Home >> Hobbies >> Other Hobbies

How to Build a Model of the Stannard Rock Light

Perched on top of a mountain submerged just below the icy waters of Lake Superior is Stannard Rock Lighthouse. The solitary outcrop is frequently called the loneliest place in the Great Lakes; construction on the lighthouse began in 1878, some 43 years after the rock was first identified as a danger to shipping. Nowadays the waters around the lighthouse are renowned for their deep-water fishing, and the sight of the lighthouse in the early morning light is an eerie experience for any fisherman. Building a model of the lighthouse is an ideal way to commemorate a major catch that was had in the waters, give thanks for safe passage across the lake or merely celebrate the majesty of Lake Superior itself.

Things You'll Need

Plywood sheet
Plywood block
Hole saw
Hand drill
1/4-inch drill bit
1/4-inch-diameter wooden dowel
Coping saw
PVA glue
Water
Large bowl
Newspaper
White primer spray paint
Black paint
Paintbrush set
Paint set
Miniature lantern, from a junk shop or craft shop

Instructions

- 1
  Use a hole saw to cut a circular piece out of the sheet of plywood. This piece should be the size you want the base of your tower to be. Choose another hole saw bit, approximately two-thirds the size of the first one, and cut another circular piece of plywood. Imagining the first circle is a clock face, use a hand drill to drill a hole a ¼ inch in diameter at 12, two, four, six, eight and 10 o'clock. The edge of each hole should be 1/4 inch away from the edge of the circle.
- 2
  Drill identical holes at 12, two, four, six, eight and 10 o'clock on the smaller circle also. Get your ¼-inch wooden dowel and cut it to a length approximately the same as the height of your model tower. Repeat this until you have six identical dowels. Put a spot of wood glue at each end and insert one end of one piece of dowel into the 12 o'clock hole on the large circle and the other end into the corresponding hole on the smaller circle. Repeat this process till the two circles are connected.
- 3
  Use the hole saw to drill another circle, identical to the larger circle. Then use the hole saw again to cut out a circular block of wood, the same diameter as the smaller circle from step 1 but with a thickness equal to one-sixth the length of the dowel from step 2. Position this circular block in the dead center of the third wooden disk and use wood glue to glue them both together. This will be the plinth for the light of your lighthouse.
- 4
  Half fill a large bowl with PVA glue and then add a small amount of water. Stir and add slightly more water until the glue is runny. Tear the newspaper into strips and dunk it in the watered-down PVA. When it is soaked in the adhesive, lay the strip across the wooden dowels from step 2 and repeat. Continue to do this until you have built up a layer around the structure of the tower.
- 5
  Use wood glue to attach the light plinth onto the top of the tower, then cover that with the newspaper and glue also. Allow the whole thing to dry and then spray it with a white primer base coat. Paint the plinth and the top wooden circle with metallic black paint. Paint the tower structure in white paint. The tower part of the lighthouse has six arched windows positioned one on top of the other that run up one side of the building. Paint these windows on using a fine-tipped brush.
- 6
  Take the miniature glass lantern and paint the metallic top the same color as the plinth. Use superglue to attach this to the dead center of the plinth at the top.

Other Hobbies