Heelllo, it's me again. I'm almost done building my first scatch build (a liberty ship). Learned alot in the process of building her, like i need to be more organized , and a few power tools would be amzaing . Now I feel more confindent in attempting a project that is a little bigger in scope. I have been looking at alot of different ship the last week, jurying my lunch breaks. not much else to do, at first i planned to do the french ship dunkerque, or second attempt on edgar quinet. That being said i still have not chosen a project and might not for awhile, but it is nice to keep looking around. Stuff i want done before i even start. Finish little Libby. Build a work bench. Research my opions get or make some work bench clamps Finish one or two other small home projects I may arm Libby but i know she will not be able to go to comps in that case, but since i may never make it to one. its ok with me if she not legal. So i ask what ship do you think make a fun project?
1. I have seen an image of single gunner Libby (real ones did have a 4" cannon at the stern to deal with small raiders). 2. I have been building 1:175 scale American Dreadnaughts. I have 2 on the ways. One is the USS Michigan (BB-27) for the wife to paint and the USS Delaware (BB-28). US battleships from BB-28 to about BB-37 (Oklahoma) are not often built to 1:144 scale. I suspect the draft for these boats are too small (around 2.5") at that scale to make them practical. They would capsize when fully equipped. To deal with costs, lack of power tools, and large sizes, I picked 1:175 scale to allow roughly 3 foot long boats with a beam of 6 inches and a fixed draft of 3", regardless of boat. A cannon with accessories do not mount well with drafts smaller than 3". The boats are flat bottom and formed from a balsa sheet 3' long by 6" wide and 3/8" thick. I use balsa throughtout the construction. I do plan to put a single stern gun on the boats. 3, I have also built a USS Texas, BB-000 (1895) for Steampunk. I have a build thread for that but I temporarally have it on the back burner. It is an inexpensive build if you can get the wood precut for you. I have to drive 7+ hours to get to nearest MWCI club so I operate as a independent where I live with some options to recruit others. MMJR
Ahoy Nativecaptain, the 4" gun on the stern of a Liberty ship is large enough to be armed in the Big Gun ruleset. I've seen a number of armed transports, including Liberty ships, run in combat. While a single stern gun isn't likely to scare off attackers, I've seen ships get shot up by transports they thought weren't a threat. Don't forget to include a bilge pump, too. And if you want to go to a Fast Gun event, you can just unplug the pump and cannon. Simple solution to a simple problem. For a next project, it depends on which format you intend to battle. If you are doing Fast Gun, I would suggest either an Armored Cruiser, like Scharnhorst, or a battlecruiser, like Von Der Tann or Invincible. Consider doing that French AC, the Edgar Quinet, that was the subject of a beginner build thread. It's a good ship, and although I don't think the original ship (and its build thread) was ever finished, there are a number of other builds for that exact ship posted on this forum. If you're going Big Gun, then a torpedo-cruiser like Spahkreuzer or Capitani Romani is a good beginner boat. Follow that up with a "treaty" battleship like Scharnhorst, South Dakota, or King George V, and you've got the beginnings of a well-rounded fleet.
