Duct Tape Sheeting

That's one of the reasons I said, "up to 6." The truth is, we don't always have 6 on hand, due to unforeseen logistical problems. But I definitely recommend building 6 of these, if a club can swing it. That maximizes the chances of having 4 on hand at any given battle.
We're talking solely about recruitment ships, but another topic could be, "Retention ships." If a club does, in fact, always have one or two club-owned loaner combat ships at every event, ready to battle, then that would entice captains whose ships are not ready to come anyway.
The photo below shows 3 of the club-owned loaner cargo ships in action. These ships will typically last 15 minutes without pumps, and much, much longer (maybe too long) with them. The reason is that the skins are duct tape, and the tape doesn't splinter and split open, the way balsa tends to do. In this case, the 3 convoy ships are being run by 3 NAMBA race captains. Our battles were interspesered with their scheduled races. The race captains had a ball, believe it or not. This becomes an excellent way to introduce combat to guys who ordinarily compete in races, but may never havce seen combat. Since they are already NAMBA members, there's no paperwork to do.

 

We started with 6 identical fiberglass cargo ship hulls from Strike Models. These have a gel coat that facilitates easy application and removal of the duct tape:

Once the penetrable windows were cut out according to our construction rules, and the hulls were trimmed and equipped, the duct tape was applied. We use readily available 2" wide tape, which we found available in a variety of colors. We painted the bottom of the hulls red, up to the bottom of the windows.
For these particular hulls, the simplest application begins with the lower course. We marked a line 1" above the bottom of the hull, all the way around, and applied the first course (red, in this case). Next, we marked a line 1/4" below the top of the red tape, and applied the second course on that line. That 1/4" turns out to be critical, because any less of an overlap will enable rounds to pull the two courses away from each other, and the ship will sink like a stone.
In the photo below, you can see the finished skin. This young man, a volunteer pulled from the spectators, was the only surviving captain at the end of a 15 minute battle at the California Maker Faire this year. The other 5 cargo ships sank within that 15 minute period. None had pumps running (by design). As you can see, the duct tape looks OK from a few feet away, and it's easy to replace. Just peel it off and reapply fresh.

Rob

 

That's.....fascinating. I'm going to have to try that on Altmark. I wonder if it's viable for combat ships as well? With the demise of silkspan, alternative sheeting materials could be a big deal.

 

The trade-off is that duct tape is somewhat self-sealing. I haven't exactly done flow comparisons between balsa and duct tape, but there is a difference. Also, just like balsa, there are variations in quality of duct tape. I can't wait to try some of my nuclear-grade duct tape on one of those boats...

It's an interesting idea, but can only be done if everybody switches over at once. It's not really fair mixing duct tape boats and balsa boats, that is why the club transports don't have pumps (which WWCC transports are ordinarily allowed)

 

I did some tests last night and even my ordinary duct tape failed the pentration test where the seam overlapped It did pass the pentration test where it is only a single layer, so I'm going to look and see if I can find something wider than 2". In Treaty I can use any material that passes the drop test, so I think this will be a viable sheeting method for my destroyer.

 

We have found variations in the penetrability of different brands of tape. YMMV. That said, it would be fairly trivial to identify particular brands that are equivalent to balsa. We've discussed it here in WWCC, and there really is no compelling argument against the use of duct tape as skin for warships. We've been using it all year on our loaner cargo ships, as described, and frankly, it is a no-brainer for recruitment ships. You can hand one of these ships to a rank greenhorn, and he/she can re-skin the hull while standing next to the pond - no Silkspan, no dope, no balsa, no glue, no tools required, with the possible exception of a blade to cut it with. (Most of it tears straight across.) I think the main obstacles for switching to it for combat ships are tradition and esthetics.

Rob

 

I personally like the look of a properly-applied balsa skin, and would resist switching to duct tape for my personal warships, if given a choice. However, as this discussion is focused on recruitment ships (what we at Western Warship Combat Club refer to as "club loaners"), duct tape solves more problems than it creates. Since we voted to allow duct tape skin for cargo ships, there are always some at the pond.
As for patching between battles: I know traditional patching methods for many captains involves Silkspan and dope. We haven't tried that on duct tape, mainly because we use painter's tape for patching in our club. I know it's ugly, but it's quick, cheap and can be boght at any hardware or similar place, and sticks just fine to duct tape. Our rounds pass right through it, and through the duct tape behind it. Of course, we're a Big Gun club, and most of us using bigger calibers than BBs, so it's a matter for testing.

Rob

 

I wonder how EB Green (Electric Boat Green "duct" tape for those of you not submariners) will rate? I'd bet on it working pretty well as far as leak-proofing. Penetrability (especially after being "patched" w/ more tape) and the self-sealing aspect are the real issues. OTOH, I've seen balsa / silkspan skins that were close to self-sealing as well (because of the type of paint used)....

 

I tried a couple of different patches, blue tape and some stuff for making lines on asphalt. It passes the drop test if the test is right by a rib, but not in the center of the span. The duct tape gives enough that it absorbs the hit rather than penetrating.

 

We tried several brands of tape at a weekend battle this year and last fall. Most were the same, a couple looked like they would not work and did not hold up well. Painter's tape is not an option.
For patching after a battle on a cruiser we just ripped tinny pieces of tape off to go over the few holes. It's a cruiser 10 or so holes is a lot no need to rip off the whole side.
For the BB it was used on we ripped the whole skin off and started over. Matt (He had tape) & I raced for patching with about the same amount of damage. He was done before I got to mid ships on one side. He also battled more aggressively with tape, since there's really no cost and no time for getting your skinned trashed. It's a nice savings pond side in time. But the BIG savings in resheeting. I think I'm pretty fast at sheeting and spend 1-2 hours removing and 2 hours sheeting. You'd be done with tape before you got 1/4 of the balsa off.
The drop test would no longer apply. Just have everyone at a battle use the same tape. The host buys a case and hands them out. He's paid back as part of the battle fee. Everyone's skin is the same, no complaints needed.
The "hard" part with the tape is marking the waterline. But if this is used all you have to do is measure your waterline from the hull down, make some notes, measure and mark each resheeting. Use a straight edge and marker or the same tape we use now.
We had one guy last fall that was totally against tape. He went home after our testing weekend thinking it was the way to go.
If it's color you worry about get red tape for the bottom and grey for the top. Our guns have no problem going through two layers of tape even under water. The 1/4" over lap is not a big deal.
We all thought ships would be harder to sink with tape. Our solution to that would be to make the battle 3 sorties, not 2. We always have let sinkers patch and waist a lot of time waiting for them, so this would speed things up to get the extra sortie in. At most regionals we already do 6 sorties a day, I think you could get in two more using tape.

 

On the self-sealing aspects of duct tape:

There's a trade-off. Some duct tape likes to tear more than others. A common type has what looks like a ribbed surface that is designed to be torn off rather than cut. That type tends to tear out in rectangular holes if hit with multiple rounds, rather than the self-sealing effect we see with a single round. I think you'll find that in the Fastgun style of battling, that type of duct tape will behave like 1/32" balsa, in terms of the volume of water intrusion into the hull. In Big Gun, multiple rounds rarely hit in the same spot on a hull, so those rectangular holes aren't as prevalent. On the other hand, as was stated, we find that a duct tape-sheeted hull can last around 15 minutes or so in Big Gun battle without a pump. That means that a recruitment ship, even a warship, could be easily handicapped for a spectator to operate. If the objective is to give a "virgin" captain the thrill of running a ship for an entire battle, you could turn on the pump, or not. I like the options. Too often, a complete newbie sinks before figuring out left/right/forward/reverse/stop.

Rob

 

There's another trade-off, too. While you can get basic red, grey, etc. you cannot produce the beautiful camouflage paint schemes that many ships wore in conflict. Just think: no dazzle schemes, no altered silhouettes, no fake bow waves. The many varied, vibrant colors will all go away.

 

I have played with many types of skin and coatings, and duct tape sounds interesting.
I don't like the fabric and the shinny surface that can't take paint, and the lack of a viable "drop test" makes it hard to introduce in a mixed fleet of balsa and tape.

I think that this product might have a use:

http://www.duckbrand.com/products/specialty-duck-tape/water-proofing-duct-tape

I have used this stuff to tape air ducts and it is truly easy to use, can be painted and patched with dope and is waterproof.
Carl