Bob Cleek

Easier still is a method I've used with satisfaction: Laminate "Hahn style" frame shapes (and whatever else desired) with PVA glue using birch tongue depressors sold in quantity dirt cheap at craft supply stores. These can be neatly "chopped" at angles using a standard "classroom" paper cutter, which, BTW, is also a very handy ship modeling tool.
 

 

Funny coincidence. I happened to see this book listed in the WoodenBoat Store book section: Crash Boat published in 2021. It apparently recounts the exploits of the ASR's in the South Pacific. I thought it might be of interest to you if you haven't come across it in your research as yet.  See: Crash Boat: Rescue and Peril in the Pacific During World War II: Jepson, George D.: 9781493059232: Amazon.com: Books (Shop around, it may be available for less elsewhere. Apparently available in both hardcover and paperback.)

Funny coincidence. I happened to see this book listed in the WoodenBoat Store book section: Crash Boat published in 2021. It apparently recounts the exploits of the ASR's in the South Pacific. I thought it might be of interest to you if you haven't come across it in your research as yet.  See: Crash Boat: Rescue and Peril in the Pacific During World War II: Jepson, George D.: 9781493059232: Amazon.com: Books (Shop around, it may be available for less elsewhere. Apparently available in both hardcover and paperback.)

Easier still is a method I've used with satisfaction: Laminate "Hahn style" frame shapes (and whatever else desired) with PVA glue using birch tongue depressors sold in quantity dirt cheap at craft supply stores. These can be neatly "chopped" at angles using a standard "classroom" paper cutter, which, BTW, is also a very handy ship modeling tool.
 

 

Growing up, we lived in a house with hardwood floors that required regular waxing with one of those "iron holystones," too. When I got old enough, that job fell to me. I was greatly relieved when Bissell came out with an electric floor waxer for home use! I have no idea whatever happened to that old hand buffer that I had to swing back and forth. It'd be good for a "What is this tool?" contest these days.  

Easier still is a method I've used with satisfaction: Laminate "Hahn style" frame shapes (and whatever else desired) with PVA glue using birch tongue depressors sold in quantity dirt cheap at craft supply stores. These can be neatly "chopped" at angles using a standard "classroom" paper cutter, which, BTW, is also a very handy ship modeling tool.
 

 

Easier still is a method I've used with satisfaction: Laminate "Hahn style" frame shapes (and whatever else desired) with PVA glue using birch tongue depressors sold in quantity dirt cheap at craft supply stores. These can be neatly "chopped" at angles using a standard "classroom" paper cutter, which, BTW, is also a very handy ship modeling tool.
 

 

The machine that are useful to you will very much depend on the jobs that they are needed for.
 
My Byrnes 5" disk sander is an integral part of my process.  I need a lot of precise end meets end joints that have zero room for play. I have never needed anything more aggressive than 220 grit and even that chews thru narrow stock quickly.  I need A LOT of light at the action point. I do not know if a slower speed would be of much help.   The key step is with the feed rate of the stock. The mass of the 5" disk does not mess around - it takes a while to power down - the dust collection is as effective - better even  - than with any other machine that I use.  Were I using plastic as a material, the variable speed 4" would be vital to avoid melting.  With wood, finger force rate can control heat generation.
 
I have a combo 1" belt/5" disk machine. Mine is branded Dremel, but all of the ones that I have seen look the same.  I find it noxious to use.  For the disk - the table is poorly designed and fabricated.  Dust collection is a joke.  The belt is too narrow and the tracking is flimsy.  It takes being overly generous to call what it has "a table".  Dusk collection is an unfulfilled wish.  It is useless for inside curves and the wrong geometry for outside curves.  A drum is better at doing both.  There is a single contact point with a round drum.  Collateral loss is limited by the round versus a flat grit face.   I guess for other types of woodworking, this could be a useful tool.  Ship modeling involves working with complex curves and this limits our degrees of freedom for useful machines.

 
 

Excellent advice about powered modeling tools! To this in fourth place after the above mentioned three, I'd add a quality stationary disk sander and I'd say move heaven and earth to buy one of the new Byrnes 4" variable speed disk sanders. There are lots of cheaper alternatives on the market, but the mass of the disk and the variable speed set the Byrnes variable speed model light years ahead of the rest. If that's just too costly, you should at least get the regular Byrnes 5" fixed speed disk sanders. Nobody I know of makes a better fence and table system on a disk sander than Byrnes. 

Easier still is a method I've used with satisfaction: Laminate "Hahn style" frame shapes (and whatever else desired) with PVA glue using birch tongue depressors sold in quantity dirt cheap at craft supply stores. These can be neatly "chopped" at angles using a standard "classroom" paper cutter, which, BTW, is also a very handy ship modeling tool.
 

 

I found that a relatively narrow belt sander was useful for general shop work (furniture, metalwork), but have only used it for one application in model making - setting the table at a slight angle from the belt to adjust the angle of 2 deck cabins (made from solid blocks) where they meet the the fore and aft decks, respectively, on my Gorch Fock restoration.  The builder had the face of the higher decks at a slight angle, as the hull had been cut from a single block of pine ... so I imagine that if shaping a block for a hull from scratch, the 'hogging' of material (after band sawing) would be made much easier with a belt sander.  It was certainly helpful shaping pieces for repro wooden dolls of the Colonial era.  I'm seeing some advantage to a solid hull versus P.O.B. - but each has its own plusses and minuses.
 
  I think that the most useful wood modeling powered tools are a scroll saw (makes cutting-out curved pieces from stock a breeze), a mini table saw (super useful for straight cuts from various model stock - as a full size table saw is both overkill and too dangerous for small work) and a variable speed rotary tool (foot controlled, and there are very many things that can mount on the rotary tool for a particular job on the model) ...  These are my 'go to' machines of choice.  Obviously, higher priced quality tools are best in the long run, but if money is tight (many of us have Admirals to report to), you can get less expensive alternatives that will work, as long as you are aware of some limitations.

I have a combined belt and disc sander. I don't think I have ever used the belt sander for model making. The disc sander is single speed and I constantly find myself wishing that I could turn the speed down. I am thinking of buying a variable speed disc sander and relegating the combined machine to non modelling work.

Small disc sanders range from the single (high) speed models to the variable speed state of the art models made by Byrnes Model Machines with many in between at all price points.  All are highly useful.
 
I assume that the belt sander that you mention is a stationary one, not a hand held model.  In my opinion belt sanders are way to aggressive for fine work and have little direct application to model making.
 
I have both disc sanders and a stationary belt sander.  I use the disc sanders all the time.  The belt sander is only used to grind and sharpen cutting tools for my metal lathe.
 
Roger

If you have a table saw you could make your own plywood that would be more suitable than anything that you could buy including the high priced stuff.  Cut strips from ordinary lumberyard construction grade pine and laminate them with  PVA glue. Two plies with grain oriented differently and joints staggered Harold Hahn style should work.
 
Roger

A shameless plug for the (very) inexpensive thin rip guide sold by MSW’s owner the Nautical Research Guild.  Using this, the wood being cut is not squeezed between the fence and the blade.  This should produce more even cuts.
 
Since you haven’t used the Saw for a while, have you checked the fence alignment.  There are instructions for doing this here on the forum.
 
Adding to Mark’s comment #2 above, a handy Saw accessory is a simple block of wood that can be used to press the piece being cut against the fence.  Using this, the right hand pushes with the push stick while the left with the wooden block presses the wood being cut against the fence.  The NRG’s guile eliminates the need for this.
 
Roger

Hi - If you had the arbours wrong the blade would not run true and give you all sorts of problems - you would know it wasn't right.
 
So assuming they are ok if your wood is tapering during a cut it could be one of many reasons.
 
1.  The edge of the wood that is on the fence is not straight and true.  This will need correcting.
2.  You are not keeping the wood tight up against the fence as you cut?
3.  The blade is too thin and is deflecting - what size blade and with how many teeth are you using?
 
Cheers Mark

Thank you, Bob for a lot of useful information!  I'm very familiar with the crash boats website, and have been in contact with the gentleman who runs it.  That's where I found the operator's manual for the 85' ASR, learned about the mahogany planking, etc.  I will definitely check out the Flickr site
 
And thanks to everyone for your kind comments and good advice on airbrushes - much to review and think about!
 
Melissa

Before anybody buys an airbrushing rig, I strongly suggest they read the thread linked below.  Pay particular attention to Kurt Van Dahm's comments at post #7. Kurt is MSW's airbrushing expert, as far as I'm concerned. (And it appears the Badger airbrush company shares my opinion!) I expect if you send Kurt a PM, he will be able to recommend something that best meets your needs at your chosen price-point. Note also that I believe the MSW sponsor, USA AIRBRUSH SUPPLY, offers discounts to MSW members. 
Your 85' ASR build looks like it's coming along very well. I have a bit of first-hand familiarity with this family of "crash boat" vessels. There were several around San Francisco Bay "back when" and at least one of the 85 footers is still afloat and operational on the S.F. Bay and Delta waters. See: Testimonials (homesteadcloud.com) They were quite popular with the Sea Scouts, who apparently were at one time able to get them for nothing as government surplus.  A friend of mine's father skippered the Air Force ASR stationed at Hamilton AFB in Novato, CA on S.F. Bay as recently as the late 'sixties or early 'seventies.
 
The widespread misconception that the hulls of the PT's, ASR's, and similar small craft built in WWII were built of plywood deserves to be dispelled. Plywood was used in the construction of flat surfaces in these boats, such as decks and bulkheads, but not in their curved hull surfaces because their hull forms contained compound curves (where curves go in more than one direction at a time in the same piece of material.) Because the plies of plywood are laid in different directions, plywood can only be bent in one direction and is not suitable for developing compound curved shapes. The wooden hulls of the WWII production small craft in question were built with multiple layers of traditionally spiled planking fastened together with glue and mechanical fasteners, the compound curved shapes being developed in the lay-up of the planking layers. This is a much more involved construction process than simply nailing sheets of prefabricated plywood to a frame. 
 
All of the 85 foot ASR's were double-planked with a layer of canvas laid in waterproof adhesive between the planking layers. The inner cedar planking was hung at 45 degrees to the diagonal, 1/2" thick below the chine and 7/16" thick above the chine. The Honduras mahogany outer planking was hung horizontally and was 3/4" thick below the chine and 9/16" thick above the chine.  The inner planking was fastened to the longitudinal timbers with bronze screws and to the frames with copper nails. The outer planking was fastened through the inner planking into the frames with bronze screws. The inner planking was then fastened to the outer planking with bronze screws from the inside. The decks were 3/4" fir plywood, fastened with Monel ring-necked nails to the deck beams and with bronze screws to the shelf and clamp. The decks were canvas laid over white lead paste. The 85 footers were decidedly not planked with plywood because their hull shapes included compound curves which are not possible to develop. The planking was finished "fair" (smooth) as might be expected, so planking and filling your model hull with a sanding filler and then painting will permit you to use wider planking stock as you have used on the bottom, but I would expect that the graceful curves of the bows will be more easily developed with narrower planks than you were able to use below the chine. 
 
If you haven't come across it already, you will find the "U.S. Crash Boats" website a goldmine of information on the entire "crash boat" and "Air-Sea Rescue" class with specific information on the 85' ASR's. This site provides more information than I've ever seen on this type of site. It has PDF's of all the applicable manuals, design and construction details, and even extensive crew lists for all of the crash boats. See: 85 ft. Army Air Force Rescue Boat (uscrashboats.org) See also for a large number of interior and exterior detail photos highly useful for scratch modeling: Boats: Crash Boat, Aviation | Flickr .
 
 

Before anybody buys an airbrushing rig, I strongly suggest they read the thread linked below.  Pay particular attention to Kurt Van Dahm's comments at post #7. Kurt is MSW's airbrushing expert, as far as I'm concerned. (And it appears the Badger airbrush company shares my opinion!) I expect if you send Kurt a PM, he will be able to recommend something that best meets your needs at your chosen price-point. Note also that I believe the MSW sponsor, USA AIRBRUSH SUPPLY, offers discounts to MSW members. 
Your 85' ASR build looks like it's coming along very well. I have a bit of first-hand familiarity with this family of "crash boat" vessels. There were several around San Francisco Bay "back when" and at least one of the 85 footers is still afloat and operational on the S.F. Bay and Delta waters. See: Testimonials (homesteadcloud.com) They were quite popular with the Sea Scouts, who apparently were at one time able to get them for nothing as government surplus.  A friend of mine's father skippered the Air Force ASR stationed at Hamilton AFB in Novato, CA on S.F. Bay as recently as the late 'sixties or early 'seventies.
 
The widespread misconception that the hulls of the PT's, ASR's, and similar small craft built in WWII were built of plywood deserves to be dispelled. Plywood was used in the construction of flat surfaces in these boats, such as decks and bulkheads, but not in their curved hull surfaces because their hull forms contained compound curves (where curves go in more than one direction at a time in the same piece of material.) Because the plies of plywood are laid in different directions, plywood can only be bent in one direction and is not suitable for developing compound curved shapes. The wooden hulls of the WWII production small craft in question were built with multiple layers of traditionally spiled planking fastened together with glue and mechanical fasteners, the compound curved shapes being developed in the lay-up of the planking layers. This is a much more involved construction process than simply nailing sheets of prefabricated plywood to a frame. 
 
All of the 85 foot ASR's were double-planked with a layer of canvas laid in waterproof adhesive between the planking layers. The inner cedar planking was hung at 45 degrees to the diagonal, 1/2" thick below the chine and 7/16" thick above the chine. The Honduras mahogany outer planking was hung horizontally and was 3/4" thick below the chine and 9/16" thick above the chine.  The inner planking was fastened to the longitudinal timbers with bronze screws and to the frames with copper nails. The outer planking was fastened through the inner planking into the frames with bronze screws. The inner planking was then fastened to the outer planking with bronze screws from the inside. The decks were 3/4" fir plywood, fastened with Monel ring-necked nails to the deck beams and with bronze screws to the shelf and clamp. The decks were canvas laid over white lead paste. The 85 footers were decidedly not planked with plywood because their hull shapes included compound curves which are not possible to develop. The planking was finished "fair" (smooth) as might be expected, so planking and filling your model hull with a sanding filler and then painting will permit you to use wider planking stock as you have used on the bottom, but I would expect that the graceful curves of the bows will be more easily developed with narrower planks than you were able to use below the chine. 
 
If you haven't come across it already, you will find the "U.S. Crash Boats" website a goldmine of information on the entire "crash boat" and "Air-Sea Rescue" class with specific information on the 85' ASR's. This site provides more information than I've ever seen on this type of site. It has PDF's of all the applicable manuals, design and construction details, and even extensive crew lists for all of the crash boats. See: 85 ft. Army Air Force Rescue Boat (uscrashboats.org) See also for a large number of interior and exterior detail photos highly useful for scratch modeling: Boats: Crash Boat, Aviation | Flickr .
 
 

I think it's a matter of your choice.   I have a combo unit and works well.   It's not top of the line but it does what I want.  

It's been my understanding that the 1/8" shaft "plastic collared" micro-bits are designed for drill presses and break very easily when used in a pin vise. I must confess that I have never used them, though. 
 
Brass comes in different hardnesses, and some alloys are easier to work than others. Have you tried annealing the brass you're working on? Sometimes that helps the bit "bite" into the metal better. Just thoughts, for what they are worth. 

Growing up, we lived in a house with hardwood floors that required regular waxing with one of those "iron holystones," too. When I got old enough, that job fell to me. I was greatly relieved when Bissell came out with an electric floor waxer for home use! I have no idea whatever happened to that old hand buffer that I had to swing back and forth. It'd be good for a "What is this tool?" contest these days.  

Ah, but which color "bronze?"   Crescent Bronze, a leading powder-coating manufacturer, has a good bronze color chip card that is worth adding to one's collection of color chips: Crescent Bronze - Color Card Request

 
The standard option for obtaining painted metallic effects is the "real deal," actual colored bronze metal pigment-ground powder sold for the purpose of producing a bronze, brass, copper, gold, or silver metallic finish for painting. (I'm don't know exactly why they use bronze for all these other metals, except that perhaps bronze is easiest to manipulate the color by adjusting the alloy formula.) Schmincke Pigments is the leading manufacturer of ground metallic pigments which are sold in most all artists' supplies stores. They come in a range of shades, colors, and finishes as raw pigment (sold as "oil bronze"), as well as premixed in an oil base and tubed like artist's oil paint. They can be used like any pigment, either mixed in a carrier, e.g., clear varnish, to make a paint, or dusted onto a tacky surface after a sizing is applied and lightly burnished with a cotton ball after the sizing dries, in the same method used for gold leafing. The base metallic color can be thereafter "weathered" to tone it down to a desired appearance in the usual fashion if necessary. See: Schmincke's website for detailed information on their "oil bronze" product line: Bronzes: Schmincke Künstlerfarben (They also sell lines of premixed colored bronze powders in an acrylic medium and powders for use with watercolors. I've never used either of these, so you're on your own there.)

 
Of course, a lot depends upon what appearance you are seeking. In some instances, metallic colors wouldn't be required because standard colors would serve to produce the desired effect.  This video below demonstrates an easy and very effective way to create a convincing faux bronze patina finish using metallic bronze powder which is rubbed on using carnauba wax as the "carrier." The tone of the finish can be adjusted by modifying the background color from black to a flat "penny brown." "Verdigris (green)" weathering powders can thereafter be applied to achieve a very convincing weathered bronze patina appearance. This method can also be used to create a very convincing representation of a copper sheathed hull over a base of scale thickness paper "copper plates." 
 


 


 
 

Growing up, we lived in a house with hardwood floors that required regular waxing with one of those "iron holystones," too. When I got old enough, that job fell to me. I was greatly relieved when Bissell came out with an electric floor waxer for home use! I have no idea whatever happened to that old hand buffer that I had to swing back and forth. It'd be good for a "What is this tool?" contest these days.  

True that, but the great models we see from the 17th and 18th centuries were built with human powered tools. They certainly had lathes and perhaps even pedal-pedal powered scroll saws. The Egyptians were using human-powered wood turning lathes in 1,300 BCE and fret saw blades were in use from the early 1500's. My comments regarding the POW bone models were in response to an assertion that, "Prisoners used to make accurate models of square riggers from bone with no tools at all."