New member

[E Pinniger]

Hi,
I've been building R/C model boats for some years now - after being given a part-built hull and scratchbuilt paddlewheels for the P&A Campbell steamer "Britannia" (1896) a couple of years ago, I've finally got round to building a model from it. As my first attempt at a paddler, I will probably be asking for advice here in future! I'm planning to post a build thread for Britannia once I've found out whether it actually sails; it hasn't been tested in the water yet (this is awaiting the hull being painted + varnished)

[PeeWee]

Welcome aboard and good luck for the maiden voyage

[the bombus]

Hi there ,
also a sincere welcome from me !
you don't have to wait until the maiden to share the adventure .
the more buildinglogs the merrier like to say.
enjoy the forum and ask all you like there's more than enough knowledge here to answer a zillion questions
gr from The Bombus

[E Pinniger]

I've learnt (from several previous attempts at build logs) that it's "tempting fate" to post anything online before I'm 100% certain it will actually sail    However, I've now tested "Britannia" in the bath and it seems to be seaworthy - the paddles work, there are no problems with leaks or instability, and the model sits at close to the right waterline with the 6v SLA battery providing most of the ballast (plus a few hundred grams of lead amidships). It sits slightly high but this will allow for the weight of superstructure and fittings.
The only thing I wasn't able to test is the turning ability (rudder only, no seperate paddle control); I've built the model with a larger, over-scale rudder as recommended on the plans, so it hopefully should be steerable. I hope to test the boat out at Black Park lake within the next couple of weeks. Anyway, I'll get to work on a build log soon, I've taken plenty of photos of the model during construction.

[the bombus]

hi pinniger ,
I can understand your way of thinking(never tempt fate)
so we will be looking out for your building log
maybe you could lift a small tip of the veil with a overall picture ??
gr from Bombus

[R.G.Y.]

Don't worry if the model will not perform straight away, there are always challenges. To me getting it right in the end is the great satisfaction. R.G.Y.

[E Pinniger]

Sorry that I still haven't got my build log started - I've been very busy lately and have only just got round to starting the writeup and sorting out the photos (I've taken photos of all the build stages, starting off with the basic balsa hull as I got it). But here are a few photos of Britannia's maiden voyage at Black Park today (24/5/2012).

This first sail showed up a number of issues that need fixing, but I was more or less expecting this, as I have no previous experience with paddlers! Ballast needs adjusting as it's too top-heavy (the boat is in no danger of capsizing even in wind gusts, but tends to heel over and "sit" on one paddle box or the other, which can be seen in the second photo below) - I'll be replacing the standard 6V SLA battery with a smaller, flatter one of the same voltage and make up the weight difference with lead ballast placed as low down as possible. Also, the motors (which are unsuppressed) are causing interference problems with the rudder servo; hopefully fitting suppressor capacitors to the motors will fix this. The motors/gearbox are also very noisy, but I don't know how much more I can do about this, given that I've already surrounded the motor with foam padding. (The motor and gearbox assembly is from a Tamiya R/C tank)

On a more positive note, the paddle wheels work well in both forward in reverse, the turning circle (rudder only) isn't bad at all, and absolutely no water came into the hull through the paddle shaft openings. The motors also didn't overheat, even after prolonged running.

Anyway, I hope to get the build log started within a week or so!

[Harold H. Duncan]

Very nice, look forward to the build
kiwi

[steamboatmodel]

"(the boat is in no danger of capsizing even in wind gusts, but tends to heel over and "sit" on one paddle box or the other, which can be seen in the second photo below) "
I have seen this in a lot of the narrower paddlers. One fellow I know has a Mt Washington that had this problem and was almost relegated to be a mantle queen. He solved the problem by hocking up a spare servo with a weight on a beam. This sits on the center line of the model with the weight centered in normal conditions, when he enters a turn or the model heels over he shifts the weight to counter the heel.
Regards,
Gerald.

[E Pinniger]

"(the boat is in no danger of capsizing even in wind gusts, but tends to heel over and "sit" on one paddle box or the other, which can be seen in the second photo below) "
I have seen this in a lot of the narrower paddlers. One fellow I know has a Mt Washington that had this problem and was almost relegated to be a mantle queen. He solved the problem by hocking up a spare servo with a weight on a beam. This sits on the center line of the model with the weight centered in normal conditions, when he enters a turn or the model heels over he shifts the weight to counter the heel.
Regards,
Gerald.

Interesting! I might attempt this if the heeling problem persists. However after replacing the battery with a smaller and much flatter one, and putting lead sheet ballast in the bottom of the hull, the model seems a lot more stable and less top-heavy; fingers crossed that it will sail OK now.
The hull beam (excluding paddle boxes) is about 14cm, and the length about 105-110cm, so it is fairly narrow (and also fairly shallow-draughted)

[R.G.Y.]

I have found this method sucssesful. To avoid adding extra weight I use the battries as the weight.  Geoff

[mjt60a]

.... tends to heel over and "sit" on one paddle box or the other....

Just wondering as I can't tell from the photos, are the paddle box vents actually cut out or just painted black? On my 'PBM edwardian paddlesteamer' they are molded styrene with black paint to accentuate the openings - though I've tried several alterations to get the model to sail I still find it 'sticks' to the surface of the water if even the slightest breeze tilts it while sailing. Seems the paddles are very efficient at pumping the air out causing a vaccuum which holds the sponson down until it's brought back to shore and righted by hand. I suspect that if I replace the solid outer end with a styrene one with cut outs it would clear the water out by itself... just an idea 

Nice looking model by the way!

[Spankbucket]

Although I haven't put my 'Presto' on water yet I may have anticipated and avoided some of this kind of problem. I cut my paddle box vents out as part of the Robocutter design but subsequently, I lined the inside of each outer face with a fine mesh cut from a pair of my wife's old black tights! I'll report back on the performance once I get to a convenient pond and a warm low-wind day!

I use copious amounts of sheet lead in my non-paddler boats in order to get the correct waterline...(They are balsa hulls and therefore light)...I cut the sheets into strips and then some of these into square chips (with an old tincutter)...the square chips can be selectively placed to trim any small discrepancies after the strips are in. I use old lead flashing salvaged from house updates but am now running low and maybe have only enough for one or two further boats.

[E Pinniger]

Just wondering as I can't tell from the photos, are the paddle box vents actually cut out or just painted black?

They're cut out, not just painted (both the diamond-shaped holes and the smaller round ones), so the vacuum problem shouldn't occur, at least in theory. The paddle wheels are also substantially smaller in diameter than the boxes (about 2cm clearance from the top of the paddles).
The model is a lot less prone to "stick" now with the modified ballast, but I haven't yet had the chance to test it out on an area of water larger than the bath! Regarding RGY's post re. batteries/ballast weight, I originally used the battery (6V SLA) to provide 95% of the ballast weight, but found this made the model too top-heavy, as the shape of the battery meant the weight wasn't low enough in the hull. It now has a much smaller battery (about 25% of the ballast weight, and much flatter/lower anyway) with the rest being lead sheet in the bottom of the hull.

[mogogear]

Hello and welcome--Maiden voyage??