HMAS/m AE2, Scratchbuild

[hendie]

I've been following this on my travels - my kindle thingy doesn't do the photo's any justice.

 

Very nice work on the curvy thingies

[Bandsaw Steve]

Some Fine Tuning

 

I have two hobbies; building models and drawing / painting.  The way I tackle both activities is very similar. I start with large, rough shapes and progressively, gradually, fine-tune them until I am happy with them. Then I add detail.

 

The basic shape of AE2's hull has been roughed out below - but it's going to need some fine-tuning.

 

For one thing, it's still generally too 'fat'. Here the stern cross-section template cannot actually slide all the way up the hull to it's 'station-point' simply because the stern is too broad across the beam.

 

And the hull is tending to be too square. Here is a contour gauge's reading of the top section of 'station point 1' compared with the template.  As you can see, the contour gauge is showing a much squarer profile than required.

 

Here, on 'Station 5' the contour gauge is showing that the tops of the saddle-tanks and the pressure hull are too flat - their top surfaces should be arcs of a semi-circle not the flattened arches that we can see here.

 

So back to the chisels it is... but making smaller and more considered cuts now. Note that this chisel is being used 'right-side-up' this time.

 

Eventually I move to an electric hand sander with coarse paper to remove finer increments of wood.  Go slowly - This type of modelling achieves whatever shape is required by removing material so if you remove too little, it's no problem. Remove too much and it's hard to fix.

 

Finally I move to hand sanding - here using some very coarse paper because I'm basically still using it as a shaping tool rather than to achieve a smooth surface finish.

 

And here's all of the relevant station contours in place- Still not perfect, but much better than they were, and good enough to keep me happy. 

 

I reckon that the plan view looks OK also - if this boat is still too broad across the beam it's pretty hard to see where.

 

And this is what she looks like at that point - not really much visible change from last time but, nevertheless, considerably more accurate than she was.  There's just one thing that's bugging me about this and that's the very front of the pressure hull. I've had problems 'reading' this shape off the master plans so I've been guessing a bit here and I can't help but think that the shape I've made looks more like something from a WW2 submarine (say a type VII U-boat or a 'Gato' class sub).

 

Anyway, eventually I looked at my 'backup' set of plans rather than my 'master' set and saw this...

 

As you can see the pressure hull at the bow comes to a single point - it's a cigar-like cylinder that houses the single 18 inch torpedo tube. This is totally unlike the 'boat's bow' shaped front that I've given to my pressure hull. Luckily it's a simple fix, just cut-out the relevant bit of paper, stick it on and, well - you know the rest...

 

This worked out OK in the end and I'm now happy with my pressure hull's bow.

 

 

Here's a view of how it turned out - and a bit of a sneak preview of what she will look like with a, very rudimentary, conning tower attached.

 

Anyhow, that's about it for the fine-tuning of the hull.

 

Next up I'm going to try to make all five bits of the hull stick together in controlled fashion.

 

Best Regards and enjoy your modelling!

Reconcilor / Bandsaw Steve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Vanroon]

Nice work there Chopper. 

G

[hendie]

enthralling stuff  oh great butcher of the wood

[longshanks]

The lessons continue.............

 

Looking Good

 

Nice one Bandsaw

 

Kev

[Buddyboy12]

She is looking great! Enjoying this alot.

[albergman]

G'day Reconcilor/Bandsaw Steve/ChiselMeister

 

Enjoying watching you convert a pile of timber into a submarine!    Great tutorial you're making too.   Certainly helps explain the scratch building process.

 

Keep up the good work.

 

Frank

[robgizlu]

Agree with the Guys.  It's a delight seeing this come together

 

Rob

[Bandsaw Steve]

Hanging Together

 

Generally speaking kit-sets, especially modern ones, fit and lock together pretty well, and once assembled are structurally sound - most of that is an inherent part of the kit's engineering. When scratchbuilding however, it's up to the builder to ensure that the parts of the model fit together correctly and that the end result won't fall apart at the slightest provocation.

 

So far I'm pretty happy with my submarine - but each time I 'dry fit' the principal components they go together slightly differently and I have to dither around getting each in it's correct spot. Also, because my joinery's not all that tight there's too much wobble and flex between each part. Right now I'm going to try to fix all of these issues in one hit. 

 

Here I've arranged the parts on a small bit of dead flat MDF in just the way I want them to sit when the model is finished.

 

Here you can see me using a small dab of PVA to glue each part onto the MDF. Note that I am gluing the parts to the MDF not to each other.

 

Even with just a small bit of PVA on each part the entire submarine sits attached to its base quite happily and all the bits are in the right position relative to one another.

 

Now I can drill a series of holes right through the entire structure. 

 

Each hole is just the right size for a length of dowel to fit into.

 

Now I can peel the MDF off the base of the submarine. Note that I didn't let the PVA fully cure to ensure that the MDF would come off cleanly. 

 

And now I have my own assembly kitset - sort of.

 

It goes together exactly the same way every time.  In the final model any marks left by the protruding dowel will be hidden because, as you may recall, I am modelling down to 1.5 scale metres below the waterline. So at the end of the build any remaining sign of the dowels will be hidden beneath the surface of the sea. 

 

So now, even prior to any gluing, the whole thing hangs together and I can assemble it and disassemble it quickly and with exactly the same alignment every time.  

 

See - it's all hanging together quite nicely.

That's it for now. Thanks for all the comments following the last posting - it's very encouraging knowing such an esteemed group of modellers are watching and enjoying the project.

 

Might get around to formally requesting that name-change this weekend.

 

Bandsaw Steve! 

[whitestar12chris]

Coming along very nicely.

 

All the best Chris

[longshanks]

Another step in the masterclass!

 

I'm never likely to build a sub but there are all sorts here to be carried into all aspects of scratch building

 

Kev

[Bandsaw Steve]

A small con job

 

In this small update my submarine is going to get a very rudimentary conning tower fitted. 

This part of the build has worried me for some time because my usual approach to setting things straight involves drilling holes, aligned by eye, and then using dowels to hold things together.  Often the result can be a bit wonky, and in this case wonky will not do!  I cannot do a crooked job on this con or the whole thing will look like a crooked con job!   

So I have finally lashed out and bought a Dremel tool and a Dremel drill press - and about time too!

 

And here she is - sweet as!

 

Prior to final gluing, I'm going to hold the conning tower in place with just two small dowels - here I'm marking out where they will go.

 

And here's the very start of the very first hole I ever drilled with my Dremel. 

 

And wow - drilling through Sapelli wood generates some heat! That's smoke coming off the drill bit in the photo below and that's just a fraction of how much eventually spewed out. I think the bit basically just burned through the wood in the end. Like Hendie said - as this model progresses, things are just going to keep getting more and more dangerous around here!

 

Here I'm about to start drilling matching holes in the base of the conning tower. I'm not going to show you how I made this very basic outline of the tower because that would just insult your intelligence - at the moment it is no-more than a rectangular block of wood cut to the correct size. Note the two small indentations marking where the holes must go.

 

Here are the two very small dowels fitted into the top of the hull awaiting the conning tower to fit over them. Note the specks of ash lying on top of the saddle tank - left overs from the drilling inferno!

 

And here she goes - The conning tower isn't sitting exactly square but it's pretty close, it's pointing very slightly off to starboard. I reckon I'll be able to straighten it up when finally glue it down.

Next up I'll either add a bit of detail to the hull or start shaping the conning tower into something a bit more realistic - we shall see.

 

And one more thing - I've just sent an e-mail to one of the 'mods' formally requesting a name change. So soon I should be 'Bandsaw Steve' 

 

Yeah - Bandsaw Steve - the dude with the smoking Sapelli!

 

Best Regards,

Steve

 

[longshanks]

Is it to late to change it to Smoking Steve 

 

Definitely looking like a Buccaneer    Sub now.............

 

Not seen the Dremel drill stand before, how do you rate it?

I've been looking around for a drill stand / press. I need / want to be able to drill very accurate holes using bits down to 0.3mm.

Currently looking at the Proxxon TBM220 but getting a nervous twitch near my wallet (around £150).

Anyone had any experience of the Proxxon or got any other suggestions.

 

Kev

[GrantGoodale]

I have the Dremel drill press and I am very happy with it.

 

HTH

 

[Bandsaw Steve]

I've only drilled eight holes with mine, but so far so good. And it was only 54 Australian dollars so cannot complain. Only limitation I would note is that it can only set the drill angle on pre-set increments of 15 degrees. It can drill a 0 degree, 15 degree, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 degree hole - but nothing in between. Not a problem for me but it might be for some.

[Vanroon]

That's really good update Bandsaw Steve. I love our new drill stand. 😎

How fast is that drill spinning, is the speed variable? 

When drilling hard timber such as dry jarrah I keep a cup of water nearby to dip the drill at intervals. Perhaps a sponge in your case? 

 

Good work there Bandii 

G

[Bandsaw Steve]

Hello Van Roonatic 

 

Yes 'our' new Dremel is variable speed 5000 to 30000 RPM and battery powered too. She fair flies when you crank her up but is still surprisingly quiet. I was drilling those holes at about 20000 RPM - couldn't go faster for fear of starting a bush fire 🔥.

 

Well maybe I exaggerate a touch but I can say I'm lucky I don't have a smoke detector in the shed cause it would have gone off for sure! 

 

Probably a good tip that one about the wet sponge - replace the smoke with steam!

 

 

[albergman]

23 hours ago, longshanks said:

Is it to late to change it to Smoking Steve 

 

Definitely looking like a Buccaneer    Sub now.............

 

Not seen the Dremel drill stand before, how do you rate it?

I've been looking around for a drill stand / press. I need / want to be able to drill very accurate holes using bits down to 0.3mm.

Currently looking at the Proxxon TBM220 but getting a nervous twitch near my wallet (around £150).

Anyone had any experience of the Proxxon or got any other suggestions.

 

Kev

Hope you don't mind if I jump  in here Steve (or whichever of your split personalities you are today ) as I've just bought a drill stand for my Dremels and I'm very happy with it too.   May not be available in the UK (I'm in Canada) but it's a "Milescraft" and looks surprisingly like your base so who knows ... brand changing?    Anyway, these are only $50 here so it's a bargoon.

 

 

I've been using it mostly as a cheap-o milling machine using a cheap-o Chinese Dremel knock-off with cheap-o milling bits with a 1/8th shaft and it's going to be a very useful tool for me.

 

OK, back to the program already in progress ... I'll just get my coat.

 

Frank

[longshanks]

4 minutes ago, albergman said:

I'll just get my coat.

No need for that Frank it was me that asked the question. Thanks for the reply, I had been wondering about the possibility of using it as a sander/milling machine.

 

Cheers Kev

[GrantGoodale]

I have a variable speed Dremel but even its slowest speed is too fast. See if you can find a fixed speed Dremel (usually an old one) and then get a variable speed control switch at any place that sells electrical parts. They are frequently used for light dimmers. Do not try the dimmer with the variable speed unit - won't work.

 

I have used my drill press rig with a sanding drum so I can use it to shape wooden parts. Dusty but effective.

[Bandsaw Steve]

This is more like it. Bandsaw Steve sitting around a campfire 🔥 talking about power-tools with all his dodgy mates! 👍

[longshanks]

Not sure I would have sat round the camp fire with a marriage guidance councillor ;-)

 

[Bandsaw Steve]

1 hour ago, longshanks said:

Not sure I would have sat round the camp fire with a marriage guidance councillor ;-)

 

Too right mate! This is where it's at now - the bad boy's corner.👌

Time to crack open some largers, tuck into a vindaloo and talk about lumps in women's jumpers! 😎

Course we can't go too far - I'm 'Bandsaw Steve' don't wanna be 'BannedSoreSteve' when the mods catch up. 👮 

[John_W]

You forgot seeing who could burp loudest...

[albergman]

WHAT!! No vegemite sandwiches??    I'm off then.

 

Frank