Nautical Research Journal 19


36. T e model is now mounted on its base and the tiller installed.


Aſt er the model was mounted on its stand, the tiller was made by laminating holly and mahogany, steaming the pieces, and then squeezing the sections in a preformed clamp. (Figure 36) Eventually, the hull was rigged, fi tted out with crew, and placed into a protective case.


Case construction overview I now turned my attention to the preservation of such a prize by designing and constructing a suitable case. It is made of oak with acrylic panels, and is about 39 inches in overall height. I chose this dimension for stability reasons. If the case were higher, the chance of it falling over was greater. I used acrylic instead of glass to reduce the weight. I also decided to make it a free standing piece of furniture, rather than make it a shelf display, as the width of the model was too great for our shelves. I had entertained the idea of building it into a wall by cutting a cavity within the drywall, adding a header, and framing it in place. I liked this idea the best, as it would avoid an accident caused by my wife’s overzealous dusting. However, we could not agree on a wall, so the free standing unit prevailed.


T e legs were fashioned from pre-turned legs purchased at our local box store. T e legs screw into metal plates that fi rst are screwed into the underneath of the case bottom. I could not fi nd the leg length I needed, so I purchased oversized legs and cut them shorter to 15½ inches in length. (Figure 37)


T e base is made from an oak board 32 inches long and 10 inches wide, routed along all four sides with a molding of my preference. I also cut grooves, 3/16- inch wide and ¼-inch deep, along the four bottom edges for the acrylic panels. T e four corner posts are 1-1/8-inch square stock 21¾ inches long. I cut grooves 3/16-inch wide and ¼-inch deep along the inner corners of the four posts, matching the bottom groove locations. I located the posts onto the base, and drilled the posts and base at the same time. I then enlarged the post holes. T e posts are drilled on the ends with oversized holes, and ¼-inch steel stock was inserted. T e threaded steel was then held in place with nuts while epoxy cured in the post hole cavities.


T e ‘picture frame’ top was made from ¾-inch oak stock framed with mitered joints, which were reinforced with oak splines. T e four oak frames,


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