USS Constitution by xken - Model Shipways - Scale 1:76.8

[JSGerson]

Let me state first I have never made any rope; I purchase mine from Syren. I did however see a demonstration a couple of years back at an NRG Conference by Chuck Passaro as to how he makes that excellent rope. Believe it or not, he uses the cheap rope walk that Model Expo sells. He made one modification however: He motorized it by removing the hand cranks and adding (If I remember right) a Philips screw for a hand drill to turn at both ends.

 

Once the lines were strung, he would fire up the hand drill and turn the mechanism at one end. Through trial an error he knew how far that end would move while keeping tension on it as the individual lines twisted and when to stop. Then he would go the other end and do the same thing. Because he was at the opposite end, the twist was reversed and that would twist the individual lines into one. He would then remove the newly constructed rope and pull it through some bees wax and he was done.

 

He was able to knock off a twenty foot rope in less than 5 minutes or less. Rope length is determined by how far apart the two ends of the walk are.

 

I haven't tried it yet because I don't need any more excuses to delay my build by experimenting and practicing rope making. I've been at it for at least 6 years now and still haven't finished.

 

Jon

[xken]

Jon, thanks for the feedback on the rope, I have seen their rope walk and was wondering about it's effectiveness.

 

I am working on the 30 gundeck cannons again the quality of cast parts and wood dowel choice were less than good. Of the 30 gun barrels only 2 were round with the rest being various forms of ovals; and a great deal of time spent to clean up. Also 3/32" dowel supplied for axles when it should have been 1/16" based on the laser cut holes in the wheels. I substituted 1/16" dowel which saved a great deal of time reaming the holes in the wheels just to fit the 1/16" dowel.

 

I found a Krylon spray can Oil Rubbed Bronze that I really like for the barrels, It really tones down the harshness of pure black.

 

I also tested the Carriage Red and thought it just too bright and pinkish so I fell back on my art education and checked the Munsel Color Wheel and verified that green was the opposite color for tinting versus adding black which would just change the value and turn it muddy. I also found by pleasant accident by adding too much green I had a great color for the Iron Red strip. I will tint the Carriage Red container to the toned down new red and have an ample supply for all the cannons. I will also be able to darken some for the Iron Red strip down the road.

 

Here are some pictures of about three days of clean up.

 

Here are the gun barrel colors, also the gun deck cannon kit design is slightly different the the kit supplied cannons.

Here are the red colors I will use rather than the kit supplied Carriage Red; slightly toned down with the Dark Green.

 

[xken]

The cannon build continues with all parts now drilled and painted. I built out a pilot all the way to have a guide and bench mark to check against. The challenge I am finding is that there seems to be two different laser cut patterns in the gundeck kits with the carriage of one being slightly larger than the other that impacts the height position in the gunport. 

 

I used the brass strip in the kit for the trunnion straps and 26 wire for the rope rings. Keep in mind these will be on the gundeck and only the best ones will be positioned in the cargo grate area for viewing; the balance will only be seen if peeping through the gunports.

 

I tacked together the gunport covers to be used as a location fixture when gluing the cannons in place.

 

I realized before I got ahead of myself that I should paint the gun strip white and the gunport sidewalls black before installing the cannons.

 

Here I have added the .035 rope from Chuck and tied the ends trapping the twisted wire loop that will attach to the bulwark by drilling .032" holes.

 

Here I am using the soft brass strip to form the trunnion straps. The trick is to add the straps without gluing the barrel in place so that it can be adjusted to the gunport later on.

 

Here is the pilot cannon completed with only 29 more to build.

 

Now back to cannon building.

 

[usedtosail]

Nice looking cannon, Ken. I really like your trunnion straps.

[GLakie]

Nice work Ken! 

[Canute]

Your cannons and accouterments look good, Ken.

[David Lester]

Hi Ken,

Looking great!

David

[xken]

Thank you all for your kind words of encouragement! 

 

David I was looking at your build and was wondering what you used for the transom stars? 

 

The installation of the cannons has started; I will be doing them in batches to break up the boredom and give the eyes a break at the tedious tying off of the eyebolts. The first challenge was the drilling of the eyebolt holes with all the upper deck structure in the way. I again fell back on past experiences and made a long drill handle by gluing a 1/32" drill bit into a length of 1/16" tube long enough to reach across the deck going through the gunport. Once the holes drilled I first glued the eyebolts in place and let the glue set. The I positioned the barrel into the gunport covers to center the cannon in the gunport, positioned the front wheels against the planksheer and added a touch of CA to the wheels and trunnion to hold the cannon in place. This is why care must be used in gluing the trunnion straps in place and allow the barrel to move in the straps. I am using the planksheer for consistency of positioning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now back to installing the cannons which will keep me busy for a few days.

[David Lester]

Hi Ken,

That's a great trick with the drill bit extension. With the very small size drills, I find I often just slowly rotate the pin vise by hand anyway, so no reason why this system wouldn't work beautifully.

 

As you may know I'm following the Bob Hunt practicum and he suggests making the stars out of styrene plastic. He recommends using a strip .010" x .188" Of course they could be cut from any width material, but the .010" thickness seems about right. He even includes star shaped graphics in the practicum which you can print out. You then glue them onto the styrene and just cut the stars out with a knife. If you have a graphics program or Microsoft Word on your computer it's very easy to make a star yourself. It's just a matter of experimenting until you have the right two sizes

David

[xken]

David, thanks I suspected that is what you did. I am very proficient with CAD and Photoshop so making stars the correct size is not an issue. I would print them out on photo paper for crisp bright white. I am holding out for 3D stars; I have found some but 1/16" too large. I will keep looking and will use the printing process as a last resort. The only issue with polystyrene is that it will turn almond over time due to UV light exposure, so should be painted. 

Thanks again!

[xken]

Had a great fun Easter weekend with the grand kids decorating eggs and then the egg hunt in the backyard yesterday. I was able to finish gluing in position all the gun deck cannons.

Here they are in place.

 

I then needed to locate the in haul eyebolts for the cargo hatch area. The photos of the restored ship do not show these; so I had to sort them out by using a cannon in the reload position and factor in the tackle blocks. I then made a strip to fit between the truck wheels and drilled a guide hole. I drew a centerline on the strip to align with the eyebolt in the gun carriage for positioning and drilling.

 

I had to add the ladders in position to locate the last eyebolts adjacent to the wood support post that will lay in front of the ladders. I am sure these were positioned to avoid tripping and are shown in one of the photos of the ship. I also added the deck plates at the bottom of the ladders made of .005" brass sheet and added the bolt heads by using a center punch on the backside on a steel plate which provides a great looking head.

 

I positioned the pinnace in place and quickly saw that the support will need to be rebuilt using thinner stock and the brackets will need to align with the framework structure to allow removal of the grates.

 

Now back to gundeck work on cargo framework and grates.

 

[scott larkins]

Holy crap this is a great build!!  If my current ship wasn't going to be my last one I definetely would feel the pull to build my second favorite ship in the U.S. Navy.

[xken]

Now lets build a rope walk; as well as improve and enhance what came. Once I opened the kit box I immediately recognized an issue with the plywood the parts were cut into. While not the cheapest grade of plywood it is close. The two sheets were slightly warped so the base units once cleaned and fitted were glued together with opposing curves to flatten, clamped and set aside to dry.

 

Here is what they looked like finished up.

 

The handle parts were glued together and then all edges soaked with CA to strengthen and harden. Once set were sanded and pinned with dowels to help avoid breaking in use. I also cut aluminum handles instead of the vinyl tube that was in the kit.

 

This shows the backside.

 

This is the most important step for a smooth operation. Get the clips spaced with card stock and parallel to the wood surface. I used the tube inserted in the large gear to push the clips in place against the card stock.

 

This shows the eyelet sides or inboard.

 

This shows the handle in place. I opted to pin with a dowel again for strength. I also am using set screws into the brass tube so the handles can be removed. to be setup in my Sherline lathe which I may experiment with once I am a little smarter.

 

I set up and made my first rope about an arms length apart per instructions. I used size 30 to start with I have sizes 10, 20, and 30. The higher the number the smaller the thread. The hand cranks were not the smoothest but worked fine and my first attempt I consider a great success in that in holding Chuck's next to it, it looked the same other than the color. I glued the ends and then stained it in place and let dry. Beeswax took care of the fuzz.

 

In searching around here is a sight I am going to order some brown colored size 30 from. Look around and they have smaller sizes but only in White and Ecru.

 

http://www.dmc-usa.com/Products/Needlework-Threads/Crochet-Threads/Cebelia.aspx

 

Back to more rope making experiments and learning the process to get better.

 

 

[JSGerson]

In case I haven't mentioned it to you before, Chuck Passaro  former Director of NRG and owner of Syren Ship Modeling Co who make such wonderful miniature rope, uses this very same "cheap" ropewalk. He did make one very important change. He took off the the handles and replaced them with a Philips Head screws so he could turn the mechanism with a power drill. I saw him make a 20' rope from initial threading of the walk to final product in less than five minutes. The drill made all the difference in the world.

 

Just thought you might want to know.

 

Jon

[xken]

Jon, Thanks for the suggestion I just may do that myself once I get a few experiments done. I just ordered some Black (10,20, 30 sizes) and Brown (20, 30 sizes) threads from the link above. I have to think of how to setup a work station to make longer rope when taking a break from building. I am amazed how well this rope walk is doing as is and of course the engineer in me has already thought of upgrading to nylon bushes along with the screw heads.

[JSGerson]

Chuck had two tables at either end of the room approximately 20' apart; one for each end of the rope walk with one end clamped down. The power drill turned the mechanism on the unclamped side which was was held back with one hand to maintain tension. After the unclamped walk had moved a predetermined distance - six or seven inches(?) (determined from past trials), it was clamped down and the other side was used, Because the drill was turning the gears from this side now, the twisting was reversed and the three (or four) lines wrapped around each other creating the rope. After the rope was pulled through some bees wax he was done. The rope did not unravel. 

 

Hope this helps

 

Jon

[xken]

Jon, thanks again for your explanations. Right now I have made ropes using each size that I have in hand and will now wait until the black and brown thread order arrives before making more rope for the gundeck cannons. I have a few additional thoughts on improvements but will work on them down the road when I get more serious about ropes. I will also be looking around for source of smaller sizes of thread as well. I appears that they come in increments of 10 up to 100 being the smallest.

 

Here are the test ropes of each size. the single Size 30 is .015"; then .024"; .030" and the largest .038". These were measured using the ends that were CA'ed. The largest was color Ecru and then stained which is why darker. The smaller were white and then stained and are a great match for weathered rope as seen in some of the real ship photos.

 

 

This week is spring break for pre school so we have grandparent duty for the mornings with our 2 and 4 year old granddaughters. This morning it is off to the zoo.

 

[Chuck]

Ken

 

Your rope looks great.      Well done.  Although folks search and search for the best material.....you nailed it.

 

DMC Corrodent is the best stuff available retail fore rope making.  I would still be using it if I didnt want to spend the time dyeing the rope afterwards.  There is just too much rope to be made on my end for that.  So I get mine custom dyed.

 

Aunt Lydia's is really lumpy/fuzzy and so is Lizbeths.    The later is not even a consistent size.  I would stay away from those unless you need to avoid dying as well.  The wax wont keep the fuzz down for ever.

 

The 10 sizes available by DMC make it easy to make any rope size you want.  No fuzzies and no lumps.  Its really smooth stuff.

 

Just one tip however.  Most folks never twist the rope enough initially when doing the individual strands.  The hand crank makes that work hard.   I would suggest doubling the initial twists on your rope and this will create a tighter lay of rope.

 

It just looks better.  

 

I have removed the cranks and use a hand drill on my rope walk as was mentioned.   Since getting the laser cutter I no longer use the Expo rope walk. Last three months or so.  Its just too cheaply made.   I made my own from solid cherry with larger gears.   The rope lays up nicer that way.  Much Tighter and I now also have four strand capability.  

 

I start with the ends 28 feet apart.   Then as the initial twisting occurs the rope walk is literally walked down the table as the thread tightens.   For my larger sizes I can walk it as far as 7 feet for the initial twists.  Then the three...or in my case sometimes four strands are twisted together on the other end.  With my new rope walk I have created a newer rope-recipe for making rope so it lays up even tighter.  

 

DONT FORGET TO HARDEN the rope after you make it.  Thats the most important part.  See how tightly this rope is laid up......more initial twists are needed to achieve this affect.   Since making my own rope walk I have been making it with an even tighter lay to it.   This is a photo of my breech ropes with my newer .035 rope.  Its four stranded as opposed to three.  It allows for a neat little splice simulation on the cannon breech as just wrapping around the button looks so out of scale and clunky.

 

This is a photo of how I quickly and not being an engineer changed the expo rope walk when I used it.   I used this up until three months ago to make all of my rope.  It works fine.  The principle of rope making is still the same.  I am no rocket scientist for sure....  but it beats cranking by hand.   As mentioned I can lay up a 20-25 foot length of rope in 5-8 minutes.

 

 

 

[xken]

Chuck, Thanks for the feedback and pictures. I plan on sorting out the hand cranks as well and like your idea of the machine screw. I also need to learn more as well and that will come with practice. You mentioned "DONT FORGET TO HARDEN the rope after you make it.  Thats the most important part." What do I have to do to Harden the rope? 

[JSGerson]

Chuck, are you considering offering your ropewalk as an item for sale on Syren?

[slow2cool]

Ken

I would like to know about how to harden rope.

That's a new one on me.

Joe

[GLakie]

I think hardening just involves taking the "stretch" out of it by hanging the rope with weight attached to it. 

[Chuck]

Basically to harden the rope....

 

Before you remove the rope from both sides of the rope walk,  After cutting one side only,  you stretch the rope.  

 

Dont tug it back and forth.  Just give it a gradual gentle pull until it stretches no further.  Then hold it there for a few minutes or clamp it there.   Do this while you still have control of the rope.   If you just cut it free willy-nilly from both ends,  and you havent achieved balance from the opposing tensions it will unravel and snake up and get tangled.   I am sure this is familiar to many.  So this is the opportunity to control the rope as it is still attached to one side of the rope walk.  Gradually let it unwind until it no longer untwists.  This is the point where you have achieved balance in the opposing tensions.  It should hang very nicely.

 

The opposing tension is what keeps the rope together....twisting all three strands in one direction individually firstvand then twisting all of those strands together in the opposite direction.   Its hard to achieve perfect balance.  But if you can keep the rope in control after cutting one side free as you let it naturally untwist into balance......you are ready to harden the rope.  Hope that makes sense.

 

I harden the rope by gently stretching and holding it there.  When you eventually cut the rope completely free....no twisting and unraveling or snaking together in a tangled mess.

 

If after you do this, you examine your rope and it is laid up to loosely...it just means you havent put enough initial twists in the individual strands.  You didnt build up enough energy and tension so it keeps from unwinding to a loose lay.   So the next rope you make should have more tension built up initially in the individual strands .  Its trial and error until you discover the proper recipe.  But once you do...you can make perfect rope every time.....   and very consistently.  

 

Again..this is very hard t do on one of those self-contained automated planetary machines.   Finding that balance in tension and hardening is tougher.

[xken]

Chuck, thanks for your insights; I guess I may have gotten lucky since I stained and let the rope dry in place before cutting I may have relaxed the rope enough to not unravel. I am waiting for my rope order so I will follow these tips when I start making rope.

 

In the meantime I have moved back to the gundeck and added the cannon ball racks to the ladder ways which I will leave the grates in place for this build. There will be plenty of racks to build so I thought this may help others with their builds. I used .020" brass wire and formed two identical perimeter shapes.

Next I used a small punch and flattened the end on a steel block; this provides a flat surface to carry the solder on a round wire for a strong joint. I drew patterns on a small piece of plywood using a square and taped all the parts in place on the pattern. Once soldered, the racks were cleaned with acetone to remove any residual flux the ends were trimmed and cleaned.

 

Here is a sequence of photos.

 

 

Now back to gun deck items.

 

[CaptainSteve]

Exquisite work once again, Ken.

Thanks for the How-To guide !!

[David Lester]

Looking really beautiful Ken,

David

[xken]

Steve, David thanks! I finished up the second hatch with the cannon ball racks with steps and the round anchor points with eyebolts. Not sure what they are called but I suspect that they are used to rope in cargo when being loaded. Clarification is welcomed.

 

Next I moved onto to fitting the masts in order to add their boots on the gundeck. In addition to just fitting I am also building the lower mast elements as well. 

My thread order was confirmed with a UPS delivery of April 7 when they arrive I will be able to rig the cannons in haul lines.

 

 

Parts in place.

 

Here is the lower mizzen mast pressed in place.

 

I will move forward on the main and foremast which will keep me busy for awhile. The boots are the last main parts needed to finish up the gun deck on this build.

[JSGerson]

Out of simple curiosity I noticed that the style of steps you made, which appears to match the period style of the Constitution, does not match what is presently on the ship. What were you using as a model for your steps?

 

BTY, you done a beautiful so far. Any more details as to how you made the round eye bolt "thingys"?

Edited April 2, 2016 by JSGerson

[xken]

Actually the steps are the same and just a different view. I used the same photo for reference. The round things were a piece of round wood stock with the edges slightly rounded then the two black discs were cut on my lathe using aluminum bar with the smaller disc turned with a hole to receive the eye bolt and before cutting it off the top crown was added using a small file. The two discs were glued together then both glued to the wood after being painted.

I hope this helps.

[xken]

Finished up the mast boots for the gundeck. Then cut the three masts to length, tapered and shaped them per plans. Once masts were tapered and tops cut square I added the chafing fish to each. The strip edges were angled for a tight fit to each other rather than the plans suggestion of just adding filler which could have lead to flat spots once the filler was sanded. Experience from previous model builds. Once the chafing fish were sanded I then cut in the locations for all the cheeks. To cut the shapes I used plunge cuts with the tip of a #11 blade to form contours. I then stretched the brass strip from the kit to straighten and form the mast rings for the main mast as a test.

 

I then made angle fixtures for each mast at their required degrees. These will be used to build the framing around the mast to locate the mast holes on the spar deck. I also realized that I will have to remove the bottom brass ring to achieve a tight fit through the mast location holes and  spar deck boot holes. 

 

 

Now to finish up the brass rings on the fore and mizzen masts and develop the framing for the mast hole locations on the spar deck.