OTW S Class

[Peewee]

Hi All,
I have been gently nudged into posting here and hopefully i won’t lower the level of workmanship too much.

I'm building the OTW S Class British submarine, this is my first sub build in just over 15 years so a little rusty. I have from the outset looked at colour schemes for the boat other than plain grey. to this end it has been pointed out to me that HMS Sibyl was painted green during her far east patrol. it may look a little odd when finished, but if done sympathetically i hope it will be a little different.

[Peewee]

Firstly, what does Bob supply with the kit, a hull defiantly and some excellent brass etched decks. There are also plenty of quality resin items such as the dive planes and torpedo doors. Not to mention a great set of props and an A frame.

[Peewee]

OOPS i forgot the pictures. still getting used to the forum.

[Peewee]

The first task was to cut the vent holes out in the hull, this was greatly aided bu the template that OTW supply.


A couple of shots of the slots aided by the template



The next task is to locate the dual props and A frame, this is essential for accurately locating the rear dive planes. in this picture you will note that the shafts still need blending into the hull


With the tubes tacked in place the task was then to screw on the rear skeg. The skeg will eventually be held in place with 2 screws and glued for security.


the rudder is supplied as a resin casting and a separate shaft. this is where the quality of the resin comes into its own. i was able to drill through the rudder for the shaft to be compress fitted

[Peewee]

Once the rudder and drop skeg were temporarily located into position along with the props,


i was able to measure the height of the dive planes. the dimples on the skeg turned out to be around 5mm too low, luckily i did not drill the dimples out.

the first part of the process is to make a connecter for the control rod. the brass bit in the picture.


the skeg was then removed and drilled, brass bushes installed and trial assembled.


so little room for maneuver

[Peewee]

Now to where i am up to in this build.
I moved onto the conning tower and did some cleaning up and drilling/filing yet more holes.


those with an eye for detail you will notice that the front of the tower is incorrect for Sibyl, this is as i have only in the last couple of days decided to make my S into HMS Sibyl. i also have to cut additional foot holes into the side of the tower and install a second anchor onto the starboard side.

please let me know if you wish me to change the method of the build log, as i am new to the forum i am not sure what your preferred method is. ie more pictures or a more detailed write-up.

Regards for now

[greenman407]

Great job Peewee! Your build here makes me want to go get one of my own. Keep it up, you make my build look pitiful.

[oztruck]

Great job Peewee, you are doing a good job both on the build and write-up. Keep up the good work.

[solosub]

Hello PeeweeGreat construction for a beautyfull submarine.

[Mankster]

Comming along nicely, looking forward to seeing her in action at one of the Dive Ins.

[Peewee]

Thank you for your kind words

[Peewee]

Hi All,
I managed to grab a few hours today after work and made a start on the main deck.
first i laid the deck over the molding to mark out the hatch openings, then a rough cut was taken


Then glued on the decking, ensuring both surfaces were well keyed.


Utilising the brass deck the openings were filed to the correct size


next job is to blend in the deck to the molding, I would not normally show the next 2 pictures as they show a messy work in progress but then again why not.



this is her current state, i will leave the filler for a minimum of 24 hours before sanding. then most likelyi will need to fill in a few shallow areas. Once blended i will then drill out all of the smaller holes, again the brass deck is an ideal template.

this may not be everyone’s method of securing the deck and creating the holes, however i thought it would be both accurate and retain the strength of the deck.
till next time

[tsenecal]

Ian,

what adhesive did you use to adhere the brass to the fiberglass?

[Peewee]

Hi All,

tesenecal, the deck was glued using a thick, almost gel like super glue with a 20 second working time.

today I sanded the filler around the deck, it has come up fairly well as you can see



on close inspection as suspected there are a few low spots



the deck has had a much lighter amount of filler applied, again i will wait a full 24 hours before sanding. then if looking good the holes will be drilled and a primer applied. the primer at this stage will be to highlight any areas still requiring work.



i am enjoying the work on the deck as it starts to make the personality of the boat, it also means i am avoiding the work on the conning tower mods. Though this cannot be delayed forever, especially as i have announced the boats name.

[Peewee]

Hi All,
Finally the deck has gone as far as possible until other parts have been worked on.
Today a light coat of primer was blown on to the deck; this enabled to see with more detail where the final flaws were. The holes were drilled out at this time also.


Once final filling and cleaning were complete an additional but slightly heavier coat was applied.



Whilst not totally perfect i am pleased with how it has turned out. The final cleaning will take place prior to final painting.

Thank you for reading.