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Author Topic: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby  (Read 7392 times)

derekwarner

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #25 on: September 21, 2021, 01:36:02 am »

Very smart Steve........did you change your mind on the hand of the propellers from image 447? ........or just confusing us  O0

Running gear 2 = Outboard
Final Coat 1 = Inboard

Derek
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Derek Warner

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Illawarra Live Steamers Co-op
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #26 on: September 21, 2021, 03:57:40 am »

Mmm... I've made an error. Unfortunately it will be a major problem to remedy. I'll think it over.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #27 on: September 27, 2021, 01:06:37 am »

After my last progress report Derek pointed out that I had indeed put the propellors on the wrong sides. It was a rookie mistake and I'm very "xxxxx" off about it. Changing them now will be a very messy task and I've spent the last few days sulking.

I sent a progress photo to the Busby's owner and he is fine with them as they are. So, crisis averted.

Derek and his eagle eyes, however, are banned from this build log.  ok2
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derekwarner

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #28 on: September 27, 2021, 01:55:25 am »

Is it OK for me to continue with my eyes closed  {-) ............ & trap shut?  :D .................. Derek  :kiss:
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Derek Warner

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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #29 on: September 27, 2021, 07:50:59 pm »

Well it would be a world first for an Aussie to keep his trap shut but one eye is acceptable.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #30 on: September 27, 2021, 11:19:15 pm »

I've started adding bits and pieces of detail to the hull and superstructure. The superstructure has several plates and covers, the roof has a lip around the outer edge. The vents are not permanently attached yet, I'll need to give the superstructure a base top coat before anything gets glued on.
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mikelimajuliet

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #31 on: September 28, 2021, 02:43:39 am »

Steve, All Aussies are one eyed! :}
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derekwarner

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #32 on: September 28, 2021, 06:43:21 am »

Now hold on  >>:-( ....are you Sheep Farmers suggesting I am 1 eyed?  :P 


I've always eyed Stevens work with the greatest one-eyed respect...........


Derek  O0
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mikelimajuliet

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #33 on: September 28, 2021, 08:10:54 pm »

and to be fair I may have generalised as I have always found your posts most informative.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #34 on: September 28, 2021, 09:13:19 pm »

MLJ – We need to be patient with our cousins from the West Island as they are always a couple of hours behind.  ok2
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #35 on: October 05, 2021, 11:05:27 pm »

Well, after saying that there wasn't too much deck equipment to make for this tug I went down the 'detail' rabbit-hole.

I probably spent more time on the hatches than needed.

The hatch on the left is made up from 24 pieces, the one on the right is 35. The engine room skylight has 35 components.

Yeah, I know, I didn't have to do it but you know how it is once you get started – it's a slippery slope.

At least my box of 'bits' is starting to fill up, albeit slowly. All of the bitts, vents and bollards are completed and attached.

Everything on the real boat is the same Royal Blue colour throughout, on the model it sure hides a lot of detail, as you can see in the photo of the bow deck.

I had matched the final paint colour to the Royal Blue of the plastic ice-cream container that stores all of the bits for the build. This now means that it's difficult to find any smaller items once they are painted and in the box – everything is the same colour. I may have to get a new, different coloured container. That would mean changing ice cream brands. That's a big decision, I've eaten the same brand all of my life. As a kid there were only 2 brands to choose from: Tip Top, which was made not too far from my home and gave free tours to kids – with a free ice-cream at the end; and the opposition brand: Gaytime (which is now long gone). I was never a Gaytime kind of guy.
 
The Tip Top factory even had its own Fire Brigade (I have one of their helmet badges). As a kid, the possibility of a fire at the ice-cream factory was a serious concern and being a Fireman at an ice-cream factory was the the ultimate job for a 7 year old. I never did get a job as cool as that.

However, I digress, back to the build. I can now  base paint some of the items and then start to attach them. Still plenty to do.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #36 on: October 11, 2021, 02:41:06 am »

The hull is now all painted and pretty much completed. That can sit on the side for a while.

I've been slowly plugging away and my 'box of bits' is starting to fill up. The ER vents, ER skylight, hatches, ventilator, life buoys, funnel vents and fender tires are done and painted. 15 tires needed for this one. They are made with my usual method – laser cut ply doughnuts glued together, shaped and painted. Yes, I know that you can buy perfectly good scale tyres but I like to make as much as possible on each model. Saying that, I don't make the propellers – I might be crazy but I'm not an idiot.

The superstructure base is also finished and painted. The hatch base, life-buoy brackets, wheelhouse steps, ladder rungs, portholes, downpipes, and water pipes are all in place. I can now start to attach some bits that would have been difficult to paint if attached earlier. Hopefully there'll be more parts coming out of the box of bits than going into it.

The all-over blue is exactly as it is on the real boat but it does tend to make the model look very 'plastic toy-like'. Hopefully that will change when the railings, lights, mast and flying bridge equipment goes on.

The doors won't be attached until the glazing is done and that won't happen for a while – we are still in lockdown and I can't get any suitable plastic for the glass. Plenty more to do and I might dust off the Maui hull I started last year and get that back up to speed again.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #37 on: October 12, 2023, 11:56:46 pm »

Well, it has been over 2 years since I last touched this boat. It has been packed away following a series of house moves and I only organised a workspace a few months ago. I could come up with numerous excuses (all valid) for the lack of progress: Covid, work, life, renovations, weather, even the bloody dog needs a 2 hour walk every day. However, the main reason is that because this boat is a commission and in a bigger scale than normal I’m wanting to make everything as perfect as possible – it’s a challenge. Daunting.

After such a long lay-off I lost my mojo and tried to shake off the rust with a couple of small, simple-ish projects: the Kapai and Ikatere. They didn’t inspire me with confidence.

It also doesn’t help that I’m a terrible procrastinator. My wife once gave me a book about confronting it but I never got around to reading it.

But, this model won’t make itself and I need to get a move on, I’ve told the owner it would be finished by Christmas – this Christmas – so it’s back on the bench. He has been very patient.

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Capt Podge

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #38 on: October 13, 2023, 12:23:34 am »

I'd totally forgotten about this one !


Anyway, it will be good to follow again and, hopefully, to completion.


Cheers,
Ray.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #39 on: November 17, 2023, 12:09:44 am »

Thanks Podge – slow and steady.

I tried to ease my way back into this project with a couple of small, 'simple' builds to shake the rust off. Both of those are pretty much done and are waiting for some rub-downs and waterslide decals for their finishing touches. Those won't be arriving anytime soon so it's time to get the Busby back on track.

I've mixed up a batch of the blue paint and retouched a couple of little marks that happened during 2 years in transit/storage. It's been an unseasonably cold and windy spring so painting conditions haven't been ideal but I ended up with pretty much a perfect colour match so I'm happy about that.

All of the big items had already been completed and are awaiting assembly so it's only the detail elements left to do. First up is the flying bridge railing.

On the real boat this is 50mm steel tubing for the stanchions and cap rail, and 40mm for the mid and lower rails. Normally I would use PE stanchions with etched holes for the rails – super easy to assemble and everything lines up – or solder the rails onto the outer edge of the posts. Unfortunately this boat's rails are welded in the centre of the posts (pic 1) and are much more difficult to make at scale. Luckily a mix of imperial and metric K&S brass rod: 3/64 (which is 1.2mm) and 1.5mm scales out to be exactly the right size.

First job was to make up a soldering jig. Figuring it out and making it took most of a day. Complex and time consuming but worth it in the long run. And, yes, the sides are supposed to angle in at theta. The front and back are square.

From there it was a simple process of cutting the pieces to fit. The posts slot into holes in the jig base, the rails are taped onto the jig, and bingo! Easy peasy. Soldering heaven.

Until I ran out of the 1.2mm rod – only need one length to finish it. More is on the way but won't be here until Monday. I'll leave this as it is, no point taking it off the jig and cleaning it all up just yet. I'm sure I can find something else to do.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #40 on: November 19, 2023, 03:22:05 am »

While waiting of the brass rod to turn up I did an audit of all the bits of brass I have lying around and found a couple of 1.2mm off-cuts. Just enough to finish off the railings – with about 20mm to spare.

Turned out ok. Only one or two dodgy joins which were easily fixed. Made sure to use some heat sinks to protect the other joins. Someone on another forum put me onto heat sinks. They work!

Lastly the radar stand was attached to the rear top rail. Then cleaning up the excess solder with a series of small files – all very relaxing, and satisfying. So, the railings are all done, cleaned up and ready for some paint. Compared with what's left to do, these railings were piece of cake.

And I now have a small container of off-cuts (under 50mm) of all sizes of rod and tube – surprising how often you only need a small piece.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #41 on: November 25, 2023, 08:08:17 am »

I've made a start on the flying bridge console – again avoiding the hardest parts left to make.
It's all styrene, with a slice of aluminium tubing for the compass window housing, and a brass strip handle.
The bolts are hex rod but you'd never know.
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Martin (Admin)

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #42 on: November 25, 2023, 04:48:00 pm »


Very impressive railings Steve!    :o   :-))
 
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #43 on: January 13, 2024, 11:54:44 pm »

Thanks Martin, I usually do everything at 1/50 and railings at 1/32 seem so much easier – but I also can't skimp on the details – so more work all round.
I well and truly missed the Christmas deadline for finishing this project. Side-tracked by Christmas ham and summer holidays – again!

I'm back home now and have slowly started the build again. Yesterday I soldered various mounts and brackets onto the railing: 2 x aerial mounts, radar platform, loudespeaker, lifebuoy mount, solar panel brackets, and deck lights.


I'm building this as it was on the day I photographed it in 2019 so some of the mounts are now redundant and unused. The deck lights are little LED strip lights. All of this will be painted white.


And yes, the aerials are parallel.


The soldering should have been straightforward but it was very delicate work and a shakey hand didn't help. Took twice as long as it should have. Can't remember who on this forum put me onto heat sinks but he's a genius, whoever he was.
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #44 on: January 19, 2024, 03:43:56 am »

More progress, albeit painfully slow. The amount of hours to make these 2 items is way out of whack with what they add to the build.

First up is the collar/brace that holds the mast in place against the top railing. Doesn't seem all that sensible to rely on the railing to secure the mast, but there you go. That's the final piece for the various mounts on the railing.

The engine controls were pretty straightforward but fiddly. This is made up from 60 components so far, still need to make the vinyl cover. The railings/mounts add up to 55 components, and the wheel console is another 40 – not including the wheel which is 7 pieces.

Slow and steady!
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #45 on: February 08, 2024, 06:53:40 am »

Progress, but only minor.

This project has become an grind and nothing seems to be going according to plan.

This piece – the fire system pump/hydrant, just about drove me nuts. I keep dropping tiny components, losing things in plain sight, misplacing tools, spilling glue, paint, whatever, cutting things wrong – it was a lesson in 'how not to'. I won't bother to show some of the photos.

I think I spent more time on the floor with a torch looking for tiny bits of brass than I did at the bench.

I've spun this build out for 3.5 years through several house moves, stuff in storage, covid lockdowns, no workspace, several lengthy holidays and general procrastination. The main issue maybe that it's a boat (the real one) that I really don't have any interest in. It's just not particularly interesting or unique. Plus it is all one colour. Everything is dark blue. It's dull.

The commission will pay for everything (if I consider 50c an hour worthwhile) but I'm just not engaged and it shows in some of the work.

I've had to take a good long hard at myself and remake quite a few things.

I've finished most of the components – only the funnel nav light supports, and the exhaust pipes left to make. And a load of tyre fenders to attach – fiddly and complex. Luckily, I'm definitely in the home stretch now and can get this one done and dusted, soon.
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Ralph

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #46 on: February 08, 2024, 08:53:54 pm »

That is a lovely piece of work at such a small scale.


Ralph
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Martin (Admin)

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #47 on: February 09, 2024, 08:23:36 am »

 
As good as real !   :-))
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #48 on: February 18, 2024, 10:31:30 am »

Thanks Ralph, and Martin. I'm gradually getting on top of the builld again and slowly and steadily finishing small components that are almost ready to be assembled.

These are the mast components pre painting – and all completed.

The white nav lights on the real boat are the original lights, the red ones are a recent LED upgrade.

And yes, the white light lenses are slightly shorter than the casing.

Fairly simple construction: wooden mast, brass upper and light seats, styrene day shapes. The lights are aluminium tubing and clear styrene. It all slots into the collar on the top rail quite nicely – that's a bonus!
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steve mahoney

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Re: 1963 Refinery Line Handling Tug Busby
« Reply #49 on: February 23, 2024, 10:42:36 pm »

Things are starting to move along pretty quickly now. The exhaust stacks were the last big item left to make. The came together without any drama. Using a simple jig made the process a whole lot easier.


Then the superstructure got a light coat overall and some of the finished components could be fixed in place. Once again using some simple jigs to align things correctly.


Another light coat of paint to cover any joins and glue marks, and now it's ready for glazing. The doors will come off to allow for the glazing.
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