The Fairey Owners' Club

Dear All
I am thinking about starting to build a new screen for Dawn Huntress to replace the old and tired military export one.
I have chatted with a couple of people who are interested in doing the same thing, I don't have firm orders from them yet but if
I do get them it will make the whole job substantially cheaper.
I am proposing to make the  front part of the screen in laminated Sapele and the sides from marine ply. I would also be able to supply shaped perspex and chrome finish marine grade stainless surrounds with fixings.
All wooden parts would be epoxy coated.
I know that these boats vary dimensionaly and will be scaling from the original drawings and using my boat as a template. If I were to build screens for other boats, I would make the bottom part oversize in order for it to be properly scribed in. I would also need measurements to ensure that the width of the cabin top is the same as mine.
I havn't been able to put an accurate costing together yet but should be able to come close in a week or two.
Is anyone else interested in a new screen for a Huntress?
If so I can be contacted on 07708 062950 or via the forum.
Yours Aye
Hugo

Hugo when before I did Artemis back in 1997 I had looked at a few.

Method was to obtain a template of the shape in thin hardboard, I used Huntress of Bosham, stiffen with battens to hold to the correct shape. Once we had a curved pattern this was made more rigid with epoxy coating.

Set the pattern up on the cabin roof. Build up thin strips of suitable timber a la West System by clamping to inside of the pattern. As soon as you have built up about three layers you have sufficient strength in the shape to remove the hardboard pattern, easy to add more laminations once you have removed pattern.

Use router clean up screen aperture and to cut a stepped joint to the flat plywood sides.

Set up sides first, then fit the curved middle section, epoxy and then clamp together.

I use stainless brackets to make rigid, wooden bocks seemed real ugly.

Reused the curved pattern to bend the screens to shape with careful use of three hot air guns. I would have this process done professionally done now as the Perspex crazed after three years due to internal stress set up by the process.

Making the surround I thought would be straight forward, a word of warning it is not!

Stainless was plain impossible to fight into required compound curvature. Worked OK on flat side screens, however the super laser cut surrounds were made even harder once laser cut. Drilling all those holes in stainless is a nausea. Stainless in the bin, started again!

Ordered up brass strip to the correct dimension started again, did it hell, almost as hard as fighting the stainless strip. Spoke with supplier who said why didn’t you tell us what you were doing with it, strip is hard brass, you need soft brass strip guillotined from sheet. Second heap of expensive material in the scrap bin, start again.

Soft brass strip works like a dream. Silver solder joints, drill and countersink the zillions of holes then off to the platers.

I may be able to dig out some photographs if you require.

Paul

Paul.
Thanks for that, As usual it makes perfect sense and will doubtless save me a huge amount of aggro. If the photos arn't buried too deep I would love to see them.
All the best
Hugo.

Hugo

I haven't done a full rebuild, but I have repaired a frame and replaced the perspex. Precision Units at Parkstone, Poole supplied the new perspex bent to shape - they have a range of Fairey moulds. Contact details are in the forum somewhere - I don't have them to hand. I was able to re-use the stainless surrounds. Agree Paul's experience - I wouldn't like to have to make them from scratch. However I did replace the chromed half-round brass trim strip along the top of the screen. Not easy to bend brass in the 'flat' plane to follow the corners, but I found a blacksmith who did it for me using the old broken bits as a pattern. He set up a jig on a bench and bent them cold, leaving me to nudge them into final shape. Obviously you need to get the shape exactly right before you drill for the fastenings and polish out any flaws before chrome plating.