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[J.beazley]

Today im going to tackle the task of building the rudder for my battleship but how do i go about it???

i was thinking of using a block of wood and sand to shape or use a block of metal i have and file into shape.

heres a picture


Jay

[DickyD]

Brass sheet with ABS bonded to it and sanded to shape ? 

What do I know ?  :-\

[Bluebird v2]

Hi there

This is a method I use on the majority of all the rudders I build.   I know this is not the same shape rudder as you want to build, but, instead of having a pear-shaped rudder, you could have a counter-balanced rudder like you have in your drawing.

I make my rudders out of 1/8" ply - two pieces roughly cut to the shape of the rudder.  I then clamp the rudder post between the two pieces in a vice to leave an impression on the insides of the ply.  I then use a dremel with a round cutter in to increase the depth of the impression that has been left on the insides of the rudder.

Then I Araldite the two pieces of ply together with the rudder post in between and then leave to set.   Once set, I sand to shape, using a sanding block and files etc.

I then seal the plywood rudder with either fibre glass resin or sand'n sealer.

Hope this is of some help.

Aye
John E
Bluebird

[Bluebird v2]

last picture - this is the finished rudder, along with the rudder tube assembly, which is made out of a few pieces of brass tubing and some washers.

Hope this is of some help.

aye
john e
bluebird

[DickyD]

last picture - this is the finished rudder, along with the rudder tube assembly, which is made out of a few pieces of brass tubing and some washers.

Hope this is of some help.

aye
john e
bluebird

How come you always seem to have the right bits lying about ready to put on the forum when needed John,  are all you models unfinished ? :-\ :angel:

[Bluebird v2]

Good afternoon my good man 

Those photographs come from the build album which I did of my Fairmile B - its the Mountbatten Pink one Dicky.

At the present I only have 2 models 'unfinished'  the dreaded kit of the PT Boat and the dreaded Daring, which seems to be takng a lifetime to get no where.    I am sure I am taking pieces off this Daring rather than putting them on (a bit daring dont you agree  ).

Way aye Man
John

[DickyD]

Good afternoon my good man 

Those photographs come from the build album which I did of my Fairmile B - its the Mountbatten Pink one Dicky.

At the present I only have 2 models 'unfinished'  the dreaded kit of the PT Boat and the dreaded Daring, which seems to be takng a lifetime to get no where.    I am sure I am taking pieces off this Daring rather than putting them on (a bit daring dont you agree  ).

Way aye Man
John

Dont mention the PT BOAT canny lad ?

[Bluebird v2]

okay canny lad we'll not mention that...what was that model again  :-\

[J.beazley]

WOW step away from the computer for a few hours and behold the wealth of knowledge opens

cheers guys will get bashing on this.

Jay

[sinjon]

Hello,
I have used the Dave Metcalf approach on my 1/48 Beagle.
That is using 3mm dia. brass rod in a 3mm I.D. tube - could be 6 in 6 of course.
Slot the bottom of the rod, and soft solder a piece of (rudder shaped) 1.5mm brass sheet into the slot, and then build up the shape with styrene - it works -  just another way.

Colin

[DickyD]

That was my way. Gotta be impressed with Johns photos though. ::)

[J.beazley]

Well what can i say ive asked for advice and get a "HOW TO GUIDE" with it absolutely brilliant 

This is what makes the forum a great place to be

Jay

[HS93 (RIP)]

Probably a bit like this one.
Peter

[Bluebird v2]

Hi all

Just a thought, or a bad memory,  if you use Dicky's method or HS93's method of rudder construction it is adviseable that the slot you cut in the rudder post is at least half the length of the rudder blade.  This being for strength.   Its a bit embarrassing when you pick your model out from the back of the car to find you have snapped the rudder off, its only then that you wish you had cut the slot a little bit deeper 

Now to the other end of the rudder, the part that turns it; here's a little trick that I use and have used for many a time now.  You know your 13 amp flat pin plugs in the house, well, dont throw them away.  Remove the earth pin and you can make a tiller arm out of it.  Two ways do do this:-

Method One

File the actual pin down in width, so its about 1/8" thick and then drill a hole in the appropriate place on the blade end to take your linkage rod to your servo.    Open up the hole with a drill (that was used to feed the electrical cable through) and either use the cable clamp screw to locate it on to the end of the rudder post, or, do as I do, replace that with a 4mm Aln bolt.

Method Two

This is my preferred method  :) Cut the end of the earth pin off as in B of my scraggy drawing and solder that to a bit of 1/16" flat brass as in C on the drawing.   Then mark out and drill two holes equally spaced from the centre of the rudder post hole.   I normally make dimension X the same distance apart as the holes in the servo arm. (approx 34mm apart).

Hope this is of some help.

aye
John E
Bluebird

[HS93 (RIP)]

Bluebird

I think you have been using Poor materials its only the last 1/8 of an inch that is slotted the rest is in the blade, it is then silver solderd
they have been selling rudders of a similar construction for 40 od years and still are if they fell apart as you say they would have changed them by now


Peter

[Bluebird v2]

Peter, I'm a cheapskate - Ive never bought a brass plate rudder in my life.   Always made my own rudders out of brass plate and brass bar/old brass brazing rods (1/8" diameter) and soft soldered them.

That would be the main reason my rudder snapped  :-\

 :)

aye
John e
bluebird

[Bryan Young]

Apart from the single plate old fashioned rudders that are made from brass sheet, my more modern ones (balanced or unbalanced) ones of a sort of aerofoil cross section I have made from acrylic sheet. "Perspex", "Lexan" etc. that I have scrounged from main users skips. A good rough shape can be easily (and I mean that) made with a power file. Hand files are OK but just take too long.
Power files are as cheap as chips these days and are really invaluable...even gentle carving is not too difficult if you use a very light touch. But rudder shapes are a doddle. Most of the acrylics can be drilled and tapped to take rudder posts and the like. Try it. You may be very surprised how easy it can be!

[malcolmfrary]

Akin to Bluebird's wooden method, but a bit(!) cruder on the inside, I take the 1/8 brass rod and bend an "L" at the end.  I then laminate the rudder out of three sheets of whatever didn't get out of the way quick enough - the middle one gets the L shape offered and drawn round and cut out, then the whole lot is epoxied together with the L trapped in the middle.  The outside then gets sanded to shape and mercifully hidden under paint.  Strong and reliable.  If the rod is thicker than the middle sheet, it is easy enough to file down to thickness.
The 13amp plug pin is great.  Has to be one of the old type, though.  Modern safety ones just don't have as much brass to play with.  Always file a flat on the rudder shaft for the screw - it helps alignment enormously.

[Bluebird v2]

Hi all, just a note to add to Malcolm's - try to avoid the 'newish' 3 pinned plugs - where the pin colours are similar to a goldy brass colour.  These pins dont like to be soldered says he who tried to spend a lot of time to solder one  must be a cheap and nasty 'imported' brass made a few old Volvo/Toyota motor cars 

aye
john e
bluebird

[Tom Eccles]

To Bluebird,

John, I used a variation of your rudder construction method to re-rudder a rather rough old yacht i am refurbishing.

I just want to go on record and thank you for the never ending stream of hints, tips, advice and encouragement that has made the life of this novice a great deal easier.

Please keep up the good work

Tom
'OWM REWL FER LANKYSHUR

[John W E]

We are All here to help, Tom 

john e
bluebird

[DickyD]

We dont all have a ready supply of drawings and photos and half finished models for reference John  ::)

[John W E]

Dicky, havent a clue what you are on about  who has half finished models - I do have one or two as in half finished models - HMS Daring was too big to put in the post though.  It wouldnt fit through the letterbox at the Post Office  ::) ::)

aye
john e
bluebird