The sub-deck The supports for the winch trolley rails are added to the bottom of the sub-deck before it is assembled to the ribs. The 5/32 rails are not glued at this point, just dry fit to make sure everything is straight.
The hard areas in the bow and stern are built up from layers of plywood. Since the keel extends past the curve of the hull, a sanding template is provided to make it easier to shape the hard areas. The first design error is here, where the second layer in the stern doesn't extend quite far enough.
Gascan, finish the I-boat. You're already a nuke electrician(subs)(even if you're still dinq/nub/sub-unqual)*... it would only take a few more unfinished projects to put you on the path to the Clark side of the hobby. 10 years from now, you'll have a shed somewhere with 50 hulls in various states of incompletion... It's a fate too horrible for words. * I say it with love You're probably FAR better at qualifying than I was
In regards to money, I don't need it quite yet. First I plan to finish building the prototype to make sure that there are no major issues. After that I'll give everyone a couple of weeks to get me money for the first run of kits. I'm going sell the first run of kits for $120 plus shipping. After the first run the price will go up to $150. It will be hard to estimate shipping right now. I'm hoping to eliminate at least 2 boards, possibly 3, so the total weight will go down. For now, you can estimate shipping by going on the USPS website and calculating the shipping for priority mail from 45434 to your zip, 18 pounds, and a 30x12x4 package. That will give you a maximum for planning purposes. Hopefully I'll get the prototype done in less than two weeks and by that time they will have fixed all the problems with the laser.
Rough sanding of the hard areas is done with a 4 1/2" angle grinder with 80 grit sanding pad. Clamp it to something and start grinding away. This definitely needs to be done outdoors with a sanding mask and a shower is in order afterwards. But it only took 15 minutes to do all the hard areas, so this is the best method I have come up with. The bow hard area with the sanding template removed and then installed on the keel
The ribs and water channel installed. The water channel is built-in with a slope towards the stern of the ship. Sub-deck installed. It's starting to look like a real ship. Stern windows. I have some issues with how the stern windows are fitting. That's not too surprising given the complexity of the stern, but I'm going to have to work through the corrections before I can to further. You can also see how the stern hard area came out.
The rails are 2.0" on center. Carriages are included, so don't go off and print some. The carriage parts include mounting holes for standard servos or the Hitec 785 winch servo.
The winch carriages have a piece of wood extending under the servo mount to hold two 4" pieces of 3/16" OD brass tubing. An additional brace on each side keeps the block perfectly straight. Installed
I was able to see the Ol' Iron sides today, very impressed. By far the best laser cut anything I have seen yet. All the extras which are not displayed yet make it a must have!
Yummy, Yummy, Yummy, Tug and I were just talking about the cony last battle. I cant wait till we get a run on these..... Nice Job!
Mark, that is amazing! I took time off from work to track down a computer with working internet on an island halfway around the world so I could see photos of what you've done. Words cannot describe how I am feeling right now. The thrill of knowing that something amazing is happening, coupled with the frustration of not knowing when my submarine will come home so I can build my own version. It looks great as just a hull right now, but I really can't wait to see it with masts and yards. That's when it truly becomes a "tall" ship.
Thanks, I'm pleased with how it's coming together. Speaking of masts, I need some help from the experts on the mast and spar sizes. *edit: table data removed because forum conversion butchered it, see PDF linked for data* Please look these over and let me know if I should make any changes. The masts are the most important because there are pieces in the kit that depend on the sizes. Changes can be easily made now if needed. I picked up oak dowels for the mast pieces at Lowes. In oak they have 3/16, 1/4, 5/16, 3/8, 7/16, 1/2, and 5/8. A PDF of the table is in the attached file
I'm creating new bow hard area parts and stern parts right now, so assembly progress is slow. In the meantime, here's some eye candy. Captain's gig parts Parts assembled and rough sanded Finished
