1929 Trench build Tutukaka NZ

[Oor Wullie]

I've been quiet. Had a 91 year old uncle visit, a real time traveller. Plus I pinched a nerve in my lower back hauling the base around. Watch those backs.

But I got back into it today, painting with the new exterior primer sealer. The sanded base, columns, the above-door stepped awning and another coat on the wall chamfered squares. More primer painting tomorrow. Then I do it all again in blue! Fun to see progress but painting is boring. Necessary evil.

[Oor Wullie]

Did a test fit of an unfinished window frame in one of the doors and it fit well. The inside view shows the height difference between the inset window and surround trim. If I rabbet the trim so it interlocks over the frame, I can use the trim as a type of clamp to hold the frame tight against the butyl tape between it and the wall inset lip. I needn't screw the window frame at all, just the clamping trim! I just like cutting rabbets in 24 mm wood using the jig I used for the window frames.

Other photo is my paint shop layout. The columns, base and door awning trim all primed once I finish this here coffee. I did the brush work earlier to get in the nooks the roller can't reach.

The walls and doors got a coat of exterior primer sealer in the places the roller can't reach. Another day for this work since I want to second coat the outside of the columns as well.

[Oor Wullie]

Priming pretty well done.

[Oor Wullie]

Solid week of sun. Yesterday, finished the second coat of primer on walls, doors and base.

Today was a mixed bag of detail pieces. Primed the floorboards. Cut the circle for the top of the lamp by jigsawing the corner rounds, then turning the belt sander upside down and putting a clamp either side to hold it, then smoothed the circle nicely.

Same sander for sanding the edges of the phone cabinet door. Another piece for the trim around the phone cabinet sign to cut out.

Trimmed one of the sub-floor posts since it was too high for its augered hole. Checked the level of the blocks under the base and it's still good. Hope to take the base to the site, clamp each post to the level where the floor will sit on them and get the cementing done.

Tidied up my waste wood and moved the timber for the sign boxes and roof tiers out so I can start trimming as needed. Taking off the round edging the wood comes with and cutting the bevels of the roof tiers.

Next stop is the blue paint and getting the walls and columns standing so I can get exact measures for the sign boxes. I want them tight.



Double primed components.



Primed flooring



Lamp progress



Sign box and roof tier stock

[fivefingeredstyre]

Looks like it's coming together nicely!

[Oor Wullie]

Today was one of those days. I laid the base frame down and the post holes were a bit off corner to the inside so I had to dig an angle into each hole, costing me concreting time. But I got there.

Used the base as is with some kitchen plastic wrap to protect it from cement splash. Clamped each post into the corners and did an initial pour. I used ready-crete rather than quickset since I've had the latter crumble on other jobs and you have to work very fast. So I wait four hours for the initial set to get the base off, then pour the holes fully tomorrow. 24-48 hours for full cure.

I didn't use the damp proof course yet which will drop the post height by 2 mm, once used. But I'll make up for that by putting some DPC on top of the posts.

Safety tip, wear a mask and eye protection when dumping dry concrete. That dust is nasty. Never wear your good specs or they'll end up scratched.

I'll re-level the blocks once the concrete is hard. By then the base will be blue and ready to roll.

[Oor Wullie]

The base post concreting begun.

[Oor Wullie]

Two words: Aspect Ratio. The dimensional relationship between width and height of a parallelogram.

I'm figuring out my phone box hatch trim size and my sign size.

As I'm working off Met box plans, not those of show props, I found that the tin sign I bought off Amazon is a longer rectangle than my more squarish rectangles of 292x330 mm. I bought it at the start to get my wheels in gear.

My aspect ratio is 1:1.13. I've measured a few stage props and they are all longer, more like 1:1.25, noticeably a rectangle.

In looking at the start of filming for Ncuti's term, I did a jump of joy in seeing his hatch. It comes out at 1:1.15. His font is a consistent modern, white on black. I think I prefer the black background as it avoids the imbalance of the white among the eight incuts.

I don't like modern stage props since they are cast plastic, including the exaggerated wood grain. Seems we builders are the last vestige of craftsmanship.

Anyway, I like how it's possible to square skew the font. I'll get mine printed by a signmaker along with a 6" St Johns circle. The sticker I got is way too small. 

And what's with the striped glass on his TARDIS? A first, but not attractive.

The relationship between his trim to overall width, using my 292 mm, says 28 mm for my trim surround. Other props are likely more like 26 or 27. A good seating for the handle, which I'm keeping on the right, not his left.  This makes my sign 236x274mm.

[Oor Wullie]

And this snap of a Met box or maybe Peter Cushing's, of flashing at the top of the phone cabinet top. I think I'll bang in a metal flashing as I can't see how rain doesn't enter the top of the hatch otherwise. Or is this just the top bevel?

[Volpone]

I'm pretty sure it's flashing.  Going from memory, but I've seen some other pictures with better resolution and it looks like there's flashing.  Flashing also makes sense, so it stands to reason they'd have it. 

[Andrew Harvey]

I seem to recall seeing flashing on some old ones...

[Oor Wullie]

Couple of days rest and normal life, so I got back on track and finished the concrete job, topping up the rest of the holes with 15 min quikset.

Then I got the hole saw out to cut the hole out of the lamp cover and a circular groove in the lamp base plate to take the lower lip of the lantern chimney. The two lips differ so only one fits the bottom and the top one is thicker glass and needs the full cut. I have to devise a support for the remote control solar light as it's smaller than that hole.

As some of you know, the next fun step is to get four aligned holes for the 6 mm threaded rods to connect the acrylic dome flange, the ply upper circle, the base plate and the plate at the summit of the roof. Not looking forward to the challenge, but there's no alternative. I have brass tubes to cover the rods where they protect the lens.

[Oor Wullie]

Small gain yesterday. Cut the phone cabinet trim 9 mm ply sheet to size on the table saw to match the 12 mm door, already cut, and then used the plunge saw on its track to cut out the inner square. Glued it up overnight. 

I think, in building these boxes, we have to reflect on some dialogue from the 5th Doctor episode "Time-Flight".

MASTER: I shall soon have total control of the force. The Tardis key, Doctor.
(The Master threatens the Doctor with the tissue compressor. Stapley and Bilton rush forward and the Master turns his weapon on them.)
DOCTOR: No heroics, please, gentlemen. The Master will eliminate you without a second thought.
(The Doctor holds out the Tardis key.)
MASTER: Very wise, Doctor.
HAYTER: Good heavens, that's never the Tardis?
MASTER: Unfortunately it is. So typical of the Doctor's predilection for the third-rate, but it will serve my purpose.
(The Master enters the Tardis.)
HAYTER: What does the man want with an obsolete Metropolitan
(The Tardis dematerialises.)
SCOBIE: Oh, no.
HAYTER: We're hallucinating again.
STAPLEY: Is that how you travel, Doctor?
DOCTOR: Not exactly the first class end of the market, but a serviceable vehicle, Captain.
HAYTER: Some kind of miasma.
DOCTOR: I do not wish to believe, therefore I hallucinate. Is that the philosophy of Darlington men, Professor?
HAYTER: What I've just seen isn't possible.

Key dialogue: So typical of the Doctor's predilection for the third-rate, but it will serve my purpose.

Good enough for the Doctor, good enough for me. Our aim is to build a "serviceable vehicle"!

I got some hinges of 21 mm depth, perfect for this combined 12+9 mm door thickness.

[Oor Wullie]

Rainy so no blue painting today. But I'll start to cut my roof tiers. I'd intended on working on the sign boxes first but realised that having roof tier one ready for the column and wall erection is the way to go. A known dimension and an easy piece to fit for bracing and spacing the wall attachment. I was thinking backward, relying on the column spacing being based on the more random error of the walls providing perfect spacing.

Once the four columns are up, perfect spacing is achieved from a temporarily attached tier 1, allowing the walls and doors to be fit without having the columns wobbly. Once the walls are up, tier one comes off in order to fit the sign boxes in without fuss.

Back to the table saw I go. Gotta cut the bottom of tier one sharply square and the top bevelled. Exciting! 

Oh yeah, I was really happy to find a PDF of the phone cabinet sign on this site  which is exact to the aspect ratio of my Met box plans. Gotta call the signmaker today for that and a six inch St John's, both on metal.

[Oor Wullie]

Right on! Two coats of TARDIS blue on the walls, doors and columns. Very good match to the 'official' colour. 30 degrees C in the shade, so it'll be dry and stowed in no time.

The base will get done in the next round. Yesterday, I cut and rabbeted the brace surrounds for the inner windows. These pieces will press the window frames into the butyl seal sitting against the wall insets.