@McSpuds - I live in the Dayton OH area, so 2 to 2.5 hours away. I hope to have the rest of the kit parts fitted this week so that I know if any more changes are necessary. After that I'll allow about two weeks for everyone to make their order. I think the slightly enlarged mast sizes will be good. If you get your rigging shot off and you break a mast because you have too much sail for the conditions, that seems like a realistic battle.
Mark, would you mind if we post about the Constitution on the Scale Sail forum on RC Groups, or a few other forums? I know a few people who are interested, but do not frequent the RCNC forums. For mast strength, I am not hugely concerned about rigging getting shot away in battle. It isn't very hard to get 100lb-test or stronger fishing line for real stays, and decorative rigging can be made of elastic. I am more concerned about accidentally breaking masts and yards by bumping into them during transportation and setup. It would be very embarrassing to sit out a battle because you broke your bowsprit while removing your ship from the car, after all. So I guess easy replacement of the dowels would be another important concern.
Mark, would you mind if we post about the Constitution on the Scale Sail forum on RC Groups, or a few other forums? I know a few people who are interested, but do not frequent the RCNC forums. For mast strength, I am not hugely concerned about rigging getting shot away in battle. It isn't very hard to get 100lb-test or stronger fishing line for real stays, and decorative rigging can be made of elastic. I am more concerned about accidentally breaking masts and yards by bumping into them during transportation and setup. It would be very embarrassing to sit out a battle because you broke your bowsprit while removing your ship from the car, after all. So I guess easy replacement of the dowels would be another important concern.
@ McSpuds - I am not going to the PA battle, I mostly battle Treaty format. @Kotori87 - feel free to post on other sites. I have the same user name on RC groups, so just let me know the thread and I can check in occasionally to answer questions. The mast can all be removed and either repaired or replaced if needed. One thing I'm going to work on this week is the best brass tube size to use for the mast sockets. Right now I'm using the size with the ID equal to the dowel size. That makes for a pretty tight fit - which will get very tight or even impossible to insert/remove when a finish is added or if the wood gets wet and swells. I'm going to see if I can find brass tube one size larger to try.
One thing I am trying on my masts, is permanently inserting them into a brass sleeve at the lower portion of the masts, then using a larger sleeve for the socket. Might be over kill, but I thought it would make removing the masts easier.
I also like the idea of using two brass tubes, it removes the variability of the wood from the fit. So I went looking for brass tubes today and discovered that the largest brass tube that K&S makes is 21/32". I needed a 11/16" tube to keep the 5/8" masts. So for the main and fore masts we have two choices: 1) Stick with the 5/8" mast and use the 21/32" tube for the socket (no 2nd tube) or 2) go down to a 1/2" mast, which will have a 17/32" tube case and use a 9/16" tube for the socket. Is it OK to go down to a 1/2" mast or should I stick with the 5/8" mast?
I checked my ship this weekend and I've got 1/2" oak dowels as the base sections of my masts. If those go due to wind, the sails have already been torn away by that wind. They're really strong.
I looked in my wallet this morning and there is still money there, so failing spars or not I am looking forward to relieving my wallet of its extra burden on this ship. Let me know when money can be sent, I will build to make her pretty at first (always wanted a sailing ship).
Lou, I talked with Gascan and we're trying to find a 3D printable female figure to modify to do a gorgeous figurehead for the ships It's all about pretty
I assembled the cannon ports tonight, and it looks like they will work as planned. First there is the cannon port frame with a 1/4" wide side as specified in the rules. Then there is a backer that narrows the slot down to a cannon barrel width, followed by a 1/8" spacer and finished with a 1/8" piece that acts to retain the seal. The finger of a rubber glove can be placed over the spacer and then retained by an o-ring. Tie off the glove finger around the barrel and you have a cannon port where you can freely adjust the elevation and is reasonably waterproof. At least a big slug of water won't enter the ship if the cannon ports go underwater.
Mark, I was just reviewing the pictures you've posted again and I noticed that one of the ribs has what looks like vertical servo mounts. Given its location near the mainmast, am I right in guessing that's for elevation control of the cannons?
If I don't get two of these kits soon...... I may explode! Have we given any thought to making the balsa skin a little thicker to lengthen the battles? BB's will still pen thicker stuff... just will take more to splinter it..
Good eyes, that is exactly what the servo mount is for. For the final piece de resistance, I give you the gun deck: It pivots on holes set in the ribs and contains space for 6 guns. The servo underneath allows you to pivot the deck up and down. Also in this picture you can see how the gun ports are glued to the ribs and one of the pivots. The gun deck in action: One thing I didn't anticipate was how hard it is going to be to install or change the O-rings on the gun port. I guess if the seal is needed then the effort will be made, otherwise I anticipate most captains will leave them off. The barrel is held securely in place with a couple of pieces of scrape plywood and some brass straps. Overall I'm pleased with how the gun deck performs. Just about every slot and hole in it is wrong, so I have a lot of corrections to make.
This is looking very nice so far.... I am ready for a order now... LOL :kiss: I do love the elevating gun deck. With that gun deck moving, we are going to have to set the cut off switch to turn off the guns at their zero elevation as the ship is level.... As long as those guns can not elevate above zero we are good. The gun mounting is going to be easy... just a clamp and maybe a zip tie behind the elbow to hold it secure... good job! I will get a couple of these on the local park pond as soon as I can. These will seriously drum up a few new members in the area.....
I am going to place the order on June 16th. That will give everyone two weeks to come up with their money and place their order. If you qualify, you might even ask the Admiral for the kit as a father's day present. When I get home today I will finish the draft of the instructions and then post in the "For Sale" section how you can order a kit.
