HMS Vulture 1776 by Dan Vadas - FINISHED - 1:48 scale - 16-gun Swan-class sloop from TFFM plans

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks for checking in again Michael, Jeff and Brian.

 

Making the Timberheads

 

There are 40 Timberheads to fit on Vulture - 16 on the forecastle and 24 on the quarterdeck. Almost every one has different angles cut into them, as they are vertical to the frames but are also following the sheer of the decks in the longitudinal direction.

 

I made a jig to hold the pieces while I cut and file them to shape. The jig's angles will be recut as I progress along each deck - it remains to be seen whether this idea will work, but I'm fairly confident it will.

 

 

 

I've cut a shoulder into the bottom of them to give them added strength where they go through the planksheers. They also fit into the top of each frame by 1.5mm :

 

 

The first one fitted - only 39 to go   :

 

 

 

  Danny

[dvm27]

Very nice, Danny. Now all you need to do is make 39 others exactly like that one.

[Maury S]

time to get hte mill out.  The jig will help.   I'd like to see it in use.  Such a big help to modeling.  Great work, Danny

Maury

[Dan Vadas]

Yeah Greg - although as I mentioned before they are all different .

 

Maury - I'm using the Byrnes Saw instead of the Mill.

 

Using the Timberhead Jig

 

Before the questions are asked about how I use the Timberhead Jig - here's how.

 

1. I file the two inboard and outboard tapers using the wide slot :

 

 

 

2. I transfer the piece to the narrow slot and file the fore and aft tapers :

 

 

 

3. I cut the shoulders for the moldings using a sharp flat Xacto chisel :

 

 

4. The shoulders are rounded off with a needle file :

 

 

5. Using the jig I cut the top of the lower step all around on the Byrnes table saw :

 

 

6. I cut the piece to length :

 

 

7. Using the chisel I cut the lower step to size :

 

 

8. Finally I round off the corners of the step to fit the oval hole cut through the planksheer :

 

 

  Danny

[mtaylor]

Nice... a great way to do it.

[Remcohe]

Very clever Danny!

 

Remco

[AnobiumPunctatum]

Very clever jig.

[gjdale]

Very clever Danny, and a beaut little tutorial as well!

[Jeff-E]

Hi Danny,

 

As always excellent work and a great tutorial. Thank you

[Maury S]

Great tutorial!

Maury

[ndeconte]

Nice work Danny!

[Dan Vadas]

Thank you, and you're most welcome Mark, Remco, Christian, Grant, Jeff, Maury and Neal .

 

Forecastle Planksheers

 

The Planksheers for the Forecastle and Quarterdeck need to be fitted before I can continue with the Timberheads.

 

For the quarterdeck I could soak and laterally bend the four required as they only have a shallow bend. Here's the first one fitted - there is a smaller piece still to be fitted on the inboard side :

 

 

The four on the forecastle are a bit trickier. I cut these from wide stock. Fitting the forward one around the Knightheads was quite a task - I had one reject, and used at least 30 "dry fits" on each before I was happy with the result :

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Elmer Cornish]

thank you danny!   great jig idea ,, your turning me into a model jigwright.

[Dan Vadas]

No worries Elmer - plenty more where that came from .

 

I've finished fitting all the Planksheers. The port quarterdeck one is completely finished, others are in various stages.

 

 

 

You can clearly see the two-piece construction on the forecastle ones. This is necessary (even on the real ship) as it is impossible to fit the planksheer over the timberheads owing to the changing angles of the latter.

 

Don't forget, I'm "cheating" here - I'm not making the timberheads as part of the top timbers. I find it much easier to cut the moldings into their tops on the bench rather than on the ship   .

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Dan Vadas]

Thank you to all the guys who hit the "Like" button for my last post .

 

Forecastle Timberheads

 

I've marked and drilled the slots for the Timberheads, and also made and dry-fitted 8 more of them to check if the angles were going to need changing yet. Fortunately all the Forecastle ones are straight, so I can make 8 more before I have to adjust my jig. The bad news is that all the quarterdeck ones will need to be cut on at least four different angles - it could have been worse .

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[BANYAN]

Very nice work on the planksheers Danny.  And - that's not cheating - its being 'creative' or practical

 

cheers

 

Pat

[tlevine]

Everything looks fantastic.  I love the jig for the timberheads.  I can't imagine cutting out the timberheads neatly while still on the ship.  "Cheating" seems to be the only reasonable way to go.

[Jim Lad]

More lovely joinery, Danny!

 

John

[Padeen]

Very well done Danny!   And what a nice contrast between the different wood colours, good choice!

About the timberheads, are they supposed to be the end of the frames on the real ship? Is that why you mention cheating?

[Dan Vadas]

Very well done Danny!   And what a nice contrast between the different wood colours, good choice!

About the timberheads, are they supposed to be the end of the frames on the real ship? Is that why you mention cheating?

 

That is correct Adeline.

 

  Danny

[Maury S]

Danny, Why don't you re-post your Jig tutorial in the Jig section.  It is a great help to see how these things work.

  Maury

[Bill Hime]

Danny,

 

I love jigs! Great execution and forethought. Enjoying every step of your journey !

 

 

Bill

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks Maury and Bill - I'll get around to doing that.

 

Quarterdeck Timberheads

 

I've finished making all the straight timberheads and now I need to make the angled ones for the quarterdeck.

 

First thing to do was determine the angles. I'm starting with the shallowest near the fore of the deck. I've used my digital level to get the first angle :

 

 

Then I marked the angle on my jig on both sides of the wider slot, and cut the sides of the slot :

 

 

Then I filed and cut the steps etc as before. A wedge holds the piece in place while I cut or file it :

 

 

 

As I progress aft the angle will increase. Each needs to be measured, and the jig re-cut to suit.

 

  Danny

[Jim Lad]

Clever idea, Danny!

 

John

[Dan Vadas]

Thanks John, it would have been a LOT more difficult without the jig   .

 

All the timberheads are finished and installed. The pic below shows how much difference there was in the longitudinal angles, remember that the ones near the waist were straight :

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Danny

[Jim Lad]

Nicely done, Danny.  That photo of the jig shows just how much sheer the ship has!

 

John

[Jeff-E]

Hi Danny,

 

Very nice work on the timberheads, your jig worked a treat. There is a fair bit of difference, in sheer, between the waist and the stern

[BANYAN]

Danny that is great work on the timberheads; I wasn't aware the angle of the 'head' also sloped to conform with the caprail etc  - live and learn - thnanks for the education along the way.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[clipper]

Hi Danny, you know mate that it really IS the smaller details that make a model stand out and poke you in the eye and your ship certainly does that in spades. Must go, I have an urgent appointment with my optician. Superb instructional reference work Danny

Tony

[Sailor1234567890]

Yup, she's a beauty.