Syren by JesseLee - FINISHED - Model Shipways - scale: 1:64

[Elijah]

Nice carronade Jesse! They're gonna look great !

[rtropp]

I also would like to keep the wood look.  I started experimenting with powdered water soluble dye. It adds the color but still leaves the wood grain.  I will experiment to see how dark I can go and still have the wood grain show.  

I also have ebony but until I get a worktable set up in my shed I hesitate to use it.

I will experiment more when I finish the belaying pins and move on to the cannon. 

 

Richard.

[ca.shipwright]

Jesse,

Great job on the Syren. Here is a link on how to make a small lathe using a power hand drill. It's cheap and works. I made it and use it to cut canon barrels and taper masts and yards. Put a foot long dowel or square stock  and you can cut several pieces in one set up.

 

http://www.utube.com/watch?v=yCaGW9z4bIM

[ca.shipwright]

Sorry, link won't work. Search Utube for homemade lathe. There are several.

Edited March 28, 2016 by ca.shipwright

[GLakie]

utube and YouTube are 2 different sights. 

[popeye the sailor]

a lot of great idea on making cannons...I'm sure you'll come up with the ideal solution soon     great job thus far my friend!  

[rschissler]

Good luck with this Jesse, turning them individually will be a challenge so that they are all consistent.  After making a template, maybe try a few more to see if they look pretty much the same?  So the wood doesn't look like wood, they need to be completely sealed with all pores filled.  Painting them with a couple coats of CA is an idea for this.  It will penetrate deep and harden the wood, dries fast, and won't gum up from sanding like multiple layers of paint or finish might, and it sands easily.  The downside is that sanding each one of these guns will get tedious, and you don't want too coarse a grit of sandpaper, otherwise deep scratches will look like wood grain. 

[JesseLee]

Made a makeshift lathe out of my drill. Some true Redneck engineering. Pretty crappy looking & it wobbles some but does ok for what I'm doing. Used a bunch of the scrap pieces left over to create the cradle to sit the drill in. I know I could have cut out something that looked better but I don't like to waist anything & this gave me something to use all those scrap cut off ends for. I made it for function not for looks so I'm ok with it.

 

Real life, health & other things are keeping me from getting much done but I am very slowly working on them. I've only turned 4 but they are turning out to be very consistent so far. Wish I could feel better so I could move along a little faster.

 

Jesse

Edited April 6, 2016 by JesseLee

[lambsbk]

Nice looking lathe Jesse.

[Elijah]

Nice makeshift lathe! Those carronades will look great on the ship!

[cog]

JesseLee,

 

Looks good to me, and what's more important, it does the job!!! That's what counts ... Sorry to hear you're still not at full throttle ... I'd hoped you would be movin' an groovin' by now ... Keep your spirits up, for it sounds like your carronades will come out good!

 

Cheers mate

[popeye the sailor]

just do what you can......hope you feel better soon.  every bit of progress you make brings you closer to completion  

[Piet]

Great looking lathe there JesseLee.  A few years ago I demo'd a similar setup I used to turn a few small items.  One has to use what one can to do the job.  With time on hand all your canons will be completed sooner then you think and besides, it's a hobby and have fun.  Hope you are feeling better soon my friend.

 

Cheers,

 

[mtaylor]

I like your approach to the cannons.  I turned the ones for my Constellation using brass rod, files, and dremel  with a chuck.  Wood is probably much easier on the hands I would hope.  Looking great.   I hope you get to feeling better and can get back to the bench.

[JesseLee]

Thank you all. I feel blessed to have such a community of friends here on MSW!

 

Jesse

[JesseLee]

Still working on turning the carronades. going very slowly, still not feeling well. Got 11 of them turned. Here is a shot of 3 of them being formed on a dowel, the metal template & various other tools I'm using to make them.

 

Jesse

 

 

[GLakie]

Great looking carronades Jesse! Clever idea with the jig and template! Been going through a wee bout myself lately, and I feel your pain. Hope it goes away sooner rather than later. 

[GaryKap]

Jesse -

 

I admire your ingenuity!  Your improvised cutting tool will certainly guarantee that all carronade barrels are uniform.  Nicely done.

 

I hope your health improves.  I am retired from the U.S. Forest Service and over the years picked a number of ticks from my body.  So there but for the grace of God...   And some of my good friends and former colleagues are dealing with tick related illness.  Hang in there!

 

<<Gary>>

[Elijah]

Those carronades are looking great Jesse! I hope you feel better soon!

[_SalD_]

Cannonades look terrific Jesse, nice job.  Sorry to hear your still not feeling that great,  get well.

[cog]

Still at it, my friend. You've got some stamina!!! Looking very good ... I like the mold you are using to make them of equal size ... turning three at once will make it faster too. Looking forward to the first stain on them ... Keep it up ... you're still in my thoughts!

 

Cheers

Edited April 24, 2016 by cog

[mtaylor]

I love the way you're turning the guns, Jesse.   The template is a great idea and ensures they all look alike.   

 

I'm hoping you start feeling better.... 

Edited April 23, 2016 by mtaylor

[dgbot]

A nice bit of ingenuity Jesse.  I would have turned a master then cast them in resin.  I think my sister left them back in Chitown.  Making many duplicates on a lathe is time consuming and nerve wracking.  I am glad you are feeling better. Kudos.

David B 

[JesseLee]

I need to learn how to do that David. Have no experience with casting.

 

Jesse

[cog]

JesseLee,

 

It's just another challenge, or if you wish ... learning curve. Not very difficult, but it can be sticky if you mess up ;-)

 

Cheers

[Stubby]

I have a Syren in the box for a future build - I'm definitely learning a lot from your log and enjoying your mods and ingenuity!

 

- Stubby 

[alde]

JesseLee,

 

Your carronades are a huge improvement over the kit parts. They look like total junk compared to what you are producing plus you will have the satisfaction of having done it yourself. I am looking forward to seeing them installed and rigged. They will look great.

 

Feel better my friend.

[popeye the sailor]

Agree with everyone else Jesse........sealed and painted,  the barrels will have the smoothness of brass.  great job.........your doing well in spite of how you feel........strength and determination     I hope you feel better soon.   totally impressed  

[JesseLee]

I have paused my work on the carronades for the moment. Another MSW member is sending me a lathe Dremel attachment. I am very humbled a blessed over the kindness & generosity people here at MSW have shown me. Since being disabled from my chronic lyme disease our income has dropped dramatically so finances make it difficult or impossible to buy kits, tools, etc. to give me something to work on. I have been gifted 3 kits, an assortment of wood, had tons of support & encouragement & now this is coming. I feel so blessed to have found this group of people! As I thought about all this it brought a tear to my eye. Ship modeling is wonderful therapy for me & helps keep my motor skills from deteriorating as fast. It means so much to me. Thank you so much everybody!

 

Jesse

[GaryKap]

Hi Jesse -

 

While waiting for the Dremel attachment, you might consider working on the deck fittings (Chapters Twelve and Thirteen).  And as Chuck recommends, "Each fitting should be treated as a mini modeling project of its own".  For me, these have been very satisfying and given me a sense of accomplishment.  The binnacle and companionway turned out much better than I expected.  And of course the build logs by Sal, Dubz, Rafine, and Gahm help to visualize the finished product.    With the main fife rail, note the warning to be careful when drilling holes in the laminated fife rail - it is still rather fragile as I learned the hard way.  So...grab some of these small fun projects that help move your build along.  And I hope you are feeling better.

 

<<Gary>>