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Author Topic: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!  (Read 2411 times)

Olliety

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First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« on: May 04, 2020, 10:19:14 am »

Hi all,

My name is Ollie, I've been lurking here on and off for a while gathering tips and info. I've been in the R/C aircraft game in some shape or another for the last 15 years, but I've only flown pre formed planes during that time. A few years ago I saw a SLEC tent at Weston Park model airshow, and ws hooked by the look of the Huntsman they had on display. I chickened out of starting a balsa kit at that time, but never quite managed to get the shape of that boat out of my mind ever since. In these times of lockdown, my dad sent me a message out of the blue saying he'd bought a Billing Boats Calypso to work on, and wanted some help and advice on running gear etc. After I saw that, I decided to bite the bullet and order my own kit. for a while I couldnt decide between the new Huntress or modifying the older Huntsman to have an aft cockpit ( that might be a future project) and then settled on the Swordsman, which has really stunning lines. I'm using a mixture of Gel superglue and Aliphatic glue for the construction.

Here's how I've been finding it:





It felt a bit daunting at first, but I have to give credit to Dave, as the  instructions are top notch and the accuracy is great, everything just fits!










And here's where I am now:



I'm a little nervous about the next steps; sanding the chines to shape and then affixing the hull panels, and later on sanding the balsa hull blocks to shape. I think Im going to go at it with 400 grit paper to keep my progress metered; I don't want to be overzealous in my material removal!


Thanks for looking!
Ollie
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Taranis

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #1 on: May 04, 2020, 10:27:21 am »

Thanks for sharing  :-)
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ANDY
You’ll only know your best effort if you don’t give up.

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #2 on: May 04, 2020, 10:51:17 am »

Looking good so far.  :-))
Watching.


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ChrisF

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #3 on: May 04, 2020, 12:02:55 pm »

Ollie, as a relative newbie those were the things I was also nervous about, but found actually doing them wasn't as bad as thinking about them! For sanding the chines I find  a Perma-Grit block a god-send as it spans between the chines and makes it easier to get the correct angles. In fact I have a number of different sizes and shapes and files (as do many modellers) and they are so useful. Sticking sandpaper to timber blocks and dowels is an alternative. 400 grit is a bit fine for initial timber removal.


When you get to the panels/skins, as well as clamps, brown parcel tape is great for pulling them down and holding in position whilst the glue dries.

The Swordsman is a lovely boat and I'm building one to a bigger scale at 1:12. Also an open cockpit Huntsman 31, the Sport! It's very easy to get hooked on Faireys!

Chris
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Building Fairey Marine boats: River Cruiser 23 prototype, Huntress 23 Long Cabin with stern-drive, Huntsman 28, Huntsman 31 and Swordsman 33 and two more to come! All scratch built and to a scale of 1:12

Olliety

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #4 on: May 06, 2020, 10:34:25 am »

So, I sanded the chines down to some sort of profile, hopefully it's the right one!

I've started adding the hull skin, but I'm very confused at this step. I've read and re-read the photo and text instructions but I still can't get my head around it.



Im up to here. But the next pictures in the instructions are confusing me:




Im aware it looks like the skins have cavernous gaps between them but in actual fact they ar butted together, just the angles will need sanding down after finishing the section...

The side profile drawings look like the  skins should be resting on top of the chine rails. But the actual photos look like the skins have been cut down to expose the chine rails. Pictures 18 and 19 show portions of exposed chine which are causing the confusion. Also picture 19 makes it look like the skin between the first 2 bulkheads is flush with the chine rail at the next bulkhead. What is going on here? Is it just because of how the 2 angles of the chine meet is hard to capture with a camera?
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DaveM

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #5 on: May 06, 2020, 11:49:28 am »

Ollie
Hard to describe in words, and I'm sorry if you find the photos unclear.

The bottom skins are fitted first and overhang the chine rails. Pic 17.
The edges of the bottom skins and the face of the chine rails rearwards of frame 10 are then sanded to the angle of the hull sides, but the bottom skins are left "oversized" ahead of this frame. Pic 18.
The side skins 20 are glued between the deck and chine rails, but stop at frame 10. Pic 19
The balsa blocks 25 are added ahead of frame 10. Pic 22.
It's not rocket-science - I know the designer very well and he's as thick as a brick!  8)

Dave M

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Olliety

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #6 on: May 06, 2020, 12:07:05 pm »

Dave!

Thank you so much, It's probably a step that would make sense to anyone else, maybe it's just as this is my first foray into balsa building! Feeling much more confident after your words of wisdom!

Everything else looks very simple and I'm really enjoying it so far, which is a testament to the kit and the instructions to go with it.
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DaveM

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #7 on: May 06, 2020, 12:11:35 pm »

One does what one can, m'duck. Nice to be appreciated!  O0
DM
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Olliety

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2020, 04:47:23 pm »

Hi all,

Things have been progressing well. I think I might have to do some fettling as I think my coamings arent completely vertical, but that isn't the rason for today's post. I'm worried i've walked right into a large mistake and could do with some advice:


I followed the picture instructions to build up the rear cabin structure:





And built mine the same way. Feeling pretty pleased with myself, I suddenly realised a dilemma. While my fit is very nice like this:





With the laser scored decking panel, the fit is totally wrong:





The thing confusing me is the small vertical piece which slots onto the end of the large flat panel. If I'd have built this subsection with the laser scored deck fitted, I can't see how any of this would have lined up?

Dave, any words of wisdom on this section? or advice on how I can fix it?
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DaveM

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #9 on: May 23, 2020, 05:36:16 pm »

Ollie
Ignore the deck overlay for the time being. Make the whole superstructure to fit onto the model without it, and when you do fit it the whole superstructure will simply 'rise up' by the thickness of the overlay. Looking at your model you may need to increase the height of the coamings a little but that's quite easily done with strip basswood.
Dave M
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Colin Bishop

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #10 on: May 23, 2020, 05:54:09 pm »

Dave beat me to it! I did it the other way round, I built the superstructure with the scored deck planking temporarily in place. As he says, the issue is with the coamings. According to his instructions the coamings should rise 6mm above the final deck surface as the laser scored planking is an optional item (but definitely worth using!).

You say your coamings are not quite vertical. I made that error with my Huntsman kit. The reason is that as you bend them round to follow the curve of the hull they splay outwards a little. The same can happen with the Swordsman. You definitely need to make them vertical on the outside as otherwise the cabin sldes will be slightly further apart at the forward end than they should be and there will be a gap when you come to fit the cabin front. It is all easily put right though. In your position I would add some thin stripwood on the inside of the coamings and then sand the outside down so that it is vertical. At the same time add some stripwood to the top of the coamings to bring them 6mm above the scored deck level to give a decent seating for the cabin. Hope this all makes sense!

Colin
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Olliety

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #11 on: May 23, 2020, 06:00:47 pm »

Thanks both, I'll keep cracking on then! I measured and my coamings protrude exactly 6mm off the deck , but I will think about ordering some wood to correct the coming shape.
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Colin Bishop

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Re: First boat build - SLEC Swordsman!
« Reply #12 on: May 23, 2020, 06:22:05 pm »

Quote
Thanks both, I'll keep cracking on then! I measured and my coamings protrude exactly 6mm off the deck , but I will think about ordering some wood to correct the coming shape

Yes, but you presumably measured them above the hull deck and not above the laser scored overlay and that is why you have the small gap on the stern cabin.

When you have modified the coamings by adding wood on the inside and on the top check that the cabin front fits exactly between the cabin sides before assembling the main cabin structure. As long as the outer faces of the coamings are vertical it will all be OK.

The great merit of this kit is its very exact engineering. Having built two of Dave's Faireys I realised early on that if something didn't seem to fit then It was me that had missed something in the instructions or made an error. The information is all there though but I did have to concentrate a few times. All part of the fun!

Colin
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