Todays Boating

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

I have a couple of the aircraft type ESCs, and mixers for "research" available.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

I have a bit of a sore throat just now, and this is compounded by the fact that the mrs has the car over the weekend for more SCOUT training.

This means boating in a bag again Sunday assuming I feel up to it. However, Since I have boxed everything up it does give me more choice as to what to take. The cycle ride is only 15mins, so I can put up with a bit of jiggery pokery in the carrying department. Some things like the Toyboata simply need wrapping in bubble wrap and the oblong shape sits very comfortably in a bag.

Looks like a nice day is looming so I shall be out in the garden playing with several laminations of MDF, a plane and a vibro sander (mask,hoover and so on).

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Its no good, I have a nasty cold now can u believe it and have simply run out of energy, and could not face the adrenalin pumped full on action that is boating at Bushy park for 3 or more hours. At least the sore thoat has gone which is something.I may also have some hay fever come on which is turbocharging the sniffing. Must take a pill.

Despite the nice weather I cannot even muster the energy to attack the project in the garden, although I did one bit which was a bit of a sticking point.. I had thought I would use a router, but discovered bits the size I need were very expensive (for a one off use) and so I did it by hand, and it looks ok so far.

I have a pile of 10mm thick sheets of styrofoam, which I had intended to use with the current project, but have been talked out of having to use, and so they are going spare. They seem to good to just sit there.. must be something i can make with them? I might try a side wall hovercraft landing ship or something, like wots being developed for the Marines. My 64mm EDF unit will be more than adequate for lift and poss I could use the other one for propulsion?? Another possible is the Saunders -Roe jet seaplane fighter. I had thought about this before but it now occurs to me that if the entire thing was made of Styrofoam and had a larger 90mm EDF unit, the shape would be very easy to get simply by a (lot) of sanding, and the interior air ducting similarly would not be too much of a problem to sand and drill out.

Hmmm… Ashley (sniff sniff)

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

I sympathise with your cold and don't want gloat in anyway in the great days boating I have had today, brilliant sunshine and a flat calm canal made for terrific testing of the multi cabin prototype…so hot I actually got sunburn on my baldy head.

Paul

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Paul. I am REALLY glad you had a fantastic days boating, it has cheered me up no end. I am still coughing ,sounds a bit "chesty" now..

PS get a hat, but not one of those blue baseball types with "captain" "admiral" or gold/yellow piping printed/written on the top like old geezers wear when sailing model boats.

Ashley

DISCLAIMER ###This post contains humour of a satirical and adult nature and could be mis-interpreted by those not in the groove ##

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

What is a groove? or is something that the brass section talk about whilst the real musicians play.

Paul

Disclaimer ## this post contains humour of a musical nature and could be misinterpreted by non bass players ##

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Paul. Its my old stand by "spot waltz" question…"how many grooves are there on one side of a 78rpm record??"

Do you play?? cant remember ..

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

I used to play in a band….way back in the mid 70s .. I've still got the guitar and small amp and occasionally plug it in the bash out some chords.

Paul

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Hang on, I am just going to get my felt tip out and give your picture the approprite hair style !! moustach as well?

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

No moustache, no weird hairstyle, but I did enjoy playing in a band. I have a 1960 Fender Jazz fretless and a Vox AC60 bass amp……old fashioned even back in the 70s but the combo produces a superb sound.

Happy days

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Paul. Good gear. Vox amps a bit timelesss now…valve?? all the rage. Fretless good, although i would keep an ear open if a fretless player came down to sit in with us… never know how good they are.

Our guitar player (who also play a lot of bass keeps on banging on about a stick bass ( a pseudo string bass….solid body, helf upright) but is too much of a wimp to go and buy one. Cant beat a string bass for some numbers.

I have a sudden urge to fit an mp3 player and speaker in the Titnic and play some music while she parades round the pond.. could be fun. Some Staus Quo.."down down deeper `n down" perhaps?

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

The fretless produces a mellow sound especially with Gibson tape wound strings but I did change the pickups in 1975 for Rickenbacker humbucker high gain, the Vox gets very warm but the speaker handles the sound without distortion. I almost changed to a HH electronic amp in 76 but couldn't get past the freaky orange case and now I am glad that I didn't change.

Re the Titanic perhaps 'Dream the impossible dream'

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Todays boating. Very nice. bright, fleece required but only just.

Took the Toyboata, Nelson and Titanic out. Spent ages getting the Neslon going , partly due to one of the 6v batteries being duff (I think, will get the meter out later) and then fiddling having NOT turned the transmitter on !! Der.

Titanic needed more than a few stops to redistribute the various lead weights to get the trim correct again, after its filming role. However the Toyboata was running A ok, and even rescued one grounded yacht and a crocodile (and thats a first!!).

7 boaters, variety of craft.. Andy has his pond draining waterjet police RIB out, complete with SAS action man, Ray had the hull only of a new build Scarnhorst…which we spent some time taping lead weights to and fiddling getting the ballasting requirements sorted (its first float) and so on.

It strikes me that on every Sunday, someone has either something new out,. or they have fiddled with something existing. We never have a "fit batteries and go" day, always something new or newish. Normally its me with yet another project, but we have had a good spread of projects lately and its all good stuff.

Next week I hope to have project no2 out, if I get it repaired in time, and if it is nice, may even take project 1 along. I must get the thinking cap out to find a way to keep all the water out. I should have taken the Herald along today as the breeze got up nicely.. I will bung it in the boot next week. It motors ok in the event of no wind, if it comes to it.

4 layers of MDF has now almost been shaped to death for the next project, and I need to see a man regarding this, before going on. THEN I need to get the hardware before the next step, as one or two items will be fitted on a "I can see what I need to do" basis, on seeing what the hull shape looks like. I must say the MDF does not quite look like I was expecting despite the measurements being as per the drawing (you know what I use) however I think that without the full compliment of accessories fitted thats as may be.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

So. For Sunday.. I have not managed to repair the damage to project no2, so this will be in the shed still.

I am taking project no1, HMS Hasty, the Hornet, and the Herald. This gives me a good balance of fast, unusual, classic and crowd pleaser. (not neccessarily in the order I have listed them, mind).

Someone asked about all the MDF I have been cuttting up (One sheet 4×8 so far), well almost,.. and there was a suggestion that weight would not be an issue if one was to consider making a set of D-Day Mulberry harbour type …vessels…and if one was to know a person who could spray a certain type of textured and waterproof finish..gosh what an unusual thing this would be. Think of how you could accessorise such an item(s).. troops,, guns.. little railways. Lights.. mooring facilities.. towing rings for tugs. The imagination could run riot. I don`t know how many designs there were…Gosh. If only..

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Apols to all the geezers at the pond for a no-show. The missues dad was taken to hospital in the morning with breathing diffs (ongoing) so we were out visiting and so on.

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

Nice idea about the Mulberrys but what scale would you build at?

Paul

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Well, theres a question. One would be forced to build at "accessory" scale, and this means 1/72 or ho/oo. THEN you could properly populate it with readily available vehicles and men. I have more than enough for an entire WW2 re-enactment at home. Railway stuff could be used and this would be at roughly the same scale.

I know the Mulberrys would not then be strictly to scale, but how big would they be otherwise (at 1/72)! Lets face it, whatever scale you built at it would not match the majority of boats on your pond. They are lumps of concrete, and without heavily accessorising with interest, thats what they are likely to look like.

I suppose you COULD use OOO scale, and put some railwaybits on, but this is militarily limiting.

Transport will be no probs as obviously you make them in sections to suit the transport and simply bolt them together, and arn`t they just made for that!!.

As a pondside model, what a draw. Permanently on display for the boating period, the focus of attention (especially with boats moored up) and useful..as mooring and also to use for a bit of steering practice, as tug pully things. Lighting no probs to install.

,And of course reliable..no radio required!!

Ashley

[Paul TParticipant @pault84577]

Ashley

No radio required.. you don't get away with a good idea so easily as the dock equipment would have to work and therefore controlled from some distance away….and hard wiring is not an option.

Paul

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Having visited the landing beaches and the museum, I must say the model there is superb.

I fancy building a landing craft or two ready for next June, I wonder how difficult it would be to arrange for a larger fleet at the same scale, there is a nice bit of "beach" on one of the Bushey Park side rivers.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Trevor. You are on. Easy to knock up landing craft. How many captians could we get to pilot them in a massed landing? Battleships offshore…

The Heron pond unfortunately has a very nice bit of "beach" to land on.. Perhaps if we got something together we could approach the authorities for just a one off landing for 30 mins??

Ashley

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

I could get three or four captains organised. Actually the side tributary next to the car park has a small "beach" to practice on.

Battleships offshore and the rocket launcher ships with suitable sounds would be good.

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Ashley, surely for realism it should be a surprise attack !

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Trevor You are correct of course…but…hiding all those cars and unloading the landing craft from the car park would be jolly difficult to hide from enemy observation.

I think it would be a wizard wheeze to organise (on the usual casual Bushy park basis) something for D day 70th anniversary

I may suggest this to the forum at large nearer the time, as no one will remember it so far back.

I am sure any efforts would warrant a few column inches in MB magazine especially if several clubs were to similarly get together?? Colin? How about a "D day remembrance special" , I am sure that we could get a really good bunch of us with landing craft to the Normandy beaches on an expenses basis…

Ashley

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Well, it took 4 years to plan D-Day, at a scale of 1:35 we should be able to manage it in 40 days !

Or am I missing something ?

Maybe a reprint of relevant free plans would help.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Boaters. I am charging batteries for project no1, if not too windy, and will be taking all Top Gear craft as well plus, if I get the waterproof switch finished, the sub. I have made a few mods to P1 and so hopefully it will stop filling up with water (wheres me sandwich box??) I will have the weather covered with this little lot hopefully but there again it is sunny/rainy/sunny/ra… so who knows what it will be like tomorrow.

I think we should have a chat at the pond to see if there would be something we can do for D-day next year. I think the chaps will be up for it. I may take the LCM as a point for discussion regarding hardware.

Ashley

[Author]

Posts