USS Constitution by JSGerson - Model Shipways Kit No. MS2040

[woodartist]

1 hour ago, Der Alte Rentner said:

When I reviewed the Jeff Toma build, I had to ask myself, was this indeed the one I remembered?  Though my recollection of where he left off doesn't quite jive, I must admit, this may have been the one

I really enjoyed looking thru his build log, he was creative and it looks like he never completed the rigging but the ship is really well done.

[JSGerson]

Glad to have been of help.

 

Jon

[Der Alte Rentner]

22 hours ago, woodartist said:

I really enjoyed looking thru his build log, he was creative and it looks like he never completed the rigging but the ship is really well done.

I had you in mind when I asked Jon the question..  

[GGibson]

Hi Jon!  Hope you have a wonderful long holiday weekend with family! Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Saw this book on a website named AbeBooks and was curious if you are familiar with the book or the author.  Ordered it and it arrived today.

 

      

 

 

Safe travels back home! 

Edited November 27 by GGibson

[JSGerson]

I have 1 or 2 books from that era, but I'll to wait till I get home next week to check to see if I have that one.

 

Jon

[GGibson]

Sounds great, Jon.  Also ordered this Laurence Arnot book but haven't received it yet.  Just trying to prepare myself for the build.  I have been re-reading all of your posts here to understand what you've done, and how well you've done it!  May have a few questions in a month or so.  Let's get past the holidays first...

 

Speaking of which, have a Happy Thanksgiving weekend with family!

 

 

Edited November 27 by GGibson

[mtbediz]

3 hours ago, GGibson said:

Sounds great, Jon.  Also ordered this Laurence Arnot book but haven't received it yet.  Just trying to prepare myself for the build.  I have been re-reading all of your posts here to understand what you've done, and how well you've done it!  May have a few questions in a month or so.  Let's get past the holidays first...

 

Speaking of which, have a Happy Thanksgiving weekend with family!

 

 

You've been preparing extensively for Conny, Greg. I think we can expect a heavily modified kit build from you.

[GGibson]

58 minutes ago, mtbediz said:

You've been preparing extensively for Conny, Greg. I think we can expect a heavily modified kit build from you.

 

Well, yes, Mustafa...  I have been preparing.  I've gone through Jon's build-to-date and am now reading through yours from the start to where you are currently.  Not sure about a "heavily modified kit", but if I can successfully build a "Jon/Mustafa" clone of the Constitution, I will declare it a win!  You guys, along with Peter, usedtosail, xken, among others, have me inspired and excited to get started. All of you have created your own Constitution practicums.  My appreciation for all of you is overwhelming! 🏆

Edited November 28 by GGibson

[JSGerson]

Gregg, We are here to answer your questions as best as we can. Look forward to your build.

 

Jon

[Geoff Matson]

Welcome to the group. Looking forward to your progress.

 

[Der Alte Rentner]

I will add my voice to the chorus.  Can't wait to see you get started.  

 

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all..  

[kmart]

And one more... looking forward to following Gregg's build.   

[GGibson]

On 11/27/2024 at 2:59 PM, JSGerson said:

I have 1 or 2 books from that era, but I'll to wait till I get home next week to check to see if I have that one.

 

Jon

 

Hi Jon, hope you have had an enjoyable extended Thanksgiving weekend.  To save you some time looking on your library shelf, I did see in re-reading your build log in more detail that, in your discussion regarding rudder iron chains, you reference Captain E. Armitage McCann's book, so... not surprisingly... you have the book!  I'm looking forward to using it as one of many references!  

[JSGerson]

While I waited for the new drill bits to arrive, I put the canopy stanchions on hold and started to work on the captain’s skylight. This took longer than I had expected, and the time was also interrupted with my annual Thanksgiving weeklong trip to my sister’s home where the family gathers for the holiday.

 

I studied the practicum method, xKen’s method and others. Since I am a glutton for punishment, I chose not to take the simple route. I wanted transparent windowpanes and close to scale details which meant, I would be using Ken Foreman’s as a guide more than Bob Hunt’s. Also, Bob did not fabricate the brass railing surrounding the skylight which Ken did.

[JSGerson]

As usual, the first thing I did was gather my materials needed for this endeavor. One of the items was brass wire for the horizontal 3/8” brass bars protecting the glass windows. This scaled down to 0.005” or 36-gauge brass wire which Mr. Hunt did use on his construct. However, try as I might, I could not locate 36-gauge identified brass wire to purchase. I did find Infini Model Micro Fine Brass Wire 0.1mm IBW-1000 (0.004”) online at A-Z Toy Hobby in Texas. I don’t think anyone will notice the 0.001” difference in thickness.

 

Using the template from the practicum, the skylight base core was cut from ¼” thick basswood stock.

[JSGerson]

The side border framework was made from 1/16” x 1/32” boxwood.

[JSGerson]

The skylight windows invited numerous methods from a variety of builders depending on whether the skylight was solid wood mimicking a glass enclosure or an actual framework. My method is also a bit unique. Because I intended to make actual windows with a frame and glass (mica), the window frame would only be supported at the base and top of the window frame. Therefore, I had to create a “floating” top support. The actual skylight has a wood dome with an internal mechanism to facilitate the opening and closing of the windows. So, that inspired me to have my dome supported by a pole paying homage to the real thing. An extended dome was fabricated out of boxwood with a hole drilled about halfway through to accept a piece of music wire. Another hole was drilled through the base to support the wire. The dome was stuck on the wire, inserted into the base, tweaked so that the top of the dome was ½” from the bottom of the base.

[JSGerson]

Then, the wire and dome were removed, and the base was hollowed out halfway down. This was done to create the illusion the base was totally hollow. The top piece was rounded off to create the roundness of the dome. Now, when the base, wire, and dome were assembled, I had a solid structure to support the windows. According to the US Navy plans, the dome was made from mahogany. No mention what type of wood the rest of the structure was made from, so I assumed it was the same. However, the photo images seem to show the skylight was the same color as most of the wood on the spar deck which was not mahogany. The mahogany stain I had gave a deep reddish tone, almost black looking which I didn’t want. Therefore, I initially stained the wood with Miniwax Gunstock, then applied a light coat of Miniwax Red Mahogany.

[JSGerson]

The skylight sits on a 1” thick round platform protruding about 1” wider than the skylight structure footprint. Because this component will be painted black, be mostly covered by the skylight, and I didn’t have a readily available piece of 1/32” basswood or boxwood wide enough, I used 1/32” plywood.

 

NOTE: The practicum calls for the round platform to be painted Bulwark Green. Why, Mr. Hunt chose this color I don’t know because I could not find any images showing a green platform, just black.

[JSGerson]

The skylight’s side and top window framing was made from 1/32” x 1/32” boxwood stock. The bottom was made from 3/32” x 1/32” stock. An outline was drawn on paper and covered with wax paper. The frames were lined up with drawing and fastened with PVA glue so the parts could be adjusted before drying.

[JSGerson]

The windows panes were made from mica cut to size and fastened on the backside with CA glue. Just a fine drop was all that was needed for capillary action to suck in the glue between the wood frame and mica lying on it

[JSGerson]

As I was about to add the Infini Model Micro Fine Brass Wire 0.1mm IBW-1000 (0.004”) wire to protect the windows, I realized that the 0.1 mm wire I ordered was not the wire I received. I got Infini Model Micro Fine Brass Wire 0.2mm IBW-2000 (0.010”). Although technically a bit oversized, as it turned out it looks better for the model and that is what counts.

 

The four cut wire parts per panel were of four different short lengths due to the trapezoidal shape of the windowpanes. They were very thin which made it difficult to pick up. My two forceps tweezers were just about useless. Compared to the working space on the panels, the tips of the tweezers looked like tree stumps in comparison, and I couldn’t pick up the wire pieces off the workbench surface due to their rounded tips. I ended up using my rarely used sharp but relatively heavy needle-nose pliers I had bought some years back. It was a bit awkward to use, but it got the job done.

[JSGerson]

With lots of tenacity and patience, I was able to place the four wire pieces in ascending order, longest to shortest, from base to the top of the windowpane. The wires were initially held in place with a very fine drop of PVA glue at one end of each wire. This glue was used so I had time to maneuver the wire into their final positions. Once the glue set up, CA glue was used to secure the wire at their other ends.

In the end, the skylight which fits on a US quarter coin, is comprised of 82 separate parts:

1 Base with six faces

• each base face - 4 base frame pieces x 6 f aces = 24 pieces
• 1 Dome support wire
• 1 Dome
• 1 base plate

6 Window panels each consisting of:

• 4 window frames = 24 pieces
• 1 piece mica = 6 pieces
• 4 pieces wire = 24 pieces

I’m not trying to make excuses, but with 82 separate parts, those tiny precision errors add up. On this scale, my novice workmanship is showing with these closeup images. It’s something I’ll have to live with it. The skylight will put aside till it’s time for its installation. Now, back to working on the canopy frames.

[GGibson]

49 minutes ago, JSGerson said:

While I waited for the new drill bits to arrive... 

 

I wanted transparent windowpanes and close to scale details which meant, I would be using Ken Foreman’s as a guide more than Bob Hunt’s...

 

Still very interested in hearing how the new drill bits perform in their intended purpose! 👍

 

I have quickly learned that, if there was any process to follow, xken's details would be at the top of the list!  I have enjoyed reading his detailed build log!

 

37 minutes ago, JSGerson said:

On this scale, my novice workmanship is showing with these closeup images. It’s something I’ll have to live with it.

 

Great detail on this skylight!  As has been discussed on practically every forum post ad nauseum, the casual observer with the naked eye, especially if your Constitution is cased, is not going to see it the way you as the builder has, and if your friends and family show up with a magnifying glass to inspect, kick 'em out!! 🤣🤣

 

Great job, Jon!

Edited December 12 by GGibson

[Der Alte Rentner]

I will be revisiting these pages relatively soon and benefiting from your example and expertise. Very well done! The detail explanations are very welcome as well.

[Der Alte Rentner]

21 hours ago, GGibson said:

if there was any process to follow, xken's details would be at the top of the list!

Amen to that!   (I wonder if he still peruses these pages..)

[JSGerson]

I met Ken (a professional model builder) and his wife at the 2016 NRG conference in San Diego CA while he was still building his USS Constitution model (you'll find my two cents comments and contributions in his build log). Since he finished that build he designed, built the prototype, and wrote the manual for the Model Shipways' USS Constitution cross section model kit. And to top that  off he did the same for the Model Trailways 1869 Allerton Steam Fire Pumper. He also written a couple of books on how to machine brass parts on a mill and lathe. He is an awfully nice guy and would probably answer any questions posed to him, but I doubt he still follows Conny build logs because he moved on to other projects.

 

Jon

[mtbediz]

I am sure that I will visit these pages again when the time comes. We have a saying like this, I don't know if you would say the same thing. "I don't need to rediscover America."   Because Columbus already did that.

Edited December 14 by mtbediz

[JSGerson]

Just a quick update. I finally got to play with my new drill bits (which I put aside while making the skylight) and they work just fine drilling into brass, so I'll working on the canopy frames once again.

 

Jon

[GGibson]

3 hours ago, JSGerson said:

Just a quick update. I finally got to play with my new drill bits (which I put aside while making the skylight) and they work just fine drilling into brass, so I'll working on the canopy frames once again.

 

Jon

 

Yay! Great to hear that they are working for you with brass.  Now I'll need to order some for my shipyard. 👍