Boats from the Dry Docks arrive- VIIC, Nautilus and XXIII

Collapse
X
 
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • SteveNeill
    Commander
    • Apr 2020
    • 315

    #31
    Darrin thank you. I have an old BigDave RCABS cylinder for it I use in my Skipjack that works great I'll be using for the 23. I'm excited to build the 23 I always loved that boat. But The Nautilus is next because it's a easy quick build and Mary loves the Nautilus.

    Comment

    • SteveNeill
      Commander
      • Apr 2020
      • 315

      #32
      Got stuck working in the U-boat all day yesterday. What should have taken only and hour(he says knowingly) took hours. Getting the pesky dogbone drive shafts installed drove me mad. I had it all working before but the couplers slipped. You see here in the states David Merriman used for his prop shafts 3/16 stainless steel for his cylinder. But the Chinese saw fit to use metric shafts for the props for the actual model. So in order to get the 3/16 couplers to fit the metric prop shafts (which are under sized) you have to make a brass insert sleeve. You see, they don't make metric couplers that I know of. Dumas only 3/16 or 1/8th. I know...drill out a 1/8th to the correct size...that didn't work out so well. Don't ask. I guess I need a better drill press vice.
      So the first sleeves I had slipped, were too hard to adjust so I made good ones with the holes drilled into the brass so the grub screws could pass through sleeve and tighten down on the flat spot on the prop shafts. Once this is all done it's a simple matter(wink wink nudge nudge say no more) loosening the grub screws, spreading the couplers either end apart and slipping the dog bones in. It is when you can get your hands in there. It's a tight space back there in the stern.
      Add to all this that once I had the WTC(water tight cylinder) in place I turned the radio to find the dive planes servo(that was working before) was not working. In addition to that I had no throttle.
      So take out the WTC from the model, take the WTC apart and I find that the receiver I was using must have got water on it at one time enough to corrode the pins that accept the servo plugs. OK we cleaned all that off and it's all working. I even checked to see first if that servo was indeed functional by swapping channels to the rudder channel I knew was working. This would bite me later on.
      So Everything is working. I put it all back together. Dog bones now fixed install pretty quick. I turn on everything and it all works. Huzzah! Wait a minute. Rudder is dive planes and dive planes are rudder! You dummy you forgot to which back the servos after you checked. After much cursing and expletives shouted I took the cylinder out again and made sure everything is in the right place. It is...put the damn thing back in again.
      By now I'm becoming and expert on my new boat taking things on and out and hooking up those drive shafts. This time I got it all installed and working in a matter of minutes and everything works great! Look up at the clock and it's 5 pm! Shot the whole day. But shes ready to trim today. Video to follow next week of it's rimming. Following weekend she goes for a run in a larger pool I have access to.
      On a good note you see here the Nautilus on the bench and we are starting her next. This is an easier build. I have built many of these for customers this size and they all worked great.
      And one last observation about this particular hobby. Radio controlled submarines is like no other radio controlled model. Planes are simple by comparison, cars very simple, boats very simple. If your one of these modelers and get offended by this comment think about this first.
      Radio controlled submarine is a boat model you deliberately sink and raise to the surface again. It has to be water proof and function well both under the water and on the surface. It takes a lot more technology, know how, skill, and craft than any other Hobby I have experienced. As long as I have been building subs I have fought with leaks, equipment failures, and mysteries that you have to solve. This hobby makes you a better modeler but an even better problem solver and an innovative maker. In short radio controlled submarines aren't for sissy's!submarines aren't for sissy's!


      Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG-5345.jpg
Views:	272
Size:	88.6 KB
ID:	138990

      Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG-5342.jpg
Views:	298
Size:	83.7 KB
ID:	138989

      Comment

      • RCSubGuy
        Welcome to my underwater realm!
        • Aug 2009
        • 1768

        #33
        The 3/16" adapters aren't for the drive shaft, Steve. They're for the output shafts of the cylinder. Those connect to the end of the secondary shaft via a dogbone (which you sleeve onto the 4mm shaft). 4mm universals get your angle right.

        Click image for larger version

Name:	DriveShaftSetup.jpg
Views:	301
Size:	53.3 KB
ID:	138992

        Comment

        • SteveNeill
          Commander
          • Apr 2020
          • 315

          #34
          No worries Bob I got it all working. Thanks for the help.

          Comment

          • SteveNeill
            Commander
            • Apr 2020
            • 315

            #35
            I got an excellent trim. Most guessed it and only ended up needing a small piece of foam in the stern and a couple more lead weights in the bow and it was perfect. All systems go. WTC works great.

            Next weekend she goes to a pool locally for a real run.


            Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG-5348.jpg
Views:	238
Size:	86.7 KB
ID:	139053

            Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG-5352.jpg
Views:	240
Size:	73.9 KB
ID:	139054
            Attached Files

            Comment

            • RCSubGuy
              Welcome to my underwater realm!
              • Aug 2009
              • 1768

              #36
              Gorgeous work on the paint, Steve! Wow! I love it!

              Comment

              • SteveNeill
                Commander
                • Apr 2020
                • 315

                #37
                Bob I over did it but thanks! Great boat and great trimming. Here's the video at my condo.

                Comment

                • rwtdiver
                  Vice Admiral
                  • Feb 2019
                  • 1768

                  #38
                  Steve! That was a great video! That boat really looks great, and it looks like it is going to be a performer when you get it to the pool.

                  Did you use an airbrush to get the final finish? (Which is awesome by-the-way) I am really looking forward to my first static diving boat! Looking forward to your maiden in the big pool, that is going to be one cool looking Submarine underway! Super great build Steve!!

                  Rob

                  "Firemen can stand the heat"

                  Comment

                  • SteveNeill
                    Commander
                    • Apr 2020
                    • 315

                    #39
                    The tests went pretty well. The boat handles nicely but I did get water into the WTC that prevented me testing any further. I did get a dive but not on video. Never the less I did get water in the WTC s I pulled the plug before I damaged the electronics.

                    I knew the cylinder itself had no leaks. I tested for that thoroughly. So it was a bit of a head scratcher until I saw traces of water in the snort airline. I was inducting water through the snort and into the pump thus dropping some, not a lot but enough that one servo plug got wet enough that is stopped responding on the dive planes. This is what made it hard to dive.

                    So I took the tower off the boat suspecting the snort valve wasn't closing tight enough. I put the hoes into my mouth and placed the tower under the surface. I pulled as if the pump would do when bringing the boat up to decks awash. I was getting water into my mouth with the valve closed and when I reached the surface a bunch more. After I had dived and surfaced a few times in the pool this is what accumulated at the bottom of both compartments. Not a lot for the time I ran it but enough to cause problems.

                    The big question is how do I make that snort valve that's in the tower more secure? Maybe I need the valve lower down inside the tower? Its right at the top. I bent the lever down a bit so under water it gives it more swing and closes tight but still it draws water in when the tower is fully submerged.

                    Comment

                    • SteveNeill
                      Commander
                      • Apr 2020
                      • 315

                      #40

                      Comment

                      • redboat219
                        Admiral
                        • Dec 2008
                        • 2735

                        #41
                        Maybe the snort valve isn't seating well. Try replacing the silicone valve cover or smooth out the resin valve seat.
                        Make it simple, make strong, make it work!

                        Comment

                        • RCSubGuy
                          Welcome to my underwater realm!
                          • Aug 2009
                          • 1768

                          #42
                          Posting this from my seat in the airplane ready to get home from Victoria BC, so I've only got a moment.

                          Steve, you need to make sure that the valve stopper engages directly with the brass intake mouth and cannot swivel, tilt, or otherwise come misaligned. Any deviation will cause an imperfect seal and allow water into the cylinder.

                          To be honest, I do not like using the full static SAS system, as reliable as it has been for me. I recommend and prefer to remove the snorkel and safetly float valve, and plumb the hose directly to the pump. That way, there is no way for a leak from the valves.

                          You lose the ability to do a full static dive, but that's, honestly, an overrated function anyway. I blast all my boats slightly positive and achieve superb results.

                          Comment

                          • SteveNeill
                            Commander
                            • Apr 2020
                            • 315

                            #43
                            Bob thank you so much. Can you point me to something visual that shows me what you did? Thanks again!

                            Comment

                            • RCSubGuy
                              Welcome to my underwater realm!
                              • Aug 2009
                              • 1768

                              #44
                              When I get my feet under me this week, I will do a video of SNORT conversion.

                              But basically, just remove the snorkel and safetly float valve and connect the hoses.

                              Air path:

                              Intake in sail/mast
                              Cylinder bulkhead
                              Pump intake
                              Pump outlet
                              Cylinder bulkhead
                              Ballast tank

                              Comment

                              • SteveNeill
                                Commander
                                • Apr 2020
                                • 315

                                #45
                                Thanks Bob and thank you David. I tried to do what you suggested David and it help a bit. But if the pump pulls a slow but steady stream of water in. If I force it just a bit by hand it stops. I am considering just lubing up the nipple with a bit of Vasiline and place a drop of silicone on the blue silicone stopper that will set up and form a seal around the nipple. Since the brass arm is so solid without play right to left it should seal every time. We'll see.

                                Bob I will look forward to seeing the video. I'm a sort of visual guy, when I see it it sinks right in.

                                Comment

                                Working...