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22" Schmidtt style keyed S/Steel
Three-strand Spanish Coxcomb all around in #24 size cotton line
(5) small six-strand "split" turksheads at minor spokes, also in #24
(1) Larger six-strand split turkshead marking "King" spoke in #45 cotton.
I had forgotten I am no longer a young man.
Each rim segment takes 3 x 3/yards line and some 145 hitches. Each turkshead takes an additional 10 feet of line.
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...stings/new.jpg
Just a quiet afternoon's work eh Vince.... as if.
Fabulous work. Thanks for sharing.
Nice work.
Will you finish it with anything? or allow it to gain a naturally worn patina?
lovely work though.
Once again, lovely job, Mr. B.!
Oh! I want one. I want one. :)
"Okay! Everyone listen up!. No one touches this wheel unless they first put on this pair of white cotton gloves. And, only touch the wheel when it's absolutely necessary. If I catch you putting your wet dirty hands on the wheel . . . "
Big Fella: Aye, just another wasted day....
Ian and LIBoy: Thank you, gents!
BBS and The Turpinator: There are any number of finish schemes that could be used, ranging from just clear PolyU to two coats of 1# cut Orange Shellac followed by a coat of best Spar Varnish, or painting it, or.... completely the owner's choice. I send 'em out unfinished 'cos I've come over allergic to VOC's... no good deed goes unpunished.
Roger: Smartass....:D
Absolutely first class young fella! :cool:
Well as twin wheels are the rage these days from everything from 35' up, you better get busy ;) !!!
http://www.windcrafthanse.com/image-...twin-wheel.jpg
Seriously, another fine piece of workmanship!
-M
Very nice!
It's wonderful craft and beautifully executed, BUT an afternoon of sailing in any brisk weather would remove a lot of skin. I know this from experience.
How can this lovely work be made skin-friendly?
That's what the varnish is partially for... If it was left raw line it would either strip the skin off your palms and (more importantly) open the webs between finger roots... very painful and quite debilitating. The varnish/polyu. will smooth the surface so that there will still be a grip but the roughness of the raw line will be overcome. Sailing gloves are recommended, but if the weather is tough enough to possibly have the wheel damage your hands, you should be wearing gloves already, unless you're such a "salt" that you can put out that cigarette on your palm without a wince...Quote:
Originally Posted by JimConlin
The idea of coxcombing a wheel is to give you a grip on a smooth steel wheel so that in a following sea you do NOT have to maintain control of a smooth steel rim using only the muscles of the forearms... you actually have a gripping surface that aids in that control and reduces that specific muscle strain.
Some prefer a leathered wheel and some that newer "hi-density foam" covering, both of which accomplish somewhat the same purpose... I just happen to prefer the coxcombed wheel's appearance and utility over the other alternatives I've listed.
Again, as with most sorts of "detailing" there IS no "wrong" answer... it's whatever appeals and works for you.
Sorry to wax professorial! I love options!
Once, some years ago, I got to do a 60" wheel in the same style... took forever! I shudder to think about twins, but I remember these twins in St. Thoma....Quote:
Originally Posted by Concordia...41
ahhhh....
nevvamind...
OK. The finish can smooth the texture.
Another ignorant question- Is the location of the hitching negotiable?
Might it be on the inboard or aft side and not on the principal bearing surface?
Or is there a lot of tradition around these things?
No question fairly stated can be ignorant...
The comb can be positioned anywhere you'd like on the wheel.... a case in point is this tiller I did... the customer wanted the comb to be underneath the tiller so he'd have an unencumbered surface on top as he routinely sails with the main sheet grasped between tiller and palm.
http://www.frayedknotarts.com/images.../small-end.jpg
However, pretend you've a wheel in hand at the moment. Your hand falls naturally on it so that the pads of the palm (metacarpal to proximal phalanges) fall naturally at approximately the top centreline of the wheel's rim. If one brings the comb to a 45 degree position aft, the comb is now falling across the centre of the palm (ouchie, after a while!); if 45 degrees forward, it falls more toward the joint between proximal and intermediate phalanges (certain blistering unless you deal with a LOT of manila!) and rotating it further around the wheel mostly invalidates the grip factor which the coxcomb is intended to produce. Top centreline or perhaps 10 degrees to either side is (IMO) optimal for control, but - again - the customer's preference (see above) ALWAYS wins out. It's not MY wheel, d'ye ken?
God bless gloves.
The operant portion isn't really tradition... it's how it works for you and what you want it to do.
Some time ago I rebuilt a friends computer after the "son and heir" had managed to download every known (and a few that had yet to be invented) virus available onto the box. Once cleaned and operating I renamed it "Nacho Computer" and told him that the next time he felt he wanted to download something something to look at the computer's name first.
He now owns his own computer consulting company and drives a Beemer.
I hate him.
beautiful work.
Here are some better pictures. I didn't even open the box until today because I was afraid I would get carried away by my enthusiasm and make a mistake with the finishing. I'm still trying to figure out how to do justice to this work of art.
http://hphotos-snc6.fbcdn.net/219768...6_164231_o.jpg
There is a lot to it as you can see in this thread:
http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...e-a-shellacing
Here are details of the turkshead and double turkshead for the kingspoke:
http://hphotos-snc6.fbcdn.net/220200..._4358704_o.jpg
http://hphotos-ash4.fbcdn.net/244016..._5335583_o.jpg
And my forum post over at SBO:
http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com...d.php?t=129452
Nice work, Vince. Your work is always a treat. What can you say about the choice of cotton material?
Also, not necessarily for you Vince, I'll mention here that there are other hitching knots that might yield a smoother grip. Ashley shows several. I used a three-strand "Zig-Zag" (Ashley's 3610) on a knife handle that was quite a bit easier on the hands, although harder to tie uniformly.
I use cotton for several reasons:
It is (to me, at least) readily available in quite a few small diameters where hemp is not;
It is far more consistant in appearance, tightness and compressibility (a necessary attribute to getting the uniform appearance and coverage desired);
It is MUCH more fun to work with;
It has vastly fewer "wild hairs" when tightened up (hemp or manila look like your Uncle Moe's moustache after a good bender!);
It takes both shellac, varnish or diluted paint with equal ease and is much less prone to interstitial "fill-up" than nylon, polyester or manila, thus preserving the detail appearance of the work;
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...oatshellac.jpg
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...acecloseup.jpg
And (reason #ONE) I like it.
The "ZigZag" 3610 is a definite winner as well... I've used it on many things, including a wheel's rim... just like the Spanish Coxcomb for a long-term gripping surface. Personal prejudice solely.
http://www.frayedknotarts.com/files/...Ash569page.jpg
Thank you, Scot! Didn't know that was possible!
Finished photos available HERE.
Vince very nice work ! My wife likes cotton too , she did 9 fenders for our son's DUKW in manila , by #9 she was ready to retire :)