Mast Tapering Help

Bud-J

Bud-J

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Mar 9, 2021
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Hi to all. I am currently building the ZHL Soleil Royal and could use a bit of help. I need to taper about 25 dowels for all of the masts but am unable to do this as I do not have the proper tools. I tried the drill method and snapped the mast. My last resort was to Dremel it…not a good idea.

I.E. - 8mm max to 4mm min……6mm max to 3mm min, etc.

I would be happy to pay someone to do this as I just am unable.

Thanks

John
 
Hello John

I was in the same predicament when I did my first ship The Harvey.
What I found, though tedious, was the make the mast,yards slightly longer then required and then mark the diameter required at the end that needs to be tapered to. I then used a wood file to slide it down the dowels side by side, first as a 4 sides the 8 sides then round off the high corners,IMGP0294.JPG till I was close to the marked diameter. I then use a coarse sandpaper and then a finer one holding it on the dowel and rotating the dowel so the end result was cylindrical.
It took me a while but the all turned out OK apart from 1 Mast which had to be replaced.
This was done without a Vice and just held by hand.
Having build a few more since that time I now do them on a lathe.
I have attached 2 pics of my completed Harvey so you can see the result of hand taperingIMGP0295.JPG
 
Bud-J said:
Hi to all. I am currently building the ZHL Soleil Royal and could use a bit of help. I need to taper about 25 dowels for all of the masts but am unable to do this as I do not have the proper tools. I tried the drill method and snapped the mast. My last resort was to Dremel it…not a good idea.

I.E. - 8mm max to 4mm min……6mm max to 3mm min, etc.

I would be happy to pay someone to do this as I just am unable.

Thanks

John
Click to expand...
John, good afternoon.
The drilling method, if I understood the translation correctly, is not bad. You can use a drill, screwdriver. Clamp one end of the future mast into the cartridge and then remove the excess with sandpaper. There is one nuance in this method that I encountered. If the emery compresses the mast tightly, then there is a very high probability of breakage, because at some point the emery is clamped around the workpiece. Therefore, it is better not to hug the workpiece tightly with emery. Let it be slower, but it will prevent the workpiece from breaking. There is another option to hold the workpiece with your hands, while simultaneously rotating it and removing it with emery. But this method is very tedious.
 
If you are in a position to buy a mini wood lathe, I would recommend the Proxxon Wood lathe. That's what I use. It is still a bit of an art form to get the correct taper because you have to constantly measure the diameter with calipers, but I enjoy it. The idea is to rough out the shape with a wood lathe chisel and then finish it off with sandpaper. I hope this helps
 
My sympathies are with you. (By the way, I start on my Soleil soon.) I broke an important yard doing just that with the drill. Then I discovered by chance that if I put pressure on the sandpaper going away from the drill as I taper, I was less likely to break the dowel. Bringing the sandpaper in toward the drill resulted in breakage. And I eventually bought a 10"X18" mini wood lathe to do the tapering. It saves on burning fingers, and I can use it for other woodworking purposes. I got a reasonably priced one from Harbor Freight Company. I did have to buy a 2" chuck to go with it and some chisels.
 
I haven't tapered any masts, yet. But I have tapered dowels using a drill and sandpaper that I glued to strip of wood, roughly 1 1/2" wide by 5" or 6" long. Hold the drill so that the dowel is flat on a bench or a board and use the sanding slab to sand, starting at the end that needs to be thinner and work your way towards the thicker end. Don't try to remove too much wood at once. First step is to sand a little bit for about the width of the sanding slab. Then start at that end again and work a little way towards the thick end then back to the same starting point and repeat the process until you complete the mast.
It is not a fast process, but I find it works well enough save me the money of buying another machine. I can buy more wood to sand!
 
I have successfully used the drill method. I wear a thick leather glove on the had holding the sandpaper. As mentioned above I squeeze a bit harder going away from the drill and lighten my grip when pulling back. I also don't run my drill at its fastest setting. When my hand starts getting warm, I take a break. Whether this helps the wood cool down or not (possibly keeping the mast from breaking?), I'm not sure. I use a mini lathe for shorter spars that fit on it.
 
Jeff T said:
I have successfully used the drill method. I wear a thick leather glove on the had holding the sandpaper. As mentioned above I squeeze a bit harder going away from the drill and lighten my grip when pulling back. I also don't run my drill at its fastest setting. When my hand starts getting warm, I take a break. Whether this helps the wood cool down or not (possibly keeping the mast from breaking?), I'm not sure. I use a mini lathe for shorter spars that fit on it.
Click to expand...
A separate challenge, with the spars of the schooner Bluenose is that they are not round. The side facing the sail or forward for masts is straight, as is the top of the bowsprit, while the tapers are on the other three sides. To do this I laid the dowel flat on my work surface and having marked the straight side with a line, used a file or sanding stick to stroke away from myself and then slightly rotate the dowel, leaving the straight side untouched. It takes numerous dimension checks with a good caliper (digital or fraction scale). When getting close us do the same with finer grits of sandpaper to obtain the finished surfaces. Took a fair amount of time and some cramping fingers but for the non-radiused schooner spars it was the only means that I found.
Round tapers are just a test of patience and light touch but the drill with an outward stroke of the sandpaper wrapped around two or three sides works very well. Best of luck with your own means. Rich (PT-2)
 
If your going to use a drill make sure both ends are held ( it eone end in drill the ther pushced against a nail , like a lathe. Use a slow speed s possible on drill ( cordless drill / screwdiver is best). Use coarse paper on a bock, and dont pres to hard. It takes time!
Even in a mini lathe ( proxon) with 6-3mm, it is easly to break. Just go slowly. I had 4-2mm spars on the Santa ana, and that was a challenge in the lathe.
For the final stage I hand sand with fine paper up and down the shaft.( no i'm not talking about teenage practices)
 
paulv1958 said:
If your going to use a drill make sure both ends are held ( it eone end in drill the ther pushced against a nail , like a lathe. Use a slow speed s possible on drill ( cordless drill / screwdiver is best). Use coarse paper on a bock, and dont pres to hard. It takes time!
Even in a mini lathe ( proxon) with 6-3mm, it is easly to break. Just go slowly. I had 4-2mm spars on the Santa ana, and that was a challenge in the lathe.
For the final stage I hand sand with fine paper up and down the shaft.( no i'm not talking about teenage practices)
Click to expand...
I fully agree that a slow and light touch is essential. Rich
 
I glued sandpaper to two paint-stirrer sticks, then put spacers between them to get the desired taper. Rubber bands held it together. Put the dowel in a hand-held drill, and insert it in the large end between the spacers. I was surprised at how quickly this tapered the spars.IMG_0810.jpeg
 
John…this is one that we have all struggled with. There is no really easy or quick solution. All of the common ideas have been mentioned above. I know a modeler who uses a no. 11 blade to shave the taper then file/sands to final shape. Another solution that I use is a drum sander…this is a round drum with sandpaper that oscillates up and down as it spins. Some find it easier to use than a lathe. This is one you will need to find the solution you can live with and a lot of patience. There is a Plan B. Some ship modeling web sites sell pre-tapered masts and yards…not common but I have seen them…some sets are generic and some detailed to specific models. We sympathize with your angst! I do like Guy’s idea of two sticks held together as posted above…I need to try that!
 
I find the drill method the best for masts. Slow speed 120 grit paper with not too much pressure.The drill chuck does leave an unsightly dent in the wood where it grips which can be got rid of by soaking in hot water which brings out the dent by rehydrating the fibres. Alternatively cut the mast long and trim off the dented bit after shaping. For spars which need tapering at both ends I use a small modellers' plane very finely set and taper the ends by turning the dowel as I go on a cutting board. The spar is then lightly sanded by hand to round it off. The block plane I use is the Qiangsheng Luban No 101 Bronze low angle block hand plane which is an invaluable tool for model ship building and the blade is of high quality and can take a razor sharp edge.

​

 
obsidean12 said:
If you are in a position to buy a mini wood lathe, I would recommend the Proxxon Wood lathe. That's what I use. It is still a bit of an art form to get the correct taper because you have to constantly measure the diameter with calipers, but I enjoy it. The idea is to rough out the shape with a wood lathe chisel and then finish it off with sandpaper. I hope this helps
Click to expand...
Hi,
If you can't swing a Proxxon....
Buy a cheap bead making lathe off EBay ($60 to $100). You can mount the head or motor side and tail to a length of plywood to give you the length you need for any given mast.
Some, most come with turning chiseled. Gently use the chisel and finish with sandpaper. Measure with a caliper at different points to ensure a fairly accurate taper.
Its inexpensive fun!!
Steviedean
 
Hi, I'm late to the party and can't add much new, but I've been using a drill to taper masts and spars for years and although I do break the odd one I've found it the easiest and best way to do the job. As mentioned above use a cordless drill that you can vary the speed with. The most important thing is to make sure the dowel is perfectly straight in the chuck--it's the wobble that will cause breakage. To prevent scratching the wood, I wrap the end in a strip of the thinnest cardboard I can find. This protects the wood an also helps you get the dowel straight. Start slow and the second you feel any vibration or wobbling, stop and realign the dowel.

If you do break the mast or spar, you can usually repair it and no one will ever know, so it's more of an irritation than a fiasco if you break one. Best of luck!
 
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