Sir William Wallace - Second build

[Eddy Matthews]

I've decided it's time I made my own model of the paddle ferry Sir William Wallace. I made one a couple of years ago for Andrew Gray, a friend up in Edinburgh, and the more I got into the build the more I liked it's quirky design.

The one I built for Andrew was at 1:43 scale, mine will be larger at 1:32 scale.

I've been collecting suitable vehicles to put on the deck for the past year or so, and although I still need some more, I have enough to have a reasonable deck cargo when she's finished.

The drawings have been dug out of storage, and on checking everything, it will give a model 60" long, with a hull beam of 11.25" and a total beam of 19" over the sponsons.

Construction will start later this week once I've sourced the materials for the hull.....

Regards
Eddy

[Stuart Badger]

Coo Eddy!

that's UGLY! - I love it, and at 60inches it'll be big and ugly -= even better.

Stuart

[Eddy Matthews]

No doubt I'll be picking your brains for fixtures and fittings once I get the basics done Stuart!

I admit it is ugly, but it has a certain charm about it - With such a wide hull it makes into a superbly stable model.

Regards
Eddy

[mjt60a]

Can't wait to see this one, it'll be impressive sailing!

[Eddy Matthews]

All the hull materials have just been ordered - Don't you just love online ordering! So now my credit card is £57 more in debt

The build will commence as soon as the order arrives..... I have to admit I can't wait to get started!

Yes I think it will look impressive on the water Mick, and definately something a little out of the ordinary. I don't think I'll get the model completed by the time of our paddler day in september, but it should certainly be ready to sail even if all the odds and ends aren't made and fitted.

Regards
Eddy

[Eddy Matthews]

The hull materials eventually arrived this morning - It only took a week!! Don't you just hate bank holidays!

Anyway, 6 sheets of 1/2" thick balsa have been glued together to form the bottom of the hull, and that has now been cut to shape. The hull formers are all cut out, and I should get those fitted tomorrow evening, then it's onto the planking...... With a bit of luck I should have something that resembles a hull by the end of the weekend - Photos will come then.

Now I have to find two sheets of 1/16" ply 5 feet long - This is where sods law strikes as none of my local suppliers have any!

Anyway, at least I'm off to a pretty good start...

Regards
Eddy

[andy]

Okok, but which engine?

Andy

[Eddy Matthews]

Okok, but which engine?

Andy

Nothing exciting for you steam buffs Andy....  The real boat was diesel/electric powered, so the model will use two electric motors to give independent paddle control exactly like the real thing.

Regards
Eddy

[Eddy Matthews]

The hull is now planked, and final shaping/sanding is being done.... With a bit of luck, early next week will see a hull that is a reasonable representation of the real thing, and I'll post some photos then.

At that point, the hull will be given to a clubmate who will fibreglass it inside and out for me - I hate working with that stuff, and to be honest he'll do a job that's ten times better than I could do anyway!

Now I need to get some plywood for the deck, and then I can really get onto the bit of the build that I enjoy.....

Regards
Eddy

[Eddy Matthews]

There's still a lot of sanding and final shaping to do, but the hull is now starting to look the part - Here are a few images of it taken during constuction.

Also included are a couple of photos of the modified Graupner wheels I'll be using on the model - I hate making paddlewheels, so this makes my life a whole lot easier!

Regards
Eddy

[Eddy Matthews]

Does everyone remember the "A Team"? I just love it when a plan comes together.....

Well in my case, I think our house is the home of the "B Team" - I just hate it when a plan falls apart....

Some of you will know my wife suffers from epilepsy which isn't controlled by medication. And after thousands of seizures over the last 40 years her brain is now damaged permanently. One of the ways it manifests itself is with her extremely poor balance, and yesterday she fell - You guessed it, right on top of the SWW hull.... No damage to my wife, other than a bit of a fright, but the hull is totalled beyond repair!

Those with a good memory will remember that almost the same thing happened with the SWW I built for Andrew Gray a couple of years ago - Deja Vu

I know it was a complete accident, but to say that I was annoyed would be the understatement of the decade, and I was not the most pleasant person to be with for a few hours whilst I calmed myself down! Anyway, these things happen..... Time to start on another hull....

Eddy

[Stuart Badger]

Eddy - I sympathise. There must be a dissapointment gremlin around at the moment. You may remember I was building a model of the salvage tug 'Euro'. It was crated in the UK and transported 15000 miles to Greece, carefully unpacked and lived, waiting to be worked on, on a shelf in my temporary study come workshop till 2 days ago.
Our adopted cat decided it would be fun to jump on it - it fell several feet contacting EVERY vulnerable part till it hit the floor where the hull split open!

I have to say the cat was quite tasty with a light salad!

Stuart

[Tug--Kenny]

I too, synpathise with you. Just think how good the second one will be, now that that you've been that way before. You might even be quicker, now that you know the ropes 

ken

[amdaylight]

Eddy and Stuart,

I also feel your pain. In my case it was a Sergal/Mantua Cutty Sark that I was just finishing the rigging on. My young kitten found his way into my work/play room and had fun with the bobbins of line that I had hanging from the rigging. Now to tell the truth I am the one that taught him to play with little balls of string. I had made a Kitty teaser from an old 5' fishing pole by tying a 6' piece of twine to the pole and then a small bundle of string tied to the end of the twine. I would flip the bundle of string around the living room and he would just have a ball chasing and capturing it, so when "I" left the door open to my room and the wind was blowing these little balls of string around in the rigging he thought it was play time with the result of the Cutty upside down on the floor, all the upper masts broken, and all of the lower ones driven down through the bottom of the hull.  10 years later I still have not finished the Cutty. I was so mad I wanted to kill the little monster but the SWMBO asked so sweetly "Just who left the door open in the first place, huh?"  that was the end of the mad at the cat and the start of the mad at myself period. Later that day while I sitting and watch the TV the little monster climbed up into my lap and then up my chest and curled up and went to sleep just purring like mad,  at that point all of the mad went out of me. I realized that I would rather have the cat than the ship.

Andre
over yonder in Portland Oregon
With a new cat who thinks that my room is the neatest thing to explore ever, if I leave the door open for more that 10 seconds she is in there just looking every where for what ever cats look for.

PS Stuart, I hope you and your cat have made up.

[amdaylight]

Eddy,

On a different note, was the William Wallace only used on a river or was the flat bottom a concession to ease of building?

Andre
over yonder in Portland Oregon