Model Forum / General / Models / July 2006

Ah man...I've built countless numbers of the 1:96 scale Revelle's line of  
USS Constitution.  Just picked one up off of eBay recently for a whopping  
20 bucks.  Flawless.  I wish I had a camera, as its on the bottom list of  
things to pick up, too many darn vet bills lately (cats).  I can tell ya  
this..I'm sold completely on the Tamiya acrylics.  I used the testors  
forever and a day, then found the Model Masters by accident.  But then I  
was introduced to Tamiya and I haven't looked back.  It flows so smooth  
and uniform with any decent brush.  Clean up is a breeze.

I'm not able to devote the time anymore for the typical planking anymore  
for wooden scales.  I have worked out a method using a CAD program where I  
grab up 4x4s and 6x6s, mill them into 1/2 inches strips with a rough  
contour and construct the main hull from the keel upwards, sanding to  
desired contour.

But when I need a quick sale or someone wants some nice furnishing for  
their den or wherever, I grab a Revelle quick like and I'm on the run.  
When I mentioned under 90 days, that's an 'average' of 3 hours a day.  
When I'm motivated, I can spend a day.  If time doesn't permit..its minute  
detailing or sub-assembly as order of the day.

I know you've gleemed the 'net over photos of serious wooden ships.  You  
can duplicate an exacting appearance with little efforts on the Revelles  
and Hellers.

Mentioned above, the falls on the dolphin strikers and jib boom suffered  
no damage whatsoever.  Had I used the plastic booms supplied, I would have  
been forced to remove hours of rigging, strip parts and redo w/the dowels.
I use wool, cotton and nylon for rigging.  The wools and nylons will stand  
the test of time, bar none. Any good sewing shop will keep you  
brainstorming on choices of rigging thread.  I could ramble on for days.

I was disappointed to see Revelle drop the Cutty.  I shop high and low and  
can find vendors out there with old stock.  I grab them quick like when I  
can. Got one now, in the box.  Die marks suggest it was made in 1973.  It  
was in cold storage so I can anticipate alot of the yards and mast could  
be brittle.  No worries. The Hull's integrity is all I really need.  Dowel  
rods to the rescue and I'm off and running. :D

Enough Rambling..
Just joined this ship heads group this am...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ShipModelers-Forum/

Heave..........Heave....

I fasten all the main and studding yards with 18-24 gauge wire, reducing  
wire diameter as you move up the mast.  Non-Rosin Silver Solder serves to  
create the raceways on the lower masts to assist in the yards' turning and  
positioning. Solder and stainless paperclips make great 'jewelry' for  
accents. Braiding nails..finishing nails make great railing posts as well  
as tie-off points for deadeyes and cateyes...which I heat on a portable  
hotplate burner and press into the plastic hulls.  Holds forever.  The  
superglues found for plastic models are the only way to rig. Knot-tieing  
slows the turnover down too much.  Alot of the knots that require tieing  
(for visual reasons) still need a drop of superglue to ensure they do not  
loosen. I use the cotton floss and wool yarns (and heavy gauged nylon for  
lower ratlines) for the rigging with the typical wax block to eliminate  
the fraying.  As such, the wax buildup will not always guarantee a secure  
knot..they can slip loose.  Just a drop of glue prevents this.

...[realizes that pictures speaks volumes]...  When I can, I'll illustrate  
this otherwise rambling with some drawings and send them up to the  
webspace to help convey this discussion better.

Your question was about the dowel usage.  You can not have enough square  
and round toothpicks.  You can easily make better cross-trees and dolphin  
strikers.

More to follow. HTH 8-)