Masts and the use of power tools

[DaveBaxt]

I am now approaching the building of the mast and my questions is in the main regarding the lower mast and how to make these with the help of power tools quite possibly  for exampl a Milling machine with a rotating head, together with a wood turning lathe or quite possibly a rotary table saw. When using the afore mentioned tools how are you securing the work piece when machine the flats for the cheeks and hounds. ie how to get the correct taper etc. Machining the square flats at the mast tops etc. Is it easier to start with square or round material when using such power tools . Are there any tips/trick which will help to make realistic masts bearing in mind some masts have sections which have octogons as does yards. Perhaps there are a few modelers who would be kind enough to explain their own process or giving a link to a specific build whereby these procedures are explained or just show some good photos.

                 I appreciate I am asking a lot here but just thought it would be a good idea to have a discussion, all in one place. Best regards Dave

[Roger Pellett]

An easy way to make straight tapered masts.  This assumes that you have  table saw.

 

1.  Rig up a simple taper jig.  This is nothing more than a strip of wood that fits into the saw’s miter gauge slot fastened to a board.

 

2. Tack glue a mast blank to the jig so that it passes through the blade with the correct taper.  Rip the blank.  Rotate the blank 90 degrees, glue to the jig and rip again.  You now have a tapered mast blank. 

 

3. A second jig: two pieces of wood with one edge of each chamfered. Fasten the boards together edge to edge with the chamfers forming a Vee groove.

 

4.  Lay the tapered blank in the Vee groove and plane each corner the same number of strokes.  

 

5.  Clamp an electric drill in a vice, chuck the mast blank and turn on the drill at slow speed.  Carefully sand the octagonal plank round.

 

It’s easier than it sounds.

 

Roger

 

 

[DaveBaxt]

11 hours ago, Roger Pellett said:

An easy way to make straight tapered masts.  This assumes that you have  table saw.

 

1.  Rig up a simple taper jig.  This is nothing more than a strip of wood that fits into the saw’s miter gauge slot fastened to a board.

 

2. Tack glue a mast blank to the jig so that it passes through the blade with the correct taper.  Rip the blank.  Rotate the blank 90 degrees, glue to the jig and rip again.  You now have a tapered mast blank. 

 

3. A second jig: two pieces of wood with one edge of each chamfered. Fasten the boards together edge to edge with the chamfers forming a Vee groove.

 

4.  Lay the tapered blank in the Vee groove and plane each corner the same number of strokes.  

 

5.  Clamp an electric drill in a vice, chuck the mast blank and turn on the drill at slow speed.  Carefully sand the octagonal plank round.

 

It’s easier than it sounds.

 

Roger

 

 

Thank you Roger for your input it is greatly appreciated, however I do not fully understand your methods. I get the bit about the tapered pieces but unfortunately my saw does not have a miter gauge so its difficult for me to grasp your idea. I don,t suppose you posses such a thing as a photograph or perhaps a link . Please forgive my ignorance and slow uptake and your patience in this is appreciated. Best regards Dave

[Bob Cleek]

4 hours ago, DaveBaxt said:

I get the bit about the tapered pieces but unfortunately my saw does not have a miter gauge so its difficult for me to grasp your idea. I don,t suppose you posses such a thing as a photograph or perhaps a link .

There's no miter gauge required at all. It's a "rip taper gauge." Here's a photo of the rip taper gauge made by Byrnes Model Machines and sized for their 4" table saw:

 

 

Byrnes Model Machines - Table Saw

 

This one is adjustable for the angle of the taper desired, but a wedge of plywood cut to the desired angle will serve as well to cut a single angle. alternately, a rip taper gauge is easily made in the shop from scrap wood. As pictured, with the "straight" leg of the rip taper gauge against the fence, the work piece is slid down the angled side of the rip taper gauge as if the angled leg of the gauge were the fence and the taper is cut in that fashion.

 

 

Edited January 22, 2022 by Bob Cleek

[Kevin Kenny]

Heres how i approach building a tapered mast.

kevin

 

 

[DaveBaxt]

7 hours ago, Bob Cleek said:

There's no miter gauge required at all. It's a "rip taper gauge." Here's a photo of the rip taper gauge made by Byrnes Model Machines and sized for their 4" table saw:

 

 

Byrnes Model Machines - Table Saw

 

This one is adjustable for the angle of the taper desired, but a wedge of plywood cut to the desired angle will serve as well to cut a single angle. alternately, a rip taper gauge is easily made in the shop from scrap wood. As pictured, with the "straight" leg of the rip taper gauge against the fence, the work piece is slid down the angled side of the rip taper gauge as if the angled leg of the gauge were the fence and the taper is cut in that fashion

 

Thank you for clearing that up for me and what looks like it is faiirly straight forward and therefore a great idea and something I would like to try out at some stage. 

[mtaylor]

3 hours ago, DaveBaxt said:

Thank you for clearing that up for me and what looks like it is faiirly straight forward and therefore a great idea and something I would like to try out at some stage. 

Depending on the table saw, most manufactures offer miter/taper add-ons for their machines.

[druxey]

I'm sorry, but it amuses me how difficult folk make things sometimes! I've found the easiest way to make masts and spars is by the simple methods used in the shipyards for centuries using ordinary hand tools.

 

Once you have a square stick of sufficient length, mark out the taper on one face. Plane or use a chisel to cut this on both sides. Re-mark the taper on one of the untapered faces. Repeat. You now have a four-square tapered stick. Mark out for an octagon (use a 7:10:7 proportional scale)  along all four faces and note which sections remain square or octagonal. Reserve any square sections. Using a 45 degree spar holder, plane or chisel to cut the octagonal and future round sections. Finally, sand the octagonal sections round using strips of sanding paper. Done.

 

Low tech, low cost in tools. All you need is a good rule, sharp pencil, a sharp small plane or chisel and 45 degree holder.

[shipaholic]

Yes I agree with Druxey. I could not see a way of doing it easily with a lathe or some othe power tool. Its just down to a lot of sanding and filing.

The complex shape of the masts means it needs to be done manually and carefully, see the pic below, the mast is tapered and filed flat on both sides for the cheeks and hounds to sit flat. I used small sanding blocks to do the tapering and flat files to do the square section at the top, which also has to be tapered. Always refer to the plans to make sure the tapers and dimensions are correct.

Edited January 22, 2022 by shipaholic
more pics

[druxey]

And, I should mention, cutting tapers on the saw won't cut it (that was intentional!)  as mast and spar tapers are not linear but parabolic curves.

[Roger Pellett]

I used the table saw trick for my scratch built longboat model.  As best that I could determine from the Admiralty drawing, the mast had a straight taper.  I understand that masts for ships as opposed to boats did not have a straight taper.

 

Roger

[shipaholic]

I based my masts on the drawing in Marquardt's AOTS, I believe he based his drawings on Steel's Elements of Mastmaking, Sailmaking and Rigging. Below is a photo from my copy of Steel. The taper is complex as the masts are narrower at the bottom as well, particularly the mizzen. Steel's drawings show a lot of detail, mostly unecessary in model making but gives you good idea how the masts should look. These drawings are for a larger 36 gun warship, and I don't believe Endeavour had the iron hoops as well as woolding (according to Lees Masting and Rigging of English Ships of War). A PDF of the Steel drawing is available here https://www.hnsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/mastplate4.jpg

 

 

Edited January 23, 2022 by shipaholic
changed pic

[DaveBaxt]

Thanks everyone for what are great replies  and for explaining the methods of doing everything by hand . Shipaholic your level of workmanship is truely awe inspiring. Hopefully someday I will also have leaned to achieve such high standards . However after laying out such high costs of purchacing a fair few power tools. I was really hoping  that it would be possible to carry out the work using these. However your methods are something I would like to try and will need to source some square stock in a lighter wood as I only have walnut in square stock. I probably need to get a decent small plane as the one I have is just a cheep one.

                     The replies I have received on the thread have really made it worthwhile starting it and something I can save for the future. Once again thank you for giving me a few different ideas. Best regards Dave

[DaveBaxt]

Do Any of you use lime for square stock for masts or any other preference for building masts that is readily available in the uk? I now know that boxwood is available in Europe in sheet form but is quite expensive as is the delivery costs. 

[druxey]

If the lime is well seasoned it should be fine.

[DaveBaxt]

19 minutes ago, druxey said:

If the lime is well seasoned it should be fine.

Should be and something I could practice on as it is relatively cheap. Sorry for another question what are you guys using for a jig for holding the square stock whilst shaping. Thank you again for your prompt reply.