Jack Panzeca

Hi Dee Dee,
 
She is looking good.    The little bits are time consuming but really rewarding when you finish.
 
I saw Chuck give a demonstration of his rope making technique at the last NRG convention in St. Louis.  I thought "why is he giving us his secrets, he sells this stuff".  It was about half way through the demo that I figured out the psychology.  By that time I was certain that I never wanted to make rope myself.  The serving machine makes sense but, at least for me, the rope machine is not in the cards.  By the way, I used Syren Ship Model Company's rope on my Oseberg build and it is stunningly terrific.  Another reason for not making my own rope is that I do not think that I could equal the quality.
 
Great work, Dee Dee - almost done.

Hi Dee Dee,
 
She is looking good.    The little bits are time consuming but really rewarding when you finish.
 
I saw Chuck give a demonstration of his rope making technique at the last NRG convention in St. Louis.  I thought "why is he giving us his secrets, he sells this stuff".  It was about half way through the demo that I figured out the psychology.  By that time I was certain that I never wanted to make rope myself.  The serving machine makes sense but, at least for me, the rope machine is not in the cards.  By the way, I used Syren Ship Model Company's rope on my Oseberg build and it is stunningly terrific.  Another reason for not making my own rope is that I do not think that I could equal the quality.
 
Great work, Dee Dee - almost done.

Things are moving along here at Glacial Boat Works. 
 
I've learned a lot building this small humble work boat.   My method of planking is similar to how Chuck P is planking his Cutter Cheerfull.  Chuck P posted a 'tutorial' on planking which I highly suggest checking it out.  Also, read through all of the following questions, lots of good questions and answers there!  http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/8131-hm-cutter-cheerful-1806-148-scale-by-chuck/page-22#entry292745
 
New parts! 
 
I turned the mast from a square blank last October when it was still warm outside (this was really messy!)  But it had lots of fittings that needed to be made and added,  So I started at the bottom and worked my way up to the top! 
 
The blue prints are a bit vague on how the boom is connected to the mast.  Instead, I followed the online photos and made an iron yoke and painted it light blue. I'm holding off drilling the holes for lacing the main sail, these holes need to line up perfectly with the seams on the sail.
 
The gaff is close to print, but I omitted the pivoting block.  I really need a drill press to get all the parts to align. I could 'fake it', but it would look fake.
  



 

 
 
After investing this much time and effort, I wanted to rig using better quality rope and blocks and ordered replacement rope and blocks from Syren.  The rope is great, I mean super fabulous great.  However, based purely on economics, I need to seriously think about investing in a rope making machine, also a serving machine. 

 
Check out the difference in the blocks, the kit blocks, ME blocks and Syren blocks.  Corel deadeyes are really nice and I will use those. 

 
 
Next up is making the sails.  The kit sails, well, maybe they will make nice dust rags. (If anyone wants these, send me a pm.)  I need to make a run to Vogue Fabric store in Evanston, one of the finest fabric stores in the country.  I'll be looking for fabric for my sails.  Along with the fine threads and other notions needed to finish off the seams and edges.  
 
These will be my first sails.  I used to sew all of my own clothes, so I'm going to experiment with various techniques.  I have some very fine thread, 0.06mm / 0.0025" which will be interesting to try sewing with.   
 
I'm also going to experiment with making sails from tissue paper, similar to how Wefalck made sails for his Zuiderzee botter.  Wefalck's Zuiderzee botter build is one of my favorite builds.  Check out Wefalck's sails here:  http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/68-zuiderzee-botter-by-wefalck-artitec-resin/page-2#entry47886
 
Maybe, just maybe I'll finish this model this month - or next month!
 
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my update.
 
Dee Dee
 
Edited to add second, close up photo of Syren blocks
Edited to test photo upload compression.  Shakes head.........

Hey Mobbsie,
 
She is looking great.  The treenails look terrific and the poly really makes it all jump.  If this is you slowing down I am in real trouble.  If you find the front and back ends let me know!!  
 
 
 
 
 
 

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.

Hey Mobbsie,
 
She is looking great.  The treenails look terrific and the poly really makes it all jump.  If this is you slowing down I am in real trouble.  If you find the front and back ends let me know!!  
 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi Grant,
 
Holy S**t that is gorgeous!!!  Great choices and better execution.     The last couple of photos really show the excellence.  

Hi Grant,
 
Holy S**t that is gorgeous!!!  Great choices and better execution.     The last couple of photos really show the excellence.  

Hi Guys,
 
Thanks for all the comments and likes guys, much appreciated.
 
Treenails are now complete but I'm not totally happy with them. They are on the large side, but in my defence they need to be because somebody's stolen the front and back ends of me boat.
 
Seriously, the mistake I made was at stage two, ringing the holes with pencil, I drilled the holes 0.5mm which is still slightly larger than scale but when I ringed the hole with pencil the hole was stretched even more, I hadn't considered that.
 
I used filler No 4, which was Plain white All Purpose Filler, Lime sawdust, Walnut sawdust and some Nut Brown fence stain. I'm not disappointed with the colour just the size of them but their here to stay and have been given two coats of Poly.
 
Pictures
 

 

 

 
So now your right up to date, I welcome any and all comments guys, you know the score.
 
Be Good
 
mobbsie
 
 

Thanks for all the input folks. The big tip was from both Mobbsie and Rusty, in actually applying Poly to the test pieces before deciding, so that's exactly what I did: 
 

 
The Admiral was consulted and immediately No.s 2, 4 & 6 were ruled out as being too light, and No. 3 for being too dark. That left No.s 1, 5 & 7:
 

 
There was so little to distinguish between these three, that the choice came down to the method used.  No.7 used Boxwood sawdust mixed with diluted PVA.  No. 1 used a water-based wood filler, straight out of the jar. No. 5 was the same as No.1 but with a touch of Raw Sienna acrylic paint added.
 
No.7 ran the risk of leaving a glue residue on the wood surface.  No. 5 ran the risk of the paint staining the surrounding timber.  No.1 offered no down side, so became the final choice by default.
 
Cardboard templates were made up and drilled with a 0.4mm drill.  The templates were temporarily fixed in place using double sided tape and the holes drilled.
 

 
And here’s the resulting holes awaiting filler:
 

 
Before filling the holes, the hull was removed from the jig and the exterior sanded fair.  I cheated and used an electric “Mouse” sander for this.  I was a bit worried about how the hull would stand up to this, but it was surprisingly solid.  The Mouse made relatively short work of the fairing and did a very good job of it.  I forgot to take photos of the exterior though!     
 
While I was at it, I made up a temporary work stand for the hull using the templates provided in the drawings (intended as the display stand).  I just knocked this up using some scrap 6mm MDF and 6mm square stock for the stringers. I lined the inside with self adhesive felt to protect the hull while it is being worked on.
 
The holes were then filled and the excess filler wiped off with a damp cloth.  The whole of the interior up to and including the Mortar Pit Deck Clamps, was then given two coats of Wipe-On Poly (applied with a brush), with a light rub of steel wool between coats. The end result is faint, but distinguishable treenails - I'm quite pleased with how they turned out.   
 

 

 

 
In the following photo, you can see the temporary work stand:
 

 
And finally, here’s a couple of overall shots of where she’s at now:
 

 

 
Still tossing up about adding bolts to the Deck Clamps……….

Hi Mike,
 
Thanks for the link.  That is exactly what I was looking for, even the correct size.  When I did not find anything at the time I got the idea of using ebony.  I had so much fun cutting the 1/32 by 1/32 square dowels and using a draw plate to get them down to .032 inch round dowels that I am happy that it worked out this way.  Ebony is tough on the saw blades and the dust is a pain but  my original problem was that I could not keep the Liver of Sulphur off the Swiss pear.  The ebony was not a problem.  It would smudge a little when first cut off but then a quick pass through the thickness sander and all is well.
 

 
Your Cromwell is looking great.

Me Again
 
I have a couple of pics to hopefully explain a little better what I mean.
 
The first is of the back end with the holes rimmed with a lead pencil, hopefully you can see the pencil hardness, it's the hardest I could get and so far to my experience it doesn't spread.
 
The second is the same area but it's been given a coat of Poly, this has made it quite yellow and will I think have a large bearing on the filler choice, the holes appear to be completely black but when the filler is applied hopefully all that will be left will be a darker ring around the treenail. That's the theory anyway, we'll have to see.
 
Holes drilled with pencil rim.

 
Same area with a coat of Poly

 
Hope that helps guys.
 
mobbsie

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.

Hi Mike,
 
Thanks for the link.  That is exactly what I was looking for, even the correct size.  When I did not find anything at the time I got the idea of using ebony.  I had so much fun cutting the 1/32 by 1/32 square dowels and using a draw plate to get them down to .032 inch round dowels that I am happy that it worked out this way.  Ebony is tough on the saw blades and the dust is a pain but  my original problem was that I could not keep the Liver of Sulphur off the Swiss pear.  The ebony was not a problem.  It would smudge a little when first cut off but then a quick pass through the thickness sander and all is well.
 

 
Your Cromwell is looking great.

Hi Mike,
 
Thanks for the link.  That is exactly what I was looking for, even the correct size.  When I did not find anything at the time I got the idea of using ebony.  I had so much fun cutting the 1/32 by 1/32 square dowels and using a draw plate to get them down to .032 inch round dowels that I am happy that it worked out this way.  Ebony is tough on the saw blades and the dust is a pain but  my original problem was that I could not keep the Liver of Sulphur off the Swiss pear.  The ebony was not a problem.  It would smudge a little when first cut off but then a quick pass through the thickness sander and all is well.
 

 
Your Cromwell is looking great.

Hi Mike,
 
Thanks for the link.  That is exactly what I was looking for, even the correct size.  When I did not find anything at the time I got the idea of using ebony.  I had so much fun cutting the 1/32 by 1/32 square dowels and using a draw plate to get them down to .032 inch round dowels that I am happy that it worked out this way.  Ebony is tough on the saw blades and the dust is a pain but  my original problem was that I could not keep the Liver of Sulphur off the Swiss pear.  The ebony was not a problem.  It would smudge a little when first cut off but then a quick pass through the thickness sander and all is well.
 

 
Your Cromwell is looking great.

Hi Mike,
 
Thanks for the link.  That is exactly what I was looking for, even the correct size.  When I did not find anything at the time I got the idea of using ebony.  I had so much fun cutting the 1/32 by 1/32 square dowels and using a draw plate to get them down to .032 inch round dowels that I am happy that it worked out this way.  Ebony is tough on the saw blades and the dust is a pain but  my original problem was that I could not keep the Liver of Sulphur off the Swiss pear.  The ebony was not a problem.  It would smudge a little when first cut off but then a quick pass through the thickness sander and all is well.
 

 
Your Cromwell is looking great.

Hey Mike,
 
She looks great.  I really like the black paper caulk lines.     Where did you find the monofilament?  Fishing stores around here have a very limited selection if any at all.
 
Great work, love the frames.  

Damned sneaky, Mike. And quite brilliant solution to getting those transom slots perfect! Will definitely file that one away.

Slowly progressing with the keel / stem / stern assembly.
 
Finished the deadwood and the slots for the wing transoms. Instead of chiseling, made that slots by gluing a wood strips and sanding it down to a smooth surface. (Tar simulation is done with a black paper again).
 

 

 
Simulating the iron bolts with 0.5mm black monofilament:
 

 
It is a little bit not to the scale, should be 0.52mm instead of 0.50 (assuming that original bolts were 1 inch thick). But that is the biggest monofilament I found.
Maybe on a next, true replica model will use the real iron bolts (with the heads). But this time - a small simplification.
Only one side of a frame has a bolts, because another side would be fully planked anyway.
 
Lots of sanding ahead - need to go through 240 -> 320 -> 400 -> 600 -> 1200 -> 2000 grits to achieve a consistent thickness of a frame and a smooth finish. 

Hey Grant,
 
Great idea on the spales.  Also, there is no end to the uses of the Byrnes tools, they are the best modeling investment I have made.  To treenail or not to treenail?  I had so much fun making the ebony bolts that I will probably treenail the inside as well.   
 
Really nice work Grant.  Talk to you soon.

20 midship frames are cut (which makes it 50% of overall frames!):

 

 
Looks ship-alike!

 
Starting from the midship ones because other frames are much more complex, I can get some skill and experience on an easier midship ones.
 
Overall build status:

(the frames I currently have installed on a model would be replaced by the newly produced - they are made out of different wood, more yellow-ish)
 
Next step is nasty, and I am trying to push it down the road - sanding the face of every frame on a sanding board. Produces lots of dust, takes around 20 min per frame..
So will switch to the keel instead, then simulate the iron bolts with monofilament, then...

some photos...
 

 

 

 

 

Hey Grant,
 
Great idea on the spales.  Also, there is no end to the uses of the Byrnes tools, they are the best modeling investment I have made.  To treenail or not to treenail?  I had so much fun making the ebony bolts that I will probably treenail the inside as well.   
 
Really nice work Grant.  Talk to you soon.