Reference · How-tos · Stern and ornaments

Five trials for the transom windows

Try five ways side by side to make the transom windows opaque but still shiny, and fit the winner (a grey haze on clear plastic) in the transom.

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1. 1Decide what the window has to do

   Look through the open transom: the stern frames behind it are visible, so the windows have to become opaque. At the same time you want to keep the shine of glass and be able to control the tint. Those are the three requirements you judge the trials on.

   

   Tip from Jaques: A piece of film onto which you apply a haze of thinned grey paint, as on the Batavia in Danny's log (without the leaded-glass lines).

2. 2Make five test pieces

   Cut five pieces to window size: (1) thin paper, greyed a little; (2) plastic from black flock; (3) clear plastic, lightly roughened; (4) aluminium foil behind clear plastic; (5) clear plastic with a grey haze of black and white paint. Slide each piece into its own window opening.

   

   Tip from Hans Groenenberg: Try a hard plastic, for instance the lid of the egg salad tub from the butcher, and sand it a little duller.

3. 3Compare the trials side by side

   Put the five trials in a row in the transom and look at them under the same light. Paper and flock (1 and 2) lose the shine; roughened plastic (3) does not let you control the tint; foil (4) is just a little too blingy. The grey haze (5) keeps the shine and the darkness can be adjusted.

   

   Tip from Building Mouse: You can also put aluminium foil behind a piece of clear plastic.

4. 4Apply the grey haze

   Mix black and white paint to a grey and use it to put a thin, uneven haze on the back of the clear plastic. Work thinly: the less paint, the more the pane keeps shining. Make the tint darker until you no longer see the stern frames.

   Tip from acura: Use a hole saw to cut a hole the size of the paint pot in a bit of board; that gives it a solid base.

   Watch out: Knocked over the pot of black paint while mixing. I had no large clamps to hold the pot down; a board with a hole from the hole saw solves that.

5. 5Fit the windows in the transom one by one

   For each window cut a piece of plastic to size, stick it behind the brass frame and set it in the opening. Work window by window and keep the glue to a minimum, because every drop that runs stays visible on the plastic. It is fiddly work and stays that way.

   

6. 6Check with flash

   Take a photo with flash. It shows every nasty detail, such as glue that ran a little in a few places. What you see with flash you do not see in ordinary light; so judge in normal light and only fix what really bothers you.

   

   Tip from Hans Groenenberg: Glass was only used in wooden glazing bars from the seventeenth century, in small pieces. It was cast on tables and polished with ever finer sand: reasonably transparent, but nowhere near as clear as float glass.

   Watch out: Best not to look at the boat under bright light too much. Or, as my wife said: just say it is an old ship and windows were not as nice back then.

Result

The windows shine, are not transparent and the tint could be controlled. Hans Groenenberg thought we had made the right choice; by accident there is a bit of authenticity in it too, as old glass was never as clear as today's.