Model Boat Mayhem
The Shipyard ( Dry Dock ): Builds & Questions => Working Vessels => Topic started by: Dan.Lord on August 26, 2007, 12:02:27 pm
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Hi all, I thought I'd start a thread on the build of the Calypso. ( for the second time ) So here's a few shots of the kit as received.
The main hull is abs & void of any detail, but the forming is nice & clean with no cracks splits etc. All the superstructure is made from lazer cut wood & is very clean, although I think I'll replace this with plasti card, as with my last build I found it very difficult to hide the wood grain even after several coats of primer & sanding, plasti card is also lighter.
two large plans are included one being a full size drawing, the other general build plan. typical with Billings I found the instructions to be rather vague to say the least, & you are expected to work out lots for your self, but with studying the drawings this doesn't prove to be to much of a challenge.
The brass fittings I think are excellent very clean crisp fittings & lots of detailing + lots of fittings hopefully none of which will get lost !!
There is also a couple of sheets of vac formed bits & bobs & several bundles of wood strip for the decking & rubbing strakes ( if thats the correct term, Bunkerbardge please correct if I'm wrong ) Again plenty included.
A small quantity of injection moulded parts for the heli deck & mast lookout position grace the kit too.
Well thats about it for the intro, I'll post some more pics & words as the build continues, or should I say starts !! All the best Dan.
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This gonna be good! I've always wanted to see one of these being built. O0
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This gonna be good! I've always wanted to see one of these being built. O0
Well thank you. I hope I don't disappoint you all !!
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My mate brought his in to me and told me to fix it, he had lost it in the dam on turning while the ballast was way out,
They are quite a good model and look good on the water when sailing and ballasted correctly...........
Roy
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Sorry to see your mates Calypso playing submarines, such a shame after all that hard work. I hope she repaired ok.
Well this is the fruit of todays efforts. I cut the hull out, following the built in lines, which were nice & deep, so that was an easy job. Around the top of the deck at the bow it said cut to 3mm, I've left it bigger & will sand it down once the deck is in place, as I found this to be easier than trying to mark out 3mm all along the edge, worked the first time round, so should do again.
Fitting the rudders & shafts was straight forward. I've replaced the original plastic props with a pair of brass ones, which look a million times better. These are "Raboesch" props from S.H.G. Model supplies, a great company to deal with, next day delivery, can't ask for more than that !!
Cutting out the vac form observation chamber, again straight forward, drilling out the holes for the port holes was a bit tricky, as the plastic is very thin & you have to drill right on the join for three of the holes, which tended to make the join open again. I used a square file to open the holes & finished off carefully with a surgical blade. once I've put some pug around the edges, it should look fine.
I'm going to use some two pak clear glue for the port hole glass.
Next job is the keel & main floor for the electrics etc. I'm going to put some lead under the floor, as there is a nice sized gap which will help with the ballast. Dan.
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Well here's the latest installment. Observation chamber has been filled & smoothed down, & brass port holes fitted ready for priming. I added the keel, & then fitted some lead flashing cut into strips alongside the keel, as it needs quite a lot of ballast 7-8 lbs I recall, so I thought it would be better to hide some of it under the main floor. I keyed up the hull with some 100 grit & stuck the lead down with some 2 pak epoxy, worked a treat. Main floor then went on next again epoxied into place & held in position with 2 SLR rifles, most usefull for this type of job, no home should be without them !! I've also added the front bulkhead, on the plans it is shown fitted on top of the main floor, but it then stands proud of the upper main deck, so I've fitted it on the end, where it fits perfectly, I'm not sure if this is a printing error or you're supposed to trim it, but it works fine where it is ( past experience tells me so ) so I'll leave it be.
More to follow when work permits..... Dan.
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I was gonna say 'it's a terrible build', but in view of "held in position with 2 SLR rifles" I think it's the best Calypso I've ever seen! ???
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I was gonna say 'it's a terrible build', but in view of "held in position with 2 SLR rifles" I think it's the best Calypso I've ever seen! ???
Very wise obe wan
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Of course, it's what we all have lying around - 2 slr rifles available to double up as clamps!
Ian
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It does of course offer up the obvious question .
Why do you have 2 SlRs' in your possesion ?
Are you not in Uk or are you building on a Military base somewhere in which case I would of thought they should be in the armoury ?
I may of missed something along the line but when I was in the RN arms were closely gaurded NOT used to build model boats ! ;D ;D
Shane
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It does of course offer up the obvious question .
Why do you have 2 SlRs' in your possesion ?
Are you not in Uk or are you building on a Military base somewhere in which case I would of thought they should be in the armoury ?
I may of missed something along the line but when I was in the RN arms were closely gaurded NOT used to build model boats ! ;D ;D
Shane
Well so you don't all start getting worried, the wooden one is just that, a mock up made from wood, & the black plastic one is a de activated real one thats welded solid, another one of my hobbies. You have to admit they make great wieghts though.
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Hi all, here's the latest installment on the build. Not much happened over the weekend as that horrible thing called work got in the way of modelling, yet again !!!
I managed to fit the rudder linkage & motors, Added the wooden deck mounting strip around the edge of the hull, I used cyno glue for this stuck really well.
The main deck is 2.5mm ply, & very flexible, so when you put it in the hull, it tends to bow in the middle, so I added several strips of 8mm square wood on the underneath to strengthen it up a bit, I left the front hole clear so to leave enough room to get the battery in. I know the others cover the motors, & if I ever need to remove them I can carefully remove the braces as they are only cynoed in on the ends.
I've photocopied all the decks, as they have where all the fittings go printed on them, which is great until you add the planking, & cover them all up, so I thought that was a good idea for reference.
One other thing, if you look in a previous picture, you will see some epoxy glue called 151, I got this from a local cheap shop to see what it's like, & at Ģ1.29 a go it's really great value for money. It dries in approx 3-5 Min's & goes rock hard, much cheaper than branded makes.
Well thats all folks .................Dan.
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Not much to add at present, fitted the stabalizers on the hull. these were made from a moulding supplied, with the ends rounded off, again stuck with cyno, this material really likes cyno.
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Thanks Dan I really appreciate you putting up this thread, I have been given a Calypso that really needs some??? NO make that A lot of TLC, and after this I am seriously going to think of stripping it down for a rebuild, If you dont mind I will wait until you finish then copy all of the photos and remarks to use.
You are doing a fine damm job of it mate, keep it up. Harry
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Thanks Dan I really appreciate you putting up this thread, I have been given a Calypso that really needs some??? NO make that A lot of TLC, and after this I am seriously going to think of stripping it down for a rebuild, If you dont mind I will wait until you finish then copy all of the photos and remarks to use.
You are doing a fine damm job of it mate, keep it up. Harry
Hi Harry, no mate I don't mind at all, thats what it's here for. I'm glad someone can make use of it.
Sometimes I think well thats obvious that goes there etc, but I'll try to be as informative as poss without boring the reader.
Stick a pic of yours on now so we can see just how much work you have ahead of you All the best Dan.
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Managed to cut out the sides of the hull this afternoon. They come on a printed sheet of plasti card, approx 2mm thick, so you need a really sharp knife & steady hand. You have to cut out several holes for the cleats, I used a very small drill & trimmed with the point of my knife. there is a injected plastic detail moulding to glue to the outside, A loads of wooden strips to simulate the hulls ribs on the inside. These can't be fitted until the planking for the main deck has been glued in place.
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Thanks Dan, I will get a photo up as soon as I can master the way to do it, at the moment my grandson is showing me how to do things, only hope I live long enough to learn it all. Harry
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Well planking finally arrived from the good old U S of A. It took 4 weeks to get here, but who's counting. I was going to use the photo copies of the deck I made as a template, however when I went to cut them out I found I'd slightly enlarged the copy, so that Idea was scrubbed. I decided to carefully cut out the planking by eye, got it 99% right, the small undercuts won't be seen once the side & stern bulwarks are in position. I used cyno to stick the planking to the main deck, again stuck really well, firstly I stained the edges of the planks so any glue wouldn't stick on the plain wood, & seal it from the stain, has this happen on first boat, lesson learnt !!
After completing the deck , the planks were sanded with 320 then 500 grit paper to get them smooth, & a couple of coats of teak wood stain added.
I know there aren't any ends to the planks, but at this scale & once the superstructure & deck fittings are in place you won't be able to see much anyway.
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Dan,
One member of a club I used to belong to had a Calypso.
He built it just as the instructions, but he used a 6volt 4Ah battery sitting on the motor base.
This made most of the battery above the waterline and she would turn turtle in even the slightest breeze.
I re-sited all the weight on the hull using thin foam to spread the loading for the battery.
Result a very stable model.
I don't know which battery you are going to use, just a word to the wise.
She was a US minesweeper, but with lots of additional topweight.
Bob
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Dan,
One member of a club I used to belong to had a Calypso.
He built it just as the instructions, but he used a 6volt 4Ah battery sitting on the motor base.
This made most of the battery above the waterline and she would turn turtle in even the slightest breeze.
I re-sited all the weight on the hull using thin foam to spread the loading for the battery.
Result a very stable model.
I don't know which battery you are going to use, just a word to the wise.
She was a US minesweeper, but with lots of additional topweight.
Bob
Hi Bob, I encountered that problem with my first build. I'm still using a 6v 4ah battery, but this time I've added quite a bit of lead under the motor floor, see earlier pic, this should help with ballasting . I will need more, but that can be added in the bow & stern sections, seemed to work with the first build ok.... famous last words !!!! Cheers though Dan.
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Well planking finally arrived from the good old U S of A. It took 4 weeks to get here, but who's counting.
Ahoy Dan
(TLAPD)
There was a mention of this type of planking on a planking thread.
Some of us would be interested in more details.
Who is ths suppier?
And out of interest, how long are the strips and how much was postage?
I am looking for a timber supplier, but postage from the UK is crazy for anything over about 500mm. (I am in China)
TT
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Dan,
If you can still access the "floor" cut out a hole just big enough for the battery, this will hold the battery secure and let it drop onto the hull.
She has a lot of topweight so needs ballasting deep.
then you end up with a good stable model.
Bob
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The space under he floor is full of lead, so no space available, the first one I built I added extra ballast & she ended up nice & stable, so I'm not to worried about her turning over, ( Here's where I regret saying that).
Planking sheets are from www.MicroMark.com & are 3" wide by 22" long & come in various width planks. I think the postage to the UK was approx Ģ7.00, but I had a few other bits & pieces too.
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Well todays efforts consisted of side pieces & rails.
The side pieces were glued in place as were the wooden ribs. The sides are quite easily knocked off even with the ribs fitted, so care has to be taken whilst handling the boat.
The wooden hand rails were fitted using cyno, & the edges smoothed off to give that worn appearance. On the port side rear, the rail had to be bent to allow for the large crane thats fits on the rear, I boiled the wood for approx 20-30 Min's & that softened the wood enough to allow it to bend thew tight curve OK.
The side rubbing strips were also added & smoothed off.
Thats about it, stern detail to follow. Dan.
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Decided to finish off the stern detail. The end piece was made from sandwiching togeather two pieces of hand rail, & filing out the apertures for the fairleads etc. Added a little pug to fill any holes etc & smoothed off.
Inner view shows how it nicely covers the ends of the planking.
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Side planks fitted, I used the supplied deck planks that I'm not using. I thought this would give the plain hull some detail. It looks quite effective when painted. Port holes fitted & anchor fairlead & rivits ( 20 of a 4mm intervals ) also fitted. Now the other side :D
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It's coming together nicely O0 Are the motors in their final position or are they still loose? Another question for you, the prop shafts and props, are they the kit versions? They look very quite nice either way!
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It's coming together nicely O0 Are the motors in their final position or are they still loose? Another question for you, the prop shafts and props, are they the kit versions? They look very quite nice either way!
Hi motors are in position, I had to move one a little off as they wouldn't fit both straight, doesn't cause any problems though. The Shafts are as supplied, but the props are extra, I got them from S.H.G. Model supplies on 01785 840308 I received excellent service next day delivery.
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Started to build the lower superstructure. On the plans it shows this as one piece, however I noticed on the real ship, there is a walkway from one side of the ship to the other, this was easily remedied by planking the center section of the main deck, & using some plasti-card making up two extra bulkheads. I've also added two doors to the front bulkhead, as these are present on the real ship & not on the plans. I've also added some door handles & hinges to detail it up a bit.
The rear of the superstructure has to be sanded to fit as there is a slight curve to the deck.
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Finished off the lower superstructure. I added a kick strip around the base, & fitted door handles & hinges to add a bit of detail. sanding & priming / sealing to follow.
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Primed the hull with a primer filler, firstly rubbing down the hull with 240 grit to give a good key. I've added a white primer on the top section to help the white top coat cover easier.
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For your info, this picture of the Calypso was taken on October 11, 2007. She is being tugged from La Rochelle and on her way to Concarneau where she'll be repaired.
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Well I've nearly finished painting the hull, just a bit of touch up here & there. I used Humbrol paints Red No 19, tinted darker with Black No 21, as it was a little bright. White No 22 for the upper hull & Black No 21 for the center section. I used an airbrush for the red, & a good quality brush for the other bits. The inside of the bulwarks will be painted with a light grey, I found that Humbrol No 40 was a good match.
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Made the rear hatch cover today, pretty straight forward. I added some planking & a tarpaulin, as the main hatch was covered when sailing on the original.
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Hi Dan.Lord
Your Calypso looks pretty good from here. I hope I don't upset you with this comment but I remember a Calypso sinking at Nottingham many years ago in rough water during a Midland Area Regatta. I was daft enough to go in and recover it with the help of Mike Henton of PMBC who had the brains to stay in the rescue boat! As I came up with the boat and broke water the weight pushed me down again a bit fast. It turned out that the stern hatch had no coaming and had warped a little allowing the stern to fill quickly. The sinking was really lifelike from shore. The owner was fortunate to get it back with all fittings intact and it sailed again later on that year.
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Hi Dan.Lord
Your Calypso looks pretty good from here. I hope I don't upset you with this comment but I remember a Calypso sinking at Nottingham many years ago in rough water during a Midland Area Regatta. I was daft enough to go in and recover it with the help of Mike Henton of PMBC who had the brains to stay in the rescue boat! As I came up with the boat and broke water the weight pushed me down again a bit fast. It turned out that the stern hatch had no coaming and had warped a little allowing the stern to fill quickly. The sinking was really lifelike from shore. The owner was fortunate to get it back with all fittings intact and it sailed again later on that year.
Hi no not upset at all. there is a coaming around the hatch, but only about 2.5mm tall, also the main hatch is 2mm abs, so hopefully won't warp, also there is lots of extras to put on like heli pad etc, this will help keep it in place.
, so hopefully ( famous last words ) this shouldn't be a problem. All thoughtfull comments / criticisms received with thanks. Dan.
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Hi all, I've had a break for a few months, but now getting in the mood for another bash. If any of you are interested, here's a pic of the real Calypso, she's been lifted out of the drink, & transfered to the FCRN boat yard in Concarneau, where she will be fully restored. Brilliant if I say so myself.
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That's good news. I saw her in La Rochelle some years back and she was quite a sorry sight.
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Hi all
if anybody is intrested there is a website called rcgroups.com if you go to the forum part and scroll down to model boats,enter the scale section and run through the pages till you find billings calypso thread,this thread has loads of very good info and the things these people have done(includes working heli/sub.I,m building one and I have looked through this and it is brill,hope you all think so.
best regards captain morgan
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Have you made any progress with this build lately? I'd be very interested to see it. (I'll also check out the link Captain Morgan posted). I've just myself acquired a second-hand, part built Billings Calypso kit, I bought this with the intention of converting it back to the original BYMS minesweeper (I'm more of a warship fan) - but on receiving the kit, it turned out to be much more complete and not as badly built as I originally thought, so I've decided to build it "out of the box" as Calypso.
Another Calypso-related question I have - what was the type of helicopter carried? The parts Billings provide for this are rather basic (and the clear canopy parts in my 20-year old kit are badly yellowed) and as the scale is 1/48 (one of the standard aircraft modelling scales) I'm wondering if there's a plastic kit available for it.
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Hello 8) , it is my ferst big model - Calypso . More fotos http://www.kartonwork.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7987&highlight=calypso
(http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/49947e427592a39cm.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/49947e427592a39c.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/c9090b48ca8ba586m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/c9090b48ca8ba586.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/66bd76a3c4189a12m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/66bd76a3c4189a12.html) (http://images2.fotosik.pl/101/b7e53a19a8a4e2f1m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/b7e53a19a8a4e2f1.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/1d7a8cdd9dfec32dm.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/1d7a8cdd9dfec32d.html) (http://images1.fotosik.pl/101/73d426618483bc79m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/73d426618483bc79.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/865d3e00f054603am.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/865d3e00f054603a.html) (http://images2.fotosik.pl/101/a80bfe2668adda31m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/a80bfe2668adda31.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/757df88f490dcf32m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/757df88f490dcf32.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/b988afe2058faa1cm.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/b988afe2058faa1c.html) (http://images2.fotosik.pl/101/9e0457e427819e93m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/9e0457e427819e93.html) (http://images4.fotosik.pl/64/4194bfd31fc57576m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/4194bfd31fc57576.html) (http://images3.fotosik.pl/101/3d6a830c914f2c3fm.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/3d6a830c914f2c3f.html) (http://images3.fotosik.pl/101/83a867a243c5a779m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/83a867a243c5a779.html) (http://images1.fotosik.pl/101/7e6a42c3678890c8m.jpg) (http://www.fotosik.pl/pokaz_obrazek/7e6a42c3678890c8.html)
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Hi Dan
Whats happened to the build ?
We're all waiting for the next installment. :-\
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Hi Dan
Whats happened to the build ?
We're all waiting for the next installment. :-\
Hi All, well I've had a break of late, been doing other projects etc, starting to get the itch again though, so hopefully soon there will be something to add. Cheers Dan.
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Hi All, well I've took the plunge & got her out of mothballs. After gluing the lower superstructure in place, & useing a mega clamp on the front section to get the hull to stay in place, I managed to get the front deck glued in situ, & trimmed off the excess abs from the hull. This was a job well done, as getting the front deck on can be a right pain, especialy if the bracing strut is in the wrong place, as it tends to distort the hull. Luckily, it went well & fitted a treat, I say luck, but it could be because I'm brilliant, ( I think luck is more correct ).
Also I've painted the upper deck supports ready to be fitted.
Not much done, but it's a start. Cheerd Dan.
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Great to see you back on with it Dan. O0
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colin, she does look like she's in need of some major tlc.
sad to see such a famous ship in a sad state like that. monseur cousteau would turn in his grave if he knew what she was like.
good to see she's getting a full restore.
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When I saw the first photo of her on the tow line I was shocked, :( horrified, >:( mad, >>:-(. I am also glad to hear that she is going to get a full restoration. O0 And as Ghost in the shell said both Philippe and Jacques Cousteau must be spinning in their graves.
Andre :)
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Managed to get some more done to the wee beasty. Fitted the upper deck posts, I has to enlarge the holes slightly in the lower decking, to allow the posts to sit a little lower, as the decking I used was slightly thicker than the original that was supplied. I've also decked the front & rear upper decks. As previously stated I've used some pre made decking that I brought from the USA, I really like the finish on this, & it's a real time saver. I used "gel" type cyno from the Ģ1.00 shop to glue it to the decks, & it stuck really well & almost immediately. I pre stained all the edges, in case any glue spilled out, as from a lesson learnt earlier the stain wont take on cyno'd wood !!
I've also added the hatch for the observation chamber at the bows, & also added the gunwhale strip, if thats what it's called, along the entire length of the upper & front decks, this isn't shown in the plans, but is very evident on pictures of the real ship, plus it looks nice too !!
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Hi all, well been quite busy with the bridge the last few weeks. The bridge is made from ply, & remembering last time how difficult it was to build, having to steam the ply to get it to bend etc, & also the large amount of paint needed to hide the grain, I decided to use plastic instead. I used the original pieces as templates, & used some 1mm styrene sheet I happened to have from a previous build. This made life a lot easier, & also had a far better finish.
After building the main cabin, I decided to scratch build the interior, including the ships wheel, as the one supplied was for a gallion type vessel. Again straight forward using welding wire. The telegraphs were supplied by Paul from PPS Ships, and very nice they are too ( Cheers Paul ). The two crew came from George Turner models.
I used the same method for building the rear superstructure.
As you can see I decided to wire in some lights, 6v Grain of wheat type were used, & I'm very pleased with the results, just got to paint over the wires for the nav lights, & tidy up the edges here & there.
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She is looking beautiful, a credit to you. Keep the photos coming. I could really be tempted to build a model of her... :-)) :-))
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Dan,
One word of caution on building her as is.
If you are powering her with a Gel Cell cut the Motor tray to get the battery as low as possible.
If you mount the battery on this tray she can become very "tender".
With the battery lower very stable.
I mention this as I do know of several that have turned turtle with raised batteries.
If using Ni Cad/MiNim place some ballast under this tray.
Bob
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Dan,
One word of caution on building her as is.
If you are powering her with a Gel Cell cut the Motor tray to get the battery as low as possible.
If you mount the battery on this tray she can become very "tender".
With the battery lower very stable.
I mention this as I do know of several that have turned turtle with raised batteries.
If using Ni Cad/MiNim place some ballast under this tray.
Bob
Hi Bob, thanks for the advice, I have allready placed a large amount of lead flashing under the "tray" to help with this. The last Calypso I built nearly turned turtle in the bath, & I ended up putting loads of ballast in her. This time I think with the battery in the same place, it should be ok. As you say this is a very top heavy boat.
Here's a pic of my first one in the water. Cheers Dan.
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Lovely build so far. As Footski said, keep the photos coming as I am also tempted now to have a go after seeing your effort. Well done.
Ron.
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Thanks for the kind words, I'll try to keep it interesting for you all. I've found this to be a very interesting boat to build, due to the large amount of detailing that is available for it, it's quite a daunting project though, the instructions are basic to say the least, but nothing that can't be over come.
I also got all the dvd's that were available on Jacque Cousteau, to get plenty of research material, very interesting to watch too!!
I know it's not a boat, well it's a flying boat, so I think that counts, so I thought you might like to see a model I made Of the Calypso's cousin before her demise. This was a normal 1/48th PBY Catalina, which I converted, & made up the decals on the computer. Cheers Dan.
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Managed to get a little more done today. Finished off the upper superstructure, bar a little touching up here & there. Made some of the hatches & battery box for the bridge roof, & the anchor winch.
One thing I will say for Billings kits that makes up for the basic instructions, is the excellent quality of the brass fittings that accompany the kit, I think they are truly superb.
Anyway I gave them all a coat or two of primer, & then went over them with a red oxide type colour, which I will add some satin varnish to, to take off the heavy shine.
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Well managed to get a few more bits & bobs done. Made the rear capstain, & the diving ladder / platform.
I decided to scratch build the platform, as the kit version is only a bit of abs, with some wood glued on top. Going by a photo of the real thing, I made it out of some thin (1mm) brass wire & soldered it togeather. Didn't come out to bad, & looks more realistic.
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Coming on a treat. Looks great.
barry
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Agree :-))
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:-)) great job hope to see more of your work.
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Hi all another update. I've been busy building the "Jumo" crane for the stern. This was a mini kit in its self !! Made mainly from injected moulded abs & brass fittings.
As usual the instructions were basic. You have to bend the main lower frame of the crane to fit the base, no markings are given, so it's pretty much a guesstimate as to how much you bend them. I did them so you just had to lever them apart a little to get the lower hydraulic ram in place & still be able to move it freely. The main arms were straight forward, still no locating lugs etc so a bit of care was needed in getting the parts placed correctly.
I added some extra details like the drum guards, & all the pipe work, which I used thin telephone wire to simulate. They even go to the correct places, as there was a diagram in my reference book, which helped alot !!! I added a crew man complete with the ubiquitous red hat for effect. Cheers Dan
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Excellent job.....A little tip. Hope you don't mind, but run your "ropes" through a block of beeswax before using them. It keeps the "fluff" down.
Barry
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Excellent job.....A little tip. Hope you don't mind, but run your "ropes" through a block of beeswax before using them. It keeps the "fluff" down.
Barry
Thanks for that Barry, I don't mind at all, any tips allways welcomed. Cheers Dan.
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Well I made the funnel, & a pain it was !!! The vac moulding was very poor , extreamly thin sides, & all crushed in, & some areas had thick runs in the plastic from the moulding process I assume.
I started by adding some plastic metal inside the funnel, to try & regain the correct shape, when this was dry I sanded down the runs, & where the plastic had split, & after several coats of model filler, I managed to get the shape back. After adding the top & brass extras I built up the side vent & added some hinges & a handle on the access door, & gave it several coats of white primer before adding the top coats.
I also decided to add a smoke generator, & went for the Graupner 6v model part No 2324. this was very easy to fit, & produces a large amount of smoke at full blast.
Quite pleased with the result.
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A cracking rescue job on that funnel...
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Hi all cheers for kind words on the funnel. I decided to make the heli pad next. The one in the kit, was made of planking, & going by pictures & screen captures, I cloud see that the original pad was made up by many sections of perforated metal sheet, so I decided to scratch build one.
I first scanned the plan, which was 1:1 scale, & then cut it out to use as a template. I used some aluminium mesh, the type that is used to fill rust holes in car panels etc, & then used some scrap decking, or in my case the wood I had left over from planking the hull sides which I cyno glued to the underside to act as the joins in the metal sections. Once painted it should look quite good. Cheers Dan.
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looks good dan :)
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Hi & Greetings from Nordic!
I have had Calypso kit maybe closer 15 years awating to start,
and today it was The Day..
Playing earlier a lot with rc airplanes, not so much with boats,my very first question
came up, in matter of balancing weight, before gluing any motor decks, I thought it would be the best get some idea about itīs basic ballast,
to get those as low as possible, am I right?
I hope I red through earlier posts, sorry if I repeat question, but could not find any accurate base ballast info
Thanks & Happy New Year !
Hannu
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The most common way to ballast a bot is to get the motors and shafts in place first, they have to go where
they have to go, if you see what I mean. ( But having said that, you may have a little lee way by using longer
or shorter shafts or gear or belt drives, this gives you the option to move the main battery about.... a bit!) Follow
the layout as suggested in the instructions and you won't go far wrong.
For ballast, some people use lead shot in plastic bags (or strips of lead sheet) and lay them in the completed hull
(shaft, props, motors, couplings, rudders, radio & electronics), adding, removing and moving them around until the
correct waterline as marked on the plans in archived. Allow a couple of millimetres for deck and superstructure weight.
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Finished off the heli pad today. straight forward enough following the template as a size guide. I used spray cans to paint both the white & yellow, as this gave a nice even covering, & didn't fill the holes in the mesh up. Being acryilic, it dried in a flash too.
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Hi,
Well, "problem" in Calypso is, that in kit design there is bottom deck for motors, and in matter of balance point, if balance weight, at least partially
installed, could get the balance point in lower position, if initially added below motor deck. That way it should be much more stabile runner
compared to situation all balance lead added over motor deck in higher level.
I have seen quite many scale ships manoevering badly in moderate weather, whereas major problem is not lack of correct
ballast weight, but that itīs balance point is much too high, making ship unstable in wawes/ turns etc..
@Dan.L
Your progress looks great!
BR,
Hannu
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Hello,
well, this is a bit offtopic in matter of Calypso, but as Calypso is originally modified British Yard Mine Sweeper,
after a short study, I found that there was also 4 pces of those BYMS in service in Finland,so I decided to make my Calypso kit to be
Finnish Navy Mine Sweeper, lets see what we get from that idea..
BR,
Hannu
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Hi all, not done much lately, due to computer problems etc. I have managed to build the main winch assembly & the smaller side winch. I added a couple of brass wires to represent the armoured cables that powered the winches, other than that it's the basic kit. The cover for the pulleys will be added after painting
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Hi All, well it's been a long time, but i've returned !! Been so busy of lat, note had time to do anything, but I made a start again yesterday. Finished off the rear winch assembly, & scratch built the air supply area. I've also spent some time on the vac form parts, gluing & filling them ready for detailing & painting. Not much I know but it's a start. Mare to come soon hopefully :-)
Cheers Dan.
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Lots of blood on the bench there Dan! ok2
(http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=5809.0;attach=61139;image)
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Not so much blood Martin, red paint !! Plenty of sweat & tears though {-)
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Plenty of sweat & tears though.
I bet but well worth it!!
Dan. That is a lovely build. Glad to see more of it and look forward to some more of her. :-))
Ron.
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Thanks for the kind words Ron, I'll try to keep the build going this time. Brought some model filler today to carry on with the vac form bits Dan.
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painted the air supply ready for fitting, Also detailed up the diving saucer, I scribed the lines to simulate the joins in the panels with a sharp needle, & scratch built the hatch area to give it a bit more authentic look. & added some headlights lifting loops etc. ready for painting next.
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Hi if anyone's interested, there are 2 video's on you tube following the restoration of the real Calypso. You need to turn on the captions lower r/h corner for the subtitles.
Makes very interesting viewing. Cheers Dan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnv-ZmArDxA This is part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT1Lml855vA&feature=channel This is part 2
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Finally got the detailing bits n pieces painted & fitted. also painted the diving saucer. All the O2 cylinders, fuel cans, out board motors etc came from Paul at PPS. Many thanks for those, really liven up the boat.
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Hi all, well been at it again. Made the helicopter, added the cockpit interior from another kit, as it only comes as a shell. This took some fitting, but once in looked the part, even came with several crew !!
also made the decompression chamber, tin boat, & inflatable. The Inflatable, ( which still requires tidying up) is a resin cast one, that I got from Paul at PPS ships, this is very well detailed & much better than the vac form one that comes with the kit, which is void of any detail at all !!.
I've also done the upper deck hand railing out of brass which is included in the kit. One thing about Billings kits the brass fittings are excellent quality. Slowly working forward now, doing all the detailing, I think the light is showing at the end of the tunnel now :-)
Cheers Dan.
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well got a little more done. fitted both inflatable & tin boat, cranes etc. also made bridge railings. I used a grain of wheat bulb to simulate the rear light below the flag, as I couldn't find a bulb small enough to fit inside the brass light supplied. I've painted it to try & resemble a light as best as poss {:-{.
Now in process of painting the oil drums & life raft containers.
More to follow. Cheers Dan.
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Will this is certainly turning out a museum piece build! :o
Well done Dan.
Green with envy of Peterboro!
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Thanks for the kind words Martin, goes along way. I don't know about museum piece, I intend to get her wet (not completely hopefully) If all goes well in the next few wekks.... Watch this space :D
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You've done some very impressive detailing work to the (often rather basic) kit parts! I'll definitely be saving some of these photos as reference for my own build of this kit (and the small Revell 1/125 kit which I also have)
A couple of questions:
- What reference material are you using? I haven't managed to find many close-ups of Calypso, either online or in books.
- Do you know what type of helicopter Calypso carried? Apart from being rather lacking in detail, the fuselage/cockpit parts in my kit are badly yellowed, and I'm wondering if there's a 1/48 scale plastic kit available which would make a suitable replacement.
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You've done some very impressive detailing work to the (often rather basic) kit parts! I'll definitely be saving some of these photos as reference for my own build of this kit (and the small Revell 1/125 kit which I also have)
A couple of questions:
- What reference material are you using? I haven't managed to find many close-ups of Calypso, either online or in books.
- Do you know what type of helicopter Calypso carried? Apart from being rather lacking in detail, the fuselage/cockpit parts in my kit are badly yellowed, and I'm wondering if there's a 1/48 scale plastic kit available which would make a suitable replacement.
Hi Edward, thanks for the kinds remarks :embarrassed:
As for reference, I have all the films on DVD so I tralled through all them & got some screen captures etc to help I also have a great book called "Jacque Cousteau's Calypso" & this has many great pics & diagrams.
The Helicopter is a Hughs 300, & unfortinatley no body makes one in a kit form, apart from the very small radio controlled ones, & they arn't very well detailed or correct either.
I have many pics & plans I could send you on DVD if you're interested & I also have a spare helicopter body that came with the kit which you are welcome to . Send me a PM with your e mail address & I'll get back to you.
Cheers Dan.
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Thanks for the offer - I've sent you a PM.
According to this page - http://www.sacusa.com/corporate/history.asp - the helicopter is actually a Schweizer 300C (which was based on the Hughes 300)
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Managed to get on a bit more over the last week. Made a start on the observation platform, including wiring up the lights. I'm hoping to use a 3 gram micro servo to power the radar, should hopefully be small enough.
Finished off the bow hand railings & painted them, & made a start on the bow mast, again I've use a grain of wheat bulb for the light, now got the fun of threading the wire throught the hull so I can reach it to wire it up.... hopefull some thin welding wire should do.
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Very nice :-))
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Getting on with the observation platform. I've made the radar work by useing a 3 gram micro servo, I removed all the electronics from inside & cut the case down abit , & used the main support legs to solder the wires from the motor to. Not being much of an electronics wizz, I was rather pleased with the results.
I'm going to add a voltage regulator to slow down the rpm, to give it a more realistic speed. I've been told running on 1v will give about 30 rpm.
Here's a link to a short video of it in operation.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1105505#post13027690
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Wht a neat idea. Im in the process of re-building a Calypso (Ebay salvage) and I was thinking about how to get a realistic radar.
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Made a shark cage to go on the roof as a bit of extra detailng. All most finished the observation platform, just adding a few extra bits n pieces. Very nearly finished :} now
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Well she's just about finished all bar the testing tank for ballast & trimming then off to the pond for sea , well pond, trials & then hopefully lots of trouble free fun. Here's a small video clip so far.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1107352#post13056204
I hope you have all enjoyed watching the build progress I'll post some pics of her at sea soon. Cheers Dan.
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Definitely a model to be proud of Dan, well done.
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Hi all. well she had her mainden voyage today,it was rather windy, but she sailed quite well. Here's a few pics if your interested & a short video clip . Cheers Dan.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1112389#post13128212
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Jacques Cousteau would be proud to sail in her Dan.
How would he put it....
"Dan, youu have dune yourshelf prooud. Youu have accomplished the imposssibull and reeecreated the vessul I once luved so much."