R/C Naval Combat

The hull needs a ton of work. Some good grinders would help on the inside.

I used grinders and chisels ect to clean out an Invincible before. Just wear a dust mask.

Well... it may come to that I will see Sunday. On to other news.... I was thinking of an Event Horizon project. Building a hypo-ship and making it a reality. Gentlemen (and ladies if so inclined) I present a question to the masses! Shall I build said ship of wood or prepare the mold and plug? Lend me your suggestions. I have line drawings and dimensions... I just need to know where to start...

>>I was thinking of an Event Horizon project. Building a hypo-ship and making it a reality. Gentlemen (and ladies if so
>> inclined) I present a question to the masses! Shall I build said ship of wood or prepare the mold and plug? Lend me your >>suggestions. I have line drawings and dimensions... I just need to know where to start...


Nice early 80's reference :) Or was it late 70's... I was young, then. I remember liking the little floating robots and not Max the big red one.

I've built several ships that had no forebears in the hobby (witness my IJN Hyuga BBCV, still on the ways, but glorious nonetheless... (Or Komet, or Agano)... The easiest way I've found is to:

1) Make a lot of copies of the frames drawing
2) glue them to corrogated cardboard
3) Cut out cardboard frames, cutting a tiny slit for a 1/8" x 1/2" keel
4) Put the frames on the keel (it's temporary-ish)
5) using a hot glue gun, start glueing strips of 1/32"balsa to the frames
6) when pretty much all of the hull is planked, flip it over, and start with the fiberglass and resin.
7) When you get 2 or 3 layers of NAPA fiberglass (not hobby kind) on the outside (I like 3), you can rip out the carboard frames, thank them for their yeomanly service, and throw them out. The keel stick comes out now, too, but can be reused.
8) Put 2 or 3 layers of fiberglass on the inside. The Balsa can stay, it's not hurting anything. Note that it's cool if some comes out with the carboard, it's only there to give the fiberglass a form.
9) Viola, your hypo-ship is ready to go into the black hole.
10) This is a development of the Bart Purvis method I got from his webpage, I just added hot glue :)

My Iowa was done by creating the "ribs" like in a wood boat; but instead of planking it I stretched fleece over it & fiberglassed the shit out of it. Then I removed the ribs.

I have some plugs stored at my apartment complex. I wonder if between those and your suggestions I can work something out. Is there anything I have to be aware of? Watch out for?

I stuck the aluminum to the hull preliminarily with gorilla glue. After that cured, I wiped the aluminum clean with acetone and (I had already roughed up the aluminum) I used epoxy laminating resin, glass cloth and some of that oh so nice carbon tow (although I am thinking that Kevlar tow might be more appropriate for our purposes) to bond in the aluminum rail. I then used (in holes I had prev. cut out) the epoxy to pot in some rare earth magnets. The deck has some sheet steel disks bonded to it (I would use a magnetic grade of stainless steel but that can be a bit spendy/hard to come by these days). No fasteners. these magnets are amply strong.


Craig, shoot me some pictures, I would be happy to take a look

Watch for air pockets in the 'glass. Some of my early creations had them, and I'd have to go cut/grind/sand them out to get it to lay flat. Not leathal, but annoying and a time-waster.

I also like to wear medical gloves when working with the glass. Not that I worry about itching, I really haven't problems with that, it's more that I like to be able to use my hands to smooth and pull on the glass. (And I hate getting resin on my hands)

Good safety tip the stuff has cancer causing agents in it too....

I think just about everything does these days.

Even Marshmallows!!!! :(

I've begun compiling info for the Montana. After basic when I am in school I will develop a plug for it and prepare a mold. It will be interesting to see what I come up with. I may use one of Ralph Coles Iowa hulls and enlarge it for reference. So once again, fiberglass all the way!

Marshmellows?...marshmellows cause cancer...oh no...I am doomed

Which Montana? The BIG one with 12x 16"/50cal guns in four triple turrets? Or the REALLY BIG one with 12x 16"/50cal guns in four triple turrets?

Oh man marshmellons cause cancer? I bet those footlong hot dogs do to!! Boy am I in trouble!

Marshmallows, marshmellows, marshmellons? which one of these causes cancer, and is it only in Cal?

i think it sappose to be marshmellows

"Which Montana? The BIG one with 12x 16"/50cal guns in four triple turrets? Or the REALLY BIG one with 12x 16"/50cal guns in four triple turrets?"

Since he's talking about stretching an Iowa, he must mean the BB-67 class Montana as opposed to the BB-49 class Montana :) A BB-49 class ship would be kinda cool though, I rather hope someone builds one for Treaty.

Good Mike

Hi Tom,
When scratchbuilding a fiberglass hull, I generally do it without a subdeck as I like to fit those later. I can certainly see the advantages of doing it with the subdeck in place, but if you have any curve to the deck, it's tricky to get it right and THEN do the cardboard frames and layup on top of the curved surface. For flat WWI ships, it'd be easier. I have not personally done a fiberglass hull using CA instead of resin, but I usually have a gallon size can of West System sitting in the shop. I have been told that the CA hulls don't hold up as well, but Brian Koehler has a cruiser done in this way by Bart, that is still holding together. Brian has not battled it for a few years due to a mixture of concerns about it's durability (12 years old? I think?) and love for a nice looking ship that was build by Bart. For a one-off hull, I see nothing wrong with using CA, but I'd do it in a well-ventilated place. The fumes can cause a number of respiratory problems if you use it in enclosed spaces Not that I know anything about that... For fiberglass, I break it down into rough stuff and smooth stuff. If you are using rough stuff (I usually am), then if it looks rough when you think you're done, add another layer of resin to fill in the dimples of the pattern, and sand it down afterwards. You can use fine 'glass for the outside layer, too, but there will always be spots to get sanded down. On sourcing: I've used Napa glass, hobby glass of various weights, and a big roll of 4 ounce that I'm still using years after buying it. They'll do fine. Any minute imperfections will be covered in balsa anyhow I _do_ use fiberglass matte to reinforce the inside of the hull, though. You don't want to go to the trouble of making a good hull and then have it be so thin that BBs fly through your ribs!