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[thatguy2506]

Hello,

For a school project I have decided to build a model of CVN-78 U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford. I am planning on making it RC and am wondering what scaling I should use when I am building her.

Thanks in advance!

[Brian60]

Let's give you a couple of sizes.......

Original is 1100ft in length

So at 1:72 it will be 4.6 metres

1:144 it will be  2.3 metres

1:350 it will be 0.957 metres

Its up to you, have you get transport for something that is almost 15 foot long? Or do you err on the side of sanity and go for something just under a metre?

[thatguy2506]

Thanks Brian60!


I am going to do the 1:350 sized model

[Plastic - RIP]

I'd be looking at what fittings are available for the carrier - what aircraft do you want to put on the flight deck and what plane kits are available off the shelf.

If it were me, I'd be going for 1/200 - that is 66" (5 1/2 foot) so it's big enough with enough draft to be able to put decent batteries and ballast low down to make it very stable. I find 1/350 all a bit small, fiddley and too shallow in draft for stability (I don't like adding extra keels) and the decks are too close to the water surface to look realistic and they get swamped easily in a slight swell.  (there's lots of Youtubes of Tamiya 1/350 carriers converted to RC)

1/200 is bigger, easier to build and fit out, is less fragile and still manageable to lift in and out of the water - probably about 20-ish kg when finished and you can easily get 1/200 planes and crew figures.

Depends on what fits in your car.

[malcolmfrary]

Not many people doing school projects have cars.  Access to one, quite often.
The smaller the scale, the more attention needs to be paid to keeping the top light and the heavy stuff low along with keeping the water out.  Large warship decks tend to be very low to the water compared to their length, as a result they are liable to splashes from any waves which do scale up a lot bigger for small scales.

[rnli12]

Hi,
I do have a set of the Glyn Guest design USS Bodega Bay plans I think it is around 1/144th scale a load of revell WW2 US aircraft (unbuilt) and a part built hull plus some fitings if they are of interest. Think its about 3 ft max but an easy design its just too many projects on the go.
http://www.myhobbystore.co.uk/product/18178/magm2010-uss-bodega-bay-plan
Regards,
Rich

[No-lifeboatpaul]

I got a USS Kity Hawk at 1:144 scale so its 2.3m long and weighs 32k...its big and heavy , I had to search the internet worldwide to find a few of the aircraft and helis at this scale , theres some nice pics of it taken on the water on the Alfold  charity show the other week  ,theres a section for the show in the commercial events secton on here.

[Bob K]

Stunningly lovely model of the USS Kitty Hawk.  I did post some photos of her at Alfold on Mayhem.

The original post on this topic did say it was a "school Project", so I am assuming he may be looking for something able to fit in a regular car, and of a much lower weight than yours - Even though I much admired the 2-person launch with eyebolt attached lifting straps.   

[tigertiger]

Somebody did mention issues of scale, and the smaller the boat the less well it sails. Within limits this is true, and true irrespective of scale. However, many models fit into this overall model length of about 1m. There are well tried work arounds for scale issues.
Ultimately you have to be able to transport you model, not only to the lake side, also to put the model into the water. That is why many fall within that 1m bracket.
If you do a google search you will find 1:350 model aircraft.

[malcolmfrary]

I dont know if there is a kit actually of CVN-78 U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford, or whether one of the existing kits could be renamed / converted.  Separate kits of flight groups are available in 1:350 to dress the deck up.  If it is going to be a scratch build, something about 1 metre long will happen a lot faster than a larger one.  Presumably the project needs to be finished before the OP leaves school.

[rnli12]

Well good luck with what you choose to do.
 

I remember making a fast electric (basic) for my school project in 1978, i was so exited i jumped on my bike down to the lake in Gosport to run it ....and caught it in my front wheel and smashed to bits....presented the bits to the tutor in the moring and got a B+ for effort!