Todays Boating

[Richard BarnettParticipant @richardbarnett67129]

Beware of children bearing germs! Don’t worry we’ll fly the flag down the pond tomorrow, get well soon mate👍

Ricky ye pirate 🏴‍☠️

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

EBrisk as the pond. Trevor debuted his yacht, now with r/c which went ok in the light breeze. I had the BHA out, also going well. Noel bought a cabin cruiser but his 12v Nimh was knackered despite having been charged,and he had a funny connector, not a Deans like most of us,so we couldn’t lend him anything.

Long time no see, but Simon turned, with small but voluble assistant, and he has made a bumper car!! Good man.a couple of minor changes needed..prop/ballast but a good job. Needs Barbie now.

Last week I took the Hobbies Hydro out but it kept on losing power due to something to do with the deans connector (sometimes they grub up and need cleaning), however it looked like, on inspection, that the ESC wires were hanging on by a thread…or at least…they needed re-doing. I have spliced on a new bit of wire,heat shrink covered soldered joint, and re-fitted the Deans. Seems to be ok now!

Ashley

Edited By ashley needham on 06/03/2023 08:45:55

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Just finished a stand for the BHA. Not a stacky stand (as it lives hanging from the rafters), but a transport stand, mainly to prevent rudder damage.

no great work of art, an MDF plank with ends and two padded (foam and felt) cradles to hold it on and waterproofed with emulsion paint. Just need a Velcro strap to keep it in place when walking to/from the car. The trouble with winged things, the wind lifts them up…

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

As it’s nice and sunny, I might take the Dalek and Terry bumpers out for a photo shoot today.

Other than that, the Hobbies Hydro needs testing after the ESC retire, and the Swordfish could do with a blast as my “fast contribution” to the morning.

Stand for BHA done but nowhere to hang it…some re-ordering of the shed may be needed. I have a few 2×4 sheets of ply that could usefully by stowed a bit better.

Ashley

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Posted by ashley needham on 08/03/2023 09:05:12:

Just finished a stand for the BHA. Not a stacky stand (as it lives hanging from the rafters), but a transport stand, mainly to prevent rudder damage.

no great work of art, an MDF plank with ends and two padded (foam and felt) cradles to hold it on and waterproofed with emulsion paint. Just need a Velcro strap to keep it in place when walking to/from the car. The trouble with winged things, the wind lifts them up…

Ashley

Bit like handling a yacht out of the car on a windy day!

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Yes Richard! And I put velcro straps on them…it’s no good holding on to the stand with the plane loose on top….

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Decided to give the TBD a blast Sunday (the day before my BIRTHDAY) 🕺🕺🕺.

it has two sailors on the front bit, they are cut about and painted bearskin type guardsmen, about 35mm high as they are about the right size that’s all I had at the time.

Fast forward to this century and I thought…must have some better figures, as I have been putting figures on more things lately,….but no, nothing about the right size! One set that MIGHT have been ok had only ladies left in the bag.

Can you believe it eh? Mind you, the boat was not built to any particular scale so I suppose I have gone about it the wrong way. Never mind.

Flying saucer and the afore mentioned HMS Hasty (speed 480 powered….mega fast) (in a scale fashion, obv) then for tomorrow.

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Only HMS Boxer (the T2) made it into the water yesterday. It was a bit chilly, in fact, it started out nice early on but just got duller and duller as the morning wore on.

I was thinking of getting rid of the Boxer (it was only made to be towed behind the carrier on an invisible acrylic rod, but once I made the hull I couldn’t resist motorising it) but seeing it out on the water…. it’s such a great shape, as a batch 2 bship it has that long sharp bow, and I have had it out in quite ferocious weather and it handles it really well despite the relatively small size (30 inches or thereabouts), and is mega stable due to an extra deep hull, steel strip underneath and large bilge keels. It’s also a goer, again despite the small 40 motor, but long thin warships don’t need much power to get a shift on.

i don’t feel that old today as I don’t get my state pension until my NEXT birthday, when I might get a bus pass as well! (66)

Ash

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Three more guardsmen were hacked about, painted and stuck on the TBD, and it has made a big improvement to the upper deck.

Those little points of blueness really bring to life an otherwise dull static top, even if tHey are not exactly right.

The problem with tHe Hasty was always that it looked dull. Satin black sides, Matt dirty brown colour for the deck, representing the Corticene it was mostly covered with (and all the soot), and every fitting…funnels, air vents etc were also Matt black. This was how the boats were. Matt black was the colour so they could be more effective in night actions. Dark Grey was fine for larger ships during the day to blend into the sea at a distance, but apparently almost any grey stands out very pale at night under a spot lamp. Oddly the turtle deck bow was grey in most cases, but mine has probably too pale grey on it, simply to lighten up the boat a bit. I have also just painted the 6 and 3 per gun breeches silver, again, for a speck of interest (they should be black, or at least, a dull gunmetal).

theres a big difference when Hasty and Boxer are side by side. Boxer is light grey and shiny in the sun, and looks much more interesting despite actually have much less detail on it, despite they are roughly the same size. Boxer is of course a much smaller scale than Hasty, the real thing was about two and a half times longer and weighed 4500 tons rather than the 200 of a TBD *

Fighting ranges were of course very close, the torpedoes not that fast or very long ranged, so the ability to close was paramount.

Ashley

*figures approx for comparison purposes only and I don’t want anybody shouting that they are well out or anything like that or I will get CROSS !!😡

[Chris EParticipant @chrise]

Ashley

Definitely looks like you!

Italian Airboats with a Difference!

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

At Bushey Park we have a variety of different watercraft, including one based on those Italian racers.

This one now has Ferrari logos down the side.

[Chris EParticipant @chrise]

Nice model but it doesn't have what this one has!

Spectacular Airboat

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Considered trying to build one like that but could not work out where all the equipment would go without being too big, tried one with contrarotating props to eliminate torque reaction (with power wires through the motor supports) but blew one of the motors.

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Come on Ashley, there's your next project!

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Hi Richard. Trevor looked at this and even fitted a contra rotating motor unit to a test hull (it didn’t last, the motor unfortunately but it sounded really weird when it was going!).

The issue is prop torque up high, exacerbated by the ‘built in lightness’ of your hull that you need to achieve a sea-skimming performance. The Tups are largely immune, but I have to offset the battery on the Hobbies Hydro, and similarly same for the Farman Hydroglisseur , giving them a list when at rest or going slowly. Although very shiny and spectacular, the Larsen is HORRIBLY tender but thankfully slow(ish) with it, helping to keep it upright.

An Iti racer as depicted (as a model) would simply flip as soon as it mostly left the water, or indeed the wind caught it..unless you made it unrealistically wide or had a small prop. Not saying it can’t be done, but they are windless condition sailers and thus a bit limiting.

Having some weight would stop or at least mitigate this, but then the boat would be slow. Trevor’s Ferrari is well quick and very stable, due to the very low thrust line.

Chris…there’s not much we have not looked at !!

 Still have the Cobb Crusader to get going, and of course the Sonic Sippi.

Ashley

Edited By ashley needham on 24/03/2023 11:13:27

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Following on from a remark by Charles, todays boating activity is going to Beto sort out all the odd motors I have gathered over the years from drills and so on, and attempt to make sense of them using an air prop adaptor, air prop and wattmeter.

I know one of the motors is the MFA forerunner of the 850. It’s not as big as an 850 but appears to be as whizzy.

Virtually all my small motors were donated to a “make an airboat” workshop in Kingston Guildhall some years ago. It also used up a bag of 2mm shaft push-on paddle bladed props. I recall it was a very good session. Boats were made from pre-cut expanded polystyrene I had cut into useful sizes and shapes and stuck together by the attendees with Poundland 5 min epoxy. 2xAA switched battery holders, cocktail sticks (used with paper flaps as rudders), motors/props, and decorated with acrylic paints. We tested them out using a wheeled dolly, so their boats could be put on the dolly and raced down the hallway.

i have often wondered about making a sample airboat to take to the pond, and having ‘diy’ kits in bags to sell to parents at cost….nurturing technical and design interest in model boating???

Ashley

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Whirly props and little fingers….?

Colin

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

You would think so, but small 3v motors and wide props barely cause a sting. You can get soft bladed props, which is what you would use if you were going to do it.

Its hardly worth the expense and bother really…I can’t see them being big sellers at the pond…..and then there H&S…

Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Tomorrow the big guns. HMS Nelson, battleship. Ferry (in nice new box). Perhaps something else, not sure…may not, the Nelson is a heavy beast, 44 inches long (I think) and made extra deep so I could add lots of ballast and stop it bobbing up and down unrealistically (for a 40,000 ton ship).

Ashley

[Peter WardParticipant @peterward23105]

Me thinks rain stopped play today unfortunately

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Blast, thwarted again (and I forgot to put the clock forward!!).

Ashley.

[Kevin BeallParticipant @kevinbeall91525]

I was planning a trip to Bushy today, might have to go tomorrow instead…take it the pond is open every day for use?

[Peter WardParticipant @peterward23105]

Yes open every day

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Let me know Kev, and I will pop down to meet you.

Its no good going along later on today as the car park will be full. Daytime week-days shouldn’t be a problem.

Ashley

 

 

 

Edited By ashley needham on 26/03/2023 10:09:34

[Kevin BeallParticipant @kevinbeall91525]

Will do mate, probably about 11.00 to miss the joy of Monday morning traffic.

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