Revell 1:83 Mayflower

Thanks for that footnote, GM.  I will see if I can find a copy. Good stuff!

Gentlemen, I thank you for your kind comments. GM - I think it's a little extravagant to think that I had any particular influence on Nathaniel Philbrick, other than providing him with a little information.

Getting hold of a copy of my poor old dissertation wouldn't be easy - and it wouldn't be worth the trouble. (Somewhere or other there's a place that microfilms dissertations, but I have not idea where it is - and I suspect it charges an arm and a leg.) I checked Bookfinder this afternoon, though, and was pleasantly hsurprised to discover that quite a few copies of my book (which is a revision of the dissertation) are available at reasonable prices. (A few months ago, there were only a handful of copies listed, and they were priced far beyond reason.) Here's the link: http://www.bookfinder.com/search/?ac=sl&st=sl&ref=bf_s2_a1_t1_1&qi=DAGs7gAm8TLxrEM2lsr5NJCFxm0_1454022191_1:257:884&bq=author%3Djohn%2520a%2E%2520tilley%26title%3Dbritish%2520navy%2520and%2520the%2520american%2520revolution%2520studies%2520in%2520maritime%2520history

I have no idea what the "new" copies are. The book has been out of print for almost thirty years, and I doubt that anybody's been hanging onto a stash of fresh copies for that long. Also, the one reference to a paperback edition is wrong; the book was only published in hardback.

Note that prices at Bookfinder include shipping. I've bought quite a few books from that source, and have never been dissatisfied. Oh - and just in case anybody has any wrong ideas, I don't get royalties for sales of the thing any more. (While it was still being sold "new" by the publisher, I got about $1.00 per copy.)

Anyway, if anybody actually wants to read it, cheap copies are out there.

John,

If I can pick up a copy, do you think I can talk you into signing it please? I would pay for shipping both ways of course.

Steve

Steve,

Of course I'd be honored. If you'll send it to me, I'll pay for sending it back. (Actually, if I just wrap it up and put it in the department Out box, the university will pay for the shipping.)

The address:

John A. Tilley

Dept. of History

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC 27858

Steve, that is a great idea.

Some of you may recall that I will be adding a tea light assembly into the cabin of the ship. I need to get some of this sorted out before I reach the paint stage. Primarily, how I will run wires from the cabin and out of the ship to a power source. My goal was to come up with a way that will sort of hide things. Here is what I came up with.

Below:  I will run the wires through the cabin floor and out through the transom/rudder assembly.

Below: I cut grooves and openings into the rudder. It looks like all heck but it won't be seen when the two sections are joined together.

Below: How the wires lay.

Below: Glued toegther.

Below: Back of the transom.

Below: How it will look when the rudder is attached.

gee I'm enjoying this build steve ; learning so much ,what your doing is above my pay grade . but will file it and attempt to try it in the future    ....   steve5

Steve, thanks for the compliment but you are selling yourself way too short. You are doing EXCELLENT work on your build. I hope that I can mimic the detailed paint-work like with what you are able to do. This tea light thing that I am doing is in my opinion, just a fun thing to do. It will not add much to the build because it will be barely seen and probably seldom used. Really, the only reason I am doing it is because I like to tinker and to try new things. My opinion...I don't think it is a standard to shoot for. I am just having some fun with it.

Thank you, sir!

Well, the saga of the chain plate assembly continues. I have decided that the backing links looked a little bare and incomplete. So, I made the decision to add bolt heads.

Though I had decided to do this, at this scale, I was not sure how I could pull it off. The thought of trying to chop little bolt heads, making them uniform and square, positioning them for gluing, it all seemed like a pretty daunting task. Maybe with The Chopper it might have worked, but this was reaching the limits of my fumbling hands. Then, I had a epiphany. Why not drill holes clear through the hull, insert round stock, position them, and glue from behind. In theory, it should work. 

Below: My one concern with this plan was if I can drill the holes somewhat straight and within the limits of the backing links. I know that drill bits tend to walk until they grab into the material being drilled. This was a concern. In fact, my first attempt did just that. I figured my best bet is to make starter holes. Since I can't use a drill to do this, or I could but what is the point, I decided to heat up a pin using a candle and then melt starter holes. The idea here was to make them deep enough for the drill bit to have something to grab into. This did work, and it helped.  In the end though, I still have some off-center holes. Maybe if I used a dremel instead of drilling them by hand I might have held a tighter pattern.  Not sure, but since I can barely see these things without some decent magnification, its good enough. This image shows the starter hole process.

Below: This shows the round stock process. All that I did was to keep pushing it into the hole until just a bit of it is sticking out. This worked out really well, and I was able to breeze through the process with all of them.

Below: Here is how they look.

Below: A reference of scale.

Below: A test run of adding a chain. A few things to note.

1. In the final run the deadeye strop will run down through the channel. When the time comes, it will be a real bear to install the chains. It was difficult for me to add this chain with not installing the deadeye via a strop. It will be much more difficult doing so. It will be a real test securing the lower strop to the chain underneath the channel. Its tight in there. I will have to come up with a process that will help.

2. I am not sure that I have the correct chains for this scale yet. I could only fit three links. On the replica they seem to have 5 links. I am still befuddled on if I can get one that will work. I have tried several and this is the closest I have come. 

Really nice work. I think your alignments are very good. I do not think a Dremel would help- same bit, higher speed, faster screw-up. A pilot hole with a smaller bit is always a good idea, but you did so well I would not worry about it.

The only other idea might have been to stick in a straight pin with it's rounded head, but yours look great.

You've got it BAD, brother!

That chain does look a little coarse. I think you need to use a smaller size and stretch it a bit. Brass and copper chain can stretch a surprising amount before the links open up.

Steve, sometimes a little of "kinda" beats a lotta "is".

You might try putting three or four gentle twists into a doubled up piece of copper wire and painting it black.

GM.. thanks brother...  I got something bad all right. I just don't know what it is yet. I hear they have meds for most anything though. 

Thanks JT.

Capn...thanks for that idea. That may be the way to go to make them myself. Funny that you mention jewelry chain because I have one that fits better. But then it doesn't look much like a ships chain.

Oh the dilemmas.

Thanks guys.  You have given me more to think about.

Anytime, anyplace as long as there's rum, eh Capn?

Chain is a challenge. Try finding scale barred chain. Hrrmmmph!

Most jewelry chain has a quarter twist too.

Methinks a chain making machine costs a lot of money and needs to make miles of the stuff to pay for itself.

Commander Baxter comes along and wants about 11 inches of the stuff?

"Back in ten minutes".

Laughing...  What can I say.  My psychosis is a problem at times.

But wasn't Capn referring to making a jig?  Whats this about a machine. Psychosis and all, I do draw the line at getting a machine.  

To my knowledge there is no firm evidence about the shapes of chain links in 1620. They may have been round or elongated.

The finest chain I've seen on the market is 42 links per inch. That's plenty small enough for this job. My guess is that 28- or 30-link chain, stretched slightly, would look about right - and when you're talking about a seventeenth-century ship, "looking about right" is about the best you can hope for.

I meant the machine somewhere in China that makes the chain that somehow is so useful that the local jewelry store buys it.

I have had a very long and very fruitless relationship with the idea of finding chain for models in jewelry stores. So much so that when I build the increasingly rare for me plastic warship, I leave cast on parts... on. Years back I built the rather incomparably cool Trumpeter USS San Francisco. I looked all over and bought the best chain I could find. The comments were all really positive, except for " the chain is way out of scale".

My last attempt at suggesting sanity here, GAKKK!!!. (sorry that comes up now and then). Attempt to make something that you'd expect to recognize as chain, from 83 feet away. A straight line with regular lumps on it will look about right.

JT, The first one that I purchased was something like 20 links per inch. The links were way too big. I then looked at others and the next two that I purchased did not indicate the links per inch, but the dimensions seemed about right. Well, I know now that these are not quite right either. They are much closer than the first one that I bought but I am still not there. I will look a little further into your recommendations.

Sorry GM, I am not ready to give up on my chain fixation. Maybe with more therapy I will get there. Sigh. Thanks though. I DO appreciate your thoughts on the subject. 

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

It happens.

Too funny. So my chain is a ponderous one. 

Steve,

Great work so far. I really like the picture where the windows show a bit. They look awesome.

Not sure if it is too late but I have purchased from this guy on evilBay for both pedestals and anchor chain. Here is the link If you want to take a look.

This is his 1/700 chain and he also has 1/350 chain. It is already black and I think it just might be what the Doc ordered.

Steve

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Model-Ship-Anchor-Chain-1-700-Scale-/171692359220?hash=item27f9a97e34:g:za8AAOSwWTRWwKUM

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Model-Ship-Anchor-Chain-1-350-Scale-/171687927630?hash=item27f965df4e:g:0fQAAOSwqYBWoOxP

Steve--thanks for the support and the ebay links. The chain options that you posted are being reviewed.

Speaking of chains...  I looked back at my records and the first chain that I purchased was 15 links per inch. I misspoke earlier saying that it was about 20. The 27 link version that JT mentioned might fit the bill. As a side note. I pulled out the jewelry chain that I purchased from Michaels and that one is pretty darn close to what I need. I am able to get 4 links underneath the channel and they look more to scale. I would be good with that. As GM said though, they have the twist. If all else fails, it is an option.  Anyway, this will resolve itself over time.

Today I worked on the mizzen plate backing links. I made these smaller than the others, as well the holes are smaller. I learned something with these. It is easier to pilot hole the plastic strip, then cut it to backing link size, and install. Then, the pre-drilled hole on the link acts as a guide for the drill as I drill through the hull. If I was ever to do this again, I would do it this way, and not with them installed on the ship. I feel I was able to get tighter patterns.

Two images below.  

PS: The upper and lower part of each link should in reality be all 1 piece, I think.  There are limits to my madness. Once painted, they will look as one.

Steve,

I don't know how accurate (considering what we don't know about these chains per JTilley) you want to be but here's another link. I can't vouch for it, just did a quick Google.

Mike

http://www.builders-in-scale.com/bis/parts-chain.html

Hey Mike, thanks for that. I will look into it. I appreciate that you posted this.

Steve

Thats a really great tip- cut the part centered and square around the hole rather than try to land the hole centered. I like it. thanks.

My suggestion: order a foot of each of Bluejacket's four smallest chain sizes. That'll cost you $16.00 (plus shipping). You're almost sure to get the size you need.

I'm curious about where this little chain comes from. I strongly suspect all, or most, of the hobby dealers get it from one or two manufacturers.

Like GM, I haven't had any luck buying jewelry-type chain for model work. 

The world will beat a path to the door of the individual who figures out a way to make genuine, three-dimensional chain on small scales. (BJ makes nice individual links in cast Britannia, but they're way too big for any model I'm likely to build.

GM, I am glad you think so!

John, thanks for the feedback. I will review all of this and I will surely find something.

"The world will beat a path to the door of the individual who figures out a way to make genuine, three-dimensional chain on small scales."

So true.  In the meantime, how about a standardization of how the product is sold. I see it sold by the number of links, by scale, or strictly by dimensions. Heck, I have even seen some being sold that offers none of those. It would be nice to have a standard that modelers can use that takes some of the guesswork out of it. Pick one, and we will adapt. I guess that would be too easy. Ah well. Why should it be easy. (Cough!)