The plain answer to that question is.....EVERYTHING! I advise you read the rules for whatever format you plan to battle to very carefully. (that also mean understanding what they mean) If you know what you can do, and what you can't do (legally), it will save you a lot of headaches later on. Read through this. http://www.portpolarbear.com/reports/Building%20tips%20of%20the%20week.htm Buy the How to Build a Warship CD form Port Polar Bear. It will be very helpful. http://portpolarbear.com/For%20Sale..htm
I wish that I'd known to KEEP IT SIMPLE. KEEP IT RELIABLE. Important for the first boat. Maybe for the first 20 boats. Lack of reliability has sunk more ships than enemy fire.
Heavy cruiser, nothing fancy. Get it on the water and battle, once you build your "dream boat" DO NOT touch the first ship for parts. This way you can build and still battle, none of "gee guys, I wish I could battle but you know I am putting in 30 rotates and auto levelers with sliding breech pins that are hand made by monks". Next thing you know, this captain is never heard of again due to frustration.
Lou, you always give me crap about having the breech pins handmade by monks! What's up with that? The brothers at the monastery of Our Brother of Eternal Bombardment need the cash! Seriously, though Savage, +1 on VV's advice.
How do you keep the hull watertight? I am guessing that balsa and paint don't keep water out very well. The cannon kit comes with the 1/8 and 1/16 hoses right?
I am unsure as to what regulator I should get for the 5 oz co2 tank with the on/off valve on Strike. Do I get the New Variable Regulator with 1/4" OD output?
Hi Savage 1776, and welcome to the hobby! I'm with Strike Models, and wanted to be sure you were aware of a couple of the terms and conditions that both Battlers Connection (http://battlersconnection.com/html/agreement.html) and Strike Models (http://www.strikemodels.com/terms-of-service/) have regarding purchasing cannons for this hobby. We do need you to be 18 (or have a parent purchase the cannon) and affiliated with a club and have insurance (if you're an MWCI member insurance comes with the membership, and for IRCWCC you typically buy NAMBA insurance). Echoing what others have said here, getting affiliated with a club and finding a mentor will be really helpful, will prevent errors in construction, and help keep you from shooting an eye out. =] Keri
Thank you for the info Keri, I will sign up for the MWCI. So with the poppits with 3 guns I would need a 3 port poppit, correct?
A three port poppet is not going to do what you think it will. The valve has three ports, or places for hoses to be hooked up to. They are the inlet, outlet, and vent. The inlet is connected to the CO2 supply, the outlet is connected to the cannon or actuator for the cannon, and the vent is open to atmosphere. The valve has two positions, button pressed and button released. When the button is pressed, CO2 is directed from the inlet to the outlet, which will pressurize the actuator or fire the cannon. When the button is released, the inlet is isolated and no longer supplies CO2 to the cannon. The outlet is directed to the vent, bleeding off any pressure remaining in the firing line. A single fast gun cannon will only need a two port valve. A multi-gun fast gun setup or a big gun setup that uses an actuator to operate a larger valve needs a three port valve to bleed off pressure from the actuator. If you don't vent the actuator after firing, it will stay pressurized and will keep firing. This only applies to big gun and certain setups for fast gun. Think about how you're going to place your cannons, and that will help determine what components you need.
