Forum

Ship rudders

Mornin' Toby, I'm back😁 Pardon the delay, just finished tidying up the wiring and final running tests on Colin's Taycol Supermarine motor and converter board - to make it run off a standard brushed ESC! The rivets look great👍 and the last pic was much better as well😊 Soooo many rivets 😲 guess you have to do them in batches, and then go pull up a tree or something, or you'd go doolally 😡 And I thought I was patient doing all the and stanchions on my 4' 6" 1936 destroyer - that was ONLY hundreds! Rivets? Didn't even contemplate that!! I think you should continue this in a proper Build Blog - there's lotsa good stuff you're doing here👍 And at the end you can make a pdf file of the whole story with just a few clicks😉 Be a nice memento👍 Look forward to the Launch Report. During my career I attended the launches of several naval ships I had worked on,designing the COMMS systems. The funniest one was a glass fibre minehunter at the intermarine yard in italy near La Spezia. The ship was still in dry dock, like a huge bath. They turned on the 'taps' and slowly up came the ship! Keep up the good work, cheers, Doug 😎 BTW; were you sitting on the saw to help keep awake? 😁😁

5 years ago by RNinMunich

Directory

(Tug Boat) Loch Ranza

I bought an unfinished Graupner paddle steamer kit which was in a bit of a state and spent many happy hours making her look loved. The hull and paddle wheels were in an acceptable condition but the deck and superstructure left lots to be desired. The previous owner had purchased the motor which was 50.1 geared and pushes the boat along well all other bits including 'smoke' brass and new superstructure added by myself. She was a delight to finish and looks an absolute dream on the water. (Motor: MFA 919D series) (8/10)

6 years ago by ChrisG

Forum

PS Waverley

real gentleman who started selling timbers for modelmakers, but had to stop that as he got a sensitivity to the dust of woods, but he also had a range of amazingly good stuff for amazingly low prices, including various stanchions. I bought all the remaining from him because I hate glazing ! I have tiny working compasses, rigging scissors, tiny woodscrews, rigging cord, bottle screws, all sorts from him and all cost me very little. Alas, health issues have caused him to cease trading and he has been flogging of his stock on ebay. A great loss. Martin

6 years ago by Westquay

Forum

PS Waverley

Hi Martin, My stanchions were pre-drilled, from Graupner ca 30 Years ago. Never 'eard of Modelling Timbers. Timber stanchions!!!😲 I "only" had to drill the holes in the decks (thought that was what you meant), there were enough of them. Much worse though was fitting all the two part 😡 Since fibre glassing the the hull I have to do that all over again😭 Frankly I think anyone who gets so many stanchions made as castings without pre-drilled rail holes need his bumps feeling. I thoroughly agree ref mini drills, too easy to snap fine drill bits. 👍 For precision / repetitive drilling I use my Proxxon mini milling machine as a drill press. if I need more than one of something I knock up a simple jig (usually from hardwood taken from demolished old furniture) to hold the work piece in the machine vice attached to the milling machine cross bed. I took the irritating collet fixing off the mill and fitted a real 3 jaw chuck 😉 Happy 'Vincenting', All the best, Doug 😎

6 years ago by RNinMunich

Response

Kit Quality ETC.

Hi Ian. A Mahogany deck with light strips between would look better and another colour for the cabin, but, yes to the brass . Canabus

6 years ago by canabus

Blog

Kit Quality ETC.

To give you some idea of the quality of this kit. Here are some photos. The quality is excellent and if you have a bit of experience this can easily be built. I don't fancy the all white look as the original had mahogany cabin sides and brass this is what I will do with it,👍👍

6 years ago by Ianh

Blog

Steam Whistle!

Captain's Log: I finally got the Steam Whistle for the Brooklyn! It's made by RAM! it's a RAM80 to be exact! It's not a bad device at all. It sounds quite loud! But I haven't tested it outside yet! I left all the opened on the Brooklyn. So, that helps a lot with the Steam Whistle sound!

6 years ago by figtree7nts

Forum

Robbe Smaragd

On the original kit, there were no or windows. it was all done by transfers. Grey pieces of paper, slid onto the cabin sides. I cut the holes to the shape of the transfers. Then I planked the sides around the window frames, from deck to roof. Then I used some old cd cases, to cut and shape the window glass. it worked quit well. 👍

6 years ago by East-RN

Forum

Port holes

i had some printed at the work and the perspex infills laser cut ,if you can access the technology why not use it .whatever happened to Phil ?who was the 3D printing guru ? And was printing a landing craft 1/16 th scale maybe printed himself into a corner. May have the name wrong ,chemical soup still mucking about with the old brain .

6 years ago by marky

Forum

Spektrum, new, useless...

Re , Martin, I don't know how many dozen I did on my 1/72 53" destroyer, two rows in the hull plus superstructure, but that's why I AM NUTS! 😁 Since fibre-glassing the hull I now have to do those AGAIN! 😡 Cheers, Doug 😎

6 years ago by RNinMunich

Forum

Spektrum, new, useless...

Yep, he done good, did the Naval man in Munchen. I'm in his debt and if I use the TX to fly I promise I'll insure myself, but I ain't joinin' a club unless the local one is as cheap as someone recently suggested. And the only decal on my wings will be the SMAE, if I have to hand paint it! Now...back to boats. Tis my birthday and my dear bride bought me a set of the old Yeoman white metal fittings for my Crash Tender, so now the kids have departed I will have a wee clean up of them. Then, a Chicken Achar from the new indian restaurant. A bonus is that she also bought me a pack of 20 beautifully made turned brass , glazed, that I've just realised will fit the Crash Tender wheelhouse. Result...I HATE glazing . I did 9 on a scratchbuilt canal boat and it drove me nuts. 4 down, 16 to put back in storage, the last of Modelling Timbers' stock of them and the manufacturer no longer does em. Martin

6 years ago by Westquay

Forum

LED Tug Mast Navigation Lights

Hi, Doug: I’ve got a question about the resistors that’ll be needed for each of the six mast-mounted LED navigation lights. This may seem like a dumb question to an expert like you but please don’t laugh too hard. Anyway, do these resistors need to be installed as close as close as possible to the anode or can they be located some distance away, maybe as much as a foot or so? I don’t know yet what the value or physical size of the resistors will be but I’m pretty sure that the space inside the Richardson’s mast isn’t large enough to house the wiring for the LEDs & the resistors, too. if they can be installed farther away, I was thinking I could put the six resistors on a small board & install it inside the large cabin under the pilot house. When resistors are used in LED circuits do they get warm or even hot? if so, I can open up the dummy rectangular & install black fine-mesh nylon screens in the openings. if heat isn’t a concern then I won’t sweat it (bad pun there, sorry). The hardest part of my project will probably be finding a good online source for the various electronic parts I’ll need. There used to be a great electronics supply store about two miles from my home. Coincidentally, that store was less than a block up the street from a hobby shop where I did business for almost fifty years. Now both stores are long gone. Sniff.

6 years ago by PittsfieldPete

Forum

Fittings & Detail Parts

Greetings, everyone: I’m looking for an online sources that offer fittings & detail parts, especially for modern tugboats. I have Hobby Engine’s 1:36 scale Richardson tugboat which is already pretty well detailed, but I’d like to replace its two deckhouse life rings with better looking ones & add a few others in appropriate locations. I’m also looking for a life raft drum & a few other detail parts here & there. Most of all I’d like to find navigation lights for the mast. The housings can be most any material but the lenses must be clear. I’m going to remove all of the “dummy” navigation lights on the mast & replace them with LED-lighted ones. The boat came with working port & starboard sidelights so they won’t need to be replaced. I’ve got a dredging barge designed (in my head) to use as a companion for tug. I’ve got all of the basic materials stockpiled for the barge itself plus a nice lattice boom crane for the dredge. I found a beautiful metal clamshell bucket that’s a work of art to use with the crane, too. Although I could scratchbuild things bitts & bollards I’d consider buying some as a time saver. I’ll need for the deckhouse, ventilators, etc. as well. I live in western Massachusetts which is a beautiful area but there aren’t any hobby shops nearby that stock ship fittings of any sort. I used to buy fittings from A.J. Fischer & Bliss Marine but they both went out of business a long time ago. I’ve found several online shops that sell ship kits & fittings but they’re mostly for small scale sailing vessels. I’d appreciate any suggestions. Thanks, Pete

6 years ago by PittsfieldPete

Forum

Gypsy

Those are what I used for the first set of on my H class destroyer when I was 15 😁😎

6 years ago by RNinMunich

Forum

Gypsy

Long time since I saw shoe eyelets as ! No reason why it shouldn't sail. Let's face it some of the best sailing any of us have had is with a Star yacht from the seafront kiosk when Dad was feeling generous. Let the sails out a bit on the bowsies and off it went to the other side of the pond. I had one for years! Eventually, Mum had to make new sails as the originals rotted, so an old bedsheet or one of Dad's shirts would be run through the old Singer, ready for the next years holidays. Martin

6 years ago by Westquay

Blog

Winches

Doug, Have you any info on Dreadnought's anchor winches? She now has all,I think!, of her , well over a hundred. Anchors next, then guard rails around the focsle.

6 years ago by Gdaynorm

Response

Update on the Tug Brooklyn!

Great Build; Tug Brooklyn has always been my favourite. For the brass /Port Lights that You used on the Deck Cabin; where they the ones supplied by Dumas, or bought elsewhere? (They look good.)

6 years ago by Tug Hercules

Blog

Doors

Here is a photo of the doors for the main superstructure, made out of a thin piece of Oak with a surround made from plasticard, brass and dolls house knobs. The watertight doors made from plasticard and the hinges also made from plasticrd with the aid of a magnifying glass 😁 I bought the two sets of from MMModels as it wasn't worth the trouble of making them all, lazy I know 😜

6 years ago by AlanP

Response

Cabin Aft!

What I use to cut out the is a step drill.I don't put it in a drill.I just use my fingers to rotate it.Works good on balsa and styrene.It makes a clean cut.

6 years ago by Donnieboy

Response

Fascis Board and Molding!

... and no finger prints on fingers!? Now is the time to rob a bank!? 😲 Seriously though folks 😉 looking good, the are brill👍 BTW: I think you earned a new User Name 'Quick Draw McGraw' 😁

6 years ago by RNinMunich

Directory

(Yacht) Enterprise

I love this 8 meter yacht,sail number K91 it has a great keel shape allowing weed to be ignored most of the time. Built by the southwater dabblers a while back and has been through a few owners before I brought her. Moves in the lightest of winds and copes with large gusts too. Am improvement on the basic model is the larger rudder allowing superb control (unless I get distracted!) Deck is lined in wood with a cabin top allowing access to the inner workings. I am running it on a acoms 27Mhz set as it has never let me down I can see little point in changing it to 2.4 Ghz The only thing I have done is added some and a wheel to make it more realistic. As can be seen in last photo not all weed can be ignored!!! (Motor: Mother nature) (ESC: Acoms) (10/10)

6 years ago by Bryan-the-pirate

Response

Plating

I said on post until the plating finished. Well finished one side, just three more on the other. Drilling the with a cone drill. Holding with grips don't want to cut my fingers. Sized to fit brass tube, (chromed will skim off) That will be the surrounds, fitted after finished painting the hull.

6 years ago by hammer

Blog

M. V. TEAKWOOD

Finished the major parts of the hull and am satisfied with the results. Now turned to the superstructure, which has turned into a challenge in its own right. Decided to break the structure down into decks and concentrate on each deck individually; before “rolling them up” into the complete structure. Also decided to make the central “core” first and complete, before adding the curved frontispiece containing the forward bulwarks. This would allow all the detail between the two such as windows, doors and to be accurately made and positioned. The structure from the first deck upwards was made removable to gain access to the internal systems of this working model. The lovely flowing curves, which attracted me to the vessel initially, proved a pain to reproduce. The bends around the front corners required making each deck front separately and then gently bending heated styrene around a former to reproduce. There is much opportunity for hurling! Added a L shaped strip around the front of each deck, so there is something firm to glue the front bulwarks to. Was concerned that without something like that the individual deck shields would never line up properly. Similarly added styrene U channel along the deck edges to give a surface to which the shield side rails could be fitted. This also replicates the vertical deck edge panels that are evident in pictures. Felt this would also make the structure more robust, enabling it to be removed and refitted without damage.

6 years ago by Rowen

Blog

M.V. TEAKWOOD

Started to add the finishing touches to the hull; , a bulwark capping strip and bilge keels. The were drilled to the outside diameter on the drawing and small sections of styrene tube epoxied in. These were then drilled out and smoothed to the hull contour. Once the hull is painted lenses will be added usimg clear epoxy. The bulwark capping strip is a small styrene “U” section CA glued along the top of the bulwarks. This tidies up the edge and gives a smooth, consistent appearance. Have never been satisfied with previous attempts at bilge keels. Tried making them from both styrene and wood, pinned and epoxied into place. Not very robust, although they looked fine. Plenty of scope for repairs! Decided to try another approach on this model. Purchased strips of 1/4” L shaped styrene and CA glued them into position on the underside of the hull, with the leg facing in towards the keel. Filled the gaps on both sides of the styrene with fibre-glass resin and then rubbed them down, feathering the edges of the bilge keel into the hull. These bilge keels are nice and strong and, from the outside, the bodge is not visible. it can been just seen from the underside if the model ever gets inverted. Hope that is unlikely though! From here on the construction will follow well established principles, so will only write bog updates as significant milestones are achieved.

7 years ago by Rowen

Blog

M.V. TEAKWOOD

Recently visited the U.K and collected the hull from a relative. it is now back in Canada so a detailed examination can be carried out. First impressions are: 1) The Deans Velarde hull bulwarks have fortunately not been trimmed to the final dimensions, these are marked in pencil. The excess material will really help as the Teakwood forecastle extends further sternwards and this extra material avoids having to build the forward bulwarks up. 2) The hull has many details added to facilitate positioning; , rubbing strakes etc. These will all have to be sanded off as they do not fit the Teakwood. 3) The Velarde has a pronounced “dodger” on top of the bulwarks around the bow. This will also have to be removed. 4) The bow leading edge is quite bluff, possibly to suite the GF manufacturing process. This will probably work in my favour as it can be extended forward and slimmed into the Teakwood style entry, which is sharper and more vertical. 5) The hull is slightly oversize (about .300”) , not enough to be concerned about, but it does make the revised LBP correct! 6) The hull is nicely made and a credit to Deans Marine. The initial plan was to modify the hull shape first to adapt it into the Teakwood. Decided, as it is quite flexible, it would be better to add a keel strip, bulkheads and deck supports first. it would then become rigid enough to work. This revision to my original thoughts proved the best approach. The hull needs several modifications, but until it is rigid it is premature to implement them. The modifications will only prove more difficult and then inaccurate. Made up a number of plywood bulkheads, based upon the MM Velarde plan, but reduced in height to suite the Teakwood. As these are trial fitted into place in the GF hull further adjustments can be made. Once satisfied with the bulkhead fit, they and the keel were epoxied into place. Horizontal stringers were also added to ensure the bulkheads were accurately positioned, vertical and not twisted until the epoxy set. Can probably remove them once the hull structure is compete, although they could also be left in place to support the deck. Will probably largely leave in place. Deck support stringers were also epoxied into place and the hull sides glued to them. The hull is now good and stiff and can be worked safely. As the stern portion will require further adjustment, the sides were left free from the stern bulkhead rearwards. This will allow the rework without cutting through recently fitted items.

7 years ago by Rowen

Forum

Glazing help

Hi Doug I was keen to get your interest and yes its not cheap. Can buy in 1Ltr cans locally. if you have a local scale model group they may let you have 20cc for your . Problem is you add hardner as a percent about 2% so measuring and mixing is difficult. I usually find a dead fly and encapsulate it in the spare mix. if you can get a spider they send the female of the species quite frantic especially as they don't squash under foot. The real problem is the relatively short shelf life once opened. Have fun Dave

7 years ago by Dave M

Forum

Glazing help

Hi Doug I used a trader (Steve Tranter- Model Boat Bits) to get the waterjet cutting done. The machine needs programming and I provided a spread sheet with the dimensions and they produced the file and did the cutting. As we were building two large models this was the only way we could get the project finished on time. I have been experimenting with crystal clear resin to produce for a Confiance Class tug I am building. I made out of brass on the lathe then filled the centre with the clear casting resin. I had bubbles in the initial attempt but by using a syringe and flicking the tube the bubbles all go to the top of the syringe and the result is to my liking. I do paint the first. When dry I just glue in the fibreglass hull with epoxy. Mine are near the waterline and whilst cyano would work I don't trust it when wet as experienced with the Olympic. You could drill and fill your with this, just need to place a blanking plate behind each porthole til the clear casting resin sets. I suspect this would be quicker than using acetate. incidentally I used to cut my acetate with a heated brass tube. I used a piece of stainless rod inside the tube to push the out. Cheers Dave

7 years ago by Dave M

Forum

Glazing help

Mornin' Dave, many thanks for the Titanic info. Some good tips 👍 Haven't decided yet whether to make brass T section frames or flat wooden ones! Daft thing with my destroyer is that the were fitted in the original balsa hull. Later I covered it in glass fibre for extra knock resistance so would have to do it all over again😡 The were ~5mm diameter brass into which I had to glue tiny plastic discs. How to go bonkers in stages 🤔 However, I now have a Fleetscale H class hull which has moulded in plating and so I only need to drill them out and fit glazing from within 😊 The old ones I will save for the new superstructure. Lighting will be general for some compartments not individual. The old original ship I think I will leave 'as is' as a momento of my standard of 50 years ago😉 Cheers Doug 😎 PS Water jet cutting is beyond my means but I have been toying with the idea of buying a stencil cutter. The better ones cope with up to 1mm or so. Should be enough for glazing sheet!

7 years ago by RNinMunich

Forum

Glazing help

Hi Doug The Olympic and Titanic used 5mm and 3mm LEDs in the - all illuminated. The cabins were glazed with overhead projector film, printed with the frame details then individually cut and stuck into each aperture. We had the cabin windows water jet cut so the were all the same size. I used Canopy Glue and the frames had all been acrylic spray painted. All were a close fit and stuck easily. I can appreciate your difficulty with the destroyer, I cheated with my HMS Grenville (1:96), and just cut small holes in the plating and added a dab of black paint to represent. Using the method I described with the frame on the face of the cabin leaves an aperture to glue the window into. A bead of glue will keep the window in place once dry. I find it dries quite clear and rubbery so with sufficient flat surfaces it works very well. Glue'nGlaze is tried and tested if you can get hold of some Dave

7 years ago by Dave M

Forum

Glazing help

Hi Dave, I don't propose to glue to paint! That's a lesson we learn as children with plastic kits 😉 I clean both sides first. Fitting from inside the destroyer hull would have been impossible. There's also many more of 'em than on your average Fireboat or similar🤔 Patience is, or becomes, a virtue! Doug 😎 PS I know you had quite a few in your Titanic, but bigger than the 1/4" in my destroyer. Did you do them individually or in strips?

7 years ago by RNinMunich

Forum

Glazing help

Hi Dave, I can do it that way on the Sea Scout but not so easy from inside with Glyn's ship and lots of small windows in a cramped superstructure. 🤔 In his case I would paint the ship then paint the frames separately, glue in the 'glass', then glue the whole assembly into the ship. Like I did with the on HMS Hotspur. Unfortunately Glue 'n Glaze & Co didn't exist then so some ended up 'steamed up' 🤔 Doug 😎

7 years ago by RNinMunich

Forum

Bismark by hatchette

My brother was given a partial built one a while back believe they are 1/200th -192nd, so around 45" to 48" long, one small warning make sure you seal the , before sailing, he was merrily sailing his, when it dawned on him he had not, brought it gently in and luckily it had very little h2o in it. I was peeved as I had just lost my scratch built version, the previous year before, it had rotted away in my leaky shed and would not have minded it myself :-)

7 years ago by Peter47

Forum

Shipborne instruments

Hi inkhoust Thank you for sharing the files. It occurs to me that if you make a brass tube with a bevelled edge then put the dial print in the bottom it would be possible to use clear casting resin to make the dial face and at the same time protect the print. I already use this for my so I will try it out and post the result. Cheers dave

7 years ago by Dave M

Blog

Deck fittings, and a door knob !

Now that the painting is finished I can start putting on some of the white metal deck fittings. I had previously cleaned these up with a file and wire wool and sprayed them all with etch primer, some were drilled to take threaded studs to fix them through the deck or as a reinforcement for epoxy glue fixing into the deck, and some pierced to take a short fixing pin. The chain pipe was drilled out to make it look more realistic. They were all brush painted with some Tamiya metallic acrylic paint, I chose ‘gun metal’ for this as I want to paint some other fittings and window frames with a metallic silver finish as a contrast. The were painted with the same colour as the cabin sides and glazed with the perspex that was supplied with the kit, 'canopy glue' was used for this as I read that cyano glue would 'mist' the plastic. Another small detail I thought to add was a brass knob for the cabin door, this was hand turned from some brass rod and drilled out to take a 2mm threaded stud for fixing through the door. A nice little finishing detail I think, and I'm quite enjoying working with brass 😁

7 years ago by robbob

Forum

brass

Thanks for the reply Rob. Yes, that is the type I am after, unfortunately he is only making one size and it's too big. Alan

7 years ago by AlanP

Forum

brass

I cannot find any brass with the two bars across them, they are made, as I have one that came in a box of bits that was donated to the club. Any ideas lads Alan

7 years ago by AlanP

Forum

brass

Is this the sort of thing? http://www.modellingtimbers.co.uk/21.html Robbob

7 years ago by robbob

Response

The deck anti-slip finish.

Hi Canabus. That does look like a pretty good example you have picked up there👍 As Paul says it's good to put your own spin on the refurbishment, yours appears to be 180 degrees judging by your 'photos 😜. I made the opening wheelhouse hatch to allow me to get to the servo that turns my searchlight but I soon realised that I would need much better access to fit the wheelhouse glazing, and all of the metal fittings that are on threaded studs, and of course all of the servo and lighting wiring. I have also got a great deal of inspiration and ideas from this site, for instance I also took a leaf out of Paul's book and cut away some of the wheelhouse bulkhead and cabin former to give me room to get a hand inside the space. It looks like you intend to do the same judging by the pencil marks on the cabin former in your last picture. I can now also, at a later date, put some detail inside the wheelhouse such as steering wheel, instruments and controls fairly easily which would have been impossible before. Good luck with the re-furb. Rob.

7 years ago by robbob

Forum

Ballast for Puffer

I have a large 4' Puffer purchased many years ago form Martins Models at an E Port show. Originally I tried lead but it became very heavy to carry. I modified mine by making three large sealed fibreglass containers in side the hull which were open at the base and had open at the top exiting thro the hull sides. I now only need about 1lb of lead plus the 12v 12Ahr battery to ballast. Put the model in the water then add the battery and ballast, the boat sinks to the waterline. Take the battery and ballast out and the boat rises, lift with two straps and all the water drains leaving a light hull to carry. The pic shows the model in its lead ballast days.

7 years ago by Dave M

Blog

Priming.

Rubbing/fender strips finished, fitted and primer coats applied ready for finish coats to outside of the hull.

7 years ago by sandkb

Blog

The Hull Markings

The paint on the hull has sufficiently hardened and needs a couple of coats of clear lacquer to protect it but before that happens I need to apply the hull markings. The waterslide decal set that was supplied with my kit was probably at least 5 years old when I bought the kit on eBay and they had deteriorated so badly that when I put the large ‘FIRE’ lettering panel in some warm water it fragmented and clearly was not usable. I called Mike Cummings at vintage Model works and explained my dilemma and he very generously agreed to supply me with a replacement set, and in addition a set of the recently available printed vinyl letters and markings that they now produce. I decided to use the vinyl set as a quick test piece with the waterslide set revealed that the white ink is not solid and therefore not completely opaque. Furthermore I could not eliminate the ‘silvering’ effect that happens on waterslide decals despite using various lotions and potions such as Humbrol Decalfix and Microsol/Microset solutions. A test piece with the vinyl lettering sheet was far more successful and when over-lacquered on the test piece the results were very acceptable. Starting with the large FIRE lettering I cut a paper template the same size as the complete word and fixed this with low tack masking tape on the hull, this paper was then outlined in more masking tape to form a window and the vertical spacing of the letters transferred to this to keep the correct spacing. Vertical strips of tape were then used as positioning guides for the letters which were individually cut and placed so that I could eliminate all but the solid white letters and give them a hard edge. Feeling very pleased with myself I removed the masking tape guides and realised to my horror that I had set the baseline of the letters far too close to the waterline and the vertical proportions were completely wrong ….disaster 😱 Feeling ashamed that I could make such a basic error I abandoned the lettering and called Mike at VMW and described my foolish error, no problem he said, I’ll send you another vinyl sheet and also some additional drawing that were missing from my kit that would help with detail finishing. My second attempt with the new vinyl sheet employed the same process but I was careful to measure, mark and check the positions (several times!) before starting. The roundel and numerals positions at the bow and the stern were carefully measured and marked using the supplied drawings and masking tape ‘guides’ used to fix their positions before application. Lastly the roman numerals that span the waterline at the bow and stern were marked, cut and individually applied. I also took the opportunity to fix in place a couple of modified 6mm to replicate the aft cockpit drain outlets, in the photo is the ‘94’ waterslide decal which I later removed and replaced with vinyl when I could not eliminate the ‘silvering’ problem. A big Thank You to Mike Cummings at Vintage Model works for replacing the lettering sheets TWICE! and for the extra drawings, I call that exceptional after sales service !. Cheers Mike 👍👍 .

7 years ago by robbob

Blog

White metal deck fittings.

In between coats of black paint there’s time to prepare more of the white metal deck fittings. They all require a bit of a clean up to remove casting lines and flash, and this is easy to do with an assortment of small files, blades and a small suede shoe brush with brass wire ‘bristles’. After a quick clean up with panel wipe I fixed them all to a piece of card with small strips of double sided foam tape to stop them getting blown around by the pressure of the spay can and gave them a couple of light coats of etch primer. To assemble the anchor I used some 2mm brass rod with some brass ends made from some larger diameter brass rod, drilled and filed to a pleasing profile, a bit of plasticard was added to neaten the pivot point and the assembly was also given a coat of etch primer. The cooling water outlet tube and flange and the dummy exhaust ports (adapted ) were primed also. They’ll get a coat of black gloss before they are fixed to the stern. I’ll tackle the fire monitors next…

7 years ago by robbob

Blog

Detailing the transom.

The real boat had some detail on the transom which I would like to incorporate on my model, these are the two main engine exhausts and the pump engine exhaust and there are also two small drain outlets from the rear cockpit. As my ESC is water-cooled I want to use the pump engine exhaust detail as my cooling water outlet. I have used brass as the basis for the exhaust details as they look very similar to the real thing with the rivet holes around the circumferences, the two main engine exhausts are 8mm internal diameter and the pump exhaust is a 6mm internal diameter type. I first removed the rear flanges of the larger by rubbing them flat over some wet & dry paper so that they will sit flush on the transom. I left the flange on the 6mm porthole as it will help locate the assembly in the transom. I used a 6mm external brass tube set into the smaller porthole with a very short protrusion on the external side and about 25mm to pass through the hull to leave 20mm inside the boat to connect the flexible silicone water tube to. Once I was happy with the positioning of the details I drilled the single hole for the water outlet and slightly countersunk the outside of the hole to allow for the small flange on the rear of the port hole The tube was fixed into the porthole with a light smear of epoxy and when set the assembly was given a coat of etch primer and a couple of light light coats of black gloss and then set aside as I won't fix it in place until the hull has received it final coats of black gloss. I also etch primed and painted the two larger exhaust pipe flanges ready for glueing to the transom. If I can find a couple of even smaller brass , perhaps 3mm, I may also fit them as the cockpit drain ports in the finishing stages. The hull will get a couple of overall coats of clear lacquer to seal this transom detailing and the lettering decals as well.

7 years ago by robbob

Response

Unknown

Hi Brian The hull is very similar to the Tarpon produced in the 1960's, especially the four on the raised deck. The cabin is different but this could be a later addition/modification. I did think it may have been a Dumas kit but I have scant knowledge of their range and was hoping one of our American friends would comment. It certainly looks the part and I hope you have many hours of happy sailing.

8 years ago by Dave M

Response

Windows Sorted

HI Roger arrived today and will drilling holes in side pieces this weekend thanks for your help on this one.

9 years ago by neilmc

Blog

H.M.S BULLDOG / BEAGLE

Guess spoke to soon! Needed to add whilst easy interior access was still available. Decided to make them out of 5/16" o.d. styrene tube for the outer frame and a 1/4" acrylic rod insert to resemble the glass. Cut them up from the lengths of rod using a pipe cutter. Epoxied the outer frame into holes drilled into the hull and filled any gaps up with epoxy. Have left the glasses out until the painting is complete. The cut acrylic rod surfaces do require polishing to remove the cutting marks. After completing this installation, tidied all the loose ends up, now onto the removable decking.

9 years ago by Rowen

Response

Windows Sorted

If its any help neil my fireboat has 4 , will try and send pm with photo Roger

9 years ago by shavings

Response

Windows Sorted

HI Dave After looking at some photos it looks like some have four and others have two but I suppose this is personal preference? Looked on reademodels and they have two sizes 12 and 7.5 mm which ones do you recommend for a 34inch crash tender. I confuse myself with what scale mine is constantly lol. The panel pins caught me out good and proper didn't even think what they were for until the the two pieces separated but the hull sides fit better now with them removed. I concur with scroll saws not cutting straight on sone occasions I was feeding the panel at 30 degrees to get a semI decent line and then the depth of the bed plate stumped me on the windows so reason for coping saw and files. The saw did push some ply off the back as the blade was only 24tpI buy a small bit of filler should do the trick. Thanks again Neil

9 years ago by neilmc

Response

Windows Sorted

My model has two . I sourced mine from http://www.reademodels.com/. Mine have a diameter similar to the side windows. My windows are lined with n-gauge model train track bent to shape and soldered. The bottom of the rail forms the outer edge of the window. I madw a wooden former as a jig to keep the shapes uniform. It was quite common to use panel pins when building an Aerokit, the glues available were not quick setting and needed the parts to be kept in close contact for possibly 24 hrs. Scroll saws are not good at cutting straight lines but for best results you need to feed the wood in slowly to avoid bending the blade. With windows drilling a hole at each corner will allow you to cut long pieces of wood by retracing your cut(backwards) to where you started and cutting at 90deg to the opposite corner then cutting the opposite side. Looking good Dave

9 years ago by Dave M

Blog

HMS BULLDOG / BEAGLE

Continued with hull by adding and anchor boxes. Starting on deck and have decided to take a slightly different approach. I would like to retain as much access to the hull interior as I can so will make up the deck from two pieces, a "skirt" about 1" wide that will contain the bulwark stanchions and waterways. Onto this will add a detachable deck, which will be planked. The superstructure will also be removable for routine access, but if full access is needed the deck can be removed.

9 years ago by Rowen