Fisher 34 motorsailer

[Chris FellowsParticipant @chrisfellows72943]

Posted by gecon on 25/02/2021 06:53:41:

Thanks gents for the kind words. I must admit that I am pleasantly surprised with overall impression of the Fisher. I hope the last finishing touches will make it a good SOS (stand-off-scale) yacht.

There's been a couple of days delay due to Admiralty ordering a colour change to the sittingroom bulkheads, but I'm still planning for 1st April launch and -I hope- flotation tests…it's displacement is becoming rather significant" (yacht, not Admiralty).

George

You're sailing rather close to the wind there George!

Chris

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Yes indeed Chris, I don't usually live that dangerously, easing off now to a broad reach -which is about all a Fisher owner can manage -live a bit longer that way too!

Today's 'evening offering'…genoa loosely rolled on – and fully out, just to test. Attatching the sail winches and sheets sometime tomorrow.

Edited By gecon on 02/03/2021 18:46:29

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Sorry folks, but I still have not found clear -or white- milkshake straws/tubing for the shroud rollers! These are just for test -maybe forever if they work well! Don't like hiding the nice shiny steel bottlescrews though.

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

PS..not just Post Skript also 'Party Shop' !

Found opaque (but not clear) straws at a local party supplies shop. The red and green straws were removed PDQ!

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Anti-snag struts have been added outboard of the shroud covers. Don't look great, but I can't even see them at 2 meters distance.

A similar aid needs to be fitted to the foreward ends of the coachroof handrails to prevent the genoa sheet snagging there too! The freebord will be getting less every time I introduce a 'mod'. Heavy, heavy displacement. I'm already thinking of ways to increase the volume of the hull below the waterline.

[neil hpParticipant @neilhp]

beautiful model. missed this one.

[geconParticipant @gecon]

The watchman and his son (1/15th and 1/20th scale!) are on board this evening to check the electrics and nav systems prior to launch on 1st April. Actually, I just needed a bit of inspiration so I started playing with the wheelhouse fittings and fairy lights! Watchman's name is Chopper. He used to be the bosun on the good ship Venus, so we won't discuss his CV here on this squeeky clean forum.

[Chris FellowsParticipant @chrisfellows72943]

Was that the ship with the figurehead on it?!!

Model is looking great George and the lighting adds nicely to it.

Chris

[geconParticipant @gecon]

That's the correct vessel Chris…..and there'll be no dolphin-eye views of the bows posted here

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Thought I was going to cut sailcloth today. Somehow I ended up bending and cutting brass. The pulpits are supposed to be steel so I may well paint them, but I don't think I will do that until I feel that the brass looks very wrong. The uprights are just loose fitted for test -they will be epoxied, not soldered. At 2 paces distance I don't think you can see the difference.

George

 

Edited By gecon on 11/03/2021 15:41:13

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Looking good George but pulpits are invariably stainless steel to avoid corrosion so I do think you should paint them really. But use stainless steel colour paint and not chrome.

Colin

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Oh dear, yet another job to do before 1st April then.

Have to paint the stantions too then. They are also brass and a bit skinny. Maybe I'll use 2mm alu tube instead….and paint them stainless steel of course.

Thanks for shoving me in the right direction Colin.

George

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Sorry about that! But brass is high maintenance at sea as it corrodes easily.. As far as staunchions are concerned, they are usually 25mm (1 inch diameter) so you can work out what you need on your model from that.

Colin

[geconParticipant @gecon]

You are forgiven -and thanked- for keeping me on the the straight and norrow . I have some 2mm alu' tube. So 2mm X 12= 24mm. I am sure you can give me that "1mm" in artistic licence. With lashings of undercoat and topcoat it'll be near 25.4mm when it's all dry .

Cheers, George

Edited By gecon on 12/03/2021 06:31:55

[geconParticipant @gecon]

"Well your honour, let me explain". …."You see your honour, Colin said that I had to make the stantions in 1/12th scale of 2.54cm diameter. The twisted wire on the Crémant corks were just right for stuffing up the 2.5mm alu'-tube stantions and support them on the capping rail. So that's why I had so much booze in the front seat of the car. I was not planning pop a cork while driving" your honour..sir.

"Who is this Colin chap then ?"

" I don't actually know your honour but he has a very religious surname so I think we can trust him".

"Take him down, he's nuts"

Best to get the stantions up before I go/fall overboard.

Good week end to all,

George

Edited By gecon on 12/03/2021 09:46:06

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Be very careful George, I'm told I might be redesignated as a Canon….

Colin

Edited By Colin Bishop on 12/03/2021 10:36:12

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Do you mean…like in…"if it moves, shoot it with a canon? Oh dear, but be aware that I have a few C02 powered corks on board. Actually, I have none left, they have all been uncaged in order to support the stantions!

I think I better get back to building the Fisher. All this lateral thinking and jesting is clogging up the single-cell planning department.

By the way, we have not started on the sherry yet either -just in case Ray suspects that I've been at one of the blue glass bottles from 'Bristol'

Safe weekend to all,

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Just one final thought before I open the Burgundy. Canons are OK -so long as they are not LOOSE.

Going away now until at least, monday…promiss.

George

Edited By gecon on 12/03/2021 15:55:30

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi George,

I think we all need some of your happy pills

Second thoughts I'll order a case of Bolly just for the wire round the corks

Have a good weekend

Regards Ray

[geconParticipant @gecon]

I think Bolly wire is gold…couldn't use that. The 'clergy' would urge me to paint it in stainless steel. Maybe even train a canon on me.

Ooops, I made a promiss to zip up until monday.

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Well I managed to keep my trap shut for the weekend -apart from posting a photo of my 'stantion kit'. Thought I could use epoxy on the pulpit uprights bu that did not work too well. It'll be the back dreaded soldering iron in a day or two.

Re-arranged two of the genoa traveller blocks today. The forward ones were 15mm, miles too big and looked out of place. Now they're 10mm and same size as the rear traveller blocks. Still much larger than scale but they'll have to do.

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Well I managed to keep my trap shut for the weekend -apart from posting a photo of my 'stantion kit'. Thought I could use epoxy on the pulpit uprights but that did not work too well. It'll be back to the dreaded soldering iron in a day or two.

Re-arranged two of the genoa traveller blocks today. The forward ones were 15mm, miles too big and looked out of place. Now they're 10mm and same size as the rear traveller blocks. Still much larger than scale but they'll have to do. Changed main boom block on the wheelhouse roof to a self-supporting 15mm. Large, but it's all I can offer for now.

George

Edited By gecon on 15/03/2021 18:03:39

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Photo shows why I tried first to epoxy the pulpit uprights in place. Didn't work too well. Not enough surface area to adhere to I suspect.

Admiralty sailed in while I was religiously (sorry) preparing my pulpits. She did a 180 and asked to borrow my canon. I said that I had already taken of photo of the kitchen table, but that was not the sort of cannon she was looking for.

I said that I knew a bishop who would soon be a canon…but that was still the wrong sort of cannon.

I soldered faster than a ball out of a cannon, tidied up PDQ.

Pulpits now undercoated in Humbrol matt 01.

Kithchen table is once again, visible

George

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Slow learner: painted the pulpits late on tuesday evening. Started handling them 8 hours later. They seemed to be dry/cured, but suddenly I noticed several fingerprints on the Humbrol Silver (11). I think I used too big a brush and applied too much paint which was therefore not fully cured. (8 hrs on the tin). Temp was at least 22*C.

Colin helped with info on this last year when I used and old bottle of Testors Model Master chrome paint. I did not consider that the Humbrol silver would need the same long cure-time. It seemed to be 'cured' when I inspected it!

The Humbrol silver produced a colour which was a good match for my alu'-tube stantions. They will be polished before fitting to help keep them half-shiny. Will paint them next year if they get too dull to live with.

So. it's back to the 800 wet and dry on 'save-the-pulpits-day'. Next time they'll get at least 24hrs!

George

Edited By gecon on 18/03/2021 07:50:55

[geconParticipant @gecon]

Just for info'….still learning very slowly…started google-ing humbrol metallics this morning.

Have not seen this in print until now, but the metallics need about 10 days to fully harden. This explains my fingerprint issue earlier, also the issue with Testor's chrome on the Comtesse pulpits last year. I thought the problem was due to old paint but it seems now to be.. 'old painter'.

Even the ordinary Humbrol enamels need several days to be properly hardened. Simply did not realise this.

Have sanded down the pulpits ready for another go. They are now a very dull silver-grey. Not quite sure how long I should wait before repainting. Considering going for the Tamiya Titanium Silver acrylic used on the window frames. Read that recoating oil-based metallics can be done either within 3 hours OR after 48 hours.

Will probably try one more time with Humbrol 11 silver because I think the colour matches my alu' stantions rather well. Paint again and don't touch it for several days! Launch date may well be postponed due to this

George

[Author]

Posts