Todays Boating

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi Ashley,

Are you tempted to the steam plant building ?? Here is a nice cheap to make pot boiler meths fired design for the Model Engineer 1956, just right for a small oscillating engine

May want to omit the asbestos lining to the boiler casing these days !!

Regards Ray

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Cheers ray. Oddly enough I do have a little simple single cylinder oscillator in the loft, with boiler on a sort of Meccano base I COULD use, if i wanted to.

Actually we did suggest that the chap could make his boat like a REAL Bowman and put a rubber band in it….

Ashley

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Possibly a Mamod or a Wilesco Ashley although there are one or tow other possibilities. Bowmans used a very simple little boiler very much like Ray shows above.

A handy one nowadays is the USE range of engines and boilers from Tony Green Steam. The boilers are hinged and swing up to put the solid fuel in and ignite so you are not trying to slide a burning tray of meths into your model.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Richard, I always thought the setup looked a bit home-made to me, but it’s a long time since I saw it…it’s hidden in the loft somewhere. I will try and dig it out to take a picture.

Ashley

[Tim CooperParticipant @timcooper90034]

Ashley

I used to have one of the stationary Mammods. It was on a Meccano type base. Had some machine tools to go with it. Lathe, milling machine, hammer, grinder, saw etc. Only sold it a few years ago when we thought we would be moving house. I think they used to make a marine steam engine at one time.

The Eezebilt website seems to be working normally now.

Tim

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Tim. I think they may even have done a prop shaft and prop with the marine kit?

Will try and recce the pond tomorrow to check and see the state of the weed.

I found some coloured lettering as Squires garden centre (they have a big craft section at Halliford) and have added the “Ultimate” name to the Ultimate, and stuck a few portholes on the stern, as you do…

Ashley

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Lots of stuff online about the Mamod ME1 steam unit such as this.

**LINK**

My recollection from reports at the time is that it wasn't much more than a toy.

Colin

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi all,

Yes I had one of the Mamod units many moons ago, It wouldn't power a hull big enough to carry its own weight

A double acting oscillator is much better as it has power on both strokes, and they can be reversed with a valve.

Just looked at the page header, anybody for a fishing trip ???

Regards Ray

Edited By Ray Wood 2 on 22/07/2022 18:58:46

Edited By Ray Wood 2 on 22/07/2022 19:00:53

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Agreed, the Mamod Marine engine was only a single acting, single cylinder oscillator. Very much a point and shoot plant with no control. Plus it wouldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding. Probably quite literally in this case!

I seem to remember they did a twin cylinder one as well, supposedly for paddler use I think, but still not really enough power to push it's own weight. Still great to teach kids though.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

….so perhaps I won’t disassemble my little steam engine and put it in a boat!

i presume even these little boilers need certifying??

Ashley

[Chris EParticipant @chrise]

Eezebilt Web Site

If anyone is still interested the Eezebilt web site is back up & working. My practice is to grab what I want when I can.

Eezebilt Web Site

 

Edited By Chris E on 23/07/2022 08:03:06

[Tim CooperParticipant @timcooper90034]

Chris

Yes it was back a few days ago.

I have printed a few off to think this winter.

Tim

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Quick pond recce. More weed than last week, but still the environs of the jetty and some way out are weed free and crystal clear, so no issue other than for fast boats.

Looking forward to seeing Simon`s latest airboat refinements….

I will have the ULTIMATE out.

Ashley

[Chris EParticipant @chrise]

Posted by ashley needham on 23/07/2022 17:50:55:

…………………..I will have the ULTIMATE out.

Ashley

That should make you very popular with the spectators.

Chris

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

ooo er! Ashley

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Gonna have to give it a miss tomorrow as other plans have been made for me.

Hopefully will be wowed next week.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Good boating. No weed issues. Again a bit bright for pictures.

London went well but the wind got up a bit and made it interesting. The Ultimate looked great, paddle gear grub screw loosened towards the end so the paddles didn’t turn much but not an issue as such. Demo’d one bumper.

Simon there with airboat and we discussed a few possible mods.

Mike again with Eezibilts and some other things including a quick-build airboat which went really well for its first outing barring the access lid falling off at speed, rescued with my 10m pole and the Ultimate which was used to stop it being blown into the weed.

interesting possible project has fallen into the computer, the ‘Sonic Sippi’, a high speed paddle hydroplane (yes really). A balsa and 1.5cc gloplug unguided item. We had a look at this a while ago, but didn’t have the full plan then.

As usual the boat will need extensive modification to convert to brushless, access for gear and more importantly somewhere to fit and operate rudder(s). Nothing is unsolvable, but this may be the sort of project that either works well, or just won’t work at all. You have to suppose the original worked, so I suppose there’s hope however I would need to scale up a bit and then it might get too heavy/draggy/woteva.

Ashley

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

The second G.P hull is having glass fibre slapped on the lower half, as there is a suspicious amount of lifting paint on the sides, and hairline cracks at the bow affecting the vertical planking. It’s actually fibreglassed inside the bow, and it’s not serious, but if I do this I will have nipped any issues in the bud. there will be“an amount” of fillingand sanding to do, but there we are.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

GP2 hull now has a lower half fibreglass sheath and looks good in black! I may paint the underside at some point as it’s a right mess with strips of lead everywhere and Gorilla glue oozing out the layers…on the other hand, the whole point of the GP concept is the tops, and no one sees the underneath of the boat in any case.

Last Sunday good. Stingray, fishy and Mintanic all going well. Mintanic has its original motor back in but seemed to be EXCEPTIONALLY fast and theS35 prop may be to blame so I have changed it to a plastic 3-blade 35mm ones these have much less pitch so it should go back to just being ‘fast again. The 555 was ok,but there was no excitement….

Currently doing up a Triang “Castle Harlech”. Usual issues, dog-eared castellations, splits, shoddy nailing (from new).

But, it’s a good size and 25 separate bits no less. Took me 15 minutes to figure out how to assemble it!

Off to the Great British beer festival at Olympia in 30 mins!! Thirsty already…VERY thirsty

Ashley

[harry smith 1Participant @harrysmith1]

So Ashley is prop-ing up at the bar, repairing his fluid drive system for his next boaty thing !!!

Nice to see one Ashley's on Clive Cussler's new adventures.

Clive is writing from the dead to pay for his funeral !!!

Harry

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Fully hydrated now Harry.

Not a Clive reader but having a quick google some of the covers are u referring to the Ecranoplan?.?

slowed down on latest boat top. It’s coming together, but although technically interesting, I am not sure the boat will look that interesting, for various reasons..I have a number of parts ready, I will make a effort to glue some on the top this afternoon!

Going to Fabficland this morning in Kingston to get some blue material for our table cover for the Royal Egham show.

We also really need a banner of some sort??

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Banner sorted. Nothing wild, not…contentious….52 x 91 cm, From a “stock” design at Vistaprint. It will look good on the table and not too large so we can use it at the pond (on the bench) perhaps. It should arrive in a week, so in time for the show. Will try and capture the image and send it out.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Banner sorted! Nothing wild or fancy. Ashley

Edited By ashley needham on 05/08/2022 11:03:24

[harry smith 1Participant @harrysmith1]

Hi Ashley

Yes, the front cover of Dark Vector.

We are setting up an event for next year and table covers item came up.

We are hoping an events hiring company will supply these free, if we stick up one of their signs.

Harry

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Cloth for table covering is not expensive, the light blue cotton/acrylic mix was 44 inches wide and £2.49 a metre, which is not much.

Have not been over to see the pond so unsure of the weed situation, so taking a variety of boats.

Stuck a few bits on the new top and it’s looking much better, thankfully..

Ashley

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