Topic: Chimaera - My fourth build, the first POF. (Read 33075 times)

ooyah/2 · « **Reply #25 on:** March 25, 2018, 11:07:47 pm »

Hi J.P.

When you started the thread on your pilot boat it some how rang a bell as the boat seamed some what familiar, it wasn't until Roman mentioned S.Y. Carola that the light came on.

The S.Y.Carola was berthed at the Scottish Maritime museum at Irvine in Ayrshire about 40 mils from where I live Here is the Link ( [size=78%]https://www.flickr.com/photos/scottishmaritimemuseum/sets/72157625991641603/ ) some years ago 3 off my [/size]club mates[size=78%] and I went down to [/size]visit[size=78%] [/size]that[size=78%] Museum and the S.Y. Carola was berthed there and you could walk on for a small fee.[/size]

[size=78%]I believe it has now been lifted from the water along with Spartan a Clyde Puffer and is being displayed outside the main [/size]exhibition[size=78%] area.[/size]

[size=78%]The above link gives loads of pics that may be of help in your build. There is much more info if you Google The Scottish Maritime Museum that you may pic up some thoughts on your Pilot boat.[/size]

[size=78%]George. [/size]

JimG · « **Reply #26 on:** March 26, 2018, 10:01:08 am »

The S.Y Corola is now on land outside the main museum building. This was necessary as there are now a number of holes in the plating especially in the keel area. There is also a problem with the wooden deck which leaks and is beginning to rot. These are some photos I took last year. The hull shows some later modifications made to improve handling, there is a bow thruster and small auxiliary drives each side of the hull at the stern. There are no props fitted to these at present to stop them being stolen.
Jim

steamboatmodel · « **Reply #27 on:** March 26, 2018, 03:37:30 pm »

Are the axillary drives at the stern and the bow thruster Electric ?
Gerald.

JimG · « **Reply #28 on:** March 26, 2018, 06:13:24 pm »

Quote from: steamboatmodel on March 26, 2018, 03:37:30 pm

Are the axillary drives at the stern and the bow thruster Electric ?
Gerald.

They are not electric, I was talking to one of the workers at the museum and he said they are powered by their own steam engines. They were fitted at some point pre war, I can't remember just when he said they were fitted.
Jim

southsteyne2 · « **Reply #29 on:** March 27, 2018, 12:36:46 am »

Hi Jim forget about brass keels at this stage as I would be more concerned about the frame integrity so perhaps a solid base and blocks to prevent movement (love the pics George
Cheers
John

jpdenver · « **Reply #30 on:** March 27, 2018, 04:48:59 am »

Everyone,

Thanks for all the pics and the advice.

Before I start the actual planking, I am going to follow the lead of
Mark T and work on the mountings for the engine and steam plant.

I started by just seeing how the initial fit was, and it became immediately
apparent that I have some changes to make.

Thanks,
Jim

ooyah/2 · « **Reply #31 on:** March 27, 2018, 09:29:59 am »

Quote from: southsteyne2 on March 27, 2018, 12:36:46 am

Hi Jim forget about brass keels at this stage as I would be more concerned about the frame integrity so perhaps a solid base and blocks to prevent movement (love the pics George
Cheers
John

Hi John,
Yes the pics are excellent but I can't take the credit for them as they were taken by JimG from ( Dundee) the show what a fine fared hull that the original has.

George.

ooyah/2 · « **Reply #32 on:** March 27, 2018, 09:33:23 am »

Quote from: jpdenver on March 27, 2018, 04:48:59 am

Everyone,

Thanks for all the pics and the advice.

Before I start the actual planking, I am going to follow the lead of
Mark T and work on the mountings for the engine and steam plant.

I started by just seeing how the initial fit was, and it became immediately
apparent that I have some changes to make.

Thanks,
Jim

Hi JP,
Good decision as it's much more difficult if all the docking is on, you would need midgets to get into some of the places to fit radio gear and other ansillaries.
As the hull has such a fine bow a brass strep can be fitted later.

George.

southsteyne2 · « **Reply #33 on:** March 27, 2018, 10:54:32 pm »

Hi All after the model is planked and removed from the building board there is plenty room for permanent fittings engine and boiler mountings etc before adding the decking and superstucture ,don't want to get into a concern but this method has been accepted practice and ensures a straight hull and easier to plank
Cheers
John.

jpdenver · « **Reply #34 on:** March 28, 2018, 02:21:56 am »

Hello again,

Here is the plan:
1. Fit (not install) the Engine and Boiler. Putting in any additional support,
and cutting back to get the boiler as low as possible. Install mounting studs for
the brass plates, etc.

2. Then with an "empty" hull, proceed to plank and finish the outside to a "Steel" finish.

3. When appropriate install the running gear.

So taking this little bit of time to make sure I can fit in the steam plant will make it easier
to actually install it when the time comes.

Regards,
Jim

jpdenver · « **Reply #35 on:** August 21, 2018, 03:03:01 am »

OK, Time to get back in the shop.I took some time off to work on a few projects around the house,
and then the Grandkids came for a month.
I am now back at it.

Starting to plank. Mounted it up-side down, secured to the base I am using.measuring everything to keep a straight keel.
So here is the starting point.
Thanks for reading.Jim

jpdenver · « **Reply #36 on:** August 22, 2018, 03:08:09 am »

After a lot of measurements and study,I determined that I needed to add some shims to make sure that
I did not end up with a wavy bottom.
So I got some thin pieces of basswood and built up the bottom of the
frames to bring each to the same point on the keel.
Thanks for reading,Jim

rhavrane · « **Reply #37 on:** August 22, 2018, 09:36:02 pm »

Bonjour James,
You did a great job even if I would have imagined couples a little bit thinner

jpdenver · « **Reply #38 on:** August 23, 2018, 04:01:49 am »

Thanks Raphael,
I think the translation is a bit off.If by "couples" you mean Frames, then I will explain that they are1/4 inch thick, and were provided in the kit - precut, but not in a final shape.
Now that I have the frames shimmed and sanded, it is time to work on theplanks.

The kit comes with a pretty complete manual that lays out a technique for
planking the hull.
I measured along each frame, from keel to the deck line.Starting in the middle on the widest frame.
I determined how many of the planks would fill the space. (18)

Then I measured along each of the other frames, and divided by 18this gave me how wide each plank must be at that point.I marked all the planks, and cut them, tapering to each end.
I ordered a clothes steamer to build a steam tube for the planks.It arrives tomorrow.

Thanks for reading-Jim PopeDenver, CO USA

rhavrane · « **Reply #39 on:** August 23, 2018, 08:05:39 am »

Bonjour James,
Sorry for the translation, sometimes I loose my poor English vocabulary and thank you to have taken time to explain me the reason of the size of the frames.
How will you stick the planks ? I used to fix them with little points but a friend prefers clamps, more difficult to my opinion.
To remove the little holes made by the points, I was advised to gently wet them with water to inflate the wood.

jpdenver · « **Reply #40 on:** August 27, 2018, 04:42:09 am »

Raphael,
This hull will be finished as "Steel" and therefore will have lots of fillers and sanding before the paint.The kit includes a supply of very small brass pins to be used in the gluing process. The instructionsdiscuss the fact that during the sanding, filling, and sanding again, the pins will get sanded down.
I built a steamer from a $50.00 (USD) clothing steamer, where I cut off the head and then got some
plastic drain pipe with caps on the ends. Drilled a hole for the steam tube and then steamed the planksfor about an hour.

Took the damp, steamed planks and fit them to the frame using pushpins and a couple of clamps.Let that dry overnight and them glued them to the frame, using the pin-holes for the brass pins.
Here are the pics of the process.
Thanks for reading,Jim PopeDenver, CO USA

rhavrane · « **Reply #41 on:** August 27, 2018, 05:18:50 pm »

Bonjour James,
This is definetly the tool of a pro

When you evoke a "steel" finish, I would have imagined a riveted one like on my tug Tenace: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cm_betjQHoI and besides this, to my opinion, it does not make sense to make a perfect yacht like hull for a working boat which spends its time bumping into other boats.
Other point, welding appeared with WW2, are you sure yor boat is of that time ? Welding was not mastered , we could see the retraction of the metal !

rob · « **Reply #42 on:** August 27, 2018, 06:36:35 pm »

Watching this thread with much interest, I have the same kit

jpdenver · « **Reply #43 on:** August 27, 2018, 07:42:05 pm »

Thanks all for the encouragement.
Steamed another 10 planks, 5 on each side.Pinned and drying overnight.
More to come.

jpdenver · « **Reply #44 on:** September 01, 2018, 03:19:15 am »

Planking is progressing.Approaching the deck line.
More to come.

SailorGreg · « **Reply #45 on:** September 01, 2018, 07:27:54 am »

Nice hull Jim. It's a really satisfying feeling when those final planks go on and you have a complete hull isn't it? All those lovely compound curves and elegant lines. I'm enjoying following your progress.

Greg

rhavrane · « **Reply #46 on:** September 01, 2018, 09:52:20 am »

Bonjour James,
I have to change my glasses, I had not noticed the pins while writing my previous message

Besides this, how will you finish the planking at the bow and stern levels?

jpdenver · « **Reply #47 on:** September 05, 2018, 04:35:10 am »

Now that I have finished the planking, I can see how I made some wrong assumptions.When I laid out the planks, I computed the taper based upon measurements I made usinga flexible rule or tape. I assumed a smooth taper, but in reality I should have laid it out better.
So I needed to "stitch in" some misc pieces in order to fill in the gaps.
Then the bow and stern are crafted using blocks of balsa.
I roughed them out, and then glued them into place.
Then I worked them with a rasp and got the bow to about 80%.
The stern will come next.
Thanks for reading,Jim

rhavrane · « **Reply #48 on:** September 05, 2018, 08:03:45 am »

Bonjour James,
[/size]it seems so obvious when the job is done

[/size]I like balsa too because it is easy to work with but it is fragile, I guess you will protect it with a thicker fiberglass and and epoxy resin.
[/size]For information; one of my hulls was buit as yours, and, with the heat of this summer, despite paint and resin, it has cracked along the vertical join line

Landlocked · « **Reply #49 on:** September 06, 2018, 03:21:05 am »

Looks good. I don't know how many "cheater" planks I fitted to my Sabino. My hull is way too smooth for a working boat. The plank seams have disappeared under the filler and the paint.

Landlocked.

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Author Topic: Chimaera - My fourth build, the first POF. (Read 33075 times)