Schooner Germania (Nova) by KeithAug - FINISHED - Scale 1:36 - 1908 / 2011

[mangulator63]

16 minutes ago, Roger Pellett said:

Keith,

 

Having recently published a book, actually two books; my first and my last, it can be a time consuming task.  For me, writing it was the easy part.  The hard part was done by two talented inviduals employed by a local museum that graciously donated their time.

 

This included word processing my individual chapters into a cohesive format, tracking down owners of copywrited materials and getting written permission to publish their work, and getting illustrations that I selected into a form that could be published.  I was also fortunate that one of these “helpers” was a retired university research librarian who knew what needed to be done.  I was also responsible for hiring someone to index the book. The other was a recent University graduate with bulldog determination.  She recently independently published an article about Great Lakes shipping and attended the Steam School on board the Liberty Ship in Baltimore Harbor.

 

My librarian friend also spent considerable time writing and organizing the materials to send to prospective publishers, each of which required a business plan for the book. Once a university press  agreed to publish the book they insisted on a single point of contact: me.  In the ten years since retirement I had focused on things other than up to date computer technology so communicating with them was a hurdle to overcome.

 

MSW is blessed with some talented authors who have produced wonderful books of stunning artistic quality published mostly by SeaWatch.  The fact that they not only built amazing models but also produced high quality books speaks volumes about their ability.  In my case, however, without the help that I received from others my book would still be nothing but a good idea.

 

 

I see you were fortunate to have someone donate their time in assisting you with your book publishing. I wonder if another possibility for assistance might come from a local college.  I was wondering if college students taking classes on writing or publishing look for ways to earn experience by assisting others put their book together. I feel that amount of information, idea's, images and witnessed skill in this thread alone are well worth publishing. 

In my opinion Keith's work should be published in a larger size format with full page color images and possibly a "CD" for the scalable .pdf files.

Again just my opinion. 

[wefalck]

Over the past 30 years or so I wrote/co-authored/edited probably a couple of dozen of books of various sizes for work. I also served on the editorial board of an UN organisation. And I am proof-reading/correcting four times a year the journal of the German equivalent of the NRG of which I am the legally responsible editor (not the technical one) ... Producing a decent book is hard work, though greatly facilitated by modern Desk-Top Publishing (DTP) systems. Getting all the formal stuff right, such as bibliographic references, credentials, permissions, etc. is indeed time consuming and tedious. I can fully understand that someone wants to spend his/her time with more sexy things ...

[allanyed]

I agree with all of the above,  researching is fun, writing is fun,  but the sexy part is the building and even more fun.  Finding boat and ship knowledgeable proof readers should not be a problem even within this membership.   It is a shame Bob Freidman at SeaWatch books is not taking on any new book projects.   He took most of the pain out of the process but I am not so sure there are many, or any more for that matter, like him out there.     

 

Allan

[mangulator63]

On 5/30/2020 at 2:04 PM, KeithAug said:

Thank you Richard. 

 

Unfortunately not a very productive week. Really quite hot and a lot of garden jobs to get on top of.

 

I got on with the deck dining table. This has a flanged support leg - quite unattractive in brown paint but much better in brass. .8 1.1 2.1

 

 I turned the 0.80" long leg as a cone.

This was then transferred this to the mill to cut away the excess metal to create the triangular flanged leg.

The leg was then parted off to length and a 1/8" diameter spigot was soldered on to the lower end to allow it to be mounted on the deck.

I cut the base bracket from a piece of bar and drilled a 1/8" hole for the spigot and 4off .025" holes for the mounting bolts.

The base plates were then slit to thickness and then cut off and polished.

The table top is 1.1' x 2.1' with the two leaves extended. This was made from .060" planks with scribed lines to simulate the leaves.

Wooden plinths were mounted on the deck and given a couple of coats of poly before the brass plates were added.

The legs were then added followed by the table top.

While I was at it I mounted the base plates for the crutch.

4 eyes are located at each corner of the plate - very small and made from .020" diameter brass wire.

I know I said that I was going to get on with the vents - but I got diverted.

 

 

 

 

Mr. Keith there appears to my old eyes to be a horizontal "U" shaped cross bar located between the base of each table leg. Am I seeing a shadow or did you choose not to add this part because of variations in the design over the years. I haven't read any members responses mentioning that you have not included it, so I'm probably just seeing a shadow on the deck.

Your impeccable adherence to fine details has me rereading each post, looking at images of the real vs. your creation and comparing how you have so meticulously replicated in scale such minute details. BRAVO!

Respectfully,  Tim

[mangulator63]

On 6/11/2020 at 6:40 PM, KeithAug said:

Dave, thank you for your appreciation - the vents on the original can be rotated - they tend to be facing forward when at anchor (to capture the wind). When sailing they generally point aft (to avoid capturing the spray). I am going to build the model with the sails up - so I pointed then rearward.

 

At anchor:-

Sailing:-

I curious if there is some sort of geared mechanism for turning the grouped ventilators in unison,  because it doesn't appear to be enough room between a few of them to be rotated seperate. Or maybe all controlled from one location electronically. 

[mangulator63]

On 6/9/2020 at 1:19 PM, KeithAug said:

Eberhard, Chris, Druxey, Richard - thank you all for your comments. Also thanks to everyone for all the likes

 

I made the plinths for the vents and then mounted the vents by inserting spigots into the bores of the stems.

 

I took a lot of photos. I will post these a few at a time over the next few days.

 

I haven't sorted out the rope ears on the life ring yet.

The yellow card is a temporary dust shield - I am getting fed up with cleaning out below decks.

IMHO I would paint the interior of the funnels a flat black

[mangulator63]

On 9/17/2020 at 2:30 AM, Bedford said:

In the interest of full disclosure I should inform you that I'm divorced

 

I used "Selective Hearing" and "Sudden Stupidity " both worked for about 5 years.  Then she caught on and now after 25 years,  if she senses a slight lack of motivation or movement "Large Heavy Objects" come at me at high velocity until I have Heard and Fully Understood! 

NEVER POKE THE BEAR!

[KeithAug]

18 hours ago, mangulator63 said:

I curious if there is some sort of geared mechanism for turning the grouped ventilators in unison, 

Tim - I don't believe so. I'm pretty sure that the ventilators are turned individually and manually by the crew.

[KeithAug]

23 hours ago, wefalck said:

Getting all the formal stuff right, such as bibliographic references, credentials, permissions, etc. is indeed time consuming and tedious. I can fully understand that someone wants to spend his/her time with more sexy things ...

 

On retirement I promised myself that I wasn't going to embark on any project that would become a chore. I am now in retirement year 8 and despite a number of close shaves to date i have not failed.

[KeithAug]

20 hours ago, mangulator63 said:

Mr. Keith there appears to my old eyes to be a horizontal "U" shaped cross bar located between the base of each table leg.

Tim - Yes, your attention to detail is better than mine. I will now have to rectify matters.

[KeithAug]

On 12/4/2020 at 4:59 PM, Roger Pellett said:

it can be a time consuming task

 

Wise words Roger. I think I'll stick to building.

[Roger Pellett]

Thank you Keith,

 

In my case the book only exists because of a fortuitous alignment of the planets:  A topic that had been inadequately covered, the existence of previously uncovered research, a museum dedicated to the topic of the book with some unused grant money to pay staff members to help me, and a faculty member at the University that runs the Press who helped sell the book to them.

 

In my case, these things are unlikely to occur again and I’d rather be spending my time in my shop.

 

Financially, the modest sum paid to the indexer still exceeds the royalties that I received.  Still I am pleased to see my research in a published form.

 

I agree that Bob Ferrman’s semi-retirement at SeaWatch books is a major blow to our ship modeling community; to authors as well as model builders.

Roger

Edited December 5, 2020 by Roger Pellett

[BANYAN]

Always the way Keith, when Murphy is on leave, Sod's law takes over    I think you may be reasonably safe having thought it through; even if not, with your skills you always find a way to 'fix' it.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[KeithAug]

Time for another update. I hope you are all well and that your Christmas won't be too disrupted by the pandemic. 

Pat - thank you for your comments.

 

So I moved on to something different.  On each side of the fore and main masts are a pair of pin rails - 4 in all, and all identical. I have fairly decent photos.

 

 

I was able to scale the dimensions from a combination of photos and a little plan detail. As usual I made a sketch.

 

 

Each rail has 8 holes - 6 for pins and 2 for the legs. The rail height is 0.6" and they are 1.25" long.

 

I started with a block of mahogany which I cut to size and then I drilled the 8 holes.

 

 

The pins will fit in brass collars .04" internal diameter and .092" outside diameter. I pressed and glued 6 pieces of brass tube into the mahogany to create the collars.

 

 

I then sliced off the 4 rails.

 

 

The legs were turned from brass rod 1/8" diameter.

 

 

The legs were bored to take spigots ( at both ends) for mounting to the deck and attaching the rail. I also turned up some small mahogany plinths before assembling the various bits.

 

 

I also turned the brass washers which fit over the upper spigots and below the retaining nuts.

 

 

I ground a piece of 1/4" tool steel into the profile of the belaying pin handled then started manufacturing the 24 pins. They were turned from 3/32" rod.

 

 

I am on cooking duty tonight so I must stop here. More to follow shortly.

 

 

 

[Keith Black]

7 minutes ago, KeithAug said:

I am on cooking duty tonight so I must stop here.

I didn't know you could cook on a lathe?................neat work as always, Keith.  

[KeithAug]

Thank you Keith.

 

Dinner is delayed so I will finish the post.

 

I machined flats on a 3/32" rod to form a hexagon and then parted off 8 retaining nuts. These were glued in place and then the pins were inserted into the rail.

 

 

 

[wefalck]

I like the idea of drilling a block for the brass collars and then slice off the rails !

 

At some stage, I will be faced with the task of making a pin rail for 0.2 mm belaying pins and drilling multiple  0.2 mm holes can be a drill-consuming task. However, as there is brass-tubing with 0.2 mm ID (I think), drilling 0.3 mm holes is less daunting.

 

I had actually considered making the pin and the collar in one piece and inserting this into the pin-rail. Also, the pin would be thicker and easier to make. It's a bit of cheating, put one has to be practical ...

 

I am rather surprised that they used a hex-nut on the rail-stanchions, as its corners can lead to chafing of the ropes.

[druxey]

He models, he machines, he cooks. Is there anything Keith can't do?

[Bob Cleek]

 

Who's the lubber that brought that butt-ugly hank of yellow climbing rope aboard?  

[allanyed]

Keith,

If your skills in cooking are half as good as your modeling skills, I hope you don't mind that I am inviting myself over for dinner the next time I am near Sussex!!!    I know it is off topic, but do you have any specialties? I love cooking, (about twice a month,) and one of my favorites is making pasta with mussels, clams, and shrimp.  I always use DeCecco and lately I have been able to find it with the boxes marked that it is from bronze dies.  Makes for a rougher texture than stainless steel thus holds the sauce better.    At least that is what my coworkers in Italy always told me.    I little (or more than a little) wine, some in the sauce, the rest in our glasses and it is a good night.    

 

Back to business, how did you slice each rail so cleanly and evenly once the brass inserts were in place?   What kind of glue did you use with the press fit?

Thanks!!

Allan

[KeithAug]

4 hours ago, wefalck said:

I am rather surprised that they used a hex-nut on the rail-stanchions, as its corners can lead to chafing of the ropes.

 

A very good point Eberhard and I suspect the designer agreed with you. The picture below is one of the later pictures I have of Germania which clearly shows the hex nut albeit with a domed end. You will also notice the brass rubbing strip on then rail edge.

 

 

However here is an earlier shot with the rail in the "as built" state with no nut and with no rubbing strip.

 

 

I suspect that at some stage the original design proved a bit fragile and this led to the modifications. 

 

I made the nut too large so I may lop it off and revert to the original design.

 

4 hours ago, wefalck said:

I had actually considered making the pin and the collar in one piece and inserting this into the pin-rail. Also, the pin would be thicker and easier to make.

 

No one is ever going to notice the cheat. Sometimes life needs to be a bit easier.

 

Edited December 11, 2020 by KeithAug

[KeithAug]

3 hours ago, druxey said:

Is there anything Keith can't do?

 

Druxey - My wife has a long list.

 

2 hours ago, allanyed said:

Back to business, how did you slice each rail so cleanly and evenly once the brass inserts were in place? 

 

Allan, I just used the bynes saw with a fine toothed slitting saw blade (108 teeth x 3" diameter). I have blades that I reserve for cutting metal and ones which I only use on wood.

 

As for cooking I can do most things to a modest standard but I am the go to member of the household when it comes to curry's with all the trimmings. 

[BANYAN]

Keith, could the 'nuts'  (with internal bars) also have been to allow easy removal/placement of the rails for maintenance/access to some of the mast/deck fittings?

 

Very effective way of making those rails, another gem I will tuck away .  This will be another 'gem' of a model.

 

BTW, if you ever find a way to reduce that list created by your 'Admiral' let me know - I have to work on reducing mine also

 

cheers

 

Pat

[KeithAug]

20 hours ago, BANYAN said:

could the 'nuts'  (with internal bars) also have been to allow easy removal/placement of the rails

That's a possibility Pat although I think the original design would also have allowed for removal.

 

20 hours ago, BANYAN said:

BTW, if you ever find a way to reduce that list created by your 'Admiral' let me know - I have to work on reducing mine also

 

I did quite well with the list, knocking off about 70% without accumulating many additions. I have parked the list for the last month or so. My guess I will restart in the spring by which time I should be supercharged by the Covid vaccine.

[Keith Black]

 Keith, in this image, is that electrical cable with outlets attached to the mast? if not, what is it? TY in advance.

 

[Jim Lad]

Coming along beautifully, Keith.  I think I like the idea of slicing off those hex. nuts.

 

John

[Sailor1234567890]

I believe that would be power for stuff like nav lights, Radar, radio etc. that would be needed up the mast. 

[KeithAug]

23 hours ago, Keith Black said:

is that electrical cable with outlets attached to the mast?

 

1 hour ago, Sailor1234567890 said:

I believe that would be power for stuff like nav lights, Radar, radio etc.

 

Keith / sailor.

 

The mast is of composite construction and clearly the power and instrument cables are routed through trunking on the inside of the mast. This being the case I am unsure why they don't enter the mast below deck level as this would leave the cables less prone to damage and deterioration. The cables in question seem to enter the mast via a pair of junction boxes on both the main and fore masts.

 

 

Now you have drawn attention to this detail I am going to have to reproduce it ------- Aren't I.

 

 

[KeithAug]

22 hours ago, Jim Lad said:

I think I like the idea of slicing off those hex. nuts.

 

 

Your wish noted John.

[Keith Black]

32 minutes ago, KeithAug said:

Now you have drawn attention to this detail I am going to have to reproduce it ------- Aren't I.

Noooooo, you don't have to but.... Thank you answering the question, Keith. I find it hard to believe that line wasn't in ridge conduit? 

Edited December 15, 2020 by Keith Black