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Pamir: Putting in the deck

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  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Greenville,Michigan
Posted by millard on Saturday, November 5, 2005 7:04 PM
Robert
I'm assuming your hull is glued together.Put the main deck in first.slide it in like putting your foot into a shoe.Use a very thin butter knife along the sides of the deck to help it slide by the wales. Once in place clamp the hull as tight as possible to the deck. Then use liquid cement with a small brush and let it run down where the deck and the hull meet.It will wrinkle the paint on the deck a little bit,but it will disappear when it dries.Then you can put on your other decks.

Turning to the mast.You only put brass rod in the bottom part of the mast.put the rod inside the two mast halves glue together.After it dries sand the seams down so they don't show.I don't believe the top mast was in halves so you can leave that as is.If it is in halves put a brass rod in it.The top gallant mast I' m real sure is one piece. I would not use the kits.Instead I would make one out of a wood dowel.If you have a drlll motor you can put the dowel in it and with a piese of sandpaper turn it down usin the kit one as a guide.If you don't have a drill motor just use a hobby knife to carve it down to correct size then use sandpaper to finish it.The reason I make the top gallant out of wood is because of the tension from the rigging. The wood will take more and not bend.Happy Modeling.
Rod
  • Member since
    May 2003
  • From: Greenville, NC
Posted by jtilley on Friday, November 4, 2005 7:57 PM
I can't help with the deck problem; I don't have the kit. The bottom line on such things is: whatever way is easiest is the best.

I'm not convinced that running wires up the inside of the masts will accomplish much. Again - I don't have the kit, so I can't judge how flexible the parts are. But I'm inclined to think that all except the thinnest of them are sturdy enough to do what's expected of them - and the thinnest ones are too thin for the wire treatment. If a particular mast or yard is so flexible that it seems incapable to taking the strain of the rigging, you might consider replacing it with either wire or wood.

I suppose either copper wire or steel wire could be used for the standing rigging, but I don't see any advantage to it. And there's one big disadvantage. Wire kinks easily. If you happen to bump into a piece of wire rigging after you've installed it, it's likely to acquire a kink - which will be difficult to remove.

Working with thread takes some practice; it requires a few skills that other phases of modeling rarely if ever use. But those skills are basic to sailing ship modeling.

It seems to me that wire is preferable to thread under two circumstances. One - where the line needs to be shaped into a realistic "sag" (e.g., footropes). Two - where the line needs to be thinner than any available thread.

Those copper wire sizes you mentioned are pretty heavy - probably too heavy for all but the biggest lines of the standing rigging. You could find some finer copper wire (individual strands pulled from multi-strand electrical wire, for example), but I don't see how that would be preferable to thread for the standing rigging.

The term "fishing line" embraces several materials. I don't recommend nylon monofilament; it's difficult to tie in knots, and doesn't really look like rope (or wire, for that matter). Some of the other synthetic fishline might work but, again, I don't think it would be as good as several other materials on the market.

I have no idea what sort of stores in Taiwan sell thread, but you might want to nose around whatever places people buy supplies for sewing. Normal sewing thread isn't bad for ship models - unless it has a high percentage of cotton in it. (Cotton is weak, and hygroscopic - that is, it expands and contracts with changes in humidity.) While you're at the sewing store, pick up a piece of beeswax. Get in the habit of running each piece of thread over the wax before you put it on the model.

Mail order firms like Bluejacket and Model Expo (whose website is back up and running, by the way) sell a wide variety of thread that's intended for ship model rigging. I don't know what quality of service to Taiwan they offer (or how much it costs), but if you can deal with them that's the route I strongly recommend. You've got quite a bit of time ahead of you before you'll be ready to start the rigging - plenty of time to place an order over the web for rigging line and whatever other aftermarket supplies you need, and get it delivered.

Hope this helps a little. Good luck.

Youth, talent, hard work, and enthusiasm are no match for old age and treachery.

  • Member since
    November 2005
Pamir: Putting in the deck
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, November 4, 2005 12:15 PM
Yes, It is me again

As the subject suggests, I am about to ut the decking in. From the directions, I am to put on the quarter deck first and then slide from fore deck under it to the bow. THis does not seem right. I have tried this without glue and it is a pain. I have tried it with the fore deck put in first. THis was easier, but I am not sure about how well it will hold up (the glueing of the fore deck) When I put the quarter deck in.

Any ideas on a sequence for doing this?


Another thought, It was mentioned that I should put brass running through the masts for support. But the mast come in 3 sections and at each end of sction, there is no way to run a piece of solid brass all the way through. Should I use pieces of brass or cut the inner part of the masts to have the brass run through?

OK 1 final question. For the rigging, I have found a place to get various diameter copper wiring. From 1.0mm to .45 mm. I can also get thinner steel wire. Could I use this for the standing rigging? What about fine fishing line?

Thanks,

Robert
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