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[KNO3]

What are the two white lamps on the mast for?

[Mark T]

What are the two white lamps on the mast for?

I think that they are work lights for the wheel house deck as there’s not any others to fit?

[derekwarner]

mmmm ....


I think Calin may be suggesting the two white lights as installed and so seen from fwd & astern, in those orientations don't appear in this International lighting Standard   


 https://www.sailingissues.com/navcourse10.html


Derek

[Taranis]

Interesting.  All the images I can find of this vessel show these lights as you have fitted them Mark. The only variation I've observed is the height of them. Some have chosen to place higher than the funnel and some have not.


They certainly don't look like nav lights


an example of lower

[Taranis]

This one does appear to have a white nav light on the head of the mast.
Excuse the music 

https://youtu.be/Y086jS6Kp5E. at 48 seconds and better near the end.

[Jerry C]

I reckon they’re deck lights.
Jerry C.

[Mark T]

Interesting.  All the images I can find of this vessel show these lights as you have fitted them Mark. The only variation I've observed is the height of them. Some have chosen to place higher than the funnel and some have not.


They certainly don't look like nav lights


an example of lower

There are some really nice variations of this model as can be seen by both the picture above and also in the YouTube clip. I think it’s really great the way builders put their own spin on this tug.

I reckon they’re deck lights.
Jerry C.

And me 

[Jerry C]

Whoever built that must have sailed in Blue Funnel Line.
Jerry C.

[Mark T]

Hi All


Sorry about the lack of updates but I have wasted entire weekends trying to make the main towing bollard 


I think I tried about 6 - 7 attempts to make it out of wood which is what I wanted and just had to give up.  The problem was having to drill a 8mm hole through a 12mm dowel.  I an just not geared up for this sort of thing at all.  I needed a 8mm end mill to do this but I haven't got a tool that can drive a bit like this anyway.  Here's a picture of just how hard I tried.  I drilled a 8mm hole through the 12mm dowel which just gave loads of tear out.  So I then undercut this to make it disappear but it became so weak that when I inserted the horizontal bar it just cracked and fell apart.





So after many lost weeks I swapped to brass.  Even then I still couldn't drill the holes so I made them out of 5 pieces of brass and butt soldered them together.  This is obviously an issue when building on a bigger scale.  Its OK but not what I wanted








Next was to remove the piece of deck in the middle so that I can get access to the motor lubricator.  OK I've been putting this off for over a year but I had to do it so out came the saw 





What a cavernous space 





The piece of deck is now held in place by a "U" piece that I made and I fitted the main bollard to this with screws and epoxy.  Its really simple to remove and fits well so I guess I was over worried and should have done it sooner














This is how it looks once everything else is on the deck








You also probably noticed that I have made the bulwark stantions complete with fixing rings.  These were a bit of a challenge as the mahogany is cut into a ""T" section and then scribed into the deck and capping rail - all 22 of them 





The next thing I made were the two rear deck covers.  I did these in the same way as the engine house by using a boxwood base with a mahogany top.











And as an aside I completely stripped and rebuild the TVR1A engine as I needed to remove the brass bolt kit that I installed.  It looks great but is not as practical as the supplied steel bolts.  I'm trying to build some longevity into this boat and hopefully this is another step towards it.





I'm really hoping to have this build totally complete for next weekend - wish me luck!!!


Cheers Mark

[DBS88]

Well done Mark, it looks first class, I am so looking forward to see your finished boat in steam and on the water.

[DJW]

The build is looking really good Mark. Personally I think the brass bollard works well, looks the part. Best of luck this week getting it all together. 

[KNO3]

The brass bollard looks great, better than the wood version.

Why did you change the hex bolts of the engine? I'm not sure I understand why the steel bolts would be more practical, since they wouldn't get removed often.

[Mark T]

Thanks for the comments     I'm waiting for some varnish to dry - which is still tacky over a week after applying.  I'm sure its just that time of year so I need to be patient.  The steam plant needs to be installed which has never been in since the planking was put on nearly 2 years ago.  It'll be tight but OK


KN03 - The brass bolts were way too soft to get a decent seal on the steam tight parts.  I found that they stripped easily and just could bot take the torque required.  Just my experience and others have probably found the opposite.  Also due to this experience and just how hard it is to get the entire plant in and out I just couldn't see why I needed to make this great little engine look better.  I reckon its performance and reliability has to outweigh any atheistics.

[Jerry C]

I like the brass, it sets off the gorgeous woodwork.
Jerry C.

[Mark T]

I like the brass, it sets off the gorgeous woodwork.
Jerry C.

Thanks Jerry 


Well its definitely going to be finished this weekend 


I've now reinstalled the steam plant and all of the servo's, receiver and battery.  I'm glad to say that it all went pretty much ok as I had to do a lot of guessing when I originally placed everything.


The gas servo installed which I thought was going to be tricky to do.  If fact it just dropped straight onto its mounting studs even though its tucked well away under the forecastle deck





Forward and reverse servo - also the throttle servo





The steam plant installed and here is the only thing that I had to alter.  The valves on the separator clashed with the engine house     I can't complain though if this is the only thing to get changed.  I removed the wheels and had to move one of them forward slightly.  The hole that was left was simply plugged so no real drama.  The positive side of this though was I remade the exhaust and its now straighter than it was previously.








Here's a few pictures of the finished steam plant which I am just so happy with and all of the controls work fine too.  I will fire it up when the boat is finally finished but I have lit the burner to make sure that the gas jet wasn't blocked.  It fired first time in over 2 years so I cannot thank Nigel at Pendle boilers enough  .  It's also been in the bath and I'm happy to say that it sits above its waterline so will need a little ballast to balance her out.














The prop shaft oiling tube to the left





I'm pleased that there is no visible wiring which keeps it clean and tidy.  The keen eyed amongst you would have noticed that the deck tall bollards have also been made and installed.


I'll leave you with this last gratuitous steam plant picture     As soon as I'm done I'll get the final pictures up





Cheers Mark 

[DBS88]

Mark absolutely stunning and fabulous news about the ballasting, looking forward to seeing under steam.

[rhavrane]

Bonjour Mark,
Amazing job indeed, everything found beautifully its place, I have rarely seen such a tidy engine room ! You can refill the gas tank and the oil lubricator, empty the oil separator without a superfluous millimeter 
I can't wait to see this beauty navigating and singing on a pond 
A little trick to keep the bilge clean, I cut pieces of old sponge that I put on each side of the machine to intercept as much water and oil as possible.

[Mark T]

DBS88 and Raphael thanks for the comments lads 


Until today I was honestly worried about the weight of this boat.  Back when I started building it I did some rough estimations and I knew that I was pushing the weight of it to the limit.  I thought early on that if its over weight - well I would have enjoyed the build.  But to find out that it's all going to be OK was just such a high point for me.


Thanks for the advice about the sponge - I think thats a great idea and I think I'll use it too    The gas tank just pops out for refilling and literally takes seconds to do. Its been a great day seeing everything come together as I've been building this boat now for 3 years and 3 months which seems to be my average time 


Just a few more jobs to do tonight - then tomorrow its done and I'll get the boiler fired up and breath some life into her 

[derekwarner]

Indeed a beautiful plant there Mark  ......looks realistic to the mind.....


What is the current all up [displacement]?
You did very well, with only a few minor tube work modifications......[also happen in the real world of ship engine room pipe spool building]

[/size]Looking forward to sea trials
[/size]
[/size]Derek

[Jerry C]

This has been an inspirational, epic build. One of the best bit of advice I’ve read is to treat every piece of a model as a model in itself. You’ve achieved this in spades young man. You can be rightfully proud of your work. In my opinion this build should move to the Masterclass section. Well done is an understatement. Looking forward to seeing you again when we next head down to Dudley whenever that is.
Jerry C.

[Mark T]

Hi Derek thanks very much     I've just weighed it and its 18lb (8.2kg) without water in the boiler or gas in the tank.  I estimated that the all up weight would be 9.5kg to get it down to its water line.  I've just put it in the bath and it sits parallel with its water line without any ballast but does have a slight list.  Its sitting about 1cm above the water line so I estimate it will need about 1kg of ballast to get it down.  This is great news for me as it will make it more stable and my guesses for weight distribution worked out well.  I do tend to have a lot of luck 


Hi Jerry - Thanks mate that means so much to me you actually choked me up a bit     See you when you get back to the Black Country!


Right lets get this boat finished!!!


Firstly the rear hatches were completed.  Not much so peak about here really - The capstan was smooth so I milled the vertical slots into it to make it look a bit more realistic.  They are held in place with 3mm magnets and its parent magnet is fitted in its own little holder just under the deck.  They really are strong little things!











Next was to finish the oil barrels - I didn't paint them I just made them a little brass cap and gave them a coat of varnish.  They are held in place by a magnet that I recessed into the bottom and its parent magnet is glued under the deck.








And the very last thing to do was to install the bow railings








So thats it     3 years and 3 months and 1131 images later we are done - I say we as I have received so much help and inspiration from this forum I just cannot thank you all enough. I have left some things off such as the rubber bumper - I just can't bring myself to glue it on.  Also there are no cable rails over the stern as I think that they would get in the way of working the steam plant.  I still need to make and install the boiler feed pump inlet and outlets but that won't take too much work.  I'm going to fire up the steam plant later and I'll try and get a video up of it working if I can.


Here's the finished boat





























Thanks everyone - Mark 

[Taranis]

Totally lost for words but if the forum had a like system you would go off the scale
Bravo my friend 

[SteamboatPhil]

Bloody stunning 

[KBIO]

Hello!
I don't know if I have to admire the boat or your work ?
Both, I would say!
 

[Mark T]

Andy, Phil and KBIO thanks very much 


She fired up without any problems at all.  The safety valve is set to 40PSI and works great and the gas regulator runs the boiler at 30 PSI.


It ran for about 25 minutes on the bench and was as sweet as a nut.  The only problem I have found is a threaded nut on the throttle.  I'm not sure if its the nut or the male thread on the throttle but I'll have a look sometime next week.  Either way its no big problem     I'll get it sorted out.


Here's some videos for you


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hObg1dsmZ70


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3jnh2jMKag


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyAbGwtL1pM


Cheers Mark