The second 'open deck' hull is being assembled, at the 'sheeting the sides' stage. The first hull has been glassed, sanded, filled and sanded, couldn't be more pleased with the results considering it is my first attempt.
I'm going to post all the drawings and laser files here a little later if anybody wants to make their own stunning little boat.
I have made a start on the boilers, 2" dia. and 4" long, haven't worked out the details yet but every boiler starts with the flanges. This is not my favourite task and the first six I made I really made a hash of them!! Maybe when I am in the mood I will recover them by swaging them down to the correct diameter, they are about 1/32" oversize....
The second lot is shown in the photos, I whacked them with a hammer until they were almost size and then I thought about pressing them through a sizing ring. The beauty of this is that they are very close to size and stay stuck to the mandrel. The mandrel is then grabbed in the soft jaws, a slight skim over the OD, and file to knock the hammer marks off and then some emery to smooth the ends. Then a parting blade knocks them off at the correct length. A screwdriver with a hammer knocks them off the mandrel and wallah!