Schooner Altair by KeithAug - Scale 1:32 - 1931 - Finished

[KeithAug]

Richard / Dan - thank you for your comments - you are too kind.

 

Noel - Altair is predominantly rigged with modern braided line and hence rope wound on a rope walk isn’t a great match. I searched the internet for braided line and came up with the following fishing line that can be bought in a wide range of thicknesses and several colours.

It gave an acceptable approximation to what I was looking for and it slips round the blocks nicely and has virtually no stretch. 

 

It was bought on ebay.

Edited December 7, 2017 by KeithAug

[noel_colledge]

Hi Keith

 

Thanks for the info, nice easy solution for you.

 

I would not have thought about the difference in braided and ordinary twist rope for the time line of your vessel. Just another tick on your exquisite attention to detail list.

 

Regards

Noel

 

[John Allen]

19 hours ago, KeithAug said:

It gave an acceptable approximation to what I was looking for and it slips round the blocks nicely and has virtually no stretch. 

 

FYI David Rice posted this April 14th, may help  Everson Line Company has all covered even tarred line in small diameter used for hanging webbing saved it in favorites go to Davids post for more info. Looks like a good source.

[KeithAug]

 

5 hours ago, John Allen said:

FYI David Rice posted this April 14th, may help  Everson Line Company has all covered even tarred line in small diameter used for hanging webbing saved it in favorites go to Davids post for more info. Looks like a good source.

Hi John - I may be being dumb but I'm not sure where the link is to Davids post? Also I tried to search for Everson Line Company on Google without success.

[KeithAug]

I'm gradually working my way through the final bits of rigging. I could go on for quite a while adding bits of detail. I'm finding the decision on when to stop difficult!

 I spent some time adjusting the mainsail sheets until I became satisfied with them. I then went on to rig the main topmast running back stays. In the following photo the sheets and the starboard backstay are complete.

A while later the port backstay was also complete,

I then moved on to finishing the boat and step davits. The davits and blocks had been made earlier.

The step davits have single blocks while the boat davits have doubles.

 

Edited December 8, 2017 by KeithAug

[michael mott]

Really looking very sharp Keith.

 

Michael

[Jim Lad]

First class work, Keith.

 

John

[John Allen]

On 12/8/2017 at 12:45 PM, KeithAug said:

Hi John - I may be being dumb but I'm not sure where the link is to Davids post? Also I tried to search for Everson Line Company on Google without success.

Keith,  Glad your not close by apologize for bad post. It was David Rice April 14th under masting rigging and lines. Have no idea where Everson is fake news on my part, the company is Memphis Net and Twine 1-800-238-6380. Memphis Tennessee WWW.MemphisNet.net  very reasonable actually cheap as dirt example #6 tarred line $ 13.00 for 3,042 feet also Miller Net Co. looks good super cheap too there's more cos on line, some from China and Viet Nam Buy American

[KeithAug]

Michael / John (Jim Lad) - thank you for looking in and for the comments.

 

John A - thank you for the additional information I will look them up, it looks like a good lead.

 

And so onward and upward:-

 

I spent some time figuring out how the sheets for the flying jib are rigged - the plans are quiet on this detail. From the following photo I new that the sheets (just visible) landed on the deck abeam of the deckhouses, but from other photos I knew that the only deck hard point at this location was a cleat. 

Eventually I found the following photo that showed blocks laying alongside the cleat. My presumption is that the blocks are attached to the cleat and moved between cleats to suit various sail sizes and configurations.

Anyway on that assumption I made 2 blocks with rope tails and rigged the flying jib sheets accordingly.

I then went on to mount the previously made anchors starting with the previously made outrigger. `this was glued and screwed in place (using a spectacle repair screw).

The anchor was shackled to the chain and then pinned and glued to the bulwark rail before being lashed in place.

 

Edited December 10, 2017 by KeithAug

[michael mott]

I can see that the detailing will only be finished when the obligatory splash stains of the champagne liquid are evident on the bow.

 

What a superb piece of model shipbuilding you are producing Keith.

 

Michael 

[KeithAug]

 Michael, I’m not sure I want to hit it with a bottle, It is a bit delicate. Better just drink the champagne instead.

 

I have just taken a few deck shots with the iPad camera. It is much better at keeping both the foreground and background in focus than my proper camera.

 

 

Edited December 11, 2017 by KeithAug

[michael mott]

I rather like the more brown pallet it looks quite natural.

 

A spiffy stand

 

Michael

[herask]

incredible!!! you got to take some beauty photos when it's completely done. beee-utifull!! my desktop awaits new background... :-)))

[KeithAug]

I tend to agree Michael - perhaps I need a replacement for my good camera. 

 

Herask - thank you - I will do a better job on photos once complete.

 

 

So whats left to do - better make a list.

 

I could rig a few missing haliards - for bosuns chairs, spinnaker and bloomer etc. I'm in two minds as to whether I am going to add these lines as they don't add anything and start to clutter the already busy mast profile.

 

I have to add the rudder but this is a 5 minute job - not done at the moment as it binds on the temporary construction stand.

 

The big jobs to complete are:-

 

1. Making the launch.

 

2. Making the stand.

 

3. Making the display cabinet.

 

On the small jobs list is making the flags and flag staffs (always the last job).

 

 

So to the launch which is going to be in some part a work of fiction.

 

The sum total of the information I have to go on is as follows:-

 

From the plans:- 

And from the web:-

The first job was to do a rough sketch of the hull profile - followed by a more draughtsman like rendition.

The launch is 7 inches long and the sections were iterated a number of times, plotting the vertical and horizontal section repeatedly until the profiles coincided.

 

I then started cutting wood:-

 

Edited December 12, 2017 by KeithAug

[Roger Pellett]

Keith,

 

it it looks like you have enough wood there to build a whole fleet!

 

Roger

[Jim Lad]

Not sure what all that wood is for Keith, but it'll be interesting to find out!

 

John

[Julie Mo]

Keith, you are amazing!  While I've been off doing what I thought was fairly decent work, you have created a masterpiece.  I just hope this beauty finds itself in a place all can admire.  Nicely done!

[KeithAug]

Roger / John

 

Its probably safe to say that while the wood is part of my plan for completion of the launch it isn't actually on the main route. 

 

Julie, thank you very much for looking in and for your kind comments.

[KeithAug]

A few months ago I bought a second hand scroll saw, predominantly to make the cutting of frames easier and more accurate. Since then it has sat on the floor of the workshop gathering dust. Making the launch frames was the first opportunity to use it and practice. What I needed was a solid table to mount it on - hence the wood in the previous post. It would have been easier to have cut the frames with a piercing saw but that would have made the purchase of the scroll saw even more extravagant.

 

Anyway to the bench - which I wanted to be of high mass and stiffness with good vibration absorption properties. I didn't want it bolted down to keep flexibility of space in the workshop.

 

The frame was made from 3" x 1.5" pine with a very solid top made from a piece of 1.625" thick oak. To add stiffness and mass 3 sides and the base had inserted panels made from 0.9" flooring quality chipboard.

I had a few rubber bushes from washing machine delivery packaging that I decided to use to isolate and damp the saw mounting lugs. The bushing was arranged to ensure that the only connection between the saw and the bench was through the rubber.

The table top was drilled to take the bushes together with a clearance hole for the bolt.

I built storage into the bench to take heavy items, increasing the mass further.

So now I have the scroll saw ready to start making the launch. 

 

 

Edited December 17, 2017 by KeithAug

[michael mott]

Very nice base Keith.

 

Michael

[Jond]

Great bench.  I bought a scroll saw for last year because my band saw is a big old 10 inch and I want to learn plank on frame.  I am thrilled to see I can watch you make frames because I struggle using the saw.  The up stroke grabs my wood.  I will look to see how you work with delicate wood.

 

Thanks jon

[noel_colledge]

Check to make sure your blade is in the right way round Jon, you should be cutting on the down stroke on a scroll saw so the blade pulls back into the table. This may be your problem.

 

Regards

 

Noel

 

[KeithAug]

Michael thank you. Not quite as heavily built as your coffee table.

 

Jon / Noel:-

 

I had a practice with the saw today. It came with a lot of blades - the first pulled as you described but the second (a much finer blade) didn't. I'm pretty sure I had both the right way round but its difficult to check - in the end I got the jewellers loupe out to check. That said there are a lot of blade types - most of which I have as they came with the saw. It will take a while to try them all.

 

 

 

Edited December 19, 2017 by KeithAug

[Mark Pearse]

Hi Keith

 

I like the way you've used the heat-shrink on the rigging - could you tell me some details on the product?

 

thanks, Mark

[KeithAug]

Hello Mark

 

I got the heat shrink from Amazon. I got the smallest diameter possible 1.6mm pre shrunk 0.8mm shrunk.

 

 

 

Edited December 20, 2017 by KeithAug

[Landlocked123]

Hi Keith,

 

I love the blade chart. Thanks. J.

 

[michael mott]

That blade chart is very useful thanks for posting it.

 

Michael

[KeithAug]

This is a better scroll blade chart:-

 

http://www2.woodcraft.com/PDF/Olson-scrollblade-chart.pdf

[KeithAug]

Sometimes when I am about to start a new element I find myself getting frustrated with the state of the workshop. This happened on Sunday so I spent the day tidying up.

That done I was forced to make a start on the launch. I redrew the sections at twice scale to get them as well defined as possible. I then reduced them to scale size on the printer. The launch is about 7 inches long and 1.6 inches wide. I made a test section to have a little practice on the scroll saw - bottom left quadrant. The sections are just formers and will be removed once the hull is planked.

I then made the base board on the mill - the slots are .080" i.e. the thickness of the ply sections.

I found cutting the sections on the scroll saw quite challenging. It took a great deal of concentration to keep the cut on the line. This was predominantly because the cut line looked almost identical to the black drawn line I was following. As a result I struggled to see where along the line the blade actually was. Next time I will draw the line I am following in another colour - probably orange (dark enough to see, light enough not to blend with the black slot of the cut).

 

Taking the cut slow and steady produced acceptable results - the frames temporarily fitted in the next photo are as cut.

The frames were squared up and glued using the right angle edge of some "V" blocks. They were clamped while drying using rare earth bar magnets (3mm x 10mm x 40 mm).

With the 7 frames installed a keel was made and glued in the pre cut notches. The keel is much deeper than needed and will be cut back later. Balsa blocks were glued between the sections to add stiffnes during planking. 

I am thinking of single planking in mahogany of .125" x .040" section.

 

I have to admit that i'm not entirely sure what I am doing. Its all bit of an experiment. Oh Hummm!

 

I may not get another post done before Christmas as the house is already in entertain guests mode. So if I don't can I wish you all the compliments of the season.

 

Edited December 23, 2017 by KeithAug

[mojofilter]

Wow! My surgery isn't that clean!!  Well, maybe, but that's clean!!