Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

[thor]

Guys,

I am preparing a series of articles for the next few issues of the SCR entitled 'Magnificent Monsters'. If you have a large scale R/C sub, 1/32nd scale or larger, please email me at matt@precisionpattern.biz. I would like to feature your boats in the series.

What I am looking for:
1) Pics from all sides out of water.
2) In water pics....under the surface if you have them!
3) A brief history of your project.
a) Ballast system specifics
b) Challenges your tackled on your project
c) Likes and dislikes of the particular subject
d) How do you handle the boat in and out of the water....launching techniques, recovery, etc...
e) Power supply, electronic speed controls, basic electronic setup
f) Drive train, gear reductions, motor selections, seals,

There is a growing trend back toward the larger scale boats. The mission of the article is to assist as many modelers with answers and solutions to successfully modeling a submarine in large scale submarine.

Thanks for the help!

Matt

[tabledancer]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Excellent project Matt,I`ll be getting ready to send you a few picts of the tower to post soon.






TD

[JWLaRue]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Matt,

Perhaps an OTW Type VII, OTW Seehund and Manley(?) Type II would be of interest?

-Jeff

[thor]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Jeff,

You know they would be!

Matt

[Guest]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

We had a large variety of big scale boats at last Sundays dive-in, including a 1/48th Alfa (although smaller than 1/32nd scale, it's still a big sucker at that scale), 1/32nd S-class, 1/12th X-craft, 1/6th Dive scooter- we even had a 1/6th scale Orca!

[thor]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Andy,

Excellent! Would it be possible to get contact information for these modelers??? Those are some excellent subjects to cover!

Matt

[Guest]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Well the Orca and Dive Scooter belong to a Belgian modeller called Raf. Not sure if he is a Sub Committee member- will have to check the directory.

The Alfa was originally an Eden models boat (now Sheerline) and is owned by Alistair Cullen (who is a member). Alistair doesn't build subs as such, he buys them S/H and tinkers with them. I know the Alfa was back from a significant refit by Chris Cloke at Sheerline. Huge boat- even an Engel Typhoon looks like a baby next to this brute. It needs 67 pounds of lead for ballast alone!

The 1/12th X-craft was built by Nigel Edmonds, using tooling from Alan Poole and is now owned by Bill Macleod.

The Orca and Dive scooter were both dynamic divers, the Alfa uses a water pump system, with two centrifugal pumps mounted in series (to provide pressure) pumping into a central cylindrical sealed ballast tank which is baffled to avoid slosh. The x-craft uses a geared water pump which pumps into a bag, mounted in the centre of the dive module (wtc) to surface the pump is reversed. A modified festo valve which is hooked up to a servo acts to shut off the pipe leading to the bag, as geared pumps are not self sealing.

[Wheelerdealer]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

That Alfa is at the rather odd scale of 1/42., same as my LA class hull. Shown here next to a 1/96 scale Akula (yes you can use the LA hull as a test tank for the Akula ). Unfortunately she is still unbuild.

[Guest]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

You could use it as a novelty roof box for transporting smaller subs- like a set of Babushka dolls.

Did Dennis manufacture a dive module for that beast?

[Wheelerdealer]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Yes he did, made by Craycraft.

[Guest]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Ah right, Brian Cornelius- so a compressed air module. Have you got that module in your boat then?

[u-33]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Does this old beast count Matt?




(you'll have to excuse the pictures, they are mobile phone pics of 35mm photographs taken maybe thirty five years back)

She was a semi-scale 1/24th scale model of U-117, a Type 1X U-boat measuring 108" oal, made from wood(old doors and floorboards, etc). The bottom pic shows her alongside a Darnell Models U-boat to give an impression of her size. She was built...ooh, thirty five years or more ago now, and was based on the MAP plan, but doubled in size.

It turned out to a bit of white elephant though, she was just too big to handle or store, although I did run her for few months, but I had to sell her in the end.

She was so heavy that it took five men to lift her out of the water to allow the water to drain out of her...just too much really.


Rich

[thor]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Rich,

You bet! It is a bit of an extreme example but send whatever you have to me and lets get it in the SCR!

Matt

[u-33]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Matt, I'm just waiting on getting my archive photo albums back from our club chairman, soon as they arrive I'll get something organised for you. I believe the boat still exists(or did a few years back)in a display case in the bar of a golf club not too far from here, I'll do some research as to if it is still about, if it is I might be able to get some better pictures of it.

I can't really remember much about it now, it was a long time ago, but I do remember it had two big electric motors run from a 12volt car battery. I did run it out in the open sea a couple of times, it looked really impressive pushing through the waves with the skipper standing in the conning tower, observing the course settings through his binoculars. He was connected to the rudder servo, so as the rudders turned the boat he would turn with it.

It did win a trophy in a competition I entered it in on a big reservoir, our club was invited to a Save Water Show at the reservoir, she won the 'Best Boat of the Show' award.


Rich

[subicman]

Re: Calling on all 1/32nd Submarine Owners

Matt,

I would assume that my 1/16th Kairyu prolly doesn't make the cut, as it is about the same size as a 1/96 Sturgeon.


Tim