Not that it matters but the rules do not state a ‘minimum’ weight, only maximum. Standard weight is what the ‘scale’ weight should be and max weight is what the ‘heavy load’ weight should be. So ‘between’ 12.15 and 13.4 is not correct. It can be 10lbs and as long as the freeboard and window depth rules are correct it is legal. It feels like who ever did the scale weight calculations kinda just spitballed it. But there are conflicting formulas for weight. Either using long ton of 2240 or imperial ton of 2000 The Deutschland should ACTUALLY be 9lbs in standard displacement, not 12. (12,000 / 144 / 144 / 144)*2240 = 9.002 lbs (16,200 / 144 / 144 / 144)*2240 = 12.152 lbs So you can see why she was swamping herself. For reference my non-combat Graf Spee is 8lbs on the nose and sits on the scale waterline, actually just at the bottom of the boot stripe. Fastgun doesnt -really- go off the scale waterline, instead relying on a -calculated- waterline that fits in the freeboard and penetrable area rules which is why the weight is important. When ships were made from wood and fiberglass hulls it was a lot easier to throw it in a pond with what ever max weight and get the exact waterline for the heavy load. That gave you the window size and freeboard in one simple check. With designing a boat in CAD, there are ways to check the water weight and calculate the waterline but it is only a rough estimation. I always built my models to the scale waterline. That way I knew the penetrability rules would be cleared. It is always easier to add weight and change the waterline than to remove it.
Thank you @Iunnrais! - 3.5" is a bit deeper than she was on her last day. - I'm not sure if that's good news or not. I'm going to find a second set of plans to check accuracy. Thank you @darkapollo. That photo and the math certainly helps me a lot. Not sure what happened; but glad to see you back.
IRCWCC weight calculation should be full load displacement in long tons / 1333. We actually just put a rule proposal on the ballot to add that formula to the construction rules, as it's what we use, just behind the scenes in the ship list and not published someplace for reference which it should be. This means Deutschland standard should be roughly 9.3lb and max should be roughly 12.01 x 1.1 = 13.2lb. Once again roughly, please check the ship list for the actual ship list committee calculated weights. Also note, the Deutschland's standard displacement at 10,000~ tons was basically a lie and the class full load displacement varied greatly from ship to ship. So IRCWCC generally runs with the heaviest weight. Edit #2: Also consider that IRCWCC considers all of this ship class the same ship class, for the most part, despite some differences in overall dimensions/construction. Clipper bow or not, beam differences, etc. When you take the largest of all these dimensions you end up with a hull that can probably handle the added weight much easier than the smallest of all these dimensions.
Also remember that these were bulged hulls and often that is changed to be a more flat sided hull which will change its internal volume and thus, weight capacity.
That's a mother beautiful Spee you've got there. (If you don't get it, there's a Kelly's Heroes reference in there. Watch it sometime, it's a mother beautiful movie.) But seriously, great job, she's a beauty.
Thank you! I am quite proud of her. Need to finish the turret rotation and elevation and she will be all done. Working on too many other boats right now for that to be a priority.
It's been quite some time since I last updated; but quite a lot of things have changed. Firstly, I sold the Taz and picked up a Bambu X1C; and I must say it is a MASSIVE upgrade. Next, I made major revisions to Deutschland, and she is now ready for print. 1) I upgraded the deck with screws and (assuming it works) TPU seals. 2) I upgraded the weapon rotation assembly. I lost some magazine space; but the change in dimension mitigated most of it. I expect I should still be able to do 40-50 rounds per cannon. - I had been concerned about ship/cannon impacts. The cannon deck is small and has 4x screws, the cannon has a threaded collar to hold it in place, the support around the servo is very beefy, the servos are metal gears, and the connection from the servo to the cannon is heavily plastic enforced . I anticipate the plastic barrels will be the first thing to break upon impact, so I'll bring extra to battle days. 3) Multi-facetted float. The smoke stack is hollow to accept foam to aide in floation. The lower superstructure disconnects & will float too, incase of the ship listing then rolling over. The bottom deck will stay screwed to the ship, to prevent loss of parts. 4) Cross bars have been removed, so once the deck is unscrewed, access to the internals in unobstructed. 5) CO2 bottle is oriented from front to back, so the ship's movement will encourage the CO2 to stay away from the front of bottle. It's also oriented as sharply as the height of the ship will allow. 6) CO2 Valves, firing boards, and tubes have holders. All tubes live at the bottom of the boat, so they are out of my way. - Not pictured is the T-joint which attaches to the bottle (directly above) 7) Replaced twin 12v 5200 mah to a pair of GoldBatt 12V x 2200mah- Saving a ton of space and weight. Still should give me plenty of battle time. - The battery holder is a nice tight fit, and holds the battery upside down. 8) Moved the ESCs off of the motors, for easier motor management. - Moved to a vertical config, so the ESC fins are facing upward. - Added a mount for the ESC power switches to live. 9) Moved the pump forward of the drive motors, into previously unused space. Upgraded it to use the same 380 motors as the drive. 10) Pump outlet pipe is embedded into the ship's hull. To adjust the pump outlet restrictor; there is now a screw in adjustment tube. - Initially; it's just an 1/4" tube which is perfect for Big Gun rules. However, I can swap out for different restrictors if I want.
It’s been quite a while since I updated this thread. Between work, remodeling our kitchen by myself (and wifey), and working on this ship I just didn’t have the energy to write. ;( First, I’ve revamped my cannon making process, and feel confident that I can move back to 1-piece cannons again. The cartridge cannon was an awesome concept, but takes up too much space. Plus I never liked the flat walls holding pressure. I also hated the implementation of the original cannon rotate. It took up too much space, the rubber O-ring gave too much slop, and the cannon never returned to the same position repeatedly. I also read some post about Big Gun guns allowing too much water through the barbets. Since wind/waves is something NTXBG deals with regularly, I gave the gun an actual barbet to keep more water out. Lastly, the plastic “ball bearing” concept was also awesome; but it was never as smooth as I wanted it. So I moved to a locking collar concept, which is working 100% better/easier. Video Link: https://youtube.com/shorts/AGn5jpx5gEM?si=pG_R1ImQu7WHB-54
More updates- Nearly everything is printed again, and I’m in the process of bench testing everything. I replaced the rudder system to use GEARS, moving away from the original push/pull rod. My reasons: - Now there’s nothing to adjust. You drop the gears in and you are done. - If the rudder gets pushed too far, the rod system had no other choice but to bend. Now the rudder turns as much as it likes. - Lastly, this eliminates more metal parts. No cutting, no screwing, no rusting.
The first battle went GREAT! She didn’t sink and spent the afternoon annoying USS Missouri. Everything worked flawlessly for the entire 3-4 hour battle. She never stopped moving, rudder always worked, cannon rotate was perfect, pump kept me on top of the water, and the cannons sent roughly 400 rounds at the USN. A few notes from the battle: After the first hour, I started to get used to driving the ship and aiming the cannons. I’m happy with the x & y axis positioning computer. I learned my approach tended to be come up behind the target, send fire from my front cannon, then fire my aft cannon as I quickly turn away. For a ship as large as Missouri, I could usually land 6x shots I before being at risk of his 6x front cannons. Sending a full volley vs individual quick shots made zero difference to me. Firing full volleys is now on the bottom of my list. Plastic barrels do not work. Missouri made it a game to blast every single barrel off my ship. I will come next month with metal barrels. I realize I wasn’t consistent with my printing profile strength settings. My hull had no damage, whereas my deck, SS, and cannons took a beating. My float works, but the rope will get stuck during a sink. This will be upgraded by next month. I need greater control over while cannons fire. You can see from the video that I anticipated the front cannon would fire, but the rear was actually selected and my shot missed. I have two trigger buttons on my TX, so I’ll use them for front/back. I think I’ll keep the press/hold will cycle through all guns. The superstructure is too heavy. I need to lighten it up. The barrels were too heavy, and the ship would list under their weight. I’ll add simple counter weight on the back of the turret, for next month.
The superstructure NEEDS to be hollow and thin walled. I believe the files I use for my non-com are under 500g total. It is as light as I could make it and still have structural strength. At best you need very very low infill to reduce the weight.
thank you. I’ll do my best to create my own version of the SS as good as yours over the next couple weeks. I really appreciate being able to use your design initially. It got me on the water so much faster by letting me focus on the mechanical parts.
Or just modify the files you have.. they were made in fusion so fusion can revert them back to a solid pretty easily. Cut them apart at the deck levels and hollow it out. The walls should be 3mm thick.
As soon as the broadside of 9x 1/4” bearings leveled the tower the ship became a lot more maneuverable. So maybe I just don’t care too much. It would be nice if it just got shot up, and not have chunks flying off though… I do need to harden up the cannons and the deck. I can’t have them take damage like that.
Glad you got her on the water! I wish I'd made it, but someone seems to have given me a bit of a bug, and I figured it wouldn't be nice to share. Bleh. Anyway, hopefully I can see y'all in October and you won't mind if I sling a few bb's your way.
I can’t wait. Do I have to wait my full timeout if I’m shooting at you? With no accumulators; she is unreal when I disable my Bug Gun ”reload” timers. Muhahahhahaa
Glorious! Glad to see you had a good battle. Lots of lessons whenever you put a new ship on the water. Sounds like you know exactly what to do to improve. No idea when or how, but I hope to match Mikasa against her some day.
We're talking about NABGO next month? It will not be anywhere as glorious as what I understand they used to be; but you are of course welcome!
Upgrades! Thanks to @Kotori87 - I have new metal barrels coming. I'm sure they are going to be much tighter tolerance, so they will likely hit way harder too. I've created the new float, based on the failures from the last version. This one has the spindle attached and is a nice usage of the previously wasted in my bow. I just hope I don't have any deployment issues. Next, I'm going to work on a counterbalancing system to try to keep the new metal barrels from sinking the ship. I have a couple ideas. I'm going to start with playing around with a gyro-based receiver.
