Falmouth Severn Class

After a visit to Cornwall earlier this year I talked myself into building the earlier Falmouth Severn Class Lifeboat, RNLB The Will  17-02 for a friend. This was also the first of the production boats.


First thing to sort out was the bow thruster. On the full size boat this is 400mm in diameter, in 1/12th scale this is 33.33333 mm diameter. Handy thing is standard plumbing pipe is 32mm bore so I built one for a great deal less than a commercial item at £80 ish!!

Sections of pipe were fitted into each other and sealed along with a screw cap inspection cover.






A motor was fitted to the screw on cap and a paddle blade added to the motor shaft.









The position for the thruster was plotted onto the hull and BIG holes bored into the hull.









The thruster was then fitted and bonded to the hull.









Before going any further the boat was loaded with ballast and checked out in my test tank.       https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gyi1nBb7V8U






Now everything works it's on with the build.

great start 

you know what i like most of all..... your work bench is as bloody messy as mine, Love it!!

funny tho when i clean up i can never remember where i left something but in a mess i can put my hands right on it 

As I always say,  Tidy bench = tidy mind,   Messy bench =  Busy !!

gribeauval wrote:

As I always say,  Tidy bench = tidy mind,   Messy bench =  Busy !!

AGREED   

Next job on the agenda is more holes in the hull!!  This time the slots for the propshafts. Marked out , drilled and filed to suit the angles needed to get the props in the correct place.






Talking of shafts, the ones provided were full outer tubes which are not cotrrect for a Severn Class Lifeboat so it was mark off where the cut should be then deep breath and on with the cutting disc.






The bearing from the section removed was carefully knocked out and re-fitted into the shortened outer casing. This plus the A frame shaft support were now ready to fit.






View of the shaft fitted  in place in the hull.






The rudders were also made using standard brass items with styrene overlays to give the correct shape and size.






The shaft, supports and rudders in place ready to add the bilge keels.






Quick view of the brushless beasts that will power this brute!!

Just a question Mike..............how did you seal around the motor shaft that passes through the screw cap.....I am interested in making one of these for the new tug kit that I have been given.......but knowing me the thing would leak like a sieve and sink with all hands.

cheers mate.................am enjoying the build as well. cheers.

you are a workaholic, lol

nhp651 wrote:

Just a question Mike..............how did you seal around the motor shaft that passes through the screw cap.....I am interested in making one of these for the new tug kit that I have been given.......but knowing me the thing would leak like a sieve and sink with all hands.

cheers mate.................am enjoying the build as well. cheers.

you are a workaholic, lol

I like to use the KISS principle  (Keep it simple stupid!) for most things I do.

The motor is mounted by its two front face screws on a layer of waterproof auto grease and then plenty of grease around the shaft/motor bearing. That's why I built it with the screw cap so that it could be easily removed for servicing. The screw cap also comes with a circular rubber seal to prevent leaks when it's screwed in place, I just cut the centre of the rubber out to make it into a BIG flat rubber washer.

Also if you look at the third picture of the assembled thruster you will see a small hole in the side of the cap. This is to allow an allen key to be inserted to fasten/remove the paddle which is built onto a coupling insert. It doesn't leak because it is on the outside of the pipe and seal.


Simples !! 

cheers matey......brilliant

The bilge keels have now been fitted to the underside of the hull. This was done by gluing brass pins into the keels, passing them through the hull, bent over and sealed with grp mat and resin on the inside as well as bedding them on a layer of methacrylate adhesive (Stabilit Express). When all this had cured the joint was faired in with body filler.






Whilst all this was setting one of my smaller drawings of the stern of the Severn was scanned and printed at 1/12th scale.






Using this the positions for the exhausts and trim tab rams were plotted out onto the stern of the hull, little bit of a geometrical nightmare to get it all in the correct relationship.






Once again , pluck up courage and drill the holes out!






The main engine exhaust recesses have been fitted and sealed into the transom.

A good rummage in the bits box has produced enough styrene tubes and bits to make the exhausts. The two main engine exhausts have also been fitted with tubes to allow simulated exhaust cooling water to be pumped out of them as well as hinged covers. The three smaller ones are for the crankcase breathers and the generating set exhaust.






Exhausts in place on the transom.






The base plates for the rams have also been made from styrene sheet along with the hydraulic connections recesses.






All the plates now fixed and sealed in place on the transom pluis a quick coat of primer.






Rams and trim tabs next.

did you not get the brass etched fittings kits with it mike.....mind you this is brilliant for the scratch builder who wants to cut the price drastically............good on yer matey...........have had two of this kit before and sold them on as never had the time to build them....probably most of the time would have been searching though all the brass to find the right parts. lol

nhp651 wrote:

did you not get the brass etched fittings kits with it mike.....mind you this is brilliant for the scratch builder who wants to cut the price drastically............good on yer matey...........have had two of this kit before and sold them on as never had the time to build them....probably most of the time would have been searching though all the brass to find the right parts. lol

Mick never had the brass etch set Neil, remember he bought this as a basic kit a few years ago and it has been in his loft all this time. Besides I like making all the bits as often etched brass is much too thin for the part it represents.


Next few bits have been made.

First off the assembly line are the rams for the trim tabs. These are again sliding fit styrene tubes with added wire to represent the hydraulic lines.






View of the rams temporarily in position on the transom.






Next off the board are the trim tabs (non-working), again made from styrene sheet.






The tabs have been bonded to the transom in a neutral position. The rams and pushrods are removable and will be refitted after the hull is painted.






Next job will be the boring primer, rub down, primer, rub down etc (x4) before the top coats (X3) and the varnish (x2).

Always a pleasure seeing a masters work Mike 

Damien wrote:

Always a pleasure seeing a masters work Mike 

Hi Mike,
I am now following your build on here as I err no longer have access to another site. I am watching every stage with great pleasure,and cant wait to see the finished product in due course!
Cheers my friend
Mick

Managed to get a few hours on the Severn this afternoon whilst waiting for the paint on an Atlantic 21 to dry.

Decided to fit the kick boards onto the deck before continuing with the paint job. These come as "preformed parts" in aluminium T section. Non of these parts actually conforms to the curve and twist of the hull so a lot of re-bending and twisting was required to make them fit as they should!

The positions were marked onto the deck using the RNLI drawings and all the parts were bonded onto the deck with epoxy and 12mm x No2 stainless steel self tapping screws. This means that when the rails are bolted on place will be able to pick the boat up with them if necessary !! Just needs a touch of filler in a couple of places to seal small gaps.



View of the rear deck and side steps.






Starboard side view. The large gap at the front is where the fisherman's anchor will be fitted later, small gaps are for fairleads.






Port side view. The large gap at the bottom of the steps (same starboard side) is the position of the hatch cover where the crew can stand at a lower level to reach casualties easier.

Well I shall also be following this build to the very end and beyond! I love to watch Mike's innovative builds,he makes it look so easy,but I know the time and care he puts into them.
Mick F

Another few small steps forward with the build.

First of all the scuppers (dummies) that drain the "step down boxes" at the bottom of the steps that lead to the rear deck were made from styrene, and diamantes for the bolts.






Their positions were plotted onto the hull and then fixed in place, four on each side.






The motor mounts for the large brushless motors have also been fitted into the hull. They were first bedded onto sections of epoxy putty, with the motors, shafts and couplings in place to ensure everything was aligned properly. These were then removed when the putty had set and the mounts fixed in place with glass mat and resin to give a permanant fixing. Also an mdf plate was fitted behind the mounts for the radio gear/escs etc to keep them out of the bilges if water gets inside the boat.

Today I had a couple of hours to work on the Severn. This consisted of sorting out the position of the DWL (design water line for those that are not familiar with the terminology).

To do this my large reference plane was assembled in my kitchen as it was showery outside. This is an Ikea large glass dining table, with screw in legs, that I aquired from a local charity shop for a few pounds. It gives me a large flat surface which is 60" long x 28" wide and allows me to set up hulls to accuratly draw in waterlines using an engineer's hight gauge, fitted in this case with a pencil.






Once the line was established it was masked off and the lower section given the first of three coats to represent the red/brown antifouling.






More when time allows.

Update just for Mick!!  


The upper hull section and the lower superstructure sides have now had three coats of Oxford Blue over two coats of grey primer. When hardened off for a week the white boot topping was added.








Next will be the antislip coating on the deck.

Wow thanks Mike! Cheered me up as my operation was cancelled for the 3rd time yesterday.Getting painful now
Mick

Cheer you up a bit more in the next few days mate as I can now refit the trim tab rams I made earlier. This will make the tabs themselves less vunerable to damage as they will 'triangulate' the ends of the tabs to the hull for strength.

Magic! Thanks mate

I've just been given a 1;16 scale speedline severn so think i'd better start taking notice of this thread............i'll learn something. may be even how to build the thing

neil.

But its an orange top dont forget lol!

Aye man.........and after looking at all the stuff in the box it looks beyond my capabilities any more and will probably be going on the market..........too much stuff for me to get ma heed roond at this late stage in life.........but havent a clue what its worth.

After a conversation with Mick earlier this week I have plugged in the Apprentice and set him off building.

This time it's the wheelhouse shell, but as neither of us likes the grp tops, it's to be done in 2mm MDF.

First thing was to cut and erect the rear wheelhouse walls as everything is measured from there.




The sides were plotted from the GA drawings and cut out.




The sides of the rear extensions were also added.




Both sides glued up ready for next stage.




Inner sides of the rear boxes made and added. All the joints will be reinforced with square section on the insides of all the joints.




Rear exterior wall, box tops and false roof added.






After the glue has hardened off the edges have been smoother down ready to start aat the other end soon.

I'd totally forgotten about this build matey.........glad you've resurrected it as it was like a good novel....great to read again. cheers.

did you see the pics of the 19mtre Severn the Canadians are building...........that would be a nice one to modify a Severn into.

nhp651 wrote:

I'd totally forgotten about this build matey.........glad you've resurrected it as it was like a good novel....great to read again. cheers.

did you see the pics of the 19mtre Severn the Canadians are building...........that would be a nice one to modify a Severn into.

Going to see if it's possible to get it ready for the 150th anniversary at Falmoth this summer as it is going to be  a model of "The Will" which was a Falmouth Severn.

I saw the Canadian "Severn", would be nice to build in aluminium!!

I went away with my wife for a few days and upon my return the Apprentice has progressed the wheelhouse to this stage.  

All the pictures that were shown in this thread so far were on Photobucket. If you wish to see them now, after their rule change of embedded photos please look at them in this folder where they are all visible.      

https://s242.photobucket.com/user/gribeauval/library/Falmouth%20Severn


All following updates are now on a new free viewing site.

Back to the Falmouth Severn build.

The lockers that are along the sides of a Severn superstructure are to be bonded to the hull and the removable top will have cutouts that fit around them to maintain the coaming that keeps the water out of the hull.

Front plates marked out in 1.5mm styrene.


Back of lockers made and fitted.


All four locker section made, painted and detailed ready to bond to the hull.

very nice indeed mike..............which county is this one heading too.

This one is going to Cornwall, land of the oggie pasties.

does the owners surname have connotations of the land of frogs lol.

The four side lockers made earlier have been positioned, the coamings cut away and sealed in place.


As there is to be no full interior detail a framework has been added to maintain the relationship of the lockers when the superstructure is removed.


New sides to fit around these lockers can now be plotted and cut out.

i'd never ever thought of doing it that way..........just brilliant adaptation.

By having the sides cut out to fit behind the flanges of the lockers it helps lock the superstructure in place instead of it sliding about if the boat heels over in tight turns or when rapidly accelerating from rest.

yeh, totally agree........a brilliant concept...........well done that man...........good thinking.

nhp651 wrote:

does the owners surname have connotations of the land of frogs lol.

I wonder who that could be?

don't know but he's a lucky sod, lol.

battleshipbuff wrote:

nhp651 wrote:

does the owners surname have connotations of the land of frogs lol.

I wonder who that could be?

I must admit I am again enjoying the restart of excellent work on this model
To see it coming together with each new part being made and added gives me great pleasure
Hope you are able to keep adding to this Mike, a privilege to watch you doing so
Thanks
Mick F

Spent a pleasant weekend cutting up 2mm mdf.

The superstructure is all based around the rear wall so once this was plotted and cut out the rear box structures were fabricated and fixed in place. The mesh vent covers were also fitted at this stage.


The side panels have been slotted to fit around the lockers that are fixed to the main hull.


Starboard panel cut out and slotted in place ready to fix in place when the matching Port side panel has been made.


The sides have now been glued to the rear box sections with the use of multiple sash clamps. The cling film prevents sticking to the lower hull and lockers.


At the front more clamps and weights to prevent the front end lifting until the front panel is fitted. The frame that holds the panels at the correct spacing can be seen inside.


next on the agenda will be making and fitting the many panels that form the front of the wheelhouse.

hope you all have a peaceful and happy new year.................and to those of you down under who have beaten us to it yet again.............a belated new year guys..........and happy building in the new one.