No Idea

Hi druxey - I can't help but feel that the garboard plank gives new builders more issues than any other plank. I've read so many descriptions of this plank that it even confuses me. I think we need to come up with a more simple description of it. Yes its generally wider, yes it can go through a 90 degree twist at the stern and yes it needs to be parallel to the keel. But its still a plank that needs to be made just like all of the others. There are more clever builders on here than me that could attempt to resolve this issue in plain language.

Was the bulkhead laser cut? Did you remove all of the burnt edge first. The ash that’s left can stop a decent gluing joint

I have had a very enjoyable Sunday afternoon reading you build from start to the present. I think your approach to using edged tools is absolutely commendable and your build is beautiful, there is so much to learn right here. Having seen this I am very tempted to buy some carving tools from Mikhail and was wondering if there is a webpage to look at there tools? I'm looking forward to the next update.

Thats very interesting Kurt and thanks for sharing

Hi Kurt that's really interesting as I have been leaning to the same conclusion as you, especially when ripping long lengths of thick hardwood for planks. Can I ask which is your preferred carbide blade?

Just a guess but I think he left the long Allen key in which locks the blade height and it may have rattling around

Mine does this sometimes and all it is on mine is the blade catching on the zero clearance insert. It makes a tinkling noise but stops after a while. It’s amplified on theses saws because the insert is thin aluminium and underneath it is basically a sound box. Nothing to worry about at all. Without doubt my Byrnes saw is the best tool I have ever bought.

Hi - I can see why you may want to swap woods - but as you have said this is your first wooden boat build. Why not just build it and get some great experience under your belt. You will learn loads and solve many small problems along the way too. There are some really tricky planks that you would have to cut and it will take you ages. This may put you off a bit for a first attempt as it should be fun and inspire you to more complex builds. Just my thoughts that’s all 👍

You can sometimes really over think things. I’m terrible for doing this and my experience has shown that more often than not the doing is much easier than first believed. Just go for it and solve each small problem as it arises. If your unsure whether to glue something, clamp it in place first and have a play around with it. You’ll get the idea but make sure you have fun and enjoy your build

Yea your right there but what’s the worst that can happen. It’s a diluted mix of PVA which most likely is just going to coat the surface of the wood. Nothing more and nothing less Ah come on that’s hardly inspiration for this builder and has nothing to do with their original question. Personally I wish the builder really good luck and I hope it turns out great 👍

If this is the kit I’m thinking of the planks are already spilled “shaped” by the manufacturer and the hull is clinker built. This would mean that there’s going to be no lateral bending forces, in fact I bet there’s very little bending involved at all due to the pre-manufactured planks. Its also a very narrow hull which will also help. Personally I would follow the instructions word for word as the kit is designed with ease of build in mind. If I’m thinking of the wrong kit then just ignore my ramblings 😂

Great get reading they are fantastic sources of information. They will explain about lining the hull, tapering planks, fairing the frames and working out planking widths and runs. As you progress it will all make sense and make your planking so much easier for you. And it will look great too. Don’t get too hung up on how to heat the wood for bending. All methods work as they all involve heat and it’s a case of finding what works best for you. I like to use a hot air gun whereas others like to drop planks straight into a boiling kettle. It all works no problem. As for clamping there are many options such as the micro mark clamps to name but one. I’m sure others will be along soon to give you a few pointers.

Hi - firstly if you haven’t read the planking for beginners in the articles database it’s a great place to start. It really will answer most of your questions. Personally I don’t use pins to hold planks I much prefer to use clamps but that’s my choice and others will use their own methods. I haven’t made the Rattlesnake but looking at the pictures the frames are quite spaced apart. This will make planking harder to get the correct shape especially if it’s single planked. Can you fill between the frames with some balsa to get the Hull shape before planking? If you can it will make the job much easier. Now as you have decided to steam your planks, you will make them flexible but at the same time the moisture content will increase. This expands the wood so you need to clamp/pin/hold your planks in place and then let the plank dry out. Once this has occurred you can then glue it in place. If you don’t then usually the glue doesn’t bond very well and also the plank shrinks a bit. This will then give you gaps. By the sound of things you have an electric aeropiccola bender which is a great bit of kit so why not try heating and bending your planks with that first? Have a good read through the data base and good luck with your build 👍. Effective planking is all about the planning of the entire job before one plank is even laid.

Selecting glue is such a personal opinion, as what I use would not suit another builder. I guess it depends on how you want to actually do your build and how long you want to take doing it. Personally I only use aliphatic resin as it suits my needs but does take a while to dry. That means that I need to plan how I clamp my joints and it takes longer to do rather than using CA. For me building is a pleasure and not a rush but other builders need to be quicker. My way is not superior to the others its just my way and you need to experiment to find the glue that suits you building style.

Goodness me - If I read the above post I would give up and go home. Its a model boat not a critical piece of a nuclear plant that has to be so precise that lives are at risk. Take the good advice above and just trace it out buddy. Making boats is not that hard really, oh and good luck with your build

I've done this type of joint many times and my solution has always been in the flux that you use. You are trying to solder copper to brass but in a very small dimension. There is no need for silver solder this is only required when strength or excess heat is present so soff solder is more than adequate. Use a very acidic flux such as "power flow" which plumbers use but don't breath the fumes in. Once the flux has turned to fluid just touch the joint with any type of soft solder and its job done. You can either use a small flame or soldering iron it really doesn't matter - its all about cleanliness of the joint and the acidic flux does this job nicely

Hi ir3 - can I ask is this sander 240v? If it is I would be very interested

Thats is very inventive and the results looks great well done. Can I ask what make of soldering block do you use? I've not seen one like that before

Hi Bob what an amazing and thorough answer..... so basically if I wanted to build a beautiful ship like the one in the picture, I would need to have a working understanding of lofting theory. Then apply this understanding to my drawings as best I can, given the limitations of my information. Which would mean plenty of bedtime reading, research and some technical drawing practice. The reason for my interest in this thread is I too want to improve and build ships like the one above. I think I’ll order some more books

Or buy some fishing hooks from your local tackle shop and cut the eyes off the hooks. Leave a little bit of the shank on and then drill a shallow hole into the top of the block to make locating it easier when gluing

Hi Bob that’s just the Allen key laying on the saw. I think the type of keys supplied now are different to the old ones. It’s got a sleeve locitited over the short end to give you a better grip

Hi All I've been playing with the tilting table to try and find a reliable way of setting an angle. I've come up with this idea of using an adjustable Vee Block which seems to work quite well. Its simple - set the angle that you want on the Vee Block and then slide it under the table. On the first pictures I used a small piece of 19mm plywood as a parallel to space it out, and on the second example I used a steel 3-2-1 block which worked ok as well. This could easily be clamped in place to give extra support when the saw is in use. I've taken pictures of a simple 45 degree angle but I guess any angle could be dialled up. What are your thoughts? Would this make life easier for some users or not? Edit - Sorry the pictures are not in the correct order but I guess you get the idea

Hi Messis - Just a thought; if I was doing this I would twist the copper around the blocks and leave nice long twisted tails just like the drawing. I would then solder the very ends together to stop them untwisting. Then to fix them to the mast which looks like an aluminium tube, I would place them all on the mast and hold them in place with tape. Next I would fill the mast with epoxy resin. This would fix them all at the same time and they would be going no where.

Well I'm glad to say that at last I've managed to have a go with my Bynes saw and I'm really impressed with both the quality and power of such a little saw. I firstly read the instructions and just generally became familiar with the saw and gave the table a good clean and a coat of wax. I also changed the plug to a UK three pin plug as it came supplied with a two pin Euro type plug. I had three large pieces of timber which were mahogany, pear and boxwood. I first ran each piece through to make them into manageable widths and also to make sure that the sides were parallel with each other. I used the supplied blade for this purpose which plowed through all of the different woods with no problems what so ever. The finish actually was surprisingly good even with this blade and with a little sanding I think you could easily use this blade for making planks; that is of course if you could afford the waste as the kerf is wide. I then changed the blade to a slitting saw. I fitted the .40 - 4" blade and ran this through a zero clearance insert which was very easy to do. I fitted the 4" blade as my timber is 13mm thick and the small .30 - 3" blades would not be strong enough in my opinion to make this cut. After a couple of trial runs with some scrap timber I set the fence to 1.6mm which again is so easy with the micrometer adjustment. Anyway enough chat here are pictures of my first few go's at cutting planks on my new saw, I did get a little surface burning but this is my technique which will improve and not the fault of the saw. The planks are 1150mm (3.75ft) long, 1.6mm thick and 13mm wide and are boxwood. The final width will be 6mm so I can get two planks out of each strip. Wow what a machine I'm extremely impressed so far!

Hi druxey thanks - I really do like steam but it has to be done right otherwise its very dangerous not just to the builder but also people around them. We have very strict regulations over here and all boilers must be certified. In fact the regulations have just been updated and now all gas tanks must be tested and certified to 400PSI. Here's a picture of my current steam build.