djranier Great art work! Looks like your saying all the bottom, showing, needs filler or sealant and should be pitched toward the channel. I noticed in the ship with the pink material its not filled and pitched at the back. Looks like the stuff that smells sealant would have to wait until spring to be done outside, so thats out. The pink stuff I cant get locally unless I buy a ton of it. Looks like styrofoam and balsa might be it unless you guys say no.
Any of the ways work, just make sure the balsa is well sealed is all. I would still lay it out about the same.
Should there be room for the large cylinder to fit between the water channel in the front or should it sit up on the edges of the channel.
It can sit up on the edge, you dont really want a whole lot in the channel since that will block the water flow. One thing you might consider putting in the channel is a few small magnets, just glue them to the hull, you can even epoxy over them. They do a pretty good job of catching bbs that enter your hull and make thier way to the water channel, keeps them away from the pump so they dont somehow clog the pump or pump screen, it also makes them easier to remove since by the end of battle youll have a bunch stuck there not loose all over the place.
Tried to work with channeling today but keep running into dead ends. At least I started just don't know where to go now. I know where to go just can't get the how to do it done.
what do you want to use to fill in the rest of the area with? unless you are going to use that sealant its probably going to require a bit of cutting and sanding.
The area between the motors I would also fill, but with a taper, from the high side towards the stern, with the taper going down as it goes forward till you get out from between the motors. That way the water in the stern will run down to the pump. Filling the area with balsa will be the easest I would think, plus no smell. Did Bob explain on how to seal all the balsa. I would coat the inside hull where ever you lay balsa, and paint the bottom of each peice with resin to ensure that water does not get under the balsa. Then build it up to just above the water channel with SG, like 1/8 max. Then sand down towards the center, from the sides at like a 2 or 3 deg angle, so that it flows down towards the water channel. Then seal the works with resin, and any gaps along the sides. See I make it sound so easy. []
I thought maybe in the spring I could use the sealant in the back section. Tilting for the proper drainage. Right now looking at balsa and some Styrofoam but not sure as yet what to do. Have to let the epoxy coating dry on the channel wood. The balsa really doesn't give good support for the batteries so supports would have to be added. Want it to look neat also. Maybe neatness is not in this game. I don't think Bob talked too much about under balsa sealing. I got the rudder gears and the low profile HD servo for the rudder maybe I should think about setting that up. Suggestions always needed.
I cut & sand the balsa as close as I can get it to hull shape. Then I coated the bottom in bondo and squished it into the hull. Removed extra bondo. Sanded when dry. Then coated with three coats of penitrating epoxy. Hull and deck weighs 7.4 lbs right now. With all the stuff in it she still is at 35lbs. Seams to be the normal weight for an NC. I put a lot more bondo, the light weight kind. into it then I thought I would. I'm sure there is a lighter way to do it. Wonder it putting balsa in and then pouring Dave's concrete sealent would be better. A method I don't think anyone has talked about is what John Bruder uses. He gets some 1/4" foam from an auto parts store. It is meant to be on the floor of a garage. it is very light wieght. Does not absorbe water and is very durable. I think he glues it in the hull with shoe goo.
Very good Bob, thanks. Not sure which way to go with this but thinking balsa and foam maybe. I like Dave's sealant channel and his pink foam channel. If it was summer the sealant would be good to seal and dry outside. Looking for some pink foam. To cold outside for that smell in the house and me living out of the car this week. Think I'll try to work with the rudder gear, sealing the channel again and getting ready to install the two prop shafts and dummy props. While getting suggestions on doing the channel. I bought balsa and styrofoam but not sure yet.
Are you still looking for pink foam or did you find some, Ive got part of a sheet of pink foam leftover from other projects, its about 22"x15"x1.5", might be a little thick but if you want it you can have it. Just cant get it to you till next week sometime.
Thanks Snipehunter I don't think it can be any thicker than 1/2 inch to work right, but if you have it next week maybe I could use it I'll be still searching for the Holly Grail of foam.
klibben I have come up with that also but the smallest amount you can buy is $44.00 worth. I'll keep searching but thanks.
if you want to use foam kinda like bob was suggesting maybe all you need to do is go to walmart or dicks sporting good or something like that and get a cheap foam pad for under your sleeping bag or yoga or something like that. probably cost you $10 or less, easy to cut. just cut it to shape and glue it in place and then coat it with epoxy to keep it waterproof. just an idea, never tried it.
Thanks Snipester Don't know which way to go yet but good lead. Looking at your pictures and seeing how you added your rudder servo. Did you epoxy the wood holding the servo down to the hull. Holds it no problem?
yup, it holds great. I just took a stick of 1/4" by i dunno 1/2" basswood i think and cut a bunch of lengths of it and glued them together till it was the correct height, sanded the bottom so it fit nice. attached it to the rudder servo and then used CA to tack it in place after i positioned the servo so the gears meshed correctly. Took the servo out and epoxied it in place, its a pretty strong mounting system i think. Not the prettiest but it works and results are what counts.
Thinking of balsa. This is 1/8 inch balsa, pitched up on side, but would need some bottom support. Maybe Styrofoam? Maybe smaller sections would be better. Maybe 1/4 inch would be better.
Here is the info on the water channeling foam from John Bruder. John is a MWC guy from CO. It is interlocking foam garage floor tile. I paid about $6.00 for nine 2' x2' squares. Checker Auto parts had it, Pep Boys sometimes has it. Lowes often has it in multi colors. Prices may vary. It is 5/8 inch thick and usually smooth on one side with a pattern on the other side. I always glue the pattern side down. I have glued it in with plumbers goop and have also put it in with thickened epoxy, weighted down so that it sets in the place I want it to be. It cuts very easily with a sharpened steak knife or a filet knife. Or any sharp kitchen knife works. I usualy use a wooden guide to keep the cuts straight. Yes, I still like it. It is water, oil and probably nuke proof. It never absorbs anything and has almost no weight. I still have it in the Barham and I still like it. I put it in the Baden before I sold it and removed the old crap I had inside of it and it made the ship 3 pounds lighter. Whoever bought the Baden from me can tell you if they like it or not. The one negative is that it makes your water channelling 5/8 inch high. It works great but raises all of your internal parts and weight over a 1/4 inch higher than normal water channelling. It has worked very well for me in spite of this difference. It is cheap, easy to work with, never soaks up any water, can be painted, also works for super structure and lasts forever. Amen.
