Arctic Convoy

Started by marky

16 updates 104 likes 122 comments
marky Opening post

Arctic Convoy

While everything on HMS Bustler is trying to dry/harden in the sub tropical heat here in Scotland I thought I would put something else onto the slips ,decided on a cargoship /tramp steamer from the 30s-40s will call it Arctic Convoy as a tribute to the gallant men who endured so much.
Started with the main decks and boat deck that I can do in the warmth of the kitchen,the drawings showed steel decks but being a true Scot if I spend a couple of pounds on a 1000 coffee stirrers then I'm going to get my moneys worth, so decided to give the ship wooden decks.
Hull frames are marked out ready for cutting will post pictures of the Hull later on .
Liked by petercbrown and Colin H and
36 comments
  1. marky
    Commodore
    Thanks for all the info and help ,was looking at Howes advert last night .
    I am going to make the whole deck with the superstructure lift off to give better access,will put another stringer in on each side and deck will fit in place with dowels fitted to existing stringers to deck ,will fit a neoprene gasket later to keep it watertight.
    Cheers Marky .
    Nearly forgot ordered propshaft and rudder from banggood.👍
    Liked by Nerys and Martin555
  2. Nerys
    Fleet Admiral
    That's a good idea Mark as long as you are sure about having a watertight seal. It's always worth having as much access to 'the works' as possible as you never know what may go wrong.
    Good luck, you are doing well.

    All the best, Nerys
    Liked by marky and Martin555

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marky #2 of 17

Hull frames

Donned the fingerless gloves and the furry hat and braved the cold shed to cut the frames (wife wouldn't let me bring the wee bandsaw into the kitchen) all frames cut and sanded ,the base should be 1" balsa ,I used an old shelf of light wood that was the same thickness ,frames glued in place and deck supports added,did some work on the chart room and flying deck.
Liked by petercbrown and Colin H and
2 comments
  1. RNinMunichBronze
    Fleet Admiral
    Excellente Mark 👍
    Each superstructure 'chunk' is a fine model in itself!
    I envy you guys who can do such accurate woodwork.
    Encore, Encore 😀
    Cheers, Doug 😎
    Liked by petercbrown and marky and

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marky #3 of 17

Decks

Trial fit of the decks ,they actually look a reasonable fit ✨,if I remove the excess less 1/4" all round where the holds are this would give access for any rc gubbings.
Liked by mturpin013 and petercbrown and
4 comments
  1. mturpin013Bronze
    Admiral
    Hi Marky I am in a similar position re RC (first boat), but I've read all the books and really its not that complicated as modern RC seems to be made easy by the manufacturers, just make sure you count the number of channels you will need, I'm not sure I did! but we will see.

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marky #4 of 17

Slight alterations

Been a while (internet problems)Have made some slight alterations ,added some extra stringers to take the main deck drilled the main deck and fitted 5mm acrylic pegs ,will post pictures later .super fast internet !don't make me laugh.
Liked by MouldBuilder and mturpin013 and
3 comments
  1. MouldBuilder
    Admiral
    If you can get Virgin in your area, give it a try. I get 213 Mb/s almost constantly. Just tested across wifi at 140 Mb/s.
    Liked by Martin555
  2. marky
    Commodore
    Virgin have just started laying cables in our area so may give it a try once their finished.👍
    Liked by Martin555

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marky #5 of 17

Decks

While waiting for bits to come decided to stain the decks ,wee tip :- stain them the same colour your other half wants the window surrounds done in 🤣🤣🤣.,a rub down and another coat tomorrow
Liked by Colin H and Elsrickle and
1 comment

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marky #6 of 17

Prop shaft etc,

Well prop shaft arrived in the post ,postie must have sat on it it has a very obvious bend in it the rudder is also the wrong size , will take it on the chin can't be bothered sending them back to China will see if model shop in Edinburgh has something.
Liked by Martin555
3 comments
  1. marky
    Commodore
    Martin now you mention it I could probably solder another brass sheet onto the rudder to enlarge it ,am going to take the prop shaft into my old work to see if they can push a piece of bar the right diameter through it to straighten it and also try and straighten the inner shaft ,it was just so annoying after the wait.
    Cheers Marky👍
    Liked by Martin555
  2. MouldBuilder
    Admiral
    I think you might get away with straightening the tube but I have doubts about the shaft. It will be difficult to get straight enough to avoid vibration at the speeds we turn them at. Sorry to be depressing,☹️ Good idea about enlarging the rudder though.😊
    Liked by RNinMunich and Martin555

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marky #7 of 17

Razzle Dazzle

Just throwing ideas around Though of giving Arctic convoy a Dazzle cammo paint job ,found a couple of interesting schemes.
Cheers Marky
Liked by Colin H and MouldBuilder and
3 comments
  1. marky
    Commodore
    Thanks for more inspiration Doug ,was reading that although there are many pictures of dazzle ships they are only in Black and white or sepia most of the colourful images are from the original paint designs.
    Cheers Marky.
    Liked by Martin555

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marky #8 of 17

Holds

Thanks to my friendly laser cutter person 200 little gusset plates in 2 minutes ,some now glued round holds .
Liked by Colin H and redpmg and
3 comments
  1. marky
    Commodore
    Tried cutting by hand ,murder just trying to get two the same and I don't really have the patience 😁.
    Was nice to the people I used to manage in my previous life when I worked at the art college and they are quite happy to do me wee favours like laser cutting ,3D printing and as much scrap wood as I can use .
    Cheers Marky
    Liked by RNinMunich and redpmg and
  2. RNinMunichBronze
    Fleet Admiral
    "Everyone else seems to be too far away............. "
    I'm soooo alone, oh woe is me 😭
    Know the feeling Red 😉
    Except here, amongst kindred spirits👍
    "You'll never walk alone!" 😊
    Cheers, Doug 😎
    Liked by Martin555

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marky #9 of 17

Holds continued

A little coat of paint fairly brought it altogether,a special thanks to Mr Lee at my local Chinese restaurant for the masts (chop sticks).
Cheers Marky
Liked by Colin H and MouldBuilder and
3 comments
  1. figtree7nts
    Admiral
    Hi Marky,

    I see I'm not the only one.
    That uses Chopsticks for a mast!👍
    Your model is coming along nicely!

    Cheers, Ed
    Liked by marky and Martin555

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marky #10 of 17

Plating question

Thinking slightly ahead after cladding the Hull I thought of doing plating in either card cereal boxes or ice cream tub type plastic ,the question is ,if using the cereal boxes which surface would be outside the printed side or the inside of the box ?

Cheers Marky👍
Liked by MouldBuilder and Martin555
6 comments
  1. marky
    Commodore
    Thanks for the idea of litho plate,will take a wee trip into the art college where I worked before retirement they have a printing department and see what I can scrounge.
    Cheers Marky👍
    Liked by Rookysailor and Martin555
  2. marky
    Commodore
    Thanks for all the help and ideas that will keep me bumbling about and out of mischief for a while.

    Cheers Marky👍
    Liked by Martin555

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