Jack Panzeca

Hi Grant,
 
Well done on those Spales mate, nice innovation and application and they can be used in so many ways in the future.
 
It's a real bummer you had to redo the Pit Clamps but you made a good job on the replacements.       :)  
 
You've made excellent progress mate so I shall now get my Cross Section out of the bag and continue, that is of course after the big clean-up.        
 
As far as tree nailing is concerned on the planking I'm not going to do that, I think in some cases "Less is more". I will however be doing the external planking.
 
Great talking this morning mate, got a good bit sorted out.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie

Well, laziness got the better of me and I paid the price!       
 
I had decided that the next step was to permanently install the Mortar Pit Deck Clamps.  To do this, I needed to clamp the Clamps properly to the frames.  However, as “regular” clamps could not fit around the frames/jig, I decided to use a push method to hold them in place. This is where I got lazy.  I thought I would just use some scrap timber cut slightly over length and then wedge this between the opposing sides to give a pushing force on the clamps. Unfortunately, all I succeeded in doing was marking the face of the Clamps to the extent that they needed to be totally re-made.                  
 
Time to re-think clamping.  I decided to do what I should have done in the first place, and make up some spales.  These are really simple to make and require only some brass or aluminium tube, some threaded rod, nuts to suit, some scrap wood and some felt.  A quick trip to the hardware store got me all the supplies I needed and in next to no time I had some spales ready to use:
 

 

 
I made these to a size to suit this specific job.  While I was at it, I made up some smaller ones that I figured would come in handy when fixing the riders in place.
 

 
Just for comparison, here’s the two sizes side by side:
 

 
With these made up, and it was a simple job to re-cut the Mortar Pit Deck Clamps and then glue them in place using the spales to hold them tightly:
 

 
Once the Clamps were in place, I could then install the Riders.  The mini-spales came in real handy for this job:
 

 
Here is a couple of pics of the Riders in place. The joinery is not as tight as I would have liked, but I’m hoping that most of the flaws won’t be terribly visible later on.
 

 

 
Limber Boards and Footwaling
 
With the Riders in place, it was time to install the Limber boards and Footwaling.  This was a fairly straight forward job – and it was the first introduction of a different “colour” of timber - Boxwood.       
 
The “L”-shaped rabbet in the Limber Strake was cut using the Byrnes saw, and the angle faces on the Limber board were achieved using the Byrnes disc sander.  Temporary spacers were cut to aid in placing everything at the right distances.  Here’s the result:
 

 
 

 
Still tossing up whether to add tree-nails to the planking here.  The correct scale size would be a #78 drill  bit.  If I do these, I may use the drill and fill method, rather than trying to draw proper treenails to that size.  Will give this some further consideration during the week. Observations / suggestions welcome.  
 

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

Hey Grant,
 
The new work looks great!    The floor and futtock riders took the weekend, I am going to set aside a lot longer than that (maybe a month).  
Anyway, she looks terrific. 

Hi Ken, Grant, Ben, David, mobbsie and Greg,
 
Thanks for the kind words and encouragement.   Anything worth doing is worth doing correctly and since I am a late bloomer in this area it does take some practice.  I attempted model ship building 15 years ago or so and without the MSW community I stalled pretty quickly.  Now whenever help is needed it is right here.  Special thanks to Grant and mobbsie who started this group build and kindly allowed me to tag along.  I learn something new from them every day.
 
Thanks again to all the "Likes".

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

Can I have your old ones please Jack.
 
Well done mate that's as close to perfection as you can get.
 
BE Good
 
mobbsie

Your work is truly beautiful Jack . 
 
 
 
David

Well done Jack, we all have that moment when the hard work actually pays off, look forward to seeing all the frames done.
 
Ben

Great work Jack. The practice has obviously paid off in spades! I know what you mean about the feeling of finally getting it right.

Jack, very nice work. Looks very good.

Mortar Pit Deck Clamps
 
The next task was the construction of the Mortar Pit Deck Clamps (upper strake).  This is a relatively straight forward job and the Sherline mill made short work of cutting out the required notches. A bevel was required on the lower inboard edge, where this clamp butts up against the lower strake, which is a thinner dimension timber. This was marked out using a compass, and then a miniature plane was used to cut the bevel.  I picked this tool up at a woodwork show a year or two ago, and it is just wonderful to use. 
 

 
The outboard faces of the clamps also needed to be shaped to allow for the curve of the frames.  For this I used one of my foam sanding blocks (the red one on the left of the picture).
 

 
These come in a pack of six different shapes and use a self adhesive sandpaper (samples included in the pack).  I picked up the tip on these from somebody’s log here at MSW a long time ago, but I can’t actually remember whose log it was.  Anyway, they are terrific - I used these for fairing the inside of the frames as well.
 

 
Keelson
 
The Keelson was also fairly straight forward.  It was simply planed and sanded to impart the necessary bevels, and then drilled for copper bolts at each frame.  Locator holes for the pillars to be installed at a later stage were also drilled before fitting.  After glueing in place, the copper bolts were added, being glued in place with epoxy, and then blackened.  I hope I don’t have to remove it now! It was then marked out for the locations of the Floor Riders. 
 

 
Floor and Futtock Riders
 
The Floor and Futtock Riders were a real bear to make.  At first, I thought I would be clever and cut all the Floor Riders together. Good in theory, but they all need to be finessed for their particular position to account for the inevitable small errors in previous steps.  Similarly, the Futtock Riders were cut from the template and of course did not fit the curvature of my frames - accumulation of errors again.  Net result was that I had to remake all components, ensuring that each individual piece was carefully adjusted to fit in its designated location.  It took me the entire weekend to remake these parts, but they are now ready for fitting.
 

 

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

Well, my first keeper frame turned out to be another practice version.  I have not mastered the fit of the chocks. Starting on the most visible frame is probably a tactical error.
 
Just so you know that I am not napping, the latest try has produced some advancement.  I originally planed to use copper wire darkened with Liver of Sulphur for the double frame bolts (Grant's method).  I did not have much luck with it, staining the wood as well as the copper.  Grant graciously tried to coach me through it but I did not do so well.  I started to wonder how hard it would be to make the bolts from ebony.  I had a block of ebony in the shipyard so I started to play.
 
I cut the planks to 1/32 square dowels and with the help of the Byrne's thickness sander and finally the Byrne's draw plate they turned into .032 inch round dowels.  Not too hard, it was fun.  The first picture shows the frame and the ebony.  I really like the way they look and i only have 200 or so to make. 
 

 

 
I think that I will start on the interior doubles and see how I do with those.

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

WOW!!   

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

The first picture is the junk pile.  Treenail (bolt) tests and joinery practice.  Some were not bad some are awful.
 

 
The next pictures are of frame 4A & 4B.  The practice is paying off.  I did all 40 ebony bolts even though, the best I can tell, when the model is finished only the 2 at the small chocks (8 total) will be visible.  Good practice.  A lot of sanding yet to go.
 

 
This sure is fun.  The emotional reward of finally getting it right is huge.
 
Thanks to all the "likes" always appreciated.  Special thanks to the rest of the group, their assistance is enormously helpful.
 
The rest of the double frames are next.

Thanks David,
 
An dramatic change of employment has taken all my attention at the moment 
I’m afraid future updates on the ST will be quite irregular for an unknown period of time.
 
An minor update.
I (finally) managed to make my own hearts from teak wood and mounted/rigged the first ones on the bowsprit..
Underneath an visual sequense ..
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Hi Mobbsie,
 
I am paddling as fast as I can!      If I catch up can I still copy your homework? 

Hi Mobbsie,
 
I am paddling as fast as I can!      If I catch up can I still copy your homework? 

Okay, okay, I'm coming........... The dog ate my homework and now I have to re-do it.