I have sratch built a sharnhorst class hull and it mesures 65 3/8" x 8 3/8" Is this close enough? I didn't account for the skin on top of the ribs. I just glued the patterns I bought on the plywood and cut them out. It's my fist ship so I'm lerning as I go.
Your overall length is about 1.75% too long, and 2.55% too wide, based off 1/144 conversion of the dimensions listed on the MWC shiplist. I believe you said that you're building for MWC rules. MWC rules require all dimensions within 2%, so your hull is a bit too wide. I don't think anyone's gonna prevent you from playing just because the first ship you ever built (scratchbuilt, no less!) is a teensy bit too wide. You should also check that your rib thicknesses and bow/stern solid sections are legal. Do you have any pictures yet? I'd love to see what you've got so far!
If your ribs are thick enough, you can sand them down a bit to get closer to spec. If you've already sheeted, go with it. Tell the guys you're battling with about it and I'll guarantee you that they'll let you battle it. If you someday want to go to Nationals, then you can get some help in slmming Scharnie down, but for regional battles, they'll probably be happy to have another ship on the water. So in short, don't worry about it right now Get her on the water and battling, fix it over the winter. I second Carl's call for pics
There's a how-to in the Photo section... basically, you get an account (free) on photobucket.com, upload your pic to that, and then there will be a web address you copy and paste to a posting on here, where it will be visible The how-to explains it better; it literally took me 5 minutes(if that) to do it. Like this one
Thanks Tuggy, I nearly forgot! The Filemanager has just come online as of last week. You can upload to it instead of photobucket... Should be tons easier. I will change the photo instructions. GOTO the main page (http://www.rcnavalcombat.com) & click on "File Manager" it is setup like explorer & it should be relatively easy to figure out. But I'll post instructions on the photo thread eitherway. I hate that 2% rule... Gave me a heart attack when I first read it (I had already finished NJ's hull to Big Gun, which I think is like 5%!) I hurredly rushed home & broke out my tape measure................. 1/32" thinner than the rule in the middle & like 1/8" shorter overall (I forget the acutal numbers....) WHAT I MEAN TO SAY IS -->> DAMN THAT WAS A CLOSE ONE!!! HOWEVER, TUGGY's right. They will let you fight in regionals. My MWC group let me fight a Big Gun Alsace (can get much more out of MWC spec). You will not want to be going to nats your first year either... Your ship (like all new ships) will experience "new ship blues" & the one thing you don't want is to travel to NATS & have a non functional ship. (That would suck)
Are you sujesting that I might not be perfect right from the start?LOL. Ya I plan to get lot's of advice and just spend the first year working it out. here's my album link.
Very nice work, Steve!! What size battery are you using, and where's it going? I saw the size of the CO2 bottle and wondered I'm running a 9 oz bottle, and that's really more than I need.
Yea it's 20 oz.CO2! I'm going to use seperate packs for radio,drive motors. nimh 3000 ma cells soilerd together with battery bar's for custom fit in the hull. I have so many high quality pack's from my other hobby's I can run 2 together for drive motor's to get amp/hr capacity What do you think about waterproofing them?
I do have 2-6 volt power wheels battery's and 2-12 volt 7 amp hr batterys but I thought they take so mutch room and you have to charge them slow. on the other hand theyre almost trouble free and mutch less likely to catch fire if you have somthing shift around in a sink ect. Am I on the right track?
If you have the NIMH packs laying around, go for it. I'm using SLAs for mine cause I'm poor As far as waterproofing, I think as long as your battery cases are sealed, then you're ok. I'm using 2x 12AH 6v batteries in my MWCI Scharnie. That's what Rick King uses in his, and has been for quite a while. I'd say 24AH is plenty, even scrappin' and pumpin' out on the water for a 3 sortie battle.
Yup sure looks like you know what you are doing. Becareful of those masts (they look metal), if you fall down while carrying it you could stab yourself. I think most people use SLAs... but probably because of cost more than anything. NIMH are just fine too as long as you have enough of them to get the needed AHs. I use: 1x 12V @ 18AH in the NJ. (roughly 6V @ 36AH) --> not tested yet 2x 12V @ 7AH in the Alsace (roughly 6V @ 28AH) --> lasts hours and hours
The "standard" battery setup for large warships over here in Australia is two 12Ah 6volt SLA batteries. Unless you have a Yamma, then you run FOUR..... Like Tug said, that gives you a lot of time on the water. NiMh batteries seem to be used mainly in small ships that can't afford the weight of even a small SLA. We don't use LiPoly cells, due to the risk involved if cells get damaged, then wet.
We had a Lithium cell pack cook off in a cruiser... very funny, except for the man involved He got it out with a set of tongs and threw it to let it end it'sa life in a glorious pyroclastic demise. It smoked a lot and quite a bit of heat was generated, but unfortunately, no big show Probably because it had been removed from the lake, only a little H2O was present on shore. But I won't use Lithium in a ship, no sir.
I have used lithium successfully (Lipoly, not li-ion) and yes it has survived exposure to 15 feet of water for more than an hour (it was hard to find). One should either put them in a watertight box or coat the pack with electronics safe silicon. Then test it for a day in a pot of water out on your driveway. One trick to remember is that Lithium Ion is far testier and easier to cause a meltdown/fire in than lithium polymer (bit o personal experience here). I do not recommend anyone use them in a ship who is not well familiar with their characteristics (particularly during charge) and does not really need them for run time reasons (or weight). We should keep an eye on the lithium battery front because (this is anecdotal) a few years back lithium fires were relatively common (almost always caused during charging)but now they are very very rare. The technology is getting better and as long as one is smart about how the cells are used, you'll be fine. Biggest secondary downside is the excessive cost of the cells. The 4 cells that run my Karlsruhe cost me ~140$ US total.
