OTW 1/100 Vanguard build thread - a step by step pictorial

[eckloss]

Hello all...

My intention here is to provide a brief documentation of the build-up of the OTW 1/100 Vanguard kit.

Before I begin, a little background is on order...

Several months ago, I contacted OTW and ordered one of their 1/100 scale Vanguard boats. Robert at OTW was, as I'm sure anyone who has dealt with him knows, extremely happy to help in any way he could. He kept me updated every step of the way in regards to the production of the boat and its delivery.

The kit came with a 2-part hull, upper and lower halves, sail, forward dive planes, rear dive planes, and rudders. I also opted to purchase the cast-metal pumpjet to complete the boat.

About 5 weeks after my order, the Vanguard arrived in perfect condition.

It's not my intent to review the kit here, but I do have to say a few things]http://www.otwdesigns.com/Vanguard/Vanguard.htm[/url]

Included with the kit was a CD with a great selection of photos of the Vanguard class. One photo in particular jumped out at me...it was a close-up of the sail running just above the water, with all masts and scopes extended. I thought to myself "I'd really like to reproduce those masts and such on my own boat!". But, I lack the time or proper tools right now to do something like this myself.

I posted a message on the SC board asking if anyone would be interested in taking on the project for me.

David Merriman of D&E responded and said he would be interested. He also agreed to help with the rudders and dive planes on this boat (the originals from OTW needed some modifications to better conform to the available photo documentation I was provided).

I sent David the sail and appendages, as well as as much photo documentation as I could get my hands on.

After he reviewed what I sent to him, David was eager to take on the project, and jumped right in. He also agreed to take on the entire kit....the commission of the sail modifications has now turned into David doing a complete turn-key build up for me.

David has been documenting the entire process on video. I received the first two hours of footage earlier this week, transferred it to DVD, and have grabbed some still images from it. As I get more video and stills, I will continue to post them here, with some brief explainations.

I invite comments as the build-up progresses.

I will post the first set of images shortly.

Erich Kloss

[eckloss]

The sail]http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap003.jpg

First order of business

The sail]http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap003.jpg[/img]

First order of business was to remove the top portion of the sail. The sail was mounted flat on a board and a cut line drawn with a water-line marking tool. Two lines were drawn about 1/16" apart as a guide for cutting with the band saw.





The band saw made quick work of removing the upper portion of the sail. Here you can see the sail alongside the photo that will be used as a guide for building the masts and scopes.





A block of high-density (about 40lb/cu ft) modeler's foam was cut and the removed portion of the sail was traced onto it. This foam has about the same working properties as dense balsa, and will serve as a mount for the masts.





The block was cut to a rough shape, then sanded into near-final form on a belt sander.





The formed foam block was then adhered to the sail using CA and baking soda.





A sanding block was laid up against the sail to bring the new top portion into shape. David took great care not to remove any of the gel coat on the original sail. Instead it was only dulled. The black markings show areas where pits in the fiberglass have been identified and will later be filled.





Next, a center line had to be determined along the top of the sail to use as a guide for scribing in the top openings. At the rear of the sail, the point where the two halves come together provide an easy mark. The front of the sail, however, is rounded. By laying a piece of pencil lead across the fron face, a center line can easily be traced.





With the forward and rear centers marked, a ruler is laid down between them and a center datum line traced out.





To ensure the center line is actually in the center of the top of the sail, several transverse lines are drawn. Then, a compass is used to compare the distances from the center line to each side. In this case, the sail was found to be very well made and very accurate as to symmetry.





Automotive filler was mixed and applied to the sail in the areas previously identified, to fill any pits and imperfections.


...continued onthe next message...

[eckloss]

http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap013.jpg

David took the large color



David took the large color photo of the sail and had it reduced to match the scale of the OTW sail. From this reduced photo, measurements can be made to help identify exactly where the openings atop the sail should be.





As you can see here, a compass is again used to measure the distances from a fixed point on the photo (the forward most part of the sail) to the openings.





That distance can then be transferred to the sail with a 1]http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap016.jpg[/img]

Next, rough outlines are made of the shapes of the openings.





After properly tracing the opening shapes using various stencils, you can see the final outline. These will later be opened up to accept the scopes and such.



Much more to come....

Erich

[eckloss]

http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap018.jpg

After a careful review of



After a careful review of some more documentation I was able to dig up, it was determined that the sail, as originally constructed by OTW, was slightly undersized, in both length and height. In the photo above, you can see the correct sail profile drawn on a set of Vanguard plans.



In the next three photos below, you can see David's end result]http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap019.jpg[/img]








...more to come...

e.

[eckloss]

...it was at this point

[color=#000000]...it was at this point that I sent the hull itself to David, along with one of his WTC 3.5's and a set of Thor electronics.

Now for the Z-cut.





The upper and lower hull halves had a built-in flange along the inner edges. This was removed to make room for the indexing strip, to be added later. This was done with moto-tool and cut-off wheels.





On a flat board, David laid out a center line and a set of parallel lines on which to align the hull halves. Rubber bands stretched over the hull and secured on either side with hooks kept the hull halves in place. He then clamped a board with an area cut out of the bottom center over the area where the cut would be made. Arranging it at a 90 degree angle to the center line of the hull, a marking tool was laid against this board and the ink marker was run along the contour of the hull. This ensures a cut line exactly perpendicular to the longitudinal center line of the hull.





After completing the guide lines, the aft portion of the upper hull half was removed with cut-off wheel. The same process was repeated for the lower hull half, removing the forward portion of the hull, which will later be attached to the top hull section.





The areas where the hull parts will be joined are roughed up with sanding block and course paper.





Here, David is tacking in place the forward portion of the lower hull to the upper hull. A few drops of CA are used along the seam, and quickly set with the aid of baking soda. Same process is repeated for the other hull half.





Here you can see the end result, before the final bonding with resin and tape is done.





A length of 1" wide fiberglass cloth tape is rolled in preparation for laying inside the hull to form a bond between the hull sections.





West System epoxy resin and hardener are mixed and with a bent brush (for easier use inside the hull) applied to the inside seams. The cloth tape is then laid and unrolled over the seam. The tape is further saturated with resin along the entire seam, on both the fore and aft hull sections.



Next post]

[eckloss]

I have to make a

I have to make a correction.

I neglected to mention in the post regarding the modification of the sail that after one more review it was determined that the sail, as produced by OTW, was more accurate than originally thought.

Such is the way with Brit boats it seems. Not nearly as many documents or photos as one would like =)

If I led anyone to believe that OTW was in any way lacking in their production of the sail, I apologize. This is not the case. They were pretty much dead on after all. Another testiment to the fine work OTW does with their boats.

I will be posting the indexing strips photos here soon.

e.

[georget]

I do believe that the

I do believe that the OTW Vangaurd kit is 100% accurate. They used an original hydro-stat test hull as the master! This is the reason for the overall lack of detail of scribed lines. The hydro-stat test hull had no need of them.
Also I was told that the plans that come with the hull kit are for refence only and NOT very accurate.

George

[Guest]

The rear vanes aren't right.

The rear vanes aren't right. The scribed line for splitting the fixed vane from the moving vanes is wrong, you can see that by careful examination of reference photos of the fullsize boat in drydock.

That, and the lack of scribed lines for the missile loading tracks is my only real beef with the detail on this model.

Both are fairly easy to correct by the builder.

With Dave on the case, methinks we may well see some upgrade parts in the very near future!

Andy



Edited By Sub culture on 1113719875

[eckloss]

Indeed, David is re-mastering the

Indeed, David is re-mastering the dive planes and rudders. I will have posts and photos detailing the process in the near future. New parts will be forwarded to OTW. David is also doing work on a new pumpjet.

[Guest]

What's wrong with the OTW

What's wrong with the OTW pump jet?

Not enough blades perhaps?

The rudders looked reasonable on the OTW model. The upper rudder doesn't have a line scribed in it for where it splits, and they have to be 'faired' into the hull.

Plus the top of the rudder isn't sufficiently rounded, no towed sonar array mount cast in either.

One other thing I've noticed- I believe the forward torpedo hatches have been scribed in too high.

Andy

[eckloss]

Indexing strips.

As stated earlier, the

[color=#000000]Indexing strips.

As stated earlier, the built-in flange that ran along the inside of both upper and lower hull halves was removed to make way for an indexing strip.

The flanges are intended to be used to lock the hull halves together and keep them in proper alignment. This could be done by inserting metal pegs at regular intervals along the flanges.

The indexing strips act similarly to guide the hull halves together and keep them aligned.






First, a length of wax paper was laid down over the lower hull half. The wax will prevent any of the resin from adhering to the hull, while still allowing the strips to take the shape of the curvature of the hull, as is needed for properly working indexes.





Next, 10oz fiberglass cloth is cut to length, with a width of several inches. The cloth is laid along the center line, and resin is brushed in. After saturating the first layer, a second layer of clost and resin is applied. The entire application is then allowed to cure.





Once fully cured, the entire work is easily lifted off the hull, and wax paper simply peeled away. You will notice the rough indexing strip, shown here upside down, has formed itself to the curves in the hull.





The strip is again placed over the lower hull and taped down to keep it from moving. It is then roughed with course sand paper. This will allow a better bond between the strip and the interior of the hull.





The initial strip was made wide enough so that two strips, one for each side of the hull, could be cut. Here, David marks out lines for the two strips. Each will be about an inch tall.





The strips are cut out with bandsaw.





The end result]

[eckloss]

(indexing strips continued)



http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap111.jpg

The strips are

(indexing strips continued)





The strips are adhered to the hull with West System epoxy resin. The inside edges of the hull is first roughed with moto-tool and sanding drum. The area is saturated with resin, the strips positioned, and held in place with clothes pins until fully cured.





Here you can see the strips in place. They may be trimmed later as needed.



Next, the process is repeated to make the flanges for the forward and rear portions of the hull.

The overall configuration can be seen bleow.



The process for creating the flanges is about the same. Just a few photos below to show some of the steps.











thats all for now. more later this week.

e.

[eckloss]

...and it continues...

With the indexing

...and it continues...

With the indexing strips and flanges secured in place, David goes on to add another level of perfection. This one took me by surprise, and I couldn't be more thrilled....one thing I have an issue with is being able to see a huge seam gap when the upper and lower hulls are joined. David's neat little tricks took care of that with the Vanguard, as you'll see]http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap150.jpg[/img]

First, at the forawrd end of the lower hull half, a length of GRP was installed to keep the end of the hull stretched apart to the correct distance.





Mounted to the inside of the upper hull are rows of molded pieces which capture the indexing strip on the lower hull and align it tightly to the lower hull. These pieces are contoured to the inner hull and reinforced with carbon filament.





Here you can see the gap between the hull and the capture device into which the indexing strip goes.





Next, the seam where the upper hull rests on the lower hull flange is filled.

Silicone grease is applied to the inside of the upper hull cut area. This insures that the filler (bondo-type automotive filler) does not bond to the upper hull.





The idea here is to bring the upper hull nearly into position, apply filler on the lower hull flange, then slam the two hull parts together and allow the filler to set. The hull then can be separated again and the rest of the filler applied and sanded.





With the upper hull at the ready, filler is applied with a putty knife onto the capture flange. You must act quickly before the filler starts to cure!





The hull halves are brought together and the set screw installed. You can see that some filler seeps out of the seam.

http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap157.jpg

As the filler starts to cure to the point of being tacky, the excess is removed with a sharp putty knife.

...continued...

[eckloss]

(...sorry, missed that last picture...)


http://www.minitek.com/vanguard/cap157.jpg


As

(...sorry, missed that last picture...)





As the filler starts to cure to the point of being tacky, the excess is removed with a sharp putty knife.







After everything is allowed to fully cure, a little sanding is all that's needed to smooth over the seam. Then, flex the hull to separate the two hull halves. You are left with a perfect, almost invisible seam.





Filler needs to be applied to the rest of the flange to level it out.





A sharpie is used to trace out the edge of where the filler ends and new filler should be applied.





More filler is applied with a putty knife.





After it sets, the new filler is sanded down lightly until the mark left by the sharpie starts to reappear.



The hulll is then reassembled and the seam is checked. Additional sanding may be needed to bring the hull halves into perfect balance.

more to come...

e.

[georget]

Anything new on the Vangaurd

Anything new on the Vangaurd build??
George