Copper hull plates cut

[Gabri]

Hi to All,

I’m building the Amati Pegasus and this is my first serious model that I’m trying to build. I have finished the first part and now I’m coppering the hull, but i have substitute the standard furniture included in the kit with a most detailed plates. Because they are ticker I have found difficulties to proper cut them with the right tool , and in all my research I was not able to find tool or technics than allow me to have a sharp cut line.

 

so i ask your help to solve this first important issue.

 

thank you and have a nice Sunday

 

Gabriele

[allanyed]

Ciao Gabriele,

Welcome to MSW!!!  Qual è la tua citta o paese in Italia?

 

Per Goodwin in The Construction and Fitting of the English Man of War the plates are about 48" X 15" and weigh 8.75 pounds for most of the hull and up to 32 pounds in the areas receiving the most wear given above.  What thickness are you trying to use?  If you go with an average weight/thickness it should be so thin at scale that it is thinner than paper so you can cut it with  scissors.  Note that at your scale, the 1/4" nails which were the size used according to Goodwin,  will barely be visible and maybe best left off.   If you do want to show them they should be indented as they are nailed, not sticking up like the head of a bolt as seen on some modern models.  

 

Have you looked at the various builds here at MSW that show how those builders did the coppering?   

 

Allan

[Roger Pellett]

A number of years ago I bought a good quality paper cutter, the kind where a lever pivots and shears the paper.  It will cut thin copper and brass sheet cleanly.

 

I second Allen’s suggestion about trying to simulate nails in the plates: Don’t!

 

Roger

[wefalck]

Cutting thin(!) copper sheet with a steel ruler and a cutter on a cutting-mat should not be really a problem. Don't try to cut through in one go, but in several passes. A pair of old(!) scissors should also work. Straighten out the strips/plates by rubbing them softly with a cork on the cutting-mat. You may also need to sand the edges slightly with very fine wet-and-dry paper to remove burrs.

 

If you have a table-saw, you can also stick the copper sheet with a glue stick to some thin MDF or plywood and then cut the strips with a fine-toothed saw-blade.

[Bob Cleek]

On 9/5/2021 at 9:19 AM, Roger Pellett said:

A number of years ago I bought a good quality paper cutter, the kind where a lever pivots and shears the paper.  It will cut thin copper and brass sheet cleanly.

 

I second Allen’s suggestion about trying to simulate nails in the plates: Don’t!

 

Roger

I'll 'third" Allen's suggestion regarding the omission of the copper plate tacks: Please don't! We've got a whole generation of models with the "pox." Three hundred years from now, based on the few models then extant, modelers will be arguing on some other ship modeling forum that "contemporary" models in museums prove the fact that copper plate was held on by three-inch headed round-headed rivets!

 

A note about cutting copper sheet with a lever-action paper cutter (my preferred method) or with scissors:

 

You will likely find that in cutting strips of copper sheet on a paper cutter, the off-cut strip will curl to the side. A strip of cut copper sheet can easily be straightened out by placing one end in a vise and the other in a pair of pliers and pulling hard in a straight line away from the fixed side. When I have a bunch of strips to straighten, I place one handle of a pair of vise-grip pliers in my big bench vise with the grip  holding tension set to hold the strips, and then place one after the other into the vise-grips in succession for pulling without having to continually re-adjust the vise-grips in the vise to hold each strip. Using another pair of vise grips on the "pulling" end will also prevent hand-fatigue if you have a lot of strips to straighten. Squeezing an ordinary pair of pliers tight enough to hold the strip while you pull on it can put a lot of repetitive strain on your hand holding the pliers.

[Gabri]

Thanks to all of you.

@Allan. I live in Montalcino near Siena, Tuscany. Nice little town. I've been looking at some great work and bought the Amati copper plate to upgrade the ones in the Pegasus kit, which aren't so great. They are medium tick.

 

@Roger: that could be a very nice solution, I'm just waiting to visit my parents who have a paper cutter and try it out. I haven't thought about it. Thanks

@wefalck: the old scissor works pretty well, the only problem is when the piece is too small and it's hard to sharpen the edge.

@Bob: exactly the problem I have using the scissor, so I will try to proceed with your suggestion

Thanks for your reply, it's my first time with coppering and it's not easy to work with metal compared to wood.