Garth yours is a true Canadian solution!🇨🇦

So, that's about $2.00 USD? 🤣
Sorry, I couldn't help myself ....

I know, I'm bad .... This past summer while we were in Ottawa, even the Canadians were humorously disparaging the exchange rate. It certainly made the trip more affordable for us, though.

Dave B

Excellent Garth? Did you scribe it?

Capital idea Garth! Can't imagine of a better use for scrap 2"x 4's and could not live without Evergreen Plastics! I have a stash of saved styrene.
😊

Nice video Duncan - I like too see these Classic Model Power Boats running at speed and making white water - really good!

Why not add it to the Classic Model Power Boats thread? It would be good to see it pictured there.

Believe it or not, nobody has shown an Aerokits Rescue Launch on this thread at all!

Bob.

Hi Bob,

The crash tender was fitted with an electric motor and a lead acid battery until it got refurbished during the lockdown with new running gear. I supposed since there was no fuel contamination and vibrations this has stopped any of the joints deteriorating.

It is not always been possible to determine what sort of glue was used on some of the restorations that I have done Duncan.

The model boats that I built in the 1960's were put together with Cascomite (powder mixed with water) or Aerolite 306 that came with a glass bottle of solvent to harden the glue when it was ready to be applied to the joint.

Aerolite 306 was expensive and I was a student apprentice back then and cash was tight, so Cascomite (less expensive) was what I usually used - and it was stocked in most hardware shops so it was easy to pick up locally.

Even though there was a lot more hardware shops back them than there are now, very few stocked Aerolite 306, but those that did proudly boasted that it was the glue that was used to stick the twin engined Mosquito fighter/bomber together, "The Wooden Wonder" as it was known.

Some (many) of the restoration projects that I have taken on have been fuel soaked and some had been powered by old unsuitable two stroke petrol engines (usually ex agricultural ) that may not have been installed particularly well and the vibration and often crash damage had taken its toll on the wooden joints.

It surprising how many nice boats ended up with a later owner who obviously did not appreciate the time and care that was taken by the original builder when they chopped the bulkheads out to install an oversized (often a single cylinder two stroke) engine to see how fast it would go before loosing interest in it and leaving it in a corner of an outbuilding until it was rediscovered many years later and put up for sale !

Add crash damage into the mix and some of the joints had fractured (or the wood around the joint had split) so some of the old boats had a hard life - whereas others (especially some that were electric powered) often survived much better.

Some old boats had never really been used that much as they had been 'shelf queens" that seldom (if ever) got to see any water. These have also not been without their problems either - especially those that have been kept on a bright sunny window sill or above an old well used fireplace for many years that had dried the wood and the joints out and were sometimes almost falling apart.

The best boats that I have worked on have been those that were well made and loved by the original builder who had used them enough to test them and make sure everything worked OK, and then kept in a well ventilated garage under a dust sheet where is stayed until it was used again and maintained well in-between every outing.

It is good to hear that your 50+ years old Aerokits Crash Tender is still holding together well enough on its original Cascomite glued joints and I hope that you are still enjoying running it.

Bob.

I presume most of these old models were glued together using Cascomite powder mixed with water. My Aerokits RAF crash tender is 50+ years old and all the joints seem fine and it was built using this type of waterproof glue.

I would agree with Roy and stress the importance of checking every joint on an old pre-built model that you are going to convert and prepare for use.

Most of my current models are restored and some of them are 60+ years old, and even those that were well built by their original builders can still suffer from the adhesive failing due to old age.

Unfortunately, most of my restoration projects were not put together very well and some of the original joints were never good and were made good for the first time in the boats life when the joint were cleaned, reinforced, and shown some decent adhesive for the first time!

Good luck with your conversion project 👍

Bob.

Hi if you are bringing her back to life, which is good, then do not trust any of the existing joints for glue.

Perhaps not, in this case but I have converted 50/60, year old models from decorative to operating and the joints are dodgy.
Good luck with the project.
Roy

Good morning Roy, as far as I'm aware she was never run in the pre finished stage. The motor and rudder had been installed, followed by a "dry " assembly of the wheelhouse; then put away to collect dust in the loft for the next 40/50 yrs.😊

Hi Doogle, I see an old Taycol motor in the old kit. They were contempory at the time. I assume the i/c engine is gone now. She must have had a good turn of speed with an i/c engine!
Roy

Enjoy, I was given one of these to complete by a friend of mine who was given this when he was younger and then sat in the loft due to health issues. Well the mice had been having a field day eating the instructions and and anything else they could sink their teeth into. However, I persevered and happy with the end finish. Enjoy your build. This is still one of my favourites to sail

OOH!!! I like that idea! You have to do it Garth! And honestly love the looks of the Veron Kit. Are they hard to find nowadays?

Oddly enough I have been trying for years to figure out a worthy hull to make a reasonable facsimile of Dr. Benton Quest's research ship from the legendary cartoon Jonny Quest. Here's a couple of screen grabs...
👍😉

The Veron trawler goes back to the late 1950s and a bit generic rather than an accurate model. I built the Caribean Coaster about that time.

With the large bow I would have a look through Sarik plans to see what would suit, not to buy plans but get some ideas.

Look forward to seeing the result.
Roy

See you Saturday Night at MMM light up the night at the Promenade

I am taking the sailboat Emily and the Saint Pierre Dory