US Brig Niagara by 6ohiocav - FINISHED - Model Shipways - Scale 1:64

[mikiek]

Joel ain't joking. All that stuff hanging on or about the hull is a prime candidate to get torn off. You're entering a whole new level of handling the hull.

[jbshan]

Joel ain't joking. All that stuff hanging on or about the hull is a prime candidate to get torn off. You're entering a whole new level of handling the hull.

A larger work table may be in order, for keeping away from the edge of.

[6ohiocav]

​

Rudder Assembly

 

 I worked on the rudder assembly.  To do that, I had to create the gudgeons and pins.  I used the brass straps from the kit.  I also bought some brass tubing and some brass pins that fit snuggly in the tubing.

 

For the female rudder brackets, I molded the strap metal with my pliers.  I then attached the finished U shaped strap to a strip wood clamp, and soldered the end of my tubing flush with one end of the strap.  I then cut off the other end and filed the excess.

 

For the male keel brackets, I did the same thing, then soldered a length of brass pin inside the tube and cut to size.

 

I used yellow glue drops to simulate bolt heads, and glued the straps to the rudder. The entire assembly was set aside for black paint, and once painted, I will attach it to the ship.  Here are some photos.

 

I also found time to work on the stern.  I finally lined the stern gun ports with red painted strip wood.  That was a tedious project, seeing that I could not sand the edges after installing without completely ruining the finish on the bulwark. I therefore had to make sure they fit perfectly before installing.  I do like the look however. 

 

Since I had to get out the red and green paint for the stern, I used it as an opportunity to do some much needed touch up work around the ship.

 

I also drilled the hole to accept the top of the rudder.  I located the hole where I thought it needed to be, only to get it wrong.  It needed to be as far back against the bulwark as I could place it.  I now have a larger hole than I would like, but feel that I can create a frame piece to cover it up that should look ok. I will add some photos later tonight for those of you that plan on cutting this hole in the future.

 

I am just about ready to open up the paint booth.  I have worked on all of the parts that need to be painted black, and since I believe I now have them done (including rough channels), I should be ready to break out the air brush.  On the list for black paint – Masts, trees, yards, gaffs, bowsprit, rudder and hinges, channels and some trim pieces.  All of that hard work now threatened to be tarnished by a mediocre paint job. Wish me luck.

[mikiek]

Hope I catcha in time, some of the masts are supposed to be buff and some natural!!

Edited August 10, 2016 by mikiek

[mikiek]

Sorry, I wanted to get that other post to you asap.  The hinges look good. Did you anneal the brass or use as is? Also which brass strip did you use?

 

Had to do a double take on your pix. I have the same mat on my workbench.

Edited August 10, 2016 by mikiek

[6ohiocav]

Mike

 

Roger that on the masts. I know that only small portions of the masts around the tops are painted black. I started masking them off last night. The bottom of both masts are made out of holly, and the rest is in cherry. I will be applying an oil finish to the wood for the natural look. I don't have the plans in front of me, but I believe all of the yards and booms are black.

 

I used the 2mm brass straps from the kit. It is the widest brass strips provided. It is the same brass strips I used on the carronades for eyebolts.

 

I did not anneal the brass per se.  It is pretty flexible and I bent it cold with my mini pliers. I heated it up to solder the tubing and pins of course.

 

Thanks for all the heads up. You have already saved me many times over.

[mikiek]

Don't forget the rings that go on the spanker mast. That seems to be a pretty common oversight. They've got to go on before you install that mast to the main.

[6ohiocav]

Mike,

 

I forgot about the rings.  Thanks for the heads up.

 

... all of this begs another question I have been pondering.  Since I am rigging my ship without sails, do the spanker mast rings simply sit around the spanker mast on top of one another?

 

By the way, my kit supplied spanker mast is shaped like a banana.  It is such a small diameter dowel, I have yet to find a replacement. I am going to soak it and try and straighten is some. I then planned on staining it with a cherry finish, which of course if I ever do get it to straighten out, will probably cause the dowel to warp again.  Always something. 

[jbshan]

I'm really sorry, Darrell, the rudder should be tapered top down and front back.  As is it will look clunky and not very streamlined.  This should show on the plans, or in the book.  (Sheet 3, bottom left, in the book, step 16, though that just tells you to go to the plans).  If you haven't painted yet, the glue on the pintles should sand off with the taper and you can re-install them.

From my Lexington.  This rudder is easier to get off at the moment, though Lawrence's does dismount.

 

Here is the sole.  It's blurry, but you can see the shape.

 

Here is the after face.  Compare the thickness at the top with the bottom.

Edited August 10, 2016 by jbshan

[6ohiocav]

Rudder and Tiller

 

​​Thanks to Joel's keen eye, I have reworked the rudder by carving the taper.  I also rounded the top and carved the tiller out of cherry. As I am replacing all non painted kit laser cut parts with my own creations, more time is added to the build.  However, in the case of the tiller, the fact that I left the unfinished part attached to the cherry stock actually made the fine carving easier. carving the octagon and then creating the rounded end would have been rather tedious on such a small delicate part.  Using the stock cherry stick as a handle helped.

 

As soon as I get the rudder painted, I will be installing the entire system.

 

Here are some shots.  

[mikiek]

Wow. Looks better than before. Hope you were able to reuse your metalwork on the new piece. What do you use to glue the metal to wood?

[6ohiocav]

I was able to reuse the gudgeons.

 

I just used Medium CA. I know it is not the preferred method of attaching brass to wood, but it holds well enough for this non moving part.  Besides, it came in handy when I had to remove them for the rework.

 

I have not decided how to attach the pinions to the painted ship hull. Any thoughts on how to remove the small sliver of paint needed for the brass strap without marring the adjoining surface. I only have to scrape a thin strip of paint. I thought about cutting a razor blade to width and using it like a chisel.

 

I came across the same challenge when I glue the pin rails to the painted bulwarks. I hacked the heck out of the surface and spent time repainting around the rails

[mikiek]

I can't remember where but recently I read that these parts were set in a recessed notch-like area. So when mounted they were flush with the surrounding surface. I'll see if I can find that.

 

Everyone seems to say don't glue to painted or charred (laser) surfaces. I haven't had problems with either.

[jbshan]

That's beautiful, darrell.  The top is indeed almost round.  Note on my rudder the leading edge is straight, while on Niagara it has a jog forward.  This is an improved design that allowed a round rudder port with much limited leaking compared to the early design.  For us, we can drill a simple round hole, while the older design needs a fan-like shape to allow the rudder to swing properly.

While I haven't always followed it, the rudder irons are set in to the face of the rudder, while those on the hull can stand proud of the hull plank.  You'll only need to trim around the irons with an xacto™ and scrape off inside the marks to remove the paint.

 

Again, this is Lexington, 1775.  I can try to get some shots of Lawrence's rudder, but it's all black and I don't know how much useful info you could see.

[6ohiocav]

Bilge Pump

 

This little project taxed all of my amateur skills. Carving, painting, metal work, and soldering. It took two evenings.

 

I started by milling some 1/8 inch square cherry bar stock to make the bits. I filed the chamfers with a micro half round file. Created the base, painted it gun stock red, and glued up the top.

 

Using the bar stock, I formed the rectangular metal band using the 1mm brass straps from the kit. I carefully soldered the ends together, filed and then blackened it.

 

I then worked on the center rod, and the “U” shaped bracket.  I used .05mm brass rods. For the bracket, I flattened both ends of a 3/8 inch length, I carefully bent it with my round nose pliers.

 

Soldering the base of the bracket to the end of a .05mm rod was a real challenge.  I clamped down the rod on top of a granite tile, and attached the U bracket to a pieces of scrap wood that I could hold in my left hand against the end of the rod.  That freed my right hand to do the soldering.  Getting it to line up square was the real challenge. Believe it or not, I actually did it right the FIRST time.

 

Once done, I cut the small black plates for the wooden handle.  I then blackened the plates and the center rod and bracket.

 

I carved the bilge handle out of cherry.  I inserted two of the small brass eye bolts from the kit on the bottom of the handle and attached two sections of 24 gauge black wire for the drivers. I drilled holes on top of the bits to accept the driving wire.

 

Once all of the components were done, I assembled them all together with medium CA. 

 

Here are some photos of the process.

[6ohiocav]

Joel,

 

Your Lexington Rudder is a work of art. That does not look like a laser cut part. What type of wood is it made from.

[jbshan]

First, your pumps.  How very nice not to be working on those dratted guns, eh?  All the pent-up skill coming out in the pumps.  Well done, Sir.

The Lexington rudder is done in the manner of that in 'The Fully Framed Model', by David Antscherl, using boxwood scraps from the Lexington semi-kit.  All the seams you see are from using individual pieces to build up the blade of the rudder.

[mikiek]

Nice pump! What else would you have done in those 2 nites?   

 

You didn't show the backside, did you paint and/or drill the water exit holes in the 2 columns?

[6ohiocav]

I drilled two small holes.  My crew is glad that it can remove the water from the leaky hull! 

 

I have not glued the pump down on the deck yet.  I may wait a while.  This thing is very delicate. One bump, and I think the handle will completely fall apart.

 

How is the "stropping'?

[mikiek]

I've done what you're planning with the pump (kept in a drawer). It gets beat up and broken that way too.

 

I'm still in admiration of you putting your nose down and grinding out all those carronades. The process is taking an incredible amount of time. I'm not even getting one per day.

[6ohiocav]

Mike,

 

I don't know if this will help, or if indeed you are doing it this way, but I did the task systematically.  That is,

 

1. I made all of my eyebolts at one time (170).

 

2. I then seized all of my tackle loops at one time (80).

 

3. Then stropped all of the single blocks with loops and hooks at one time(80),

 

4. Then the double blocks with hooks (80).

 

5. I then seized all the eyebolts to the breech lines and passed them through the sled and carronade rings and seized the other end to an eyebolt.

 

6. I installed all of the eyebolts into the bulwarks and waterways.

 

Doing these tasks separately gets you into a rhythm, and you get efficient doing it. Only after assembling all of the component parts did I start going down the line to install the guns on the deck carriages.

 

Regardless, seeing all of that intricate handy work blossom on to the deck is worth the effort.  I still have those "did I actually do that" moments. 

[mikiek]

Back to the assembly line

 

My biggest problem recently is that eyes, hands (and brain) are not working together. I've done more than my usual share of stupid things during this process. Lots of rework....

[6ohiocav]

Oh, I forgot. Make sure you strop a cold one once in a while to heal the eyes and brain.

[mikiek]

Sometimes I wish I could.   I am looking into some additional lighting. Thinking maybe I am not seeing things well enough. What do you light your area with?

[6ohiocav]

Great question and one that I have given some thought to.

 

I use a desk lamp on a movable arm (with a magnifying lense that I rarely use) with an incandescent bulb on my left. On the right, I have another desk lamp with a shade and normal bulb. My den has an overhead light that I can use as well.  Combined, I can almost eliminate the shadows created by my fat fingers, which to me is the biggest problem. I work during the day and do most of my model work at night, so lighting is always a concern.

 

Since starting this project, I have had to upgrade my reading glasses from a 1X to a 2X. I consider that a battle casualty.

 

An interesting side story.  Earlier this month, we had a power outage.  I think I was rolling rope coils, and decided to finish up using candle light. Thought I would experience what it was like in the 19th century.

[mikiek]

Just ordered a hi-intensity LED lamp. I think you're right about the shadows. They will play tricks. I have grabbed for rope with tweezers and literally missed 5-6 time in a row. A good excuse for some primitive vocabulary.

 

I apologize for getting off topic.

[Canute]

Good lighting is key for what we do. Bright LEDs are the way to go. I have some halogens, but feel like I'm gonna melt with them on. I also use a lighted magnifier on a swing arm; think the bulb is a florescent lamp. Our peepers aren't getting any younger.

 

Really nice job on the rudder and bilge pump, Darrell.

[6ohiocav]

Ken,

 

thanks for stopping in and "shining some light" on the topic.

 

I love your grist mill. I was hoping to order some good NC corn meal when it is done!

[Canute]

This pocket of NC does have some Yankees down this way. I'm not sure what the ratio is now, but most of the train club members are not born in the South.

 

Been lucky this year; haven't had those cornfields under water. Should get good corn and apples. We are the apple capital of NC.

[hervie]

Hello Darrel, Thanks for visiting my Syren log, which led me to discover your log. Lots of good stuff here. I'll be following with great interest from now on. .../hervie

Edited August 20, 2016 by hervie