HM Cutter Cheerful 1806 by niwotwill - Syren Ship Model Company - scale 1:48

[niwotwill]

Now with the deadeye strops ready for finishing I started on the chainplates. Using the same methods as the backstays I made the 8 chainplates. I just realized that it has been a month since my last post as I was in Arizona visiting my daughter along with a little holiday travel so the last two days have been filing the chainplates and now the backstays and chainplates are ready for blackening. Just a photo of one aligned with the print.

Next is to blacken the parts and then make a simulated mast so the chainplate angles are determined with string. 

[niwotwill]

CHAPTER 9 IS COMPLETED!!!!

Back stays and chainplates blackened and installed.

These 8 parts have been one of the most challenging things of the Cheerful. The blalck smudges are easily wiped off the planking since the wop has made the finish sealed and very smooth. The process of making the deadeye strops the same length and shape was a days work. The chainplates brought their own problems of length, shape, and loop. Getting the lengths correct so the deadeyes all align with the top rail was completed with many parts in the bin. Finding a needle nose small enough to make the loop another process until finding the pliers from a jewelry set allowed loops small enough to appear correct in scale while fitting the strops. I found that if I annealed the chainplates this allowed the bending of the loops without distorting the chainplate. Four days of mind bending work later it is completed.

 

Chapter Ten is mostly woodwork so this will be better on my soul and mind.

[niwotwill]

Chapter 10 starts with the seats on each side of the tiller and the monograph suggests using the drawings (which are in 1:48). I made copies of the top view and the side view on the drawings making copies without cutting up the original drawing as only one copy was furnished. First was to plane a sheet of boxwood down to the 1/32" thickness for the seats. Once ready I made templates of the inner side and top using the drawings as they are at 1:48 scale. Preserved the drawing by folding to fit on the copy platform. Using elmers school glue stick I glued the prints to a card from my wife's menu file supply. After cutting the card to make the patterns I glue sticked them to the wood. 

The copy with the pattern removed

While the template was a very close fit there was still a lot of filing to get the radius fitting the transom.

After glueing the sides using the same method the tops were sanded and filed to fit without any gaps

The harder part was the front as there was no way to make the pattern so a piece of wood cut to basic shape was used. Starting with the inside piece being a straight surface the bottom was fit to the deck radius The inside of the bulwarks not being flat were the most difficult. Many attempts made, five to be exact, before a part was close enough to be used for final template and sanding.

Last thing was the hole in the seat and glue it all together.

One side done with templates for the port side to start with fitting. Tomorrows another day and woodwork is so much fun after the strops and chain plates.

[bigcreekdad]

Very nice work! While I am in the middle of a smaller kit right now, you have inspired me to go back to my uncompleted Cheerful. I stopped when I just could not get a decent drop plank cut. It always ticks me off when I look at her. I'm not usually a quitter, but this somehow frustrated me greatly. Glad I didn't sell my Jim saw and thickness sander yet.

[Chuck]

Really nice progress.

[niwotwill]

Transom knees simple parts to be put into place, RIGHT. 

First thing is studying the plans and others building logs. Finally found a post that had actually shown the process of modifying the the transom frames to allow the knees proper seating. Again using the plans I made a card template to mark the knees unto the wood. Cutting the knees from the wood with the scroll saw making sure I left sufficient wood beyond the pattern for shaping. Using the knee I started the nerve wracking process of cutting the frames. Using a new blade thin slices were cut until the knee slid under the cap rail. When both frames were cut I carefully started slicing the frames allowing the knee to fit under the cap rail on the side.

 

 

As you can see no matter how carful you are the cutting process left a mess. Next taking the knee and started shaping to the final fitting shape. Sand test, sand test, sand test until the knee fit under the cap rail and flush to transom and bulkhead.

Starting knee from saw.

Knee fitted ln postion ready for finish sanding and gluing into place.

This whole process would have been much easier before the boom crutches and timberheads were attached. I kept fearing the I'd knock one off damaging the mounted surface with the securing pin.

 

[niwotwill]

A lot has happened since last post. First the knees were sanded and into the final fit and the first coat of red paint to seats and knees and then preparing for a vacation trip to the east.

First three coats of red paint in the spare time.

Now on to vacation

[niwotwill]

Just back from a wonderful vacation. Started in Quebec City for a marvelous 3 days of touring the 17th century city. Walking in Quebec City is a lot of hard work as it is very hilly as everything is uphill from the St Lawrence. We watched the 32nd stage of a professional bicycle race just as I think the Tour do France would be. Hundreds of racers team sag cars etc. The did 16 laps up and down the steep narrow streets, just amazing. We boarded a cruise to Nova Scotia and then down the coast to Boston where we rented a car for 5 days in Maine. Staying in Boothbay Harbor as our home base to explore. If you get the chance go to the Maine Maritime Museum we spent almost two days so much to see. Bath ME is the home of the museum on the grounds where many ships were built. In 1909 the largest sailing ship built in the US was launched and the ship was lost March 1924. Wyoming was a 6 mast schooner and was 450 from tip of bowsprit to tail of after boom. To understand the size of the Wyoming a steel sculpture was made to it exact size.

Spent time trying to remember what I was working on prior to vacation. Then spent too much time to find the cleats from Syren Model Ship and yahoo I found them in the Cheerful tub of wood and parts. Sanded the largest cleats to shape and drilled a hole for a brass wire. 

Drilled a hole in the stern frames and placed the cleats with superglue.

looking at the photo I see more shaping needs to be done

[niwotwill]

Back to working full time on Cheerful. Finished the windless which was started some time ago. I'm not sure if I mentioned that the small assemblies are Syren Model mini-kits. Finished the bowsprit step and finally got everything painted.

Windless and bowsprit step in place not glued until the bowsprit is made then the parts will be pinned and glued to deck.

and finally finished painting the seats and cleat

 

 

[niwotwill]

Well it's been several months since my last post and I'll bring the log up to date. Lost some energy to work on Cheerful due to my daughter's wedding but not back and working in full steam. I started with chapter 10 by maaking 100 eyebolts for the bulwark and gun carriages. My method is fairly simple by twisting a length of 26 AWG wire around a twist drill of a size to create the inside diameter. Then the loop is soldered to the stem with the excess loop cut and filed smooth. The stem was bent perpendicular to the eye creating a post.

These are the eyebolts prior to trimming and etching prior to blackening.

Next was to make the loops for the large gun harness. Using a larger diameter twist drill and 24 AWG wire creating the larger hole with heavier ring. Take the open ring and inserting into the smaller eyebolt the ring was soldered to close. I used a hard silver for the eyebolt and a soft silver for the ring thereby not breaking the eyebolt solder joint.

Again before etching and blackening.

This was a mind bending process that took 3 days of tedious work and I am very glad its over.

The ladders were next on the list of things todo. Getting back to wood work was like a holiday and the ladders were fairly simple to make. With the ladders painted I glued the in place on the bulwarks.

Pinrails were the next thing on the list. I thought the bow pinrail would be the hardest but the side rails were more difficult due to the slight radius of the bulkhead and the rail having a parallel side.

The catheads were the last of the inboard detail prior to cannon carriages. I used the same procedure as the monograph described in making the catheads with two prices. The first step was to notch the cap rail which was very nerve wracking to say the least but after much carful cutting and sanding to notch was completed with no mishaps. The inboard piece was the most difficult trying to get it to sit flush with inboard bulkhead planks. Got this done with several pieces and much cutting and sanding when the fit was correct the length was made flush with the bulkhead top. The top piece was very straight forward using the method of drilling four holes and notching between them simulating pulleys. Taking the pieces laying them flat on a glass tile while glueing together maintain the flat joint. Once the glue set the catheads were sanded in preparation for painting. The vertical piece was painted red prior to installing and the black was applied after the installation.

Fitted prior to paint

Finished catheads

Now onto cannons and rigging.

 

 

[glbarlow]

Just catching up on your log. Very nice work and progress. I enjoy watching another Cheerful coming to life. Well done!

[niwotwill]

 I completed with the cannon painting and weathering with only a minor mishap. I don't remember if I stated that I'm using Syren Models brass cannons and carriage kits. The first step was to clean the brass cannons by soaking them in lacquer thinner. Next washing them in warm soapy water followed by a thorough rinse and a drip dry. I sprayed them with a coat of Mr Eds surface 500 for a primer followed by Tamiya Nato black. I hadn't glued the pins as I think the paint will hold sufficiently until resting in the carriage. Using a weather powder of rusty brown and dusting until I liked the surface. When complete a light coat of Tamiya flat clear was added to protect the weathering. 

And the final result is

The carriages were a small model in their own and below are the parts of each. I want to thank Chuck and Syren Models for the spare parts of each kit.

With the axles requiring shaping for the wheels I figured this would be my starting point. There is laser mark detailing how far the axel needed to be rounded. I used my lathe with the axle chucked and a flat swiss file was used for rounding by lightly using the file. Removing the laser char from the wheels was accomplished during the rounding of the axle. Sliding the wheel onto the axle while an interference fit existed. Spinning the wheel and using the flat file made the job very easy.

before removing the char

after removing the char

Assembling the carriages required making a jig similar to the one shown in the monograph. The assembly required a mental process. With long axle rear and large wheels on short axle so easy to mess up. I made one carriage as a prototype making sure I hadn't done something wrong.

Assembly glued and ready for paint. I decided to leave the wheels natural so the axle end needed to be masked is sprayed so I had painted the prototype. Painting proved to be easy enough. The ends of the cedar pieces are an open pour so paint soaked in leaving uneven dark colors. Many coats of paint were required.

Basic carriage assembly

First almost complete.

I like the wheels and quoin left natural but the axles have darker ends that I'll live with.

[glbarlow]

The wheels are reversed, the large wheels go to the front. 😊