Todays Boating

[Trevor HollowayParticipant @trevorholloway99134]

Do not forget Hampton Court Bridge and the surounding roads are subject to road closures tomorrow due to the cycle event.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

I must look up the cost of waders. I used to have a pair…never used then and then they started cracking.

​About £40 ish from the briefest of surfs. With the weed wots likely it may be worthwhile. Peace of mind and so on.

I long hank of nylon line and a weight may also be an option.

No boating today due to cycle race.

Ashley

[BRYAN ASTONParticipant @bryanaston57723]

Greetings all

Does anyone know of an indicater light flashing or otherwise that would be visible from a slight distance to show that the battery is about to run out, it would have to be transferable from boat to boat, and water resistent ,it would make a change from waiting till the boat drifted to the pond side or asking for a push.

Yours in anticipation

Bryan

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

I think Ashley's pond has had its fair share of flashers recently…

I imagine it would be possible to devise a circuit that monitors battery voltage and triggers a Hi Bright LED when it falls to a certain level.

Personally I try to fit sufficient battery capacity to exceed my likely sailing session time.

Colin

[Dodgy Geezer 1Participant @dodgygeezer1]

Ebay is your friend here:

**LINK**

[harry smith 1Participant @harrysmith1]

Hi Trevor

I use these as they also read out total and cell voltage as well.

Hobbyking low Voltage Alarm (part VOLTAGE-ALARM).

Work well and are cheap.

Ashley's pond has the biggest set of flashers !!!

Harry

Edited By harry smith 1 on 30/07/2017 14:14:07

[BRYAN ASTONParticipant @bryanaston57723]

Thank you Colin,Dodgy, and Harry

I have sent away to Hobby King for one, It is difficult to time the battery life on a power boat , sometimes you are cruising and sometimes you are flat out.Life is a constant problem.

Bryan

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Was your last sentence a philosophical comment Bryan?

Colin

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Gents. I am not sure todays boating runs to philosophy ….

​Ashley

[BRYAN ASTONParticipant @bryanaston57723]

Colin

Yes, the pathway of life is strewn with banana skins and sooner or later you are going to step on one.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Regarding the battery voltage indicators…they are for Lipo batteries and plug into the monitor leads on those batteries.

​However for Nimh`s, could you extend two pins to put across the main battery though???

My wattmeter has a low voltage setting and all the led`s flash when the voltage goes below the pre set level (adjustable by user)…They are not very bright though, however placed near a window or cleverly extended by fibre optic wire OR clear acrylic rod with matted ends???

​I am sure there must be other low voltage alarms out there that simply go across the + and _ terminals ?

Ashley

[NoelParticipant @noel26080]

On the subject of waders, I think you will need chest height waders.

When I was out in the pond last week at thigh depth, the bottom was shelving away more rapidly with each step.
Without the huge pole it would have been even messier recovering the tug

On Sunday when I went the weed appears to be growing ever larger but was mercifully staying on the far bank thanks to the wind.

[Dodgy Geezer 1Participant @dodgygeezer1]

Posted by ashley needham on 31/07/2017 09:42:52:

Regarding the battery voltage indicators…they are for Lipo batteries and plug into the monitor leads on those batteries.

​……………..

​I am sure there must be other low voltage alarms out there that simply go across the + and _ terminals ?

Ashley

If you look at the Ebay link I provided you will see that, though most indicators are the little square ones intended for LiPos, there are a couple of ones intended for standard Nimh battery sets. And elsewhere on the web are simple circuits for this kind of thing – here is one comprising two resistors, two diodes and an LED… **LINK**

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Ah, DG. I did not peruse long enough!!

​Waders. The ones at about £40 were chest waders. Generally, unless it gets REALLY bad, keeping to the middle of the pond is the thing, as if anything conks out then there is time to rescue it.

Fiddling with the SansP still. Put the upper bulkheads on now (10mm high) and glued a few blocks in at the corners (some sort of cabins). Applied filler.

Impatient as usual, decided to bath test the hull. No leaks.
​The hull, motor, shaft, rudder and servo weigh in at 250g, the ballast (including battery) required to sink it to the approximate waterline….1.8Kg !! or 4Lbs if you want. BUT it is nice and stable, due to the cutout that the 4 strips of lead and battery sit in. 200g of lead needs to go as far forward as poss (bulkhead just in front of battery seals forward end of hull), and I need to cut some sheet to fit nicely in the well underneath the propshaft coupling.

​The tricky bit looks to be the iron tube/H-Section beams that support the boat deck/walkway. The deckhouses and mast support are conveniently 18mm high, the right clearance, and the beams can be located on them for support, but what material to use. Plastic round strut bent over a wooden former is probably the way to go. I will see what I have. POSSIBLY garden wire might do, but getting the width of it nice and straight will be tricky. Something 1.5-2mm will be about right.

Ashley sorry no new snaps.

[Malcolm FraryParticipant @malcolmfrary95515]

​Waders. The ones at about £40 were chest waders. Generally, unless it gets REALLY bad, keeping to the middle of the pond is the thing, as if anything conks out then there is time to rescue it.

"My" lake is about 3'6" deep, with uneven silt on the bottom. And currently enough weed to feed a small country if there was a worthwhile recipe. Chest waders and a big stick – the third leg is invaluable for exploring where the next step is and general steadying. The other available lake is about half that and concrete bottomed. Chest waders and the stick are still favoured.

[Kev.WParticipant @kev-w]

Where I sail, **LINK**

chest waders will get you no more than 4.5m from the bank, after that you'll need scuba gear

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Our pond is quite shallow, and the only need for waders is in the weed season when the weed bunches at one end and if a boat gets stuck on it, it is a reasonable distance out. Waders and my 10m pole would get you within reach of a boat even in the worse case. Actually, not the WORSE case, but if it gets that bad we don't sail.

​Kip. You need a canoe or dingy for that water!

​Sans:  Sorted out the beams. PURISTS PLSE SKIP THE NEXT LINES.
​I will use 1.5mm ply cut into strips about 2mm deep, and support them on the few cabin blocks on the top deck. This will involve moving these cabins a bit to get them in the right position, and not QUITE where they should be. Only an expert will know and in any case they will be hidden by a mass of boats and the walkways.

Boats will be another issue…I am thinking solid balsa, but we will see.

​Painting today, after marking out the 6 inch casement apertures and sticking on the cover door flaps. The white bits of the superstructure and deck houses need to be painted, the deck then needs mostly painting so that the white blocks can be stuck on and there will be a neat edge along the bottom. Doing it this was as the beams will have been attached to the blocks and get in the way of painting the deck easily and getting a good edge, May make some guns as well.

​Ashley

Edited By ashley needham on 01/08/2017 09:43:54

[Kev.WParticipant @kev-w]

Posted by ashley needham on 01/08/2017 09:40:48:

​Kip. You need a canoe or dingy for that water!

​Ashley

The club thought of that, we rent the boathouse & have a dinghy with a small 12v outboard motor.

**LINK**

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

V jealous.

Ashley

​NB Sans. Made a big doo doo error. Not saying, no one will notice. Cant be bothered to correct…

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

You put the turret at the back Ashley?

Colin

[Kev.WParticipant @kev-w]

Ashley, now you have made the statement, they will be all over any of your pics like a rash

You can bet your 'bottom dollar' that someone is going to spot it.

[harry smith 1Participant @harrysmith1]

Hi Kim

Colin has scratched the rash !!

Turret at the R-SEND !!!

Harry

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

If it were that easy (turret) I would just sail it backwards and move the Union jack…

​There is also one large error, not an error really, but deliberate and this was because I wanted to simplify the lift off section.

Have painted the upper works (such as they are) with gloss white this morning. Finish looking really good and the join of the upper bulwark bits is virtually undetectable. Off to Old codgers swing band soon. Will recommence build pm.

​I have used an SHG marine plastic coupling…from my only other ecperience of them (these are the ones with a dumb-bell insert, they are a bit rattly and I may "glue" the dumb bells in with a bit of silicone sealant . This will preserve the articulation but stop the clatter, possibly.

Don't forget this is just a fun build and not the last word in scale or accuracy (as always really!!)

​Ashley

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Masked and painted the black bit on the hull. It is 15mm deep (that's the freeboard!!!). Nice sharp line using Wilco masking tape.

Gloss white has gone on ok, painted matt black in funnels and outside of same…cant remember what number Humbrol./.. matt sand I think. looks ok for the buff. Decks will be pale stone, same as for my Titanic. There are lots of different opinions on what colour wooden decks should be painted. I went will the majority on the Big T, and after painting something slightly darker on this main deck, will stick with the pale colour.

​Ashley

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi Ashley

Your going to need loads of ballast to get her down to that waterline

Regards Ray

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