No worries on the questions! Both Formats have limits. it is just which ones do you want to play with. Here are the rules for WWCC: http://www.westernwarshipcombat.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=54 If I were you I would compare these with the MWC rules I posted above to see which you find more interesting to you. Now onto the questions Ok 1st: There can be a significant price difference between FG & BG. But for the most part they can be relatively the same price I believe, though I have never purchased a FG ship and built it so I must confess i may be ignorant of the true cost of one. For BG the key cost is is the rotating guns found in the larger ships such as Battleships. Unlike FG they are not readily available currently. Strike is currently working on getting production of them up and running but when that will be ready to go we do not know, I have heard soon. So that being said you cannot buy a battle kit for BG yet. Also depending on your building skills you can cut cost by constructing pieces your self and using hobbyking to purchase your electronics. ok 2nd: Ok for the balsa, after a sortie (timed battle such as 20 min, combat days are typically made up of multiple sorties) we usually repair damage useing painters tape to cover the holes. Now once you have the ship home there are a couple methods for fixing the damage: A) strip the entire balsa side off and replace and repaint it. This method is very time consuming. B) cut the damaged "window" out and replace it. You can see what a "window" is here: http://www.westernwarshipcombat.com/index.php?set_albumName=Post-Campaign-Battle&option=com_gallery&Itemid=85&include=view_album.php&page=1 The gentleman in WWCC cuts the damage out from center of a rib to center of another rib. C) Cut a square around each hole and place a new square piece in its place. This is a good method if the ship did not receive a lot of damage. Hope this helps!
ah okay i belive i have found a ship i want to start with, but if theres no big gun battle kit, how do i get the corect cannon system for it, all i could see were $30 plans for probably a generic big gun system, so does this mean that big gun does not exist, and that its homemade? and no my crafting/building skills have never been tested so probly not great haha. and im seeing that hulls are fiberglass and the wooden ones with ribs apear homemade, so since my woodworking skills arent great, should i just stick with fiberglass? And if so, where does the balsa go in a fiberglass hull, do i have to make cutouts? And if so, how do i secure them in place ? Thanks again guys for all your help, i really appreciate it.
Which ship are you interested in? For fiberglass hulls you cut windows into the hull and cover the outside of the hull over the windows with balsa sheets. Most big gun cannons right now are home made but there are a few people who are beginning the process of making them. And there are people who sell their old ones.
There is a fast gun group in Nevada, perhaps you should check it out before you make a decision. www.mwci.org and click on local contacts.
well when i first found the hobby, ofcourse i wanted the biggest and the best, (at the time i wanted the dkm bismark, and uss iowa) haha but after about a year of research, i realized its best to work my way up, so i found the hms exeter, wich i really really like. but ofcourse im open to any other suggestions
That is a cool looking ship. I hadn't seen it until doing a bit of research but its a neat boat. I notice on strike the hull is listed as good for rookies. For BG, this ship would probably be run as a torpedo cruiser meaning it would have 3 1/4" barrels off each side and will run up on another ship (preferably a big battle ship < muahaha) and blast a way. This is the type of ship were a BG version COULD end up being cheaper then its FG counterpart. This is because torpedo systems are relatively easy to build and maintain. For FG I do not know how effective or what its unit allocation is. And jadfer just pointed out there is a FG group in Nevada. So you could get in touch with them and they can help you gat a hull started. I've found that when it comes to building these ships the format you play with doesn't really matter as the ships are built to similar standards. Also the guys are extremely helpful no matter which format.
It gets 3 units in IRC/MWC, so it would get 2 cannons. I disagree with you on cost, the fastgun ship built budget would be cheaper. But then that is a loaded comment, as different people have different preferences on components, so it can go either way (cheap/expensive) for either format, again, depending on preferences.
Okay so lets say i rig up a torpedo system, can i still use turrets? like is there enough switches or whatever to operate both the torpedos and the guns? if i can do this, then i believe i should be able to get started right away because this is the ship i want to start with, but i do not want to be a sitting duck, i need the guns operational for longer distance shots, as a defense.
Sorry, have to weigh in with a reality check. HMS Exeter is 575' x 58'. That means in 1/144 scale the model is 48 inches long and 4.8 in the beam. MWC gives a "max weight" of 8.75 lbs (meaning more weight than this pushes ship too deep in water). Put in drive motor (or motors, Ex has 4 screws, so can either mount 1 large motor driving a gearbox to power two screws or two smaller motors), pump, battery or batteries, CO2 bottle & regulator, radio reciever, ESC, and "fire control" (kip valves or poppets, etc). Now you're ready to add weapons. How much room do you think you'll have left? Ex had 6 eight-inch, 4 four-inch guns and 2 triple-mount torpedoes. So theoretically for big gun you could mount 10 guns and 6 torpedoes. Yeah, right. You'll be doing very well to have enough weight and space available for the two bb guns allowed for fast gun. Cruisers are not simple builds in this scale. If you truly want this ship, and big gun format, I suggest you look into 1/96 scale.
Maybe a pocket battleship like Graf Spee. She would be pretty good in big gun. Have the stern cannons fixed, and the front ones rotatable. Then have the torpedoes in the stern for hunting convoys or such. ( that is if you have room, they get a little skinny towards the stern) I asked about the combat effectiveness of the German pocket battleships, and the following is was Gascan's points about them compared to a Baltimore class cruiser. "Beaver, the pocket battleships are among the few heavy cruisers I would consider running. They have almost all of the disadvantages of the Baltimore, except for two. They have 11" (7/32") cannons, which makes it easier to damage thicker armor or below the waterline. She is 6" shorter, which actually makes her smaller and a bit easier to transport, store, and launch than the Baltimore (which was the essentially the same length as the SoDak). The stats don't show it, but they are a bit built a bit tubbier, I think, which makes it easier to work on. The downside is that they are slow (28 knots), with middle weight armor and less pumps, so they can be caught and eaten up by battleships, same as I said for the Baltimore. I have seen them built with two rotating triples and torpedoes, with two rotating triples, and with a single rotating and a single fixed triple. The more stuff crammed in there, the harder it is to get them to operate reliably and perform maintenance and patching. The boat with the fixed triple was the most reliable, because it didn't have a rotation mechanism jamming up the cramped aft end. I would personally build one with a single rotating triple up front, but only if I were planning another battleship after that. It would be a stepping stone to learn from, then use as a relatively simple loaner boat or for gunnery and maneuvering events. The single rotating gun handles just like a battleship so you can learn how to fight, but leaving the aft turret unarmed keeps the cramped aft end clear to simplify the systems and make it more reliable. Are they good starter boats? Yes, but mostly for smaller clubs or those getting started. They are a great learner boat, a stepping stone to greater things. They can then get passed along to the next new guy, either sold or as a loaner. They struggle to find a place on the battle pond in larger clubs with a larger population of battleships and torpedo boats, both of which like to snack on pocket battleships." Lot of great info there. Hope this helps, Beaver
Jeff is right. With smaller ships such as this it is very difficult to arm everything. Heck its hard to do with the large battleships! In the BG format a ship like this is typically armed with either torpedos OR cannons with the torps being the most effective. With FG torpedos are not allowed so its the unit system. If you just use it as a torp boat it can be a simple ish build. absolutek: I was comparing the costs using the strike cannon system and running gear to the typical torpedo systems made by fellow club guys. Using this comparison I believe the BG set up would be cheaper. I of course could be mistaken.
Well, thanks for clearing that up, i guess i should keep looking for a ship then, maybe a battleship, i was just thinking i could form it with a Y shape where the two torpedo tubes are up front cut through the hull, with a rotating turret between the two fixed tubes, so like putting it in the center of the two arms in the Y shape setup, but i can see how weight is an issue, or against regulations, so sorry if it seemed dumb, im just throwing out ideas because ive never done this before and so im trying to explore my options and basically, i intend on my first ship to be more of a learning experience, like something i can use to incorporate new ideas for future ships. But yes, i guess i should keep looking for a ship big enough. I would like to find one that can handle 2 tri shot, or 3 barrel up turrets up front, and atleast dualfire in stern, (if that is allowed or possible) but i do want it kept at 1:44 scale and set for big gun, so if anyone knows of a ship that can meet thst criteria, please feel free to share, im open to all ideas and opinions. But if such a thing does not or cant exist, then if anyone knows of a better way or capable ship,please let me know.
So are you thinking something along the lines of an Iowa class? I am not entirely sure what you are describing.
Well although that would be perfect, i dont have that much to spend, any other ship thats not a thousand dollars will do haha remember it is only my first ship
I wish i had an image or dimensions of a big gun, so that i could estimate the space needed and weight, and apply that to a ship, it might make selecting a bit easier, but since its home made, its rather difficult for me to estimate
Also if you really like the HMS Exeter the you should build the HMS Exeter. whats the point in getting into a hobby like this if you cant build the ship you want? Torpedo boats are very effective and alot of fun. I plan on building one one of these days
Yea i agree, and i will be building lots of ships anyways, so what im thinking is, because i dont have building experience to make my own big guns, i will buy the exeter in a fast gun setup, for person use, not competitivly, and when i get more hands on experience and knowledge, il make a ship setup for big gun, and use the exeter as target practice haha, and what is this indiana style cannon you are talking about? And i am trying to decide on a big gun ship to build wile i build the exeter, is the sms derfflinger a good choice? What would you recomend that would fit for what i had in mind
Indiana Style Cannon is what the rotating cannons are called. There are some great pictures and descriptions online. As for a good ship to start with for BG I would say it depends on what you're interested in meaning a ship and what your price range is. The bigger ships cost a bit more as you can see in the hull prices on Strikes website. a plus side to larger ships is more room inside the hull but the down side is cost and size haha.
meant personal use not "person" haha woops didnt want to make it seem like im shooting at people haha my bad
