mtaylor

Clare,

Great to see this one coming back.  I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Might get some arguments here, but the "Chop It" tool from Micromark I find does not give a clean 90 degree cut. So, for cutting multiple identical cuts it was worthless. Gave it away.

That one looks to be the same as the one Harbor Freight sells.  I bought the HF one.  The biggest issue I've found is that the angles on the vise aren't dead on.  I spent about 30 minutes setting it to 0 degrees to get an honest cut. 

Just a note.. any power tool should be checked for squareness before using.  And then again during use.  I keep a protractor and some small drafting triangles handy.  I even check the blade on my scroll saw periodically during use to ensure a good 90 degrees from the table.  I failed to do that once and cut several frames out that had the cut not at 90 degrees. 

Gaps?  What gaps?  I even zoomed in... It might be better (by some people's definition) to cut the notches off ship, but you do what's right for you.  I tried it both ways on mine and found I preferred to do them "on ship" also.  

Nice progress, Pete.  Use the sanding stick idea for working up the inside and the outside of the hull before you start planking.  Putting the keelson on will help with rigidity before sanding.

Looks like you're off to a great start. We can read your English just fine.

Mobbsie,

The Aggie is a 64 gun ship. The Bellona is a 74.

A fascinating build, Jaro, and very well done.  I hope you can find some time to finish her.

Hmm... places like Cornwall won't ship to SA?  Though I'm sure the shipping would be an arm and a leg.... 

 

Uh oh, was that a siren?  Are the 'Frivolous Post Police' in the area?????

Crap!  I hope they aren't otherwise we're all in trouble.  I gotta' find out if MSW has a brig and are the rations bread and water? Or Brie and wine?

I'm going to have to dig though things to find the cutters. They're buried around here somewhere. Take a look at page 18 of the PDF I referenced. It talks about grinding the cutter. I'm trying to remember who else modifies their tools and had or has pics.

One of our scratchbuilders made a duplicator for his lathe and again... brain fart. I'm almost to the point of re-setting up the lathe for cannons.

Robbyn,

SF is looking great. I'm sure you'll have no problem with any ship you decide to build.   I think there is a common thought around here: "so many ships, so little time".

Are you doing any kind of therapy for your hand?  Like gently squeezing modeling clay or a tennis ball?

<fingers crossed for you>  Life is stressful enough and then when the hammer falls, it's our hobbies and those who care about us that give us hope and relief from the stress.  Looking forward to seeing the guns all put together.

Nice looking yards, Augie.  Hopefully the snow has passed you by so you can work on the yards instead of in the yard. 

I'm wondering about the "normal" comment also.      You've done a fantastic job on both of these Denis.  Think about how they would have come out if you were anyone but you?         The details make them look like two totally different boats from different kits.  Wonderful work... just wonderful.

Mobbsie, you are flying along at warp speed and doing a super job.  I too await your next update.

Hi Frank,

Good to see you back.  Don't rush things.  When the time it right, you'll get everything tied off.

Beautiful coppering, Prodas.  Looks very impressive.

Hi Anja,

I'm very happy to hear that your job situation settled down.  Hopefully your blood pressure and stress level have calmed also. 

Gil,

Your excellent work on the rigging continues.  Just wonderful to see.    I hope all went well (or will go well) with your wife's surgery.  I'm playing catch up on MSW as my wife just had a shoulder replacement.

Congratulations on launching her.  Looks really great in her new home.  I'll bet your workbench looks strange now that it's empty.

Thanks Mark.

 

By the way -- and this is not just because I'm a very slow shipwright -- your signature maxim is superb!

 

Cheers,

Robert

Thanks.  It's actually there to slow me down. 

Michael,

Beautiful metalwork and mostly by hand no less.  I'll be that was both relaxing and fun.

Fascinating as always, Gary.  Just curious.. how difficult was it to get both sides the same?  Or was it a function of close and not exactly the same?

Gary,

Sorry for not responding quicker.  Not been online much this past week.

The cannon I've made were all from brass.  I use a 1/8" cutter that's narrowed by grinding to about 1/32" for all of the barrel except for the muzzle swell and the casabel.  For those I have cutters that have been ground to match those bits.  HSS is easily ground, just don't let it go to "red" when grinding.  A cup of water for quenching/cooling is good idea.

The Little Machine Shop has a good tutorial on Lathes and also the grinding of tooling:   http://littlemachineshop.com/Info/MiniLatheUsersGuide.pdf  Peruse the rest of that site as it's very informative.

Michael,

I think you just solved the "biggie" issue for me.  My saw has no overhang and I was trying to figure out how to set this thing up with zero-play.  Now to convince my wallet that I need to buy some taps.