HMS Atalanta 1775 by tlevine - FINISHED - 1:48 scale - from TFFM plans

[jml1083]

Hi Toni,

 

I've been following your log for awhile. Your work is absolutely meticulous. Your descriptions and photos are a great help to less skilled builders (like me for example).

[tlevine]

Thanks, Jim.  I was hoping to have pictures of the fore mast partners this weekend but I hurt my hand (actually I made the mistake of breaking up a dog fight and ended up the only casualty). Next weekend...

[druxey]

Please take care, Toni: your hands are your most valuable asset. I trust the damage was not too serious.

[tlevine]

Thanks for your concern, Druxey.  The hand is pretty swollen today  but I don't think there was any permanent damage.  And right now, the culprit wants to play "squeeky-toy"!

[tlevine]

The hand is mostly healed so I was able to get a little work done this weekend.

 

The fore mast partner is located between beams 2 and 3.  Unlike the lower deck, the fore and main partners on the upper deck are complicated affairs.  The carlings are let into the beam from below but stop one inch below the top of the beam.  Fore and aft cross chocks are mortised into the carlings and the beams.  Finally, the four corner chocks  are mortised into the cross chocks and the carlings.  The cross chocks have a round-up to match the beams.  A total of 32 bolts hold this assembly together.  Sorry for the picture quality but these were taken before I finish sanded and cleaned up the assembly.  The blue discoloration is from the droplet of blackener I put on one of the bolts that was damaged during insertion.  I put plain water on the area later and it is not longer a problem.

 

 

 

 

 

The completed assembly is glued to beam 3 but dry-fit to beam 2.  The brass wire will keep the assembly in place as I make the knees and carlings.  You can see that the blue color is gone.

 

 

 

I have started work on the beam 3 assembly.  The lodging knees are attached to the beam but everything else is simply press fit in place.  I was lucky enough to have bright sun to take pictures in.  Yes, I know, light overcast is best to prevent shadows.  But sunlight picks up gaps and other irregularities better.  You can see the difference between beam set 2, which is finished and glued and beam set 3 which is still in the "rough" stage.

 

 

[druxey]

Looking good, Toni. To get a smoother bolt 'head', have you tried using a small cup burr? Another technique is to use a blunt knife and roll it across the wire to form a small head. Someone recently posted an illustrated 'how to' of this on MSW.

[tlevine]

I have not tried a cup burr.  I usually round them off with a file but apparently forgot to do so with this batch of bolts.  I am going to try and improve their appearance by filing them flat and then painting the shiny end or possibly removing and replacing them.

[druxey]

Ah. Good idea.

[tlevine]

I have ordered the cup burrs.  Anything has got to be less annoying than filing and shaping the ends of countless wire "bolts".  In the mean time...  I attempted to force the brass wire out from the back side with minimal success.  I filed the ends flat and then shaped the ends by pinching them in a needle nose pliers.  I decided to paint the ends.  In order to prevent paint from damaging the wood surface, I applied a coat of finish first.  I used thick acrylic hobby paint and daubed it onto the ends of the wire.  Two coats were applied.  This paint is the kind used for arts and crafts, not the paints that we normally use in model building.  I needed something thick so it would not run out on to the wood.  The appearance is much better.  Pictures in a few days.

[tlevine]

Well, a few days has turned into a few weeks.  I received my cup burrs.  They do a nice job of smoothing the ends of brass "bolts".  There are several sizes available, depending on the gauge of the wire.  I purchased my from Widget Supply, a company that sells hobby supplies.  While on the site I found a great sanding devise, a 1/2" disc sander for the Dremel with several grits.  I used to get these from Micromark, but they stopped selling them last year.  The disc sander is perfect for outside tapers and when you want a less aggressive sander than the drum sander.  I have no connection to the company, simply a pleased customer.

 

 

I have installed beam set 4.  Notches have been cut into the bulkhead walls for the carlings and ledges.  I am much happier with the bolt head on the fore mast partner after rounding them up and painting them.  Blackening was not possible in situ and I was pleased with how it turned out.  The hole in the deck aft of beam 5 is for the pin of the bit.

 

 

[druxey]

Those look very nice now, Toni! Good going. Cup burrs are not well known amongst the model-making crowd, but are extremely useful. I was using one earlier today to round off the ends of steering wheel spoke handles.

[gjdale]

Lovely work, as always, Toni.  And thanks for the tip on the cup burrs and sanding discs.

[ChrisLBren]

Nice work Toni !

[tlevine]

Thanks Grant and Chris.  Druxey, the cup doesn't get clogged from the wood dust?

[EdT]

Toni,

 

You have my sympathy with the brass bolts. Brass doesn't like to get black or stay black - paint or selenious solution - doesn't matter. Rub your finger over it and you will likely create a bright spot. Facing thousands of bolts on Naiad, I rejected brass. Perhaps the following will be helpful.

 

A one-half inch thick round bolt head at 1/48 scale will only project 10-thousandths of an inch. That bump is just about detectable. If driven home into wood the projection is probably less than half that - even with a washer.

 

I adopted two alternate materials for bolts. For iron driven into wood, I genrally used black monofilament fishing line dipped in CA. Fidhing line was suggested to me by the late Alexei Romashenko. This can be cut off flush or slightly above the surface. In the latter case a few passes with 320-grit paper will round the head a bit. For bolts driven through ironwork, I used copper wire, forced home into the underlying wood, then cut off just above the surface. Tapping with a hammer peens it over and rounds it off somewhat. It can then be blackened with no effect on surrounding wood using liver of sulfur solution. LOS does not work on brass.

 

The only place I left monofilament bolts protrude was on the globe-headed type used to secure the ribbands to the frames. I sanded these to round them a bit. At 1:60 I made all bolts in wood essentially flush.

 

I have not had much luck with cup burs. Maybe its the copper. They clog with soft materials. Remco recently suggested a new type that resists clogging. Here's a link:

 

http://www.gesswein.com/p-10767-busch-burs-twin-cut-cup-fig-411t.aspx

 

I have not tried these.

 

Hope this is helpful.

 

Ed

[shipmodel]

Hi Toni  -

 

Just found your log and read it cover to cover.  Really nice work with great dedication to getting it right.  I will be using some of your techniques to improve my own work.

 

For bolt heads I use soft iron wire, clip it short and file it round, as you do.  I may get a set of the cup burrs since you like them.  They are shiny when new, but by the time I am done with the model they age and tarnish to a dull generic metallic look that I like.

 

Will you be bringing Atalanta to Charleston?  Love to see her in person. 

 

Dan

[druxey]

My burrs are fine as I use them by hand, not spun in a drill. They are at least 30 years old and haven't clogged with wood dust yet!

[tlevine]

Ed, thank you for the information.  I have never worked with copper, except for hull plating.  I will probably start playing with both of those so see how they work for me.  The cup burr I just bought is coincidentally the type suggested by Remco.  I got it because it is described as resistant to clogging.

 

Dan, I have used iron wire in the past but decided it might be too soft.  Something else to take another look at.  As I am flying in to Charleston, Atalanta gets to stay home. Maybe next year if the meeting is driving distance for me.  Look forward to meeting you next week.  I'm fairly easy to pick out...one of the only girls in the room!

 

Druxey, I will try hand spinning.  I had put them in the Dremel at very low speed to prevent the metal from heating up too much.

[tlevine]

Robin, sorry for the delay in responding but I don't get to the computer every day.  The dimensions were taken from TFFM.  I would doubt there would be much room for storage underneath the platform.  These rooms were more like cells than anything else.  No natural lighting, no ventilation and no headroom.  You would not have been able to comfortably stand erect.  Maybe someone else has some insight.

[dgbot]

Well if you happen to be in a maritime museum and see the size of the uniforms of the average sailor you will find that they were usually on the small side as compared to us.  Diet  played a big role in this.  During this area you would be considered a giant if you were 6 feet and a freak if you were taller.  See you in Charleston.

David B

Edited October 13, 2013 by dgbot

[Dan Vadas]

what dose TFFM stuf stand for

 

Robin - it stands for "The Fully Framed Model" series of books written by David Antscherl and Greg Herbert. They detail every piece in the construction of a "Swan Class" Sloop, and are the books that Toni and I (among others) are using to build our current models.

 

  Danny

[tlevine]

It has been a few weeks since I made any progress on Atalanta.  Last week was the NRG conference in Charleston.  I met several MSW members when I was there.  It is great to put a face to a name.  

 

I have installed the fifth beam-bitt pin assembly.  This is a complicated area to construct not only because you are trying to fit a piece which intersects three decks (fore platform, lower deck and upper deck) but also because the sequence of installation is critical for a correct fit.  The bitt pin is tapered on three sides as it descends into the hull.  The aft side is perpendicular to the water line.  Because I planked the port side, the port pin had to be reshaped below the lower deck to allow installation.  This will not be seen because of the bulkheads surrounding it.  Because the sequence of installation is so important, I will show it step-by-step.  Please remember that the pictures show a dry-fit assembly.

 

The first step was to build the beam-hanging knee assembly.  The carlings and ledges were then glued up and removed from the model as its own assembly.  The lodging knees were made and the mortises for the ledges were cut.  These were also removed from the model.  Once all the pieces had been fabricated, it was time for installation.  The first step was to install the port pin and the starboard lodging knee.  I also had to remove a section of the fore-and-aft bulkhead abaft the 5th beam to allow the beam assembly to pivot into position.  This was replaced after everything was glued in place.  You can see the notches in the bitt pin for the crossbar to be added later.  The bitt was pinned to the lower and upper deck beams.  The bolts for the lower deck beam are decorative.  The upper ones are functional. 

 

 

 

 

The beam-hanging knee assembly was then installed.  An additional piece of bulkhead planking was cut to fit underneath the beam so there is no gap between the wall and the lower edge of the beam.

 

 

 

The starboard pinn was installed next.  In the pictures the pinn is slightly off plumb.  This was corrected when everything was glued up.  The port lodging knee was then installed.

 

 

 

Finally, the carlings and ledges assembly was put in place.  Finish will be applied to the pin (except at the notch for the crosspiece) but not to the upper part of the deck structure.  The bitt standards are long knees which extend forward from the pinn to the third beam.  David states that these structures should be notched for the beams they intersect but does not say anything about the ledges and carlings that also intersect the standards.  Any help would be appreciated as I have not yet decided how much of the upper deck I will be planking.

 

 

[dgbot]

Looking good Toni. What are you going to use as a finish?

David B

Edited October 27, 2013 by dgbot

[Jim Lad]

More delightful eye candy, Toni!

 

John

[tlevine]

Thanks, John.  David, I use Watco's Danish Wood Oil.  I believe they have changed the formulation since my new can is yellowing the holly much more than did in the past.  At this point, I probably would not recommend it unless one is looking for that "old-timey" look.

[WackoWolf]

I still have a old can about half full/or half empty. I do like the old time look on certain models, but it also come down to how many coats you put on it. Just my 2 cents.

[Mirabell61]

very impressive build Tony

it`s a real delight to study your build log from begin to the current state, a masters work !

 

Nils

[tlevine]

Thank you Robin and Nils.  Joe, I rarely put on more than one coat unless the wood is very porous, like basswood.  It simply gets to shiny.

[tlevine]

The bitt standards are knees that extend anteriorly from the bitt pin.  They are let into the deck beams and ledges by 1".  I rough-cut the standard and then cut in the notches using the Preac saw with the blade elevated 1" above the table.  To make things more interesting, the round-up of the deck needs to be taken into consideration.  Also, the deck slopes upward towards the bow but the bitt pin is perpendicular to the water line.  That angle had to be cut on the aft side of the standard so it would fit snuggly against the pin.  Once I was happy with the fit, I transferred the shape of the standard onto the rough piece and cut it to the correct shape.  The edges are beveled.

 

 

 

After the starboard standard was fabricated, the port one was made.  The pictures show the port standard before and after final shaping.

 

 

 

 

The standards are bolted to the underlying frames.  The cable stopper hole is drilled near the intersection of the pin and the floor height.  It is 2.75" in diameter.  I used a #60 drill bit and then enlarged and rounded over the hole with Swiss needle files.  The hole is barely visible in the last photo.  The color difference betweeen the pin and the standard is because I put finish on the pin but will be delaying putting any finish on the standard until after the deck has been installed.

 

 

[ChrisLBren]

Looking good Toni !