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Author Topic: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed  (Read 29686 times)

LarryW

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #75 on: January 27, 2011, 09:44:59 am »

hi JON., all lakes round kemble are private, or fishing pools ........LARRY.
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triumphjon

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #76 on: January 27, 2011, 04:40:49 pm »

could tell who owns any of them , i remember that coming from bath through kemble we used to turn right and down a lane and into a lake on the right , but it was around 8 years ago & ive been thousands of miles since then ! still might be worth asking if they would let model boats operate on private lakes ? . alternativly whats wrong with the sharpness canal , or the stroud canal , stroud is not only close to the m5 j 13 but there is a layby right next to canal and main road !
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samuelmerry

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #77 on: January 28, 2011, 08:49:20 am »

I know of a lake in tewkesbury that you could look at using, i have used it for running my 26cc 2 stroke boat so i am sure you would be fine running yours. During the warmer months you can only run after 5pm due to activities on the water but you may be able to run at a more sensible time if the lake is quiet.
give them a call, number is on this site:
http://www.croftfarmleisure.co.uk/
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #78 on: January 28, 2011, 09:50:33 am »

Great info on prospective use of lakes etc.

Yesterday I cut out all the glazing for the wheelhouse. It is made from a small sheet of 1mm perspex-like stuff that came as some packing with a piece of mail - perfect and didn't cost me a thing! It was only just big enough but it all worked out. All the glazing pieces fit in their prospective places. I did the glazing at this stage as I have glued in pieces of ply that locate it and hold it in place, and I wanted to paint the inside of the superstructure with the location pieces already in place for neatness.

As you can see from the picture, you can also see that yesterday I installed all the remaining coaming pieces and the piece of deck dividing the 2 compartments. The coaming is supposed to be 1/8" but I have made the new pieces 1/16" with a reinforcing strip around the top so at first glance it looks 1/8". This was done as the deck insert piece at the front (as you can see from the earlier posts in this thread) was 1/8" as it would not have been very rigid if the required 1/16". This is thicker than it should have been but was the best solution to get a good result. The coaming is made thinner as it does not have to reinforce the deck at this point (the 1/8" ply does that by itself!), and it means the total weight (use of material) will be about the same; a compensating weight reduction if you will.  The reason for all this is that the hull as built had a different shaped aperture from the plan, and it needed to be altered so that the superstructure from Vic Smeed's plan fits on there. Now it is substantially as per the plan, although slightly narrower in places (the constant-width part is narrower - the taper toward the front is as per the plan). I left it this way as removing the deck to rebuild as per the plan might have caused unnecessary damage. The piece of deck that divides the 2 compartments is a good fit and remains in place without gluing. I have not yet glued it in as I wanted to paint the underside first, and then I discovered that plugging in a couple of wires to the wiring loom is very difficult with it in place. So I might leave it detachable, we'll see.

Today's task will be to paint the waterline in final colour (black), and when it is touch dry I will turn the model over and paint the deck.
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #79 on: January 30, 2011, 05:04:52 pm »

Well, I've got on with the painting and here are the results. The pics are not the best, due to the poor lighting they are flash photos, but I will take some better ones later on. As originally designed it is a light missile carrying craft, so I chose an appropriate colour scheme, which is inspired by WW2 MGB colour schemes such as those found here http://www.hslmouldings.co.uk/71ft_6in_mgb.htm although as I've said earlier the vessel is a fictitious one as stated by the designer, Vic Smeed, authenticity is not an issue.  There are a few flaws in the paintwork that need to be fixed up, and this will be done when the paint is properly hardened in a week or so. I have some RN pennant numbers which will be applied to the hull, and the number chosen is the MM plan number - 718. In terms of further detail, I've got some bollards/cleats etc, but  definitely a lightly detailed "semi-scale" look though.
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gwa84

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #80 on: January 30, 2011, 05:38:12 pm »

looking good are you going to glass the windows
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #81 on: January 30, 2011, 05:41:23 pm »

Yes, already cut out and ready for installation - I glued location pieces inside that will hold the glass in so it just sits in there with a press fit. There are a few paint touch ups to sort before I put the glass in there.
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #82 on: January 30, 2011, 08:50:44 pm »

And the BIG question - are you going to go for full authenticity and mount two missiles on the rear hatch...?
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #83 on: January 31, 2011, 11:10:36 am »

Hmmm, still thinking about it. Now that most of the work has been done I've started looking into it. I've been looking at pictures of 1960s missile craft on the net, and working out how it might be done, as such craft (real ones) do not seem to have the missiles exposed to the elements as on the Vic Smeed plan, but are in some form of tube or can.
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Circlip

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #84 on: January 31, 2011, 11:41:13 am »

They didn't keep Bloodhounds in cans.

  Regards  Ian.
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #85 on: January 31, 2011, 01:38:07 pm »

I fitted the wheelhouse glazing that I had prepared previously. You can also see in the photos that the paint hasn't been buffed back with steel wool yet.

Ian thanks for the Bloodhound suggestion, I've just been trawling the net for info.
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #86 on: January 31, 2011, 02:01:31 pm »

Hmmm, still thinking about it. Now that most of the work has been done I've started looking into it. I've been looking at pictures of 1960s missile craft on the net, and working out how it might be done, as such craft (real ones) do not seem to have the missiles exposed to the elements as on the Vic Smeed plan, but are in some form of tube or can.

I don't think the original design was meant to be completely scale-like - it was a 'fantasy' craft. I was thinking about being 'authentic' to the original design rather than any real-life example. Do you have access to the original plans, which presumably incorporate the 'rocket structure'? I suspect that this was removable, anyway...
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #87 on: January 31, 2011, 02:56:05 pm »

Dodgy, you are absolutely right, it is not designed to be scale-like. I have got the original plan and have come up with an idea of how to make it work. I've bought 2 Bristol Bloodhound Airfix kits for a very reasonable price on ebay which will be the basis of the missiles (will be lengthened to the same dimension as shown on the boat plan).
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #88 on: January 31, 2011, 03:38:35 pm »

I've bought 2 Bristol Bloodhound Airfix kits for a very reasonable price on ebay which will be the basis of the missiles (will be lengthened to the same dimension as shown on the boat plan).

I bought one of those myself (memories of kit making in the 1950s)...but won't they be a bit delicate? I would guess that the original design just has two sanded broomsticks with some slotted fins at one end....
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #89 on: January 31, 2011, 06:17:12 pm »

It says on the plans to make the rockets from tube/dowel or 'adapted toys', as shown. I haven't actually seen one of the Airfix kits so you may well be right regarding their suitability. However I'm hoping they should have some parts that are of use...
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Circlip

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #90 on: January 31, 2011, 06:30:56 pm »

Airfix ones will be too small/fragile but a scaled up version from tougher materials should surfice.

  Regards   Ian
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #91 on: January 31, 2011, 08:05:57 pm »

Thanks for the advice, I've cancelled the purchase. Unfortunately I've just found out my Paypal account is locked as Paypal is auditing my security details, so the seller probably thinks the 2 events are linked, and hence that I am dodgy in some way!!
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #92 on: January 31, 2011, 08:06:42 pm »

The Bristol Bloodhound is a great kit and was a favourite of mine at school - you get a Land Rover, a transporter, a launch pad AND the missile to build, as well as several men and a dog...

But the missile body is 3 1/2" long, and 1/4" wide. You need a 7" x 1" body. I suspect none of the parts will be of use...

Still, you will be able to do a wonderful diorama - or a missile base would fill a section of your railway....
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #93 on: February 08, 2011, 06:35:19 pm »

I've almost finished the painting - I've gone through the cycle where correcting one paint flaw creates another and so on and so on. There is still a bit of touching up to do and initially I was not quite convinced by the grey/green colour I'd chosen (the range of colours in spray paint is always so much more limited than in tins) but now it has gone off and been buffed with steel wool it looks much better.

The prop turns by hand much more easily now I've lubed the prop shaft. My uncle suggested that 30 years of inactivity had perhaps caused a bit of corrosion in the motor which would prevent it turning freely, so the end bearing of the motor got a drop or two of oil as well.

I am still working on the missile idea, scratch-built seems to be the way to go.

Finishing touches  take almost as long as building it in the first place!
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #94 on: February 10, 2011, 01:13:25 pm »

Although it doesn't look much different from the last set of photos, a lot of painting and finishing have been done. The deck and waterline needed repainting, and the RC gear has been reinstalled and tested. I now have the throttle and steering working quite well, though as always some further fettling will be needed with settings on the Futaba T6EX 2.4 gHz Tx, as it is originally designed for aircraft and there are all sorts of end point settings and the like that need to be adjusted. I gave it a further test in the bath last night and now have found reverse. When at a constant throttle setting the motor does oscillate a bit in tone, a cycle taking several seconds. This might be down to the fact I have not yet earthed the battery black wire. However, it is nothing major.

As you can see after doing some paint touch-ups I applied the BECC RN-type pennant numbers. The number '718' is actually the MM plans number that can be seen at the bottom right of the Slalome plan. As it is a fictitious craft I felt that was in keeping, and the RN numbers make it look a bit more like a naval vessel, especially before I build the missiles and install them on the rear of the superstructure. I prefer the RN style numbers over the US-style shaded italic types.

The batteries, ESC and so on in the rear compartment are all mounted to a single ply 'deck', with the wiring held down by cable ties. I elected to use a separate receiver battery so that the it can still be steered if power is running low, and for weight distribution reasons. The deck is removable by unplugging the 2 motor wires and undoing the rudder servo linkage and a single screw that secures the deck to a captive nut just forward of the rudder post. In this way minimal strain is put on the wiring and the whole thing can be removed for adjustment or maintenance. It is also easier to work on building the deck and installing/adjusting gear outside the boat. Because the deck opening is slightly narrower than the original, there isn't a great deal of room and mounting the RC gear in this way makes things a bit more convenient. The batteries still need something to secure them to the deck, so that they do not move about.

A single removable box for the battery and RC gear was actually part of Vic Smeed's concept for the design.
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #95 on: February 10, 2011, 05:13:54 pm »



I am still working on the missile idea, scratch-built seems to be the way to go.



I must admit, I am watching this thread for the missile build. When I looked through the plans pictures all those years ago it was always the pair of missiles on the rear decking which made this boat stand out from the crowd, and since the pictures were so small I often wondered what the full-size boat would look like with them on...

If it were me, I would be thinking of two different diameter lengths of plumbers plastic tube, or plastic electrical conduit. The nose, beveled junction in the middle and tailpipe would be made of bits of old broomstick, which I would turn by mounting in a drill and sanding down....

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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #96 on: February 12, 2011, 02:34:28 pm »

Yes, I've never seen another full-size Slalome model either - only the plans illustration and the equally indistinct photos in the Model Maker 1963 article.

On another note, can anyone advise where I might buy a connector like the small one at the end of these thin wires coming from the battery?
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dodgy geezer

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #97 on: February 12, 2011, 05:55:00 pm »

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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #98 on: February 12, 2011, 06:34:37 pm »

Apologies, wasn't a very good photo. Better one is here...

That website looks good too. Very helpful thank you Dodgy.
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Boz

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Re: Rebuild - 'Slalome' by Vic Smeed
« Reply #99 on: February 12, 2011, 06:43:22 pm »

Inaugural sailing!!!!

Here are some photos taken earlier this afternoon of the inaugural sailing. All systems operated well and there was battery power to spare. There is still some fine-tuning needed for the rudder - it turns slightly to port when the rudder is centralised and needs correction, but not really a problem. The geared down 6v motor is not powerful enough to get it anywhere near a plane, which is what the hull is designed for when fitted with IC engines. It moves at a reasonable clip though, and the range of the Futaba 6EX was very good indeed. The manoeuvrability is excellent, unsurprising as the hull form is designed for it, and it is helped along by a larger rudder than shown on the plan. Some inquisitive ducks followed it at a safe distance!
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