Bob Cleek

You certainly won't go wrong with a Rope Rocket, I had the opportunity to buy my PL4 new at half price from a fellow who found he had no need for it. I'll mention in passing that somewhere I recall recently reading where Alexey Domanoff moved from Belarus to Poland. If so, his EU customers may find the cost of his products, considering shipping, taxes, and customs duties, if any, may have changed significantly. Similarly, shipping, taxes, and customs will likely increase the cost of Syren Rope Rockets to EU customers. I'm not sure exactly what the governments' "bite" will be for you in Spain, but it seems US modeling products are sometimes prohibitively expensive for EU modelers, if the discussions of the subject on this forum are any indication. Check out Chuck's tutorial videos if you haven't already:

With the full disclosure disclaimer that I haven't done everything that can be done on my PL4, and have never used a Rope Rocket, but am familiar with similar rope makers... Changing bobbins on the PL4 is no big deal. You just remove the wing nut on each bobbin and slip another bobbin on the spindle and replace the wing nut. Bobbins cost a few cents and marked bobbins can hold various sizes of thread, eliminating the need to unload bobbins to change thread size. Making different sized rope is simply a matter of using different sized thread. If one wishes to vary size by adding threads to each strand, the multiple threads can be wound on the bobbins simultaneously, although I'm not sure why one would want to unless the properly sized thread were unavailable. (Multiple threads in strands runs the risk of yielding "square" rope.) If one wishes, laid rope can be laid up to produce thicker rope by simply loading it on the bobbins. (Bobbins load in seconds using a bobbin winder. The PL4 will make three or four strand rope of any size needed for modeling. The Domanoff machines and the Syren Rope Rocket each have their strengths and weaknesses. At the end of the day, I suppose we all dance with the girl we brought. Domanoff pros: Automatic operation requires less acquired manual dexterity to operate. Relatively unlimited length of rope produced. Less chance of differences in appearance between batches due to variables in lay-up of same-sized strands. Small footprint for operation. Rope length not limited to linear space available. Produces cored rope which is essential for correct four-strand rope and wire cored rope for shaping catenaries. Equal thread tension is less of an issue if bobbins wound on tensioned bobbin winder. Easy electronic adjustment knobs for operating speed, take-up spool speed and direction of lay. Exact characteristics of rope can be replicated by duplicating the operating settings on the rope maker. Produces rope neatly wound on spool ready for convenient storage should one wish to do so. Dominoff cons: Higher in cost than Rope Rocket for top-of-the- line PL4. Other models are lower in cost and worth a hard look if money is a major consideration. Cannot unlay thread and lay up in opposite direction while on the machine. Multiplying strands in the lay up requires loading separate threads together on bobbins. (I've never tried this.) Rope Rocket pros: Considerably less expensive than PL4. Larger "user base" on MSW with more information on operation, etc. Operator can reverse thread lay direction on the rope maker by twisting thread in opposite direction. It's the "hare" to the PL4's "tortoise." Rope Rocket probably will probably lay up short lengths of rope faster than the PL4, but, production of greater amounts of set-up time for the Rope Rocket, given its limited length capacity, will probably leave it in the PL4's wake as the PL4 just keeps turning out rope until the amount of thread on the bobbins runs out. (This observation does not apply to Rope Rocket virtuosos like Chuck Passaro, Rope Rocket's designer, who uses it to produce prodigious amounts of the highest quality after-market rope available anywhere.) Rope Rocket cons: Requires practice to achieve manual dexterity required to produce consistent excellent results. Tightness of twist and lay "by feel" dependent upon operator's skill and experience. Individual thread tension setup is critical to resulting quality of rope produced. Length of rope produced limited by linear space available to operate the rope maker. Cannot produce cored rope. Un-cored four-strand rope is susceptible to "lay collapse." No question about it, each machine produces fine rope in the hands of a knowledgeable operator. I'd say, on balance, that it's six of one and half dozen of another. About the only thing that people seem to agree upon when it comes to rope making machines is that the Model Shipways one is junk. ******************************************************************************************************************************** Re: cored rope, from Alexey Domanoff's instructions: When do we need a central core? Let's take a look at pics: This is 3-strand rope. You may see - everything is ok, all strands lay in their places. You may need central core (made from very thin wire) if you'd like to "form" rope as you like. Diameter of this core shouldn't be more than 0.155 * R. This is 4-strand rope. You HAVE TO add central core, otherwise strands will try to be in "center" of the final rope.

Making your own works, too. They probably won't be as nice as "store bought" ones, but the price is right. Everybody has a box full of old Allen wrenches and broken drill bit shanks. See: how to make micro chisels - YouTube

The "spools" on these machines are standard home sewing machine bobbins. You can purchase them at sewing stores or online for very little money. They are reusable and you have to wind your thread on them yourself. This is easily done on any sewing machine, which will have a "bobbin winder" on it, or you can use a dedicated bobbin winder. I prefer the dedicated bobbin winder because I don't have to get out the sewing machine to wind bobbins. I believe it is important to use a bobbin winder not only because it is extremely tedious to wind thread on a bobbin by hand, but also because it is important to wind the thread on the bobbin with uniform tension. Bobbin winders have an adjustable tensioner which ensures uniform tension of the wound thread on the bobbin. Review the rope-making information in the "discussions" section of the MSW forum regarding the best threads to use and the "receipes" for various sizes of scale rope. Discussions about Rope Making - Model Ship World™ Guttermann Mara polyester thread seems to be the favored material at present. Linen thread of suitable quality has become very difficult to source in recent times. The Simplicy Bobbin Winder is portable and runs on either AA batteries or plugs into a household outlet. (I'm uncertain if they make one that runs on the household line voltage in Spain. We have 120VAC here in the US. I'm sure there must be a European equivalent in any event. Bobbin winders are a common sewing accessory.) US$22.00 from Amazon: Amazon.com: Simplicity Sidewinder Portable Bobbin Winder, White

Given your stated purposes, the easiest, fastest, and least costly method would be manual drafting. The fairness of a hull is easily determined with a batten. However, if you are enamored with CAD, that's another matter entirely. There are many forumites who are thoroughly versed in CAD options who can steer you in that direction.

See: The forum search engine is your friend... sort of.

Guys, he's looking for 5mm wide hinges (the distance across the hinge when open.) 7mm and up are commercially available. It appears that 5mm hinges are not. If 7mm works for him (maybe he may want to file them smaller,) those are readily available. They have a wide price range. As usual, MicroMark is far and away the most expensive. The best prices will be found from dollhouse miniatures parts supply houses on line.

I just tried the link above. I had no problem. The link for the PDF of the instructions drops right down.

I've looked for these without success, as well. The smallest ready-made miniature piano hinges around are 7mm open width. You'll hate me for saying so, but this is probably something you will have to fabricate yourself. I'd suggest buying some brass tubing of suitable thickness and some brass strip of the suitable width. Mark the strip with the widths of the hinge tubing and "spot solder' every other space marked out with silver solder. Then cut the unsoldered sections of tubing free with a jeweler's saw at the marked spaces (keeping track of which loose piece came from where, so they all fit back perfectly.) Then reassemble the cut pieces by running a piece of brass wire down tube as the hinge pin. Then "spot solder" the loose sections of the tube to the other piece of brass strip of suitable size and gauge to make the other leaf of the hinge. Tedious, yes, but simple enough. A jig made of a length of wood with a groove cut in it for the tube to lay in and strip holding "fences" so that the brass strips fetch up against the side of the tube at the right height and not move around will make the soldering assembly go much easier.

That's for sure. If I were anywhere near his location, I'd be seriously thinking of picking up the lot, keeping what interested me, and selling the rest again on eBay. I'm guessing the proceeds from selling what I didn't want to keep would equal or surpass what I paid for the total.

True. He doesn't have the "Byrnes Trifecta" (table saw, thickness sander, disk sander,) either, but as the saying goes, "He who dies with the most tools, wins!"

I hope it's okay to re-post something from eBay here. I don't know the seller, but I figured the deal was something some MSW forum member would love to hear about. Someone is selling a complete ship modeling shop setup, plus a MS Syren kit and a wooden airplane kit, all for $1,000.00 "buy it now" or "make an offer." (No bidders to contend with. Just "first come, first served.") This seller must have bought just about everything Micro-Mark offers for ship modeling. (Not all of which I'd buy, but his choices certainly include all of the Micro-Mark stuff worth having.) He's got a Dremel "system" with drill press, router, flex shaft, etc. He's got all the hand tools anybody would want. Tons of material and supplies and parts and a nice wooden machinist's tool chest. Everything there for scratch building, too. Plus a bunch of books and magazines. What's odd about it is that all of the stuff looks absolutely clean and brand new, almost like he (she?) bought stuff but never used it. (To some extent, I've been there, done that, and got the tee shirt myself! Haven't we all? ) He mentions that he's selling it all, lock, stock, and barrel, because health reasons preclude his using it. He says it would cost about $3,000.00 to buy, but I'm guessing it would be way more than that. There is a catch, of course. Because of the amount and weight of it all, the cost of shipping would be prohibitive, so you have to pick it up yourself or arrange to have somebody get it for you. He lives in Utah. If you are anywhere in Utah, or know somebody who is, definitely check it out. Even if you aren't in Utah, it's worth drooling over and enjoying the bittersweet feeling of "the one that got away." Here's the link: https://www.ebay.com/itm/234092055148?hash=item3680f94a6c:g:-HMAAOSwGqZg8crL

Tasty! I've never seen Dietzgen spline weights before but I knew they once made them. Usually, what you see on eBay are the similar Keuffel and Esser models. The few I have are a real collection of odd ball homemade "beaters." I keep meaning to cast myself up a nice matching one of these days. Yours are very reasonably priced for "store bought" ducks. I don't know of anybody who's making them anymore except Edson. I'd love to come across a bunch of the fancy bronze ones Edson makes at a bargain price, but $61.00 a piece is too rich for my taste retail. These are really something any serious scratch-builder ought to own. See: Edson Boat Accessories: Spline Weights (edsonmarine.com)

Minwax does use the term "stain" loosely in their advertising text, but if you read the label carefully, you will note that Minwax doesn't call their above product a "stain." They call it a "Wood Finish." That is, "something other than a stain." They claim it "Penetrates, Stains, and Seals," but they don't claim it is a "stain." Minwax does sell stains per se and calls them that:

Yes, well... that's USS Constitution's coppered bottom after her latest restoration, I believe. As discussed here in another post which included pictures of that copper being applied, it was noted that "the hull plates do not look smooth even when viewing from a distance" because the workmen who applied them did a poor job of it. Critically, they used carpenter's hammers to drive the copper tacks instead of a proper coppering hammer with a wide slightly convex face which drives the tack nearly flush with the plate without unduly denting or distorting the plate. The object of it all is to make the bottom as smooth as possible. The more texture to the bottom, the more resistance to the water and the slower the boat sails. Ham-fisted workmen making a mess of USS Constitution's copper plating using flat faced sharp edged carpenter's claw hammers: Cutty Sark's newly replaced bottom sheathed with Muntz metal (a type of patent brass) showing the use of proper hammers by skilled workers: Close up of Cutty Sark's Muntz metal sheathing: Coppering hammer: See: C. DREW Coppering Hammer (numismalink.com)

It's the water that raises the grain. No water, no raised grain. Bend your wood using dry heat. A bending iron is good if you have one. If not, a small clothes iron works well. A piece of metal pipe of suitable diameter can be heated from the inside with a torch and used by bending the wood against it. Some have even found good success by using a microwave oven to heat the wood. Use the forum search engine to see various dry heat methods. Review Chuck Passaro's great video turtorials on plank bending in the resources section under the "More" drop down menu at the top of the forum page. Water based paints run the risk of raising wood grain if they are too thin because of their water content. If using water-based paints, prime the wood with thinned shellac as mentioned above. Shellac will not raise the grain. it is thinned with alcohol. Oil-based paints will not raise wood grain. This is a significant advantage of oil-based paints, although it is a simple matter to prime wood for water-based painting using shellac which dries very quickly.

I hope everybody is sitting down, because this is going to cause a lot of people to gasp in horror... If it's an accurate depiction one desires in the scales we usually build models, using real copper to "copper" bottoms really isn't the way to go. It is difficult to work with and nearly always produces a poor result. Model kit manufacturers include copper tape and foil in their kits because it's just one more inexpensive way to make consumers think their kits are "high quality." As many have noted, prototype coppered bottoms look nothing like what the majority of coppered bottom models look like. To achieve an accurate scale depiction of a coppered bottom, one must consider the principle of "scale viewing distance." Scale viewing distance is the distance between a model viewer's eye and the model multiplied to full scale. In a 1:48 (quarter inch to the foot) scale model, one foot of scale viewing distance is what the viewer would see from 48 feet away from the real ship. At two feet of scale viewing distance, which I'd say was a "close look," the scale viewing distance of a 1:48 scale model is 96 feet, or a third of the length of a football field or about the length of two big semi trailers. For a 1:96 scale model (1/8" to the foot) a two-foot actual viewing distance equals a scale viewing distance of 102 feet. Can your eyes see a half inch copper tack head against a copper plate at a hundred feet? Of course not. One way to accurately depict copper plating at model scales is to use paper "plates" which are of scale thickness. This is quite thin paper. (You can do the math.) Glue the plates onto the hull. Soaking the paper plates in water will allow them to be contoured to bends and curves as needed. When the glue dries, apply a coat of thinned shellac which will soak in to the paper, harden and stabilize it, and serve as a primer for painting. Then paint and weather the "copper" plates to appear, at scale viewing distance, like the real thing. Apply quality paint sparingly so as to preserve the barely visible plate edges. (If for some stylistic reason you wish to depict your coppered hull as bright and shiny, use quality copper-colored metallic paint.) When plating a model hull, "Less is more." is the key. I know that this method will not yield a "real copper" coppered bottom, but it will look a lot more like the real thing than real copper itself and creating that compelling impression of realism in miniature is what it's all about, no?

Remember, best results are realized when you only use synthetic bristle brushes for water-based paint (acrylics) and natural bristle brushes for oil-based paints (enamels.) For very fine detail, check out the offerings on eBay for "nail brushes" (sometimes called "dot brushes,") used by manicurists for painting fingernails. They come in a variety of small sizes and are dirt cheap. Buying fine artists' brushes in small sizes can get expensive fast. Beyond that, the size and type of brushes to buy depends on the size and type of painting you are going to do. Find a local art supply store and buy brushes as you need them. You'll soon build up a good selection. Clean and store your brushes properly and they will last a very long time.

Wow! That's what I call a sale. There are some real bargains there.

As mtaylor said, you are definitely exhibiting the symptoms of scratch-building, AKA "kit bashing." This is known as "going over to the Dark Side." It seems you've discovered the dirty secret of most kits: there's no way anybody can build a model that looks like the the picture on the box the kit came in without supplementing what the box contains. To achieve a model as good as what's on the box cover, the builder has to do a lot of customization and research, not to mention having the skills necessary. Your work is quite impressive for a novice. The next thing you know, you'll be building from scratch. Before that, do a couple of really good quality models. Don't let the average-quality European (or, God forbid, Chinese counterfeit) models turn you off to the hobby. Try one of the really good kits to really impress yourself with what you can accomplish. Just a couple of observations... I'm not sure if your photos show your coppering as complete or not, but in the off chance they were showing what you thought was a completed job, be aware that the coppering covers everywhere there's wood below the waterline, including the entire keel and rudder. You might also consider adding a patina to the copper (if the tape hasn't been coated to prevent that) or paint it to accurately depict the true appearance of a coppered bottom. This is a stylistic thing, I suppose. Some like shiny copper bottoms, but they don't really exist in real life. Also, cannon balls are colored black, so you may want to paint them flat black. Nice work on the propeller, although I'd be hesitant to encourage people to "flick" it when the model is done. If it isn't permanently mounted as yet, you may want to file or sand the casting seams from it. Fortunately, Mamoli did provide an historically accurate two-bladed propeller. Some kits provide inaccurate details like that, since it's cheaper for them to use the same castings in multiple kits. The propeller would have been of iron and should be painted flat black, of course. If you really wanted to make yourself crazy, you could install an electric motor to slowly turn the prop at scale speed and a smoke generator for the stack. (Smoke generators are a model railroading item, sold in model railroading catalogs.) I mention this just to give you an idea of how creative some modelers have gotten.

Well, I learn something new here every day! I've had one of these pin vises for years, along with a collection of others. I never had any idea it unscrewed to open and contain two double-ended collets!

Sure do. Lots of them. A good selection of tweezers, forceps and hemostats for openers. Do a search on YouTube for "how to tie surgeon's knots" and you'll find tons of video tutorials for medical students on how to tie suture knots with instruments. The micro-surgery videos are very instructive. There are tricks to using the instruments to tie fine knots in difficult places. I recommend you get a pair or two of long 10" or 12" tweezers which can reach across a deck to tie half-hitches on belaying pins on pin rails. I am also a big fan of the "ear polypus.' Here again, get a long one with some real reach. https://www.pjtool.com/4368-8-ear-polypus-alligator-clamp.html?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=ear polypus&utm_content=Tool- PLA- Shopping&utm_campaign=Tool- PLA- Shopping&msclkid=1bff71b841351a0b9cf9114e069d22e3

I still have a stash of that MS "balloon cloth" from the "Yellow Box Era." I don't think it's really anything other than a finely woven linen cloth. It was called "balloon cloth" (or sometimes "ballooner cloth") because they used to make hot air balloons out of it. It was also used by bookbinders to bind high quality hand-bound volumes. I searched for it online and kept getting hits for fabric with hot air balloons printed on it! I only found one source which appears to be the read deal, in three weights: heavy, medium, and light: https://fabrics-store.com/all-fabrics?hsa_tgt=kwd-77240888451493:loc-4084&hsa_grp=1235851277083946&hsa_src=o&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_mt=b&hsa_ver=3&hsa_ad=&hsa_acc=6560444710&hsa_kw=www fabric-store com&hsa_cam=1705433906&msclkid=83c7a17969641b583bd5c18f2c462432&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=[TDM] Branded&utm_term=www fabric-store com&utm_content=Branded

Now that you mention it, I remember seeing that technique in Darch's book. At the time, I also winced at the use of lead shot, which could "bloom" and fall apart. While I haven't yet had occasion to try it, I'd do much the same with FIMO, but instead of placing the line inside a ball of soft FIMO, I'd use a piece of lost wax wire* which would melt away when the FIMO was baked in the oven, leaving a small hole for the line to be run through. If the hook or eye at one end of the block had a small hook in its mounting peg and the FIMO was formed around it, the wire hook or eye would be well held in the hardened FIMO after baking. As most know, FIMO plastic clay (which is sold by other manufacturers under different brand names) can be rolled very thin and block cheek shapes can easily be cut or stamped cookie cutter fashion from the thin sheet of FIMO. * "Wax wire" is used by dental labs and jewelry manufacturers in the lost wax casting process. They are sticks of uniformly sized casting wax in various diameters, usually expressed in wire gauges. See: https://contenti.com/jewelry-casting-supplies/carving-specialty-waxes/round-wax-wires

You would most likely find Harold Underhill's Masting and Rigging: The Clipper Ship and Ocean Carrier, Used copies seem to be readily available through Amazon. There' sone losted for $3.99! That's a steal! https://www.amazon.com/Masting-Rigging-Clipper-Ocean-Carrier/dp/0851741738