Forum

U49 Mclaren Clockwork Submarines.

Ahoy Mateys,17 inch, U49 has a 3 plate hull made from an old Panettone tin,it has two s and a powerful single spring clockwork motor. The diving planes are a through hull type and quite large because its bit of a lump to dynamic dive, to assist diving it has 350g of lead trim in the bilge.

5 years ago by mactin

Forum

U48 Tinplate Clockwork Diving Submarine

Ahoy Mateys, U48,this ones taken me ages due to a brief hiatus brought on by a touch of black death I caught. Anyway another bin salvaged effort made entirely from scrap tin and alarm clocks. No in this one,the smaller boats don't need them and dynamic dive on planes alone,or just surface run. Cheers Neil www.mclarenclockworksubmarines.com

5 years ago by mactin

Forum

Landing Ship Tanks (WW2)

I have a hankering to build an LST and although I could probably build a reasonable representation from photos, I would like to get hold of some plans. There seem to be plans available for the smaller landing craft like LCTs and LCMs but nothing for LSTs, the only ocean going landing craft of WW2. Over a thousand were built, all in the USA, despite being a British conception, only 113 were actually built for the Royal Navy. They were 328 ft long with 50 ft beam and were fitted with s, similar to submarine types to enable them to run well up onto a beach to unload their cargo of tanks and other vehicles. They only needed 3ft6ins water under the bow to beach. Doors opened and a ramp came down. Really they were the forerunners of the RoRo ferry. My interest in building one is because my late father, a Lieutenant Commander, RNR, captained LST 368. all through the North Africa, Sicily and Italian campaigns. Would be pleased to hear if anyone can help me locate plans. Cheers, Nerys.

6 years ago by Nerys

Blog

Seat Trials and mods.

It’s been a while since the boat had it’s maiden voyage on the lake at St. Albans and I’m pleased to report that it looks really good in the water and goes like stink if you open up the throttle. Sadly I still don’t have any decent video of the boat yet as I can’t film and drive the thing at the same time, but I do have some static wide shots from my GoPro. When I do the video I’ll ask a cameraman mate to do the honours, maybe I’ll put the GoPro on the bow and then the stern to get some low action shots…the storyboard is already building in my head!! These early runs were great as they showed up some minor problems that needed attending to. I found that it needed ballasting slightly as it was not sitting on the waterline evenly from side to side so I flattened out some old lead water pipe and cut it into small sections so that I could add ballast incrementally. I did this in the ‘domestic test tank’ and once I was happy the lead pieces were fixed in place inside the hull with some super strong double sided tape. The ESC needed a little programming adjustment because I had forgotten to set the low battery level point to ‘off’ as I am using NiMh batteries and not LiPo’s , that was the cause of the short initial run time on the first outing…..DOH !! The batteries are now held in place by Velcro straps on some bearers that I added, otherwise a battery change involved cutting cable ties and replacing them at the lakeside…not very practical. The volt/amp/watt meter is also now on a proper bracket so that the display is more readable. I have also changed the charging connection from the nasty Tamiya connector to a nice little panel mount XT 60 connector that HobbyKing sell, it comes with a handy blanking plug that I have drilled for a retaining cord. I have also finally got around to upgrading the firmware on my Turnigy i6 radio to the 10 channel version so that I can assign the lighting to the switches properly and have the rotation of the searchlight on one of the two rotary knobs. I can use the old 6 channel RX in the new boat….blog coming soon.

6 years ago by robbob

Forum

U44 Tinplate Clockwork Diving Submarine

Avast Mateys, U44 finished, 18" long 40ml in the bow hand beaten and rolled from a 50p cereal tin from a charity shop www.mclarenclockworksubmarines.com cheers.

6 years ago by mactin

Response

U-181

Hi Haig, you're right 👍 My Akula II is only half the size of your boat at about 35" x 4 1/2" beam. So only one 750ml . Trimming could be tricky! Although I also bought the Engel Pitch Control module. The tube is going to be pretty well packed but sliding it out will make servicing and adjustment easier (I hope😁) With the Akula's typical USSR enclosed bridge there's not much scope for crew. Could put one lookout with his head stuck out of the top hatch I suppose. Hmm! Where to get 1/125 people? As for the 1/72 U26 crew; I've got a deck gun crew set, a CO and tower lookouts & Flak gunner set, and of course I can't resist the guy peeing overboard - must remember to keep him on the lee side 😲 Happy diving👍 Cheers, Doug 😎 BTW: I believe there is a mod kit for working periscopes, must look into that. Would add a little more interest.

6 years ago by RNinMunich

Response

U-181

There are 2 s 750ml each - allowing nearly 1.5kg of ballast. I have only fixed half the crew to the boat, and only some key ones in the conning tower. You cannot see them when at a distance and certainly not underwater, so a calculated view. They do stand out on the photos so it looks more realistic. I think the newer tube internals allow for smaller subs but there is hardly any space left within this model.

6 years ago by reilly4

Forum

Seabreacher

Hi Steve Plenty of suggestions being made. I use waterjets and you should be aware of the max revs quoted by the manufacturer. You exceed this figure at your own risk. I agree with the previous comments regarding brushless delivering far more power if powered by Lipo. Ballast is a crucial part of the equation and the Sea Breacher has a large volume of air in its hull which makes it very buoyant. Like a sub perhaps some form of that can be vented may be worth considering. You really need to speak with someone who is into submersibles as they have the experience and knowledge of how best to proceed. The Model Boat Convention is on next weekend and they sometimes have submariner modellers in attendance. Good luck Dave

7 years ago by Dave M

Forum

Dont throw your tins out.

No probs, its only a basic single and motor setup some of my other stuff ends up looking like the engine room of a type 21. theres lots more detail on my site but heres a few internals of different boats ive done. cheers Neil

7 years ago by mactin

Response

U35 clockwork submarine

U35... Finally done! 2 Months this one took! 3 s Clockwork Timer for the compressed air system clockwork motor for the coaxial contra rotating tandem props. Maximum time on the bottom 1 hour. clockwork tinplate submarines are great fun!

7 years ago by mactin

Blog

H.M.S. BULLDOG / BEAGLE

Finished the wiring, major ballasting and superstructure, but without finishing details. Will do final trim ballasting on open water; my indoor test tank is too small for a 48" long model! Have decided to work on the mast next. The second picture shows a joint at the rear of the deckhouse roof. Originally thought it would be ideal if the whole wheelhouse could be made removable, but could not hide the front joint very well and decided this would be a better approach. The wheelhouse is thus now fastened to the lower superstructure. Through the removable roof section access to the interior light and the radar scanner motor can be gained. The second picture also shows the motor driveshaft extending upwards through the roof. Plan is to extend the shaft up to the platform on which the scanner sits and then use gears from an old clock to offset the drive forward and position the scanner in the correct location.

8 years ago by Rowen

Response

H.M.S Fearless

HI xtramaths, thanks for your comments glad you are inspired. Several additions have been added since launch date.. one in particular is the ballast. Still adding all the time, latest, pump six gallons of water into tank to sink stern 2" open stern door and bring out two landing craft on separate controllers

8 years ago by DennisRobotham

Forum

Dusseldorf Fire Boat

It looks like a lovely model , pity the photo wasn't three times the size. There's no way this can be determined by a forum post. Every model is different: Current waterline determined by materials used for construction and equipment on board. The only way to do this is install battery's, fuel etc., and place the model in a tank filled with water. Then place small ballast blocks in various places on the deck to bring the model to the correct heel and waterline. Take the model from the water and glue or secure the ballast blocks in the hull in exactly the same internal position. To make this accurate, for models running on liquid fuel, the tanks should be at the balancing point, not to far forward or aft. This will allow the model to rise out of the water correctly as the tanks are drained.

10 years ago by Johnk

Response

Tito Neri

Hi, I am about to build the Imara with a finished weight of 19kg. Your choice of water ballast is of great interest to me as I will not be capable of lifting mine when finished. if you are able to email me some details of how you constructed your s, it would be greatly appreciated. kind regards Peter email: (PM Only - Admin)

10 years ago by PETERCHRISTOPHER

Blog

Update for September 2013

Still a long way off from finishing this model! But so far all is going well, some ballast was removed from the stern after a sail round Bournville pool a few weeks past! I would like it finished by spring of next year! Oh yes aerial trouble has been sorted! LOL thanks to some fish tank air pipe

11 years ago by hslmouldingscouk

Forum

submarine

Thank you for your reply and the information. Looks like I need to do some experimenting.

11 years ago by Eraser5661

Forum

submarine

I want to control a sealed with a solenoid valve and none reversible windscreen washer pump. Can I use two micro switches operated with a servo ? How do I connect the switches to control from one channel to submerge the boat with the aid of the pump, hold ballast In off position and to surface without the pump working.

11 years ago by Eraser5661

Forum

submarine

Would a screen washer pump provide enough pressure to force water in to a sealed pressure tank? Somehow I doubt the theory. Id try it out in the bath first before putting anywhere near a sub. This way you wont need to worry about the switch wiring till the ballast system works properly. You may need to fit a geared pump motor to get over the pressure effect, or it will simply flip the rubber paddles inside the pump element and stop the pump from working once it reaches a certain pressure, same happens if a washer system blocks on a car.

11 years ago by Gregg

Forum

Smoke generators?

Had considered this as well. The heaviest bit will be the water. Not sure about using lake water with a fogger, filtered or otherwise. its basically a high frequency resonator plate with a rubber/silicon seal. They are replaceable and spares are available. Adding a pump will also add weight. However we all need ballast and water is a good source for this. How about sealed fresh water (s) open to the pond at one end and fitted with an internal membrane so that as the water is used it is replaced with pond water. If the units work ok with pond water, and they are used in ornamental ponds, then an open tank in the base of the hull with sides extending above the waterline would fit the bill perfectly with no need for a pump and never run dry. Maybe someone with a unit in their garden pond could advise of this practicality?

12 years ago by Dave M

Blog

The build continues - Fixtures and fittings

Having burnt the midnight oil for the past two months 😑 Bill and I have been taking a rest and catching up with all the mundane jobs we have been Ignoring 😊 . The next stage will be to: Finish the deck fittings; Make and install the railings 😟 ; Complete the mast rigging; Identify the correct lifeboat placement for the Olympic - Double stacked but how? Install the rest of the lighting in cabins, on decks; Complete the lighting control mechanisms; Install all the windows; Install the motors, ESC's and Radio; Check the ballast in the test tank - to allow for all the fittings added; Launch for maiden voyage 😀 Not a lot then! Bill and Dave

12 years ago by Dave M

Blog

Northern Modelling Exhibition

Both models made it to the show, after some long days and late nights spent by us both. 😊 We still have much to install before the models are complete but they were sufficiently completed to place on exhibition. We did manage to jury rig the LED lighting for both ships and the result is Impressive. 😎 Bill also exhibited his 1:96 scale model of the Lusitania and all three models were displayed in line so attracted much interest from visitors wishing to capture all three together. 😀 Once the weather Improves and the Ice has vanished from our club lake 😁 we will be performing a dual launch. We have already ballasted each boat at 56kg of lead and will put in the test tank before we take to the lake to make any final adjustments. 😉 Hopefully this will be before the 11th April (the 100th anniversary of the Titanics maiden voyage!). 😀 We are at the exhibition until the exhibition closes on Sunday so if you are near to Trafford Park why not visit and see for yourself, there are lots of other exhibits from Trains to Lorries and Boats to Planes. 😀 Bill and Dave

12 years ago by Dave M

Forum

All Metal Brass/SS USS Holland Submarine

I'm building a 1/12th scale USS Holland submarine In 304 stainless steel and 342 brass.The symmetrical hull will be lathe spun In 304 stainless steel and the superstructure will be made from flat sheets of stainless steel.The conning tower,hatch and fittings will be made out of 342 brass.I am building brush-less motorized piston s with stainless steel cylinders. Regards, John

14 years ago by sunworksco