US Brig Niagara by mikiek - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64 - First wooden ship build

[mikiek]

Man Friday nite was one of those where I almost gave up the hobby. Just feeling down I guess, but I tried to shape one hull strake, screwed that up royally. It was almost 90 degrees in the garage and I was dripping with sweat after about 5 minutes. Just kept saying to myself - "this is not fun".

 

I did snap out of that on Saturday and made some progress. I tool arrived which I find incredibly helpful for planking - proportional dividers. Transferring measurements is a breeze now. I've also found that my results are getting better. I was going to cut & shape all the strakes for band B, then glue them. With the dividers I do one strake, then measure the remaining distance to the end of the band with the dividers set for however many strakes I have left to do. This allows for easy corrections after each strake is laid. For me, they have been very helpful.

 

I have come up with an action plan for the garage. I am going to insulate the front garage door - this is metal and faces west. Then I am going to pick up one of those portable AC units. I'm not expecting miracles, but if I can get temps into the 80's with some dehumidification I think it will be more comfortable. Probably also a better environment for all the modeling materials. Gotta do something or I will have to pack up everything and wait for fall.

[Don Quixote]

What's this planking tool and where did you get it? Definitely one plank at a time! It's all about finding the right 4 letter words.

 

Regarding the portable AC. The exhaust hose is plastic and gets HOT. Get some insulation and wrap it around it. Believe me! Also keep the unit as far from the wall as you can. If not enough air can pass behind it, it'll get confused as to what the temperature really is. The exhaust will keep it warm back there so It'll just keep running and running. I can't understate how much heat comes off that plastic exhaust hose. I think it literally and exactly counteracts the cooling. Massive insulation around it. Can you tell I can't stress that enough?

 

Spent the 1st 45 years of my live in Michigan so I know what you're facing with humidity. I'd ADD a stand alone dehumidifier.

 

Don't get discouraged! I think it's all about the next ship. I'm working on eliminating everything not to do so that when I start my next build the only thing left will be uh... Another set of problems to solve.

[mikiek]

Brian - I did get a dehumidifier today. Guess I should have researched more. Yes, it did start filling the bucket almost immediately. It also exhausts 105 degree air. Reading the fine print - this is normal behavior. Go figure, low humidity makes it seem cooler. OK I get that.  What does 105 degree air blowing into your room do?????

 

It will be returned tomorrow.

 

Good tip on the AC vent. I'm not sure if this idea will work or not. It's a big area even though my workbench is at one end of it. I don't plan on leaving it running all the time. Just turn it on 30 minutes before I start work and shut it off when I'm done. If I can keep temps in the mid 80's while I work I think that will be good enough.

 

As for the planking tool - proportional dividers are used by architects, artists, (modelers), etc. Typical use is to transfer measurements between drawings and the like and can be used to change the scale as well. It looks a little like a compass (the circle drawing one). You can get plastic ones on Amazon for $10-15. Better ones go for $50+ .  It has given me some confidence when shaping planks. Even if I screw one up, after it is glued I can remeasure the distance to the end of the band and it will tell me how wide the remaining planks need to be. So I can adjust as I go.

 

I see in your signature you have a few mini Mamoli's. Where did you get your kits? Been considering one for my 10 year old but they are not that easy to find.

[texxn5]

Hi Mike, yep our power was out until Thursday - almost lost the freezer. On the 19th got 8" of water in the garage. You know we've had a hail storm, a flood and a tornado in the last 6 weeks. We might want to consider a different location to live....lol. Good ole' Texas Gulf Coast!

John

[mikiek]

Wow John - you had it worse than us. Hope you've got everything back in order. We're on the crest of a hill so I don't worry about flooding. Bought what I guess is a medium size generator back during the hurricane. It won't run the whole house but I can keep the fridge, deep freeze, fans, etc. going. Of course that brings on "extension cord hell".

 

Got a feeling we haven't seen the last of the foul weather.....

[Don Quixote]

 

mini Mamoli's

modelexpo-online.com

 

Around $50 each. These guys rock! Can't tell you how many times I've broken or ruined parts that they replace for free. Shipping and all. It's even in their guarantee. "Lose, bust or ruin a part, just let us know!"

 

Sign up for their news letter. At least once a month, usually more, they have sales. One might be 50% off EVERYTHING (including tools and paints) and another for 55% off... EVERYTHING!

 

From what I can see of your model, it's probably from modelexpo-online MS2240. Their models are pretty good quality and the owner takes great pride in his business down in Florida. In fact, he retired, but didn't like the way things were being run so he took over again. Friday I sent a message saying I'm missing some rope. Be sure to include your model number (MS2240) and the exact part number. I got an email yesterday from the owner Marc Mosco CC'ing 2 people in telling them. "Please send him the rope".

 

They have a lot of tools, but I prefer micromark.com. Good pricing and a great selection.

[mikiek]

Yes, my Niagara is the Model Shipways kit. Didn't buy it from ME. Got a better price elsewhere.

 

Sadly, they don't seem to have any Mamoli kits. Since Mamoli shut down it's getting harder to find them.

[Elijah]

Sorry about the bad weather and shop temps . I hope things are back under control now!

[Don Quixote]

Insulating that exhaust hose on a portable AC REALLY makes a difference. If I place my hand on the outside-insulated part of that exhaust hose, it actually feels cool to the touch. Which to me means the transfer of heat to cool (or is it cool to heat) is thorough. The outside of that insulation is retaining the cool air produced by the AC. Heat is not escaping.

[Don Quixote]

Well, since we're talking about kids here... As far as I'm concerned nothing is more important than shaping a young mind. Both of my boys grew up building models, fixing cars, lawn mowers, building decks, planting gardens, using telescopes and microscopes... Anything that piques the curiosity... When my oldest was 12 years old, I took the 4 barrel carb off the old '73 Olds Cutlass, sat him down across from me, told him to pay attention and  took it ALL apart. Handed him the rebuild kit with the gaskets and all... Shoved it across the kitchen table to him and told him to put it back together. He did. The car ran. With a few tweaks:)

 

Therefore, PM me your address and I'll ship you my Golden Hind Mini Mamoli.

 

ONLY if he does a build log!!! I mean it! Communicating with people from all over the world, writing, spelling, laughing, getting advice... PRIDE!!! It makes my heart swell just thinking of the next great engineer you helped create!

[Don Quixote]

Sorry, I gave the other one away to a neighbor for the same reasons. The boy seemed so smart and interested, but I fear he's done nothing with it! No encouragement from the parents!

[Don Quixote]

Proof of concept ONLY! I went to Ace Hardware and bought a rubber pad, 6" X 6" X 3/32". Laid down my 6" steel measuring ruler and cut off a strip the same width as the ruler. Affixed it with contact cement. Laid down 2 strips of wood. One to be cut, the other to support the ruler so she doesn't sit off at an angle. No, I did no measuring or anything, just proof of concept. My thought was that the rubber would provide enough resistance that the wood wouldn't slide. The ruler didn't slide. I didn't lose 6 outta 7 layers of skin from my finger tips.

 

I used to work for a 3M fabricator. Tomorrow I'll call them. There must be an adhesive that is much thinner and even more resistant to movement that we can use. I think I'm on to something here. Let me know what you think!

 

 

[Canute]

Brian, you could do the same with a piece of sandpaper under the steel straight edge. Set if back from the edge, so you can  cut against it and also draw lines, holding a pen against it.The wee space prevents wicking the ink/paint under the edge.

[Don Quixote]

Uh... Oh yeah... The Admiral is ALWAYS telling me I over think things.

[mikiek]

Brian I think you have made me aware of my problem. I was just pressing my guide (a 3" metal angle) on the plank. Of course trying to keep anything on top of something as skinny as a plank is problematic. Often times the guide edge was not perfectly flat on the plank so the edge was at something other than a 90 degree angle to the plank. So getting the entire guide to the same elevation as the strip (1/16" in my case) should fix several problems. Putting something with some tack under the guide and the plank should make it even better.

 

Brilliant!!

 

re: the Mini Mamoli's, I did find a US site that still has a good selection at decent prices. I picked up 2 kits.  Historicships.com has them. However you can't get to the page directly from their home page. If you Google 'mini mamoli' the results do have a link to their page. I called them yesterday and they did verify the kits are still in stock.

[mikiek]

I'll post some pix this evening but I wanted to get these questions out there.

 

Band B is finished!!! With the help from the dividers, the last strake in the band (I'm working downwards from the wale) landed right on my bulkhead marks. So that had me feeling pretty good. No spiling or extra filler pieces required so far. I do see some waviness on the exposed edge of the last strake so I guess that needs to be smoothed out.

 

Here's my concern. I went ahead and marked the end of Band C. On the plans, C seems to have some craziness to the shape, however my marks make C look pretty much like B - fat in the middle, skinny on the ends. The plans also show 2 stealers in this band, but I thought stealers were for when the band width exceeds the sum of the plank widths. I'm not sure that's going to happen.

 

The other odd thing is on the plans, Band D (the last/lower band) is really fat in the middle. The marks I made for the end of Band C (which is the beginning of Band D) would make Band D almost the same width from bow to stern.

 

Add to that, I am having a tough time reading the plans as they relate to the garboard. Looking at the planking layout, the bottom most plank in Band D is really fat in the middle. However, it appears that there could be another plank underneath. The bow view has something right at the keel but I can't tell if it is supposed to be a plank (the garboard) or it is just a poor print job.

 

Researching garboards, I've seen them in all shapes & sizes. All I can figure is that different hulls are going to have different requirements.  But at the end of the day, isn't the goal to have a nice flat surface to lay the next plank on?

 

Early on in the planking, I made 2 test garboards and pinned them into place. There was a lot of wrestling to get them in place but the only shaping I did was to round them at the bow so they would fit in the rabbet. If I lay another plank edge on to the garboard it seems to lay nicely, again with almost no shaping.

 

Any Niagara builders out there that have gotten past this step I would appreciate hearing from you. I can post a pic of the plans if that helps.

 

I hope all that made sense.....

[mikiek]

On further review of the plans here is what I have determined:

 

1. The plans are a bit confusing until I think about it some. On the plank layout the bow side shows 5 planks in Belt D. The stern side shows 6 planks.  For this belt you also have to use the plank profile and that shows 7 planks at the stern.

 

 

 

So 2 of the 7 are stealers so that knocks it down to 5 actual planks. This is what is called for in the plan. The garboard doesn't run all the way to the bow - it stops at bulkhead B. This is why there are fewer planks in this view.

 

2. The plank layout is attempting to show a 3D shape in 2D. This is why the shape of Band C looks so crazy (wide,skinny,wide,skinny). I believe in reality, and after measuring, remeasuring and remeasuring, it is fat in the middle, skinny on each end.

 

3. As best I can tell, the garboard is just another plank. Same width as the other planks in Belt D. You do have to look at the plank profile though, as a stealer is called for under the garboard at the stern. From the research I have done, I have not seen this arrangement before. Also in my research, the special shaping, wider planks, jigs, tapering and other baloney is not required for this build. It has a curved front end so that it will fit into the rabbet, but not much else. I do plan on putting a twist in the strip before mounting it - similar to what I did for the planks running over the stern.

 

On another note, I have been stocking up on timber from Crown Timberyard - all shapes & sizes. Plans call for 5/32"x1/16" strips for the last 2 bands. This is one size strip I didn't have. However I do have several 1/16"x3" sheets so I used the Byrnes to rip a bunch of 5/32" strips. I am just so impressed with the accuracy of that saw. All the strips were spot on from one end to the other.

 

Have not decided whether to continue on with hull planking or take a break and work on something else for a while

 

Belt B completed:

 

 

 

 

[jbshan]

The garboard should not reach all the way forward, but die out as it reaches the stem.  You want as much room along the stem as you can get in order to fit in as many planks as possible.

It is not unusual for the garboard to have a stealer at the stermpost, or near it, as the opposite condition occurs here, where you don't have enough planks of the ordinary width.

[mikiek]

OK Joel - I can see the plans telling me that. The thing I am finding a little odd is there are several bulkheads where the garboard is laying neither vertical or horizontal. Thinking bulkhead A is the bow and bulkhead Q is the stern these would be C,D,E and L,M,N.  One edge of the garboard is in the rabbet, the corner of the other edge is on these bulkheads. At these points, It doesn't appear that there is much surface to apply glue.

 

Some serious edge beveling might help but I don't know if that is appropriate there. And if I do, then the next strake to be laid is not going to edge up to the garboard very well.

[jbshan]

Ideally, the rabbet would match the angle required for the garboard to lay into it with a square corner.  In other words, the garboard lower edge would stay square and the rabbet would change angle along the keel to accomodate.  If you have a square edge to the rabbet along the keel, you can use a wider plank for the garboard and bevel to match the rabbet.  That'll also let you bring the upper edge of the garboard up a bit so it lays onto the bulkheads a bit better.

[mikiek]

That may be the clearest most succinct description of how to cut a rabbet I have come across. So the cut or groove of the rabbet is the same from bow to stern, wide enough to accept the garboard. But the angle of that groove changes to follow the twist of the garboard. Almost horizontal amidship rotating 90 degrees (to vertical) at the stern.

 

Unfortunately, I have already butchered this one pretty bad. It's going to work but the garboard edge doesn't always sit squarely in the rabbet.

 

I may have the perfect Dremel bit to use next time. I'll give it a try on some scrap wood.

[jbshan]

I cut my Niagara rabbet with the bulkheads OFF the center plate.  I used them as guides while I was cutting, but took them back out while actually cutting.  I used a very small hand-made chisel for the actual cut into the center plate, checking back and forth with a short piece of plank for size, and sliding the appropriate bulkhead back in to check the angles.  Cut a little, check, cut a little more, check again.

[mikiek]

You know I think that's what most of the write ups I found were trying to tell me. But until I get to a place where I actually use the rabbet - placing the garboard - it's another one of those hard to visualize tasks.

 

At any rate the garboard (with stealer) is laid on both sides. The strake above it, also with a stealer, is also in place. They look OK but I think there is a bit of waviness on the upper edge of the second strake at the stern. With all the twisting and turning I think it was inevitable. I've been doing quite a bit of forcing strakes to lay where they really don't want to go.

 

Speaking of that, the strakes in Band B are taking a dip right about where the bow curvature transitions into the mid ship area. I was edge bending for Band B to get the strakes flush at that point, but Band C & D are calling for a wider strip - 5/32"x1/16" - and those don't want to edge bend very much. I've begun spiling a piece of 1/16" sheet. The edge that will contact the previous strake is shaped well and fits nicely. However, I am debating how to cut the other edge. This particular plank will run from bulkhead C to G, with the apex of the dip being at bulkhead F. I'm considering adding to the width of the plank around that point, maybe 1/32" to 1/16" to remove the dip for subsequent strakes.

 

Is that a valid strategy or am I just denying the inevitability that all planks in that area may have to be spiled?

[jbshan]

I can't find a particular photo showing the plank in that area, but check a few build logs.

Certainly get the wobbles out so the next plank will have a smoother edge to match.

There will perhaps be a dip in the area between the masts, but try to get it out by the time you get to your next band.  A pic or two would help.

[mikiek]

I'll check out logs, but here is what I am seeing

 

 

 

A strip laid in the problem area - it sure wants to go off in a different direction.

 

 

 

I can't help but wonder what kind of grief this is going to give me after a few more strakes.

 

[Don Quixote]

I had the exact same problem. As you'd see from my log, I ran into the issue much earlier that you. I pulled most of those planks off and started over, but I wound up using drop planks to fill in the space. In that document "plankingprojectbeginners.pdf" I sent you via private mail, it's explained on page 22. If you don't have it, pm me and I'll send it.

[Elijah]

It looks to me like a spiked plank would best fit in that area. Good luck!

[mikiek]

Brian - I have debated adding a correction plank. My gut tells me it is overkill for what I need to fill. I didn't include a pic of the plank I was spiling for that spot but I am adding maybe 1/16" in width to about 1 1/2"  of a 5" plank In other words, it ain't much. This really didn't come to a head until I switched from 1/8"x1/16" strips to 5/32"x1/16".  The wider strips don't want to edge bend very much. If I stayed with the 1/8" strips I could probably keep going.

 

What I can't say is with either a correction plank or a spiled plank, will 1 fix it or am I going to have to do another one 4 or 5 strakes further on?

 

Elijah - I have started a spiled plank for that spot. One edge is nicely shaped to fit edge on with the last strake but I am indecisive as to exactly how/where to add the additional width for the correction. If I don't get it right, I will just move the problem to a different spot on the hull!

[jbshan]

Mike, this log, from this page forward, has lots of pics of the planking process.  Some have big dips showing, but the next one, from a different angle, it looks smooth.

 

http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/313-niagara-by-lb0190-model-shipways-wood-pob-164th-lb0190/page-13

 

One thing you can do is to mark on each bulkhead, once you have the bands laid out, the widths of the planks.  'Six planks, over this distance need to be this wide', then mark that width.  Even if you don't exactly match the calculations, it gives you a guide for each plank.

Edited May 10, 2016 by jbshan

[mikiek]

I think Larry had the same dip but it's a couple of bulkheads closer to mid-ship. He may have had to edge bend a little. Mine, being a little closer to the bow, I'm having to edge bend and do the normal bending for the bow. You are right about the pics and my build does the same. At some angles the problem is plain as day, at others it looks perfect.

 

 

One thing you can do is to mark on each bulkhead, once you have the bands laid out, the widths of the planks.  'Six planks, over this distance need to be this wide', then mark that width.  Even if you don't exactly match the calculations, it gives you a guide for each plank.

 

This is why I fell in love with the proportional dividers. It easily does exactly what you describe. As a matter of fact I am using them after every strake. 'Here's the remaining space (edge of last strake to band mark) and I have 5 strakes to go'. The dividers then show me how wide each of the 5 should be for each bulkhead. Lay that strake. Do the dividers again changing the setting to 4 strakes. The only way to hose it up is not getting your band marks right. Unfortunately for me, the dividers did not arrive until after I was finished with Band A and was a couple of strakes into Band B. And I knew my Band A was off at the bow.