It’s been a while since I built my last model boat, a Thames River Police Launch and prior to that my RAF Crash Rescue Tender and I thought I’d better get something on the go pretty soon or I’ll have nothing new to show at the club exhibition in September. While I was visiting the Warwick International Model Boat Show in November last year I spotted a new model by SLEC of a Harbour Pilots Boat, due for release in Spring 2020. A quick ‘phone call to them confirmed that it was now available and so I decided to buy the kit and start building it to keep me occupied during the enforced isolation we all find ourselves in at the present. The kit arrived the following day, very safely packaged in a strong carton, and after opening the box and quickly checking the contents I took out the supplied Building Instruction and Picture Instruction manuals and studied them both at length to familiarise myself with the construction sequence. Anyone that is familiar with the old Aerokits/Keil Kraft model boats will recognise their characteristic ‘egg crate’ method of construction and this model is a re-working of one such design by Ian Hull for SLEC. Fortunately I have all the required tools, adhesives and other materials in the workshop including a 10” propshaft and 40mm 2 blade prop that I bought in error for a previous model and so I can make an immediate start. I’ll still need to buy in a receiver, servo, rudder, brushless motor and speed controller and a couple of LiPo batteries at some point but I certainly have all I need to make a start on the build. All of the plywood parts are CNC router or laser cut and many of the parts lock firmly together with tabs and slots that are already quite a good fit, but however fine the router bit is it can’t produce a sharp 90 degree cut so the first thing the instructions tell you is that you should use a small square file or a sharp knife to square all the internal corner cuts to ensure a proper snug fit. Construction starts with the assembly of the main keel, first bulkhead and the two small parts K2 that lock it together. At this point I’m dry-fitting the parts to ensure that it all slots together correctly. It’s here that a small improvement could be made by re-designing the two smaller parts so that the tabs that slot into the main keel K1 are staggered rather than meet at the same point as the existing slot is long enough. Easily fixed by amending the CNC files but for now it can be fixed by filing each tab to half its length, but I’ll pass on the suggestion to SLEC. The remaining bulkheads are slotted onto the keel and the two long beams are slotted in at deck level to lock it all together. When I was happy that all was well I took it apart and re-assembled it all using a waterproof aliphatic PVA glue and a few clamps to hold it all together while the glue sets. A try square was used to check the assembly for square. In the next part I’ll be fitting the strakes and additional keel parts and constructing the base of the superstructure.

After the successful build of the ‘Vintage Model Works’ RAF Crash Rescue Tender I was asked by Mike Cummings of VMW if I would undertake to build a prototype of their new model with the aim of checking the construction method and the assembly instructions for accuracy before the kit is put into production. The model is a ‘Thames River Police Launch’ and is based on the original design by Phil Smith for the Veron company, this was a very popular model kit in the late 50’s and 60’s and sold for the princely sum of 43 shillings and tuppence, approximately £2.15 in today’s money but an equivalent cost of £48.50 in 1960. This design has been updated to accommodate electric propulsion and radio control by Colin Smith, the son of the original designer and it has been re-scaled to be 36” in length where the original was 24” which gives much more scope for detailing and provides more ‘hiding room’ for the drive, control systems and all the associated wiring. The kit produced by VMW uses the same construction techniques as the original and the materials are a combination of balsa and plywood both of which a laser and CNC cut for precision. The ply and balsa materials supplied are of very high quality as one would expect from VMW and all the stripwood for the chines, rubbing strakes and deck detailing is included, even the dowel required for the mast is in the box, very comprehensive! The kit also includes white metal fittings such as the fairleads and stanchions, and the searchlight and horns. The glazing for the windows comes in the kit too. The instruction sheet supplied is in need of revision as it is largely taken directly from the original as written by Phil Smith and some of the terminology needs updating, for instance the ply bottom and side skins are referred to as ‘strakes’ but I understand that a re-write of the instructions is in hand along with an updated plan showing the best positioning for the motor, prop-shaft, battery, ESC, receiver, rudder and servo. During construction I have added a few additional pieces of ply or balsa as reinforcement or supports and substituted some balsa parts for ply where I thought a stronger material would be better. I also added some hatches to give access to the wiring at the bow and the rudder & servo at the stern but largely I have not gone ‘off plan’ to any extent. The pictures show the model in it’s present state (Nov 2018) and is ready for painting and finishing.

Here's the history bit so pay attention... Many years ago as a boy in the fifth year of my north London secondary school, circa 1971, our woodwork class was given the option to make something of our own choice. Having mastered the majority of joints, wood turning, finishing techniques and the making of table lamps, stools and bookshelves etc. this seemed a good idea, so myself and a fellow classmate and model making chum asked if we could construct a model boat. The teacher, on hearing that it was to be from a kit and not from scratch was a little surprised but agreed. So my friend and I jointly invested about 20 quid in an Aerokits 34.5 inch RAF Crash Tender from Blunts' model shop in Mill Hill (long since gone like many others) and we set about construction during lesson time and sometimes at break times. I recall we used "Cascamite" to glue it all together on the advice of the woodwork teacher because neither 'Scotch' glue nor PVA was suited to marine construction. Good progress was made over the course of our last year at school but it was never fully completed, only requiring painting, running gear and detailing. My friend decided that he needed to withdraw from the project as he was enrolling in a college away from home to study for a career in the merchant navy and I agreed to buy out his share and continue with the project. And so it was that I carried on with the painting and installing the running gear which consisted of a 1.5 cc marine diesel engine, water pickup, prop shaft and rudder and a MacGregor radio system with a stick for steering and a single button for speed control. The engine and radio came from Michael's Models in Finchley (also long gone) for £20 as my elder brother, who had started a Saturday job there, was able to get a staff discount for me. The diesel engine was noisy and smelly and a pig to start with a leather thong around the flywheel and I decided to abandon this means of propulsion (I foolishly ran it for slightly too long 'dry' and melted the soldering around the brass water jacket!). By now I had graduated from my part time job in Woolies to an engineering apprentice with Post Office Telephones and my new income of 20 quid per week could support my modelling and electronics hobbies after my contribution to the household for my keep. So off to the model shop to buy a Taycol Supermarine electric motor, two 12v volt lead acid batteries and a suitable charger. The diesel came out and was sold on Exchange & Mart and the mount and coupling re-made to accommodate the new Taycol motor. What an improvement that was! I can't remember now what speed controller or servo I used but whatever it was did the job, and it went like the clappers on Friary Park boating lake (also long since gone) even though the radio control system was a bit crude with the non-proportional steering and 'blip' throttle control. The boating took a back seat when I acquired my driving licence and my first car (a rusty old Cortina Mk 1) and I also got involved in sound recording for radio. I decided to sell the boat and bits for £60 through Exchange & Mart and bought an Akai 4000DS tape recorder and a 'Chilton' audio mixer, built a home studio and along with a good mate of mine started making radio commercials for the new commercial radio stations including London's Capital Radio. We even won a 'Campaign' advertising award for one of our efforts! And so after several years as a 'phone engineer I moved into professional recording for A/V and broadcast and then into TV production. Fast forward to today. Semi-retired with grand kids and with more free time on my hands I still had an interest in model making so in Jan 2016 went to the Model Engineer exhibition at nearby 'Ally Pally'. It was there that I saw an RAF crash tender just like the one I built all those years ago and got into conversation with the chap on the stand. This re-ignited my model making interests and I researched the hobby and that model in particular.