FN Beaver (Suffren class Heavy Cruiser)

What about Lion?

 

As it has been mentioned before it is a decidedly mediocre battling boat. Nothing about it is exceptionally hard to build. Building something you are passionate about keeps you excited and engaged when the frustrating mistakes happen. As long as you are having fun with this... you are doing it right. All, of course, in my humble opinion.

Edit: I would personally continue down the path of building a Suffern. It is cheaper, elicits more thought in design, and most of all you have a resource who has built and battled it recently who has shown willingness to help. That last attribute is probably the most valuable of all. It also has battling attributes that are more forgiving for a new captain in my estimation.

 

Strike also carries a Northampton hull. What about that? Also, Beaver and Barry said that Lion was an OK starter boat.

 

Yes, as others and I mentioned in a previous thread, Lion is OK as a starter boat. Build it if you like it. A class 4 ship won't be too complicated, and has a roomy hull to fit everything in.

Ask yourself these questions:

-Have you already bought the wood for the Suffren? If so, I would proceed with the Suffren build, as you already started on the project. Yes, fiberglass is easier and quicker to work with, but it sounds like money is your limiting factor rather than time. And you have Beaver and Barry to help you. Also you mentioned your dad is buying the wood. That's more money you can save to spend on other parts of your build.

-If you decide to not proceed with the Suffren, then you address the question of how much money exactly do you have to spend to get a ship operational. On strikemodels, a Northampton battle kit costs $658, and that doesn't even include batteries, radio, building supplies. Buying a hull is $125; you still need to come up with the other $533+. NOTE THE PLUS SIGN at the end. You can spread your spending over months or a year but it is still money you have to spend eventually. As Nick mentioned, buying a hull and having no funds to fill it is a waste.

-Do you prefer the Northampton or Lion? Northampton is a cruiser, which will be somewhat cheaper and easier build.

 

I haven't bought wood, and if Lion isn't that great, I saw a Seydlitz hull on BC. How's she?

 

I have neither driven nor fought against the Seydlitz, but the Von Der Tann is also a class 4 bc and is usually touted as the better boat for newcomers. Actually the Von Der Tann is a good boat. Charley at Battler's himself recommended the Von Der Tann to me when I was starting out. The Seydlitz has .5 more units and is faster at 24 seconds, but is longer and has inline rudders, both which will hurt turning ability. Probably comes down to battling style. A better turning ship vs a faster and slightly better armed one.

You still haven't answered the question about your budget. If you buy a $140 fiberglass hull, will you realistically have enough money over the next year or 2 to get a combat ship on the water? $140 is enough to get you a cannon kit for your Suffren.

 

I have around 200 right now, and I can get around 10 dollars a week, with some extra now and then.

 

If your income is guaranteed, then it looks like you could feasibly get a ship on the water in a year and a half, which is a decent time frame. A battler near me says to budget $1200 for a class 4 ship, but cheaper is certainly doable. The biggest thing then becomes commitment, which goes back to build what you really want to build so you stick with it.

EDIT: Just remembered Kevin P on this site has built a Seydlitz. You can ask him how his ship is.

 

Well, the things that I really want to build aren't beginner friendly, since I want to build Iowa, North Carolina, South Dakota, Tirpitz, Kongo, and Nagato.

 

Then I modify my statement to build what you want that is around a class 3-4. Building giants as your first ship is best left to people like rcaircraftnut who have been builders their whole lives.

Also take a look at this:
http://ircwcc.com/main/shiplist/

Use Ctrl+F to look for a ship your interested in, and note ship length, shaft number, rudder layout, and speed. With these parameters you can get a general idea of the ship's characteristics.

You would have to look at actual pictures of the ship to get an idea of turret layout and difficulty of making the superstructure. Ships from the WW1 era generally have less superstructure.

 

I am going to suggest that you put that $200 you have into buying a used ship. I have seen and purchased them in the past for less than that. It will be much cheaper and faster in the long run for you to refit a ship than to build one from scratch. Keep your eye on the classifieds. I would keep saving untill something decent comes avail. This will be your most cost effective option.

 

That would be my first choice too, and that's what I did when I bought my USS Helena; we suggested this route to him before.

 

Matter of fact I recently made a deal on an Iowa for $150 I just need to go pick it up. Shipping becomes an obsticle for the larger ships so keep that in mind. I am willing to relay a ship to you but that takes time as I cant always get loads where I want to go rite away.

 

I started out with a DKM Scharnhorst. It was not the recommended ship to start woth. I did well however, as stated above I have been building and opperating rc since the age of 12. I am 40. Thats litterally almost 30 yrs of exp. The only thing I needed help with really was tactics. I already had a working knowledge of the tools, techniques, and systems used in our models. So I am deffinatly the exception to the rule. You seen like a brite young man, a bit resistant to guidance, lol, but you seem capable of aquiring the skills to do this.

 

There is an HMAS Austrailia for $235 + shipping

 

Yeah, but I want to build either Seydlitz, Moltke, or Lion

 

Well, that's your choice. I though you didn't like the Seydlitz and Moltke's with their wing turrets?

 

Yeah, but they have superfiring ass guns, and on BC and Strike they looked pretty sexy, so I'm fine with them. Not British ones though

 

Also, how does IRCWCC ramming work? I understand that it is illegal, but what are the penalties?