Fade To Black

So the next step in the inexorable plod toward completion consists of working the panel lines with black artists' chalk. I drew a line across each panel line then went back and rubbed it in with a rag (a discarded t-shirt). The chalk made the panel lines pop along with the recesses of the topside grating. It also helped mellow the roof brown paint. The top half has been worked, the bottom half is next.

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Paint Test Take II

After getting some advice from Greg McKellar, I took another run at a base coat for Nautilus. Greg's suggestion was to use a light coat of Roof Brown applied sparingly over the gray primer. This produced a very neat look, much better than the dark gray/brown on the wheelhouse and dorsal fin.

Of course there's much more work to do than this. But I really like the start. And if your monitor setting makes it look a little green, don't worry. It's brownish in real life.

When my wife first saw it she was amazed at the difference. "It's been gray for so long it almost doesn't look right." I know what she means. Once it sets up a bit I'll flip her over and do the underside.

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10th Anniversary Special

Lest you get your hopes up on the Nautilus progress, I'm also working on another project for R/C which I have had on the shelf for a long time: a 1/96 USS Helena (SSN-725). This would be the boat in which I was fortunate enough to make a DVE - Distinguished Visitor Embark - back in March 2001.

I've had an old ThorDesign Flight II LA hull in the corner for several years. I also bought a Flight II sail from Matt many moons ago when I contemplated converting my Flight III boat to Helena. However, I sold that boat last year.

So far the hull is cut and mated together. The seam fits really well. Unfortunately, I don't have any stern appendages at this time. So I've turned to working on the sail. The image is of some light work on the forward vertical array. It was originally scribed as several parallel panels up the leading edge. However, on Helena it was one larger array. So I puttied them together and rescribed the perimeter, along with a shot of primer. Starting to look better.

Compare the above to this shot of the actual boat taken in 2001.

The boat and her men are still at it after all these years, fighting the good fight. The day I spent aboard her was one of the most memorable of my life.

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A Darker Shade of Nautilus

Well, I made my first attempt at painting the exterior of the static boat. I followed the paint mix ratios in the instructions, however, it did not turn out like I expected. Way too dark. It's a great color for shadows and panels lines I would expect. Just not what I had in mind for an overall "look". I think I needed more of the Euro Gray in the blend.

"If you didn't like it, then why put on so much?" you might ask. Having been removed from the project for so long it felt good to be doing something. And the airbrush was laying it down like velvet. I just couldn't stop!

I greatly admire the work done below by Greg McKellar on his Gen 3 static build. His is more what I hope to achieve. Yes, the comparison makes the dark seem darker...

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Sun N Fun 2011 Dates Set

Sun N Fun 2011 will return to Hermann Park in Houston, Texas on September 17 - 18. Get all the event info including directions, lodging, and event schedule here: http://www.warfish.com/subron5/snf2011.html.

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Sun N Fun 2010

Sun N Fun 2010 was a great time. The weather was absolutely perfect. SubRon vets Jeff Porteous, Tom Kisler and Don Baker had successful runs with their boats. Lee Giles returned with his magnificent British S-class boat.

Several new local members show up this weekend including Jackson Chu, Chad Divine, Fitz Walker, and long time SC member Andy Hunt who is now living near Houston. Looks like time to start a Houston based sub-group of SR5.

Here's a video of Jeff Porteous' Blueback on patrol.

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Same Thing Only Cooler

Sun N Fun 2010 is almost here and we're returning to Hermann Park in Houston, Texas on October 2-3. Only this time the forecast is for highs in the mid 80's. The usual cast of characters is scheduled to appear so please join us if you can.

If you can't attend, be sure and get the t-shirt: http://www.zazzle.com/sun_n_fun_2010_tshirt-235253056091735612

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Scorching Sun N Fun

Well, another SubRon5 event is in the can and it was a doozy! We had the most boats and the best venue we've ever had. The people at the Hermann Park Conservancy were extremely helpful and the water was great. The sun...well, that was a different story. It was really hot. But that is Houston in August.

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Sun N Fun 2009

It's that time again for our sub modeling group, SubRon5 to get together for a weekend of submerged operations and fellowship. This time it is in Houston this August 22-23. You can see all the details here: http://www.warfish.com/subron5/snf2009.html. If you are in the neighborhood please come see us!

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Wahoo Project

Happy 2009! With the holiday dust settling I thought I'd update modeling progress and explain the recent absence of posts.

I have been busy. The static Nautilus almost has a finished display stand. Little details added don't do much in the way of generating blog posts but they are necessary to the completion of the project.

My main focus has been working with a group of fellow modelers to create the definitive r/c model of USS Wahoo (SS-238) in 1/48 scale. This has long been a dream of mine and the group has been steaming along and making great progess. You can follow the work as we post about it on The Wahoo Project blog: http://wahooproject.blogspot.com/.

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Testing, One, Two...

Since I had the stand and the base handy I decided see how the boat looked in place. The images were only corrected for size so it looks a bit better in person. But we're definitely getting there. The bow-on shot looks appropriately sinister. Click on the images to see them full size.

I'm starting to think about primer and paint. But I'll probably tackle the wheelhouse lights next.

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Back to Base-ics

Following a work stopping benchtop accident in which I knocked the completed wheelhouse interior onto the floor I took some time off and tackled the display board for the stand. I cut a piece of red oak to size and routed the edge with a Roman ogee bit. I stained it with a dark mahogany from ZAR and sprayed several coats of clear lacquer to seal it. Light sanding with 1000 grit paper kept it smooth between coats. I'm very pleased with the results (note 1/72 Permit class project in the background).

With the display base looking good, the urge to work on the boat came back so I returned to the wheelhouse. The pieces that were knocked off were CA'd back in place. Then I fabbed a latching pin system to keep it in place on the hull.

First, a hole was drilled in the forward end through both the deck and exterior pieces, then the forward access hatch in the hull. This captured a pin that slides in to secure them all via friction.

To hold the aft end in place a brass rod was bent to slide into a hole cut in the upper hull. This captures the entire assembly and holds it down. The wheelhouse now fits snug and doesn't move yet is capable of being disassembled. This will allow replacement of D-cell batteries for the lights inside the hull.

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Prop Spin

In order to provide a spinnable prop, the stock mouting shaft can't be used. I didn't want to install a motor for the static display but I did want to be able to see it turn on demand. So I bashed together a solution based on the stock mounting shaft.

A stainless 3/16" shaft was used along with a flange type oilite bronze bearing. With a wheel collar on the back side and some found pieces glued to the shaft on the outside to capture the shaft on the bearing, the bearing will be glued in place on the hull allowing the shaft to spin. The prop will be glued on the shaft once it is installed in the hull. Simple; easy; works.

Pics to come.

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Atomized Phosphorus Anyone?

Don't even know if I spelled that right. Thought I'd post this shot of the completed phosphoric atomizer now that it's done. The oil cans are a bit on the small side when it comes to installing them (those with eyes over 40 years old will understand what I mean). I drilled out the holes per the instructions and set them using CA.



The primer was shot on the back side of the cans prior to assembly. I'll shoot the outboard side all at once at a later date.

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On Guard!

Took some time and installed the prop guards on my static kit. A paper template was used to mark the 45degree angles to keep the supports in proper position. 5-minute epoxy was the adhesive of choice.

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An Accident...

With the railing done I set about affixing some of the interior components to the wheelhouse floor: the helm, control levers, depth tube, knobby doohickey on the port wall just behind the control levers on the lower deck. Got them epoxied in place, set them aside to cure -- and promptly knocked the entire assembly off the bench.

The stair well cup was broken off along with the helm and control levers. Fortunately, each individual piece was virtually unharmed save for some scraped paint. The rails connecting the center stairwell pole to the circular railing were lost. And the helm railing was bent slightly. It was gently worked back into position.

So I set the parts aside after assessing the damage to redo the work again at a later date. For some reason I had a headache.

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Helm Rail

Well, the rail behind the helm station turned out to be a piece of cake compared to the stair well.

Used the same procedure as before with a little rearrangement of the order. First, I used one half of a wooden clothespin as a form and bent the un-annealed brass wire into the proper shape. It was the perfect shape of the rail. I bent each end, one at a time, around the end of the clothespin. I cut the rectangle at the point where the rail went through the bottom leg of a support.

Next, I searched for the proper form for the curve of the rail. I measured it out and determined a cylinder with a 2.25" radius would work best. I finally found an air freshener spray can that fit the bill. Then, after annealing the wire to make it more malleable, I bent it around the can.

The supports slipped on one at a time at the joint in the wire. The upper supprt hole was strung on the wire and moved around until the lower hole lined up. It was slipped onto the wire then moved down. I arranged it so the break in the wire fit in the lower hole of a support. It was all secured with CA and the break in the wire is hardly visible.

I drilled two holes I marked in the deck for the proper placement of the supports and secured the assembly in place with two drops of 5 minute epoxy.

With the railings completed, it's just a matter of gluing in the rest of the sub-assemblies such as the helm, control levers, depth tube, etc.

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So Long, Stair Well

Finally got the railing to the stair well finished.

The circular rails were made from .045 brass rod. I prepared them prior to bending via a process called annealing. I heated the brass with a small butane torch and then quenched them in water. This made the brass much more malleable than its original state. I bent it easily around a 1" wooden dowel. After drilling out the support pieces I threaded the rings through and CA'd them to the deck.

For the spiral staircase well the CR instructions recommend a 1" id clear acrylic tube. I couldn't find one in the local hobby shops or hardware stores so I opted for the next best thing: a 1 1/4" PVC end cap. I sprayed the interior flat black, drilled a hole in the bottom for the brass rod center support and glued it to the underside of the deck with 5-minute epoxy.

As an side, I'm really getting used to the quick cure epoxy -- apart from the smell. It sets up fast with a strong bond. For static builds it's great. I realize now how prejudiced against it my r/c past had made me -- 5-minute epoxy not being waterproof. But I'm using it more and more as I go.

The rails were completed with two sections connecting the rings to the center pole. CR recommends a 1/8" diameter rod for the pole. But to me it looked too thick so I traded down a size or two.

The ball on top of the pole is a 4mm gold bead from the fabric store. I filled the center with a small length of brass rod. I left the center pole in unpolished brass, along with the rails. I think it looks better (the pole and stairs were painted in the movie). I brushed the white metal rail supports with gold enamel.

I've got to say this step was one of the most tedious of the build. And super close images show where the rails and supports are out of alignment. However, with the wheelhouse covering it the flaws will be very difficult to see through the windows. I'm satisfied with the look.

Next stop is the helm rail. Will it be easier or worse...?

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In Praise of Beginner Subs

Or "Everything I Needed to Know About R/C Subs I Learned From My Permit"

Had a conversation with a new member of the r/c sub community last week and it brought to mind the central issue for the newbie: what to build first?

Most of us are drawn to the hobby with visions of grandeur swimming in our heads. For me it was the ultimate fleet boat: 1/32 scale; fully detailed down to the last rivet; operational masts and radar; ten working torpedo tubes; diesel sounds when on the surface; running lights. I actually found a 32nd Parallel hull. It sat on my dining room table for a few weeks, hanging over each end by several feet, before it hit me -- I can't do this.

So many of my fellow skippers experienced the same crossroads starting out. The boat of their dreams was beyond their earthly means. What separated the ones who continue on in the hobby and those who don't? The "Beginner Sub."

The beginner sub is large enough to run in open water (Wal-Mart subs are toys). They come almost ready to run (Small World Model's boats), or in a highly prefabricated kit form (SubTech Albacore, Dumas Akula, ThorDesign Permit). Either way the box includes detailed instructions. Note that "beginner" doesn't mean "cheap." These are real r/c subs that stand up under use and perform like their real world counterparts. In most cases, Dumas Akula excluded, they are highly accurate scale models.

But why waste time building a boat you don't lay awake at night dreaming about? Simple. Instead of dreaming you will actually be driving, sooner rather than never. A beginner boat teaches you the things you don't yet know you need to know. Things like the fact that 5 minute epoxy isn't waterproof; how to install a WTC so that it sits level in the hull; setting up stern plane linkages around a prop shaft.

What the new guy can't know is that building the scale representation of a submarine is only one aspect of r/c submarining. You've also got to master submarine-specific electronics and how to keep them dry while in use. Trimming is an additional art that only comes through patient trial and error. The skill with which it is done means the difference between a pig of a boat or a sub that dances to your command. Because it takes skill to get r/c subs to run the way they were born to. Skill that can only be gained by stick time.

That's what beginner subs boil down to when laid alongside the jaw dropping museum pieces of our imaginations: they get completed in a reasonable amount of time and they run. They don't have to be perfectly within scale, they don't even have to look particularly pretty. They just need to be ready to run when the call comes down to go to the pond. Because r/c submarines are way more fun to drive than watch being driven.

And once your beginner sub is done you'll have plenty of time and space to tinker with your large scale Disney Nautilus project. They're what work benches are for.

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SubRegatta 2008

Several SubRon5 buddies went to SubRegatta 2008 in Carmel, Indiana this past weekend: Wayne Frey, Jeff Porteous, Tom Kisler. Preliminary reports from Jeff point to a great event that everyone enjoyed. Jeff and Tom traveled on to tour Cobia and Silversides. When they get back home they should have a more thorough report and some pictures. In the meantime, you can see some shots posted on the message boards at SubCommittee.com.

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