Hey Guys (and girls?), I recently got really interested in this hobby and immediately began to research but I couldnt find a straight forward answer or guide to where to start. I'm also from the Netherlands and there are no clubs here (from what I know). I hope if anyone of you could help me jumpstart me and maybe supply some good sources on how to build one and what to keep in mind regarding the rules and stuff. I want to build a small destroyer (Fletcher class) or similar and want to start small and easy. I also got a 3D printer which I can use, I have also Fusion 360 experience. If anyone got some links or can explain what you need or the best beginner way to start, I would really appreciate it! Keep on securing the ponds!
Hello!! I would check your local laws about home-made BB guns before really diving in to this. There arent many/any members in the Netherlands so you would be looking to also build up a club so knowing the local laws would go a long way. That said, a destroyer is kinda small to start out with. They can be really twitchy to steer. Plus difficult to arm as there is not a lot of interior space.
Hey! That's a very good point, sadly I can't find anything when I googled for the laws, any ideas? Also which type of ship would you recommend for starting out? without getting a battleship or heavy cruiser.
From what I can see, you have to be over 18 to own any form of ‘gun’. In our case, we build BB guns so I would think that law applies
Yes, I think so. But I guess you need to use a private pond for the activities. Also, I saw some good build forums, but most of the pictures are gone. Do have some that you recommend so I can start learn how to build? Also, because you 3d print your ship, do you recommend that? I really like 3d printing.
Personally I feel printing ships is going to be the wave of the future. It might take a while to initially design the ship vs buying a fiberglass hull, but the fact that you can include so much into the print that you can go from a spool of plastic to a fitted out ship in a few days makes up for it. No cutting wood, or fiberglass windows, waiting on glue or epoxy to cure, no trying to figure out how to fit things, etc. Plus making the superstructure is faster. There are just a lot of options. Also, if you don’t want to build a battkeship or a heavy cruiser, I’m not sure what would be good. It is normally recommended to do something in the class 3 or 4 group (see rules for ship-class list). They are big enough to build but small enough to not be overly complex. Usually 2 or 3 guns with a single pump.
