Wintergreen

... go to a show and tell ...
 
... day two  ...
 
First we had to calm down Alexander, who had a breakdown after the secrets about the quality of his Sphynx was revealed the day before. Now he stands there with shattered dreams, on the pile of shards that is nothing more than a worthless and substandard model, now filled with the hankies of his bitter tears. I always told him to do a bit of research before starting to build. At least a little bit, a tiny bit. And better he would have done the scuppers of the decks properly and not just faked, as now the deck is stained with plenty of teardrops that could not drain away ...
http://modelshipworl...-12#entry258120
 

 
And dear Norbert was told, to better put planks, as the water could penetrate through the gaps in between the frames.
 

 
They even did not accept the far-fetched excuse, that these were the scuppers needed to drain out the water that came over and in by the hatches ...
 
Especially Joachim´s Vasa was judged to be unrealistic, as it is missing a very elementary part, the pirat plank that all ships of those days were fitted with ...
 

 
... and now he stands there and tries to find out where it fits.
 
Just Dieter, he was fine, as it was discovered immediately, that that little boat is an easy to build snap-together kit ...
 

 
... never build a ship, do not worry, that´s easy, just tell me where to get the kit and I will do even better :-)
 
Just Ingo, he was clever, he gleamed in the brilliance of his latest build :-)
 

 
So we really enjoyed thoroughly, DAniel

PS: Oh yeah, some models were there too ;-)
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello again and, as always, thanks for the likes and comments.
 
This time I turn to the details of the foredeck.  Although the basic structure and planking has been completed for a while, it was never attached to the hull because various components under the deck had to be completed first.  These included the guns that were done last time, the anchor bitts, and the post with sheaves for the foreyard halyard and tie system.
 
Here is the system on a contemporary model.  This is the one for the main yard, but the pieces are the same: a post attached to the deck with a number of sheaves for the halyard line; an upper ramshead block with matching sheaves and a transverse hole for the tie which comes down from the masthead; and the halyard line running between the two.  As you can see, the line goes through the deck and must pass through a series of holes or a scuttle of some sort.  There are no clear photos of this detail that I could find.
 
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I also had to figure out how to install them fully rigged, since it would be quite difficult to get to the posts once the upper decks were in place.  Even RC Anderson recommends fully rigging them, then tensioning the system with the tie and not the halyard.  Here is what I came up with.
 
I started with the ramshead blocks.  I made these up with false sheaves rather than trying to build them up since they would be rigged and the sheaves hidden under the running line.   A series of five holes was drilled in a sized piece of hardwood in two matching horizontal lines using a Dremel drill press.  Then a thin grinding bitt was laid against the wood to cut a channel from one hole to the other.  You can see where I am starting the process in the right side hole with the others in later stages of carving.
 
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These channels were carefully deepened and straightened, then angled at the ends of the cut until they approximately replicated the curve of the sheave that is not there.  This was done on both sides of the workpiece.  Now the blocks will accept the line which will look as though it is running around a circular sheave. 
 
Once all the slots were cut and cleaned up, the block was parted off to length and taken down to the ramshead shape with a sanding drum.  Here are the two for this model.  I do see that the tops of the blocks need some further shaping to match the one in the earlier photo.
 
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In a similar way the posts that will go under the foredeck and quarterdeck were cut, pierced, and shaped.  The one on the right is an early example, before my technique was perfected, and which would be replaced if it were not going to be hidden under the foredeck.  The cut at its base is so it can fit over the knee of the anchor bitts, which brings it to the starboard side of the centerline.
 
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And here are both sets, which were made up at the same time to maximize consistency.  You can see how the posts will be secured with brass rods into the deck for strength.
 
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Here is the foreyard set fully rigged.  Sharp eyes will notice that there are only 4 loops of the halyard line and not 5.  When I went to install the set initially it really seemed too large for the ship.  I went back to my photos of contemporary models and found that the 5-sheave blocks were used on the largest three-deck warships.  This small frigate would not have needed such lifting power, so I took the finished pieces to the table saw and sliced off one side of all the pieces to eliminate one sheave.  This had the happy result that the scuttles in the decks did not have to be quite as large.  More on this later.
 
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The next detail for the foredeck was the railing to keep sailors from falling into the waist and to house the ship’s bell.  I wanted to build and install it now so I could secure it from beneath the deck with metal pins before the foredeck was put on the model.  Here is a photo of a fairly fancy one from a model of a French ship of a somewhat later period.  Although this one is continuous from port to starboard, Budriot shows two gaps which will be used later to house spare spars and topmasts, so there is a long central section with two short sections flanking it.
 
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I decided that my railing would have balusters set in channels for the body of the railing, with posts that went up through a caprail and ended in shaped timberheads that could be used to secure rigging lines.  The first task was to make a fairly large number of identical balusters without spending days turning them on a miniature lathe, which I don’t have.  I opted for the mill-and-part-off method that has worked for me with support knees, shingles, and other repetitive parts.
 
On the left is the baluster shape that I selected from internet images, then the cross section of the workpiece after milling channels with the Preac table saw and rounding off as needed with a carving bitt.  On the right is the side view of the workpiece with the parallel channels cut by the saw.  Note that the grain runs vertically.
 
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Here the individual balusters are being parted off the workpiece on the Preac.  It is set up with the tall vertical fence and the thinnest, finest blade that I have.  The workpiece is being fed into the blade and is supported by a sacrificial stick held against the miter gauge.  This support stick is taller than the blade height so the end remains attached and I can push the workpiece through repeatedly, taking off identical slices.
 
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Here are four of the balusters set into upper and lower channels ready for the end posts and caprail.
 
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And here are a set of completed railing sections ready for installation.  Note that four of them are angled slightly to match the round-up of the deck.  
 
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However, when I went to install them I realized that I had made a major mistake.  I made the railing about 40 inches tall in scale, enough to keep a man from falling over it into the waist.  This looked terrible against the size of other fittings.  I went and rechecked my dimensions to find that the railing is really only 18-24 inches tall.  Proof, once again, that if it doesn’t look right, it is probably wrong.
 
Instead, a new workpiece was shaped and short balusters were parted off.  Here you can see the relative heights of the old and new railings. 
 
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You can also see that the new workpiece did not cut as cleanly as the old one.  I gave them a few coats of finish and, when dry, took off the wood fuzz with a thin pointed grinding bitt.  Here is the final set of railings, the upper ones for the quarterdeck and the lower ones with the belfry for the foredeck. 
 
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So here is the foredeck ready for installation on the model.  You can see not only the railing and the scuttle for the halyard, but some additional features whose construction is pretty straightforward:  the smokestack for the galley stove, a small grating for the galley, a set of riding bitts with sheaves (also quite low to the deck), the mast coat, eyebolts for hooked rigging blocks, and that curious rigging fitting with ten cleats set onto the deck.
 
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And here it is, installed.  Newly added are the catheads for the anchors, which are secured to the deck with headed bolts and the timberheads around the low bulwarks, secured with metal pins.  You can also see how the ramshead block was led up through the scuttle.  It was a tight squeeze but it made it, and then the scuttle was mostly closed off with wood battens to help keep the lower deck dry.
 
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Next time, the gangways and quarterdeck, including the whipstaff.
 
Be well
 
Dan
 
 

Nice looking pins Thomas!
 
For the record, a lathe, (wood or steal) is not really needed. I did the same trick with my Dremel clamped to my bench and then, as you describe, using needle files and sand paper.
 
Anything that can hold a pin of less then 2mm in diameter and spin it quick enough (at least some 1000rpm) will do.
 
I also tried tooth picks but found them to be too soft so I switched to pear or if it was apple instead in my Regina build.

Hi Mark.
Just want to say thanks for all the great photo's sir along with all the other folks photo's, they are a great help in figure out some of the items and hope you get to take more of them in the future. I did lower the leading edge of the top front rail maybe a hair or two to follow the planking behind it which does run with the sheer and used it as a stright edge. Does seem to have brought it more in line. Lowering it two much just might  mess with the items above it. You are so right Mark it is the viewpoint.One can look at it from a thousand view's and still not get it right, having your eyes and others as another set of eyes really help's to see what one doesn't.  I found out some times leveling something depends on how other items look around it which sometimes are not level. Here is a old and new showing the top rail forward edge. At the moment it is just pinned in place in case I need to take off another hair or two. 
Gary
 
 
 

Here is a few on the cannon's. Hope you enjoy them.
 
Gary



 
 

Thanks Mario and Dave.
 
 Mario your so right sir and work has kept me away from Montagu but I do look in on the site, to help me get through those times when there wasn't enough time to do any ship building. Things have eased up a bit the last month and have been working on the stern and the thirty two pounders which have all been installed and have a few more tackles to make up for them. In the mean time the stern upper and lower counter curves have kept me busy trying to get their curves just right. Seems every time I thought I had it right, found a part that didn't look just right and tore  it off just to redo it.
 
 To me if those curves are not right your eyes lets you know, and every thing else is built upon those curves. So getting them right was high on the list. A make or break sort of item. Some thing that helped was the ideal that I got out of Davids new book the fire ship comet, the quarter gallery berthing piece on page 111. He talks about how he mount this on Comet so figure I would try it. After making 3 of them, I finally manage to make a port and stbd that fit the bill and this in turn help big time in getting her upper and lower counter curves to lay proper.
 
 In the process the top plank on the lower counter was a little shy on meeting the rail of the lower counter and had to make a new one. Not glueing the planks in place and held by a small amount of glue on tree nails made pulling it off a lot less nerve racking. One thing about building up the curves of the quarter gallery is figuring out the curve of them. But there is hope for finding their curve  at least the one I came up with. English plans only show one pattern for this curve and that is on the quarter deck level, but is bigger then the ones that fit the upper deck. Taking their size off of the stern and sheer view and using the quarter deck pattern one can get it real close in size, which I do believe Montagu is just right. Sorry about the long delay in a up date. 
 
 Gary 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I have started to build the pin rails. In the Syren instructions Chuck mentions that the pin rails should be around 1/32’’ thick, but for stability reasons they are built out of a 1/16’’ thick bass wood strip. As shown in image 1 I used a compromise: I made the pin rails out of pear wood for stability and thinned them down at the (visible) side and front edges to 1/32’’ thickness, however I left the (invisible) rear edges with thickness 1/16’’ so that it was easier to drill holes to pin and glue the rails to the inboard side. As the image also shows I always built the pin rails in pairs by temporarily gluing 2 pieces of pear wood together, drilling the holes for the belaying pins and giving the part its final shape before separating the 2 pieces again. 2 mounted pin rails are shown in image 2.
 
 

Image 1
 
 

Image 2
 
 
 
I initially used the brass belaying pins included in the kit and blackened them (image 2). However, to my taste their heads are a bit short, so I looked for alternatives – ideally made out of wood. As I did not find any wooden, reasonably shaped, commercially available belaying pins I started to make them myself using my little Proxxon lathe (image 3) and tooth picks. The result is shown in images 4, 5 and 6. On the right side in image 4 you can also see how these wooden belaying pins compare to the brass versions from the kit.  Well, I have done 12 so far, so there is still a little way to go to replace them all  .
 
Thomas
 
 

Image 3
 
 

Image 4
 
 

Image 5
 
 

Image 6
 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 94 – Main Deck Framing 5
 
Because the main deck framing supports the mast partners, knees are installed as reinforcements at the partners.  I also installed them at the hatchway openings.  I made these as overlapping knees.  I did not go to this trouble for the lodging knees at the side because their fore and aft arms are not visible on the model.  I do not yet know if these central knees will be covered with decking or not.  The first picture shows some of these knees before installing.
 

 
The next picture shows a few installed at the main mast partners and at the hatch just aft of this.
 

 
I installed these central knees first before going on to the major task of setting all of the ten dozen or so lodging knees at the sides.   The next picture shows this lodging knee installation proceeding aft from the bow.
 

 
The next picture shows a closer view of this work. 
 
 

 
This is one type of lodging knee combination used on these ships and is the one I used on all of the decks.  It is the simplest – with the fore and aft arms simply butting.  They will be covered by the waterways in any case.  In the picture a knee is being marked so it can be cut to fit neatly between its partner and the beam.  Bolts are then installed, the knee is polished up and then glued in.
 
The next picture shows all of the main deck lodging knees installed.
 

 
And, finally, a picture of the full hull at this stage.
 

 
The next step will be to install the ledges between each of the beams to complete the framing of this deck.
 
Ed

Battle of the Stern - Opening Salvos
 
Reread the plans at least 10 times and compared them to the salvaged stern section from V 1.0...  realized I can do a lot better and also figured out where the errors crept in.  Then reviewed Hahn's article from the NRJ on her.  The pictures were unclear and perhaps I missed something first time through.  So... scanned the article and adjusted the pics... yep.  whiffed it.  Scan of a a scan of a printed magazine with retouched photos...  <hangs head since he knows better>
 
So, I started with some deconstruction by removing the stern post.  That done, took some basswood and worked on the filler piece.  The pics seem to show one curve (which I used for V 1.0) and plans show a different curve.  Originally, I figured Hahn found something and did the filler differently then the drawing and I followed that.  Wrong!!!!  It was the pic. I followed the drawing this time.  Much happier.
 
Also, worked on the first transom frame.  A lot happier even though it took the second try to get it right.  
 
These are "rough faired" for now.  I'll go back and finish shaping when the second transom is installed.
 

Hello all, many thanks for warm words and comments!
 
not a big update,I have produced stanchions for the ladderway rails. The images are mostly self explanable, I hope
They are turned on Unimat from 1,5mm brass road. Then finished with steel whool on Dremel Tool. The rings are from 0,3mm brass, the rails from 0,4mm.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Finally installing around ladderway after blackening
 

 

 

 
Continue to work at Q-Deck beams, and how she look now.
 

 

 
Next step will be Capstan.
 
Regards
Alex

Thanks for the likes and comments.  I'm taking them in spirit they are given.
 
 
Hmm.....  <waves hand> See the carvings?  They are not the carvings you are looking for.     Well.. that didn't work so I guess I'll do them the old fashioned way with scalpels and a moto-tool.
 
 
Michael,
I have that sense of turning raw materials into something already. I think you know that feeling also and it's a good feeling, whether it's wood or metal. 
 
 
I do that for my personal use, Keith.  The camera sees things that my eyes don't.  The last time I posted one like that, someone said it looked "un-natural" to be right side up...     
 
 
Nearly finished????   I'm reminded once more of the old "Bored of the Rings" parody and the statement:  "5-10 is your height, 160 is your weight, you cash in your chips on page 88".   In this case, I'm thinking I'm at about page 2.  But it is a journey and every page will be an adventure.
 
Back to sorting out transoms and other things. 

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 93 – Main Deck Framing 4
 
The two large fresh water tanks needed to be permanently installed before the main deck framing could be completed.  The first photo shows these two tanks in place.
 

 
The tanks were iron and rest on heavy wood bases in the hold over the keelson.  These bases were shown in earlier posts.  The tanks were made from cardstock glued on to wood blocks.   The picture also shows  tops of the lower sections of the bilge pump suction piping just forward of the tanks.   The next picture shows the run of these pipes down to the limber channel.
 

 
The pipes are copper tube.  The upper sections between these pipes and the pumps on the main deck will be installed later.  The 4”x4” dunnage timbers on the base for the forward tank can be seen in this picture – taken before setting the tanks - just aft of the pipes.  The main mast step can be seen just forward of the pipes.  (This was shot at an aperture of F32 and very slow shutter – much better field depth vs. the pictures in last post.)
 
In the next picture the framing in the midship area is approaching completion.
 

 
All of the full beams have been installed in this picture including their hanging knees and pillars.  In the picture the headers for the main hatch - with scores cut for the half beams - have been fit as well as the main mast partner carlings.  In the next picture the framing over the tanks has been completed and the last pillar under one of the half-beams is being test fit. 
 

 
All of the pillars are pinned with copper wire bolts top and bottom.  The fitting of this last pillar finishes the deck beam setting.  The next picture shows the hull with the main deck framing at this stage.
 

 
Next will come the lodging knees for all these beams and the ledges – but first a few housekeeping items needed to be taken care of.  One of these was literally a housecleaning of the workshop that might be partially noticeable in the above picture.  This tidying up also included installing 10 dozen or so functional copper wire bolts with epoxy to further secure the main deck beams and knees.  One of these is being installed in the next picture.
 

 
There are two at the end of each beam – one through the beam into the clamp and one through the beam into the hanging knee.  The other task was to apply wax finish to all of the structure from the middle deck up to just below the main deck beams.  This cannot be done easily after the ledges are installed. 
 
The deck framing has not been sanded at this stage as might be noticed.  This will be done once after all of the ledges are installed.
 
Ed

Hey Mark, the camera only takes what it sees, and evidently, it saw some very nice work!!  :im Not Worthy:
 
Frank

Hello to all who are following this build -
 
It has been a while since my last posting.  Summertime had a lot to do with it, but I also took some time away to work on a short-term and time critical project.  So here is a little diversion from this build.  It may merit a separate file, but as you will see later on, it is incomplete.
 
I was asked to restore a  presentation model of a modern container ship.  The CMA-CGM Vivaldi was built by Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in their Makpo Shipyard in South Korea.   Launched in December, 2004 she was 334 meters LOA with a breadth of 42.3 m (just under 1100 ft LOA, 140 ft breadth).  Its carrying capacity was not listed on the dimensions plaque on the model, but it is huge.  Here she is in a photo from the company website of CMA-CMG Shipping, which owns and operates her as part of one of the world’s largest fleets of container ships.
 
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The model was likely built in the same shipyard as a gift to thank CMA-CGM for the contract and was presented at the time of launch.  It is built to the small scale of 1:200, but the model is still 5 ½ feet long.  Given that the price for the ship was in the millions of dollars, it is not surprising that a good deal of care went into the construction of this presentation model. 
 
It was probably kept in one of their offices, perhaps in their headquarters in Marseille, for the last decade but then was presented in turn to a financing company in Stamford, Connecticut.  It was during the delivery of the model that things went bad.
 
Here is the crate that it came in.  You can see that although there is no obvious damage to the box itself, one of the bottom cleats is missing. 
 
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I was called in when the box was opened and it was found that one of the glass panels of the case was cracked and there was some damage to the model. My first overall impression was that this was not going to be a hard job.  Some of the containers had been detached from their mountings and were tipped over, but they were still on deck and in a line.  The superstructure was in place and there was no evident damage to the hull.
 
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Closer examination revealed that the devil had been playing in the details.  A large number of small pieces were lying on the blue felt base and some had even become trapped in the channel that the glass case sat in.  Fortunately many of them, including some quite complex assemblies, appeared undamaged like the one in the center of the photo.
 
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A repair proposal was discussed, a fee agreed to, and work began with the recovery and conservation of any detached parts.  Once the wrapping of clear plastic was removed the impact point could be seen.  It was clear that there had been one sharp blow which had chipped and cracked the glass panel, but without separating it from the rest of the case. 
 
Unfortunately, this is exactly the kind of impact that cyano glue does not like.  With the help of JerseyCityFrankie the glass cover was removed and all of the loose parts were carefully collected.  The detached container units were numbered from the bow to the stern on sticky notes and set aside.  The grey railing units could not be immediately identified, but they were put into one container for later study.  All of the smaller parts such as the lifeboats, ladders, white railings, and various unknown pieces were put in another.
 
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Now the full extent of the damage could be seen and assessed.  Along the edges of the hull most of the railings and stanchions were broken off, leaving unpainted spots showing where they had been attached.  At the stern there was additional damage where the railings and ladders had been crushed and even some pieces of the rigid styrene components had been broken.  When everything that was loose had been removed the deck was almost nude other than two container units at the bow that had somehow managed to remain in place.  This was packed up in bubble wrap and taken back to the studio in Brooklyn, NY.
 
12
 
The superstructure which had initially appeared to be generally sound was found to have suffered the most damage.  In additional to losing both lifeboats, most of the railing on the aft face was gone, as were numerous small parts for the lifeboat cranes.  All of the various radars and antennas on the topmost level were missing.  Most significantly, the starboard bridge wing was broken off almost completely. 
 
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Although the proper locations of many of the pieces could be deduced from what they were, there were a great deal more that could have gone anywhere.  Fortunately the company had a second presentation model of the same ship, the Vivaldi.  A series of photographs were taken of the other model to guide the restoration.
 
Here is the bow, showing the white lookout mast which had been detached on the damaged model.  The ladder and safety cage had been separated and crushed, but now I could see how they had to be repaired.
 
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Those gray railing units turned out to be catwalks that fit between the container units.  They sat on top of U-shaped pieces that supported the containers.  Photoetched ladders gave access to upper catwalks which were bordered by photoetched brass railings.  3-bar railings edged the deck all along the sides of the ship.
 
15a
 
The superstructure had 8 deck levels with a full array of electronic equipment on top.
 
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This area was going to be the most challenging, with radars and antenna that were all made up of very small parts that were quite similar to each other.  The photographs that I was sent were not completely helpful in specifying what went where.  Fortunately, using my Photoshop program I could take the image provided and enlarge it, remove the color, and play with the brightness and contrast until I could see almost all of the details.
 
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Now that I had the undamaged model as a guide I could start the actual repairs.  The first thing was to reassemble all of the catwalks.  Some were in pretty good shape, but others had been mauled, with most of the parts separated, some of the plastic parts broken off, and the photoetched brass rails badly bent.  Here is one of the catwalks with all its pieces and a second one after restoration.  There were 21 of these in all, which took up about half of the total restoration time.
 
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Now for the incomplete part -
 
The next several weeks were spent doing the restoration.  I took construction photos as I went, as usual, but had not gotten around to downloading them. [i know you can see the problem coming . . . ]  Soon after I took the last photograph, my daughter and her two boys came over.  One is the newborn, the other 2 years old.  While I was doting on the young one, the other found the camera.  He likes to push buttons.  Enough said. 
 
Let me describe what I did, and I hope you can follow along using photos of the completed repair.
 
All of the least damaged catwalks were put back together.  Since there were small variations in how the bases had broken off of the hull I could locate about two thirds in their original positions, fitting them together like a jigsaw puzzle.  They were numbered and set aside.  One by one the rest were repaired until there were only two left, which were severely bent, with missing parts.  Some replacement parts were fabricated from bent wire, and others from brass shim.  Missing ladders were replaced with similar ones from the spares box.
 
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Starting at the bow and working aft the containers and catwalks were glued to the cleaned up hull.  The containers sit on the corners of the catwalk bases and on a square stanchion between the forward and aft bases located on both edges of the deck.  This gives six attachment points for the double wide containers and four each for the single wide ones.  These also broke off irregularly.  Although each container unit was numbered when it was removed, several ones were out of order, and I had not recorded the orientation of the unit.  Each one was test fit to the proposed location and the irregularities let me confirm the original locations.
 
21a
 
The superstructure was the biggest challenge.  I first relocated the lifeboats and repaired their cranes.  Railings which were bent were carefully bent back and glued.  Some that had been detached were too badly bent to repair.  I had 3-bar railing of the right size in my spares box, but the rails were a bit thinner than those on the model.  I used them to replace the railings that would not be seen easily between the aft face of the superstructure and the container unit behind it.  Then I cannibalized the model railings from that area to replace railings in more obvious locations.
 
22
 
The photos that I miss most are those of the repair of the starboard bridge wing.  Here the impact had broken the brittle styrene that made up the bridge deck and the angled and pierced supports on the fore and aft faces.  The detached pieces had kicked around and were now mostly unusable shards.  I first carefully cut the damaged section away in a straight line across the deck with a miniature keyhole saw.  A piece of similarly thick styrene was cut to fit and glued in and the joint sanded smooth.  Artists acrylic paints were mixed to match the green of the deck  The shape of the aft diagonal support piece was traced from the existing one on the port side and cut out, fitted and finished. It was spray painted gloss white before being installed.  The end cap was similarly fitted.  All joints were cleaned up and touch-up painted.
 
22a
 
Using the photographs of the undamaged model the fittings and fixtures on the upper electronics decks on top of the wheelhouse were located.  Antennas, radars, and lightning rods were all glued in with cyano.  Nothing special here, just a delicate touch and perseverence.
 
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Final small detail parts were installed and all of the spots where paint was chipped or missing were touched up and the model was carefully examined to find bent railings and other defects.  I know that I got almost all of them, but I also know that a few got bye, but I'm not telling where. 
 
A new glass case was ordered and delivered from a local custom glass shop.  So here is the completed model ready for delivery to the customer.  It was driven back to Stamford, CT, with a nervous moment for every pothole and road repair that I couldn't avoid.  It survived completely intact and was installed in the office to gratifying compliments from the customer.
 
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Hope you enjoyed the divertimento.  Getting back to the QAR now.  A new build log post soon.
 
Be well
 
Dan
 
 
 

Well it depends on whether you add the claw and ball or just the simple plain type  
 
Michael

Thanks, druxey, it was also a gripping episode of clamping before the glue began to set. It keeps the pressure on....
 
Mark

Young America - extreme clipper 1853
Part 56 – Wax finishes, deck clamps
 
 
Thanks, Jim and amateur for your comments.
 
Before getting into the next part of the work, I have included some information on wax finishes, since that got some discussion after the last post.  Also, I need to make some decisions on finishes soon.  The first picture shows some wood samples that have been treated with various wax finishes.
 

 
A composite sample was prepared with four strips about ½” wide, glued to a plywood base, sanded and then buffed with steel wool.  The top strip is heartwood cherry, below that is Swiss pear, then Castelo (sometimes sold as boxwood) and at the bottom is genuine European Boxwood.  The primary woods on this model will be Swiss pear (for oak) and Castelo ( for hard pine).
 
The samples were cut apart and all treated with turpentine/wax solutions, 2 coats, and then allowed to dry for 24 hours.  They were treated, from left to right as follows. 1. natural, ordinary beeswax, 2. a blend of white and yellow food grade beeswax.  (This yellow is less yellow than the natural wax – probably less pollen.),  3. white food grade beeswax, 4. petroleum based microcrystalline wax (Renaissance), also in turpentine.  Sample 5 has no finish.
 
Sample 5 is the lightest.  Samples 2,3 and 4 are virtually identical and very slightly darker.  Sample1 is the darkest.  The next picture shows sample 1 next to the unfinished sample 5.
 

 
The contrast here is more evident.  After looking at all of these in different lights it is clear that the natural beeswax is darkest and most yellow.  The less pale yellow shows up as lighter than the blend - which makes no sense.  That, the white beeswax and the microcrystalline are virtually the same shade as the unfinished.  The slightly darker look may be unevaporated turpentine.  Turpentine dries slowly.  We’ll see what happens in a few days.  All the wood samples were chosen from pieces with pronounced grain, relatively speaking.  The test shows the quite heavy grain in the cherry as opposed to the other woods.
 
I will probably do some more work with the pale yellow wax to tone down the natural.  We’ll see.  For me, genuine boxwood probably does not need any yellow wax.  Castello needs some yellow to bring it to life.  Pear has a dusty white hue that also benefits from some darkening and some yellow – all my opinions, of course.  Although I did not test oils, varnish, shellac or polyeurthane, all are much darker and more yellow.  Water based sanding sealer (straight acrylic emulsion) has no color.
 
The next few pictures show finishing work on the mizzen step.  In the first picture very dilute liver of sulfur solution is being applied to the copper bolt heads to turn them black.
 

 
I have been advocating liver of sulfur to blacken copper for some time – including in the Naiad books – partly because it leaves surrounding wood unaffected.  I want to stress here when used like this the solution needs to be dilute (Do tests.).  In the next picture the solution has been left to dry on the wood.
 

 
At this point the solution has self-neutralized to white and dried.  Two of the bolts had some residual epoxy on them and did not turn black, so they had to be sanded again and retreated after this picture was taken.  Note that there is no trace of stain from the LOS.  If too strong a solution is used, the wood may show gray-green blotches.  If this happens, that can be removed with white vinegar.  I have only had this happen once – but vinegar seems to be the antidote.  The next picture shows the step being treated with wax solution.
 

 
This picture was taken a few minutes after the area was wetted with wax/turp solution.  In the picture it is being dry-brushed to remove and spread excess.
 
The last few pictures show work on the lower deck clamps.  The top surfaces of these need to be “dubbed off” horizontal.  As installed, the clamps are angled to varying degree over their length.  The first picture shows the pronounced angle near the bow.
 

 
The wood strip in this picture should lie flat on the clamps and be horizontal.  To achieve this, the clamps were pared over their length with a chisel as shown below, then faired out with a file.
 

 
Because the angle varies the paring needs to be tested while proceeding.  In the next picture a straight steel wire is being used for a check.
 

 
The wire fits more easily between the frames and the iron latticework.
 
After dubbing off the clamps, the next step will be installing the reinforcing breast and deck hooks at the bow and stern.
 
 
Ed

Hi everyone,
 
Big event today. I started on the stern before Christmas, and today I finally glued everything except the upper and lower counter moldings and the two vertical counter timbers above the gun port cills. The moldings need profiles shaped before gluing, and the remaining counter timbers need a little more fitting. It is all looking shipshape!
 
Very, very slow progress on this. Good thing I am not doing this for money....
 
Best wishes,
 
Mark
 
 

Thanks for the kind words and I'm still having a 'geek-gasm' over how quickly the old reflexes and data set have dropped back into their places.  
 
I believe I mentioned before that this new arrangement makes 'on deck' rigging a lot easier in terms of angles, approach and access ... enough so that I can now proclaim, "The Fore And Aft Running Rigging Is Complete!!" (cue marching band, cheerleaders and confetti, lol)
 
But as with many things in life the completion of one stage leads to yet another, with the accompanying questions and pleas for advice - but that comes after the pictures
 
First of is the best shot I could get of the halliards and downhauls for the Fore Topmast Staysail and the Flying, Inner and Outer Jib sails.  The set isn't as 'perfect' as I would like but the geometry here has been determined by the size of the blocks I used, which were too large for scale.  I did manage to set them with almost no tension so the standing rigging still looks taut - that took some finicky finessing let me tell you, lol.
 

 
Here's where I admit that in my enthusiasm for progress I neglected to take as many photos as I usually do, but I did remember to take a few.  This one's of halliard tie off's with rope coils emplaced.  The rope coils I made for these were a bit smaller then the average as with the no-sails set up most of the halliard is run through almost to the bowsprit.
 

 
And finally the downhauls tied off and with thicker rope coils to reflect that there would be more line stowed here under these circumstances.  Somehow I don't think I put enough coiled line here to properly reflect the 'real' situation, but that can be corrected easily enough - these coils are easy to get at unlike many of the others behind the deadeyes and such.
 

 
With a great sigh of relief I can now let go of the anxiety of leaving the fore and aft rigging for so long.  This leaves one major final stage rigging adventure and that is the Braces and this is the final stage for me because I am not rigging for the stuns'ls.  But before that can happen there must first be an accounting of all the little details which I have left incomplete for various reasons.  One of these details is the placement of the bumkins which can now be fixed in place - I left them off until now on the advice of many who told me not to put them in place until I had to, sound advice which I'm glad I took.
 
As well are certain finishing touches which bring with them a foreshadowing of the completion.  Finally setting and tying off the boat davits will be accomplished soon and I'm planning to simply make more on my rope coils and attach them as seems appropriate - Question Number One; Is this correct or is there a different way that these lines are coiled?
 
The anchors which I scratchbuilt so long ago can now be linked to their chains and stowed, which leads to - Question Number Two; can anyone give me a link or photo which shows how this is done?  I know the basics but it's been so long since I thought about it that I do no want to depend on my flawed recall.
 
Life rings will be attached as well, I had considered omitting them but they add a nice touch to the look.  I never did attempt to print out the ships name small enough to label the life rings ... and I doubt I will at this point, lol.
 
Holy wow ... it feels weird to be talking about the completion after all this time ...

Thanks again for the kind words and support, everyone. It certainly helps ease the struggle of trying to remember, recall and reinvigorate while trying to get the old brain to play along, lol.
 
Something that occurred to me during this return process is that though I've been away from the build for months at a time, in the olden days of wind sail that span would be considered a medium duration at best.  Sometimes ships and crews wouldn't return for years and along with the uncertainty of if they would return at all family and friends would simply hope for the best, and this was the normal shape of things.  These kinds of thoughts kept my chin up during the hiatus, not knowing if I'd ever be able to return to the shipyard  is a downer to say the least.  And with that preamble out of the way ...
 
SHE'S BACK!
 

 

 
What is mercifully not easy to see in these photos is the accumulated fine dust and thin cobwebs - you can see the little brush I was using for cleaning up process.  That plus a modified 'foot' pump were enough to deal with the evidence of time sitting.  And the next pic is after the meticulous go-over was completed.
 

 
When last I left off the Vangs, Boom Sheets and Signal ensign had been attached, awaiting finishing touches.  Months later the loose ends have been clipped and rope coils have been placed for the boom sheets.
 

 

 
The Main Topmast Staysail halliard had been tied off but the downhaul was hanging loose.  Finally got around to tying that off.
 

 
Here the ends of the signal ensign and the starboard vang have been clipped and rope coils placed ... hard to see but this is the best my camera can do.
 

 
One of the things I discovered immediately upon the return to the threadwork was that it was easier for me to accomplish the tying off to the on-deck portions.  With that, and bolstered by enthusiasm and frantic energy, I set up, ran through and tied off the halliards and downhauls for the main topgallant and royal staysails.  Here are the halliards tied off at the spider band and rope coils in place.  It might look inaccurate because it is, yet another instance of doing the best I can with a kit rebuild.
 

 
Finally the downhauls tied off and rope coils in place, again hard to make out clearly and I probably could have left some details, like the rope coils, out and it wouldn't have been noticeable ... but I felt compelled.  That let's me know that I'm finding the groove once more
 

I just realized that I neglected to thank everyone for their kind messages and good wishes - so an extra big Thank You to everyone for your support.
 
When last we left I had completed the raised work area - this opens the door to the next bit of fun which is the rest of the big re-think of the workspace.  The first bit of business was to move a shelf and re-purpose it.  This was done at the Admiral's insistence, she didn't want the shelf where it was anymore so this worked for both of us.
 

 
The shelves were open slat design so I laid some shelf liner to protect the wood and to close the gaps.
 

 
Next up came the installation of wall shelves but in a new position from their previous layout.
 

 
Then the installation of a small stuff shelf to the right of the work area, similar to the one I had before but a little prettier.  This is for stuff like glues, thinners and other regular use small items.
 

 
Then began the process of unpacking and arranging and re-arranging.  Plus assessing what I have, where it is and trying to recall th einventory and so forth.
 

 
And of course the lighting.  I'm using a couple of the old lamps plus an even older lamp which I had stored away for some future purpose.  The where of placement will likely evolve as well but the set up as it is seems to work pretty well.
 

 
 
And here we come to another stop.  Along with the re-think of the set up is also a re-think of how I store and array my working tools and supplies.  I realized that I was utilizing old patterns from my previous set up working off the couch in my living room.  Given that I am now in a truly different situation it's time for me to change things up, from where and how I store my brushes and paints all the way to the placement of the waste bin.  
 
One of the ways in which I took the new set up for a test drive was to disassemble, repair and reassemble a little 3 tier wooden jewelry box I had once used for paint storage and is now returned to that task.  As well I am in the process of fabricating a new brush holder and figuring out where I stored all the little bits and pieces of repurposed stuff, not just rigs and jigs but basics like my toothpick container and the 2 part epoxy, lol.
 
So things are going well.  Once I have a bit more of the basics nailed down I hope to move the Dame back to her berth and then begins the process of figuring out not only where I was in the rigging but What It All Means once more ... after this much time away from it all my brain can process looking at the Dame is, "Holy cow, lookit all them threads ...."

Thanks all.
 
Yes Mark the rabbet was cut using chisels, as it curves in two directions no way I could do it on a mill.
 
The parts that make up the helmport are an interesting exercise in testfitting to get them right
 

 

 

 

 

 
The straps to the counter timbers were cut from 0.2 mm brass sheet and bend to shape, 0.4 mm brass bolts (actually a bit oversized) were used to glue the strips down
 

 

 
Remco

Hi again to everyone following this log.  Thanks for all the support, comments and likes.
 
Here is the work that has happened in the last week.  I usually put two or more weeks of work into a log entry, but I am going on vacation with the family all of next week, and didn’t want to postpone it.
 
At the end of the last entry I noticed some symmetry problems at the bow.  The thin molding was low on the port side, and the starboard bulwark was too high.
 

 
Here I have corrected the problems.  I think that the fix is satisfactory, but I will continue to examine the model to see if there are any others that need work.
 

 
Next I started on the planking for the gun deck where it will be visible in the waist.  The insides of the bulwarks were planked just like the outer surface of the hull, with individual planks of birch veneer glued on with contact cement.  Planks were trimmed to cover the gunport frames and linings.   Treenail fasteners were done in the usual manner.
 

 
The planking of the deck in the waist is a little different.  Budriot’s plans indicate that the central section of the deck was made up of thicker planks than the rest of the deck.  The outermost of these planks were let into the deck beams beneath and are known as binding strakes.  They helped lock the deck to the deck beams and strengthened the entire core of the ship.
 

 
On the model I did not lock them into the structure so they are not binding strakes, but they are made of thicker stuff than the planks.  Examination of photos of contemporary French models in the Musee de la Marine (Budriot, Historic Ship Models)  indicates a pretty consistent look to this section of the deck.  The binding strakes and the gratings are dark, even painted black, while the central planking is lighter and matches the color of the rest of the deck planking.
 

 
I started with the gratings which I made earlier.  These were made on the English pattern, so I crowned them and set them down into the raised strakes so they are nearly flush.  These are the first of the early pieces to be permanently attached to the model. The binding strakes are cherry, like the coamings for the gratings, while the central planking is holly.   This is a veneer and was glued to crowned sections of basswood to match the curve of the gratings. 
 

 
Once this section was in place and pinned to the deck substrate, I drew the locations for the deck beams, starting with those at each end of the gratings and filling in from there.  They laid out with a pretty consistent pattern of 4 scale feet center to center.  
 
Now I used the holly veneer to plank outward from the center section.  I was going to saw up a bunch of individual planks and do the deck as I had done the outer surface of the hull.  But then I decided to try using one large sheet of veneer with the planks marked and scribed on.  After a satisfactory test piece was made I decided to go for it.
 
A paper pattern was made that fit the area from the binding strake to the base of the bulwark.  This was laid out onto a piece of holly veneer, but not cut.  Using a long metal ruler as a straightedge a series of 6mm wide planks were laid out on the wood.  With the veneer clamped under the ruler a pencil line was drawn with a 0.5mm mechanical pencil so all the lines would be a consistent width.  Without unclamping I scribed the line into the wood with two light passes using the back of a #10 blade.  The markings were made permanent with two coats of spray satin finish.
 

 
With the planks lined out I cut and trimmed the veneer piece until it fit snugly into the space from binding strake to bulwark.  I test fit the piece in place and lightly marked the beam locations onto the veneer.  Using the straightedge and a small square the butt joints were marked out, penciled and scribed as before.  I used a 3-step pattern with a 1-3-2-4 stagger.  I don’t know if this is historically correct for French ships of the period, but it looks right.
 
After a final sanding to smooth the deck substrate several coats of thinned contact cement were painted onto the deck and the veneer piece.  When dry the piece was laid in place and burnished down to the substrate.  This is a permanent bond, like a kitchen counter, but the treenails that will be installed doubly guarantee adhesion.
 
At the base of the bulwarks a margin plank, finish plank, and chamfered  waterway were installed.  They are cherry and contrast nicely with the birch of the bulwark and the holly of the deck.
 

 
Now all the fastening holes could be drilled.  Careening the model in the cradles gave me access without straining.
 

 
As with the hull planks, I used square treenail sticks pressed into round holes and clipped short, leaving just nubs of wood above the surface of the planks. 
 

 
When all the holes were filled they were painted with dilute white glue.  When the glue dried the nubs were cut off flush with a small sharp chisel.  The fastenings are birch which subtly contrasts with the holly without becoming overbearing.  The fastenings in the cherry binding strakes were made of walnut, also for a bit of contrast.
 

 
With the waist planked it will soon be time to work on the upper decks.  Here I have laid up the substrates for the three sections.  They are made up of two layers of 1/16” basswood glued over a curved form.   The laminated pieces held their shapes quite well after the glue dried.   Paper patterns were used to get the right outlines.  The pieces were cut on the band saw and refined with a bench disc sander.
 

 
With the deck pieces temporarily installed I fitted out the waist with cannon, the ship’s boat, and my figures. 
 


 
I don’t see anything when I examine the model or in the photos that looks obviously wrong, but my eyes are getting old and I am a bit biased.  If anyone sees anything, please tell me now while I can still get at it to change it.
 
Thanks
 
Dan

Hi all
 
Being distracted by new toys, followed by work, I haven't done much that was photo worthy, so I thought I would post a couple of "proof of life" shots having just finished the orlop deck framing.
 

 
In the background of the photos you can see the aft magazine with roof and hoods on. Some scratches still need to be smoothed out on this, and the flash makes it look worse than it really looks.
 

 
There are bulkheads still to go in either side of the aft magazine, and the platforms will be planked, but until I start work on the forward magazine and platform I won't decide how much to plank.
 
At this juncture I would say I am not a fan of carlings and ledges .... only the fore platform, two full decks, quarter deck and forecastle to do, then no more of them - yay!
 
Cheers
Rob