MelodySusie
Materials & Tools
The tool with the name MelodySusie Electric Nail Cutter 30000 rpm Professional Electric Nail File Manicure Pedicure Set Gel Nails Acrylic Nails Nail Care Cutter Set with Foot Pedal and Attachments for Nail Studio Home DIY Manicure
For years and years I have been using my trusty Dremel 300 for so many tasks. Of course I was going to use it again a lot on the Flying Fish. However, I noticed a wobble on the tools, especially when grinding (when I say I noticed, I mean it has been like that for a good number of years, haha). The Dremel itself was fine, somehow the chuck was out of whack. So finally I ordered a new chuck.
When telling my girlfriend about the situation (yes, she has to endure many “interesting” stories from the workbench) she offered me the use of her manicure tool. Pshhh, I said, how could ANYONE take these little beauty gadgets seriously? But sure, why not just give it a try — boy, was I wrong… Not only was her tool much more comfortable to hold, I had never seen such precision before! Another phenomenal feature is the quick tool change mechanism. A twist on the handpiece is all it takes to release or grip a bit. I humbly thanked her, accepted my defeat and immediately ordered my own on Amazon.
One thing to watch out for is that – other than the adjustable Dremel chuck – the tool only takes bits of a fixed size (2.35 mm) and delivers less power than a Dremel. But given that the setup is to do fine work with this one and heavier work with the Dremel, it is a perfect and highly recommended addition to the workshop.
Rarely can I let things be the way they are and the same was true for my newest tool in the shop. It comes with a foot pedal and when I bought it I thought it was for turning it on temporarily. Funny enough, it turned out to have the opposite function. Pushing the foot pedal actually turns off the motor – how weird. It does not make sense to me. I opened it up and luckily found that the switch was a temporary SPDT (single-pole, double-throw). Rewiring it from the NO pole to the NC pole was a quick thing and changed it to my preferred behavior.
In the enthusiasm and joy of this new spectacular tool, I also purchased a bunch of bits and made two versions of a Gridfinity-based tool holder. Behold.
So to summarize, I think the MelodySusie Electric Nail Cutter 30000 rpm Professional Electric Nail File Manicure Pedicure Set Gel Nails Acrylic Nails Nail Care Cutter Set with Foot Pedal and Attachments for Nail Studio Home DIY Manicure is a great tool and I can highly recommend it.
Planking Clips
The clips I cobbled together in the last part were okay-ish. They did the job but I was not fully happy with them. What‘s more, they would not work anymore as more planks would cover the hull. The part gripping the bulkhead is too wide. I had to have something narrower and fired up CAD and the 3D printer.
I tried to make a design that was quick to print and easy to assemble. Below you see a number of iterations. Version 5 seemed to do the trick.
V1: simple and quick to print, yes. But super finicky to use.
V2: Easier use, but mistakenly worked in the wrong direction (handles need to be pulled apart to open the jaw).
V3: One-handed operation. Jaw opening angle not quite what I wanted.
V4: Range of motion increased and handles lengthened.
V5: Addition of the plank squeezer handle and minor adaptations.
I found that sticking sandpaper to the insides of the jaws drastically increased grip strength.
Process
Up to the planking stage I had the ship sitting on 3D printed stands. With the addition of the first lower planks they do not fit anymore. So it‘s time to start thinking about the real deal. Here the instructions say „just make some brass parts“, like everyone just has brass stock and a lathe sitting around. To be fair, this seems to be a common item in the model ship building world and can be bought easily. But why buy a low-quality part when I can make a low-quality part myself, right?
The 3D printer is once more of great help here because I can easily fine-tune the shape of those stands. Iterations are quickly done and affordable. Just like with the clips, iteration 5 looked like the version to keep.
Challenges & Learnings
You may have noticed how this post was more about things other than progress on the Flying Fish. Me too.
On one hand I enjoy these little challenges along the way that demand creative solutions, on the other hand I see that whatever time I spend on those side quests I am not spending on the ship itself, shifting its launch date.
I guess the best way of looking at it is this: The kit is what it is and will take a long time to build. I’m not willing to compromise on build quality, which means there’s little room to speed things up. The side quests are simply part of the process, and getting frustrated about them would be pointless. Given my expectations for the final result, there is no way around them. Also – and that‘s the beauty of hobby projects – there is no deadline and so the project is done when it‘s done.
Resources
Have you tried something similar? Got tips or questions? Feel free to leave a comment below.
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