hey everyone, im new but have been looking into this for over a year, trying to gather up as much info as possible, and well, i was wondering if anyone can help me with a few questions, im trying to decide on a starter ship, simple, yet affordable, though money is not a problem, and i would prefer it to be what i assume is called a "Fast gun" setup. is there any way i dont have to make from scratch for my first time ship, i am aware strikemodels has what appears to be kits, but i have no building experience and so i was wondering how simple they are to build, for a beginner. And which ship would be most recomended as a starter, im not looking into something huge right away, so a small cruiser might do, as long as i can arm it with .177, anywho, thanks in advance, any help is much apretiated.
Welcome! The easiest way to get into this amazingly fun hobby is to find a local club and start interacting with the members directly. They will be able to give you hands on training with ship building and handling. Where are you located? Also many clubs have guys with loner ships or just ships they would like to sell to new players. I am not sure what the best starter ship for Fast Gun (all BB cannons) as I am a Big Gunner personally but I have been told that a cruiser is best way to learn. If you look on Strikmodels.com in the hull/kit section, at or near the bottom of each ships description they list what skill level the ship is best for. For example, the USS Brooklyn is listed as one of the best rookie ships to build and battle. It even is available as a complete battling kit with basically everything you need. With the help of a local club and the people on this site, ships are relatively easy to build even for first timers, although mistakes do happen even with the most experienced builders. Hope this helps! Jon
I'm not an experienced battler by far (at least on water), but I have just finished a fastgun FN Mogador DD (a small 1.5 unit boat). Having been through this build and also running a 4 unit VU a couple years back, my opinion for a first boat is not a cruiser. The main reason is lack of side cannons. A boat that only shoots towards the rear will keep you on the periphery of the battle and out of the most fun IMO. For a first boat I'd recommend one of the 4 or 5 unit dreadnoughts. This will get you more inside volume (which makes for an easier build), side cannons, and an extra gun or two (the cost of which is negligible). The downside is that these boats are slower and wont be able to run away like a cruiser but they turn faster than most other boats (a good thing in fastgun). As far as getting started, look for that local club as Jon recommended.
Thank you so much, i really apreactiate all the help, and to answer your question, I am currently in nevada, outside of las vegas, and have yet to find a club nearby, probably due to there not being any water lol but in a few months will be moving to foothills in california, im sure i can get in a club or organization there, but in the mean time, i was wondering, for co2, will any regular 12 gram bottle work, or is it not enough, and also,these " battle kits"... they come with detailed instructions right? Will i need any special tools or is it just glued together? Thanks again for all the help, im really looking forward to this hobby
I am from California but never heard of Foothills CA, where is that exactly? Currently in California there are 3 clubs (that I know of), 2 fully active and 1 in the start up stage. The fast gun club is SCRAP out of Pasadena SoCal area and they are very active. There are 2 Big Gun clubs (I'm apart of both), Western Warship Combat Club (WWCC) in the bay area, they are very active and South Coast Battle Group (SCBG) also in the Pasadena SoCal area, but just in the start up stages. Co2 bottles will vary from ship to ship and the different armament that ship carries. The battle kits do come with instructions to my knowledge but if you are concerned with anything like that best to call Stephen (part owner), he is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Before purchasing a kit double check the format of the club you will be close to. Jon
What i meant by foothills was, up in the mountains probably east of san diego, i havnt got the exact location as i am still in the process of finding a house. But by the sound of it, SCRAP would be the best bet? and if so, your saying i should contact them to find out their requirments and base my ship off of that?
What i meant by foothills was, up in the mountains probably east of san diego, i havnt got the exact location as i am still in the process of finding a house. But by the sound of it, SCRAP would be the best bet? and if so, your saying i should contact them to find out their requirments and base my ship off of that?
What i meant by foothills was, up in the mountains probably east of san diego, i havnt got the exact location as i am still in the process of finding a house. But by the sound of it, SCRAP would be the best bet? and if so, your saying i should contact them to find out their requirments and base my ship off of that?
What i meant by foothills was, up in the mountains probably east of san diego, i havnt got the exact location as i am still in the process of finding a house. But by the sound of it, SCRAP would be the best bet? and if so, your saying i should contact them to find out their requirments and base my ship off of that?
What i meant by foothills was, up in the mountains probably east of san diego, i havnt got the exact location as i am still in the process of finding a house. But by the sound of it, SCRAP would be the best bet? and if so, your saying i should contact them to find out their requirments and base my ship off of that?
No worries it can happen on occasion. If your moving to the SD area and want to play Fast Gun then I do believe SCRAP is the closest club, great group of guys. Now if you ever feel like trying Big Gun out we are starting a Big Gun club up as I mentioned in the same area. (I might be a little bias haha) But yes if your heart is set on fast Gun and want to start building a ship before you get to the area then the SCRAP rule set is the one for you. If I am not mistaken their rule set is the MWC style rules which can be found on their site here: http://mwci.org/rules.shtml Also if you have any questions the knowledge base on this forum is outstanding so never hesitate to ask even if it seems to be a simple/stupid question. Jon
Alright, thanks so much, i will definatly check them out, and i should hopefully get started on some ships rather soon, i dont have anthing against Big gun, its just something i understood well, as from things i have read that there are alot more restrictions, but i may be mistaken, in just not quite clear on the full differences between the two, other than size if ammo
We really need to start a thread explaining the differences between all the formats for new participants. Everyone has to find what they want to do so its all good. I personally wasn't into fast gun so I decided to start/restart a big gun club haha all formats are fun!
Well, if you dont mind me asking, seeing as youve had experience, what advantages does big gun have over fast gun? What made you go with big gun?
Mind? heck no i dont mind I could talk about this stuff all day! Advantages? none really. each way is different and in the end its what your into. For me personally, I enjoy the more scale speeds and the rotating guns. Big Gun (BG) allows you to arm every gun the ship had over 3", so if it had it and your crazy enough you can arm it. I was not a fan of the unit system in Fast Gun (FG) which limited the number of cannons. Although I am not crazy enough to arm all the guns I love the idea of trying it someday. I was also not into the rate of fire in FG. In BG there are time limits you have to wait between firing to simulate the ships reloading. The BG ships are also skinned with balsa based on the actual armor they had (ex: ships with 12"+ armor get 1/8" balsa). So that being said, I do plan on building/buying a FG ship at some point just to try it. As long as it runs and shoots/sinks other ships(within the rules and safety) how can it not be fun? haha Jon
wow that actually does sound better, i thought big gun had its limits, seems now its the other way around, well im glad im learning all this before i jumped into a build, thoughin future i might build both just for more battletime/experience, but this makes me want to check out big gun more haha. is there a significant price difference between a fast gun and a big gun ship? for example, if i bought a battle kit, because i only saw one price for battlekits, not individual prices for the changes in arts between the two. So if i buy a battle kit, what do i got to do to ensure consists of the setup i want, and will it still be the same price...or is it easier to buy everything separate?
Oh and also, this has been confusing me for quite some time and i was hoping i can get this straightend out. See im used to fiberglass hulls, i was racing the 1 meter sailboats before i got into this. and so what confuses me is how the repairs are done to balsa. For example, lets say the whole port side has been shot up, do i just replace that skin, or the entire hull and how is it removed because i have seen lots of pictures and they all seem to be quite flush, where it looks like its all one piece. so how do you swap out its armor to be able to get back into the game fast?
I do apologize for all the questions, im not trying to overwhelm. Just trying to get the facts straight, and soak up all the info i can
No need for an apology. If you don't ask questions, how are you supposed to learn? To answer your other question, there is an article about repairing damage in the Knowledge Base on this site that shows how to repair damage after a battle. (just search Hull Repair) To get back in the battle fast, most people put waterproof tape or silkspan over the holes. (the latter isn't used too much more due to SP not being manufactured in the US anymore) Beaver
