H.M.S. Crane flatiron gun boat 1872

 Coming together nicely David.

started making the funnel and engine room structure from 1.5mm card, I  traced all the parts needed then cut out with sharp knife fixing together with super glue you can see the type I use £2.49 from local hardware


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where I cut out  L and R  was wrong so filled in with same pieces I cut out
you will also notice I put it the wrong way round so had to re trace again   



cut outs now filled
I bought some gorilla glue last year, but i have not used it yet as one part has to be moist, so prefer my super glue   






I have used 1.5mm card for all of this build



this is where I made my mistake forgot to cut out the part that fits to cabin. so I reshaped it and turned out ok



the funnel is made from sterredent tube, for (the younger people you get these for your false teeth to clean them  )
the funnel also is cut in half  I will do all the hinge later and show how I do it




there is also a frame to make for it to rest on



this is it so far

david

today I have been fabricating my own motor mounts, I used some old sheet metal of an old boiler front. I cut out the shape from a previous mount I made then drilled the holes.



this is the pattern from another mount I made



this is the drilled and bent to shape motor mount



before motors are fitted



motor now fitted



I have now fixed them to the mounts with 3mm bolts cut down to size from my stock.
These motors will work from 6v to 12v. I bought them of ebay years ago for about  £5.00 for 4,  thinking they were r380 but found on 6v they are very slow but on 12v they really go, so I will try them on 7.2 lipo if that's to slow I will try  11.1v lipo, that's when I have fitted prop shafts.


david

You've made good progress whilst I have been away David.

Barrie

welcome back barrie, I have missed you while you have been away. hope you had a nice time, where did you get to this time.

david

Hi David, We've been cruising in the Gulf of Bothnia - that's not a typo - its an arm of the Baltic Sea. Very good weather and beautiful scenery. I will get back to modelling sometime next week after catching up with the garden etc

Barrie

I have now fitted the prop shafts they are 5inches long x 4mm.












this shows the prop shafts fitted to motors, with  inserts fitted to some tubing.  I don't use the the red couplings I find then noisey .

david

I have spent a few days making the lifeboats . I drew out a small plan then cut out then fixed it together. 



started of with some 1.5mm card




cut out the frame work



then glued with cayno 



I filled in with some odd bits of foam, then coated it with polly filla then when dry rubbed smoth




after making plug I coated it in Vaseline. I mixed some plaster of paris which sets very fast and just pushed the plug in with some weight to hold down



when set I removed the plug, and made my first boat by putting some fine glass fibre matt and coated with resin. when set I pulled it out and gave it a coat of resin to loose the glass matting on out side as I didn't have any of the gel coat.




this is the first boat cast



these are the two boats ready for seating being made



one boat nearly done



this is the resin I use fast glass always use it for bits I need to cast never had any problems.
I have made some oars but cant find photo so I will show later in build


david

I have found the missing oars .




the bottom oar is before sanding and top finished just used some bamboo skewers to make them and two coffee stirrers for the paddle part







this is the steps for the bridge and other places. made from card again 



these are some small steps 



the big length is what I have made the small steps from cut of every three steps.



all steps now cut ready for fixing in place the wheels I made for another boat and they go on the cannon.


david

I have been doing a lot of bits that need making. I have made the bridge from 2.5 mm copper wire then solder.




this is the frame work and ply for the deck



starting to make shape



ready for soft solder



this is the copper wire used its from household mains 2.5 wire striped from sheath



here you can see  clips for heat sink, stopping the heat melting the solder already done. I used my little pencil blow torch for all joints.

also while solder was out I made the hinge for the funnel which is split in the middle I used some copper and brass I had in stock



it sits on a cradle that I made from some wood.



I used 14 BA nuts and bolts to fix it in place




that's it for today I am prepping for painting and making more bits.


david

You're making very good progress David. That's an unusual funnel. I wonder what the reason was for having it fold?

Barrie

Folding funnels aren’t unusual Barrie, they usually folded back to go under bridges.

Common practise back then for funnled vessels, that can go up and down rivers like the Thames etc.

I have been making some more small bits on my lathe first is the bollard for anchor chain

 
 I have used some  doweling for this 1 inch dia



finished  ready for cutting of





this is the heat shield that fits in front of funnel to keep the heat of the bridge . I used a toilet roll tube cut to shape.




next job I made the slide rollers using some copper tube and brass rod then bent over



here I have fitted them to the cannon frame.

I have also started the painting and fitting out all the small parts I have made. I will show the boat painted next time.


david

I have now got to the stage where the painting is all complete



I have painted the deck grey on the out side and a buff colour I mixed to give a wooden deck look. then used pencl  to mark the planks.



I have sprayed the red and the black from the tins I have in stock the white line I have used a pin stripe for cars as I could not get a good finish other wise.

 

the sky lights I have mixed some blue to give the effect of glass. the rigging I used some black cotton from the wifes sewing box  



painting now complete. I have had to take out the motors I first put in as they were rated 24 volt when I tried them 12 volts was very slow. so I bought 2 re385 from component shop near me. I have not put them in yet so I will repot back later on  as to how it sails on the water.


david

Well done David - it looks very smart.

Barrie

The 385’s maybe under powered I’ve had issues with those before using in a heavy boat but small In size, just watch your amp draw if using larger props they do heat up a lot!

If you have issues you may want to try the rated jp 400 sizes, I can vouch for their ability to move a decent size boat, and they run easily at high rpm from 6v-12v, which the 385’s tend to require 15v to get not even close to the same rpm or ability.

https://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/acatalog/JP-Motors.html

I dont like to put the 385’s down but I’ve tried running a few boats using those and they have always let me down simply due to not being able to fit battery’s capable of giving them the right rpm to move the model.

I have fitted the re 385 and what a difference on 7.4 lipo plenty of speed and some these are 3v to 15 v ones so that done I have put some chain on for the anchors and that completes my build.



here are the motors in and working



this is showing the chain in place for anchors









well that's it for this build, I don't think I will be building anything soon .  I have some work to do on my bluebird k7 I have bought a edf jet  or fan with brushless motor and esc. I hope to install it and see if it will plane, if I have success I will post on here. they use them on model aircraft so it should work  . hope you enjoyed this odd build, I see I have had over 1,000 views so some one liked it .

you can see my bluebird build under  speedboats then k7

david

Well done David. Its good to see something different and some unusual building techniques.

Barrie

here are some photos I have found of h.m.s crane on the water last year, after finishing  the build. it just needs some extra ballast up front then it will be ok. it sails fantastic and happy with the finish, it is also nice and light for launching which is what I wanted.

























 this lake has now closed and being redeveloped,  we have now moved to the bigger lake.


david

I've been going through the posts today, and was following this build from the start...……...loved the innovation of building the lifeboats, and the folding funnel..….

the finished model looks superb, and is a very unusual prototype...…..only ever seen one other model of one. great build David.

just as a side comment about folding funnels...…….in my 9 years as a narrow boat owner and sailor, I saw quite a few folded funnels...…...sad part about it was...……...they weren't supposed to be lol...too many low bridges on the Trent and Mersey and GU, lol.