for me, is a beautiful model.   
  

More hammock crane work.
 
I decided I needed a better way to make the modeling clay form for the hammock covering cloth.   I had just kind of rolled it out and mashed it into rough shape, but it was a little TOO rough and varied in height and thickness.  So I made a mold out of scrap wood.  This is the length I need for the forward sections.  The previous clay form and removed covering paper are above it--

 
Then I mashed the clay into one side of the mold--
 
And clamped the outer mold piece against it.  There are spacers at the end to make the right thickness, and I used my calipers to make sure it was the same width at the middle.  They also worked as a clamp.  I mashed additional clay into the top where needed--

 
Then scraped the top smooth--

 
This gave me a piece of clay that was uniform in height and thickness--


 
I ran a finger along each side of the top to round and smooth it--

 
New pieces of Silkspan were moistened and folded around it--

 
When this dried, I tucked and glued the loose ends at the bottom, and let that dry--

 
Here it is fit into place--


 
 
I am much happier with this attempt.   It may be more uniform than it really should be, but it will be easy to go back and make it a little "lumpy" if I decide it needs it.  Here's a view from inboard--

 
As I finish up the hammocks I'm adding the capstan bars to the capstan.   It's always one of the things on a model that catches your eye, and I've been waiting a long time to add this touch!   I cut some blanks, and test fit a few times to get the length I thought was appropriate.  They look pretty chunky, but they haven't been tapered or rounded yet, hence they are also not glued to the capstan yet--

 
I numbered each hole and bar on the underside just in case it matters which one goes where--

 
As the afternoon light starts to fade--

 
That's all for now.
 
Ron
 
 

Another update that I'll attempt to do very quickly... (especially since I didn't take many notes during the construction) <shrug>
 
MAIN GAFF - The final spar of the five!  This one was actually sorta fun to build for a few reasons.  First, it was fairly easy as it repeated several of the build processes that had been used on any of the previous four.  Secondly, I was able to utilize some of the special tools to finish it up and make it, in some cases, a better product.  First, worked on the gaff jaws and, like I had done on the fore gaff and main boom, used the Proxxon mill to shave down the two sides of the spar to give the jaws a flat surface to adhere to.  Drilled the holes for the brass rods, aligned the clapper, and glued everything together.  Enjoyed doing this part on all three of the spars.  A slightly different configuration on the eyebolt placement on this main gaff, so pay attention to those details.
 
        
 
For the stop chocks towards the center of the main gaff, I wanted to give the chocks a bit of an indentation or groove to securely sit in, so started making grooves with the Proxxon mill on the two sides.  The stop chocks were measured to be about 10mm long and I had a 1/32" thick piece of scrap wood that I shaped for the stop chocks.  After a bit of milling on both sides, I actually found that I had milled all the way through the dowel.  But, it worked out well, as I was then able to firmly insert each sides' stop chocks in the main gaff.  Secured them with glue and gave them a final sanding to best shape them to form. In the zoomed picture, the two chocks look uneven so may need to work on those a bit to more evenly shape them.  Used a #71 drill bit, as I recall, to place a hole for the bridles on both sides.
 
        
 
        
 
As we moved closer to the other end of the main gaff, five (5) sets of smaller stop chocks were placed on the underside of the main gaff.  Those were made from some 1/32" square stock, sanded down a bit and placed with just a toothpick drop of PVA glue.  Let those dry overnight before sanding a bit more to give them an angled appearance and then gave them a touch of cherry stain.  Drilled a hole using a #65 drill bit through the sides at the indicated location and soldered one more small band at the end using the 1/128" thick brass strip.  Again, I found a couple smaller eyelets than what I had previously been using and placed two at the top and bottom sides of the main gaff end.
 

 
So.... there are the five (5) completed spars.  Top to bottom - Main Boom, Main Gaff, Fore Gaff, Fore Boom, Jumbo Jib Boom.  All in all, it progressed pretty well.  Right at about two weeks' time frame from when I began sanding the five wooden dowels to their needed diameters until now.  It was fun and educational, but so glad to move on.
 

 
So, I guess now it's on to another set of challenges, trials, tribulations and victories.  Time to begin rigging, stropping blocks, tying lines, etc.  Need to sit down before jumping in head-first and review all of the available build logs before me to assess the challenges and develop a game plan.  There are some great rigging examples in that group, I know, so their work is extremely appreciative and inspiring.  With that said, I appreciate the likes, comments and criticisms of my work here, hoping that I add at least something to the Bluenose community for future builders.  Thanks! 

Continuing with hammock cranes.
 
I was able to thread the three outboard lines and test the hammock covering cloth.  I'm not truly happy with the covering cloth, I may redo that, but I do like the overall look--


 
It was blackening residue in the holes that was making it so hard to thread the line.  And the end caps were clogged with Tung oil finish.  I had to carefully try and get the drill bit through the holes and clean them out.  The angle wasn't exactly right, and I probably should have just twisted everything out and re-glued them.  Some became loose anyway (and many bent this way and that-thankfully none broke).   But after clearing the holes, I found that I could get the thread through.  By the last one, I found that with the tip just stiffened by wax, rather than CA glue, I could get them through quite well--didn't need to push and pull with the tweezers.   The CA, though it stiffened the end, did increase the diameter a smidge.
 
Here are the first set of lines through, and the next set of hammock cranes glued in.  After all the lines are threaded, and the cloth in, I'll knot off the ends of the lines--

 
Now I'm off with my daughter to my parents' house in Rochester to try and see the eclipse.   It's supposed to be cloudy, but maybe we'll get lucky.  If not, we'll still have a nice, if brief, visit with my folks.   Hoping the traffic will be manageable, but it probably will be pretty bad.
 
All for now,
Ron 

Thanks Mike!
 
Continuing on with the hammocks, I made a line of clay, which fit between the hammock cranes--

 
I wrapped this in the black painted Silkspan and tested the fit.  It looks just okay.  I may work a bit on the "wrinkles"--

 
I removed the clay/paper, realizing it would be much easier to run the line through all the hammock cranes without having it in the way.  And it was FAR more difficult than I anticipated.   I spent hours trying to come up with a way of stiffening the end of the line with superglue, and cutting a point on it, but the holes in the cranes were just too small, and some had become partially blocked with blackening deposits (I think).  I spent a lot of time with a pin trying to open the holes--very awkward with them glued in place.  Some cranes came loose from the rail, or bent (though easily re-straightened).   I even tried supergluing a strand of fly tying thread to the end of the line to lead it through the holes, but that failed like all the other attempts.  I finally searched for a thinner line in my stock, and found one.  It was just enough thinner to work--
 
 
Hopefully I can get through the rest of the holes, and finally see what this looks like with the hammock paper inside.
 
Also, trying to finish everything on the deck before rigging begins, I glued some eyebolts and rings to the deck binding strakes, and some to the channels, which can be seen in the photos.
 
All for now,
Ron
 
 
 

Another update... got another spar completed, so taking a break and getting this down in the build log.
 
FORE GAFF - This one was probably the easiest, or quickest, of the spars I've been working on.  As I have done with the others, I first worked on the end closest to the mast, which for this fore gaff meant working on the jaws that will wrap around the fore mast.  As I had done on the main boom, I used the Proxxon mill to flatten or shave the gaff on either side of the spar to give the jaws something flat to be secured to.  Then, after marking the hole locations for the jaw eyebolts, I used my Proxxon drill press to drill #65 bit holes in the jaw sides for the 0.81mm brass rods.  
 

 
Also drilled the necessary holes for the required eyebolts for the throat halliard linkage on the topside of the fore gaff and for the topsail sheet eyebolts on the underside.  Thanks to @John Ruy for his input and clarification on the plans and the needed eyebolts.  The first (left) picture is the topside, the second (right) picture is the underside with the additional eyebolt in the spar itself.  (There's one eyebolt in that underside picture that looks a bit turned, too.  Need to see if I can fix that!)
 
          
 
On the other end of the fore gaff, there are a few fittings needed.  Two peak halliard bands were shaped and secured in their appropriate locations by using the 1/64" x 1/16" brass strip.  Shaped them so they fit snuggly in their locations, removed them to drill the holes for the pins to be placed during rigging, and then glued them in place using CA glue.
 
At the end of the gaff, I shaped a small band using even thinner 1/128" thick brass strip.  On the top and bottom of this band, I drilled a small hole to accept eyebolts.  I had some smaller 2.07mm wide eyebolts that I used here rather than the thicker 2.78mm ones I have been using elsewhere.  Hopefully, these don't look too oversized for the very end of this smaller fore gaff.  I also drilled out a 1/32" hole in the side of this fore gaff just behind this band, as shown in the plans.
 

 
And, here's a picture of the full fore gaff, in all its glory. 
 

 
Going to go back and clean this up a bit, as I am with all these booms and gaffs, once this last one is completed.  With that said, I only have one more to work on... the main gaff.  See ya later...  As always, thanks for the likes, comments and criticisms.  All are appreciated.

Got a couple more of the booms completed, so a brief update...
 
FORE BOOM:
 
GOOSENECK - Wrapped a 1/64" x 1/16" brass strip (have been using a ton of these!), cut to shape and soldered.  Holy moly, the bands on these smaller booms and gaffs are going to be tiny!  Bent a small piece of brass strip and glued to the end that attaches to the foremast.
 

 
Boom Tackle Band - Soldered two strips together on one end, formed around the boom (again, very small!).  Drilled holes through the strips on the bottom of the boom to fit a 0.51mm brass rod for the link.  The circle link may be too big and I may switch it out before rigging and attaching to the fore mast.
 
Sheet Band - Similar to the Main Sheet Band that was made earlier for the Main Boom, except (yep, saying it again) this one is smaller.  Used a 0.51mm brass rod bent around a 1/4" wooden dowel for shape.
 
Clew Band - Did something a bit different for this clew band.  I used a 0.2mm brass sheet (half the thickness of the 1/64" strips I had been using) and measured and cut a 1/16" width strip from the sheet.  Came out in a nice curl as I cut it with sharp scissors.
 
        
 
Similar to what was done on the main boom clew bar, I drilled holes using a #65 micro drill bit for the link bar, but won't put link in until rigging.  Glued the clew band in place.
 
Topping Lift Band -  Used more of the 1/128" thick brass sheet that I cut to form a band at the very end of this fore boom.  After fitting, soldered and secured on the fore boom and added eyebolt.
 
The clew band and topping lift band are not at the very end of the fore boom, as shown in the plans.  Noticed this after I was done and looked back at the plans.  Hoping this is not critical in the rigging stage.  Need to do better on the remaining booms/gaffs.  With that said, here's a closeup of the end with the four (4) bands close together, as well as a picture of the entire fore boom completed.
 
         
 
JUMBO JIB BOOM:
 
Traveler Band - Used more of the thinner 1/128" brass strip for this band at the fore end of this band.  Drilled two small holes in bottom side of band for a staple-type rod insert.
 

 
Sheet Band - Similar to what I have done on the two previous booms, with the 0.51mm brass rod looped at the bottom.
 

 
Clew Band & Topping Lift Band - Again, similar to the bands that have been created and fixed to other booms.
 

 
And a photo of the full Jumbo Jib Boom completed.  Pretty straight-forward.  
 

 
Three down, two more to go!  Some techniques and operations I know I have improved on, but many, many, many things I need to work better at achieving.  Appreciate the likes, comments and criticisms, as always.
 
 

Continuing on.
 
I'm going to try using clay to stand in for the hammocks.   My plan is to wet the Silkspan, and wrap the clay.   Hopefully when it dries it will shrink a little and take on the bumps in the clay.  We shall see.
 
First test is to size the clay filler, and determine the right width to cut the Silkspan--

 
I folded this piece over the clay, and held the ends down just to try and get some idea how it will work, and look.  It hasn't been wetted, and it's also the thicker Silkpan, which I don't intend to use.  But I can waste it to test, and determine the width piece that I need.  I think I can trim 1/4 inch of the width of this piece--

 
I'm also ready to start locating the end caps and cranes on the cap rail.  After epoxying a pin in each end cap, I located them on the ship, drilled holes and dry fit them--

 
Incidentally, I ended up narrowing each cap a bit.  These looked okay in place, so I drilled more holes in the cap rail and tested the 7 aft starboard hammock cranes in place--
   
I discovered that some of the blackening on the cranes had either not taken, or had flaked off, so they will need to be re-blackened.   I also see that the end caps need some adjustment of the top curve.  The two at the entry steps are not uniform.  When I narrowed the end caps I also adjusted the angle/curve of the tops, and apparently I "fixed" some more than others.  The angles on the iron cranes will need fine tuning as well, once they are glued on.


 
All for now.
Ron
 
 

Planning ahead, I want to have some figures on the deck to give the model human scale. Without that a model could be 200 feet or 400 feet. I had a discussion with Retired Guy who suggested Vanguard Models where he obtained his figures. Unfortunately Vanguard Models no longer carries the fisherman crew set. He suggested looking at MODELU. I purchased a set of ship's crew from ModelU and a figure from Shapeways. These are 3-D print to order firms that have stock figures. Sort of like ordering photos from a stock photo house. You can get any scale you like. ModelU is in UK. I ordered March 19th and the figures arrived March 29th. I guess 10 days isn't so bad for half way around the world and a couple international borders.
https://www.modelu3d.co.uk/
https://www.shapeways.com/marketplace?type=product&q=figures
The Shapeways figure arrived ready to paint in a yellowish plastic. The ModelU figures were still attached to their printing substrate and supports. They need cutting out:

Here's the whole crew on deck(Shapeways figure is on left):

These will be challenging to paint!