EdT

Lovely, lovely work, Druxey. For some reason, I do not use rubber bands, perhaps because the box I had was so old that they broke whenever I stretched them. I have forgotten how useful they can be. Thanks for the reminder. Photography is often too discerning of our errors and unrepresentative of the actual visual effect, especially on reflective surfaces, but what would we do without it? Larch was a commonly used wood on American ships. The shipyard name for this here was hackmatack, more properly tamarack, the same as European larch - about 75% the strength of white oak. Thank you, Bill C. Ed

Thanks for your comment, rob, and for the likes. Gaetan, The dye completely penetrates and there is no build up. I dilute the Tung Oil (` 50% mineral spirits or turpentine) to increase penetration and use only pure unmodifiedTung oil. (Some Tung Oil finishes have additives to shorten drying time or are partly polymerized to insrease build up and gloss.) The first two, sometimes three, coats are completely absorbed into the wood. The deadeyes are end grain. I only want to use enough to put a slight sheen on the wood and do not want any build up. The excess oil is wiped off after each application. So any oil build up is undetectable. Oil and finish should only be mixed if they have a common solvent. The dye crystals I am using are soluble in water, but I do not know if they are soluble in oil - probably not. They may be soluble in alcohol or turpentine. I don't know. Actually, it is better if they are not soluble in the finish, because then the finish will not leach out the color. The water-soluble walnut dye, once it has dried, is not affected by the oil. If you stain a piece of wood with a stain that is soluble in oil, mineral spirits or turpentine, apply the oil stain (for example Minwax) and let it dry. Then apply oil and wipe it off with a clean rag as directed. You will notice that the rag will be darkened with stain, meaning some of the stain has been removed. Dyes - water or alcohol soluble - will not be affected when oil or for example Wipe-On Poly is applied. I believe the water soluble walnut stain could be mixed with a diluted acrylic medium (water based emulsion), but this would limit its penetration in wood. I might try that on a rigging stain to see how it works. It may eliminate a step. I have not tried this. We can never learn enough about finishes. Ed

Yep, looking good, Gary.

Gaetan, I am not adding the binding agent to the dye, but applying it after the dye dries. On the deadeyes I am applying 3 coats of diluted tung oil after the dye dries. Ed

Thank you for the interesting note, Gaetan. I love the references to guarding the pot and also on letting the dew dry. Aniline is an organic compound discovered in the early 19th century. In the late 1800's it found use as a dye material and a substitute for natural indigo dyes (blue). This was the beginning of major new developments in synthetic dyes of all colors. (If you have heard of the company BASF, the A stands for aniline.) I believe most dyestuffs today are aniline based. The aniline molecule has a complex structure that is broken down by UV light, hence aniline dyes will fade over time. I am not a dye expert but after experiencing fading problems - first using fabric dye (Rit) on model railroad scenery and wood structures and then later (and of more concern) using synthetic dyes on fine furniture projects - I looked further into these materials. I no longer use synthetic dyes for this reason. Vegetable dyes do not exhibit this problem, but have been largely replaced by synthetics. For example colors of antique oriental carpets retain their true color over long periods of time. The other reason I avoid dyes, especially on wood, is because unless fixed they remain soluble as I mentioned in the post. They need to be fixed with a binder like Tung Oil, linseed, soya, shellac, varnish, acrylic, etc. Pigmented dyes, inks and paints generally do not fade, so in the past I have used thinned acrylic artists' paints to dye rigging and/or wood. These also have their own binder built into the finish. Based on someone's post on MSW and the use of walnut stain for rigging by Bernard Frolich (The Art Of Ship Modeling), I searched and found natural walnut dye - Van Dyke crystals. I believe this should be a good choice for coloring hemp running rigging. Yarns of hemp were treated - before laying up into rope- by passing them through a tar bath, hence their brownish color. This seemed to fade over time toward white - probably as the tar solution evaporated or was washed out. I expect to treat standing rigging with a diluted black acrylic gouache - perhaps with some burnt umber. This will provide the color and binder for moisture resistance. I am basing this choice on American practice as described by S.B. Luce (Seamanship, 1868). This describes treating standing rigging with a "coating of blacking made of tar, whiskey, lamp black, litharge and sea water." Tar was probably coal or pine tar. Litharge is lead oxide of some type, probably to add body to the mix. I assume whiskey is spirits (alcohol). While tar is more brown, the lamp black (carbon black) would make this permanently black. A little carbon black goes a long way. Ed

Gaetan, you are right that it is never too late. Of course Young America is quite large even at 1:72. Everything you say rings true. Every time I drop a small part on the floor I curse the small scale while looking for it. I am sure the larger scale has its challenges in that more detail must be incorporated. You have clearly mastered that. Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853 Part 156 – Channel Deadeyes 2 The first picture shows one of the 16” (.222” actual) deadeyes with its three holes drilled. This was done in the milling machine using a four jaw centering chuck and a calibrated rotary table. To retrace the steps, the rotary table with the chuck was first centered in the lathe, by eye in this case. The x-axis feed was then locked to prevent me adjusting it by mistake. The y-axis was then moved so the drill would be off center by one-half the deadeye radius – then also locked. The next picture shows the setup ready to receive a deadeye. A dowel was placed in the chuck to set the deadeye height, to help level the deadeye for drilling, and to prevent me dropping deadeyes into the abyss. This is smaller in diameter to avoid fouling the jaws. In the next picture a deadeye has been placed and the chuck jaws tightened. In this picture the nib left after parting in the lathe is being filed off. This side of the deadeye was then sanded. The other side was sanded and polished in the lathe. The next picture shows a hole being drilled. The holes are 1.1 times the diameter of the 5” (circumference) lanyards, in this case 5”/3.14 or 1.6” (.022” actual). They are spaced at 120 degrees using the graduations on the rotary table. To keep the small drill from skating on the curved deadeye face, the bit is chucked short and the hole is started with very light pressure using the Sherline® sensitive drilling attachment – an indispensable tool, shown before in these posts. The table is then rotated 120 degrees for the next hole. The next picture shows how this side of the deadeye was then polished using a Scotchbrite® wheel.. The next picture shows the 16” channel deadeyes just after removal from the Tung oil jar. These were first dyed using a saturated water solution of Van Dyke® crystals. This non-fading vegetable dye is made from black walnut husks. As long as there are undissolved crystals in the jar, the solution is saturated and will remain at a constant maximum concentration. I hope to use diluted solutions of this later to dye hemp rigging. Some readers will know that I am not a fan of dyes – for two reasons: most solution dyes are aniline based and will fade on exposure to light, and secondly solution dyes remain soluble after drying and therefore can smudge and run if wetted. I have not relented. This natural walnut dye should never fade and finishing the deadeyes with Tung oil will prevent later smudging. I considered dyeing these black using India Ink, but after comparing decided to go with the walnut, which I believe is a more realistic color. I used oil diluted with 50% mineral spirits and expect 2 or 3 more dips on these before getting the desired polish. That will consume 2 or 3 days before these are ready to be bound on the channels. This should allow time to make the chain, bindings and preventer plates – and to prepare the channels. There are other sizes to make as well. Ed

Beautiful work as always, Gaetan. Oh, how I envy your scale. Ed

Truly amazing work, Glenn. Ed

Thanks, everyone. Carl,I'm trying to get adjusted to "repetitive". There is a lot of that kind of work ahead. Druxey, the stop snaps over the cross feed bed rod. It is made from a piece of brass tube slit longitudinally slightly off center. A picture is attached below. This can be used in any setup by making the first of a number of repetitive cuts, loosening the tool in the holder, bringing the cross feed up against the stop, then resetting the tool in the holder.

Young America - extreme clipper 1853 Part 155 – Channel Deadeyes 1 The next major task on the model is to fit out the channels with deadeyes, chains, bindings and backing (preventer) plates. You may notice in these posts that some of the terminology diverges from what most of us are used to – namely British RN usage. I am trying very hard to use 19th Century American terms, gleaned mostly from texts from the period. So, the first step is to make the 16” chain deadeyes for the fore and main mast lower shrouds. There are 24 of these required at this stage. For dimensions of this type of rigging component, I am relying largely on James Lees book, unless other specific references can be found. The deadeye dimensions thus used are thickness slightly larger than half the diameter and holes located at one-half the radius. In the first picture, a square of boxwood has been chucked in the lathe, partially turned to the 16” (.222”) diameter, and rounded at the end. I tried Castelo and pear for these but ultimately went with the harder European Boxwood – from a stock of slightly off-color material that I have and designate as Boxwood ‘B’. This left a minimum of fuzz and chips on the turnings. The cutter in the picture was rounded on both sides of the center for the 16” deadeye rounding. The brass stop on the cross-feed lathe rails was used to set the depth of cut. In the next picture, the rounding on three deadeyes has been cut and the cut point for the fourth located. The deadeye thickness was set with the z-axis calibration wheel on the lathe. After the first three deadeyes are finished and parted off, the cutter will be indexed for the next three from the fourth cut shown. Three is about the maximum for this unsupported turning. In the next picture the grooves for the iron bindings (strops) are being cut using another special cutter sized to fit the iron ring. These grooves were centered and cut to depth by eye. The next step was to sand and polish each deadeye before parting as shown in the next picture. This was done with sanding and polishing sticks. The polished deadeye was then parted off as shown in the next picture. The last picture shows three parted off deadeyes. The nibs left from the parting will be removed in the drilling step – to be described in the next post. Ed

Looks like you've got it to me, Maury. "Cute" is my favorite word for model parts. Ed

Druxey, In my experience metallic paint is always difficult (i.e. disappointing). To simulate brass and gold or silver braid or buttons on military miniatures I worked through a lot of different materials. In the end the best result came using metal powder purchased from an art dealer mixed with a binder just before use. Oil based binders, however, darken with age as I am sure you know. There are now some acrylic products sold for miniatures painting that do not yellow that work fairly well. I believe Liquitex sells a gold acrylic. Miniatures paint from a company called Vallejo is about the same. Good Luck. Ed

Bravo, Frank. Ed

I don't know what more can be said, Alberto. The model is simply beautiful. Ed

Its been a while since I commented on, or even looked at, this log, but there have been some "likes" lately and I wanted to thank those who have posted those. Completing this model seems like ancient history, but it still occupies prominent space just over my shoulder as I type these words. Thanks. Ed

Looking good, Gary. The reason I advocate cutting the gun ports later, is first, because they are set at a fixed height above the deck, and you have not yet laid out deck heights. Second, cutting these from fair lines along the hull based on the deck line will ensure a fair attractive line. Ed

I would say that he upper face of the wing transom at the post should be at the base of the lower counter, that is, at the top of the stern post rabbet. In addition to supporting the stern, it beds the ends of the fore and aft hull planking and marks the beginning of the athwartship counter planking above. This planking transition is usually covered by a tuck rail. Ed

Frank, Its good to see you getting off the ground with the model. I look forward to following your progress on this interesting and unique project. Ed

Another masterful metalworking achievement, Micheal. While I envy the larger scale work, I am sobered by the thought of the level of excellence required to pull this off well. Congratulations. Ed

Johann, these are in a class by themselves. Simply beautiful work. Ed

Young America - extreme clipper 1853 Part 154 – Quarter Davits It seems like a while since the last post. Progress has been slowed by research, documentation and drafting for the rigging. However, about a week ago the last of the four boats was completed and since then the quarter davits have been made and fitted. The first picture shows the completed 22’ cutter that will be secured to the starboard davits. The 6 sweeps were made from drawn bamboo flattened at one end. The quarter davits were secured outside the hull just aft of the main channels. The forward davits were supported by the channels. The aft pair were held by iron brackets. One of these and its bolt is shown in the next picture. This is a top bracket – longer to account for the inward slope of the sides. The lower brackets are shorter with a hole only in the top. All were made from the brass rectangular section shown in the picture. In the next picture a lower bracket is being installed. The rails were mortised to fit these. The next picture shows the top end of one of the davits in the lathe after cleanup of the solder and rounding of the top bearing. The ends were fashioned by the method used for the poop handrail stanchions. The next picture shows one of these shaped. After cutting to size, this davit was fitted as shown in the next picture. The next picture shows both starboard davits fitted with their hooks installed. The last picture shows all four davits. These will probably be blackened to simulate iron, but I have not decided. They appear black in one of the photos. I will probably put these into storage with the boat until later. There is quite a bit of rigging to be installed along the rails that will best be done with maximum access. The above picture shows a break in the belaying pins that extends almost the length of the boats. Pins forward of the six at the forward end of the space will extend uninterrupted all the way to the cargo opening and virtually all will be used. There were a lot of sails on one of these ships. A half dozen square sails per mast, an equal number of studding sails on the forward masts, plus quite a few fore and aft sails. While I do not intend to install sails, I do plan to install most of their rigging, excluding most of the studding sail rigging and other items like staysail sheets. I expect access to be an issue. Ed

Addendum 3 to Volume I This addendum addresses a number of inconsistencies between sidings shown on frame patterns and sidings specified on the List of Dimensions. As a general rule, the List of Dimensions should be considered the governing source for dimensional data and should be consulted before sizing any pieces. For convenience, siding dimensions were shown on the patterns. Placing dimensional data in more than one place is bad practice and usually results in inconsistencies, as it did with a number frame patterns. These inconsistencies and a few other minor issues have been corrected and revised patterns are attached. Patterns not included in the attached need no correction. The sidings for cant and half frames given in the List of Dimensions are generalized. The specific sizes for each of these frames can be taken correctly from the patterns. In virtually all cases, the corrected sidings differ from those on the original patterns by 1 or sometimes 2 inches (.014” to .028” actual). In most cases the pattern differences resulted from transitions to the reduced sizes at the ends of the hull, being taken at different stations than specified on the List of Dimensions. Since decisions on where to place these transitions was somewhat arbitrary, since size differences are small, and considering that most of the upper futtocks will be covered by outer planking, some may consider these corrections somewhat academic. However, this should not be license for inconsistencies in the information. I for one, consider precision to be important and regret these errors in the original package. All the addenda will be included on the CD in the next volume. An updated pattern sheet for the bow timbers is also attached. The original labeled both sides stbd. Ed 1to72 Bow Timbers Patterns.pdf 2f.pdf 17a.pdf 17f.pdf 18a.pdf 19a.pdf 20a.pdf 21a.pdf 22a.pdf 23a.pdf 24a.pdf 25a.pdf 26a.pdf 27a.pdf 27f.pdf 28a.pdf Aa.pdf Af.pdf Ba.pdf Bf.pdf Ca.pdf Da.pdf Ea.pdf Ef.pdf Fa.pdf Ff.pdf Ga.pdf Gf.pdf Ha.pdf Hf.pdf Ja.pdf Ra.pdf Rf.pdf Sa.pdf Sf.pdf Ta.pdf Tf.pdf Uf.pdf

Blocks and deadeyes are not far off, Carl.

Nice work so far, Tom. I too like to see some bread and butter work enter the fray. I found the Microplane to be a very good tool for hull shaping, leaving little dust and able to shape a softwood quickly hull right up to the 120-grit hand sanding stage. A little late for you at this stage, but maybe for later. Ed