Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length.

[SwordsmanDreamer]

Hello all


In considering my next project, I have been wondering about an enlarged version of the 1/16 Fairey Huntsman designed by Mr Milbourn.


I have the plans, and as I understand it, one can take them to a printer and have an enlarged copy made.


So an increase to 1/12, 31 inches, doesn't seem too much of a leap, after all, as I understand it, the Huntress kit, 34 inches, from SLEC is in liteply.


So a 1/12 liteply Huntsman seems a reasonable proposition.


If one was interested in going a bit larger still, what might be a reasonable practical limit if sticking to 2 & 3mm, and would it be reasonable / possible to increase the thickness of the sheet to go larger ?


But then I assume that much of the strength is going to derive from the bulkheads / framing, as much as the mere skin thickness. Perhaps with adequate bracing etc, one could stick with 2 & 3mm, after all it would be sheathed etc.


I would welcome your thoughts and observations.


Litelply is attractive as it is easy to work with, and seems to be cheaper than the birch etc.


Thanks


SD

[tonyH]

I'd have thought that skinning the hull with liteply could be a bad move. The face of the hull is the area most likely to be damaged by the odd other boat/driftwood/concrete wall and you've only got to pierce the surface veneer into the underlying balsa and you could have a problem.
Framework etc. brilliant but definitely speak to SLEC.
 

[Colin Bishop]

As Tony says, the surface of liteply is fragile and easily damaged unless protected. The SLEC Fairey kits designed by Dave Milbourn use all liteply contruction but the sides, bottom and transom are covered with 1oz glass cloth and finishing resin, either epoxy or acrylic.

Unlike birch ply, the glue holding the liteply layers together is not waterproof and it delaminates when wet or even damp.

Colin

[ChrisF]

Morning SD

Was down at the club the other day and another member had a 34" Huntsman which was part Liteply so you can certainly go to that size. I note that SLECs 47" Huntsman 31 kit uses birch ply. In theory you could use some Liteply but as Tony says not for the hull skins where thin birch ply is much better. Personally I won't use Liteply at all!

As for enlarging the 1:16 drawings, I wouldn't. Reason being is at that size Dave simplified the design e.g. the deck is flat and the hull is built off it. Not saying it couldn't be done but you probably have to add some extra bulkheads/frames.  Also the Huntsman 31 has it's signature flared bow and it is concave as you move back along the bow and ideally needs to be more accurate the bigger you go. You need additional frames to achieve that.

There are drawings available for the model at 1:12, by Philip Connelly and I think available from Sarik as an X Plan. MM1061 though I need to confirm that when I turn the PC on. I think 1:12 Is a nice size but could be enlarged if desired.

Did you ever build a Swordsman?

Chris

[SwordsmanDreamer]

Hello all


Thank you for your various replies.


Yes I appreciate that the liteply is not as hardy as the birch / wbp, and that the SLEC kits are intended to be covered in cloth + resin - as is my Swordsman - which is why I put " after all it would be sheathed etc. " in my post - what I meant was, the Huntsman would also be covered (sheathed) in cloth + resin.

Could the M1061 plan be used with Liteply, do you think (again, sheathed) ?

I remember it being said (by Mr Milbourn) that much of the reason for using the heavier construction techniques was due to the use of I/C engines (and the fact that liteply was not available years ago). I have no intention of ever getting involved with I/C engines.

Thanks

SD

[tonyH]

Hi SD,
Coating with 1oz cloth can, if you damage the wood underneath, cause more problems. Getting a decent finish to a repair can be a real b****r which, sadly, I know from my foray into power boats. After all weight, which at 1/12 for a Huntsman would be about 5lbs, on larger scale boats, is rarely a problem but you're the builder after all

[ChrisF]

Hi SD

How did your Swordsman turn out, any pictures?

No reason why the MM1061 plan couldn't be built in Liteply really. Yes, construction was beefy to resist the forces involved when starting IC engines and to resist vibration but I still prefer to build "heavy" and believe the model sits better on the water. The Fairey hulls are very buoyant and don't think that the relatively small difference in weight makes that much difference anyway. If you want to save weight the thickness of frames etc. could be reduced or use Liteply.

I cover all my builds in cloth and Eze-Kote even though I use birch ply as it ties in the difference materials if balsa and filler is used as well as the ply and provides a good base for painting.

Chris
.
Overlapped with Tony. I should have added that as he says I wouldn't use Liteply for the hull skins as it doesn't like bending to shape much either!

Haven't finished the H31 yet but it doesn't feel that heavy. Unlike the Swordsman which is pretty porky! Must do a bath test.

[Colin Bishop]

Further to the comments above, the SLEC Faireys are small lightweight boats and the construction method seemed to work well enough in that context. Personally I would not use liteplay in my own builds though, birch ply is a much tougher and versatile material and you have the choice of 0.8mm and 1.5mm for skinning depending on the size and framing of the boat.

Colin

[ChrisF]

My thoughts entirely Colin but SD seems to like it and I presume used it in his Swordsman build.

Chris

[SteamboatPhil]

I have no objection to lite ply, but in small use (ie replace the sea nymph kit ) but it will not form a "natural curve" as birch ply does over any thing longer than say 2 ft (sorry not metric). I have tried with lite ply with resin on the inside, coat the outside........ yeah  after 2 years it all separated, who knew water can get into a gap


PS. Boat fell apart.