catopower

Without these, I'd be useless at ship modeling...
 

Yes, The Pilot Boat 'Phantom' Menace 

Well, sometimes. I'm always sensitive to posts regarding failing eyesight. I lost use of my right eye more than 30 years ago and suffer from a whole swarm of permanent floaters in the left. Many age-related vision issues (though not all) can be treated: near- and far-sightedness and astigmatism with glasses or surgery; cataracts with what is today fairly simple surgery. Macular degeneration is more serious but if caught early it can be arrested. If you've not visited a vision specialist, you should. Don't simply accept that your vision will decrease with age. Many people do and won't seek medical advice. Foolish pride says this half-blind man.
 
You do adapt to low vision. I'd pretty much given up hobby work until about 10 years ago when I discovered that good lighting, magnifying visors and patience can overcome many vision issues. Granted, I'm not as good at small details as I used to be but planning and patience are the most important. You will lose small parts. Have a good number of spares handy. Take frequent breaks. Whenever your eyes are tired or you feel frustrated, find something else to do. Even during long stints of working, focus on things at different ranges every couple of minutes.
 
Well... I'll step down off my soap box now.

The next issue on the Mary is to fix the positioning of these fittings that work like cleats or kevels. Does anybody know the proper term for these Dutch belaying points?

These fittings were mounted so low on the bulwarks that there was no room to wrap lines around them. I had to debond the glue that was used on them, which was some kind of rubbery adhesive. It made them easy to remove, but left a lot of rubbery glue spots and some hard to remove residue on the model. I did what I could and re-attached the fittings with thick CA glue.
 
This allowed me to finally rig the lines for hauling up the lee boards. Rope coils to come later.

Looking ahead at rigging the vangs, I noted that an image of the Utrecht reconstruction showed small pin rails at the bulwarks, aft. So, I added those to the Mary. I didn't have a whole lot of room to do this, as the forward wall of the stern cabin is about an 1/8" further forward than the plans show. This was an adjustment made by the original modeler. Made the spacing a little tighter, but I think the new pin rails should be okay.

 

Trevor, thank you for the kind words. It is good to know that I'm not crazy for missing Sierra so much. 
 
Sebastian is a good, new companion, though he eats everything in sight, and then is ready for more! 😊

The next issue on the Mary is to fix the positioning of these fittings that work like cleats or kevels. Does anybody know the proper term for these Dutch belaying points?

These fittings were mounted so low on the bulwarks that there was no room to wrap lines around them. I had to debond the glue that was used on them, which was some kind of rubbery adhesive. It made them easy to remove, but left a lot of rubbery glue spots and some hard to remove residue on the model. I did what I could and re-attached the fittings with thick CA glue.
 
This allowed me to finally rig the lines for hauling up the lee boards. Rope coils to come later.

Looking ahead at rigging the vangs, I noted that an image of the Utrecht reconstruction showed small pin rails at the bulwarks, aft. So, I added those to the Mary. I didn't have a whole lot of room to do this, as the forward wall of the stern cabin is about an 1/8" further forward than the plans show. This was an adjustment made by the original modeler. Made the spacing a little tighter, but I think the new pin rails should be okay.

 

The next issue on the Mary is to fix the positioning of these fittings that work like cleats or kevels. Does anybody know the proper term for these Dutch belaying points?

These fittings were mounted so low on the bulwarks that there was no room to wrap lines around them. I had to debond the glue that was used on them, which was some kind of rubbery adhesive. It made them easy to remove, but left a lot of rubbery glue spots and some hard to remove residue on the model. I did what I could and re-attached the fittings with thick CA glue.
 
This allowed me to finally rig the lines for hauling up the lee boards. Rope coils to come later.

Looking ahead at rigging the vangs, I noted that an image of the Utrecht reconstruction showed small pin rails at the bulwarks, aft. So, I added those to the Mary. I didn't have a whole lot of room to do this, as the forward wall of the stern cabin is about an 1/8" further forward than the plans show. This was an adjustment made by the original modeler. Made the spacing a little tighter, but I think the new pin rails should be okay.

 

I've been having a really hard time working on my ship modeling projects. I started this topic a few days after my dearest kitty cat, Sierra, passed away. She'd been seriously sick for a couple weeks and couldn't hang on. I ended up having to work a lot extra to pay for her vet bills, plus had a hard time concentrating at home. So, things progressed very slowly, even though at times I thought things were getting better.
 
Now, maybe they are getting better. I don't know. But, I did compile some of the work I've managed to accomplish over the last two-and-a-half weeks...
 
I set the sails aside and started working on the main hold-up on this model, which is the making of chainplates. Once these are made, the shrouds can then be dealt with. It’s been a long time since I’ve made decent chainplates. On the Charles yacht model, they are simple wires that wrap around the deadeye and the bottom ends are inserted straight into the hull. I wanted something a little more sophisticated. So, I created chainplates from brass wire that are soldered to form flat plates with a loop at the bottom end for a nail.
 
Took me a while to consistently form brass wire into the right shape. For this, I had to make a little fixture with a piece of brass rod for the big loop (for stropping the deadeye) and a hard, stainless steel pin for forming the small loop for the nail.


It’s also been a long time since I’ve done much silver solder work, and I couldn’t find my silver solder and flux, so I had to buy more. I was sure I had some somewhere, but I guess it was hidden away somewhere some time ago. The soldering process turned out pretty well as you can see below. After soldering and cleaning up the new chainplates, I blacked them, starting by soaking them in vinegar (acetic acid) solution, rinsing them off, and them soaking them in a dilute solution of BlueJacket’s Brass Black solution. I find that BlueJacket’s metal toners work the best of any metal toners I’ve used over the past 30 years.


Deadeyes are 5mm, 3D printed resin deadeyes sold by Syren Ship Model Company.
 

Trevor, thank you for the kind words. It is good to know that I'm not crazy for missing Sierra so much. 
 
Sebastian is a good, new companion, though he eats everything in sight, and then is ready for more! 😊

So sorry to hear about Sierra. It is unbearable to have to say goodbye to a companion, but it does get easier over time.
 
Sebastian is fortunate to have found such a good home.
 
Trevor

Regards from Felix

Thank you, Patrick. Her death has been really hard to take, we were very close. 
 
Two weeks ago, I was going crazy and decided that while I could never replace her, I needed to do find someone to take over her job at least. So, I adopted this little boy kitty from the animal shelter to serve as my new ship modeling supervisor and kitty overlord. I named him Sebastian, and he's been helping out a lot. It's taken him this long to get used to me, but we're managing pretty well now.
 

 
 

I've been having a really hard time working on my ship modeling projects. I started this topic a few days after my dearest kitty cat, Sierra, passed away. She'd been seriously sick for a couple weeks and couldn't hang on. I ended up having to work a lot extra to pay for her vet bills, plus had a hard time concentrating at home. So, things progressed very slowly, even though at times I thought things were getting better.
 
Now, maybe they are getting better. I don't know. But, I did compile some of the work I've managed to accomplish over the last two-and-a-half weeks...
 
I set the sails aside and started working on the main hold-up on this model, which is the making of chainplates. Once these are made, the shrouds can then be dealt with. It’s been a long time since I’ve made decent chainplates. On the Charles yacht model, they are simple wires that wrap around the deadeye and the bottom ends are inserted straight into the hull. I wanted something a little more sophisticated. So, I created chainplates from brass wire that are soldered to form flat plates with a loop at the bottom end for a nail.
 
Took me a while to consistently form brass wire into the right shape. For this, I had to make a little fixture with a piece of brass rod for the big loop (for stropping the deadeye) and a hard, stainless steel pin for forming the small loop for the nail.


It’s also been a long time since I’ve done much silver solder work, and I couldn’t find my silver solder and flux, so I had to buy more. I was sure I had some somewhere, but I guess it was hidden away somewhere some time ago. The soldering process turned out pretty well as you can see below. After soldering and cleaning up the new chainplates, I blacked them, starting by soaking them in vinegar (acetic acid) solution, rinsing them off, and them soaking them in a dilute solution of BlueJacket’s Brass Black solution. I find that BlueJacket’s metal toners work the best of any metal toners I’ve used over the past 30 years.


Deadeyes are 5mm, 3D printed resin deadeyes sold by Syren Ship Model Company.
 

Thank you, Patrick. Her death has been really hard to take, we were very close. 
 
Two weeks ago, I was going crazy and decided that while I could never replace her, I needed to do find someone to take over her job at least. So, I adopted this little boy kitty from the animal shelter to serve as my new ship modeling supervisor and kitty overlord. I named him Sebastian, and he's been helping out a lot. It's taken him this long to get used to me, but we're managing pretty well now.
 

 
 

Thank you, Patrick. Her death has been really hard to take, we were very close. 
 
Two weeks ago, I was going crazy and decided that while I could never replace her, I needed to do find someone to take over her job at least. So, I adopted this little boy kitty from the animal shelter to serve as my new ship modeling supervisor and kitty overlord. I named him Sebastian, and he's been helping out a lot. It's taken him this long to get used to me, but we're managing pretty well now.
 

 
 

Thank you, Patrick. Her death has been really hard to take, we were very close. 
 
Two weeks ago, I was going crazy and decided that while I could never replace her, I needed to do find someone to take over her job at least. So, I adopted this little boy kitty from the animal shelter to serve as my new ship modeling supervisor and kitty overlord. I named him Sebastian, and he's been helping out a lot. It's taken him this long to get used to me, but we're managing pretty well now.
 

 
 

I've been having a really hard time working on my ship modeling projects. I started this topic a few days after my dearest kitty cat, Sierra, passed away. She'd been seriously sick for a couple weeks and couldn't hang on. I ended up having to work a lot extra to pay for her vet bills, plus had a hard time concentrating at home. So, things progressed very slowly, even though at times I thought things were getting better.
 
Now, maybe they are getting better. I don't know. But, I did compile some of the work I've managed to accomplish over the last two-and-a-half weeks...
 
I set the sails aside and started working on the main hold-up on this model, which is the making of chainplates. Once these are made, the shrouds can then be dealt with. It’s been a long time since I’ve made decent chainplates. On the Charles yacht model, they are simple wires that wrap around the deadeye and the bottom ends are inserted straight into the hull. I wanted something a little more sophisticated. So, I created chainplates from brass wire that are soldered to form flat plates with a loop at the bottom end for a nail.
 
Took me a while to consistently form brass wire into the right shape. For this, I had to make a little fixture with a piece of brass rod for the big loop (for stropping the deadeye) and a hard, stainless steel pin for forming the small loop for the nail.


It’s also been a long time since I’ve done much silver solder work, and I couldn’t find my silver solder and flux, so I had to buy more. I was sure I had some somewhere, but I guess it was hidden away somewhere some time ago. The soldering process turned out pretty well as you can see below. After soldering and cleaning up the new chainplates, I blacked them, starting by soaking them in vinegar (acetic acid) solution, rinsing them off, and them soaking them in a dilute solution of BlueJacket’s Brass Black solution. I find that BlueJacket’s metal toners work the best of any metal toners I’ve used over the past 30 years.


Deadeyes are 5mm, 3D printed resin deadeyes sold by Syren Ship Model Company.
 

Thank you, Patrick. Her death has been really hard to take, we were very close. 
 
Two weeks ago, I was going crazy and decided that while I could never replace her, I needed to do find someone to take over her job at least. So, I adopted this little boy kitty from the animal shelter to serve as my new ship modeling supervisor and kitty overlord. I named him Sebastian, and he's been helping out a lot. It's taken him this long to get used to me, but we're managing pretty well now.
 

 
 

I've been having a really hard time working on my ship modeling projects. I started this topic a few days after my dearest kitty cat, Sierra, passed away. She'd been seriously sick for a couple weeks and couldn't hang on. I ended up having to work a lot extra to pay for her vet bills, plus had a hard time concentrating at home. So, things progressed very slowly, even though at times I thought things were getting better.
 
Now, maybe they are getting better. I don't know. But, I did compile some of the work I've managed to accomplish over the last two-and-a-half weeks...
 
I set the sails aside and started working on the main hold-up on this model, which is the making of chainplates. Once these are made, the shrouds can then be dealt with. It’s been a long time since I’ve made decent chainplates. On the Charles yacht model, they are simple wires that wrap around the deadeye and the bottom ends are inserted straight into the hull. I wanted something a little more sophisticated. So, I created chainplates from brass wire that are soldered to form flat plates with a loop at the bottom end for a nail.
 
Took me a while to consistently form brass wire into the right shape. For this, I had to make a little fixture with a piece of brass rod for the big loop (for stropping the deadeye) and a hard, stainless steel pin for forming the small loop for the nail.


It’s also been a long time since I’ve done much silver solder work, and I couldn’t find my silver solder and flux, so I had to buy more. I was sure I had some somewhere, but I guess it was hidden away somewhere some time ago. The soldering process turned out pretty well as you can see below. After soldering and cleaning up the new chainplates, I blacked them, starting by soaking them in vinegar (acetic acid) solution, rinsing them off, and them soaking them in a dilute solution of BlueJacket’s Brass Black solution. I find that BlueJacket’s metal toners work the best of any metal toners I’ve used over the past 30 years.


Deadeyes are 5mm, 3D printed resin deadeyes sold by Syren Ship Model Company.
 

I've been having a really hard time working on my ship modeling projects. I started this topic a few days after my dearest kitty cat, Sierra, passed away. She'd been seriously sick for a couple weeks and couldn't hang on. I ended up having to work a lot extra to pay for her vet bills, plus had a hard time concentrating at home. So, things progressed very slowly, even though at times I thought things were getting better.
 
Now, maybe they are getting better. I don't know. But, I did compile some of the work I've managed to accomplish over the last two-and-a-half weeks...
 
I set the sails aside and started working on the main hold-up on this model, which is the making of chainplates. Once these are made, the shrouds can then be dealt with. It’s been a long time since I’ve made decent chainplates. On the Charles yacht model, they are simple wires that wrap around the deadeye and the bottom ends are inserted straight into the hull. I wanted something a little more sophisticated. So, I created chainplates from brass wire that are soldered to form flat plates with a loop at the bottom end for a nail.
 
Took me a while to consistently form brass wire into the right shape. For this, I had to make a little fixture with a piece of brass rod for the big loop (for stropping the deadeye) and a hard, stainless steel pin for forming the small loop for the nail.


It’s also been a long time since I’ve done much silver solder work, and I couldn’t find my silver solder and flux, so I had to buy more. I was sure I had some somewhere, but I guess it was hidden away somewhere some time ago. The soldering process turned out pretty well as you can see below. After soldering and cleaning up the new chainplates, I blacked them, starting by soaking them in vinegar (acetic acid) solution, rinsing them off, and them soaking them in a dilute solution of BlueJacket’s Brass Black solution. I find that BlueJacket’s metal toners work the best of any metal toners I’ve used over the past 30 years.


Deadeyes are 5mm, 3D printed resin deadeyes sold by Syren Ship Model Company.
 

Yes, The Pilot Boat 'Phantom' Menace 

After losing pieces in the rug, I put a new crisp white drop cloth under my work area. Makes it easier to find pieces and keeps the rugs safe (not just from glue and paint but also from when you stab yourself in the hand with a razor blade and bleed all over yourself). 

Meant to include these yesterday. Showing rabbets actually cut in.

Hello,
Here are hopefully current pictures of the build. Most of the bodywork is completed, the sternpost is in place, the rudder has been fitted and shows a reasonably parallel line with the sternpost. One of the problems I encountered was the supplied keel, while laser cut, had quite a warp to the forward 2 inches. That caused misalignment with the stem. Wood filler and a lot of cautious sanding has got the area looking much better. The tool shown is a Dremel round cutter. I used that to create the small cutout to accept the flat at the top of the rudder. I also worked on the cockpit area. The problem I ran into there was the supplied cutout was oblong and to the right of center.

Hello Bruce,
Interesting, I am at a similar point in my build of the Mary Taylor. You are a few steps ahead of me. You mentioned about dents in the hull, my trick to prevent dents is to seal it with a few coats of tinned Z-Poxy Finishing Resin to prevent dents. I am planning to copper plate my Mary Taylor with individual plates. I did my Blue Jacket Revenue cutter the same way as opposed to copper paint. I was pleased with my result. Also if you wish to see how I sealed my hull you can go to my "Yankee Hero" and "Revenue Cutter" logs.
 
BTW: Good Luck with your build!
 
Bill T.