USS Constitution by g8rfan99 - BlueJacket Shipcrafters - 1/98

[g8rfan]

Hello all, back again. So since the decision was made to stick with the Hull/Revell model, at least for the most part, I took the leap and opened up the bulwarks from where the catheads protrude, back to the first gun port.

 

 

The cast metal tailboards supplied in the kit didn't have as fine a detail as the ones on the Revell model, so once again, I set about making a mold and casting new pieces. I thought I would show a little more of the process this time. First, the trailboards had to be enclosed to give a cavity to make the mold. I used modelling clay to build this up. I planned to tilt the hull so that the end of the stem was at nearly the same height as the end of the trailboard, that way, I didn't have to make such a deep mold

 

care has to be taken to make sure every little hole is sealed up from the back. Then, the two part silicone is mixed and poured in. The silicone sets up in about 45 minutes, but I let it sit overnight to make sure it is fully cured. Once cured, the mold peels away easily and cleanly.

Then I once again used automotive Bondo to make the new piece. Although the Bondo is fairly fluid initially, you still have to work it into all the little details to make sure there are no air bubbles. The Bondo sets up in about 5 minutes, so you have to work quicckly, and then again, I let it cure overnight before removing.

Finally, the piece was thinned down so that it could be fit properly against the stem and hull.

 

Next up, painting the trailboards and fabricating the catheads

 

 

 

[yankee clipper]

Impressive results, very nice.

[g8rfan]

Thanks Clipper, appreciate you stopping by. Here's the first finished trailboard

[Flyfisher]

I like your style of mixing media to create such a finely crafted piece 

[g8rfan]

And then there were two.

 

Before attaching these, I plan to get the cat heads done and installed. Thanks Jim, glad you like my approach.

 

[JSGerson]

looks like your image did not upload properly. Give it another try

 

Jon

[g8rfan]

Sorry Jon, How's this

[g8rfan]

Progress is being made, slow but sure. As with all the other challenges of this model, the catheads were no different. I wanted to fabricate these with the triple sheaves in the end. The idea was to use a laminate method like that used by @JSGerson (post#661). The problem is, at my scale, it meant the layers to make the holes were going to be very thin. There was also a problem with the dimensions. The catheads are meant to be 15 inches thick, which at scale would be 5/32 (10/64). There was no easy way to divide that up so that the spacing was even. My solution to the latter problem was to make them just slightly smaller than they were supposed be. With 9/64ths, I could make the outside edges 1/32 each and the internal spacing evenly split into 5x1/64

 

For most of the pieces I used 1/32 basswood sheet and used a laser engraver (one of my favorite toys) to cut out the shapes. Since I didn't have 1/64 wood sheet, I used poster board, which conveniently is exactly 1/64th of an inch thick. To make the holes for the sheaves, I used a file to thin two of the sections down to 1/64, thus leaving a 1/64th opening. These thinned out gaps were filed at a 60 degree angle to match the end of the cathead. Once installed, this gives a vertical hole. The third hole was made using the 1/64 poster beard, which was cut to match the filed down sections of 1//32 wood. Of course filing the 1/32 wood down to give uniform depth and size was tricky, however, I came up with a pretty good solution. I used the holes left behind in the posterboard from where I had cut out the 1/64 pieces. By placing the wood pieces in the matching holes, I could simply file down until the file was flush with the poster board, and marked the poster board for reference so I could keep the file properly angled.

 

Since I'm making the bow as she appeared in 1812, the lower rail will not curve up into the cathead as she does now. Instead it fairs into the hull and the catheads are supported by independent knees. These were also cut out and assembled in the same manner to give an overall thickness of 9/64. Once all the pieces were cut and filed, they were glued together using wood glue. Here's how they turned out:

 

 

Next, I'll drill a hole through the sheaves and install a piece of dowel to act as the internal pulley. lastly they'll get some light sanding to remove the burn marks from the laser and to polish up the shape and a coat of paint before putting on all the hardware.