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[minardifans]

I used to have a model boat as a child, one my father bought from a junk shop. It had a wooden hull and was powered by a motorcycle battery. I remember it weighing a ton, not lasting very long on a charge and all the electrics being stored in an empty 'Stork' Margerine tub inside the hull to stop the water leaking over the electrics. 

After watching some of the RC boats in the local boating lake in the lovely weather we've been having I'd love to give it a go again (and also because my son loved watching them to).

I love DIY projects as I'm into my model railways and such so I was thinking of scratch building a hull to start with. I was looking at some other members on here have used Plastic as a frame before planking with plastic also and then coating in Fiberglass. The question I have is wether or not you need to use the fiberglass sheet or can you just use the resin liquid on it's own or are there other resins that you can use that don't require using a weave.
I've got a basic idea of shape and plan in my head and some sketches on paper, just need to think about waterproofing before I go any further.

Thanks.

[offshore1987]

Hi and welcome 

Daniel

[Tug-Kenny RIP]

Hello and welcome to our club.

Have a look around and maybe use our 'Search' facility. If you have any queries, the members would be happy to help you.  Maybe you could post a build blog along with some pictures and show us how you're getting on.

Cheers

ken

[andrewh]

Hello Minardifans and welcome

QUOTE:
I love DIY projects as I'm into my model railways and such so I was thinking of scratch building a hull to start with. I was looking at some other members on here have used Plastic as a frame before planking with plastic also and then coating in Fiberglass. The question I have is wether or not you need to use the fiberglass sheet or can you just use the resin liquid on it's own or are there other resins that you can use that don't require using a weave.
I've got a basic idea of shape and plan in my head and some sketches on paper, just need to think about waterproofing before I go any further.
QUOTE

If you are familiar with plastic assembly  - go for it!  I have made several boats with styrene because it was available for free, builds fast and gives a good finish.
You can (depending on the actual hull shape you have in mind) make the planking fairly watertight without any further covering.  People do this and bung up any leaks with the same plastic dissolved in solvent.
You can bond glass strips inside the hull for strength, or cover the outside with glass (or nylon stocking, or horticultural fleece!), andf you can stick it with virtually any adhesive including fibreglass resin.  Or emulsion paint  - but prolly not pva glue as it is marginal on water-resistance for this application
Tell us, please your intentions
Having an interested son is a very valid reason to have a boat to play with sail seriously
andrew

[dodgy geezer]

If you're looking for a cheap way to get your son (and you) into boat modelling, then I run a site specifically intended to enable young kids to build small simple boats with minimal help from Dad. Free plans and help are at http://modelboats.hobby-site.com/ ...

[larry w]

 HI AND WELCOME,
                           I would build a easy build in balsa from a plan , or a kit item ,      there are some good beginners plan in boat magazines  god luck Larry.....

[Stan]

Hello Newbie . Welcome to the Mayhem site. I could send you a plan that is easy to build using balsa wood. I have sent you a p/m yesterday  if you would like this plan please make contact via Mayhem.

Stan

[minardifans]

So not sure where to start with motors and electrics etc. I understand that I will need a controller with crystals that normally come in a pack. Where is the best place to buy motors/servos etc and is there need for some kind of circuit to wire them up to? Is there a kit where you can buy all the bits such as servos/motor etc in a pack or can someone explain what exactly is needed in this area and what is the best type of wire to use. Completely new to the electronics side of things on this side.

Ideally for the type of boat I am making I would like 2 motors, 2 rudders and a speed controller. I have no idea what parts I'd need or where to start, but I have an idea of controlling two rudders off one servo to save money maybe.

[Stan]

Hi Minardifans. First of all  I would buy a 2.4 radio set , not many people use 27 am or 40 fm now. Servos work with all radio sets. Only problems are the different colours used on the servo  leads. Motors such a large range, do you want scale speed or fast speed? Speed controllers need to be matched to the motors you re planning to use.  Prop size will also impact on the speed controller you will use. Wiring information check out Action Electronics web site,  they have some good information that may help you out.  Without more information on the type of model you intend to build it is very hard to answer all your questions. I am sure mayhem members will help out if they can with any problems you may have but I think they will agree more information is needed.  I would also suggest if possible you visit your local model boat club where you will also find a vast amount of information.

Stan

[minardifans]

Well my interest is in Ferry boats and StenaLine since they take us on holiday each year yet my son wants a fast boat so I thought I would combine the two by building something like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2bA-tcEe6U

I live in Holyhead so a bigger version of the HSS operates from a port down the road and it would be nice to model something local. I don't intend it to be that detailed, just the basic shape and I intend to use mainly plasticard (or similar) and then seal the hull of the model using either Fiberglass or Epoxy resin.

I have drawn some plans and worked out how big the model would be regards to various scales. 1:100 would be massive. (1.3m long!) So I've worked on 1:100 minus 30% of all the measurements (whatever that scale would be, I'm sure someone good at maths could tell me.) but the model would be about 90cm long which for me sounds good because if I'm gonna build something I like to do it big!

[DickyD]

Hate to disillusion you but if you check on the builds shown on the forum 90 cms is actually a bit on the small side.

The average size of a tug is about 90 cms. 

[minardifans]

Really? I had the thought that building something 1.26m long x 40cm wide and nearly 30cm high would be rather too big. considering the HSS is practically brick shaped.

[wartsilaone]

My advice is to make it as big as you can while being able to fit it in the car or trailer.  It's surprising how small your boat looks when it's out on the water.

Ali

[minardifans]

Funnily I did take the car into account. I have a Citroen Picasso and 1.25m ish is the maximum width. I could make something much bigger but a) it would be impractical b) I would have to remove seats from the car to transport it and c) I need to fit it through the loft hatch in order to store the boat over winter.

The wife is dead against my plans however. She would rather I buy our son a simple Chinese Syma type RC boat.  I have no experience of these and how long they last etc. I would rather build something without my sons knowledge and surprise him with something I have built with my own hands. Plus these cheap Chinese boats are all focused on speedboats etc and no ferries.

[Stan]

I do not thinlk fibreglass resin will be much good on plastic card.

[wartsilaone]

Check out my thread and youtube videos for more info on building a plastic hull.

http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=29250.0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ej2D99Wdp4Q

Ali

[minardifans]

I don't think what I have is actually plasticard. I work in a shop and it's what firms send us with advertising on. It's about 2mm thick. It's not cardboard based and definitely plastic based. It's not corex (that stuff that has hollows in it). It's solid but fairly easy to cut or slice. Some of what they send us is up to 4mm thick. They always send us more than we actually need. The consistency of the stuff is almost like if you took polystyrene and pressed it solid under massive weight to remove all the air bubbles.

My first task is to see if this stuff is glueable with plastic weld.

[DickyD]

Really? I had the thought that building something 1.26m long x 40cm wide and nearly 30cm high would be rather too big. considering the HSS is practically brick shaped.

It was just a thought on my part, feel free to ignore it, I havent built many boats.

[minardifans]

Check out my thread and youtube videos for more info on building a plastic hull.

http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=29250.0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ej2D99Wdp4Q

Ali

There was no need, after seeing the boats in our local boat club I youtubed rc ferries. Your awsome model was what drew me here in the first place. I found it on youtube and was like WOW! I did have first intentions of saying "I'm gonna build Stena Hollandica!" before sitting down and thinking, there's now way I'm that talented and it would be enormous. But your methods had made me realize I could do it with plastics rather than wood. Then I decided for my first build it would be a good idea to keep it more simple so the Stenna HSS is rather blocky, no guard rails,  etc etc.

[dodgy geezer]

Funnily I did take the car into account. I have a Citroen Picasso and 1.25m ish is the maximum width. I could make something much bigger but a) it would be impractical b) I would have to remove seats from the car to transport it and c) I need to fit it through the loft hatch in order to store the boat over winter.

You also need to consider where you will store the boat at home. If it's a nice one then you might want to display it. If not, you might want to make a box for it, which saves it being knocked and broken in storage...

The wife is dead against my plans however. She would rather I buy our son a simple Chinese Syma type RC boat.  I have no experience of these and how long they last etc. I would rather build something without my sons knowledge and surprise him with something I have built with my own hands. Plus these cheap Chinese boats are all focused on speedboats etc and no ferries.

No matter how good or bad it is, a boat built by yourself is always a lot better than something you have bought ready-made. And if your son can do something as well, that makes it a lot better.  You will find that displacement boats like ferries look better on the water if they're bigger, but they take up a lot of room to make...have you thought of a place to sail it?

You are probably best to go for a 2.4Ghz system - they are very cheap now. The cheapest I know is £21 for a transmitter and receiver - a lot of people use the RadioLink at £26 or the Planet at £46. If you're new you might find it better to buy from a local shop where you can get advice and help, rather than buying from a web site where things are very cheap, but there is no 'aftersales'. Having said that, you can get servos from GiantCod at less than £2 each, which means you hardly need to save money on them....

Perhaps if you give us an idea of your budget we can produce more precise advice....

[minardifans]

It was just a thought on my part, feel free to ignore it, I havent built many boats.

I feel challenged to make it massive now... given that I haven't even started, don't get your hopes up... This is my first time.

[Stavros]

minardifans a friend of mine has built the stenna explorer and he sails up on LLanberis lake every sunday his name is Welsh Druid on here aka |Don Brown go up and see him for a chat I used to sail up there but alas dont anymore ....personal reasons



Dave

[minardifans]

You are probably best to go for a 2.4Ghz system - they are very cheap now. The cheapest I know is £21 for a transmitter and receiver - a lot of people use the RadioLink at £26 or the Planet at £46. If you're new you might find it better to buy from a local shop where you can get advice and help, rather than buying from a web site where things are very cheap, but there is no 'aftersales'. Having said that, you can get servos from GiantCod at less than £2 each, which means you hardly need to save money on them....

Perhaps if you give us an idea of your budget we can produce more precise advice....

That is the problem, you might as well be speaking French. I have no idea what these systems are or how they work. Some links for some shops that people buy from here would maybe help. There are no local shops here, the nearest model shop here is on the WWW which is very sad.

[wartsilaone]

Thanks for your comments. It's nice to know I've inspired someone.

I think plastic is perfect for making a HSS. Keep us updated on you progress, I shall be you thread with interest.

Ali

[Stavros]

dave