Exciting development!

[Gareth JonesParticipant @garethjones79649]

Just for Phil’s benefit, the wheel does go round, its driven by a small geared motor cannibalised from one of our sons old toys. The motor is run in parallel with the propeller drive motor via the same speed controller, the faster the boat goes the faster the wheel goes round. The mouse’s tail catches in the treads of the wheel as it rotates and looks just like its running. If you select reverse, the wheel changes direction of rotation and by a brilliant stroke of design (luck) the mouse (usually) turns round and runs in the opposite direction.

Right now you can go back to the serious stuff……

 

Gareth

[Gareth JonesParticipant @garethjones79649]

Just in case you are still worried Bob, here is a close up of the mouse.

 

 

Pets at Home nibble and gnaw cat toy, £2.99 for two.

Gareth

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Thank you Gareth and Colin

We don’t want the readers thinking that you had a real mouse in there!
It had me fooled for a while!

Suppose I should have gone to SpecSavers!

Bob

[Phil Winks 1Participant @philwinks1]

Nice link there Bob I’ve saved the vid for further viewing later. Gareth Just love that design feature would love to see how you did that and subsequently copy it just for fun

[Gareth JonesParticipant @garethjones79649]

Phil,

 

To avoid hijacking Bob’s excellent story with too much frivolity, please see the separate Mouseboat thread in the Scratch build part of the forum.

 

Gareth

Edited By Gareth Jones on 08/11/2011 12:40:59

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Just a little reminder, for all you GE fans, out there….

 

The Team Team are on the telly tonight, with a programme about the launching of the Great Eastern ship…………….Sounds very exciting

 

I`m hoping a shot of my model may be in the prog……but it`s a long shot really.

 

 

 

Bob

[Tony BurtonParticipant @tonyburton83970]

Hi Bob.

Do you mean Time Team

Tony

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Great Eastern is also on the on the front of the December issue of Model Boats (see Home Page) with a gallery of photos of the big day taken by Dave Wooley inside.

 

Bob’s entertaining article on the project is in preparation and will appear in the New Year.

 

Colin

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Oooops!…..Sorry chaps

Thanks Tony

 

While I`m here, a few pix to get you chaps into the mood for tonights prog!……

GE was built on two giant cradles and was designed to slide down ramps with an incline angle of 1 in 12.

Imagine, if it hadn`t jammed up at the launch, 12000 tons of iron would have hurtled into the Thames and created a Tsunami!

 

They used the same hydraulic jacks, made by Tangye, that lifted the Thomas Telford Menai suspension bridge in Anglesey…..to free the “crossing action” of the ramp guides

 

This is one of the actual ramps……..Awesome!

If this is just one of the ramp sections, imagine the size of the cradle!

 

I assume the grass on the left was water at the time!

 

This is a section of the launching chain

How did they make and assemble these complex links?……..Especially the little cross bar in the middle?

 

 

This is the Millwall area of the Thames.

Top arrow points at the GE launch sight, bottom arrow points at the Cutty Sark

 

I hope you chaps find all this historical stuff interesting?

I`m loving it!

 

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Thank you, Colin

 

That`s a very nice Dave Wooley picture of the Hoylake club members, standing behind the GE model…..What a super exciting day, that was!

 

The club members were very helpful on the day and deserve the credit and publicity

 

Must go back soon and show me face……..metorphorically of course!

 

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Great Eastern and Cutty Sark…….Size comparison

The hull of the Great Easton was 690 feet long and weighed in at 12000 tons

Cutty Sark hull is 212 feet and weighed 960 tons

 

What an amazing achievement!

 

Bob

[Tony BurtonParticipant @tonyburton83970]

Hi Bob

This has to be the largest ever topic on the website……..well done Bob……you certainly know your stuff on the ship and its history. And very interesting it too.

Tony

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Thank you, Tony

 

I`m pleased to hear that you find the subject interesting, that`s very encouraging.

 

The programme tonight, btw, is on Channel Four at 9.00 PM

 

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

I enjoyed the prog last night, but left me with lots of unanswered questions….

 

Still can`t work out the lie of the launching ramps?……..There seemed to be two sets for some reason?

I would have liked to have seen a clear plan of the ramps on the waters edge.

 

The experts reckoned the ramps were uneven and misaligned, but after lying in the mud for 150 years, what do they expect? They blamed Brunel for poor ramp foundations, but Scott Russell probably built it and covered the wooden stuff with concrete….out of sight out of mind!…eh?

 

Scott Russell didn`t agree with the sideways launch and could have done a shoddy job on purpose?

 

The old timbers from previous old ships was interesting to see.

 

What about the lack of rivets at Rock Ferry? It`s very strange that Mark Horton and Mike Stammers found quite a pile! Time Team traced quite a lot of GE plating under the mud……..What a pity, they didn`t dig a piece up?

 

I liked the very clear pictures of GE being built and shots of Great Britain at Bristol. The animated computer simulations were nice.

 

Could have done with……..”Continued next week”………..The prog probably took several weeks to film all edited down to one hour.

 

Having said all that, I still enjoyed every minute of it!

 

Bob

[Tony BurtonParticipant @tonyburton83970]

Hi Bob

Hear hear…………… I agree with everything you wrote, But think they could have done more on G. E. and less on other vessels etc. But it was enjoyable

 

Tony

 

PS. Whenever I take my THPV Pathfinder to boat clubs Most other modellers havent a clue what it is and seem to know very little about pilot vessels or Trinity House. Altho they think its a nice looking ship.

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hi Chaps

Just letting you know that Dave Wooley’s pictures of the Great Eastern at Hoylake, are now on show in the Subscribers section

What a great day for the Modelboating world, that was!

Well done everybody!

Bob

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hi Chaps, again

 

I would just like to offer a word of thanks to the Modelboats Magazine team for the lovely centre page photo display, in the December edition, and many thanks for the mags, Paul

 

Nice photos, Dave, and write up, Colin

 

We shall cherish the magazine in the family archives, my wife and I are highly delighted!

 

The reason for the extraordinarily high view count is probably due, to being referred to by the BBC people and also, the thread has now mysteriously appeared on Facebook!

 

All the best chaps

 

Bob Abell

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Hi Bob,

 

Credit where it is due – it wasn’t my write up but Dave’s! It’s certainly a wonderful advertisementt for Model boating though and all credit to you for making it happen!

 

Colin

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hi chaps

Remember this at Hoylake?

Look at it now!

Nicked by the scrap metal thieves!

Later, rumoured that some workmen removed it, unannounced, for renovation

Only time will tell?

Bob

 

[Phil Winks 1Participant @philwinks1]

Lets hope it was workmen eh would be a shame if its gone for good

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Many thanks to Colin for his kind words mentioned elsewhere, regarding this thread………..I’m extremely touched,

In an effort to satisfy quite a few people, regarding the broadcast date for the Coast prog……I’ve asked the question

May I take this opportunity of wishing everybody on the forum, including the phantom readers!……all the very best for Christmas and the New Year

Bob

[David WooleyParticipant @davidwooley82563]

All the very best to you Bob . I will certainly be looking forward to the screening of your GE . It was a fantastic day and one I shall remember .

Dave Wooley

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hello Dave

 

Thanks for your reply

 

Yes, it was a very exciting and interesting day, I often have a browse through the thread pages, re-living the various events that took place and looking back with great fondness over the previous four months of involvement

 

It`s nice to know that the story is not over yet, with the forthcoming publication and the broadcast eventually to look forward too.

 

Here`s a few more pictures t remind you of the very special day…

 

The Hoylake Club chaps had great fun with their novelty craft!

I think, Mark is looking the wrong way!

 

Another picture of Mark having a go at the controls, the day was warm and sunny with no wind and was very novel and enjoyable

 

The whole day was great fun, meeting with the BBC team and Dave Wooley, as we didn`t know what to expect next!

Larking about in the water was a bit of a novelty too!

 

More pix?…….Bob

[Mark Beard 1Participant @markbeard1]

Bob, thanks so much for keeping us all up-to-date and involved with your fascinating project! Wishing you and yours a very happy and peaceful Christmas, as well as success in your new-found celebrity status in 2012! Mark

[Bob Abell 2Participant @bobabell2]

Hello Mark

Thanks for looking in, you are very welcome!

The thread is a pure labour of love and is nice to talk to fellow modellers and enthusiasts regarding the Great Eastern

I could have started several individual threads along the way, but didn’t fancy breaking the story line, which makes it easy for backtracking, now and again.

All the best for Christmas and the New Year to you and the family

Bob

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