Beginner IRCWCC/MWC ship

Ya i know it. I looked there and did not see it. were is it?

 

tomasa8,

The Indefatigable hull is only available from Ralph Coles in Nova Scotia, or from Mike Deskin who often has some of Ralph's hulls in stock in the U.S.

Ralph and I collaborated on the Indefatigable project as an alternative to the slightly smaller Swampworks Invincible hull, which I think went out of production before the Indefatigable was available. I did the hull drawings and Ralph built the hull mold, which he considers one of his best. I've made an Indefatigable hull from his mold and it's a beauty.

If you want an Indefatigable hull contact Ralph at ralphster30@hotmail.com

He's willing to sell that and other molds so the hulls can be produced in the U.S. where shipping will be cheaper. Any takers?

Bob

 

As someone who has a Swampy Invincible and has seen the Indefatigable hull, I'd say the Indefatigable is the better ship. It's got a little more room (the Invincible is a little cramped) and isn't terribly longer, so it's turning is pretty good. the Ralph Coles hull is far and away a better product then the Swampy Invincible hull (aside from not being as detailed, it's too short).

I like my Invincible for it's history. If I was building a new ship and didn't have a preference though, the Ralph Coles Indefatigable is definitely the hull I'd build on.

 

I agree with you Mike, Indefatigable is a nice hull. They do have quite a bit more room in the hull. Enough for a 6 volt 12 amp battery. Plus we can change batteries between sorties. That's a 6 volt 24 amp battlecruiser that is 15 or 16 lbs. Niceeeeeeeee.

 

Hmmm. Although you can arm just the center prop shaft, last I looked at mine, she was a triple prop/shaft ship?

Also, which backing up problem are you referring to? Just curious.

Cheers,

 

I read through the three pages of responses and powder monkey just got back with his boston cruiser so he can attest to this. A cruiser is a hard first build /battler. Here is my thought. Maryland. It is big inside, can take loads of damage and has enough guns and speed to play with everyone. I saw two battle this week and was very impressed. That is my recommendation for all my rookie friends.

 

I agree!

Sending a rookie out in a cruiser in the IRC or MWC is negligent. I always tell my rookies class 4 or 5.

Cruisers are fun but they are a bit tricky to trim out properly and are not forgiving to rookie driving.

Plato

 

In the MWC cruisers aren't a bad choice for a rookie since they are 23 sec and that allows them to have a chance to get away from enemy battleships. Also unless they get themselves into a bad position most people wont take the time to try and chase down a faster boat (it normally doesnt work out). A rookie in a class 4 or 5 on the other hand tends to be in a hug n slug type ship which can very easily take a pounding if you dont know what you're doing. However for the IRC the larger cruisers which can be good rookie boats are 24 sec and are just dog chow for the fast battleships, so you might as well build a boat that will give you a fighting chance (classes 4+).

It depends on the ruleset you're going to be playing the game with.

 

At least with the class 4+ you can take more than 4 hits before wet pants happen. My rookies went out, got caught in furballs and still came back to shore to tell about it. The cruiser took little damage and was unable to run away when the sharks struck.

 

I think i want to run an alaska Tug, but i sent you 2 emails, if you could check them out and reply for me. Thanks.

 

Well I lived it at NATS IRCWCC 2008 and I personally (unless you are a lover and not a fighter) would not recommend any thing under 5 as a rookie its not very fun sitting and watching and it is even less fun when a Big boy comes looking to mess up your day I have a 1 hour sink (and every thing still worked after thank you very much) [^] to prove it []

 

MWC is a different story, with the 1 sec differential, as long as your ship works, you can stay away, and the cruisers can take alot of damage and survive.

The 3 new cruisers we took to Nats this year, Scheer, Mogami, Kumano, all suffered 30+ hits and none of them sunk, Rick's Scheer had over 50+ in one battle. The cruiser battle is where we racked up the big hit numbers on Wednesday, the rest of the days the average was less than 10.

Now some of the Rookies at this years Nats sank with 1 or 2 hits, but they suffered some kind of failure which caused the sink.

 

Honestly a class 4 is better off then a class 5 for rookies. Class 4 gives you everything you really need, with one less unit to maintain. My Invincible kicked tail, I loved it. My turning kept me out of trouble...basically I could out run everything I couldn't out turn (except Von der Tann),

Building the big ships is a major reason the Allies continue to lose at NATS. They show up every year with NCs and SoDaks and try to win on points, while the Axis shows up with a pair of Yamatos and the Imperial German Navy. Then the Allies use up their triple sterns blasting impenetrable area, then eat sidemounts from all the Axis sluggers.

When the Allies kick the class 5 and 6 ships to the curb and build class 4 WW1 dreadnoughts, they'll start to do better, because they'll have ships better equipped to play the Axis' game.

 

We don't all build NC's and Sodaks. We have had plenty of small boats in the past and have still lost. The nc/sodak build was something we came up with to fight against the three yamatos we had last year. This year we lost again but the fighting was better. The allies also did not have as many boats on the water as we planned to. We were down a Iowa, a second Iowa for battle three, A tennesse after monday and two rookie cruisers that were spotty all week. A class 4 is a good rookie build also but the space constraints are why I recommend class 5. Then you don't have to build up after you get settled in.

 

Rob, what do you think about an Alaska? Mike(crzyhawk) is trying to disuade me from making one, but, what do you think(not that i dont value youe opinion mike, but i want to see what others think too). Just to remind you, its a class 5, 808ft Battlecruiser.

 

While I am not Mike, you did ask for other opinions. Here's mine: []
We all want to see you on the water and battling. This hobby is great in that the more boats on the water the more fun everyone can have. To drive hours and give up a weekend for a battle only to have your boat spend most of it's time under water or on the bench is an almost certain death sentence for you with the hobby. You will get frustrated and quit, it's happened more often than you would think. The main point of this hobby is to battle, not who has the best looking ship or who reinvented the wheel.
That being said, I believe you are setting yourself up for dissapointment with the Alaska for a rookie boat. My bet is you want something different and want to be know for making it work. While that is a noble ideal, it's just not going to work in the hobby. The veterans will have you for lunch (it's just that simple). It's a very big boat (read as $$$$$ to build). Now think of transporting and ship recovery--it will be heavy. Once you get it on the water you might find it is not your fighting style, so now you are out all that time.
Here's my advice (for any format): Build a simple boat and make it work. Once you get it working, put it off to the side and DON'T touch it. Build the Alaska then, but with all new parts. This way you will always have a ready to go boat.
Or, build the simple boat (class 4 for fast gun) and make it perfect over a couple of years (it does take that long). Look at the advancement in water proofing servos and electrical items, construction materials and gun designs just over the past few years.
So, in parting I would not recommmend the Alaska as a rookie boat. I am sure it is not what you want to hear, but we want you in the hobby for a long time.
Lou

 

Well, i was planning on a Cleveland class cruiser, but ive heard alot about not doing one of those(i have been looking at your topic alot), because it is a cruiser. Is that a good beginners ship? (i would be using the kits from BC to make it)

 

Lou has the right of it. Alaska is one of my favorite ships, and I'd LOVE to see one on the water. It's not just not good for Rookies. If you had some battling experience under your belt, I'd be all for you building it because I want to see one on the water, but as a veteran captain it's my duty to try and give the best advice I can to you.

That's good advice about not stripping a working ship, too. Sometimes it takes longer then others to get everything done (and working reliably), and you never want to find yourself without a ship, when you have had one up and running.

 

Not for a rookie ship. Go with VDT, Andria Doria, or any allied/axis class 4 ship. Get the feel of battling and work on making it reliable. Then build your Alaska.
Again, not to dash your hopes/dreams, but you need to start simple and work on the internals and reliability. My pick would be the AD, plenty of room to work in and a great all-around ship.